She only babbled when she was embarrassed. "You don't really have to do this, Ko-mekh. Spock only made me call because he's afraid that I can't control my teeth when I get excited. But, it was an accident, Ko-mekh."
At first, Amanda Grayson watched the young woman's steadily darkening blush with amusement she only just barely held in check. Nyota Uhura didn't go into detail, but having known the girl for most her life made it easy enough to discern her topic of interest. When the other reason for her call became clear, however, a sudden memory of herself as the young human bride of a Vulcan chased away all traces of levity.
"Ko-mekh?" Nyota's voice turned shrill. "Is everything okay?"
"Nyota," she said, feeling her face stiffen with worry, "I think you'd better come to Vulcan right away."
"Um, what? Honestly! It was an accident and Spock was barely even hurt. The bruise is almost totally healed!"
"Oh, Ennie," the older woman said, her expression once again motherly. "I know you have plans… "
"But Ko-mekh," Nyota began, "I can't miss this conference. We've been preparing for months! I can't let Pavel down. Plus, I'm not sure Spock would forgive me if I left the two of them alone for the next five days."
Nodding, Amanda considered. The young Russian cadet could be difficult to take sometimes, but never anything so annoying as to challenge her son's carefully controlled implacability. Still…
"I understand," she said. "Maybe next week?" She didn't really want to interrupt Nyota's long awaited 'girl time,' and young Sarah Grayson had been looking forward to their trip all year, but some bonds were more important than others. Hopefully, her niece would have just as much fun — maybe even more — spending time with just Jane Faransdóttir and Upenda. "I think the girls will understand."
A myriad of emotions crossed Nyota's face as she considered the request. Every one of them sent a stab of guilt through Amanda. The job called 'motherhood' included several less-than-comfortable tasks; protecting her son's reproductive future was just one of many.
Saving his life was everything.
A/N: What you didn't see in Chapter 10 of 1C13:11.
Disclaimer: I don't own Star Trek, any Star Trek character or concepts and I still don't profit from writing about them.