When Kelly Grayson entered her captain's ready room with a pile of tablets for the personnel assessment in one hand, Ed couldn't bite back a groan. It was just pointless busywork. Its not like his Union superiors would let him do much by way of restaffing the ship this early in his first command. It was just writing report cards that no one would really read. Boring paperwork.

When Kelly pulled a bottle of sparkle-whiskey from behind her back with the other hand, Mercer had to grin at her. At least he didn't have to do the job alone and sober. Whatever their history may be, he and Kelly did this job well together. And she had excellent taste in intoxicants.

So slogging their way through the list of department heads was only minimally painful. It was easier when they finally made it to the bridge crew that they both worked closely with every day.

"Gordon is good. Damn good. Looks like you made the right call there." Kelly was forced to admit. MEd had known Malloy for a long time, but Kelly had never served with him. And maybe she wouldn't have had the most flattering guess as to what kind of officer Gordon Malloy would turn out to be. Still, he'd come through for the ship and its captain so she could accept that he hated her personally for what she did to his best friend. As long as he respected her orders as his superior officer. "I'm not sure about him and LaMarr though."

"What do you mean?" Ed asked.

"Just those two, together." Kelly said with a shrug "Its a little like letting the biggest class clowns sit together at the back of the room, isn't it?"

"But they aren't sitting in the back. They are sitting in the front, where both of us can keep an eye on them." Ed pointed out. "John likes to talk. He's going to be engaging anyone who sits next to him. And if there is anyone who can carry on a conversation about A'askvariian dancing girls while still piloting a starship safely through a stellar debris field, its Gordon."

Kelly wasn't sure if she agreed but clearly Ed had thought this out. And it seemed to be working okay so far. She could always bring it up again at the next assessment if that changed.

"Besides," Mercer continued, "the rest of the bridge crew is rock solid so I think it balances them out."

"True. Isaac is an impeccable officer. You got lucky getting the only Kaylon in the Union. And Bortus is serious and professional 100% of the time." Kelly said. One could hope those two would be a good influence on Malloy and LaMarr.

"Plus, there's Alara." he reminded her.

"I don't know, Ed. She's so young. I'm not sure if Gordon and John respect her enough to follow her lead when they don't feel like it. Like you said, she is pretty green." Kelly said dubiously. Ed frowned at that.

"Alara is a great officer. Dedicated, can recite the Codes of Conduct forwards and backwards. Whip-smart, knows when to obey orders and when to question them. You know, you might consider offering her a little career guidance sometime. She'd make a helluva First Officer someday." Mercer took a swig from his glass and leaned forward to set it on the table.

"She seems to be doing well as Chief of Security." Kelly responded.

"Yeah, she's good at it. Great at it, in fact. But she'd be good at anything she tried. There's no reason for her to be stuck in Security her whole life just because she is strong." Ed said, then chuckled a bit. "Though when she busted that door right out of the wall, that was pretty bitchin'."

Kelly studied her ex-husband over the rim of her glass of the opalescent Orellian liquor.

"You really admire her." she said before taking a sip.

"Of course." he answered automatically. Then he noticed Kelly's eyes on him. He knew her looks. "I admire all my officers. Every member of the crew." He clarified. Or tried to.

Kelly's "mmhmm" was a vague acknowledgement of his words. She was annoyingly good at that: responding without really reacting which usually led the other person into a conversational trap of some sort.

"Dont 'mmhmm' at me. If you're insinuating my respect for her is less than professional-" Ed said, defensive.

Kelly rolled her eyes, tossing back the rest of her drink and thunking the glass down on the table to interrupt him. "I know you better than that. Even if Union regulations on crew romances weren't a bitch to navigate, you would never put one of your officers in an awkward position."

"Especially not one who is half my age." Mercer muttered pointedly.

Kelly knew her ex well, both as a Captain and as a man.

"Relax, Ed" She leaned forward and gave his hand a pat where it rested on his knee. "Its just a crush. They happen sometimes but before long they pass. It's harmless."

Ed glared at her mulishly. He knew she wasn't wrong, and she was just trying to help him stop feeling so conflicted. But it was a lot easier to pretend none of it was happening when no one put words to it and spoke them aloud.

They both knew that not saying things was easier. They also both knew that lack of proper communication had been a killer for their marriage. It was too late to save their relationship, but they could try their hardest to work together as the best commanding officers they could be to their crew. Through unspoken agreement, they both endeavored to be honest and straight forward with each other.

Painfully, even embarrassingly, so.