Agent Fox Mulder (i_want_2) wrote in multi_fiction, @ 2008-04-09 14:48:00 |
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Entry tags: | het, rated: teen, startrek |
Fic: Pon-Farr Away From Home 1/1 StarTrek TOS
I apologize for the way this ends, it was a work of labor that bore sour fruit.
Pon-Farr Away From Home.
By Lopaka Tanu
Disclaimer: I do not own StarTrek or any of the affiliates.
Category: Sarek/Amanda Grayson
Rating: Adult
Series: StarTrek: TOS.
Summary: When they first met.
________________________________________
She sat amoung the cacti, it was her favorite place on this red planet so far from home. These few patches of vegitation reminded her of the extreme deserts of her world. Vulcans cared little for this place as it was not logical to tend a garden that served no purpose but that it be asteticly pleasing. They had commented so to her many times. She ignored their superior attitudes and soon they had left her to the so called 'irrational Human nature'.
Her tour as Life Science advisor to the Vulcan Science Academy of Xeno Biology was almost at an end. A teacher of biology, her field of research was the social effects on the genetic evolution of a spieces. Mainly that of Earth Cultures, which were of great interest to the Vulcans. How a species so illogical had evolved into this stage of exploration was still very much a mystery to them.
She clipped off a dead bud from a wild K'tath plant. It reminded her of the Vulcans she dealt with. It grew at a regiorous schedule, bloomed, then died, nothing special. Even the blooms were boring, the same red color as the stalk and the sand from which it sprang. Yet also, it had thorns. Protection against what, she had no idea, nor cared to learn. For the thorns each contained a tiny blot of deadly poison.
Having passed the danger of pruning the Vulcan plant, she returned to her ruminations. Over the past standard Tarren year, she had been confronted by many a self appointed judge amoung the Vulcan High Council. She had thought to find some allies amoung the IDIC, but was fairly surprised by their almost hatefilled reaction. Still to this day, she had no idea what had turned their opinion of Humans as such.
Chief amoung those that interogated her for information daily, were the ambassadorial sciences. Those that would deal with Humans and other 'emotionally chaotic' species. Another of their favorite terms. They had many, all of which said the samething, 'we are better than you, so neah'! She gave a small grin. Okay, the 'so neah' part was her own contrievance, but the rest was a purely unspokenly said.
Clipping the tip of her finger, she yelped, and placed her sore digit in her mouth. After a moment of sucking on it, she pulled out the sore finger and stared at the wound. A tiny bead of blood flowed from the wound. The sound of a familiar snort of diresion brought her attention to a figure standing close by.
"Why do you persist in tending these? It serves no purpose to let them grow wild and then prune them back only to let them grow again. It is an innefficient waste of precious resorces."
Ignoring him, she went back to removing the dead buds from her plants. After a moment of silence from him, she started humming to herself. An old Earth song that had high, nasel pitches. From the quickening of breath, she knew that it had the intended reaction.
"It would seem you are proving my point quite nicely. Your species is too young to be allowed access to our archives. My recommendation still stands."
Amanda repeated the refrain with more vigor, sneering at his gasp.
"Stop that, it offends my ears."
Picking up speed, she continued on through another round of the song. Her enthusiasm to punish him over ruling her good judgement. Just before she could reach the refrain again, a firm hand on her shoulder brought her round to face him. She stopped breathing at the anger in his eyes, the killing strength in his hand.
"I told you to stop! Confounded child, do you not mind your elders?"
"Remove your hand unless you wish to lose it, Mr. Junior Ambassador."
Sarek's eyes blinked once, his emotionless visage returning like a cloud over his face. Backing away, he let her go as if burned. "Forgive me. I am out of line."
"You're damned right, you are! Now get out of here before I report you to the Council."
"There will be no need, I shall be leaving. Good day, Ms. Grayson." His emotionless mask was firmly in check as he turned away. By the time he was out of sight, it was almost impossible to believe he had just commited an act that would ruin his blossoming career.
Amanda took a steadying breath as she fell to her knees. Grabbing at the ground, she tried to focus on her surroundings. Something was wrong, Vulcans never acted this way. Granted, he was one of the most arogant, but no Vulcan had ever harmed a being without just provivication. And one little earth Rock song from the twentieth century would not be considered that, no matter how annoying.
