The Talk (Durant & Wilkas)

[Durant, M.]

0900 Hours, June 22, 2542 (MILITARY CALENDAR) /
Berthing Area, B-Deck, aboard UNSC Vengeance

Lieutenant Durant marched out of his quarters with a datapad tucked under his arm. The last couple hours of his day had been spent combing through reports from his platoon. He checked and double checked any report that involved a personal meeting with Staff Sergeant Cruz, and that had led him to the counseling reports submitted by Cruz on Private First Class Wilkas.

There were over twenty-six counseling reports submitted to him by the Staff Sergeant on Wilkas. Why would one Marine deserve so much counseling time? Durant was aware that the woman has issues with anxiety that made her prone to panic attacks, and she wasn't exactly the most optimistic person in her abilities to be a good Marine, but twenty-six sessions? If Wilkas needed that much one-on-one time with someone, then perhaps he needed to recommend her to a certified Navy shrink.

Of course, he suspected that was not the reason why she was being counseled so often. He thought back to what Corporal Davis had told him earlier in the morning when he visited him in the brig. Apparently Lance Corporal Furby had a theory that Staff Sergeant Cruz and PFC Wilkas were fraternizing, and Davis had supplied evidence of his own to lend credence to that proclamation. Since the CO had ordered to find the Marines whom were fraternizing, this was the closest thing to a real lead he had.

Durant found himself at the PFC's door without realizing he had made his way over to her quarters. He had been so deep in thought that his body must have been running on autopilot. Michael gave his head a shake to clear his mind and knocked on the door. "PFC Wilkas," he called through the door. "it's the Lieutenant. May I come in?"

[Wilkas, G.]

Grace Wilkas had hoped to keep her secret meetings with Cruz a classified secret. The redhead did go out of her way to keep it secret, not talking about it. Of course there were a few unavoidable things which she could do little to hide. Like the record of a certain medical procedure. Wilkas even found herself growing fond of others, after all what she and Cruz had was something that could never truly be, nor should truly be.
She did discover suddenly to find herself attracted to Furby. Yet, she kept such a thing classified.

Her room for once happened to be tidy, a miracle in itself. Grace listened quietly to the music, also another miracle. She heard Durant knock on the door, sitting up on her bed. "Sure it is open." The RTO wondered what Durant wanted from her. She was uncertain as to just why he needed to speak with her.
Wilkas felt confident that he would not know of her secret, her grim secret. Her boots lay in a neat pile at the bottom of her bed, the only sign of mess in the otherwise neat room.

The PFC's inspection senses had been tingling so she tided the room up a few hours ago. Grace liked to think she was getting better with her panic attacks as well as the anxiety. Of course, only time would actually tell if this happened to be the truth and not just her idle hopes and dreams. Maybe she wasn't cut out for life as a marine, but for the moment she was stuck here till the UNSC decided otherwise.
"Hey Sir." She greeted him with a half hearted salute. Wilkas looked rather tired, she managed to escape the brig, just. When the spark of violence broke out, rather than risk injuring her comrades, even the rivals in November... The Russian made a dash for the exit, thus avoiding the security when it came to break up the party.

No one dropped her in it either, though she suspected maybe this was what Durant had come to ask her. Whether or not she went to the party. "I didn't go to the party sir." She decided to go on the offensive first.

[Durant, M.]

"Sure," rang the voice of PFC Wilkas through the door, "it is open."

Durant keyed the panel beside the door and it slid open into the wall to admit him. He stepped inside. The room was surprisingly clean and devoid of clutter, a welcome rarity in regards to her side of the room. Corpsman McMillan was absent, as usual, making the conversation he was about to have much easier as it gave himself and the PFC much needed privacy.

The Lieutenant made his way over to Wilkas's half of the room and stopped just short of her. "Hey, sir," the RTO greeted, snapping a half-hearted salute his way. He smirked and returned an equally half-hearted salute. "As you were," he said.

Silence reigned between the two for a moment, and Durant spent the time wisely. The conversation he was about to have with her was by no means going to be an easy one, and he wasn't quite sure how to approach it. How was he supposed to ask her if she had been sleeping with his second-in-command? "So, you been gettin' it in with the Staff Sergeant?" He almost chuckled at the thought.

