~*~Logic. Emotion. Two worlds that base their livelihood on one or the other, yet I can never truly belong to either. In my twenty-six years of existence, I have never really appreciated my mother's people, because appreciation is an emotion. To appreciate is to be human, and to be human was something I would never allow myself to be. But now Mother is gone, as with the billions of Vulcans that died that day. For several months I believed myself to be alone, despite my Nyota at my side. Mother had always been the one I could truly be myself, and now she is gone…~*~

No words are spoken between my Grandfather and me as we silently make our way back to Starfleet. My mind is conflicted with everything he had told me, and yet I cannot refute his history. That he is human, but is 281 years old and capable of extraordinary things due to a mutation in his genetic makeup. There have been no accurate data about this occurrence other than the data files about the Eugenics period, only to be told we have been misinformed.

As he has been evidently keeping watch over me while attending the Academy, Grandfather drives his way through campus towards the building that contains my quarters. Finding an empty spot, he slides out his key card and the car gently sinks to the pavement, and I take this time to observe him before I take my leave.

"What?" Grandfather asks, catching me studying him. "Do I have something on my face?"

"No," I say, unsure of what to tell him, "I am just curious as to why now? Why make your existence known to me now, rather than when Mother was still alive?"

He shrugs, "Why not? I gave my word to her mother-your grandmother-that I would keep Amanda safe, and I had failed. I could not risk leaving the planet without exposing me and my kind. I was a coward."

I tilt my head, "The Federation is not ready for the kind of knowledge that of which you know. As no one can predict the outcome of reactions of the Federation and outside, hostile races, it is only logical to protect that knowledge. I am sure Mother would be displeased with the idea of you being tested and scrutinized. As a product of a human and Vulcan union, the scrutiny is less than ideal."

"I just feel I could have done more," Grandfather says. "But without stepping on too many butterflies, I am too late."

"Butterflies?"

"Chaos Theory," he explains.

"Ah, yes. How certain actions can affect the following events in an unpredictable pattern," I say. "But what does this have to do with Mother?"

"Some other time, I can explain it to you," Grandfather tells me. He looks toward the building. "I have a feeling your friends are up there, waiting for you."

I nod, a human trait I had long ago picked up, "When can we meet again, I am most intrigued about your past, Grandfather."

Grandfather chuckles, "You don't have to call me Grandfather, or Grandpa or whatever. Gabriel's just fine. But like I said, I'm available for whenever you're free. I'm not hurting for money, so I have plenty of free time."

"You were in pain?" I ask.

"Oh no," Gabriel says, "I meant that money is not a concern at the moment, so I am not working. But if you want, stop by tomorrow, and bring your friends. I can russle up a barbeque, vegetarian stuff for you. We can have a grand ole time."

"I do not wish to pose an imposition…," I start, but Gabriel only waves me off.

"It's not an imposition, it's an invitation," Gabriel reaches over to the glove department and pulls out a piece of paper. He waves a hand over it and numbers appear on the paper. He hands me the paper and sees my raised brow, prompting him to say, "Thoughtography, to 'burn' images from my mind onto a surface. Anyway, number to my cell phone, err, communicator. Noon, tomorrow."

I take the piece of paper and I bade my farewell. I take the stairs to my quarters on the fourth floor. My hearing picks up noises from inside, indicating that Nyota, Kirk, and McCoy are present, watching the news station on my view screen. Seeing them on the couch confirms it.

"Hey, buddy," Kirk says, rising, "how'd it go with your relative?"

"It was intriguing, and very informative," I say, placing myself next to Nyota and she laces her fingers with mine, initiating my touch-telepathy. She sends me her love through the connection. "He has invited us to his home to consume nourishments, a luncheon ritual called a 'barbeque'."

McCoy lets out a grunt in what I would assume to be his approval, "A good ole fashion barbeque, I like the guy already."

I feel a hum of concern from Nyota, "What is it, beloved?"

"He does know you don't eat meat, right? That is what is usually served at a barbeque," she says.

"Yes, Gabriel did inform me that there will be a vegetarian cuisine for my consumption."

"How are you guys related anyway?" Kirk wants to know. "I mean, you have never seen him around before, so…?"

"We are related through my mother's side of the family," I say, keeping my face neutral.

Kirk rolls his eyes, "Of course, I clearly remember the decidedly round ears and brows parallel to his eyes. Way to state the obvious, Mr. Spock."

"He is a distant relative of mine, whom I had no knowledge about prior to today," I tell them repeating the mantra I told Grandfather.

"You're not telling us everything," McCoy states.

"Yes," I say. "Gabriel told me it is up to my discretion on what to inform you about my relative, and I have come to the conclusion that it is not my secret to tell." I stand up and place my hands behind my back, looking at my companions. "If you will excuse me, it is time for my meditation."

