From: Christine Fontaine
Date: Wed, 16 Apr 1997 18:40:39 -0400
Subject: USS CHESAPEAKE: At The Briefing
SD 90416.1840
MD 05.1455
Scene: USS CHESAPEAKE: Observation Lounge
Back in uniform, since after all she was attending a mission briefing,
Lieutenant Commander Catherine Ledoux stared blankly at the PADD in front of
her. With the exception of the Marine Commanding Officer, whose name
Catherine could not recall, all the other members of the senior staff were
on the bridge, and most of them had been there since the ship had left DELTA.
Doctor Ledoux was feeling strangely out of place. Catherine felt that she
should have been on the bridge, or at the very least in Sickbay, when the
CHESAPEAKE had finally embarked upon her first mission. Instead, she had
been in her quarters, changing out of her civilian clothes and back into her
uniform. Although Catherine knew that her vacation was supposed to be for
her benefit, so far, it had done more harm than good, upsetting the
veterinarian's equilibrium.
As the rest of the officers began to file in to the Observation Lounge,
Catherine could feel her cheeks turning pink. Although only four officers
knew that she was on vacation: Murray, Tats-Marush, Brennan and Bell, the
vet nevertheless felt like she had a bright sign pasted across her front:
"Hi, I won't be in sickbay for the next two days". Catherine could only
hope that no one would report in for their compulsory physicals over the
next two days, or, if they did, that Doctor Donne would be able to handle
the examinations without being questioned.
Timidly glancing about the room at her fellow officers, Catherine caught
Anne's eye as the Chief Science Officer gave her a smile. Catherine smiled
back in return, hoping that Anne had recovered from her morning counselling
session. Quite clearly, Anne had been very upset, and Catherine could only
hope that Anne would be able to work through her problems.
Next the doctor's sapphire gaze alit upon the Counsellor, Stavay
Tats-Marush. Catherine had an appointment with her the next morning.
Thankful that the counsellor aboard the CHESAPEAKE was kind and sympathetic,
Catherine was no longer approaching her appointment with a feeling of dread.
Unlike other counsellors, Catherine felt that Stavay could sympathize with
her clients, since the Shrevashal officer had been through some difficult
times herself. Ever since their encounter in sickbay, Catherine had wanted
to tell Stavay that if she ever wanted to talk 'women talk' that Catherine
would do her best to oblige. Unfortunately, the French Canadian vet had yet
to summon the courage to utter those words.
Captain Bell took a seat at the head of the table in the lounge. Just then
Catherine remembered the message she had received from her Commanding
Officer regarding the Captain's pet seahorses. Although Doctor Ledoux had
very little background in ichthyology, she was willing to take a look at
Captain Bell's aquatic friends.
Seated next to the Captain was Commander Brennan. Commander Brennan, who
had found her crying in her office one day. Catherine winced at the memory.
At least he had been kind and understanding, for which the doctor was very
grateful. Catherine was also delighted that Daniel spoke French; it was
wonderful to be able to converse in her mother tongue. The vet also had to
admit that it was nice to have another Shakespeare afficionado aboard;
someone with whom she could hold an intelligent conversation about the
Bard's works.
The only other member of the senior staff that Catherine had met was Ensign
Keyrin. Certainly a young woman who had been through a great deal.
Frowning in sympathy as she thought of the scars criss-crossing the Security
Chief's torso, Catherine had to admire Keyrin's strength and determination.
As the briefing began, Catherine sat up a little straighter in her seat,
listening carefully to the information that was being disseminated. Making
a few notes on her PADD, Doctor Ledoux knew that she'd be referring to them
again; her memory these days was anything but reliable. For a brief moment
Catherne wished that she could have brought Doctor DawnFire to-Ennien with
her to the meeting. A Sivaoan's photographic memory could not be equalled;
they remembered everything, right down to the smallest nuance, the tiniest
detail. Sighing, Catherine wished that her memory was that accurate.
Listening attentively, Catherine noted that this mission would not involve
the medical department's resources. This was good. No Chief Medical
Officer wanted a busy sickbay. Although Catherine enjoyed her work a great
deal, she was happiest when she was least busy for that meant that there
were no ill or injured personnel to tend to.
Continuing to take notes on the information that was being presented,
Catherine finally heard Captain Bell address her.
> "Doctor, one would hope that we keep ourselves nice and healthy. As
> always, be prepared. The same goes for you, Lieutenant," she
> nodded to the MCO. "Are there any questions?"
Catherine waited for the other officers to ask their questions. Finally,
during a break, Catherine quietly spoke up. "Just a reminder. For those
of you who have not reported in for your physicals yet, please contact
sickbay to arrange a time. Thank you."
Respectfullly submitted,
Chris Fontaine
LCDR Catherine Ledoux, DVM
Chief Medical Officer
USS CHESAPEAKE
<< NRPG >>
Just Catherine's take on the briefing. Not much, I know. ::shrug::
Chris - busy packing...
***********************************************************************
* Chris Fontaine * "If I waited for perfection... *
* cfontain@uoguelph.ca * I would never write a word." *
* http://www.uoguelph.ca/~cfontain/ * - Margaret Atwood - *
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
* LCDR Catherine Marie Ledoux, DVM, CMO, USS CHESAPEAKE, NCC-31813 *
* LCDR StarSong to-Ennien, MD, PhD, COUNS, USS LEVIATHAN, NCC-25002 *
* RADM FireSong to-Vensre, MD, ALB Adjutant, Armstrong Lunar Base *
***********************************************************************
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