Lt. JG Natasha Cole - I Could Get Used to This
Natasha Schell
(( Archaeological Survey Site – Serein Basin, Rylor ))
oO Apparently archaeology came with more eye contact than advertised. Good to know. Oo
Nyra’s gaze shifted to Natasha.
Tal: ::idly:: Most evenings, too.
oO Oh. That sounded a little less like archaeology and a little more like an invitation. Oo
Cole: I’m not hearing a downside yet.
There was something unexpectedly calming about the way Nyra worked, precise without looking tense, focused without shutting the world out.
Tal: ::light laugh:: That’s because we haven’t reached the part where you spend three hours cataloguing fragments that all turn out to be the same broken bowl. ::a faint smile:: It does build character, though.
Natasha tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear while listening.
Jovenan: Response
Natasha brushed a little dust from her gloves, glancing between the two of them before her attention settled briefly, and perhaps a fraction too easily on Nyra.
Cole: If we keep coming back, can we negotiate better titles than “volunteer”?
Natasha had just enough time to realize Nyra was deliberately making her wait before the corner of her mouth twitched.
Tal: ::loftily:: Titles are earned through sustained contribution over time. ::glancing between them, warmly:: Though at your current trajectory, I’d say you’re both on track for promotion to ‘provisionally useful’ by the end of the day.
Jovenan: Response
oO This was a far better use of shore leave than overthinking alone in her quarters. Oo
Cole: I suppose I could be persuaded to continue my field education.
Tal: ::offhand:: Then I suppose I could be persuaded to continue field-educating you. ::quickly:: Both of you, I mean.
Cole: That sounds dangerously close to a good use of shore leave.
oO Right. That should not have been as appealing as it was. Oo
Jovenan: Response
Natasha’s eyes followed the geometry Nyra traced in the dirt, but her awareness of how close she’d stepped in sharpened a little too. For a second, she forgot she was only supposed to be volunteering. This was no longer just a dig site; it was a puzzle, and Nyra was showing them how to read it.
Tal: All right. Working theory. ::her tone easing naturally from playful to precise:: We may not be looking at scattered debris at all. ::tipping her brush toward Cole’s square:: This gives us controlled access. Something that opened and closed, meant to be accessed by only the right people. ::tipping her brush toward the seam:: A built boundary – threshold, fitted stone, maybe the edge of a floor or doorway.
Natasha watched as Nyra tipped her brush toward Jovenan’s square, following her own train of thought.
Tal: And here, repeated domestic or work use. Heat, occupation, and routine. ::eyeing Jovenan and Natasha:: Peer review time. Your thoughts?
That was the part Natasha recognized. Not the archaeology exactly, but the moment when disconnected details stopped being details and started behaving like evidence. She went a little still, her attention sharpening as her mind shifted from appreciation to analysis—not dramatically, just efficiently. It was familiar territory because details mattered.
Cole: ::processing what info they had:: If the latch and seam belong to the same system, then we’re probably not looking at random domestic debris. We’re looking at a controlled space people used repeatedly. The hearth makes it feel less ceremonial and more practical, like something people actually worked around. Possibly domestic in nature.
Jovenan: Response
Tal: I think that’s right. The next useful evidence probably won’t be dramatic. ::glancing between them:: We’d want to look for continuation of the seam, post settings, compacted flooring, maybe discoloration where repeated traffic or storage changed the soil chemistry. ::mock-conspiratorially:: Which is archaeologist for ‘you are both now officially authorized to get very excited about dirt.’
Cole: You make a surprisingly compelling case for dirt.
Jovenan/Tal: Response
Cole: I’m not saying I’ve been converted. I’m just saying I understand the appeal a lot better than I did this morning.
Jovenan/Tal: Response
For the first time in longer than she wanted to think about, Natasha realized she wasn’t bracing for anything. She was just… here.
Cole: I could get used to this.
Jovenan/Tal: Response
Tags/TBC
----- ◌● -----Lt. JG Natasha Cole
Security Officer
USS Artemis-A
A240205NC4