T'Prillah's site of STAR TREK TOS S/Mc Slash

Don't Panic! (Part 2)

2009-01-01T05:24:00.001-08:00

Title: Don't Panic (Part 2)

Author: T'Prillah

Codes: TOS, S/Mc, PG-13. Cross over

Author's note: STAR TREK meets "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy."

See part one for disclaimer.

______________________________

DON'T PANIC---PART 2

"Oh," McCoy moaned. He was lying in bed, cuddled in someone's arms. The arms felt wonderfully warm, the chest he was up against felt even warmer and even more wonderful and as he stirred, the arms pulled him closer. `Mmmmmm,' he thought. `The arms feel so good I may never want to get up again.'

The arms that held him, however, started shaking him. McCoy tentatively opened his eyes. "Mmph," he said, dozily. "Such a bizarre dream."

"Dream?" the voice answered. The voice sounded like Spock's. McCoy finally managed to focus his eyes. It was Spock.

"Oh hey, Spock," McCoy mumbled. "What are you doing here?"

"Here?"

"Yeah here. What are you doing?"

"It appears that I am currently in bed with you," Spock replied.

McCoy snickered. "I knooooowww that. What I mean is: How'd you get here in my quarters?"

"Your quarters?"

"Why do you keep repeating everything I'm saying?"

"Where do you believe you are, Doctor?"

"Well, it`s funny you should ask that," McCoy said. He sat up on an elbow in the darkness, as the arms continued to wrap around him. "I had quite a crazy dream that the Engineering department destroyed my quarters, then it didn't matter because the Klingons destroyed the Enterprise--God, was that ever creepy."

"And true."

"Hmmm?"

"We are not on the Enterprise."

"Oh..no.." groaned McCoy. "No."

"Oh..yes," said Spock.

"So would you mind, just for my sanity, telling me where in God's name, are we?"

"We are safe," Spock said.

"Oh good," McCoy said. "Where?"

"We are on board the Klingon vessel. In one of the crew quarters."

"Oh," groaned McCoy. "So this is obviously some strange usage of the word `safe' that I wasn't previously aware of."

He felt Spock pull away then get up from the bed and search for the light. Hopefully it wasn't voice activated only or they'd be in trouble. Spock finally found something. He activated it and a low light came on.

"How'd we get here?" McCoy wanted to know.

"We transported here." Spock came back to sit on the edge of the bed.

"Why?"

"I believe that I had already gone over that with you."

"God, I feel woozy."

"The long range transport beam. You have most likely lost some salt and protein, although the Romulan Ale would have cushioned your system."

"Spock, I'll be the judge of that. I'm the doctor around here."

"I brought some peanuts." Spock held out a metallic bag. "Have one."

"I don't want any goddamned peanuts. I want to go home. Let's get back to the Enterprise."

"We cannot."

McCoy sat up. "What do you mean? We cannot?"

"We can never go back."

"Spock," McCoy said dryly. "We aren't 5,000 years in the past or anything like that, are we?"

"Negative."

"Just checking." McCoy stood up, shakily at first, then steadied and stared around him. "It's a disaster in here." He frowned at the bits of clothing, unwashed cups, trays, food, socks and smelly alien underwear that lay around the cramped cabin.

"Quite reminiscent of your own quarters, Doctor," Spock replied.

"You be quiet. So the Enterprise is really destroyed? And you mean to tell me that Jim, Scotty, Uhura, Chekov, Sulu, Chapel..the whole crew..all of them are just.. gone? Just like that?"

"As we are the only two survivors, it would follow logically that yes they are all gone."

McCoy smacked his hand to his forehead. "Great. So how did you know that the Enterprise was about to be destroyed? It does seem to me that you had some sort of advanced warning or something."

"I did. Thanks to this." Spock pulled something out a backpack that he'd apparently brought with him.

"What's this?"

"This," Spock announced almost proudly as he opened up the electronic book, "is the Hitchhiker's guide to the Galaxy. It tells a hitchhiker--which is what we are, due to the fact that we are hitching a ride on board the Klingon vessel-- everything one needs to know... about everything." He pressed a button, a screen lit up and characters began to flicker across the surface.

McCoy whistled. "Fascinating."

"That's what I'd said." Spock suddenly looked McCoy over. "Do you have a towel with you?"

"A what?"

"A towel."

"Spock, I'm standing here in only my robe and boxer shorts. Does it look like I've got a goddamned towel?"

"Hmmmmm," Spock grimaced in irritation.

"So where'd you get this book?" McCoy asked as he gingerly fingered it.

"On Vulcan. I am doing research for another version. This book, while quite valuable, is horrendously out of date. I am actually employed by the VHS."

"The VHS?"

"The Vulcan Hitchhiking Society."

"But," McCoy scratched his head. "I thought you were the First Officer/Chief Science Officer of the Enterprise."

"Negative. The captain had erroneously assumed I was when he'd discovered me hitching a ride aboard your starship. Your REAL first officer apparently never showed up for work so I thought it might be fascinating to simply stay awhile and see what happens. I've been serving with you in that capacity for just under five years. 4.725 to be exact."

"And all this time you were just a... fraud?"

"I would not put it precisely in such vulgar terms, but yes you would be essentially correct in that assumption."

"Oh," the doctor said, glumly, then brightened a little. "Well, on the bright side, I like the cover. `Don't panic'. It's the first helpful thing I've heard all day."

"It would also be helpful if we looked up Klingons in the book," Spock said, then typed in a command.

The book said: `Klingons. Here is what you do if you find yourself on a Klingon ship. Forget it. They are one of the most unpleasant species in the galaxy. Not quite evil, but bad tempered, bureaucratic, officious and callous. They wouldn't even lift a finger to save their own grandmothers from the explosion of Praxus VI without orders signed in triplicate, sent in, sent back, photocopied, lost, found, subjected to public tribunal, lost again and finally buried under ice for three months then recycled as firefighters.'

"Oh, Jesus!" McCoy exclaimed.

"There is more," Spock said.

It also said: `Under no circumstances are you to allow a Klingon to read poetry to you.'

"What a strange book," McCoy blinked.

"Indeed," said Spock. "Fun."

"Fun?" McCoy seethed. "Dammit Spock! You might think this is all a joke. But I'm a little upset about the fact that my ship is gone. More than a little. I'm a lot upset!"

"Yes," Spock agreed. "I can understand that."

"Understand that?! Understand that?! Why you green-blooded, heartless bastard--"

"Please Doctor, keep looking at the book."

"What?"

"Don't panic."

"I'm not panicking!"

"Yes you are."

"Okay, so I'm panicking. But it seems to me I'm the only one doing something around here."

"Shhhh!" Spock held up his hand. "Listen!"

"What?"

"The Klingon Commander is speaking over the intercomn."

McCoy listened. "I can't understand what he's saying. It's all in gibberish."

"Then you shall need this fish." Spock suddenly clamped a hand over McCoy's ear.

McCoy felt the sudden sickening sensation of a little fish slithering deep into his aural tract. He gasped in horror, clawed for a few moments at his ear, then stopped and listened:

"DaH 'oH qaSta' Daq chaH jajmey, vetlh ...this is commander Kor speaking. Please, everyone, stop what you're doing and listen to this. It appears we have a couple of hitchhikers aboard. I just want to say this to the hitchhikers. Listen, I want to make it totally clear to you, guys, that you're not welcome aboard. I worked hard to get where I am today, and if she isn't going to marry me, then you aren't going to stay aboard my ship. If SHE wants to be a little whore and date my brother instead then that's fine. Absolutely fine. Because if I have to be unhappy, then I don't see why anybody else should have a jolly good time. Kor out."

"Hmph," said McCoy. "Sounds like a drama queen. No wonder she dumped him."

"Indeed," said Spock.

"Spock, here's a question."

"Yes?"

"What is this fish doing in my ear?"

"It is translating the Klingon dialect for you. It is called a 'Babel Fish'. It is in the book. Look it up."

"No, I`ll take your word for it. Spock, Does it really need to be in my ear? I can feel it wriggling. It's a little unnerving, to be perfectly honest."

"Well," said Spock. "It is either a fish," he dug though his backpack and came up with a silver metallic tube, "or you could use this. It is entirely up to you."

McCoy took it from him. "The universal translator."

"Affirmative."

"Spock, do me a favor and take this fish out of my ear, immediately."

"If you wish. But some species enjoy the sensation."

"I don`t," McCoy insisted. Spock shrugged and took it out of McCoy's ear, as ordered. "Spock aren't you going to take yours out? We do have the translator."

"I prefer the fish," Spock said quietly.

McCoy shook his head in despair. "Did I do something wrong or has the universe always been this weird and I've just been too wrapped up in myself to notice?"

Suddenly there was the sound of footsteps approaching. "Klingon guards," Spock observed.

"Oh no," said McCoy. "What do you think they'll do to us?"

"If we are lucky," Spock replied. "They will transport us out into space."

"And if we're unlucky?"

"If we are unlucky, the Klingon Commmander will read us some of his poetry first."

---------

Klingon poetry is of course the third worst in the universe. The second worst is from the Romulans. All about war and honor and all that, none of it rhymes and it's altogether a boring read. The absolute worst poetry came from Vulcans.

Commander Kor smiled. His hapless prisoners sat strapped into their `Poetry Appreciation Chairs'.

Tiny beads of sweat stood out on Spock's temples as electrodes were strapped to him. For he knew that as Vulcan poetry was indeed the worst in the universe, thanks to Surak no one had ever been subjected to its horrors. But the Klingons had no such restraint.

The electrodes on Spock and McCoy's heads were attached to a battery of equipment: imagery intensifiers, rhythmic modulators, alliterative gesticulators and simile dumpers all designed to heighten the experience of the poem. It was a fate worse than death.

Commander Kor cleared his throat and began to read in perfect Klingon, but as Spock and McCoy possessed universal translators (actually McCoy a translator and Spock a fish) they were exposed to its full horror, in Federation standard. "Come be with me, let your mind float free...*" Kor began.

Spasms rocked Spock's body. He wretched his head back as pain shot through his body. This was far worse than Vulcan poetry.

"...Across the space of our separation, let it join with mine, for an eternal moment..."

"No..." Spock groaned. "Please no! Make it stop!"

The merciless Klingon went on: "Who are better joined? Those who are together. Each thinking of other people, in other places. Or we. Who are in other places," His voice rose to a horrible pitch of impassioned stridency. "Thinking of each other!"

"Noooooo!" screamed Spock. "Nooooooo!" He went limp.

"Now," smiled Kor. He twirled his mustache, evilly. "You have a choice. Either die a painful death, transported out into the vacuum of space to suffocate...or...tell me how good my poem was."

Spock was gasping for breath, he moaned loudly. "No...please...anything but that..."

"I'm a doctor not a poetry critic!" yelled McCoy.

"TELL ME!" The veins in Kor's head were beginning to stand out.

"Alright, Fine. Read me some more," said McCoy.

"Nooo!" groaned Spock.

"We are star met. we are joined. we are blessed. we who have found each other, we are the dream of the ages, we are the hope, the desire, we are love," said Kor. "Well?"

"Aghhhhh!" moaned Spock.

"Actually," McCoy said, happily. "It's not too bad."

"Really?" asked Kor.

"Oh yes," said McCoy. "I kind of like it."

"Please continue," said Kor.

"Well," said McCoy. "I think some of the imagery was really effective. Powerful even. It was beautiful!"

Kor smiled wider. "Really."

"Certainly," said McCoy. "See, I write poetry myself. I've written a couple booklets of verse dedicated to the Great Bird of the Galaxy so I should know what I'm talking about. Right Spock?"

"Ohhhh," Spock continued to moan. His head lolled back. "Nooo!"

"I wish to hear a detailed review," said Kor. "Now. With stars and everything."

"Well," said McCoy. "It...uh...was interesting. It had a sort of rhythm which seemed to counterpoint the uh...uh...humanity--"

"HUMANITY?!" Kor seethed.

"Klingonity," Spock hissed at McCoy.

"Klingonity," McCoy parroted back. "Sorry, Commander Kor. The 'Klingonity' of the poet's compassionate soul which contrives though the medium of the verse structure to subliminate this, transcend that and come to terms with the fundamental dichotomies of the..uh..whatever the poem was about."

