Title: Fire, Wind, and Water: The Debussy Suite 4, Bells Through the Leaves
Author: Wildcat
Series: TOS
Rating: MA
Codes: S/U
Summary: Seven months after Uhura is reassigned to the Lexington, she and Spock travel to London for her nephew's graduation from university. This takes place after the events described in the following stories:
A Woman's Touch
The Taste of Snow
Almost a Kiss
You Would Even Say She Glows
The Flame Within
Fire, Wind, and Water 1: What the West Wind Saw
Fire, Wind, and Water 2: The Isle of Joy
Fire, Wind, and Water 3: Dialogue of the Wind and Sea
Note that this is part four of Fire, Wind, and Water: The Debussy Suite.
Disclaimer: Paramount owns Kirk, Spock, McCoy, Uhura, and company. I have just borrowed them for a while and will not profit from any of this.
Once again, thanks to Claude Debussy for his piano composition, "Cloches a travers les feuilles," from which I took the title.
Also, thanks to my ever-faithful beta readers, Jungle Kitty and ebonbird, and a special thanks to Ned, who helped ensure that my descriptions of the life and sights in London were accurate.
Fire, Wind, and Water: The Debussy Suite won 1st place for "Best S/U Story," 3rd place for "Best TOS Story" and Honorable Mention for "Best Overall Story" in the 1998 Golden O Awards. This particular story also won 3rd place for "Spock Romance" in the 1998 ASC Awards.
Feedback is desired.
Bells Through the Leaves, chapter 1
From her seat next to the window, Uhura reached across Spock and accepted the steaming cup from the flight attendant standing in the aisle.
"Anything else for you, ma'am?"
"Do you have any milk for the tea?"
"Yes, of course." The man handed her a small container. "And for you, sir?"
"Nothing at the moment, thank you."
Uhura smiled at the young man as he moved to the next row, and then she leaned close to Spock and murmured, "I'd almost forgotten what it's like to have someone looking after me on a trip like this."
"Our flight accommodations are quite comfortable." He stretched out his legs to demonstrate the generous distance between the seats. "You chose well."
"Thanks. I figured that if we were going to be sitting here for twenty-one hours, we might as well enjoy ourselves." She stirred the milk into her tea. "Of course, we could be in the cargo hold of a Tellarite freighter, and I'd still enjoy myself as long as I was sitting with you."
"I will remind you of your words in another twenty-point-five hours."
Chuckling, she leaned back in her seat. "I just can't believe that we're finally on our way to London! It seems like I've been looking forward to this forever. While I was waiting to meet you at the spaceport this morning, I almost thought I should pinch myself to make sure I wasn't dreaming. What do you want to do first after my nephew's graduation?"
"If you are agreeable, I would like to tour the British Museum. I have not yet accessed the museum's calendar of upcoming events, so I do not know which traveling exhibits might be present, but..." His voice tapered away as Uhura reached into the carry-on bag underneath the seat. "What do you have in there?"
She grinned and pulled out a padd. "I found a travel agent on Starbase Fourteen who specializes in Earth vacations. Look at these brochures she had: The Tower of London, Westminster Abbey, the old Underground, pub tours—not that you'd be much interested in that one—gardens and parks... Look at this beautiful hologram of the flowers at Buckingham Palace. And here's a schedule for the British Museum."
Accepting the padd from her, he said, "Nyota, as always, I am impressed by your resourcefulness."
"You just didn't bother to look it up because you knew I would."
He met her eyes briefly, the corner of his mouth raised. "Perhaps."
They returned their attention to the padd, and he keyed in a few commands. A moment later, he held it between them.
"Oh, look," she said. "The mask of Tutankhamen is on loan from the Egyptian Museum. When I was little, my grandmother tried to take me to see it during a trip to Cairo to visit her parents. She made the mistake, though, of telling me about the curse of the mummy's tomb, and I refused to go in the museum."
"You have never seen it?"
"No. This will be a first."
He paged through some more of the brochures. "This will interest you. Ling Chih Yong is to perform a program of Debussy's piano music Saturday evening at the Academy of Saint Martin-in-the-Fields."
"Really? I must have missed that when I looked through these before."
