Star Trek TOS, Spock/Kirk, mostly just cute.
As Aphrodis appeared on the screen ahead of them, Kirk's head popped up from where it had been propped lazily against his hand.
Automatically, Spock reported, "Class M planet, very similar to Earth, oxygen-nitrogen atmosphere, though oxygen levels are a bit higher than earth. The planet is 85% water with two separate land masses."
They already knew this though. Furthermore, they knew the planet was inhabited by females only, due to a disease that wiped out males several hundred years previously. Though the disease had long ago been classified and neutralized, the male gene had never been reintroduced to the population and the planet had been run by the females successfully for centuries. When the men died, the society had already been at an advanced enough level to have delved into genetic manipulation and it had taken the women only ten years to develop artificial insemination techniques using just women. They had survived that way ever since, evolving into a highly technological, peaceful society, where their advancements were used to preserve the natural life on the planet. Women had easily fallen into all roles that men had dominated, including careers in the sciences, engineering, math, and hard labor. Star Fleet had informed them of this, and had given them the mission to negotiate with the planet for access to their generous stores of dilithium crystals.
"Thank you, Mr. Spock," Kirk replied, regardless, then looked toward the helm, "Mr. Sulu, enter normal orbit. Lieutenant Uhura, contact the planet's surface."
"Transmission open, Captain."
Kirk hit the button on his chair's arm and announced, "This is Captain James Kirk of the USS Enterprise. To whom am I speaking?"
A softly aged, feminine voice responded, "Ah yes, Captain Kirk. This is Lucrelia, of the Elder Sisters. We've been waiting for your arrival for some time now. We look forward to negotiations with you for our crystals. As for your landing party, we do have a small condition."
Kirk raised an eyebrow. He never liked conditions, especially not when approaching a planet or place with which he wasn't familiar. But he was obligated to at least hear the request-and all news from Star Fleet informed him that all previous contact with this planet had been very peaceful, if not outright friendly, so he had no reason not to at least listen. "And what may that be, Lucrelia?"
"Simply that you beam down only two of your crew. An atypical and particularly unappealing request for you, I realize, Captain, but it is the only request we have. And I'll believe that you'll find we had mentioned this as a condition in our previous contacts with Star Fleet."
"She is correct, Captain," Spock informed him, "The request has already been approved."
Kirk's hand rose to his face, as if thinking, but he knew there was no way around this. Sending only two men to a planet with known inhabitants was generally against his better instincts, but if Star Fleet had already approved it...
"I promise than no harm will befall anyone, Captain. You have my word on that."
He released a sigh, giving in. "So be it. Myself and my First Officer will be beaming down shortly."
"A welcoming party will meet you there and give you further instructions."
Pushing himself out of his chair, he closed the communication link, and nodded silently to Spock, marching towards the elevator doors. To Uhura, he said, "Tell Scotty to have the transporter room ready."
He and Spock entered the elevator wordlessly, except for the floor command, and Kirk kept his eyes trained on the door. Over the past few weeks, he'd found himself less and less able to look his First Officer in the face. It hadn't interfered with duty yet and Kirk wasn't planning on letting it, but it was becoming a bit troublesome.
Kirk had only himself to blame though. It was his own fault, falling for Spock.
Besides, he had picked who was best for the job. A two-man team venturing onto an unknown planet for mining negotiation? He'd never risk random crewmen for such a task. He and Spock had negotiated and fought their way out of more dangerous situations than Kirk could even begin to remember and Kirk trusted that they could do it again, if need be.
It certainly didn't help that Spock stood so close to him though. They had the whole elevator to themselves and Spock, as usual, stood mere inches from him. Distraction was difficult to avoid when he could feel the heat of Spock's chest against his arm, his back.
They were in the transporter room not two minutes later and were beaming down to the planet's surface a minute after that. Kirk found himself in a green, earthy area, surrounded by plush grass and high hedges.
When they materialized, they were met by a trio of girls; a blonde who looked about twelve, a brunette who was likely sixteen and a redhead who was probably eighteen. All three were dressed in simple linen garbs, loose except for the belt that held the dress in place at the waist.