Almost.

"I didn't go to the party, sir," Wilkas blurted out, breaking the silence. Durant stared at her for a moment and cracked a smile. That had come out of the left field.

"Suffering from a guilty conscience, PFC?" he inquired. He hadn't considered asking her about it, but now that she mentioned it so out of the blue, it confirmed whatever suspicions he might have had. Despite that, he had no intentions to act on it or investigate further into the matter. "You'll be happy to know I had no intention of questioning you on your whereabouts at the time of the party. I am going to assume that you were here -- in your rack -- sound asleep."

He regarded her with a knowing smile. "However, if you did happen to be at the illegal party that turned into a riot that injured numerous November Company Marines and twenty-seven Navy MAs, I believe it would behoove you to stick to that story."

The Lieutenant made his way over to a seat near Wilkas's bed and sat down. He set his eight-point cover on his knee, the bill facing towards his chest, and stared up at the RTO. "No," he said, locking eyes with her, "I actually came here in regards to a different matter that has garnered my attention. But before I get into it, I'd like to know how you are doing? Have the counseling sessions with Staff Sergeant Cruz helped you any?"

[Wilkas, G.]

Wilkas swore the LT looked positively surprised by the fact that the room was indeed tidy. It wouldn't last mind you, but if the inspection train came thundering down the tracks, she now happened to be ready for it. Fortunately Durant returned her salute in a equally half hearted manner. She liked him, Durant seemed like a good officer. After all he put up with Wilkas' many flaws. Though recently she suspect he suffered considerably from the party, the party she didn't go to by the way regardless of what anyone says.

"NO sir." She said the first part sharper than she meant to, leaving it pretty obvious that Wilkas was in fact lying to him. Yet, he seemed content to leave the matter in the shadows, he probably had enough on his plate to deal with at the moment, without her needing to be chewed out for something she didn't even do. "Yep me too... I mean I was."

The knowing smile however caused her some alarm. She nodded, glancing down at her socked feet, they didn't look like hooves. The UNSC marine corps surely did not possess the power to give their members hooves right?
He sat down on a seat near her bed, she watched him, curious at to what he might say or do. Why had he come here for? Maybe to vent? Maybe to talk with the good doctor?

He locked eyes with her as she raced through her mind, trying to think of any reason other than that one. "I'm alright just tired, missing home and wondering why I drew the unlucky card of being drafted." It must of been a run of bad luck for her to end up here, at least in her eyes anyway. "Yeah they've helped considerably." Wilkas suddenly wondered if the LT was asking about her panic attacks and anxiety issues.
Maybe he was getting a replacement RTO in like the veteran who she replaced, only he'd bought the farm. The thought of leaving Oscar hurt, a lot. This surprised her since she longed for the day she might be able to return home to Earth. But she could not simply just abandon her friends to continue the fight whilst she remained safe on the home world.

[Durant, M.]

An uncomfortable silence reigned in the room when Wilkas finished speaking. Durant shifted his weight to one side and placed his right leg over top his left, so that his right ankle rested against his left knee, and eased himself against the backrest of the seat. A train of thought rocketed through his brain as he tried to decide how he wanted to tackle the elephant in the room.

Obviously he had to say something, but he wasn't quite sure what. How do you ask someone if they are sleeping with their superior? He looked Wilkas up and down and could not, for the life of him, imagine her engaging in an inappropriate and fraternous relationship with a senior NCO. From all that he had seen of her over the last few months, Grace Wilkas was a somewhat naïve, innocent young woman. There was not a sultry bone in her body from what he could see.

However, the scuttlebutt that had been going around, plus what Davis had reported to him earlier that morning painted a much different picture. Not to mention the medical report submitted by the doctors in the ship's infirmary. Wilkas had obviously been pregnant, and he knew what that meant.

"I'm glad the sessions have been successful," he said with sincerity. Despite the possible implications of the medical report and what Davis had said Furby had seen in the platoon sergeant's office, he was happy that some progress was being made in brightening her disposition. She had never asked for any of this, and while that concept continually perplexed him, he could understand that it was a cause for great frustration.

"PFC," Durant said, sighing heavily, "something very... alarming... has come to my attention. I have to ask you... are you seeing anyone? Romantically?"