"Really? You liked it that much?"

"Oh yeah," said McCoy. "Right Spock?"

"Noooo!" groaned Spock.

"You do understand," said Kor. "That the poem means: `even though I may be a Klingon, deep down, I just want to be loved.'"

"Oh sure, I got that," said McCoy. "Totally."

"How many stars does it get?" Kor asked excitedly.

"Hmmmmm," said McCoy, chewing on his lip. "Three."

"Three!"

"And a half. Three and a half."

"Not four?"

McCoy shook his head. "No, nobody gets that, not even me. Right Spock?"

"SILENCE!" said Kor. "Seize them! Transport them out into space."

"Nice goin' Spock," McCoy said out of the side of his mouth.

They were thrown into the transporter beam. And beamed out into space.

-------------

END OF PART 2, Stay tuned for Part 3

* from "Come be with Me." by Leonard Nimoy. (Sorry Leonard!)

DON'T PANIC--PART 1

2009-01-01T01:44:00.000-08:00

Author: T'Prillah

Codes: TOS, S/Mc, PG-13, humor, parody

Author`s Note: This is Star Trek meets "The Hitchhicker's Guide to the Galaxy." So obviously this is farcical. And yes it's slash, eventually.

Disclaimer: I do not own Star Trek. I do not own the "Hitchhiker's" series. Written with apologies to Douglas Adams. No money was made on this. If TPTB in both fandoms still wish to sue me for compensation, then please take my attack cat as payment. Please.

________________________

DON'T PANIC

0600 hours. Thursday morning. Doctor Leonard Horatio McCoy didn't feel very well this particular morning. As he pulled himself out of bed he remembered hazily that the night before, he had gotten drunk. Very drunk.

The Enterprise was currently on a routine mapping mission. That meant nothing exciting was happening, nor would it for at least three weeks. The crew was bored. Very bored.

A case of boredom such as this on a long boring evening called for a celebration of nothing in particular in Kirk's quarters. It was a party of three: Kirk, Spock (who was bored too) and McCoy.

After games of chess and poker and even fizzbin had all been exhausted, the night needed something much more exciting. A drinking game was called for. McCoy decreed that every time Spock raised an eyebrow, they took a shot of booze. It happened twenty-seven times last night (mostly deliberately). Twenty-seven times, Kirk and McCoy (and they presumed, also, Spock) each drank a shot of highly potent Romulan Ale, straight from a bottle from McCoy`s stores hidden specially for nights like these. That's right. Romulan Ale. Thems were the `McCoy' rules.

McCoy couldn't remember how he'd even made it back to his quarters. But obviously he had. He'd woken up naked, half on the bed, half off, tangled up in the bed sheets; an angry red line dancing around his wrist.

He staggered over to the toilet for a pee.

And heard a buzz.

`Oh..God..!' he thought as a groan escaped his lips. `Now my head is buzzing! Please God! I promise! I am never drinking another drop as long as I live.'

The buzzer sounded again. Insistently. After a while he realized it wasn't in his head after all. It was his door signal. McCoy flushed the toilet, threw on some boxers and a robe and opened the door. "Yeah? What is it?"

"Good morning, Doctor McCoy!" The damn voice emanating from the red shirt with one gold stripe was entirely too chipper.

"Do you have any idea what time it is?" McCoy growled.

"Indeed I do, Sir." The red shirt smiled intently, staring straight at the lock of hair sticking up from McCoy's head.

McCoy grimaced. "You'd better have a damned good reason for standing at my door this morning, Lieutenant."

Lieutenant Jackson, assistant engineer to none other than Lt. Commander Montgomery Scott, (a fact that he was proud to brag to anyone that would listen) did have a damned good reason for being at McCoy's door that morning. He'd been assigned the honorable task of widening the deck 5 conference room. The conference room that was located right next door to McCoy's quarters.

The lieutenant patiently explained to McCoy, with an aggravatingly wide smile plastered onto his face, that the doctor needed to vacate immediately, so they could start tearing down the bulkheads. McCoy's quarters was smack dab where the new section would be located.

"But these are my quarters!" McCoy whined.

"Yes sir, they certainly were."

"But I live here."

Lt. Jackson consulted his datapadd. "Yes sir, it says right here. Doctor Leonard--"

"Give me that!" McCoy ripped it from his hand. Sure enough, by orders of Captain James T. Kirk. That couldn't be right.

McCoy threw the datapadd back into the lieutenant's fumbling hands. "I don't give two shits if the orders came from Rear Admiral Nogura himself," he huffed. "These are my quarters, and I'm not leaving. You can go to hell." He walked over to his bedchamber and lay face down on his bunk. "This is a bad dream. This is all just a very bad dream. Please, God, I promise never to drink again. Please make them all go away."

The lieutenant followed McCoy into the bedchamber. "I'm afraid, Sir, that you've got to accept it!"

McCoy groaned and flipped over onto his back. "Say that quieter if you value your life."

"You must leave now sir. The conference room must be widened. You must vacate these quarters immediately."

"At 0600?"

"Yes sir."

"Tell me, WHY in God's name, must the conference room next to MY cabin be widened. Why not some other conference room? On some other level at some other time? On some other ship perhaps?"

"The Babel conference will be taking place on board the Enterprise in two days, sir. You were aware of this."

"Was I? This is the first I've heard of it."

"There was a meeting."

"When?"

"Yesterday. At 1400"

"Yesterday at 1400, when I was in the middle of surgery? On Ensign Chekov`s leg?"

"I believe so, Sir."

"So I couldn't be at that meeting. The meeting about the demolition of my OWN quarters."

"I guess not, Sir."

"But that's crazy."

"Sir, this has been in the planning stages for 6 months."

"Oh, Yeah," McCoy realized. "I did hear something to that effect. But it's not like I took it seriously. You guys in Engineering hadn't exactly gone out of your way to call attention to the plans or anything."

"The diagram was on display, Sir."

"Yeah," sighed McCoy, "but I had to go down to the bowels of engineering to locate it--"

"That IS the display department, Sir."

"With a flashlight."

"Well, we did have a report that the lighting was inoperative in that section."

"So was the turbo lift, apparently," grumped McCoy. "I had to take the goddamned ladder down there. In the dark. I'm afraid of the dark. Nobody's been down there in ages. I could swear there was a spider sitting on my shoulder." McCoy shuddered at the memory. He didn't care for spiders, either.

"Well you did eventually find it, didn't you Sir?"

"Yes," agreed McCoy. He flung his arm over his head. "It was behind an old computer, next to the main warp core, in a disused office with a sign on the door: `Beware of the killer sehlat.'"

Lt. Jackson tutted as he glanced around. "Your quarters are not very pleasing to the eye, Sir. I must say. Not decorated very well, are they. Smells a little in here, too, like feet. It's also a little on the small side. Not very officer-like."

"You, shut up and get out and take your goddamn cocky attitude with you. You're not tearing down my cabin. I happen to like it."

"You'll like the new conference room."

"Piss off."

"Sir, am I to understand that you refuse to leave?"

"That's right. If you want my quarters so badly, you`ll have to work THROUGH me."

"Doctor McCoy?"

"Yesssss?"

"Do you have any IDEA how much DAMAGE our brand new `Bulkhead Removal Phaser' would suffer if it were to touch you and ultimately disintegrate you?"

"How much?"

"None at all, Sir."

"Doctor?"

Pointy ears loomed into McCoy's field of vision. He'd hadn't heard the doors open. "Spock!" Now the first officer would make this wet behind the ears engineering tech see some reason. "Am I ever glad to see you!"

"Doctor are you busy?"

McCoy scowled as he lay sprawled out on the bunk, clad in his robe and boxer shorts and nothing else, from where he'd been arguing with the engineering lieutenant and the engineering lieutenant's assistant now standing there clutching the BRP (Bulkhead Removal Phaser). "No," McCoy said sarcastically to the first officer. "Whatever gave you that idea?"

"Excellent, Doctor McCoy, then you can join me for breakfast in the officer's lounge."

"Now?"

"We must talk."

"So talk. I'm listening," said McCoy.

"And eat. It is logical that we talk and eat."

"Logical, huh?"

"We shall go to the Officers' Mess on this level."

"Spock, listen! This damned engineer wants to disintegrate my quarters!"

"I do have a very good reason for it," interjected Lt. Jackson.

"You shut up!" snapped McCoy.

"Well," said Spock. "The Lieutenant will not be able to disintegrate your quarters while you are not present to complain."

"He can't?" asked McCoy.

"I can't?" asked Jackson.

"No, you cannot. It is entirely against regulation."

"It is?" The engineer frowned at his datapadd.

"Doctor, you must accompany me to the officers lounge immediately. I must discuss with you a matter of great importance."

"But what about my quarters?"

"What about your quarters?"

"Spock. Weren't you listening? He wants to disinte--"

"And you say he is unable to do so, due to your presence on your bunk?"

"That's right," said McCoy.

"Certainly one can come to some sort of an arrangement with the Engineering department."

"But, you're the first officer. Can you just order them to stop?"

"I cannot. I have no jurisdiction in that area."

McCoy sighed. Loudly. "Sweet Jesus, Mary and Joseph--"

"Lt. Jackson," said Spock.

Jackson looked up. "Yes Mr. Spock? Has the doctor come to his senses yet?"

"For the record, let us assume that he has not."

"What?" asked McCoy.

"And?" asked Jackson.

"And," said Spock. "If one can assume that McCoy WILL be here, lying on his bunk in protest, then it follows that you do not actually need him to be present."

"Huh?" asked Jackson's assistant.

Spock reiterated: "If you take it as read that McCoy WOULD be here, you would not actually NEED him here. He and I will go to the officer's mess for 30.2 standard minutes while you wait here. It is logical."

"It is?" both McCoy and the lieutenant answered.

"Flawlessly," replied Spock. "So if you will, please come over here to the doctor's bunk and lie down. Doctor McCoy and I shall return in exactly--"

"Hmph?" asked Lt. Jackson.

"I am sorry," replied Spock. "I have not made myself perfectly clear. You must take the place of Dr. McCoy while he and I are gone. Or there will be nothing to stop the BDP(Bulkhead Removal Phaser)."

"What the hell are you talking about, Spock?" McCoy voiced it this time, though Lt. Jackson and his assistant looked equally puzzled.

"Lemme get this straight," ventured the lieutenant. "You want me to lie there--"

"Affirmative."

"On the bunk--"

"I believe I said that."

"Instead of Doctor McCoy."

"Precisely."

The engineering lieutenant tilted his head. "So if I lie down here in place of the doctor, you will take him to the Officer's Mess."

"Your hearing is in perfect working order, Lieutenant. Do we have an agreement?"

"I guess so, Sir."

"Come, Doctor McCoy. Time grows short. We do have an agreement with the lieutenant."

"Spock?" asked McCoy. "Shouldn't I put a uniform on first? I am a little underdressed."

"It is early. I am certain no one will notice."

McCoy got up and followed Spock out of the quarters. In the corridor, he jerked his thumb back. "Can we trust that kid?"

"We can trust him for as long as necessary."

"How long is that for?"

"Twelve point eight minutes. Come doctor."

In the Officers' Mess on deck 5, Spock and McCoy stuck their diet cards into the food replicator. Seconds later out popped their respective breakfasts. Spock handed McCoy an additional card. "Have a drink, Doctor."

"What's this?"

"Hair of the dog that bit you, as you would say," Spock explained.

McCoy shrugged and stuck the card into the slot. It came up with a nice large glass of very blue Romulan Ale.

"Romulan Ale? At 0600?"

"Incorrect," Spock replied. "It is closer to 0700. 0645.32 to be exact."

"Spock, Romulan Ale isn't exactly something you'd drink at this hour, especially not before a duty shift!"

"I insist," said Spock. "Consider it an order."

McCoy sighed. "Well if you put it like that." He grabbed the glass out of the replicator, stuck it on his tray and sat down across from the Vulcan. "Not exactly legal either," he grumbled under his breath. "Where'd you get this card?"

"Drink your drink, Doctor," Spock replied.

