Calm Before the Storm

Victoria took a deep breath as she and Kirk stepped off the ship and onto the ground of Yorktown Base, looking beside her to Kirk as he stood next to her, sobered up since it had taken a few hours more to get clearance and dock the ship. He was openly holding her hand now that they were off duty, a small smile on his face she knew was mirrored on hers. It really was a breath of fresh air, to be there on the base. A change of scenery from nothing but stars and a passing planet. It was nice to see different faces in casual clothing than crew members in their uniforms day after day.

Both of them remained at the entrance to the base, waiting till all the crew who wished to depart had gone off, always putting the crew first, as a captain should. She stood by him, waiting with him, because she understood duty and she knew Kirk was looking forward to the two of them being able to spend time together again, she wouldn't make him come find her or get started on their shore leave before he could, that wouldn't be fair.

They watched as Uhura and Spock spoke a short distance away before going separate ways, Bones moving to speak to the Vulcan once she left. That was an issue they weren't fully sure about. Spock was tightlipped about anything personal, only asking if his work had not been up to par whenever Kirk would try to speak to him, for if his work was affected only then would the captain have the capacity to speak to him on personal matters. And his work was always above par. Uhura, each time Victoria would try to speak to the woman, would just say it was nothing and she was fine, and then try to turn the conversation onto her and Kirk, which would get Victoria trying to direct it back and neither would find out anything.

Sulu hurried past, heading for his husband and their daughter, who had come to the base to meet with him on this momentary leave. Chekov was excited as ever as he walked off with another of the crew, ready to explore the base as he hadn't been there before and was excited to check out the bars.

Victoria looked over at Kirk when he squeezed her hand, "What?" she asked, smiling at him for the softness in his eyes that he directed at her.

It was…ironic, in a way.

They had been at each others throats, constantly butting heads, for YEARS before the incident with Vulcan. Meeting Spock's older, parallel self and being told they were apparently married and 'sickeningly sweet' together in his dimension had been off-putting and, really, it made them question if Vulcans could go senile. They'd formed a truce in school, by that point, and to hear all that was...something else. But it had forced them to face and admit to feelings that had always been there for each other. Then they'd been given the chance to work together as crew, to explore their relationship more, build it and, perhaps, had become a bit more like what the Future Spock had described them as. Their bickering had taken on more of a teasing tone, they flirted more, they were sweet on each other. Though Victoria would be the first to admit she'd held back a little more than Kirk had, knowing how he'd ben in school, she'd wanted to make sure HE was sure, that he was really willing to give a real relationship a shot.

It wasn't till her father had died, till they'd almost lost everything, including each other, near literally on her end, and begun their five year mission that she'd realized Kirk was genuinely serious about her, that he wanted it all with her, he was in it for the long haul. They'd said they loved each other and there was nothing to hold them back any longer.

...except there was.

At first, and even now in private, they still butted heads, still barbed at each other, they were both too passionate in personality to just make goo-goo eyes at each other, but there was a softness there that had become more prominent. But it was like the longer they were in space, in their roles on the ship, the more they became aware of their actual duties, the rules. Maybe it was a maturity that came with really being out on their own in the vastness of space, a pressure they put on themselves to be better, to make their fathers proud, but things...changed.

Kirk tried so hard to be a good captain, putting so much responsibility on his shoulders, trying to be the epitome of a captain the Fleet would want so he could keep his crew and not lose them like before. And she had begun working more and more for Engineering, wanting to be on top of her game, wanting to know every detail of what went on, to be an asset not just to the ship but to Kirk. If she could at least take part of the burden off his shoulders, give him something he didn't need to worry about because SHE could handle it, like keeping the ship running, she would. SHE would worry about that and let him worry about other things she couldn't help with.

It had forced them to be responsible in a way they hadn't before. She refused to entertain thoughts of landings or courses that could put the ship in danger or damage it. He refused to break some rules he wouldn't have hesitated to before.

