Amanda was once again endlessly grateful for T'Iva when she returned home from the Institute. When Amanda mentioned to the woman where she would be going that afternoon, T'Iva immediately went upstairs and arranged a new outfit for Amanda. Instead of robes or a dress, T'Iva found a simple tunic and leggings that were nevertheless very attractive. Amanda tried the outfit on, and was very pleased to find that they were comfortable but sturdy - just what she wanted for tramping around a volcano site. T'Iva also supplied her with a pair of boots that would be perfect for walking on rough rock. Amanda wondered if Sarek meant for them to be walking all over freshly cooled lava rock - she sincerely hoped not. She'd never been to a volcanic site after all, and knew nothing about the safety precautions that were vitally important for such an occasion. This worry added more strain to her already twanging nerves as she waited for Sarek and Selek to arrive. She was somewhat soothed, however, as T'Iva insisted on brushing out her hair and arranging it in a more suitable style for tramping about outside. Feeling the brush run through her hair made Amanda feel less stressed - she was reminded of elementary school mornings when her mother would brush and plait her long auburn hair.
Finally Amanda was ready for whatever outdoor activity Sarek had planned, although she felt a little bit sheepish. She didn't have to wait long for the cousins to arrive, however. Amanda lept up as soon as she heard the hovercar stop outside the house. She grabbed the little bag T'Iva had helped her arrange and hurried for the door. "Please be careful of the sun, t'sai!" T'Iva called after her.
"I will, I promise!" Amanda said, remembering for some reason the first time she had gone out with a boy on Earth. Her mother had thrown myriad pieces of advice at her, just as Amanda was trying to get out the door. The memory made a little smile tug at her lips, but she was careful to tuck it away before she met Sarek and Selek.
Sarek was halfway out of the hovercar when she came outside. He was turned away from her, looking back into the vehicle and saying "I would appreciate it if you would stop attempting to give me advice, Selek, I am perfectly capable -" He cut off, noticing Amanda approaching, and turned around quickly, almost but not quite stumbling as he got fully out of the car. Amanda had to fight hard to keep from laughing at the sight, but she managed to keep her face completely blank. Sarek, looking a bit like a bird of prey that was ashamed at having been seen hopping around awkwardly on land, folded his hands behind his back and gave her a brief nod. "Miss Grayson." He said.
"Hello, Sarek." Amanda said, managing to keep almost all the amusement out of her tone. "I hope we do not have a long trip ahead of us."
"No - the hovercar is simply for your comfort, so that you may be out of the heat. The trip is less than an hour; 53.8 minutes."
For her comfort, hmm? Amanda, pleasantly surprised, nodded and climbed into the car. It was larger than the hovercar that T'Rea and T'Sana had occasionally sent her. Amanda couldn't help but be impressed. She kept forgetting that as a council member, Skon was one of the most influential - and wealthy - citizens of Shi'Kahr. Selek was already seated comfortably inside, and Amanda was pleased to see that he couldn't keep his excitement entirely out of his manner. His dark eyes were bright and round, almost like an excited kitten. Amanda knew that Selek, a wise and mature man at the ripe age of 12, would probably not like her comparing him to a kitten, but the likeness was uncanny. She sat across from him and put her bag on her lap. "Hello, Selek. It's good to see you."
"And you, Amanda." The boy said. It was the first time Amanda had seen him in anything but the uniform of the Children's Institute. He wore a tunic like Amanda had seen Sarek wear before. The young man himself was getting into the car, carefully taking a seat next to Selek. He said nothing to either of them, only signaled to the driver to start again. Amanda focused on Selek again, trying not to look at Sarek. "Are you excited to be visiting the volcano?"
