But when the lights go down...
Spock was not one for parties.
He found consuming alcohol, a low-grade poison, for the sole purpose of becoming inebriated a useless exercise and truly distasteful... However, there was some novelty in seeing the captain so at ease away from the ship and believed the alcohol ,and casual surroundings had a similar effect on the rest of the crew, and so when kirk turned his smouldering blue eyes on him and his lower lip assumed an endearing pout he could do nothing but comply to his captains wishes...
A truly logical decision he was sure .Due to the higher efficiency the crew exhibited whilst cheerful if a little tired and nothing to do with the fact that when ever Jim decided to bring out the big guns, those glistening blue-blue puppy eyes, he may have melted inside just a bit.
The party was still rather premature but would soon -by the quantity of alcohol being consumed be in "full swing" and Spock even complied when Chekov shyly offered him a strange blue coloured substance that Scotty and Sulu where drinking. Romulan ale he assumed.
Chekov was a talented young officer and apparently respected Spock a great deal, he had noticed how the young man hovered. slightly. after completing a complex equation ,for what he now knew was small signal of approval . And before he derived the cause of this behaviour found it rather irritating. when he had eventually found out, he was gratified to have such a big fan and endeavoured to fulfil his expectations as the chief science officer just as vigorously as before -there was little he reserved in the line of duty and although flattering he needed no other motive than his insatiable curiosity to fulfil his duty's to the best of his ability.
The impromptu shore leave they where now enjoying ( Spock grudgingly so) was unexpected, the ship needed a new reserve supply of dilithium crystals and some minor repairs to its hull, they'd had a run in with Andorian slave traders recently and had got off relatively lightly ,but the culprits had gotten away.
" so- mister Spock, are you enjoying ze ale?... I myself preferr vodka- but it is wery good kind yes?" spock tilted his head slightly taking another sip of the liquid and swirling it in his glass " I find it pleasing to the tongue. however I do not find it pleasant to become intoxicated should my shields weaken and the wildness of this establishment cause me ... discomfort."
Chekov winced-shifting in his chair and frowning, he smiled a little and hesitantly plucked the offending substance from his hands ,careful not to touch them. " I am sorry, I vill get you some wulcan spiced tea... I tink zey haff it here..." he looked over at the dance floor, people where grinding against the music and beautiful women of no discernible race where meandering between them on high healed fiokern heels dispensing drinks in containers of artful design, but of course for obvious reasons there where no Vulcan beverages to speak of.
" or not..." he looked rather put out but Spock solved that easily enough "ensighn chekov, I do beleive there will be some sort of non alcoholic beverage I may consume, establishments like this are well equipped for all manner of races, I will return momentarily" he gave a small smile, a miniscule twitch of the lips and made his way through the crowd that parted like the red sea before Moses, but he was not insulted, merely gratified that other races respected his culture and mental privacy enough to give him room to walk.
As he passed he noted with overwhelming amusement that a very jolly Jim and McCoy where attempting a Russian dance, dropping down on one knee and springing up with a flourish. Chekov was snorting into his drink.
When he reached the bar he perched gracefully on one of the high steeped chairs surrounding it and waited for the barman to appear. The barman was an Andorian, blue antennae twitching gently as he bent over his task of cleaning flukernok glasses, this had to be done manually as the structural integrity of the glass was weak and its composition was of mostly soft bone which reacted negatively to the sonics.
He waited patiently, avoiding the eyes of a reptilian betazoid on the stool next to him whose inky black irises where flaring in his direction, her tongue was curling around her long drinks straw in a highly inappropriate manor and her tail was waving suggestively in the air, his ears turned a startling shade of green and he wished Jim was there to tell her to "get lost"
he was saved when the bartender spun confidently slapping his hands down on the counter and addressing him "what may I do for you my fine fell..." he froze, and his eyes flashed from the pristine Science blacks he had refused to remove upon leaving the ship, his sharp angular features, upswept brows one raised in appraisal, and the graceful pointed ears held regally as Spock sat there ,puzzling over this strange behaviour from an obviously experienced bartender...
It lasted only an instant .But in that instant an uneasy feeling settled in his stomach and his easy posture became hard to maintain, the Andorian immediately shrank away from him in a way that reminded him of an eel or some other slimy creature sliding back into a pond, without a word the man stumbled hastily away and snatched up the glass he had previously been cleaning, even though Spock could see it was perfectly clean-and during which he noticed a slight quiver in his blue fingers.
Spock sat rigidly in his chair, hands folding together and knuckles whitening as he sensed the imminent danger surrounding him. A calculated glance to his left and his right revealed nothing peculiar but only seemed to add to the painful clenching in his gut, and growing sense of the time between the man retrieving the glass and returning his eyes searched frantically for his captain ,but Jim was nowhere to be found.
