Prompt No. 7: "Can you hear me?"
"I don't even know if you can hear me."
He can, although the speaker would have no real way of knowing this. Having spent far more time than is preferable in Vulcan medical facilities as a child, being examined and questioned and ever-so-subtly mocked for his uniquely hybrid physiology, Spock has been quite careful to keep his Starfleet medical file as sparse of detail as possible, and that, shared with no one – his own parents, included.
Privacy invasion is a serious offense, for a Vulcan; and yet, his childhood was full of such offenses, even if the actions were well-meaning and medically necessary, in some cases. Self-protection is an instinct which all intelligent species share, and so this instinctive action is quite logical, for his species in particular.
Whilst not precisely happy about it, Doctor Boyce had accepted this amicably when the matter arose the first time, some years into Captain Pike's command of the Enterprise.
Leonard McCoy, in surprising contrast, had promptly informed Spock upon discovery of the fact, that if Spock died in the doctor's Sickbay because he was too superior to bother keeping records up to date, then it would serve him right, and he should not expect any human to cry over it. Directly quoted and emphasized.
Spock would not have expected this emotional reaction, regardless, and certainly not from professional Medical personnel; but now, some weeks later, he is given to understand the vehement rant was intentional, if antagonistic, hyperbole. And as such, is a peculiar indication of what a human might term affection. Such an emotion is not exactly welcome, particularly from a being so opposite to a Vulcan in so many ways; but it is a change of pace, and anomalies are nearly always intriguing. Time will tell, with this particular human.
But this is not the doctor's voice, hovering at the edge of what his drifting mind now recognizes to be the tail end of a healing trance.
"Bones says he thinks you can, based on your readings, but that he doesn't have any validated information on you. And the 'Fleet medical database apparently isn't helpful? We're going to have a chat about that when you wake up, by the way."
They most certainly are not, but Spock is not in a position to protest aloud right now.
"So I don't really know if you even can hear me, or if you'd prefer to be alone, even. There's…a lot, that I don't know about you." A brief pause. "I'd like that to change, but –"
The sound of a door sliding open cuts into the rambling monologue, but it does not bring with it the noise of a busy day shift; it must be evening, or night. Chronological sense goes offline, to use a metaphor, during such healing trances, to allow the body complete detachment from any sense of urgency or stress due to the passage of time. One is healed, when he is healed; tracking that period of time is illogical.
"I thought I heard someone sneaking past my office." That is the doctor, though his usually acerbic tone has been modulated for the hour. It is gentle, and strangely soothing. "It's after midnight, Jim. Do I have to start enforcing visiting hours?"
"No, no. I'm leaving, I just –"
"Shush. I didn't say I'd enforce them tonight. You look like you haven't slept yet, though."
"I did, actually." A slightly bitter snort. "That was the problem."
McCoy hums in understanding. "Do you regularly have a nightmare problem, Jim? We can give you something for it."
"Not typically, no. I'm not even sure I usually sleep deeply enough to. But tonight..."
"Well, I'd like to hope most missions in our future don't end up like this, but if it does get bad, you need to let me know."
"They'd better not end up like this," Kirk says, unusually vehement. "I won't stand for it."
McCoy is silent for a moment, and when he does speak, seems to be choosing his words carefully. "You know, I thought you were out of your mind, when you said you wanted him as First Officer."
"You said so, yes. You were wrong."
To hear this in such a matter-of-fact tone, is certainly reassuring. Spock is not foolish enough to believe he is performing exceptionally in his relatively new role; but he is willing to learn, and for some reason, this particular human seems to think he can. It is a most intriguing change, even if the task seems daunting at times.
"Whether you believe in him or not is irrelevant, if he can't get a human crew to respect him."
"I would hope you're not saying this anywhere that human crew could hear you, Doctor." The tone is razor-sharp with pointed professionalism.
"Of course not. I learned my lesson, you know that."
"Then what are you getting at?"
"Just that I'm still not convinced he's the best choice for First Officer, Jim. But I will admit, he's certainly been the best choice for you. On and off the Bridge." There is a short silence, and then a thoughtful noise of realization. "But you already know that."
"Yes."
"So where's the problem, then?"
"It's only been a few months, Bones. In over a decade, a medical file was never needed for him, but fifteen weeks into my captaincy, he steps in front of me on an away mission and almost gets himself killed?"
"In his defense, he was the one with knowledge of the creature's anatomy, Jim. You wouldn't've stunned it before it got to you, and Security was twenty meters away."
That is quite accurate, even if Spock had not expected the doctor to take his side. His actions were logical, even if they were purely instinctual.
"It doesn't matter, the outcome is the same. This is…" An unsteady exhale. "This is dangerous."
"I'm guessing you aren't talking about hazardous away missions anymore." There is a vague sigh of assent, and the doctor's tone mellows. "Jim, you've lost crewmen before. And you've lost officers, friends, even family members to this business. You knew Mitchell for years, but that didn't affect you like this seems to be doing."
"I'm aware."
"So what makes this different? What makes him different?"
"I don't know! I've never…it's never been like this, before. What do I do with that, Bones?"
A few moments of silence.
"I know they warn you against the dangers of attachment, or some ridiculous nonsense like that, in 'Fleet command training, Jim. It always sounded pretty inhuman to me. Familiarity and professionalism aren't mutually exclusive and shouldn't be a problem, unless the officer is incapable of separating them. Given your command style, I thought you felt the same way?"
"I did. Do, really. But I understand the reasoning behind the school of thought. We can't afford to have obvious weak spots. Achilles' heels. It's a death sentence to command."
The sound of moving footsteps. "People aren't meant to live their whole lives lonely, Jim. Having someone to lean on is not detrimental to the service, I don't care what command psychology says. As long as you don't let it affect your professional judgment – which I've seen no evidence of – then I'd say it can only be a good thing."
"You sound so sure."
"I am. And I have medical data from your monthly psych scans to prove it. He's good for you. Whether I like him or not."
A brief chuckle. "You do. You just like provoking him more than admitting it."
"In case he can actually hear this conversation, I admit nothing," McCoy drawls, much closer now. There is the faint sound of medical sensors beeping, and the scratching of a stylus as the results are notated. "He's doing fine, Jim. He'll wake up when he wakes up."
Spock hears the captain's quiet exhalation, and the sound of a chair being replaced across the room. "Thanks, Bones."
"You need something to help you sleep?"
"No, I think I'm fine. I'll see you tomorrow. Good night."
"'Night, Jim."
The sounds of a door sliding and receding footsteps are followed by a moment of silence.
Then, a quiet huff of laughter. "Well, that was something."
It was, although Spock is not lucid enough to understand what, precisely. Eidetic recall will assist with an analysis, once the trance is complete.
A vague sensation of dimming lights, and a sigh overhead. "If you did hear that, then you better do something about it when you wake up. You make a liar out of me on this, and we'll be havin' words, Spock. Illogical, emotional, provoking words. Understand?"
That much, he does.
We do know from A Private Little War, that Spock is aware of his surroundings during a healing trance, but the rest is my own imagination.