Lieutenant Commander Esmé Dumont
Name
Esmé Dumont
Position
Diplomatic Officer
Rank
Lieutenant Commander
Biographical Information
| Homeworld | Nice, France, Earth | |
| Species | Human | |
| Gender | Female | |
| Birth Year | 2342 | |
| Age | 50 |
Physical Appearance
| Height | 5'8" | |
| Weight | 125 lbs. | |
| Hair Colour | Dark Brown | |
| Eye Colour | Brown | |
| Physical Description | Notable features belong to this seasoned human female whose appearance is beginning to show the slightest signs of age. Most striking is her brilliant, broad smile, defined on either side by faint smile lines set under prominent cheekbones. Caramel eyes are watchful and stand out against dark eyeliner. Dark brown hair, so dark it almost appears black, is straight and falls around her face in a simple wedge cut. Though her skin has a natural chestnut hue, she has taken time to apply an even layer of cosmetics that deepens the natural tone of her skin and evens her complexion. |
Family Data
| Spouse | Ambassador Christian Dumont (deceased) | |
| Children | Sylvie Dumont (girl, born 2370); Gabriel Dumont (boy, born 2375) | |
| Father | Olivier Renard (architect; partially retired) | |
| Mother | Dr. Aubrey Renard (neurosurgeon; retired) | |
| Brother(s) | Lucas Renard (architect and urban planner) | |
| Sister(s) | Dr. Michele Renard Velasquez (seismologist; terraformer) |
Personality Profile
| General Overview | Esmé Dumont is described as a level-headed strategist who listens intently, but tends to be thoughtful about deciding upon a course of action. Her background in professional counseling, colonial affairs, and staff management has given her a unique perspective on issues of diplomacy, and those with whom she has worked regard her as fair and consistent. She has a practiced patience about her, and her unique wisdom comes from experience that was forged through a some of Starfleet's most trying times. She is slow-to-anger and quick to forgive, but she is also very task-oriented and goal-focused. While this makes her a strong accountability partner, she sometimes holds others to unrealistic expectations. | |
| Strengths & Weaknesses | + Level-headed + Empathetic + Slow-to-anger or provoke - Perfectionist (self and expects this of others) - Thoughtful to a fault (slow to commit) - Limited "official" experience in the field as a diplomatic officer |
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| Ambitions | Although she has immediate ambitions of doing well in her return to Starfleet, Esmé has already been thinking about the next stage of her life. Though she cannot see herself retiring completely within the next twenty years, she has considered making the shift to an administrative job at Starfleet Headquarters or teaching at Starfleet Academy. Beyond her professional ambitions, she hopes the current assignment will be a distraction from the not-too-distant loss of her husband, Christian Dumont. | |
| Hobbies & Interests | Hobbies: + Tennis + Piano + Painting Interests: + Art + Psychotherapy + Interstellar Politics + Theatre |
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| Languages | Federation Standard, French, Romulan |
Personal Relationships
| Family | Sylvie DumontDespite doing all that she could to make her children her first priority, the reality of war scarred Sylvie’s early childhood. Despite being a heavily fortified installation, Starbase 310 found itself under constant threat of attack by the Jem’Hadar. Worse, because of Esmé’s position at the time, she was often gone for long hours, sometimes even days. Sylvie has always been headstrong and independent, not unlike her mother. This has led to some conflicts, particularly in adolescence and early adulthood. Unlike her mother, Sylvie did not find focus for her life early in adolescence. Mediocre in school and university, Sylvie found herself in artistic expression. Currently, she is in the company of the Paris Opera Ballet. Esmé’s training as a counselor has given her a unique into her daughter’s development. Knowing that Sylvie’s attachment and securing was threatened early in childhood, she holds herself responsible for some of the strain on their relationship along with Sylvie’s difficulties adjusting even in adulthood. The two are navigating what it means to have an adult relationship now that they have made it through the turmoil of adolescence, including the loss of Sylvie’s father. Gabriel “Gabe” DumontUnlike his sister Sylvie, Gabriel was born after the conclusion of the Dominion War. Esmé was able to strike a much better work-life balance in those years despite her increasing scope of responsibility, and there wasn’t the constant threat of attack on Starbase 