Title: Lesson One, of sorts
Series: Insontis
Rating: G
Characters: (this bit) Kirk, Uhura, bb!Spock
Word Count: (this bit) 1112
Warnings: Crack. Quite ghastly amounts of fluff. Written by me. Utter lack of plot. It's not meant to be real fic, it's not even meant to necessarily be IC, since one of the protagonists literally is not in character.
Summary: Starfleet Command and the Federation have become interested in the Insonti technology which transformed their most prominent starship captain into an infant some weeks previous. The Enterprise has been handed the assignment of performing further research into the device, while developing a deeper rapport with this as-yet non-Federation planet, in the hopes of producing an allegiance between the Insonti people and the Federation.
A/N: This and its continuing ficlets are my Christmas gift to a faithful reviewer, sierra_scarlet, who has been kind enough to review every single chapter of my Insontis arc, at times when my writing morale was quite low. A happy holiday season to you and to everyone who commented on the first chapter - I was floored and flattered by the response this already has gotten! :)
Chronological Order of This 'Verse:
When I Was a Child
Impeccable Aim
Lesson One
A Matter of Genetics
Taking Sides
Fangirls
Out of the Mouth of Babes
A Two-Way Trust
Lesson Two
Unleashed
Family Interlude
Artistic License
Blackmail Potential
Captain Sunshine
Sunshine and Darkness
Ducks in Space
Smart is Sexy
Lesson Four
Never Too Young
The Sincerest Form of Flattery
Lesson Five
Persuasive Arguments
A Decided Lack of Amusement (1/4) (2/4) (3/4) (4/4)
Catch a Falling Star
An Infernal Device
Lesson Six (and Seven, really) (1/4) (2/4) (3/4) (4/4)
The Second Time Around
Lessons Eight and Nine
Lessons Ten and Eleven (1/2) (2/2)
Outside the Box
Comprehension (1/4) (2/4) (Interlude) (3/4) (4/4)
And So It Begins
Fear Is Only Embarrassing in Public
Never Tease a Vulcan
Best Destiny (1/4) (2/4) (3/4) (4/4)
Parting Ways (1/6) (2/6) (3/6) (4/6) (5/6) (6/6)
The Wounds of a Friend (1/4) (2/4) (3/4) (4/4)
Lessons Learned
-
A Child of Two Worlds
First Impressions
Instincts
Lesson One, of sorts
When he had finally managed to pry his now infant First Officer out of the greedy clutches of a dozen squealing nurses and a much amused CMO, the captain finally made his escape from Sickbay with his precious cargo and managed to get to the Bridge without being waylaid by any other crewmen. Word spreads quickly aboard a starship, and he was relieved to see that his Bridge crew was looking for his reappearance with more resignation than surprise at the news that Commander Spock had been himself subjected to the Regenratron technology.
Even though it was three hours into beta shift, it looked as if the alpha shift crew had remained on duty to see their First Officer, and his heart warmed at the gesture of loyalty as he stepped out of the turbolift with a Vulcan toddler in his arms.
"Oh, Captain! He's so small!" Uhura exclaimed softly as he paused by her station. A pair of curious dark eyes peered at her over the top of a fleece blanket Kirk had appropriated to give the child extra warmth, and she smiled. "Tonk'peh, Spock-kam," she greeted Spock in his own tongue, and a flash of warmth flickered in the little one's expression. "Does he speak Standard, do you think, sir?" she asked, suddenly worried.
"The Insonti High Council said the language comprehension centers are not changed by the technology involved, merely regressed in vocabulary and communicative ability," Kirk replied, and she hid a smile as he unconsciously cuddled the child closer protectively. "He should develop Vulcan and Standard simultaneously if we continue to use both, from what the High Priest told me. Spock made recommendations to that effect in his own notes, which I've retrieved from his pre-transformation research. I will be relying on you to help develop that Vulcan portion, Lieutenant, as I'm afraid my own Vulcan is extremely basic and we've yet to decide whether or not to recall M'Benga or another doctor well-versed in Vulcan physiology."
