Disclaimer: I own no part of this ever expanding franchise.

Everything's Relative

Jim scowled and wiped more water off his face. They were on a mission to make a planet play nice with New Vulcan, Jim wasn't sure he would ever adjust to the original being gone, and Jim hated it. The natives were being deliberately slow about the negotiations and leaving the landing party outside in the elements. It wasn't safe. Jim looked at the cliff near his young captain, he wasn't safe!

"Watch out!"

Jim ran over and shoved his young counter-part out of the way, just as the wall of mud and rock he had been standing under gave way under the pounding rain. The momentum sent them rolling down a small hill and into a large puddle with a spectacular splash.

"Captain!"

Spock quickly followed them down the incline and helped James up.

"Are you all right?"

"Besides being filthy and looking like a drowned rat, yeah I'm fine."

James looked at him as he stood up and for a moment Jim was sure the young man knew who he was, but thankfully covered in mud and who knew what else it seemed he was unrecognizable.

"Thanks, lieutenant uh…lieutenant…what is your name?"

"William Bell." Where the hell he got that name from he didn't know, but it seemed to work.

"Good work."

"Thank you, sir."

XXX

After nearly killing the captain of the new Federation flagship the natives were much more cooperative about dealing with their new planetary neighbours on New Vulcan. Negotiations for supply lines were underway, and half of the landing party stayed behind to help; along with Doctor McCoy who had remained to continue minor treatments of a virus that had been working its way through the population in a show of good faith.

Cleaned up and dry James was now holed up in his quarters filling out reports on the event, figuring that the sooner he got them out of the way the sooner he could move to fun activities.

He looked up from his computer when the door buzzed.

"It's open!"

The door slid open and his first officer came in to the room.

"Spock, what brings you here?"

"I am here to discuss lieutenant Bell."

James sighed. "Spock, if you're going to quote regulations at me don't bother. He saved my life I'm not disciplining him for that."

"If I were to quote regulations, captain, they would not apply to Mr. Bell in any case. He is not a member of Starfleet. No one has any records of him at all as far as my research can tell."

"Spock, what are you saying?"

"He is an intruder, captain, according to the computer he has been in an unoccupied cabin for the last three weeks."

James couldn't believe that. An intruder on his ship and no one had noticed a thing. He was an older man why would they, whoever they were, send him to the Enterprise? And how had his crew not suspected anything? A highly trained spy for someone he had to be; and yet he had saved him on the planet at great risk to himself, so why was he here?

"Well let's find out what he wants, but let's try not to alarm the crew."

They made their way quickly to the proper cabin and stepped into the room. Jim smoothed down his shirt and smiled ruefully at them.

"No good deed goes unpunished, does it?"

They announced their intentions, as per regulations, stuck him in a briefing room and began the integration.

Jim sat back slightly in his chair as the Vulcan glared at him, his eyes blazing with intensity. Jim wasn't use to seeing that. His Spock had always been composed and reserved. This Spock was like a live wire.

"How did you get on this ship?"

"I popped in out of thin air."

"Why are you here?"

"I have no goal in mind except for living again."

"Who has been aiding you?"

"No one."

The captain came over at that point and looked him in the eye.

"Who are you?"

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"Try me."

"My real name is James T. Kirk."

Jim was surprised when the boy didn't demand to know his real name again at that answer, but instead sat back on the table, with a world weary sigh, and shifted his gaze to his first officer; who was looking between them with a critical eye.

"Upon closer inspection there are resemblances," Spock said.

"Time travel?"

"No, captain, although that would account for the age difference, his eye colour is not identical to yours. He must to belong to another universe."

James let that thought float across his mind. An older him, from the other universe, just like Spock's counterpart-hey wait a minute. If he was him, if they could both be standing in the same room and have the universe not implode on itself that meant…

"That bastard! He cheated!"

"Sir?"

"Watch him!" he ordered Spock, and quickly strode out of the room.

Jim looked at the Vulcan so many years younger than his own.

"So, do you play chess?"

XXX

"Uhura, contact New Vulcan. Tell them I need to have Ambassador Selek beamed up immediately."

"Yes, sir."

Not even an hour later James tapped his foot impatiently on the floor as the older Vulcan appeared on the transporter pad.

"What is the emergency?"

"You lied to me."

"Vulcans cannot-"

"You're half-Vulcan and apparently capable of half-truths."

"May I ask to what you are referring?"

"You said you couldn't meet him."

"I merely implied that I could not. How do you know of this, and why has it become such an urgent concern?"

"Because your universe vomited up someone else onto my ship, weeks ago as I've just discovered, and the world didn't end."

James said nothing more and led Spock Prime towards the briefing room. Spock could only speculate as to who else could have come into this universe from his own. He could think of no one that would have been near the black hole to be sucked in accidently, nor anyone who would have entered it deliberately. Thoroughly at a loss he entered the room, and stopped dead in his tracks.

"Jim."

"Spock!"