"Fine," McCoy smirked. "You don't have to order me twice." as he downed the glass he gazed coolly around the room. The other officers were in the middle of their morning stupors. "You're right Spock, nobody has noticed me only wearing my robe and boxers. Very astute. Though the deck is a little cold on my bare feet."

"One might have put a pair of slippers on."

"You're the one who said that time was growing short!" McCoy had said that a little too loudly. Loud enough for a Lieutenant-Commander from the Life-Sciences section to overhear. The Lt. Commander turned around to Spock and McCoy.

"Time grows short? Why?" asked the Lt. Commander.

McCoy glared daggers over at the nosey Lt. Commander. Spock replied: "Time grows short because the Enterprise shall be destroyed in less than ten point two standard minutes."

"Destroyed?" asked the Lt. Commander. "Oh..Well, it's a nice day for it," he turned to his companion, a Lieutenant Jones. "Isn't it a nice day for it, Jones?"

"Oh yes. It certainly is," replied Jones.

"Destroyed?!" McCoy sputtered. "Destroyed?! The Enterprise? With all of us on board? Are you out of your Vulcan mind?"

"If it was destroyed," said Jones. "It would certainly get me out that physical I have scheduled for 1100 hours."

McCoy gripped the edge of the table, seething. "Destroyed?! And you're doing nothing about it? Spock!"

"Calm yourself Doctor. We are doing something. Here, quickly, have another drink," replied Spock.

"Why?"

"Muscle relaxant. You are going to need it."

At that moment a large hum sounded from far away. McCoy stood up. "What the hell is that?"

"Do not worry. It has not started yet."

"Oh good." McCoy sat back down.

"They are merely disintegrating your quarters," Spock replied, calmly.

McCoy jumped up and ran out of the Officers Mess and down the corridor. Spock followed him.

"My GOD! They've disintegrated my quarters!" McCoy screamed.

McCoy's humble cabin was no more. Instead, a bright, gleaming new and much larger conference room stood in its place. With new chairs and pretty plants and everything. McCoy stood staring at it in shock. "Oh my God!"

"Well," said Spock. "They did have their orders from Captain Kirk."

"Yes, but where am I going to sleep from now on? What about all my belongings? My books, my toothbrush, my skull statues, my plants?"

"Are you serious Mr. Spock?" Jones had joined them in the corridor, staring at the gleaming new conference room. "Is the Enterprise really about to be destroyed?"

"Indeed I am serious, Mr. Jones," Spock replied. He checked his tri-corder. "In five point three minutes I would estimate."

"Wait," said Lt. Jackson. "We learned about this at the Academy. In case of imminent destruction, we're supposed to lie on the deck with a paper bag over our head. Isn't that right, Jones?"

"Should we do that, Mr. Spock?" asked Jones.

"If you wish, you may."

"Would it help?" asked Jackson.

"Not at all," said Spock.

"You barbarians!" McCoy shouted to the now multiplied engineering staff milling around. "I'll have you court martial-ed all the way down to the Academy! I'll have you scheduled for a complete physical each and every day, complete with rectal exams and blood work, and on top of that I'll appoint you, Lt. Jackson as my main guinea pig for all my medical experiments, instead of Chekov--"

The red alert sounded. Uhura's voice came through: "Mr. Spock to the bridge please, Mr. Spock to the bridge please--"

"--and another thing!" McCoy bellowed. "I'll slip all of you something in your food that'll turn your pee bright pink for a month--" McCoy stopped and turned to Spock. "Red alert. We're in red alert."

"Very perceptive Doctor," Spock replied. He grabbed McCoy's arm and pulled him down the corridor.

"Spock, I'm out here in my robe and boxer shorts! That`s against regulation!"

"Affirmative Doctor; cannot be helped."

"Where are we going?"

"To the transporter room."

"Not to the bridge? But you're being summoned!"

"No time," said Spock. "Come, Doctor."

As Spock dragged McCoy to the transporter room an alien voice suddenly sounded on the loudspeakers:

"To the crew of the Starship Enterprise. This is Commander Kor, of the Klingon Bird of Prey, Tal'zor. As you might have been aware you have been caught in a neutral zone. Although it's a Neutral zone by your description only. Hah! It is actually a Klingon Zone. Yes, we are fully aware it isn't marked. So, as you might NOT have been aware, we have been planning to develop this sector of Klingon space. Our plans for redevelopment require the building of a hyperspace expressway and regrettably, your starship is right in the middle of that proposed route. As a result, your starship has been slotted for immediate demolition. The process will take less than two of your Earth minutes. Thank you for your time."

In the transporter room, McCoy yelled out to the speaker. "Hey! We're not stationary! It's not like we're on a planet for God's sake! We could actually MOVE out of the way!"

"They cannot hear you Doctor," Spock said as he operated the transporter controls.

"Spock? Has everyone gone mad? Are you all out of your goddamned minds? They're gonna destroy us! Isn't Jim gonna do something about this?"

Before Spock could answer him, the loudspeaker sounded again: "Ohhhh please. Stop your whining. There's no use getting upset about it now. You were politely contacted hours ago, and you've had plenty of time to lodge any formal complaint. It's too late now."

Spock opened his mouth to once again speak but the loudspeaker sounded once again: "What do you mean hailing frequencies weren't open? I'm sorry, but if your communications officer can't even pick up a simple call, then that's your problem. Energize phasers."

"Wait!" McCoy yelled out from the transporter pad. "The Organian peace treaty! What about the Organian peace treaty?!"

But there only was a terrible, ghastly silence.

-------------------------------

END OF PART 1 LINK TO PART 2

THERAGEN

2008-12-29T22:55:00.001-08:00

Author: T'Prillah

Series: TOS

Pairing: S/Mc, Sc

Rating: NC-17

Summary: Takes place during “The Tholian Web”. My take on what happened between the scenes when Spock takes a drink of the Theragen derivative with McCoy in his quarters and when he appears on the bridge.

Feedback: Yes please. Bad or good, private or public.

Author’s note: This is just a fun story. I wanted to explore: Why is Spock in such a damned good mood when he appears on the bridge? Probably this scenario has been done before. Ah well.

Archive: Written for Spiced Peaches XV-some corrections made for this posting to ASCEM-L.

Disclaimer: Star Trek is owned by Paramount, et. al. I don’t own em’ .

THERAGEN

“Complements of the house.”

After many long hours of intensive, investigative laboratory work that had finally ended, Dr. Leonard McCoy entered Spock’s quarters bearing a tray with a beaker full of an orange liquid. Success. McCoy grinned triumphantly at the acting ‘captain’ and the chief engineer. “To your good health and the health of the crew.”

Spock sounded almost pleased. “You have found the antidote, Doctor.”

“Yes, and I’ve ordered it orally and intravenously for everyone aboard the ship.” McCoy handed a glass to Scotty, then Spock, then finally poured a glass for himself. “I would like for you gentlemen, to drink it down.”

“Ensign Chekov was affected so early,” Spock noted. “Has he responded to it?”

“He is his smiling self again and I’ve discharged him from sickbay.”

Spock noticed as the engineer, behind the doctor, took a huge gulp of the liquid and then ask: “What is it?”

“It’s a diluted Theragen derivative,” McCoy replied.

Spock sniffed the contents of the glass. “Theragen. A nerve gas used by the Klingons.”

“Aye, and deadly too,” Scotty protested. ‘What are you thinkin’ of Doc? Are ye trying to kill us all?’

The doctor smiled.

“If I remember correctly,” Spock said. “It caused fatality only when used in pure form.”

“That’s right,” McCoy confirmed, “and in this derivative, mixed with alcohol, it merely deadens certain nerve inputs to the brain.”

“Ah well!” the chief engineer scoffed. “Any decent brand of scotch will do that!”

“Oh?” McCoy replied. “Well, one good slug of this and you could hit a man with phaser stun and he’d never feel it or even know it.”

Upon hearing that, Scotty wasted no time in chugging the rest of the liquid down. “Does it make a good mix with Scotch?”

“It should,” McCoy chuckled and rolled his eyes at Scotty. The Enterprise was trapped in a web spun by the Tholians. It was twenty minutes till the next interphase. Captain Kirk was floating between two dimensions, they needed to figure out how to pull him back. They’d thought him dead, hell, he and Spock had even listened to Jim’s last wishes. But, apparently all the chief engineer appeared to be really concerned about was a possible new way to get seriously inebriated. Unbelievable.

After Scotty had swiped the entire beaker full and darted out of Spock’s quarters, McCoy shook his head in disgust. Scotty would be by the sickbay later that evening, seeking a hangover cure.

However first things first. He turned to the Vulcan still holding onto a full glass. “Well? Drink it down, Spock.”

Spock stared at McCoy with an almost puzzled look on his face. Surely the doctor realized that due to his half- Vulcan physiology, he was the only one unaffected by the interphasing.

As returned Spock’s gaze, McCoy was aware that Spock probably felt that it was illogical to waste a dosage that could have easily gone to another member of the crew. But for reasons of solidarity, he wanted to see Spock drink this antidote. “It’s the human thing to do,” he insisted.

At McCoy’s prodding, Spock finally held the glass to his lips, but still, he hesitated.

McCoy raised his own glass in a toast. “That’s a medical order.”
Then he said it, gently, with all the admiration he could muster shining in his blue eyes. After his actions of the past hours, it was high time he gave the man who stood before him the respect he deserved: “Captain.”

After a long moment, Spock took a cautious sip then finally drank it down. He set the glass down and continued staring at the doctor, intently.

McCoy had already drank a dosage in the sickbay. He was the first to take it of course. And as soon as he had, his terrible aggression had completely evaporated. He immediately felt...guilty. He’d realized just how horribly he’d treated Spock. Deep in his mind, he’d known all along that Spock had only been doing his best in this terrible situation, yet, McCoy had kept at him. Irrationally. Carping at his heels. Questioning his every move. Going overboard on trivial matters when they should have been working together to solve this crisis. Why? The interphasing? Sure...McCoy supposed he could blame that. Interphase or not, he could kick himself for his actions.

He knew damn well that Spock was well within his rights to have him in front of a review board for his behavior. But McCoy knew what everyone knew. Spock wouldn’t.

Perhaps, Spock had actually appreciated the challenge. Or--

“What are you doing?” McCoy stammered. For suddenly, Spock had grabbed onto his arms in a vise grip. McCoy found himself suddenly pulled into an embrace. “Spock...hey...”

“Why...Doctor,” Spock replied. “You of all people should have known what would happen if I ingested a Theragen derivative.”

“Uh...” McCoy muttered, taken aback. He’d realized that something might happen, but not...this. Obviously he’d known that some portion of Spock’s Vulcan side might become repressed temporarily. But, the effects should have been minor. At the most, McCoy expected maybe a smile out of him.

But, to McCoy’s amazement, Spock was holding him in his arms, looking at him now, returning his gaze of admiration. And there was also a look... of...longing.

Longing?

Spock?

Without even speaking, McCoy posed a question in his blue eyes: ‘Spock? Do you desire me?’

In response, Spock pulled the doctor’s lips to his. Tasted him.

As he felt the Vulcan’s gentle mouth on his, McCoy mused that he’d wanted something like this to happen with the first officer since he’d signed on board.

Working intimately with the pointy eared, overgrown elf, McCoy had logged hour upon waking hour with this man: discussing issues, arguing, sniping, storming off in a huff, walking back and apologizing with his tail between his legs, demanding apologies, teasing, yelling at --with obscenities and without--usually with, laughing at, laughing with (okay maybe he did the laughing for the both of them), walking quietly down corridors together as they matched strides, solving major medical emergencies, studying new species, dissecting creatures, beaming down to planets, creating potions in the lab, harassing each other on the bridge, listening to music together, working on reports together, consuming many a breakfasts and dinners together. Hell he'd even attended the guy’s ill-fated marriage ceremony.

And then on one notable occasion, McCoy had blinded the Vulcan for life. Or so he’d thought. How was he supposed to know about that damned inner eyelid--after going though hours of guilt--damn him.

However, in the middle of it all, McCoy had also managed to fall hopelessly in love with the Vulcan. So... he wanted this with Spock.

Even if Spock’s actions were only because of the Theragen.

Well, this one encounter would be enough to last him for years.

