Disclaimer: It's the last chapter and I still don't own Star Trek.
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Origins: The Journey Begins
Chapter 30: One
STARDATE: 2231.242 (Wed, Aug 29th, 2232) [1-year-Old]
Today was Spock's first birthday. The sun had barely risen and Amanda was already in an angry mood.
She hadn't even got out of bed when she sent her first wave of disapproval and annoyance through the tel she shared with Sarek. She knew Sarek was meditating but she didn't care. She was angry with him.
She knew Sarek would be able to feel her displeasure as he meditated in the next room. He would not have to rise into a state of consciousness to feel the deep, burning anger his wife passed onto him.
Long before this day Amanda had talked about a first birthday party for her biological son. Spock was her only child, and he was most definitely her last. She wanted to give him the best first birthday party ever!
Amanda sat up in bed and crossed her arms over her chest as she recalled the conversation she had had with Sarek on multiple occasions. It's not logical – he said. He will not benefit from it – he said. It is time-consuming – he said. It's not the Vulcan way – he said.
Amanda was sick of his logical reasoning. Did he not understand that his son was also part human?
Annoyed with the way that things had turned out, Amanda's anger started to boil and she needed a release. Over the past two months, she had continuously debated with Sarek about the idea of a birthday party.
Amanda got up out of bed and headed down to the kitchen. She needed to eat something before her irritation made her queasy.
She sat at the dining room table with a cup of hot tea brewing before her. She had finished her meal and knew that it wouldn't be long before Sarek finished his meditation and came down for nutrients.
Right on time, Sarek entered the dining room wearing a robe that displayed his House symbol on the back. Knowing that his wife needed to vent, he gathered his tea and bread that Zahntu had prepared for him and sat down adjacent to his bondmate.
He didn't eat the bread but he took one long sip of spicy tea before pushing it away and leaning forward, his arms resting on the table, his fingers steepled.
"I assume you want to have further discussion-" Sarek began but was cut off by Amanda's outburst.
"Damn right, I want to have further discussion! This is Spock's first birthday for crying out loud!" Amanda's voice was rich with emotion. Sarek was intrigued with the Terran phrase she had finished with. Vulcans do not cry out loud. Nonetheless, he hid his curiosity well.
"I am well aware what this day is," Sarek said calmly as he reached for his tea.
"Well, are you well aware of how your decision has made me feel?" Amanda emphasised by waving her hands about.
"I am well aware that you are human and have many emotions. Most of them illogical." Sarek spoke coolly. He had only stated fact but he got a very strong wave of anger through his bond. He had said something offensive then.
"Spock is part human and has many human emotions. So, however illogical you think my emotions are, just remember your son them too." Amanda seethed. She was on the verge of exploding, but after so many years living with Vulcans, she knew anger was pointless.
Sarek sighed as he heard what his wife had to say. She had said it many times before yet it still unsettled him.
"Amanda, I know my son has strong emotions. I see him express himself visually every day. You need not tell me." His voice was soft, just above a whisper. There was a short silence. He could tell that Amanda was calming herself down. He could hear her mentally counting to herself. He did not understand what counting to ten and calmness had in common but he was grateful that it was working on his wife.
"Sarek… I understand this is hard for you; to see your son expressing his emotions. But… to force him to suppress these emotions… at such a young age…" She paused, hoping that Sarek would speak to break the awkward silence she had created.
"I have informed you why he needs to suppress his emotions." He looked at her, his eyes were begging her to understand.
"I know." Amanda became quiet again.
A knock at the door echoed through the foyer and the tension at the table dissipated. Amanda looked at Sarek in confusion, she was not expecting anyone to come by. She was suddenly aware of her attire. She was still in her night robe.
Sarek noticed his wife fidgeting and said, "Calm, wife. It is only my mother. I have invited her to come and speak with us."
"Your mother! Oh, now I can relax!" Amanda sarcastically exclaimed as she fidgeted even more. Sarek stood to get the door. Once Sarek was out of the room Amanda spoke out loud, knowing full well that her husband could still hear her.
"I can't believe you get your mother to fight your battles for you. I told you to do it once, and now you pull her into every 'debate' you can't win." She mused loudly, looking into her now empty mug. When did she finish that?
"I assure you, I am not 'fighting' for my son. I am merely acting as a mediator to assist you both so that you may come to a decision regarding Spock's birthday." T'Pau's voice wafted over Amanda.
Amanda turned to see her mother-in-law gracefully enter the room and take a seat on the other side of her.
