Prologue

The night sky above Starfleet Academy twinkled with a billion stars. The full moon shined brightly, lighting the world below it almost as if it were the sun itself. A light breeze blew through the trees, rustling their leaves gently. The warm, humid air was filled with the soothing sound of crickets chirping and the sounds of laughter and music coming from within the academy.

This peaceful, beautiful night marked the official promotion of James Tiberius Kirk from his battlefield assigned position of First Officer to Captain of the USS Enterprise. Inside the hall that was usually designated for entertaining ambassadors from faraway planets were swarms of Starfleet Command members, cadets from the academy, and of course, the crew of the Enterprise. The room and its inhabitants sparkled and shined like the moon and stars outside. The center of the hall had been turned into a dance floor of sorts while the area outside of it was dotted with tables. A buffet sat at the front of the hall, lined with various types of food for the various denizens of Starfleet. An open bar served drinks of all kinds from all over – strong spirits, juices, fizzy drinks, and even just plain mineral water.

Each person in the room had a smile or a look of enjoyment of some varying degree on their faces. In one part of the room stood the newly appointed Captain Kirk, where a flood of people were anxiously taking turns to bask him with attention. Some came up to him to give their congratulations and to shower him with words of praise for his actions during the Nero conflict. These were comprised of a mix of past teachers, Starfleet officers and leaders, and former classmates. The rest of the group were all female, every one of them fawning over him and flirting, some in a rather subtle manner, others in a very direct and blatant manner. A few lucky females were whisked away to the dance floor, where they shared a slow dance with the strikingly handsome blond-haired, blue-eyed man.

First Office Spock and Communications Officer Nyota Uhura had a crowd of their own, though much smaller and of a different demeanor than those around Captain Kirk. Some addressed Uhura's interception of the distress call that led to Kirk's proper assessment of the Nero situation. Others, in fact, most of those surrounding the two, inquired Spock about the destruction of Vulcan and what his views were of the now close to extinct race. Both spoke candidly, honestly, and modestly, and in some way brought their conversation topics back to Kirk's impressive leadership skills.

Doctor Leonard McCoy was conversing with some of his medical colleagues, their discussion not on Kirk's heroics, but instead on matters completely unrelated, such as revolutionary new treatments and equipment. Lieutenant Hikaru Sulu discussed fencing with some of his old friends while Ensign Pavel Chekhov tittered excitedly to his own collection of girls how he managed to teleport both Sulu and Kirk as they fell from the drill Nero used on Vulcan. Chief Engineer Montgomery Scott, or Scotty as he was more commonly known as, was taking the opportunity to pile his plate high with the many different foods on the buffet table, while discussing quantum physics with a few curious professors who followed him.

Yes, this was truly a fantastic night for everyone, and fun was had by all (except for Spock, since "fun" isn't something that a Vulcan experiences). But naturally, all fun things must come to an end, and eventually, so did the celebration. The members of Starfleet Command and academy's professors were the first to go, having other more important things to do in the morning. About an hour later, clusters of cadets started to disappear back to their dorm rooms. The last to leave were the crew members of the Enterprise. Soon, the only people in the room were Kirk, Spock, Uhura, McCoy, Sulu, Chekhov, and Scotty. They all met on the dance floor and began to converse.

"Well Jim," McCoy began, slapping his friend hard on the back, "That was one hell of a party on your behalf."

"Indeed," Spock agreed. "The sheer amount of people in attendance was fascinating."

"I don't think I could've thrown a party that big if I had the chance!" Kirk said, beaming brightly from the vast amount of attention he received the entire night.

"I certainly doubt you'd have nearly as big of a turnout if you had," Uhura said with a smirk. "You may have a lot of charisma, but not nearly enough to have Starfleet Command and the academy professors show up willingly."

"Eet was eencredebule!" said Chekhov, buzzing with excitement even more so than Kirk. In his excitement, his accent thickened almost to a point where he could not be understood. "I hawe newer seen so many peepul een one room like dat before!"

"Well, who says the fun has to end now?" Scotty said, nibbling on the last of his hors d'oeurves. "If I remember correctly, there's a bar close to campus."

