The Runes, chapter 29
Author: T'Prillah
Fandom: Star Trek: TOS
Pairings: Spock/McCoy, McCoy/Jocelyn
Beta: thanks always to McCoySpockLove. All errors remain mine.
Rating: M (for HORROR themes, death--not Spock/McCoy)
Jo was still asleep, her head on my chest, her soft blond hair cascading down. I ran my fingers through it-- so shiny in the morning light-- then caressed her smooth back. She looked so beautiful, felt so good, I'd forgotten how good. She'd been amazed at the change in me. I hadn't been the same old Leonard, unable or unwilling to give her what she wanted. Now I knew what to do before she even asked.
With a soft noise she opened her eyes. "Good morning," I said, moving in for a kiss. I pulled her over so she was laying on top of me. My hands traveled down to her naked thighs. Wanted her again, inched her hips forward so she was straddling me, felt her around me. Closing my eyes, I arched my back as I thrust up into her, my head laying back on the pillow-- oh...it was good, so good.
But something seemed terribly wrong. I opened my eyes. It wasn't her! It was a clown, all painted white face, drawn on red smile, laughing, laughing and still it was laughing. Why wouldn't it stop? The sinister laughing, oh God... he, she...it? It was grinning at me with yellow pointed teeth...it had pointy ears and held up a butcher knife... poised above me ready to strike. Still laughing.
"Get off me!" I screamed, pushing whatever it was on top of me onto the floor.
"Jesus... Leonard!" a voice said from below.
I whimpered for just a moment, hugging myself in terror, cringing, till I realized it was really Jocelyn here, not a pointy eared clown at all wanting to kill me as they fucked me. I moved down to the floor next to her. "Sorry."
"What the hell was that all about?"
"Nothing." I swallowed hard.
"Nothing?! You call screaming 'get off me' during sex, nothing?"
"I thought you were...I thought...you were..."
"What? What, Len?"
"I thought you were a clown, trying to kill me." As soon as the words came out of my mouth I felt absolutely ridiculous.
"A clown?!"
I let out a shuddering: "Yeah."
"A clown from the funhouse?"
"Uh huh," I said trying not to make it a whimper. "With pointed ears."
"Oh, Len...So...you weren't awake, just now? When we were--"
"I don't know," I mumbled. "I don't know anymore, Joss. I don't know what's real, what's not."
"It was just a night terror. That's all. Just a bad dream," she soothed, ruffling my hair. "That's all it was. A dream, baby."
"No..." I said. "No it wasn't. It was real."
"What do you mean it was real? Someone is trying to kill you? Who? Who's trying to kill you? Leonard, it was just a dream, sweetheart."
"It's not just a dream. Romulans. They've been trying to kill me."
"What?! Why?"
"Because..." I said. "Because of the Runes. They want the Runes."
"Runes? What are those?"
For better or for worse, I went into the story about how I'd bought them... and the curse and...Spock. She just looked and felt--let's not forget I could feel every goddamned emotion coming out of her too-- absolutely horrified. "...and now...I'm a touch telepath. I didn't like the ability at first...but now I've gotten used to it."
"Touch telepath? Like a Vulcan? That's what happens when you sleep with a Vulcan? You become like them?" The emotions emanating from her: panic, concern, horror, love, jealousy, bewilderment were all bombarding me at the same time, but yet I still held onto her tightly.
"I don't know about other people... but it happened to me."
"You're not going to get pointed ears, are you?"
I had to chuckle a little. "No...no...nothing like that. I'm just a touch telepath. There's another human like me on board the Enterprise. Dr. M'Benga. He's been teaching me alot about this ability."
"You can feel what I'm feeling when you touch me?"
"Yes," I replied as calmly as I could. "I can feel what you're feeling." She was aghast.
"Len. Listen to me. No one's trying to kill you. You're only having bad dreams because you're under alot of stress. That's all. You're worried over nothing. I don't believe in curses. You being a physican, I'm surprised that you do believe in all this mumbo jumbo. You're safe here. No one's trying to kill anybody."
"It's real. It's--"
"Will you listen to me? You're safe here. Nothing's going to happen. Okay?"
I finally nodded. "Okay."
There was a knock at the door then Jim's voice. "Bones?"
"Yeah Jim," I called out from the floor, my arms still wrapped around Jo.
"You alright in there?"
"I'm just fine. Be out in a minute." I turned back to Jo, stood up, drawing her up with me and holding her close. "I'd better...check on Dr. Bell." In response, Jocelyn just nodded, felt awkward around me.
-------
The first thing I noticed was the smell.
The hairs on the back on my neck stood up as I inched my way into her bathroom. Her's was the only bedroom in the large house with an en-suite bathroom. It was no use calling out to her...I knew what I would find, but I still held onto some irrational hope. As I got closer to the crumpled body, the distinctive, sickly sweet metallic odor grew stronger. I knelt down among the coagulated pool of blood and felt for a pulse at the neck. Nothing. I pulled my scanner out...checking for possible minute brain function. Double checked by touching her forehead. There was nothing...just her body, the open artery, and the knife on the floor--
"Bones?" I never even noticed him walking up behind me.
"She's...dead, Jim."
There was a strangled scream/gasp from behind. Jo. She ran forward and knelt down next to me. "No," she whispered. "Who did this?"
"It appears that...it was self inflicted," I pressed out. "The wounds are... self inflicted."
