“Report to Dr. Zvizdaryk for treatment,” Itana handed down her decision to the shamefaced young crewman standing before her desk. “You’ve dodged the reprimand this time, Crewman, but I expect the guidelines on fraternization with unknown species to be followed henceforth. Dismissed.”
“You handled that well,” Counselor Sudet mused once the ready room door whisked shut. The blonde Betazoid clasped her hands behind her back and turned to fully face Itana as the captain settled back in her seat.
Itana crinkled her nose slightly. “I hope so. He’s fortunate he got off with just the sniffles and a bad case of hives.” She cast a look over her shoulder towards the ready room window, where the pale shoulder of the Copernicus's saucer gave way to a striking view of the gently cloud-streaked blue gem of a planet beyond. “I suppose I shouldn’t have been surprised. Imria’s one of those planets that brings it out in people.”
Sudet smiled faintly as she, too, turned to the window, watching the slow crawl of pale clouds along the face of the vast ocean that encircled the planet Imria from pole to pole. “It’s been a long voyage. It’s natural for people to crave companionship. There are studies on this about how holodecks only go so far.”
“There’s a degree of discipline that comes with the job, Elyxia.” Picking up her coffee mug, Itana gave the drink a little swirl before pausing for a sip. “We all agree, when we put on the uniform, that we have to uphold a certain standard of behaviour. No one’s perfect, obviously. I get that. I do sometimes wish it was easier.” She grimaced and looked back to the window.
“I wonder if I shouldn’t have called for leave here,” she mused. “A tropical island planet full of friendly and open-minded people… I should have known this would happen.”
“Have you been down yourself, Captain?” Sudet looked back with a curious cant of her head, brushing away a curl.
Itana frowned slightly. “No. I’ve got things to do.”
The counselor nodded once before turning to lean lightly against the window frame. “Do you mind if I speak freely?” she questioned. “As your friend, not just as your counselor.”
“Of course, Elyxia.”
“I think you’re holding out on yourself.” The Betazoid folded her arms loosely beneath the swell of her chest, crossing one ankle over the other. “You’ve been down to planets like this before. You like to walk on the beaches and dive in the oceans. Yet you haven’t allowed yourself to do that the last couple of times we’ve visited a planet like this.”
“You’re getting at one of those things where you try to read me like a book,” Itana groused.
“Yes, you can thank me later,” Elyxia parried with aplomb. “What I’m really getting at is, you’re thinking about Aienna a lot, and maybe with a bit of envy.”
“What do you mean by that?” Taken aback, Itana rotated her chair to better face the counselor.
“I mean that you haven’t been face to face with her since we left starbase.” Moving from the window, Elyxia slowly made her way across the ready room to where a few items stood on Itana’s end table - one of them a photo of the captain with a bright-eyed Betazoid woman. “You’re the conservative one with her. I think there’s a part of you that’s wondering what kind of adventures she’s getting into. I can sense how much you’re bottling that side of yourself up.”
Itana pursed her lips, blush growing as she lowered her eyes to her half-full mug. She really did hate when Elyxia Sudet did this to her — and yet, she could hardly deny it. “We’re both poly,” she conceded, voice a little quieter. “She’s always been more ‘out there’ about it than I am. I swear to the Prophets, that woman—”
“—pushes you out of your comfort zone,” Elyxia finished the thought with a knowing smile.
“Don’t Betazoids have rules about reading people’s thoughts?” Itana huffed.
“Read? A Tarkazian blind cave troll could have seen that one,” Elyxia quipped, waving off the huff with a flick of one hand. “The point is that you expect a lot of yourself in terms of your personal dignity. You need someone like Aienna to give you permission to open up. Right now she’s not here to do that. I’m not saying ‘Go down to the planet and break fraternization rules yourself.’ What I am saying is that you can give yourself permission to go walk on the beach, or go reef diving, or whatever it is you want to do. Go socialize. Spend time with the crew. Find a new xenocoffee. You can have fun on your own.”
The few beats of silence that followed almost certainly felt longer to Itana than they really were. Her thoughts had already drifted - back to the sunny beaches of a world far from this one. Back to shining dark eyes and a halo of chestnut hair, to bare limbs gleaming in the warm sun, to gentle hands and a playful laugh that drew her in like a gravitational force. She closed her eyes and curled her hands together, bowing her head for a moment.
“It’s fun with her,” she murmured. “Damn it, I wish she were here.”
“You’ll be with her in time.” Elyxia’s voice had softened, tone carrying the gentle notes of a smile without Itana having to look. “Until then, she’d want you to be happy. You can tell her all about it when you get home.”
Itana lifted her head with a slow rush of breath. “So what you’re saying is I have permission from you now?”
Elyxia laughed. “I’m too dressed to be the Betazoid you’re looking for. You have permission from you. That’s all.”
“Sure, leave it up to me, huh,” Itana sighed, at least trying to throw some mirth into it. “But I suppose going down wouldn’t hurt.”
“That’s the spirit.” Elyxia’s smile was like a cat’s, dark eyes glittering with humour.
“I swear to the Prophets,” Itana huffed past a smile.
