Disclaimer: See Chapter 1. Thank you so much to Ahlysha, maba7x, T'Sara and 2redbird for reviewing!
Meral shoved the items he had been ordered to get and the dripping umbrella into L'Vek's arms before silently stomping off towards his room. The walk home, though drier, had done nothing to improve his mood. He narrowed his eyes at a passing colleague, Sorak, and slipped into his room to be alone. He needed to meditate. The sound of that music from the shop was still ringing in his ears, and the smell of the place had not yet faded completely from his nose.
He hastily lit a candle and folded his hands in the proper way, then set out to re-center his mind. He focused on propriety, and Judith's apparent lack of it. She dressed as if she were ready for bedroom escapades, she walked as if she wanted every man in her sights to come on to her...she made him inhale what might possibly be a psychoactive drug and made him taste things he did not want to eat. She was a nuisance, and the sooner he forgot about her, the better.
He closed his eyes and banished the thought of Judith from his mind.
…
L'Vek returned to his quarters once he had prepared the meal Meskhenet wanted him to try, and the smells arising from the tray were enough to make his head swim. But it was a pleasant sensation, he discovered, entering his room to see his Emmie lounging on the couch in only a bathrobe. He set the tray down on the coffee table and slid in beside her, and she lifted her head, kissing him softly on the lips.
"Ready to eat, habibi?" she murmured, and he nodded.
"How did Meral like his shopping trip?"
L'Vek raised an eyebrow. "He did not seem to enjoy it at all. But I find it very strange that he came back looking even more...put off than usual. He was in a very foul temper and went to meditate, or so I assume. I wouldn't suggest prying into his affairs. He strongly dislikes this planet and its people."
She sighed, but obligingly opened her mouth when he offered her a spoonful of a rice dish he had made. The corners of his lips curled upward when she moaned, and he put down the spoon and stroked her hair.
"Are you ready for the festival next week?" she asked. "My friend Judith and I are dancing at the Jamaican and Egyptian expos, respectively."
L'Vek nuzzled her neck. "I would very much like to see you dance," he purred, and she shivered in delight.
"Habibi, shouldn't we wait until after we eat?"
"Who says we can't do a little of both, hm?"
She grinned wickedly at him. "You naughty little Vulcan," she teased, then dipped her finger in hummus and held it out for him to take.
He smirked and obliged her, and she smiled in contentment.
…
He couldn't believe L'Vek had convinced him to go to this festival. The sun was out, but it was still chill, and yet L'Vek did not seem to mind the cold. They wandered through the crowd, watching all the displays. Competing music confused his ears, and all sorts of exotic smells made his head swim. Meral strongly disliked being among crowds of humans. They had no regard for personal space nor any sort of propriety, and being out here, even if it was warming up, was stretching his tolerance to the limits.
"My a'duna will be performing at expo 78. She showed me a picture of the flag that will be flying above it."
Meral nodded stiffly, glancing sidelong at a human weaving through the crowd, headed in the opposite direction. The man had on a ridiculous-looking feathered mask that rose two feet above the crowd, and everyone else was looking at him with smiles on their faces. How could these humans be so cheerful?
They arrived at long last at expo 78, and just as they took a seat in the back of the crowd, the dancer on stage finished their performance, and everyone clapped.
An announcer came out with a microphone. "Next, representing Africa and her mother, the notable and beloved human rights activist Kimbe Keeler, comes our next performer, Judith Keeler, from our very own San Francisco!"
The crowd clapped politely, but Meral felt his jaw relax slightly. It was her.
She was dressed in little more than a loincloth, a brassiere, and beads, and he watched, transfixed as the heavy and irregular beat resounded through the tent. He clenched his jaw and his fist, seemingly unable to take his eyes off of her. She moved like a prowling sehlat protecting its kits from harm, and her leaps and twists and turns made him feel dizzy, and warmer. He wished wildly for a moment that he had a lirpa in his hand, but not to fight...why did he need a weapon? The woman dancing on stage was...harmless...Judith was harmless...
"Are you unwell?" L'Vek whispered to him in Vulcan.
Meral shook his head. "I am adequate," he replied stiffly.
She moved faster and faster, stomping and leaping and filling his head with the wildest of visions. She looked as if she belonged in the desert, her figure lithe and sinewy, able to leap from rock to rock as she hunted...why was he dwelling on this?
