Prince James was sulking. He had just learned that his easygoing, fun-loving life was going to be ruined. No more wild parties. No more flirting. No more fun.
He had to be a responsible prince and marry some foreign dignitary's daughter. Queen Winona had given him until 25 to choose his own wife, and he hadn't paid any attention, not thinking she was serious. Now, he was 26 and she informed him time had run out and she had picked out a wife for him and All his begging and pleading had been in vain.
She had set her jaw and declared, "James Tiberius Kirk, I let you go long enough. You've had five years to make your own choice and you kept on with your little flings. I have contacted Lord Sarek and Lady Amanda and they agreed that their daughter would be a good match for you. They arrive next week. You will behave yourself. Is that clear?"
Even Jim didn't dare talk back when she got that tone. He took himself grumpily upstairs to his suite and threw himself in his big easy chair.
Ugh. He knew who Sarek was-the Vulcan Ambassador. How in the world could a free spirit like him be compatible with a stiff Vulcan? He should have tried harder with Lady Carol or even Princess Uhura. Now he was doomed.
In the middle of his pouting, a knock came on his door. "Come in," he grunted, not moving from his chair. His stepfather, one Christopher Pike, entered the room. Jim still didn't budge, being deep in the throes of a pity party.
"She tell you she was going to do this?" He asked somewhat sullenly.
"Of course, Jim," he answered, taking another chair close by. "She also gave you a pretty good chunk of time to find someone before she stepped in."
"I know, I know," Jim sighed, "I was stupid. But why a Vulcan? We'll make each other miserable."
"Because Spock is the daughter of Win's best friend. And she's not full Vulcan, so unfortunately, none of the high up Vulcan lords want much to do with her. She gets prejudice from both sides and handles it with more grace than I ever could. I've met her before. She actually has a pretty wicked sense of humor under all that coolness and logic. Don't throw yourself off a cliff just yet, son. You might be surprised."
He gave Jim an encouraging squeeze on the shoulder. The prince was very fond of his stepdad, though he had given him plenty of trouble in his early years. He knew Chris was going to back up his wife, but he was trying to make the whole thing less horrifying.
"I'll be a terrible husband," Jim muttered, terror flashing in his eyes when he said the fateful word. "I'd have no clue under ordinary circumstances, much less an arranged one. What do I do, Dad?"
"Sadly, there's no manual for husband training," Chris answered ruefully, "it's a trial and error process. You can start by not acting like you hate the sight of her, for one thing. Don't show how much you dread this. And reading up on Vulcan culture would be a very good idea to avoid awkward incidents and it'll show you have an interest in understanding her. Anyway, they have to find out if you're mentally compatible for this to become official."
"Mentally compatible?", wondered Jim, even more nervous. "Isn't that basically what dating is for?"
"For humans, yes," answered Chris, "but Vulcans as you know are a telepathic species and they form mental bonds with their mate-bonds that last for life. So they do a test to see if your mind and hers can get along. If they do, well, they'll have an official bonding ceremony plus the wedding and you'll be joined for life-literally." Jim swallowed hard.
This was highly unnerving. The permanence scared him, a well-known commitment phobe. And his wife would know everything he was thinking? Maybe he could abdicate and run off to the Caymen Islands or something. Chris was speaking again.
"Don't panic yet, son. They won't do it unless you're a good fit. I'll leave you to your research now. Better lay low for awhile." Jim nodded dumbly as Pike left the room.
Just great. How was he going to get out of this one? Winona HAD given him plenty of time and he had blown it. Now he would be stuck for life to some emotionless person who could read his mind and see every stray thought. It was unnatural. He liked his women with spirit. Only problem was, he couldn't settle on just one.
He groaned. Time to do some research. There must be some way of getting out of this. Might as well see what this Spock looked like. Surely there were pictures of her. He typed in a search on his tablet. Sure enough, there were pictures aplenty. He tapped one to get a closer view. Hmmmm, not bad, he thought.
Spock was tall and stately, with sleek black hair done up in Vulcan braids and twists. Her eyes were dark and mysterious, but not completely devoid of expression. Cute nose, finely shaped chin and full lips completed the picture. But Jim's attention was arrested by the strikingly pointed ears peeking out.
Well, he thought, despite her stiff posture she was really very attractive. He'd probably horrify her, though. He suddenly felt sympathy with her. She probably didn't want this either, but being a good obedient Vulcan would go through with it.
He hauled himself up and made a trip to the royal library, needing to know more. Molly, the official court historian and librarian, helped him find the books he was looking for.
"Vulcans are traditionally very secretive in certain areas, but these will explain the culture and customs well enough, Your Highness." She handed him three large volumes.
"Thanks, Molly," he replied weakly, and made his way back to read them.
He spent the next few days holed up in his room reading, only coming out to eat and take short runs. Jim skipped most of the history sections and went right to the stuff he'd need to know right away. His mom looked in and smiled, relieved he wasn't out making a fool of himself. Jim's brain was swirling with so much information, he started taking notes. He was greatly relieved to find that Vulcans were very strict with their telepathy, melding without consent was taboo and they had certain shielding techniques to protect privacy.
Their hands were very sensitive, so handshakes were a no-no, for multiple reasons. It appeared Vulcans were easily stimulated by hand to hand contact. Jim grinned. That was a useful fact to know.
Apparently, the emotionless exterior was only extreme self-control. Vulcans did feel, very deeply, but they had learned to bury it because of their violent history.
Jim had a lot of thinking to do and only a short time to do it. His prospective wife would arrive in three days. He needed moral support, like, now. He called up his best friend.