Chapter 5

Jim was standing on the transporter the following morning. She was now wearing her gold shirt and pants and was waiting for Bones and Carol to arrive. She had a talk with Rand earlier about her uniform and Rand promised to look into what happened to her dresses, because it turned out all of them shrunk!

Scotty was fixing the coordinates to beam them down and Spock was standing stiffly next to her. She sighed, 'might as well get this over with'.

"Hey Spock?"

"Captain?"

"Listen, I am sorry about yesterday morning. You must have thought I was insane when I ran into our bathroom like that."

"On the contrary, Captain. I believe it an excellent demonstration of your flight response."

Huh? Jim couldn't tell if Spock was serious or if he was joking. She glanced sideways to look at him. He was facing forward but she could swear there were light traces of a smirk in his lips. He's actually joking! Jim could not help but smile.

"Very funny Spock! But seriously, I don't want you to get the wrong idea. I really didn't notice what I was wearing. I would never…I know you are with Uhura. Ugh! This is coming out all wrong!"

"Captain, your apology is unnecessary. It was clear that you were distracted. I do not fault you for your actions. Nor do I judge you for them." Spock sounded very sincere when he said this, which made Jim feel a whole lot better.

"Thanks Spock. So... were good?"

"Yes Captain, 'we are good'."

Jim couldn't contain her smile. "Okay good! I didn't want things to get awkward between us."

"'Awkward', Captain?"

"Yeah. You know... you avoiding me and not talking to me..."

"That would be highly unlikely Captain. You are in command of this vessel and my duties require me to constantly have some form of contact with you."

Jim gently slapped Spock on the shoulder, "You know what I mean!" She teased.

Then she noticed that Spock seemed to stiffen even more after her touch. Maybe she had overstepped her boundaries? But she's playfully slapped him on the arm before and he never seemed to mind. Okay, he minded, but he never protested or reacted in a negative matter.

"Sp-"

"There is something I must speak to you about, Captain."

Jim was taken aback by the sudden change in topic but went along with it.

"Uhh, sure. What is it, Spock?

"I must inform you of the new orders we have received from Starfleet."

"Oh, you got them too, huh?"

"Captain?" Spock tried to hide the surprised tone in his voice.

"Yeah, are you talking about the ones where they want us to report back to Earth? Spock nodded.

"But when they say us, they really mean me." Jim frowned. "They want me to report to the Academy for a physical exam. And they emphasized that Bones couldn't perform it. Why the hell would they interrupt our five year mission for a physical?"

Jim looked over at Spock but the Vulcan was avoiding her gaze. She had hoped he would give her some sort of "logical" explanation. Or even a comment on how her reaction was illogical. But instead he only stared at the wall in silence. This only made Jim feel worse. Was Spock hiding something from her? No, he couldn't be. Then what was happening? Wait, could it be...?

"Spock?" He still didn't respond but Jim kept on going, "do you think this has to do with the whole Khan thing?"

To her surprise, Spock turned to look at her. His expression somewhat softened.

"What would make you come to that conclusion, Captain?"

"Well, what else could it be? We know his blood is capable of bringing the dead back to life. Who knows what else it's capable of! Starfleet is probably worried I am going to turn into a homocidal manic!" Jim's eyes then filled with panic, "Spock... what if the blood really did something to me? What if starfleet locks me up?" She looked down, she didn't want Spock to see her so compromised.

"Captain," Spock's voice was soft. "I assure you that I will never permit such a thing to happen."

Jim looked up at the Vulcan. His face neutral but his eyes were warm.

"Spock, I -"

As if on cue, McCoy walked into the transporter room with Carol in tow.

"Sorry we're late guys! The Doctor here was having a hard time deciding which hypos he should take."

"Well, with Jim going down to the planet's surface... I might as well take the entire sickbay with me!"

"Ha Ha. Very funny Bones. I am not in sickbay that often!"

"I approximate that 97.891 percent of missions end with you visiting the medical bay, Captain."

"NOT helping, Spock!"

"See Jim! Even the hobgoblin agrees with me."

"I don't understand why the two of you don't want me to beam down. I'll be fine! We'll all be fine!"

Jim was staring forward at Scotty and missed the nervous glance McCoy gave to Spock and Carol.

"Okay Scotty! Beam us down."

"Aye Captain!"

