Hangover

by Satin Ragdoll

Spock came awake slowly. He knew something was very different. His sheets were tangled and he was half-way off the bed. Plus the fact that his head was throbbing in pain.

He tried to sit up and found that a very unsatisfactory situation. The room seem to spin around him and he was hit with a wave of nausea. What had happened to him? His memories of the night before were...foggy.

He whispered, "Lights, twenty percent." Maybe a perusal of his room would provide him some answers.

Looking about, Spock saw that there was a note on his night-stand. It said, "Eat this, and then come to sickbay. No argument. McCoy." An arrow indicated a tiny foil-wrapped package.

Spock opened the little package and examined the contents. It was a small piece of chocolate. Chocolate. Spock's memory of the previous night came clear. He had drank two cups of Uhura's excellent hot chocolate, and then...and then... Spock closed his eyes. He had become seriously inebriated. He remembered Chapel helping to pick him up and he remembered McCoy putting him to bed. He also remembered Jim laughing.

Spock sighed very softly. He knew Jim meant no offense by it. The Captain was just being...human.

Spock considering putting the little piece of chocolate in the recycler, but remembered a human idiom regarding "the hair of the dog that bit you". Did that have some medical veracity, then? Deciding to trust McCoy's judgment, he put the piece in his mouth, wrinkling his nose a little. Cheap chocolate, most likely replicated. Nothing like what Uhura was sharing the night before.

Spock got up and began his morning routine, moving slowly so as not to increase the pain in his head. To his surprise, by the time he was finished he was feeling marginally better. His pain had decreased by five point two three percent. Perhaps there was something to this "hair of the dog" idiom, after all.

He left his quarters to report to sickbay, fevrently hoping that he met no other crew-members on the way. Humans could be remarkably loud in the best of circumstances.

oOo

McCoy was waiting for him. Chapel was there, as well, but after one blushing glance, she made herself scarce.

He was expecting McCoy to be his usual brash, annoying self, but once again, McCoy surprised him. Bones spoke quietly, "Did you eat the piece of chocolate I left?"

"Affirmative."

Bones shook his head and chuckled a bit, "You could have just said, 'Yes', you know. Less talk, less headache."

Bones brought forth a tumbler and gave it to Spock. "Drink this. Doctor's orders."

The smell coming forth from the container was less than appealing. Stomach roiling, Spock attempted to give it back, "If it is all the same, I would rather not."

The angry spark came back into McCoy's eyes, "It is not all the same! Now look, Spock. I know what it is to be hung-over. I also know what it takes to fix it! In humans, at least. But for you, I had to spend hours last night trying to find something that would work with your screwed-up hobgoblin body-chemistry! So, drink...the...liquid, Spock. Or, do you really want to have the headache that I know you have right now, all day?"

Spock eyed the doctor, but drank the mixture. It did not taste as bad as it smelled. It was spicy, and Spock could tell that it would have a human in tears, Vulcans having a much higher tolerance for spicy things. Had McCoy suffered in the preparation? His eyes were a little red. Spock's eyebrows drew down. "Doctor, did creating this cause you discomfort?"

McCoy blew it off, "Maybe a little. But, that's a doctor's job. Besides, I'm willing to bet that it wasn't worse than your headache! Is that feeling better, by the way?"

He was feeling better. He quirked a brow, "For once, your 'concoctions' have actually done their job without actually making me more nauseous."

McCoy grinned, "I'll take that as a 'thank you'. You're released now, but take it easy."

Spock nodded, and left to take his duties on the bridge.

oOo

Kirk turned around to face him as he strode onto the bridge. "Hello, Spock. You...okay...this morning?"

Spock nodded, "Thanks to McCoy, I am functioning at almost full capacity."

Kirk's brows rose. From Spock, this was high praise. "Okay, then. Just for the record, I'm sorry I laughed."

The ends of Spock's lips tipped up, "It was a typical ...human ...reaction."

Kirk scowled, "Mr. Spock, if I'm not mistaken, I believe you've insulted me!"

Spock was taken aback, "No offense was intended, sir!"

Kirk laughed, "Nam-tor ri thrap wilat nem-tor rim. (There is no offense where none is taken.)"

Spock blinked, "I didn't realize you knew Vulcan, sir."

Kirk laughed again, "Well, I figured 'why not'. Though your language is a pain to learn, Mr. Spock."

Spock didn't say anything to that, even after Kirk watched him a moment to see if he would.

Smiling, Kirk opened the ship-wide intercom, "Now, here this! This is the Captain speaking. Henceforth nobody, and I mean nobody, is to give Mr. Spock chocolate. Ever. That is all."

Spock stood there in silence a moment, thinking on what a good friend Jim really was. "Captain."

Kirk looked up at him, "Yesssss, Mr. Spock."

"Thank you."

Kirk just grinned before turning back around, "Mr. Sulu, take us out!"

Fin.