Honor, Respect, Domain
Posted on 09 Feb 2024 @ 7:39am by Commander Calliope Zahn & Lieutenant Commander Christophe Leblanc
Mission:
M4 - Falling Out
Location: Chief Engineer's Office, OC
Timeline: MD20 Morning Following "Almost But Not Quite Over"
2241 words - 4.5 OF Standard Post Measure
Deciding on where to ask Chris to meet with her was difficult. With the timing of Lance’s flight today, she couldn’t wait until later to ask Chris about the situation in private, so it was between his office and somewhere public. She lodged a quick systems note asking to meet in his office. Whatever anyone wanted to think of her arranging to meet him was their problem. But she couldn’t make this sensitive of a personal favor out in the middle of some lunch spot and risk being overheard.
Meanwhile, Chris had received the notice that Commander Zahn wanted to meet with him in his office from one of the yeomen stationed in Main Engineering. He didn’t even bother wondering what it was about, and simply gave the instruction that it should be confirmed. The situation he found himself in was complicated, and the balancing act involved dealing with two members of a failing marriage and not falling too far in the middle. Whether he would ultimately succeed depended on circumstances.
He entered his office, walking to the replicator and ordering a tray of lemon cakes and tea. Placing it on the coffee table, he walked over to the nearby conference table and returned to his work at a nearby terminal.
After Calliope's long trek from the dockyard down to Main Engineering, she did a double check in the black reflective panel outside of Chris’ door to make sure nothing was out of place. One deep breath to remind herself to keep her cool and not add more pheromones to this mix. She was already feeling worked up, though, so she closed her eyes and measured some breaths before she pressed the chime.
When the chime rang a few moments after he had settled to wait, he stood and walked over to answer it.
“Bonjour.” He said in a calm and amiable tone, his eyes falling on hers as if he knew exactly where she would be before the doors opened.
“Hey, Chris,” she said, caught for a moment by the direct eye contact with his bright baby-blues, and then gave a somewhat forced smile. “May I come in?”
“Please.” He said, stepping aside graciously with a gesture of his hand, but not returning the smile. He walked in front of her as the doors closed again, stepping over to the red couches and chairs in the sunken area and gesturing toward the couch closest to the exit for her.
Calliope followed him inside and was instantly struck by the red seating which had replaced the gray and black tones. And the lighting settings, they seemed less harsh. Some of the display modules had been moved, changing the flow in the room and she found herself consciously navigating the space.
“Thanks for making a little time on short notice,” she said.
“Please have a seat,” he said, standing and waiting for her to do so. “I would be telling a lie if I said the request came as a surprise. I have been busy, after all. And I hope you don’t mind; I haven’t eaten and thought a little snack might be nice.”
She happened to sit down just where Lance had been on his last visit, and rubbing her palms on the side of her legs, considered how comfortable she should make herself, given what she needed to ask.
“That was thoughtful. Thanks.” She took a piece of cake to be polite, and gave it a taste before setting it back down on the table. “Lemon, nice. You, uh,” she motioned around in general with her fork. “Made a few changes.”
“When a man inherits something..especially if he is to keep it for a long while, I believe it is important for him to make it his own.” He said, sitting down across from her and folding his leg over the other. He maneuvered his fork on the plate. “How are you? It has been at least thirty seconds since we last spoke.”
He smiled confidently, taking a bite and chewing it politely with pearly white and perfectly straight teeth.
“Thirty seconds or so, yeah.” When had it been? The party? “Well, let’s see. Ran a couple local patrol runs. I get a couple days stop over before the next patrol assignment. I haven’t redecorated the captain's quarters though. I guess that says something about how long I expect this latest assignment to last.”
Chris chuckled and gave a nod, his eyes alert and focussed on what she was saying. He didn’t interrupt with any unnecessary comments, but simply listened, taking another bite of the cake.
“My therapist wants me to go to the spa. And he might, you know, have a point, but I gotta wonder how many six foot tall bearded guys with stress issues he sends to the spa. It feels a little silly to me. Not the treatments or anything, just the going to one. I bought all sorts of my own crazy spa equipment I use at home.”
“I have noticed you are not a six foot tall bearded guy with stress issues.” He noted with a curious expression. “I doubt you have the same needs as such a person either.”
He placed the plate on his knee, looking up at her with an almost challenging expression which fought with the calm and curious one from before.
“I mean, he probably sends them fishing or to the firing range. But looks at me and thinks spa. Anyway.” She took another bite of cake. “Anyway,” she repeated, but with a sigh.
“I gave you spa related gifts as well.” He noted with a shrug, pushing past her hint at changing the subject. “Perhaps the best solution is the most obvious one?” He asked, picking up his fork again and offering a half smile, “Or maybe he and I are both idiots.”
That made her chuckle. “No, not idiots. Just nice guys, I guess. I mean, you also both suggested the holodeck time. If you get my asteroid dodger racing program translated, I wouldn’t mind a few laps. It was wildly unrealistic and the in-game physics were bizarre, but that was part of the charm.”
