AN: I'm going to warn everyone before this chapter starts that this part of the story has some very dark and disturbing content. And by disturbing, I mean mutilation disturbing. In order to spare you guys and the story, I'm going to put a warning in bold right between the disturbing passages and the normal stuff so you know when to avert your eyes. Also, questions will be answered.
Chapter Five: Stories
"I'm sorry, Captain, but I refuse to move this ship."
Jim Kirk was at a loss. His greatest fear had come alive: Colonel Minerva had seized control of the ship. They were now standing in the way of Lemieu's ship, the Hero's Tale, leaving the Persephone System and Minerva refused to let him through.
"Colonel, please, I know he hurt and insulted you, but he's a foreign Amabassador with diplomatic immunity! If we piss him off too much, the Gorillians will take it as an act of war. If that happens, the Romulans will aid them in fighting a war with us. We can't afford it."
"Captain, there is a way to take care of Lemieu without starting a war. I know there is."
"Colonel, with all due respect, the best minds in the Federation have been trying to take down Lemieu for decades. No one has been able to figure it out."
"Then we will." Minerva replied. "I'm sorry, but I will not stand by while free women are attacked and enslaved. It goes against everything I live for, everything I know, and everything I believe in."
"Colonel, please, the Federation has never been able to find a solution to this."
Minerva smiled. "Yes, but the Federation has never had a Scyran ship or a Scyran Princess. Let me remind you, Captain, that The Federation is very interested ad desirous of an alliance with my people. How open do you think the Scyran Parliament and Queen are going to be to an alliance when they found out the Federation allowed a man who attacked and tried to kill their crown princess go free, particularly after we so generously gave you our ship and technology?"
"I—uh, well…."
Minerva shook her head. "I just don't understand you people! You build fleets of starships to explore the galaxy, you travel through time and face down giant space amoebas. But you're willing to watch and let some dwarf go around and kidnap your women because you're afraid of war and he has diplomatic immunity? Even an Ambassador with Diplomatic Immunity can cause a political incident and he just tried to kidnap a foreign princess. Maybe you just don't care about your women. Maybe you only care when it is your men who are threatened."
Kirk slammed his fist on the conference table. "That is not true!"
"Then prove it." She looked at him pleadingly. "Come on, Jim, I don't want to do this. I know we can think of something together if you would just try! What if it was Uhura? Or Yeoman Rand? Or your mother or sister or daughter? Today, my eight-year-old daughter almost lost her mother. Your women aren't as powerful as we are, Jim. They can't fight off two giant men unarmed! This is fifty-four percent of the Federation's population that various bureaucrats and now you are allowing to live in danger. You're a better man than that, Jim. Say that attacking me was an act of war because I'm the princess of a nation the Federation is allied with. Attacking an ally is an act of war, Jim. Use that to your advantage to help your people!"
Jim sighed. "It won't work. The alliance between the Federation and Scyra isn't official. It will take him two seconds to find that out and call our bluff. There's no way we could-" His eyes flashed suddenly. "If there was some way that we could convince them that we were in the middle of completing an alliance that required you in some way, that could definitely count!"
"Well, has there ever been a time when the involvement of a Princess was crucial to forming an alliance? Then you could say that they were hindering diplomatic relations and threatening the security of both the Federation and Scyra." Minerva asked.
"I can't think of any…." Jim said. "Oh…. Wait…. Yeah…. We could take a leaf out of the book of the old royal families of Earth. Minerva, can you pretend that you are married?"
"I suppose so," Minerva said. "But if I were already married, then wouldn't there already be an alliance?"
"That's right. But maybe there needs to be two ceremonies to finalize it….?"
"I like where you're going with this." Minerva said.
Kirk smiled suddenly. "Minerva, I need you to find a Scyran child who looks like you, dress her up in Arsinoe's royal robes and have her report to sick bay. I want you to dress full-royalty too. Robes, jewels, crown, the whole thing. I want you to make sure everyone knows you're a princess the second they look at you. Spock?"