"Of course, Captain." She smiled kindly at the inquisitive little one, who then promptly hid his face in a fold of the blanket against the captain's gold tunic. "He's a shy little thing, sir."
"I imagine he was indeed, as a child, Lieutenant," Kirk replied quietly. "Perhaps we will be of assistance in changing that aspect of his childhood."
An incoming transmission light began blinking at her, and she hastily turned her attention to filtering out the static caused by their close orbit around Insontis. The captain smiled reassuringly at his Communications Chief before continuing to the command dais, where he crouched down to deposit his bundle on the floor of the lower Bridge.
Spock sat after wobbling for only a moment, and blinked with an awestruck expression at his surroundings.
Chekov and Sulu grinned as the toddler then eagerly accepted the small medical tricorder which the captain fished out of a pocket. The tiny dark head bent studiously over the scanner, experimentally pushing buttons and watching the blinking lights which the actions produced.
"Sir, Starfleet Command for you on Channel One," Uhura spoke up from behind them.
"An entirely expected pleasure, thanks to you, you little stinker," Kirk muttered with no real rancor. He tucked the blanket around the oblivious toddler and then quickly vaulted to his feet, plopping himself down in his command chair with a defiant thwock. "Let's get it over with, Lieutenant."
-0-
"Captain Kirk," Admiral Cartwright reiterated sharply, twenty minutes into the vid-conference. "This was not what we had in mind when we granted Commander Spock permission to further study the Insonti technology!"
"I understand your concerns, Admirals," Kirk replied, unruffled. "However, I remind the council that he was granted scientific carte blanche in his departments' endeavors. That he, a Vulcan and a scientist, took that at its literal face value, should not be an unexpected conclusion. And, may I add, I agree with his preparatory notes and reasoning; we do need to test the effects on a non-human subject before we are capable of even attempting to unravel the technology involved. To refuse such an opportunity would have been contradictory to Commander Spock's very nature as the foremost scientist in his field."
"That's the biggest load of bull I've ever heard him spiel with a straight face to a bunch of Starfleet bigwigs," Sulu murmured under his breath.
Chekov, still staring wide-eyed at their tiny First Officer, who was calmly playing with his small tricorder, nodded emphatically.
"We can hardly keep the Enterprise off active assignment for yet another four months, Captain Kirk," Komack interjected severely.
"Neither I nor Dr. McCoy, nor indeed the Insonti High Council anticipate it being anywhere near that long, sir," Kirk returned calmly. "All of us agree that the time for a mentally superior species to assimilate the lessons necessary for re-aging will be, in all probability, no longer than the Enterprise was stationed here for research purposes. We will lose no more time than we would be in orbit anyway; I believe Commander Spock would never have agreed to so inconvenience the ship and handicap his departments had that been the case."
The board of admirals looked sourly at him on the Bridge's viewscreen, and he decided a strategic change of tactic was in order.
"Besides, Admirals," he added, suddenly swinging a startled Vulcan toddler up in front of him, "how can you be irritated with something this cute?"
Wide-eyed, Spock blinked at the dozen elderly admirals in shy fascination, apparently not minding the fact that he was being held in mid-air under the arms by a grinning human.
An undignified snort, followed by a barely muffled fit of snickering from the aging Admiral Archer set the relaxed precedent Kirk had been hoping for, and after Cartwright had groaned and signed them off with a resigned sigh, he grinned at his Bridge crew with satisfaction.
"Our little one is going to be spoiled rotten before he's six years old, you are aware, Captain," Uhura inquired with a smile.
"Totally." Kirk chirped, grinning. "What say we go see what Doctor Bones is doing about setting you up for the night, kiddo?" he continued, looking down at his tiny First Officer, who merely raised a small slanted eyebrow in incomprehension.
"Sha'hassu?"
"T'etek'hassu," he corrected, not missing the coo of delight from Uhura at hearing the distinction. "Don't tell me one of the lessons I have to teach you is how to share?"
Notes on Vulcan language: -kam is the suffix indicating a term of endearment, usually used with children; thus, Spock-kam is the proper Vulcan way to address a child affectionately. T'etek- is the plural possessive; T'tetek'hassu means our doctor.