He shook his head.  Fraternisation between crewmembers was a dirty little secret within the Royal Navy; it wasn't meant to happen, but everyone knew someone who’d engaged in sexual relationships while on deployment.  Sometimes, a commanding officer would turn a blind eye; sometimes, the happy couple would be broken up, normally by having one of them reassigned to a different starship.  There was no formal regulations, but informally it depended on just how badly the relationship affected discipline.

“I’m sorry to hear that,” he said, and meant it.  He’d never had a relationship with another pilot, but he knew just how intense such relationships could become.  “But you can't let it affect your duties.”

Rose sagged.  “I know that,” she said, weakly.  “What do you suggest I do?”

“Write him v-mails, then forget about it,” Kurt said.  He paused, feeling a sudden flush of embarrassment.  “Remember that some v-mails may be viewed by security officers now that we’re in a state of war.”

He smiled at her expression.  It hadn't been that long ago that a girlfriend had composed v-mails to her boyfriend in the navy, including videos of her naked and performing sexual acts with a girlfriend.  Somehow – Kurt suspected treachery – the videos had been distributed through the naval communications network and then into the planetary datanet.  The resulting inquiry hadn't been able to place the blame.

“I don’t think I have time to be explicit,” Rose said.  She gave him a smile that completely transformed her face.  “Thank you, sir.”

Kurt dismissed her, then turned his attention to his terminal.  A new v-mail from Molly had popped into the ship’s datanet, allowing him to view it now he was alone.  It wasn't even remotely explicit; Molly reported that Penny still wasn't doing too well at school, while Kurt’s boss had warned that he might have to find a replacement if Kurt didn't return to work soon.  Technically, it was illegal to sack a reservist who had been called back to the colours, but Kurt understood his boss’s dilemma.  He couldn’t afford to pay Kurt’s salary while receiving nothing in return and it might be months or years before government compensation appeared.

He shook his head, ruefully, as Molly kept outlining the problems with Penny.  Their daughter was smart enough to understand just how incompetent her teacher was, according to Molly, which led her to act badly in class.  But Kurt knew that there would always be incompetent assholes in the world ... and many of them would be in places of power.  Penny was doing herself no favours by challenging her tutor ...

Shaking his head, he keyed the switch and started to record another message.  Maybe another lecture from her father would help.  Or maybe she’d just keep rebelling against her parents ...

***