EDITED: Thank you fanfiction for hiding my PM's from me...so useful! The first half of this chapter has been BETA tested by the absolutely brilliant Genber0398. Who amused me greatly with the adorable little notes she put in the page xD I took great joy in searching them out, it was sort of like playing hide and seek with myself. ^_^ In a response to a question you asked, the quote Uhura whispers to herself before she disembarks the shuttle, is a play on what she said when she was 3 years old. The day she met Spock. "I'm gonna fly in the stars on a spaceship when I grow up. So I learning how to say hello to everybody" - Chapter One.


Three Months Later

As the small civilian shuttle began its descent towards the ground, the high unmissable peaks of the Golden Gate Bridge loomed into view.

The hour was early, barely passing 6am. As such, a thick impenetrable mist lay upon the calm waters of San Francisco Bay, obscuring the dotted islands and seemingly endless ribbons of water that surrounded the dominant island.

There were only eight passengers on board the small shuttle. Three of them had slept the entire nine hour journey from Kenya. Now they began to rouse. Sleepy eyed and disheveled, but excited for the journey they were about to make.

For many of those aboard, their arrival in the United States was a first. All of African descent, the continent was a strange yet exotic place. The overcast skies and promise of rain did nothing to dampen the wonder, the weather was in fact ignored – with noses and hands pressed firmly against the small square windows.

Only one of the eight individuals seemed uninterested with the towering silhouettes of the approaching city. She sat quietly in her seat, engrossed with the standard issue PADD she held in her hands.

For Nyota Uhura, the city landscape was unimportant. She had visited the city many times in her youth.

Her outward appearance was nonchalant. Hair pulled away from her face by a simple ponytail. Make up minimal with only a small set of fibreglass leaves hanging from her ears. She was wearing the red uniform of a Star Fleet cadet – the only one of the three women in the shuttle dressed appropriately for their destination.

The shuttle vibrated slightly as it hovered over a large open ceilinged shuttle bay, bringing Uhura from her thoughtful musings.

Ignoring the excited chatter around her, Uhura glanced out of the window closest to her. Watching as the shuttle began its descent into the hanger. Shutting down her PADD, Uhura bent to pick up her small carry on bag from its position beneath her seat, opening the duffel and placing the portable devices carefully inside. She took care not to scratch the equipment as she pulled the zip closed. The PADD had been a gift from Commander Pike.

It had arrived nine days after she had been discharged from the hospital, hand delivered by a confused but polite Star Fleet cadet. Uhura recalled her mother singing her praises for the unexpected gift, launching into a speech about each of the Commander's wonderful qualities. And of course, dropping not so subtle hints about the 'perks' of an older man.

Uhura had ignored her, as she usually did when her mother focused on her personal life. She had given the impromptu delivery boy the signature he required, and had left him in her mother's capable hands as she made her way towards the small office at the back of The Travellers Café.

To say she had been surprised when she had opened the reinforced box would be a dramatic understatement.

She had not expected a gift of any sort, particularly one of such expense. If she was entirely truthful, she had not expected any contact at all from Commander Pike or Commander Spock after they had left for San Francisco the day after she had been admitted into the hospital.

Yet, after her first two days of bed rest, she had received a com-link call from Commander Spock, inquiring to her physical health. She had been shocked, and extremely flattered. He had offered to send her several beginner transcripts he had discovered, that were based on the languages she desired to learn, not on the standard syllabus.

Within an hour, she had been deeply engrossed in those pages. A day after that, Commander Pike had contacted her, asking if she had had any other trouble with Kuvuli Bado (the young man having seemingly disappeared off the face of the planet, although fortunately there were off planet personnel also looking for him) When she told him she had neither seen nor heard from Bado since that night, he had seemed genuinely relieved, and had spent the next fifteen minutes amusing her with anecdotes of his time in Star Fleet.

The PADD had been pre-programmed with her class schedule for the first semester of the upcoming year, along with acceptable maps of the academy's layout, and even directions to and from the more popular restaurants and bars outside the academy grounds. The location of her dorm room had also been programmed into the device.

Uhura had stared at the gift for a long moment, carefully using her fingers to swipe between the pages. Commander Spock seemingly had a hand with compiling the required information on the PADD, for the next section of the language transcripts she had been reading was added as an attachment to the allocated times of his own lectures.

He had even added a personal note, stating that during the weeks before term started if she required any assistance with the translation of any of the new languages, he would be available to assist.