“If I ever leave this section of the station, I will be sure to make that happen for you.” He said, leaning forward and picking up the hot tea presented in a white porcelain cup. “I am a hopeless workaholic, and I rarely find a good time to stop. If I had a therapist, he might send me to massage as well. I have kept that in mind for my future projects, actually. Relaxation and work, all in one.”
He eyed her for a second.
“Which brings us to the topic at hand.”
Setting down the fork, Calliope skipped the preliminaries and just tilted her head and looked at him. “Chris,” There was no sense repeating what they both knew of the situation surrounding Lance. “You gotta take back the charge against Lance.” Her intonation implied the ‘please’ she didn’t say.
“Commander Quinn attempted to steal station property.” He said, strong, but certainly not unkind. “He gathered a crew to sneak it out of the hangar. What makes it worse: he is completely and totally unrepentant.”
“I have no doubts on any of those counts. Especially that he’s not sorry for any of it. But I’m not asking for him. I’m asking for me. I need him to not miss his flight out to Sol.”
He looked at her for the space of a few seconds before licking his lips and speaking again.
“Why?” He asked clearly, his eyes observant and attentive.
“Oh boy. Well. My reasons probably aren’t going to fit into the snack time you carved out here.” She laughed awkwardly. “But I guess, most of all I just know bringing him out here was a mistake. My mistake. And when he’s back where he belongs, it’ll be best for everyone, and he can forget me in his work again. Hopefully for good.”
“And what is the discernible difference for you between him getting back to his life on Earth or getting cozy on a penal colony?” He asked, opening his hands to the heavens gently.
She folded and then fanned out her fingers with a shrug. “I don’t not care about him, Chris. I don’t want to see him suffer and maybe even become malicious or something. I want to put things back the way they should have been. Without me in his life, when he fit in with the other super nerds and things made sense for him. Besides. You don’t know the shit he’s weaseled out of. He’ll eventually find an ally through his family or from Daystrom to pull the right strings. I know he’s not going to see the inside of a prison over allocation of a half-baked science project. But I don’t want to risk him building up a vendetta and fixating blame on anyone. I just. I wanted to do this peaceably. I just want him to go.”
Chris nodded, parting his knee in a quiet rhythm.
“I understand that this man is…slippery. He gets what he wants with his privilege and connections, but I will be frank with you: I don’t care. I have earned everything I have on my own name, and I am not interested in consenting to being treated with as much disrespect as he has shown me. I have the power to keep what belongs to my department, and I intend to do so. I would rather him sit in a cell trying to figure out how to get out than among his snooty friends figuring out how to undermine my efforts.” He leaned forward, his feet finding the floor together. He looked at her directly, placing his tea cup on a saucer. “Listen, Calli. I know you want him gone, but I am in an awkward position. Call it petty if you will, but if I let him go, I have nothing to gain but more difficulty and red tape.”
Calliope was silent for a while. She’d spent a long time making apologies for and running interference for Lance. Mostly in social and interpersonal matters. This was just one more case of begging his pardon. But with Chris unwilling to retract the charges, and seeing as she didn’t want to make any new waves with Corvus, there was nothing she could do to mitigate this situation for him. He’d picked a fight with someone who couldn’t be cowed by his superiority complex.
Slowly she stood, dusting crumbs off her lap. “Thank you for the cake.”
Chris stood as well, stepping around the coffee table and approaching her. He frowned subtly, but genuinely.
“I am sorry I could not satisfy you, mon fleur. The only reason I have is because a beautiful woman asked me.” He smiled then, a sad and understanding expression. “It is almost enough. If what you say is true, your husband will make his way out and be back in my hair soon enough.”
Calliope had worked at making an exit strategy that Lance would take, setting up the return to Daystrom quietly so he might follow through, convincing Corvus to pull her punches and just let him go, moving out herself to make the decision for him. But she’d not accounted for Lance getting into a spitting contest with his replacement. She shook her head. “All over that damned shuttle.”
“Over more than a shuttle. Over honor, respect, and domain.” Leblanc said, unapologetic about an idea he was sure was not particularly meaningful to her in the current situation.
Honor, respect, domain? Calliope shook her head. All she saw was two male egos.
“I wish I could convince him to move on, but I have used all the bargaining chips I have.” He grinned. “That is, besides blowing it up.”
“Well. If you need someone to push the button on that ordnance, call me.” Calliope pointed over her shoulder to the door. “I’ll let us both get back to business. Thanks again for giving it an ear at least.”
“Of course.” He said with an unpretentious nod. “Enjoy your day at the Spa. I have only been here a short while and I’ve already heard what a wonderful experience it is.”
“I’ll try,” she said unconvincingly as she rounded the sofa and stepped back up. “Hey—” She stopped just short of the door. “Can I just ask one small favor?”
“Probably.” He said, quirking an eyebrow, “what can I do for you?”
“If you’re not actually gonna demo it, can you just… rename it maybe? I used to think it was some kind of sweet gesture,” she admitted. “But now it’s weird.”
“If I did that, I wouldn’t be able to call Calliope mine, would I?” He asked with a wink. He let it sit there for a moment before he shook his head with a smile, “I already have a list of potential names. Worry not, Calli.”
“Later, Chris,” she said, smirking to herself. From the other side of the door, she glanced back once. She’d thought he was a terrible flirt, but now she was sure.
