This is the first chapter of my snippets and snapshots in the lives of Zia and Spock. You will need to read 'Starfleet Academy' and 'Vulcan Hunters' to be able to understand a lot of what goes on. At the beginning of each chapter I'll give a brief summary, just to give you an idea of when the chapter occurs. It's not a continuation of the previous two stories, but it fills in the gaps and answers questions from those stories.

Again, thank you to MoreColourfulMoniker for agreeing to beta this story, and for providing some seriously good insight into this chapter.

Summary: Giana and Patty Abbott find a little Vulcan baby and aren't sure whether to keep her or send her away.

o.O.o

Chapter 1 – An Unexpected Discovery

Giana Abbott walked straight-backed out of the IVF clinic, her face set in unhappy lines. Another IVF treatment: another unsuccessful pregnancy.

Only sheer determination prevented her from collapsing onto the ground and crying her heart out. For the past two years she'd undergone extensive psychology, drug treatment and surgery to remove the eggs from her body. The eggs were fertilised and placed within her, and all seven treatments had had the same end result: no baby. She fought the urge to kick a park bench, instead marching into the nearest coffee shop and sitting in a booth right in the corner. A waitress came over.

"What would you like?" she asked politely. Her nametag read Magritte.

"Nothing, please," Giana murmured, burying her face in her hands. She changed her decision, her voice muffled. "Actually I'll have the triple chocolate cake."

"Coming right up," the waitress said perkily, moving away. As soon as she was gone Giana pulled her communicator from her jacket pocket and dialled a number, pressing it to her ear.

"Hey honey! How did it go?"

"It failed, just like every other time." She bit her lip. "The doctors don't know what's wrong, but they said that I'll never have kids." Never was infinite, she knew that, but it still hurt to hear it.

Patty's voice was heartbroken. "No… is it both of us? I refuse to believe that it's just you. It has to be both of us."

"No, there's nothing wrong with you. It's all me." She fell silent as the waitress brought her the cake, only speaking when she was out of earshot again. "I can't handle another failure." She ran her hand through her hair. "I guess this is the end of our dream."

"There's always adoption."

"That won't be the same. I just… I'm sorry. I know we swore to have children no matter what, but it's taking its toll."

"Hey, I wouldn't care if we never had kids as long as I have you. Where are you? I'll come get you."

"I'm at the coffee shop just down the road from the clinic, Zaraffa's Coffee."

"I'm on my way."

He hung up and Giana fought back tears, picking up the fork and shovelling the cake into her mouth as fast as possible. Her stomach rebelled but she still ate, grief taking over. A mantra sounded in her head – no children… no children… no children…

"Hey."

Her eyes snapped up and met Patty's. He slid down across from her and took her hands, rubbing his thumbs in circles.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, her voice breaking.

"Don't be sorry," he told her. "This is something couples face, and we will deal with this. I swear it."

"I'm a failure as a wife," she sobbed, pressing her face onto her arm and crying into it. Patty scrambled around the table and threw his arms around her, drawing her close to him and making small reassuring noises. He closed his eyes, feeling his own sadness. What had they done to deserve this hurt? Seven failed pregnancies had definitely affected Giana more than she cared to admit, each time needing severe counselling before she chose to undertake the treatment again. There was no way she was chancing another failure again. Slowly her sobs subsided and she looked up at him, her face red.

"Let's go," he murmured. She nodded and stood, sparing a second to put money on the table, before allowing Patty to put his arm around her and lead her out of the shop. People glanced at them curiously, but said nothing. They crossed the road and he took her down an alley towards the car park where the car was. While walking his foot accidentally kicked a box and a gurgle sounded.

"What was that?" Giana sniffed. She grabbed Patty's arm and stopped him, staring at the box. "It sounded like a baby."

"Who would leave a baby in a box?"

Giana ignored him and knelt beside the box, ripping the tape that enclosed the top and tearing it open. Her hands flew to her mouth to stifle her cry, for inside was a tiny baby, mere hours old, with miniscule pointed ears. "Patty! Oh, Patty! It's a baby!"

He knelt down beside her. "What kinds of parents leave their baby alone in an alley?" He glanced around them, but saw no clues. "No… its parents just left it here."

By this time Giana and picked up the baby and was cradling it in her arms. "It's a she, Patty. It's a little baby girl." She gently stroked the soft pointed ears and twirled around the tuft of dark hair, warmth bubbling in her stomach. "She's beautiful. Her parents don't deserve her for what they've done."

Patty stared at the expression of adoration on his wife's eyes. His own heart melted at the sight and he put his hand on the baby's cheek. "We can't leave her here; anything could happen to her."

"We should take her home and file her as missing." She frowned. "What species do you think she is?"

