A/N: Welcome, wonderful readers, to Chapter 12 of Elaria.

I just wanted to say thank you to all of you who are reading and following this story; it really means the world to me. I have to admit I got a little teary-eyed after I saw how much support this story still has after being on hiatus. You guys are the best.

My heartfelt thanks also to all of you who reviewed. I love getting feedback, and you guys are always great about letting me know how I'm doing. :)

In any case, this chapter is a little shorter than the last one (11 was actually a monster length-wise compared to most of the chapters for this fic; I attribute that to me loving a good fight scene XD), but it's got some good moments, I think. So I hope you enjoy it. :D


Chapter 12

Elaria tuned out halfway through the debriefing. She'd tried to stay focused, but her headache had made it increasingly difficult, and eventually she'd just given up on paying attention.

She was so out of it, she didn't even notice right away when they adjourned for the day. She only came out of her trance when Khan stepped in front of her seat and knelt down so that they were face-to-face.

She blinked, then jumped, startled. "Khan!"
HE just looked at her, a faint frown on her face.
"What?" she asked nervously, quickly standing up. "Come on, let's get going. I've got a follow-up with McCoy for my shoulder, and you're no doubt needed elsewhere." She hurried past him, and had almost made it to the door when he stopped her, putting a hand on her elbow.
He turned her around and put a hand under her chin, looking closely at her face.
"Wh-what?" she demanded, flustered.
"Your pupils are extremely dilated," he informed her, his voice quiet. "And your breathing pattern is uneven."

"Because you're standing so close," she snapped, blushing.
He smiled faintly then shook his head, turning serious again. "Your pupils have been getting more and more dilated, starting during our altercation with Solomon. You've also shown increased sensitivity to light and sound, as well trouble focusing."
"Meaning?"
"I'm concerned," he told her, "that you may be on the verge of another episode."

"Episode?" she repeated. "You mean the migraine-and-blackout thing again?"
"Yes." He pressed his hand lightly against her forehead. "You're also running a slight fever. We should get you to Medbay straightaway."
"Didn't I already tell you that I was on my way there?" she grumbled, nevertheless allowing him to lead her from the room and down the hall towards the turbolift.

After all, she couldn't deny that she had the same worries. Even now, the pain in her head was growing worse.


McCoy had to admit that was both both surprised and relieved when Elaria came into Medbay, Khan behind her like a second shadow.
"Well," he said, "lookie here. You actually came to your doctor's appointment. How refreshing."

She managed a faint smile. "Well, after what happened when I avoided the last one, I figured getting it out of the way would be the most prudent course of action."
He gave a low chuckle. "Good idea." He waved her over to an examination table, then glanced at Khan. "You planning on staying?"
Khan looked to Elaria. "Do you want me to leave?"
She hesitated, then shook her head. "No, you can stay."

McCoy raised his eyebrows in surprise; something had evidently changed between the two of them. Khan, who had always seemed so ice cold towards others, now seemed genuinely interested in the Kartiani woman's well-being. And Elaria, who had mostly fluctuated between indifference and irritation towards all of them, seemed to be showing warmth towards Khan, of all people. "Are you two friends all of a sudden, or what?"

Elaria gave a crooked grin, but didn't answer the question. "Get on with the exam, doctor," she said instead. "I'll only sit still for so long."
McCoy rolled his eyes, but obliged. He started off with the most obvious ailment, the shoulder wound. "Take off your shirt," he requested. "I want to clean out that wound and apply an antibiotic ointment."

She pulled her t-shirt off, leaving her dressed only in jeans and a sports bra. "How bad is it?" she asked.
He inspected the wound. "Well, it's certainly not good, but it could have been much worse." The wound was about an inch and half wide, but wasn't as deep as he'd feared, and the station medic who'd initially treated the injury had done a fairly decent job. He cleaned the wound one more time, then applied the ointment, which had the secondary effect of numbing pain, like a local anesthetic.

"There," he said once he was finished binding the wound. "All set. Now, any other grievous injuries you want to share."
She shook her head. "Nope."
"But her headache has returned," Khan interjected.
Elaria shot him a death glare. "Khan!"
"It has."
"I was going to tell him!"

Bemused, Bones watched them bicker like a married couple for a few moments more, then interceded. "Your head hurts?" he asked Elaria.
She sighed. "Yeah. It started in the middle of my fight with Solomon, and it never really went away."
"She has shown symptoms of a severe migraine," Khan remarked.
"I'd hardly call it severe," she countered. "I haven't even had spotty vision yet."

McCoy rolled his eyes. Unbelievable. "Alright, let's have a look." He pulled out his penlight to check her eyes. Sure enough, her pupils were dilated, and she flinched away when he brought the light up to her eyes. His tricorder scans confirmed it. "You're in the early stages of a nasty migraine. It's also having an impact on the rest of your body; your blood pressure and heart rate are up, and your body temperature is higher than what it should be."