He glared at her for a moment in uncomfortable silence. It had not been a question he had wanted to ask. He didn't like to stick his nose in the personal affairs of his Marines, as he valued their privacy, but under the circumstances he was left with no choice. Barring the (admittedly) circumstantial evidence that stood against her, he had been directly ordered to investigate the situation by the Skipper. Captain Flannigan counted on him to get to the bottom of it, and he could not return to him and say he hadn't had the courage to go through with it. That was just simply not an option.

If Wilkas was having an affair with Staff Sergeant Cruz, action needed to be taken. Durant knew better than anyone the implications of such an affair, and how it could affect the platoon further down the road. He needed to resolve the situation now before it escalated to something far more serious. Right now no one had been hurt by it, and no favoritism had been shown (unless you count Cruz only counseling Wilkas out of the entire platoon as favoritism) but that could change in a heartbeat.

"I ask you that because I noticed a report from Sick Bay that indicates you underwent a... procedure," Durant said, doing air quotations on the last part. "To be frank, the report said that you had had an abortion, and that indicates that you were PWOP."

[Wilkas, G.]

The silence seemed to drag on forever, Wilkas shuffled uncomfortable on the bed suddenly feeling a lot more apprehensive about why Durant happened to be visiting her. He appeared pleased that the sessions with Cruz were successful, maybe he was only concerned about that and nothing more? Unfortunately such thoughts were premature. His question was difficult for him to ask, difficult for her to answer.
She could lie but if he already came here to ask her then someone or something must of ratted her out. Guess there was only so many rugs under which things might be hidden.

"I was." She managed to say uncomfortable in a quiet voice, the scene felt strangely reminiscent to her first 'boyfriend' way way back with the talk she received from her parents. It was not a fun conversation, nor did this happen to be a fun conversation either. "But I am not seeing anyone any more." For a tiny brief moment, she wondered if Durant himself held an interest in her. It would of been surprising but Grace doubted he would of possessed any interest in her, well except for her being a massive source of extra paperwork/pain in the head.

At the mention of sick bay, Wilkas looked like she was about to be sick. The short red head stood up of off her bed, heading over to the door to her room which she promptly locked. She returned to her original position on the bed, trying to make herself as comfortable as possible. Though given the grim circumstances of the conversational topic it seemed foolish to even attempt to find any measure of comfort.

"I didn't intend to end up in such a position, boys and girls in the same place all the time... You get familiar." Wilkas awkwardly explained, wanting to look at her hands but managing to keep eye contact with Durant. "We used all appropriate protective equipment yet... It... It still happened." If she could go back in time and prevent things from occurring she would do so, however such technology was for the moment not in her possession. "Neither of us never intended for it to happen and I made the call to get the situation resolve as soon as possible." Though the aftermath had left her being rude to some of the NCOs as the whole situation understandably upset her.
"I will not disclose the other party's name I think I deserve some privacy but if you must know it is over between us... Can't risk that sort of situation again." Her tone was firm, harsh even, one which revealed the topic would never be up for willing debate or even discussion between friends.

[Durant, M.]

The Lieutenant was at a loss for words. Wilkas had admitted that she had been in an inappropriate relationship with another Marine, but stuck to her guns and refused to drop a name. He wasn't quite sure what to say. Part of him had hoped the report had been made in error, but deep down he knew that was simply impossible. Doctors didn't write reports like that for giggles.

He sighed and stared down at his lap, his hands had suddenly become interesting. Thoughts washed through his mind like a hurricane. What was there to say? Wilkas wanted to maintain her privacy -- what little privacy she had -- and yet that was simply not possible. Not after a report like that. The company commander wanted answers and he could not approach him with nothing.

"I respect your wish for privacy, PFC," Durant said, forcing himself to look at her. "However, I'm afraid that possibility has gone out the porthole. There is clear evidence of a fraternous relationship that resulted in a pregnancy; evidence that so far has escaped the attention of the BC. If the BC finds out about any of this, he could order an Article 32 investigation, and if that happens, there could very likely be a court-martial. The investigators will not be as understanding as I am."

