The Story of You and Me

Posted on 10 Jul 2016 @ 2:00am by Commander Thiago Teixeira & Commodore Harvey Geisler

2,768 words; about a 14 minute read

Mission: Risky Business
Location: Captain's Mess
Timeline: MD 2 || 1200 hours

It hadn't been long since Harvey finished his inspection of the Black Hawk. Today's had been much longer than normal, primarily because it had been a long time since his last inspection, and because he wanted to be very thorough. If the rumor was true, and there was a Thalaron weapon in that nebula, Harvey did not want to find himself on the receiving end of that weapon. It had to be destroyed no matter the cost.

What concerned him the most was bringing home those two crews, and preferably with two Intrepid-class hulls intact. He was going to make that his primary objective, and hopefully, they'd come up with something in time.

Now that they were more than a day underway, Harvey felt it was time to get to know his first officer. The man was invited to join Harvey for lunch in the Captain's Mess. While there was business to discuss, hopefully Harvey could learn a thing or two about the man, especially since Harvey had decided to push himself to get to know his crew more.

Thiago walked down the corridor of deck five, passed science labs and crew quarters. He hadn't had much chance to explore the ship yet, having stayed mostly in his quarters when not on duty. However, deck five was not new to him; he had used the gym earlier in the morning, as was his routine. He'd then taken advantage of the swimming pool being located on the same deck by doing some laps.

Since his workout in the wee hours of the morning, he had reviewed the duty rosters for each department and made some notes about possible changes for better efficiency. He'd done this in the comfort of his quarters. He still needed to make have a meeting with Senior Chief Hanson. As the Chief of the Boat, she was the intermediary from the Command staff to the enlisted crew, and vice versa. Teix wanted to discuss any issues the crew might have, as well as gain an understanding from Hanson about the training needs of the crew.

Arriving to his destination, the Captain's Mess, Thiago went to touch the announcer and was mildly surprised when the doors opened before he could reach the control.

Harvey, who was standing to pour himself a glass of water from the pitcher left on the side table, looked over to the open doorway. "Commander Teixeira," he greeted. "Right on time. May I offer you a glass of water, or perhaps something from the replicator?"

"Captain," the Brazilian man responded. "Water will be fine, thank you. Will Commander Bast be joining us as well?"

Harvey hadn't invited the Operations Chief, thinking Bast's time was better used in getting his team settled and department working. "Not this time," Harvey replied, pouring another glass for Teixeira. "I wanted the chance to get to know you before the crew give me their own thoughts about you."

Thiago dipped his head slightly as he replied, "Very well, Captain. I assume you've read my service record."

"I have," Harvey said, handing Teixeira the glass.

"What more would you like to know?" he inquired.

Harvey gestured to a seat at the table where a bowl of salad and two clean plates waited for them. "The Black Hawk marks your third tour as Executive Officer. What's keeping you from the chair?"

Thiago took the offered seat. "You don't waste any time getting to the big ones, do you Captain?" he responded with playful grin. "It's a good question to ask, though not an easy one to answer."

Harvey was about to interject and suggest something but he saw that Teixeira was about to do something else.

Thiago lifted his hand to stop Geisler. "I don't mind, sir. I just anticipated more small talk first." He took a sip of his water, holding the glass in his hand and staring at it for a long moment afterwards. "Commanding a starship isn't for everyone."

The Captain took instant notice of where Thiago's eyes were pointed. He, therefore, kept his own gaze fixated on not what the XO was looking at, but on his face, ready to catch the man's gaze when he looked upward again.

Still looking at his glass of water, after taking another sip, Teix continued. "I never had any aspirations to a command of my own. Some people have that," he said, now looking up at Geisler as he finally set down his glass, "some of us don't."

"Some of us have responsibility thrust upon us," Harvey said. "Not to say that the Black Hawk was thrust upon me, but I felt it better to finally take the chair Starfleet was pushing me towards. So, for a man who had or has no aspiration for command, how did you wind up in red with three pips on the collar?"

"I'm good at what I do," Teixeira answered, matter-of-factly. "I don't say that to be boastful or self-promoting."

"Then how do you say it?" Harvey asked, reaching over to the salad bowl. Using the tongs, he began to fill his plate, followed by a light addition of raspberry vinaigrette.