The four figures were engulfed by the yellow beams and then materialized on the planet's surface moments later. The planet was like one large tropical jungle. But unlike the jungle's found on Earth, this planet had very little humidity. It's temperatures were constant throughout the planet, with little to no variation at the poles. The sky was a mixture of red and orange. As if it was stuck in the middle of an eternal of a sunset. To Jim it appeared to be a tropical paradise, it almost seemed impossible that such a beautiful place could exist.

"Well... I might just stake out a claim and settle down here Jim."

Jim threw her medical officer a skeptical look.

"Oh? Then who will heal me when I am hurt?" Teased Jim.

"Hmph. Maybe then you will learn to keep yourself out of trouble."

Jim laughed as Spock bent down and collected some soil samples. "The soil appears to be rich and fertile Captain. A colony would have little trouble sustaining itself."

Carol appeared from behind some bushes, holding some red and white colored flowers. "These flowers appear to be harmless and have no nutritional value. However, they are quite unique in their shape and texture. I figured Sulu would like to examine them."

"Very considerate of you Doctor Marcus," Jim said as he analyzed the flowers, "I think he will appreciate it very much."

Carol smiled as she gently put the flowers into her bag. She then proceeded to analyze a strange looking fruit that was hanging from a tree.

Jim walked around and looked at the vegetation. She was hardly an expert in botany but she could appreciate the uniqueness of the flowers. She picked up an orange and yellow flower that reminded her of a sunflower. She lifted it up to her nose to smell it.

"Dammit Jim!" yelled McCoy as he pulled the flower away from Jim's face. "You are allergic to your own allergy medicine and yet you willingly inhale alien pollen?"

Jim just waved off the Doctor's protests. "Come on Bones, you worry too much. I am not going to drop dead because of some flower."

She proceeded to place the flower on the Doctor's ear. "Aww. Bones! You look so pretty!"

"Dammit Jim! Will you take your job seriously for once!" Growled McCoy as he reached up to yank the flower out of his ear.

"You know I always take my job seriously Bones! But what is the harm in having a little fun? We are in paradise! Might as well enjoy it."

Spock was running scans on an interesting looking rock. He was trying to ignore the unsettling feeling he got when the Doctor's hands briefly brushed Jim's while he was trying to remove the flower from her person. He knew it was illogical to feel this way, and yet the feelings remained despite his efforts to push them away. Suddenly his scanner picked up something.

"Captain, there appears to be subsurface vibrations running throughout the entire planet."

Jim walked away from McCoy, who was still scowling, and went to stand closer to Spock.

"That's unusual. Can you tell me what is causing it?"

"No Captain. But it appears to be artificially produced.

"How can you tell Spock?"

"The vibration is strong and keeps a fairly regular rhythm. Were it a natural occurrence, it would show more variances in strength and frequency."

"Hmm, that would mean there is life on this planet. Something has to be producing these vibrations."

"Affirmative."

"Captain." Carol came back with a handful of thorns in her hand. "I found these lying on the ground. The scans showed that they are highly poisonous and lethal to most humanoid species."

"Do you think these come from some sort of plant Dr. Marcus?"

"I am not sure Captain. But I am sure I can give you an answer after scouting the area."

Bones took the thorns from Carol's hand and analyzed them. "Are we sure we want to scout the area for these things?"

"Doctor, if harnessed correctly, the toxins in these thorns could be effectively weaponized."

"Weaponized? We don't even know the first thing about these things! We could end up killing ourselves by attempting to collect them."

Spock was listening to the officers argue when a small movement caught his attention. He turned and saw that one of the plants was changing the position it was facing. He noticed that this plant had thorns similar to those in the Doctor's hand.

"Captain?" But Jim was too busy trying to mediate McCoy and Carol's argument and did not hear Spock.

Then Spock noticed that the plants new position placed it right in front of the Captain. Spock knew what was about to happen and before the Vulcan could even think he yelled.

"JIM!"

Jim turned slowly towards the sound of her name when she felt something smash into her. She felt a pair of arms wrap around her. One wrapped around her waist and the other around her head as she was falling backwards.

When they hit the ground, she barely felt it. The arms had prevented any harmful injuries she might have sustained when her body made contact with the ground.

Jim stared up at Spock in shock. What had just happened? But then she quickly realized something else. This was the closest she had ever been to him.

"Captain . . . the plant." Spock seemed to be struggling for words and his usually stoic face was filled with concern and worry. "Are you alright Captain?"

"Yes, Spock. Thank you." Jim said, slightly out of breath from the shock. She realized how intimate this must look as she stared up at the Vulcan's chocolate eyes.

