Author's Note: I received a bit of lovely constructive criticism from Shaan Lien. She suggested that the class were too unstructured and informal for a military environment. I shall attempt to incorporate the militaristic aspect of Starfleet into later stories. However, this story isn't going to be too focused on so much the classes or the military. This story is about people and what they do in off hours. If I think something is "fun", I'll probably mention it. But don't expect me to mention that Calc 2 was boring on Monday, then it was boring again on Tuesday, and so on and so forth. Also, if I don't really know what I'm talking about, I'll tend to skip. So don't expect too many details about classes a high school senior wouldn't know. I also wanted to thank everybody for their enthusiastic reviews. It's actually nice to have people nag you and say, "write your story already, I want to read it." Also, a special thanks to the persons that at least partially embody the characters of Ayuiij ch'Ishima, Kali Samsara, and Yoshi Tamakari: the story would not be half as fun without you as inspiration; you have great personalities. Also, for you gente who actually know these people in reality: No, they are not exactly the same, most of these people wouldn't actually give a hoot about Starfleet Academy, so there has to be adjustments or changes I just wanted to do—writer's prerogative.

Time: About two weeks previous to the events in Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Elora Derii stood nervously in the door of the Ten-Forward lounge of the Starship Enterprise. The room was large and spacious, with table dotting it in a conservative manner. Most of the people in the room were crowded at the bar, were one or two to a table, and the most were standing up and milling around in a semi-self-conscious manner. The Starfleet officers, she could see, occupied the bar, while the new cadets didn't seem to know what to do with themselves. After seeing all this, Elora wove her way through the moderately massive crowd and sat down at a table before she could attract any attention. Normally, Elora wouldn't have been so self-conscious, but she was aboard the Enterprise, most of the crewmen had a list medals and accolades longer than Elora was tall. In addition, the delegation of the Kamari people was aboard, and Elora didn't want to chance messing anything up.

Don't be ridiculous, Elora scolded herself after coming to her senses. As if stepping on the toes of the ambassador would undermine your entire self-worth. I don't recall reading in the Word that one is morally culpable for clumsiness. Elora took a deep breath and forced herself to relax again. As she looked around the Ten-Forward lounge she saw a few other prospective cadets from Andor, Trill, Betazed, Vulcan and other planets in their corner of the Alpha Quadrant. The Enterprise would travel to the Alpha Centaurian system next, and finally to Earth. Generally speaking, Elora knew that the flagship of the fleet would not be relegated to a ferrying service; however, the presence of the Kamari delegation changed all that. The Kamari system was located on the far side of the Romulan Star Empire, and the Kamari's visitation to Earth marked the conclusion of a series of treaties establishing peace between the two peoples. Because the Kamari had technology to "construct" hyperspace corridors, they could pass through Romulan space without truly passing through Romulan space. The Romulans did not have the technology, and the Kamari weren't in a terrific hurry to share with them. They preferred to deal with a primarily democratic organization, such as The United Federation of Planets.

As a token of the Kamari goodwill and participation in the Federation, two of members of the delegation had applied to Starfleet Academy and both had been accepted. The Kamari delegation had spent the last few months on a somewhat limited tour of the Alpha Quadrant. They had begun their stay on Vulcan, sojourned for a month, then traveled to Earth, the Centaurian system, out to Rigel, Sirius, and back again to Betazed, Trill, and finally, returning to Vulcan.

Elora gazed out to the opposite side of the Ten Forward Lounge where large windows of transparent aluminum stretched across the walls, revealing the endless eternity of stars. Elora let out a sigh at the sight of its poetic beauty. For a moment the stillness of space seemed to quiet the raucous noise, created by mostly humans, in Ten Forward.

A few minutes later, a young woman, with short blond hair and wide blue eyes that stood out on pale, freckled cheeks, sat down across from Elora.

"Hi!" she said cheerfully. "I'm Lael."

Elora regarded her curiously for a moment; this one had the characteristic large eyes and secretive smile of a Betazoid. "I'm Elora Derii," she said after a brief pause, "but I bet you already knew that."

Lael shrugged, still smiling. "Not really, I wasn't trying to read your mind."

I was right, Elora thought triumphantly. She smiled back at her, "It wouldn't have offended me, I don't really have anything to hide."

Lael stared at her for a moment. "I know, that's why I came over here, actually. Do you know that you kind of exude that air? You've got a guilelessness about you that most telepaths would find soothing. And," she said, waving a hand in the air toward everyone else in the room, "you're far less chaotic than all of them. But then again, humans are the noisiest people in the quadrant. Did you meet many Terrans on Trill?"

"No, not really," Elora said thoughtfully. "There were a couple people who worked at Starfleet Security, but not a whole lot. Trill society is generally insular." Elora leaned back in her chair a little and crossed her arms. "I have never met a telepath before, and I've always wanted to meet one. What's it like? Can you read everyone's mind the same? Does it ever confuse you? Oh, sorry," Elora said quickly. "If you don't want to answer, I understand."

"No, that's okay, I don't mind," Lael responded. "Actually, most non-telepaths are pretty paranoid around Betazoids. Even a lot of Vulcans are too—maybe they don't like the fact that we know they have emotions. Not many people are just curious. And to answer your question: no, I can't read everyone with the same amount of ease. It varies from person to person and sometimes from race to race. The more naturally open a person is, the easier they are to read." Lael paused a moment, looking upward, lost in thought. "Umm, some Vulcans can block me pretty well because of the whole mind-discipline thing. That's a learned skill, though. There are people on my homeworld that I couldn't read if I tried."