Uhura had spent the rest of that day with a very out of character girlish grin upon her face, something her mother had teased her mercilessly about.

When the day of her departure had arrived, Uhura was partially convinced her mother had slipped a mild sedative into her drink in order to get her to sleep. The shuttle had been announced to leave at 11pm the previous night, given the long duration of the journey. She had chosen to stay as long as possible in her home country, spending that time with her family.

There had been many tears when she had arrived at the closest shuttle bay to Kitui. Her entire family had accompanied her. Her older brother Kamau and his wife Heri. Even their three young children. Of course, they had been sound asleep in their parents' arms given the lateness of the hour, but Uhura had made sure she had held and kissed each one before saying goodbye to her parents.

It had been an emotional ordeal.

She did not regret her decision to apply for Star Fleet however. As much as she loved her home country and those who lived there, she had been training herself for this day since she was old enough to talk.

The shuttle gave the tiniest of bumps as it landed in the shuttle bay, the others traveling with her quickly gathering their belongings. As she stood up, pulling her skirt down her legs as the skirt had ridden upwards when she had been seated, Uhura allowed a small smile as a memory warmed her mind.

"Fly through the stars on a spaceship..."

With a small amused laugh, Uhura made her way through the shuttle door, and stepped out onto Star Fleet ground.


Her alarm was ringing.

A high pitched, music jingle that annoyed her immensely. Groaning at the intruding noise, Uhura peaked her arm out from underneath the warm cocoon of her blankets, blindly feeling for the noisy device.

When she couldn't find it, she propped herself up on one elbow and squinted dangerously towards her bedside table.

The alarm was not there.

Her mind still heavy with sleep, Uhura frowned for a long while at the empty space. The repetitive jingle was still blaring from somewhere in the immediate vicinity. Yet it was not coming from the space where it should be.

A small laugh broke her from the unseeing glare Uhura had fixed on the bedside cabinet. Frowning, she turned her head in the direction of the amused sound.

Her roommate was sitting fully clothed on her bed. Her pale green legs crossed beneath her, causing the already short skirt to stretch and reveal a part of the other woman's anatomy that Uhura really did not desire to see, at any time of the day. Balanced on the Orion girl's flattened palm, was the missing alarm clock.

As Uhura watched, Galia dramatically lifted her other hand to press firmly on the small button, which turned off the repetitive noise. She then grinned brilliantly.

"Good morning!"

Uhura's response was a sleepy glare. Content the sleep interrupting music was now silenced, she flopped back onto her bed, her face nearly disappearing within her large white cushion.

Gailia watched her with amusement, mentally counting down the seconds until she knew Uhura had drifted back into a light sleep.

"Your first class starts in eight minutes" She said in a matter-of-fact way.

3...2...1...

Uhura shot upright, her eyes comically wide as she all but toppled from her bed. Galia's delighted peel of laughter followed her into the bathroom. Pleased with herself, the green skinned woman happily placed the alarm clock back in its rightful place, and bent to pick up the satchel that she had rested against her bed.

"Shall I tell Commander Spock that you're going to be late?" She called out. The bathroom door shot open and Uhura's head popped out, brushing her teeth vigorously with one hand and brushing the knots out of her hair with the other.

"Don't you dare!"

The door shut once more, the sounds of a small struggle echoing through the barrier. The kind of sounds that only a woman attempting to get dressed in a very small space could make.

After another forty or so seconds, the door popped open once more and Uhura hopped into view, trying to pull on one of her boots. She was fully dressed, her hair pulled up into her standard ponytail.

As usual, her appearance was impeccable. Not one hair out of place. Galia watched as Uhura finally succeeded in slipping on the stubborn boot, rushing past her to risk precious seconds to check her appearance in the medium sized circular mirror on Galia's bedside table. She then rushed back across the room, firmly looping her earrings into the small designated holes as she did so.

Then, gripping the hem of her skirt firmly and wiggling her hips until the material was stretched as far down her legs as possible, she spun around her bed to pick up her own satchel. Satisfied she was properly presented, she turned and determinedly marched from their room, gripping Galia's arm as she passed.

It was not until they were hurrying across the academy ground did Uhura allow herself to breath.

"Why didn't you wake me up?" She groaned. Galia shrugged.

"I tried. Several times. You're impossible to wake up these days Ny," the girl replied. Uhura pulled a face in response, and increased her pace.

