CCR: Ocean Front Property parts 10 thru 13 as posted to Yahoo Groups. See part one for disclaimer. Much thanks to Rochon for fantastic betaing. She gets any better and I'll name her co-author!
"Maybe I just don't like you."
"Everybody likes me" Jim said grinning.
"I don't" Chris said, her voice teasing "You maybe charming, Captain, but you're just not my type. You're a Tomcat. You always were and you still are. Hell when we first met you were practically engaged and I was your best friend's girlfriend; you still hit on me."
The chime from the front door went off at that moment.
"I'll go get that" Chris said leaving the room.
The room practically exploded with conversation.
"Well I'll be" McCoy said "Your best friend's girl, huh. What friend was that, Jim?"
"You remember that friend I had when we first met. You know that guy" Jim said quietly.
"No, really! Chris was with Gary!" McCoy said loudly "That means your girl was Carol. No wonder she dumped your ass."
Christine Chapel had dated Gary Mitchell. The thought was inconceivable. Spock's mind was reeling at the idea. He was so wrapped up in the scenario that he almost missed what Scotty was saying, almost.
"So that's who he was. No wonder she nay told me. I can see it though, the lassie has his eyes" the engineer was mumbling to himself.
"Sons of Garuth! What the hell are you doing here?" Chris's voice rang out above the crowd.
"Hey everybody, look who's here" Chris said coming back into the room with a blonde woman in tow.
Spock was about to ask what "lassie" Scotty was talking about when the Scot jumped up and ran to the woman.
Scotty engulfed her in big bear hug and said "Theresa, I thought you where back at the Shipyards. How did you get here?"
CPO Theresa Ross hugged Scotty back and kissed him on the cheek "Well, a little bird told me that my cousin was hosting a Kirk's Enterprise reunion and since I did serve on the ship, longer than said cousin I might add, I thought I should be here."
"How did you get here away? That boss of your was pissed off when you went with us to V'ger. The only reason you were with us was because Scotty wouldn't let you off the ship" Chris asked.
"Well I kinda convinced Matt that Starbase 14 might need me to work on Enterprise's repair job. You know since I was so involved in the refit and all. That said he sent his new little protégé to keep an eye on me. That woman is a pain my ass. I think he thinks I'm gonna run away with you guys" Ross said. Then she looked guilty and said "That and I might have told him that it might make my cousin happy enough to go out with him the next time she was on Earth."
"Ugh, great. Terry!" Christine sighed "Captain, permission never to see Earth again."
"Matt? Not Commodore Matt Cartwright" Kirk asked.
"I'm afraid so, some things never change" Chris said.
Kirk snorted he was laughing so hard.
"Matthew Cartwright was promoted to Commodore?" Spock asked.
"Yea, last year" said Jim, taking a breath "Do you know him?"
"Indeed. We attended the Academy together. He finished first in the class. He is quite a competitive man."
"He's grabby, too" Christine laughed "I'll tell you what, Jim, there are worse things than you. So what do you say we all dig in and have a good time? I propose a toast. To old loves, old friends and old memories; let our pasts be exactly that, our pasts, and let our futures bring a better tomorrow."
"So say we all" came the standard response from the group.
The meal started in earnest then. The food was incredible and the drinks flowed freely. Conversation was buzzing all around. Spock learned that quite a bit had happened in the nineteen point three two months he had gone. He knew that Uhura, Sulu and Scott had all received promotions. He also knew that Chekov was now in security, and that Rand had transferred to engineering as well as Tamura. All these things he had seen for himself when he officially became the Enterprise's XO after Decker's "disappearance". At the time he had also seen that Christine had been promoted as well and had not thought about it. He now realized that she had actually been promoted twice. She was a full commander. McCoy had also been promoted but not until after his commission was reinstated, so Christine was technically the highest ranking member if the medical staff. The impact of what that would mean to their working relationship was not lost on him. He also learned that evening that Decker had made both Christine and Chekov take the bridge officer's exam and that they both had passed with high marks.