And with that newfound pressure…they fought less, they worked together more. The barbing died away where the crew could see, because they had to maintain professionalism, they didn't want to add undue tension to the others or give anyone cause to think that they couldn't do their jobs because they argued all the time. They kept it to themselves, the weight of it all, relying on each other in private to get through the next day. Maybe one day they could see themselves as that sickening couple Ambassador Spock mentioned, but right now there was too much of a weariness to them, the monotony of the same thing day after day had gotten to them, they both knew it, they both felt it.

Nothing changed. Nothing was different. They didn't have rules to work around or think creatively about because neither of them would be willing to risk breaking them. Their bickering was gone during most of the days so there was nothing new to bounce off of, there was no passion to inspire the other, to raise their energy. There were no comforting touches most of the time, no affectionate arm around the shoulder or hand on the back, and it felt like it was slowly killing them both. Stifling who they were and how they were, both alone and with each other, for the sake of their positions, their duties, their crew...they needed this.

This…this stop really was refreshing.

To get away from it all even for a few days.

To be James and Victoria again.

"Nothing," Kirk spoke, though his gaze was that familiar teasing now.

She narrowed her eyes playfully, "I know that look," she remarked. She hadn't seen it in a while, but she would never forget it, "That's you're 'I'm up to something' face."

He chuckled, "You can put your 'I'm going to kill you' face away," he lifted his other hand to touch her cheek, stroking just under her eye with his thumb, her own face tended to morph into that whenever his did his own expression, "It's a good thing, I promise."

"What is it?"

"You're gonna have to trust me."

Her expression grew soft, too, "You know I do."

He beamed at her words, as he always did to hear it, "Come with me then," he turned, leading her by the hand he was still holding and out into the base.

~8~

"This is...different," Victoria remarked as Kirk held her chair out for her to sit down at their dinner table. It wasn't just his too-gentlemanly action but the fact that he had chosen a place like this for them to eat. It was…fancy, not overly so but more than she'd ever expected from Kirk, especially given the first time she'd ever met him had been at a bar brawl and that his preferred place for them to wind down when on any sort of leave was also at a bar.

She was wearing a somewhat nice dress, black, halter in style, with some black heels, her hair down in waves, since he'd said to just 'dress nice' when he'd dropped her off at the temporary rooms they'd been assigned by the base. He, on the other hand, was wearing a suit. James T. Kirk was wearing an honest to god suit, with a tie and a jacket. It was weird to see him in anything but his commander golds after 3 years in space but a suit of all things was REALLY out there.

"How so?" he asked, clearing his throat and taking a long gulp of the water set out on the table.

She eyed him a moment, questioningly, when he downed the contents like it was a shot of vodka or something, "Just thought a bar would be more your style for a quick meal."

"What's wrong with a bar?" he teased, feeling more at ease.

"Nothing," she smirked back, "I've had some very fond memories in bars," she lifted an eyebrow and he burst out laughing as he recalled quite a few of them, "And one very, very intense kiss."

Kirk's eyes smoldered slightly as she brought up that event between them. It certainly had been one hell of a kiss, not that their kisses since then hadn't been just as mind-blowing, but that had been their first and what a one it had been. Even if it was to get a guy off her back and to stop harassing her, to pretend to be her boyfriend for a few minutes, it had been well worth it for that alone.

Maybe he should have picked a bar for this.

This sort of place didn't seem to lend itself to outbursts of passionate making out the way a secluded bar did…

He was now questioning every life decision he'd ever made that had let him think this was the right place to do this...he was going to kick himself if he didn't get a significant kiss out of this.

He cleared his throat, trying to take another drink of water, only to realize he'd drunk his glass. Victoria chuckled and slid hers over to him, watching him drink that, too.

"You ok?" she had to ask, he was acting odd. Not just this choice of eatery but his behavior, and now the compulsive water drinking. If he kept on like that she'd have to ask Bones to test him for diabetes or something.

