Spock followed Nyota into her quarters. He stood with his hands behind his back as she put away her things. They sat at the kitchen table silently, and Spock rested and thought about the visit.
"Are you sure your father not liking me doesn't bother you?" Nyota asked suddenly. She gave him a worried look as she said this.
"It bothers me," Spock replied sharply, but he felt the need to elaborate.
"I will tell you what I told my father. That I do not believe at this point that anything will change my mind about you."
"You actually said that?" she asked in surprised, her tone changing.
He hadn't actually said the words, it was his father who had asked the question, but he figured that it was close enough. He nodded.
"Oh, Spock," she said softly, walking over and putting her hands on his shoulders.
"I feel the same way," she whispered into his ear. She looked into his eyes for a moment before she kissed him.
It struck Spock that this wasn't a time for talking. He put his arms around her and pulled her in towards him.
"You love me, don't you," she whispered, and he clung to her tightly, kissing her hard and tearing at her clothes.
*****
Dr. McCoy was hurt badly. He was off-duty, recovering in sickbay. Kirk seemed to miss his friend, Spock had heard him call down at least three times that first day back.
"I still have several broken bones, and I still can't move," Spock had heard him snap back the third time, possibly amused that Kirk had asked him for his status.
Later that day, Spock went down to sickbay to inquire about getting his cast removed, and he overheard the two arguing.
"Drugs, religion, counselling, I don't care how you do it!" he heard Kirk yell out. The doctor mumbled something in return.
"Yes, you do have a problem," Kirk exclaimed, "You just staggered off the top of a four-story building!"
More mumbling.
"Think about it, Bones, why do you think your wife left you in the first place?"
No answer.
"I'm not going to be able to cover for you forever," Kirk continued, "There was that nurse who found the bottles and I'm sure that some of the construction crew doubts that you were just ill. Eventually, it's not going to be up to me what happens to you!"
There were a few exchanges that Spock couldn't make out, and then Kirk came storming out.
"Spock," he said in surprise when he saw him. He looked worried.
"I just walked in, I did not hear anything," he said, and he could tell that Kirk knew he was lying. Kirk nodded gratefully. Spock continued,
"I just came to see whether my arm has healed sufficiently to have the cast removed."
"No!" Dr. McCoy yelled from behind the curtain.
*****
Spock rifled through his dresser drawer, until he found what he was looking for. His talisman. He remembered to the millimetre where he had put it, but over the months, it had shifted between his folded clothes. As he touched it, he felt an overwhelming calm.
He stopped himself.
He hadn't used it for years. He had decided to stop using it. He didn't want to use it.
He wrapped it in a cloth before he held it in his hand.
Spock started feeling nervous as he approached sickbay. He told himself that his feelings were illogical, that the doctor was incapacitated and wouldn't jump at him, but it didn't help. Spock wouldn't admit to himself that he was afraid of what Dr. McCoy might say when he confronted him.
In a burst of courage, Spock pulled back the curtain. The doctor looked at him.
"I brought you something," Spock said, having no idea of where to begin.
"And what would that be?" the doctor demanded, accusatorially.
"A Vulcan artifact," Spock stated.
Thankfully, Dr. McCoy didn't look angry, he looked confused.
"Why would you bring me a Vulcan artifact?" he asked.
"It improves one's powers of resistance," Spock answered.
He watched as 's expression turned back to one of anger.
"So you're trying to push your Vulcan mumbo-jumbo on me?" the doctor asked suspiciously.
"It is not mandatory," Spock stated, stepping forward and putting the talisman in its cloth on the bedside table.
"If you want to use it, hold it in your hands, and think of something calming, like waves on a beach."
"And this actually works?" Dr. McCoy demanded.
"Sometimes," Spock replied, "Depending on your determination."
McCoy looked a little resigned, like he had heard that before.
"Well that's not –" he started, but Spock cut him off. Suddenly, Spock felt courageous.
"I did not come here to have an argument," he stated calmly, "And I am not forcing you to accept my assistance. But you need to be aware that while Captain Kirk may be reluctant to take action against you, I am not."
"You would go against the captain?" McCoy asked, stunned.
"No, I would not go against the captain. I would simply tell people what I have observed. I am certain if I told the other doctor, she would feel compelled to act as dictated by medical ethics. And if I told the crew, some might feel compelled to act in a way that would improve their safety."
"What did I ever do to you?" the doctor demanded. Spock resisted the urge to answer honestly.
"What I am concerned about is hundreds of Vulcan children not being crushed to death by an improperly constructed school," he spat. He figured moral outrage was a better story than trying to save Kirk from himself. Then he felt ashamed of that thought.
"So it's all about protecting your own," McCoy chided, as if the thought made him happy.
"You endanger everyone," Spock countered, "You endanger yourself. You endanger everyone on this ship."
And then Spock's courage left him. He slammed the curtain closed and walked out of sickbay before he had a chance to hear the doctor's response.
*****
Spock walked into Captain Kirk's ready room. He had invited him in for drinks. When Spock got inside, he was surprised to see the Captain drinking a cup of coffee.
"I'm quitting to set a good example," Kirk said when he saw Spock eyeing the mug. Spock nodded.
"How was your visit?" Kirk asked as Spock sat down.
"My father did not approve of Nyota, as expected," Spock stated flatly.
"That's too bad," Kirk said, looking into his coffee.
"He reminded me a bit of my mom," Kirk added slowly, "Whenever I had anyone over, she would always cut up fruit and talk to them nicely, and no one would ever believe anything I said about her, because how could someone who cut up fruit and took an interest in your day be a bad person?"
He looked a little bitter as he said this.
"No offense or anything," Kirk continued, "But I kind of got a little bit of that from your dad. I mean he hardly even looked at you. He didn't ask a single question."
"That is because he never likes the answers," Spock spat without thinking.
"That must be hard," Kirk said. He threw back his coffee as if he wished it were whiskey.
"Do you think I'm a coward?" he asked suddenly, "For not seeing my mother ... because it's so difficult."
"Do you think you are a coward?" Spock echoed back.
Kirk smiled a bit over his mug and said,
"I guess that's the important question, isn't it?"
They sat and talked as the ship moved away from New Vulcan and into space.
***************************************************************************************
A/N: That's all folks! I know there's a few loose ends, but life doesn't always tie things up neat and tidy, and I might want to do a part 2 :)
If you haven't had chance yet, please take a minute and write a review. If you like it, say you like it, if you don't like it, say you don't like it, if it was only so-so, say what you like and what you didn't. I really appreciate the feedback.