Jim buckled down and applied himself to study for the next few days. The sample test he did showed he wasn't that far behind, but his advanced math and science needed some brushing up. He'd done his best to keep his mind sharp during his years as a slave, but generally algebra was not used much in his work for the masters.
Between Spock's and Amanda's tutoring, he found himself picking it up again rapidly. During the hot parts of the day, he'd stay in and study, and in the mornings and evenings he'd help with various chores. Life had begun to fall into a routine again and Jim actually liked it. Existence wasn't loathsome anymore.
Unfortunately, or fortunately, this easy rhythm was disrupted by the arrival of the representatives from Starfleet. He'd just finished working out some equations with Spock when Sarek returned home with a couple of strangers in tow, both in Starfleet uniforms. Jim hardly noticed this host family tactfully withdraw while he was busy sizing up the visitors.
The older man was clearly Captain Pike, judging by the rank stripes and authoritative air about him. Something seemed vaguely familiar, but Jim couldn't put his finger on what it was. The younger man looked highly uncomfortable and was already sweating, in addition to looking slightly green. Poor guy obviously had been dragged down here against his will, Jim thought sympathetically. He couldn't deny, it was nice to see non-hostile humans again, but he stayed on his guard lest they try to lure him to their side.
"James Kirk?" Captain Pike asked.
"Yes, sir." Jim answered warily.
"And you are...?" The other man seemed to be assessing him with a look, hazel eyes trained on him. Jim was used to being looked up and down by speculative buyers, but this wasn't that kind of look.
"I'm Chris Pike and this is Dr. Leonard McCoy and we don't want anything from you, only to verify your existence and talk to you a little bit. I brought the doctor along in case you needed medical care, much to his dismay."
Jim turned to the uncomfortable looking man and stuck out his hand. "Vulcan not your style, doc?"
He asked, with a more friendly grin than he'd offered the Captain. The poor guy looked like he could use a drink, but he shook Jim's hand amicably.
"No." He muttered. "Hot enough to boil my blood. But it's the shuttle ride that did me in. I have severe aviophobia-fear of dying in something that flies. I warned the Captain I'd probably throw up on him, but he made me come anyway. Do you know how dangerous those things are?"
Jim's eyes widened as the deep grumbling drawl went on about eyeballs bleeding and probabilities of suffocation. He could hear Pike give an exasperated sigh behind them.
"And yet, you joined Starfleet?" He said, somewhat amusedly, thinking he already liked this man a lot.
The doctor made a face. "Nasty divorce left me with nothing but my bones. Figured I might as well give other planets a try since the ex made life on earth so miserable. Speaking of miserable, you look like you haven't seen a good meal since Hector was a pup."
His sharp doctor eyes roamed over Jim's still very lean figure again. He shrugged.
"Trust me, Dr. Nothing-but-your-Bones, It was a whole lot worse when I was brought here two weeks ago. The Ambassador and his wife have been very hospitable and make sure I eat regularly. I'm not used to that, so it takes reminding."
Pike was frowning at this. "Where have you been all this time, Jim? You've been missing for a decade and most people gave you up for dead."
"Thanks to my loving stepdad selling me, I've been on Orion used as a unpaid whore for a rich merchant's wife and then working as a slave herding cattle on a giant farm on this backwater planet that's a hotbed for disgusting living conditions that Starfleet blatantly ignores with all the dilithium they bribe you with."
Jim's cool response was just short of hostile when he'd finished, staring with pointed suspicion at Pike, who looked suddenly much older.
"Oh." Was all he said for a minute, locking eyes with Dr. McCoy in a serious silent communication. Then he swore and ran his hands through his hair.
"I'm sorry, Jim. I knew Frank was a bastard, but I deluded myself into thinking Winona would have had better sense than to leave you with him. I...promised your father I'd watch out for you if anything happened to them and I failed. I shouldn't have given up so quickly, Jim."
The sincere regret in his eyes calmed Jim somewhat, but years of pain and bitterness weren't going away overnight.
"Yeah, well, don't even waste your breath trying to get me to go back there or join Starfleet to be a poster child for them. You've got corrupt officers that are allowing a lot of innocent beings to be trafficked and treated like animals, worse than animals in many cases. Why would I want to join such an organization? Instead of graduating high school, I was giving out "pleasure!"" He nearly spat the last few words with the force of his resentment.
"I'm certainly not going to try a recruitment pitch on you right now, Jim," Pike said, trying to placate Jim with his calm tones and not show the horror he was feeling at imagining a teenage kid being treated like that. "I can understand why you'd hate our guts. I never imagined something like this would happen."
Jim snorted. "Of course not. Who ever thought George Kirk's son would end up sold as a slave to a Federation member planet where it's supposed to be banned?"
"And I thought MY life was a mess," the doctor said under his breath. "Hey, kid. Before you burst a blood vessel, can I do a quick scan, make sure you're not carrying some alien disease like Cardassian Pox or Andorian shingles? Stuff's nasty. Makes your eyeballs bleed if you don't catch it in time. Who knows what you could have picked up out there? Space is disease and danger wrapped in darkness and silence."
Rather than becoming further irritated, Jim found himself smiling and assenting to the grouchy doctor's request, sitting down on a cushion while a medical scanner was waved in front of him. He was trying his best to ignore Pike, who had an expression of sadness and disgust (not at Jim) on his face.
"Well, you're deficient in iron, calcium, magnesium, and a whole list of other stuff, but that's to be expected." Dr. McCoy said at last. "Nothing that proper meals and supplements won't cure. Remarkable for the conditions you were in."
Jim hid his own relief with a cynical laugh. "Oh, I don't have any of THOSE issues, Bones. I can assure you of that. They were very careful to keep me in optimal health on Orion, being a prize pet and all."
The doctor's face was a comical mixture of dismay and incredulity. "What did you just call me?" He asked in disbelief.
Jim smiled again. "It's your new nickname, Bones. I've decided we're going to be great friends, even if you are stuck in Starfleet."
"Bones" sighed and Pike shook his head, glad to see Jim still had that Kirk charm.
After all this mostly uncomfortable conversation, Jim was incredibly grateful to see Spock enter the room and inform them that dinner was prepared. He eagerly followed her graceful figure to the dining room, secretly admiring how fetching those deep blue robes were on her. He bet Starfleet didn't have anyone like her in their ranks.