Beginning of a Very Long Day

[Isabeau Delevan 0]

Nick was sitting in his office. He had only slept a couple of hours last night. Now he sat at his desk, writing another report of yet another drill and he wished he could just lie down on his sofa and take a nap. But the reports piled up on his desk wouldn't file themselves. At least the department's response time was satisfactory. There was still room for improvement but they were making progress. On top of that DJ had voiced her concern that Starfleet would soon realize that Aegis was not really in need of a doctor for the diplomatic staff. Unfortunately she was right. He feared it would only be a matter of time until she'd be transferred.

 

And then there was this memo he had received from Commander Chirakis. He was to make sure everyone in his department was up to the job out here. Everyone he thought was better off somewhere else would be reassigned to a post closer to Federation territory. There were several people in medical that would probably have to leave the station. It was a difficult decision but he couldn't put it off much longer. Nick leaned back in his chair, closed his eyes and sighed. He'd have to remember to take some time for himself every now and then. A good workout, dinner with DJ, reading a good book...anything that would take his mind off the job would do.

 

Isabeau woke early and worked out. Her usual routine. She was surprised that Porter wasn't in the gym; they seemed to be on the same schedule as far as the gym went. Too bad, she enjoyed his acerbic observations and they made the time go faster. Running on a treadmill too often made her feel like she was getting nowhere fast.

 

She showered and changed in the locker room and grabbed breakfast in the mess. She expected today's shift to be quiet since they'd completed the Colonists' physicals yesterday. It had been nice to meet the twelve souls who were off on what she considered an excellent adventure. Dr. McDowell had been very pleasant, even considering how she'd happened along just in time for a drill. Isabeau finished her juice, her expression darkening as she recalled how Dr. McDowell's physical had also been interrupted by Nick.

 

That had been completely unexpected, she thought, and not for the first time, as she carried her tray to the recycler. The rest of the afternoon had passed quickly, all of the staff very busy and they'd not spoken again. She wasn't looking forward to today's shift as she left the mess. Normally, she anticipated the coming day, looked forward to what it would bring, good or bad. Today felt like it was just going to be something to get through, she thought as she walked through Medical's double doors and went directly to her workstation to see if anything had happened over Gamma shift that was going to cause any ripple effects.

 

Through the open doors of his office Nick saw Isabeau enter sickbay. There was something else he had to take care of. He had to apologize to her after telling her off for doing a physical during a drill yesterday. He had definitely not handled the situation well. No matter what had made him treat her like that it was unacceptable and if he had caught anyone in his department talking to someone else like that they'd have been in some real trouble with him.

He got up and walked to the door. "Isabeau, would you please come over for a minute. I'd like to talk to you."

 

She kept her eyes on the screen for a moment, before standing. She'd been expecting it and figured it was better to get it out of the way sooner, rather than later. Walking over, she stopped just outside his door, giving him a level gaze, accompanied with a polite, "Good morning, Dr. Lepage."

 

Nick resisted the urge to roll his eyes. He had been a jerk and Isabeau was still mad at him, he deserved it. "Alright, Isabeau, I'm sorry. I was way out of line and I am genuinely sorry. I'm not even trying to find an excuse for how I handled the situation because no matter how stressed, tired or whatever I was I shouldn't have done it." He watched Isabeau closely, trying to read her expression. He was serious and he hoped his tone had conveyed it.

 

She responded in the same polite tone with which she'd greeted him. "I agree with you."

 

"Good, I hope you won't require I throw myself out of an airlock to make up for it." Nick hoped his attempt at humor would actually work but he wasn't too sure of it.

 

"Your death, would in no way mitigate your actions of yesterday and would put a burden on the rest of the staff, so in fact, it would actually be a selfish and grandiose act on your part and would reflect badly on myself to derive pleasure from it." She let a moment's pause go by before smiling, as she added, "Not that I would." She motioned past him to his office. "A moment of your time if you wouldn't mind?"

 

Nick nodded and let her enter. "Sure, now that I feel fairly confident you won't kill me I guess it's safe." He almost regretted saying this the moment he had but now the words were out and he couldn't take them back.

 

"It's entirely possible that you are overconfident, Nicolas but no matter how impetuous you think me, if I wanted to dispatch you it wouldn't be in your office in full view of rest of the medical staff." She took a seat in front of his desk and smiled faintly as her eyes fell on the little statue of the reptile from Najera, recalling that Nick had been miserable on that trip. She waited while he sat himself behind his desk, her expression more cheerful than before.

 

"Yeah, I'm sure you'd lure me into some remote jungle and just tell everyone it was an accident. I'm really sorry, Isabeau. It won't happen again. As a matter of fact, it shouldn't have happened in the first place. Had I caught anyone else talking to someone on my staff like that I'd probably have put it in their file. Feel free to file a complaint with Commander Chirakis." He was actually serious about her filing a complaint. He definitely deserved that as well. However, he smiled at her as he took his seat behind the desk, knowing she'd probably have other ways to make she he wouldn't forget what an idiot he had been.

 

"Please, Nicolas, a little credit. It would be an unfortunate lab accident," she teased gently before leaning forward, her expression very serious. "You know very well I won't be having a conversation with Commander Chirakis about this or anything else anytime soon." He knew exactly how she felt about Starfleet Intelligence even though she had nothing personal against the XO. "Our paths are not likely to cross with any real frequency, and I didn't come in here to complain about how you spoke to me. My concern is with the why."

 

Nick had completely forgotten that Chirakis was SI. He decided not to comment on that for now. "Well, as far as the why is concerned...I don't know. Maybe I'm losing it." He shrugged slightly, not entirely sure what exactly she meant.