"Yeah," he nodded, clearing his throat again, "Yeah, I'm...I'm fine, I just…wanted to talk."

"Talk?" she teased, smiling a bit, "I don't know if this is the right place for it…"

"Why not?" he frowned.

She shrugged, "You tend to say a lot more when it's just the two of us," she leaned in to put a hand on his, "Behind closed doors…" and began to trace a pattern along the back of his hand, "In bed…"

"God," Kirk let out a near strangled groan, "You're killing me here, Tory," he told her, his other hand trying to tug at the tie around his neck. Was it hot in there? Or was the tie just that tight?

She laughed, leaning back into her seat, "Calm down, Jim," she told him, hoping using her lesser-used nickname for him would help put him at ease, "It's a nice place and anything you don't say here I'm sure I'll be very interested to hear later."

This time he snorted, "Yeah, right."

"What?" she challenged, crossing her arms over her chest.

"What did I say last night?" he challenged her right back, mimicking her stance.

"I have no idea."

"Exactly."

"You are very distracting," she defended, smirking, feeling…relieved.

THIS, this is what they'd been missing, this old habit of theirs, the trading words and back and forth, the teasing and ribbing. Even when they were on the ship, it was like they were more careful around each other where other eyes could see them. They were professional, to a T, while they were on duty.

Everything that happened with Khan had really gotten to them. Kirk had been determined to be a true captain, one worthy of a 5 year mission, and she…she'd made a lot of mistakes with Khan, in her anger and grief, that she looked back on now and regretted. Both because they were things she never should have done and because of how her choices had impacted those closest to her. Setting off the torpedoes on Khan's ship and killing his crew at the same time, that haunted her. Allowing the weapons onto the Enterprise in the first place, going over Scotty's head to do so, driving him to quit, was another. So many things she'd done because she'd been so focused on avenging her father, and it put Kirk in a difficult spot. She knew it influenced him, his need to comfort her and support her had him making choices a levelheaded captain wouldn't have allowed. She knew he felt his own grief at the loss of Pike, he'd had a very great respect for her father and he likely would have gone after Khan himself had she not been there, but the fact that it had hurt her so deeply had pushed him even farther.

She never wanted to put him in a position where he put her feelings and struggles above the safety of the crew again so she did her best to stick to just her job and her duties when they were on the Bridge or when she was in the Engine room.

That probably hadn't helped the strain they'd both been feeling lately. Everything had to wait till after and half the time they were interrupted by an emergency in the engine room or the Captain needed to settle something. And other times they were just so exhausted they just slept. They spent so much time together but it was overshadowed by their duties and responsibilities and their fear of hurting the other's career that they were just…too careful. They rarely got times like this where they could just be, to do and say what they wanted.

"Am I?" Kirk grinned, leaning back in his chair, smug as anything.

Victoria rolled her eyes and threw a piece of a breadstick at him, making him laugh.

He let out a long breath and leaned in, reaching out to take her hand, "Is it weird if I say I missed you?"

She smiled, turning her hand to hold his more, understanding him 100 percent, "I missed you, too."

"And I love you."

"I love you too."

"You're beautiful."

"You're an ass."

Kirk burst out laughing at that, knowing she'd catch him trying to get her to follow the pattern and say 'you're beautiful too' or something.

"You really are beautiful, Tory," he told her, his eyes going soft as he observed her, just sitting there and looking truly breathtaking. She was smiling at him, having gone with him on a whim, with no direction at all, just trusting him. It made something warm swell in his chest knowing that. After the bad foot they'd gotten off on at their start, she trusted him, she'd go anywhere with him and…and he wouldn't go anywhere without her either.

He nodded to himself, now sure that he was making the right choice. He couldn't wait any longer, he really couldn't. It was just…it was killing him to have her with him and not WITH him. He wanted to share everything he had with her, every decision he made, every sorrow or happiness, every new adventure or boring day.