Spock raised his left eyebrow to show he was listening. Jim smirked.
"Spock, go put on your dress uniform. Congratulations, today you become a prince, and a father."
"Are they ready?" Kirk asked Janice.
She nodded. "They're waiting outside."
"Good. Mr. Chekov, open up communications with the Hero's Tale."
"Aye, Captain."
Suddenly, the image of a very angry Lemieu sitting in a command chair appeared on the screen. "Kirk, you are going to suffer for this! This, this is an act of war, Kirk!"
Jim assumed a look of innocence. "We're only repaying you in kind, Ambassador."
"What is that supposed to mean?" Lemieu sneered.
"Ten hours ago you attempted to abduct a young woman on Persephone Eight, did you not?"
"That is the custom of my people, I have diplomatic immunity, trying to abduct your women is not an act of war!" Lemieu said.
"It is an act of war, though, for one government to threaten and interfere with the diplomatic relations between two other governments, is it not?"
"Yes, so? Abducting some random whore isn't political! Trust me, we will fight you, Kirk!"
Jim looked at his fingernails. "I wouldn't do that, Lemieu. After all, the Romulan Empire did agree to ally itself with either of us if the other committed an act of war."
"Yes, which is why you should be scared! I've been trying to take your women for years Kirk, that's perfectly legal for me! Not an act of war."
Kirk laughed. "Lemieu, are you aware of who built the ship I'm currently commanding?"
He wasn't supposed to know, but that didn't matter.
"Yeah, some race you people made first contact with seven years ago." Lemieu replied impatiently. "What's your point?"
"Are you aware that the Federation and the nation in question, known as Scyra, have been working on forming an alliance?"
"So what if you were? I fail to see how that involve me." Lemieu said. "Get to the point Kirk, I'm running out of patience."
"It was decided that an alliance would be formed by a marriage between a member of the Scyran royal family and distinguished member of Star Fleet who came from a very distinguished Vulcan family. It was agreed that the couple would first be married in a Vulcan ceremony, and then in a Scyran ceremony, and then that would seal the alliance. The Vulcan ceremony took place six years ago."
"So you have an alliance with some isolated race, big deal. You're testing my patience Kirk, I assure you, alliance or no, we will destroy you and the stupid little race that built your fancy ship."
"Actually, the alliance isn't finalized yet. See, to get married in Scyran society, it is required that the couple produce a child strong enough to reach the age of five. The couple did so, and the family is on their way to Scyra for the second ceremony and the formal forging of the alliance. It just so happens that this is the ship that is transporting the family."
"So, you're the ones holding us both up. It's not our fault you're staying here. I don't understand where you get off blaming us. You're shooting yourself in both feet."
Kirk grinned. "See, that's where we get to you. Tell me, Lemieu, do you ever bother to learn who the women you harass are before abducting them?"
Lemieu snorted. "Of course not, they're just new whores for my harem. That's all the identity they nee-" And then the dawning comprehension came to his face.
Kirk looked over his shoulder at Janice. "Yeoman, will you please ask our special passengers to enter the bridge now?"
Janice pushed the button to open the doors and Minerva and Spock walked in. Spock in his dress uniform, carrying Minerva's little cousin Tabitha who was wearing royal robes and prosthetic ears and eyebrows designed to make her look Vulcan, Minerva in her royal robes, jewels, and crown.
Everyone on the bridge bowed to them, including Kirk, who got up from his command chair and helped Minerva into it. "Ambassador Lemieu, allow me to introduce Her Royal Highness Crown Princess Minerva Hippolyta of Scyra, her husband, future Prince-Consort Star Fleet Commander Spock of Vulcan, and their daughter, Her Royal Highness Princess Arsinoe Hippolyta."
"You tried to take my Mommy from me!" Tabitha said very convincingly.
