Unorthodox Debrief
Oct. 22nd, 2023 05:18 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
madimpossibledreamerMain Points:
Star Trek (the 2009!movie verse)
Summary: They have to deal with the consequences of their actions, for better or worse.
Word Count: 1245
Rating: Teen
warnings: implied Tarsus though it doesn't go into detail, McCoy's divorce
Captain Pike is the one who opens the door, and he definitely looks displeased. “Come in.”
They sit, and the Captain arranges his papers, looking less than impressed. “Mutiny is a serious charge, cadets.”
“Sir, permission to speak freely,” Jim offers quickly.
“I don’t think it will much matter whether I give you permission or not, but all right, Cadet Kirk, explain away.” McCoy resolves to pay attention for tips on how to handle Jim, assuming he’s going to even have the chance.
“I don’t have a problem with authority. I have a problem with incompetence.”
Pike responds instantly. “You don’t appear to have a problem with me.”
“What, you got me into Starfleet, didn’t you?” Kirk appears completely confused, like he couldn’t conceive of a world where the Captain wasn’t competent, which is also a little encouraging.
“And I’m still having almost daily conversations with myself and others on whether that showed competence or incompetence.” Something about the man’s eyes says that he’s amused, but it’s still a serious matter.
“I started it,” Jim starts again, and the Captain nods.
“Now that I can believe,” he says, but before it can go any further, McCoy interrupts.
“Sir, he still hasn’t eaten.” Leonard watches carefully and notes the awareness that enters the man’s expression. He knows about Jim’s little quirk, whatever it is.
“Then you’ll eat, now, and given that I’m, according to you, not incompetent, you should have no problem with that order.” He walks over to the replicator. “Grilled cheese okay?”
Kirk’s reluctance dissolves, and he nods. “Yeah, but I only think I can eat about half. Someone’s gonna have to take the other half.”
“I’ve already eaten, and I’m not indulging your curiosity,” Pike states, raising an eyebrow, and soon brings over a plate.
Kirk grabs one of the slices and begins devouring it like he hasn’t eaten in days, quickly enough that the doctor in McCoy has him watching carefully for the moment the kid’s going to choke. Once he finishes, he makes no move to take the other half of the sandwich, and after a few moments as if waiting for him to change his mind, Lucia reaches over and quietly takes it.
“Thank you,” Kirk says without a hint of irony, and Pike smiles.
“There, is being polite so hard?” His voice hides a hint of warning. “So, incompetence. The way Cadet Finnegan puts it, you’re responsible for undermining his authority to the point he didn’t even have a chance to be seen as competent.”
“He’s gonna have to deal with an ass like me eventually,” Jim points out. “He should be able to do that without losing his temper or his competence.”
“The stunt on the shuttle was for my benefit,” McCoy corrects, because he can’t just sit here and let someone else take credit for this whole mess.
“I’ll bet the Acting Captain didn’t even know Bones suffers from aviophobia. He’s too quick to attribute actions to malice, and doesn’t bother to try to learn more about his kids. Um. Men. And women, and other assorted genders, sir.” That’s…an odd slip of the tongue, but it’s a good point anyway.
Pike blinks, like the thought hadn’t even occurred to him.
“I kept Bones from having the panic attack, and we saved the ones we were sent to rescue. We managed to rescue our fearless leader when he stormed off, though Beltran had gotten ‘wounded’,” he uses air quotes, “…by the time we got there. I’d call that a successful mission, sir.” McCoy can’t quite tell whether Jim’s trying to pull all the attention to himself so the others won’t get punished (a possibility he wouldn’t even have considered before having seen that display in the shuttle) or whether he’s trying to take all the credit. Or call the rules useless.
“I suppose you would’ve been a better Captain,” Pike responds neutrally, no sign of how he’s taking this.
The response Kirk should give here is a no, which is exactly why he nods. “I would’ve yeah. But so would McCoy here, and Dawson, and Ch’kethis, and hell, even Cuevas here, though I’m not sure how easy she’d find it to open her mouth to give orders given I’m pretty sure I haven’t heard her say ten words since I met her.” The corner of her mouth twitches upward in a smile. “The point is, a Captain is just the guy who gives the orders. You know the weaknesses of your people. You know their strengths, too. You have a command staff to give you advice. And, yeah, that’s probably one of my weaknesses, since I’d probably have to keep reminding myself that I should listen for advice and maybe actually listen to it.” He pauses, then quietly adds, “Finnegan just wrote me off and didn’t bother to learn that I actually have experience that might be useful. Every crew member down to the lowest ensign counts. You know that, I know that, Finnegan has yet to learn, and I’m not sure if he’s got the inclination to learn.”