As she moved her left arm, the shoulder ached. She brought up her right hand and ran it over the cloth. Wincing from the action, Amanda pulled back the collar to reveal the red marks from his hand. She could still feel the burning hot hand as it clenched her shoulder, the way his thumb dug into her collar bone.
For a moment, a terrible madness touched her mind. A horror at what she had done before with drawing. Hoping that her actions had gone unnoticed.
Shaking her head to clear the foreign thoughts, she let go of the bruised flesh. If she was going to report it, she had better get there fast while the evidence was still fresh. Rising to her feet, she started for the edge of her garden. Another figure at the entrance blocked her path. "High Priestess T'Pau, I am surprised to see you. I mean it is an Honor that you..."
She was silenced as the old woman's hand shot out and cupped her face. Amanda felt her mind slow down with lethargy. The last moments she had before blackness consumed her were of T'Pau's stern eyes and a voice in her mind repeating the same word. Forget.
****************************************
"Try again. Your focus has become too clouded with recent events."
Sarek glared at her, his face contorting in barely suppressed rage. "To hell with my focus. It has been seven years, most honored T'Pau. That means I have but weeks before I shall perish from the fires of my own Pon Farr."
"All the more reason to over come this madness. Now focus." Her calm voice brokered no room for arguement. She sat peacefully staring into the fire as the smoke and incense rose from its flames. "Quiet your mind..."
"And do what?" He kicked the tripod of coals from the fire spit. "All my work and preparations are for nothing. You know this as well as I. When the fullness of my condition is upon me, there will be no stopping it."
Standing slowly, she gripped the folds of her robes so that she did not step on them. She arranged them neatly after reaching her full height. "I know nothing. Neither do you. Does one such as yourself, a mere child in the vastness of the universe, claim to know the future?"
"No, however the facts of our own past..."
"The past is where it belongs, the future is not yet set, can be altered from the intended course. All that matters is the now or have you forgotten all I have taught you?"
Glancing down at the smuldering embers, he shook his head. "I have not."
"Then concern yourself with these exercises, let the universe look after its own interests." She waited until he resettled the coals into their rightful place and assumed his meditation position once more, before sitting again. Raising her hand, she placed it palm out. He did the same, touching hers. "Focus your mind."
"I cannot."
"Why?"
"There is too much at risk," came his sleepy responce.
"There is nothing at risk."
"I have done... things. Things that jeopordize my career."
"That matter has been settled."
Sarek tried to withdraw his hand, but found it clasped tightly in the vice of T'Pau's own. "What have you done?"
"What was necissary for the good of our people." Her voice was now in his mind. A soothing presence lulling his concentration. "You have dishonored your family with your actions. Shameful deeds that put your very species at risk. Reveal them to me that I may judge you."
"By what right..."
"I am the High Priestess of all Vulcan. Your mentor in all teachings. By the right of being mother to your father. I claim all these as my justification, now open your mind."
Sarek blanched at the almost angry words. He could feel the bitterness of having to do this through their link. Having no other choice, he let her see. He felt her anger at his actions, then recoil in shock at the source of them. In a soul sheering action, he was forced from her mind and flung across the dark room.
As he settled on his side, blinking at her through pain, he felt the fading touches of her mind. "Please forgive me."
"There is nothing to forgive."
"But I have done..."
"There is nothing to forgive. Leave."
He got up to go. "I am sorry..."
"I do not speak of this place, I meant our world. Do not return." T'Pau's narrowed eyes seemed to penitrait his very being. "You shall not be welcome until such time as you are able to control your desires. Now leave, your presence offends."
Bowing lowly, he backed out of the room. Sarek bit back on the rage he felt, but could not help the tear that slid down his cheek. This time he did find focus for his anger, a very familiar face.
****************************************
Amanda's body screamed as she fought her way back to consciousness. Something was not right. The world around her shook, her bed vibrated. Her first thought was that an earth quake was happening. However, that changed as she recognized the familiar hum.
She was on a ship.
Opening her eyes proved almost as difficult, but once they were, she took in the white walls. The gray ceiling was segmented by white lights. There came a whistle and her attention was dragged over to the door. A man in a blue shirt and black slacks smiled at her from it.