McCoy and Kirk both nod, concluding that anymore attempts for information regarding Grandfather would be futile. Only Nyota remains and she pulls me close to her as I place my forehead against hers. We stand there in comfortable silence for several minutes. "So," she finally says, "what's he like? This Gabriel person, you don't have to tell me anything specific, just what is he like?"

"He is truly a fascinating person," I say. "He has seen so much, and he has told me only a fraction of what he has experienced. He had a violent past, but that is what makes him so…" I am momentarily at a loss of how to describe him, "humble, I suppose." I step away from Nyota and take her hands into my own and held them close. "If were to tell you something, do I have your word that you will not repeat this to Jim and the others?" I ask of her. "It is pertinent that this information does not get out, particularly to Starfleet."

Nyota's eyes widen at the implication, "This must be really huge if you feel you have to withhold information from Starfleet."

I agree, "It is, far larger than what I had anticipated."

"Ok, what is it?"

"Gabriel is my biological, maternal grandfather," I confess.

I sense confusion from Nyota. "Hmm, okay? Has he been placed in a cryogenic stasis unit all these years?" Nyota asks. "He looks no older than thirty, and I still don't understand how this might have anything to do with Starfleet."

"Gabriel was born in 1977," I begin. "He is capable of doing extraordinary things, things that can only be imagined in fantasy, all due to a genetic mutation."

"Spock, I've never seen you this worked up before," Nyota says.

"It may seem illogical to believe, I have witnessed just a fraction of what he can do with just his mind," I say. "It is also important that Starfleet do not hear of this. They might see Grandfather and people like him as a danger to the Federation, a living weapon, something to study. Grandfather says it is dues to genetics, so it would be safe to assume that it is hereditary. They would want to look at me, and I would be obligated to participate in any studies, or risk court marshal."

Nyota cups my face with a hand and leans in to place a kiss on my lips; however, I can still feel her confusion and some doubt. "It might be easier to show you," I say.

"A mind meld?"

"A face to face introduction, perhaps?"

Nyota tilts her head, "This buzz I'm feeling, you're excited?"

"I suppose I am," I open the door to my quarters. "Come. The next shuttle leaves in a half hour. We ought to leave now to surprise Grandfather." We take the lift to the ground floor and walk to the nearest shuttle station. As we wait for the shuttle, I show Nyota the gift Grandfather gave me.

"Mother had a fascination with turn-of-the-millennium history, particularly music," I say. "She would spend time with Grandfather, having him tell her about any and all things from that era. She in turn shared that experience with me, mostly in the form of films from the twentieth century."

"You really have an amazing family, Spock," Nyota says, and the shuttle arrives and we take our place at the back for some privacy. "Tell me, Spock, how has your grandfather…lived this long?"

"He called it 'rapid cellular regeneration'. New cells are constantly and instantaneously replacing old ones: he cannot get sick, age, or die."

Nyota looks thoughtful, "He's lived almost three hundred years."

"He will most likely live to see three hundred more," I say.

"'Most likely'?" Nyota says.

"He says he cannot die, but it does not exclude the possibility he cannot be killed," I tell her, logically. The shuttle reaches our destination and we make our way to Grandfather's home. In the distance I see him. He has a large, thin box in one hand and sack containing food items in the other. He walks to his door, stop, tilt his head, and then look in our direction. He smiles as we approach.

"Looks like I got home just in time," he says. "I hope you like cheese pizza, and I do hope you'll stop by tomorrow for the barbeque." He directs the latter to Nyota, effortlessly walking backwards and the front door automatically opens behind him.

"Of course!" Nyota exclaims. Grandfather's pet comes up to Nyota and sits at her feet, waving a single paw in the air. "Hey there, puppy!"

"Nyota, the sheer size of the animal indicates that it is in its adulthood years," I explain to her, only to receive a giggle from Nyota and a roll of the eyes from Grandfather in response.

Nyota kneels down to scratch behind the beast's ears, and in response it lays on its back to expose its belly, prompting her to scratch it as well. "You are just too adorable! What's its name?"

"Kavik," Grandfather replies. "He's about seven years old, I've had him since he was four months old, so he's pretty well behaved." He extends a hand to Nyota, "I'm Gabriel. Gabriel Gray."

Nyota takes his hand, "I'm Nyota Uhura. I'm Spock's girlfriend."

Grandfather, while still holding Nyota's hand, steps back and gives Nyota a quick look over. "You have chosen well, Spock," he says, with a smirk that could only be described as sly, causing Nyota to blush.

