Disclaimer: I own absolutely nothing of any importance except for my character.

One of the Brightest Stars

I was sitting on the shuttle heading towards my future quietly meditating when I finally heard the gruff voice of McCoy. "I may throw up on you."

What surprised me was that it was James who answered him. My heart started drumming at an unnatural pace and my breath caught in my throat. James was here, he was heading to Star Fleet. He had finally decided to give in to his destiny.

I had to wait the entire flight before I could talk to him. The anticipation was killing me. I needed to talk to him so last night wouldn't just disappear and we could go on being friends while we were both in this unknown environment.

I needed him with me as much as I hated to admit to that, before I heard his voice I knew I was suffering from the slight depression of not having him with me. I had been with him for all of his life, either as; a motherly figure, a silent guardian, or as his friend or lover.

The truth of the matter was that my entire world evolved around him and without him it seemed a little less bright.

I had lived through civilizations that had flourished and diminished and I had held the love of kings, but I would have given up everything for James.

I could hear James and Leo talking, apparently neither of them remembered the punching incident and on the flight the seemed to have already become fast friends. Leo was now Bones for some crazy reason. .

The shuttle came to a halt and I near about jumped out of my seat to get to James. I was still in the clothes from the previous night and he was still wearing his blood covered t-shirt. I smiled he was a sight for sore eyes.

Leo saw me first. "Tempe!" He called. James whipped around and I walked right into his open arms. "Glad to see you made the flight!" Leo said as he looked at me and James quizzically.

"James and I knew have been friends since high school." I said explaining how we knew each other trying to clear up some of this mess. "And you know Bones how?" James asked me.

"Bones?" I laughed. "I met Leo at work one day, while he was drinking his ex-wife away."

"James?" Leo laughed at him. "Yeah shut it, Tempe is the only person that can call me James, everyone else has to call me Jim." James clapped Leo on the shoulder.

I was excited I had my darling James with me, and we both had a made a new friend. Things were finally looking up for the both of us. He had his life at the beginning of getting it on track and I was ready to help him through it all.

--

I was sitting in class, listening to an age old lecture I had heard over a thousand times when my mind began to wonder to my last night out with the boys.

"Don't look now Jim but it looks like Gaila has her eye on you." Bones whispered to us two as we sat at the bar drinking. I was seated next to Leo and James sat across from us trying to act cool about how close Leo and I were.

I looked over James's shoulder and saw a beautiful green Orion slave girl that was a free woman checking out my James.

She was exactly what he would want; gorgeous, perfect curves, and she was green. She also had red hair like Jo had and her hair was curly like mine. She was almost a perfect mix of the two of us.

Jealousy was a bitch, while I knew she would be nothing but an easy notch on his bedpost, how the hell was I supposed to compete with that?!

Bones picked up on my vibe while Jim was busy looking at her. "Chill, Tempe you know it's you he wishes was checking him out." He whispered in my ear just as James turned around. Jealousy flashed through his eyes as he saw how close Bones was to me and how his lips were inches away from my skin.

"Bones, Tempe, I think I'm going to go enjoy myself. You two love birds have fun." James walked straight to the newest whore of his and began flirting his ass off, only minutes later they left the bar and more than likely went straight to his bedroom.

Leo put a comforting hand on mine and put his other arm around my shoulders as I tried to contain my anger. "You knew he was like this Tempe, he'll grow up eventually." He tried to give me a reassuring smile to calm my nerves.

"I know Leo. It looks like you won't want to go back to your dorm for awhile now." He shrugged. "I doubt I'll go back at all tonight." I took his hand in my own. "Come home with me. My roommate is out tonight staying with her boyfriend so we won't be bothering her." His dark eyes met mine and I knew there was more than just friendship hidden in those dark depths.

"Cadet Black, please stay a few minutes once class is out." The emotionless voice of Commander Spock shocked me out of the recollection of the night before with James and Bones.

This was new, Spock never seemed to want to talk to anyone beside Uhura, and I knew that he had a thing for her. She always denied that they were in a relationship but it was obvious to me that they were indeed romantically linked.

The bell rang signally the end of class, everyone stood and left, Uhura flashed me a weird look as she walked by my desk. "Cadet Black, please come here." I rose and obeyed, something about the Vulcan was always unsettling for me, even though I studied the race and understood their customs perfectly he was different from the rest, I guess that had to be because he was only half-Vulcan.

"Yes Commander." I stood tall in front of his desk trying to not crack under the scrutiny he was putting me through. "Cadet Black, I must inquire as to why you are in the medical field while your linguistic skills are unparalleled, even Cadet Uhura is inferior to your skill." His voice and face was void of emotion, but his eyes partially betrayed him. They conveyed intrigue.