Selek's eyebrows twitched. "I am interested in further study of the site." He said. Amanda felt a little embarrassed at having asked him a question with an emotional hook. "There are rock formations which -"
Sarek broke in at this point. "Selek, Miss Grayson does not possess any information on the volcano which we will be visiting." Amanda glanced at him. His dark eyes met hers, and for an instant she felt another butterfly flutter before he broke the gaze. Selek seemed to take the hint. He settled into his chair and proceeded to give Amanda a full rundown on the site they were travelling to. It was a very old, very curious place. It had been active for tens of thousands of years, and the scientists at the VSA had almost pinpointed its lifespan to be in the late 60 thousands. Amanda listened, fascinated, as Selek rattled off more facts on the volcano. She wondered what kind of core Vulcan had to allow a volcano to remain active that long. The oldest one she was aware of on Earth had only been active for about two and a half thousand years.
"It is called Khaf-Spol, the heart." Selek told her as the hovercar left the city to glide out over the red sands of the desert. Amanda puzzled at the name, but she realized the reason for it when they caught the first glimpse of the volcano. The sand below them had slowly changed to dark red rock that was almost black. The ground also began to slope gently upward. Amanda looked eagerly out the window, joined by Selek, all of her worries about Sarek gone as she tried to spy the peak of the volcano. It wasn't very high - the volcano seemed to be wider than it was tall. Still, there was a peak, far in the distance, wreathed in a smoky haze. Amanda was just about to ask Sarek when they would be getting out when the hovercar halted, coming to a smooth stop on a flat area of dark black rock. Selek immediately sprang out of the car, in a way that did not seem dignified enough for a Vulcan. Sarek followed him, his own movements much more graceful. Amanda tried not to think about that grace as she climbed out after them. She was relieved the struggle of pushing thoughts of Sarek out of her mind, however, as the sudden blazing heat took all other thoughts out of her mind. It was stifling. Amanda felt as though she were trying to draw breath in an oven. She gasped for a few moments, her head beginning to spin uneasily.
"Miss Grayson," Amanda looked up to see Sarek in front of her, concern radiating from him. His hand was outstretched to her, and Amanda saw that there was something small and white in his hand. "Please take this, for the heat." Amanda reached out and took the object from Sarek's palm - her fingers very slightly brushing his skin as she picked it up. It was enough to send a little jolt of electricity through her. "Attach it to the front of your clothing, here." Sarek withdrew his hand and gestured to his breastbone. Amanda, puzzled, tried to focus on the little object. It was roundish and simple, with a little blue light shining on one side. She uncertainly pressed it to her sternum, wondering what it was supposed to do. The little device fastened to her clothing and began to buzz very slightly. A wonderful coolness spread over Amanda's body almost immediately. Dumbfounded, she looked up at Sarek, whose eyebrow twitched very slightly.
"It will keep the heat from disturbing you." He said simply. "The heat energy of the air around you is sapped and repelled from your body. Quite a useful device." Amanda blinked and nodded. She was surprised, but felt as though she shouldn't be. Vulcans, although they weren't very open to strangers, were used to having them visit their planet, and as not everyone could tolerate their intense weather, it stood to reason that they would have come up with some sort of device to compensate. Still wondering, but feeling much better, Amanda set her gaze on the strange place around her that was Khaf-Spol. The black-red rock sloped very gently, and heat waves glimmered away from its surface up to the dusty sky. Selek was already far ahead of them, hurrying up the slope. He turned to look at them, impatience radiating off him like the heat waves off the rock. "Must you take so long, sa-kai, brother?" He turned back and scrambled up away from them, obviously eager to see the real ridge of the volcano.
The two of them set off after him. Amanda turned to Sarek, curious. "He calls you brother?" She asked.