She had not been late for any of her classes in the full two months she had been at the academy. She was not about to start now. The small fact that it was Commander Spock's class that she was now hurrying towards made her tardiness seem so much worse.

He had not once spoken of that night in Kitui. Even when she had thanked him the first time she had been assigned to his class, he had simply brushed her gratitude aside and told her to take her seat. She had taken his lead, treating the incident as nothing but a thing of the past. She could not act overly familiar with a Commander, no matter the circumstances in which they met.

Commander Pike seemed friendlier towards her than towards the other cadets, taking the time to escort her to the canteen or walking her back to her room whenever they happened to meet on the walkways.

He had once jokingly told her that his polite behavior was due to the fact he was terrified of her mother, who had contacted him the day Uhura had left for America. The older woman had threatened to send him poisoned fruit if anything happened to her youngest child.

Uhura had been mortified when she had heard this, and had begun to apologize profusely for her mother's behavior. Pike had laughed at her, and stated that he had been highly tickled by this comment, rather than offended. He had in fact spent the rest of that day laughing to himself...and thus causing his companions to question his health.

Uhura had nonetheless made the mental note to contact her mother as soon as she returned to her dorm.

It was a brilliant stroke of luck that Commander Spock had not been present when she and Galia had hurried into the lecture room. It was highly unusual for Spock to be late, yet his absence was met with delight by many of her classmates.

She had barely sat herself down in her usual seat when the doors to the lecture hall once again opened and Spock strode in, seeming deep in thought with a PADD in his right hand. Regaining her breath, Uhura placed her satchel by her feet. Her own PADD and her personal note pad already prepared on the table.

As was routine, Spock began his lecture without greeting the students or taking attendance.

Galia leaned over slightly from her seat one level above Uhura and tapped her friend lightly on one shoulder.

"Ny" She whispered. Uhura tilted her head slightly o show she was listening.

"You forgot to put your tights on"


It was quite remarkable how the simple matter of being incorrectly clothed could distract ones mind and train of thought so thoroughly.

Uhura considered herself fortunate that she was already well revised in Andorian Orientation. The Commanders lecture – the basics of Andorian Systems and Culture, was a topic she considered herself well versed on. She had taken a similar course under the tutelage of Hoshi Sato. Granted, the course she had taken back then was not as in depth as the lecture Commander Spock was teaching – but she was content with the knowledge that she was not missing anything important.

From the very second Galia had quite happily informed her that her legs were now bare to the world, Uhura had become ridiculously self conscious.

Her chosen seat was situated right next to the row of steps that lead both towards the back of the lecture hall, and down towards the main door. As such, every student that was seated to her left, would have a very indecent view of the top of her thighs. Her skirt had ridden upwards when she had sat herself down, the already short hem barely covering her underwear.

The only way she would be able to pull the skirt down and sit more comfortably, would be to stand up and purposefully pull the material down, wiggling her hips much like she had before her mad rush across the campus.

What made matters worse, Spock's podium was directly below her. She had chosen her seat because of that reason, yet at this moment Uhura was regretting her decision. All he would have to do is glance up in her direction, and he would be able to see the colour of her underwear – despite her legs being tightly clamped together.

This fact dominated her thoughts for the entire two hour lecture. She had only written the name of today's lecture on her note pad. The rest of the page was filled with random squiggles that she had drawn in an attempt to make it look like she was concentrating.

Her next lecture was not until after lunch. She usually spent this time in the communications lab, monitoring deep space frequencies. Today, she was going to sprint with as much dignity she had back towards her dorms and get changed into the regulation trousers she had not worn once since she had arrived at the academy.

Perhaps she was over thinking this. The attire she wore at the gym was lot more revealing than her cadets uniform. She has also been seen by Commander Spock himself when dressed in her bathing costume at the campus swimming pool. Her lack of suitable leg wear was nothing to be embarrassed about...

The sound-com above the main door bleeped loudly, signalling the end of the first lecture of the day.

From either side of the room, students climbed to their feet slowly. Some taking happily amongst themselves as they made their way out of the room.

Gaila stopped next to her and waited for Uhura to gather her belongings.

"Are you going to communications lab?" She asked.

Uhura shook her head, and very careful stood. Relishing in the chance to subtly pull her skirt down.

"Not right away"

Side by side, the two women descended the stair way, Gaila happily keeping up the conversation.

"Silos asked me out this weekend. He said he's bringing his room mate...and he needs a date..."

Uhura sighed and shot her friend a self suffering glare.

"No"

Gaila blinked and rolled her eyes.