The tension over the past hours turned to passion as the kiss grew deeper.

Spock pulled off McCoy’s sickbay tunic and black undershirt, exposing the doctor’s chest. He ran his hands down it, caressing the light brown hair. “Doctor...” he murmured, his warm breath hitting McCoy’s neck.

“It’s...huh...oh God...it’s Leonard...” McCoy replied, breathlessly. He felt the Vulcan’s teeth on his shoulder, biting him. Then the hot mouth moved to claim his neck. “Ohhhhh...”

“Yes, Leonard,” Spock whispered. The salty taste of the human’s body aroused him beyond belief. The wonderful scent of Leonard McCoy--of soap from his shower that morning mixed with his sweat from the heat of the cabin was intoxicating. “Leonard. The touch of your skin is so cool and refreshing. Your scent is-- I wish--I wish to taste--every centimeter of you.”

McCoy gulped. He probably should stop this. Spock had to be out of his Vulcan mind. The first officer was going to regret this later.

Okay maybe just a little more. The hot mouth felt so wonderful. A little... more. Then he’ll stop him.

Okay...eventually. He let Spock begin to divest him of the rest of his uniform. The long fingers expertly, swiftly pulled off his boots one by one, making the CMO shudder with each expectant drop onto the deck.

Spock picked up McCoy underneath the arms and sat him up on top of his desk. Reaching back with an arm, McCoy pushed everything--the tray, the empty glasses, neatly stacked computer tapes, a writing stylus-- onto the deck. Completely unnecessarily. McCoy saw that in a vid once and always wanted to try it. Spock paused and raised an eyebrow.

“Sorry,” McCoy laughed sheepishly.

The hot mouth returned to McCoy’s neck as the long, thin fingers dove to the bulge in his trousers. Spock let the doctor’s hardness play into his hand. McCoy groaned at the warm touch, radiating though the fabric right to his balls.

Spock leaned over the desk to once again claim Leonard’s mouth, as his hands moved to the waistband of McCoy’s trousers.

“Mmmmmphhh...wait...” McCoy mumbled, into Spock’s mouth.

“Wait?” Spock wondered, into McCoy’s mouth.

“Wait...” With extreme effort McCoy pulled away. “I can’t let you do this.”

“Why not?”

“Because...you’re...” McCoy snickered. “I never thought in a million years I’d ever say this to you. But you’re too drunk to know what the hell you’re doin’.”

“Oh?” Spock replied. He didn’t remove his hands from McCoy’s waistband. Instead, he began unfastening it.

“Spock...” McCoy began in earnest. He put his hand over Spock’s. “I can’t let you do this.”

“I assure you, Leonard, I am in full possession of my faculties.”

“Are you sure, Spock?”

“Positive.”

McCoy gave in. “Okay.” He closed his eyes and leaned back as Spock pulled his trousers and underwear down to his ankles, then finally off. There was a soft thud as the ensemble landed onto the deck, then McCoy’s socks joined the pile. ‘Don’t say I didn’t warn him,’ McCoy thought.

“Lie back and enjoy it, Leonard,” Spock commanded.

With eyes closed, McCoy felt his feet being taken into Spock’s mouth. Spock sucked firmly on each of his toes. A feeling of electricity went straight up McCoy’s leg with each suck and went straight to his groin. “Oh God...” he moaned loudly. He heard a sound of pleasure from Spock as the Vulcan licked the balls of his feet, tasting them. First one foot and then the other.

Spock pulled away from McCoy’s feet, setting them gently down. There was a pause. Warm hands caressed McCoy’s calves and thighs. McCoy opened his eyes to see Spock crouched over him. It looked like this crazy Vulcan was about to give him a blowjob!

For a second he was about to stop Spock again...then felt Spock’s mouth on the head of his cock…and gave in completely. It just felt too damn good. He ran his finger along the pointed ear and leaned back. “Ohhhh yesss,” he hissed. It had been too damn long since anyone had done this to him.

Suddenly, the doors to Spock’s cabin swooshed open. “Doctor McCoy, can ye gi' me some more of this Theragen? The lads down in Engineering--”

Scotty took one look at Spock and McCoy and froze.

In terror.

Calmly, Spock pulled his mouth off McCoy’s cock with a popping sound and turned around to regard the chief engineer. He raised an eyebrow. “Carry on, Mister Scott.”

“Aye,” Scotty squeaked. He was out of the quarters in an instant.

“Door lock,” Spock commanded to the computer, then promptly returned his attention to the doctor’s cock. He ran his tongue along the underside of Leonard’s pink hard shaft, then to a spot right underneath the head. It got Leonard rock hard. Spock placed his lips on the tip, swirling around the head then swallowing the cock to the hilt. He swallowed it all, purring, then pulled back and did it again, over and over. He used a hand to complement the actions of his mouth.

McCoy bucked his hips up and groaned loudly, letting his head fall back onto the desk. “Ohhhh,” he moaned. “I’m close. Slow down...it’s too soon.”

Spock paused from sucking the doctor, but kept stroking him, gently. “I wish to taste your passion. Let me swallow your seed.” He replaced his mouth, and swallowed Leonard deeply.

With a loud gasp and a groan, the sweat pouring down his face and chest, his mousy hair falling into his light blue eyes, McCoy climaxed down the hot throat. Spock sucked him dry till he was limp.

As McCoy recovered, Spock laid his head onto Leonard’s chest, listening to the increased heart beat, as McCoy caressed Spock’s back, then rested his hands on the silken hair.

After a few minutes, McCoy found his voice. “You were too good at this...you’ve done this before.”

“Obviously.”

McCoy smiled. “Spock, take your uniform off...I want to see all of you.”

Spock indulged him, and McCoy was treated to the sight of a very slender, yet very strong, tall, naked body. Spock leaned over so the doctor could touch him. McCoy caressed the soft black hair covering Spock’s sternum. He found the light green nipples and circled a finger around them as he leaned over and took a pointed ear into his mouth. He moved to suck and lightly bite down on the other pointed ear as he traced his hands down Spock’s black garden path. He moved down to the thatch of wiry black pubic hair around the base of a very proud flushed green penis.

McCoy’s fingers found the hard cock and held on to its demanding warmth.

He finally pulled his mouth off of Spock’s ear and sat up on the desk, pushing Spock up with him. “Spock,” he gasped. “Don’t suppose you have any lubricant around here, do you?”

“Why?” Spock asked innocently.

“I want to feel you inside me. That‘s why.”

“I take it, you have also done this before?”

“Goddamn right, I have. Now go on and get some.”

Spock retrieved the lube from his bathroom and was back in a flash, his lightly green erection leading the way. McCoy stared at it as he waited for him.

“Do you wish to move this activity to my bed?” Spock asked.

“No, I want to stay right here.” McCoy pulled his legs up to his chest and readied himself for Spock.

“You are rather flexible,” Spock noted as he flipped open the tube of lube. He slathered the oil into his hand, letting it drip onto his fingers. He circled a finger around McCoy’s anus, making him squirm with delight.

“More,” Leonard demanded.

One of the warm digits slid into Leonard’s rectum. McCoy pulled his legs tighter against his chest, relishing the sensation. He felt one finger, then demanded more. Soon he felt two then three. He didn’t want to wait any more and he let Spock know by laying his legs on the Vulcan’s shoulders. Spock got the idea.

Spock’s hard cock pushed through Leonard’s anus into his rectum. It was unresisting--but a little tight at first. Worried that he might be hurting the doctor, Spock pushed gently, continuing smoothly till he sank down to the hilt. Seeing that McCoy was okay, he began thrusting. He got to sink in very deeply due to the position of McCoy on his back, on Spock’s desk.

McCoy felt Spock’s cock hit his prostate, felt himself being opened up and filled with each thrust. He arched up, wanted Spock to be deeper, wanted him to thrust harder. Hearing Spock’s little cries as he banged into him, caused McCoy’s own cock to spring to life again. He captured it and stroked it in tandem to the deep thrusts. Spock thrust into him harder and harder. Then--

“Wait...wait!” McCoy gasped.

Spock stopped. “Am I hurting you?”

“No...but my back is killing me. Sorry. Let’s move to the bed after all. God...I’m sorry about that..”

Spock shook his head with a slight smile. Without pulling out of Leonard, he arranged the doctor’s legs around his shoulders, then reached underneath and pulled him off the desk. He walked them both over to the bed and lightly plopped McCoy down, then continued on fucking him.

“That was a nice move,” McCoy chuckled in between gasps.

The only sounds that occurred next were their moans:

“Ohhhh...God...yes...”

“Yessss...Leonard...”

“OhhhgodSpock...”

“Leonard...”

“Ohhhh...oh...I’mcoming...”

“Yes...”

---------

McCoy lay there with Spock collapsed onto his shoulder. He tapped him. “Don’t you have to get back up to the bridge?”

“Affirmative.” Spock sat up and checked the chrono. “We have five minutes till the next interphase.”

“Wonderful stuff, that Theragen,” McCoy smiled. Then got very serious as he watched Spock nip into the bathroom to clean himself up. Oh...

He followed the Vulcan into the bathroom and took a quick shower. Then dove into his uniform. Spock did likewise.

Back to reality.

“Well, Spock, that was fantastic, thank you. Guess... I’ll...uh...see you around,” McCoy said regretfully. It was a shame this was only a fluke.

“How about when this crisis is over?” Spock asked.

“What do you mean? You mean you want to do this again? With me?”

Spock looked at McCoy. “You are goddamned right I do. For the rest of my life, Leonard.” He lightly kissed the shocked CMO and went on his way.

----------

The lift doors on the bridge opened to allow Commander Spock through them. “Welcome back, Lieutenant,” he said, happily.

“Thank you, sir.”

“Your absence was keenly felt, Mr. Chekov.”

The bridge crew stared at Spock in wonder, all thinking the same thing: ‘What the hell had gotten into him?’

----------

“So...” Kirk was saying, “How’d you two get along without me?”

“Oh.” McCoy bounced on his heels. “We managed. Uh...Mr. Spock gave the orders and I found the answers.”

“Good. No problems between you?”

“None worth reporting, Captain,” Spock said.

“Try me.”

“Mmmm. Only such minor disturbances as are inevitable when humans are involved.”

“Which humans, Mr. Spock?”

“Oh,” McCoy explained. “He means that when humans become ‘involved’ with Vulcans, Jim.”

------------------

finis

THE RUNES PART 8

2008-12-28T01:44:00.001-08:00

Title: The Runes part 8

Author: T'Prillah

Codes: S/Mc, horror, NC-17

Warning: implied non-con & discussion of rape

____________________________________

THE RUNES-PART 8

Someone was standing at my terminal.

It was Christine Chapel. Nosing around in my files. Again.

I thought I'd warned her.

I crept up behind. Quietly as a cat. "Looking for something?"

She jumped and turned around. Caught. Her eyes grew as wide as saucers.

I smiled.

"Doctor?!" she gasped. "What's...what's...what's? G-gotten into you?"

"What ever do you mean...my dear?" I asked sweetly.

"Your...your report!" she stammered. "It's…"

"It's what?" I crept closer, even closer. My face was inches away from hers. My hand shot out and with a finger I tilted up her chin. I could feel her trembling from my touch. "What, dear? Tell me why you've been snooping."

"Forgive me, Doctor. I didn't mean to--"

"Of course not." I ran that finger along her jawline, down to her throat. "Of course not," I whispered. My hand suddenly shifted to the back of her neck.

I jerked her head foward till her lips met mine. She finally managed to wriggle away from my mouth but not away from my embrace. "Doctor. Please stop."

I chuckled. But I didn't release her.

She swallowed hard. I met her determined eyes. "Sir...this report...I noticed that in the whole thing...you've written: 'Spock will make a lovely corpse...' over and over again. For three-hundred pages!"

"Have I? Well, he will...won't he?"

She gazed at me in horror for a few seconds. I laughed in response till she screamed and pushed away from me with strength I never knew she had.
She ran out shrieking into the main ward.

Probably to try to call Spock or M'Benga or the captain about me.

Pity.

I followed her, then stopped in my tracks. What the hell was I planning to do to Christine?

And...Spock will make a lovely corpse? What the hell's the matter with me?