The oldest of the girls stepped forward, greeting him with a wide smile. "Greetings, I am Ageia of the Little Sisters." Motioning to the blonde and brunette respectively, she continued, "These are my sisters, Fraelas and Romua."
"I'm Captain James Kirk, and this is my First Officer Spock." As he introduced the Vulcan, he stepped up beside Kirk.
"Kirk and Spock. It is a pleasure to meet you," Ageia replied pleasantly. "The Elder Sisters await your arrival."
"And... where exactly are these Elder Sisters?" Kirk asked suspiciously, quickly scanning the area. They were obviously nowhere in sight.
"You will find them on the other side of the maze," she told him, nodding toward an opening in the hedges a short distance away.
"A maze?" Kirk questioned.
"Indeed, Kirk. The maze has been constructed to test the worth of those seeking council from the Elder Sisters. It is a standard procedure on our planet and we are afraid you are not exempt."
Kirk raised an eyebrow. "And what do we have to do to get through this maze?"
"Simply navigate your way through. In the course of the maze, you will encounter three doors which will require you to complete a certain task in order to open them. After opening the third door, you will come to find the Elder Sisters."
"Interesting," Spock claimed, speaking up for the first time since landing on the planet, "It seems the maze is a way for them to test not only ingenuity, but to test ability and strength of will as well."
The brunette, Romua, interjected, "Forget not the circle, sister."
At the mention, Frealas hopped in place, her eyes looking down towards their feet, "Oh look sisters! Their circle is pink!"
Ageia's smile cocked a bit to one side, "It is, sister. And a deep pink at that. This will be a wonderful trial for them then."
At the mention of this, Kirk's eyes followed theirs to the ground beneath his feet and found that both he and Spock were enclosed in a deep pink circle, no bigger across than six feet. It seemed to be made of light, as if it were a hologram were projecting itself upon them from the sky above. His eyes shot back up to the girls. "What's this about?"
Ageia shook her head slowly, still smiling. "It's of little concern to you, Kirk. All you should know for now is that you are unable to leave the circle. It simply prevents the two of you from separating. You must conquer the maze and the tasks together."
Though Kirk had nothing to be suspicious of, he couldn't help but think there was something more to this that they weren't being told. What exactly was the color of the circle supposed to mean? And what were these three tasks they needed to accomplish? He wouldn't get the chance to ask them more though.
"You have been given your instructions. We will meet you on the other side, Kirk and Spock." And then the three girls disappeared in a flash.
Without prompt, Spock explained, "A unique version of our own transport beam, it seems." He then attempted to use his tricorder to scan the area, but it gave off no familiar whir. "The tricorder appears to have been disabled."
At that, Kirk pulled the communicator from his pants and flipped it open-but heard no responsive beeping. After a few tentative attempts to contact the Enterprise, he added, "The communicator, too. And the phasers, I'm sure."
Spock's approached the edge of the circle, raised his hand, as if to stretch it outside, but at the edge of the circle, it hit something quite solid that it couldn't reach beyond. "It appears as if we are being contained in some sort of force field. That is the most likely source of our devices' failure."
Kirk nodded his agreement. "It seems the only choice we have... is to complete the maze."
"Agreed, Captain."
Kirk approached the edge of the maze leisurely, peeking inside, and staring down a long, hedged corridor. The hedges were all eight feet high, about four feet apart, making a huge pathway. After a moment, he felt Spock come up behind him, closing the distance between them as he too inspected the beginning of the maze.
Kirk's eyes darted to Spock for a moment before looking back to the maze. "Is there any logical way to solve a maze, Spock?"
"Indeed there is, Captain." Spock replied. "The best method for a unit stuck inside an unknown maze is known as the hand method. One simply uses their right or left hand to follow the wall of the maze from the beginning to the end."
"And that'll get us through the maze?"
"Well, there are circumstances that would render the method ineffective, such as if the walls of the maze were to shift, or if we had been placed in the middle of a maze with walls that were not all connected to the sides, but considering our current position at the entrance, there should be no problem finding the exit."