Just then, the doors to Ten Forward opened to reveal two persons, the first of which instantly drew the attention of all in the room, including the attention of Lael and Elora. She was obviously Kamari, tall and thin with dark, glittery blue skin, and long, blue-black hair. She wore a white two-piece outfit, a no-sleeved vest, and a knee-length skirt, that contrasted sharply with the color of her skin. She gave an enigmatic smile as she entered the room, and folded her arms across her chest. She cast a glance back to her companion who was just now removing the hood of her cloak from her head. The Kamari's companion was slightly taller, and far less striking. She had light golden brown skin, and thick, wavy dark brown, nearly black hair. She wore the typical dress of a Vulcan female, a blue-gray cloak over a shirt and long skirt of a darker blue. She gazed around the room curiously, and nodded in the general direction of Elora and Lael.

The two went and sat down at a table, which held a three dimensional chess game. The Vulcan began inspecting the crystal and silver pieces of the elaborate chessboard as a crowd gathered around her companion. Elora and Lael watched them curiously for a few moments; then Elora spoke to Lael. "Well, what do you think of them? I don't mean a judgement—I am just curious to learn what your first impression are of people." Elora folded her arms across her chest and rocked back in her seat.

Lael bit her lip uncertainly and looked over at the group surrounding the table. After a moment she nodded and almost immediately shrugged her shoulders. "Well, actually, I couldn't read the Kamari girl too well. I think she enjoys being mysterious, and that always throws me off. But the Vulcan feels . . . I don't know, odd."

"Odd?" Elora said, her eyebrows rising. She hadn't been expecting an answer like that.

Lael shook her head in frustration. "Explaining how people 'feel' to a non-telepath is like telling a man blind from birth about the colors of a sunset. I don't know—it's like she's only partially there. She could just have some odd telepathic shields I have never felt before. I am not going to ask her, though, Vulcans are very private people." Lael smiled at Elora. "You can if you really want to know."

Elora chuckled a little self-consciously. "No thanks," she replied.

Suddenly, the crowd dispersed about the two like children running away from a parent who has a medical tricorder in hand. The Kamari was laughing out loud as she attempted to move her bishop to the king's level without even looking at the chess board. The Vulcan was characteristically stoic, but she seemed to be regarding her companion with a degree of confusion.

"Let's go say hello," Lael said impulsively. Elora looked at her for a moment, generally Elora didn't put herself out like that, but the Kamari and the Vulcan did seem like an interesting pair. Vulcans were typically low-key and unobtrusive, and this Vulcan seemed no different, but she also seemed to be friends with a purposefully obtrusive, attention grabbing Kamari. That fact was . . . unexpected.

"Okay," Elora said in belated response. The two got up and walked over to their table near the starfield.

"Checkmate," the Vulcan said clearly, and with the slightest touch of dryness to her voice.

The Kamari's jaw dropped and she looked indignant and startled at the same time. "Not fair," she grumbled. Then her eyes found Lael and Elora and lit up in friendly welcome. "Hey, do either of you play chess and can beat Sayel? Cause, yeah, she beat me in twenty minutes." She smiled in a self-deprecating sort of way while gesturing at the elegantly sculptured chessboard.

"Ten minutes. Additionally, because you have played but infrequently and you were not paying attention," Sayel responded calmly, "there was no other logical unfolding of events."

"I don't know how to play 3-D chess," Elora admitted. "I've seen the game before, but I have never played myself."

"Indeed?" Sayel inquired with a modicum of enthusiasm. "Perhaps you would care to learn?"

"Sure," Elora said eagerly. Lael chorused with a "why not".

"Very well," Sayel responded. She then pointed to herself and the Kamari. "I am Sayel and this is Siyana a'Kamara, we are traveling to Earth to begin studies at Starfleet Academy as I know you are as well."

"My name's Elora Derii."

"Lael Daemas," the Betazoid offered quietly as she studied the chessboard. "This looks complicated," she announced after a moment. "I don't like complicated, at least not in a game."

"It is not complicated," Sayel corrected matter-of-factly.

"Right, to whom?" Siyana asked sarcastically. When Sayel turned to arch an eyebrow at her, Siyana folded her arms across her chest defensively. "It is not a complicated game to learn—but if you want to be good at it, it definitely gets complicated."

"An accurate statement," Sayel responded. She arched her eyebrows as Siyana. "You are being discouraging; perhaps they could learn how the game works before you tell them they could not possibly learn because it is too complicated, therefore insulting their intelligence."

Elora's eyes widened at that comment. I guess Vulcans really don't understand other humans or anyone else, she thought worriedly. I can't believe she just said that to her. Then, to her surprise Lael broke out in laughter as Siyana marched around the table and thwacked Sayel on the arm. "That was so not funny!" she said indignantly. "I so did not say that. At all."

Sayel's eyes sparkled with the briefest hint of amusement and it was only then that Elora realized that Sayel had been teasing Siyana as any other person would a close friend. "Oh," Elora said, for a moment feeling sort of dumb, then laughing out loud.

"Lael seemed to think it was amusing," Sayel said in a neutral voice.

In a pseudo-pouting position, Siyana crossed her arms over her chest and did a convincing caricature of a little girl's whine, "So if Lael thinks it's funny, it is, but what I think doesn't matter at all."

