Chapter 1: The Mission

Captain's Log, Stardate 4963.3

The Enterprise has been ordered to planet Alpha Circini IV—called "Jamorkee" by the people who inhabit it—to negotiate for the right to mine fontanium, which is in very short supply since the destruction, five months ago, of our best source of the material. Fontanium is used in the desalination of water and is vitally important for adequate drinking water on several Federation planets.

Jamorkee has been visited only once before. It's a congenial planet that is well qualified for Federation membership, but although its people were reasonably hospitable to the first contact team, they were uninterested in joining the Federation.

The first contact team noted that personal friendships are greatly prized on Jamorkee, and the Enterprise was chosen for this mission because Mr. Spock and I have the closest friendship of any Starfleet command team. The Federation's diplomatic experts believe the strength of our friendship will make us more persuasive to the Jamorkeans.

Admiral Fitzgerald contacted the Jamorkeans and received their permission to send emissaries to their First Minister, Bekka Jalloh, so Minister Jalloh will be expecting us.

Kirk returned the recorder to Yeoman Kwan, then walked over to the science station. He leaned back against the console and crossed his arms over his chest as he regarded his science officer. "I assume you've read the first contact team's report of their visit to Jamorkee?"

Spock swiveled his chair to face the captain. "Of course, Captain. Shall I forward a copy to you or summarize it for you?"

Kirk smiled. "Both. I want to read the whole thing eventually, but for now, tell me about this Jamorkean approach to friendship that got us assigned to the mission in the first place."

Spock called up an image of the planet on the viewer over his station and gestured at it. "Unlike most humanoid civilizations with which we are familiar, Jamorkeans do not organize their society around spousal relationships. Sexual relationships among the Jamorkeans are brief and ever-changing, and the relationships that provide societal stability are friendships."

Kirk frowned. "How do they raise the children, if they don't have spouses?"

Spock changed the image in the viewer to one of two Jamorkean women and a man playing with a toddler. "Children are reared by their mothers and by the primary registered friend or friends of those mothers. Any given mother and her primary registered friends live together and provide the family unit for the children, and those families are at least as stable and secure as spousal relationships on the majority of Federation planets."

Kirk blinked. "Registered friends?"

Spock inclined his head in a brief nod. "Indeed. Jamorkeans register their friends with their government, just as Federation citizens register their spouses through marriage. Friendships may be registered as primary, secondary, or tertiary. Primary friends have all of the rights and obligations that Federation governments provide to spouses, including custody of children, rights of inheritance, power of attorney if the friend becomes comatose or mentally disabled, and so on. The rights and obligations of secondary and tertiary friends are correspondingly lesser, though if all of an individual's primary friends die, the secondary friends may assume the rights and obligations of primary friends, in much the same way that a distant cousin could inherit under Federation law if no closer relatives existed."

Kirk considered this. "That might actually make more sense for Starfleet officers than the usual system."

Spock tilted his head slightly as he regarded his captain. "It is a more logical system than many that humans have attempted." He raised a brow. "Given how poorly humans adhere to vows of monogamy, this appears to be a much more stable arrangement."

Kirk smiled. "Well, you'll get to observe it from close up, since we'll be there tomorrow." He looked around the quiet bridge, then back at Spock. "I think I'll go to my cabin to read the first contact report. You have the con until DeSalle arrives for beta shift."

"Acknowledged." Spock turned back to his station as Kirk walked to the turbolift.

In his quarters, Kirk sat at his desk and read the first contact report, thinking about how best to appeal to the Jamorkeans when the time came to negotiate for the rights to mine fontanium. It wasn't long, though, before his thoughts turned again to their societal structure. Now that Sam was dead, he had very few blood relatives, yet Spock and McCoy were his family in all but blood. It would be nice if Jamorkee joined the Federation, so that he could register Spock and McCoy as his legal family. Of course, there was something else he'd like even more, but Kirk sighed and firmly pushed those thoughts away. No point in thinking about what he couldn't have.

Once alpha shift was over, Kirk decided to talk to Spock about the upcoming mission. He knew that his and Spock's friendship was solid, but he also knew that admitting to having any emotions—even those of friendship—was difficult for Spock. Kirk wanted to make sure that Spock wouldn't freeze up if their friendship was mentioned by the Jamorkeans, given that Starfleet was depending on that friendship to secure supplies of fontanium.

Kirk pressed the button at the door of Spock's cabin and heard the deep voice say, "Come." Thinking for the hundredth time that Spock probably had no idea he had the sexiest voice in the Fleet, Kirk entered the Vulcan's quarters. Spock was seated behind his desk, practicing the lute; he pressed a hand to the strings to silence them and looked up at his captain.

