Jamie

Jamie could feel the eyes on her back. It's hilarious to her that people really think that she doesn't notice the looks or the whispers. "Ignore them, unless you have no choice. Notify your advisor if that ever becomes the case." Chris had told her before the Yorktown left on a six-month mission. She didn't go see him off, too many people but she still kissed him goodbye like any good wife would. "Come back to me, Chris," she had told him. "Always," was his reply.

Jamie was thrilled to learn that Scott had been offered a spot on the Yorktown. She swore that One smiled when they found out that Chris asked the engineer to join his crew. "The Yorktown lass, cannae believe it, the bloody Yorktown." He earned it.

She visited the ship a few days before they left, a lot of the engineering team had given her hugs and expressed their sadness that Loh was killed in action –he was helping a Starfleet officer get to safety, they dared anyone to downplay his sacrifice- but they were thrilled that she was okay. Shran was sad that she wouldn't be coming along but knowing she was attending the academy made him proud, "One day, Golden-top, you're going to take my job."

Aside from the curiosity of her classmates, Jamie took to academy life quite well. On her first day, she made friends with two of her classmates, Cadet Third Class Gary Mitchell, and his roommate Lee Kelso. She had to do a double take when she saw Kelso, he reminded her so much of Sam. Gary's focus was helm and Lee's was navigation. The trio had the same academic advisor, a Lieutenant Commander Ben Finney. When she walked into his office, he looked at her with a smile, "You're going to be the one that gives me a headache, aren't you?" He was right; she flew through information so fast that she would finish most of her coursework before the first week was up. That lead to repeated notifications to him from her instructors.

She wasn't the only one blowing through her work. One of her classmates, a Vulcan named Spock was giving her a run for her money. He was only half a point ahead of her in the class rankings. Like her, he had a main focus, computers, but he also had proficiencies in other areas. Jamie noticed that people treated him differently as well. She understood why when she learned that his father was the Vulcan ambassador to earth and his mother was human.

The first time she encountered Spock, it was in astrophysics. She didn't need the class but since she had an opening in her schedule, she decided to go for it anyway. The instructor had told the class to pair off for the duration of the class. Their classmates avoided her and Spock equally. Jamie walked over and introduced herself in Vulcan. The surprise on everyone's faces –everyone but Spock- was comical. "My parents are dead heroes, your father an ambassador, none of our classmates want to work with us, would it be agreeable to work together? I have doctorate in warp-physics, so I am not as uneducated as they think." She said to him in Vulcan. He nodded, "That is agreeable, Doctor Kirk."

The week before Christmas, Jamie was called before an academic review board; she -and Finney- were accused of cheating. She was lucky that Barnett was there to let her speak, otherwise, she would have gotten steam-rolled. By the time she was done, she had talked her way around the three instructors who made the accusation and the board.

After they could found no wrong doing on her part, or Finney's, Admiral Komack made it a point to tell her that they would be keeping an eye on her. She leveled her blue eyes at him, "With all due respect, sir. Everyone is already keeping an eye on me, I knew that would be the case when I joined up. I'm not my parents, you will be disappointed if that's what you're expecting. I have two PhD's and unlike most of my classmates, I've already served in the black. I saved a bunch of lives and held one of my friends as he died. If people would read my file, and not just the name on my file, you would all realize that I've already done most of this stuff for real. Going out of your way to not give me special attention is actually special attention, sir."

She knew she shouldn't have said that but she was fed up. The whispers and looks from her classmates were one thing but being called a cheater was something completely different. Her words had the desired effect as many of her instructors stopped going out of their way to trip her up. Chris laughed when he saw Komack's face in the video footage –Barnett sent it- but he was also very proud. "That's my girl."

