Disclaimer: Star Trek belongs to Gene Roddenberry. The movie rights belong to J.J. Abrams and Paramount. Thanks to Zachary Quinto and Chris Pine for inspiring me to write about the young versions of Spock and Kirk!

A/N: Sorry for the delay! This chapter has been most daunting, and I put it off by writing an 'essay' about slashy content in the novelization of the movie. (This can be found on my livejournal, the link is in my profile if you are interested.)

So when I finally did write the chapter, I decided to split it into two parts, with the actual ceremony in the subsequent chapter. So this isn't really the end. Faked you out! I wasn't expecting this to happen, but my one paragraph conversation involving Bones just continued to grow. I decided not to fight it. This is all build up to their bonding. I hope this gets you pumped up! And… action!

Teach Me

Ch. 10: Unshakable Bond, Part One

(Spock POV)

We retreated to Jim's quarters after my father's rather hurtful declaration. As we both took a seat on his bed, I tried to process what had just happened. Disowned! Try as I might, I could not digest this startling concept. As of this moment, I had no family to speak of.

"That's not true, Spock," Jim spoke up. "Soon I will be part of your family." My eyebrows flew up to my forehead.

"How did you…"

"Your emotions are coming through our link," he admitted. "I can practically feel everything you do."

"I am sorry." I hung my head. "My concentration has slipped. If you allow me to meditate, I can-"

"Don't be sorry! I want to feel you, dammit. It's time you stop shielding me anyway." Jim and I locked eyes and I basked in the warmth radiating from them. "Spock, he'll come around," Jim insisted. "I know it." I could tell Jim believed he was telling the truth, but unless he had somehow glimpsed our future, which was highly unlikely, there was no way for him to know how my father would act.

"I do not believe you comprehend the severity of the situation," I replied, my posture as unyielding as ever. "I have been permanently excommunicated from the House of Surak. While this is an acceptable sacrifice for having you as my bondmate, I must allow time to meditate on the possible outcomes of this situation and…"

"Spock." Jim quietly cut me off. "I know it hurts." I nodded, knowing there was no way to hide my true feelings from him.

"I do not understand my father's logic," I vented. "He should have nothing against inter-species relationships, as my mother was human."

"I don't think that's your father's problem," Jim whispered, scooting closer to me. I shivered at our close proximity. Our faces were almost touching and I desperately wanted him to kiss me. But I knew that would not be a good idea. Because once we started, I would not be able to stop… "He believes it's your duty bond with a female and raise a child on New Vulcan. But what he is forgetting is your commitment to Starfleet, and that your genes are, well…"

"Flawed?" I supplied. Jim sighed.

"If you want to call it that. The fact is, you have low odds for producing healthy offspring."

"You are correct," I breathed. "My mother experienced three miscarriages before I was carried to term."

"Then, logically, you would not be the best choice to bond with this female since you are not full Vulcan. Right?" Suddenly, I did not want to discuss this any further. I didn't want to think about what would happen on New Vulcan with the girl. But as I was not tied to my father, his demands would no longer apply, and I would be free to bond with whomever I chose.

"Jim. I am bonding with you, therefore this discussion is irrelevant. What is done is done; I will not dwell on it any longer."

"Of course, Spock." Jim stared at me in confusion as he tried to absorb my latest wave of illogical emotions. I wished I had the strength to block my turmoil from him, the deep ache of all familial bonds severed. But I could not. Perhaps part of me wanted him to know what I was facing.

"Now I have lost both of them," I whispered as the realization hit. "My mother, and now him. All I have left is you."

"And you'll always have me," he murmured. Until you die, I thought, a feeling of misery gnawing at me from the inside. After all, the lifespan of a Vulcan was almost twice as long as the life span of a human. It was a disquieting fact that I had overlooked until now, but suddenly was more apparent than ever. "Spock!" Jim spoke sharply. "Don't think about that. If you do, I may not be able to keep it together. Besides, we have so much time left to spend together."