The dance blessedly ended soon after, and he blinked, like a man awaking from a dream.
The announcer stated that L'Vek's T'Sai was next, and she walked onto the stage with a bright smile, her eyes searching the crowd. She spotted L'Vek, and her smile widened, and her piece was short, a lascivious dance involving gyrating her hips all over the stage. Meral thought privately to himself that he wouldn't let any mate of his dance like that in front of all these people, but he also noted that Meskhenet did not take her eyes from L'Vek, as if she were calling to him, gesturing him forward with her hips...
Meral shook his head of the thought and clapped politely when the dance ended, but only for the sake of his superior.
"Mister Vulcan man!" he heard behind him, and he turned and saw Judith Keeler standing there, her hands on her hips.
L'Vek raised an eyebrow at him. "You know this woman?"
"Ai, Mister Vulcan man. Dat be Meral, da man who shop in de pourin rain."
Meral bowed his head. "Ms. Keeler helped me find the ingredients you requested, Osu," he explained, and Judith's eyes lit up.
"Oh, so yer de Vulcan who cook de food 'o love, man?"
"I did cook a meal the night Meral went out to the grocery store. It was food. There was no connotation connected to it."
"An' where did me Vulcan brotha get dat recipe?"
"My wife gave it to me. The woman who belly-danced just now."
Her eyes lit up again. "Emmie girl is yer wife, eh?"
"Yes, Emmie is my wife."
Ms. Sadir came up to them and gestured for them to leave, and Meral followed, his posture stiffening when Judith fell in step beside him.
"See, Mister Meral?" she said, gesturing up to the heavens. "De sunshine come back, and we celebrate dis day! Yes ai, life is sweet as de suga when you let it be."
He couldn't help but notice that she was still wearing that ridiculous outfit, but she also had a bag slung over her shoulder, and he hoped some more decent clothes were contained therein.
"If you gentlemen aren't opposed to hiking a bit, I know a bistro a few blocks from here that should be a lot less crowded."
L'Vek and Judith both approved of this idea, but Meral stayed silent. The crowd of people pressed in on his senses, and he was eager to be away from this place, but he would rather not be in a bistro. He was no longer hungry, and he preferred the quiet of the Consulate to the buzz of the shops. He sighed and followed though, knowing L'Vek wanted his company.
The bistro Emmie led them to specialized in Indian cuisine; they took a seat in the back, and Meral groaned inwardly as Judith sat across from him. The restaurant was alive with foreign, exotic smells, and he thought he recognized one of them from the shop...
"De cinnamon, Mister Vulcan man," Judith whispered across the table. Her voice sounded flirtatious, and he flared his nostrils in response. "Smells like 'eaven."
He was forced to take a deep breath, and already he could feel the scent affecting him...what was this substance that made him feel so...relaxed? So...alive?
Then he remembered that it acted on his brain like a psychoactive drug, and yet he couldn't find it within himself to be displeased about that. He felt the smell rejuvenate his senses, and for a moment, he thought this might not be a drug after all, but simply a calming substance, like lavender apparently was to humans.
Judith ordered the chai spice tea for the table. "I am tinking we get a family style lunch," she said aloud, looking at the menu. "I am starving, and dis way we all get to try new food."
Emmie smiled. "Good plan, Judith." She looked at L'Vek. "That means we all order an item and they bring it and place it in the center of the table, so we can all try everything."
L'Vek nodded. "That is agreeable. It is much the way our homes work on Vulcan."
The waitress brought the chai and poured a glass for everyone, then took everyone's order. She bowed to them and left them in peace.
Judith sipped the tea, moaning slightly. "Nothin' be betta than a well brewed spice tea after a long day." She set her eyes on him. "Drink da tea Mister Vulcan man, you look like a sad day. Keep da sunshine in yer heart and you neva 'ave a cold day."
Meral took a sip of the tea, and he felt his body relax against his will. He leaned back in the seat, closing his eyes. The beat of the music over the speaker was rather soothing, and with every breath, he felt his veins spark with life. He felt...strong, virile, like a warrior of old. And all from this cinnamon...
He opened his eyes and saw that Judith was watching him closely, and he finally let his expression relax into something he thought was more neutral than his usual displeasure.
Judith smiled warmly. "See now, Mister Vulcan man, dere is healing power in tea shared wit friends. De day don' seem so cold now." She winked at him.