Sulu chimed in, "Yeah, it's about a 10 minute walk from here!"

"Then what are we waiting for?" Kirk said, flashing his million-dollar smile. "Let's go!"

The seven members of the Enterprise made their trek to the local bar to celebrate Kirk's promotion to Captain. As they walked, they continued to laugh and chat freely, as if they all been close friends for years and years. When they arrived at the bar, they found several groups of crew members and cadets from the celebration who apparently also wished to continue their celebrations. Cheers erupted upon their entrance, which only added to Kirk's jovial mood. With a big smile, he went up to the bartender and yelled in a voice loud enough for all in the bar to hear, "Bartender! A round of drinks for everyone in the bar, compliments of Captain James T. Kirk!"

More cheers erupted throughout the bar while Kirk's guests simply laughed, or in Spock's case, bemused the gesture silently. Though Spock found it highly illogical and rather rash to purchase drinks for each patron in the bar, he realized that this was a human reaction to high levels of happiness, and thought it best to keep his opinion to himself this time. When asked for his drink of choice, Spock simply stated, "A mineral water will be sufficient."

When their drinks arrived, McCoy held his glass high, his companions raising their glasses in kind. "I propose a toast, to the official captain of the USS Enterprise, Captain James T. Kirk! Here's hoping you don't get us vaporized somewhere in the depths of space!"

Laughing, they clanked their glasses together and drank their respective drinks. "Thanks for the vote of confidence, Bones," Kirk said sarcastically with a grin on his face.

The rest of the evening panned out as one would expect it to. Scotty and McCoy proved to be the heaviest drinkers of the group. A drinking contest was initiated and before long, the two were downing shots of the strongest spirit the bartender had behind his counter. Chekhov found himself feeling very sad that he was too young to participate and sipped his soda solemnly while everyone else became increasingly intoxicated. Naturally, Spock refused any and all offers for alcoholic beverages, which increased as the night progress and his companions became more and more intoxicated. Though Chekhov wasn't the only person drinking non-alcoholic beverages, the fact that the other person was Spock held little comfort for the young Russian boy. Uhura, who had been swept into the excitement of the evening, ingested a little more than she had intended, and was swiftly becoming more and more openly affectionate with Spock. Spock made it clear that while he did indeed have an interest in Uhura, he articulated that it would not be proper of him to encourage her lowered inhibitions and kindly turned down her advances (much to her disappointment).

Sometime during the night, Spock realized that Kirk had separated from the group. His logical assumption was that he was pursuing courtship rituals with some of the females in the bar. His assumption, however, turned out to be incorrect. Kirk was no longer inside the bar. Relieved that he had finally found something interesting that didn't involve the heavy consumption of alcohol that his colleagues insisted on indulging themselves in, he took the opportunity to search for the captain's current location.

Spock went to check the bathrooms first. He decided to check both just in case a female managed to lure him into the women's bathroom, but found no trace of the young captain. Logically, if the captain wasn't in the restroom or in the main section of the bar that meant he was somewhere outside. Sure enough, the moment he made his way back through the bar and out the door, he found Kirk leaning against the wall outside, staring up at the sky.

"Captain," Spock said, "Everyone is inside of the bar celebrating your promotion, however you are outside alone. This is most illogical, even for you."

Kirk smirked and gave Spock a sideways glance. "You know, we're not on duty, so you can call me Jim."

Spock ignored Kirk's comment and persisted. "If you are overly intoxicated and in need of an escort back to the academy, I have no obligation to the activities inside and would not mind leaving to ensure your safe return.

The blue-eyed man laughed heartily. "Why Spock, it sounds like you want a little alone time with me. I'm sure Uhura wouldn't approve."

"I assure you, my offer is not meant to be a disguise for ulterior purposes, but rather a sincere desire to…"

"You're bored stiff in there, that's all," Kirk cut Spock off mid-rant. "You noticed I was gone and was hoping for a polite way to excuse yourself from the festivities. Am I wrong?"