What kind of tom-fool experience does Jim have? Why is he used to lack of food and so nonchalant about being shot at by barbaric projectile weapons? It’s all adding up to a picture McCoy doesn’t like.
“You may have disregarded all authority—which is something I keep warning you about,” Pike responds, and Jim has the grace to look guilty, “…but you did indeed achieve results that they’re happy about. They’re thinking of giving you extra marks on this—which isn’t necessarily what you need. Anything you can think of to help you learn to take advice?” He raises an eyebrow.
Jim winces. “Having an actual assigned role would help, particularly if I have to work with someone else on the tasks. Especially if it’s someone who will call me out on trying to complete an amount of work that actually isn’t physically possible. Alternatively, I have the feeling Doctor McCoy here is going to rightfully gripe at me if he happens to be around and I do that.”
That’s...surprisingly mature. And realistic. And, strangely, the first time someone has actually appreciated that Leonard is grumpy and does not have the best bedside manner.
There’s something odd in the man’s tone as he continues. “They’re starting to wonder if you’re psychic, Cadet Kirk. You’re probably going to have to take a test.”
The way Jim twitches like someone’s used an old-fashioned taser on him, that’s nothing of what the kid expected. “Excuse me, what.”
Pike laughs. Actually laughs. “I’m pretty sure they’re going to find absolutely nothing. I have a suspicion that what other people see as you just jumping into things is your brain moving faster than most. You take in the environment and form and discard plans of action before most people have even taken a look around, but you need to start incorporating new information and new ways of thinking into that decision-making process of yours, or it is going to get you and your crew killed or court martialed someday.”
Jim’s quiet all the way back to the dorms.
Star Trek (the 2009!movie verse)
Summary: They have to deal with the consequences of their actions, for better or worse.
Word Count: 1245
Rating: Teen
warnings: implied Tarsus though it doesn't go into detail, McCoy's divorce
Well, Leonard thinks, darkly amused, Joce had called him “boring”, “a killjoy”, and “unwilling to step out of his comfort zone”, and here he is, in a space organization, having taken a shuttle for the second time today, having ignored rules and proper procedure, waiting for whatever sentence their instructors see fit to give them.
Captain Pike is the one who opens the door, and he definitely looks displeased. “Come in.”
They sit, and the Captain arranges his papers, looking less than impressed. “Mutiny is a serious charge, cadets.”
“Sir, permission to speak freely,” Jim offers quickly.
“I don’t think it will much matter whether I give you permission or not, but all right, Cadet Kirk, explain away.” McCoy resolves to pay attention for tips on how to handle Jim, assuming he’s going to even have the chance.
“I don’t have a problem with authority. I have a problem with incompetence.”
Pike responds instantly. “You don’t appear to have a problem with me.”
“What, you got me into Starfleet, didn’t you?” Kirk appears completely confused, like he couldn’t conceive of a world where the Captain wasn’t competent, which is also a little encouraging.
“And I’m still having almost daily conversations with myself and others on whether that showed competence or incompetence.” Something about the man’s eyes says that he’s amused, but it’s still a serious matter.
“I started it,” Jim starts again, and the Captain nods.
“Now that I can believe,” he says, but before it can go any further, McCoy interrupts.
“Sir, he still hasn’t eaten.” Leonard watches carefully and notes the awareness that enters the man’s expression. He knows about Jim’s little quirk, whatever it is.
“Then you’ll eat, now, and given that I’m, according to you, not incompetent, you should have no problem with that order.” He walks over to the replicator. “Grilled cheese okay?”
Kirk’s reluctance dissolves, and he nods. “Yeah, but I only think I can eat about half. Someone’s gonna have to take the other half.”
“I’ve already eaten, and I’m not indulging your curiosity,” Pike states, raising an eyebrow, and soon brings over a plate.
