"Spock!" Jim grinned as the face of the elder Vulcan flickered onto his screen. This Spock, he liked. He'd taken to calling him Nice Spock in his head, as opposed to the younger counterpart Bitchy Spock that served with him on the Enterprise. Bitchy Spock was loveable in his own way, Jim supposed, but he did try to strangle Jim, he did abandon him on an ice planet from hell, and he did try to get him thrown out of Starfleet. The least that sort of behaviour warranted was the title of Bitchy.

"Jim." Spock's eyes softened at the sight of his young friend. "To what do I owe this pleasure?"

"What, can't a guy just call to say hello?" Jim hedged, grinning with his best charm.

Spock, of course, saw right through the bullshit. "Indeed, whatever the reason for your call, I am certain to count myself lucky for your company."

Jim fought down a blush. In a way that no one else in Jim's life ever had managed to do, Elder Spock made him feel cherished. He cleared his throat uncomfortably. "Actually, uhm, I did sort of have a question."

Spock smirked, just a slight twitch of the lips and eyes glittering with amusement. "Proceed."

"Sooo... you've lost everyone you've ever known and loved, right? Did you go crazy and have to lock yourself in a room with someone for a week?"

Spock blinked. "... pardon?"

"Yeah, see, that's about the reaction I had too. I knew something was off about this." he muttered in frustration.

"Would you care to explain more fully, Jim? I must confess that I do not quite follow."

"Spock, that is my Spock, that is to say, not that he's mine, but you know, Bitchy Spock, the younger you, is supposedly sick. Only he doesn't look sick. He doesn't seem any different than he always does, as far as I can tell. He got kind of weird this morning on the bridge and went to sickbay. Now Bones has us turning the whole ship around to head toward New Vulcan, and he says Spock's got like Vulcan PTSD or something and is going crazy. And when he does he wants us to lock him in his room with Nyota. Oh, and for some reason they'll both need mind healers when they're done." He sighed in exasperation, dropping his hands that had been gesticulating wildly with enthusiasm throughout his tirade.

"I... see." Spock answered carefully. And the thing was, he did see, now that it had been explained to him like that. He wasn't exactly happy about what he was hearing, and he wasn't certain what actions to take. That his younger counterpart was being thrown into premature pon farr should not have been surprising. It was one of the most major problems the colony was dealing with at present, as those who had lost someone scrambled to find a new mate in time. It was organized chaos, and the High Council was desperate that news of the affliction not reach the outside world. Spock was more glad than ever that he'd taken the time to corner McCoy while on Earth and give him the basics in information. At the time, he hadn't thought the doctor would need such information for years yet. He had only hoped to help his counterpart avoid some of the needless drama that he himself had faced during his first Time. Now, it seemed, his advice had been all the more necessary.

The question was, what was he supposed to do? Should he explain the situation to Jim? His katra called out that he should withhold nothing, from any Jim Kirk in the multiverse. However, his logical mind said otherwise. It was imperative that the pair find their own way. It seemed improper to meddle in their destinies. And yet if they were indeed t'hy'la, and Spock was planning to risk all of that to be with Uhura... He sighed, uncertain as always about the ethics involved. Every decision he'd made since coming here threatened to be the worst decision he could possibly make. Kaiidth.

"You know something, don't you." Jim said, his eyes taking in the other man with laser sharp focus.

"If you are on your way to New Vulcan, Jim, then you are doing the best thing."

"I don't want to just do the best thing. I want to know what the hell's going on aboard my ship!" Jim's voice raised and he threw his arms out wildly in consternation. "Everybody but me knows what's going on and no one seems willing to tell me!"

"Jim, please calm yourself." Spock said tiredly. He should not be doing this. He should not. But he was about to do this. "What my counterpart is suffering from is called pon farr. You must not mention that you have this information to anyone, for it is a tightly held secret of Vulcan society." Jim instantly settled down and nodded seriously. Finally, he was getting somewhere.

"Beginning sometime in early adulthood, a Vulcan male will experience his first pon farr, and will repeat the event once every seven years for the duration of his lifetime. It is a call to mate, but unlike anything you have ever experienced. Logic fails completely. Our mind is chaos and the world becomes unknowable. All we can know is the desperate urge to mate, and nothing else. If we do not mate, we will lose our mind or die. This is the pon farr."

"Die? You mean, Spock, my Spock is facing something life threatening?" he asked in alarm, his eyes darting instinctively to their shared bathroom.

"Indeed." Spock answered gravely. "All Vulcan children at the age of seven are bonded with another that is deemed mentally compatible. This psychic link will call both parties to one another in the future at the time of the pon farr. However, it is likely that Spock, like many of my people, has lost his future mate with the destruction of his home world. This would be why Lieutenant Uhura is supposedly involved in the whole affair. If a Vulcan does not have a mate at the time of pon farr one must be chosen for him, for a full marriage bond will and must be formed by the completion of the mating cycle."

"No shit." Jim answered with wonder, somewhat stupefied by what he was hearing. This was some heavy stuff. "So... Spock and Uhura, finally tying the knot? During the honeymoon?" he grinned cheekily. He knew it was a life and death situation, but he couldn't quite help himself. Not when Nice Spock kept talking about 'mating'. "Wait so this means Spock was cheating on his fiance this whole time?"

Elder Spock's lips twitched with tightly controlled amusement. "It seems likely."

"Huh..." Jim said wonderingly, astonished that Mr. Stick-Up-His-Ass had it in him to be unfaithful.

"Indeed." Spock interrupted. "Jim you must keep in mind however the gravity of the situation. My counterpart will be devastated by his affliction and humiliated should he know that outside parties are aware. Not only this, but a Vulcan in the fires of pon farr can become dangerous, unhinged, and with Vulcan strength on a human ship, it is a dangerous situation. One must not challenge him, intrude upon his sacred space, or be seen to be challenging his mate. This is of the utmost importance." What he said was all true. What he hoped was that "his mate" would not necessarily read as Lieutenant Uhura, although he had no idea how that would take place. All he could do for his own part in this was give this Jim the information he was seeking and hope for the best.

"God it." Jim answered. "No fighting the crazy, scary Vulcan. I think I figured that one out the hard way already." he smirked sardonically. "Aren't you the one who sent me after an emotionally compromised you to get myself near choked to death on the bridge?"

"My apologies." Spock laughed with his eyes.

"Yeah, yeah. You all keep saying that. Anyway, thanks for being up front with me, Spock." he said warmly. "Don't worry. I'll keep an eye on things and handle the situation."

"Of this I have no doubt."

"I guess I'll talk to you later then - got captainly things to do, and I'm sure you have a colony to build or something."

"Indeed. Fare well, my friend."