Chapter 2
by Starsinger
Realizing who the child must be, Sarek takes her to see Spock Prime. Don't own them.
The child slowly took to the daily rituals on New Vulcan. After her first forced bath, she cleaned up with a dusky olive complexion, closer to the Vulcan norm than Romulan. Her hair turned out fiercely curly as was demonstrated with her older counterpart. When a genetic analysis was run it was discovered that her mother was Vulcan, and the family to which she was related had been killed when Vulcan was destroyed. That discovered, Sarek filed for guardianship and was granted such.
There were hold-overs from her years on Hellguard. He never found her in bed. Frequently, she was under the bed fast asleep on the rock hard floor. She awoke at the slightest noise, survival instincts so ingrained it would be difficult to train out of her. The only thing that made this time difficult was that she would fly into sudden fits of anger and rage that no one could explain. One day at the end of his rope, Sarek called upon Spock Prime.
Spock looked at the girl in shock before calling out to the kitchen, "Saavik."
Saavik came out of the kitchen and stared at the girl, her face unreadable. Sarek realized that if the two were truly anything alike, this girl would learn self-control. That made him feel easier. The girl wandered around the dining area while the three talked.
"I would never have guessed that the universe would be this determined…" Saavik's voice trailed off. She knew the work she had done to cause this to happen. She reached out her hand to touch Spock's, "It doesn't want you to be lonely."
Spock nodded, he'd spent over half his life with her. Often apart because of her own duties with Starfleet and his responsibilities as an Ambassador. They had both retired shortly before the incident with Nero, and both now enjoyed the fruits of that retirement, if not quite the way they both expected. Halfway through the discussion on how to handle the girl she flew into yet another inexplicable rage. Spock caught her and laid two gentle fingers on her temple. She relaxed, letting the anger flow out of her as suddenly as it had come.
"That will, unfortunately, be a common occurrence," Spock said. "It's just a side effect of her early life. Is she still sleeping under the bed? Taking the food you give her and hiding someplace before eating it? Waking at the slightest sound?" Sarek nodded yes to each question.
"These are survival instincts that will stand her in good stead, Sarek," Saavik replied. "She may well choose Starfleet when she is old enough. Trust me, she is bright enough to get into the Vulcan Science Academy as well." Spock and Saavik looked at each other, a deep sadness passed between them. Something he couldn't understand. "Let her choose her own name. Let's see if this is truly an echo, or something new."
This brought Sarek up short, "She was never really given a name?"
Saavik caught the little girl to bare a shoulder, on the shoulder was a brand, "This brand represents the name of the clan who donated its genes to her. If she ever meets someone from this clan, she would be recognized as such." Saavik revealed her own shoulder to show the scar. Identical to the one on the girl's. "It is done just after a Romulan child is born and is the first thing a child remembers." The girl struggled in her grip and Saavik let her go. It was a strange turn of events, as they entered the library looking for the girl so Sarek could leave, that they found her there. She had pulled out a book in Vulcan and was appearing to teach herself to read.
"It's going to be even harder for him now that Amanda is gone," Saavik said quietly. It was often Amanda's quiet touch and dazzling smile that hauled in Saavik's wild temper. "She should start wandering away from home in a few days."
Spock turned and touched her face in appreciation and love, "But you always came back."
Three days later Sarek called, "I can't find her anywhere."
Saavik replied calmly, "Sarek, she will come back. Just be patient. She's not going to settle down easily."
Several emotions flitted across his face as he considered her words. He nodded, "I've taken on your suggestion and hired Mrs. O'Brien as a housekeeper." A human and a widow, like Sarek, she had three children and four grandchildren back on Earth. She herself had been shocked at the appalling condition of the child Spock brought home. She too worried at the child's absence, not at all reassured by this strange other woman to whom Sarek spoke. The girl came home three days later.
Spock and Kirk strolled outside the academy where they were both teaching classes. Spock had refined the Kobayashi Maru even further with elements stemming from the encounter with Khan. Although he wasn't forcing anyone to enter a warp core chamber or anything. "So, let me get this straight," Kirk said in a low tone. "You went to find Romulan children and you found your WIFE?"
"Well, obviously, Jim, she's not my wife right now," Spock said uncomfortably. The conversation with Uhura that had followed his return from Vulcan had been VERY uncomfortable. "If it does happen, it will be many years from now when it does." Saavik's exact words to Uhura five years ago had been that she was no threat to the young couple. "Where are you headed?"
"Tactics, Spock, I'm actually trying to teach these kids to do what I do. McCoy has a theory about my brain, he thinks it simply processes information faster than anybody, including me, can keep up." Kirk sighed, "That's not something that can be taught." Spock said nothing having witnessed this process many times since the first time on board the Enterprise heading for Vulcan. "Spock, what if she can do this? What if that's one of the reasons she's cropping up here too."
Spock considered this. Another such as this would be an advantage, but it would also mean Starfleet would have a fight on its hands. Vulcan would not willingly let that go. "I do not know, Jim. My father and I will do our best to make sure she follows the path best for her."
Saavik's looked onto the landscape of New Vulcan. The child, she knew, was very gifted. One whose grasp of situation would only be exceeded by Kirk's. Unlike her husband, she had taken the command chair and guided her through war. She lost many people in her crew, but had managed to come out of it with her ship intact, and most of her people alive. She only knew that this girl needed to choose her own path. She felt a familiar arm drape itself across her shoulders as she was handed a cup of tea, Earl Grey. She sipped at appreciatively and relaxed into his embrace. The sun set fading into darkness over the new landscape ahead.