Disclaimer: I do not own Star Trek . . . consider yourselves disclaimed.
AN: See? You see? I promised I'd get all three mini-chapters up in a day! TA-DAAAA! Also, more cookies for all my reviewers! Huzza!
As he gazed out across the vast expanse visible from the rear window of his current lodgings, Spock reflected on the planet's differences from the Vulcan he grew up on. While the colony was indeed hosted on a planet highly similar to its predecessor, there were subtle reminders that it was not Vulcan everywhere he looked.
First, Vulcan II had a great deal more bodies of water than Vulcan. It was nowhere near the water-dominant planet Earth was, but it did have the occasional river or lake, and a few larger bodies, which on earth would be large lakes, but for many Vulcans it would be the closest they had ever come to seeing an ocean. Spock noted with interest that, much like his first day on Earth, many of the incoming colonists were highly fascinated by the large bodies of water the planet had, stopping to gaze upon the shore of the lake outside his window. His father's living area took up a majority of the front most windows of the housing facility, on the second floor.
Really, Spock thought to himself, as he watched the constant parade of colonists entering the building below, the Vulcan High Council had practically granted the ambassadors their own wing. It was quite logical that his father and Prime be willing to share the facilities with the Kirk family.
That was another, less subtle reminder that this was not Vulcan. Although he was once again among his own people, so to speak, it was the elder version of himself – now operating under the guise of a second earth ambassador – rather than his mother staying with his father. At first, Spock had been slightly surprised at hearing of such arrangements, but decided it was better that his father have some type of company rather than none at all, especially after all that had taken place.
After speaking with Prime, Spock had also come to understand that in the alternate reality Prime came from, he never got the chance to know and understand his father, as Prime now did in working so closely with the man. Seeing how this benefitted everyone involved, Spock decided it was logical, although he still occasionally felt disquieted by the idea that there was another Spock taking his place, so to speak, on Vulcan II. However, the disquiet always left him after only a few words from Uhura or a moment of meditation.
He finally spotted the two men he was looking for among the crowd of new comers and began making his exit from the room and nodded to himself. He knew that by staying on the Enterprise he had done "what felt right" and he did not regret it.
AN: Okay, just one last thing I wanted to mention – Spock Prime and Sarek are for sure not together. I just wanted to make that clear, because the first time I wrote this out I read back over it and I was like "Hey, that makes it sound like . . . aw, gross!" So I rewrote it, but now that I've had the thought, no matter how I phrase the whole "Prime and Sarek are staying together" thing, it sounds wrong. So incase anyone else picked up on that unintentional connotation, shake your head rapidly and hope the thought flies out of your head. Also, for those of you who didn't think of that at all -- *evil grin* I sure bet you're thin' about it now! BWAHAHAHA!!!