"Oh God!" My head shot up from my desk. Oh... I must have dozed off. My monitor was still on, still open on the intake report I'd been working on for the past six hours. "Christine!" I called out to the sickbay ward, a little panicked. "Christine? Are you out there?"

She appeared an instant. "Doctor?" Seeing how pale I must of looked, she came running up. "Are you alright?"

"I'm...I'm fine." I managed a reassuring smile at my head nurse. I rubbed my burning eyes. Probably aggravated by staring at the computer monitor for six hours straight without a break. Why did I insist upon taking care of everyone else, but constantly neglected my own health? "I was just...uh…Can you get me a glass of water please? From the bottled we have in storage. The...uh... water we picked up from Starbase ten." As I stood up, I staggered. I hoped she hadn't noticed. She did.

Before I could wave her off, she rested her hands on my shoulders. "Your eyes are extremely bloodshot. How much sleep have you been getting? We really should take a look at your eyes--"

"Look, Christine. I appreciate your concern, but just go get me the water first, then we'll scan me, okay? And bring me some aspirin too," I muttered as a terrible headache set in. Of course.

She nodded and left.

I rubbed my eyes with the back of my hand. I picked up my scanner, aimed it at my eyes then glanced at the readout. That can't be right--

"Bones?"

I spun around at the voice. "Jim...what can I do for you?" I tried not to outwardly express my unease to my captain. Was this the real Jim Kirk? Or was I dreaming again? I couldn't be certain, not anymore. But as CMO, as his best friend, I had to take that chance. He looked like he needed to talk.

"Bones?" Somehow he seemed very drawn, very quiet.

"Yeah, Jim?" I'd deal with with my scanner later. I got up from the chair, retrieved a bottle of Saurian Brandy. "You in on a drink?"

"I don't know." He hunched down in the chair across from my desk.

"You don't know if you want a drink? Of Saurian Brandy? Oh, oh," I nearly barked out a laugh from nervousness, then caught myself.

"Uh..." Jim began. "Bones...I really need to talk to you. In confidence."

"Hang on," I said. "Christine!" I bellowed out. "What the hell's the damned hold-up?!"

"Coming, Doctor McCoy," she called back, then finally brought my aspirin and water. "Doctor, I thought you were going to--"

"Later!" She nodded at me and left.

"Okay Jim," I sighed. "What's on your mind?"

"You're the only psychiatrist on board...however I'd rather not have to come to you about this..." The words seemed to be tumbling reluctantly out of him. "But... uh..."

Hearing that, I immediately slipped into 'Psychiatrist mode'. This was real. "You know you can talk to me about anything, Jim."

"Anything?" He was uncertain. I'd never seen him like this before.

"Of course. Come on." I walked around my desk and put my hands on his shoulders. "Tell me."

"It's not a good idea if you touch me. I don't know how to say this to you."

I dropped my hands. "You'd better just come out with it and we can go from there."

"Okay, Bones. Well... I've been having some dreams..." He glanced at the deck. "...about you."

I walked back over to pour the Saurian Brandy into a glass for him and one for me. "Oh?"

"Yes. 'Oh'," he replied. Looking down.

I chuckled a little. "Well that's not...uh...too bad, is it?"

"These dreams are. They're awful, Bones. They're horrible. Night terrors."

"So...do you remember what these night terrors have been about?" I asked, quietly.

"They're...uh...about you and I...engaged in uh...uh...sex..." He trailed off again.

"Listen Jim," I soothed. "It's completely normal to have sexual dreams about someone you're good friends with--work with-- intimately."

"This is normal? Dreams like this?"

"Jim, why don't you tell me more about it. Okay?"

He took a deep breath. "I've been having dreams about..." He stopped again.

"About what? Jim. About what?"

He closed his eyes. "Rape."

"Rape?"

"Yeah."

"Did I...did I... do this... to you?" I gasped.

"No. Bones. I did it...to you...or against you..."

"You raped me in a dream?"

"Well no...I attempted it..." He shifted in his chair. I handed him that drink and he drained it. I poured him another glass. "One night I dreamt that I attacked you... in the sickbay," he said with a horrified expression.

I looked at him with an equally horrified expression but kept my voice calm. "I see."

"And...on another night...I tried to... have sex with you in Spock's quarters...uh...you know...but this time you seemed to be willing...you know...you returned the affection...or maybe I thought you did and but
you didn't. What the hell does that mean, Bones?"

I took a deep breath and got out: "It's just stress, Jim," I shut my eyes. "That's all it is. Just stress. You're a little on edge--"

"That's not all, Bones."

I took a shaky sip of my brandy. "Please, continue."

"I also...in this dream...tried to get you to...uh..."

"What?"

"I tried to get you... to...to... kill Spock."

"Kill Spock?" I stood up. "You did? You dreamt about that?"

He stood up with me. "Why would I dream about wanting to kill Spock? It can't just be...stress, can it?"

"Jim," I said. "It's probably nothing. Just...don't worry too much about it. Don`t read too much into it. Just your subconscious trying to talk to you. That`s all."

"My subconscious is trying to tell me to kill Spock?"

"No…No Jim," I managed a weak laugh. "You're just worried about something."
"Bones..." He gripped his glass tightly. "I've never had dreams like this before. They seem so real."

"I'll bet they do..." I sat back down. Jim did likewise.

"Bones..."

"So...in this dream of yours," I found myself wanting to know, "do you mind me asking...did you and I ever… have sex?"

"No," he replied. "We might have, we probably would have, but Spock interrupted...it. You told me something about knowing where he was...or
maybe I knew where he was, or maybe we both knew... or something like
that...but in this dream you and he were..bonded."

I choked on my brandy. "So," I said casually. "How long have you been having dreams... like this?"

"Every night. Since we departed Berengaria Seven."

"And you decided to tell your kindly old doctor about it...now? Why didn't you tell me before?"

"This isn't easy for me."

"You've gotta tell me about these things, Jim, you can't just let it fester and drive you crazy. I can't help you unless you talk to me about what's bothering you."

"I know. I know, Bones. These dreams are downright bizarre. Frightening." He dropped his voice to a whisper. "Dreaming that you and Spock are bonded...that's crazy...you and Spock aren't bonded, right?...I mean I know you two have become an... uh...'item' but..."

"We're not an 'item' Jim," I corrected him, softly.

"You're sleeping together."

I blushed a little. "See? That's upsetting to you," I pronounced. "Hence the dreams."

"No," he protested. "Whatever my senior officers wish to do in their own time is none of my business, as long as it's not affecting your duties, you can sleep with whomever you like."

"It has been affecting my duties a little, Jim," I admitted.

"The efficiency and wellbeing of my crew is my main concern. You know that Bones."

"I do know that. But it doesn't mean you aren't personally upset by this, Jim."

"No, no," he insisted. "Honestly, I'm not upset. Although I have been a little more irritable lately with you, there's more too it than that…" He looked around my office as if sensing something. "Bones, you might think this is crazy but I can feel something-- it's definitely affecting the whole ship. Nothing seems right.
Everything is…I don't know…I guess this is insane…"

"Are you experiencing any physical symptoms--other than a feeling something is odd?"

"I can't sleep properly."

"I'll prescribe you some sleeping pills, Jim."

"No... Bones." Suddenly he turned to me. "Look at you."

"What about me?"

"Look at your eyes. I'm worried about you. Especially, you. You look like hell, Bones."

"Well," I said. "I haven't been getting much sleep either. And not for reasons you might think."

He shook his head. "The whole crew is touchy...on edge... Even Scotty. Do think we picked up some disease from our last shore leave? I've never known this quadrant to be problematic. I intend to get to the bottom of it. I want you to start doing some physical and psychological examinations of the--"

I held up my hand. "I think I can solve that little mystery for you."

"Oh?"

"Yeah," I said reluctantly. "I can. I think this whole thing... is my fault."

"Really," he said. "How so?"

"Come with me, Jim. To Spock's quarters. I have a little bit of explaining to do."
"Why can't you just tell me here?"

"I need to show you something." I stood up. "Come on, Jim."

We left my office and entered the turbolift.

"Bones," he protested. "I don't think I should be alone with you in Spock's quarters."

"Why Jim?" I laughed. "They're only dreams, right?"

"Right." After a time he finally laughed with me. "They're only dreams. I'm acting irrationally."

"We all are," I agreed.

"So you're not angry with me."

"Jim, why would I be angry about you dreaming about me? You don't have much control over nightmares. I mean, yeah they're horrible and I'm sorry to hear about it but I'm not personally angry with you."

"Much control? So I CAN control my dreams."

"Uh...Look, If this is really bothering you I can hook you up to the monitor--"

"No. This is to remain off the record. I just never thought I'd ever dream about...hurting you or Spock. That's the last thing I'd ever want to do."

"I know that," I replied. "I'll explain everything to you."

He nodded, we exited the lift, entered the corridor and finally Spock's quarters.

"This is probably the culprit." I waved at the bag of Runes.

"That's it!"

"You`ve seen these before?"

"I dreamt about this, Bones."

I gulped as I studied the captain. Then my eyes shifted to the bag. They were now on Spock's desk. How'd they get here? Since I'd brought them on board, oddly, they'd kept moving around the cabin. This morning they had been on the ledge. Spock had moved them back to the nightstand. No one should have been able to get in here to touch them. Why would they? As a precaution, since I'd started sleeping here, we'd been locking the door.

I sat Jim down and to the best of my ability explained to him what I'd done: Bought these damn Runes. I went on all about the curse and most of everything else.

"So that's why you and Spock are sleeping together? Are you kidding me? Because of this curse of these… Runes?" he laughed incredulously.

"It's not funny, Jim."

"I know, but...are you sure this curse is real?"

"According to Spock--"

He shook his head and waved me off. "Well, he'd know I suppose. So you brought 'cursed Runes' on board," his eyes narrowed dangerously at me, "putting the Enterprise at risk--"

"Jim," I explained. "I didn't know they were cursed. Honestly. I still don't absolutely know if it's real. I just have faith in Spock's judgement that it is. And...all this crap started happening since I'd brought them on board and the sex with Spock did appear to alleviate most of it."

He rolled his eyes. "I ought to have you in irons Bones! Bringing these things on board--don't tell your commanding officer, have sex with my first officer in an attempt to...Jesus..." His hand snatched forward and he picked up a stone from the bag. "They're pretty."

"JIM! Don't touch them!" I lunged for him.

He dropped the stone. It made a soft tink as it hit the others in the bag. "Why not?"

"I don't know. I'm not absolutely sure...that…"

"That... what?"

"That you and I…"

"That...you and I... what? Your saying that you and I also have to have sex to end the curse? You can forget it, Bones."

"Just...leave 'em alone. Okay Jim?"

After a long irritated silence, he said: "So this...is why my whole ship has been behaving like this? Why I'm having crazy dreams about attacking you, killing my first officer...and you being bonded to Spock?"

"I'm really bonded to Spock," I blurted out.

"Sorry Bones. It almost sounded like you said that you're bonded to Spock."

"You heard correctly," I muttered and looked at anywhere but him. "We really are."

He leaned back and rubbed his face. "When did this happen?"

"Well...It happened accidentally," I said, then added quickly: "It can be reversed. Thank God."

"Accidentally? I don't think I want to know the details." He glared at me and I shifted in my chair. Then the glare changed to a look of curiousity and concern. "It can be reversed? So you don't want this to be permanent? Why not? Don't you want to be bonded to him?"

"I don't know, Jim. No I don't. Or maybe I do." I chuckled a little "You know...I don't know what to do."

"How do you feel about him?"

"I care about him."

"And of course you don't know how he feels about you."

"I know how he feels. He cares about me too."

"What about love?"

"I don't know," I said quietly.

"Bonded. I can't believe it. Although, I never thought in a million years you'd ever be intimate with Spock--"

"Well we won't be for much longer," I said a little more sharply than I intended. He gave me a look. "We only have one more Rune left," I explained.

"And then what?"

"Then we just have to wait until the bond fades. Then, it's over."

"Over? Just like that? Then what happens--You two just go back to--being
friends? Shipmates?"

"I suppose so."

