NU2U: "Blood Ties", 18b/26 (TOS/AU, S/Ch, Sa, Am, Vulcan OCs, K, Mc; h/c, anx [PG13])
Gamin
pregnant wife Christine back to Vulcan to be presented for acceptance
at a clan gathering. This part: the baby shower.
Disclaimers: Part 1A.
******
For the next hour or so, Spock, Christine, and the others did what
Kirk described to his Vulcan friend as "killing time" while waiting
for McCoy to get back so they could start Christine's baby shower.
After reappearing with T'Shelya and T'Myryn, Amanda fixed a light
breakfast for everyone, which was eaten informally--in whatever
location in the parlor each person happened to be--as she brought it
out serving by serving and passed it around. Spock stayed at
Christine's side and T'Syrith seemed to have settled into her lap for
the duration, with the other children gathered as usual at Christine's
feet.
They talked with Sarek and Amanda, and with others as they
occasionally joined in, but Christine could not help thinking that the
conversation seemed just a tiny bit forced. Of course, it was
possible she had misinterpreted them. One of the various bits of
information she had picked up about Vulcans during her time here was
that they were not masters of small talk--one of the factors that made
it difficult for them to socialize with Humans--and Christine knew she
would have to make allowances for that.
Finally, McCoy returned. After he told Christine that he had checked
on the condition of the babies and they were still stable, something
happened which Christine could only consider strange; everyone who had
been gathered around her got up and went to gather around Kirk and
McCoy--except Spock, who simply
kept an attentive eye and ear cocked toward their group as they talked
among themselves too softly for Christine to hear.
McCoy spoke to T'Merit first. "All right, everything's set--things
are
pretty slow at the moment, so I was able to clear this evening for the
surgery."
"Good. One of T'Syrith's concerns has been that it might cause her to
miss the baby shower," T'Merit responded, her voice betraying her
sense of relief.
"No chance of that," Kirk assured her. "If nobody has any objections,
I think we ought to get this party under way."
Sarek raised an eyebrow at him in mild surprise. "Now?" he
questioned.
"You can hardly blame them for wanting to leave as soon as possible,"
Amanda put in. "Spock and Christine haven't exactly enjoyed
themselves while they've been here. The shower is to cheer them up,
after all, and the sooner it begins, the longer we might be able to
make it last."
Sarek nodded in understanding and acceptance. "I will notify Setek
and the others," he offered, then moved off.
"All right, children, let's go get our presents for the babies,"
Amanda
urged, and she and T'Merit followed the children toward the door.
"Bones, you get our presents for Spock and Christine, and I'll get our
presents for the babies," Kirk recommended then.
"Right," McCoy agreed. Then they, too, headed for the door.
Christine watched in growing confusion as they all began to leave the
room. "Spock, what's going on?" she demanded suspiciously.
"Patience, Christine. You will understand momentarily," Spock
returned calmly.
Christine regarded him dubiously but asked no further questions,
thinking to herself that there were times--even for her, even now-when
Spock's secretiveness could be annoying. As she studied him, however,
she saw something in his eyes--the sparkle of quiet playfulness and
anticipation within their brown depths--that immediately piqued her
interest and curiosity.
As she was about to ask Spock just what, exactly, he was up to, she
saw the others begin to come back into the parlor-the children first,
then Amanda, then Kirk, McCoy and the rest by ones and twos--all
carrying packages of various shapes and sizes. As they approached
Christine, she looked at Spock, her whole face a question. This time,
Spock explained. "Jim described to me the Human custom of 'baby
showers'. I discussed it with my family, and they agreed to
participate--they wanted your final impressions of
your treatment by them to be pleasant."
While Christine was digesting this, Amanda suggested that the children
present their gifts first. They came forward one by one and placed
their packages in her lap; by the time she finished unwrapping them
all, her lap was full of baby booties, jumpers and dresses of various
colors. Then Amanda gave T'Syrith a large package and led her
forward. "I promised T'Syrith she could give you this one herself,"
she explained. "It's from all the children, but she picked it out."