He ran a hand through his red hair, looking sheepishly at her. "I am sorry, Ma'am, but they couldn't salvage your clothes."
"What is going on? What do you mean, clothes... oh!" She pulled the sheet up over her almost completely exposed breasts. "Why am I here?"
"Uh, you don't remember?"
"I would not ask if I did."
"Yeah, guess that's right. Okay, I'm doctor Renner, second doctor of the Star Fleet Medical Corps Vessel, USS Eros. We were summoned to Vulcan on an emergy gold one priority." He walked to the end of her bed to pull out the clip board. "Let see here. The details of how it happened are still unknown, but we believe you stung yourself while prunning your K'tath plant. As there is no known cure on Vulcan that would be safe for a Human, we had to be called in and take care of you. Sorry about that."
"Why should you be sorry, you saved my life."
"Temporarily. See, another thing, we don't exactly have a cure either. It wasn't something the Vulcans were very foreth coming about. Dr. Stavros tried, but the Minister of Sciences on the Council of the IDIC flat out refused. In fact, they all but threw you at us. After we got you, they found it convenient to ignore us. The Captain isn't a fan of the Vulcans, so he ordered us out of there."
Amanda took in his red flush with a bit tongue. "Very well, I knew they wanted me gone, so be it. How long until we reach starbase?"
"Starbase twenty-two is fourty light years away. It will be about two days at warp three, we don't do anything faster unless it is an emergincy. Not that your case isn't, just, well, you're stable." He started to figit and look away.
"Fine, leave me." She smiled at his relieved look out of courtosy. Just as he turned to go, another thought occured to her. "The last thing I remember is being in my garden. I seem to recall another presence, do you perhaps know who found me?"
"Yes, and nice guy if I do say so myself. Well for a Vulcan that is."
"Oh, do you know him?"
This time his face really lit up. "Yes, Ma'am. In fact, he asked to see you when you were up to it. He is on the ship with us, something about learning more from the sorce."
"I gathered that, it would be hard for him to see me if he wasn't."
"Oh yeah, well shall I tell him?"
"First tell me who it is."
"I think is name is Sah-rick..."
"Sarek, Junior Ambassador Sarek."
"Yeah, that's the guy. Shall I tell him?"
"No! I mean, no, I will tell him myself. Thank you, you may go. I would like to rest now." She added the last to placate him. When the squirming youth was gone, Amanda laid back against the biobed. Great, Sarek had followed her here. Could things get any worse?
Just as she thought, the universe seemed to answer. The next moment found her on the floor as the lights went out and the ship shook violently.
****************************************
Sarek was mentally cursing the inferior technology of Starfleet. This ship was designed for comfort and was completely inefficient. There was no room for meditation and the enviromental controls were set too low for a Vulcan. In the seventy years of this United Federtion of Planets one might have at least considered to design for a race other than Humans.
Arrogance.
The Humans were afflicted with it like a plague. It always seemed to him that they could learn a few things from their Vulcan allies. Now that he was amoung them, it might do him well to provide that knowledge. Then another pain hit him from the blood fever and he forgot all about his arogance in favor of passing out.
It was several hours later that he awoke. Things around him seemed dimmer than before. For a moment he thought he was back on Vulcan before memory returned. A minute change in the air let him know that it was barely circulating. Anger filled him at the incompetence of Human technology to provide a liveable enviroment.
Another lack of now familiar sensation alerted him that the vessel was not moving, but adrift. Logic dictated that perhaps something was seriously wrong with the vessel itself, not just the usual lack of competence. Irrational fear took hold of him.
Thinking like a Vulcan instead of an emotional animal was becoming increasingly difficult. For the sake of decency, he put forth all his mental strength in remaining calm. There had to be an effort to restore function to the ship. What was needed was for him to contact the captain and offer his services.
With a plan of action, he adjusted his robes to a presentable manner and set off. It was logical to assume that since life support was barely sustained, that the communications would also be down since they were a secondary consideration. At least that was what Star Fleet protocol dictated. His opinion of Humans was low, but he admitted their sense of duty had proven reliable.
The door stopped in mid motion then started to close. This was the last straw in a long line of offenses. In a sudden bout of Pon Farr enduced rage, he punctured his fist through the sealed doors. Grabbing the hole along the seams, he shoved outwards bending the metal to the braking point which resounded in a shrill screech.
