"There is no way I'm going back and telling him that." Amanda glared across the table at her blue skinned antagonist. "I like my head on my shoulders, thank you very much."

Shras Endilev, the Andorian ambassador's, antenna wiggled in amusement before a rather feral grin spread across his face. "Vulcans are pacifists. You have nothing to worry about. I'm sure they won't, what is the human expression? Shoot the messenger?"

Amanda sighed and resisted the urge to bang her head against the table. "You forget, I've been in that man's rooms. He's got nasty sharp things all over the walls. Pacifists don't decorate with weapons, Shras. I don't care what the media says. Those Vulcans are dangerous. And you get far too much amusement out of sending me off to him with unreasonable demands. When I took this job they said I was going to translate. Nobody mentioned I'd be playing a game of telephone! Or that I'd end up doing most of the negotiating instead of you lot doing your own work!"

The ambassador gave a rather human shrug, his grin showing off his rows of pointy teeth. "They pay you well enough, the Vulcan government, you can do a little running." He chuckled and ducked as Amanda threw her data pad at his head.

"You are so lucky I like you or I'd have aimed better." Amanda couldn't help but smile at him despite her irritation. They'd become good friends over the last month, their relationship slowly going from pure work to something close to comrades in arms. The other ambassadors in the negotiations were rude and rather annoying, but Shras had been pleasant if somewhat antagonistic and his honest curiosity about Earth had lead to many off work hours spent playing tour guide around the planet. Sarek had had to approve the outings and had done so with the theory that a happy Andorian would be a corporative Andorian. The Vulcan couldn't have miscalculated more if he'd tried. "What is it with you two anyway? The other ambassadors have all reached agreements and signed the damn trade treaty. You won't even sit down in the same room with Sarek."

"You've been in the same room with him. I shouldn't have to explain." Shras' antenna waved again in amusement. "I almost feel sorry for you pink-skin. So much time in such horrid company."

Amanda growled. "I'm starting to think I should have never taken this job. I'd strangle him in 10 seconds flat if he didn't keep that conference table between us like a shield. By the time I vault over it he'd have one of those things off the wall and I'd be cut in half. How have you put up with him all these years?"

Shras smirked. "Ah, Andoria and Vulcan have had centuries to refine their hatred of each other. You are quite correct, Vulcans are dangerous and Sarek is one of the most deadly of the lot, but it's not those weapons you have to fear. He's crafty, underhanded, and arrogant. The worst part is he's arrogant with reason. His family are virtual royalty on Vulcan and his matriarch is one of the most powerful and respected leaders in the Federation, has been since before there was a Federation. T-Pau is formidable and she's taught Sarek everything she knows. What Vulcan wants she usually gets and Sarek takes no prisoners for her in the process." Shras' antenna went straight back against his head in irritation. "I am delaying signing that treaty because it is all I can do to annoy that pointed eared menace. He's gotten the other worlds to align neatly and all to his benefit. Andoria deserves at least one concision for my signature."

"One concision. You just gave me a list of twenty!" Amanda stood up and retrieved her padd and shook her head at the readout. "Annoying as he is, this is punishing me not Sarek. This list is completely unreasonable and you know it. At least pare it down to five. Give me something to work with here! If you don't we won't get out of here in time to see that movie you wanted to watch. I could have gone yesterday with my friends from college, but oh no, you wanted me to take you and now you're games will keep us both from seeing it." She snorted in indignation. "Honestly, you two are just like the kids I have to teach. Too much testosterone the lot of you."

"Pink skin, you are so amusing when you are angry. You go red!" Shras sighed as Amanda growled at him. "Alright, give it here. I'll narrow the list and you can translate it into that gibberish they speak. I'd rather see that Western film anyway. I read the previews and it sounded far more interesting than Sarek can ever be anyway. I'll always take your planet's staged gun fights before negotiations with Vulcans." He grabbed the padd and erased most of the list, leaving a good 10 demands on screen. "Why can we not hold negations in standard now that the Tellorites are gone I do not know. Half the problem we are having is that you have to take an eternity to explain 'emotionalisms' to a Vulcan in Vulcanur."

Amanda shrugged and took the padd back. "I'm not complaining. This is job security. Besides, you and I both know how horrid your Standard is. And I'd still have to explain emotionalism to Sarek in whatever language we choose – After all, I'm more a cultural translator at this point than I am a linguist. I'm just glad I learned a bit of ancient Vulcan or this would be twice as hard since Vulcanur doesn't even have words for half the stuff you want me to tell him." Amanda glanced at the padd again and raised an eyebrow. "There just aren't any good equivalents in modern Vulcanur for statements like," She raised the padd to read off the line in question, "oh my. 'Die you dehydrated pestilent sand farmer'."

"True, their language is terribly dry." Shras gave another toothy grin. "You are remarkably fluent in Andorian. However did a human learn it?"

Amanda grinned and sat back down. "Oh, you'd be surprised what you can pick up on the entertainment channels."

He blinked. "You learned Andorian off entertainment channels?"

"And the Vulcan Science Academy." Amanda chuckled. "They could teach the basics, but to really learn a language you've got to hear native speakers talking to each other. It's always faster and more complex than anything you'll hear in the textbooks. Not to mention slang and common grammar and all that. I have an ear for language naturally which helps."

His antenna waved again and the ambassador licked his pointed teeth. "Well if the Vulcans get rid of you I suggest you contact the Andorian embassy. We could use a good translator for our negotiations with Earth anyway. You've been quite helpful explaining the culture here and cleaning up when the universal translator fails."

Amanda snorted. "Thanks, but I think my government's about to declare me a trader for aiding the enemy as it is. I mean, it's not my fault Sarek hadn't realized they were insulting him by purposely putting him under the cold air vent at every meeting. I mean, how dense can he be not to realize that had to be on purpose? It really shouldn't have mattered when I pointed it out to him."

The Andorian's smile was again frighteningly toothy. "Vulcans would never stoop to that sort of negotiating tactic. Sarek did not realize humans would do so. He'd have expected that sort of thing from an Andorian. He will be wiser in the future. Vulcan has a great tendency to view your kind as childlike and probably thought your government did not realize what they were doing."

"Yeah, well this child is sick of his condescension." Amanda crossed her arms and eyed the clock in near despair. "I have to meet with him in 15 min. Ugh. Are you sure this is worth torturing him over? I don't think he cares how long the negotiations take. He'll wear us both down eventually."

"I am on my third Vulcan ambassador." Shras sniffed. "They always try to pretend they have more patience than the rest of us. Sarek has lasted the longest on these stalemates, it is true, but even he will eventually tire and give me at least the tariffs on wine production from the colonies."

Amanda rolled her eyes. "Shras, you are impossible."