Joanna wore a bright, empty smile as she moved around the room. The Fontana Institute wholeheartedly celebrated those few holidays that were still acknowledged by the Emperor and, for whatever reason, Valentine's Day was still on the list of approved holidays. So she was dressed in what she considered a horribly girlish frock of blood red in a room decorated with what seemed to be miles of pink and red crepe streamers and hundreds of hearts. None of the decorations improved her mood one bit
It had been over a week now since Uncle Christopher and Lieutenant Leslie had been sent down before the Enterprise headed off for a mission. To put it quite plainly, Joanna was highly disappointed in both her older brother and Uncle Jim. The man that they had sent with Uncle Christopher was totally, totally wrong for him. For one thing, Lieutenant Leslie didn't like kids. Which meant he had to go. The sooner - the better.
It was at times like this that Joanna cursed her youth. She really wasn't old enough to be able to properly dispose of bodies on her own and, while she did have a formidable set of contacts for her age, most of them were on the Enterprise and too far away to be of any practical use in this matter. Uncle Christopher was nearby, but since he was still recovering as well as being the crux of the problem, she didn't see that he could be a great deal of help either. Not so long as Loser Leslie was still in the picture.
Working her way around yet another table topped with far too many red or heart shaped food items, Joanna finally spotted the two men, Uncle Christopher in his wheelchair and Loser Leslie to the side - ignoring him for the most part. Then someone else drew her attention - someone who was also looking toward the two men.
Stepping to where she could get a better look, Joanna studied the man. By his braid, he was an Imperial Starfleet Commander. She guessed he was around the same age as Uncle Christopher. The commander's blue eyes were rather intense and she noticed they seemed to be focused in a disapproving way at Leslie - which automatically greatly raised him in her estimation.
He apparently had the feeling he was being watched and turned his head, spotting Joanna before she could avert her eyes. As his eyes narrowed, she briefly debated trying to disappear into the crowd, but decided that wouldn't do her much good in the dress she was wearing. That decided, she stood her ground and met his gaze, a move that seemed to intrigue him as he made his way around the various obstacles to where she was standing. When he spoke, the tone was firm but seemed to have an undercurrent of amusement.
"You are aware that staring is impolite, Miss?"
Joanna had been considering her options as she watched him coming closer. There would be no way to tell if her approach was the correct one until it was past the point to change it.
"Yessir. Very aware. I apologize. It seems to be a family trait to be defensive where family is concerned."
The blue eyes shifted slightly, but not in a way she could read. He and Uncle Jim might have basic eye color in common, but that seemed to be where the similarities ended.
"If you're referring to Admiral Pike, he doesn't have any family."
"Related by blood? No. But he and my family have a . . . a . . ."
Frowning, Joanna thought silently for a minute before making a vague gesture with her hand.
"It's complicated."
That seemed to amuse the Commander and he motioned her over to a chair so that they could speak at more of an even level.
"Complicated, eh? So, who is your family?"
"Doctor Leonard McCoy and Captain James Kirk, sir. I was told to refer to Admiral Pike as my Uncle Christopher, but he's more like my grandfather, really. Or how I think a grandfather would be."
The silver eyebrows rose a bit.
"I wasn't aware either Doctor McCoy or Captain Kirk had a daughter."
Joanna allowed a smile to escape.
"So far as I'm aware, neither of them do, sir. I'm Doctor McCoy's sister."
"Quite an age gap."
"Long story, sir."
That got an actual chuckle out of the man.
"I bet."
Across the room, both of them heard Pike raise his voice though they couldn't make out what he was saying over the other noises in the room. They both ended up glaring at Leslie - and both noticed the other doing it.
"You aren't fond of Lieutenant Leslie, I take it?"
"No, sir. I don't like the way he treats Uncle Christopher - and I don't believe Uncle Christopher likes it either."
"Then why do you put up with it?"
