Disclaimer: This story and the characters I created belong to me. "Star Trek" belongs to The Powers That Be at Paramount…more's the pity.

Notes: This story was originally written August-October 2004…etc…etc.

The words that inspired this chapter? CENTS MEND FALL ZING

Feedback welcome!

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Kirk's sitting room in the Chief Minister's residence...

"This is outrageous!" Kirk blustered, masking his twinge of fear at K-tel's words with an outward show of fury. "And Chief Minister K-bec will be appalled when she discovers what you've done!"

K-tel smiled condescendingly as she patted Kirk on the head. "Dear Captain, what makes you think she doesn't already know?"

Kirk's jaw slackened as he absorbed the implication of K-tel's question.

"I did say 'we', Captain. Surely you didn't think I was in this alone, did you? This is her house, after all," K-tel said, "and it was her invitation that brought you here. Do you think it was an accident that you arrived here so much earlier than the other guests?"

"What? Cat got your tongue, Captain?" K-tel taunted when Kirk remained silent. "Not going to put in your two cents' worth? Not going to zing me with yet another example of your witty, hormone-soaked repartee?"

Kirk's mind was awhirl with many questions - so many that they crowded each other out on their way to his tongue, rendering him temporarily speechless. When he was finally able to draw a couple of them out of the tempest, he asked, "How did you get the hekim? How did you even hear of it? According to the Doctor, it's not only illegal - it's very rare."

"We have a very dear friend, a native of Hoya 6, who introduced us to this wonderful drug when we helped her with a little problem a while back. We quickly saw the benefits of having this substance around, and we engaged her services to procure a steady supply." K-tel paused, then added, "You've met her, actually. A couple of times."

"Oh, have I? And where is she now?" Kirk gestured with his hand around the room.

"Right now, I'd say she's up on the Enterprise, getting acquainted with some of your crew."

"Impossible!" Kirk snapped. "My crew would not have beamed anyone up without my authorization."

"But she had your authorization, Captain. In fact, she beamed up right in front of your eyes."

"Nonsense! I think I'd remember beaming someone from this planet up to my ship."

"Oh dear," K-tel mocked. "Yet another female you've conveniently forgotten, Captain. Isis will be so disappointed that she didn't make more of an impression on you this time either."

"Isis? The cat? She's your dealer?!" Kirk asked incredulously.

"Yes, Isis," K-tel confirmed. "She's not really a cat; that's just one of the shapes she likes to amuse herself with when she travels amongst humans. Of course, she hasn't felt much like associating with humans recently - not since Gary."

"Gary?"

"Gary Seven? You do remember him, don't you?"

Images popped into Kirk's head of the tall, harshly-featured human agent he had met a couple of years ago, during a mission that had seen him time-travel to old Earth during its early space race. Later in the mission, they had enlisted the help of a young Earth woman - but, Kirk recalled, Gary Seven had not exactly been alone when he first met the agent. Gary had been travelling with a small black cat named...

"Isis," Kirk breathed. "She was travelling with him."

"Indeed. She actually left Hoya 6 for him," K-tel said, then began to run her fingers idly through Kirk's hair. "You know how it is when you fall for a guy. A few sweet nothings whispered in your ear, a few promises of devotion and you're ready to leave hearth and home for him. And then, when his eyes stray and he forsakes you for another - like that little Earth trollop Roberta - you feel like your broken heart will never mend."

"At this point, you have two options: you can either let him get away with it, or you can make him pay," K-tel said harshly, tugging on Kirk's hair hard enough to make him wince. "She decided to make him pay..."

TBC…