"Then lead the way, Mr. Spock," Kirk offered, extending his hand.
Spock didn't literally use his hand to follow the wall but he proceeded to lead them along the right-hand wall. Kirk followed behind at a fairly close distance-the circle around their feet didn't allow for much room between them, especially while walking.
Navigating their way through the maze actually turned out to be a rather boring process. Spock led them silently along the wall, which occasionally led them down dead ends (which, Spock explained, the only time their silence was broken, was perfectly natural). Kirk could think of nothing to venture for a conversation and instead distracted himself by keeping his eyes wide, his ears alert for any possibility (no matter how unlikely) of attack.
It was close to twenty minutes later when they found a large iron gate in an upcoming area of the hedge wall. They approached the gate cautiously, unsure of how the whole 'task' thing was going to work. The gate appeared simple enough though. The wrought iron bars were tall, with ornate spikes on top. On the gates appeared to be a simple sign and when Kirk got close enough, he saw the word written across it.
'Embrace.'
Upon seeing it, Kirk froze a bit. What? Was that... supposed to be the task? What kind of task was that? His eyes scanned the rest of the door, but there was nothing else written on it, or around it, nothing else to indicate any other sort of task that would have needed to be completed to open the door.
Instinctively, he reached his hand out and gave the gate a firm pull, a push. Neither budged it. He looked to Spock and the Vulcan was raising an eyebrow at the gate.
Kirk looked back to the gate. Would the gate really open if they... hugged? Though the thought was hardly unappealing to Kirk-if not a little embarrassing-it seemed so... strange. When the Sisters had mentioned tasks, Kirk had assumed some big physical or mental spectacle, either by a show of strength or riddle, but... a hug? That was both a simpler and... a much more complicated task.
Not that a hug was that big a deal. Kirk had touched Spock before, had put an arm around him a number of times, out of concern, and perhaps, unknowingly, out of affection. A hug was no real problem. It was just a strange request, and one that would draw out more than a bit of awkwardness.
But Kirk tried to shrug it off, shove his affections behind a barrier necessary to complete the task without embarrassment. He put a casual smile on his face and looked up to his first officer. "Well, Spock, the gate wants us to hug."
"It would appear so, Captain," Spock replied noncommittally, though he was still scanning the gate, as if he could watch it long enough and perhaps something new might be revealed. When, after a moment, nothing was, Spock finally turned to him.
Kirk wasn't exactly sure how to go about beginning the hug, but he shrugged, smiled, and opened his arms, hoping to avoid as much awkwardness as possible. Spock raised an eyebrow, and when he opened his arms, Kirk went in for the kill. His arms wrapped around Spock's middle, Spock's arms then coming to settle around his back.
Although Kirk hadn't intended on letting himself get wrapped up in the moment, as soon as Spock embraced him, he felt a little swept away. Though there were times when he and Spock had been in contact, and they were frequently close, they'd never really... hugged. Not like this, not where the sole purpose of the hug was to hug. It was always to help one another to their feet, or to help transport them somewhere. This, of course, had the outside purpose of opening the gate, but it was different.
Spock arms were strong and lean and Kirk was pressed flush to the Vulcan's chest. The side of his face was against Spock's neck, his chin able to rest on the taller male's shoulder with ease, as if it was meant to sit there. Everything about the embrace was... just right, the way their arms fit around each other, the way their chests were pressed together. It felt absolutely wonderful. And Kirk couldn't help but think that if he were to turn his face just so, it would fit perfectly into the crook of Spock's neck.
After 30 seconds, though it felt like much longer, something inside the gate clicked loudly, and the door creaked open an inch.
Having no good reason to continue the embrace, Kirk pulled out of it then, his face unfaltering as it refused to reveal his disappointment, or to betray anything he'd felt during the hug. "That was simple enough."
Spock's face, as usual, was set in its stoic Vulcan ways. Even if the hug had affected Spock at all, Kirk knew he'd never know it. "Indeed." Before he could say anything else, Spock's eyes were drawn downward, toward the circle, his eyebrows shooting upward. "Captain, it appears as if the circle has grown."