I managed to refrain from growling but my hand had automatically reached out to Nyota's belt loop and pulled her closer to me. "Yes," I reply. "She has, as humans often say, both brains and beauty." Acknowledging I had an illogical moment, I turn my attention to the animal. "Kavik is a strong Vulcan name. A prominent Vulcan by that name was involved in the study of xenobotany a few centuries ago. How did you come by that name, Grandfather?"

"Gabriel, remember?" he says. "Kavik means 'wolverine' in some native Alaskan language. Other than what I've read about Vulcan history since Amanda married your father, I admit I don't know too much about their culture or that of other alien cultures. I can't risk going off planet and always kept to myself."

"All this time you've never been off planet?" Nyota asks, in disbelief.

Grandfather, Gabriel, I corrected myself, looks at me and lifts a brow, "She knows."

I nod, "Of my companions, she is the only one I have explained of our relations. We are to be mated soon. Keeping any secrets would be illogical, as she is fully trustworthy."

Gabriel shrugs, "Ok, I trust your judgment." He opens the pizza box and places a slice onto three plates. Soon he places three glasses on the counter. From the refrigeration unit, a pitcher of lemonade and Gabriel pours into each glass. "Come. Let's sit."

"What do you want to know," he asks, biting into the pizza. I, however, only stare at the slice. "Is there something wrong with the pizza?" Gabriel asks of me.

I look up, "There is nothing wrong." Gabriel just looks at me.

"I can tell when people are lying," he says. "You, however, are only telling me half the truth."

"Vulcans do not eat with their hands," I admit. "I did not want to be troublesome, but…"

"Nonsense!" Gabriel says, and soon, without getting up, a fork and knife gently glides through the air and lands on my plate. "You need to stop seeing yourself as an imposition."

Nyota is still staring at the utensils, mouth agape. "Wow," she breathes. "Spock told me you could do things, and said something about cell regeneration, but…wow!"

"I can do a lot of things," Gabriel says. "But I'm not omnipotent. There was a time I thought myself so, but that was a lifetime ago."

Nyota nods, "Can you tell me more about what you can do? What happened between you and your family?"

Gabriel tells Nyota the same things he told me earlier, and goes into further demonstration of his abilities: alchemy, freezing, illusions, plant manipulation; and discusses his past with my grandmother and why he had to leave and how he came to possess all these abilities.

"You tell us that you are not omnipotent," I say. "But you have clearly showed us that you are."

Gabriel sighs, "I see how jaded your opinion of me has become. But I'm not God, and I learned a long time ago that it is not my place to play God. The abilities I've shown you…you still cannot imagine the things I can do. I have a super-enhanced eidetic memory. I am able to remember every single detail of every single day of my immortal life from now until life as we know it ceases to exist. I am tired."

Nyota shakes her head, "But you have taken lives."

"It has been nearly a century," I tell Nyota. "I believe his continuing existence of immortality is punishment enough to him. By this time, there is not much the authorities can do at this moment. They would only have his spoken confession; it has been so long ago that everything would be considered circumstantial and his words would be of a mad man."

"Thank you, Spock," Gabriel says, and looks at Nyota. "So I'm going to ask you the same question I asked Spock: Can you trust me?"

"If Spock trusts you, then I do to," she says. "I'm just having trouble trying to forget about all those people…"

Gabriel says, "I could always make you forget. If you prefer, I can make it so that you cannot remember me at all."

Nyota's eyes widens, "No, no, I'm good."

"Gabriel," I say, "may I ask a personal query?"

"Shoot," he says, leaning back into the couch and placing a foot on the coffee table in front of us. "Err, speak your mind, I should say," he says, noticing how I tend to take human idioms literally.

"If you find displeasure of immortality and superior memory," I start, "why did you obtain such abilities?"

"I was not thinking at the time of the long term consequences," he says. "I wanted the instant gratification of having those abilities, regardless of who got hurt. Now I shall forever be shameful of what I had done. Because, in the end, it cost me my family."

We were silent for a moment, and then Nyota tries to stifle a yawn, prompting me to say, "It is getting late, and Nyota needs her rest." We all stand and Gabriel walks us to the door. "I look forward to the barbeque."

"I second that thought," Gabriel says. "It has been a long day for everyone."

Gabriel makes a few offers to drive us back to Starfleet, but in the end Nyota and I preferred the walk back to the shuttle station. The night is clear, and Nyota's gaze is focused on the stars above. "Do you think he'll ever travel off planet?" Nyota asks.

I only tilt my head and link my arm through Nyota's. She continues, "I mean, traveling off planet has become a way of life in a way, that no one would give it a second thought about staying planet side. I couldn't imagine not exploring the stars. Gabriel, your grandfather, he has the opportunity to explore it all."