Jocelyn broke down in sobs. All this was my fault. My doing. I was too busy fooling around to watch over Dr. Bell, to make sure nothing happened to her. I failed. I'd brought it with me. I felt more guilty than I ever had in my life.
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Since we were planet-side, we had to wait for the local government officials to come, do their own investigation. They also ruled what I had declared: a suicide. She was a doctor, our line of work was stressful. High rate of depression, the stuffy officals from the government kept reminding me, as if I didn't know. Her husband had been killed, she was mourning his death. That's all...simple as that.
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Jim, Jo, the little boy Alik and I walked out into the back yard. I held Alik's little hand in mine. Jim flipped open his communicator. "Two to beam up. Stand-by transporter room."
"Acknowledged."
"Bye bye," Alik said to me as I lifted him up.
"You be a good boy for Aunty Jo, okay?"
"Okay." I set him down, but he wasn't ready to let go of my hand. He wanted me to stay, still thought I was his daddy.
I stared at my wife, realized I didn't want to go back to the ship. I wanted to stay here. But...I had a job to do. I was CMO of over 400 crew who needed me. Jim needed me...Spock needed me... I still didn't want to leave her. I was terrified to leave her alone here, she could be in danger, Alik could be in danger. I pulled her to me, kissed her with everything I had, the little boy still clutching onto my hand, my other hand around the back of Jo's neck, touching her face, feeling the mix of love and anguish emanating from her...Len, please don't leave me again-- "I'm sorry..."
I met my forehead against hers, ran a finger down the side of her face, to remember what she felt like, her thoughts...I felt myself drinking in her thoughts... is this what Spock did when he'd touched me? I skimmed the meld points as M'Benga had once showed me how to do on another, but I couldn't do it now, couldn't lose myself in her mind, not without permission...and to ask...no, it would frighten her--
There was a tap on my shoulder. "Let's go, Bones."
-------
"Well, that ends that little mission," Jim said a little too lightly for my taste after we'd materialized onto the pads and stepped off. He headed off slightly ahead of me out of the transporter room, with me following behind.
"This way, Captain," I said curtly and motioned him towards sickbay.
"Not now, Bones."
"I am well within my rights as Chief Medical Officer of this ship to perform post planet-side physical and mental examinations of this crew. I am giving you a medical order to report to sickbay, immediately, Captain. Or would you rather relinquish command?"
He scowled. "Coming, but you're not going to find anything."
"I will merely be satisfying my professional curiosity that everything is well with you, Sir."
"Sure, whatever you say, Doctor."
Damn, I didn't find anything physically wrong with him, either. Emotionally, he checked out too. I guess "unfeeling son of a bitch" was the real Jim Kirk after all.
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I entered without signaling and strode in without a word. He glanced up. Music was playing, "Moonlight Sonata" by Beethoven. His hand darted over to shut it off.
"Leave it," I muttered. The music was a perfect soundtrack to my mood. I plunked myself down heavily in the chair opposite. I pulled out the Saurian Brandy bottle from under my arm and without questioning or giving me any of his Vulcan bullshit, he fetched a glass. Only one glass-- for me. He wasn't having any. I spent the rest of the evening, in a funk, getting drunker by the hour to melancholy classical music, staring into the middle distance with him in the opposite chair. He appeared almost pensive, his hands steepled.
The next morning I woke up in my quarters without any idea how I'd gotten there.
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In my office, the bosun's whistle sounded. "McCoy here."
It was Uhura. "Message for you Dr. McCoy, marked personal and private."
"Put it through, Nyota." She clicked off and suddenly the message came up onto my PADD:
"Leonard,
I'm sorry, but I truly believe your life is there, your destiny is on the Enterprise with Jim and Spock, my life is here on Vega. You and I should simply...move on with our lives.
I'll always love you,
Jo."
I scrolled down even further. Divorce papers.
Years ago, people used to have to wait six or more months to get a divorce finalized. Not in this day and age. Divorce was immediate, once both parties signed the papers. The property was split up later on. Not that there was anything to really split up.
I yanked my wedding ring off of my pinky, looked at it, opened a drawer and dropped it in. Is that what she was really thinking about when we were making love--whether or not we should divorce? No, that wasn't it at all. She wanted to reconcile with me, but I knew my new ability frightened her. Maybe she also knew I could never really be happy with her, that my life, my heart was with someone else.
Leaning forward, I buried my face in my hands.
After a few moments, I toggled the intercomn switch. "McCoy to Captain."
"Kirk here."
"As soon as you're available, I'd like to see you in my office, Sir."
"Be there as soon as I can. Kirk out."
By the time he showed up, a couple hours later, I was already on my third glass of Brandy. He sat down across from me at my desk. "Here, Captain." I thrust the PADD at him. "Since you're my commanding officer and basically my life belongs to Starfleet, I need your signature on here too."
He read it and grimaced. "I'm sorry, Bones."
I didn't look at him. "Yep."
He signed the PADD and passed it back over to me. "At least...there aren't...any children involved."
I looked horrified, then broke out into hysterical laughter. Jim was a deer caught in headlights. He knew damned well nothing was funny. "You and I...have known each other for fifteen fucking years..." I was still laughing hysterically, "and I just realized...how little you really know about me..."
Those suddenly very sad, hazel eyes searched mine. "You and Jocelyn have a child?"
"No." I kept laughing hysterically, unable to stop. Jim just stared at me.
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stay tuned for the next chapter...