"Bones. Married officers serving aboard Starships isn't against regulation. You two are of about equal rank. You're mature enough to deal with the realities of hazardous duty."

"I know that. I'm just...not exactly sure that I'm really ready for another marriage. There's a lot of things in my past I've never shared with you."

"Maybe you should share it with me. Then you can move on and be happy."

"Thanks Jim."

"How long ago was that marriage of yours? Fifteen years ago?"

"Jim."

"Don't you think it's about time you were happy?"

"Why are you assuming that I'm so goddamned happy with Spock?!"

"Because for the past few weeks you have looked the most content that I've ever seen you be, in all the years that I have known you."

I looked down and said nothing.

He cleared his throat. "I've always wondered what it must be like to be bonded to a Vulcan. It must be an interesting experience..." He trailed off, as he noticed I still was studying my hands. "Sorry, it's none of my business."

"You're right. It isn't." I laughed. "No...it's alright. It's not too bad, actually. I'm getting used to him being inside my head." I smiled. "I'm not alone anymore. It's like he's always there...always with me...I feel what he feels..."

"And you want to give that up."

"Jim."

"You can read each others thoughts?"

"Yeah. And...he's shared some of his memories with me. Just by touching me."

"Oh…" he said softly.

Just then a summons from the sickbay came. I went over to the viewer, answered it and conferred with M'Benga. Another damn emergency. I had to get down to sickbay. As I turned back to Jim, my eyes noticed the desk.

The Runes were gone.

"Jim? Did you move them?"

"Move what?"

"The fucking Runes, that's what!"

"No! Bones. I was standing right here with you."

"Shit."

--------

"Doctor McCoy," Spock said in his usual bland 'we're out in public areas' tone of voice. "It is time."

"Did you locate the Runes?" I flipped my monitor to 'off''.

"Affirmative."

"Good. Lets go."

Our footsteps made a soft noise as we left my office and passed through the main sickbay ward. We walked by Christine Chapel sitting very still in the corner.

"Something the matter with Nurse Chapel?" Spock asked me calmly.

I glanced over at my nurse then looked back at Spock. "She's fine."

The sickbay doors opened up with a loud swoosh into the quiet pulsating hum of the corridor. Our calm, evenly matched strides went past the outer doors of my office, then the offices of M'Benga, then all the rooms that comprised deck seven. Our footfalls were silent, here in the corridor.

We entered the lift.

"Level please?" asked the computer voice, pleasantly.

"Deck 5, Sweetheart," I smiled.

We said nothing else till the doors opened up to the appropriate level.

We exited the lift and began our calm stride down the corridor.

As we entered officers territory our steps got faster till we passed the living quarters of 'Captain James T. Kirk, commander USS Enterprise' and we approached the one immediately next door: 'Commander Spock: First officer/Chief Science Officer.

We were home.

"Are we ready?" I asked.

"Ready," he replied.

We entered his quarters and made a beeline towards the bag of Runes. Spock held it out and I chose the last stone. I gave it to him to read, but he closed it in his fist. He had a hooded expression on his face.

"What does it say, T'hy'la?" I asked.

"I shall tell you...in good time..." He broke off and pulled me to him with a gentle-- yet posessive-- kiss.

I melted in his grasp, but still wanted to know. "What does it say?"

He growled and pulled me too him again. We made quick work of each other's uniforms. He picked up my naked frame and deposited me onto the bed.

"Spock..." I murmered as he lay on top of me. "What does it say?"

"Later..." he whispered. He pulled my legs over his shoulders, lubed up and slid all the way in. I arched my hips so he could sink in deeper, still deeper. I moved my pelvis in circles. It felt so good. So damned good. Both of us moaned in unison.

"Oh yes...harder..." I demanded. He thrust in harder. I definately would be walking funny tomorrow. Still I wanted it even harder. He reached up and laid a hand gently onto my face. Now I felt what he was feeling as he was feeling what I was feeling!

I exploded and he was right there with me.

"Oh....my..." I gulped after awhile. "Oh..."

"Hmmmm," he grunted.

He was collapsed onto me, still inside me, so I pushed him over to the side till he slid out. He was heavy. His head flopped over onto my chest. "That was wonderful..." I murmered. "I want to...do that again..."

"We will," he promised. " Very soon. T'hy'la. Very soon."

"But not right now..." I laughed. "I don't think I could...so fast...not after that. I'm sore."

"Yes," he said. "Now."

I didn't like the way he'd said that. "What about the Rune? Is that it? That was the last one. Is the curse ended?"

"Not yet," said Spock.

Suddenly the door to the bathroom swooshed open. I jumped.

Walking out in a towel and only a towel, was Jim.

----

"Leonard. Leonard! You are dreaming. Wake up!" I felt warm hands shake me. "Wake up. Wake up." The hands shook me again.

I came into a sort of awareness and fell into his embrace. "Spock?"

"Yes, Leonard...you have been trapped in a nightmare."

"You're alive! Oh God...Spock...you're alive...JIM!" I began to struggle again and he held me close.

"Leonard wake up."

Finally fully awake, I groaned. "I dreamt that... Jim wanted to have a threesome. You wanted it too, so we started to...but I fought you. Both of you. I stabbed Jim… then you...over and over. I couldn't stop. It felt like nothing...like I was stabbing a pillow. At first I found myself enjoying it and then… I was so distraught I was going to kill myself. But there was a voice in my head reciting a prayer...in Vulcan...maybe not...I don't know...but the voice stopped me."

"That was I, attempting to awaken you."

"Why did you try to force me to have a threesome with Jim? I tried to kill you! Or maybe I did!"

"It was only a dream," he insisted. "That is all."

"It felt real. I felt your warm blood. I could smell the copper scent, then the smell of Jim..."

"Leonard. It was a dream. I am not dead. We are here now. Safe."

"Did it really happen? Did I really stab you?" I reached out and felt his chest.

"Leonard." I detected a hint of warning in his voice.

"What about Jim? Was he here?"

"Leonard. He is safe. Nothing happened."

"Alright. Fine. But, we need to find those damn Runes. Or we're gonna be in serious trouble."

"Affirmative. We are in trouble. The ancient guard is attempting to possess--"

"It`s me!" I gasped. "It's working though me. Am I the murderer? I'm the murderer!"

"It shifts. It has possessed not only you, but Jim as well."

I'd figured that. Jim and I had argued last night about the now missing Runes. I had to get to sickbay but he'd followed me in the lift as we'd argued heatedly. I'd accused him of stealing them. He'd acted very suspiciously in response but I got nothing from him. Spock and I had searched for the Runes from top to bottom in his quarters to no avail.

They weren't in Jim's quarters either. An precursory internal scan of the ship Spock had done also turned up nothing. We'd eventually given up...actually I was so exhausted that I couldn't see straight, so I'd convinced Spock to resume the search in the morning. They had to be somewhere.

"Spock," I wondered. "Has the murderer ever tried to possess you?" Though I didn't think it would. Not with his Vulcan controls in place.

"It did. Once," he admitted. He didn't elaborate and a chill passed though me. I felt him rise up. In the darkened quarters I heard him walk over to the bathroom.

I decided to get up also. There was no way I was going back to sleep after this.

It was completely dark in here, even Spock's 'watcher' statue wasn't lit. Strange. It always watched us. I sat up on the bunk and called out: "Lights to twenty-five percent."

The cabin stayed completely dark. What the devil?

"Computer," I snapped. "Lights to twenty-five percent'." They still wouldn't function. "Spock...what's wrong with the cabin lights?"

"Leonard," Spock came back, pressing a glass of water into my hand. "The lights ARE on."

"You're kidding...."

"I am not. The lights are operational. Can you not see the illumination?" I felt his hands grab my shoulders.

"Spock..." I said quietly. "I think you need to escort me to sickbay. I'm blind."

-----------------

END OF PART 8, Stay tuned for Part 9!!

"Everything I am" Vid by McCoySpockLove

2008-12-13T13:19:00.000-08:00

Vid "Dancing" by McCoySpockLove

2008-12-11T15:56:00.001-08:00

Featured Story: "FRICTION" by McCoySpockLove

2008-12-11T15:17:00.000-08:00

TITLE: Friction
AUTHOR: McCoySpockLove
CODES: TOS, S/Mc/ AU
RATING: [PG-13]
SUMMARY: Spock & McCoy are trapped in the ice age on Sarpeidon, this time without Zarabeth
FEEDBACK: Any and all. This is the first slash story I’ve ever written. It’s very sentimental.
BETA: Thank you to both Ellen and Ster Julie for the beta over many months All mistakes are my own.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Originally published in the online 'Zine: Spiced Peaches XIII, a themed edition (“Bad Luck“), published by Tempest Coyote.
ARCHIVED: Spiced Peaches and The Spock/McCoyote's Den, ASCEM-L and it's companion sites, this site. All others please ask.

______________________________
FRICTION

Spock and McCoy had experienced their share of challenges during their five year mission on the Enterprise, and getting trapped in an ice storm was just the sort of bad luck that always seemed to befall the Vulcan and the good Doctor. They had been at the mercy of brutal winds and snow ever since the two stepped through the time portal on Sarpeidon. Finding shelter was their main objective, and so they trudged forward in the blinding snow. Rounding a corner of a rock cliff, McCoy fell, unable to go on.

“Leave me, Spock. Save yourself!” McCoy cried.

“We go together!” shouted Spock over the wind.

“Don’t be a fool you stubborn Vulcan! Go!”

“No, I will not leave you!” The Vulcan half carried McCoy until he himself could go no further.

Almost by instinct, Spock desperately began to dig in the snow. He knew their only chance for survival at this point was to get out of the harsh and bitter wind blowing brutally cold against them. Murmuring to himself, “Dig, dig,” to keep from passing out, Spock continued to dig, unaware of how raw and bloodied his hands were becoming.

When Spock was finally satisfied that he had dug a large enough space to shelter them he turned to McCoy and, reaching under his arms, pulled the doctor into the snow cave. One last task was at hand. Spock had to close off the entrance as best he could by packing the snow up into a mound at the entrance. Once finished, the Vulcan fell onto his back in complete exhaustion. Moments later, he became aware that McCoy was shivering horribly. Spock found the doctor’s audible whimpers disturbing. Quickly analyzing the situation, Spock dragged himself the few feet to where McCoy lay, and with the little strength he had left, gently laid himself on top of the doctor to try and keep him warm and to calm him. There was little else he could do, since they had no medical supplies on hand. As Spock lay on McCoy, he noted that the doctor’s shivering was lessening considerably. Spock relaxed as best he could. He was so completely exhausted that he did not realize when he drifted off to sleep, resting his head on his own forearm, beside McCoy’s head.

Sometime later, McCoy awoke, looking up at the low ceiling of the snow cave. Disoriented, he had the thought that he had been buried alive but quickly realized there was a definite air pocket above him and beside him, and that Spock was sprawled on top of him. He put his right hand on the Vulcan’s back. He could feel Spock’s heartbeat and noticed that his breathing was slightly labored. McCoy tried to shift his weight underneath Spock because his leg was cramping, and in so doing, his groin made contact with Spock’s, bringing a slight smile to the doctor from the pleasurable sensation.

“Spock” McCoy said softly, trying to wake the Vulcan. He still had his hand on Spock’s back. He turned his head toward Spock’s head, this time saying into his ear, “Spock.” Startled awake, Spock jerked his head up.

“Easy there…” McCoy said. Trying to focus, but saying nothing, Spock looked down at McCoy.

“You okay?”

Spock remained silent.

“I see you found a way to get us out of the cold - AND to keep us warm.” McCoy rubbed his hand up and down Spock’s back and smiled. At that instance, Spock suddenly realized he was hard against McCoy, and he bolted up, as if burned by fire.

“Whoa!” McCoy sat half way up and grabbed Spock’s arm. “Now just WHERE are you going? You can’t go out there! Listen.”

Spock turned his head towards the entrance to the snow cave, where he had closed it off , except for the air hole. In the silence of the cave, he could hear the wind fiercely blowing outside, and he sat back down beside McCoy, crossing his arms and placing his hands underneath them.

McCoy noticed dried blood on the Vulcan’s hands.

“Spock, let me see your hands.”

