~*~

"Professor Spock?"

The confused voice of the clinic's pretty secretary shattered the peaceful silence of the walk. Though maybe peaceful wasn't the right word. It was comforting, leaving him far more relaxed than usual, but her proximity also caused him to feel… unbalanced in ways that were unfitting for their professional relationship. In fact, compared to how he usually felt, this was the farthest thing from peace he had ever experienced. Uhura's cool body pressed against his chest caused disturbing flaws to the Commander's self control.

"What's the matter, Professor? Oh my, God! Uhura!" The aide's high pitched voice grated against his already frayed nerves.

"She was collapsed against a wall in the entrance to the staff's quarters. She was unable to walk, so I decided it was prudent to carry her here myself." His monotone voice seemed to shake her out of her slight panic, and she nodded.

"I'll go get Dr. McCoy."

She walked away swiftly, and the clicking of her heels made him flinch as his oversensitive hearing picked up the sharp sound. He paused, trying to calm himself.

He was distracted from this course of action when Uhura produced another small moan. His heart rate, already elevated from seeing the pretty cadet apparently incapacitated against a wall, increased a further 5%. As well, his breathing had become difficult and slightly rasping, increasing a mere 2%. In short, Commander Spock was having a very inappropriate reaction to his proximity to one of the academy's star pupils.

He rebuked himself internally, stating the various reasons why this was illogical and why it should cease. Firstly, she was a student, and he was a teacher. Several regulations in the Starfleet Conduct Manual specifically prohibited liaisons between teachers and students.

Secondly, it was improper to have this reaction towards any female while she was doing something as innocent as sleeping. He let out a rasping breath as she snuggled into his chest again, something she was doing approximately twice every ten minutes. Well, perhaps not innocent, but it was nonetheless an inappropriate reaction to have to a sleeping woman.

And thirdly, his Vulcan control should not be so easily undermined by a human woman who wasn't even provoking him on purpose. He made a noise of contented displeasure so low it couldn't have been heard by the woman asleep in his arms, but she stirred slightly as she felt it vibrate through his chest, burrowing her head further into the fabric of his shirt.

He suppressed another groan and looked around the waiting room. Surely somewhere there had to be a chair. The sooner he put her down, the better. He had been using meditation techniques to prevent his response to the cadet's presence from manifesting itself physically, but they were not going to work if this continued much longer. Finding no chair in the immediate vicinity, he was about to search for one in the hallway when the assistant returned with Dr. McCoy in tow.

"Professor Spock, Miranda here told me you found Uhura collapsed in the hallway?" McCoy took a small light out of the black bag his was carrying, then gently opened Uhura's eyes and shined the light into her pupils. Getting no response except a slight spasm, he put the light back into his bag and turned to her stoic Vulcan rescuer.

"Can you describe any of her symptoms to me?"

"She appeared to be disorientated and said something about the way to the clinic changing to the entrance to the staff's quarters. She was shaking perceptibly and had difficulty speaking. She did not seem herself." Spock decided to keep the fact that she had been repeatedly nestling into his person to himself, concluding that it was irrelevant, not to mention discomforting. He stood still, calmly observing the emotions that played across the doctor's face.

"I can't think offhand what it could be. I feel as though I'm missing something obvious," the young doctor frowned in concentration and frustration. "Computer!"

"Yes, Doctor McCoy." A monotone female voice seemed to fill the room, startling an already agitated Commander Spock.

"Search Galactic Encyclopedia of Viruses and Diseases for any type of ailment that produces the following symptoms: Shaking, hallucination, exhaustion, deterioration of vocal, locomotive, and cognitive abilities," He paused to allow the computer to confirm the search had begun. "Would you agree, Commander, that hallucination is a logical assumption to her confusion relating to her location?"

Spock thought for a moment, calculating the possible causes for disorientation as well as the probabilities of each.

"It is one of the more likely possibilities that would produce the effects experienced by Cadet Uhura. It possesses a likelihood of approximately 89.43%" Just as he finished, a tone alerted them to the fact that the computer search was finished.

"Search has produced thirty two possibilities for the requested set of symptoms."

"Was there anything else at all you can remember, anything at all? It may seem to be beside the point, but you never know what small detail may be significant."

Spock hesitated a moment, then spoke.

"On the way here, she did seem to become rather… attached to my person. I do not know if this was coincidence, the illness, or my elevated body temperature."

"Computer, narrow search with to diseases with temperature influences."

"Narrowing search… Search complete. Fifteen possibilities for request set of symptoms."

"Computer, list common names in alphabetical order."

"Names of diseases with the selected symptoms: Andronesian Encephalitis, Bajoran Dream Flu, Darnay's Disease, Macrovirus…"

"Computer, repeat second disease."

"Bajoran Dream Flu." Spock instantly became more alert. This one sounded promising.

"Computer, define Bajoran Dream Flu."

"Bajoran Dream Flu. Purposefully created for religious exploration of the soul, it produces several severe but non-lethal symptoms. The subject will begin to shake severely, followed by hallucination and diminished mental abilities. The subject will begin to feel alternating feelings of extreme cold and burning, which will cause them to attach themselves to the nearest object of extreme temperature. Objects suggested for this purpose are heated blankets or cooling packs. Once the subject has been introduced to their "comfort item", they will fall into a deep slumber." Spock could feel the relief burning through his body. It did not seem to be a serious disease. His internal celebration halted as the computer continued. "Observers should note that once in this slumber, the subject must not be removed from their comfort items or they will go into severe shock followed, most often, by death. This sleep, lasting anywhere from eight to twenty four Earth hours, will be characterized by vivid and realistic dreams which show the subject his or her deepest fears and desires, whichever are most prominent in the existence of the subject. Subjects have been shown to experience some difficulty distinguishing between their dreams and reality upon waking."

Spock felt his face freeze as the eyes of the other two people in the room slowly shifted to him, one containing fear and one poorly contained humour. A laughing smile crept on to the doctor's face.

"So, Commander, any comments on the situation?"

~*~

WooHOO! Chapter two is up and running! I'd like to thank all the people who added my story to their alert lists and a huge thank you to the 8 people who reviewed my story:

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You guys have no idea how happy I was to receive your reviews! I'd also like to give a shout out to my beta's Audi katia and Miranda River. You guys have made this experience something to remember! Thanks so much! I'm sorry for the evil cliffy, but it had to be done! I'll try to polish off another chapter tomorrow, or rather later today lol. Until then, keep on truckin! Live long and Prosper!

Tara-Yomitorika