NU2U: "Blood Ties", 22/26 (TOS/AU, S/Ch, Sa, Am, Vulcan OCs, K, Mc; h/c, anx [PG13])
Gamin
pregnant wife Christine to be presented at a clan gathering on Vulcan,
where both run afoul of certain ultra-conservative clan-members. This
part: back on the Enterprise, an angsty h/c interlude for Spock and
Christine that culminates in a nasty nightmare for Christine.
(Warning: nightmare images with PG13-level graphic violence.)
Disclaimers: Part 1A.
******
Once back aboard the Enterprise, McCoy issued orders for Christine to
stay in bed for the rest of her maternity leave--another three weeks--
and immediately, Spock picked her up in his arms, carrying her back to
their cabin. Spock himself had no leave time left--in fact, it had
technically expired the day after T'Syrith's surgery, though Kirk had
been understanding enough of the circumstances not to enforce the
expiration or even mention it--and had to report to the Bridge, but he
stayed long enough to settle Christine into bed and make sure all the
gifts and things were put up. (Most of the larger items were kept in
a storage area until the children were ready to use them.)
Not surprisingly, Christine was asleep by the time Spock was ready to
leave. He paused on his way out, taking her hand in his and kissing
it softly before finally replacing it where it had lain on her stomach
and departing the cabin.
When he returned after finally getting off duty, well into the ship's
night, Christine was awake again and greeted him as he entered the bed
chamber and began to take off his uniform.
"Christine, you should be asleep," he chided her.
"I was, and I will be again, shortly," Christine tried to assure him.
"But right now, I want to talk."
"Very well. Allow me to get ready for bed first."
"All right."
As Spock pulled off the last of his uniform and headed for the
bathroom, he asked her, "Would you object if I adjust the temperature
upward a little? It still seems much too cold in here to me."
"Go ahead--but don't turn it up too much," Christine cautioned.
Spock nodded silently and continued on his way. He returned from the
bathroom a few minutes later and came to join Christine, climbing
under the covers next to her. "Now, what is it you wish to discuss?"
he asked finally.
"I've been wondering about T'Pera. Are you sure T'Pau turned her in?"
"Quite sure. Storn and Syryn went with them, remaining until the
authorities arrived and they saw T'Pera being taken away. Storn
informed me of this shortly before the baby shower," Spock assured
her.
"What happens to her now?"
Spock turned to raise an eyebrow at her. "Are you...concerned
...about *T'Pera*?" he questioned incredulously.
"No, just curious," Christine admitted. "I gather this type of thing
doesn't happen very often on Vulcan."
"True, it does not. Our methods of legal enforcement are rather
limited, simply because they are so seldom needed that more elaborate
measures were deemed unnecessary," Spock explained. "Usually, the
prisoner will be interviewed and given a psychological evaluation--so
far, the few among us who have ever violated our law as severely as
T'Pera have been found to have some form of mental illness. I would
estimate that at this moment, T'Pera is probably still being
interviewed. Depending on the results of her psychological
evaluation, she will either be committed to a hospital and spend the
rest of her life in isolation
--the closest we have to what you would consider capital punishment--
or incarcerated for an amount of time to be determined by a City
Tribunal Council."
"Hmm. I never thought about it before, but I suppose a Vulcan would
*have* to be mentally ill to do what T'Pera did," Christine reflected.
"It is a distinct possibility. If proven true in this instance, it
will be more imperative for T'Pau than it would for anyone else that
she respond in the customary manner," Spock remarked coolly.
"What do you mean?" Christine asked, puzzled.
Spock averted his eyes. "She will disassociate herself from T'Pera
completely. T'Pera will...cease to exist...for our clan, and thereby
for Vulcan as a whole, until such a time--if any--as she recovers,
though she will, of course, be given the best treatment that Vulcan
medical science can provide," he elaborated hesitantly.
"*That's* customary?" Christine challenged, startled. "If anybody
other than T'Pera was involved, I'd call that crueler than death."
"Not to a Vulcan," Spock returned, turning back slowly to her. "We
consider any form of mental aberration humiliating, to the afflicted
as well as to their family and those around them. That is why we
isolate ourselves during pon farr."