Kirk followed the gaze, immediately noticing the observation. The six foot circle had now grown to at least seven feet across, large enough for either or both of them to lie across it with ease. "It seems so. Any explanation for it, Spock?"
"Only that perhaps the extra space was given as a reward for completing the task," Spock replied.
Some reward that would be, Kirk thought to himself sarcastically. The gate forces them to hug and then lets them have some breathing room? It seemed a little backwards to him, but he had no theories of his own to suggest. "Well... regardless, we have another section of maze to complete. Please, lead on, Spock."
The reasoning for the circle's engorging become obvious soon enough though. Spock soon pointed out, as they proceeded through the maze, that the circle was beginning to shrink. Slowly, sure, but it was shrinking nonetheless. The smaller the circle got, the more it restricted movement-reasonably, once the circle shrunk too far, it would restrict their movements completely, rendering them unable to even walk and therefore unable to complete the maze. It was more or less like they were working on a time limit now. The circle had grown after completing the first task so as to allow them more time.
Once they had realized this, they hurried their pace through the second portion of the maze. It was no more difficult to solve than the first section, but the shrinking circle made Kirk feel pressured.
Admittedly, though, he was partially glad for it. It let him quickly take his mind off the hug and focus on the task at hand.
The second part of the maze was completed in half the time, due to their increased speed and the decreased length of the maze, though they lost at least a foot and a half of the circle's diameter in the trek. They approached a second gate, which looked much like the first except for the word written across the door.
'Kiss.'
When Kirk saw it, his eyes shot wide in surprise before he could reclaim the expression on his face. His heart was suddenly hammering. What the hell kind of trial was this? What exactly did the Elder Sisters think they were doing? What would this prove?
He wanted to start shouting at the sky, in case the Sisters were watching, tell them off for how ridiculous this was. It was something he would do-he'd told off alien captures before who'd expected inconceivable tasks of him, though those had usually been tasks of violence or rage that he was actually unwilling to do. This... was different. It wasn't that he didn't want to kiss Spock, god no. The past weeks, especially, he had been almost tormented by the thought, and he knew he would like nothing more than to press his lips to Spock's.
But not like this. He didn't want to be forced into it, he didn't want SPOCK to be forced into it, just because of some insane task on some planet. He wanted it to happen because they both wanted it to happen.
But... how would protesting look? What might Spock deduce if Kirk got indignant over a kiss? Would he see the intentions that Kirk would make clear (because Kirk would have to argue that a kiss may make things between he and his officer awkward, might detract from duty), or would Spock be able to furrow out his true intentions, as he was so often able to? Because if Spock found out that Kirk might be in love with him... well, that could only be disastrous. And Spock knew from experience, if nothing else, that Kirk wasn't exactly a prude. He'd kissed more lips than he could count, more than he could remember-it was usually in some attempt to get the better of someone, sure, but Kirk could hardly be called a prudish kisser. Surely, that fact alone would make a protest from Kirk over a kiss seem suspicious.
Kirk was almost afraid to even look at Spock, sure that Spock would somehow be able to read his stormy internal conflict if he looked him in the eye.
Luckily, Spock made no attempt at eye contact as he announced pointedly just a moment later, "I suggest that whatever action we take be taken quickly, Captain. Our time is limited."
As Kirk's eyes fell to the circle beneath them, he knew Spock was right. It was a bit hard to tell, but the circle was obviously still slowly shrinking. They didn't have much time, especially if they would have to complete a third portion of the maze.
Kirk focused on the gate, as if he were trying to think of some way out of the task. He asked Spock, a last ditch effort (and perhaps trying to put on the show for Spock that his first officer was not at the top of Kirk's To-Do List), "I don't suppose we have any options here?"
"It wouldn't appear so," Spock replied evenly.
And really, it gave Kirk no choice. Spock himself had now sealed off the possibility of other options, other actions. The only thing they could do was obey the gate and Spock was the one that had made it unavoidable. Kirk turned to Spock with a carefully guarded expression on his face. "Then we have no choice."
