Disclaimer: I do not own Star Trek or any of its characters.
"Woah." said the Captain as he glanced at his Counsellor the next morning at breakfast.
Wherwie she had before had faint lines, there were now almost neon purple marks adorning her skin. Ellara blushed slightly, not used to such praise, especially from an off-worlder. "You look a lot less human now." he said, a slight flirtatious tone in his voice.
Ellara smirked as she took her seat, saying, "Actually, you look Rendorian. Science has already proved that we came before you, Captain."
Kirk looked taken aback as he took in the information. That wasn't something he had expected. "Well, it certainly looks good."
Ellara smiled before beginning to eat. However, she choked on her food when she saw Commander Spock take a seat beside her. The events from the night prior had not left her mind, the intimate moment still freshly engraved into her skin. "Chew, Counsellor." teased Bones, taking in her flushed face.
After having regained her breath, Ellara turned slightly towards the Vulcan. "Commander Spock." she greeted tersely.
"Counsellor Ellara." he replied, voice just as stiff. They were both thoroughly embarrassed; there was no denying it.
The others around the table took in the tension between the two and decided that Ellara's purple cheeks and the green tips of Spock's ears were enough of an indicator of what went down. "Hey, El," the Captain started, receiving a glare for his use of the unappreciated nickname. "I was looking for Spock last night." Ellara shot a quick glance at the man in question. "The computer said he was in your room."
At his knowing smirk, Ellara's face deepened to a dark shade of violet. Looking at her wrist, Ellara said "Well, looks like it's time to get to work. Goodbye!" and left ridiculously fast.
As soon as she was out of the cafeteria, she began to hit her head against the wall. They had noticed her new stripes, they knew Spock had been in her room, and she didn't even have a watch to tell her what time it was! This was just turning into a disaster.
After a few moments of head banging, Ellara shook herself, remembering that she was a strong, capable woman, and that something as small as this should not be causing her so much anguish. With that, she began the walk to her office.
Ellara looked up as a knock sounded at her door. Considering that it was open, she could see exactly who it was. The Counsellor was pleasantly surprised to see Ensign Chekov at her door. "Ensign." she said, standing up. "To what do I owe this pleasure?"
Chekov took this as his cue to walk in, and did so, twiddling his hands. "Ze Captain sent me to ask you a question." he said, accent thick.
Ellara's head tilted to the side, an eyebrow raised in curiosity. She leaned against her desk, and gestured for him to continue. "Oh really?"
The man- well, boy, she supposed- nodded, and took a few breaths. "He says that ze Commander is not at his station, and to see if you and he were togezer." he elaborated, slightly cautious.
Rolling her eyes, Ellara dropped her head in her left hand. "For crying out loud!" she muttered, shaking her head slightly. Shaking it off, Ellara looked back up and said, "No. I don't know where Commander Spock is. He's certainly not with me."
At that, another knock sounded at the door. Ellara released a small groan and shouted, "Just a minute." She turned back to the Ensign and said, "Listen, I'll sort this out with the Captain. Unless there's something else, you should just go back to your work."
Chekov nodded and opened the door to leave. Standing on the other side was Commander Spock and the Captain. Ellara was taken aback, having not expected that. As the two men went in and the boy left, Ellara grinned. "I see you found the Commander, Captain."
Her grin, however, faded as she took in their serious expressions. "Please, take a seat gentlemen." she said, gesturing to the two chairs in front of her desk, sitting down in her own.
Spock and Kirk followed her request, and there was an uncomfortable silence for a minute. "To what do I owe this visit?" asked Ellara, leaning forward slightly.
"This is on account of what happened back in Zellphori." replied Kirk, mouth set in a thin line. "It's about how you ruthlessly murdered a member of your own species."
Ellara chewed on her bottom lip, leaning back and looking at the edge of her desk in thought. "Ah." she simply stated.
"The Captain and I are here to understand why the event occurred." explained Spock.
The Counsellor nodded, having comprehended that part. "Yeah, I got that. It's complicated, though." she said, a little terrified if she was being honest.
"We have as much time as you need to explain." prompted the Captain, slightly angry. This was not a joking matter. Someone had been killed by the hands of an irreplaceable member of crew, and he wanted to know why.