That question got into delicate territory, but Joanna remember something Uncle Jim had told her once and went with her gut as she took a closer look at his insignia.
"Are you a doctor? A medical-type one?"
"Yes, I am. We haven't gotten around to introductions, have we? Doctor Phillip Boyce."
Boyce offered her his hand and she took it.
"Joanna McCoy. To answer your question, it's because Uncle Christopher isn't well enough to take care of Leslie himself yet and I'm not strong enough to give Uncle Christopher the help he needs while healing. If the Enterprise was closer . . . but it isn't and Leslie isn't worried about Uncle Jim or my brother finding out what's going on."
Thoughtfully releasing Joanna's hand, Boyce's eyes went back over to the two men, but this time, they were settled on Pike. This time, the expression was one that Joanna recognized. Lust. A smile began to form.
"Does Uncle Christopher know you want him?"
Head snapping back around, Boyce focused on Joanna again.
"Don't talk about things you don't know anything about, young lady."
"I won't. And I wasn't. How long?"
A very slight lip twitch betrayed his desire to smile at that.
"No, he doesn't And for over a decade though I've never approached him."
"Because of Doctor Puri?"
"Exactly."
"Of course, he's dead now."
"So I had heard. And now there's Leslie."
There was a remarkable amount of scorn in Joanna's voice.
"Leslie isn't intelligent enough to replace Puri at Uncle Christopher's side. I suppose he isn't an idiot, but when someone is used to be surrounded by genius level minds?"
Boyce didn't attempt to hide his amusement again.
"Exactly how old are you?"
"I've been told I'm rather advanced for my age."
"I bet you have. So? Might I have the honor of escorting you to the Admiral's side?"
"Yes, please. It looks like he's trying to spot me."
Pike had indeed been trying to spot where Joanna might be and was arguing with Leslie about going to look for her. Joanna's look grew darker.
"If I were older . . ."
His hand resting on her shoulder, Boyce looked down at the girl at his side again.
"What if you were older?"
A smile formed as Joanna tilted her head and looked up at the doctor.
"You know, in class we were taught that the Emperor believes that there is only one appropriate Valentine's gift."
Boyce began to laugh and his laughter drew Pike's attention. He seemed relieved and Leslie annoyed as the pair approached and Joanna made the introductions. Boyce and Pike had met before at several functions while Puri was still alive and by his side. Boyce had respected Puri enough to not pursue Pike - however, he had no compunctions about circumventing Leslie.
As Joanna hoped, Pike responded beautifully to elevated conversation, becoming more alert and engaged. His years with Puri had made him able to converse knowledgably on a number of medically related topics, which pleased Boyce in turn. The only one displeased by the turn of events was Leslie, who had to content himself with being disagreeable to Joanna. Joanna cheerfully ignored him, knowing how much that would further irritate the lieutenant.
The festivities were reaching the midway point when Leslie was finally fed up with being ignored and left the area without even bothering to ask Pike's permission. A few minutes later, Boyce pardoned himself.
"I regret I must step away for a bit to attend to some necessary business, but I hope you will both allow me to rejoin you when I return."
Smiling, Pike answered first.
"Of course. I look forward to continuing our conversation."
Joanna was very pleased at the way Pike's eyes followed Boyce as the doctor exited before he turned back to her and they began talking about her studies. It was just short of an hour before Boyce joined them again and suggested that the three of them go out for some air and to admire the gardens. They accepted immediately. Pike was nearly as sick of being in a sea of red and pink crepe as Joanna was.
The day was warm enough to be comfortable and the fresh air was delicious after the sugar tinged air of the reception room. Pike and Boyce resumed their talk as Boyce steered the chair discretely toward one of the paths. Looking ahead, Joanna saw a box perched on a table in the distance and tried to contain her impatience as she could help but hope the box contained what she thought it might.
When they were close enough that the box had caught Pike's eye, Boyce shifted the conversation.
"So, Miss McCoy here informs me that you've become a grandfather figure to her."