He also learned that many of the Enterprise's former crew had also advanced. Riley, Kyle and DeSalle had all joining M'Benga and Ames aboard the Reliant in officer's positions. DeSalle quite loudly reminded Christine he was a first officer now "hint, hint", whatever that meant. M'Benga and Ames surprised no one it seemed with their intent to marry soon. Arex was joined on the Bozeman by Barrows, Mears, M'Ress, and Spinelli. McCoy had elbowed the latter, congratulating him on "getting all the hot girls." Uhura apparently had kicked him under the table after that comment.
The next topic of discussion was the refit of the ships. Ross and Scott had apparently been the leads on the project. They were both very curious as to what everyone thought now that the shakedown cruises of most of the ships were done.
"Well I'll just say I'm grateful for married officer's quarters. If Khali and I had to share a single, we'd never fit" Ames said.
"Aye it was a bonnie suggestion on Theresa's part" Scotty said.
"Hey, do we have any on our ship? I didn't think we had any married couples on Enterprise" Jim asked.
"We don't sir, I mean Jim, some of your senior staff may have appropriated the quarters" Uhura said sheepishly.
"I want one!" McCoy exclaimed.
"First come, first served buddy!" Chris said "Anyways I'm not giving mine up, it took forever to get my bed in."
"You know, you could take the executive officers quarters, laddie. They're a bit bigger that your current and Mr. Spock's still in the science officer's quarters. Unless you want to move there, Mr. Spock" Scotty said.
"I am comfortable where I am, Scotty, and I thought we agreed to try to be less formal" Spock said. He had never called the engineer by his nickname before and briefly considered calling the man Montgomery. The name however did not seem to suit the man. He found himself relieved when the man beamed a smile at the use of his informal name.
"Aye Spock! I guess that means you canna have em Leonard" Scotty said, trying out the doctor's name.
"Scotty, who was suppose to have em? I mean who was Decker's XO" McCoy asked, suddenly struck by the thought.
"I was and I was first aboard so you nay hafta worry about me. I'd be loads happier out of the command structure though if you'd be kind enough to let things be the way they be, Spock" Scotty said smiling, his eyebrows going up with his suggestive tone.
"Are you saying that you would prefer that Mr. Sulu stay second officer?" Spock asked.
"Aye."
"With your permission, Jim, I think that is a most logical decision. It would be a waste of material to keep him away from engineering."
"Does our CMO agree with our XO's evaluation?" Jim said to Chris.
"Since it's my job to make sure the crew's emotional state is healthy, then yes, it's a most logical evaluation" she said, tossing a wink in Spock's direction.
"Then it is settled. Congratulations Scotty, you are now officially only our chief engineer" Spock said, the corners of his lips slightly going up.
"I guess that means I get a bigger room" McCoy said "I got ask though, everything seems bigger, and how did you pull that one off?
"Technology" Ross said "Bulkhead materials changed so they're thinner, new engine design made them a lot more compact, weapons storage bays are half the size they use to be with the advent of mark three torpedoes and of course the biggest change was caused by the invention of the replicator. Without all that wasted space for food stores, we have a lot more room for amenities."
"But don't anybody worry, I got huge section of the hydroponics bay set aside so Chris will have fresh produce to work with" Sulu said.
"That reminds me, Ru, I need to pick up a few more things for you to plant" Chris looked as though she had a sudden thought. "That and stop giving Gertrude all the uttaberry, Jan" Chris said.
"Beauregard likes them, they make it purr" Rand replied.
"You can always make it purr, Jan; however the uttaberries are making it fat."
"How about we add some icoberry plants, too, Chris; I heard you were able to get a hold of some of them" Sulu said.
"You're more than welcome too. You'll have to take care of them, though, they make me itch just thinking about them" Chris said.
Spock was slightly amused to see her psychosomatically scratch the back of her neck.
"You have gotten icoberries. Issss that forrr me?" asked M'Ress.
"Of course, Kirr, I know you love them" Chris said.
"But you had such a terrible rrrrash last time we had them. You had sssspots all the way down the middle of your back" the Catian responded.
"Well you'll just have to cut them for me. Speaking of sweets, I think it's time for dessert" Chris said going to the kitchen.
"Oooh, I think I know what this. Let me help you Chris" Ross said getting up quickly.
The dish that Chris and Terry returned with was huge. Spock instantly recognized the dish as one that his father was very fond of.
"Ktarian chocolate puff, my father's favorite, he insisted that we serve it whenever among friends" Chris said. "Now it has 17 types of chocolate in it, so be careful Spock, but I'll be insulted if you don't at least try it" she said challengingly.