Spock looked back at him, gave the slightest indication of a nod. There was no use in hesitating any further-Kirk sucked in a breath, raised his hand to Spock's face, and leaned in.
Perhaps because he reasoned it logical (Spock was a bit taller than Kirk, and though the difference wasn't great, it wasn't negligible), Spock returned the gesture, leaning down an inch or so to meet Kirk's lips.
Kirk's eyes closed when their lips made contact; if he'd thought his heart was beating hard before, it was nothing compared to now, actually KISSING Spock, engaging in the task that had been plaguing his dreams for weeks. He didn't want to fall for this mockery of a real kiss, so he tried his best to focus on his breathing, on staying calm, on the possible sound of the gate unlocking that would force him to pull away-anything but the kiss itself. There was no use in getting hung up on it, because it meant nothing to Spock, so it had to mean nothing for both of them.
No use in relishing in the pressure of Spock's lips, in the nearness of his body, or the tickle of breathe Kirk could feel from Spock's nose. No use in enjoying the way his hand had come to naturally cradle Spock's jaw and cheek. It would all be over as soon as the gate's lock clicked.
When Spock's hand came to Kirk's face, his fingertips touching lightly to Kirk's cheek, his temple, he nearly shiver in delight, but swallowed the urge-the touch could mean nothing to him.
Kirk was just beginning to worry that they might need to deepen their kiss in order to open the gate when the click sounded and Kirk skittered away from Spock's mouth. Almost instantly, despite his attempts to stop it, he could feel his cheeks heating up and he quickly turned his head from Spock to hide the blush that couldn't possibly go unnoticed otherwise. Kirk cleared his throat and said as evenly as possible, "Let's move, quickly."
Spock gave no verbal reply to the command, but he pushed through the now open gates, and hurried along the new path.
Neither one mentioned that the circle had again grown after the kiss, or, as they progressed through the maze, that it seemed to be shrinking more quickly than before-Kirk noticed because his head was diverted downward in an attempt to avoid Spock's gaze. The only indication that Kirk had of Spock noticing was their pace, quicker than before and now just short of a jog.
As the circle shrunk, further and further, it pushed them closer together, next to one another to avoid stumbling over one another as they walked. Five feet, four, the circle was shrinking rapidly and they could have no clue how long they had to travel in the maze. Kirk could only rely that Spock's method could get they through in time to the third gate to complete whatever the third task could possibly be.
Kirk was already dreading it.
By the time the third gate was in sight, the circle was dwindling to three feet and it had pushed them shoulder to shoulder as they hurried along the path.
As it turned out, none of Kirk's dreading could have prepared him for what was written on the gate.
'Confess.'
It... It wanted him to confess? Confess his feelings to Spock? Kirk suddenly gasped for a breath as if he'd been punched in the stomach, though he tried to do so silently, so as not to draw attention to himself. How... how was he supposed to do that? Didn't the Sisters know what kind of position this would put him in? He was Spock's Captain, they were the Captain and First Officer. They needed to work together constantly-and Kirk knew that, even though Spock could probably take a confession in stride and continue to behave as if nothing had occurred, Kirk couldn't react in the same way. Not only would knowing that Spock knew and had no affection for him in return be a crushing blow, but... having to work alongside Spock, knowing that he knew would be so horrible for him.
Not to mention that having to confess would crush any and all hope that kept Kirk's flame for Spock going and Kirk would much rather live with the (however vague) possibility of hope than know for sure that Spock did not return the feeling.
Looking beyond the iron bars, Kirk could see nothing but an expanse of green grass. He'd thought the Sisters were supposed to be waiting for them but there was no one in sight. He wasn't sure if he should yet feel cheated by this experience.
But... wait. The previous gates had required participation from both of them. They both had hugged, had kissed, so it would only make sense that... they were both expected to confess. But that meant... that meant Spock had something to confess. It meant Spock, like him, was hiding something worth confessing. Could it possibly be... Kirk almost didn't dare to hope for such an outcome.
