A/N: This is a collection of mostly unrelated ficlets, inspired by the free write challenges at Ad Astra, looking at various moments in the lives of our favorite crewmembers. Some are humorous, some are serious, but all are snippets, either fleshing out things we already know or totally unique situations. I'll be adding to this as long as the free writes continue to spark ideas, and the response continues to be favorable. Chapter titles are drawn from the prompt given that particular week.
The Last Place in the Universe
It was the last place in the universe he wanted to be. He pulled the hood more snugly about his face, but that did little to protect him from the biting wind, the swirling snow that, along with the bone-chilling cold, was doing its best to penetrate the numerous layers of clothing he was wearing.
Thunk! Something hard and white exploded against the back of his head. Hearing giggling behind him, he turned to see his cousin, her breath escaping through the scarf wrapped around the bottom half of her face in white, airy puffs.
"C'mon Spock, you've got to admit this is fun! There's nothing like the first snow of the season. Mom says you guys never get snow on Vulcan. This'll be your only chance to learn how to sled. Race you to the top of the hill," she called over her shoulder, tugging the wooden toboggan along behind her.
He wanted to explain that snow did exist on his homeworld, but only at the poles and atop the highest peaks – both environments inhospitable to its inhabitants, explored only by a select few intrepid souls; that Vulcans were a species dedicated to logic and never did anything 'just for fun,' but since speaking would mean tugging down the flap of the thermal turtleneck that he'd pulled up over his mouth before winding his own heavy scarf over top that, which would in turn give the bitter wind an avenue into his jacket, he thought better of it, merely trudging dutifully along in the path she had broken in the pristine, fluffy snow.
Much to his surprise, he found that he did enjoy her company, a stark, refreshing contrast to that of his peers and schoolmates on Vulcan. It was the current physical environment he found somewhat off-putting, the frigid air doing its best to penetrate every exposed pore. Up till now, he had not personally encountered temperatures this low, and he was not finding the experience to be a pleasant one.
When his mother had told him they would be going to Earth to visit her relatives, he'd been a little uncertain at first. After all, to this point his only contact with humans had been that with his own mother, a woman whose bearing and demeanor were certainly tempered by her many years spent on Vulcan, married to the Vulcan Ambassador no less.
When it came to interacting with a human child, he had had no idea what to expect, but was pleased to find that despite their disparity in age and the obvious cultural differences, they had more in common than he'd initially thought possible. At age twelve she was already an accomplished chess player, was learning the basics of the Terran trumpet, and the two shared similar tastes in literature. All in all, he'd found the time spent with her to be most agreeable.
He must admit, though, he had preferred their first visit last summer, when all he had needed was a sweatshirt to be comfortable outdoors. During that more temperate time of year there had been a wide variety of native flora and fauna available for examination. They were markedly different from the species indigenous to his world, and the two of them had spent many hours capturing, scrutinizing and then releasing these elusive creatures.
"Hurry up, slowpoke," she called, mittened hands cupped around the spot where her mouth was buried beneath the folds of her scarf, the laughter and gentle teasing in her tone doing much to take the sting out of her words. "I'll even let you drive."
That spurred his five-year-old legs to move a little faster, despite the thick snowpants and heavy boots, his mind already calculating the proper trajectory, speed and weight distribution which would be necessary for them to travel all the way to his cousin's back porch without having to slog through any more snowdrifts.
Besides, there was one place in the universe he wouldn't mind being at all when they were done playing in the snow – sitting at his aunt's kitchen table sipping a steaming mug of rich hot cocoa.