Disclaimer: I don't own any part of the Star Trek franchise or the characters in it.
One cheery stall after another, McCoy browsed through the market, happy to be standing on honest to goodness ground. Cooped up in sickbay, his only relief being visits to the bridge and the occasional away mission, he had been longing for some fresh and non-recycled air. So maybe the breather in this city wasn't fresh per say; he would take it.
You learned to take whatever you could get in the first few months of service on a starship, and McCoy was reaching his next year mark. So he had snapped up this shore leave as his and threatened to dismember anyone who disturbed him while he enjoyed it.
McCoy had spent the first half of his day setting up his room and napping. (All threats had been taken care of yesterday.) Once he had rested he decided to take a look at the city, bustling metropolis that it was, and so found himself scrutinizing the wares of yet another stall.
He mentally compared the price of the old-style ceramic starship model to one he had seen two stall ago. Running a hand through his hair, he sighed. It didn't really matter anyway; Jim would love it. He gave the vendor a grimace and the required credits then took the wrapped gift absentmindedly, already mapping out the next stalls he would visit; he still had to get gifts for Christine and Spock.
For more stalls and a necklace later McCoy was torn between just getting the Vulcan some random trinket or giving the whole think up. None of them really needed anything anyway. Nonetheless, he felt he should get them something for abandoning them all this shore leave. So he grudgingly continued to look for something that might interest his less than cheerful friend.
Spotting something, the doctor pointed to the object that had caught his eye and asked vendor of it's cost. "This object is very rare these days, very hard to come by. But I can give it to you for the generous price of twenty credits."
McCoy narrowed his eyes and made a jerky hand motion toward the object. "You're kidding, right? I saw one in even better condition over there," he jerked a thumb behind him in the direction he had come. "What do ya think I am, stupid? Ya know what, forget it. I'll just get the other one." McCoy turned on his heel and started in a brisk walk toward a random stall.
"Hey mister!" McCoy quickly masked his grin and turned back to the vendor. "What?" he asked innocently. "Come back. I'll give it to you for seventeen credits. No more, no less." McCoy waved his hand at the vendor and turned back towards the other stall. "Fifteen!"
By the time McCoy had finally walked away he had gotten the price of the colorful plastic block down to nine credits. However, he had failed to notice that his exchange with the vendor had been watched. Now busy walking through the market and examining his prize he once again failed to notice; he was being followed. He continued to go on his way, not noticing, until something tugged his pant leg. Looking down he saw something that caused him much surprise, which he expressed less then eloquently.
"What the heck are ya doin'?"
A/N: I've been craving some good McCoy fluff and I couldn't find exactly what I wanted, so I decided to write it instead of waiting for someone else to. I'm also writing this as a little stress reliever so expect six chapters, one for every week of my summer course. See you next chapter. And leave a review. Please?