"That's something else we should find out. Let's just go home."

They stood and continued to the car park, the only difference being the tiny baby curled up in Giana's arms.

o.O.o

The baby was nestled comfortably in Giana's arms, her lips fastened around a milk bottle, suckling it fast. Giana stroked her tiny hands gently, in awe of her.

She had been expecting to have nine months to prepare for having a child. To have this thrust upon her was a bit… overwhelming. While delighted at the experience, she was very uncertain. This baby was most definitely a different species, which type she didn't know, and how would she care for an alien baby? She had no idea where to look for the answers.

"Hey honey," Patty said from the next room. "I think I've found it." He walked into the room with PADD in hand. "If the Web is right, then she's Vulcan."

"Are you serious?!"

"Yeah, according to everything here, she's a Vulcan."

"Show me that." Giana stared at the PADD screen.

Vulcan

Planet of Origin: Vulcan

Affiliation: United Federation of Planets

Warp Capable: 320 A.D.

Classification: Mammalian, Humanoid

Environmental Requirements: Warm Class M Conditions

Typical Lifespan: 200 Years

Sexes: Male, Female

Telepathic Abilities: Touch Telepathic

Blood Colouration: Green (Copper-Based)

Distinctive Features: Pointed Ears and Eyebrows

"I know them," she exclaimed. "I've heard they're a stuck-up emotionless species!" She gaped at the little girl. "But why would they just abandon you? You're a real sweetie." The girl looked up at her with large eyes and Giana glanced at the pointed ears and the green veins running all over her skin. "What have we gotten ourselves into? We haven't done the prenatal classes, let alone the classes to deal with a Vulcan child. Maybe we should try to contact Vulcan and get them to come and pick her up."

Patty was shocked. He dropped the PADD and sat on the arm of the chair, wrapping an arm around his wife's shoulders. "Honey, why are you giving up?" Her head shot up. "I know you're nervous, but all parenthoods are a challenge."

"But she's not ours-"

"We saved her life! She's only hours old and she would have died if we hadn't found her, Vulcan or not. Think about it. This is a little baby. She hasn't even had a chance to live and her parents abandoned her. Now we found her, so we have a moral obligation to protect her!"

Her anger flared. "She's Vulcan! How would we raise a Vulcan child?! We don't know the first thing about their upbringing. What if some of our food is poisonous to them? Will she age at twice the speed of human children?"

Patty withdrew his arm and stood, but instead of being furious he looked defeated. "This is what we've wanted for years, Giana. Is it because she's not human? Is it because she's not our flesh and blood? It makes no difference. She has no one to love her in this world, not even her parents." He knelt in front of her and rested his hands on her knees. "I know you're scared, but at least consider the possibility that she could be our daughter. We can research Vulcan children and figure it out."

He was right: she was scared. She was scared about what this could mean. What if they did take responsibility for the baby? Would they…?

And she realised that it wasn't just about them. She had been thinking about her and Patty and how they would cope, and she'd neglected the most important thing. What would it mean for the child? They could give her a second chance in life, maybe even a better one. From what little she knew of Vulcans, they did nothing related to emotion. Given the chance, was it right to drag this girl away from that and deposit her into a completely different life.

Her eyes locked with Patty's. Those same eyes that had looked at her with passion and fire were now filled with sadness and desperation. She knew that he wouldn't try to pressure her into anything, but really the answer was obvious.

"I'm sorry for being selfish," she murmured. "You're right; we could give her a second chance. She most likely would have died."

"We wouldn't have been given this opportunity if we weren't strong enough to handle it."

Her gaze strayed to the child dozing in her arms. "This will be a big challenge."

"Do you still want to contact Vulcan?"

"No." She had made her decision. "Her parents are Vulcan and they rejected her, leaving her to die. I don't know what they thought, but they have no love for her or her potential. If we sent her to Vulcan then she would probably live in an orphanage, subject to the bitterness that her parents didn't want her. It's better to show her love as a human than show neglect as a Vulcan. I think that she would be miserable on Vulcan, but here we can actually prevent that feeling. We can do more good if we take her in than if we send her away."

Patty smiled and leaned forward, kissing Giana gently.

"We can do this," he said confidently.

"I hope we can."

o.O.o

The Utah Government Building was an intimidating place. It was lined with white columns and the Federation flag waved lazily in the wind at passers-by.

Patty and Giana walked up the steps nervously. A week had passed since they made their request and a meeting had finally been arranged to decide whether the baby would become theirs or sent back to Vulcan. The matter was completely out of their hands.

