Welcome back. Is this the moment we have all been waiting for? Read to find out.

And thank you to everyone who has reviewed so far, not least of all the guests. I'd love to reply to all of you, just know I see and appreciate every review!

Spock sat on the edge of his bed, lost in thought. He didn't even try to meditate. A faint feeling of dizziness had taken hold of him after he had hugged Christine. He had felt it too as he had hugged her. And he had recognised it for what it was.

He hadn't let her get too close; it was him who had grown attached. He had been blind to the full truth until this very evening when she had whispered his name with such a fondness as the native people of his planet never managed. He had sought out her company; he had dined with her; he had made her a habit.

And he had liked it. He had liked it a lot, and if he thought about it, he would like to share many more meals with her, perhaps more than just meals.

If he was human, he would have laughed at his oversight and the irony he could see now. There was no mystery to the natural emergence of their bond. It was perversely logical. He had developed feelings for her. That was what he had been missing before: simple feeling.

But even if that was true, he could not, and would not force Christine. If that was what she wanted, they would proceed with breaking up the bond, even if they had to go to Vulcan to achieve that.

Spock sighed. He would have to have at least one difficult conversation tomorrow, probably more.

Before he could ponder that issue any longer, the door to his cabin slid open and Christine barged in. Since when did she have the access codes to his private quarters?

"Why even try?" she burst out. She moved into the room and came to stand next to the support beam. "Why even try to break it?"

Spock had quickly recovered from the shock of her entrance and looked at her apprehensively.

"I had assumed you would not want to be stuck with me," he said carefully.

She smiled widely at that, much to his confusion. It had not been a joke, this was a serious topic, a matter of a lifetime.

"It would have been fair to assume I would jump at the opportunity, considering how infatuated I was during the five-year mission," she said, the fond smile still on her lips.

"It would not have been fair of me at all," Spock protested. "That was a long time ago. People change."

"Why, yes, they do. And we've both changed. And it's good that we have, Spock." She sighed and stepped closer. "Don't you see? It's those very changes that made us grow closer. And growing closer eventually made us…"

"Bonded," Spock said.

"Yes! The Vulcans were acknowledging our status, not creating it." Christine joined him on the bed, close enough that she could have touched him but with enough distance to not invade his personal space. She looked at him intently as she went on. "And I guess there's no way around that now. We're simply too compatible."

Spock raised one eyebrow. This was nothing new yet, the bond was based on compatibility. Their issue had been with the decision having been taken from them, not the reasons for the decision.

Seeing as Spock wouldn't say anything, Christine continued talking. "What I'm trying to say is that I think sharing consciousness wasn't the only contributing factor." She met the intensity of his dark eyes and lowered her voice to a bare whisper. "There's been more for some time now. And I do not mind being stuck with you." She smiled up at him, putting all her sincere feeling into it. It didn't matter how silly she sounded. She knew what she had felt him feel. "It would be illogical for us to protest against our natures. Don't you think?" she said softly, quoting his own words back at him. She didn't take her eyes from him for even a second and saw that he remembered saying those very words to her, in his cabin on the old Enterprise.

He did not say anything now, and he did not do anything except look back into those sparkling blue eyes. He still didn't do anything when she took his hand in hers and closed her fingers around his.

A tingling feeling spread through his fingertips, like the tickle of an electric current. He saw that she felt it, too, as her eyes widened in amazement, and felt her surprise at the sensation through the subtle telepathic touch.

It would indeed be illogical to protest, if not downright foolish. Times had changed and so had they, but those changes had pulled them towards each other and tied their fates into the prospect of a joined future. He might have chosen the Vulcan path, but it did not need to be one of solitude.

She was still looking at him, waiting calmly, her eyes full of trust, a trust that he knew was mirrored in his own gaze.

Spock sighed and capitulated.

"I regret to say, for better for worse…" he began.

"You don't seem very regretful," she teased, her voice sounding unnaturally loud in his cabin although it was barely above a whisper.

He pursed his lips as he considered this. "Of course, I have to acknowledge that this seems like the logical choice."

"You old romantic," she laughed, swatting him on the shoulder with her free hand.

He simply continued to hold her gaze, as she let her eyes wander freely over his face: the brown eyes shining warmly, his brows raised at her, and the corners of his mouth tilted up ever so slightly.

She tore her eyes away from his lips and stood up, breaking the spell of the moment.

"I should go," she murmured and cleared her throat. "It's late, and I had already gone to bed."

She had almost reached the door when he spoke.

"You may stay."

She turned around to face him, sending him a questioning glance.

"I have heard that it's customary for couples to sometimes share a bed," he said, standing at his desk, talking with that innocent matter-of-factness that only he could manage.

"Well, I can't say no to that."

She returned to his bed and slipped under the covers while he stayed at his desk, busying himself with some reports.

Christine breathed deeply and closed her eyes, inhaling the scent that clung to his bedsheets. After a while of making herself comfortable, she realised he hadn't moved from his position at the desk.

"You know, I'm sure it's customary for couples to share a bed at the same time," she specified, without opening her eyes.

"Of course."

After some minutes that were filled with the rustling of fabric and the swoosh of the bathroom door, the mattress dipped briefly and she felt him stretch out next to her. Through half-closed lids, she could see his profile being illuminated by the lamp, with the rest of the cabin plunged in darkness.

For a while, no one spoke. Then, Christine opened her eyes fully and cleared her throat.

"This bond…" she murmured sleepily.

"Yes?"

"I felt it very clearly. It was as if you were never completely gone. Not quite there, but not separated either, a thought away."

Spock nodded. "Yes, that's the bond."

"I still don't know how it came to be, without any ceremonies."

"Neither do I," he admitted, "but I suppose there are many possibilities and not just the one way."

Christine hummed in agreement. "Kol-UT-Shan."

Spock turned to her abruptly. "Infinite diversity in infinite combinations. I didn't know you spoke Vulcan."

"I don't," she chuckled, relishing his apparent astonishment. "Not well. I looked up some random phrases when I was head over heels in love with some stubborn first officer I served with."

"I assume I know him?"

"You might have. A long time ago."

She watched Spock for a while. He had closed his eyes, and his features were relaxed, a perfect image of Vulcan serenity.

"When are we going to tell everyone, before they find out via official channels?" she asked.

She could imagine most people wouldn't be pleased to find out about the relationship between two of their friends from diplomatic sources instead of in person. And the probability of that happening had increased significantly, with the diplomatic visit being on the day after tomorrow.

"I would propose to wait another day, but not more."

"Another day? Making sure you really want this?" She was joking, although the reasons behind him delaying any announcement intrigued her.

"No. Making sure you really want this," he said seriously. "This is an arrangement for the rest of your life."

"Oh, I should hope so. But another day it is."

She closed her eyes again and sighed contentedly as Spock turned off the light. The rest of her life. She could live with that.

In the darkness, she shuffled closer until she could feel his shoulder under her head. Slowly but purposefully, she snaked an arm across his torso, feeling the softness of his tunic, and the warmth of his body.

A hand closed over hers.

"Are you trying to seduce me?" his voice said from directly above her head.

"No!" she protested. Then noticed the hand still holding on to hers. "Are you trying to seduce me?"

"I am not."

She dared to snuggle a bit closer still and felt herself become drowsy. There was a heartbeat under her hand, soft breathing from above her, and this wonderful warmth. As she was slipping away, the rustling of bedclothes reached her ears, and she felt a warm pressure on her forehead as the Vulcan pressed his lips to her skin.

To be continued...

All's well that ends well? Well, they still haven't told anyone. How will people react? Will there be challenges on the way to a happy future?