Christmas was spent at Cody and Zane's place. Zane's sisters, Shana and Sara, visited from Texas, their friend Clint was there, as were Charlie and Hobelia. She invited Spock but he had plans with his mother's family. She had surprised him with a gift for the holiday. "I know you don't actually celebrate Christmas but you're mother's family is from Seattle, so these are necessary." She had gotten him a hat, a scarf and a pair of gloves in black with science blue trim. He didn't smile but he thanked her and wished her a "satisfactory holiday."

For her birthday, she hid in the condo. Cody came over with junk food and pulled up the original Avengers movies; the remakes suck, Robert Downey junior and Mark Ruffalo just can't be duplicated. Between Barnett and Finney, she'd been cleared from classes for the day. Spock had taken the liberty of sending her all of her work for the day, even the classes he didn't attend. It brought a smile to her face that he might be warming up to her.

February 2252

Spock

"It's a dumb earth holiday to show love towards people. Traditionally, it's romantic love but you can show close friends and family love as well." Jamie was attempting to explain Valentine's Day to Spock. "I don't really see the need for a special day, if you love someone, then you love them. Life is too short not to show them all the time." There was something in the way she made her last statement that he found odd.

"If I may make a query?" That was Spock's version of 'Can I ask you something?' She nodded and he continued, "It appears that you dislike this holiday, may I inquire as to your reasoning?"

"I just don't believe that we need a special day to show love. I love my husband. I tell him every chance I get because I know, better than most people that something could happen to anyone at anytime. When I was on the Lovell, all I kept thinking was that the comm feed cut before I could tell him that I loved him. It was the last thing my father said to my mother. I never got the chance to say it to my brother or my aunt and uncle before they died and I wish I had; I hope that they knew how much I loved them. If you love somebody, don't wait to tell them."

Spock contemplated her words. He loved his mother, however, he never told her. Spock illogically assumed that she did not need to hear the words, befriending Jamison had given him a different perspective on humans; specifically human women. His mother's control over her emotions was in observance to his family's station as a high house on Vulcan, that did not mean she did not show them, just that she had control over them. Perhaps he should speak with her.

Chris

Home, sweet, home. Chris walked into the condo and chuckled at the sight that met his eyes. Jamie was asleep on one end of the couch, a cadet he recognized as Mitchell was asleep on the other end and Cadet Kelso was on the floor. He quietly walked over to Jamie.

"Wake up, J," he whispered in her ear. Her blue eyes blinked open and she smiled at him.

"Hey, welcome home," she smiled sleepily.

"Having a sleepover?" Chris asked. She glanced at her friends at his words.

Jamie shook her head, "All-nighter, helping them with Basic Warp Design class. I got to skip it. Finney knows they're here." He nodded and gave her quick kiss.

"Want to leave them here and come to bed?" She nodded, covered each of her friends with a blanket and followed him into their bedroom.

As soon as he closed the door, he pulled her into his arms. Jamie pressed a kiss to his neck before she whispered against his skin, "Think we can be quiet?"

"Maybe. Let's find out."

Gary

Coffee, he smelled coffee. Gary jumped up, he was not in his dorm. No, this was Jamie's place. They had been working on warp design and the way Jamie explained it, you would think she was related to Zefram Cochrane himself. Gary looked around the room, Kelso was still asleep on the floor but Jamie wasn't there anymore, "Kirk?"

"She's in the shower. Want some coffee?" Gary looked towards the kitchen and saw the man from the pictures around the condo.

"You must be Chris, Jamie's husband," Gary said when he couldn't find anything else to say. The man nodded. Gary took a good look at him, he's seen this guy somewhere before. "Don't I know you from somewhere?" he asked as he entered the kitchen.

Chris smiled, "I don't know. Do you?" Gary gave the man a once over, when he saw the dress gray uniform jacket with captain's strips hung on a chair, it clicked.

"You're Captain Pike. The CO of the Yorktown, youngest Captain in the fleet. Sorry, sir, I…" the cadet sputtered. Oh, shit. Oh, shit. Oh, shit.