Kirk grabs one of the slices and begins devouring it like he hasn’t eaten in days, quickly enough that the doctor in McCoy has him watching carefully for the moment the kid’s going to choke. Once he finishes, he makes no move to take the other half of the sandwich, and after a few moments as if waiting for him to change his mind, Lucia reaches over and quietly takes it.
“Thank you,” Kirk says without a hint of irony, and Pike smiles.
“There, is being polite so hard?” His voice hides a hint of warning. “So, incompetence. The way Cadet Finnegan puts it, you’re responsible for undermining his authority to the point he didn’t even have a chance to be seen as competent.”
“He’s gonna have to deal with an ass like me eventually,” Jim points out. “He should be able to do that without losing his temper or his competence.”
“The stunt on the shuttle was for my benefit,” McCoy corrects, because he can’t just sit here and let someone else take credit for this whole mess.
“I’ll bet the Acting Captain didn’t even know Bones suffers from aviophobia. He’s too quick to attribute actions to malice, and doesn’t bother to try to learn more about his kids. Um. Men. And women, and other assorted genders, sir.” That’s…an odd slip of the tongue, but it’s a good point anyway.
Pike blinks, like the thought hadn’t even occurred to him.
“I kept Bones from having the panic attack, and we saved the ones we were sent to rescue. We managed to rescue our fearless leader when he stormed off, though Beltran had gotten ‘wounded’,” he uses air quotes, “…by the time we got there. I’d call that a successful mission, sir.” McCoy can’t quite tell whether Jim’s trying to pull all the attention to himself so the others won’t get punished (a possibility he wouldn’t even have considered before having seen that display in the shuttle) or whether he’s trying to take all the credit. Or call the rules useless.
“I suppose you would’ve been a better Captain,” Pike responds neutrally, no sign of how he’s taking this.
The response Kirk should give here is a no, which is exactly why he nods. “I would’ve yeah. But so would McCoy here, and Dawson, and Ch’kethis, and hell, even Cuevas here, though I’m not sure how easy she’d find it to open her mouth to give orders given I’m pretty sure I haven’t heard her say ten words since I met her.” The corner of her mouth twitches upward in a smile. “The point is, a Captain is just the guy who gives the orders. You know the weaknesses of your people. You know their strengths, too. You have a command staff to give you advice. And, yeah, that’s probably one of my weaknesses, since I’d probably have to keep reminding myself that I should listen for advice and maybe actually listen to it.” He pauses, then quietly adds, “Finnegan just wrote me off and didn’t bother to learn that I actually have experience that might be useful. Every crew member down to the lowest ensign counts. You know that, I know that, Finnegan has yet to learn, and I’m not sure if he’s got the inclination to learn.”
What kind of tom-fool experience does Jim have? Why is he used to lack of food and so nonchalant about being shot at by barbaric projectile weapons? It’s all adding up to a picture McCoy doesn’t like.
“You may have disregarded all authority—which is something I keep warning you about,” Pike responds, and Jim has the grace to look guilty, “…but you did indeed achieve results that they’re happy about. They’re thinking of giving you extra marks on this—which isn’t necessarily what you need. Anything you can think of to help you learn to take advice?” He raises an eyebrow.
Jim winces. “Having an actual assigned role would help, particularly if I have to work with someone else on the tasks. Especially if it’s someone who will call me out on trying to complete an amount of work that actually isn’t physically possible. Alternatively, I have the feeling Doctor McCoy here is going to rightfully gripe at me if he happens to be around and I do that.”
That’s...surprisingly mature. And realistic. And, strangely, the first time someone has actually appreciated that Leonard is grumpy and does not have the best bedside manner.
There’s something odd in the man’s tone as he continues. “They’re starting to wonder if you’re psychic, Cadet Kirk. You’re probably going to have to take a test.”
The way Jim twitches like someone’s used an old-fashioned taser on him, that’s nothing of what the kid expected. “Excuse me, what.”
Pike laughs. Actually laughs. “I’m pretty sure they’re going to find absolutely nothing. I have a suspicion that what other people see as you just jumping into things is your brain moving faster than most. You take in the environment and form and discard plans of action before most people have even taken a look around, but you need to start incorporating new information and new ways of thinking into that decision-making process of yours, or it is going to get you and your crew killed or court martialed someday.”
Jim’s quiet all the way back to the dorms.
