Counselor to Counselor

Posted on Tue Jun 26th, 2018 @ 11:52am by Splendora Sage & Lieutenant Commander Ariana Monroe-Wayne
Edited on on Tue Jun 26th, 2018 @ 11:59am

2,234 words; about a 11 minute read

Mission: Episode 95 - Helping Old Friends
Location: Counsellor's Office
Timeline: MD 05 1520 hours

ON:

The day was passing, time ticked by slowly. Second by second, minute by minute, hour by hour. It has always been said that fate's path is chosen for us, it twists and turns and leads us to where we need to be at a given time, to whom we need to meet at a given time and so too this path twisted and wound to bring two together with similarities that were hard to ignore....

Ariana sat looking at the chronometer on the wall she wasn't sure whether Braxton would turn up for the appointment that she had invited him for but she was hoping that he would.

Braxton stood in front of the counselor's office. He scratched the back of his neck. He didn't know what he was doing here. He'd tried everything to get out of it. He'd even talked to Splendora as he'd seen her but she pointed out that she was a Civilian shrink and he needed a fleet counselor. He scratched the scruff of his skin. He hadn't shaved in two days, of course that was partly because tomorrow would have been Nicole's birthday. He was about to leave when the cursed sensors picked up his frame and the door hissed open.

As the door slid open Ariana smiled warmly, "Warrant Officer Braxton it's nice to see you again" she motioned for him to take a seat, "please sit down."

Braxton stepped in as if the floor was made of lava. He grunted, reverting to his usual speech patterns, and then unceremoniously plopped down on the sofa.

“What happened to that nice smile I saw sickbay earlier?” Ariana smiled warmly, “you did your best to hide it but I saw it a couple of times.”

And it was that very fact, the fact that he smiled that had been the bee in his bonnet. He felt that if he smiled he betrayed the very memory of Nicole.

“I understand you lost your wife under terrible circumstances & that she was also three months pregnant...” Ariana looked at Braxton, “I am so sorry for your loss, I can only imagine how it must have felt being asked to examine me earlier.”

As she spoke his mind went back to the day, it was a fact that only a few survived. He could see it all unfolding. He closed his eyes and shook his head to dislodge the memory, as if it wasn't burned in his mind. He tried to shrug it off, "I'm a doctor....well almost a full doctor a few tests away. I've been a Marine medic for years. No matter how similar situations are I don't let my personal past influence my work." And there were similarities. It was eerie, Nicole was half Betazoid, she was three months pregnant with twins and he....he was unconscious. He had been trying to evacuate the bridge crew when he'd been hit by the beam and knocked out Nicole had been in engineering. He shook his head trying to will away the pain and memory. A fine misting of sweat broke on his brow. His mouth felt cotton dry and as a reflex he tugged at his collar. It had been ages since he felt like this. If he wasn't careful he'd have a panic attack. He tried to breath. "Medics don't feel they just do." He tried again forcing the memory away.

"I think you'll find the best Medics do feel... empathy is a very strong tool to use when dealing with patients, getting over involved isn't recommended but empathy goes a long way in our line of work" she offered a warm smile, "When you were examining me earlier I saw a glimpse of the man underneath that hard shell you project, but I also felt the pain that you're trying to hide."

He sighed, he had been sure his screens were up. But she was wrong. The man he once was...he lost. He stayed silent not willing to respond. Silence was easier.

"Tell me about your wife" she relaxed back in her seat before realising she'd forgotten her cushion yet again, getting up she grabbed the cushion and put it behind her back as she sat back down. "What was she like?"

Why did she keep probing. Why did she keep pushing. He didn't want to remember but his curse was he couldn't forget. From when he woke to when he slept. It would have been her birthday tomorrow and her death date anniversary was coming up. He shook his head and then grunted. "What's to say."

"I know you find it hard to talk about but in the long run it'll help" she didn't want to push him too hard, "If you're not comfortable with it that's fine but I'd like to help you if you'll let me? Tell me what your wife was like, there must be plenty of good memories of her & not just the bad memories."

Braxton pinched the bridge of his nose. "What is there to say. She was pushy, strong willed, blunt, and perfect." He said as a wisp of a smile crossed his face. "She was half Vulcan and Half Betazoid, a top notch engineer. I met her when ....when I moved to Vulcan in 2378. I was there two days when she walked up to me and said..." He grinned full on now, the harshness of his features softening. It all poured out. "She said that she'd tame me and marry me in five weeks...it took three." His features were softened but his eyes grew somewhat misty and his voice husky. "She had an ethereal quality to her, an angel accidently dropped in this life." He spoke with her with such reverence. As his eyes misted he stood. "I should go."

Ariana smiled, "It's okay, thank you for telling me about your wife, she sounds like she was very special to you, I would like to talk again another time."

"Sure." He would have said anything to get out of there. "I have to go. Got duty at the Marine office" He all but ran out mowing down Splendora in the process.

Splendora managed to move out of the way just in time before a marine ran her down. She recognized Brax as he retreated and smiled shaking her head. She pocked her head in just a little. "Counselor?"

"That's me" Ariana poked her head up from the PADD on which she'd been making notes, "Come on in."