He didn't know why Bones had set his mind going this way, how a few stupid words could get to him so much. Everyone knew he and Victoria were together, that they were 'Jim and Tory,' everyone. It just dug into his head though, that he wanted it to be official, he wanted it to be forever. He knew things were strained and hard, but he wanted her to know that she was it for him, no matter what, however hard, however difficult, he would be with her at her side and he knew he could say the same for her. He wanted them to walk through life side by side and this was just his way of showing her how he felt.

"I think…" he began, clearing his throat, looking down at their joined hands, his thumb nervously tracing over the back of her hand, "I think we have a lot we need to talk about, not bad things," he added quickly, not wanting her to think that he was breaking up with her when he hoped it would be the opposite, "It's just…there's something I want to do, so that…so that you know, no matter what we talk about or what we decide, it'll be the two of us, no matter what."

Victoria gave him an odd look, "Are you sure you're ok, James? You're acting weirder than when Bones injected you with that vaccine…"

He chuckled, "I'm fine, better than fine and, hopefully, I'll be over the moons very soon," he cleared his throat again, "Victoria, I…I wanted to ask if you would…"

"Captain Kirk?" a voice spoke beside the table.

He could see a man in uniform in the periphery of his vision but refused to take his eyes off Victoria, "Yeah, we're not ready to order," he tried to wave the man away, "Victoria, I…"

"James, that's not our waiter," Victoria whispered a bit loudly to him.

He closed his eyes for a moment, he knew that, he was just hoping if he pretended hard enough the man would walk away. He sighed, turning to try and not-glare at the man in Fleet attire, "Yes?"

"Captain Kirk," the man straightened, "Commodore Paris requests your presence."

Kirk was not amused, giving the man a flat look, "I'm not on duty right now," he reminded the man, "We've been cleared for shore leave…"

"I apologize for the inconvenience," the man deadpanned, "But I have been informed this is of the utmost urgency. That the Captain of the Enterprise, specifically, be brought to the Commodore post haste."

Kirk rubbed at his eyes, considering it if was possible to retroactively resign as Captain and give Spock the position for a span of 24 hours so the Vulcan could deal with this and not him.

"Well, if it's an emergency," Victoria sighed, sounding resigned and as reluctant as he was to have their night cut short, to have to call off dinner when they hadn't even gotten to order an appetizer.

"I was only told to bring Captain Kirk," the operative remarked.

Kirk gave him a look as he stood, "If the Commodore wants to speak with me, while I'm off-duty, then she can speak to my crew as well if this is an emergency that may affect them, don't you think?"

Victoria hid a smirk behind taking the last sip of water left in her glass before she stood "Unless you want to keep the Commodore waiting?" she eyed the operative, "We can both be very stubborn."

The operative just sighed, as though he, somehow, was very aware of that fact, "This way."

~8~

Kirk hesitated as he reached a secure room of the base, having been led there by another official, Victoria with him as he was not about to let anyone tell her to leave since he wasn't 'on duty' right now then this couldn't be official. He let out a breath when a woman, Paris, he recognized from transmissions when they were working out the stopover in the base, gave a nod, allowing the guards to have Victoria pass.

There was a young man at a computer, an alien woman he couldn't recognize the species of, standing before them, with pink skin and a ridges waving back from her forehead in a manner that reminded him of cornrows, speaking a language he couldn't understand. The man, apparently, was working on that though.

"Speak normally," the tech called out, scanning the alien as she went, "Language analysis complete," he called to Paris.

It took a moment, the words the alien was speaking somewhat garbled, before it sorted and they could hear English imposed over the dialect she used, "Is this working?" she looked around, the tech nodding her to continue, "We were on a science mission inside the nebula. Our ship suffered a critical malfunction. I took an escape pod before the ship crash landed on a nearby planet. We need a ship capable of navigating the nebula. You must have someone who can help us."