"We are close." Sarek said, with a gesture that was almost like a shrug. That was the end of conversation between them for a while, as they climbed the dark rock up the steadily increasing slope. Finally they reached the top of the ridge, where Selek was already waiting. Amanda nearly gasped at the sight in front of them. Khaf-Spol spread out before them in a strange valley-like formation. Rivulets of brightly glowing lava pulsed down the slope of the valley on the curve of the ridge opposite them, twining together very like, yes, veins. Amanda stared, taking in the strange beauty of the place. It was strange how the glowing lava did put her in mind of a heart. Heat haze and smoke shimmered off of the lava, which moved lazily and patiently down the slope. Unlike the typical volcano that Amanda had pictured in her head, there was a sense of stillness and peace about the entire place - as though they were watching the steady churning of the gears of the planet which worked at the speed of the passing of ages. The place simply felt old.
Selek, unimpressed by the strangeness that had struck Amanda dumb, was already moving down the slope towards the coursing lava, moving with a child's grace over larger black rocks in his path. Sarek started after him, but when Amanda did not follow, he turned and gave her a look that said "Are you coming?"
Amanda licked her lips and stared at him. "I'm sorry. It's...very beautiful." She said, feeling rather lame. This was obviously old hat to the two Vulcans, but she couldn't help feeling overwhelmed herself. She started down the slope after him, careful of her footing, before Sarek spoke and stopped her.
"Do not apologize. It is pleasant to hear that you find Khaf-Spol beautiful." Amanda looked up and met his eyes. She saw again that strange look she had glimpsed at his Ambassadorial ceremony, when he had rescued her from Prais. An odd sort of depth, of gentleness and understanding. It was so different from the normal cold look that his eyes held, when they seemed almost black. Now, however, Amanda could see the flecks of gold she'd noticed before. Noticing that she'd been staring, Amanda abruptly looked away. "Oh, well, it is." She said, for lack of anything else to say. This seemed to satisfy Sarek, however.
"Come, let us indulge Selek of his thirst for discovery - I believe he has already found a fire salamander." There was something like a smile in his eyes when Amanda looked back, but he turned quickly and followed after Selek before she could really identify it. It's bad enough that I'm in a very strange world, Amanda thought to herself as she trudged after him, why does my mind have to start messing with me too?
Selek had indeed found a fire salamander, which Sarek referred to as a yonal-shatarr - literally fiery lizard. It was small and spiny, with multicolored eyes that spun like a chameleon's. It hissed at Selek and tried to scuttle underneath a dark black rock. The Vulcan boy, unphased, scooted around and moved the rock out of its way. The little creature, frustrated, opened its mouth and huffed a small cloud of smoke at Selek. Amanda had to put a hand over her mouth to keep from giggling, such was the absurdity of the sight. Selek beckoned Amanda closer and together they sought out more yonal-shatarr.
"Amanda, look," Selek said after a few minutes, a hint of excitement in his voice. He pointed to a cluster of reddish eggs underneath a rock outcropping. "We have found a nest." Selek climbed closer as Amanda herself came forward to get a better look. Sarek stood a few feet away, observing with a passive expression that didn't entirely mask his amusement. Selek drew quite close to the little clutch of eggs, peering at them with an academic's interest. Amanda picked her way over to him, careful on the looser rocks by the outcropping.
Suddenly, a large yonal-shatarr, much bigger than the one Selek had been poking at, climbed over the outcropping and hissed loudly at Selek. Amanda could see four sharp teeth in its mouth, a red tongue flickering between them. "Selek!" Alarmed, she lunged for Selek to defend him from the spaniel-sized lizard. There was a rattle of rocks beneath her and Amanda felt her foot slip. She let out a gasp and scrabbled for a moment before she lost her footing completely, falling onto her hip and sliding a few feet down the slope. Thankfully, the slide stopped before she had gone far from Selek or Sarek, but there was a sharp pain in her leg just below her knee Amanda swore under her breath, trying to get back to her feet. Her leg flared with pain in protest and she fell right back onto her butt again.
"Damn damn damn..." Amanda was about to try for another go when she suddenly felt Sarek's presence beside her. She turned to see his face close to hers, a hint of concern in his dark eyes.
"Miss Grayson, are you hurt?" He asked, his gaze breaking away from hers to look at her outstretched ankle.
