Free Counseling

[Hanna-Beth Rieve 0]

Hanna-Beth Rieve collected the tray with Vulcan dish for herself, and some

more-or-less random liquid for Tethra Shoeny. She could barely pronounce what

she had ordered, but, she figured, 'how bad could it be?' She found a seat in

the Starbase's central food court, and and handed the drink to Tethra as she sat

down.

 

Tethra gently took the drink from Hanna, with a gentle smile upon his face he

sat down opposite to her and the drink was softly placed on the table.

 

Hanna looked at her generous portion food for a moment, then back at Tethra's

bland drink. She couldn't help but mention, "this seems a little awkward."

 

"Why is that" he looked at her strangly as he placed his finger in his drink to

absorb the nutrients.

 

Hanna blinked. "I guess you must be used to it. You know, one person sitting

with a whole plate in front and you only have a 'tasteless' drink." She began

to eat her meal, slowly.

 

"It is not the meals that bring satisfaction, it is the company" he smiled at

her absorbing his drink.

 

"Why, thank you, doctor. I guess the whole getting used to cultural differences

thing never really sunk in. I'm supposed to be here exploring new, unseen

worlds, and, here I am not understanding my own fellow officers." She smiled as

she said that.

 

"Well you talked to me didn't you?" Tethra said as he swirled his finger. "That

in it's own is a great step in the beginning of the understanding of others and

of course oddly enough yourself."

 

"As I recall, you snuck up on me from behind." She took another bite. She

paused for a moment to drink her water, swallow, and to bring in a new thought.

"Take a look at this, for example -- native Vulcan food is full of variety, and

yet, on a starship, they'll all order up nutritional supplements." She

continued on the previous topic, "I'm not asocial. It's just a big ship."

 

Tethra looked at her smiling. "Interesting thought it is indeed." removing his

finger from the glass. "Though in time you shall meet many of your crewmates and

begin to grow a close bond with it's plating. It is merely the cycle we take."

 

"I'm sure I will. Enough of my whining... what's your story?"

 

"I am unsure of what you mean" Tethra pondered as he placed his finger back in

his glass "What is it that you mean when you say 'my story' ".

 

"Well... I mean..." she stopped eating for a few moments to think over -- what

did she mean? And how could she say it without feeling like the antithesis of

what a Starfleet or Marine officer was supposed to be. "I mean ... you're not

like anyone else on the ship. Of course, we all have some common experiences,

we've all been through Academy," (q) "and diversity training," (n) "but, still

you're far away from home, everyone else's ... I guess the best word is...

culture ... is so much different from yours."

 

"Oh you want to know of my home?" Tethra softly asorbed some of his drink. "It

is a place I gravely miss each day, for we have a great connection to water it

is what gives us strength wisdom." he slowly pulled his finger from the glass

once more and patted his left gill. "Is there anything about me that you would

like to know in particular? Nothing taboo"

 

She took the chance that she could really be open with him. "Well, for one

thing, about the first thing I noticed when I saw you off duty is ... is that

... you're naked."

 

"Naked?" he looked at her unsure of what she meant. "Oh, right the absense of

clothing that is right. My species finds clothing to be restricting, I am

aquatic it is very difficult to swim with garments on. Also it irritates my

delicate skin so it is better to be without it whenever I can."

 

"I guess that makes sense. To you, all of our embarrassment must seem equally

unusual"

 

"It is true" He smiled "I find it quite strange to see people with garments on

anyways, rather than be as the seas had intended."

 

"You always speak of the seas as if they're alive on their own," she noticed,

curiously.

 

"The seas of Minerva are alive." Tethra placed his finger in his glass again and

slowly swirled his finger around the mixture "It is the sea which is the

dominant species not the Minervans themselves, I suppose this is how we differ

from most other species. We accept that were are at the wills of our enviroments

not the other way around."

 

Hanna-Beth was making good progress on her dish. "Interesting. And, you don't

see the advance of technology, settling space, terraforming new worlds, as being

out of harmony with nature?"

 

He smiled at her and finished the asorbance of his beverage. "Other worlds may

not be alive but it not so for the Minervan sea, we hear her talking."

 

"Even out here?" she inquired.

 

"A mother cares for her children, no matter where they venture" he smiled "I am

sorry, but I have spoken too much of my home already, she is telling me to

stop."

 

Hanna-Beth giggled at Tethra's joke. But, in the back of her mind, she thought:

if Tethra could hear his home, even though it was light years away, she could

surely make a home out here on Agincourt.

 

Tethra looked at her unsure why she was giggling, but placed his hand over the

beverage and dispelled the thing he has spent absorbing for the past little

while.

 

--

Lt.(jg) Tethra Shoeny

Medical Officer

USS Agincourt, NCC-81762