First Impressions

Posted on Mon May 25th, 2026 @ 5:27pm by Bellamy Ghazi & Ensign Nate Stanton

1,565 words; about a 8 minute read

Mission: Prologue
Location: School Room
Timeline: Before 'First Contact'

Bellamy Ghazi watched the stars through the screen on the wall, taking them in with a small smile. They preferred travelling at impulse over warp. Warp was...well, streaks of speed, of travelling to a new destination. They wore a simple shirt, sleeves pushed up, and brown trousers. Their brown hair curled slightly, cut to their jaw, but a bit unruly. They could tame it in the morning, come three hours later and it decided to do whatever it wanted. It wasn't a school day, but they were meeting a new student. Loretta Stanton-West, daughter of Ensign Nate Stanton. She had transferred from the USS Silo. A good student, from what they could see. But they...also believed in just getting to know the students.

The chime sounded in the classroom before the door opened. Nate Stanton stood with his daughter Lottie, urging the 11 year old to move inside. Lottie smiled politely as they made their to the new teacher, but she was clearly nervous. She'd be spending a lot of time with her new teacher, it would be miserable if they weren't nice.

Bellamy turned to face them, smiling as they looked at Lottie and then at Nate. "Loretta...it's nice to meet you. I'm Bellamy Ghazi, your new teacher," they said and motioned for the desks, to sit down...and they went to sit down too, not at the teacher's desk, but one of the smaller ones for the students. "You've come from the Silo?"

"Yes, Miss Ghazi, not been here long," Lottie smiled with a touch of shyness, but moved to sit with her, unconsciously tidying her dark hair up.

"Should I...?" Nate motioned over his shoulder and towards the door, unsure if the teacher wanted to speak with her alone.

"Sure, Ensign," Bellamy said with a smile, looking at Nate with warmth. "I'll get to know Lottie and I'll walk her back home." They looked at Lottie and gave her a small smile, the warmth still there. "And just Ghazi, or Teacher Ghazi if it feels better for you. I'm nonbinary, so I don't use Miss or Mister."

"Oh...sorry..." Lottie frowned, glancing to her Dad as she flushed red at the mistake. Nate just gave her an encouraging smile though, before letting himself out.

"It's okay, you weren't to know and you don't have to apologise for what you didn't know," Bellamy said quickly, tilting their head as they gave a small smile. "Now...what do you prefer to be called in school? Loretta or Lottie?"

"Lottie," the girl replied quickly, giving a half shrug as she chuckled softly. "I've...just always been Lottie at home."

"I like it," Bellamy nodded, encouragingly, chuckling softly. "I was a Belly when I was growing up. Between us? Fine when I was little, less fine when I was your age."

Lottie giggled softly, nodding with understanding. "Maybe...Belle then?"

Bellamy smiled at the words, nodding as they accepted it. "I like Belle. If you want to, you can call me that," they said and gave a small wink. They had been given a lot of nicknames from students over the years. Belle was nice. "What's your favourite lesson, Lottie?"

Lottie hesitated for a moment, unsure what the best answer was. She wanted to make a good impression, but she didn't want to lie either. "Well...I like reading. A lot, actually. And art...I really like drawing, on paper and screen."

Bellamy smiled gently, encouragingly, giving a nod. "I'm a bookworm too," they said, a quiet confession. "I am not very talented at drawing though. But I enjoy it."

"Will we do art here? As a lesson?" Lottie asked, biting the inside of her lip in a moment of concern. She'd found all ship schools to be different.

Bellamy watched her closely at that, seeing the worry on her face. "Yes, but not compulsory," they said, almost firmly, meeting her eyes. "It's more...for students who enjoy it and want to do it in the classroom. There's music as well...not from me, I am not a music teacher."

"I want to," Lottie said quickly, relaxing as her smile brightened. "And music. My Dad plays me guitar."

"I am sure we can arrange that, for any instrument," Bellamy said, watching her closely before leaning a little closer. "And...because it is what I always ask...what is your least favourite subject?"