Sayel raised an eyebrow at that, as if silently communicating that to grace that comment with a reply would be to engage in far too much illogic for one evening. "Although your mockery of a small, naughty child's voice is clearly above satisfactory level, I would prefer that you not indulge yourself in that practice."

"Only if you're nice to me," Siyana demanded in less whiny, yet still petulant tones. Then she dropped the entire act and turned to Elora and Lael. "So about that three-dimensional chess," she said with an impish smile. "Here," she continued, taking one of the smallest, most slender pieces from the board, "this is a pawn, let me show you what it does." She and Sayel switched off explaining the purpose and capabilities of each of the delicately formed crystal and gold pieces.

They finished the learning session with a short, concise game played with Elora, whom Siyana coached, playing Sayel. Sayel expertly caught each of Elora's typical errors and oversights, and within minutes, Elora had lost the game.

Elora was busy feeling discouraged when Sayel's eyes flickered upon and set upon hers. "Satisfactory for a beginner, you did not make the more useless errors that most beginners do." Elora instantly noted that Sayel was neither careless nor inaccurate with her praise. She clearly believed everything she said, and probably would have thought it "superfluous" to state anything other than the complete truth, especially if saying anything other than the complete truth were to pacify a emotional being like a Trill.

"You know," Siyana suggested in a offhanded manner, "you could have let up on her; she is a beginner you know."

"I am aware of the fact that she is a beginner, but I do not see how, what is the expression?" Sayel asked, not quite interrupting herself. "Taking it easy on her?" I do not see how that would benefit her in the end. She would just have to reverse her steps and unlearn deleterious habits. It is better to learn correctly the first way."

"I don't think it helped her self-esteem," Lael commented quietly. Elora silently agreed, and for the first time wished Lael wasn't a telepath, certainly when Sayel raised an eyebrow with the first hint of true emotion she had showed for the evening. The emotion closely resembled disdain, although very mildly. Elora didn't want her thoughts told to everyone, especially a cold-hearted person like Sayel, and Vulcans in general. Sorry, Lael, that probably wasn't fair, she thought, silently wishing Lael could hear her, and most people could probably figure it out anyway.

Sayel's voice took a slightly more gentle turn as she placed her hands behind her back and looked from Lael to Elora. "It is not losing the chess game that damaged Elora's 'self-esteem'. It was the fact that she placed some degree of intrinsic value of self-worth upon winning the game that did the damage."

Siyana was nodding. "Sayel's right. People generally aren't upset because they can't sing or draw well or play sports. They're upset because they think they should be able to do those things and they can't," Siyana said, moving her hands in an almost circular pattern to emphasize her point. "It's because we think it's important and it really isn't."

"I think I would cry if I couldn't draw," Elora said, thinking of her many sketches hanging in her parents' house on Trill, and still more stored in her things in her cabin, waiting to be hung up in her new room at Starfleet Academy. She wondered if any of the cadets at Starfleet would care enough to look at her things. Not many people outside her family had seemed to care back on Trill, and the ones that did almost seemed to be doing her a courtesy. Elora didn't even know if she was good anymore. She felt a frown cross her face as she stared off into space. She realized that all attention was on her. "Sorry," she said, "I was . . . ."

"Looking at itna," Siyana said firmly, she then shot a glare at Sayel, as if daring her to disagree. Sayel merely raised a placid eyebrow in response.

"I don't know what means," Elora said in polite bafflement, her voice taking on a sort of refined quality, revealing to anyone who knew her a combination of skepticism and confusion.

"Itna is what you are staring at when you're not really looking at anything," Siyana explained, her eyes lighting up with mischief. "Or when someone points and says, "Ooh, look behind you," but there isn't really anything behind you. Whatever it is that you turn around and look at, that's itna."

"Okay . . ." Lael said, a frown crossing her face as she shot a confused look at Elora. "Is that a word in Kamari or something?"

Siyana began to laugh, eventually laughing so hard that she couldn't answer Lael's question.

"She made it up," Sayel said with a sigh. "She enjoys making up words. At this rate, in ten years she will have enough words for her own lexicon."

"Ooh, I will?" Siyana managed to gasp out enthusiastically.

"Yes," Sayel said, an edge of sarcasm entering her voice. "You can name it Siyana's Lexicon of Nonsense Terms."

"Yay!" Siyana said, then her eyes lit up again. "Will you translate it in to Vulcan for me?"

"No," Sayel responded adamantly.

"You're mean," Siyana said, raising her eyebrows at Sayel and taking on an air of superiority. "I'm going to ignore you now."

Sayel merely arched her eyebrows in response, and to Elora's surprise Lael burst out laughing. "Now that was funny," Lael said, grinning at Sayel.

Elora felt herself becoming more confused by the moment. I don't know if I can stand four years of this . . . chaos, she thought to herself. She had to guess that Lael was just reading Sayel's mind.

"Oh, not fair, I want to know," Siyana said, turning imploring violet eyes onto Lael. "Tell me, tell me."

"It was nothing," Lael said with a shrug. "Just something about 'sorrow upon sorrow'."

"More sarcasm," Siyana muttered, shooting a semi-dark look at Sayel. "Surprise."

"I could not draw to save my life," Sayel said, abruptly re-inserting herself into the previous conversation. At nearly everyone's confused stare, Sayel inclined her head toward Elora. "I am steering the conversation back to what it was before we degenerated into the conceptual world of 'itna'."

"Ah," Elora said, trying to remember what it was that they had been talking about.

"I could not draw to save my life," Sayel repeated, fixing Elora with her direct stare. "Would you judge me for that? Am I any less of a worthwhile person?"

