"Well, it's no desert, but I think it's pretty damn beautiful."

Amanda stood with her hands on her hips, looking over at the great expanse of mountainous forest that lay in front of them. Sunlight illuminated the grand bowl of the valley, covered over with deep green pine trees, between which glimpses of gray rock peeked. The wind was up, and it tugged playfully at her hair and clothing, bringing her the crisp scent of the trees below. She had forgotten how much this sight meant to her, in her time on Vulcan. I'll memorize it, to save for later. She glanced over at Sarek. For when Shi'Kahr is especially hot.

Sarek didn't look especially cold, but Amanda could tell that he was uncomfortable. He was wearing much thicker clothing than was his usual dress, and the tips of his nose and ears were green. "It is certainly much greener," He hazarded.

"And blue, too. Look at those mountains in the distance." Amanda pointed to the snowy peaks of the great mountains that were slightly hazy in the midmorning air. "Our color pallet is nearly the opposite of yours."

"I do remember it," Sarek said, in a distant tone. "You shared the names of these trees with me, during a dream."

Amanda nodded, looking back at the landscape. "It was important enough to me to share, I suppose." She blinked, the briskness of the air causing her eyes to water. She smiled a little. "I'm happy that I've had the opportunity to share it in person."

They were silent for a moment. A hawk wheeling over head filled the silence with a sharp call, thinner and higher than the calls Tau made. Finally, Amanda put her arm through Sarek's and gestured back towards the hover car. "Come on. My mom said she was making brunch, and I'd hate for that mountain of food to get cold before we got there." She smiled up at him, and there was a responding glow in Sarek's eyes, but it was accompanied by something else.

Amanda tried to focus on it as they got back in the car and started continuing their journey to Mr. and Mrs. Grayson, and Amanda's childhood home. It was just a little niggling feeling, and Amanda got the feeling that Sarek was trying to hide it. She glanced at him, a quizzical look.

"Are you nervous?" She asked, incredulous.

"No," was Sarek's immediate answer, but it was far too hasty. He returned her gaze briefly before going back to concentrating on the road. "Perhaps I have a degree of trepidation. But I am not nervous."

Amanda smiled a little. She couldn't help feeling pleased. She was nervous herself, to tell the truth. Her parents had been incredibly surprised at her news - 'Hey mom and dad, I'm marrying a Vulcan ambassador and we're coming to visit for a few days, is that cool?' - but they seemed to be happy as long as she was. Still, Sarek was certainly far from whatever they had hoped for their future son-in-law to be.

Amanda just hoped that they'd be able to see him as a person, rather than a Vulcan, an alien. Of course her parents were no xenophobes, but Amanda wasn't sure that they'd had a lot of interaction with other races. Her home town wasn't big, and unless someone new had moved in since Amanda had been away at school, she was pretty sure that Sarek would be the only non-Human for miles once they reached it.

Amanda had done her best. Knowing that she and Sarek were going to spend a few days with her parents, she'd briefed them on Vulcans 101 and sent along a little list of protocols, just to be safe. No handshakes, no pressing them to talk about their feelings. Vegetarian, accustomed to warmer temperatures than on Earth, very formal. Blunt as hell. So, her parents were probably going to be fine with Sarek. It was just a question now of whether or not Sarek would be fine with them.

"They're just regular Humans," Amanda said, conversationally. "You're great at dealing with Humans."

"I have never attempted to marry any of the daughters of the Humans I've been in contact with." Sarek's tone was dry. His fingers looked a little tense on the steering console.

"That's good to hear, but they're in the same boat as you are, really." Sarek took his eyes off the road for a moment to give her a puzzled look.

"I mean, you're all in the same situation. You've never tried to get permission to marry a Human girl before - not that you need their permission really, just mine - and they've never had to meet a Vulcan who is to be their future-son-in-law. Everyone is new to this game." Amanda gave him a reassuring smile. "So, everyone will be awkward, really. Except for me."

Sarek raised an eyebrow, looking at her sidelong. "And why is that?"

"I'll be too busy trying not to laugh."

Despite her confident statement to Sarek, Amanda's heart was in her throat when her childhood home came into view between the trees. The Graysons' home was somewhat rambling, and about half-modernized. It was an old house, and had retained bits and pieces of its history as families moved in and out. In terms of conveniences, it wasn't a patch on Amanda's little flat in Shi'Kahr, but it held much more value to her.

Amanda nearly leapt out of the car when they pulled to a stop. Sarek followed her at a more sedate pace, as was his wont. She couldn't tell whether he was excited or not, her own emotion being somewhat overwhelming. Amanda could sense, however, a hint of nervous tension in his movements as he started unpacking their things from the car. Before she could go to him, however, Amanda heard the front door closing, and turned to see her parents coming down the path to them.

"Mom! Dad!" Amanda rushed to them to be happily engulfed in the hug they had waiting for her. There were big smiles on both of their faces, but they too seemed nervous.

"Welcome home, sweetheart. It's so nice to see you!" Faye Grayson exclaimed, wresting her daughter from her husband and pulling her into a tighter hug. "We've missed you so much! And we're very glad about your news."