Christine unwrapped it eagerly and opened the box, carefully and
wonderingly pulling out and unfolding its contents: a large, blue
quilt decorated with a large IDIC symbol. What made it special,
though, was that around the IDIC symbol, written in bright pink fabric
markers, were the names of the children--*all* the children, including
those who had been forced to leave yesterday; only as an afterthought
did she look beneath the quilt and notice the two matching pillows.
Even T'Syrith's name was there, near the top of
the quilt. At first, Christine was too stunned to speak.
Amanda, meanwhile, noticed her reaction to seeing T'Syrith's name.
"T'Syla helped her write her name there," she supplied. "By the way,
it was T'Syrith's idea to put the names on the quilt. They all wanted
to be sure you would remember them."
Oh, my..." Christine reached to carefully and with great reverence
touch each name, her fingers lingering the longest on T'Syrith's.
Finally, she folded the quilt back up and set it aside with the
pillows as she looked at T'Syrith, who stood next to her, waiting with
veiled anxiety for some tangible sign of approval. Christine gently
pulled the child into her lap and hugged her. T'Syrith was startled,
but yielded easily without the usual stiffening of the muscles or
discomfort that seemed to accompany any physical contact with older
Vulcan children or adults; she gratefully put her arms around
Christine's neck and smiled slightly with pleasure when her Human
cousin kissed her on the cheek. "I'll never forget you, T'Syrith,"
she promised. "I'll never forget any of you."
T'Saya was the first to realize that Christine was expressing her
gratitude in the same way that Amanda often did. "*All* of our names
were on the quilt," she pointed out hesitantly, as if she knew that
her words smacked of emotion--jealousy--and expected to be reprimanded
for it. "And we *all* gave you a present."
"So you did," Christine asserted. As T'Syrith reluctantly climbed
down out of her lap, she picked up T'Saya and gave her the same hug
and kiss, repeating the gesture for each child in turn; incredibly,
all responded in kind. It was possible that Amanda had coached them
in how to respond, but Christine knew instinctively that the emotion
behind the responses was pure and sincere.
"All right, who's going to go next?" Amanda asked then, as the
children went to sit down and watch the rest of the baby shower.
"I will," T'Merit offered, presenting Christine with her gift.
Christine unwrapped it and was enthralled with the amount of pink baby
clothing stuffed into the box; she said so to T'Merit, who looked
noticeably relieved that her choices were acceptable.
In quick succession--or so it seemed to Christine--came the gifts of
Savir and T'Shelya (a twin stroller), Storn and T'Myryn (two baby
swings, so that both could use them at the same time), T'Hara and
Shonn (a set of milk bottles and baby-sized eating utensils, mainly
spoons), Seron and T'Lian (a set of blankets), T'Lina and Sasok
(something completely unexpected by Christine: a collection of hair
ribbons and decorations in various shapes and colors), and finally,
Setek's pair of walkers.
Then, while Christine was still occupied with these gifts, Amanda
spoke again: "That just leaves Captain Kirk, Dr. McCoy, and us." She
glanced over at Sarek. "Are our presents here yet?"
Sarek nodded. "They were delivered earlier. However, considering
their size and the fact that they will not immediately be used, I
think they might be easier to transport in their boxes and packaging.
Perhaps we should simply describe them to Spock and Christine, leaving
them as they are for the time being," he suggested.
Amanda appeared crestfallen. "I suppose you're right. But we won't
get to see her unwrap it," she admitted dejectedly.
"You have already watched her unwrap the children's gifts, and you
will watch her unwrap the Captain's and Dr. McCoy's gifts," Sarek
tried to console her. "I am afraid, my wife, that you must content
yourself with that."