"Ambassador Lemieu," Kirk said, "Had you been successful, you would have prevented an alliance six years in the making. You threatened diplomatic relations between the Federation and Scyra, and therefore committed an act of war."
Lemieu's eyes almost burst out of his skull, his jaw fell to the floor. "I… I…. I didn't know, I- If I could—I—I-"
"Your accent is gone, Ambassador," said Minerva. "Ambassador, you witnessed my combat prowess earlier today, did you not?"
Lemieu nodded.
"Well, let's just say that's just a taste of what my people and I are capable of." Minerva said, smiling. "And this ship? Well, it could easily vaporize yours using practically no power and take out about fifteen more in the same blow. We have a fleet of these ships. While I am not Queen yet, I am allowed to assume the role of Commander-in-Chief of my country's armed forces should I at anytime decide to do so. Today, when you made your pathetic attempt at abduction, you didn't just declare war on the Federation and the Romulan Empire, you declared war on Scyra, as well. All Fourteen Billion of us. Now, I wonder what your government would think of that?"
"Your—Your Majesty!" Lemieu said, "I never intended—"
"Yes you did. You made that abundantly clear. Don't try to lie to me unless you want me to personally castrate you." Minerva said.
"I- I was merely following the customs of my people, if I had any idea-"
"A custom that the Federation has made abundantly clear is not welcome in their territory. I am guessing by your words that were I not who I was, you'd be proud of yourself for what you do. You're not sorry for your barbarity, you're just sorry that there are consequences this time. Your words and excuses are pathetic and you are making your situation worse with every word you say."
Lemieu gasped. "I am so sorry! Please! What do I have to do-"
"Gerard Lemieu, you are a disgusting creature, sub-humanoid purely on the virtue of your actions. Since the Federation made first contact with your people, you have been linked to over four hundred and fifty attempted abductions and over seventy disappearances. You have gotten by because the Federation is a peace-loving institution who hate the thought of putting their people through a war no matter how disgusted they are by your animalistic, repulsive, monstrous lifestyle. My people used to be that way with the other nation that inhabited our planet. But we've learned from our mistakes even if the Federation hasn't. You slither about Federation space, making human beings live in fear of your monstrous views of women. Seeing them not as people, but as objects that are rightfully yours. Finally, you've gone too far. I have no doubt you are devoid of real remorse and will learn nothing of this. All you are expressing is a manifestation of your own cowardice. The Federation should have invaded and taken control of your people and set your women free from your hideous oppression the minute they first came into contact with you, but they didn't because their government is afraid of becoming an aggressor. Now, if you have any sense whatsoever, you will try to convince me that there is some redeemable aspect to you and that I shouldn't deal you the punishment that you and your pathetic excuse for a race so richly deserve. Oh, and I'm still debating whether I should send your government a warning in the form of your dismembered limbs, decapitated head and entrails."
Kirk was seized by a great fear as he listened to the Colonel speak. This was not the kind, funny, nurturing mother and disciplined Officer he knew. This was a war-beast preparing to strike and protect her young. This was the warrior released. This was the future queen doing whatever it took to protect her people.
Lemieu was on the ground before they knew it, hysterically begging for mercy. After several minutes of it, Minerva shouted at him to shut up. He did.
"Alright, to prove you're committed to your life, you are going to present an offering. Yeoman, please take my child out of the room."
OKAY! IF YOU DON'T WANT TO READ SOMETHING REALLY DISTURBING, SKIP OVER THE PASSAGES UNTIL YOU SEE ANOTHER BOLD MESSAGE!
Spock handed Tabitha over to Janice, who quickly followed Minerva's order.
"What kind of offering?" Lemieu said. "I've got seven billion credits on board the ship. It's yours."