Lottie's smile weakened at that and she gave an awkward, half shrug. "I'm...not that great at the serious, hard stuff. Science. Maths."

"That's okay," Bellamy said and gave a nod of understanding, because they did get it. "No one is good at everything. It's partly how brains work, or how we best learn. Is it your least favourite because it is hard, serious...or are you just not that interested in it?"

"Cos it's hard work," Lottie admitted before grimacing, shaking her head with a self conscious laugh. "Makes me sound lazy."

"Not at all," Bellamy shook their head, their light brown eyes on her. "Lottie...it's natural. And even when adults say they don't do that...they do. Very few like everything, and fewer enjoy things that...are a lot harder."

"But...don't you have to get good at everything, if you join Starfleet?" Lottie watched them with curiosity.

"You need to be balanced," Bellamy said softly and gave her a gentle smile. "And yes, be good enough to pass the exams. But a lot of hard work goes into making up for the subjects where you aren’t as strong. And...different bits of Starfleet have different exams too. The enlisted do different from officers, and it also depends on specialisation. So...if you want to join Starfleet, you can. Even if maths and science are a lot harder for you than History for instance."

Lottie smiled awkwardly, shaking her head quickly with the words. "I...dunno what I want yet, not really. I like flying, like my Dad though."

Bellamy smiled back, watching her with a small smile. "You have time to decide what you want. And if you like flying...you can do that. There's civilian pilots too, not just Starfleet."

Lottie nodded, biting on her lip as she wondered how much she should ask. "What...what are you best at?"

Bellamy met her eyes before they smiled, considering it. "History," they finally said before they chuckled. "Ancient history. It's because I enjoy it the most."

"I...like the history stories..." Lottie thought on it, absently playing with some hair. "But learning all the dates and names is hard..."

"It really is...I think...you get better at it with practice, but sometimes...it's enough knowing rough dates," they said and gave a small nod. "Do you have any other questions about me, or the lessons?"

"Will there be homework?" she asked with a half screwed up nose, unable to hide how she felt about it.

Bellamy bit their lip to stop a laugh, their brown eyes warm with it. "I...don't believe in homework for the sake of homework. There will be projects, where...you have some weeks to research a subject. But not homework. The work is done in the classroom."

Lottie let out a breath of badly disguised relief, her smile returning as she tucked some dark hair behind her ear. "What...kind of projects will we do?" she asked, clearly warming up to that idea.

"Most of them will be about the things people do on a starship. So you've got good sources to interview," Bellamy said as they tried to find the best way to frame it. "Some science, or engineering...or what medical does, or how does operations work. We are lucky to be in a starship...gives us access to so much."

"So....we might get a tour of all the secret bits of the ship?" Lottie asked, her smile becoming a grin of hope.

Bellamy laughed and nodded, their eyes shining with warmth at that. "I'll see what I can arrange. I think it would be very interesting to see the warp core. And maybe even some Jeffries tubes."

"Yeah," Lottie agreed with a smile, pulling a leg up into the chair to hug close, resting her chin on her knee. "And...maybe...Stellarcartography...Labs...the Bridge..."

Bellamy nodded encouragingly, smiling as they considered it. "And of course a tour of the bridge. Has to be done, of course..." they looked at Lottie and winked. "Especially if you get to sit in the main chair."

Lottie laughed at the sheer cheek of the idea of it, biting on her lip. "Have you ever done that?"

Bellamy shook their head, smiling as they thought about it. "No...when I was growing up, the Captains my parents served under were...strict about children on the bridge."

"Then we should sneak you into the chair too..." Lottie's eyes sparkled with mischief, showing there was another side to this bookish girl.

Bellamy laughed warmly, nodding as they watched her, the warmth of the girl. "Okay...if we get to do it, I'll take a seat too," they promised, with a playful smile. And they were pretty sure they would if given the chance now. "I think we are going to get on well, Lottie."

---

Lottie Stanton
Civilian Child
USS Guinevere

Nate Stanton
Flight Control Officer
USS Guinevere

Bellamy Ghazi
Teacher
USS Guinevere

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