"Mother." Amanda nodded in acknowledgement. Sarek returned to his seat.
After a couple of long awkward seconds silence, Sarek continued his train of thought, "Spock's human emotions conflict with his Vulcan emotions. With the Vulcan emotions being significantly stronger, it is only a matter of time before he will bring harm to others."
"Has he been attending 'Young Advance Minds'?" T'Pau queried steepling her hands in much the same way as Sarek had done moments before.
"Every day for the past four months. He is there now." Sarek replied.
"Are you assisting him in home meditation?" T'Pau asked.
"Indeed. The sooner he learns how to control his emotions the better it will be." Sarek stated.
"And I get that. Truly, I do." Amanda interjected. "But how does any of this have to do with a simple birthday party?"
"Our son is not human. You cannot expect him to be raised as one." Sarek said. His voice rose a little louder and his tone was sharp.
"He is not Vulcan either. So how do you expect to raise him as one?" Amanda leant back in her chair, eyes glaring at Sarek. "All I wanted was for our son to have at least one human birthday before you turned him completely Vulcan."
Sarek frowned slightly before answering, "I will teach him all that I know about the ways of Surak. He will be well equipped with our laws and expectations. He will achieve his status as Head of House just as Surak was many years ago, maybe then, after many years of Vulcan practices and behaviour treatment, he will not be shunned or frowned upon. He might even be recognised as a Vulcan and not some hybrid science experiment."
Sarek looked up at Amanda to see steady streams of tears rolling down her red cheeks. She was embarrassed, ashamed and sad.
"Sarek, why? Why didn't you tell me this?" Amanda said through a sob. "Why didn't you tell me that this was how you felt?"
"What sort of role model would I be for my son if I fell prey to my own emotions?" He slumped slightly in his chair. He had never been this intimate with his bondmate before anyone before, including his mother.
"Sarek, it is important to feel." T'Pau's voice was strong. Both Amanda and Sarek looked at her in shock.
"I do not understand. The teachings of Surak state-" Sarek was cut off by his mother.
"-I know the law." She was stern. "Logic is to rule over emotions. Our kind thrives on logic, uses logic to function at our fullest capacity. But to be completely illiterate of any form of emotion is illogical. Without 'feeling' how would we know what is right and what is wrong?" T'Pau looked at the two before continuing.
"Sarek, how do you expect your son to control his emotions if he does not have the knowledge to identify them? How will he learn to suppress rage if he does not know what it is? He needs to understand what it is that he is feeling for him to successfully conquer it so that it will not return in full."
"Spock has spent his first year of his life experiencing these emotions," Sarek said after a short silence.
"I am certain that indulging your son in human birthday traditions just once will not affect his mentoring," T'Pau said as she stood up from her spot. "I must leave you now. I have other matters to attend to. Live long and prosper."
Sarek and Amanda both stood and responded respectfully before T'Pau vanished out the front door.
T'Pau was on a mission. Her son could be so stubborn at times. A trait he got from his father, unfortunately. T'Pau didn't lie when she said that she had other matters to attend to. She planned to give Amanda want she wanted; a first birthday party for Spock.
She had very little information about the tradition of birthday parties so her first stop was the Vulcan embassy. After making her way through the corridors she came to the one Vulcan who she had in mind.
"H'ven R'Va." T'Pau addressed the Communications Officer by her full name, startling the woman.
"Honoured Mother S'chn T'gai T'Pau," R'va responded as she bowed to her superior.
"I am need of you." T'Pau began as she stepped into R'Va's dark office and motioned for the younger Vulcan woman to take a seat.
After visiting the embassy, T'Pau stopped off at the Early Learning Centre. After walking through a room filled with young Vulcan eyes staring at her she came to the correct learning cove.
She looked down to see her eldest grandson rapidly answering question after question the simulation was throwing at him. After completely his round he turned to see his grandmother looking down at him from above.
"Grandmother!" Sybok was visibly shocked, but then remember himself and quickly put on his best Vulcan façade.
T'Pau dismissed his display of emotion and continued with her mission. "Walk with me, Sybok. I need to discuss something with you."
T'Pau's mission was almost complete she only had two more Vulcans to talk to. Unfortunately, they were both at Sarek's house. If caught, she would have to tell the truth. She would have to be quick if she didn't want to be seen by Amanda, perhaps she could distract the human. She headed for her son's house.
She was granted access by the front guards and swiftly entered the house and headed straight for the kitchen. Fortunately, both the Vulcans she wanted to see were there. She informed them of the upcoming event and vanished from the kitchen within minutes.
