Lt. Jg. Ryden Tarus Kel - Who Gets Your Time?
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Ryden Kel
Dec 28, 2025, 8:51:27 AM (yesterday) Dec 28
to sb11...@googlegroups.com
((Hong Kong District - Starbase 118))
Kel: So… what are you hoping tonight gives you, Commander?
Ryden let the question linger just a fraction longer than necessary,
his tone easy but intentional, eyes drifting between the water and
Foster as if genuinely curious which answer he’d choose to offer.
Foster: A little peace, a little companionship. Maybe even a little
more understanding.
Kel’s mouth curved, subtle but unmistakable.
Kel: Those three together? Sounds less like a night out and more like
a carefully chosen company.
Foster: Everyone’s different, right? We know this academically because
you can look at a Human and a Gorn and think ‘yep, they’re different!”
Different biologies, different planets, different cultures. But I
don’t think we really appreciate how profoundly different others are
until we try to listen to them and understand them.
Kel nodded slowly, attention fixed now... not just polite, but engaged.
Kel: I think that’s where things get interesting. When you stop
categorizing people and start actually listening to them.
There was a warmth to his tone, a quiet invitation rather than a challenge.
Foster: Because somewhere along the way I realized that I was stuck in
my own head, and being stuck in there was pretty miserable. When I
tried to see things from someone else’s point of view I slowly
realized that some of the things I believed were pretty stupid. Not
all of them, of course. But we’re often our own worst critics. So it
was an exercise in stepping outside of myself and trying to see the
world differently. It made my own head a much better place to dwell
in.
Ryden’s gaze softened, thoughtful... but there was something else
there too, a quiet appreciation.
Kel: That kind of self-awareness tends to make people… easier to be
around. More open.
He paused, then added lightly:
Kel: And usually more interesting company.
Foster: Yeah, I do think people are also the same. You get to learn
things and figure out what’s the same, what’s different, and what you
are curious about.
Kel glanced over fully this time, expression openly curious.
Kel: Curiosity’s a good place to start. Especially when it’s mutual.
Foster: For example, I’ve never seen the lanterns on Trill or been to
a remembrance ceremony. What do you remember about them? What did they
look like?
Ryden smiled... genuinely now.
Kel: Quiet. Intimate. You release these floating lanterns onto the
water, each one tied to a memory someone’s willing to share.
His voice lowered slightly, reflective but warm.
Kel: You don’t explain everything. You don’t have to. Just enough for
someone else to understand why it matters to you.
He took a breath, eyes returning briefly to the lights before meeting
Foster’s again.
Kel: I suppose that’s what makes them meaningful. You choose who gets
to see what you’re holding onto.
The implication sat there gently... present, but not demanding.
Ryden let the quiet sit for a moment, the reflections on the water
shifting as the night held its breath.
Kel: You mentioned Earth earlier… growing up there. ::His tone was
casual, but the attention behind it wasn’t.:: What was that like for
you? Being Andorian on a planet that isn’t exactly built for the
cold... or the antennae.
Foster: ?
Kel: ::A faint, teasing warmth edged into his voice.:: I imagine you
stood out. In ways people noticed… and in ways they probably didn’t.
Foster: ?
Kel: I ask because I get it more than most people assume.
His gaze drifted briefly, thoughtful.
Kel: Growing up on Trill, I was always almost familiar... but never
quite. Betazoid enough that my eyes gave me away. Black sclera don’t
exactly blend in when everyone’s expecting the spots to be the most
interesting thing about you.
Foster: ?
There was a small, self-aware smile.
Kel: People noticed. Sometimes they were curious. Sometimes they were
uncomfortable. Most of the time they didn’t quite know what to do with
me.
Foster: ?
He looked back toward Foster, expression open, warm.
Kel: I learned early how to decide what parts of myself were worth
explaining… and who was worth explaining them to.
Foster: ?
The question came easily after that, personal without being heavy.
Kel: So did Earth feel like home to you? Or did you have to make it one?
Foster: ?
Kel: And looking back now… do you think it made you more patient with
people... or just more selective about who gets your time?
Foster: ?
The invitation lingered there, unforced, quietly intimate.
