Chapter 14- Stars

Stars, in your multitudes, scarce to be counted.

Filling the darkness, with order and light.

There was a time when Humans believed that stars were merely white points of light in the night sky. Humans of the past had believed many incredulous things to explain what they were not yet able to discover through science. It was once believed that the world was flat. The nation once known as the United States had a President in its early history that believed that the Earth was hollow. John Quincy Adams, son of John Adams (who was the second President) not only believed that the Earth was hollow, but beings lived inside the Earth. He even went so far as to support an expedition. He left office and the expedition was tabled because his successor believed two things- one being that the earth was flat, and the second was that popular opinion did not believe in the Hollow Earth Theory.

Time went on, as it does in every civilization. Truth comes to us all, in our time, and in our turn. The sound barrier broken, the first Earth lunar landing, and eventually, the warp drive that changed Earth's civilization forever. Humanity reached for grander accomplishments. Enter the Vulcans, who had known of Earth for centuries. Eventually it all led to the Federation.

On the observation deck, Sarek and Amanda walked together. Newly released from Sickbay, he was allowed to start some light exercise by taking walks. With the enormous windows, the view was breathtaking as different colors twinkled. Amanda sighed as they stopped in front of the window.

"What are thinking about, my wife?"

Amanda gazed out the window. A brief moment of frustration crossed her features and she turned to look at her husband. "If it weren't for the fact I have so many blessings to count, I would be so angry right now!"

"You must be referring to the fact that I kept my heart condition a secret from you."

"Yes! It doesn't matter that there was nothing I could have done. Think, Sarek! If something happened with my health, would you wish to be kept in the dark? You aren't a Healer, and you aren't a physician. There would be nothing that you could do, except be there for me. I realize that Vulcans do not think in those terms, but you aren't married to a Vulcan woman. In fact, Sarek, I would venture to say that between you and our son, Spock is more Vulcan than you!"

Sarek turned to his wife, nearly incredulous. "That's highly illogical, Amanda, considering that Spock is half-Human and I am not."

Amanda blew out a tiny puff of air, and turned her chin very slightly to the side. "That is not what I meant at all, husband. I think that you have never wanted to acknowledge the fact that for all of your Vulcan comportment, that there has always been something inside of you that longed for more."

"Elaborate."

"Do I really have to, Sarek? For all of my Vulcan garb, and public Vulcan manners, my ears are still quite round. I am emotional, loving, sentimental, merry, and mischievous. Something inside of you, all those years ago, responded to that, and responded to me as a man to a woman. If you hadn't had a little voice inside of you that wanted more from a marriage besides a woman that merely served you when necessary, you would have already been wed to a Vulcan woman when we met."

"Logical. But our marriage was also logical. I was free to choose another, but I wanted to be a husband to you. Where does Spock enter into the equation, besides the fact that he is undoubtedly a product of everything that you described?"

Amanda smiled at her husband. He would never say that Spock was a product of their love, but she really did know that he meant exactly that. That was the gift of the Vulcan marriage bond.

"Look at the view, my husband. Do you see how beautiful it is, Sarek?"

"It is quite aesthetically pleasing," Sarek conceded.

"Spock was looking for something more, too. He was locked into a betrothal bond with a woman who hated him. It would be decades before he could even take up the duties you have had as a Federation ambassador. Spock had two things going for him when he enlisted in Starfleet. He had the blood of two different species who had explored the known universe. He wanted more, Sarek. There has never been a Vulcan who has had the terrible task of simultaneously mastering Vulcan passions and Human emotion."

Sarek picked up his wife's hand and stroked it. "There are days that I am uncertain of who should be the diplomat between us. I did tell Spock that my marriage had made me less culturally blind towards more emotional cultures. But I have never pondered the possibility that Spock has had such an inner struggle- I just accepted, too easily, that he wanted a purely Vulcan path. I didn't want more Clans such as Stokh's to look down on Spock. He was worthy in every way, and exceeded even my expectations as far as his intellectual accomplishments."

"Is it logical to choose a purely Vulcan path for a child who is not purely Vulcan?"

"I once thought so. Spock's physiology and his telepathic gifts, his Vulcan side was truly dominant. But as you have said, we were the first to produce a Vulcan-Human hybrid child."

"We just had to wing it and fly blind, Sarek. Spock made his choices because he has always wanted your approval. But he felt something else calling to him. Have you ever wanted something so badly, Sarek, that if you didn't get it- that you felt as though you would just combust?"

"Only you, my wife." Sarek placed an arm around his wife's shoulders.

"Now that's why you're the diplomat, Sarek. If a Human said that, it would be construed as a silly pickup line. But from a Vulcan, it is nothing but sincerity. That's one of the reasons I married you. I hated the silly mind games Humans had a tendency to play in their relationships. I suppose it's why I had never found myself to attached to someone before I met you.

"A fact that was of great advantage to me, Amanda."

"I think, Sarek, that Spock wanted this." Amanda gestured to the window. "It wasn't to defy you or your plans for him. Vulcans live many decades beyond a Human lifespan. There is plenty of time for Spock to fulfill his dreams before he assumes his duties to Vulcan. From what I understand, Spock is gaining a great deal of experience in diplomacy from his duties here. His life in Starfleet means that he probably knows more about the cultures of other civilizations than you did when you assumed your father's ambassadorial duties. He wanted this, Sarek. Is it considered going against the grain as far as Vulcan society goes? Perhaps, but one might point out that he came by it quite honestly. You certainly turned Vulcan high society on its ear when you presented Amanda Grayson as your wife."

Sarek shook his head. "I still desire for him to come home."

"So do I, Sarek." Amanda faced her husband and gave him a joyful smile. "Count our many blessings, Sarek. Be content with what is! It is logical. I feel twenty years younger! You are well, you have reconciled with Spock and I no longer feel torn between the two of you. Spock can come home on leave without the awkward silence hanging over like storm clouds. The silver lining of all of this is that I never have to paste on a mask of civility for T'Pring again!"

"Amanda..." Sarek chided.

She threw her head back in laughter. "Oh, my stubborn Vulcan husband! I just hope that it doesn't take another 20 years for you to be proud of our son, and admit that his enlistment in Starfleet wasn't a catastrophic mistake!"

Alone on the deck, they embraced each other tightly and watched the stars together.