310 in Gabriel’s formative years like his sister had experience. Esmé described Gabriel as a “happy child,” and he was. Rare was the occasion where he would cause any fuss at all; nothing seems to bother him, and it never has. Moreover, he has always idolized his parents, understanding from a young age that they were part of something bigger than themselves. For Gabriel, he did not reel from the loss of his father; rather, it inspired him to do something in his honor that would make his father proud. And, as for his relationship with Esmé, the two became very close. Esmé believes she would not have been able to survive the first few months without Christian had it not been for her son. Gabriel is in his second year at Starfleet Academy where he is studying to be a flight control officer. |
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| Relationships | Christian DumontIt has been two years since Christian, a Federation ambassador, was killed during a mission involving the Cardassians and the Kressari. Esmé was present during the event, as her husband had asked for her presence due to her familiarity with the principal Cardassian diplomat involved. For months after, those moments replayed for Esmé each time she closed her eyes. Now, those moments are few and far between. Esmé is no longer broken; she wouldn’t even describe herself as bruised. She is psychologically stable, and her sensitivity concerning her husband’s death does not put her at risk for irrational behavior or emotionality. Never-the-less, the scars from this loss will last a lifetime. |
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| Friendships | Carlos RamirezVice Admiral Carlos Ramirez (ret.) first met Esmé when she was assigned as the senior counselor for Starbase 310. In that role, on the border of Cardassian, Bajoran, and Federation space, along with numerous independent worlds, Esmé quickly became the de facto diplomatic advisor for flag officer. When war broke out, they found themselves on the front lines together, and they literally fought side-by-side. Esmé became Ramirez’s liaison officer to the 13th Allied Fleet, and he depended on her to keep the Klingon, Romulan, and Federation commanders working together. Later, in the aftermath of war, Esmé became part of Ramirez’s staff, focused specifically on colonial affairs along the Cardassian border. Eventually, for the last two years of his tenure with Starfleet, Esmé served as Ramirez’s chief of staff. After the death of her husband, Esmé retreated. Though she had done much of the healing, she had found herself in a place where she wasn’t sure where to go with the second half of her life. It was during a visit with Ramirez that a return to Starfleet was recommended, and he arranged the seldom-used reactivation as a way to help his former chief of staff find her purpose again. The two do not communicate regularly, but Ramirez now regards Esmé as the daughter he never had. |
Personal History
| Personal History | Esmé Dumont was born in Nice, France, to Olivier and Dr. Aubrey Dumont on December 6, 2342. The youngest of three children, Esmé was raised in a warm, loving environment that was both nurturing and protective. Because she was nearly ten years younger than her siblings, Esmé’s earliest memories are of spending time with her father, a respected architect and freelance sculptor whose works are visible throughout prominent cities across the Federation. Her father, much more invested in the art of design than the process of construction, spent the majority of his time working from his home studio rather than spending time in the field. This made him primarily a “stay at home” father, so she was largely cared for by him. Even though her closest parental bond in childhood was with her father, she and her mother were also close. However, as the chief neurosurgeon at the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Nice in her home town, patients, students, guest lectures, and seminars all across Earth and occasionally off-world frequently dominated Esmé’s mother’s time. Her parents were strong advocates of personal freedom and self-determination, though they set appropriate boundaries and provided significant guidance during early and middle childhood. From a young age, Esmé was compelled to compete with her siblings, both of whom excelled at academics. Intensely interested in mathematics, her brother, Lucas, developed an interest in architecture and followed in the footsteps of their father, though Lucas’ studies and early career took him far away from their home. Likewise, Esmé's sister, Michele, developed an interest in geology that would later evolve into a near obsession with terraforming. Both ultimately left for university and began their respective careers while Esmé was still in high school. This set the bar high for her. |