James and the younger Spock looked on at the reunion. Both were told of this legendary friendship that they themselves were supposed to build somehow; being allowed to observe it now Spock noted that the relationship between them did appear to be genuine. He watched as the other James Kirk threw himself out of his chair in a rush to greet the ambassador. Still he was quite surprised to see that it was the ambassador who embraced first. The other Kirk seemed surprised too, as his eyes widened slightly, but he returned the hug enthusiastically.

How long they stood in their embrace Jim was not sure. Still the initial shock of finding someone from his own universe, and Spock of all people, began to ware off and he focused on his Vulcan friend. He was older that much was obvious, but there was an internal difference as well, he would never hug him in public like this. Jim looked him over. His eyes were the deep brown they had always been, but now they seemed so much warmer than he ever remembered; so, so open. What had his friend been through to cause all that change?

"How long have I?"

"79 years 6 months and 3 days."

Jim's eyes widened. "Oh, god…Spock, I'm sorry I'm so sorry."

"I do not understand why you are apologizing for forces you cannot control."

"I actually let myself think I was happy there for so long and you, you were here all alone and…I'm sorry."

Spock didn't loosen his hold as Jim began moving his hands over his face that now had countless more wrinkles, and running his fingers through his hair that held more grey than black.

"I am old, Jim."

Jim stopped for a moment as he tried to find a way to tell him that he didn't care how he looked he was still his Spock.

"So am I my…" friend, brother, it had been so long since he had been able to speak the word out loud. "T'hy'la."

Spock junior sucked in air. They were-had bonded- so…when, how? Why?

"Spock, what does that word mean?"

"I-I shall discuss it at a later time."

Their older selves were hugging again as if the other would disappear on the spot if they let go.

"How long do you think we have left?"

"I would estimate 50.59 years each."

"Not enough to account for what was lost. We will have to work extra hard then to make up for it."

"Affirmative."

The reunion was then cut short as the room shook.

"Captain to the bridge, what's happening?"

"We are entering an ion storm, Force 7, captain."

"Can we set a course around it?"

"Sir, doctor McCoy and some of the landing party are not yet back on board and the planet will be affected as well."

"I'll be right there. Let's go, Spock, you two as well."

"Why us?"

"Well for one thing you're wearing that uniform so you're technically part of my crew."

"You always did look good in red, Jim."

"Do you think that wise, captain?" The younger Spock asked.

"I may be brash and cocky, but I'm not stupid enough to leave the two most experienced people on this ship to sit around in a briefing room during a crisis."

"I concur, but they are us and will respond to similar stimuli. Confusion is not what we need at the moment."

"That does present an obstacle," older Spock agreed.

"We could go back to old ranks for easier distinction," the older Jim proposed.

The elder Spock considered that for a moment.

"As you wish, admiral."

"Thank you, captain."

"Captain?"

"Admiral!"

"It was a stupid decision, junior, stay where you are and enjoy it; trust me."

The four men made for the turbolift and when the got on the bridge Jim whistled long and loud at the sight; ignoring the gazes of the alpha shift crew-members.

"I go away for a couple of decades and everything gets fancy."

"Captain-"

"They have my authorization to be here, Chekov. Spock, what have we got?"

"Initial reports were correct it is a typical ion storm, violent and-" the ship shook and Spock fell against his counterpart, "unpredictable," he finished.

"And we have to remain in position or we can't get them aboard."

Jim whispered in the captain's ear. "Turn her into any on coming waves it will help hold her steady."

"You should also inform Mr. Scott to monitor energy surges in the transporter equipment. Ion storms have a habit of producing very interesting results during beam up."

"He did look good with a beard you know," Jim said, looking at the elder Spock with a smile.

"No, Jim."

Mr. Scott was informed with all haste as the ship bounced through the elements.

"Captain, the landing party is now onboard, and uninjured, but Doctor McCoy wasn't with them," Uhura reported.

"Well where is he?"

"Knowing Bones he ran off to save ten more people while yelling that he'll only be a minute," Jim said, with a roll of his eyes.

"Come on Bones don't play hero on me!"

The ship rocked again.

"Damage report!"

"Forward shields are weak, but holding."

"Captain, the transporter room reports that they have him!"

"All right, Sulu, let's get out of here; punch it!"

"Love to let him, captain, but we have a problem down here," Scotty's voice suddenly announced through the intercom.

"Scotty, you did get McCoy aboard right?"

"Aye, we did, sir, but…"

"But what?"

"Well there appears to have been a-a slight transporter malfunction."

James didn't need to hear anymore as he dashed off the bridge to see his friend; closely followed by Spock and their counter-parts. As they approached they heard yelling from the transporter room.

"I'm a doctor, not an astrophysicist!"

McCoy couldn't believe this, even at his age the universe just had to throw him one more curve ball. One moment he had been beaming down to Earth ready to kiss his entire career goodbye and retire and the next thing he knew he was standing, wherever the hell this was, next to some young pup of a cadet claiming to be him. He knew he should have taken the shuttlecraft.

The doors to the transporter room opened and bright blue eyes saw double. A young Jim and a young Spock who were quickly followed by another Jim who hadn't aged a day, and was un-dead for reasons yet to be explained, and another Spock; looking like he had aged several hundred days.

"What the hell did you two do?"

(End chapter 2)