"Some are natural geniuses in engineering or science or medicine. Natural pilots exist too. Great tacticians. But for every Montgomery Scott, Beverly Crusher, Benjamin Sisko, or even Sun Tzu, there are hundreds of people like me. People who maybe don't have the same natural gifts as those treasured few, but who are hard workers and excel at a smaller scale." He stopped to drink some more of the water, which was coming up to room temperature. "I was never an amazing scientist. But I was a good and hardworking one. Same with Ops. I've always done the best job I can and made every effort to expand my range. I didn't have a preternatural intellect. I'm just a hard worker."

"That's how I ended up 'in red with three pips'. Sir."

Harvey placed a fork full of salad into his mouth and began to chew while Thiago was explaining. He in fact noticed that when he was name-dropping, he didn't use the likes of James Kirk or Jean-Luc Picard. Thiago simply, or so it seemed to Harvey, that he certainly did not see himself in the same category. Still, he nodded as Thiago spoke. When he was done, Harvey swallowed. "It's those hard workers who are the backbone of Starfleet," he commented.

Thiago, who had finally served himself up some salad, looked up from his plate. "It's like a sports team," Teixeira followed up, "There are stars and there are role players who are there to grind away at their assigned task, their specialty."

"I've been aboard the Black Hawk for eight, going on nine months now," Harvey said, changing the subject. "In that time, I've had four Executive Officers. You'll be my fifth. I can't say I appreciate the turnover, but the Black Hawk needs stability."

The salad was, well, salad. Nothing spectacular, nothing horrible. Just average. "Stability? I can do that. Provided, of course, Starfleet doesn't reassign me. And I can avoid an unfortunate situation like my predecessor."

"If Starfleet wants to reassign you, they'll have to deal with me," Harvey said in a tone that was ever so serious. To address the other statement, Harvey said, "I take it you've had some time to read up on our history, then?"

Thiago nodded while finishing the mouthful of salad. "I have, Captain. This crew has seen a lot in a short time."

"Indeed," replied the Captain with his trademarked phrase. "Between mysteries and boarders and now the Consortium, there hasn't been much of a relief. And, it's been rather harsh on the chair next to mine."

"I don't know much about the other people who have sat at your right hand, so I can't say that I'll be better than them. But I will give my all to you and this crew."

Harvey nodded, thinking at least of one particular redhead whom he already missed. "Your career history alone tells me that you'll do well. I'm not looking for you to be better than another. And don't let the ghosts of others keep you from getting involved. You are the First Officer. I expect results."

"Of course, Captain." Thiago allowed it to go silent for a few moments before furthering the conversation. "Can you give me some insight into how you view command? How would you describe your leadership style? I will, of course, learn more as I see you in action, but it helps if I have some knowledge 'from the horse's mouth.'"

The Captain set down his fork. "Command is a team effort. I have no interest in micromanagement, so I don't. I trust the departments to operate, and also to communicate to us what is happening. All command decisions will run through the two of us, and I'll have the final say. You're more than welcome to disagree with me, just don't do it in front of the crew."

"That goes without saying, Captain," he agreed. "I will strive to be a more than adequate partner in the command team." Thiago continued eating his salad.

Harvey nodded his approval. "I look forward to it then. Our chef should be bringing chicken marinara for lunch. Will that be sufficient?" He hadn't thought to see if Thiago had any preference on the meal before or after inviting him.

"Of course, Captain. I'm not a picky eater. I probably should be. I tend to indulge too often, chocolate is a particular weakness," he confessed. "Fortunately, Starfleet has provided us with top grade gyms."

"That it has," Harvey commented before taking a drink of water. It was only at Thiago's mention that he realized it had been since before the Yolvandan Outbreak that he had been to the gym. "Do you restrict yourself to the gym?"

"Oh, I do a little of everything," he answered. "Heavy on the cardio; running cycling, swimming. Strength training too, of course, but not for size, just definition." Thiago paused before asking, "What about you, Captain?"

"Oh," Harvey said, setting down the glass of water. "I recently took up surfing. My inspections keep me walking, and if time permits, I'll hit the gym or the running track twice a week."

"Good, good," Thiago replied. "It's important to keep active. Good health is....well, you know, Captain. Being a physician and all."

The door slid open and the Bolian chef arrived with two plates of the chicken marinara. He set one in front of captain, and then set the other plate in front of the new XO. With a smile to both officers, the chef departed.

Teixeira examined his plate. It looked, and smelled, pretty good. "So, Captain, do you regularly have company when you eat? Or are you making an exception for your new first officer?"

"I've dined with a select few," Harvey replied, only to realize a moment later that the list was actually very short. "Primarily one of my former XOs and our Chief Medical Officer, Doctor Kij."