Minerva shook her head. "I'm not stupid, Lemieu, you probably have more than that. But that doesn't matter anyway because I don't want something as insincere and common as money. No, I want to teach you a lesson. I want to take something that will teach you a little humility. I want something very close to you, that you never thought you'd have to give up. Something that made you feel entitled to try and abduct me and countless other women. And no, it's not your ship or your money. No, you're not going to lose any of that, if that's what you were afraid of. No, you're going to lose one of your testicles."
Everyone gasped and looked at Minerva in utter horror. Her face was perfectly serene. Even Spock looked stunned.
"What?" Lemieu squeaked.
"Have one of your crew go and fetch you a knife. And then, right where you are, with all of us watching, you are going to personally pull down your pants and cut off one of your testicles. I don't care which. Just one. And I suggest you do it, or you'll have to face much worse pain."
Jim bent down and put his lips to Minerva's ear. "Um, isn't that taking this a little too far?"
"He's losing something he's got two of. He stole the lives of countless women. Who do you think will have suffered more? The women who were torn from their homes and families to be a sex slave in his harem, or him?" She said. "He's already proved he doesn't deserve to have his genitalia, I'm only cutting off a slice. All the horrible things he's done were because he thought he should be allowed to, that he was entitled to, because he was a so-called man. He needs to have what he based his cruelty off of cut down to size. Jim, people like him are the reason women everywhere are afraid to go out at night, resent you because men like him have kept them down, are afraid to trust people, particularly men, why you Federation people are so confused and suffer so much when it comes to romance and inter-gender communication. You more than anyone should hate him for what he's done to you, your sex, and your entire race. Think about all the times you tried to reach out and get close to a woman but she wouldn't let you because she was afraid? Think of the friends you've had who've killed themselves because being raped left them with a feeling of filth they could not wash away. Think of all the women you've cared about who have felt victimized by some monster who thinks he has the right to call himself a man. Think of all the negative connotations that come with being a man that you've had to deal with even though you know that being a real man is a wonderful thing. Think of all the horrible things that have taken place because of misogyny, misandry, chauvinism and all forms of sexism. All of it is personified by that pathetic bug in the velvet coat."
Kirk thought about that time his cousin Mary had come home in tears because her date and three of his friends had beaten and raped her, how when he tried to comfort her and let her know how much he loved and supported her, she jerked away because anyone touching her brought her back to that horrible experience. How the defense attorney at her trial berated her, called her a slut, and tried to make people believe she was some sort of sexual deviant, how the defense attorney was actually allowed to pass her panties around to the jury. How the jury originally was hung because she had worn tight jeans and the judge decided that removing them required help from the wearer. How for four damn months those guys were free and harassed her. How after Jim beat one of the boys up, his friends kidnapped him, taped him to a chair in their basement, taped his eyes open and forced him to watch the video footage. How he had been forced to watch four guys, who he had gone to school with, rape and sodomize his cousin and raped her with beer bottles and broomsticks, set fire to her hair, beat her, piss on her, and burn her with cigarettes. How they only got put in jail after Jim managed to steal the tape and give it to the police, and Mary was forced to relive the ordeal in court again while everyone saw what was done to her. And by that time, it was already too late. He remembered that when even after the guys who did that to her were put in jail for twelve years, she still screamed in her sleep, could not stand to be touched and kept trying to kill herself. How she was afraid of Jim when all he wanted to do was hold her tight, keep her safe, tell her how much he loved her and how he would never let anyone hurt her again. He watched as his brilliant, beautiful, vibrant cousin was shattered into a million pieces and turned into a hollow shell of a human being who had to be permanently committed when she was supposed to go to Yale and become the doctor who cured every last disease known to man and saved the galaxy. It was because Mary had her life destroyed that Jim had always strived to be the best so maybe, even if Mary had her life stolen from her, she could at least live through the way she inspired him.
A tear fell from Jim's eye. He looked at Lemieu and suddenly saw the faces of the four monsters who had destroyed his cousin's life. They would be out of prison by now, free to shatter the dreams and steal the innocence, hope, and dignity of more girls. He felt the anger build up inside him.