"Well, no," Elora said, shifting back and forth, she could sense where this topic of conversation was headed.

"Then you should not judge yourself."

"It's not that simple," Elora replied.

"Yes, it is," Sayel instantly contradicted. "But people insist upon acting as if it were otherwise. You should not allow yourself that pretense, it will keep you from undue sorrow in the end."

"Sayel thinks people can just ditch their psychological problems by force of will," Siyana said to Elora, as if revealing some secret. "Most Vulcans are like that."
"No . . ." Sayel said slowly, shaking her head, her expression becoming slightly less focused for a moment. "I believe that one may leave most of one's psychological problems by rearranging the thought process and acquiring a disciplined mind. The majority of Vulcans believe that all behavioral psychology is alterable through will power. I do not."

"Hey, do you like psychology?" Lael asked in a timid voice. "I do, I think I am going to major in it. That or sociology."

After a longer pause than the question warranted, Sayel responded. "I am familiar with many psychological theories, mostly with aberrant behavior among telepathic species. Whether I like it is somewhat irrelevant, although I confess to finding the subject fascinating."

Lael smiled. "In other words, you like it," she said with an understanding smile.

Before Sayel could respond, Siyana interrupted her. "She'll deny it until she's blue in the face—hey, like me—so just know that yeah, she does like it."

"I did not confirm or deny whether I liked it," Sayel responded, her voice becoming more distant. "I like chess—at the moment I am not considering psychology in that regard."

"Why not?" Lael asked artlessly. "Why are you angry?"

At that, Sayel's head shot up, and Elora almost, almost, caught the look of surprise that flickered across her features. "I had forgotten you were telepathic, fascinating," Sayel responded in a voice completely devoid of any suggestion of fascination. Intrigued herself, Elora watched as a mask slipped over Sayel's features, cutting off any semblance of emotion, interest, or expression in general. Impassively, Sayel said, "Vulcans value their privacy, perhaps you will have recalled that?"

Despite Sayel's voice lacking any sort of edge or mean-spiritedness in general, Elora winced, and she noticed that both Lael and Siyana had become very quiet. Lael was staring down at the table, and Elora instantly felt sorry for the girl. Betazoids were naturally inquisitive and open; it was probably very easy for Lael to forget that others were not so open. Elora felt very uncomfortable for the few long seconds in which silence had descended. Finally, Sayel spoke in an even voice. "You should also know that I am not angry now." She looked over at Siyana who seemed as relieved as everyone else. "I believe that you mentioned that the Enterprise has a state-of-the-art stellar cartography laboratory. Perhaps it would be intriguing to examine the facilities?"

As the quartet walked down to stellar cartography, familiarized themselves with the equipment, and brought up the home system of the Kamari on the surround-stage, Elora found herself wondering about why Sayel chose to have mercy on Lael, by all accounts, an "emotional being". Many things that Elora had just observed about Sayel seemed to be contradictory, but many Vulcans were just like that. She didn't know, and she wasn't going to know, and she wasn't particularly interested in the astronomy of the Kamari home system.

"Ah, Kamara," Siyana said as she pointed to the only M-class planet rotating about the trinary star-system. She pointed to each planet. "Arewea, Sutáien, Castilalla, Hidthana, Mjukrillith, and Perajish. They are names of the Muses."

"Muses?" Sayel echoed, looking at Siyana with perplexity. "Do you refer to the characters in Greek and Roman mythology?"

"Uh . . . no," Siyana responded. "But it's the closest word in Federation Standard to the word in Kamari. I suppose you could call them the 'embodiment of virtues'. Everything in our solar system is named after one of the nine virtues."

Sayel frowned at Siyana. "What are the names?"

As Siyana and Sayel discussed the Kamari solar system, Elora wandered over to the far side of the room, gazing at the bright burning orbs that were the primary stars of the Kamari system. A thin stream of hydrogen looped from the smaller yellow star to the blue giant, giving the blue giant the appearance of gaseous rings. An even smaller white dwarf, tiny in comparison to either star, orbited the other two stars as if it were a planet.

A smooth, distinguished male voice broke into Elora's hearing from behind her. "Remarkable, isn't it?" the voice asked, wonder tingeing its nearly arch tones. "I have seen wonders like this for more years than I often like to count . . . but even here there seems some sort of mystery."

Elora turned around, instantly recognizing the hawk-like visage of the captain of the Enterprise. "Captain Picard," Elora responded respectfully. She had never met the man, but even Elora, as sheltered as she was upon her insular home planet, had heard of the exploits and adventures of the legendary Enterprise crew. Even to Elora, Captain Picard seemed to be the ideal captain. Nearly as calm and inflappable as any Vulcan, he seemed to rise above any situation, yet retained compassion for all and, seemingly, humility.

"Cadet Derii," Picard responded amicably. "It is remarkable," he repeated absently, though with emphasis. Without taking his eyes off the rotating trinary stars, he spoke, "This is the home system of our Kamari guests, if I am not mistaken."

Elora nodded silently and continued to gaze in silent appreciation as the scene before her. For a few moments, the two stood in mutual, silent appreciation, but Picard spoke again. "Unfortunately, I did not come down here to stargaze," Picard said finally, with the slightest wisp of a smile touching his lips. He then fixed his eyes firmly on Elora and raised an eyebrow. "Not an hour ago I was contacted by Trill's ambassador to the Federation." Registering Elora's surprise, Picard continued. "The ambassador was insistent that I give you a message, and, if possible, personally escort you back to Trill."

