"Couple of days? Fantastico. I will be greatly looking forward to that call." Ben picked up his tea and lightly blew on it. "So, I'm sure there will be plenty of time for me to get to know them, but is there anything you think I should know about the rest of the... our crew?" He took a careful sip of the hot tea.

Pleased with his willingness to dive headfirst into his obligations, Elena once more picked up her data pad and held it out to him, his image still on the screen. She scooted a little closer to him so she would be able to narrate as images slid across the display. The Companion reached forward and moved to the next photo.

"You will be sharing the cockpit with Miss Wychovski, a former Alliance pilot," she began, looking over the blonde woman's photo with a curious smile. She moved to the next crew member.

"Here is our Mechanic, Mr Kurigawa."

Again, the photos slid to another member of their crew, "Our lovely Doctor, Brenna Casey," she introduced, affection obvious in her voice. "She was a volunteer medic for the Alliance, although I don't imagine she was very selective in who she saved," she informed him, smiling tenderly, "After Serenity Valley she left the military work to serve in a hospital on Londinium," she further explained.

On to the next. "Damien Riggs," she announced, "A former member of the Alliance Navy and a close friend of mine. He will be our cook," she told him with an amused grin, gentle laughter spilling past her lips. "He's quite skilled, I assure you."

She slid her finger across the screen to move to the next crew mate. "Miss Saxton, she will be representing The House aboard our ship," she told him, glancing up at his face for a moment before returning her attention to the data pad.

The next image to slide by was of a large brute of a man, the kind who looked like he could crush someone's head without much effort. "Mr. Graves, he's to be a member of our Security, a 'gunhand', if you will," Elena remarked, although she didn't like how uncivilized 'gunhand' sounded. "Quite the decorated Alliance soldier and a former Captain himself," she described, a smile touching her lips. He was a strange one, this Mr. Graves, but she wanted Benjamin to find that out on his own.

Ben watched and listened attentively, doing his best to cement their names with their respective faces in his mind. There was certainly a large percentage of the crew that were former Alliance Military. He was worried slightly about how they would feel about a former Independent being chosen as the ship XO, but he figured that Elena must have considered that as well and concluded that it wouldn't be a problem, so he let it be.

After Elena had finished, he spoke. "Doc was at The Valley?" For those who'd been there, there was only the one, and he had yet to meet someone whose soul hadnt been marked by that meat grinder of a battle. "I was there too. A fair few Alliance docs and medics broke ranks and did their best to helped our wounded during the surrender." Not that it had mattered much, while the Independents surrender was organized a catastrophic number of survivors died due to lack of food and medical support. He winced a little at the memory of that week of hell. As the saying went, "No one leaves Serenity, you just learn to live there". He wondered how many of the other former Alliance on the crew had been there.

He cleared his throat and took a sip of his tea. "Looks like solid bunch. Alliance had some pretty solid pilots, I'm sure Miss Wychovski is quite good... Not as good as me of course." His expression turning sly for the last part.

"Always nice to have a good cook around too." He did wonder a little at how Elena had laughed when she had named Riggs their cook. He surmised her claim of his skill was referring both to the kitchen as well as combat.

"And Mr Graves certainly looks the part of a gunhand." He took another sip of tea and then said softly to himself, "Non vorrei incontrarlo in un vicolo buio."

Once more, mischief lit in her eyes and she leaned away from him, "Nor would I," she returned, calmly picking up her tea cup and taking a slow sip, amusement in her tone.

Placing her cup back on its bronze tray, she slid the data pad onto her lap and flipped between the image of their Doctor and their Cook.

"Both Mr. Riggs and Doctor Casey witnessed Serenity Valley," she confirmed, looking over their respective photos. "I try not to press her on it, but I believe our doctor was one of those who broke ranks," she told him, smiling warmly in his direction, "She is the type to help when necessary, regardless of one's ideals," she added, nodding once before putting the data pad down again.

"But fret not, Mr. Street, you have a fair share of allies and I will not tolerate any of my crew harassing one another," she assured him, folding her hands on her lap and watching him.

Bens eyes lit up and his face split into a grin when Elena showed that she had understood his unconscious slip into Italian.  "Ah! Tu parli italiano! Meraviglioso!"

His expression turned more serious when she confirmed that both Doc Casey and Chef Riggs had been at the Valley, and he nodded at her description of Miss Brenna. Anyone who'd been among those to try to help his dying comrades was A OK as far as he was concerned.

"But fret not, Mr. Street, you have a fair share of allies and I will not tolerate any of my crew harassing one another," Elena finished.

Ben chuckled softly. "I admit I was worrying a tiny bit about how they might react to having a Browncoat as their XO."

With a slight nod, her gaze flickered down toward the data pad before returning to his face, "The war is long over," she murmured, smiling gently and idly crossing her legs at the ankle, "And I aim to ensure it stays that way on The Allure. There will be nothing to worry about," she added.

There was a speech she'd need to give when the crew was all together, and she'd been hard at work crafting it these past few days. She needed to remind the crew of their duties, the expectations she, the Guild and the House had for their conduct, and she wanted to find a way to assist them in surpassing their differences to better serve the greater good. No matter their beliefs, or their particular political leaning, their priority was to be the ship they served upon.

A gentle breath slipped past her painted lips and her shoulders relaxed ever so slightly. Her smile returned and she tilted her chin to the right just a bit, "I believe we are in for quite the adventure," she wagered, looking forward to commanding this ship with his assistance.

Ben returned her smile. "I imagine you're probably right..." He paused a moment while he finished the last of his second cup of tea. "...Especially with the way I fly." He said with a mischievous wink. He placed his cup back on the table, sat up, and shrugged. It was not just a simple movement of the shoulders though, his shrug utilized most of the muscles in his upper body. Useful for getting the blood flowing after sitting for a while. "Well, I've probably kept you long enough. I'm sure you've got a lot to do, what with preparing the ship and all."

Nodding, the Companion stood, her hands brushing over the front of her dress to clear away and wrinkles that sitting had caused. Bending down a bit, she picked up the data pad and held it against her chest with one hand, using the other to gesture for him to follow her.

"I enjoyed our meeting," she informed him, grinning before she turned to lead him toward the door, walking slowly so that he could walk beside her. "And I will be sending you all the required documentation once we've concluded," she added, moving out of the meditation room and back into the corridor. A couple trainees were walking in the opposite direction and they eyed him curiously before nodding politely to them both and hurrying on their way. Elena smiled, pleased with how the day had gone so far.

Once they reached the front, the Companion accompanied him outside, stooping just a little ways past the front entrance. "Don't hesitate to reach out if you have any questions," she asked, extending her hand toward him, the breeze running through her dark waves and toying with the hem of her dress.

Ben rose and followed Elena out of the room, falling instep beside her. "Its been a genuine pleasure meeting you as well." He said, and he meant it. Elena was an impressive woman. Beautiful, smart, clearly extremely intelligent, and most important of all she had a sense of humor.

He smiled at the mention of documentation, hoping that it would include ship specs and crew files. For a moment it felt like he was back in high-school with homework to do.

"Don't hesitate to reach out if you have any questions," Elena said, extending her hand. He took it and bowed in much the same way as their meeting, much less awkwardly, but probably still just as incorrectly. "I will, and I'll be waiting on your call. Abbi cura di te e arrivederci alla prossima!" He released her hand and headed back towards the street.