Spock still had his arms tightly wrapped around the Captain. Jim's arms were pressed against Spock's chest. But Jim attempted to place her hand on Spock's shoulder to express her gratitude. She smiled up at him and she saw something flash across his eyes. In the back of her mind Jim knew that Spock should be letting her go, they were out of danger and she was not injured. But Spock kept holding on to her and Jim was not about to protest. She wasn't about to cut short what could end up being the only opportunity she would ever have to being this close to Spock. So they lay there for what was only seconds, but in Jim's mind it felt like hours. She could spend all of eternity lying in Spock's arms and staring into his chocolate eyes. Then, reality came calling.

"Dammit! Spock! Jim! Are you two alright?" Bones came rushing towards them with Carol closely behind him. It was then that Jim realized that they were five feet away from where they were originally standing.

Spock unwrapped his arms from Jim's body. He stood up and grabbed Jim's arms to help her up. He then placed his arms behind his back. When Jim looked at him she found that all traces of the emotion that had been in her first officers eyes only moments before, were long gone. Jim was snapped back to reality when a tricorder was shoved into her face.

"What the hell! Bones I am fine!"

McCoy ignored her protests and continued taking scans. Once he made sure that Jim wasn't about to drop dead, he turned to scan Spock.

"Dammit Spock! Are you trying to get yourself killed?"

"I assure you Doctor that I intended to do no such thing. The Captain was distracted and it appeared unlikely that she would notice the threat in time. I only did what was logical in the given situation."

"Yeah, yeah. And I am sure holding on to Jim like that was also completely necessary." McCoy said with a smirk on his face.

"Doctor? I do not understand what you are implying." The Vulcan's expression revealed nothing.

"Nothing. Don't worry about it Spock. Now let me see your damn arms to make sure you aren't injured!"

Spock reluctantly extended his arms. Jim could see a small pool of green staining Spock's blue uniform near his right elbow.

"Spock wasn't hit was he?" the fear in Jim's voice was obvious.

"No. The damn hobgoblin just scraped himself while he was saving your ass Jim!"

"Don't call him that." Jim said in a low whisper as she approached Spock. Jim felt the need to reach out to Spock, but she didn't. She knew that it wouldn't be appropriate for her to do so.

But apparently Spock had a similar thought because he drew himself closer to her.

"Dammit Spock! How am I supposed to bandage you up if you move around!"

Spock ignored the Doctor and maintained his close proximity to Jim. Neither said anything, nor did they look at each other. But just knowing that the other was right there seemed to comfort them both.

"We are getting off this damn planet right now!"

No one argued with the Doctor's statement. Seeing no objection, the Doctor pulled out his communicator.

"McCoy to Enterprise."

"Aye Doctor?"

"Four to beam up Scotty."

"Aye, locking on to yer coordinates."

"Wait!" Jim called out before McCoy could give the final order.

McCoy turned to give Jim a questioning look but found her next to some flowers.

"Dammit Jim! Haven't you had enough run-ins with flowers for one day?!"

Jim ignored him and turned to Carol, "these flowers are safe right?"

Carol was just as confused as the Doctor but answered the Captain's question. "Yes Captain."

Ignoring the looks everyone was giving her, Jim bent down and plucked out a green flower that resembled a rose. She walked back to the beam up point and handed the flower to Spock.

"Thank you for saving my life." Jim could barely look at Spock as she said this. She could feel the stares she was getting from Bones and Carol and they were not helping the blush that had already formed on her face.

Spock was clearly taken aback, but nonetheless he took the flower, "you are welcome, Jim." The corners of his mouth lifted ever so slightly and the tips of his ears turned a light shade of green. The two of them just stood there for a moment, staring at one another.

McCoy was horrified by the sight that was unfolding in front of him. He turned to look at Carol and she too looked shocked.

He had been teasing Spock earlier, but this gave him cause for concern. McCoy could not deny that Jim was an attractive woman, but it was Jim! Spock knew this. McCoy couldn't even allow himself to consider the alternative. But the blushing Vulcan in front of him was not helping him keep his peace of mind.

"Uh, Jim? Can we beam up now or are you going to gather more flowers and give the hobgoblin a bouquet?"

Jim flushed, "No, we can go now."

McCoy pulled out his communicator, "okay Scotty. Beam us up."