She needed to know the stakes. The Skipper had been nice enough to keep the situation under wraps so that he could conduct his own investigation, but it was only a matter of time before word got out. There was already scuttlebutt about how Wilkas spent her off-duty time, and he expected that some people would start to draw their own conclusions. Such speculation could be dangerous if it were heard by the wrong people.

"You know how it is, PFC. Oscar Company is already suspect with battalion for the party and a list of other reasons," Durant said. "The last thing we need is for someone to be brought up on charges for a simple mistake they made. If you tell me who it was you were seeing, we can handle everything off the books. No JAG investigation, no court-martial, no ruined careers. Something like this could seriously damage your record, PFC."

[Wilkas, G.]

Wilkas held no desire to simply reveal the name, the embaressment of this situation happened to be incredible. She would rather her career go down the pan than reveal all of this to her LT, even privately it might still be spread to the rest of her company. Grace shook her head slowly. "Sir with respect I won't reveal the name." Her voice shook, as if she was struggling to keep making this stand.
"The relationship is over there is no need for any of this." The RTO informed him folding her arms, she was not going to discuss this. Grace clasped her hands to disguise how much they were shaking.

"You can write me and everything but I'm not going to reveal the name... I ended it, this is my problem, bearing that in mind I shall deal with the consequences of it." She seemed determined to not even hint at the responsible party. "Why is such a problem for sir? I dealt with it in a manner most appropriate." Wilkas could not see why he and the marine corps were so determined to reveal a venture now long dead.
"I don't have a career in the UNSC anyway so it hardly matters to me." Grace added sounding determined. "If I hadn't been drafted none of this would ever of happened." Maybe in the court martial she might get herself dishonourably discharged? She would get to selfishly get to go home then.

[Durant, M.]

Michael frowned, finding that he was at a loss for words. He had given Wilkas an opportunity to come clean and make things easier on herself, and she had slapped him in the face for it. Her refusal to give up the other party involved in the crime aggravated him more than he had originally anticipated that it would. Part of him had expected this, but he still wasn't prepared for it.

With a sigh, he glanced down at his hands in his lap. How was he to proceed? It was obvious that he wouldn't be able to coerce a name out of her, and that left him with little optons. He could just order her to give the information up, but considering her stubborn refusal to answer under amiable conditions, he doubted that would sway her. No. He needed to play his cards differently if he was to get anywhere.

"Okay, PFC," the Lieutenant said, nodding his head slightly. "I admire your willingness to sacrifice yourself to protect another. It is admirable. However, if the BC does catch wind of this, and he will, I'm afraid Staff Sergeant Cruz won't be safe from the investigation that will inevitably ensue."

There. The cards were on the table now for her to see. He stared at her knowingly, his face devoid of expression. "I mean, I'd be disappointed if it weren't Cruz. Such an accusation, even if proved false, would be damaging to his career. Think about it, PFC. Do you think a JAG investigator won't think it curious that you and Staff Sergeant Cruz have seen each other on a regular basis under the guise of "counseling sessions?" Even if the story holds up, they'll be suspicious. And then they might pay a visit to Sick Bay and order a DNA test of the baby. I wonder who the DNA would come back to?"

The Lieutenant shook his head and turned towards her with a look of concern. "You may not be concerned with your own career, PFC, and that's perfectly understandable. But what of his? I can assure you if you admit to me who it is, it will be saving the both of you a lot of trouble, guilty or not. I can recommend the Skipper handle the situation quietly, and no one will have to know your secret. However, if JAG gets involved, all bets are off. If they find hard evidence that you and the Staff Sergeant were having an illegal affair -- regardless of whether or not you ended it -- they will prosecute, and everyone on the ship will know what had happened behind closed doors."

[Wilkas, G.]

Wilkas looked absolutely stunned when Durant revealed Cruz's name. How on Earth did he manage to find out about them? Surely the pair of the managed to keep it secret enough, until a certain incident occurred. "It was not his fault though he shouldn't get in trouble over it as there is nothing left to deal with." Grace muttered in a quiet voice, looking for all the world to be distinctly crushed.