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| Education | Despite the success of her brother and sister, Esmé did not feel drawn to the hard sciences like her siblings. In fact, she found herself quite lost when it came to deciding upon a career path. She was fortunate to have the support of caring teachers and advisors during her time at le lycée, and these professional educators left such a profound impact on her that she started college at the Université de Nice pursuing a degree in interstellar history with a minors in education and psychology. Though she did not have the same academic prowess in the sciences as her brother and sister, Esmé excelled in her studies, achieving accolades for her scholarship. |
Career History
| Pre-Starfleet Career | The penultimate distinction in her early career was being accepted upon graduation for a teaching assignment aboard one of Starfleet’s newest starships, the Starship Galaxy, a vessel class designed to support both crew and families, and so there was a need for teachers aboard. This was a relatively new development in Starfleet, as most families had remained shoreside or at staircases in preceding decades. It was a tremendous opportunity to not only get her “foot in the door”, as it were, for her career, but it had the added benefit of allowing her to see the wonders of space. Esmé’s experiences aboard the Galaxy were awe-inspiring. Before this assignment, she had never considered service in starship or life aboard a starship for that matter, and at the conclusion of her two-year teaching contract, she had finally discovered a career that matched her passion: ship’s counselor aboard a starship. |
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| Starfleet Academy | Using the relationship she had built with the commanding officer of the USS Galaxy, Esmé was accepted into a Starfleet direct-commissioning program for those who had already earned a college degree, and she enrolled in the master’s-level counseling program with Starfleet Academy. Of course, the coursework was tailored towards starship counseling, and so her coursework included both advanced theoretical and practical studies in mental health as well as conflict resolution, personnel management, and diplomacy. Esmé successfully completed the program and was commissioned with the rank of lieutenant junior grade in 2367. | |
| Early Career | Esmé’s first assignment as a Starfleet counselor was to the USS Yamaguchi NCC-26510 upon her graduation in 2367. As one of the general counselors aboard the ship, she was responsible for providing therapeutic services to officers, crew, and their families. Though she found her work rewarding, she also found it routine. There was little excitement—until later that same year. USS Yamaguchi was among the first ships to assemble for the infamous confrontation with the Borg in what is now known as the Battle of Wolf 359. Esmé’s itinerary for the day had been typical: three clients in the morning, a lunch meeting with the counseling department staff, and an afternoon visiting with primary classrooms working on character eduction. While visiting with the primary classroom, the ship engaged the Borg Cube that was on a direct course for Earth. The attack had been swift; USS Yamaguchi had maneuvered with the Bellerophon to draw fire from the cube, but the Borg weapons ripped through their shields and hull. Massive explosions had torn the ship asunder. Though the ship had been virtually destroyed, the primary school was deep within the saucer section. Though badly damaged, the structural integrity of their section had been sustained. Esmé managed to help the primary class traverse the broken and battered ship until they found a working escape pod and were able to escape the ship. Out of nearly 800 aboard, they were among only 147 to survive. Esmé and “her children” were affectionately referred to as the “lucky 13” who escaped the Borg from the Yamaguchi’s saucer section. Though the experience with the Borg had been horrific, there was no time for personal grief. Esmé was immediately recalled to Earth where she became one of dozens of counselors appointed to Starfleet’s crisis response team in the wake of the Borg incursion into Federation space. She spent the next 18 months counseling victims and their families. After all, the 11,000 casualties affected almost everyone on Earth in some way – whether they actually knew someone present or not. While serving on Earth, Esmé’s work frequently brought her to Starfleet Headquarters where many of her