"You don't even know what he looks like!" She exclaimed.

"Even so...the answer is still no"

Gaila groaned and lifted up her hands in expiration. A small crowd had gathered by the main door way, a cue of sorts of students waiting for a change to insert themselves into the continuously moving line of Star Fleet cadets moving along the hallways. Uhura and Gaila halted behind the small group. The Orion woman pouting moodily.

"You seriously need to unwind Ny. You know you'll sleep better if you get some..." Galia grinned, her vivid red eyebrows wiggling suggestively. Uhura sighed.

"There is nothing wrong with my sleeping habits. Or my social life"

Galia scoffed.

"Or lack there of"

"Galia..."

"What? How did that old movie quote go? 'All work and no play makes Nyota a horny girl" Galia laughed. Uhura simply raised her eyebrows in response and purposefully turned away. Perhaps if she squeezed to the front of the slowly moving group she could loose the other woman in the crowd?

"Firstly, Its 'All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy' and secondly, no"

"Aw c'mon! He's human...tall, dark haired, a bit quiet but I reckon that's you kinda guy. You'll have so much to not talk about" Gaila said. Uhura did not grace her with an answer. She noticed a small gap at the front of the group. All she would have to do, is step slightly to the left and push her way throu-

"Cadet Uhura. One moment please"

As one, the two woman turned. Commander Spock stood almost directly behind them. His arms folded behind his back.

"Later Ny!" Gaila said, and disappeared into the receding crowd. Uhura scowled with irritation at her friend back, before turning back towards the Commander. She purposefully moved her satchel, holding it in front of her so the medium sized bag covered the top of her legs.

"Yes Commander?" She asked.

"How are you finding the academy so far Cadet?" Spock asked. Uhura blinked, slightly surprised.

"I am finding the experience enjoyable and educational Commander" She replied slowly. Spock nodded, as if he already knew this.

"And you are experiencing no problems accustoming yourself with the academy's schedule?"

Uhura frowned slight. Was this because she was late this morning? She voiced her question.

"I am sorry I was late this morning Commander. I promise it wont happen again" She said solemnly. Spock's eyebrow raised slightly.

"I was unaware of your late arrival Cadet. Tardiness is not something I approve of in my lectures, but as I was as stated, unaware, this incident will pass unnoticed. It is the standard of your work I wished to discuss with you"

Uhura's eyebrows raised in surprise.

"My work sir? Is there a problem with my essays or vocal recordings?" She asked. Uhura was confused. Everything she submitted was checked thoroughly. She did not make mistakes, particularly in xenolinguistics.

"Your vocal transcriptions are of the highest standard. However, you written assignments have decreased in standard. I have noticed some errors in those assignments which concerned me" Spock said. Uhura's looked of bewilderment turned into one of confused anger.

"Errors Sir? May I enquire as to what they are?" She asked. As an answer, Spock handed her his PADD. A written document already uploaded on the screen. Uhura recognised the document as her own. It was the last essay she had submitted - a written documentation of the Aldean planetary defence system, and the possible negative effects it could have on the planets o-zone layer. The essay was one she had been assigned for her XenoScience and Foreign Affairs class. As the subject was taught by representatives of the Science Department, it did not surprise her that Commander Spock had access to all submitted work.

What did surprise her however, were the highlighted sentences and underlined mistakes that covered the majority of the essay. Frowning, Uhura bent to set her satchel on the floor next to her feet.

Carefully, she moved her fingers across the screen, reading the essay mentally as she scrolled down the page. Her frown deepened.

"I do not understand..." She said quietly.

"Elaborate" Spock responded. Uhura let out a deep breath and raised her head to look at him directly.

"I would not make these mistakes. The incorrect sentence structure. The misspelling of words I have used several times, even the repetitive use of doubled letters in words. They are not mistakes I would make" Uhura said firmly. She held of the PADD in front of her, pointing to one of the errors in question. Spock took the PADD from her hand, looking intently at the screen.

"That was my deduction also. The errors seem deliberate. Cadet, do you allow other students to read your essays before you submit them?" Spock asked. Uhura shook her head, slightly offended.

"Of course not!"

"I meant no offence Cadet. I am merely pointing out possible reasons for the decrease quality of your work"

"You mean plagiarism? You think there is a possibility that someone is copying my work and submitted it as their own?"

"It is one possible scenario. By intentionally altering your work it would give the impression that you were the individual plagiarising another students work" Spock clarified. Uhura had crossed her arms in an unconscious form of defiance, now they dropped to her sides.