Splendora entered smiled, "I hear you'll be taking some of my patients." She grinned and held her hand out, "Doctor Splendora Sage, Psychology Psychiatry specialist and owner of the Psychiatry /Psychology and Natural Medicine Centre called Mind, Body, Soul Healing. I was helping out until they got a counselor." She smiled wider, "And I sense you're Betazoid too." ~Welcome~ she said telepathically.

~Thank you~ Ariana responded telepathically it was nice to be able to use her telepathy to talk to someone. "Welcome Splendora please make yourself at home" she motioned to any of the seats, "Have you by chance encountered Warrant Officer Braxton before?"

"Oh yes. He was a grunter when I met him more wolf then man but he's leveled out some." She smiled. "Having met you I can tell why he ran out of here like a bat out of hell." She held up her hands, "No disrespect intended." She held up a PADD, "Transfer of Starfleet personnel files, it was my deal with Starfleet I would help until they got a new CCO. Perhaps we start with his?" She asked.

Ariana nodded and accepted the transfer of files to herself, she looked up at Splendora in surprise as she accessed Braxton's file the likeness between herself & Braxton's wife was uncanny. "Now I understand... First he loses his wife and unborn twins then he's confronted with me, someone who looks remarkably like her and is also pregnant with twins" she shook her head, "the poor man must think the universe is playing a cruel joke."

Splendora sighed. "This is a test for him. There is so much to him but yes you look like Nicole the only difference is the Blonde hair and her Vulcan ears. It would have been her birthday tomorrow, that's my understanding. There is also an issue I discovered after doing some non regulation digging."

"An issue?" Ariana looked at Splendora curiously, "is this something I should really know? not that I'm going to let that stop me knowing."

Splendora laughed, "curiosity is a Betazoid trait we share." Her expression turned serious, "Shall I start at the beginning?"

"Always the best place" Ariana nodded and made herself comfortable.

"I actually got a chance to speak with Braxton's brother-in-law...well ex brother-in-law. Nicole and Brax...they were true love. Sopek says they wrote notes to one another daily and hid them in their working bags, they were inseparable from the first day. They married about three weeks into meeting and they loved one another with everything they had. Nicole was half Vulcan so she and Braxton bonded on that level, a telepathic link. Since Brax is half betazoid it worked and Vulcans have a way of linking with their chosen mates where their minds are one." She paused shaking her head the next part was the issue.

"So when Nicole died... he was there with her telepathically" Ariana sighed.

"And physically....sort of." She sighed, "Sopek tells me that Brax...was there when the beam collapsed on Nicole. There was no saving her and both Sopek and Nicole knew it. They only had two minutes to get off the ship and Brax was staying he would have died if Sopek hadn't pulled him out ... or rather knocked him out. When he woke on the shuttle when he felt the telepathic link stop, yes he was there telepathically too and Sopek said he'd never heard a man roar and scream like that. It shook the shuttle and he clawed at the shuttle door to get out. Sopek had to use stun setting three on a phaser to knock him out. He also used a mind block to cut the memories off so Brax only remembers being on the bridge and then waking on the shuttle but the time between those two was almost an hour. Vulcan blocks can be tricky and Brax is having nightmares....I think the block is braking down."

Ariana took a deep breath "With all the emotion behind that block, who knows what the result will be if it breaks down and he remembers what really happened. His behaviour could radically revert in his behaviour." She shook her head, "I've never dealt with Vulcan mind blocks before I'm going to have to learn."

"I'd say we turn to the CMO, Hades, who is also his cousin but Hades is off base so we're kind of on our own but I think we can pool our resources and figure it out." She looked at Ariana, "I hear you lost a spouse too."

"Yes . " Ariana nodded, "Just over a month ago, he lived longer than expected & at least he lived long enough to learn I was pregnant it was something we always wanted." her smile faded, "I wish he was here with me.... he made me promise to find someone else but I..." she looked at Splendora, "I feel guilty when I enjoy another man's company."

Splendora smiled, "That, my friend, is normal. You know that. A month is still fresh and your mind will always work in that way. Those who love us tell us to move on but they know not how hard that would be." Splendora studied her. "Tell me a bit about him, about how all this started."

Ariana took a deep breath, "Jonathon was a marine we met when his attachment were assigned to the ship I was aboard. It was an attack on the marine's that lead to both of us almost being killed, I was there doing psych evaluations when there was a massive explosion. Jonathon had injuries that lead to his eventual death just short of a year later."

"Tell me about Jonathon, what was he like?"

Ariana's smile beamed, "He was handsome, charming and everything a girl could want, he was extremely protective which was something I found annoying at times. I fell head over heels the day we met, his friends sent him over to me to ask me out" she grinned as her eyes filled with tears, "I wish he was here...."

Splendora moved over and knelt by Ariana's chair taking her hand. "But he is. He's in your heart, he is in your soul, your memories, and in every breath you take." she placed a hand on Ariana's stomach, "Most of all he is in the souls and hearts of the treasure within you."

Ariana nodded and wiped her eyes, "I know he is" she offered a brief smile, "Thank you"

"You are most welcome. How about I let you settle in and then we can talk about the file transfer," Splendora asked.

Ariana nodded "Its been a bit of a long first day so far but thanks, your help has been much appreciated. Thank you Splendora."

"My door is always open." She smiled and left her new friend. She had something vital to do.

OFF.

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