As she headed towards the door she was stopped by Amanda. "Mother. I thought you had left. My apologies, I did not know." Amanda said as she descended the stairs. She was wearing a different robe.
"I had left. I returned to accompany you to the Young Advanced Minds institute to retrieve Spock." T'Pau answered honestly.
Amanda nodded in approval and the two woman headed out.
Amanda was still upset about the 'Birthday Debate', but after picking up her son and venting to T'Pau, who listened graciously, she felt a little better.
As the women walked up the garden path, T'Pau stopped Amanda. "Amanda, I must inform you that I have taken it upon myself to create a Terran party to celebrate your son's first birthday. It is not in our custom. It is not Vulcan tradition, but Spock is part human, and must learn to embrace all of who he is."
Amanda was close to breaking down into tears. The most Vulcan woman she knew had planned a party for her son. She wanted to hug her, but she restrained herself, knowing that her tears alone were making the Vulcan before her uncomfortable.
T'Pau motioned towards the front door and Amanda quickly ran to open it, Spock playing with her shoulder as he rested upon her hip.
Amanda opened the door and was greeted by S'Reiyah.
"Lady Amanda, this way please," S'Reiyah said softly and led the small crowd down the hall to one of the ballrooms. S'Reiyah stepped forward and opened the doors before stepping back and allowing Amanda and Spock to enter first.
The ballroom was unrecognisable. The windows were draped with thick, dark fabrics of black, grey and blue. The golden floors were covered with black velvet carpets and the rich red walls were hidden behind grey and blue material. The ballroom instantly looked smaller. It was like walking into a funeral parlour.
The room was filled by all of Sarek's servants and guardians, and even some of his work colleagues. They seemed to be conversing with each other when Amanda entered, which was a good sign. R'Va stepped forward to talk with Amanda.
"T'Pau came to me and gave me the task of decoration," R'Va said and searched Amanda's face for signs of approval.
"You've done a good job." Amanda smiled. Having blacks, greys and blues hung around the place wasn't really the 'party decorations' she had hoped for, but she was happy with the outcome nonetheless.
Noticing Amanda's vocal tone and facial expression, R'Va knew she wasn't as delighted as she claimed to be.
"Vulcans do not find balloons useful. We don't require them, therefore, we do not have them here on the planet. I did what I could with the material I had. I do not have much in blue, so I added more blacks and greys to make up for the lack of blue."
Amanda smiled a true smile. "It looks amazing."
Content with Amanda's answer, R'Va bowed respectfully before taking her leave.
After R'Va departed from the conversation, Sybok and his friend, Konrok, made their present known. Spock started slapping Amanda's shoulder and bobbing on her hip as Sybok came to greet them.
"Mother." He acknowledged.
"Sybok." Amanda beamed.
"Syb!" Spock called from Amanda's hip. "Syb! Syb!" He kept calling, stretching out towards his brother.
"Hello, Spock. Welcome to your very first birthday party." Sybok said loudly as he stepped forward to take Spock from Amanda.
"Lady Amanda." Konrok bowed.
"Gentleman Konrok." Amanda smiled back. Konrok was 13 years old, the same age as Sybok. Konrok always accepted Sybok for who he was, making the boys the best of friends. Konrok was even interested in some of the changes Sybok had to go through. Konrok had not been affected by the Zephlons, but whenever Amanda called him a gentleman, he couldn't help the tiny blush that turned his ears green.
"Honoured Mother T'Pau came to Sybok at school today," Konrok stated. His hands behind his back.
"Did she now?" Amanda placed her hands on her hips and smiled at the young Vulcan boy.
"She asked if I could be in charge of the games." Sybok smiled even though Spock was pulling at Sybok's growing hair.
"Games?" Amanda was surprised. Vulcans playing birthday games, this was unheard of. Then she thought about it. "What kind of games?"
"Come and I'll show you," Sybok said. He desperately wanted to take her hand and drag her over, but having Spock fidgeting wildly in his grasp he decided to lead the way instead.
The games were not like the regular games you play at a party. There was no piñata, no pin the tail on the donkey and no pass the parcel. Instead, there were puzzles, trivia, word games and optical illusions.
Not quite the human birthday games Amanda expected, but she laughed hysterically when Spock somehow beat Konrok at a trivia quiz.
Amanda was sitting on the couch watching Spock piece together a puzzle when she felt the presence of someone behind her. She turned to see Sarek standing there with his hands behind his back.