Spock gave a flustered look. "Your assessment is correct. I find no enjoyment in purposeful self-intoxication. Also, it is unwise for a Vulcan to partake of any substance that lowers our inhibitions due to our inherently violent nature."

"Yeah, I could imagine you'd be a pretty mean drunk," Kirk said, laughing. He turned toward the Vulcan and smiled. "Well, if you're that anxious to get away, I don't mind going for a walk around the neighborhood."

The Vulcan nodded, and the two began walking in the direction of the academy. Kirk had his hands in his pockets while Spock walked with his hands clasped tightly behind his back. After some time, Spock brought up his initial inquiry. "You did not answer my question as to why you were not inside celebrating with the others."

"Oh yeah, that," Kirk said. "I just felt like getting a little fresh air, that's all."

"You do not seem as heavily intoxicated as our companions. Are you particularly tolerant of alcoholic beverages?"

"No, no, as matter of fact, amongst men, I tend to have a bit of a low tolerance for the stuff," Kirk grinned as he said this. "I have to admit, I haven't really been in as much of a drinking mood as I thought I'd be."

Spock gave a slightly concerned look at Kirk. "Is there something on your mind, Captain?"

"Jim," Kirk corrected in vain. "I dunno, I guess so. Maybe all the festivities are just wearing me out, but I just feel a bit out of sorts." Spock raised an eyebrow, but said nothing. Kirk continued, "It just seems really weird for me, you know? I mean, four years ago, if anyone told me I'd become the youngest captain in history, especially one of a Starfleet Constitution class ship, I'd laugh in their face and call them crazy. But here I am now, being showered with praise and adoration by a bunch of people who didn't give a crap about me two weeks ago, and even though I'm supposed to be honored and excited, I can't help but feel a little less than spectacular."

"Are you regretting the results of your actions during the Nero conflict?" Spock asked. Kirk shook his head quickly. "No, no, no, it's nothing like that. It's just I don't really care for this sudden change in everyone's opinion of me. I mean, technically this means I showed everyone that I'm not just some goof off and that I have some real talent, but…" Kirk sighed. "I dunno, I guess it just feels more like it's forced. Like everyone feels obligated to think so highly of me because I helped save everyone's asses."

Spock stopped walking to give Kirk a look of surprise. He hadn't expected him to openly share responsibility for destroying the threat Nero posed on the Federation. This look didn't go unnoticed by Kirk, who also stopped walking and faced him. "Yeah, that's right, I said 'helped'. I may have given the order to pursue Nero, but it was everyone's combined talents that made it possible in the first place. You and I both know that if we all hadn't been working together, I never could have managed to do what I did alone." He smiled warmly as his companion. "Come to think of it, you and I seem to make a pretty damn good team when you're not trying to kill me."

A light green flush covered Spock's cheeks, which was rather noticeable on a bright night like that night was. "Spock, are you blushing?" Kirk asked, smirking. The light green flush became a little darker. "Vulcans do not feel human emotions such as embarrassment, therefore any discoloration of my face is purely coincidental," Spock countered feebly. Kirk decided to leave that subject for another time and returned to his original point. "I am serious though, we really do make a good team. I…" he paused for a moment, as if trying to get enough confidence to say his next sentence. "I would feel more at ease about being captain of the Enterprise if I had you by my side."

Spock looked at Kirk's face, and saw that he wasn't attempting to be humorous. No, he was quite serious. Spock felt something flutter inside his stomach, a strange feeling he wasn't familiar with. There was something alluring about the perfect blue eyes of his captain; he found himself unable to pull his gaze away from them. It felt almost as if they were drawing him closer and closer…

"Hey Spock! Kirk!"

The trance Spock had found himself under was broken when he heard Uhura's voice calling from the bar. The two hadn't been walking very fast, and thus didn't put much distance between themselves and the bar. They both turned to face the bar and found that their group was assembled outside. By the looks of Scotty and McCoy, they had drunk well past the allowed amount and were being ejected. Scotty was being propped up by Chekhov while Sulu assisted McCoy. Both of the men were so drunk, they were speaking heavily in their respective accents and were completely unintelligible despite their boisterousness.