" so!" the man shouted cheerily, a wide smile splitting his face as he lent down-practically leering towards where Spock was had to fight not to recoil from his gaze, the way those wide green eyes raked down his face that had his hackles immediately rising. " It must be hard living on a Star-ship " he said,-shouted, still in that irksome jovial tone that was missing something vital, his voice had an Irish lilt to it that would have normally sounded quite pleasant but under present circumstances was incredibly disturbing. something, was "Off".
" He must be a strong-willed captain to persuade a Vulcan such as yourself to leave the safety of the ship, arrogant, is he?" the buzz word "safety" confirmed his suspicion and he had to fight not to flinch, but he couldn't just walk away. if this was one of the slave traders that had attacked the ship it was his duty to take every opportunity to ensure their successful capture and punishment.
" Jim" he paused for emphasis on the fact that he was on first name bases with his captain and let his contempt colour his voice, tiny flecks that where almost imperceptible but deadly" is neither arrogant nor callous, nor would he force a crew member to do anything against their will, he is my captain and my friend ..."
Spock's eyes flicked to the Andorian's and back to the table "It was his wish that I beam down to the planet also to enjoy what you out-worlders refer to as. "Shore- leave " I did not wish to disappoint him .the fact that I am Vulcan is quite obvious. My ethnicity is irrelevant and seen as I am quite aware of it I would prefer you did not resort to such blatant questioning" Vulcans where a rarity among slave traders and everything this stranger had said so far only strengthened his belief that this man was one of- or was fraternising with the very same Andorion slave traders who had attacked the ship days ago.
The man's antennai immediately drooped and all the colour drained from his face as he desperately fiddled with the glass" v-v-vulcan tea? b-b-b-barenhoff? s-s-spiced w-w-wine?" his smile crumpled and it was as if he was a whole different person...
His hands where shaking and a grizzly feeling in Spock's stomach materialised, he glanced quickly to the left and saw an incredibly large and well muscled andorian swipe his hand across his throat, causing the small barman to gulp and hastily grab for something beneath the table, he had stopped even trying to smile- and smashed the pint glass in the process.
His whole body went rigid- and Spock sat accessing as shakily he turned ,collecting a new one and scattering glass shards as he almost ran to the bar shelves, the mask had returned full force and Spock was just about to make his escape when the quivering stopped and the confident slimy façade fixed itself back into position raising his hackles once more .But the look in his eyes stopped him from fleeing, if eyes could communicate verbally those deep blue orbs would be begging "trust me"...
The skinny little Andorian settled himself in front of him smiling and looking downwards as if working, his lips didn't move much as he spoke and Spock had to lean in slightly to hear him over the din" listen my boy, you can't stay here- but don't try to leave either... Just-just listen to me, drink this-don't worry, it isn't poisoned or anything" he did so, any idea that this jittery ,quite rattled man wanted to harm him dissolved immediately, he was obviously just a genuine nice Andorian bartender being forced to do something he would never have done by choice, and Spock was relieved that evidently with his help he and the rest of the senior officers may have a chance of escape. The alternative was frightening.
" I assume you're friend over there is not the only one" he said levelly, " no- but please. Just drink the rest, and pretend to be tired and weak... but not yet, your Captain- he is a good man?..."
"Yes. A star fleet captain .The finest in the fleet" he smiled weakly at his shoes " They told me- this- this would have been easier if you weren't so, so... loyal" he gasped out the last word and had to stay himself but swallowed and seemed to find new resolve " my cousins are not nice men... they come by sometimes..."
He stopped abruptly white knuckles curling around the shelf beneath and Spock found it hard not to react, but what he gasped out next was enough to make his blood run cold"- the slaves" it was almost a wail.
... He felt a sense of urgency .His gut twisting painfully, eyes flashing . He noticed another Andorian settle down on the other end of the bar and fix his eyes on him- whilst casually ordering a drink and beginning to sip .A smarmy- this time terrifying grin darkening his features as black shadows played across his face .Pooling in the deep crinkles gathered there.
dark beaded eyes, assessing him with far too much interest...
"Please, I don't have much time-" the man placed another glass in front of him which he then drank and Spock frowned feigning confusion and pretending to examine the drink more closely. like vultures The men inched closer, another appearing from the shadows.
" walk over to your Captain- slowly, and try to lose them in the crowd, as soon as you're out of view run for all you are worth! do not let them reach you Mr Spock! do not!. Don't worry about your crew ...it's you they're after, they know about your mother... pretend to collapse against him, they will think they have the upper hand that way, and whisper in his ear there is danger.
He will beam you up immediately. if they catch you shout! scream! do anything to escape!-go to your ship mister Spock!. Fly away and never look back! may all the Gods be with you...go!, do it now!"
He said this last his own eyes boring into Spock's, and they blazed with compassion, Spock spared one last glance to the man he was to leave behind at the mercy of his cousins- and stumbled off into the crowd.