Christine looked deeply into Spock's brown eyes and reminded herself
that he was more troubled by T'Pera's actions than she-who-was-his-
wife could be. Perhaps it was time to look on the bright side. "I'm
glad *you* let us help you during those times, instead of closing
yourself off from us," she told him earnestly, reaching up to lay a
hand on his cheek.
Spock's eyes smiled at her, sparkling suddenly with affection and
appreciation, though his expression remained otherwise controlled.
"My situation is...unique. I have lived among Humans and learned the
value of...emotional support...even during such times as the pon
farr," he reminded her softly.
"Remember, at first, I could not even accept *Jim* seeing me in that
state."
Christine snuggled up against him. "I've always wondered about that,"
she recalled. "As well as you knew him, why didn't you know from the
outset that he'd only want to help you?"
"I thought it was beyond his comprehension. He had never seen that
part of me before, and...I thought it might alter his emotions toward
me," Spock revealed, with difficulty. "I did not want him to be
ashamed of me. I did not want to risk that loss of respect for me
that would have been inevitable if the details of my...
condition...became public knowledge. I have felt that
apprehension again since our very public shipboard wedding and
reception. I have gained a level of respect on the Enterprise that I
could never have attained on Vulcan; I do not think I could regain it
if I lost it in that way."
"That's not going to happen," Christine promised gently.
"Not unless you told Uhura." Spock allowed humor to show in his voice
and eyes. He knew perfectly well that she would never speak of the
pon farr in front of anyone else but Kirk and McCoy.
Christine grinned at him, knowing one of his infrequent attempts at
humor when she heard it. Then she thought of one other thing she had
meant to ask him about. "Spock, when we were still on Vulcan, you
said you'd inherited two Human traits from your mother, one of which
was a tendency to eavesdrop. You never told me what the other one
was."
Spock surreptitiously drew a little closer. "Because I do not know if
the other trait still remains within me," he responded evenly.
"Why wouldn't it?"
Spock hesitated. "When I was a small child-well before the Kahs-wan
Ordeal--Mother discovered that I was...ticklish," he admitted slowly.
"She never demonstrated this particular trait of mine Sarek's
presence, of course, and never again after the Kahs-wan, so Sarek
never knew of it."
"You don't think you're ticklish any more?" Christine questioned
uncertainly.
"In truth, I do not actually know. As I said, no one has *tried* to
tickle me since I was six years old."
Christine rolled with some difficulty onto her side, supporting
herself with her elbows and freeing her hands. Watching them hover
over him, Spock knew immediately what she was planning.
"Let's find out," she suggested suddenly.
"Please, Christine, I would prefer not to--"
But it was too late. Christine had already begun to tickle him
playfully--first around the edges of his ears, under his chin, over
his shoulders, under his arms and down his sides. By that time, Spock
was smiling broadly and trying desperately to keep from laughing.
Christine stopped, satisfied, and leaned closer to him. "You *are*
ticklish!" she declared, in a tone of mock accusation. "And I haven't
seen you smile like that since...
since the day when you found Captain Kirk alive after you thought
you'd killed him at the first Koon-ut-kal-if-fee ceremony."
Spock's grin faded abruptly at the memory and the less pleasant
emotions it aroused within him.
Christine lowered her head onto his chest and put an arm around
him. "I love your smile, Spock. I wish I saw it more often. In all
the time I've known you, the one thing I've wanted to do most was make
you smile because you were happy with something I did or said."
Spock was silent for a moment. Christine's mention of that first
ceremony had started him thinking of T'Pring again, and of his
parents' revelation about her earlier during their visit to Vulcan.
"Christine, very little that you do or say does *not* make me
'happy', from what little I know of the emotion...but I still find it
difficult to express. For now, please accept my word that I feel it,
and that you are a part of it."
Christine sensed a sadness behind his voice that seemed largely
unrelated to his words. "Spock? What's wrong?" she asked worriedly.
Spock lowered his voice almost to a whisper. "Do you remember the
morning after you gave birth, when you came out to the parlor and...I
asked you to hold me?"
"Vividly. I was wondering when you would want to talk about it."