"Could you guys help carry Scotty and McCoy back to the academy?" Uhura yelled. "Chekhov's about to collapse under Scotty's weight, and Sulu's almost as drunk as McCoy!"

Kirk laughed and called back, "Yeah, we'll be right there!" He turned back to Spock and clapped him on the shoulder. "Well, looks like you're in luck Spock. You don't have to be bothered with my company anymore."

The Vulcan watched as Kirk ran back over to the group to help carry the inebriated doctor. Sulu took advantage of his new found freedom and began poking Uhura with his finger as if it were a rapier while she weakly tried to direct him towards the academy. Under his breath, Spock said, "It was no bother at all…" before walking back to the group to relieve poor little Chekhov of the drunk Scotsman.

"Alright, in you go," Kirk said, sliding McCoy off of his shoulder into his room. McCoy laughed as he stumbled into his room. "Thank ya very kindly sir, your assistance was much appreciated," he slurred in his Southern drawl. "I've always depended on the kindness of strangers, but you sir are a friend indeed."

Kirk smirked. "Yeah, yeah, just sleep off the alcohol ya lush." He pulled the door closed and turned back to face Spock, who had walked Uhura to her door further down the hall after dropping Scotty off in his room. Sulu was dropped off first as he was the most problematic of the bunch. It seemed the man made a habit of practicing his fencing moves when intoxicated, and though Chekhov attempted to keep him calm, Spock wound up carrying both Scotty and Sulu. Seeing Uhura to her room seemed to not only be a welcome change of pace, but a more pleasant end to his evening.

From where Kirk stood, he couldn't hear their conversation, but he could recognize Uhura's posture and knew exactly what it meant. Kirk could see that distinctive "why don't you join me in my room tonight" body language from a mile away, and it apparently wasn't lost on Spock either. But Spock, being the obliviously perfect gentleman he was, was clearly declining as politely as he could. She then pulled Spock close and initiated a game of tonsil hockey with him, much to Kirk's dismay. He looked away, but couldn't ignore the stabbing pain in his heart. The familiar pang of jealousy accompanied the pain, but for a moment, he wasn't sure which of the two he was jealous of. He shook his head. What was he thinking?!? Of course he was jealous of Spock, not Uhura. Why would he envy someone crazy enough to fall for a Vulcan, a male Vulcan at that?

Spock pulled away and said good night, standing in place long enough to see her reluctantly close the door. He turned toward Kirk's direction and was surprised to still see he had not made his way to his room yet. "I see that you are still here," he observed unnecessarily. "I was under the impression you were stable enough to make it back to your room without any help. Was I wrong in my assessment of your condition?"

In an instant, Kirk's mind began whirling. As he had said before, he hadn't had very much to drink that night and wasn't nearly in as bad a shape as most of his friends were. However, he was still thrown off by the jealousy he felt when he saw Uhura and Spock kiss. He was certain his jealousy was directed at Spock, but given the situation, he could put that to the test.

"Captain?" Spock repeated himself, wanting to be certain the entire party was safely in their respective rooms before he retired himself. Kirk blinked, realizing he had taken too long to think about the situation.

He put a smile on his face and decided to roll with it. He put his hand on his head to feign weakness. Relaxing the muscles in his mouth and throat to have more of an exhausted/drunk tone of voice, he said, "Ya know, I felt fine on tha way back, but I guess all tha adrenaline I've been runnin' on fiiinally ran out." He buckled his knees just enough to be convincing, and before he could begin his fake fall toward the ground, the Vulcan was by his side, holding him up almost effortlessly. He gave a stern look at Kirk and said, "Obviously you're better at containing your intoxication than the others. I shall assist you to your room."

"Good luck. My room's aaaaaaall tha way down dere," he said, limply raising his arm to point down the hall. The Vulcan sighed and began walking with his captain in tow. Things were silent between the two men at first as Kirk began to assess the Vulcan who carried him. He noticed just how warm the man's body was, much warmer than his own. He could tell this wasn't due to the ten minute walk with both Scotty and Sulu slung over him, but was a natural phenomenon unique to Vulcans. His attention then shifted to the arm wrapped around his side. He could sense the strength in his grip, yet it had a gentleness to it, as if he were holding a delicate vase just tight enough to secure its safety, but not tight enough to potentially crack it. The same care was felt from the hand that held the arm draped around his shoulder.