"Commander, I would never..." She started. Spock held up a hand to stop her.

"To which I have no doubt Cadet. Yet these mistakes are troubling. They were bought to my attention by two of your present tutors. This incident is not a singularity. I have been informed of three separate work submission that show mistakes similar to these" Spock informed her. Uhura paled slightly, and looked troubled.

Someone was intentionally sabotaging her work? Yes, the mistakes were small and in some cases unnoticeable but they were still errors that she would not make. Perhaps there was an issue with Star Fleet's server? All essays were submitted to the academy's main computer, then organised into their correct department and sent to the appropriate tutors. Unless given permission to do so, no work was directly submitted to the tutor who had assigned the work.

If there was a technological issue with the server itself, it could perhaps explain the mistakes? This was the happy alternative. The other...was that there was an individual in Star Fleet who had a personal vendetta against her.

Uhura frowned, her head tilted slightly as she stared unseeingly to her upper left. She could not think of one person at the academy who may dislike her. She considered herself to be well liked, by those of different sex and species. Yes, she concentrated more on her studies then her social life, yet she had on several occasions toured the bars and nightclubs outside campus with Galia and other friends. There was no one that should hate her to go this far...

No...there was one. But there was no way he would have followed her...was there?

Uhura was unaware of the small flash of fear that crossed her face, her hand raising until she was chewing distractedly on her thumb nail. Spock had stood silently was watched each of her emotions filter across her face. Anger, annoyance, deep introspective thought, now fear.

What had frightened her?

Turning off the PADD, Spock turned slightly to place the hand held device on the podium beside him.

"Speak your mind cadet" He said softly. Uhura gave a slight jump as she was pulled from her thoughts. She hesitated for a brief moment, before shrugging one shoulder and looking apologetic.

"I'm sorry Commander. I was just thinking that maybe there is a problem with the main server? That could explain the mistakes. Maybe there are other cadets who are having the same problem?" Uhura said, a little to quickly. Spock nodded. An issue with the server was a possible, if improbable reason for the issue. That did not explain her fear however.

Her eyes had become distant once more, slightly glazed as she thought. Spock observed her quietly. The colour of her eyes had darkened. He briefly recalled his observation three months ago. Her emotions were portrayed very clearly through her eyes. When she was excited or happy, they lightened. It seemed when she was troubled, they darkened to a deep brown.

This realisation did not benefit him or the situation in any way, so he pushed the irrelevant thought from his mind.

Spock knew of only one reason the cadet would become upset. There was only one individual he was aware of that would wish to cause her harm. He was admittedly disturbed by the thought Bado was on Star Fleet ground. It was an illogical concern, for Spock was certain that had he been seen, he would have been arrested immediately. He also had no concerns for Uhura's well being. She was well protected upon Academy grounds. He and Commander Pike having made sure of this by recommending additional security be hired.

She had nothing to fear.

"Cadet"

Once more, she gave a small start.

"In light of this discovery, I deduce it would be more beneficial to your academic record if you submitted your assignments directly to your tutors. If you will hand me your PADD, I shall programme my personal contact details. I shall also pass on this recommendation to the other lecturers"

Uhura blinked at him for moment, before nodding and bending to pick up her satchel. Pulling her PADD from the bag, she handed it to the man opposite her. He spent a short moment installing his details before handing the appliance back to her.

"Should I re-submit my work?" She asked. Spock shook his head slightly.

"That will not be necessary Cadet. As the errors were not made by you, they will be overlooked and your work marked for its standard. The errors will have no effect on their quality"

Uhura let out a small sigh of relief, and gave him a small but genuine smile.

"Thank you Commander" She said softly. Spock nodded and turned away. During their conversation, his next class had formed a queue outside the main doors. They were seemingly getting impatient, given the rising volume of noise coming from the hallway.

"You are dismissed Cadet" Spock said, already preparing for his next lesson. Uhura nodded and bowed slightly, before hoisting her satchel onto one shoulder and turned to leave the room.

Two sets of eyes followed her departure. The first were set into the stoic face of a Vulcan. His eyebrow slightly raised as he observed the skin on her bared legs.

The second set were dark. Brooding, and hidden.


AN: Well, that just about killed me. Charming. Yes, were are now in school my darlings. Not much happened in this chapter...I just wanted to get into the swing of being at the academy. Not to sure what else I can say about this...