"I must admit that I have what my mother would call "a bit of a sweet tooth" so you need not worry about my tolerance level."
"That's good to know. No offense, but drunken Vulcans are a pain in the ass" M'Benga said laughing "I remember once in my residency my mom sent me chocolate chip cookies. I thought the VSA was seriously going to get the high council to ban the stuff."
"I believe they tried, but my mother threatened to leave my father if he did not stop them" Spock commented.
"I can just see your mom doing that, too. She's a helluva lady. Don't know how you could possibly be related to her" McCoy said.
"Knock it off, Bones" Jim said "Now who's on dish duty. He, who doesn't cook, cleans."
Soon the cleaning crew was assembled. Tonia Barrows told Spock that he on the cooking crew, so he was NOT allowed in the kitchen to help. Vito DeSalle said that as chief engineer on the Reliant he could easily be in charge of this crew.
Chris relented at after some protest and then told everyone to go to the common area. Once there she went to wall and pushed a few buttons. The room changed around them. The light dimmed slightly and a view of the Enterprise could be seen in the middle of the room. Spock now knew the large column they had past earlier was a holographic emitter. She made Kevin Riley bartender and told everyone to get comfortable on the seating around the room. Spock sat on a long black couch with Jim. Once the clean up crew finished their quick work, Chris moved to the front of the room.
"Well everyone I thought this might be appropriate. While I was not a member of the Enterprise crew when Jim took over, I was at the launch. So I thought I'd share my holovid of it. Here we go. Computer, play program Kirk's Enterprise 1."
The room was filled with the image of Spacedock. Spock could see the familiar embarkation area and saw many people walking in the area in the old-style Starfleet uniforms. Suddenly a voice filled the room.
"Ok Scotty, let's see those new stripes! This is Lt. Commander Montgomery Alastair Scott, chief engineer of the Starship Enterprise. The beautiful blonde next to him is Yeoman Teresa Elizabeth Ross. Both are fine examples of Scottish heritage. It is February 23, 2264 and Captain James T. Kirk is taking over the U.S.S. Enterprise from Captain Christopher Pike," said a voice that was obviously Christine's. "Computer, kill the audio," said Christine, "I am sure you folks don't need to hear my commentary."
"Definitely not, Lass, bad enough I have to see meself so young but to have to hear me full name. Christine, how could you do that to me," Scotty complained.
"I don't know, I thought it was kinda interestin', Alastair," drawled McCoy.
"Leave him alone, Horatio. I think we all sometimes wonder what out parents were thinking with these names," Jim said, shaking his head. "Oh. My. God… is that really ME?
The scene had now changed. It was the symbolic changing of the guard ceremony. Jim was shaking Pike's hand. Spock saw himself, Gary Mitchell, Scott and Dr. Mark Piper standing behind him. The camera view then expanded to include a wide shot of the crew. The group in the room was talking animatedly about who was who and how everyone had changed.
"And look, there's Pav," laughed Rand, elbowing the Russian. "Talk about a baby face. You're lucky I left before you joined the crew, I'd have eaten you up." Sure enough, among the honor guard from the academy was Pavel Chekov.
"I didn't even know you were there, Pavel," Jim said.
"It vas that day I fell in love vith the Enterprise. I knew I vanted to serve on that ship," Chekov said.
Many more minutes of footage were seen and then when the video was done and the conversations continued. Everyone was recalling different events and mission aboard the ship. Drinks were raised here and there for lost comrades. There was much speculation about what had happened on many of the planets they had visited. There was much catching up with what the crew had been doing since the end of the mission. Soon the topic again came back to the many changes and advancements that had occurred since the end of their mission. Eventually the discussion turned to the many changes in uniforms.
"I still want to know why we went to the skirts," Chris said shaking her head.
"Oh they weren't too bad, Sugah. At least they weren't jumpsuits like old Vulcan uniforms. You couldn't hide an inch in those," Uhura said.
"I don't particularly care for the current ones, either. They look like pajamas," interjected Jim.
"Oh they look good on you," replied Rand. "At least the old ones had some color."
"Please, if I have to wear blue ever again, I'll get sick," Ames said.
