Warnings: M/M slash, don't like don't read.
Disclaimer: My idea. Not my characters or related indicia. Vulcan kissing from fanon, not sure if it's canon as well.
"Defendant, Dr. Leonard Horatio McCoy, please stand."
He did, trying and failing to keep his face devoid of emotion.
"Dr. McCoy, you are protesting your demotion from Chief Medical Officer as a direct result of your recent marriage to James Tiberius Kirk, Captain of the U.S.S. Enterprise, the Federation Starship upon which you currently serve?"
"Yes, Your Honor."
The judge peered down at him. "In other words, Doctor, you think you're better than other doctors."
"Objection, Your Honor," said Spock, standing.
"Already?" asked the judge in disbelief.
"Your Honor, the right of the defendant and his, her, or its defending attorney to place an objection at any time is stated clearly in—"
"Very well, sir."
"The court recognizes Commander Spock," chimed in a young, frazzled-looking man below the judge's seat.
"Objection to your words, Your Honor. They carry a negative emotional connotation inappropriate to a legal decision. In Terran language and culture, it is considered overly prideful to believe oneself 'better', despite the fact that Doctor McCoy is the Chief Medical Officer of a highly prestigious flagship, and therefore can only be expected to have abilities and talent beyond those of the average physician." McCoy allowed a small smirk to tug at the corner of his mouth, knowing full well that Spock had basically just told the judge that yes, McCoy was better than other doctors, and to shut up now.
"You wish to complain about emotional words in a case all about emotion, Commander? But I'll take your words into account. Objection sustained. You may sit, Doctor. Commander, I have a question for you."
"Yes, Your Honor?"
"In your opinion as a Vulcan, does Dr. McCoy have superior emotional control to the average physician?"
McCoy repressed a groan. There was no way Spock could wiggle out of that one. He was well known as the most emotional one on the ship.
"I do not believe I am properly acquainted with enough Terran physicians to make that claim, sir."
"Try your best, based on your knowledge of the average Terran," suggested the judge impatiently. McCoy braced himself.
"I cannot say that Doctor McCoy has above average emotional control in the sense that a Vulcan does," said Spock. "However, I believe that Doctor McCoy's emotional state is beneficial to his patients in many ways."
"Really," said the judge, unconvinced. "What ways?"
Spock turned. "The defense calls Lieut. Christine Chapel."
Chapel stood.
"And what is your relationship with Dr. McCoy?" asked the judge.
"Sir, I am a nurse working for Dr. McCoy on the U.S.S. Enterprise."
"Give your testimony."
"Dr. McCoy is emotionally invested in each of his patients. He works with them in whatever ways necessary to help them make a full recovery, whether that be performing surgery for nine hours straight, talking to them when they're awake, and allowing those and only those visitors whom he believes it would be beneficial for the patient to see. He does not give up on a patient until he is a hundred percent sure that he cannot save them. Often, this attitude is hugely beneficial to those he can save. When he does lose a patient, it is difficult for him to let go, but a process made much simpler by the secure knowledge that he has done everything possible. If he were to lose a patient to whom he had not given the whole of himself, it would be detrimental to his ability to move on to the next one. Therefore, I conclude that in the specific case of Dr. McCoy, emotional detachment is not a desirable goal."
McCoy shot his nurse a glance that was at once admiring and grateful. He had had no idea she was that perceptive to the reasons why he worked himself half to death.
"Thank you, Lieutenant. You may be seated," said the judge. "Very well, I'll concede from your testimony that emotional commitment is beneficial in Dr. McCoy's case. I'll even admit that it's nearly unavoidable, since you live and work with these people. But your husband? Keep in mind why these rules were put in place decades ago. Can you be sure that when an away team is injured, you will not prioritize your husband over the other crew members?"
Spock and Christine both made to speak, as well as Jim, but McCoy shushed them all and got to his feet.
"I believe I can answer that for myself, if I may, Your Honor?"
The judge gestured for him to go on.
"I've always had to worry about Jim Kirk. He was my boyfriend before he was my husband, and my best friend and captain before that, and before that, he was this kid at Starfleet Academy who kept getting hurt. For a long time I didn't trust anyone else to patch him up, 'cause he has an allergy list you wouldn't believe. Nowadays, I trust my staff to read the file first and give the meds later. Anyway, you can imagine I know Jim pretty well. I can tell by a visual inspection whether he's just in pain or if he's critical, and I react accordingly. Not just that I promise I will, Your Honor, but that I have been doing it for years. And if I have more than one crew member who's as badly hurt as Jim, well, Your Honor, I've never had to ask myself whether I'd still treat Jim first. He's the Captain, and for all they taught us in medical school about all lives being equal, on a starship, it's tragic if you save the Captain but lose a yeoman, but you're generally putting the whole ship in danger if you save the yeoman but lose the Captain. And you'll see from my records, Your Honor, that I'm the best doctor on the ship, and it is well within my duty to treat the highest ranking of the worst injured first."
"And what if Mr. Kirk were not the Captain? What if he were demoted?"
"Objection, Your Honor," said Spock. "The conversation is moving into conjecture and the improbable. If I may refer you to Captain Kirk's file—"
"Objection sustained," sighed the judge. "Very well, Dr. McCoy. I grant you special permission to continue serving as Chief Medical Officer of the U.S.S. Enterprise despite being an immediate family member of one of the crew members."
"One of the crew members?" muttered Jim beside him. "What am I, a yeoman?"
McCoy shushed him, grinning.
"Thank you, Your Honor," he said, accepting the piece of paper.
"Dismissed!" called the judge, and they filed out in an orderly manner, not stopping to celebrate until they were free of the courtroom, at which point Christine screamed and flung her arms around McCoy's neck.
"You got it! Oh, Leonard!"
"Never knew you saw that much, Chrissie," he whispered softly in her ear.
"Oh, Leonard, of course I do. We all do."
When she released him, McCoy turned to Spock, but Sulu, Chekov, Scotty, and Uhura, who had not been allowed in, as they were not directly related to the case, swarmed.
"Doctor, you got off?" asked Chekov excitedly. McCoy nodded and staggered a little as Nyota threw her arms around him. Sulu, Scotty, and Chekov all shook his hand enthusiastically.
"I knew you would!"
"Congratulations!"
"Vell, Doctor, you are ze best."
McCoy turned to Spock again. He didn't hold out his hand; he knew the significance of *that*, and he was promised to Jim already. Instead, he inclined his head and said, "Thank you." And, holding up his hands before Spock could reply, "And don't go telling me thanks are illogical. I want you to know that it means a lot to me that you stood up in court and said emotional control isn't everything to help me keep my job."
Spock seemed to be about to protest, but Jim whispered, "Just accept it," and he only nodded.
Finally, they turned to one another.
"You did it," said Jim simply, but he had a radiant smile on his face. "You did all that for me."
"I did all that for my job," corrected McCoy. "I already had you."
"But you didn't have to marry me," said James Tiberius Kirk simply, slipping his hand into McCoy's. "You knew this would happen. You knew the risks. And you still said yes. So, yeah. I love you too, Bones."