"Commander, while I do enjoy language I prefer to use my skill to save lives instead of wasting that skill by pursuing another field. Would that not be logical?"

"That is quite logical on your behalf, but Cadet Black I couldn't help to notice that you are unparalleled in not only linguistics but ever class. You demonstrate supreme intelligence in every course you have chosen to study and seem to be too intelligent to pursue a medical field, thus making it illogical." This pointy-eared bastard, as Bones likes to affectionately call him, was going to figure me out.

"Cadet Black, you speak every language fluently even dead languages and forgotten languages. I must inquire as to why you have learned them, and decided to consider them irrelevant as you chose another profession."

"I chose to become a doctor because I was passionate about saving lives and I wanted to try to do study to further the medical field. As far for knowing and speaking every language I am naturally gifted and ever language comes easily to me." I lied I couldn't have Spock figure out that I had been alive since the dawn of time and that was why I knew every language known to man-kind.

"Most would consider themselves lucky to be gifted with your natural talent. While I do not understand your reasoning, I do see your logic and I admire you're intelligence. You are a fascinating human being, Cadet Black. I see you more as a colleague than another pupil and I should like to further our conversations. It seems as though you have a lot that you can teach me and it would be illogical to pass up such an opportunity."

Was Spock seriously asking to see more of me? I knew he wasn't thinking of it as romantically but still… It was as he liked to say, fascinating. "I am honored by your statements Commander and if you would wish to further our conversations that can be arranged."

"Very well, we will meet here every Thursday after my last class. Will that be possible for you Cadet Black?" He stood and I was shocked at how much taller he was than I.

"Yes, Commander, that will be possible, but I must ask you to address me as Temperance during these meetings. Cadet Black sounds too formal."

"You may address me as Spock during our meetings. Until then, Temperance." As Spock watched my retreating form I could've sworn I heard him mutter 'fascinating'.

--

Uhura was waiting for me at the door. Was it jealousy that drove her to wait to see what Spock had wanted with me or was it just our friendship and she needed to talk to me? Either way I was glad I could talk to her.

"Will you keep a better leash on your man?" She said laughing at me. My eyebrows arched and I gave her the 'he's not my man look'. "You can deny it all you want but everyone knows how you feel about him." She said.

"Just like everyone knows how you feel about a particular Commander." I countered not liking how she knew exactly what I was feeling. She smacked my arm. "Ok so maybe not everyone knows about you and Kirk but I do, and you better not say another word about you-know-who."

I just smiled at her and mimed zipping my lips shut. "Don't be mad at Gaila, Tempe. You know it's just in her nature and you know how Kirk gets."

"I'm not mad at anyone but myself, Nyota. I threw his love away, and now I have his best friend who I wouldn't mind shacking up with if it wasn't for how much I love the dumb bastard." She put her arm around me and just laughed. "Kirk can't love anyone, Tempe."

The Kirk she knew wasn't the one I knew, she knew the womanizing play boy and she wasn't going to ever really see the other side of him. "Anyways, what did Commander Spock want with you?" We finally got to what she was dying to ask.

"He was interested in why I was preparing to become a doctor when according to him I could do anything perfectly besides doctoring." She seemed relieved that he wasn't that interested in me. "Oh and I forgot that we were going to start having meetings every Thursday after classes."

She slightly stiffened. Apparently everyone suffered from intense jealousy and everyone had their own personal doubts.

"Nyota, you know I don't go for pointy-eared men, I prefer my all Iowa boy."

She laughed and her shoulders relaxed. "I know, Tempe, but I still can't help to worry. Any man would be crazy to not want you."

We walked into the mess hall and went our separate ways, she headed off toward Gaila and I went to mine, Jim's, and Leo's table. Leo was already sitting there waiting for me. He gave me one of his few smiles and I sat down next to him.

James sauntered into the mess hall a few minutes later with two girls, one arm around a girl. He kissed both of them then walked over to us. I got a glare from both of his new whores and I repaid them with a not so friendly hand gesture.

"Now Tempe, love that wasn't very nice." James chided playfully. "Oh really? And what are you going to do about it? Punish me?" I spat out. I knew I had said the wrong thing as soon as his eyes brightened at the chance of an innuendo.

"Well Tempe, punishment can be arranged." He winked at me and Bones just rolled his eyes. "Jim keep it in your pants for at least ten minutes." Bones said exasperation in his voice.

A/N: Ok so we are getting into the three years that I get to have some freedom with before the main plot of the movie takes over. Do we want Tempe to have a random fling with someone or stay ever faithful to James? Tell me what you would like to happen and I will try to deliver! Thanks so much to everyone who has reviewed!