-----
Lieutenant JG Ryden Tarus Kel
Medical Officer
StarBase 118 Ops
O240109RK1
Kel: So… what are you hoping tonight gives you, Commander?
Ryden let the question linger just a fraction longer than necessary,
his tone easy but intentional, eyes drifting between the water and
Foster as if genuinely curious which answer he’d choose to offer.
Foster: A little peace, a little companionship. Maybe even a little
more understanding.
Kel’s mouth curved, subtle but unmistakable.
Kel: Those three together? Sounds less like a night out and more like
a carefully chosen company.
Foster: Everyone’s different, right? We know this academically because
you can look at a Human and a Gorn and think ‘yep, they’re different!”
Different biologies, different planets, different cultures. But I
don’t think we really appreciate how profoundly different others are
until we try to listen to them and understand them.
Kel nodded slowly, attention fixed now... not just polite, but engaged.
Kel: I think that’s where things get interesting. When you stop
categorizing people and start actually listening to them.
There was a warmth to his tone, a quiet invitation rather than a challenge.
Foster: Because somewhere along the way I realized that I was stuck in
my own head, and being stuck in there was pretty miserable. When I
tried to see things from someone else’s point of view I slowly
realized that some of the things I believed were pretty stupid. Not
all of them, of course. But we’re often our own worst critics. So it
was an exercise in stepping outside of myself and trying to see the
world differently. It made my own head a much better place to dwell
in.
Ryden’s gaze softened, thoughtful... but there was something else
there too, a quiet appreciation.
Kel: That kind of self-awareness tends to make people… easier to be
around. More open.
He paused, then added lightly:
Kel: And usually more interesting company.
Foster: Yeah, I do think people are also the same. You get to learn
things and figure out what’s the same, what’s different, and what you
are curious about.
Kel glanced over fully this time, expression openly curious.
Kel: Curiosity’s a good place to start. Especially when it’s mutual.
Foster: For example, I’ve never seen the lanterns on Trill or been to
a remembrance ceremony. What do you remember about them? What did they
look like?
Ryden smiled... genuinely now.
Kel: Quiet. Intimate. You release these floating lanterns onto the
water, each one tied to a memory someone’s willing to share.
His voice lowered slightly, reflective but warm.
Kel: You don’t explain everything. You don’t have to. Just enough for
someone else to understand why it matters to you.
He took a breath, eyes returning briefly to the lights before meeting
Foster’s again.
Kel: I suppose that’s what makes them meaningful. You choose who gets
to see what you’re holding onto.
The implication sat there gently... present, but not demanding.
Ryden let the quiet sit for a moment, the reflections on the water
shifting as the night held its breath.
Kel: You mentioned Earth earlier… growing up there. ::His tone was
casual, but the attention behind it wasn’t.:: What was that like for
you? Being Andorian on a planet that isn’t exactly built for the
cold... or the antennae.
Foster: ?
Kel: ::A faint, teasing warmth edged into his voice.:: I imagine you
stood out. In ways people noticed… and in ways they probably didn’t.
Foster: ?
Kel: I ask because I get it more than most people assume.
His gaze drifted briefly, thoughtful.
Kel: Growing up on Trill, I was always almost familiar... but never
quite. Betazoid enough that my eyes gave me away. Black sclera don’t
exactly blend in when everyone’s expecting the spots to be the most
interesting thing about you.
Foster: ?
There was a small, self-aware smile.
Kel: People noticed. Sometimes they were curious. Sometimes they were
uncomfortable. Most of the time they didn’t quite know what to do with
me.
Foster: ?
He looked back toward Foster, expression open, warm.
Kel: I learned early how to decide what parts of myself were worth
explaining… and who was worth explaining them to.
Foster: ?
The question came easily after that, personal without being heavy.
Kel: So did Earth feel like home to you? Or did you have to make it one?
Foster: ?
Kel: And looking back now… do you think it made you more patient with
people... or just more selective about who gets your time?
Foster: ?
The invitation lingered there, unforced, quietly intimate.
-----
Lieutenant JG Ryden Tarus Kel
Medical Officer
StarBase 118 Ops
O240109RK1
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