In the past week they had both fallen in love with the girl, opting not to name her lest she be sent away. Giana had spent a lot of time with the girl in her arms, feeding her milk, rocking her to sleep and reading to her. The baby had grown on her, and she quite liked the little pointed ears. They reminded her of the pixies she'd read about in stories when she was a little girl. There was something else, this depth and wisdom to her large eyes that Giana found endearing – she looked like she'd lived hundreds of years already, yet she was only a week old. Her gaze was always steady, she hadn't cried, and she was already trying to say her first word. To Giana, she was beautiful. How could she have been ready to give up?

Giana took a deep breath and gripped the little Vulcan tighter in her arms. "Let's do this."

They entered the building and went to the front desk. Upon seeing them, the yeoman stood.

"Welcome Mister and Messrs Abbott," she said warmly. "Admiral Briggs will see you now. You are aware of his office location?"

"Yes, thank you," Patty nodded. He gripped Giana's elbow and steered her through the corridors. It annoyed her a bit, but she was too nervous to snap at him.

They entered the office and Admiral Briggs looked up from his desk, flanked by two other senior officers. Their eyes were locked on the baby.

"Thank you for coming," the Admiral said. "Please take a seat. We have much to discuss." They did as they were asked and Giana rocked the baby from side-to-side.

The officer behind him stood. "We are here today to discuss the custody over unnamed Vulcan child," she said crisply. "Mister and Messrs Abbott, do you have anything you wish to say before we begin?"

Patty nodded. "Have you already spoken to the Vulcan High Council?" That was one of the many terms he'd learnt during his research into Vulcans.

"No." The officer glanced at Briggs and her lips uptilted. "Admiral Briggs feels that, as her current caretakers, you had a right to make your case first."

Admiral Briggs smiled. Giana prayed that they were on her side. "Now, we will begin." He cleared his throat and the other officer brought out a PADD. "This is Yeoman Alcester – he'll be recording this meeting. On my other side is Lieutenant Davis – she'll be overseeing the political side of things."

"Please to meet you," Giana said, her voice shaking.

"There's no need to be nervous," Admiral Briggs said calmly. "We haven't really begun. Now, where and when did you find her?"

Patty glanced at Giana, noted her pale face, and decided to take charge. "Eight days ago we were walking home from Zaraffa's Coffee and found her in a plain cardboard box. I have a photo of the box that I took when I went back." He took out his miniature PADD from his jacket pocket and showed them the photo. "I work in construction and examined the whole box. It's just a cardboard box with no markings or clue as to where it came from."

Admiral Briggs opened the file on his desk. "You filed the notice seven days ago, as well as a request to adopt her and name her a citizen of Earth." He looked up at them, evidently curious. "Why?"

"Well…" Patty took a shaky breath, knowing that he couldn't hide anything for the sake of the child. "We've been trying to have a baby for three years, and my wife has undergone seven IVF treatments in that time. Nothing's worked, and we do think that we would make good parents for her."

"Interesting," Lieutenant Davis murmured, "very interesting. Human rates of infertility are almost non-existent, especially in under-thirty-fives." She picked a file up from another side of the desk – their medical files. "According to your files, both of you are completely healthy and should be able to create children."

Admiral Briggs cleared his throat. "We aren't here to discuss this. We're here to discuss the custody of the child."

"Yes Admiral," the Lieutenant said quickly, closing the file.

"Now, Mister Abbott, are you aware of Vulcan culture and lifestyle?"

"I have done lots of research on it, yes."

"What have you learned?"

"I learned that we cannot give her chocolate, her biology is very different from ours with a higher heart-rate and copper-based blood, alcohol will not affect her and she doesn't sweat. Also, Vulcans are touch-telepathic." Patty looked very pleased with his knowledge.

"I'm impressed," Admiral Briggs said approvingly. "What have you decided to name her?"

Patty and Giana exchanged another glance. "We haven't named her," he explained. "It would make it harder to let her go if she was sent to Vulcan."

Lieutenant Davis stuck her hand up. "Have you done a DNA test?"

"A doctor pricked her finger," Patty admitted, "and it showed that she's one-hundred percent Vulcan."

Yeoman Alcester made a note. "When was this test?" he asked

"Three days ago."

Admiral Briggs smiled. "Are you willing to raise her as your own, even though she should be sent back to Vulcan with her own kind?"

Giana's head shot up and she spoke for the first time. "What do you mean?"

The Admiral smiled. "You're her caretakers, and even though she's a Vulcan it's up to you with what happens to her." He clicked his fingers. "Alcester, don't write this down. Privately, I think you'll be better for her than sending her to Vulcan and spending the rest of your lives wondering what's become of her."

"We did think that it might affect her if she grew up alone on Vulcan knowing that her parents abandoned her," Giana pointed out. "We've both become very protective of her and would love to raise her as our own."