 

She watched him for a moment and wondered if she should be worried about him. "Maybe you are but I doubt it," she replied a little dryly. "You were very angry and you're not usually quick to it. You were furious because I proceeded with Dr. McDowell's physical and I have to tell you, that right now, if the circumstances were the same, I would do so again. If she'd been a regular crewman, she would have excused herself and gone to her emergency station. But she was a civilian, who told me when I suggested she forego the exam to be with her people, that the eleven of them were already on their way to Medical. At that point, knowing baseline scans and the ten exams take only eight minutes, I went ahead and proceeded with the physical." She looked at him, not caring about how he'd spoken to her the day before so much as worried that he questioned her judgment in an emergency.

 

"Nicolas, I spent eighteen months on the Spector, an Akira class, which spent that entire period seeking out new places to wage battle and new ways to injure our Marines. We were at red alert so often that it was worrisome when we weren't in the middle of either getting or giving an ass kicking. I'm telling you this because I want you to understand that I know how to deal with a red alert situation. I've just gotten in the habit of multi-tasking during them. If you're not comfortable with my reaction then I have to know that." She smiled and verbally poked him just a little. "Preferably not in the middle of Main Medical with your face the color of those beets you like so well."

 

"Isabeau, I wasn't questioning your ability to do your job. I guess I was just frustrated with the way the first couple of drills went and well...look at this pile of paperwork." He indicated the PADDs on his desk. "After every drill I have to send a report to the XO within one hour. I have to do a quick debriefing to make sure everyone knows what we still need to improve. And yesterday I got the order to send everyone packing who doesn't seem to be up to the job. I have some candidates in this department and I'm not looking forward to telling them. Do you realize that I was the one who suggested Rachel Garrett get a new assignment? Right now there are more things I hate about my job than things I like. This whole thing yesterday had nothing to do with you or your performance. I trust your judgment and I know you're more than capable to do your job."

 

"Ah...punching bag not incompetent." Somewhat relieved, she leaned back and looked from the stack of padds to the frustration written across his face. "The drills are for a reason. We're in the middle of this asteroid field for a reason and yet...we have twelve people heading out..." Isabeau checked her watch and continued, correcting her previous statement, "...who've already headed out to a planet for God knows what reason."

 

She tilted her head, still watching Nick, her expression thoughtful. "Clearly the powers that be think we're going to have some trouble. If they are actually removing any staff that might not be up to this potential threat, then I think we may have more to worry about than crushed hopes and lowered expectations."

 

Nick sighed as he leaned back in his chair. "That's exactly what worries me. It's not the drills I'm complaining about it's the whole situation. All those little things just add up to a point where it gets difficult to even know where to start." He fell silent and looked up at the ceiling. After a few moments he looked back at Isabeau. "I'm not sure how much longer DJ will be here either."

 

Isabeau was startled. The dip wing was empty for right now, it was true, but DJ McKinny was such a part of Aegis Medical that just thinking of her not being here was a tremendous disappointment. Poor Nick. He loved her so much. He'd be losing a lot more than an incredible physician. "I'm so sorry, Nicolas. I hate to hear that. We're out here in the middle of nowhere, maybe it won't happen very quickly or at all." Struck by a thought, she had to ask, "Does DJ want to transfer? Is she feeling at a loose end? Her skills are such that she would be welcomed anywhere and has probably turned many posts down."

 

"Well, she didn't want to come back to Aegis in the first place. She had a great job on Earth. So she got this assignment and now the only diplomat we still have is Joy and she'll hardly ever need a doctor. Well, there's Drankum but he can just as well come here. We'll close down the diplomats' sickbay for now. We could probably use it as an additional ICU seeing as it is better equipped than this sickbay. For now DJ will work Lilly's shift but that's just a temporary solution. I wouldn't blame DJ for wanting to leave, actually. There are nicer places than Aegis."

 

But none of those places have you, she wanted to say to him but didn't. He knew DJ loved him. They would find a way to be together at some point. Or they wouldn't. It was none of her business but she felt for both of them and deciding not to say anything more about it, tried to lighten his mood. "Places nicer than Aegis? I can't imagine them," she joked. "It's all about location, location, location, and look where we are—in an asteroid field and about to become a ship building facility. Hmm....we're living in the middle of an industrial area now, Nicolas. Does that qualify us as a slum?"

 

At this point Nick couldn't help but laugh. "You know, I could just add DJ and me to the list of crewmen I think are not up to the job out here. Oh, just imagine that. We'd get a post somewhere close to Earth, somewhere where things don't blow up and the Breen, Borg or whoever do not lurk in every nebula to attack you. I'd send you a postcard every week."

 

"More and more Nicolas, you talk like an old man which I find distressing since you're eight months younger than I am." She leaned back and smiled at him. "I don't need postcards of the rings of Saturn or Jupiter's moons. How about if I keep you updated on the Aegis titanium works? I'll send you and DJ a gilded celebratory rivet or whatever we have to commemorate. Maybe there'll be a t-shirt. You know Ambassador Drankum won't forget about the souvenir concession."

 

"Hey, a man may dream, no? I have no intention of leaving this place. A little more sleep and less paperwork would be nice though." At this point Nick stifled a yawn. He was definitely getting too little sleep. "I don't know how to get through the day. I feel like I haven't slept for days."

 

Once again eyeing the formidable stack of paddwork waiting for him, she got to her feet. "I would suggest a little black coffee for the workday and an early night tonight." She walked to the door and turned to look back at him, seeing how exhausted he was and wishing she could make him feel a little better. "Nicolas, my mother used to have a saying: La journée s'achèvera assez tôt et demain tient sa propre promesse," she quoted, smiling at the memory. Today will end soon enough and tomorrow holds its own promise. "It's true, you know."

Edited April 16, 2009 by Isabeau Delevan