Amanda extricated herself from the anaconda mother's grip and laughed. "Good! I'm happy to see you guys, too. Come and meet Sarek. He was just getting our things out of the car."

The aforementioned Sarek was standing stiffly by their pile of belongings. He looked as blank as a slab of stone, but Amanda could see how anxious he was. That emotion was definitely not visible to her parents, however. Amanda glanced at them to see the tension in their own expressions - Faye's fixed smile, and Evan's half-anxious look that was probably supposed to be welcoming. Amanda went to Sarek and put her hand lightly on his arm, a brief touch.

"Come on, no one's going to bite," She said gently - the phrase directed more at her parents than at Sarek, who wouldn't find much comfort in a Human statement like that. The Graysons advanced, and, much to Amanda's horror, her father held out his hand.

"Nice to meet you, son. I'm Evan Grayson, this is my wife Faye. We're so excited about the wedding."

Amanda nearly groaned in exasperation. She let go of Sarek and gently pushed her dad's hand away. "Dad, Vulcans don't shake hands. It's a cultural thing." Her father looked immediately abashed, and had opened his mouth, probably to apologize, when Sarek spoke.

"I don't understand - why did you call me 'son'? I have a perfectly able father of my own. It seems inappropriate."

The look of confusion and embarrassment on Evan Grayson's face made Amanda's heart twist. This was going to be a lot harder than she had expected. "Sarek," Amanda said, "He didn't mean any offense by it. It's a term of endearment." Relax,she told him. You're scaring them. She remembered how intimidating Sarek had been when she'd first met him. It must be a hundred times worse for her parents.

"Come on inside," Faye said, taking Amanda's hand. "I've made tea." She turned to Sarek and smiled. "Amanda says that Vulcans enjoy tea. I thought you could try some of our Terran brew."

Amanda smiled too, relieved by her mother's perseverance. As her parents led them inside, Amanda could feel Sarek trying to smooth his ruffled feathers. It might make him seem more stony to her parents, but at least Sarek would be more at ease. That might help.

The house was just as Amanda remembered it. The comfortable, familiar sights and smell of home relaxed her. The house was decorated simply, with older furniture and many, many family photos. Sarek paused to look at these, and Amanda felt the urge to push him past them. Most of the photos were of her as a laughing, curly-headed toddler or gangly pre-teen. Unfortunately Amanda's mother picked up on Sarek's interest, and with a wicked look at Amanda said "Wasn't she sweet as a kid? Amanda's always had an excellent smile."

Amanda fidgeted, noting the puzzlement coming off Sarek. Describing the way a person smiled was not exactly a Vulcan thing to do. "Yes." Was all he said in reply. At this rate, he's going to come off as a laconic robot.

I am doing my best. Amanda felt the slight hurt in Sarek's presence.

Right, I'm sorry...I just want them to understand what the real you is like.

They arrived in the kitchen and Faye shooed them all into chairs around the round kitchen table while she got the tea ready. This left Amanda and Sarek seated together across from Evan. Amanda didn't need a mind link to notice how nervous he was. They sat in silence for a moment, then Amanda and her father both spoke up at once.

"So Dad, how is -"

"Amanda, why don't -"

The silence returned and Amanda bit her lip. "Uh, go ahead, Dad."

Evan smiled at her, glancing at Sarek before speaking. "I was just wondering how you two met. You didn't tell us that story, Amanda."

"You haven't told us much of anything," Faye commented as she put cups on a tray.

"I know, I'm sorry! Life is really hectic over there. It's a little overwhelming, I guess. I can't help but get absorbed in it." Amanda gave her father an apologetic look. "You know I tend to get lost in the clouds a lot."

This earned her a chuckle from her father. "No, no, we understand, just as long as you fill us in now!" He raised his eyebrows at her. "Clearly a lot has been happening. Are you getting any work done?" His tone was joking, a lighthearted dig at her.

"Amanda's work in the program has been exemplary." Sarek said. "She has been very successful."

Amanda couldn't help giving him a little smile, for jumping to her defense so quickly. "Well, I've been doing my best. It's hard work, but I love it there." She smiled up at her mother as Faye brought over the tray, laden with tea and cookies. "Mom, you should see the kids. They're all adorable, even if they aren't very expressive. And smart as hell. I had to revise my entire lesson plan because they were moving through it too quickly."

"Sounds like someone else I know," Faye said, taking a seat beside her husband.

Amanda rolled her eyes and picked up a cookie. "Yeah, right."

"Come on, I want to hear the story of how you met." Evan persisted, starting to pour out tea for them. "We're going to have to know it well. Every time we tell someone that our daughter married a Vulcan, they're going to want the details."

Amanda felt Sarek balk at this, although outwardly the only sign of disturbance in him was a slight twitch of his hand. You don't mind if I tell them, do you? Humans share stories - sometimes personal ones.

Sarek relented, although Amanda could tell he still wasn't at his ease. Amanda picked up a cup of tea and pressed it on him. Drink it, it's good. You're doing fine.

I supervised a peace talk between generals of warring planets, both of which were not particularly friendly towards Vulcan. This is more stressful. Amanda smiled a little and briefly touched his arm, only to become aware that both of her parents were staring at them.