He did not look disappointed at all. In fact, all was confirmed when he sent a wave of adoration and respect towards his wife. Amanda responded visually; smiling broadly, her eyes dancing with happiness. She stood up from the couch and came closer to her husband.
"I believe I was too focused on Spock's development and acceptance that my acceptance of you was lost. I focused too much on my son causing me to set you aside. That was not logical. You should not be cast aside and have your wants and needs destroyed because of my foolishness. I apologise." Sarek was sincere in his apology.
"Wow." Amanda was speechless for quite some time. Sarek's blank face forced her to continue. "I can't believe you apologised. You never apologise." A small smile appeared on her face.
"Do you accept?" Sarek questioned. His eyes betrayed him; showing Amanda his concern and nervousness.
"Accept? Accept what?" She asked seriously. Her smiled was replaced with a worried expression.
"My apology. Do you accept?" Sarek clearly stated.
"Of course, I accept, Ashayam!" She smiled before giving him a very passionate, very public kiss. Sarek's ears turned green with embarrassment. He closed his eyes and focused on redirecting his blood so his ears weren't visibly green.
The doors to the ballroom were opened once more and Zahntu strode through the door followed by a long table on wheels. The table was covered by a white sheet and was pushed from behind by one of Zahntu's cooks.
"Zahntu?" Amanda's face was starting to hurt from all the smiling.
Zahntu just cocked his head to the side and raised his eyebrow. Either Amanda was questioning his appearance in the ballroom, or she had forgotten who he was. Zahntu bowed to Sarek, then to Amanda before lifting the white sheet off of the table.
Endless bowls of blue ice-cream were placed along the wide table. Amanda gasped in shock as her eyes spotted the giant bowl of bubble gum ice cream in the centre of the table.
"I understand that chocolate cake is preferred for birthday parties, but considering our Vulcan biology, I could not allow it. Especially with young ones attending this event." Zahntu said to the royal couple before him. He turned to face Amanda. "I understand the colour blue is to represent a male child. Therefore, I decided to import various flavours of blue ice cream. I know your favourite flavour is bubble gum. There are many bowls of this flavour. The largest one being yours of course."
"Thank you, Zahntu. That's very thoughtful of you." She smiled sweetly before grabbing the large bowl and another smaller bowl of a different flavour.
Sarek looked at her with curiosity.
"This one is for Spock." She said and went back to the couch. Seeing the two bowls of ice cream in her hands, Spock stopped his puzzle and toddled over to her and gently tapped her knee.
"Yes, Spockles. This one is for you." She said as she held out a small spoon heaped with blue ice cream.
Spock opened his mouth and allowed his mother to feed him the ice cream. After the first mouthful, Spock clambered up onto the seat, took the bowl and spoon from his mother and started to feed himself.
Amanda laughed at her son's enthusiasm and called Zahntu over. Zahntu glanced at the eager young boy before turning his attention to Amanda.
"I am curious to what flavour ice cream Spock has," Amanda asked.
"I am not familiar with the words of the ice cream flavours, some are quite obscure and unusual. The flavour your son is eating is called 'Viagra'."
Amanda coughed and started to choke on the bubble gum ice cream. After swallowing a substantial amount of ice cream Amanda brought her hands to her head to soothe the instant brain freeze.
"WHAT?!" She yelled. All eyes fell on her. She didn't notice. She yanked the empty bowl out of her son's hands. "SPOCK! Did you eat all of this?!"
Spock's bottom lip began to wobble.
"Sweety…" She gathered Spock in her arms and mentally summoned Sarek. He appeared instantly.
"Sarek, he's consumed Viagra!" She panicked.
"Vulcan's are not affected by this drug." Sarek tried to calm her.
"He is part human!" She exclaimed.
"He is also too young and immature for the drug to affect him. He is safe." Sarek then paused before continuing, "However, I would exercise caution when he is older. With his DNA being part human there is no doubt that this drug will affect him in the future."
Amanda was shocked. She couldn't tell if he was joking or not. Then again, Sarek rarely joked. "Do you really think so?" Amanda said. Knowing that Spock was going to be okay, she calmed down.
Sarek replied, "Only time will tell."
So, that's it for now. I know it's kind of a weird place to finish the chapter but I didn't want it to go on forever.
The next story in the 'Origin' series is called 'Child of Africa' and it is based on Nyota Uhura's life from the age of two to the age of six. I'll start posting that story on November 6th. That way it gives my time to work on the next story.
Thanks again for reading and don't forget to leave a quick review on what you thought about the story.
