Therapist Confab

Posted on Mon Sep 15th, 2025 @ 8:49pm by Captain Shran dh'Klar & Lieutenant Commander Callie Raven-Grayson & Lieutenant Ilia Mooi

1,116 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: Holding Pattern Hijinks
Location: Callie's Office

Lt Ilia made her way down the corridor towards the office of Counselor Raven-Grayson. She had learned that her immediate superior was the spouse of the XO, which made this an interesting meeting in itself. She never knew what to expect when meeting with superior officers on a starship. Humans were the most difficult to deal with, because of their immaturity. Reaching the door, she hit the chime and waited for an answer.

Callie was passing the door at the time, pausing she opened it greeting the new person on the other side. “Hi there” she offered a polite smile. “Please come on in and make yourself at home. I’ll apologize right now; personnel files are a bit slow in arriving so I’m afraid I have no idea who you are!” She gave an embarrassed smile.

Ilia entered and offered a soft smile. "My understanding is that this ship recently dealt with some extreme combat conditions, so it is understandable if you haven't received notification of my arrival. I am Lt Ilia Mooi, your new counselor. I'd say junior, but I am a full counselor and have practiced for several years. My understanding is you are an empath. I am certain you make good use of that. I met your husband when I came aboard. That is an interesting situation. StarFleet doesn't normally allow married senior officers to serve together. And that Cmdr Celes is something quite different. Never encountered a Betazoid quite like her. Remarkable telepathic ability."

Callie nodded. “Deanna is a remarkable person; her abilities are considerably strong.” She smiled warmly. “First off welcome aboard, it’s good to have another Counselor onboard ship. After recent events I think we all need someone to talk to, me included.” She paused for a moment. “As for being an empath, yes I do rely on my abilities quite a lot.”

"If you would like to sit down and discuss things, I am happy to listen. I'm not officially on duty, but I won't tell if you don't" Ilia said warmly.

Callie smiled warmly. “I guess it couldn’t hurt, but I don’t want to take up your off-duty time. You need that time to settle in and get organized.”

"Not to worry. I tend to have plenty of time for that when I come to a new duty station, especially one with so many humans" Ilia replied plainly as she sat opposite Callie. "So, talk to me about what happened recently that has caused you so much stress."

Callie paused for a moment. “We had an incursion of mirror duplicates of some of the crew; Jon and I included. I was abducted so that my duplicate could take my place, during which time Jon’s duplicate fooled me into believing that I’d been rescued. There was a holodeck representation made of our quarters, and I fell for it hook, line and sinker!”

"Forgive me for saying, but that does sound fascinating in a way. Based on what you are saying, it sounds like this was not a pleasant encounter. What happened to you specifically?" Ilia replied, probing her in that traditional therapeutic way.

“He thought it would be fun to use me, I didn’t have my abilities as he made out I’d been injured during my so-called rescue, when in-fact they’d used an inhibitor to block my senses. He was so like my Jon; I thought I was safe and I…” she paused. “We made love, it was different, but I trusted him.”

"And I am sure that was unsettling for you. How have you dealt with that in the aftermath of these events?" Ilia probed further.

“Jon and I have talked about it, he had a similar experience with my duplicate, so we both feel guilty about betraying each other.” Callie offered a smile. “Our relationship is a strong one, this isn’t going to break us, we will endure.”

"I am sure you will" Ilia offered, "but you said you feel guilty. You have talked to your husband, which is certainly something you need to do in this circumstance, but have you taken the time to review the situation within yourself? Introspection is difficult for everyone, but particularly for us as counselors. I mean, you have a lot to unpack within that event, beyond just the betrayal. My understanding of what happened aboard this ship is that a great deal of violence occurred, something like what happened during the war, and that sort of thing doesn't just go away. It has to be confronted and dealt with, as you well know. "

Callie nodded. “I know, as much as I’d like to forget I can’t. He was planning on keeping me onboard their ship, to keep using me as his plaything. If it hadn’t been for Jon saving me, I’d probably still be there.”

"That sounds frightening. Have you dealt with such betrayal or feelings of helplessness before?" Ilia questioned.

Callie nodded. “I was mentally controlled by someone I knew back at the Academy; his name was T’Vall. I didn’t know it back then, but he was responsible for raping me, it was only when he turned up here and controlled me taking me from the ship that I eventually learned the truth. I lost 2 children, both his. If it wasn’t for Jon and his enduring love, I’m sure I’d be in some institution now instead of being here.”

"You have some deep feelings regarding betrayal. I think this is something we should explore further in a proper session" Ilia replied.

Callie nodded. “Then it’s a good job you’re here.” She offered a smile. “I'll have to fit myself in with you between my own appointments. I’m also taking self-defense lessons with Deanna and with Jon, I’m not taking any more chances.”

"Good of you being proactive" Ilia noted. "We'll get schedules synched up and see how things go. I'm sure my schedule is going to get hectic quickly as well." She stood up, "Good to meet you commander. Looking forward to working aboard this ship."

“It’s been nice meeting you Ilia and thank you for your help” Callie smiled as she stood up to see Ilia to the door. “I’m looking forward to working with you.”

"Pleasure meeting you as well. Look forward to working together" Ilia replied before leaving, going to her quarters to reflect and decompress. This was going to be an interesting assignment for her, but she had made a friend and liked that this friend was her boss. This was definitely going to be a good duty assignment.

 

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