He turned to look at Spock, who was still watching the gate, but as soon as he did, the Vulcan spoke, "I believe I may have deciphered the overall objective of the maze."
"Oh?" Kirk replied, feeling a little stunned by the statement.
"Yes," Spock replied, then was silent for a time as the circle continued to shrink at their feet, "It seems, in our case at least, the maze has conspired to bring us closer together."
Kirk was facing Spock and the circle was enclosing on them, the invisible wall of the circle pressing against Kirk's back, pressing him towards Spock. Could... Spock mean what Kirk hoped he meant? That there was something closer they both could be pushed towards, that they both could want? Thinking it made Kirk feel ridiculously hopeful.
"I'd... say the circle is in on it as well," Kirk replied, trying to keep his head straight on his shoulders.
Spock was forced to face him as the circle closed in on them. "I'm afraid it would be unbecoming of me to give in to what the gate requests of us."
Kirk suddenly found himself grinning, his heart hammering. The only thing Spock felt was unbecoming of him was emotion. All the clues were pointing in one definite direction, one certain answer. As the circle pressed them closer together, Kirk's hands reached up to Spock's shoulders. "I'm afraid we aren't being given much choice, Spock. Or much time." He sucked in a breath, his hand moving to touch Spock's face. Certainly, the Vulcan wasn't going to confess first, and with the way the circle was slowly pushing him into Spock, they couldn't have much time before they would be stuck. "I love you."
The expression on Spock's face didn't change (then again, it so rarely did, and certainly, he'd already known what was going to be said), but his hands moved to Kirk's face, fingertips brushing tenderly against his face and his hair, almost as if afraid of his desire to do more. His eyes met Kirk's with an intense look and remained focused there for a long time. The circle was now pressing their chests together.
Finally, Spock replied, "I love you, too."
At hearing those words, so long desired, from Spock's lips, Kirk couldn't help himself. He pressed his mouth forward, against Spock's, kissing him again, only this time with the knowledge that the gesture was mutually desired, this time with more than platonic intention. He kissed Spock harder than before and after a moment, Spock kissed him back, with just as much fervor.
The circle paused, then began expanding, expanding, until finally, it dissipated.
But then the lock on the gate clicked, and the gates opened wide, and beyond them a small host of women were applauding faintly. At the sound, surprised, Kirk pulled away and turned to face their alien hosts. A group of older women, five, were seated along one side of a long table, while the younger girls they'd met before, and a few unknown others, were standing about. All were clapping and smiling in their direction. Kirk knew that they must have seen them kissing and fought back a small wave of embarrassment.
The women in the middle of the table stood and walked around it, approached Kirk with her hand extended. "Captain Kirk, Mr. Spock. You've navigated the maze and completed all the tasks laid out for you. The Elder Sisters congratulate you and welcome you for negotiations."
Kirk's head still swirling a bit from the kiss, he took her hand, and tried to get focused on the mission they had come to complete.
After that, they were invited to sit for negotiations, which went unsurprisingly well. As a meal was prepared and brought to them, the conversation turned lighter, more casual and eventually the Sisters were coaxed into explaining the maze. As it turned out, Spock's observation was correct; the maze was meant to bring any travelers that explored it closer together. It was designed to turn enemies into comrades, to create stronger bonds between friends and lovers, and even to bring together those who needed a push in the right direction. The tasks changed, of course, bending to the needs of those who entered, but the goal was always the same. Those on the planet Aphrodis held peace, harmony, and the ability to love in high regard, and those who sought council or help from the Elder Sisters needed to prove they held the same philosophy and that they were able to open their hearts to others.
Throughout, Kirk continually glanced over at Spock as he engaged one of the other Sisters in a conversation about the planet's advanced micro and genetic biology. He couldn't help but watch him and wonder what was going to happen once they left the planet, once they could be alone.
He didn't have to wonder long though. Once the deal had been agreed upon, and dinner finished, Kirk and Spock beamed back to the ship. Both of them exhausted from the day's ordeals, they retired (upon Kirk's suggestion) to Kirk's quarters, prepared for the interesting night that lay ahead of them.