With a chuckle, Pike gave a glance to Joanna.
"Oddly enough, I have to say that's true."
"Excellent. Then she can serve as the family representative. Or course technically, since you outrank me, it would generally be you asking to court me rather than the other way around."
Pike looked over his shoulder at Boyce.
"Are you asking me to become a consort to you?"
Fully ignoring the incredulous look he was getting from Pike, Boyce continued.
"Or asking that you accept me as yours. Or we could use the word paramour, if you prefer."
Caught off-guard for once, Pike tossed out the first thing he thought of.
"Rather sudden, isn't this?"
The chair stopped moving for a minute as Boyce laughed, then restarted once he caught his breath.
"Hardly sudden. I've been watching you since the beginnings of your association with Rajinder. However, those of us in the medical field who consider ourselves true doctors have an understanding with one another. We don't poach one another's patients or significant others."
That caught Pike's intrigue. For her part, Joanna had dropped back just enough to not draw attention to herself.
"True doctors?"
"There are probably fewer of us in Starfleet than you would think, Admiral."
"Raj often told me that. And if you're looking to court, shift to call me Chris in private."
"Phil."
Pike's eyes went back to the box on the table.
"So . . . what's in there?"
"Your granddaughter was kind enough to remind me of something our Emperor once said. What is in the box is a combination - a proper Valentine as well as a expression of intent."
The wheelchair was deftly maneuvered alongside the box and was at a level where Pike could reach it without aid. As he lifted it, he guess the weight to be about four kilograms - possibly a bit less. In fact, he had a fairly good idea what was inside. Prying off the lid proved that he had guessed correctly. Inside was the head of Lieutenant Leslie, neatly severed at the neck and cauterized as well.
"I hope you weren't extremely attached to him. Should you choose to reject my proposition, I will find you a replacement."
Pike poked the forehead with one finger.
"I was dependent on him, but attached? No. He was a bit too pleased with my dependency. Tell me, Phil. What defines a true doctor?"
Taking a seat at the table, Boyce patted the seat beside him. Taking the hint, Joanna came over and perched beside him.
"I'll define that for you by giving you the different kinds of doctors you find in Imperial Starfleet. The most plentiful is what Raj and I would refer to as hacks. They have what most might term as unsavory pleasures and found at a young age that the medical profession would allow them to live out many of their fantasies without repercussions. Type two are at least useful - we call them prospectors. They don't give a damn about the patients themselves, only what they can discover from them. Type three are the computers and they're the second most plentiful in our ranks. They can do their doctoring by the book, but they're no good facing a new situation. If someone hasn't done it before them and fully documented it, they can't do it. Now a true doctor might have one or more of the aspects of the other three, but they are also the ones that can take past knowledge and apply it to new situations. They are the innovators, the inventors and the only ones worth a damn out in the black."
"And how would you classify someone like Leonard McCoy?"
Another laugh came out.
"You already know the answer to that. Raj would never have mentored anyone that wasn't a true doctor. And before you ask, you already know better than to ask what category I'm in."
"Considering you're the physician to the Admiralty? Yes, I already know. I'm not an easy man, you realize."
"Easy has never been on my list of desirable qualities, Chris."
Joanna snuck one quick look into the box, quite satisfied that it would be her last glimpse of Loser Leslie. Following that, she got back to her feet.
"If you both will pardon me, I believe the rest of your talk will go better without me. I'll save you both some of the cake."
Both men watched as she skipped off, then Boyce looked to Pike again.
"How old is that kid?"
"Still quite young, but considering both a Betazoid and an Orion have had a hand in her upbringing, I suppose regular standards don't apply."
"She asked me if you knew that I wanted you. I don't know that I would have gone ahead and approached you if she hadn't."
Much later that evening as he ran his hand along the back of the man sharing his bed, Pike made a mental note that he owed a rather large debt now to Joanna. And he didn't mind it one bit.