"Mitch, chill," Jamie told him as she entered the room. Chris just laughed at him. "If you were anywhere else, it would be a big deal but we don't do ranks at home. His father is a Chief who works at HQ. Can you imagine what it would be like if me and his dad had to salute him every time we saw him?" She shook her head and took the cup of tea that Chris offered her.

Gary looked at her, "You're married to a captain? Why? How?"

"I'm not married to a captain, I'm married to Chris. We've known each other a long time, since before he made rank. Doesn't change who he is, he's still the same person I fell in love with." Jamie looked up at Chris, who gave her a smile. Kelso entered the room.

"We aren't late, are we?" the navigator asked. Jamie shook her head.

"You have time," she said. Jamie wasn't in their first class of the day, she tested out of it and decided to take plasma physics/plasma dynamics with Spock.

"Gentleman, I'm going to ask that you don't tell anyone who she's married to. The important people know but the academy as a whole doesn't need to. Jamie gets enough crap because of her parents, if everyone found out that I'm her husband…" Gary and Lee both nodded.

Kelso spoke up, "We won't tell anyone. None of their business anyway."

May 2252

Jamie

Jamie, Gary, and Lee each stood at attention in Admiral Everett's office. The Commandant of Cadets didn't say anything, he just watched them. The academy's Superintendent, Admiral Hahn, and Commander Bowers, their instructor, were also watching them. Their small group was part of the last batch of students to participate in a field exercise for their Survival Strategies course.

There were two dozen students on the shuttle to what, they assumed, was a class at the Academy Annex in France when they 'crashed' in an unpopulated area near the Spain-France border. The trio managed to slip into command roles, Jamie did a damage assessment while Gary and Lee got an understanding of what the other cadets could do. They knew they couldn't stay there and they had no way to comm the academy. Jamie and another cadet managed to make a crude communication device. Gary took a cadet to find food and water. Lee and two others worked to figure out where they were. They spent three nights out there before they managed to send up the S.O.S. and were there another night after that. When Bowers and his people got there they found the cadets working together seamlessly with Jamie, Gary and Lee acting as CO, XO and Second Officer. Bowers' was impressed.

"Do you know why you are here cadets?" Admiral Everett finally asked the group.

"No, sir," the three replied simultaneously.

"The latest field exercise for your Survival Strategies course boasts some of the best scores in years. Your scores are particularly exemplary. You managed to get the other cadets to work as a team while formulating and executing multiple plans to aid in your survival and rescue. Beginning next month, you will be enrolled in the Advanced Tactical Training course. The three of you will be Team Delta. Kirk, you will be team leader." Did he just say what she thought he said? A.T.T. was one of the hardest courses in the academy, you can't even sign up for it, you have to be selected. It was literally for the best of the best and they were just added to the next session. "Good job cadets. That's all, you're dismissed."

The cadets let out a quick, "Aye, sir," and left the room. Once they were out of the building, Gary tossed an arm around both of his friends.

"We should celebrate," the tall blonde said, "Let's get some drinks."

"I'm gonna invite Cody and Zane to come along, Spock too," Jamie told her friends.

Lee smiled big, "You think Finney knows?" Gary and Jamie both shook their heads. "Let's go tell him."

Jennifer

The Yorktown was out on another six-month tour that left in April. Jennifer was sitting in the galley with Scott when Captain Pike walked over to their table and sat down.

"Captain," the first officer and engineer both uttered in greeting.

"One, Scott. I just got a message from Jamie. She got picked up for the Advanced Tactical Training course," he told them. Jennifer could see the pride shining in his eyes, Jamie was doing outstanding at the academy. One wasn't surprised, she knew that once people got around her name, Jamie would be a force in the fleet.

"The lass is kicking arse, always knew she would. Cannae stop a woman like that when she's got her mind set on something." One nodded her head in agreement with Scotty.

"What did she do?" she asked. One knew how A.T.T. worked. Chris told them what happened that landed Jamie and her two friends an A.T.T. spot.

