milliways_bar | (no subject)

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Captain Kirk enters from the Enterprise. For a second, the gentle roar of the ship's warp engines rumble across the threshhold before the door closes. The captain takes a seat at a table, and flags down a waitrat. On the menu? A coffee and a bearclaw.

All the while, Jim never takes his eyes off his datapad. There's just too much information to process in one day, and Jim is glad to have an extra two hours of Bar time to catch up on his reading.

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A somewhat troubled looking forensic anthropologist (armed with her own mug of strong coffee) sits down across from him with a sigh that's a bit louder than she means it to be.

"Hi."

Between the Bancroft trial and her recent conversation with Hannah, it's good to see a friendly face.

[OOC: *waves* Work, possible slow-time, etc....]

That rouses Jim from his reading and he smiles. "Temperance...something the matter?"

Brennan makes a face at her coffee.

"Hannah is angry with me. I think."

It's possible that some or most of Hannah's anger is directed at the situation rather than at Brennan personally. Brennan certainly isn't taking it personally.

Still, not a comfortable situation.

"About anything in particular, or does this have to do with her boyfriend's disappearance?" He puts aside his datapad for now.

"Mostly it's about Henry. There's still no news about him yet."

Brennan sets her mug aside. She had gotten it mostly out of habit--she doesn't really feel like drinking it.

"And I'm worried...I'm worried that she feels like she has to sit outside the real world and wait for something that may not or can never be. I worried about that even before he disappeared. That it's not healthy to turn your back on the real world."

Brennan shakes her head. "I told her that and she got angry. I imagine I sounded fairly callous."

She's sorry for that. But not sorry enough that she wishes she hadn't said it.

Sometimes things need to be said whether people want to hear them or not.

"How old is she? Because I have a bit of experience with the young. Albeit in the rather unique setting of the academy." Where most of the cadets are (depending on who you ask) either very in touch with reality, or completely out of it.

"Sixteen. Not quite seventeen."

A hard age to be, even under the best of circumstances.

"She'll be a senior in high school this coming year."

"Ah. Well, that's a little youngert than the plebes tend to be, but beyond that..." He pauses, since he's now about to go when he's never been before. Or at least, where he hasn't been since he was that age. "I think she'd probably too young to be so committed to anyone in the first place. Not that what she's going through ins't very difficult, but at that age she needs to have more than just a boyfriend.

"Or so it seems. I won't deny that I was not exactly socially acitve at that age."

"Neither was I."

Brennan had pretty much kept herself to herself in high school.

"The thing is, I think Hannah knew that. We never really discussed it, but I don't think she ever entertained any notion of spending the rest of her life with Henry Wellard. They're from two different worlds. Literally."

"But with things as they are....he's being held in something akin to the biblical Purgatory, and there's no knowing when or if his friends will be able to get him and Captain Sparrow out. It's hard to move on from that without guilt."

"I know I had a very hard time with it when my parents disappeared."

"Then you should be able to relate to her better than many could. If you've told her anything about your own past - as much as a boyfriend is not that same as parents - she should probably know that you understand.

"But at the same time...well, I think you can give her a little space and some allowance for her anger.

"Does she other friends her age?"

"She knows about it," Brennan confirms. "It's just....I'm not good at having talks that center around emotion. That's more Booth and Angela's strength."

Part of being smart is knowing your weaknesses. Emotion and intuition are definitely Brennan's weaknesses.

"I know she has at least one good friend at school, and a friend in Vermont that she corresponds with regularly. And she's very close to her mother. But none of them know about Milliways."

"Understandable. If I haven't told my friends, I can't see her doing so. And i take it she hasn't made many friends - any friends - here?" He's seen plenty of teenagers here, though, and wonders why Hannah wouldn't be part of whatever they do.

"Have you considered having Angela talk to her?"

Brennan thinks.

"Me. Henry. Booth would count, I think. I believe she might once have mentioned someone named Meg, but I don't know who that is. That's all I know of."

Brennan has never consciously considered before that, aside from Henry, she might be Hannah's closest friend in Milliways. Which is mildly disconcerting in the fact that it makes Brennan feel worse over having upset her.

"Angela is good with people. But I don't know if Hannah would appreciate me getting someone else involved."

~~(And the pups share a mun which complicates things slightly.)~~

"I know it's not personal. And I think it was something she needed to hear. I just wish that the reason for needing to hear it didn't exist."

Brennan smiles wryly. "How's that for illogical?"

"It doesn't even come close to making Spock's ear's bleed," Jim says with a slight smirk. "He might even allow that the situation provided an oppurtunity.

"I think she might be okay, with time. But you might encourage her to find more friends here her own age. Not to replace Henry, of course. But I know that the cadets sometiems needed to hide from the instructors."

"I know she'll be okay with time--all things considered, Hannah tends to be pretty pragmatic."

"Maybe. Maybe talking to someone else would help."

Brennan actually smiles a bit.

"How is Spock? And your Bones."

It's funny how you start to develop an interest in people you've never met just by hearing someone talk about them.

"They're fine. And we are finally off and flying officially. The christening was two days ago." Jim smiles, but it's not entirely the joyous grin of a man who is back doing what he loves. "The ceremony was interminable, our first mission is a milk run, and the ship is still not in top shape. But we're travelling at Warp 6 and I can't say that it's not great."

For the moment Brennan is happy to be distracted, both from her case and from her worries about Hannah.

"What constitutes a milk run? And I take it Warp 6 is fast?"

"Warp 6 is the standard cruising speed of a starship. About 500 times the speed of light. So fast." At least they aren't travelling at warp 8.

"In this case, a milk run is a trip to two planets that are not members of the Federation, and that are anything but strange new worlds. I was just reading up on thme when you arrived. Bajor and Betazed. The latter is actually a three week trip, so at least our engines get a good testing."

Brennan raises her eyebrows in appreciation. It's certainly faster than anything her world's space program has achieved.

"What do you have to do once you get there," she asks, craning her neck a bit to look at the datapad. Not that the information on it would mean much to her even if she could read it upside down.

"I think the term is 'showing the flag.' We arrive, with the hero of the Whalesong Incident at the helm of the most famous ship in the fleet, and meet with the leaders of each world, and visit schools and hospitals and other ships, and generally work to convince the Bajorans and the Betazoids that they want to join the Federation.

"And we have to avoid the slightest hint of condescension, or paternalism, or actually acting like the Western Powers did when they arrived in Nippon in the 19th century.

"In short, gunobat diplomacy revisited." Jim disapproves of wasting his time on this to start with. But the attitude it represents isn't one he cares for, either.

"In other words, politics again?" Brennan smiles sympathetically.

"Yes. And I won't even mention how I'm sure that their choice of this assignment is a message from my political rivals." He smiles coldly for their benefit.

"At the very least, though, I've never been to either world. And both are fascinating."

"That's something then."

Brennan looks a little sheepish.

"I'm probably distracting you."

She had sort of just plopped down and started talking. Booth would probably say that that was rude.

Jim wouldn't call it rude. He does that often to his crew. It's only fair that it be done to him.

"I have a little time, Temperance. That's one of the good things about this place. It allows a busy captain some extra hours in a 24 hour day."

And busy forensic anthropologists.

"One of the points in its favor," Brennan agrees.

"That and the company, and the coffee." He smiles. Truth is, he's not sure what to make of the Bar even now. But he's still glad to have it.

[ooc: fade here, I think.]

"I'll drink to both of those." Brennan lifts her coffee mug in salute and smiles.

Even with the complications Milliways creates, she's not sorry that she found it.

[OOC: looks good to me.]

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