Days began to creep by, but there was no change. Although all external damage had been healed, Spock remained comatose in sickbay, and there was nothing else the medical staff could do. Amanda's sixth birthday was only a couple days away by this point, but no one was really in the mood to celebrate.

After four days of round-the-clock work, warp power had been restored. The Challenger had joined them and her captain had loaned out several of his engineers. From what they'd been able to tell by communicating with the surface, the explosion had been an act of terrorism on the part of the minority government on Nafon. The Federation had decided to remove themselves from the middle of the battle between factions on the planet, so Enterprise was carefully making its way back to Earth for repairs. Challenger was acting as an escort/possible rescue vehicle since Scotty wasn't entirely sure that the ship would be able to hold together for the entire journey. Very many things were uncertain onboard the starship at the moment.

McCoy wasn't surprised to see two figures appear in the doorway to sickbay at almost exactly 1530 hours. Leryn and Amanda had been there at the same time – as soon as school finished – every day for the past week. He didn't need to say anything, merely nodded a hello as they made their way through sickbay toward their father's bed. Leryn took her customary seat and pulled out an assignment to work on. However, Amanda remained standing, held her father's hand within both of hers, and closed her eyes. Leryn frowned when she noticed.

"What are you doing?" she asked her little sister.

"Trying to talk to Daddy. I have to concentrate."

She gave the little girl a sad smile. "You've always been a really weak telepath, midget. It's not going to work."

"I can feel emotions sometimes, if they're strong," she argued. "I have to try. I have to do something to help Daddy."

"Mom said it helps just for him to know we're here."

"But how does she know for sure?" Leryn didn't have a good answer for that one. "I have to try to talk to him. He has to be better for my birthday." With that, she once again closed her eyes and concentrated. When she looked up again a few minutes later, Leryn was watching her.

"Anything?" she asked. Amanda shook her head, biting back tears. She knew that crying was illogical, but at the same time it seemed so very logical to be upset about her father. The thought that she needed him awake to explain the contradiction only made her feel worse.

Leryn noticed her sister's brimming eyes. "Hey, it's okay," she told her. "It was a really good idea. Remember what Dr. McCoy told us? Papa's concentrating really hard on getting better right now, so he probably just doesn't have the energy to talk to you, too."

Amanda looked away. "I want Daddy to wake up now."

"I do, too…You know, it's pretty neat that you wanted to try to do that."

"You said I shouldn't try to do Vulcan things."

"I know, but sometimes I say stupid stuff. I didn't mean it, and I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings."

Amanda smiled a little. "It's okay."

Leryn put down her homework. "This stuff can wait until later. How about we read Falor's Journey for Papa? He always likes when we do it together, right?" She nodded.

As always, Nyota came to get them after she was done with her shift. They had finished reading their story by the time she arrived, and were instead telling their father about what they'd been doing in school. "Let's go get dinner," she quietly said as she stood behind the girls.

"Bye, Daddy," Amanda told him, giving him a gentle kiss on the cheek.

"Goodnight, Papa," Leryn added. "Maybe tomorrow you'll be better." The same wish was made every evening.

They had dinner in the mess hall, and the girls had to work on their homework once they got back to their quarters. Amanda needed help with geometry, and by the time she was finished, it was her bedtime. Nyota tucked her in and toggled the switch on her nightstand that turned out the lights

"Sweet dreams," she told her daughter.

Amanda curled up with her bear. "Night-night, Mommy."

Out in the living room, Leryn was working on finishing up her own homework. "How was school?" Nyota asked her as she tried to straighten things up a little.

Leryn shrugged. "Okay…Mostly I've just been doing my work and leaving."

"I know you've been through a lot – and we're still going through a lot – but don't lose your friendships. I promise you that not all boys are like Ryan."

She smiled slightly. "I guess Papa's proof of that, right?"

Nyota laughed. "Yes. Most people thought he was a block of granite, but your father's one of the gentlest people I've ever known. You just have to get let in first to know that."

Leryn considered that. "Hey, Mom…I've done the math. You and Papa were together while you were still his student, weren't you?"

She blushed slightly. "Yes."

"I'm impressed you got him to break the rules."

"It wasn't easy," she returned, "But it was worth it…" Looking around the room, Nyota realized that she hadn't really been cleaning up so much as just moving random items from one place to another. She had a store of extra energy that had come from nowhere and she wasn't sure how to get rid of it. "Will you be okay here with your sister for a little bit?" she asked. "She should be asleep by now. I just…I need to take a walk."

Leryn nodded. "Sure, I can get her back in bed if she wakes up…Tell Papa we love him, okay?" she asked, assuming what her mother's destination would be.

Nyota smiled. "I will. Don't stay up too late."

She took a lap around the deck before heading to sickbay, trying to get her thoughts in order. It didn't really work, however, and she felt even more energized by the time she was done. Slipping into the seat beside Spock's bed, she took his hand in both of hers.

"I wish you were here to logically analyze what's going on with me tonight," she quietly told him. "If this is supposed to be some warning, it needs to be clearer. And it needed to have come BEFORE you ended up in here."

Staring down at his motionless form almost brought her to tears. "Is it wrong that I don't want to go home? I don't want to sleep alone again. I've been trying to stay positive, but…I don't know what I'd do without you. Don't make our girls go through what you've suffered. They need both of their parents."

Nyota sat for a long moment, perhaps waiting for some type of reaction, some sign that he really could hear her – that he was trying to get better. There was nothing, however, and she silently chided herself for hoping. She pulled her chair a little closer to the bed so that she could lean against it, curled her legs up, and closed her eyes. Maybe if she got a little rest here, she'd be more put-together when she went back home.

Sickbay was still darkened when she awoke, so she knew that it was still the middle of the night. A computer display on the wall near the bed informed her that it was 0316. A blanket had been draped over her body, and she assumed that McCoy had done it before leaving for the night. She got up and began to fold it back up, trying to stretch out the crick in her neck.

As she turned to say good-bye to her husband, her heart stopped. His eyes were open, watching her. "Spock?" she whispered. "Can you hear me?"

He tried to say something in reply, but his voice was painfully hoarse and the word was unintelligible.

"Shh, shh," she told him. "It's okay. Don't talk."

He reached one hand up to wipe away the tears on her cheek, tears she didn't even realize had fallen. She gave a watery laugh as she caught his fingers and held them within hers. The fact that he actually squeezed her hand back was overwhelming. "You were just trying my patience, weren't you?" she asked as she leaned over to kiss him.

"Kanu?" he finally managed to croak out in Vulcan. It was easier for his brain to process his first language at the moment than worry about English.

"The girls are fine," she replied. "They're at home. Oh, they're going to be so happy when they hear you're okay."

"Hali?" was his next question, inquiring about the Enterprise.

"We're still in one piece for the moment. We'll see how long we get laid up in space dock. You did it, Spock. You saved everyone."

He nodded slightly before his eyes slid shut, and for one terrifying moment, Nyota thought he was going back to sleep. However, he looked back up at her a moment later and forced out one more word, "Ashau."

Her tears spilled again. "I love you, too."

TBC...

A/N: Did you really think I'd kill him? :-) Thanks for all the feedback!