“No need to trouble yourself, Doctor. The state of my hands is unimportant at the moment.”

“SPOCK! Let me be the judge of that…..please.”

Spock sighed. “Very well.” He pulled his hands out from under his own arms and dropped them down on his lap. McCoy took one of the Vulcan’s hands, turning it over gently to examine it. He did the same with the other hand.

“Spock, your hands are really bad. You’ve got frost bite. You’ve been bleeding.” McCoy looked at Spock, and then it dawned on him. “You dug this snow cave with your bare hands, didn’t you.” Spock just looked up at McCoy, saying nothing. McCoy pulled his blue tunic off, leaving a black t-shirt.

“What is your purpose for removing your uniform?”

“I’m going to wrap your hands, Spock.”

“Doctor, you need every bit of clothing to stay warm.” McCoy tore his tunic in half, making two strips of the material, and moved closer to Spock, reaching for one of his hands.

“Doctor….I assure you…”

“Now you listen to me you green blooded…..”

Spock raised his eyebrow, and McCoy stopped himself, his initial anger turning to concern.

“Spock, I’m telling you that your hands are really bad. I think you might have an infection. I‘m going to wrap them, and maybe, just maybe, we can save your hands. Okay?”

“As you wish.” McCoy wrapped each hand as gently as he could. He could tell that the Vulcan was in a lot of pain. Spock seemed uncomfortable with McCoy touching his hands, and the doctor was also very aware of the tension in Spock’s groin. He could see the stiffness, as he lay Spock’s hands back on Spock’s lap.

The aching in Spock’s groin wasn’t going away, and he shifted uncomfortably.

“Spock….” McCoy’s voice was gentle. “It’s just a normal physiological response. It’s damn cold in here! It doesn’t have to mean anything.” Spock shifted again, looking embarrassed.

“You just need a release, Spock,” McCoy said very gently. Spock, who had been silent, turned his head, looked at McCoy, and raised his eyebrow at the doctor.

“Your professional observation, Doctor?”

Both men had begun to shiver again.

“Look, Spock…. You found a way to keep us both alive with this snow cave, but it‘s not exactly warm in here. I know that if we don‘t stay - together - for warmth, we‘re going to die from hypothermia.”

“Logical.”

“Okay then. Get your Vulcan self back over here. I‘m freezing!”

Spock hesitated, but then complied, laying down beside the Doctor, and McCoy in turn pulled Spock onto himself, wrapping his arms around Spock’s back. McCoy could still feel Spock’s hardness against him, making his own body react., and he patted the Vulcan on the back.

“Spock…. Just let go.”

“I cannot!”

“Yes you can. Nobody else is here Spock. Trust me.”

Spock shifted uncomfortably again, still struggling, trying to maintain his control.

“Spock,” McCoy almost whispered. “It’s okay….you don’t have to suffer so…” McCoy began to rub Spock’s back.

Soon, they began moving together, hips pressing ever so slowly, timidly, the pleasure building. McCoy felt tenderness and vulnerability coming from Spock, and he wanted to freeze the moment in his mind. Spock was not just responding to a physical need. He was responding emotionally to the Doctor. Leonard could feel it, and he wondered if that is why Spock had so tried to avoid this, because it DID mean something more to him than just a physical release. Spock reached up to caress McCoy’s head, stroking his hair with his injured hand. The pleasurable sensations that flowed between them comforted them both. Their breathing became more labored, and McCoy felt himself near the edge. With one more gentle stroke of his head from Spock, McCoy climaxed quickly, gasping at the overwhelming feeling of pleasure penetrating through his belly, and the undeniable feelings of love he sensed from Spock‘s touch. After several minutes of calming down, McCoy whispered, “That was nice….”

He could feel Spock fighting it, hitting his fist into the ground.

“Just let go, Spock…..relax.” McCoy moved his own hips against Spock’s and stroked his back. When he reached up and touched Spock’s ear, Spock climaxed hard from such a long build up, crying out almost involuntarily. McCoy wrapped his arms around the shaking Vulcan.

“That’s it. That wasn’t so bad now was it?” Spock was still breathing hard, trying to come down from the virtual ceiling he had been propelled up to.

Eventually, Spock’s breathing slowed to normal, and he rolled to the side, off of McCoy, saying nothing. McCoy pulled Spock closer. He spooned behind Spock, arms wrapped around Spock from behind, the back of Spock’s head on his chest. Several minutes passed, in the quiet embrace.

“Spock……there was more to that than just a little friction between us.” McCoy paused before proceeding. “Why didn’t you ever tell me how you felt about me?” he quietly asked.

“I’ve spent a whole lifetime learning to hide my feelings, deny my feelings.”

“I know that…but Spock, your feelings are just as much a part of you as your logic. I wish you could learn to embrace them.” McCoy emphasized his words by tightening his embrace around the Vulcan.

“Of course you do, and you always reminded me of it.”

McCoy sighed, and put his hand on Spock’s head. Spock responded by putting his hand on one of McCoy’s forearms.

“But why me, Spock? I‘m just an old country doctor.”

“I’ve always been fascinated with your over emotionalism and illogic.”

“Gee thanks, Spock.”

“….but mostly…..”

There was a long pause before the Vulcan continued, as if he was weighing his words very carefully.

“You are a good man, Leonard.” Spock paused. “ A very good man.”

McCoy didn’t know what to say. For a moment, he just froze in silence, tears beginning to well up in his eyes. He was completely touched by the words from the Vulcan’s mouth. He lay his chin on top of Spock’s head, caressing Spock’s head with his hand. “Oh Spock, what are we gonna do about us when we get out of here? IF we get outa here?”

“I do not know….” Spock trailed off. “Provided we survive this…..We have our duty.”

“I can’t just forget what happened here, Spock. Maybe you can, but I can’t.”

“Leonard…..how could you ever think that I could forget you? You remain in my heart.”

McCoy closed his eyes and held Spock closer, cuddling him. Despite all the disagreements, the sparring, the angry reactions, the friendly needling - McCoy knew that he loved the Vulcan.

Weary from the cold, the two drifted off to sleep.

Several hours passed, and when McCoy awoke, Spock was beside him but no longer wrapped in his arms. Their sleep had been restless, and McCoy was shivering again. He turned his head to look at Spock, and put his hand on Spock’s back.

“You alright Spock?” Spock did not respond. “Spock?”

The Vulcan felt weak, but he managed to roll over and face McCoy, who gently smiled.

“You’ve got snow in your hair.” Reaching his hand out, he began to lightly brush the flakes out of Spock’s hair. As blue eyes met brown, the Doctor slowed the brushes of his fingers and let his hand linger in a caress of Spock’s head. Their faces were very close. The most tender feeling welled up inside Leonard, and leaning his head forward, he pressed his lips very softly against Spock’s. When he felt Spock respond by gently pressing back, McCoy let out a quiet sigh of joy. More sweet, soft, gentle kisses were shared. As they parted lips to look at each other again, Spock reached out his hand, but as he tried to touch McCoy’s face, the make-shift bandage around his hand restricted him.

“Leonard, untie these.”

Concern filled McCoy’s eyes. “That’s not a good idea Spock.”

“Please.” Spock said it almost in a whisper. It was almost like Spock was pleading with him, but it was an indication to Leonard that Spock wanted to touch him, to be with him in this most desperate situation.

McCoy took Spock’s hands and freed them from the wrappings. They began to share affectionate touches. Hugging, caressing, holding, teasing each other‘s ears, kissing. Spock lowered his head to rest in the crook of McCoy’s neck.. Wrapping his arms around Spock, the Doctor was amazed at how vulnerable Spock was being with him. Minutes later, Spock sat up.

“What is it, Spock?” McCoy asked softly.

Spock looked down at the doctor, hesitating. He wasn’t sure how to process the feelings that were inside him, and he could not deny them.

“Leonard.”

Spock extended his index finger and middle finger. McCoy recognized the gesture immediately. Sarek and Amanda had touched fingers in this manner. McCoy didn’t know quite how to react to this. Was Spock wanting to join with him? Tentatively, McCoy raised his hand and extended the two fingers, and touched them to Spock’s. A wave of complete love penetrated every nerve of his body, and he softly gasped at the sensations, closing his eyes and laying back. As Leonard felt the pleasure reach the core of his being, Spock suddenly pulled his fingers away.

“Spock?” McCoy said, almost pleading.

Before he could even completely open his eyes to look up, Spock had moved his hand down, unzipped Leonard’s fly, and with his own index finger and middle finger, he began to gently stroke McCoy’s genitals very tenderly, up and down, with just those two fingers, nothing more, sending once again that same wave of feeling through McCoy, just like when Spock touched his fingers, only this time, the feeling was even more pleasurable since he was so sensitive there. This went on for several minutes. Groaning and moving beneath the gentle stroking, McCoy was becoming overwhelmed by intense physical and mental pleasure.

“What are you doing to me…God…”

“I am a touch telepath, Leonard. So when I touch you, I not only touch your body, but I touch your soul. That is why it is so pleasurable to you.” McCoy heard himself moan from Spock’s pleasurable touch, as it radiated through his heart, soul, and body, again penetrating every nerve ending he thought he had. Spock never changed the soft rhythm of his stroking with just his two fingers, and he didn’t have to. The good Doctor climaxed shortly after the stroking began, and Spock cupped his hand over Leonard’s groin, holding him protectively until the Doctor calmed down.

“Oh my God.” McCoy continued to moan, the pleasurable feelings lingering beneath Spock’s gentle hand.

“Are you alright, Leonard?” Spock asked, still holding his hand to the doctor’s groin.

“Nobody’s ever made love to me like that before.”

“Then you are pleased?”

McCoy chuckled. “Are you kidding? That was the best damn feeling I‘ve ever felt in my life.”

“You’re pleasure is mine, Leonard.”

McCoy opened his eyes, looked at Spock, and whispered, “I love you.”

“I know.”

“You green blooded smart ass!”

Spock raised his eyebrow. McCoy smiled at him, with a long and lingering gaze.

“You’re hand is so warm.”

Spock’s hand still covered the Doctor’s groin, gentling him, comforting him. McCoy reached down and put his hand on top of Spock’s. He simply adored Spock’s touch, and it was far more profound than just physical pleasure. He was truly touched by the caring in Spock’s heart, and his eyes became misty.

“Com’ere” Leonard whispered.

Spock lowered himself face down into McCoy’s embrace, and the two held each other for several minutes. Leonard caressed Spock’s head, stroking his hair. His fingertips found the tip of Spock’s ear, causing the Vulcan to quietly moan from the contact and slightly pull away from the ticklish sensations.

Leonard turned his head and whispered, “I always loved your ears.”

“Really Doctor. Your constant teasing regarding my ears would indicate otherwise.”

“Oh yea?” McCoy laughed softly.

In his most sensual voice, he said, “You pointed eared hob goblin.”
Leonard kissed Spock’s ear.
“You overgrown elf.”
Leonard kissed Spock’s ear again.
“My logical green blooded Vulcan.”
When he kissed Spock’s ear for the third time, the Vulcan felt his emotions well up so strongly for Leonard that he turned his head and passionately kissed the Doctor, surprising the hell out of Len.

“Leonard!” Spock gasped, in between the passionate kisses. Trying to regain some control, Spock ceased the kissing and pressed his forehead against the Doctor’s forehead, breathing heavily. Leonard placed both of his hands on either side of Spock’s face, trying to calm him. When Spock’s breathing slowed, he once again lowered himself down into McCoy’s embrace.

“Spock, we’re in one of the worst possible situations we could be in, but I feel happier than I’ve ever felt.”

McCoy turned his head and kissed the Vulcan’s cheek. Spock sighed quietly, and both closed their eyes, savoring the moment. A few minutes passed in the quiet stillness.

“Spock?”

“Yes Leonard.”

“Listen.”

“I hear nothing.”

“Exactly!”

“I do not understand.”

“Spock! The blizzard stopped.”

Spock rose, cocked his head, and turned his ear to the front of the snow cave.

“You are correct, Doctor.”

“Do you think we could find the portal?”

“Uncertain.”

“We’ve got to try, Spock.”

McCoy released Spock from his embrace, and the Vulcan moved to the front of the cave, reaching out his hands.