"Yea, if I'd known about the cocktail waitress uniform, I don't think I would have signed up," Chris said.
"Now that would have been a damn shame. I think I our mission would have suffered greatly without those fine legs of yours," DeSalle said, leering and wagging his eyebrows from across the room.
"Hmph! I couldn't even bend over in that thing," Chris said, "I always felt like the biggest klutz. I was always trying to make sure I didn't expose myself."
"I must admit, darlin', I didn't mind. Sickbay was a mite bit prettier with you around,' commented McCoy.
"You gonna tell her what we did to your desk, Leonard?" M'Benga asked.
"Shut up, Kahli. She's my boss now, you know. She might be a bit mad."
"Are you referring to the fact that Dr. McCoy's desk became two point three two centimeters shorter after Christine's assignment to the Enterprise?" Spock asked, confused as to the relevance of this information.
"You son of a bitch! Leonard that's low, even for you", Chris said slapping McCoy upside the head.
"I do not understand," Spock said.
"You wouldn't," quipped McCoy. He was slapped again. "Chris has the habit of put her palms on a desk and leaning into it when she's talking to you."
"Bones, you dog! You could have a least clued me in," Jim said.
"Clued you in? You? The man who changed the height of the captain's chair? You had a pretty good view yourself," retorted McCoy.
Spock's mind quickly put together scenarios between Kirk and McCoy's comments. Both eyebrows flew up when he saw the view in his mind's eye. Doctor McCoy, or anyone else at his desk, would have been able to see straight down Christine's uniform. He quickly admonished himself for thinking that he should have borrowed the doctor's office more often. Spock was brought quickly back to reality by Jim's voice.
"You gonna out help me here or what?" Kirk was asking.
Spock realized he had missed part of the conversation. "How shall I do that, Jim," he asked, covering his lapse.
"Tell Jan and Ny that I had to change the height of the chair because Chris Pike was taller than me," Kirk led.
"But that is not true. Captain Pike was only one point two centimeter taller than you and that should not have affected the efficiency of the chair," Spock responded.
"Ha!" said Rand.
"Pig!" said Uhura.
"Spock, you were supposed to lie for me. You know, be a good first officer and cover my ass."
"It is illogical to lie about something that is so obviously not the truth, Jim. I believe, if I am using the term correctly, the women have 'busted' you," Spock said with some humor creeping in.
"And on that note, I'm going to bed," Chris said. She looked as though she was about to burst with laughter.
Spock internal time sense told him that it was well indeed into the evening. Many people admitted having been tired out by the long day. Tamura had in fact already fallen asleep on Sulu's shoulder. Spock noted that they were also holding hands. He found himself wondering if Christine had had something to do with this relationship as well.
The assembled group then headed off on different directions to their rooms. Despite Chris's earlier declaration, she was the last one out of the room. She quickly went about doing a cursory cleaning of the room. She next went through the kitchen and out to the patio. Risa's moons were low and cast a soft light in the night sky. She made sure the fire pit and grill were extinguished and the pool had been put into a cleaning cycle. Moving over to the manual controls for the lights, Chris turned them off and watched as the area was bathed in moonlight.
Chris remembered she had left her door unlocked and decided she would take the patio staircase to her room. Arriving on the second floor landing, she became aware of the presence in the shadows.
"Can I help you with something, Spock?" she asked.
Spock started slightly at her question. He had been quietly watching her move about the pool area and had not thought she had sensed his presence.
"I was wondering if you had a computer station I might use. As you well know, I do not require as much sleep as humans and I thought I might use the extra hours to work on a research project that has recently recaptured my attention" Spock said. It was not a lie… exactly. Back when they had served on the Enterprise the first time, Christine had always been on the outer edges of his conscience. Now, here on Risa, Dr. Christine Chapel had indeed returned to his thoughts with a vengeance.
"Oh, sure, there's a station up in the den. Follow me", Christine gestured with a wave as she continued up the patio stairs.
Spock followed Christine with more than a little apprehension. He could see that she intended to go through her bedroom. As much as his curiosity wanted to explore the room, his sense of decorum objected to being in a woman's bedroom. Especially THIS bedroom, he thought wryly. This was a woman with whom he "had a history with" as the captain might say. A virus had made her say she loved him, a sickness had imbedded her into his dreams and they had once shared an intimacy greater than anything he had ever known.