"I think so," Amanda said, frustrated, from between gritted teeth. "It's not bad, don't-" Before she could say anything more, Sarek was rolling back her ripped leggings. Amanda, shocked, watched as he uncovered the injury. It really wasn't bad, only a small gash just below her knee to one side. Amanda was more embarrassed than hurt, but Sarek was very grave, as well as the panting Selek who appeared a moment later.
"Your blood is red! How curious." Selek said, leaning over her to get a better look.
"All humans have red blood, smertau, pest." Sarek said, but there was no maliciousness in his tone. "There is a first aid kit in the car. Go and get it, Selek." His cousin hopped to it, scurrying over the dark rock with a speed like that of a young mountain goat. Feeling deeply embarrassed, Amanda shook her head.
"It's all right, I don't need first aid. I was just being stupid." She tried to get up again, but was halted again, this time by a firm hand on her shoulder. Sarek's hand. It was the briefest of touches, but Amanda couldn't help but be surprised.
"No," He said evenly, looking into her face. "You must stay seated. You are bleeding."
"Not that much!" Amanda tried weakly to protest.
Sarek shook his head. "It should be cleaned. And you are not stupid - I was remiss in not warning you to be careful on the slope." There was some chagrin in his tone. "I should have given you more information on Khaf-Spol. My invitation-"
"You forgot to tell me about the yonal-shatarr too." Amanda interrupted him, her voice dry. She did, however, manage to put Sarek back at his ease, at least a little.
"They are normally not very aggressive." Sarek looked over his shoulder at the spot where the lizard's nest was. "That one was frightened enough to flee, look." He gestured back towards the nest, and Amanda turned to look. She could just see the tip of a reddish tail peeking out from the shadow of the rock outcropping, and perhaps the shine of two lizard eyes. She smiled privately; the situation was rather funny, after all. If only she weren't so embarrassed to have fallen in front of Sarek.
At that point, Selek returned with the medical supplies, looking somewhat cowed. He handed over the med kit to Sarek, who opened it without a word and began to prepare to clean Amanda's wound. When she protested that she could do it, he only shook his head and gave her a look. Defeated, Amanda turned back to Selek instead.
"I didn't know that red blood was an oddity to you." She said as Sarek applied what she assumed was antiseptic to a piece of gauze.
"Indeed. Vulcans have green blood." Selek said. Amanda blinked, surprised. She hadn't known that, and now that she looked closely, there did seem to be a greenish tinge to Selek's cheeks from the effort of running back with the kit.
"Oh! I did not know that." She said, and hissed with surprise. Sarek had touched the antiseptic-soaked gauze to her leg, and the stinging pain was much worse than the initial injury. "Ouch."
"It is not the only anatomical difference between Vulcans and Humans." Sarek said, paying close attention to her leg. Amanda's heart buzzed in her chest - what was he getting at? In front of Selek? "The Human heart is located between the lungs. Vulcan hearts are below the lungs, to the left side." Oh, phew. Amanda thought, that sounded like a set up to a very bad penis joke. Sarek broke his attention from Amanda's injury to look up into her eyes again. Amanda could feel her cheeks growing pink. His dark hair was falling across his eyes in a very...attractive way. Selek rescued her from herself, however, by saying "Humans are quite strange."
Sarek turned away from Amanda and began putting away the antiseptic and gauze. "In some ways, yes." He said. "Do you feel any pain, Miss Grayson?"
Amanda looked down at her leg. The cut was almost completely gone, the healing process having been significantly boosted by the liquid Sarek had applied to it. She gingerly touched the area, and noting no residual soreness, shook her head. "No, thank you. I'm sorry for having such poor balance."
"It is of no matter. Humans are known to be deficient." Amanda turned to look up at Sarek, who had stood. Did he really mean to make another jab at her for being Human? After all this? She was surprised to find, however, that there was a spark of a joke in his eyes. He was teasing her! Amanda's cheeks felt hotter than ever. She looked away from him and started to pull herself to her feet, only to find Sarek's hand at her elbow, steadying her. His touch was again brief, but reassuring, and Amanda found herself missing it when it was gone. In an effort to hide her confusion, Amanda brushed herself off and make a clicking noise with her tongue.