"Back to Trill?" Elora echoed with confusion. She shook her head adamantly. "Why? That doesn't make any sense."

Picard nodded in partial agreement. "The ambassador's message may clear some things up for you, but I am afraid that I do not understand the matter completely. Apparently, there is a joined Trill by the name of Celosia Tereza who is a member of a very small religious sect. This woman is dying, and, for reasons unknown to me, no other person is able to receive the symbiont as the next host except you. The Symbiosis Commission wants you to join with Tereza before Celosia dies, if possible." Picard reached up to stroke his chin, deep in thought. "After receiving this message, I read part of your file on record with Starfleet Academy. Now you, Cadet Derii, are not a member of the Symbiosis Commission. There are over six billion other beings on Trill at the moment, Cadet, what do you have that six billion other people do not?" At this, Picard again refocused his sharp hazel eyes on Elora.

Elora's mind raced to find an explanation for the captain. "I don't know," she uttered aloud, "honestly—" suddenly her voice caught in her throat as she realized what she had that no one else did. "I am stupid," Elora said to herself before she looked up at Captain Picard. "I have heard of Celosia Tereza—she is a translator, actually one of the few at her level that is a member of my religion."

"Your religion?"

"It's very small on Trill, maybe two hundred thousand people, I don't know," Elora said, shaking her head. "It's only been around for the last hundred or so years. Most other Trills believe in a sort of ethical philosophy stemming from deism," she said with a shrug. "Not many people take God seriously anymore. It's not very 24th century. Anyway," she continued, drawing herself back on topic. "I think I am the only Trill of my religion who passed most of the high level psychological and psychiatric exams for the joining. I dropped out of the program when I took my final oaths."

"Did your oaths conflict with the joining process in some way?" Picard asked curiously.

"No, that wasn't it at all," Elora said bluntly, and with a sigh. "The oaths are a public proclamation of faith, and they attest that a person is an adult in the church. Therefore we have more rights and responsibilities, but we also are held accountable for our actions by other members."

"How does one become a member?" Picard asked, a hint of skepticism creeping into his voice.

"It's not a cult, if that's what you're thinking, sir. All you have to do is believe in the same sort of things, like any other religion," Elora responded. "The only reason why I dropped out is because no symbiont will join, or really, will stay joined with someone who is a follower of the Word."

"That's fascinating," Picard replied, "does anyone know why that is?"

"Psychological incompatibility has always been the answer once the host has rejected the symbiont. My . . . forefathers so to speak . . . were shunned for the last hundred years or so because no symbiont would stay joined. However, Celosia Tereza converted after she was joined."

Picard's eyes lit up in realization and, unconsciously he angled his head toward Elora a little more. "So the symbiont was converted as well," he surmised.

"That would be my guess, sir," Elora said, trying to fight down a sudden growing nervousness. I am the only person who could ever take Tereza as a symbiont, she thought. I suppose they could take Tereza back to the Pools, but that generally doesn't work out well, especially for as old a symbiont as Tereza. They are so used to having hosts that it is terribly hard for them to adjust. It might go into shock . . . or die. And who knows when the next compatible person will come around. Suddenly, a surge of panic nearly overwhelmed her. I left all of that behind, Elora told herself, and that was never my dream anyway. It was just a tradition, and the chances of me actually receiving the symbiont were always so small.

"Cadet Derii?" Picard was asking, "Are you alright?"

"Yes, sir," Elora said, feeling incredibly disoriented. "It's just . . . it's just a surprise, that's all."

"Perfectly understandable," Picard said with a gracious smile. "Perhaps you'd like to return to your quarters to think about your decision?"

With a sinking feeling, Elora shook her head, "No, I've already made up my mind, sir. I'll do it." I have to, there's no one else, she added silently. She feared saying the words aloud because she knew that Captain Picard wouldn't understand. A Trill simply did not refuse an "honor" like this. No one would understand her reluctance, and they would rightly chalk it up to fear, or maybe even cowardice. "I think I will go to my quarters, though, sir."

Picard nodded, gazing at her thoughtfully. "Dismissed, Cadet."

"Aye, sir," Elora responded unenthusiastically.

About four hours later, Elora was still sitting in her room, nervously braiding and unbraiding her hair, just waiting as the Enterprise rendezvoused with another ship that would carry the rest of the cadets to earth while Elora returned with the Enterprise. This isn't going to be fun, Elora thought for the hundredth time, her mental tones entering the bitter range and settling there. In the midst of her dark musings, a two toned sound broke, jarring her to alertness.

Elora waited to see if the person would leave, then mentally scolded herself for being so petty. "Come in," Elora called, hearing the apathy in her voice.

To Elora's surprise, Sayel stood at the door, a candle cupped in her hands. It gave off a delightful, gentle smell, almost a combination of the desert, water, and perhaps a flower Elora was unfamiliar with. How someone managed to include that into a candle, Elora did not know. Sayel stepped through the door and set the candle down on the table in front of Elora. "I was told one could feel the mental 'vibes' from down the corridor."

"Really?" Elora asked, horrified that she might have been a burden upon someone else.

"It is possible, but I perceived nothing," Sayel said calmly.

"You're a Vulcan, you would know if anyone would, right?" Elora asked.

"In fact, I am only half-Vulcan. I am half Betazoid as well," Sayel revealed.

"Oh, well, then you'd really know, right?"