Ellara sighed, leaning back further. "On my planet, what happened is normal. If you come from Leurielle and go into Zellphori, anyone from there has the legal right to challenge you to a fight that only ends once your opponent is dead. It's law; if you go into a sector that is not your own, you can be challenged. The only way that you can't is if your a Priest or if you're there on government business. In most sectors, Starfleet is classed under government business. However, Zellphori doesn't accept it. They've always been the deviants, I suppose. So, by Rendorian law, I was required to fight."
Kirk nodded, sort of understanding the situation. "That may be true, but you didn't just kill the man. you slaughtered him. You almost… seemed to take pleasure in it. How can I be sure that you won't do this again?"
"That was a special case." she said quickly, eyes widening. "That man… when I was sixteen, he killed my mother and my fiancée. They were the most wonderful women I knew, and he killed them both at the same time. It's got a classification, too. That was a revenge kill. The souls of my mother and my… my beloved… they were avenged. They can now rest in peace."
Ellara relaxed her pose, believing her work to be done. The Captain nodded, thinking things over. "We don't tell anyone about this." he commanded sternly.
Ellara nodded quickly, not needing to be prompted about that. "Alright." he sighed, leaning back. "Wait a minute, your fiancée was a woman?" he asked, shooting forward.
"Captain, I do believe that discussing the Counsellor's private life was the reason for our being here." interrupted Spock, looking to the man beside him.
"Yeah, yeah, shut up Spock. I'm the Captain, I can do what I want." he said, waving his Commander off.
Ellara chuckled, enjoying their banter. "Yes, my fiancée was a woman. Rendoria doesn't take much stock into sexuality. Considering we're engaged before birth, whoever comes out is your soulmate. We're one of the only planets in the galaxy that has found out how to make children with same sex couples, without any birth defects." she said, a small smile on her face. "I was only four years away from marrying her. My Lywa."
She looked down, her eyes glazed. "Well, we'll be going then." said the Captain, him and Spock standing up to leave. Ellara snapped out of her trance, getting up with them. "It was a pleasure." she said, the smile still present, although slightly less real.
The two men nodded and left, leaving Ellara to her thoughts. She wasn't sad anymore. She didn't burst out crying or screaming at the thought of what had happened. Ellara took a moment, and then quickly pulled a candle and a lighter from her desk drawer. Lighting it, she got down on her knees and began muttering her beginning chant. "Thank you, oh great Gods. You have taken away my grief, and I can now begin to live my life again. I give you all of my love, and place the fate of my life in your hands. I have achieved all I want. I ask if I could have a new purpose. Thank you." Ellara finished off her prayer and extinguished the candle, placing it back in the drawer. She slowly stood up, thankful to the Gods for having given her this opportunity.
Ellara sat back down in her seat, a small smile on her face. She was about to begin a new chapter in her life. She could really dive into her career and know that her mother and father would be proud. She could pursue new relationships freely, maybe even find a lover. Wouldn't that be a shock to her town. When Rendorian's lost their mate, they generally wouldn't seek out another. It was hard to replicate the bond formed from birth. Some tried, and a few were even successful. Maybe if Ellara looked outside of her culture, she would find someone. There was the entirety of space awaiting her. Her life was finally taking a turn for the better.
Chapter ten! Wasn't that a wild ride. Ellara has fiinally come to terms with the death of her loved ones, Spock and the Captain are pacified about what happened on Rendoria, and Spock and Ellara blushed. How sweet. I am very sorry I couldn't get it up on time, but this was my birthday week and I had a ton of relatives over so it was really hectic. Next week we can look forward to some friendship stuff! Yes I am vague. So, I hope y'all enjoyed, please leave a comment or constructive criticism, it's always appreciated! Can't till next week.
animexchick: Yeah, I had to have some father/daughter bonding time.
booklover1798: Thank you!
AwesomeFangirlOtaku01: Spock, ever the helpful Vulcan. Yeah, I just want their relationship to be relaxed and start sloooooooowly.
Gal: I'm planning on it, don't worry.
P. S. if any of the ending of this has an abundance of typos, I was finishing it up on my phone on the bus because i needed to lol but it means that it probably didn't end up as good.
Updated September 13th, 2016.