He handed the padd back to her. "She will play the 'Estampes' suite and a number of selections from 'Images II.' If you wish, we will attend her recital."
"I'd love to, but when is our trip to Bath?"
"Dr. Singleton agreed to allow us access to the excavations on Friday, so it will not conflict with this."
"Great! So, we have Sefu's graduation on Wednesday, the trip to Bath on Friday, and this Saturday night. Maybe we can see the museums on Thursday. Did you want to try to visit your grandmother while we're on Earth?"
"If you do not object, I thought that we could spend a portion of Saturday in Seattle. I have not yet contacted her in case this conflicts with any plans you have already made."
"Except for this recital, I don't have any plans for Saturday, so it fits in perfectly. Besides, you can't go to Earth without visiting your grandmother."
"She would certainly be angry with me if I did. I must add, however, that she would never forgive me if she discovered I brought you to Earth and did not introduce you to her."
"She knows about me?"
"No," he replied hesitantly. "She does not."
She sighed. "You still haven't told your parents about us."
He shook his head.
"So what are you going to tell your grandmother? That you're on Earth for a business trip and that I'm your colleague?"
"I will tell her the truth."
Watching him closely, she said, "If you tell her, you're going to have to tell your parents."
"I am aware of that."
"Are you sure you want to do that?" she said acerbically. "After all, we've only been involved for a year and six months."
He raised an eyebrow, obviously amused at her tone. "It has been precisely one year, six months, and four-point-eight days, assuming that the measurement is based on the Terran calendar and that we have been 'involved' since the moment we first consummated our relationship."
She shook her head as they regarded each other. Finally, he lifted his hand with two fingers extended.
"Yes," he said gently. "I am sure."
Placing the padd in her lap, she touched her fingers to his and smiled. Her voice equally soft, she said, "Good. And it's about time."
...
Careful to keep his movements to a minimum, Spock changed the settings on Nyota's padd to compensate for the low light and studied the tour schedule at the Tower of London. They had been en route for twelve point four hours, and at the moment his surroundings were very quiet and still. Except for the ever-present hum of the warp engines in the background, all he could hear were a murmured conversation between two of the passengers in the very front of the craft, and Nyota's slow, steady breathing as it emanated from the pillow against his shoulder.
He thumbed off the padd and leaned back in the seat so that he could see the top of her head. Although he was somewhat restricted by her weight against him, he also found it oddly soothing. Their peaceful environment seemed to encourage a sense of solitude. Such a thought was illogical when one considered that they were far from alone, but he nevertheless found it easy to ignore the presence of the other beings around them.
Resting his head against the top of the pillow, he closed his eyes and placed himself into a light sleep.
...
"Oh, Spock, isn't it beautiful? The sky is crisp and clear, and look at the trees and the autumn flowers! I've never seen so many shades of gold, orange, and red."
Uhura leaned back in her seat to allow Spock to see out her window. Although they could have chosen a much more direct route to her sister's house, they had decided to program the taxi to take them through downtown London instead, and she couldn't help but exclaim over every new sight. She felt like such a tourist! Even though she had been so weary when they landed at Heathrow that she'd stumbled through customs like a zombie, she'd quickly shaken off her fatigue in the excitement of the moment. And now that the hustle and bustle of the more commercial areas was gradually being replaced by these solid rows of well-kept brownstone houses, she was almost beside herself with anticipation.
Finally, the taxi came to a stop in front of a set of high steps. They were just the same as the steps leading into the house on the right and the steps leading into the house on the left, but Uhura would have known that this was Milele's house even if she hadn't recognized it. This house alone, in the midst of all the other identical houses, had a large, bright maple tree growing brazenly from the tiny swath of green that squeezed between the sidewalk and the house.
Uhura remembered the day Yusufu planted that tree. Sefu had been an infant in Milele's arms, and they had planted the seedling beneath his nursery window on the morning they brought him home for the first time. The little boy's parents had dreamt of the day when their son would look out onto his own private bit of nature, but Uhura had scoffed. How could such a tiny thing survive in an urban environment such as this? But the determined little tree had thrived, and it had grown, and now it was glorious in its colorful autumn coat.