Feeling better about himself and secure in his superior Vulcanism in comparison to the Human made doors, he dropped them. Once more to adjust his robes, and he started into the ship proper.
The long dark cooridors filled out before him. Emergency lights flashed at places and at others they were gone completely. Energy sparked from their remains like blood from a dying animal. A feeling of panic filled him at the thought of being trapped on a dying vessel. Looking around quickly, he let the emotion over run his judgement for a moment.
In that moment, a conduit beside him flashed causing him to cry out. He jumped when it sparked again, yelping. Turning, he ran down the cooridor farther away. Blind panic set in causing him to become animalistic.
Rounding a bend in the cooridor, he slammed through a pair of partially open doors, tripping over someone sprawled on the floor. Smacking his face into the floor broke him out of the instinctual fear. It took Sarek a few moments to realize that he had lost control. Growling in frustration, he hit the deck with a fist before forcing himself to regain composure.
In the time he was fighting his own inner demons, the figure he had tripped over had started to come around. Low moans emitted from her throat as she tried to focus on the world around her. Of which was increasingly hard to do as something was laying across her face. This something's movements were covering her mouth and nose preventing her from breathing. In an act of sheer frustration, she bit down on the something, hard.
Sarak felt his eyes go wide as a scream erupted from his lips. Instinctively, he tried to bat at the creature biting his reproductive organs. However, he stopped when it only served to make it clamp down harder. By now his breath had turned into a high pitched whine in between whimpers. All he could do was force his body to relax and go limp.
As he did so, the creature released him and rolled his body off it. With a sigh of relief, he instantly grabbed the sore member, clutching it away from the offending creature. In fact, he wrapped his whole body around it, bringing his knees to his chest.
Amanda gasped for breath as she was free from the soffocating force. A few deep breaths brought in enough air that the fog that had adled her mind started to clear. Precious moments were thanked as she allowed it to sink in that she wasn't dying. 'At least not yet', a cynical thought said as reality came back to her.
First thing she did was take a mental inventory of her body, making sure nothing hurt or was out of place. After all checked came back intact, she focused on memory. She had been laying in bed when the ship shuddered. Then the gravity plating had gone off line. She tried to turn over and inavertantly launched herself into orbit of the door. There was a powering up sound and the gravity plating came online, followed by.... 'Ah, got it.'
She rubbed at her sore head and bottom. Sitting up, she blinked her eyes blearily at the junk pile that had been the sick bay. Where her bed had been was now a pile of suport beams and duritanium. "So much for starfleet ingenuity."
"I completely agree," came a gasping whisper.
Amanda focused on the sorce of the voice with a hawk's laser percision. Narrowing her eyes, she started to her feet. "You!"
"And you, Ms. Grayson." Sarek tried to sit up, but wasn't fast enough to avoid the soft soled booted foot that kicked him in the ribs.
"This is all your fault! If I am going to die, I will see you there first!" Grabbing her foot, Amanda started to hop cursing up a storm. "Damned Iron sided Vulcan! When I get a pair of proper boots I am going to kick your ass up around your shoulder blades! You're gonna have to take your shirt off just to shit!"
Sarek sat up with great effort. Taking advantage of her emotional state, he got to his knees, then to his feet. A few tentive steps brought him to her side where he brought his hands up to touch her face.
Amanda blocked his hands by swinging her sore foot against his chest, sending him back against the bulkhead. "Don't you touch me, bastard! I remember what you tried to do to me. Then covered it up by poisoning me. Thought you were pretty smart, didn't you!"
Grasping his sides, Sarek stood again. This time, he kept his distance. Feeling it was best to explain before any other actions were taking, he sat down on a flat surface. "I did not. I can only ask your forgiveness in the matter of my lack of control, nothing else. It was not me who poisoned you."
"Your lack of control? Try your attempted rape! I know all about the Vulcan mind melds, it was covered by my biologics instructor before I even came to Vulcan. I know how in your past your people used it to subjegate the wills of others. I am not as ignorant as you would have others believe." She put her foot down, hands on hips. "Contrary to popular Vulcan belief, Humans are not inferior."
"The very fact that you have to say a denial, makes you so."
