Thankful for a friend

Posted on Sat Aug 30th, 2025 @ 2:24pm by Lieutenant Colonel Azhul Naxea & Lieutenant Commander Rin

Mission: Season 6: Echoes of the Zynari
Location: Deck 10; Section 32-J
Timeline: MD 5
1133 words - 2.3 OF Standard Post Measure

ON

Naxea strolled through the corridor at a relaxing pace. Her side was still sore if she ran or walked too fast. As she rounded a corner, she spotted the form of commander Rin. "Rin! Just the person I needed to see," she called out as she picked up her pace to catch up causing her grimace at the faster walking speed.

Rin paused, turning her head to identify who was speaking, then turning the rest of herself around to face the colonel. She could not miss the pained facial expression, nor the body language that indicated the cause. "Afternoon, Colonel. Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," Naxe waved dismissively. "Just a little sore from the encounter with Desek. Which is why I wanted to speak with you. I wanted to thank you for your aid and for taking care of Sle'anna."

"I'm glad we crossed paths when we did," Rin replied. "Between you and me, this conflict was inevitable. He wasn't going to be content locked up in even comfortable quarters. He offered us nothing of value and entertained himself by antagonizing the crew. I'm just glad this came to an end with relatively little permanent harm, outside of the unfortunate guard. Sle'anna is ok?"

Naxea nodded. "She is. She seems to still be herself. I do recall how well you handled her. I doubt many people could handle a screaming Bajoran/Sequus hybrid. You'd make a great mother one day, if you choose to be that is."

"Well, it won't be biologically," Rin said. "The Collective saw to that."

There was a pause as Rin considered sharing more. She was a private person, both personally and professionally. Not sharing was her default and always had been. Sharing invited judgement. It also inconvenienced other people with her problems. Therapists had been pushing her for years to open up more. Every once in a while Rin found something she could that with, but they generally didn't last long in her life, for various reasons.

"I considered adoption after the accident," she said hesitantly. "But the fact is I don't even do great with adults, Waiting out a screaming baby is a far cry from raising a child. The breakdown of my emotional inhibitor changes the landscape some, but while that might help me bond with a child it doesn't change the fact that I have no experience with children. Not in a 'every first-time mother thinks that' way. I mean Sle'anna is the first baby I've ever held. Literally no experience."

"I've never had a romantic relationship. And I trust me saying that doesn't drive you to start setting me up on blind dates," she continued, cautiously. "There is the practical concern of raising a child on my own. It means they would spend much of their time in daycare. That's not a stable homelife. Other people onboard offered objectively better options for the orphaned children."

"I'm not one to set people up on blind dates or to tell them how to live their lives. It was only an observation," she explained unable to suppress a grin at the thought of Rin going out on a blind date. "Most would have simply passed Sle'anna off to a nurse and you didn't. That means alot to me. Don't let the not having experience with children be a reason not to be a mother. I sure didn't have any experience. Sle'anna was...is on the job training. As for a stable home life, Sle'anna mostly stays with people she knows such as S'hib or Gunnery Sergeant Gami. And before you object, you do have friends on this ship."

"Alright, I won't object," Rin replied, not sure where to take that.

Naxea was tryingout her counselor's suggestion of getting out more and she owed Rin who she was actually hoping to consider a friend. "Where were you headed by the way?"

"Lounge, grabbing a bite and a drink. Especially a drink." There was an awkward pause. "You're welcome to join me, if you'd like."

"Thank you. I suppose I could use a drink," she replied as she walked next to Rin. "So, are you sure you don't want me to set you up with a date?" She teased with a mischievous smile.

"Yes, I am absolutely sure," Rin replied with a slight frown. "If I ever find someone, I imagine I will be friends with them before anything more comes of it."

Naxea chuckled in reply. "I am only teasing," she stated. "Friends before a relationship is always a smart move. You know I am curious. What were you doing walking at that time of night when Desek ambushed me and Sle'anna?"

"Returning from the Observation Lounge," Rin answered. "I go there to think sometimes. Contemplate the universe." She paused, considering whether her question would be appropriate. "A question for you, if you're willing to answer. Did Desek's death give you any closure? Did it soothe your heart any, heal any emotional wounds?"

"Yes and no," she replied after a moment. "He was a vile person who deserved to die with all the lives he destroyed. Yet...it doesn't erase what he did. He was still the father of my half brother, Daimen."

Ah, Rin thought, that explains the personal investment. The thought came without judgement. An emotional response to such circumstances was entirely reasonable. In a perfect world, the colonel would have reigned herself in more than she had when Desek had first come on board. However, in a perfect world, the situation would never have occurred into the first place.

"I'm sorry your family has had to endure that," Rin acknowledged with a nod.

Entering the lounge, Rin asked for mac and cheese and a glass of red wine. "Would you like anything?"

"Just a cup of raktajino. Thanks," Naxea said before replying to Rin's previous statement. " It wasn't easy. For a long time I despised both my brother and mother. My brother for being part Cardassian and my mother for keeping and giving birth to Daimen."

Rin paused. She didn't want to pry, but she also wondered if this was something Naxea was trying to work through. "Is that something you want to talk about?"

"Oh no. Sorry, I was just giving you some background information. I'm not here to unload on you. I do that plenty with Counselor Kelea-Salik." She grabbed her raktajino and followed Rin to a table near the viewport. "Back to being a parent," she said sitting down in an effort to change the subject from Desek. "You are welcome to hold or watch Sle'anna whenever you want. And no, I'm not trying to pawn her off on you," she chuckled before taking a sip of her drink.

The two women sat and continued to talk.