"Then don't make promises you can't keep," I retorted. "I will not always have you, Jim. This is a truth I must come to terms with." Jim closed his eyes, and through our link I knew he was questioning if bonding with me was worth it if it was to cause me so much pain in the end. "Do not misunderstand me, Jim," I told him gently. "I want this. I want a life with you, regardless of the cost." He opened his eyes and stared deep into mine.

"Can I hold you?" He asked. "I know you think it's best if we don't touch until the ceremony, but it's driving me absolutely nuts. I promise I'll keep my hands to myself."

"Are you certain you can keep that promise?" I scrutinized him closely, but it seemed he had no other motive than to offer me comfort. And, perhaps, to gain some himself.

"I'm positive," Jim answered firmly. "No kisses - Vulcan or otherwise." I exhaled in relief. As long as our fingers did not come in contact, I should be able to keep my urges in check.

"Thank you, Jim." I allowed that sentiment as he pulled me into his arms. We faced each other on the bed, Jim's forehead resting against mine. "In a few days, we will not have to resist each other."

"I look forward to it," he answered, his eyes sparkling with mischief. But then they grew serious. "Spock, I know it may not seem this way at the moment, but your father still cares about you." I reveled in our closeness, glad that I had allowed myself this one luxury before our bonding. It had been just as difficult for me to not touch him. While our proximity was rather taxing, I knew that it would be would be worse for both of us to deny this. I could keep the blood fever at bay, as long as Jim did not provoke it.

"You are wrong, Jim." My future bondmate gave me a wry smile.

"He will figure it out, Spock. He will realize that you are still his son, his only link to Amanda. He will want to have you as a son, even if you're bonded to someone he deems inferior."

"I hope you are correct," I whispered before releasing a small yawn. "Jim, we cannot afford to fall asleep. We are needed on the bridge." Jim just gave an exasperated sigh.

"Spock, we just saved Earth, and not to mention the ship from certain destruction. I think we deserve a little down time. Sulu, Chekov, and the rest can handle the ship."

"Logical," I murmured. I did not have the strength or the will to argue. "I suppose I could rest for a minute amount of time." We drifted off in each other's arms, our worries dissipating as we descended into slumber.

.~.

Much to my dismay, we slept much longer than I had anticipated. McCoy came to check on us after ten hours and found us lying in the same position. He cleared his throat and I immediately woke.

"Why, good afternoon, Spock." The doctor graced me with a knowing smirk.

"Doctor." I sat up in bed and acknowledged him with a stiff nod. I felt myself blush at being discovered in bed with Jim, even if all we'd done was sleep. I poked Jim with one of my feet. After all, McCoy was his friend. No doubt the poor man had received the shock of his life when my relationship with Jim had been disclosed to the crew by Nero.

"Jim, are you awake?" McCoy asked.

"Whassamatter, Bones?" Jim yawned sleepily, turning over to find his friend standing a few feet away from the bed.

"We're receiving a transmission from New Vulcan and one of the elders is asking for you."

"Really?" Jim said, trying not to sound too excited about it. I knew better. A tiny pang of jealous surfaced before I pushed it away. "Did he identify himself?"

"No," McCoy replied with a frown. "He only identified himself as your old friend, which struck me as odd."

"Excellent," Jim said happily. Dr. McCoy just shook his head, trying not to think about how it was possible for Jim to be 'old friends' with an elderly Vulcan.

"Good God, man! How many Vulcans are you acquainted with, Jim?"

"Just two," he assured the doctor as well as myself. "Hey, Spock, do you care who we have to officiate the ceremony?"

"I do not have a preference," I admitted. "Although it might be more difficult than you think to find someone who will perform the ceremony against my father's wishes."

"We'll find someone," he assured me. "In fact, leave that to me." I did not thank him in front of our present company, but Jim knew how grateful I was thanks to our link. He then climbed out of bed to take the communication from the Vulcan colony.

"Thanks for waking me, Bones," said Jim, patting the perplexed doctor on the back. Dr. McCoy had tried to follow our exchange, but came up short. Jim started to walk out the door, but McCoy stopped him.

"Now just a minute!" Jim stopped in his tracks and did an about-face.