Amanda started towards him, arm drawing back to slug him. "Pretenious, smug, pointy eared freak!"
Catching her fist, Sarek let a little of his rage leak through the mask. Forcing Amanda to her knees, he looked her directly in the eyes. "If we are going to toss around names, I would be within my own right to describe you as an overbearing, obnoxious, emotional bovine."
Her eyes went wide then narrowed. "You dare call me a cow?"
"Yes! You are behaving like the stubborn, willful creature of your home world."
"Stubborn?" She repeated the word under her breath, eyes losing focus as she tried to place the refrence. After a moment, she snorted. Her snort turned into chuckles, then hysterical laughter.
Sarek growled as he yanked on her arm. "Do not laugh at me, Human!"
"You stupid Vulcan, it is a mule, not a cow that is stubborn and willful." She gasped out between cackles. When he jerked on her arm again, she screeched in laughter.
"You will cease this emotional outburst at once." Trying to shake her only made her laugh harder as he only had her left arm. In a growl of rage, he pushed her arm away from him and stood. "Fine, be the mule all you wish. There is else where to be on this ship."
"Be that way all you want!" Crawling to a wall, she ignored his presence trying to get to her feet. Amanda grasped the side of a biobed to pull herself up. "It just amazes me that your people claim to be so high and mighty, yet you resort to childish tactics when confronted with something you don't understand."
"We are not childish."
"That is where you are wrong." Sighing, she gave up trying to get a steady grip in favor of rearranging her weak body into a sitting position. When she was satisfied with her placement, she went about adjusting her robe and dusting off. "From the moment we first met, your race has done nothing to encourage our so called 'enlightenment' that you supposedly have mastered."
"We have reached an enlightenment your race can never hope to achieve."
Her gaze fell on his obstinant features, clearly stating she didn't buy a single word of it.
His own eyes narrowed in anger at her. How dare she play at being his superior! "There will come a time when you will be forced to admit our superiority."
"Hardly." Laughing, Amanda held her sides. "You sit there appearing the preening peacock with half the intelligence. Perhaps you might consider less bitching and more planning. We are, after all, adrift in space on a derelict space craft."
"You know nothing of the condition of this ship..."
"Shut up!" Gesturing around the demolished sick bay, she screamed at him. "This, the heart of the entire ship aside from the engine room, is in shambles! That is clue enough to the condition of the rest of the ship! Get your pointy head out of your ass and look around. It is not going to get any better by your continuous complaining."
Sarek just stood there. 'Did she... This Human female...'
"Don't just stand there gaping like a fool, help me to my feet." She held out her hands expectantly. The set of her face told him she wouldn't tolerate any other action.
Sighing, he moved forward and bent down to grasp her hands. Just before he reached them, her foot shot out and up between his legs. Sarek screeched as he knelt clutching his crotch.
Amanda grabbed his collar and pulled him to her face. "I remember!" Her eyes blazed in fury. Unclenching her fists, she brought them up to grab his face. "Did you think you could make me forget? I'm Human, not stupid!"
In a fit of rage, he grabbed her face in a mimicking gesture. "Just remember, you innitiated this!"
"Innitiated what..." Suddenly she was looking at herself through his eyes and knew exactly what she had done. As one, they kneeled on the floor of the sickbay, facing each other. The rushing heat filled him and overrode all sense of decorum. It spread from him to her and their eyes locked.
'Such a terrible pain.' Her thoughts filled their minds.
'Help me ease the burden. You are the only one.'
'Promise me.'
'I do.' Simultaniously they felt the acceptance and the fire consumed. Neither knew who was who, their thoughts focused so intently on the goal.
****************************************
It was several hours later Amanda came to herself. Things were jumbled in her mind, emotions and memories that were not her own. There was also an other, a part of her that felt detatched. Reaching out on instinct, she felt it awaken. Glancing in the direction she felt it, she rubbed her head and groaned. "Tell me we didn't do what I think we just did."
"Do you think I am proud of my actions?" Sitting up, Sarak pulled his robes around himself to cover his body. "It is a disgrace, what I have done."
"Oh, and bedding a Vulcan is going to go down well with my own people." Glancing around for her clothes, she found them in shreds and scratches crisscrossing her body where they had been torn from it. "Great, just great, haven't you ever heard of being gentle?"
