"We have no Captain and no goddamn First Officer to replace him," came the usual irritated grumble of McCoy.
"Yeah, we do" and Kirk stood up from the console he had been leaning on.
Sulu pointed at Kirk, "Pike made him First Officer."
"You gotta be kidding me!" and Uhura inwardly mirrored the sentiment.
"Thanks for the support," Kirk threw out disappointed at his best friend.
Uhura was still angry at him. He had insulted Spock and his mother when Spock had been hurting and she couldn't forgive him for it. She walked up to him and glared, "I sure hope you know what you're doing. Captain."
She hid her surprise on hearing his somber tone, "So do I."
Kirk sounded unsure of himself, and Uhura turned away to give him time to compose himself. She might be angry at him for what he did, but he was their Captain now and her Starfleet training kicked in.
oOo
Uhura had watched as Kirk and Spock had somehow joined together and become a force to be reckoned with. The Enterprise's Command duo were becoming famous among Starfleet circles. She hadn't understood at first but after having a talk with Spock about him, she understood how much regard Spock held for Kirk. It also helped that Kirk had apologized to Spock for his words during the Bridge.
They butted heads often, but when working together they almost always pulled a miracle out of their asses.
Being in the senior Command team of the Enterprise also meant she got closer to Kirk and was fast becoming close friends. He had all but stopped hitting on her after the anti-climactic reveal of her first name from Spock during their intimate moment on the transporter PADD.
It was nice to have Kirk, Sulu and Chekov join her for a game or a movie in the rec room when she was not spending time with her girl friends. She enjoyed their endless banter and found them all sharing similar tastes in music and movies. Kirk, Spock and McCoy would join her in the Observation Lounge where they would all play poker or watch Kirk and Spock play chess, the conversation flowing like a river running from the beginning of time.
Uhura had known that life in the upper echelons was going to be lonely. She had braced herself for that when she joined Starfleet, determined to make a name for herself, while doing the thing that she loved. She hadn't expected to have found a partner in Spock or a friend in Sulu and Kirk and the others. She came to understand that it wasn't as bad as she had expected or braced herself for.