clients worked. On one of her trips, she met a young human, Christian Dumont, who had just received an appointed as a Federation special envoy. Christian and Esmé fell madly in love, and they were married only six months after they met. Despite her husband’s position in the Federation Diplomatic Service, Esmé was unwilling to abandon her Starfleet career, and so the two pursued a relationship across countless light-years. In late 2369, Esmé Dumont was promoted to lieutenant and assigned planetside to Starbase 310 as the station’s senior counselor. However, only a few months after arriving, she discovered that she was expecting her first child. In 2370, Esmé’s husband joined her on Starbase 310 in time for her to give birth to their daughter, Sylvie Dumont. The large starbase made for a comfortable place to raise a child, and the features and amenities of the facility allowed her to tend to her baby while still fulfilling her duties. Because of their proximity to the densely populated region, Esmé had the opportunity to work with the Xepolite, Kressari, Trill, Klaestron, and Kobliad. In her role as senior counselor, she established herself as the trusted diplomatic advisor to the base’s commanding officer, a rear admiral. Later, as the Dominion War expanded, Starbase 310 became the site of heavy fighting during the Dominion War. Because of the base’s position on the Cardassian border, they frequently fell under attack. Eventually, an entire Federation Alliance Fleet, Fleet 13, was based out of Starbase 310 with the mission to protect the sector and maintain the border with the Cardassian Union and the commanding officer of Starbase 310 became the fleet commanding officer. He was promoted to vice admiral, and with his new rank and position, he assigned his trusted diplomatic advisor to the role of Allied Fleet liaison officer. In this capacity, Esmé was responsible for maintaining the delicate relationship among the Federation, Klingon, and Romulan forces represented. This was a capacity that she filled during the Allied relief efforts in the wake of the Dominion War, though her function expanded to include coordinating with the Cardassian border colonies that the Federation supported during reconstruction. In the midst of all of this, Esmé had given birth to her second child, a son, Gabriel Dumont, several years before. Her husband, Christian, who had been elevated to Federation ambassador-at-large, was also assigned to the region as the Federation ambassador for the sector. Esmé spent several years of dedicated service in this endeavor, and she was eventually promoted to the rank of lieutenant commander and chief of staff for the Vice Admiral. With her husband in the area for diplomatic matters and having the opportunity to serve as the “right hand woman” for a high-ranking Starfleet admiral, Esmé’s career - which had started as a classroom teacher all those years ago - had taken her to places she had never imagined. |
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| Later Postings | Time passed. In the wake of the war, Cardassian reconstruction efforts were largely successful despite a few setbacks, and without a common enemy to unite them, the former Allied forces began to retreat into their old predictable personalities. With the coup on Romulus, even with the hope for peace, there was suspicion. As the political landscape evolved, so did the working environment. Admiral Ramirez, now well into his 90s, decided the new era of peace was the perfect time to retire—and so, he did. With Christian’s focus taking him away from the Cardassian border and the retirement of Admiral Ramirez, Esmé suddenly found herself in transition as well. With two children still at home, Esmé decided to move back to Earth, live in a chateau outside of Paris, and open a small counseling practice in the city. She did so in the summer of 2380. The years came, and the year passed. Spring led to Summer, Summer led to Fall, Fall led to Winter, and the cycle repeated itself. As time went by, Christian found himself with the liberty to take assignments with less frequency, allowing him to spend more time at home. The children grew, and soon, they had left home. Esmé had started thinking about the next chapter in her life when tragedy struck. In April 2390, Esmé received an urgent summons from her husband, Christian, calling her to former Cardassian border where she had worked a decade before. A week later, escorted by Starfleet, Esmé found herself meeting with a Cardassian diplomat with whom she had worked as part of Admiral Ramirez’s staff. The Cardassians had found themselves facing an uprising on the edge of their borders perpetrated by the Kressari. The