Sayel's eyebrows arched upwards. "That would seem to fit a logical pattern." Then Sayel hesitated before crouching in front of Elora. "You are disturbed because you are to be joined with a symbiont," she said bluntly.

Stunned, Elora just stared at her Vulcan counterpart, her blue eyes wide. "How did you know that?"

"Lael . . . discovered it," Sayel responded carefully. For a moment, a touch of Sayel's impassivity dropped away. "Would you like a companion to accompany you back to Trill?"

Yes, Elora's mind shouted. Then, she wouldn't be by herself when returning to the Academy. The academic part of Starfleet Elora regarded with confidence, but there were other parts that unnerved her, including the mere brashness and seemingly fearless attitude of most Starfleet officers. It was intimidating. Captain Picard was even intimidating, even though he held his confidence in a quiet, mannered way. But I can't be dependent, can I? I should be able to do this by myself . . . . "Sayel . . . that was really sweet of you to offer, but I think I should do this by myself."

Sayel rocked back on her heels and then proceeded to sit cross-legged on the floor across the table from Elora. "In my observation of many peoples, human, Trill, and Vulcan alike, I have observed a trait that is lacking in many other cultures," suddenly Sayel's eyebrows arched upward, "notably the Borg, but in other, more . . . accommodating cultures. It is what I call excessive individuality. People seem to think it is necessary to do absolutely everything with no help from others. It is a view that is entirely without logic." Sayel hesitated for a moment, and then continued speaking in a very gentle tone. "There is no reason for you to do this by yourself. Will you at least have family waiting for you back on Trill?"

"No," Elora said with a start, she had forgotten that. "My parents are waiting for me on Earth." Within moments of that statement, the door to her quarters chimed for the second time. Elora looked at Sayel and raised both eyebrows.

Sayel shrugged. "My estimation? Friends of both our acquaintance."

Sure enough, when the door opened, Siyana and Lael stood on the other side, Siyana having a look of stubborn determination, and Lael of eagerness tempered with timidity. Both looked at Sayel with differing degrees of surprise. "You told us it was none of our business," Siyana said, accusingly.

"It probably is not," Sayel agreed amicably, "but I felt I needed to speak with Elora."

"Felt?" Lael asked with a not unfriendly smirk, pouncing on her diction.

"Indeed," Sayel responded coolly.

"Hi, Lael," Siyana said cheerfully, elbowing her companion in the ribs. "Shut up, please."

"Yeah, that's me, shutting up," Lael said, fixing her pale blue eyes first on the wall, then on the candle sitting on Elora's table. "Nice candle."

"So, yeah, we want to come with you," Siyana said firmly. "You shouldn't have to go back all by yourself. I know how I would feel." Siyana then grimaced and shook her head. "Actually, I don't know how I'd feel at all. Really, I'm sort of creeped out just thinking—"

"Siyana, kroykah," Sayel said sharply. "There is no need to add to her anxiety."

"Right," Siyana said. "Well, I guess it is interesting, at least psychologically. I mean, are you the same person, or a mix of two people, or a whole new person? And I am sort of babbling, so I'll just be quiet now." Siyana then looked around the room much in the same way Lael had and folded her hands in front of her.

Elora felt torn between despair and amusement. Then she finally smiled and shook her head. "I guess I should just stop arguing now and get it over with."

Sayel nodded slowly as she gazed off past Elora. After a moment, she cocked her head to the side. "That would seem prudent."

"I just don't want to get you guys into trouble."

"We won't get into trouble, the Academy will understand," Lael said quietly.

Siyana shot her a skeptical look, smiled, and said, "No they won't."

"We will miss orientation and some of the other social activities designed to make the cadets more familiar with each other, nothing crucial." Then Sayel shrugged. "Whether the Academy understands is immaterial. If they wish to expel us because of this action, obviously we were not meant to take part in such an institution."

"Fate, Sayel?" Siyana asked, her blue lips curving upward in a smile that was far too nice to be considered a smirk.

"Logic," Sayel corrected. Sayel lifted her unusual hazel-blue eyes to survey the room as she rose to her feet. "This should be . . . fascinating."

Elora lay in a bed in a Trill surgical bay, Lael standing next to her. As Elora nervously looked around the room, Lael tried to comfort her with stories about her family back on Betazed. The room was like that of any other hospital in the Federation, pristine, with white and other pale hues of blue, yellow, and green. Various instruments, with uses Elora had no knowledge of, composed the room, making Elora even more nervous. By this time, she had lost track of what Lael was saying. "I'm sorry," Elora said nervously, "What did you say?"

"No, it's okay," Lael said, shaking her head and giving Elora an encouraging smile. "I was trying to distract you, but I think you are determined to be worried. It will be over soon at any rate."

At that moment, Sayel and Siyana appeared on the other side of the door, accompanied by another Trill doctor who regarded them quite suspiciously. Tucking something under her arm, Sayel ignored the doctor and walked into the surgical bay. "They're about to sterilize, and we need to leave," she said directly. "But I wanted to tell you not to worry, everything will be fine," she said confidently.

Siyana gave Elora a sweet smile. "We'll be here when you wake up—you can't get rid of us that easily."

Elora smiled back as the three swiftly exited the room. And before she had time to worry any further, the doctor gave her a few brief words of encouragement, then injected her with a hypospray.