Admiral Briggs clicked his fingers again. "I think the case is clear. Davis, could you please get the paperwork?"

"Yes Admiral." She turned to the filing cabinet behind Yeoman Alcester and pulled out a file, handing it to the Admiral.

"Now, you need to pick a name and declare legal guardianship," he told them.

"Are you serious?" Giana gaped.

He smiled warmly. "I respect family, Messrs Abbott. I think everyone deserves a second chance when it comes to that."

Tears formed in her eyes. "What about the Vulcan High Council?"

Lieutenant Davis chuckled. "They have six million Vulcans, and the report you filed a week ago says that she was abandoned. There must be a reason for her abandonment, and I'm sure you don't want to go into that debacle with the High Council. What if she was left here for a reason, like some kind of scandal? I'm sure we can do more good for Vulcan by keeping her here."

"I did not think of that," Giana said softly. She couldn't believe this. The baby could be theirs because of a sympathetic Admiral and Lieutenant!

"Will Starfleet approve?" Patty asked.

"We are Starfleet here," Admiral Briggs pointed out, "and only we are responsible for our actions. I think that the child would benefit more if she stays with you, and you would benefit more if you kept her."

A single tear ran down Giana's face. "Thank you," she murmured huskily, wiping the tear away.

"What will you call her?" Lieutenant Davis asked.

Patty smiled wide. "Zia," he replied, "little Zia Abbott." He picked up a pen and filled out the form, giving her name, species, gender, age, new adoptive parents and residence. It was overwhelming, the fact that they were keeping the child since Starfleet wanted to avoid a spectacle with Vulcan, so it was to be kept quiet.

And it was done. Admiral Briggs signed the paper and Zia Abbott was legally theirs. It was unbelievable.

"It was a pleasure talking to you today," Admiral Briggs said friendlily. "I hope I've helped you complete your dream."

"I hope we've helped you avoid possible awkwardness with Vulcan," Patty replied. "We're forever indebted to you."

"We're doing our job of keeping the Federation functioning." The Admiral shrugged. "Plus it pays to do good things for people, because it makes the world a better place."

Now Giana was crying freely, holding Zia tight against her body.

"Thank you," she whispered, "thank you."

o.O.o

They were numb when they got home, Patty clutching the papers tightly in his fist. Giana refused to let go of Zia, believing that they were sleeping and would wake to find it all a dream.

"We have our own child!" she cried. Prenatal classes were useless now, seeing as caring for Zia came naturally. She was in awe of the little bundle of joy in her arms, hardly believing it to be real, no matter how much Patty told her it was the truth.

Sitting in his comfy armchair with a book in his lap, Patty marvelled at the change that Zia had wrought in Giana. Before finding the Vulcan, she was ready to give up and a week later she was happier than he'd seen her in a very long time. A smile had covered her face since before they arrived home, staying there as she bathed the baby, fed her and played with her. It was a huge transformation and he loved it.

She picked up Zia and came over, scratching under her neck. The little girl giggled and gurgled, gazing up at Giana with large eyes. "You, my sweet, are worth it all." She sat on the arm of Patty's chair and wrapped her free arm around her husband. "I love you."

He entwined their fingers together. "I love you too."

At that moment there was a knock on the door. Patty waved Giana back and crossed the room, opening the door. One of their good friends stood outside, a woman around their age named Doctor Lyn. "Come in."

"Hey," she said hesitantly, stepping inside. "How did it go today?"

"We got custody!" Giana said excitedly, joining them. Lyn grinned at the baby.

"I can teach her everything there is to know about science," she laughed, stroking Zia's head. "It'll make my PhD worthwhile. What have you called her?"

"We called her Zia Abbott," Patty said proudly.

"That's a beautiful name. She's a beautiful baby. I reckon she'll do great things one day, hopefully science-related!" Lyn winked. "But I should warn you, you should be careful. Not everyone in this town is too fond of Vulcans." She bent over, kissing Zia's forehead. "I'm really excited for all your futures'." She waved at them and walked back to the door.

"Where are you going?" Giana asked.

"I only stopped in for a brief visit," Lyn explained. "I've got things to do. I guess I'll see you around?"

"Yes, thank you," Giana and Patty said in unison. Lyn waved again and left, closing the door behind her.

Giana turned to Patty and kissed him deeply. "I can't wait."

She had a good feeling about Zia. As soon as their eyes met, Giana was in love with her. This was supposed to be their child to bring up, she was sure of it, and she was going to do a kick-ass job as a mum. Yeah, IVF hadn't worked, but now she was reaping the rewards from her misfortunes. It seemed that life had given her a second chance, in the form of a little Vulcan baby named Zia Abbott.

And she wasn't going to toss that chance aside, no way.