She frowned. "Is that normal?"

"For humans, it depends on the person in question. The stress of a migraine can definitely cause these symptoms depending on the severity of the individual case. As for Karitani, I have no idea. From what I've read, your people aren't inclined towards migraines in the first place; something to do with your lungs and the oxygen levels in your blood that doesn't allow the constriction of blood vessels that generally causes migraines. But our files on your people in general are pretty scanty, and since you're half human and half Karitani..."

"You don't know what to expect," she concluded.
He nodded. "Yeah. The best I can do for now is prescribe some headache pills and suggest you go get some rest."


Logically, Khan understood the doctor's position; he had to be cautious in Elaria's medical treatment due to the many unknown factors that were the inevitable result of her mixed heritage.
Emotionally, however...he hadn't quite accepted those facts.

He didn't completely understand why he felt so strongly about the situation, but there was no denying that he was seriously worried for Elaria. He couldn't explain it rationally; caring for her well-being in no way helped his long-term goals. If anything, it distracted him from them. And yet...

He couldn't deny the warmth he felt when he saw her, the odd lightness in his chest when she smiled. Not to mention how good she looked with her midriff bared.

He followed after her as she headed back towards her quarters. They'd gone about halfway when she paused and turned to look at him. "Thank you," she said after a moment.
He frowned at her. "For what?"
"For caring," she said simply. "I'm not used to people worrying over me, and I..." She shook her head. "Just...thanks, okay?"

He wasn't entirely sure how to respond to that, which frustrated him; her heartfelt words touched something deep inside of him, and he wanted to let her know that.

Since he couldn't find adequate words of his own to express himself, he did the next best thing.


Elaria was extremely startled when Khan pulled her in for a kiss. But she had to admit that it was very much a happy surprise.

When his lips met hers, it was like nothing else mattered. Her headache, her shoulder wound...it all just fell away. Even the pain from her father's hatred seemed to fade, becoming something out of focus and unimportant.

She returned the kiss gladly, grateful for this reprieve from her personal hell, and even more grateful for Khan's apparent affection for her, even if it couldn't possibly last.
They stood there, locked together, absorbed in each other, for a few moments longer, then broke apart, both trying to catch their breath.

Her heart pounding and her face flushed, she felt suddenly vulnerable. She was growing to care too much about Khan, she realized. She'd been so careful, all this time, to never let herself grow close to anyone, ever. Yet somehow this beautiful complicated man was stirring in her feelings of such strength that it was affecting her in fundamental ways. Such strong feelings would surely turn against her when he lost interest in her.

And he would lose interest; no one with half a brain could ever really love her, and Khan was clearly brilliant. Eventually he'd see that she wasn't worth it, and he'd turn his back on her. Of that she was sure.

That she was already terrified of such a thing, when she barely even knew the man, was a sure sign of how dangerous this was. She'd let herself get too close already. Too close.

He must have seen some hint of this fear in her face, because he reached out a hand and brushed his fingers gently across her cheek. He didn't speak, but the message was clear. Don't be afraid, his touch said. A small reassurance, one that eased the tightness in her chest but didn't banish it entirely.

She could feel something shift between the two of them, could sense the dynamic between her and Khan change even as they stood there. It was becoming something fiercely passionate, and it frightened her. There was so much risk for hurt. And she'd been hurt so much already...But looking into those soul;-searing blue eyes, she couldn't help but feel that maybe, just maybe, the risk might be worth it.


A/N: Aaaand that's Chapter 12, folks. What did you think? Like it, hate it?

I know it is a bit shorter than you'd like, but to be fair, it's got that big damn kiss, and then an almost relationship upgrade. XD I say almost simply because they're both such complicated (dare I say damaged?) people that they themselves aren't really thinking about this in a dating/relationship sense; it's never going to occur to Elaria that, oh, he's my boyfriend. Neither of them have much (if any) experience with this strange thing called romance, so...yeah. XD Eventually they'll get to that point where they realize that they're falling in love, but it's going to be an uphill battle of sorts, especially since we've got this whole assassination/Solomon thing to deal with. Not to mention the drama we're going to find ourselves entrenched in once we reached Karus, the Karitani colony world. And then all the fun that comes after. ;D

In any case, it's going to be loads of fun, so I hope you're excited. :) The next chapter should be posted within a couple weeks; I'm going to try and have it done sooner, but Chapter 13 is the last one I was working on before I went on hiatus, so it's going to be a little hard for me to get that one finished up before moving on to all new material. Don't worry, though; I promise not to leave you guys hanging again. :D

Anyway, drop me a review if you've got a second to spare; if not, it's all good, I love you guys whether you review or not. :)