Kirk only barely refrained from sagging as he stood beside Victoria when Paris looked over at him. Victoria didn't need him to say anything to rub his arm in comfort, knowing how he felt, for she felt it too. They had JUST come from space, they had just come from a mission, they were supposed to be on leave. And even though it was only for a few days rest, it meant everything to them and the crew to just have time off for once in the last 3 years.

And with how Paris was looking at them, they were going to be the ones she wanted to assist this alien, to cut their time short, drag the crew back, and head out again.

"My office," Paris spoke, nodding to the side before she led the two of them out.

~8~

Paris tapped a few buttons on a pad, bringing up a scan on a monitor that she had had her techs run to show Kirk and Victoria as they joined her in her office, "We tracked Kalara's stranded ship to a sector of uncharted nebula here at 210 mark 14."

"Was there no long-range scan?" Victoria frowned at the data, it was minimal at best.

"No data. The nebula is too dense. It's uncharted space."

Kirk sighed, knowing where she was going with this, of all the ships that were docked at the base, he knew why she'd called him in for that conference, "Well, the Enterprise does have the best navigational system in the Fleet. She could handle it."

Paris nodded, "The only ship here with more advanced technology is still under construction," she agreed, "But it's not just the ship that I'm sending."

It took a great deal of restraint for Kirk to say, "I'll gather the crew," without sounding resigned or disappointed or angry himself. He squeezed Victoria's hand, knowing she was just as exasperated with this as he was and they turned to go.

"Captain," Paris called, stopping them, "Starfleet Command sent me your application for the Vice Admiral position here at this installation."

Kirk swallowed hard, feeling Victoria tense beside him at that revelation as he hadn't told her about that yet, and turned to face Paris, "Yes, ma'am. Um…" he glanced at Victoria, at her blank face, and barely refrained from wincing, before he spoke more, "If I may, I would recommend Commander Spock replace me as Captain of the Enterprise," he added, knowing Victoria would hate if he'd recommended her, "He is an exemplary Starfleet officer. He'd make a great captain."

"It isn't uncommon, you know," Paris tried to assure him, not seeming to notice Victoria's reaction, "Even for a captain to want to leave. There is no relative direction in the vastness of space. There is only yourself, your ship, your crew. It's easier than you think, to get lost."

"It's not about..." Kirk tried to defend, the woman was making it seem worse than it was, and that wasn't the reason why he'd put in the request.

"I'll bring it up with the General Council," Paris spoke, "We'll discuss it when you return."

"Ma'am," Kirk gave her a nod, before he and Victoria were finally allowed to leave, heading down the hall in silence, taking the turbolift down, and waiting till they were outside of the building before he tugged her back when she tried to walk on by the hand he hadn't let go of, "Victoria…" he began.

"You put in for a Vice Admiral position?" she asked him.

"Yeah," he winced, rubbing the back of his head as he tried to explain in a way that wouldn't make him sound like an ass, "I just…" he sighed, lowering his hand to take her other one so she'd face him completely, "I didn't think they'd actually consider it," he told her, "Given my record. I just…I was looking for something different and I put in for it and I didn't think anything would really come from it."

"Why didn't you tell me?" she asked, "James, I…"

"I didn't want you to think I was leaving YOU," he cut in, not wanting her to get the wrong idea, "It would never be about you, Victoria, it was just…" he sighed, "I'm…I'm struggling, to keep going, to WANT to keep going as the captain and I just…I wanted to see what else was out there. But I was NEVER going to take it if it wasn't something you'd be open to."

"But if it's something that makes you happy, that you need…" she began.

And he knew where her mind had gone, she didn't want him to do this, to say he'd take it back for her if it was something he genuinely wanted and needed to be happy. Because it would feel too much like he was staying for her, staying in something that made him unhappy, for her, and she'd never want him to be unhappy. She'd live every day fearing he'd come to resent her for keeping him there.

"It's you and me," he assured her, squeezing her hands, "Together. No matter what, we're in this together. We talk and we make our decisions together, because it affects both of us what one decides in something like that. If you wanted to leave the ship, we'd talk about it and…"

"James," she cut in, a small smile on her face, "I put in for one of the Principle Engineer positions at Yorktown's Fleet Construction facility."