Kirk said, "I wanted to talk about the upcoming mission." He seated himself in a chair on the other side of Spock's desk and looked fondly at the Vulcan. "I wanted to assure you that I didn't campaign for this mission, and I haven't said anything to Starfleet Command about our friendship."

Spock looked slightly chagrined. "If you are attempting to spare my Vulcan sensibilities, please be assured that it is unnecessary, Jim. I have made peace with the fact that we are friends, and I deeply regret that the Psi 2000 virus ever led me to confess my qualms to you."

Kirk smiled. "I'm glad to hear that. And don't worry about that confession; as I recall, I made some rather embarrassing confessions of my own under the influence of the virus." He sobered. "I'm sorry that our friendship is being treated as one more bargaining chip by Starfleet Command and that you may be asked to attest to it or even to demonstrate it."

Spock said, "Jim, my duty to Starfleet requires me to undertake many unpleasant tasks, but attesting to our friendship will not be among them. I appreciate your attempt to spare me a descent into emotionality, but your concern is unnecessary."

Kirk chuckled. "As long as you keep thinking of expressing emotion as a 'descent,' I'll keep being concerned." He stood up. "I'll let you get back to your lute practice."

The next day, the Enterprise assumed standard orbit around Alpha Circini IV, which Uhura reminded everyone to call "Jamorkee" when talking with its residents. Kirk contacted First Minister Jalloh and received permission for them to beam down at once, and he and Spock materialized just outside of the First Minister's official residence.

They were greeted by a tall, slender man with dark brown skin and curly black hair who was wearing a long, robelike garment that reminded Kirk of a kimono. He introduced himself as Minister Jalloh's principal aide, Abramo Bonsu, and escorted them to an aircar marked "For Government Use Only," at which point Kirk balked.

"We're here for a meeting with First Minister Jalloh," Kirk said.

Mr. Bonsu smiled and nodded. "Yes, of course. But first you must have the standing in our society to approach the Minister, which means that you must register your friendship. Since you are honored guests, I will personally take you to the closest registration center and will conduct your registration ceremony myself."

Kirk glanced at Spock, who nodded minutely, then looked back at Bonsu. He put on his best dealing-with-diplomats smile and said, "Of course, Mr. Bonsu; we'd be honored."

Once at the registration center, Kirk and Spock were escorted to a small private room, where they were urged to get everything clear between them before registering. The room contained two chairs and a small decorative fountain, whose soft bubbling provided a quiet, soothing atmosphere. The two men sat and looked at one another.

Kirk smiled wryly. "Well, when in Rome, I guess."

Spock looked at him curiously. "Given the depth of your friendships and the brief nature of the majority of your sexual relationships, I had believed that you would find the Jamorkean system congenial, and yet you appear uneasy."

Kirk frowned. "I do appreciate the Jamorkean system, but my sexual relationships are brief for two reasons: one is because a starship captain never stays in one place for very long but shouldn't have romantic relationships with anyone in his crew below the rank of lieutenant commander, which drastically limits the number of people available."

"And the other?"

Kirk grimaced. "There's a person I'd be happy to have a long-term monogamous relationship with, but that person isn't available. I flit from short-term lover to short-term lover because no one else can hold a candle to the person I really want."

"She is married?"

"To the best of my knowledge, the person in question is divorced, but ... I don't want to get into it, Spock. Drop it, will you."

Spock inclined his head gravely. "Of course, Jim. I had not intended to pry but merely to express sympathy. I regret that so fine a person as yourself is not properly appreciated."

Kirk shook his head. "Oh, I'm appreciated, all right, it's just ... look, drop it, okay."

Spock nodded, then cleared his throat and visibly changed the subject. "Are there any outstanding issues in our friendship that we need to discuss before undergoing the Jamorkean registration ceremony?"

Kirk smiled fondly at his friend. "You're not going to just go through the motions, are you? The Jamorkeans take this seriously, so you will, too."

Spock raised a disapproving brow. "It would be both disrespectful and dishonest to approach the registration in any other way."

Kirk crossed one leg over the other and pretended to think for a moment. "Nope, I can't think of anything we need to discuss. But then, since I'm the captain, I usually get to have everything my way." He looked seriously at Spock. "Is there anything you need to talk about?"

Spock's eyes lightened in the way that meant he was amused. "It is tempting to use the occasion to extract a promise from you that you will attempt to be more cognizant of your own safety, but I suspect that you would be completely unable to keep it, rendering such a promise moot."

Kirk laughed. "If that's Vulcan for 'you'll never change,' I think you're right. C'mon, I think we've let enough time pass to show that we're taking this seriously; let's go register."

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