"Yes?" I knew that he had planned it that way. Jim's expression was quite smug, which easily gave him away. It was rather endearing, and I knew that if I was not careful, that smirk might just end up ruling me.

"Jim, what ceremony is he blathering on about?" Jim glanced over at me before answering. Go ahead.

"Bones, how would you like to be my best man?" Jim tried to sound nonchalant but failed miserably. The doctor's jaw dropped open once he understood what his best friend was implying. "I assume Vulcan ceremonies have something similar, right?" Jim looked back over at me and I nodded.

"We do not call them 'best men', but yes, close friends are encouraged to be present during the ceremony." Jim turned back to his friend.

"Bones?" The doctor shook off his surprise.

"Well I'll be a monkey's uncle," McCoy declared. "Jim, that's wonderful! I never thought I'd see you get hitched, even if it is to a-"

"So you'll do it?' Jim cut him off. It had been unnecessary, as McCoy's insults to my species did not bother me in the slightest, but I appreciated the gesture.

"I wouldn't miss this for the world." Dr. McCoy grinned at us. "Congratulations."

"You do not find the union to be distasteful?" I asked, disbelieving.

"Nah," said the doctor, his southern drawl apparent. "When you're friends with Jim, you learn to expect the unexpected." I raised an eyebrow at Jim, who shrugged.

"I'd better go take that com. See ya later, Spock. Bones." He made a swift exit, leaving me alone with the doctor.

"Now, I wasn't about to say this in front of Jim," McCoy began. "I don't know if he has you fooled, but he's not as tough as he seems. He's vulnerable, and he only lets those close to him see that. So if you break his heart, Spock, so help me, I will-"

"Understood, doctor," I interrupted. "I have no intention of severing our bond."

"Bond?" McCoy stared at me, again at a loss. I tried to explain it the best I could, including the concept of t'hy'la, that what Jim and I shared went beyond an ordinary human marriage contract. That what I felt for him transcended the physical. Our minds were to be joined, and therefore, our souls…

"I'll be damned," he said after I finished. McCoy regarded me solemnly. "I seem to have underestimated you, Spock. If anyone needed this sort of bond thing, it's Jim. He's a very special person, but he can be needy at times. He's not perfect, not by a long shot." I knew. "He knows your weak spots and he knows how to wound you if he deems it necessary. But he will always be there to share in your times of joy and of sorrow."

"This is already apparent to me, Doctor." McCoy nodded, realizing I was referring to my own personal losses.

"Good. Well, I wish you both all the best."

"Your sentiment is noted, Doctor." Shaking his head, he took his leave, and I found myself in solitude. But I was not truly alone, as I was feeling Jim's happiness through the link. Whatever he and the elder Vulcan were speaking about, it was good news.

I decided to use this time to finally meditate on all that had happened to me in this brief period of time. I had lost my mother, my planet, and my father's love all in one day. But Jim had been there to see me through it. And, if I was not mistaken, I had gained a friend in McCoy. As I allowed my consciousness to leave my body, I tried to concentrate on my future instead of dwelling on the scars of my past…

.~.

Two days later

We arrived on at New Vulcan right on schedule. Jim did not have time to accompany me to register for citizenship, as his duties as acting captain of the Enterprise kept him detained on the ship for the day. I knew he would have difficulty explaining to Starfleet why he had taken their flagship on an unexpected detour to New Vulcan. But I was not too concerned – after saving Earth from Nero, Starfleet should be the one answering to Jim, not the other way around. If he were to receive a reprimand, it would be a slight one.

However, this meant that I had to register by myself, along with my father. We departed the ship together, but we couldn't have been farther apart. Sarek was cold and distant to me, just as I had expected. I did not know how much longer I could stand being in his presence after the way he had treated Jim. But as luck would have it, I was removed from my father's presence at the request of one of the Vulcan elders.

I fully expected to receive a lecture about the merits of suppressing one's emotions, as I assumed my loss of control as acting captain of the Enterprise had reached the Vulcan consulate by now. But what awaited me was much more surprising.