As she and Spock stepped out onto the sidewalk and removed their luggage from the taxi, she heard a squeal and a shout, and she turned to see Milele flying down the steps.
"Nyota! You're here!"
"Yes!" Uhura laughed. "I'm finally here!"
When they embraced, Uhura looked up to see Yusufu and Sefu emerge from the front door, and she held out her arm to give each of them a brief hug as she commented on how tall Sefu had become and how good it was to see them. She was very aware of Spock standing by the luggage. As soon as she could extricate herself, she stepped back to stand beside him.
So proud that she thought she might burst, she said, "Everyone, this is Spock. Spock, this is Milele, Yusufu, and Sefu."
He nodded with dignity. "Greetings. Thank you for inviting me into your home."
"Believe me, it's our pleasure!" Milele motioned toward the luggage. "Sefu, why don't you help Aunt Nyota and Commander Spock with their luggage, and we'll all go inside."
Clearly awestruck, Sefu darted forward to grab Uhura's suitcase, and Spock bent to pick up his own bag. Spock's back was turned for only an instant, but Milele managed to catch Uhura's eye and mouth 'Oh my God,' pretending to swoon, before he faced her again. Uhura grinned and nodded.
As soon as Milele ushered them all into the house, Uhura walked through the living area with her carry-on bag. "Did you put us back in the guest room?"
"No, you two are up in Sefu's room. I turned the guest room into an office."
Uhura stopped in surprise, but before she could say anything, Sefu spoke up.
"Auntie Nyota, Mum couldn't wait for me to move out so she could turn the guest room into an office, and my room into the guest room."
Playfully indignant, Milele said, "That's not so! You know that'll always be your room, son. I just, uh, redecorated it a bit. Anyway, it's much nicer up there than in the old guest room. You two will be able to look out the window now and see more than just a brick wall."
Uhura glanced over to see that Spock was frowning slightly as Yusufu lifted the strap of the small bag off her shoulder.
"Here, Nyota, let me take your bag. Sefu and I will carry these things upstairs. You two have a seat and make yourselves comfortable. May I take your suitcase, Spock?"
"Yes, thank you."
Milele vanished into the kitchen, leaving Spock and Uhura alone. Still frowning, he walked over to stand near her.
His voice very quiet, he said, "Your sister has evidently placed us both in the same—"
Forestalling what she was sure would be an objection to their sleeping arrangement, Uhura held up her hands.
"Spock, if you're worried about 'propriety,' relax! She's my sister. Of course she knows about us. And Sefu's nineteen years old. He's old enough that he won't be shocked if we sleep in the same bed. Besides, there's not another bedroom in the house, and I'm sure that Sefu's sleeping on the sofa tonight, so unless you want to sleep on the floor, you're in the same bed with me. Because I'm sleeping in that bed."
"What about your parents? I happen to know that you have withheld certain details about our relationship from them."
She looked at him for a moment, then called out, "Milele? Are Mother and Father spending the night?"
Milele answered from the kitchen. "No, they're only going to be able to stay for the day tomorrow."
Uhura shook her head. "Thirty-six years old, and I still worry that my mother will find out about my sex life. I guess there are some things neither she nor I will ever outgrow. You've probably figured this out by now, but she and my father have always been very old-fashioned."
He regarded her closely. "It is possible that they will ask where we are sleeping."
"I guarantee you that it won't even come up."
Milele emerged from the kitchen with a tray. As she placed it on the low table in front of the sofa, she said, "One of the cardinal rules of parenting is 'Don't ask the question if you don't want to know the answer.'"
Clearly unsettled at having been overheard, Spock raised both eyebrows and took a deep breath. Uhura saw that the gesture also expressed capitulation, however, so she grinned and quickly whispered, "You'll be glad later that I talked you into it."
He met her gaze and didn't comment, but she felt the heat rush to her face at the look in his eyes. Yes, he was telling her, and so will you.
Smiling back at him, she suddenly became aware that Milele was waiting with two glasses of ice water. Although all she wanted was to stand there and look into his eyes, she turned away from their communication of silent promises so that they could find a seat on the sofa. A moment later, Yusufu and Sefu joined them, and soon everyone was embroiled in a discussion of what was to happen tomorrow and everything that had to be accomplished today.
End chapter 1