Kirk then dared to take a look at the Vulcan's face. As expected, his face showed no traces of emotion, but there was a look of purpose that graced his strong features. It occurred to Kirk that he had never looked at Spock from this angle before. That was to be expected, he was not often in a position where the Vulcan would be holding him in such a way. He began to notice just how soft the man's face looked. The urge to touch the face that was so close to him came without warning, and he had to catch himself before his hand reached his face. Though he quickly shifted his gaze away and dropped his hand to his side, Spock noticed the movement out of the corner of his eye.

An eyebrow rose slowly on Spock's face. In an effort to distract both his and Kirk's thoughts, he decided to converse with his captain. "You are feeling alright, Captain?" It was hard for Spock to hide the skepticism in his voice.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm awright," Kirk said in his false inebriated voice. "Jus' lemme know when we get to tha room."

Spock's eyebrow stayed at its current position on his face for a moment longer before dropping down on his face. Seeing the Vulcan's face return to his former stoic look of purpose, Kirk breathed an inward sigh of relief. He didn't want the Vulcan to suspect that he was acting, but he'd have to be more careful. Luckily, he didn't have much time left to worry about that, as they arrived at his door moments later.

Sliding the young captain off of his back and helping him stand up straight, Spock said, "We have arrived at your quarters. You should be able to handle getting inside well enough on your own." Though he said this with finality, he didn't make a move to leave. Kirk swayed unsteadily on his feet and pulled his room key out of his pants pocket after some unnecessary fumbling. He unlocked his door, but paused before opening it. Leaving his keys in the door, he turned to face Spock, who had his eyes riveted to the Captain.

Upon looking at the Vulcan who stood silently before him, his heart fluttered, a reaction he hadn't expected. He blinked as if to clear his vision then asked, "Will you consider my request to rejoin the crew of the Enterprise?"

Spock looked down, giving the matter some thought. He then looked back Kirk and replied, "At this point, I am still uncertain. I have not had as much time to consider the matter as is warranted for a decision of this magnitude. I am at a crossroads in my life that could completely alter my future."

Kirk could hear the words of Spock Prime ringing in his ears. He knew he had to make sure that Spock came with him on the Enterprise – it was imperative. But it wasn't just for the sake of repairing as much of the timeline that had been thrown off course as he could; he personally felt that Spock belonged on the Enterprise, and began to feel a little sad picturing himself leading its crew without him.

"Spock," Kirk said, "your place is on Enterprise. You know that just as well as I do. I know you feel an obligation to your people now that they face extinction, but because of that, you should do what you can in Starfleet." He took a step closer to the Vulcan and said in a low voice. "I need you on that ship with me."

Spock's heart skipped a beat when he heard the captain say those words. Both of his eyebrows rose toward his hairline in shock at Kirk's candid confession, one that showed weakness and courage at the same time. For a man like Kirk to admit he could not undertake a task alone was an admission that he believed he was not good enough. However, to do such a thing took great strength of character. Spock's respect for the blond-haired man went up quite a bit, but he marveled at his physical reaction to his words.

Looking at the man before him, he said softly, "I will consider what you have said, Captain. You may very well be right, and as such, it would be wrong of me to deny you and Starfleet of my services. Regardless, my feelings remain the same about my duty to my people. The best I can do is to assure you I will think heavily on the matter before the Enterprise sets sail tomorrow."

"Right, right," Kirk nodded, "Of course. I shouldn't expect a direct answer right now." The two stood in silence, looking at each other. Making a move towards his door, Kirk broke the silence. "Well, good night Spock. I hope to see you on the Enterprise tomorrow."

He turned the doorknob to his door and opened the door when Spock responded, "Good night Captain. It is good to see you have recovered your energy so quickly." Kirk froze, one foot inside the room, the other still outside of it. His heart stopped briefly as he realized he had been found out. He turned around slowly and stared at the Vulcan with wide eyes. To his surprise, Spock had a smirk on his face; a small one, but a smirk nonetheless.