Yellow beams engulfed them again. McCoy could never get used to these damn transporters. Thankfully the sensation did not last long and they found themselves standing in the transporter room within a few seconds. Jim was the first to walk off the transporter and greet Scotty.

"Thanks for the speedy beam up Scotty."

"No problem Captain. That's a pretty flower yeh got there Mr. Spock."

"Thank you, Mr. Scott." The tips of Spock's ears were a light shade of green again.

Now McCoy was worried. Spock would never reply to that kind of a comment in the way he just did. The hobgoblin would usually go on about how it was illogical to call a flower pretty or some crap like that. But he wouldn't acknowledge it!

The Doctor was pulled out of his thoughts when he saw that Spock and Jim were about to walk out of the transporter room.

"Oh no you don't! Where the hell do you two think your going?"

"To the bridge," Jim stated matter-of-factly.

"The hell you are! The two of you are going to sickbay!"

"Bones! You already said we were fine!"

"I said no such thing. Now march your asses down there!"

Jim groaned. "Come on Spock. Looks like we don't have a choice."

"You're damn right you don't!"

Spock followed Jim out of the room while still clutching his flower.

Uhura heard there had been an incident on the planet and rushed to see her boyfriend. She was heading to sickbay when she ran into Spock in the hallway.

"Spock! I heard you were injured! Are you alright? I was just headed toward sickbay to see you."

"I am fine Nyota. The Doctor examined me and released me as soon as he confirmed there was nothing wrong with my person. While your concern is appreciated it is entirely unnecessary."

"What about Jim?"

"The Captain is being assessed by the Doctor in sickbay."

Uhura scanned her boyfriend's body making sure he was all right. Seeing nothing but a bandage on his arm. She felt a wave of relief. She noticed that he was holding a green flower. 'Must be for a science experiment.' So she did not question Spock about it.

"What happened down there?"

"The Captain was almost shot by a poisonous plant while examining some flora. Fortunately, I was able to get her out of the way in time."

"Him."

"Pardon?"

"You said her. The Captain is a he, Spock."

Spock remained silent in front of her. His face was unreadable but Uhura noticed a certain darkness in his eyes that had not been there before. She then realized that she too had referred to Jim in the feminine the day before. Maybe she was being too harsh. She gave her boyfriend an apologetic look.

"I am sorry Spock, that sounded worse than I intended it too."

"It does not matter. If you will please excuse me, I must go meditate."

Uhura could only stare at Spock as he raced past her and headed toward his chambers. It wasn't abnormal for him to feel the need to meditate. But he usually waited until the end of the day. He was also never as fidgety as he had just been. Seeing as it was unlikely she would be able to speak to Spock until he was done mediating, she decided to head to sickbay to check on the Captain. She was about to walk in when she heard Dr. McCoy talking to Jim.

"Okay Jim. Now that the hobgoblin is gone, I need to ask you. What the hell was that?"

"What?" asked Jim with a tone of feigned ignorance.

"What was with giving Spock that flower? And don't think I didn't see you make eyes at the hobgoblin."

"What? No way! You must be imagining things." But Jim couldn't bring herself to look at Bones in the eyes.

"Jim. . ."

"I was just grateful! That's all! I mean, he threw himself in harm's way to protect me. Besides, he's with Uhura. I would never interfere with that!" Jim couldn't help but sound slightly sad as she said that last bit. She knew she could never do anything to hurt Uhura. Despite the rough times Uhura had given her at the Academy, they had actually become friends on this ship. But Jim couldn't deny what she felt for Spock.

"Yeah, I hope not Jim. And I hope you are telling the truth and you don't have a thing for the pointy-eared bastard!"

Jim blushed slightly, "no, of course I don't have a thing for him."

Even if I did... I would never act on it. Jim thought to herself. Ugh! This was the worst!

"Good. Now hold still so I can examine you!"

Jim continued to argue with Bones as he ran his tricorder over her. Both failed to notice that Uhura was standing outside the door of the medical bay and had heard their entire conversation.

A/N: First off, Carol is a weapons expert. So that's why she considers using the thorns as a weapon. But she really isn't a bad person. I promise!

There are a few lines from TOS in this chapter. Bonus points for those of you who can spot them!

Also, I have seen several reviews about people wanting someone to fall in love/like/hit on fem!Kirk and have Spock and McCoy step in. Well the next chapter involves just that! I already had this idea in mind, but you guys inspired me to actually go through with it. So that will be the next chapter! :)

Thank you all for all of your lovely and helpful reviews! :]