Student Captains – Chapter 5

It wasn't a question anymore.

Even if the Captain was forced to carry around a bouncing third grader, he would have to teach him some manners – but of course (like most things the captain did), he wouldn't be doing it alone.

The third shift was over and he went striding into sickbay.

"Ugh, Captain why are we here?" Jay complained. McCoy came into the room, using a rag to wipe off his apparently wet hands. Jay crinkled up his nose. "It smells weird in here."

McCoy raised an eyebrow, "Y'know, you don't smell any better." He shot back. "What can I do for you, Jim-boy?"

Kirk motioned with his index for him to come over, and whispered in his ear the task at hand. McCoy shoved away.

"No way in the devil's own kitchen am I doing that! You're on your own, Jim!" he threw his rag onto a bio bed.

"Bones?"

"What?"

"That's an order." The captain smiled like a fox.

"I hate you…"

XXX

"First lesson in manners training –"

"Captain, why do I have to learn this stuff? I came here to learn how to command a starship, not how to say please and thank you!" Jay interrupted, slouched over, whining.

"You know why you need to learn this stuff?" McCoy asked, "Because you're a miserable brat that doesn't know how to talk to people in a civil manner!"

"Sure I do!"

"Poppycock." McCoy spat.

Jay stuck out his tongue.

"First lesson in training," Kirk cut in, shortly before being interrupted once more.

"Is not sticking out your tongue at other people." Bones said, tone icy.

Jay didn't pay any attention to him and kept eyes trained on Kirk. "The first lesson is using the golden rule."

A farting noise flew out from his mouth. "I'm eight, almost nine years old, I know what the golden rule is." Jay threw his head up to the ceiling.

"You do?"

"Yea. Treat others how you wanna be treated." He crossed his arms.

"Do you follow it?"

"Yea."

"Then why did you bite Kenneth?" Kirk asked. Bones saw where this was going and nodded his head. Ginger sat on the side and grinned slightly.

"I dunno, he was being annoying." Jay shrugged.

"Well if you're being annoying, should I bite you?" Kirk said, tilting his light brown head of hair.

"Sure, I don't care." He said.

"Would you rather I bite you or not bite you?"

"I don't care."

"No, you have to make a choice." Kirk said.

"This is stupid!" Jay cried.

"Make a choice, Jay." Kirk said calmly.

"I going tell the admiral this is the dumbest thing ever!" Jay yelled at the unfairness of it all. "I said I didn't care!"

McCoy snickered softly before walking over to a cabinet and taking out a piece of the contents. "You have to make a choice, Jay." The hypospray glinted in the light.

Ginger, laughing, put her head in her hand.

"I don't want you to bite me…" Jay said nervously.

McCoy crossed his arms, idling holding the shot, pursing his lips, pleased.

"Well then you're not using the golden rule." Kirk said.

The boy laughed, "I don't care!" he stuck out his tongue at Kirk.

Jay thought about this and it seemed like an overload for his little brain. "Anyway it doesn't matter! In four years no ones gonna care if I bit someone!" he said defensively.

"You know what I hear, Jay?" Ginger said slyly, getting up from across the room. "That they don't let kids who have violent records into Starfleet."

Jay's face drained. "What?" he said, voice taken away.

"That's right." She shrugged convincingly, "We just haven't reported you yet."

"You don't got any proof!" Jay yelled.

"Sure we do. We have Kenneth, Kenneth's bandage, the report, the pictures–"

"You ain't got any pictures!"

"Sure we do." Ginger said. "Every time someone gets an injury in sickbay you have to photograph it." She told him, "I think I'll go comm. the admiral right now." She turned around and walked to the door.

His eyes got wide and scared. "Don't tell!" he cried.

Ginger turned around slowly. "I'm telling."

"I command you! Don't tell!" he said. It was funny – a third grader commanding an eighth grader.

"I'm still telling." She turned back around.

"Don't tell!" he pleaded.

"Hm," she said, facing him again, "maybe not, if…"

"If what? Anything!" he got down on his knees. This was hysterical, Ginger thought. Little kids are so gullible.

"Well, first you have to apologize to the Captain and the Doctor, and never stick your tongue out at anyone again." Jay nodded furiously and stared back up at her.

"Well?" she said.

"What?"

"Go." She motioned towards the superior officers.

Jay sighed. "I'm sorry…" he said, head bowed over to the captain.

"And?"

He looked up at Bones who sat there expectantly, overly exaggerating his annoyance.

"I'm sorry, Doctor."

Ginger grinned but the smile vanished instantly as he turned back around, and turned into a stern expression. "Next, you have to never bite someone again."

"Hmph." He pouted. "Fine."

"No pouting – you know what, I think I should tell." She was about to turn back around.

"No!" he cried as loud as he could.

"What's the magic word?" she said.

Jay sighed, very annoyed with the ransom, but more concerned about his ego and promised position. "Please don't tell!" he said.

She smiled. "That's what I thought." She nodded and turned back to him. "I won't tell. Now go back to you quarters, you're not to disturb the captain for another hour." Ginger said.

"But-"

"I can still tell."

Jay dashed out the back door.

Kirk and McCoy stood there, standing at the girl with the brownish red hair and nose ring like she was an angel.

"You both owe me big time." She said, and walked back into the sickbay office.

XXXXXXXXx

A/N: Hope you liked that little segment! Sorry, it's not the funniest of my work, but it needed to be done. Any ideas for Ginger's terms and conditions, just click the review button. Which characters would you guys like to see more of?