Durant had her, he knew it and wanted to make sure Grace knew that he knew. There was nothing that she could do. "Me and the other being." She reluctantly whispered however she decided to still not openly admit to Cruz being the other person responsible for this affair. The red head reluctantly surrendered herself however finally accepting that the cat was now completely out of the bag.
"What do you wish to do sir?" Grace seemed so terribly defeated by all of this. The RTO gave up, she was more than happy to see her military career go down the pan. Yet Cruz actually happened to be a great marine, one with a good career. She felt violated however having to admit all of this, even privately. She was not about to let his future go down the pan with her's, even if it meant she would still be a marine.

[Durant, M.]

It seemed Durant's gamble had paid off. The look of horror splayed across Wilkas's face was all the confirmation he needed to determine Staff Sergeant Cruz had been the father of the child. He leaned back in his seat and sighed, unsure of what to do or how he felt about it. On one hand he felt strangely proud of himself. His underhanded tactics had worked on the young Marine. However, on the other side of it, he felt ashamed that he had to resort to such tactics.

The game he had played had been a dodgy one. He knew it had been cruel and underhanded, but it had been necessary. If he had returned to Captain Flannigan with nothing, it would have forced his CO's hand to involve the Colonel, which would have inevitably involved the likes of JAG. Michael did not want to see neither Wilkas nor Cruz suffer through such an ordeal. No... this was the best way he could have handled the situation.

He sighed as Wilkas all but admitted that Cruz had been the one to impregnate her. It was not exactly something an officer wanted to hear. His second-in-command had been engaged in a fraternize sexual relationship with a subordinate directly under his command. That was by no means an acceptable practice nor acceptable behavior, and the platoon sergeant was well aware of it. Of course he had displayed in the past a certain disregard to military regulations in the past, what with the assault of Major Killinger, so perhaps this was not as unexpected as he thought it was.

It didn't matter. The both of them should have known better and the fact that Wilkas broke it off proved that she had felt guilty about it. Durant did not want to see her career ruined over it, even if she did not care for it like he did. "So what do you wish to do, sir?" Wilkas inquired.

The Lieutenant threw his hands in the air as if to say "I don't know." It was almost comical, he mused. Officers were taught so much before being given their first command, and yet none of the classes he had attended at OCS nor the training he received at TBS had covered what to do when two Marines were fraternizing. This was completely outside his wheelhouse.

He sighed again. "I don't honestly know, PFC," he admitted, shaking his head dejectedly. "Honestly it's out of my hands. Regardless of whether or not you have broken off the relationship, I have to report this to the Company Commander. In the end, the decision on how to handle the situation will be his to make."

Michael pondered over it some more. "Because you broke off the relationship, that might help you. I can recommend to the CO that this be handled in-house. The Colonel won't have to be informed until after the fact. If it were up to me, I'd settle for an Article 15, but that's not my decision to make."

The Lieutenant leaned forward and stared Wilkas right in the eyes. "I want you to know that this does not change my opinion of you. You're a good Marine and a damn fine RTO. Second Platoon is lucky to have you, PFC. I will do what I can to make sure that this is handled with the utmost respect for your wishes of privacy. Just promise me something; if you intend on entering into a relationship with another Marine, make sure they are the same rank as you or are not in a command billet over you. If you had been romantically involved with a junior Marine in the platoon, there would be no issue."

He held his gaze over Wilkas for a second longer before tearing his eyes away. The Lieutenant rummaged through his pocket and retrieved his datapad. He opened the messenger application on it and started a message to Captain Flannigan. It read:

To: Shay Flannigan
From: Michael Durant
Encryption Code: N/A

Sir,

I have to speak with you ASAP in regards to the matter you have brought to my attention. I have some information you are going to want to hear.

Respectfully,

M. Durant
PC, O-Co.

He thumbed the send button and placed the datapad back into his pocket. Michael left the message intentionally vague in case Beatrice picked up on the databurst and intercepted it. The last thing he needed was for her to read the message and alert the Admiral. If it said anything incriminating, she would be forced to report it, and neither him nor Wilkas needed for that to happen.

"Listen, Grace," Durant started, opting to use her first name, "you can trust me. I will make sure this whole ordeal is handled with care to keep from the whole world knowing your business, and I will try to limit the damage it will have on your career. I know you don't care about it, but I do. I wouldn't be a good officer if I didn't. I take care of my own."