"Yes!" He said. "Crew of the Hero's Tale, be advised that if the Ambassador does not do as the Princess commands, you are to deliver him to us. If you do not, we will attack."
"Jim!" Spock said. But Kirk did not care. He watched in satisfaction as Lemieu was handed the knife by one of his crew men. He looked fearfully at his crew, who started to surround him with very disloyal looks on their faces.
Lemieu cried out in agony and pulled down his pants. His hand shaking horribly, he took the knife and….
They bridge looked away, Minerva included. All of them did, except James T. Kirk, who hadn't let his eyes close or his gaze move away.
Lemieu screamed out in agony, clutching himself and rolling around on the floor.
OKAY, NOW YOU CAN READ AGAIN. JUST KNOW THAT MINERVA MADE LEMIEU DO SOMETHING HORRIBLE TO TEACH HIM A LESSON, KIRK HAS A COUSIN WHO HAD HER LIFE DESTROYED BY A TRAUMATIC EVENT, AND NOW THE GORILLIANS ARE AT MINERVA'S MERCY
Minerva managed to look up again and regain her composure. "Crew of the Hero's Tale. Be advised that a message is being sent to you via subspace. The Ambassador is to deliver the message to your leaders. They are expected to meet with Scyran and Federation government Officials at a time and place of our choosing to draft a new treaty. All diplomatic immunity for Gorillians has been revoked, and you are expected to return and give restitution to all the Federation women your people have attacked and/or abducted by the end of the year. We will take any abductors from your race into custody and you are to return the Ambassador to Federation space after he has delivered the message so he and all the men who have kidnapped Federation women can stand trial for their crimes. You, and all Gorrillians are to leave Federation space as soon as possible and not return without express permission from the Federation government. If you follow all these instructions, your people may be able to avoid a war. And I promise you, even if the Federation try to spare you pain if we go to war, the Scyran people will not. Is this understood?"
The crew of the Hero's Tale nodded.
"Good," Minerva said. "Now get out of our space."
She cut off communication and stood up. "Excellent work all around people. Let's set course for that Imagination Amusement Park planet you told me about so we can finally get some real shore leave, alright?"
Everyone looked at her in shock.
Minerva sighed. "I'm only that vicious to those who deserve it, I promise. I'm not proud of it, but it was a means to an end, okay? And you're going to feel much better once you hear the reports of the tearful, joyful reunions all those abducted girls had with their families and their elation at no longer being someone's property. The crime of slavery is one worthy of any punishment. I saved countless lives without having to kill anyone. I'm not going to apologize or explain myself any further, I'm still the same person, so you all might as well get over it. I'm heading to bed, all those of you who are on duty, set course for whatever system that planets in. Good night."
She walked out of the bridge with her head held high, looking every bit the Princess she was.
Spock followed Minerva out of the bridge and back to her quarters. She didn't acknowledge his following her, and let him into her quarters without even looking at him.
"Sit down while I change and get us some drinks," she said, still not looking at him.
She emerged several minutes later dressed in a white cotton nightgown carrying a tray of tea. She sat down, set the tray down on the cherry wood coffee table and said, "One lump or two?"
"How could you do that?" Spock asked, staring at her, hard. "How could you be so cruel as to force a man to—"
"Lemieu is not a man, he is a savage. There is only one language savages understand, and that is cruelty." Minerva said simply. "The only way to get him to do what we needed him to do was to break his pride, so I broke it. Really, Spock, you more than anyone should understand it was a means to an end. Yesterday the Federation was being terrorized by a barbarian who kept stealing and enslaving their citizens and they could do nothing about it. Tomorrow, they will never have to fear that again and will no longer be at the mercy of a race of barbarians. You should be pleased. The galaxy will be a much more peaceful place from here on out."