"I have yet to meet a Vulcan who proves Humans to be deficient." She said, glancing at him. The joking light had not faded from Sarek's eyes, but he simply made another shrugging gesture.
"This all depends on your observational skills. Shall we continue?"
They spent the rest of the afternoon roaming over the little valley of Khaf-Spol. Selek seemed to be everywhere at once, darting here and there to turn over rocks or chase after another yonal-shatarr, or gather pebble samples to take back home for study. Sarek and Amanda took a more leisurely pace, however, even though Amanda's curiosity was just as voracious as Selek's. They kept well away from the lava flows - even Amanda could tell that it was dangerous to stray too close.
"I do not have sufficient medical supplies to help you, should your foot go through the crust into a lava pocket." Sarek teased Amanda again. It was strange how she could tell it was a tease, even though his face was as calm and expressionless as ever. Perhaps she was just learning to read Vulcans better. Or, she thought, with another flutter in her heart, perhaps I'm learning to read Sarek better.
As the sun sank towards the horizon, its rays filtered through the haze that shimmered over Khaf-Spol were turned a beautiful, vibrant red. The light of the sunset seemed to blaze over everything around them, up from the lava itself. Amanda was overwhelmed by the fiery colors: the dark black red of the rocks, the glowing orange of the lava, and the purples, reds and oranges that flared in the sun's light. She and Sarek paused to sit on a flattish high point on Khaf-Spol's ridge, while Selek investigated a cluster of rocks that were tinged with the burnt blue of copper. They sat together in silence for a time, watching the sun disappear, the colors it shed growing more vibrant as it sank lower.
"Sarek," Amanda said after a time, surprised to hear herself say it. The Vulcan turned to look at her, the red light catching in his eyes and illuminating his face. Amanda paused before going on, not sure exactly what to say. "I know that we...haven't shown each other the best of ourselves in the past."
"I was cruel to you." Sarek said bluntly, surprising Amanda.
"Yes, a bit." She said, after a hesitation. "But that is over and done with, at least from my standpoint."
"And mine as well." Sarek said. Amanda's heart was beginning to beat faster, she could feel it thudding in her chest.
"What I mean to say is that I would like for us to be friends." She looked at her hands, not wanting to meet his face, and see the brilliant light emblazoned there. "I have needed a friend here."
Sarek said nothing for a moment, long enough so that Amanda wondered if he were disgusted with her offer. Finally, she turned to look at him again, hazarding a glance to try to read some reaction from him. He was looking out towards the sun, and Amanda was struck again by the elegant strength of his features. "Yes," He said, still not turning to face her. "We shall be friends, Miss Grayson."
Amanda wanted to smile, but she kept it inside for herself. For some reason, Sarek's acceptance was making her mind fizz inside her little refuge. "That's another thing, Sarek. If we are to be friends, you have to start calling me Amanda, all right?"
Sarek met her gaze again. The deep brown of his eyes was infused with the crimson light of the dying sun. "Yes, Amanda."
Author's Note: I struggled some to get this chapter out, but I'm happy with what happened in the end! Here are some quick things: for all of you who are volcanologists, or know more about volcanos than I do, I sincerely apologize for all the mistakes and crap that I made up here. My knowledge of volcanos was gained mostly from Wikipedia while I wrote this chapter. Maybe I can attribute my mistakes to creative license? ;) Also, the Vulcan dictionary online that I use is mysteriously malfunctioning, so I had to use another less-good one! I intended to have Selek call Sarek cousin, but I could only find the female form of cousin - go figure. So now they're cute and call each other brother! Take that for creative license.
Once again, love to you all for your reviews. You add greatly to the fun of writing this fic :)