"The Pon Farr is voletile, most often leading to violent behavior. That you survived with as little damage should is a testament to my restraint." Standing, he inspected his on torn clothes with disdain. "However, in the same vein of your complaints, you are most destructive under sexual ardour."
"Give me credit, it was the first time for me." Her head shot up as an impulse tugged through her mind. Penning him with a glare, she held up a hand. "You even say it and I will show you just how destructive I can be."
"I was merely going to suggest this was not your first time having sexual intercourse."
"Don't even try that put upon act with me, I know exactly what you intended to say." She clutched the remains of her clothes to her and clumisly stood up. Feeling sore between her legs, she did a few stretches to ease the cramping. Each time she gritted her teeth, she sent a glare Sarek's way.
Sarek raised an eyebrow, appearing slightly smug.
After easing the pain, she stood up straight and scanned the damaged sick bay. There appeared to be nothing of which to salavage. "Help me find us some clothes."
"I have clothes in my cabin." Crossing his arms, Sarek stood off to the side, watching her hips as she walked. "This is not the most opprotune time, but might I suggest you cease walking that way, it is most distracting."
"Well, if you quit looking at me and focus on finding clothes then you wouldn't be distracted, now, would you?" Stretching her back, she moved towards what appeared to be a counter with shelves. The counter was completely entact, however, the doors were wedged shut. "Hey, vulcan boy, get over here and help me with this."
Crossing his arms, Sarek stood proudly. "Not until you ask politely. It is a small curtosy, I suggest you use it."
"I can see your cock, we just had sex, and I am starting to get cold. Get over here before I lose what last bit of dignity I have remained in possesion of and kick your ass!" Pulling on the drawer, she growled and jerked with all her body weight. The drawer handle gave under her assault and she flew across the room. Before she could land in some debris, she felt strong, warm hands holding her up.
Heat filled her at the touch. Catching her breath, her gaze traveled up the flexing mucles in Sarek's arms, across his chest, and to his face. She couldn't quite place why, but the calm benevolence there, suddenly made her drop the handle. Reaching up, she gripped his cheek.
Sarek pulled her up to her feet. "Perhaps clothes can wait."
"Uh huh."
****************************************
It was when she was riding Sarek into the deck plates for the third time she heard the tell tale whir of a transporter. Never in her life had she moved so fast.
It was the image of a half furious, half curios, half hard Sarek that greeted away team. Growling, he stood up, ready to attack whoever had invaded the ship.
"Whoa, whoa! Hold your fire." A man with a phaser pistol lowered it as he gestured for the other three men to do the same. "Lower your weapons. Ambassador Sarek, I presume?"
Sarek stood up from his defensive stance. "You are from starfleet?"
"Uh, yes, sir." The lieutenant smiled at Sarak in embarrassment. "We are here to rescue you, sir."
"Very well." Going rigid, Sarak tried to adjust his robes and found none.
A slight rumbling at the far end of the sick bay had the away team training their phaser pistols on the pile of debris. Amanda popped her arm above it. "Don't shoot, it is just me."
"If you must, feel free to shoot." Sarek ignored the heated glare Amanda sent his way.
Standing up, Amanda tied the last strip of cloth in place over her breast. The strips of Sarek's robes and her medical pajamas were barely enough to cover her, but it was the best she could do in such a short notice. She walked up to the other side of the away team avoiding their knowing looks. "We," she stressed the word, "are ready to go."
"All right, ma'am." The lieutenant flipped open his communicator. "Constellation, this is Lieutenant Freemont, we have two survivors ready for transport directly to sick bay."
"Confirmed, Freemont, stand by." A short moment later the whiring of the transporter whisked Amanda and Sarek away.
Freemont looked at his fellows, the grin on his face increasing to gut busting laughter.
****************************************
Amanda sat up on the biobed, pulling on the new top they had left for her. The entire time she and Sarek had been scanned, she had kept her distance. Now that the medical staff were gone, she turned to him. "Just what is going on with us?"
"I do not understand what you are asking." He pulled on his own medical top with obvious disgust.
"Why can I get impressions of your thoughts and emotions?" She raised a hand to forestall his complaints. "Don't start with me on that Vulcans have no emotions crap. I want the truth. I know this has something to do with the Pon Farr, that much I do remember from the melding."