"But what about when the time comes that there is nothing left to explore?" I ask. "What would there be to see when he has seen it all, and to be the only one of his kind to have seen it all? He cannot predict who gets what ability, and with the colonization of planets, it is possible they all have traversed elsewhere. Humans with abilities are far outnumbered by those without abilities, and locating any has become futile. In the end, death would be the next great adventure."

"That is so sad," Nyota comments. "Well, what about the person he got the cell regeneration ability? He wouldn't be alone, not exactly."

I look at her with a raised brow, "Considering the circumstances he obtained that particular ability, the possibility they parted ways on friendly terms is less than 2.482%. The possibility they remained in contact is even less so."

"You're right," Nyota admits. "Still, he could find way. Why hasn't he?"

"I do not know," I say. "To be able to travel off-planet, one would have to submit their photo, fingerprints-for humans, and genetic profile yearly. In addition to illusions, he can physically alter his appearance. Perhaps he cannot change his prints and genetic profile that way."

"It would be suspicious if the same prints and profile kept reappearing with a different face for over a century," Nyota agrees. "But still, Bones would still get a kick out of seeing him heal from a wound."

"Perhaps we should be more concerned about Mr. Kirk's welfare tomorrow," I say. "How temperamental my grandfather has become over the last two centuries is still questionable, I do not wish for Mr. Kirk to test his patience."

This gets a laugh from Nyota. At this time I finally notice that we are back at my quarters. "Yes, Jim really does have a way of knowing what buttons to press and really piss people off," she agrees, and we slowly make our way to my bed chamber. We undress and change into sleepwear and Nyota places our day's clothing into the refresher and I prepare the bed.

Once situated under the covers and Nyota has curled under my arms, she begins to speak, "Tell me about her, your mother. You never talk about her, even after that day."

"What would you like to know?"

"I dunno. You mentioned once that your mother was greatly influence by her father. Now that we've met him and know the truth, maybe you can connect what aspects of Gabriel influence her."

I think about what she said, and many things about my mother made clearer sense. "Mother would tell me how Grandfather, Gabriel, would always drop everything he was doing, just to spend some time with her. She claimed that Gabriel knew his time was up. The reports surrounding his death were marked as negligence but nothing to prove suicide, and she knew it was suicide. She just did not know why." I am silent for a moment. "She loved her father very much; I often had trouble understanding her emotions towards him."

"And now?" Nyota prompts.

"Why all of this sudden curiosity?" I ask.

"Well, you have never been this open," she replies. "Now the flood gates are unleashed and I want to hear more."

"Illogical."

Nyota responds by nipping my pectoral muscle. "You're avoiding the question, buster."

"Whatever the cause of death," I say, "I had found solace in the fact that Mother would be with her father, if one were to believe in the afterlife."

At that moment, my comm station signals an in coming call. Kirk. "How can I be of service, Mr. Kirk?" I ask, masking any indication of how annoyed I am to be disturbed.

"Bones and I were wondering if we should bring anything to this shindig tomorrow," Kirk asks.

"I would not know, Mr. Kirk," I reply. "I never had much experience with 'barbeques'. It might be polite to bring something, anyways. Is there anything else I can assist you with?"

"Yeah, what dress code should we follow?"

I can almost feel Nyota rolling her eyes behind me. "Regulated Starfleet uniforms will unnecessary, as we are on leave until Enterprise is finished being refitted for repairs. Gabriel has no affiliation with Starfleet, so casual wear will be suitable." I finish and stare at Kirk through the view screen, as if to dare him to ask further questions. He does.

"Who else will be there?"

"He planned this at the spur of the moment; it is unlikely to expect anyone other than myself, Nyota, you and Dr. McCoy, and Lts. Sulu, Scott, and Chekov," I allow myself a microscopic tilt of my lips. "So there will be no need for you to be in your 'finest duds'."

"Ouch," Kirk chuckles. "But nah, Sulu, Scott and Chekov all have something going on tomorrow, so it'll be us guys and-oh hey Uhura!"

Nyota appears at my side at the comm station with a blanket around her, "Goodnight, Kirk. And a piece of advice: don't do anything to test Gabriel's patience." Kirk's eyes widen, and before he could reply, Nyota turns off the comm station and programs any further incoming calls to directly go to voicemail for the rest of the night.

"Nyota, my savior," I say as I pull her to my lap and whisper against her neck. "I shall forever be in your debt."

"Well," she says, coyly, "I know one way you can repay me."

"Anything," I tell her, before nibbling her earlobe.

"It involves you. Me. Stark naked."

I whisk Nyota up, "As you wish," I say, before racing back to the bed.

A/N: I know Spock seems a bit OOC, but I figured if there is anytime for Spock to explore his humanity, it'd be while explore his human family.