"How did you…" The Vulcan cut him off, "If you simply wanted to be held, Captain, it would have been best simply to ask than to perform so unconvincingly and then drop the act at the last minute. While I cannot say I would have complied with your request, at least you would have been honest. A quality, might I add, which is more befitting of a captain than deceit, even for the sake of saving face."

Kirk's face turned a bright shade of red. He cleared his throat, and said jokingly, "I guess I'm not as good an actor as I thought, huh?"

The Vulcan did a sort of shrug with his eyebrows, the smirk growing ever so slightly. He turned away and simply replied, "Good night, Captain." As he walked away, Kirk exhaled heavily and entered his room, his face still very red.

The bridge was full of life the next day. All around, crew members made swift preparations for their departure. At the front of the room sat Sulu and Chekhov. The elevator door opened to reveal Captain James T. Kirk, ready for duty.

"Leaving thruster and impulse engines at your command, sir," Sulu said with a smile, turning to Chekhov.

"Weapon systems and shields on standby," said Chekhov, turning to Uhura.

Uhura spun around in her chair and smiled sweetly. "Dock control reports ready, Captain."

Kirk walked onto the bridge, donning the yellow shirt of a captain. He could not contain his excitement as he smiled at his crew members, who all returned the smile sincerely. He made eye contact with McCoy and smiled even bigger. "Bones!" he said cheerfully as he clapped a hand onto his friend's back. "Buckle up!" McCoy couldn't help but look exasperated and said nothing in response. The idea of the Enterprise being led by Jim Kirk, despite his heroics, made his stomach turn in a way medicine couldn't cure.

Kirk sat in the captain's chair and contacted engineering via the communication board on his arm rest. "Scotty, how we doin'?" he asked.

In the engine room, Scotty smiled upon hearing Kirk's voice and firmly shouted, "Dilithium chambers at maximum, Captain." There was a pause over the intercom, and then Kirk heard Scotty scream, "GET DOWN!"

Smirking at his amusing Scottish Chief Engineer, he closed the channel. All his crew had been accounted for…all except for Spock. The smirk disappeared as Kirk thought solemnly to himself, Well, I guess he's made his decision… Shaking away the sadness that suddenly gripped him, he turned his focus to Sulu. "Sulu, prepare to engage thrusters." Sulu nodded and began his preparations.

The whir of the elevator door came from behind Kirk. He turned his head to see who the new arrival was and saw Spock, arms clasped behind his back. His rich tenor voice rang over the beeps and whirs of the consoles around him, "Permission to come aboard, Captain." Spock looked directly at him with his usual stoic gaze. Kirk felt as though everything around him had stopped. He came, he thought happily to himself. He chose the Enterprise!

He beamed at the new arrival and responded, "Permission granted." He spun his chair around and rose to greet the Vulcan, the big smile returning to his face.

Spock approached Kirk and said, "As you have yet to select a First Officer, respectfully I would like to submit my candidacy. If you desire, I can provide character references."

Kirk took a few seconds to just stare at Spock, his heart overwhelmed with emotion. He wasn't sure why seeing him made him so happy, and at that moment, he didn't care. With Spock aboard, everything would be as it should, and he could truly be at peace. The smile still clinging to his lips, he finally replied, "It would be my honor, Commander."

The crew members aboard the bridge couldn't help but smile along with the captain as he personally appointed Spock his First Officer. Giving a nod, Spock moved to his position, passing by a smiling Uhura. Kirk stood in place, tightening his fists. Yes, his crew was now complete. His destiny was his to embrace now that he had everything, and everyone, he needed to do so.

He sat back down in his chair. "Maneuvering thrusters, Mr. Sulu."

Sulu pressed a few buttons on his console. "Thrusters on standby."

Kirk stared out at the vastness ahead of him. His adventure, no, their adventure, was finally beginning. He took a deep breath, and gave the order, "Take us out."

With a smile, Sulu nodded. "Aye Captain."