Taking a deep breath, Sarek composed himself, feeling strangely at peace with her presence. "In short, we are mated. The bonding process is mental as well as physical."
Staring at him like he suddenly developed an arm growing out of his ass, she froze. "Are you telling me that I will always have you in the back of my head like some gnat in my ear?"
"Precisely."
"You don't have to sound so damned smug about it." Glancing away, she slid down off the biobed. She walked in a daze over to the piture of water they had left for her. "Why me? I don't even like you!"
Sarek shrugged. "You were convenient."
"Don't give me that. You started this on Vulcan." Tapping her temples, she took a swallow of the water. "I remember that much."
Sighing, Sarek climbed off his own biobed and walked over to stand beside her. Taking the piture from her, he pour himself a glass, unconsciously mimicking her gestures. "At the time, it seemed to be the most logical course of action. You intrigued me. Challenged me unlike any other ever had."
"So because I put up a fight you decided I was the perfect mate?" At his nod, she rolled her eyes. "I don't know rather to be insulted or laugh at you."
"You should feel honored. I hold great prestiege on my world, as has my family for many generations." Taking another drink, he choked on the water. Rubbing his ribs where she had hit him, he frowned. "Why do you insist on hitting me?"
"It makes me feel better." She put her cup down and walked back to her bed. "You implied I was an easy slut. On my world I would be well within my rights to slap you."
"Instead you chose to use your elbow, very amusing." Snorting into his glass, Sarek took another drink. "We shall return to Vulcan soon."
"What?" Now she was officially freaked. "Just hold on a minute, Sarek, I am not going anywhere with you."
"You are aware of our customs." He knew she was, sensed her understanding at the back of his mind. "We shall go through the customary rituals of my people."
"I want an Earth wedding too!"
Mulling it over, Sarek nodded. "I am willing to honor your rituals for the sake of arguement."
About to rip into him again, Amanda was stopped by the arrival of the doctor. "What's up doc?"
"Ah, Ms. Grayson, I was just coming to talk with you, both of you." Holding up the hand computer, he examined it with a shake of his head. "If you will please be seated, I have somethings to tell you."
"I prefer to remain standing." Sarek moved to stand beside Amanda's bed, folding his hands behind his back. Watching the doctor with a curious stare, he waited patiently. "You may begin."
"Thank you," the doctor frowned at the Ambassador, but kept his comments to himself. "Just how long have you two been having sexual relations?"
"What is the relevance to..."
"Since yesterday." Amanda ignored Sarek's slight green coloring. "Does this have to do with why I no longer feel the effects of the poisoning?"
"It might." The doctor scratched his head. "I can find no trace of the poison in your system. It has been replaced by hormones of a curious nature. I don't know how to tell you this, so I guess I better spit it out. Ms. Grayson, you are in the first stages of a Vulcan pregnancy. Several hormones are present in your body that are not normally a part of the human biochemistry. It is confounding us to what exact the cause of this is, but I suspect it has something to do with the plant matter that you were poisoned with."
Holding up the computer, he turned it so they could see it. "Apparently exposure to a hormone found in Vulcan males combined with those produced by the embryo has converted the toxin into a harmless, yet essential, reproductive hormone."
Sarek appeared intrigued by the doctor's statements.
Amanda looked sick. Holding her stomach, she looked down. Looking back up at the doc, her face twisted into a snarl. In the next instant she launched herself at Sarek. "This is all your damned fault!" Growling, she tried her damnedest to do him serious bodily harm.
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Holding her index and middle finger to Sarek's, Amanda could feel his ice cold fear. Smiling slightly, pure smug satisfaction filled her. It was far from perfect, she knew she could have done a lot worse for a mate. The circumstances of their bonding not with standing, she could learn to eventually love the arrogant man. If not, she had a hell of a long time to make him sorry for his actions.
Sarek sent back a thrill of pleasure through their link.
So what? He would get over it, she knew it would only take time. Time and a lot of... She had to focus on the ceremony! Now was not to the time to be thinking of Vulcan mating practices. Catching the eye of T'Pau as she bound their hands, she could have sworn she saw the old Vulcan wink at her.
For the rest of the ceremony, both stood there in stunned shock.
THE END.....................................