In moments, Elora felt as if she were on the precipice between waking and sleeping. She did not know if the drug merely simulated this sensation or if she were really about to fall asleep. She knew her eyes were still open, but she could only make out vague and distorted shapes, there also seemed to be a lapse between sight and recognition. Physically, she felt nothing, and mentally she had only an unclear sense of confusion. She saw a doctor lean over her, and then move somewhere off to her left. She turned her head slowly, and saw a blurry figure stretched out on a bed identical to the one she lay in. Slowly, Elora realized that the other must be Celosia, and she smiled at the figure, knowing that she would soon enter into eternal peace, joy, love, and life. Elora got the vague sense that Celosia was smiling back at her. Moments later, a soft beeping noise floated up to Elora's consciousness, and she realized that Celosia was dead. A brief touch of sorrow pricked her heart; then Elora drifted away into unconsciousness.

At an indeterminate time later, Elora awoke to an overwhelming sense of first confusion, and then, loss. Elora gasped aloud as tears sprung from her eyes from another's emotion. She sat up, feeling herself begin to hyperventilate with a combination of panic and elation fueled by extreme disconcertion. She could feel the symbiont's emotions, not completely separate from her, now bleeding and blending into her own, her emotions and the symbiont's would soon be one. There would be a time when she wouldn't know what Tereza was feeling and what Elora was feeling, she would be both of them at the same time, and yet neither.

"Oh my gosh," Elora said as she covered her face with her hands. A curious echoing sensation drifted through her mind, as she felt the symbiont's thoughts, grieving for the loss of Celosia. Tereza sung a lament to herself, and Elora found herself listening, then singing the words of the song to herself. For a moment both of their thoughts snapped together as one, parted into distinction, then came together again. Elora could feel the symbiont's attention shift from Celosia to Elora as she strove to connect with her new host. Tereza was old, having eleven previous lifetimes of experience to draw upon. Elora felt a rush of love concern, and acceptance, and then felt that vanish into her perceptions about herself. I wonder if this is how telepaths feel when experiencing others' thoughts and emotions; I will have to ask Sayel or Lael. Tereza's thoughts took an upward, enthusiastic turn at the thought of the two telepaths. Elora knew that the symbiont had always found telepathic species interesting and Celosia had formed a close friendship with a Vulcan. Turrin and Yalen had Vulcan friends as well, Elora thought; these were memories of previous hosts of Tereza's, and therefore thoughts not her own. Vulcans are people like anyone else, Elora realized, I have been treating Sayel as if she were somehow not a person, but something extraordinary. Elora then felt a glimmer of amusement stemming from Tereza, but swiftly flowing into her mind. Most Vulcans enjoy being thought of in such high regard, although they would deny it to the grave.

"Elora?" one of the nurses asked sometime later, poking her head into the room. "Your friends want to know if you're up to seeing anyone yet?"

Elora hesitated for a moment, torn between her desire to be alone, and a jolt of enthusiasm from Tereza, who eagerly desired to meet her friends. Their friends, her friends . . . whatever. "This is getting confusing," Elora muttered aloud before responding to the nurse. The nurse nodded sympathetically; she too was a joined Trill. "Sure, tell them yes. Tereza—we—I want to meet them," Elora said, now feeling even more mixed up.

The sensation only increased when her three friends walked into her room. Impulsively, Siyana walked quickly to her table and hugged her, quickly followed by Lael. Sayel nodded a solemn greeting, but regarded her carefully. With a modicum of surprise, Elora realized that she would now be far more observant than she ever had been before—at least with people. Elora could spot a grammar or spelling error at a distance of 100 meters, but Tereza could read people almost as if they were transparent glass. She noticed every nuisance of facial expression and body language. Although Elora could as well, Tereza could see pick out the relief on the features of Lael and Siyana, and the smallest hint of worry on Sayel's face with a combination of something else . . . curiosity.

"Live Long and Prosper, Sayel," Elora said with a mischief temporarily borrowed from Tereza. Only a second later did Elora realize she had spoken in perfect Vulcan.

"Peace and Long Life," Sayel returned in the same tongue, " . . . Tereza."

"Elora doesn't even know Vulcan," she responded, realizing that while Tereza was speaking more, she didn't have a monopoly on the conversation. "I think enough of my previous hosts spoke Vulcan that it's permanently ingrained in my memory."

"Fascinating," Sayel said. "I have spoken to few joined Trills, but I have spoken to enough to know that they have a rather eclectic base of information after enough lifetimes."

Lael was staring at Elora, eyes wide. "This is so weird," she said, her voice faltering.

"This is so cool," Siyana said enthusiastically. "Elora, do you realize that you even speak differently now? I can tell the difference and I've only known you for a few days. This is so cool."

"You said that," Lael grumbled. When Sayel raised an eyebrow at her, she shrugged miserably. "I'm sorry, it is just so strange. I just spoke to Celosia Tereza and now I'm talking to Elora Tereza who used to be Elora Derii. And I can feel the difference, and what's more, I can feel your minds joining together. You are becoming less distinct the longer we stand here and talk." Lael shivered, "it's sort of creepy, you know?"

"No, I don't know," Siyana responded, annoyed. She cast a conspiratorially annoyed look at Sayel who merely responded with Vulcan stoicism.

Elora couldn't help feeling a little stung by Lael's description, but Tereza seemed to accept it as normal, or at least common and innocuous enough to remain inoffensive. "Sorry," she said diffidently. "Nothing much I can do about it."

"No," Lael said, waving a dismissive hand, "I'm sorry, just ignore me. I know I'm being silly."

Then Elora cast a look at Sayel. "You're speaking differently, too," she commented.