I was met by an ancient Vulcan, who welcomed me to his makeshift home. It was there that he revealed to me that he was, in fact, myself from the future. This elder Spock had apparently traveled back in time via the same black hole that allowed Nero access to our century. It dawned on me that this was the time traveler Jim had met on Delta Vega. Jim had been correct; I did not mind that my elder self had melded with him in order to share necessary information. I also inferred that this was the telepath that had taught Jim how to shield his true feelings from me in order to compromise me and take over the ship. Spock had apologized for that, but insisted that it had been necessary. I agreed with him wholeheartedly. If Jim had not gone after Nero, he would have destroyed Earth for sure, and he would still be very much alive. Who knows where we would be if this had been allowed to happen?

My time spent with my elder self was most illuminating. He showed me all that Jim and I could be, by showed me of his time spent with his Kirk. While future Spock assured me our life would most assuredly follow a different path than theirs, he predicted that we could still achieve greatness together.

Spock reminded me to cherish the time I had with Jim. He no longer had his Kirk in his life, and he was quite envious of what lay before me. Even though I promised that I had no intentions of ever leaving Jim, he had me swear never to devote myself to the Kolinahr discipline.

"But why would I wish to purge myself of the emotions I feel for Jim?" I wondered, not without disbelief. "I do not find them to be shameful." That was when I gathered that undertaking the Kolinahr had been one of this Spock's regrets. I couldn't imagine what could have driven him to take such drastic action, and was not sure I wished to know.

"Then you are much wiser than I ever was," the elder Spock replied with a sigh. "Nevertheless, Spock, trust me when I say there will be times that you will want to give up on Jim. Now more than ever he will have issues to sort through. His childhood was not an easy one."

"I will not wish to give up on him!" I exclaimed.

"Do not be naïve, Spock," the other me chided. "Maintaining a successful bond takes many years of discipline and hard work. You will discover things about him that perhaps you would not wish to know. The reverse is true as well."

"I understand." I said softly. "I never believed this would be easy. Jim is certainly a challenge." Elder Spock chuckled lightly.

"That he is. But as long as you do not deny your feelings, you should be fine." We continued to speak of other things. I questioned him about Pon Farr, and he assured me in his time of mating that he didn't harm his Kirk – much. We spoke of my father, and Spock echoed Jim's words about giving him time. I wanted to ask Spock if our father was present for his bonding ceremony to his Kirk, but was afraid to learn the answer. So I didn't ask. I took my leave of Elder Spock after promising to keep his (my?) identity a secret.

Later that day, Jim joined me in our temporary accommodations. He informed me that while Starfleet was disappointed he would not be returning to Earth right away, he was still awaiting a hero's welcome as well as being guaranteed the captaincy of the Enterprise. I had not expected any less. I assured Jim that once my fever had passed, we could return to Earth so he could receive his medal of honor they no doubt intended to bestow on him. Jim rolled his eyes at that, claiming all of the attention was starting to give him a headache and that he'd rather stay shacked up here with me on New Vulcan on our honeymoon. I reminded him that if he stayed too long Starfleet might consider giving someone else command of the Enterprise. Then Jim decided that an extended stay on New Vulcan wouldn't be such a great idea after all.

Preparations for our bonding took up much of our time during the next day. We had to find a suitable venue ("Was it entirely necessary to invite the whole crew, Jim?") as well as suitable attire for myself and Jim. I did not know if traditional Vulcan robes would be available, but thanks to our connection to my elder self, we were able to borrow some. While my robe was to be the traditional somber black, in contrast, Jim chose a blinding white garment symbolizing his rebirth. I knew that once I saw him in it, I would seriously have to master my hold on the blood fever because Jim was sure to be a vision in white.

There was also that matter of the human part of the ceremony. While Jim found the Vulcan ceremony to have more meaning to him than any superficial human civil union, he still wished to be legally wed to me on earth. Jim drew up the necessary paperwork to apply for a lifelong marriage contract and left it on my desk to sign. He also expressed his wish to buy us matching wedding bands, a traditional Earth custom that my parents had also embraced. I was touched by this wish of his, although we would have to wait until we returned to Earth to search for rings.

