Spock Prime watched from beside lieutenant Uhura's station as the younger Spock and Doctor McCoy bickered with a feeling of nostalgia. Oh, he longed to relive the days when he and his t'hy'la would do the same.

"Ambassador." McCoy acknowledged as he walked past him, off the bridge.

Spock Prime watched as his younger self gazed longingly after the doctor.

"Commander," he softly said, approaching Spock. "Could we talk, perhaps?"

"Of course, ambassador," Spock agreed, following the silver haired Vulcan into a corridor. "What is it you wanted to talk about?"

"Doctor McCoy," Spock Prime replied. "He's a wonderful man, and remarkably intelligent."

Spock was taken aback.

"He is, though he refuses to yield to logic." he allowed.

"Mine was very similar to yours in that respect then," Spock Prime commented with a smile. "And many others, it seems."

He gazed ahead, lost in memories.

"Ambassador," the younger Spock said to get the elder's attention. When Spock Prime looked at him with an almost fatherly expression, he asked, "What was your relationship to your McCoy, if you don't mind me asking?"

Spock Prime smiled.

"Not at all," he replied. "Leonard was my bond-mate and my husband."

Spock stopped, his eyebrows raised.

"You loved your McCoy?" he asked.

"Very much. I still do, though he passed years ago," the elder replied. "And I like to think that he loved me."

Spock was in silent contemplation for a while as he walked. Spock Prime kept a close eye on him.

"Is something wrong?" he eventually asked the young Vulcan.

Spock shook his head.

"To live as brilliantly as you, with a man as great as your McCoy by my side... How can I expect to live up to that?" he pondered.

"There is a simple suggestion," Spock Prime told him. "Don't. At least, don't try to."

Spock's eyebrows raised, before crinkling together.

"Is it possible that the doctor returns my feelings?" he murmured, trying not to let passers-by over-hear.

"In this timeline, I don't know," Spock Prime replied, honestly. "But whether he does or not, if you tell him your feelings, his respect for you will not be altered, and he will be flattered by your interest and attention, I'm sure."

Spock nodded in thought, as Doctor McCoy rushed past. He felt the older Vulcan's slightly bony hand on his shoulder.

"Go, talk to him." Spock Prime encouraged.

"He is quite obviously busy." Spock protested.

"Then he will likely appreciate the distraction, if he's anything like my t'hy'la was."

Reluctantly, Spock nodded and performed the ta'al.

"Thank you, ambassador."

Spock Prime mirrored the gesture.

"Good luck, commander."

A/N:

The sequel with be a crossover between Star Trek - The Original Series and Star Trek: 2009. If you want to read it, that's where you'll find it. Or you can check my profile. :)

~Ellis~