Thanks again for the reviews!

I'm also happy some of you like Olga, you'll see more of her occasionally in later chapters. :)

Chapter 22 – The Vulcan Code of Behavior

'So you haven't been in contact since the day you smashed your console,' Irina asked Soltek while they both were sitting on her couch.

'I've sent them a text message apologizing for my behavior, informing them about my health and concluded that there was no need to come to Vulcan and they responded that they wanted to talk to me verbally,' Soltek answered.

'Good,' Irina said relieved, 'at least they don't think you've gone insane then.'

'It is unlikely that they would draw that conclusion, although my behavior must have been quite alarming,' he replied.

'What exactly would they conclude?' Irina asked.

'We can only speculate,' Soltek answered slightly reluctant, 'but they might have concluded that my emotional control had failed because...there was a neuro-chemical imbalance in my brain.'

'You mean that you had the pon farr...can this happen prematurely?' Irina asked curious.

Soltek frowned, 'I don't have enough medical expertise to validate that hypothesis...but my telepathy teachers have warned against initiating any form of telepathic contact to someone there was...an attraction to. They said it is difficult to control and could severely compromise our mental equilibrium if we lost control during the telepathic contact.'

'No skin contact between the unwed...I get it,' Irina said, 'so that's the reason behind all those restrictions.'

'Possibly,' Soltek said, 'I didn't draw that conclusion when I was studying telepathy so I didn't ask about the implications.'

Irina chuckled.

'I don't see the cause for humor,' Soltek said.

'When I first went to see Dr. Lark she said something about sex education on Vulcan not being very thorough,' Irina said smiling.

Soltek raised both his eyebrows, 'that is a very human statement, I assure you Vulcans are...informed sufficiently.'

'Of course no one needs sex education if you just be a good boy and keep your hands to yourself,' Irina teased grinning widely.

Soltek blushed violently.

Irina regretted to have rubbed it in although it was incredulously cute to watch an adult Vulcan engineer blush like an adolescent school boy, who had been caught looking at a girl.

She went over to the replicator to give him some time and got herself a glass of water.

'Maybe we should get it over with now,' Irina said, 'what time is it on Vulcan?'

'1800,' Soltek answered, 'my parents will be at home.'

'Should I come with you?' she asked.

'I will call them alone first and then call you to introduce you,' he answered.

'Okay,' she said and gave him a short kiss on the cheek as he stood up to leave for his quarters, 'good luck!'

Then she sat down on her couch and waited nervously.

'Greetings, my parents,' Soltek said neutrally as his mother and father appeared on the screen.

'Greetings, our son,' they greeted back and he wondered if he spotted concerned anticipation in their faces.

'I ask forgiveness for not responding earlier to your wish to communicate verbally,' Soltek said.

They watched him intently, possibly trying to determine if he still showed signs of the fever.

'Since our last verbal communication got interrupted we want to inquire if you have changed your decision regarding T'Linck,' his father said.

'I haven't,' Soltek said as neutrally as possible, 'because I have found a prospective mate and have decided to pursue a bond with her because such a bond would have many logical advantages over a bond with T'Linck.'

'Please explain who this woman is and why you choose her over the woman your clan head has selected for you,' his father said tonelessly.

'Her name is Irina Paranov and she is a science officer working in the field of astronomy with the rank of Lieutenant. Since she is also in Starfleet we have a higher chance of living together permanently which would be an advantage over choosing T'Linck, who lives on Vulcan and is not enlisted in Starfleet,' Soltek said without a pause or even blinking.

'This woman is human?' his mother asked.

'Affirmative,' Soltek said, 'but she has served with many Vulcans and is very familiar with our culture.'

'Son,' his mother said carefully, 'you must be aware that she most likely will die approximately 113.8757 years before you because humans have a shorter life-span.'

'I am aware of this,' Soltek said.

'You must also be aware that your clan head may not come to the same conclusions as you do, she may forbid you to marry this human woman,' his father said.

'I know,' Soltek answered, 'I'm prepared to deal with the consequences should that be the case.'

His parents looked shocked for a second, then they quickly looked at each other and Soltek could tell they were talking over their bond.

'Have you informed this human woman of your considerations to become her mate?' his mother asked.

'Affirmative,' Soltek answered, 'it is customary for humans to go through a period of familiarizing oneself with a prospective mate before accepting a proposal...and we have agreed to conduct this process.'

They again raised their eyebrows and his father frowned before replying: 'Son, since you are still young I must warn you to guard your logical equilibrium very well and keep to Vulcan rules of behavior among those emotional off-worlders.'

Soltek wasn't sure he would find the right way to respond to this. 'Father, I am careful,' he said, trying his best to keep his voice steady and not show any emotions, 'but you have to be aware that in interactions between different species it is imperative to compromise between different codes of behavior.'

'Son,' his father asked sternly, 'what does this period of familiarizing with a prospective mate contain for humans?'

Soltek knew his father was about to find the weak spot about the situation between Irina and himself and he became painfully aware that he was blushing. 'Introduction to the families and friends of each other,' he answered, 'talking about each other's viewpoints on life planning, improving communication between each other, familiarizing oneself with each other's requirements for a mate, spending time together to evaluate compatibility.'

His parents frowned, then they looked at each other and obviously talked over their bond again.

'I see,' his father said, 'it is certainly logical to respect the customs of other cultures, but it is not logical to do this to the extend of sacrificing your own culture. Some compromises are within the limits of diplomacy...but there are certain lines we have to insist on,' his father added with an emphasis.

'Son,' his mother said, 'if this woman is so important to you we will talk with your clan head and we give you permission to familiarize yourself with her, but we have to insist on proper Vulcan conduct while you do this...we know humans have not the same ethics and sincerity about bonding as Vulcans have and we warn you to guard yourself against their emotional behavior.'

'We know some of their familiarizing rituals require some distasteful forms of...physical contact and we forbid you to indulge in them before we are convinced this earth woman is compatible with you and you are officially bonded,' his father said sternly and Soltek noticed his father was slightly blushing, but was too busy trying to control the burning knot of shame and guilt which seemed to painfully contract his stomach.

'I have to inform you,' Soltek stuttered, 'that we have already negotiated to include some human customs in our period of familiarization.'

His parents didn't even try to hide their shock this time.

'What are you saying?!' his mother nearly hissed.

'There has been...physical contact,' Soltek said tonelessly, unable to look into their eyes.

After a pause his father spoke up and he didn't hide his anger very well: 'Soltek, you have severely disappointed us, we cannot allow you to have further contact with this human for the time being. We will discuss how to deal with this situation and then call you.'

Irina had a bad feeling about this while waiting, then finally she got the call from Soltek.

'I have informed my parents, but they wish to take some time for meditation and counsel and don't require to make your acquaintance until then' he said.

'They took the news badly then?' Irina asked concerned.

'I have to meditate before I am able to report,' Soltek said tonelessly.

'Damm!' Irina muttered after he had terminated the call.