Amanda did not feel very comforted, but she gave in, anyway. "We got
you a set of nursery furniture-a dresser, changing table and double
crib--all in white with pink and blue trim," she told Christine
quietly. "I wish you could see them. I guess I can show you the
sheets I got to go on the crib mattresses."
As she left the parlor to get the sheets, Christine questioned Sarek.
"Where did you ever find nursery furniture in those colors?"
"In one of the import shops near the spaceport," Sarek returned.
"We were most fortunate, in two ways: first, that one of the two baby
supply stores had such things, and second, that Amanda had
procrastinated for so long over her choices that we had not already
purchased furniture elsewhere."
"Oh--so you'd been planning to get us nursery furniture for some
time?" Christine was startled.
Sarek appeared mystified by her surprise. "Of course. If my
grandchildren *must* be raised on a starship, I must at least see that
they are properly equipped."
Christine was given no time to react, for at that moment, Amanda
reappeared with the pink-trimmed sheets to show her before putting
them back with the furniture. Christine was duly impressed with the
trim, which consisted of some elaborate embroidery across one edge of
the top sheet, plus matching embroidery framing the upper surface of
the bottom sheet and edging the pillow cases.
After Amanda put the sheets back up, she turned to Kirk and McCoy.
"Well, Captain, you two are the only ones left."
"All right." Kirk pushed his large, flat present forward first.
Christine started to pick it up, but decided it was a little heavy for
her at the moment, in view of her condition. "Captain, what in the
world--?"
"Don't ask. Just open it," Kirk advised, smiling mysteriously.
Christine complied, and Spock helped her pull out its contents--the
portable playpen that Kirk had spent so much time looking for
yesterday. She knew immediately what it was. "Oh, boy--I know we're
going to get a lot of use out of *this*," she declared. "It's a
wonderful gift, Captain--thank you."
Kirk then handed her a smaller package. "This one's from McCoy," he
explained.
Christine unwrapped the package quickly, but--as usual--lingered over
the things she removed from inside: the assortment of outerwear,
embroidered sweaters, matching knit caps, and a number of sun-bonnets--
most of which were pink. "Oh.Leonard, they're adorable!" she
exclaimed. Then she looked around and realized she was by now almost
chest-deep in baby gifts. Her
eyes fell upon Spock. "Any bright ideas on how we're going to get all
this stuff back to the ship?"
"I am certain the Captain and Dr. McCoy will help us carry it from the
Transporter Room, but doubtless we will still have to make several
trips," Spock returned quietly, raising an eyebrow at her as he
decided the question must have been intended rhetorically, since
Christine surely knew "how" the gifts would be transported as well as
he did.
Instead of responding, Christine began to thank everyone. Kirk
patiently allowed her to finish, then, as Spock's relatives began to
disperse, he spoke again: "You're not quite finished, Christine. We
have a few more things for you." He handed a small, flat, oblong box
to Spock, who took it, meeting Kirk's eyes with an expression of
gratitude.
He turned then to present the package to Christine. "*This* gift is
from me," Spock told her.
Christine unwrapped it curiously and removed the crystal necklace
inside with a wordless yelp of surprise and pleasure. "It's
beautiful, Spock," she gushed softly. "What is it made of?"
"Crystals called 'sapohr', which come from our mountains. They are of
assorted colors, which makes them ideal for carving into various
shapes for jewelry," Spock explained. "Jim found them while he was
shopping yesterday, and he knew of your affinity for the t'lerya."
"And he knew that you would want to give me something when everyone
else did," Christine realized, smiling understandingly at him. "Could
you put it on me?" she asked then. "I'd like to wear it."
"Of course."
Christine turned her back to him, allowing Spock to fasten the
necklace around her neck.
"And there's something from me," Kirk put in, giving Christine another
small package while Spock was still occupied.
She unwrapped it quickly and took out the matching bracelet. "Oh, how
lovely! Spock, can I wear this, too?"