"You were horrifying," Spock said, "Seeing you like that is one of the worst things I've ever experienced. I never believed you could be capable of such a thing. You were someone else, someone evil."
Minerva slammed her teacup down, shattering it. "You don't know what the Hell you're talking about, Spock. You have no right to say such a thing to me! I might have wings, but despite what you and all your Federation friends want to believe, I'm not an angel! Not everything is like Vulcan, Spock, not every planet is full of people who always do what is logical and ethical and control their emotions, okay? That isn't the real world! The real galaxy isn't peaceful, it's full of horrible people who do horrible things every day. The majority of sentient beings out there are not peaceful and civilized, they're barbaric and war like! Even civilized people started out as barbarians and very few people have gotten far enough to develop a conscience! I hate to break it to you, but the majority of people out there are savages, and there's only one things savages understand: cruelty. I was the daughter of the leader of a slave revolt who had to rise up and go to war with her entire planet in order to gain freedom for herself, her people, and me. I was the first-born child of a nation created through oppression and bloodshed, who witnessed for the first five hundred years of her life the creation of the first civilization her planet had ever seen, who was born to one day rule and preserve the incredible nation her mother built. For nineteen hundred years, my people have had to fight off barbarians who wanted to destroy everything they had built and enslave them. I spent almost two millennia fighting battles, watching as history repeated itself and more and more people died because my mother refused to get off the defensive and finish the war. I've personally killed and maimed thousands of people to protect those I cared about. There are oceans of blood staining my hands, do you think I like that? Do you think I liked killing people? Do you really think I sleep easily knowing that I personally ended thousands of lives? But I did it because that's the only thing barbarians understand. I did it because I had to protect my people.
"And that's not all of it, either. Do you know how the war finally ended? It ended because I knew as long as we refused to go on the offensive, the war would continue and billions of lives on both sides would die and our people would never be able to make the progress they deserved to make. I knew the only way to finally end this war was to make the people of Pyros hate war so much that they would overthrow their leaders and refuse to fight anymore. I knew I had to break the spirit of the Pyron people and make them terrified of us. So you know what I did? I did what I had to do because I was born to be a leader. I rounded up twenty million soldiers under my command, went behind my mother's back and attacked one of the largest cities in Pyros. I had my soldiers brutally massacre all the free adults in the city, kidnap the slaves and children, and burn the city to the ground. In one night, I had fourteen million people killed and thirty million people stolen from their homes. I made eight million children orphans. Two days later, the Pyron people overthrew their leaders, and begged us for peace and assimilation into Scyra. There hasn't been a death on my planet since. And you know what? I would happily do it again. Do I hate myself? Am I horrified by the person I became? Does looking at myself in the mirror make me feel ill every time? Do I have horrible nightmares of all the horrible things I did? Of course. But when you're a leader dealing with barbarians, you're not allowed the luxury of being someone you can like and live with. You get to like yourself because you were born to a peaceful race that had long abolished crime and war among themselves and were never forced to be a leader! You grew up being taught that your goal in life should be to control your emotions, learn as much as you could, contribute to the progress of your government and lead a productive life. But I didn't grow up that way! I grew up knowing it was my duty to protect my people and our way of life at all costs, to lead and look after the society my mother had built, to do the things no one should ever have to do in order to keep my people safe. I grew up with the responsibility of billions of lives! I grew up knowing from day one that the day would come when some horrible barbarians would try to destroy me and everything I knew for the sake of destroying it and that I had to be the one to destroy them before they destroyed us. You never had to let yourself be tortured in order to feed an enemy false information and gain information of your own. You never had to gouge someone's eyes out and shoved a sword down their throat to keep them from killing your son. You never had to torture anyone to find out where your enemy was going to attack next. You never had to kill fourteen people in one day to keep them from taking innocent people captive. You never had to decapitate someone in order to protect your people. You never had to shoot someone in the head to keep them from assassinating your mother. Your never had to kill eight people to save your own life! You never had to do any of those things! But I did! I've had to do all those things and so many more over the course of twenty-four hundred years, Spock. You couldn't imagine the things I've done! But guess what? Being innocent and good is a luxury, and I never got to have that luxury. None of my people did. But we sacrificed that so that our children could have it someday! I'm not a nice person, Spock! I'm not allowed to be! I'm capable of doing absolutely horrible things and I'm willing to do it if it means saving those I love! But over the years I've had to do things so horrible that not even my mother, eldest daughter and son can look me straight in the eye without flinching! The people I've sacrificed my soul for are afraid of me, even the ones who love me! And you know why? Because I'm tainted! So don't act like you know me, like I'm really some good little girl at heart, because I'm not. I've sacrificed any ability I had to feel love for myself before your grandparents were born. I can't feel the slightest bit of love for myself after all the things I've done. The only reason I go on is my sense of duty and Arsinoe. So don't you dare try to act like you know me, Spock, because you don't know shit!"