Sayel's eyebrows arched in surprise. "Very perceptive. I was told that if I did not drop the formality I would be taken out and shot," she said dryly, casting a look at Siyana.

Elora paused for a moment before speaking. "I was wondering if this . . . sensation was anything like telepathy, but I guess not if this is so odd to you." Elora felt Tereza's interest spark at the question.

"Does it feel like a blending, a . . . merging?" Sayel asked, crossing her arms across her chest and tapping her finger against her lip as she spoke.

"Yes, and now I can barely tell the difference between Elora and Tereza," Elora responded, wincing at her phrasing. "I think if you asked me something about either now, I would just respond with 'I', ten minutes ago I really wouldn't have."

"Well, that's efficient," Siyana commented. "I don't really know too much about that kind of telepathy, but it sounds closer to a Vulcan telepathic experience than a Betazoid one."

"That is most accurate," Sayel responded. "Mind-melds can be very confusing to the untrained. One can easily lose a sense of self because of the seamlessness of the unity."

"Hey, I never felt that," Siyana said, turning to Sayel in protest.

"You've mind-melded with someone before?" Lael asked, "I've always wanted to do that."

"Me too," Elora uttered before she knew that she felt this way. Of course, if someone had brought up this before the joining, she wouldn't have wanted to, but now she did. "Well, Tereza's always wanted to . . . ."

"And you in the last ten minutes?" Sayel asked. The Vulcan looked a little perplexed at the notion of desiring to experience a mind-meld. "Why?"

"I don't know, it seemed like it would be interesting," Lael commented, non-committal.

"I suppose non-telepathic species have always been curious about telepathy since we have no basis of comparison. It's almost like a fairy-tale, magical," Elora reflected.

"That sounds right," Siyana said. "You notice that telepathic species have interesting myths or legends about people with no telepathic power, but Terrans and Trills have stories about magic or telepathy."

"A human once said that science is magic rooted in a naturalistic explanation," Sayel reflected. "I believe that people are fascinated by the impossible, and so they attempt to make it real through fiction and fantasy."
"But why didn't I feel all of that?" Siyana asked, repeating her question to Sayel.

"You melded with someone advanced enough in the mental sciences to keep the separation as well as adapt for changes when melding with non-Vulcans or non-telepaths."

"Why did you meld with someone?" Elora asked. "Just out of curiosity—you don't have to tell me."

The dark blue girl shrugged, then shot Sayel a quick look with her cat-like violet eyes. "The person had to show me something that I couldn't have learned any other way. Her name was T'Sina and she was attending the Vulcan Science Academy. I don't know, she was some sort of prodigy and knew everything there was to know about telepathic ability."

"She didn't know everything," Sayel corrected calmly, arching a scolding eyebrow at Siyana. "But she was highly advanced in the telepathic studies."

"Oh, Sayel, didn't I say something to you?" Elora asked suddenly, staring at Sayel. Celosia had said something to the other girl before she had died, and had given her something as well. Elora closed her eyes and tried to remember, but despite her efforts, she could not. "What did I say?"

Sayel looked at her oddly while Siyana stared at Sayel in much the same curious fashion. "I am not sure," she said slowly. "Tereza said only two words I could discern. Something about an El-Aurian and treachery. Do you know what that means?"

"No," Elora said honestly. "I don't have a clue."

"The only thing I can come up with is the whole Tolian Soran thing with the Enterprise D and the Nexus? Remember? Dr. Soran tried to divert the Nexus to the Veridian system and almost wiped out a populated planet? Soran was an el-Aurian and he was definitely a traitor to the Federation and living beings in general."

"Okay," Elora said slowly. "That's all true . . . but I don't understand the connection between that and anything else."

"Nor do I," Sayel said. The taller Vulcan hesitated, then began pacing through the small room. "Though I admit, this does coincide with the odd behavior Celosia demonstrated toward me." Sayel shook her head, her thick brown hair barely shifting in response to the swift, curt motion. "She seemed to know me from some other place and implored her daughter to give me a book and necklace of hers. But I do not see what either has to do with an el-Aurian, let alone a treacherous one."

"Well," Lael said with a shrug. "Maybe it's one of those mysteries that you never find out the answer to, but drive you crazy for the rest of your life."

"How useless," Sayel muttered.

"How cheerful," Elora said, not having heard Sayel. She stared at Lael with her lips pursed in dismay. "I hope that's not what happens."

"Or maybe it's one of those things that's actually important, but by the time it comes up again, you have already forgotten about it, and it bites you in the—"

"Thank you, Siyana," Sayel interrupted. "You, as well, deserve a sizable reward for optimism."

"Hey, I bet you I'm right," Siyana protested, grinning.

"What can I say?" Sayel retorted briskly. "You know everything, and hence are always right."

Laughing, Siyana just nodded in reply. "Oh, finally you picked up on that."

Sayel just made a neutral tone deep in her throat and turned to Lael and Elora. "Now that we are completed with such obvious silliness, we should begin to formulate a logical argumentation for why the Academy should not suspend us for arriving late to the first term."

"Ooh, I had forgotten about that," Elora said, despondently. Then she brightened. "Hey, I think one of Tereza's previous hosts was a defense lawyer."

"Then would you like to argue with Admiral Paris or another one of the Academy staff members?" Sayel offered generously.

"No thanks," Elora replied, shivering at the very thought. Six hundred years old or no, a Starfleet admiral was still an impressive thing.

"We'll leave that up to you," Siyana told Sayel. "After all, Vulcans can repress emotions like fear, and I don't know, panic."