Loyalty...and Love?

"Spock I will not have you make us go backwards!" Kirk yelled as Valarie entered the bridge. Everyone was watching the fight go on between acting Captain Spock and Cadet Kirk about what they should; meet up with the Armada or go after Nero?

"Guards, escort Cadet Kirk off the bridge." Spock commanded and the two silently stared each other down as two men grabbed either side of Kirk and pulled him away. Suddenly Kirk punched one of the guards and began to fend them off.

"Casanova?" Valarie exclaimed and distracted him for one brief moment. Unfortunately it was long enough for acting Captain Spock to knock him out with the Vulcan grip much to her dismay.

"Get him off this ship." The Vulcan demanded and the three left the bridge with an unconscious Kirk in tow. Valarie somehow knew that they were going to do something horrible to Kirk and she wouldn't let that happen. So she followed them to the escape pods and watch horrified as they threw Kirk into the pod roughly.

"I want to maroon him on the planet Delta Vega." Spock said and she saw an engineer put in the coordinates.

"No! You will do no such thing. Spock think logically about this-" She exclaimed hoping to reason with the infuriating Vulcan.

"You have no right to question my authority and what I think is best for this ship." He cut her off and she felt her anger begin to simmer.

"No I don't but I do have the right to beseech you to rethink what you are about to do." She demanded and crossed her arms in defiance.

"Is that so?"

"It is as a member of this crew ship I can ask my Captain for such a simple thing. Is sending Kirk to a planet classed level M dangerous the logical thing to do?" And this time it was her turn to stare down the expressionless Vulcan. She feared for Casanova's safety and she wasn't sure if she could handle worrying about two people and keep a level head to do her job properly. That and she knew that what Spock was doing was wrong; she knew this isn't what is supposed to happen.

"He has publically challenged my orders to the point of physical violence which I will not condone on the ship I am captain of. These are the precise reasons I can maroon the cadet on whatever planet I see fit until I choose." He replied with condescension that she understood as a warning to herself but she did not care. She was not going to lose another person on this ship if she could help it.

"I understand but you can just as easily lock him up in a janitor's closet or a storage room out of the way, you do not have to expel him off this ship!" She countered with as much venom as she could muster. Valarie did not regret it one bit as she saw frustration cloud the Vulcan's brown eyes.

"Contain yourself Cadet for you are dangerously edging over the very line that Cadet Kirk just crossed and will face the same consequences as such." Spock appealed to her. She knew that he was being so lenient because he didn't want to tell Nyota that he marooned her best friend with an infamous and annoying womanizer on a planet filled with dangerous and unknown beasts. But Valarie wouldn't back down, she owed Casanova that much.

"You know what? I am starting to think that you are holding a grudge against Cadet Kirk because he, first of all, beat your stupid test, then he somehow weaseled his way onto the Enterprise and got promoted to First Officer, Captain!" She lashed out and Valarie felt the tension thicken in the air to the point where it was nearly suffocating.

"That is enough! If you do not back down then I will remove you from this ship and then you will be brought up on charges with Cadet Kirk once the mission is over." Spock threatened and Valarie hesitated for a brief moment at his implications. If she continued then she will surely lose her position in Star Fleet along with Kirk for disobeying the Captain and putting the ship and its members in immediate danger by trying to incite an uprising. That would mean that her career and goal as a top notch engineer would be over. But then what about Kirk?

He was willing to stand up for his beliefs and try to save this ship. He also was trying to save her uncle and the planet Earth, both of their homes. Kirk's instincts were good; Valarie realized this on multiple occasions throughout the previous two years of knowing the womanizer. In fact, she trusted Kirk explicitly on such matters for some unknown reason. She knew she has just renewed her friendship with Casanova recently but it didn't weigh heavily in her mind as it dawned upon her what she was going to do.

"Then so be it." Valarie replied evenly with no hint of doubt and much to the surprise of everyone in the room, including Spock who knew of her passion for her career. She was willingly giving up her career for the infamous womanizer; it was as easy as that. With this in mind she knew that she would always back Kirk and that will never change. She will follow him to the ends of the Universe and back with no complaint if that meant she was with him. It was then that she realized that she, Valarie Esposito, loved James T. Kirk with all of her heart. Oddly enough she wasn't scared of this; actually it was quite simple to embrace.

So simple that she allowed Spock to incapacitate her and her last thought was of James T. Kirk as darkness consumed her consciousness and her body was crammed into the same escape pod as the man she loved.

Hey everyone!

What do you all think? Remember that I would love to hear your opinions , good, bad, or ugly. Just click the little blue button down there and tell me the the truth. To keep you all interested the next few chapters will be in Kirk's POV now that you know Valarie's feelings.

The disclaimer is in Chapter 1: Meeting His Match

luvs, crzychigurl343