Spock stared at her for several moments. She was in tears, her head in her hands. Every sob was like a knife in his chest.
"Minerva, please, you're not tainted. I'm sorry. And, if you can't love yourself, then I guess I'm going to have to love you for you."
She lifted her head and looked at him in confusion. "What?"
Spock knew it was no use. He had said it and it was only a matter of time before it came out.
"I love you," he said, "I've loved you ever since I first saw you. When you're around, I don't need logic for everything around me to make sense. You make everything around you beautiful. Since meeting you, I've seen the galaxy in a new way I never thought possible. Everything you do is wonderful. I feel absolute bliss whenever I hear you laugh. I've tried to re-create the music of your voice on my lyra, but I can't. You make me feel good about who I am. When I'm with you, I'm not ashamed of my human side, I'm just glad to be alive. I never appreciated my life until it had you in it. I tried for so long to banish these feelings, but I couldn't. And after a while, I didn't want to because it made me feel so… alive. And I realized that denying myself something like this wasn't logical, that if I kept trying to deny myself, I'd go mad. I spend every moment thinking about you, and every time I see you I'm almost knocked out by your radiance. I don't know if it's my human side revealing itself or if I'm mad, all I really know is that I want to be with you. You're all I ever want to know, because you're all that really matters. You may think you're tainted and that you're bad, but I know that can't be true. I could not logically love something that was bad because I am an ethical person. Despite all you've done, you're still a good person. I don't know what else to say except I love you."
Minerva stared at him. "I wish I could tell you I love you too, but I don't know. I don't want either of us to get hurt. I have other lovers back on Pyroscyra, could you take not being the only one? Is there a future for us? Spock, my life is likely to go on for an eternity. You have what? Two hundred and sixty five years at best left? We would never get married, Spock, could you handle that? What about how our parents and people would feel? And if we had children, they'd be half Scyran and only a quarter Vulcan and be raised as Scyrans, would you be able to handle that? When I get into a relationship, I go in for the long haul, but could we handle each other? We know so little of each other, what makes you think it would work?"
"I don't know, but I can't fight this anymore. I have to try, at least." Spock answered. "It would be illogical for you to reject me without giving me a chance."
"I just don't want to hurt you."
"I am warned, then." Spock replied. "You have stated the dangers. If something bad happens, I will have only myself to blame."
"If I do this, you will keep in mind that you are not the only one nor is it likely that you ever will be?" Minerva asked him.
"Yes, I understand."
"Fine, then, I understand." Spock replied. He did. Kind of. He didn't really think that would be a problem since she didn't have any lovers aboard the ship."
She smiled. "Alright then. We'll go on a date soon and see where it goes from there. Now, if you don't mind, I'd like to turn in. Good Night."
Spock stood up. "Good Night, Minerva."
AN: So you all know, I never meant to mislead you guys. I really had no idea you guys thought it would be that particular way, but it's not like I could really tell you the truth. I hope you all enjoyed this.