"Amanda?"

Amanda blinked at her mother. "What?"

"You just went quiet for about two minutes. Are you all right?"

Amanda felt her cheeks flush darkly. Damn! She'd never told them about the mind-link. Here she was just chatting happily with Sarek over the mind link, leaving her parents to wonder about her sudden, weird silence. "Um."

"Amanda and I were talking." Sarek spoke up. Amanda looked at him, surprised. "I suppose you know that Vulcans are a highly telepathic species. We form telepathic bonds with those who are close to us. Through those bonds, we can communicate feelings or thoughts."

"But Amanda isn't -"

"Well, but, I'm special." Amanda said, sheepishly. "Most humans are psi-null, which means that they have no telepathic ability. But uh, some people are more receptive to telepathy. I'm one of them. That's why Sarek and I have gotten to be so close. We're on the same wavelength, you might say." Even though Amanda was pretty certain of this layman's explanation of Vulcan bonding, her parents still looked dumbstruck. Damn it, damn it, damn it, why didn't I think to tell them about this earlier? "I'm really sorry, I should have explained it to you earlier. It's become so natural for me that I don't even think about it anymore."

After a long moment, Evan cleared his throat and shrugged. "That's all right, sweetie."

"I knew that Vulcans can communicate like that, but I didn't think that you could do it too, Amanda." Faye said gently. "Just another thing that makes you unique." She smiled, but Amanda still felt a little uneasy.

Your parents are worried.

Your dad is mean. Leave me alone.

Amanda smiled, forcing it to be a little brighter than usual. "How about I tell you the story of how we met, then?"

Amanda proceeded to recount the story, putting effort into being cheerful and lively and making as many jokes as possible. Eventually her parents seemed to unfreeze somewhat, and laughed along with her. Faye smiled at Sarek and commented on how he had a romantic soul, which seemed to puzzle him further, and Evan expressed great interest in the shavokhs, Tau and Kaht. This led to a discussion between the two men about wildlife on Vulcan. Evan had worked as a high school biology teacher in Portland for the last twenty years. Once he and Sarek had settled into a more comfortable rapport, Evan was badgering the Vulcan with questions and sharing anecdotes. Sarek even contributed with a few instances of his dry humor, which was appreciated as much by Evan as it was by his daughter.

While they were engaged thus, Faye got up from the table and led Amanda outside, to show her improvements made to the garden while Amanda had been away. The sun was starting to sink, and thick gold shafts of sunlight were falling between the bare branches. Amanda felt a bittersweet twinge in her heart in appreciation for the sight. In the summer, the leaves would be so thick that the light would turn emerald. Sunlight falling across Shi'Kahr was beautiful, of course, but Amanda hadn't realized how much she missed the gentle, green-tinged light that came down through leaves. She sighed.

"Amanda, dear," Faye called her back. She was sitting on a little bench that Evan had made, situated next to a little tree that flowered in the spring. It was beginning to show hints of blossoms, but they wouldn't be full-fledged flowers for a few months now. Amanda hugged her arms a little tighter around her body and sat down next to her mother. The slanting sunlight warmed her a little, but Amanda found herself missing the persistent heat of Vulcan.

Faye sighed and folded her hands in her lap. "Please don't think that I'm disapproving, but this is all very...sudden." She said. "And I've never known you to act hastily before. I'm a little worried about you. It's natural for people to go off to a foreign world and fall so much in love with the culture that they..."

"Decide to fall in love with one of the natives?" Amanda asked. She felt a hint of irritation at her mother's anxiety. Amanda was 26, after all, she was old enough to be trusted to know her own mind. "I know what you mean, Mom, but this isn't like that. I..." She hesitated. "Damn, there's no way to explain this without sounding like a dumb love-sick puppy. I'll do my best, though." She drew one leg up on the bench and faced her mother.

"I feel as though I've found some parts of me that were missing, and not just with Sarek. Before I went on this fellowship I always worried that maybe there was something else I should be doing, that maybe I wasn't following the right path. I felt like there was a place in the universe that I belonged, but I didn't know how to get there, and I was always afraid that I wasn't doing what I should to get there. But now I feel like I'm exactly where I should be. And now that I'm here, there's so much for me to discover. Does...that make any sense?"

Amanda looked up at her mother, but Faye was looking towards the house. There was a smile on her face. Amanda turned to see what she was looking at. Sarek and Evan had just walked out onto the front porch. Sarek looked out at them and raised his hand. Amanda waved back.

"It makes sense, Amanda." Amanda looked back at her mother. Faye's eyes were shining. "I felt that way too, with your father. And it only got better when you were born." She reached out and pulled her daughter into a hug. "I trust you, Amanda. I know you're going to be very happy."

Author's Note: Okay, I know it's been about...five months. I hope I didn't test your patience too much! From time to time I glance back at this story and get really inspired to write more of it. We are so close to the finish now, I'm going to power through!

I thought this might be a nice little fluff chapter. It took me forever to think of a way to approach writing it - I hope the result isn't too boring.

And don't worry, we'll leave boring old Earth soon! I have some fun stuff planned, just you wait ;)