Until V'ger.
V'ger had intensely searched his mind and returned memories he had not known he'd lost. When he had woke in Sickbay, she had been there, like always, by his side. However, when she touched him, the feeling was alien. It was like she was not even there. He remembered how awkward he had always felt around her and her him. It was almost as if there was an energy field around them that discharged whenever they got in close proximity. It was gone, he realized. He did not feel it anymore and he missed it. It was a constant in their relationship. It had been there from the very first day they met. He remembered that day with shocking clarity.
The Enterprise had arrived at Starbase 12 shortly after its first encounter with the man known as Harry Mudd. Mudd was to be transferred to the authorities there after having already escaped the detention facility on Rigel XII once before. The ship was scheduled for a stopover for supplies and personnel changes.
Spock was checking over the manifest and crew files when he encountered an image that brought him to a dead stop. Number One? Why is she blonde? How old was the picture? She looked as young as when they had first met. His quickly looked at the name on the file button: Chapel? He knew that Number One's name was Ross, Leigh Ross. The enigmatic former first officer had been an admiral's daughter and had preferred the title to her name. She had thought that her famous name had made people biased towards her, for better or worse. He could sympathize with this idea and had quickly removed all mention of his father's title from any records pertaining to him.
But this woman's name was Christine Chapel and she was not a navigator but a nurse. He accessed a more comprehensive record on the woman. The first thing he noticed was that she was immensely over qualified for the position. Chapel held multiple degrees, a doctorate in bioresearch, and had nearly completed her medical degree. Moving on to her personal history he saw that she had one sibling, but it was a much younger brother. He considered it odd that two women could look so alike; but he knew that close genetics in a species could produce doppelgangers in a race. But…the eyes were the same. Not as strong on her fair features, but still that crystal blue that was never seen on Vulcan. He dismissed such fanciful thoughts and returned to his evaluation. Her rank was given as brevet ensign. She had been made an officer upon her commission. That was an oddity given that she had not attended the academy. Upon further research he found her reason for joining the crew: she was searching for Dr. Roger Korby.
Korby had been known as the Pasteur of archaeological medicine for his translation of the Orion medical ruins and apparently was Miss Chapel's fiancée. He had been lost on an expedition to Exo III four point seven years ago. Two expeditions had failed to find any trace of him but the Enterprise was scheduled to stop there in future. He was surprised that Starfleet had chosen to give this woman a full commission, even if it was without the benefits. It seemed that her assignment to the Enterprise would terminate after they arrived on the planet.
Illogical, he thought. Korby was surely dead and she was wasting her talents in this assignment. Perhaps he would rectify the oversight. He swiftly looked through the file for any reason that she would not be able to handle a more complete assignment. Spock noticed that she had a regular dosage of a Metorapan hybrid for chronic headaches. He saw in her medical records that they were caused by some slight genetic flaws that Dr. McCoy should be made aware of, but knowing the Doctor, he probably already knew about, but nothing that would diminish her ability to perform her assigned duties on the Enterprise. The only other record of note was an extreme allergy to Ladanum. As he doubted that any service on a starship would bring her in contact with the opiate, he resolved to find a more constructive use of her tenure on the ship.
After he finished the paperwork that his yeoman would present the quartermaster, he went down to the transporter room to supervise the exchanges. Harry Mudd, it seemed was not going quietly.
"I tell ya, you got it all wrong. I was a victim of circumstance," the con man was saying as Spock entered the room.
"Mr. Mudd, I assure you, you will receive a fair trial from the authorities on Starbase 12. They have one of the finest Starfleet JAG offices in the entire Federation," Spock replied moving in front of the control panel.
"Do we really have to involve the authorities? I've got this little moon in the Risan sector that would be perfect for a young, handsome Vulcan like you. I could be persuaded to give it up, if you could find your way to maybe, oh I don't know, displace me to the wrong coordinates," Mudd said.
"Energize, Mr. Kyle," Spock said to the transporter chief.
The familiar hum filled the air and three people appeared. A woman and two large men came down the steps.
"Here he is gentlemen," said Spock to the Starbase security team.
Christine Chapel was handed her bag from the shorter of the team. She gave the man a small hug and patted the other on the arm.