"I wish to do so now."
"Go ahead, I'm listening."
"The appearance of Stonn and T'Pring's son had precipitated a
most.unsettling...revelation about T'Pring by Mother. It seems that
three months after I left Vulcan, she initiated a partial bond with
Stonn. She managed to convince her father that I was never coming
back, thus *our* bond was meaningless, and he gave his permission."
Spock's voice was thick with pain and bitterness that he could not
fully suppress, and Christine was filled with empathy. "But she was
already bonded to you!"
"Yes." Spock saw no point in even trying to justify T'Pring's
actions.
"And I know you never betrayed your bond with her--"
"Of course not. Vulcan matrimonial bonding is...more than betrothal.
We were bound to each other..." But the words rang hollow when spoken
in reference to T'Pring, and he and Christine both knew it. "I am not
entirely certain I believed that any more after that first
ceremony...not until I realized that,
unlike T'Pring, you would honor our bond because of your emotions for
me."
"And when was that?" Christine asked curiously.
"The first time I considered asking you to bond with me--after the
nightmares following that ceremony had passed and I first told you
about the pon farr and T'Pring," Spock returned softly.
"Hmm. I remember thinking that trust in me and my emotions could be
your only reason for being so open with me," Christine recalled.
"Yes. It was too soon and I was still too uncertain of myself to ask
you then, but I could prepare you for that possibility, as well as
test you by trusting you with the information. You did not disappoint
me, Christine," Spock told her.
"And you never disappoint me," she returned gently.
"Never?" Spock repeated dubiously, deeply moved that Christine felt
she could say this and mean it, but uncertain if he should reveal
those emotions.
"Never," Christine reiterated, in the same gentle tone as before.
Spock accepted this silently and eagerly, deliberately stopping
himself from composing a mental list of all the things he had done or
said to her since meeting her which he was certain *had* disappointed
her; if nothing else, he told himself sardonically, it would keep them
up far later than was advisable. He drew his arms around her finally,
resting a hand against the
back of her head as if to hold it in place against his neck. "By the
way," he whispered finally, "I checked on the children on my way back
to the Bridge; they appear to be doing well."
"Good," Christine replied, and Spock could tell from the mental
impressions he received from her that this encouraged her, but he also
sensed her remaining apprehension as she asked,
"What if T'Pera is released? Will T'Jaim and T'Krystyn be in danger
again?"
Spock still remembered T'Pera's final threat, but he said nothing of
this to Christine. "She would not be able to reach them on the
Enterprise, in any case," he pointed out reassuringly, then admitted
reluctantly, "I am much more concerned about the Protectors of the
Vulcan Way. Their influence has been spreading steadily over the
years, and if they are now willing to
threaten unborn children, I am afraid to speculate on what they might
do next. Though considered reactionary, they are also an accepted and
legitimate group."
As Spock reached to turn off the lights, Christine closed her eyes,
preparing to go to sleep. "Maybe when word gets out about this,
they'll be discredited," she suggested tiredly.
"Perhaps. I hope so."
As Spock was about to enter his sleep-trance, Christine lifted her
head suddenly and spoke again: "Spock, will you kiss me good-night?"
Spock barely hesitated before taking her face in his hands and lightly
brushing her lips with his. "I...trust...that that was acceptable,"
he stated doubtfully, well aware that he was too distracted just now
to devote himself fully to the effort required for the still-
unfamiliar emotional expression.
"It was fine," Christine assured him, seeming to understand. She loved
both the gentleness and the care he took with each kiss, as well as
the newfound ability, imparted to her through their bond, to sense the
sincerity of the emotions behind it.
Satisfied, Spock drew the covers up over them, and they quickly fell
asleep.
Christine, however, was afflicted with memories of T'Pera, the birth,
and the cruel treatment of her by some of Spock's relatives, memories
that became visions of T'Pera drenched in the babies' blood, waving
their fetal bodies at her in triumph, with the same cold,
condescending expression in her eyes that Christine had seen so often
while in Sarek's home. When this
was followed by a vision of T'Pera contemptuously tossing the tiny
bodies into a pile consisting of Spock's and Amanda's bodies and
splattered with mingled red and green blood, Christine screamed
wordlessly and kept on screaming, even after she had awakened both
herself and Spock.
