A/N: Hi, folks. Sorry for the delay. It was harder to pick back up after interruptions than I realized. Please enjoy :)

Quarantine

While McCoy didn't entirely remember the first two days, he definitely remembered the next 5.

It was just his luck that the Icthyrian he helped treat when they were stopped at Starbase 11 was a carrier for Heuretta endolosis. The fortunate thing was they caught it in a sterile field as soon as he was back on the Enterprise. The rest of the Starbase's staff that treated the Icthyrian were alerted, and McCoy promptly entered into quarantine.

Heuretta endolosis, while not fatal, was extremely contagious among humans, and mutated easily in Vulcans.

The symptoms struck rather quickly and McCoy spent most of the first two days sleeping like a rock. His staff, in protected gear, kept tabs on him and would leave food and plenty of water for the bouts when he was up. He found a note informing him that he looked far less grouchy when he was asleep.

When the lethargy abated, he got antsy.

"Push-ups, Bones?"

Jim Kirk peered at him through the window of the sealed door. He looked both amused and confused.

"Beats pacing," McCoy grunted, doing one more. "This room's too small for that."

"So I noticed. Won't we be in a pickle if several crewmembers need to be contained?"

The doctor got to his feet, shaking his head. "All of Sickbay and each of the science labs have quarantine seals activated by voice command. And if we need to expand that we have portable sterile force fields to rig something up. But, since it's just me for now, here I am."

Kirk nodded. "For how much longer?"

McCoy narrowed his eyes. "My sentiments exactly."

That was Day 3. The contagious period was known to last 3-4 days after symptoms abated.

By Day 4 McCoy had resorted to pacing the isolated room.

Jim tried to play games through the door with him when he was off-duty, but that still left very little for Leonard to do when he was on the Bridge. Chapel got him some PADDs to read. He caught up on his paperwork in record time.

Then Day 4 ended.

"Any time much longer like this and I'll end up talking to myself," McCoy muttered.

"Doctor, who were you speaking too?"

McCoy whirled around and brightened. "Spock! I am so delighted that you've stopped by!"

To those versed in reading Vulcan microexpressions, Spock looked vaguely nauseous at McCoy's uncharacteristically upbeat greeting. Such reactions just didn't happen.

"I came to check in on your continued recovery."

McCoy grinned. "Awfully sweet of you, Mr. Spock. Though it wasn't a bad case at all… reason I'm in here is to keep this li'l bug from hoppin' to you and then turnin' into something nastier." He paused for a moment, then gave the first officer a sly look. "So I suppose you could say you're the reason I'm stuck here."

"I see." That classic eyebrow rose up. "I was under the assumption that your own relaxed medical standards led you to becoming contaminated."

"Now, see here you-"

Day 5 wasn't so bad.

Day 6 must have been unusually busy for the ship, because hardly anyone stopped by. McCoy flopped on the biobed and stared at the ceiling. He really wanted a change of clothes. He really wanted a shower.

He really really wanted to know what was going on. The lack of any news or even gossip was starting to get to him.

"Y'all better not be gettin' in any trouble out there!" he hollered.

Day 7 left him irritable.

"Listen, Nurse, I'm past the standard period, now let me out!"

"Can't do that, Doctor," Chapel said sweetly. "Considering the reports from Starbase 11's own quarantine, the general recommendation is at least another day to be on the safe side. And since we have a couple different species this thing can cross-mutate in, that makes the recommendation required for us."

McCoy sighed dramatically. "I knew I would die alone, I just didn't imagine it would be at the hands of my friends!"

"Oh, please," Chapel laughed at him. "This is a mutiny, plain and simple."

Finally, on the morning of the 8th day, a solid week since entering the quarantine, McCoy stepped out of isolation a free man.

"I'm missing time," he expounded as Jim met him in Sickbay's main ward. "Can I even rejoin the real world? Do we still use tricorders and protoplasers? Jim, fill me in, what have I missed?"

Jim smirked. "We've been recalled to Starbase 11. A missed strain of Heuretta endolosis mutated and is wreaking havoc on their station. They have requested medical aid."

McCoy stopped and closed his eyes. "Let me get my shower, first."