"Thanks guys. Be sure to tell Vee I'll be fine," she said then she walked towards the first officer.
"Permission to come aboard, sir," she said with a small salute.
"We do not salute aboard Starships, Miss Chapel," Spock said coolly, looking deep into her eyes. They were the same blue he remembered, but somehow these were different. They sparkled as if she was enjoying some private joke.
"I am sorry, I didn't mean any-"
"Secure the prisoner!" Spock said quickly. Out of the corner of his eye he had seen Mudd's movement. Mudd had the handcuffs off and had stunned one of the Enterprise's guards with his own weapon before they could react. Mudd then brought up his elbow quickly hitting the other Enterprise man in the temple.
The man collapsed in a heap. Mudd lunged forward grabbing Christine from behind. His arm snaked around her waist and he jerked her backwards.
"Now gentlemen, why don't we all relax," Mudd said.
"Mr. Mudd, I suggest you release the ensign right now, before the charges of kidnapping and unlawful detainment of a Starfleet officer are added to the list of your crimes," Spock said.
"Let her go right now or we'll shoot you", the taller of the security team said.
"Now you wouldn't want to hurt this lovely angel. I just need to borrow her to escape from the devil," Mudd said looking pointedly as Spock.
Mudd was pointing the phaser towards the men and moving towards the console.
"Mudd tightened his hold on the nurse and pulled her closer. "I'll tell you what. Why don't you all just back away from the console and step out into the corridor? I'll just beam me and this angel somewhere far away from – HEY!" In trying to hang on to the woman and make his way to the transporter controls, it seemed she had managed to get her legs entangled with Mudd's, resulting in both of them falling to the floor. The Starbase guards pounced on Mudd instantly, pinning him face first to the deck. Spock went to the woman on the floor. He held his hand out to her. Her long delicate fingers gave a forceful tug as she pull herself up. He felt a tingling sensation at her touch and almost dropped her back to the floor.
"Fascinating," he said in a shocked whisper and let go quickly.
"Wow, is it always so exciting around here, sir?" she asked straightening herself up. She now stood almost even with him in her flat boots. Chapel immediately turned from Spock to the injured men, her loose hair fanning him in the face. The elbowed man was shaking his head and she helped the stunned officer sit up.
"They're okay over here", she said.
"And yourself?" Spock said, noting her selflessness.
Mudd chose this moment to let out a low moan. The guards were putting his cuffs back on, behind his back this time, Spock noted.
"Let me take a look at him before you beam down," she said kneeling next to the man.
Mudd rolled over and put his head into her lap. "Will my lovely angel save me from these ruffians?" he said to her.
Chapel looked up at Spock then, a slight smile etching her face. Spock responded by raising one eyebrow.
"I think you'd better play nice," she said. She then quickly examined Mudd and said to the Starbase 12 security team "Jon, Bill, he's okay. Just a little bump on the head, I think."
"Thanks Christine," the taller of the two men said. They both took one of Mudd's arms and pulled him up from her lap. Chapel stood up and gave a slight tug on the hem of her skirt. She then quickly adjusted her shoulders against the lowering top.
"Damn, these things are short. Sorry sir," she quickly added.
"Understandable, you are a tall person for the uniform," Spock responded.
"Yep, legs all the way up" said Mudd with an appreciative glance and a smile.
"Goodbye, Mr. Mudd," Spock said.
"Bye, Christine," said the security officers smiling as well.
"Bye Angel," said Mudd.
Chapel then gave a small wave as Spock said "Energize" to Kyle.
Christine went back to nursing the injured men. Spock called a medical team and Kyle went to retrieve her dropped bag.
"I feared he was going to hurt you there for a second, Miss Chapel. The fall was most fortunate," Kyle said coming over.
"Christine, please. I don't stand on formality. I'm guess I'm lucky I'm a klutz," she said.
Spock raised an eyebrow at that statement. She had caused the fall, he was sure of it.
"Then I'm Winston," said the transporter chief.
Spock took the bag from Kyle and turned towards the nurse. "Miss Chapel, I am Mr. Spock, the first officer."
"I knew that," she said, smiling, and he felt the energy in the air again.
Feedback please! Help, help, help! Starving for input!
---"A life without ship is no life at all" ˜ Aucat