"Yes, Christine," Spock assured her, faintly amused for some reason
that eluded him, but nonetheless pleased. He finished hurriedly with
the necklace and reached to help her fasten the bracelet around her
wrist.
"One more," McCoy said, handing her the tiniest package of all.
Christine unwrapped it and carefully picked up the fragile-looking
ear-rings. "So it's a set. It's perfect.thank you, all of you," she
said
sincerely, glancing up finally at Kirk. "And thank you for thinking
of me when you saw them, Captain."
Kirk merely nodded in acceptance of her expression of gratitude.
"Now...if I just had a mirror, I could put the ear-rings on."
"I will get you one," T'Syla offered, speaking up for the first time
since the children had given their gifts. "I know where Amanda keeps
hers."
After she got up and left, Kirk asked, "All right, now--which one of
you wants to unwrap these wedding presents?"
"Let Spock do it," Christine suggested. "After all, he hasn't had the
chance to unwrap anything, and I've been unwrapping things all
morning."
Kirk handed the two remaining packages to Spock, who took them warily,
regarding Kirk with a raised eyebrow. "'Wedding presents', Jim?"
"You heard me. Go ahead--start unwrapping."
Spock picked a flat, rectangular package and proceeded to unwrap it.
Inside was a color photo of himself and Christine at the shipboard
wedding, in the IDIC symbol-decorated frame that McCoy had picked out.
He was too stunned to even notice Kirk sitting down on the sofa beside
him. "Do you like it?" Kirk asked anxiously.
Spock looked up at him slowly. "Is this gift from you?"
"The photo was my idea. McCoy picked out the frame," Kirk informed
him, still watching the Vulcan uncertainly for a reaction.
Spock looked back and forth from Kirk to McCoy and back to Kirk again
with an expression in his eyes which indicated that he was too deeply
moved by their gesture to know how to express what he felt in
response. He knew that they knew that the wedding had been special to
him--he had been in pon farr, but for a little while, it hadn't
mattered; Christine had looked so beautiful in his mother's wedding
gown, happier than he had ever seen her and exuding pride and love of
him in everything she said or did--and he, too, had felt pride.
"Jim...Doctor...I could not have asked for a more appropriate wedding
gift," he managed finally.
"Now open the other one," McCoy urged.
"Very well." Spock allowed Christine to examine the framed photo and
set about unwrapping the last package.
"This one's from me," Kirk supplied, just as Spock was removing it
from its wrapping.
Spock regarded him questioningly, both eyebrows raised in puzzlement.
"A computer tape?"
"It's the log recording of your wedding. I assumed you'd want a
copy."
"Yes, Jim," Spock assured him, wanting to quell the uncertainty he saw
again in his friend's eyes, knowing Kirk must be afraid that the
recording might bring back unpleasant memories of the pon farr. "It
was a pleasant time for me. Someday I shall show it to our children,
so that they can see how fortunate I was to have a friend such as you
and a bond-mate such as Christine."
Kirk blushed faintly. "I'm glad you like the presents, Spock," he
admitted softly.
At that point, T'Syla came back with Amanda's hand mirror and
approached Christine. "All right, now hold it up in front of me,"
Christine instructed the child, as she reached her side, showing her
how to hold the mirror in the best position. "There, now--hold it as
still as you can."
T'Syla complied, and as she watched, Christine carefully clipped on
her new ear-rings. "Do you think someday I will have jewelry like
that?" T'Syla asked, admiring the ear-rings, and especially the
necklace.
"You very well might--if you have a husband and friends who are
special enough to think to give them to you," Christine responded
happily. "Go put the mirror back up, now."
"Yes, cousin." With that, T'Syla hurried away.
END PART 18B
My ST:TOS Fan-Fiction can be found here:
GAMIN DAVIS' SPOCK TREKS
http://spocktreks.bravehost.com
(Kirk & Spock Friendship, Spock/Christine
and pre-TOS Spock fan-fic, plus Art, Poetry,
Filks and a Listing of my Available Zines