Chapter 12

by Starsinger

And we're back to Jim and Spock Prime on Delta Vega. Don't own them.

Delta Vega

Jim stared in awe and awkward fascination at the ancient Vulcan. The mind-meld left a hideous headache that he'd experienced before, but the information he had been bombarded with left him breathless. "So, I was supposed to go to Starfleet Academy," he whispered.

Spock sighed, "I'm not sure, and this is the first time I even considered you would go down a completely different path. My father welcomed you more than he did me."

Jim reached out, palms up, not actually talking the older man, "Spock, I barely know you, either one of you. I know your father and your mother." Jim took a deep breath, remembering the woman who became like a mother to him, one that he'd never had, "Knew your mother. The man I encountered on the Enterprise was just as proud his mother and stubborn as his father. How can I convince him of anything? I'm not Starfleet."

"Jim, all I know is that somehow, somewhere, you must take control of the Enterprise. The fate of Earth and the Federation rests on you doing just that," Spock was once again confronted by those blue eyes. When did Jim get so tall? "There's a Starfleet outpost near here. We'll stand a better chance of getting you back on the Enterprise from there."

Back on Vulcan

Jim came home and through a sketchpad on the kitchen table. M'Benga and Amanda looked up at him, quite perplexed. "How am I supposed to work with that woman?! She's impossible!"

"Who?" Amanda asked as Geoff raised an eyebrow.

"T'Pring, I don't understand how she got into the Diplomatic School. We're collaborating on a paper on Andorian society, and she insists that she do all the writing. I have TWO Masters degrees that required that I WRITE papers and DEFEND them! She thinks all I'm good for is drawing!" Jim vented. "She told me, today, that nothing can happen between us, that she's bonded to another man. Like I'd EVER be interested in that…that…"

Geoff started in on the chicken dish trying very hard not to laugh, Amanda responded, "She can be cold."

"THAT is an understatement. Who the HELL is she bonded to?" he asked.

"My son, Spock," Amanda breathed.

Jim's eyes nearly popped out of his skull, "Wow, I wouldn't have blamed him if she was that he left. I'm sorry, Amanda, she's made a lot of assumptions." He sat down and dug into the lunch that she set before him. Jim was an amazing houseguest, he kept his room clean, helped with the housework, and even helped wipe the dishes after every meal. Amanda smiled as they finished lunch. Jim picked up a charcoal pencil and started sketching. Amanda walked behind him and watched him draw a city she'd never seen before.

"Where is that?" she finally asked.

"This is Andor, the capital city of Andor. They actually have their own name, but Andor was easier for most other species to get their mouths around," Amanda couldn't help but admire the drawing as it took shape.

His PADD pinged, Kirk, here's the paper. T'Pring.

Jim read what she'd written and sighed, "This is barely acceptable. You'll excuse me, I have revisions to make."

Amanda watched as he left the room, "I'm going to call T'Nara." Geoff watched as she rose from the chair and went to the comm.

"Well, I have some books to study," Geoff murmured with a grin before inserting the dishes into the dishwasher and heading off to his own room.

Jim looked up as a knock sounded on his door, "T'Nara! What are you doing here?" he asked, rising from his chair.

"Amanda called, are you okay?" she asked as she sat on his bed. She looked at him, concerned.

"Yeah, T'Pring is a bitch," he breathed.

"Come on," she said, beckoning to him. Jim got up and followed her outside. They ventured into the desert around the house. The muted yellow, tan and brown hues were punctuated with bits of colors of green, red, and blue of various animals that inhabited the Vulcan desert landscape. "Look around you, Jim, you're an amazing person who's chosen to live among complete strangers. The amount of trust that took…"

"T'Nara, what do you know about Tarsus IV?" Jim said interrupting her.

"A famine occurred there, and a massacre. There was a group of children who survived in spite of…" she looked at him. "You have no reason to trust us," she said, comprehension dawning on her face."

"No, Vulcans never abused me. A Vulcan found me, and I was buried deep underground in the Governor's basement. I have a difficult time trusting people, but Vulcans, Vulcans never did me wrong…"

USS Enterprise

T'Nara's hands clutched at the observation deck window, "A Vulcan did you wrong now, Jim."

"T'Nara," a voice sounded behind her. She whirled around to discover Geoff and Sarek behind her, "Geoff tells me that Spock threw Jim off the ship. Is that true?"

"Yes, Ambassador," she responded.

"Where are your parents?" he asked.

"They were visiting my brother on Condus IV. I talked to them minutes ago, they are relieved to know that I am safe," she responded.

"Good, Amanda and I spent so much time helping him trust other people, and my own son may have just thrown it all away," Sarek said quietly. T'Nara and Geoff said nothing. They, too, hoped that Spock's actions had not broken the deep sense of trust that Jim had finally forged with those around him.