"Oh?" Teixeira's attention was peaked. Knowing that the Captain and the good Doctor spent time together having private meals was important. He didn't want to step on any toes.

Harvey merely nodded. His personal life and the people he spent time with was unimportant. Between his friendship with Adam and budding friendships with his Yeoman and Lieutenant Corwin, he could probably talk for a few hours about what he did in the off hours. And, that was an unusual feeling, and a pleasant one all the same.

"If you don't mind, Captain, tell me about yourself. I like to get to know the people I work with. Most especially the Captain since we will work so closely."

Harvey finished his bite of chicken marinara and leaned back in his chair. "I'm 43," he began, leaning forward just to pick up his glass of water. "Lost my wife in the Dominion War. I used to be a Doctor and a Medical Researcher once upon a time, but gave it up for a career in Command. I still enjoy a good book and a good medical journal, but lately, I've been finding my life lacking. So, I'm looking for a few new hobbies. And the crew so far has been pretty supportive."

"Says a lot about the quality of the crew that they feel that comfortable, Captain."

The Captain took a drink of his water and looked at Thiago. "What about you, Commander? Tell me what I can't read in your file."

Teixeira looked across the table at the Geisler. "I'm not sure that I have many secrets. I have a brother and a sister. Our parents are physicists. I am the only one in my family to join Starfleet."

"Oh?" Harvey asked, looking up from his lunch. He could relate completely as Harvey was the first in his family to ever consider service in Starfleet. "Why is that?

"Same reason as most," he began, leaning back in his chair, "I wanted to help contribute to society. To explore the galaxy." He paused for a split second. "Honestly, Captain? I joined for my parents," he said bluntly. "My parents are well respected in their field. They pushed me to reach for greatness, or at least their version of it. I was a failure in that regard. I'm nowhere close to the scientist they are. I joined Starfleet to try to please them, to achieve some great pinnacle of scientific glory. Instead, I struggled in most of the subfields I tried out. I turned out to be a decent systems specialist though. I finished the Academy with distinguished marks in Starship Systems Operations, Sensor Systems, and Navigation."

"And, how about now?" Harvey asked, placing his fork on the empty plate. "Are your parents pleased, or are you barely noticed at reunions?"

"You'd have to ask them. We don't really talk much. It's been..." His voice trailed off while trying to recall the last time he'd actually had a conversation with his parents. "Probably three years since we've had anything more than a quick chat via subspace. I write them on occasion. And sometimes they write me back." He used his napkin to dab around his mouth, wanting to make certain that he didn't have any sauce on his face. "What about you, Captain? Talk with your family?"

Harvey shook his head. "The last time I spoke to my parents, it was years ago. Hell, they don't even know I'm commanding a starship. All my parents ever cared about was that I stayed out of trouble. I did a fairly good job at that until joining Starfleet, but by that point, they didn't care anymore."

Thiago leaned back in his chair. "Sounds like we have something in common, Captain. Family can be complicated." He let those words hang for a moment before changing subjects. "What can you tell me about the Doctor?"

The Captain blinked in surprise, caught off guard by the question. Had he heard about his and the doctor's now-prior relationship? Or had she taken advantage of their non-exclusivity? "Jayla," he began to answer, "is a very qualified physician, and a joy to have around. Quite friendly too."

"Good to know," he answered, opting not to push for more. He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but something was...nuanced about Geisler's response. "I would like to schedule regular one-on-one meetings with the department heads. It helps me stay up to date on everything. Is that okay, Captain?"

"Of course," Harvey said with an affirming nod. He couldn't afford time to continuously bring the XO up to speed. Harvey knew the senior staff fairly well by now, and his inspections and occasional briefings would give him enough face time with them.

"That includes you too, sir."

"Lunch seems to work well," Harvey remarked. "Unless you think we need a different forum."

"We can play it by ear, perhaps, Captain. I wouldn't want to start associating meals with work," he said with a chuckle. "Maybe I can get you into cycling. I've got a decent catalog of holoprograms."

Harvey smirked, thinking of his surfing adventure the night before. "Sounds like fun, Commander. Just name the time."

"It's a date," Teixeira said. "But let's hold off on scheduling it until we make it through this mission."

"Well," Harvey said, placing a used napkin beside his plate. "I don't think I have anything else. Any final questions or comments?"

Thiago shook his head. "I'm glad to be aboard, Captain. I think we're going to be a good team."

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