He blinked at her, "What?"

She shook her head at him, "Great minds think alike."

"You…what?"

She laughed, "I wasn't mad, James," she told him, "I was just surprised you did that, because…well, I did it, too," granted she hadn't heard anything back yet, but the fact remained she HAD applied, like he did.

"But…" he shook his head, "I just…I thought you'd want out of the Fleet completely."

"And do what, exactly?" she asked, without bite to her words, more a sort of resigned realism, "I have a degree in Engineering, for Starships, and experience in just that, not anything else. I can't…I wouldn't be able to do anything else without going back to school again and it was enough the first time. I don't hate the Fleet," she added, "I just…I felt like I had to be part of a crew because of dad and…I never really felt like I got to choose that. This…this might be a choice I can make."

At first, after what happened with Vulcan, she HAD felt like she'd finally found her niche, people and things she enjoyed seeing and doing each day. But then Khan, then her father, then the hell that came after that. And ever since it just felt like each day she was reminded of the fact that she'd never really had a choice in all of it. That her life had been decided for her before she even really had a say and all the events and tragedy she'd experienced could have been avoided if she'd had that choice, gone somewhere different. It was hard to go each day feeling like that.

And...well...there was another reason, but if they were both considering this option, maybe it wouldn't need to be said at all.

"I get it," he nodded, before letting out a small relieved laugh, "So we both…"

"Mhmm."

He took a breath, "How about we do this," he offered, "We…we get the crew together, help Kalara and her crew get back, and…and then we finish our conversation from dinner. We talk about our options and we decide from there."

She nodded, "Sounds like a plan."

~8~

It took some doing to contact all of the crew. It was required that they all keep comms. on them as they went out onto the base, in case of emergencies, but that didn't mean everyone wanted to answer it when the call went out to return to the ship for an impromptu mission before their shore leave could even truly begin. Still, it was a testament to their dedication and professionalism that the crew did return quickly and, soon enough, Kirk and Victoria found themselves entering the turbolift, in uniform, to head up to the Bridge from Engineering, where they'd been checking in with Scotty to make sure there was nothing major that the ship wouldn't be able to handle mid-upgrades and minor repairs. Victoria had been sure it would be fine, being Liaison to the Bridge it was her job to know everything going on in Engineering, but she agreed checking with Scotty, who was around the engines more than anyone, would never hurt. According to him, the ship should hold for the travel through the nebula and back, so long as they were careful to not crash into any asteroids or meteors or debris which they wouldn't do normally either.

"Mr. Spock," Kirk greeted when they saw Spock was already in the lift.

"Captain," he nodded, "Liaison Pike."

"I was thinking..." Kirk started to say, at the same time Spock began with, "Perhaps there..."

"No please," Kirk tried to gesture Spock to speak first.

"Captain, after you," he declined, "I insist."

"I can pick," Victoria offered, smirking a bit at their back and forth.

"You're biased," Kirk gave her a look, the same time, again, that Spock said, "That would be agreeable," if only because he knew she'd pick Kirk to go first.

"James?" she smirked at him.

He rolled his eyes, shaking his head, before he looked at Spock, "After this mission, we should uh, we should sit down. There's something I need to talk to you about."

It wouldn't be fair to just spring the captain position on him, IF he even chose to leave the ship, if he got the Admiral position. He and Victoria would talk about their options, make a decision then, but, regardless, this was something that would also affect Spock on a few levels. He'd be given a new position, new responsibility he may or may not even want, he might be losing a member of Engineering and have to find a replacement while at Yorktown, he'd have to consider a new First Officer, and many more. IF they chose to leave, that is, but Spock should be made aware it was a possiblity, to prepare and consider himself for when the time came to truly decide.

"I, as well, have something to share," Spock agreed.