Kressari had remained neutral officially during the war, but they had been known to work with both sides. They had used a political incident within the Union as a chance to change the balance of power in their favor, and they were doing so from within Federation space and planting evidence suggesting the Federation was behind the transfer of illegal material into Cardassian space. The Cardassian diplomat, having an established dialog with Ramirez through Esmé, insisted on speaking with her. He provided intelligence that included specific information about where and when the transactions were occurring. After convincing the Union that the Federation was not involved, the Starship San Juan set out to find the Kressari faction responsible for the political unrest. However, when they arrived, the San Juan was ambushed. It was revealed that an aide of the Cardassian diplomat had betrayed them all. The San Juan survived but was crippled. A devastating hull breach had caused serious internal damage and casualties, one of which was a fatality: Christian Dumont. One of the collateral effects was a strengthening of relations between the Federation and the Cardassian Union, but Esmé was far too injured to attend to the aftermath. She returned home to Earth, feeling empty, even lost, in a way she never had before. It was not because of being alone; in fact, she had always considered herself to be independent verging on headstrong, but it was because all that she and her husband had work for, so they could enjoy the second half of their lives together was lost. Esmé stopped seeing clients and withdrew to her chateau in the French countryside, where she lost track of the days and spent her time immersed in paintings—oil on canvas, mostly landscapes. Months passed until one day, while working in her studio, she saw an elderly man walking up the path from the street to her home. As the figure came closer, she recognized the man’s features: it was Admiral Ramirez. They visited all afternoon, and as she heard Ramirez talk about his own path, including losses and setback, she realized that while life had changed through her husband’s death, her life had not ended. That day, Esmé expressed her desire to the admiral to return to Starfleet. The admiral, still having some pull with the brass though he was retired, assured her he would throw her name along to some friends at Headquarters. In truth, Ramirez came there that day because he had always cared greatly for Esmé, almost as a father would for a daughter, and he had already been working on her return to Starfleet. |
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| USS Highlander | Esmé found her commission reactivated within a few weeks of her conversation at her home in France, and she soon received briefings for her new assignment while awaiting transportation to her new assignment. It was one that would require all the breadth of her experience to be successful: diplomatic officer aboard the USS Highlander. |
Chronology
| 2341 – Born in Nice, France, on Earth. 2359 – Graduated from secondary school in Nice, France. 2359 – Began undergraduate studies in interstellar history at Université de Nice. 2363 – Graduated from Université de Nice. 2363 – Assigned to USS Galaxy NCC-70637 as a secondary school teacher. 2365 – Completed teaching assignment. 2365 – Accepted to Starfleet’s direct commissioning program. 2365 – Enrolled in the master’s-level counseling program at Starfleet Academy. 2367 – Graduated; commissioned Lieutenant (junior grade) in Starfleet. 2367 – Assigned to USS Yamaguchi NCC-26510 as assistant ship’s counselor. 2367 – Reassigned to Starfleet Medical – Psychological Crisis Response Team Sierra. 2369 – Married Federation Ambassador Christian Dumont. 2369 – Promoted to Lieutenant. 2369 – Assigned to Starbase 310 as station’s senior counselor. 2370 – First child, Sylvie Dumont, born on Starbase 310. 2372 – 13th Allied Fleet is assigned to Starbase 310. 2372 – Assigned as 13th Allied Fleet Liaison Officer under Vice Admiral Carlos Ramirez. 2375 – Second child, Gabriel Dumont, born on Starbase 310. 2375 – Assigned as Liaison & Colonial Affairs Officer for the 13th Fleet under Admiral Carlos Ramirez. 2376 – Promoted to Lieutenant Commander. 2378 - Assigned as chief of staff to Admiral Ramirez. 2380 - Resigned from Starfleet; relocated to Earth and returned to counseling in private practice. 2390 - Participated in Kressari-Cardassian Incident. Husband, Christian Dumont, is killed during the mission. 2392 - Commission reactivated in Starfleet at the behest of Starfleet Command; assigned rank of Lieutenant Commander. 2392 - Assigned to USS Highlander NCC-74962 has diplomatic officer. |