He watched, momentarily transfixed, as she took a sip of her tea.
Her lips were full, and as he knew from their contact with his cheek, they were soft, plump, luscious...he was spellbound as he watched her tongue flick out and stroke across her bottom lip, then retreated. He swallowed thickly, taking another hasty sip of tea.
"And now he can't get enough," Meskhenet teased, and Judith giggled. Her voice was low when she laughed, and it snuck into his ears like a searching tongue...
He blinked the thought away and reached for some of the flatbread on the plate, and he bit the inside of his cheek when Judith's fingers brushed his.
"It seem we cannot stop running into each other, Mister Vulcan man, 'ere." she said, placing the flat bread they were both going after on his plate. "I tink you want it more dan I. And I don' want ya to be frownin' any more so you 'ave it."
L'Vek stood and handed Meral his credit chip. "I have the desire to be alone with Emmie to discuss the matter of our trip to Vulcan. You will stay and pay for this, and take Ms. Keeler out for dessert when she is ready. I have no more need for you the rest of today."
He held up his two fingers to Emmie. "Attend, my wife," he said, and then looked at Judith. "I hope we see more of you. I find you agreeable."
He gulped and watched them leave, then took another sip of tea, his eyes fixed on the table.
"Come now, Mister Vulcan man, I be dat bad?" He glanced up at her and was once again momentarily distracted by her warm brown gaze.
"No, I suppose not," he replied, taking a bite of the flatbread, then closing his eyes. The flavor was buttery and rich, not like the simple foods he was used to...
His eyes snapped open when he realized he had taken what she had put on his plate. She may not have made it, but still...
she didn't make it herself, he told himself. And I am paying for this meal anyway. This is not her show of providing for me.
He sighed and took another bite. "This bread is...agreeable." His muscles had tensed when L'Vek left, but he was slowly relaxing again.
"It be betta if you add some of dis," she suggested, scooping out a light beige sauce out of a bowl. "It is a bit spicy, but da flavor..." She moaned as she put some of the bread in her mouth. He frowned at her, wondering why she was making such inappropriate noises in public.
She sipped her tea, and he followed suit, trying not to let his eyes drift downward to her scantily clad form. The owners of the bistro were apparently letting things slide today, considering all the ridiculous costumes everyone was wearing.
Judith stood and grabbed her bag. "I be back Mister Vulcan man. Don' you be running off on me!"
A few minutes later, she came back, dressed in proper clothes. Well, proper was an overstatement. She was dressed in a tank top and short shorts, as if she didn't mind who saw her in what was little more than underwear, in his opinion.
"Dere, maybe now you won' be lookin' at me like I be throwin' myself a' you, eh? I'll be ok with takin' you up on some dessert. I know a place."
She grinned and filled his tea cup up, and then hers. "So what do you do fo' Mr. L'Vek, Mister Vulcan man?" she purred softly, sipping her tea and eating some of the vegetables off the platter. She took one, a long orange stick, and swirled it in some sauce before popping it in her mouth. She then sucked her fingers, cleaning off the sauce that was smeared on her digits.
What little relaxation he had found in the flavorful tea was now gone, and he watched as if spellbound as she continued to eat. He didn't even hear her question, he was so transfixed with her lips forming a perfect "o" around her fingers as she sucked each one. He pinched his thigh to give himself focus again, and he looked down at the flavorful tea in front of him, realizing she was waiting on some sort of answer from him.
"I am his aide," he said. "I deliver messages, act as his secretary, summarize reports to be sent to the High Command, and do other various things that he needs done, such as shopping for a dinner."
"You seem like a smart man, Mister Vulcan," she said, her eyes hooded. "I bet dat L'Vek give you a run for your money. 'e come off being serious, but I see in 'is eyes some ting else...he has a mischief about 'im. You on da otha 'and..."
She paused and leaned over the table. "You give off da vibe dat you hate all dat is Earth. But no worries my Vulcan man. We let you get away with dat until we show you all we 'ave to offer."
He frowned down at the food left on his plate and took another reluctant bite.
"You don't be going back to work today?"
"Apparently not," he replied coldly, taking another sip of his tea.
"Den we gonna get out of 'ere and I will take you to some place dat loosen you up."
She stood and held out her hand. "Come on, Mister Vulcan man, we give you some 'uman adventure." She winked. "If we 'urry we can beat de crowd. And I don' be wantin' any arguments."