That night, my elder self showed up at our door. Apparently Jim had already employed him to officiate the ceremony. I tried not to dwell on the fact that I was going to be bonded by my future self, and instead thanked both Jim and elder Spock. It would truly be an honor to be brought together by someone who knew us as well as this Vulcan did. I would have no trouble allowing him to join minds with us in order to join our minds.

After Spock ran through the brief ceremony with us, he did not linger. But before he left he warned both Jim and I that once our minds were joined, Jim would experience my biological imperative to mate through our mind link. He recommended that we shield ourselves from our connection during that point or else we would never make it to the celebration afterwards. Jim suggested that he wouldn't mind skipping the celebration, not to anyone's surprise. But I knew that the celebration party was a large part of what makes human weddings enjoyable, and I wanted Jim to enjoy his. Jim relented, realizing he would miss out on the sandwiches Scotty was preparing, Uhura's home-made wedding cake, and Bones' whisky. I did caution Jim not to overindulge, as I wasn't certain how the effects of alcohol would transfer through the bond. While I knew Jim could hold his alcohol, I certainly did not wish to test my limits on my bonding night. Jim promised that he wouldn't over do it, much to my satisfaction. After all, I did want him fully functional and I knew alcohol tended to put a damper on certain human bodily functions.

Soon it was time for bed. Jim and I had been sleeping in twin beds, as I did not trust myself sleeping directly next to him. We quickly changed out of our uniforms and into our night clothes. Jim gave me a quick hug before climbing into bed, an action I eagerly permitted. As exhausted as I was from suppressing my urges, I was about to fall asleep when I heard,

"Hey, Spock?" He really likes to talk, I reminded myself. Don't hold it against him.

"Yes, Jim?"

"When I spoke with elder Spock on Delta Vega, he was the one that taught me how to shield myself from you."

"I had already deduced that."

"Of course you did," Jim sighed. "Are you having any second thoughts about tomorrow?"

"Are you?" I countered.

"No, I still want to spend the rest of my life at your side," he assured me. "I just have this awful feeling that I'm going to screw this up somehow. I've never once had a successful relationship before."

"Is there any reason why you cannot have one now?"

"No."

"Try not to fret, Jim. Good night." I turned over, preparing to sleep when,

"Spock?" My elder self said it would not be easy. I'm so tired…

"Yes?"

"I'm worried about the meld." I sighed.

"Lights." Jim and I found ourselves blinking at the sudden light.

"Why didn't you voice this concern when my elder self was here?"

"I dunno," he mumbled.

"We've melded before," I reminded him.

"That was different," he insisted. "It wasn't a complete meld and we weren't bonded then."

"What are you afraid you will see?" I wondered. What if Jim was not ready to experience all of me? What if he couldn't handle that yet? Normally I would not have asked it of him so soon into our relationship, but my Pon Farr made it necessary that we bond now.

"It's not what I'm afraid I'll see, it's what I'm afraid you'll see," he whispered. "Spock, I haven't told you everything about myself and my past. Not by a long shot."

"Anything I learn about you in the meld will not change how I feel about you," I assured him.

"How do you know?"

"Because you are my t'hy'la. I will accept all that you are. My love for you is unconditional, you know that."

"Oh." Perhaps he didn't. "Thanks." I sighed. Jim, for all his intellectual and creative brilliance, could be quite dense at times.

"Now may I go to sleep?" Jim chuckled, relieved that we gotten that straightened out.

"Sure, Spock. I can't wait for tomorrow now!"

"Neither can I." And I meant it.

"Good night, Spock."

"Good night, Jim." I waited, expecting him to call my name yet again, but he never did. Finally succumbing to sleep, I dreamed of what my new life was to be like with Jim. I was certain I would enjoy roaming the galaxy and exploring new worlds, my bondmate at my side.

End Ch. 10

A/N: So what'd you think? Any suggestions for the ceremony? I really could use some input here! It will make me upload faster.