Spock took her head in his hands and forced her to look at him, having
to shout to be heard over her cries. "Christine, listen to me! Stop
this! You must calm yourself and tell me what is wrong!"
At the sight of him and the sound of his voice, Christine did quiet
herself enough to simply burst into tears and collapse against him.
"Oh, Spock, you were dead! You and Amanda.and T'Pera was holding the
babies'--bodies--in her hands. You were all dead, and there was blood
everywhere," she sobbed softly.
"Green and red...green and red, flowing together...and T'Pera had
killed you. She was showing the bodies to me...she was *proud* of
it!"
Spock understood immediately. "It was a nightmare, only a nightmare,"
he told her gently, taking her into his arms.
"I know, but maybe it means she's going to try again--first the
babies, then you, then Amanda," Christine half-whispered, still
obviously crying. -"She may be imprisoned, but she has friends--those
Protectors of the Vulcan Way."
Spock held her more tightly. "No, my wife--not here. We are safe,"
he returned soothingly.
"Why do they hate me? And why do they hate our children?"
Spock started to point out that even the most conservative Vulcans did
not "hate", only "disapprove"--but in T'Pera's case, the difference
seemed inconsequential. "It does not matter, now.
We are not on Vulcan any more," he reminded Christine gently.
At that point, they were interrupted. "Spock?"
Spock looked up to find Kirk peeking around the edge of the
transparent partition.
"I don't mean to intrude, but I heard Christine scream and thought you
might need help," Kirk apologized softly. "Is she all right?"
"She had a nightmare about T'Pera killing the children, Mother and me
and is afraid we are not safe," Spock explained, in the same muted
tones Kirk had used--then, suddenly inspired, he added, "Perhaps you
*can* help, Jim. Would you come here for a moment?"
Kirk nodded, going through the transparent partition as it opened
before him and continuing to their bedside, and as soon as he sat down
beside Spock, Christine reached out to grab his arm. "Captain, please
don't let T'Pera find them. She'll come, or she'll send someone to
try to get them, I know she will!" she pleaded.
"Nobody's going to get onto this ship without being detected,
Christine," Kirk promised her, carefully removing her hand from his
arm and clasping it reassuringly. "McCoy and I care about your
babies, and Spock, and you, too, and we're not going to let any of you
get hurt."
Christine began to calm herself a little more.
"You see? Our children are...loved...and accepted here, as we are,"
Spock reiterated, kindly but firmly. "We are safe here. We are
home." He paused, looking up gratefully at Kirk. "Thank
you, Jim. I thought she needed...verification. I can take care of
her now."
Kirk nodded, getting up to leave. "Do you want me to have Bones check
her over tomorrow?"
"No, she should be all right by then. I will contact him myself if it
becomes necessary."
Kirk continued on his way back out of the cabin to his own quarters.
Spock, meanwhile, decided to just hold Christine and let her cry for
as long as she needed to. He knew she had a great deal of pent-up
anguish and resentment that had gone largely unexpressed while they
were on Vulcan, and he knew that it was not good for Humans to
suppress their emotions for any
length of time. As her tears finally began to subside, Spock helped
her lie down next to him again, continuing to hold her close. "It is
all over now, Christine, and as my father said, your behavior honored
your husband. Our children are safe now," he consoled her, one last
time. "T'Pera cannot reach them, or me, and Sarek will protect
Mother. We are home now, m'chejan...we
are home."
Home. The very word conjured up within Spock images of the
Enterprise, Jim Kirk's constant friendship, Christine's love, and
McCoy's well-intentioned teasing--images of those whose affection for
him was unconditional and who accepted both him and his children as
they were. Christine would remember this
when she awoke tomorrow--Spock could already feel her relaxing
against him as he gently wiped tears from her cheeks--and he would, if
necessary, offer to remove the memory of the nightmare from her mind.
END PART 22
My ST:TOS Fan-Fiction can be found here:
GAMIN DAVIS' SPOCK TREKS
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and pre-TOS Spock fan-fic, plus Art,
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