"We make a good team," Kirk remarked, glancing at the two of them, he was speaking not just of the crew as a whole, but them in smaller numbers too, "Right?"

"I believe we do."

"The best," Victoria agreed.

"You are, as I believe the Captain said, biased," Spock remarked, as close to teasing as the Vulcan had ever gotten.

"Doesn't mean I'm wrong," she shrugged, stepping out of the lift when the doors opened, Kirk refusing to follow, gesturing for Spock to go first ahead of him.

"I insist," Kirk shot back at him, the Vulcan stepping out onto the Bridge with him following.

"Captain on ze bridge!" Chekov called out, as he always seemed to do, the crew getting into their assigned spots and positions, Kalara hovering in the back and watching the goings on with a quiet franticness to her.

Kirk glanced over at Victoria as she moved to her station, ready to be the contact for Engineering and gave her a nod before moving to his chair and getting to work, "Lieutenant Uhura open a ship-wide channel," he ordered.

"Yes, Captain," the woman agreed, hurrying to do so.

"Attention, crew of the Enterprise," he began when she gave the signal it was open, "Our mission is straightforward. Rescue a crew stranded on a planet in uncharted space. Our trajectory will take us through an unstable nebula, one which will disable all communications with Starfleet. We're gonna be on our own. The Enterprise has something no other ship in the Fleet has: you. And, as we've come to understand, there is no such thing as the unknown, only the temporarily hidden. Kirk out," he gave Uhura a nod to close the comm. and returned his focus to the screen as the ship took off and made its way right for the Nebula.

It was surprisingly close to Yorktown base, not taking even 30 minutes to reach before they were carefully drifting through it.

"Mmm," Chekov reported, "Readings indicate cloud density diminishing, sir."

"Engineering reports all holding steady," Victoria added, knowing Kirk was more concerned with the way this might tax the engines than anything. The ship had been wearing out over the years of deep travel, they were meant to restock and replenish not just supplies but items for engineering, too, having some others look in on the warp drives and other areas to ensure it was up to standard and wouldn't break down on them for the remainder of their mission. They'd left before anything major had gotten underway though.

"This is Altamid," Kalara spoke after a moment, as a planet became visible on the screen, the ship starting to get past the majority of the debris in the nebula, "My ship is stranded here."

"Approaching Altamid," Spock made the log as he read a scan of the planet and the records they had of it, "Class-M planet. Massive subterranean development. But limited to no life forms on the surface."

"Proximity alert, sir!" Chekov called when a small alarm began to blare, "We have an unknown ship heading right for us."

It was a fair deal more than just one ship, they could see in the viewing panel soon enough…it was a swarm.

A/N: I feel like Kirk was on the edge of murdering someone for a hot second there :) Wonder what he was planning that had him so nervous? }:)

I like to think that part of Victoria's own stress and strain is based off of Kirk's. Like on some level she's taking cues from him. In the last story, Kirk was a major support for her, helping her through her grief for her father, being there for her, giving her space and a shoulder to lean on. In some way, this is Victoria's own form of repaying that kindness, trying to do what she can to make his job smoother and easier, to pick up on how he wants to present himself and, instead of getting upset or fighting him about the changes between them, she adapts her own behavior to sort of mimic his, to show she accepts what he feels he needs to do and she's there for him too. Doesn't make it any easier for either of them to endure though :(

But Kalara! The Nebula! The swarm!

Wonder what will happen next and who will end up where with who... }:)

Some notes on reviews...

I can say yup, the Bones/OC is going to be a yellow shirt, she's a pilot ;)

SO many updates lol :) I hope you enjoyed them :D This is definitely going to explore not just falling in love again, but sort of rediscovering yourself and finding your way back to things after being too complacent :) It'll also involve a bit of Victoria coming to terms with something that's sort of been underlying her love/hate relationship with the Fleet ;)

Since this chapter probably gives away a big flag about Kirk's intentions, I can probably say it seems to be leading that way ;) ;)