Jennifer smiled, "That sounds like her." They may never be best friends but Jennifer knows a good officer when she sees one and Jamie had the makings of a good officer.

Spock

He was not sure why he agreed to engage in social interactions with Jamison's friends, cousin and his spouse. Jamison had come to him relaying her news of Advanced Tactical Training and asked if he would join the celebration that Cadet Mitchell proposed. Due to the academy's rules preventing cadets from going off campus during the week –unless, like Jamison, they were married and lived off campus- the group decided to go out Saturday night.

"Consider this an experiment exploring the social interactions of humans after indulging in intoxicants," Jamie said to him in Vulcan. He found her suggestion to be agreeable and accepted her invitation.

The group had gone to a bar away from campus, it appeared that Jamison, Cody and Zane frequented this establishment. Spock was engaged in a conversation with Zane in regards to his work in Plasma Dynamics when his observation of Jamison's interactions with Cody posed a question.

"If I may make an inquiry." Zane nodded. "Jamison and Cody interact as though they, themselves are siblings as opposed to being the offspring of siblings. I fail to understand the dynamics of their relationship"

Zane smiled, "Technically, they are siblings. Their mothers were sisters, so biologically they're cousins but when Jamie was ten she went to live with Cody and his parents. They legally adopted her. So, they were her parents, which made Jamie and Cody siblings. Explaining it to people gets complicated because she did have a biological brother, George junior, so she just goes with cousin because it's easier. In their hearts, they are siblings. She considers me her brother-in-law." Spock understood that Jamison had an unusual family dynamic. Jamison's biological and adoptive parents, as well as her biological brother, were all deceased.

Most of the other cadets were under the impression that being the daughter of George Kirk had made her life easier; Spock knew that it was not the case. Classmates and instructors had illogical attempts to compel her to quit; their actions had the opposite effect as Jamison continued to excel. Spock had a difficult childhood due to his encounters with those who saw his father as a traitor for marrying a human; he did not wish to experience what life would have been like if one of his parents were deceased.

Cody

"You got half a second to get your hands off my little sister…"

Meathead cut him off, "Or you'll do what?"

Cody chuckled. "Me, I won't do shit but she doesn't like to be manhandled and you are about three seconds from getting your ass kicked." Meathead had the nerve to laugh, then Jamie slammed her foot backwards into his knee and elbowed him in the face with an sickening 'crunch'. Ouch, that looked like it hurt. Meathead's friends got up and decided to rescue him from Jamie; Spock, Zane, Gary, and Lee all stood to flank her. Cody couldn't help but laugh.

"I told your buddy to keep his hands off my sister or she would take him down. You really want to start a fight because he couldn't listen to a married woman who told him to leave her alone?" Cody asked. Meathead's friends all looked at each other and their friend.

"Sorry dude. We told you to let it go when she turned you down the first time. Let us check you over; your nose looks like it's broken from here," another big guy told the man Jamie took down.

Cody turned to Jamie, "That was seriously badass, but I think we should get outta here." The group grabbed their stuff, settled their tab and left the bar.

July 2252

Jamie

"Jamison, as you are no doubt aware, my parents are conducting business on-planet, my mother has expressed a desire to meet my friends. She has requested that I extend an invitation to you, Cadet Mitchell and Cadet Kelso to join our family for an evening meal." Since the night in the bar, Jamie had managed to get Spock to interact with people outside of class. Jamie didn't like the idea of Spock never learning to understand the other half of himself, so she made an effort to teach him about his human side.

"I would love too, Lee is out of town, but I'm sure Mitch would love to come. Is this meal following human tradition or Vulcan? I can cook; I'm not sure Gary can though." As she had been teaching him, Spock had taught her about the Vulcan culture. If they were on Vulcan, an invitation to dinner meant that the guests would cook.

"My mother will cook," was Spock's reply. Jamie nodded as they continued to make their way across campus.

"Send me the details and I'll be there."