“Oh no you don’t! You’re not doing THAT again!” McCoy scrambled to the front of the cave.

“What Doctor?”

“Digging in the snow!” McCoy paused for a moment, looked down, then zipped his pants. “I have PERSONAL reasons why I wouldn’t want you to lose your hands from frostbite!”

“Why Doctor, I do believe you are blushing.”

McCoy rolled his eyes. “You’re never going to let me live this down are you?”

There was just the slightest hint of a smile on Spock’s lips, and McCoy had the immediate urge to kiss him. They stared at each other for several moments, McCoy lost in wandering thoughts about how good Spock had made him feel during this terrible ordeal.

“What do you propose we do” Spock said, bringing McCoy’s focus back to the present.

“I’LL dig us out!”

“Then the same fate would befall your hands Doctor.”

“Damn it, Spock!” McCoy fumed.

The Doctor turned and picked up the bandages he had removed from Spock’s hands. He quickly wrapped them around his own hands.

McCoy glared at Spock. “It’s the only logical thing to do!” Spock let out a barely audible sigh as he raised his eyebrow.

McCoy was exhausted by the time he dug them out of the snow cave. Without food and water, both men were weak. Blinded by the sunlight, they emerged from the shelter. Pausing only long enough to let their eyes adjust, they walked a short distance before coming upon the base of an ice cliff. McCoy stopped a short distance away to rest, while Spock reached the cliff. Feeling the face of the rock, he tried to find the portal.

“Anything?” the Doctor called.

“Negative.”

Then, very faintly, a voice cried out, “Bones, Spock!”

“Did you hear that? It sounded like Jim!”

Spock called out, “Captain?”

“Spock! Thank God! I’ve been through so many discs in this damn library, I didn’t think I was ever going to find you.! Is Bones with you?”

“Affirmative, Captain.” Spock turned to look back at McCoy, and as he did so, McCoy fell to his knees in the snow, saying, “Oh my God….”

Alarmed, Spock rushed to the Doctor, and went down on his knees in front of him, putting his hand on his companion‘s arm.

“Leonard, are you alright?”

A look of disbelief and relief was on the Doctor’s face as he quietly said,
“I thought we were dead.”

“Illogical since we are obviously still breathing.”

“You know what I mean you pointed eared Vulcan!”

Again, there was just the slightest hint of a smile on Spock’s lips.

“Indeed I do Doctor.”

McCoy, his irritation dissipating, followed through this time on his urge and gently pulled the Vulcan close and kissed him very gently, lovingly, and Spock reciprocated just as gently.

“Bones, Spock! Hurry through the portal. Time is running out!” Kirk called from the other side.

They parted lips.

“We’re damn lucky Jim found the right disc.”

“Fortuitous, Doctor. Shall we go?”

“Damn straight! Let’s get out of here.”

Spock helped McCoy to the portal.

“Oh and Doctor, regarding your statement earlier that I will never let you ‘live this down’…. You are correct. I will never let you forget it.” Blushing, McCoy looked at Spock, but before he could reply, Spock took McCoy’s hand, and they stepped through the portal.

They had been damn lucky to have found each other.

END

WARNING AND DISCLAIMER

2008-12-10T00:15:00.000-08:00

This website features slash fiction.

Slash, if you are not aware, depicts characters from THIS particular fandom (STAR TREK: THE ORIGINAL SERIES) engaged in a sexual and/or romantic relationship with someone of the same sex. Ratings go from G-very mild or friendship fic to NC-17 (That includes very explicit sex).

If you read these stories-- even after reading the warning-- and are STILL offended. Don't say I didn't warn ya. You can go here to escape.

Right now all of the pairings on this site feature Spock/McCoy.

If you are squicked by the idea of Spock/McCoy in a romantic or sexual relationship or extreme friendship then please leave NOW.

If you are over 18, and are still eager to read the stories then go here to the STORY INDEX. Enjoy!

AEGRI SOMNIA--Part 3

2008-12-08T23:33:00.000-08:00

AUTHOR: T'Prillah
CODES: TOS, S/Mc, h/c
RATING: NC-17

AEGRI SOMNIA--Part 3

Spock and McCoy found themselves materialized back on the planet in apparently the exact shelter that they had left. The rain was still pummeling furiously outside and they could hear the patter on the shelter. 'It's no better than where we were before but at least we’re safe... for now,' McCoy thought.

McCoy pushed the Vulcan to a lying position on the ground. He picked up his metallic blanket and wrapped it around Spock. Spock was freezing but desperately trying to minimize his shivering.

"Stop Spock, I know you’re cold. Stop trying to fight it. Here put these on. If they fit." McCoy hesitated, then pulled off his own blue uniform shirt stained with all manner of fluids, leaving his black undershirt on, and then stripped off his boots and trousers, leaving on his thermal underwear and socks.

"I cannot take your uniform," Spock’s voice was getting weaker.

"For Godsakes, Spock!" McCoy exclaimed, the desperation showing in his voice. "Don’t fight me on this! Okay?! Can you just not argue with me for once?"

The Vulcan nodded assent. McCoy pulled the uniform top over Spock’s head and upon realizing the fastening had broken, left it alone and pulled the black trousers over the ailing science officer’s hips and closed them. Spock merely leaned back and tried to concentrate on breathing with as much dignity he could muster.

Thankfully the medi-kit was still lying in the dirt. McCoy dug out another small medi-scanner from the bag and ran it over his patient and muttered to himself: "Fluid still resting in the lung sacks... blood gas, adequate to low...no brain damage...no broken bones." McCoy moved over to behind Spock, pulled him up to resting on all fours and thrust his arms around Spock’s diaphragm, forcing up more foul liquid the Vulcan had ingested.

After this, Spock promptly lost conciousness. The doctor gently laid him down, pulled out the hypo loaded with tri-ox and shot Spock with it.

Hours passed before Spock came to. McCoy sat watching the Vulcan till he awoke, the concern showing in his blue eyes.

"I bet it hurts to breathe," said McCoy gently.

Spock nodded. It felt like fire when he took in breath.

McCoy interpreted his scanner. "Abrasion in lungs...leukocytosis. Guess what Spock, you picked up a bit of fast moving gram negative bacteria back there; seems to be an alien derivative of Streptococcus pneumoniae. I’m not surprised with that nasty shit you were swimming around in when I found you. You still have more fluid in your lungs which I can’t get out. It looks like...dammit... one lung sac has already become infected and is quickly spreading to the other."

An eyebrow was raised in response. "Streptococcus Pneumoniae? Fascinating. I thought that I was inoculated against Earth-style bacteria."

"I said an alien derivative of it! Where ever the hell we just were, was probably full of nasty alien bacteria just waiting for little old us. Plus your damned Vulcan hide can’t deal with this type of crappy weather for long. I know my human hide is getting mighty sick of it. Seriously, you know how deadly double Pneumonia is if you don’t get treatment."

McCoy pulled a hypo out of his medi-kit and popped on an ampoule of Dexalin. "This will only help you breathe and sooth your lungs a bit. I’m not carrying any compound antibiotics with me. We need to get you back to the ship."

After the Dexalin shot with a bit more Tri-ox thrown in for good measure by the doctor, Spock found that he was indeed better able to breathe, but still unable to sit up. "Doctor, what happened to me?"

"I was about to ask you the same thing."

"I have no information. Please elucidiate."

"Well, you disappeared in a transporter beam. I went after you, and found you suspended in a tube. We were in some type of alien ship or something. I think. I don‘t really know. It was disgusting."

"Even for you?" asked Spock.

"Even for me."

Spock cocked a disbelieving eye at the doctor. "Are you certain that is what happened? I do not remember."

McCoy rolled his eyes. "No, I’m making it up, Spock." At Spock’s sharp look he said, "Of course I’m certain."

"Did you find anything out about this alien ship?"

"Look Spock. I’m just assuming it was an alien ship. I don’t know what the hell it was. I just know that it smelt bad and I was doing my damnedest to figure out how to get us out of there."

"Who were the inhabitants?"

"I DON‘T KNOW, Spock!” McCoy snapped. “All I know is that there was nobody around to stop me when I was looking for you. But somebody must of transported you into that tube. I don‘t think you crawled into there by yourself. I didn‘t have time to do any goddamn studies, okay? Lay off."

"Fascinating," said Spock, as he shifted his weight. "Have you your communicator? I appear to have lost mine."

"No, Spock. I lost mine too. And my phaser, and tri-corder." McCoy knew that Spock was itching to investigate the situation, but was just as helpless as he was.

"Then we wait till we appear on the planet wide bio-scan."

"Who knows where the Enterprise might be."

"Indeed."

"Spock," McCoy began, "I have a--"

Spock immediately started off on another round of coughing. As the coughing became more and more severe, McCoy inched forward to Spock’s head and held it up as the Vulcan became nauseated and gasped. He pushed the Vulcan to lay back against the wall and patiently waited till the wave passed. Unwrapping the blanket from around Spock’s legs, he pulled it up to the Vulcan’s shoulders, and then sat down heavily across from him.

"Share... the blanket with me," invited the science officer in between gasps.

"Alright, Spock." The doctor moved to underneath the blanket next to the Vulcan. He waited a few minutes for Spock to recover slightly. "Feeling any better?"

"Somewhat."

"Good," McCoy said, and huddled closer. He stared into space for a long while, "I'm sorry about this, Spock."

"Sorry? For what?"

"Doesn’t this upset you?"

"Upset me?"

"I mean, you being forced to cuddle with me. Isn't it upsetting to you?" McCoy chuckled slightly.

Spock shook his head. "No. Admittedly, I do not mind your touch. You slept next to me last night with no ill effects. You are my doctor. You touch me more often than anyone else in the crew. I have become used to you by now."

McCoy laughed. "Used to little old me? Ah Spock. How sweet. But, I'm afraid I'm not much of a teddy bear." At the raised eyebrow the doctor commented: "Cuddling with a stranger would upset you then."

"Being upset, in the way you are indicating, is a human emotion. However, the sensation of close contact with a stranger would be uncomfortable, yes."

"Oh. But can't you--"

"Yes, under normal circumstances, I block out others thoughts and emotions using the Vulcan mind rules."

"Under normal circumstances...?" asked McCoy. "But this isn’t a normal circumstance. You‘re seriously ill. So... you can read my thoughts?"

"Well, as you know, I am a touch telepath, so only if I am touching you. Yes, Doctor, I can tell what you are thinking." At McCoy's shocked look he added, "however, I am trying my best not to do so. But, unfortunately, even as you move away from me, at this moment in close quarters I cannot shield your emotions."

"Sorry..."

"Do not apologize. You normally have remarkable emotional control for a human. You express mostly humor and anger to mask certain others such as despair, sadness or even... tenderness. I am able to feel your underlying emotions rather strongly."

McCoy smiled and moved himself away further away from the Vulcan. "Okay, Spock, tell me. What am I feeling right now? Tell me everything."

"You have expressed fascination about what I have just told you. And, you are concerned about my welfare."

McCoy was smug. "Oh well, that’s a brilliant deduction. Watson!"

"That is not all, Doctor."

"Oh, what else?"

"Besides the obvious surface feelings, there is something deeper. You have deep seated emotional feelings of attachment for-- No..." Spock trailed off as he considered it. "It is love. From what I understand the emotion to be. You are in love... with... someone. You try to hide it though, as you are not comfortable with it."

McCoy started nearly out of his skin. "I don't see how that is any of your--"

"You asked, Doctor."

"Oh, yeah...So I did. Uh...Do you know who it is?"

Spock hesitated. "No, I do not. There is more. Additionally, you have been suffering terrible nightmares as of late."

"That’s nothing new Spock. In my line of work you see a lot of crap that gives you nightmares."

"This is different. You have been having recurring nightmares about this planet. You haven‘t been able to sleep well for some time. You are frightened."

"I don’t think I want to have this conversation any more. I'm going to sleep."

"Are you certain--"

"Positive."

"Then, I shall bid you, good night, Doctor."

"Yep," McCoy mumbled.

As McCoy drifted off into an exhausted sleep the dream returned. "You will be assimilated..."

"No...!"

"Your nightmare?" the Vulcan queried in the dark.

"No...it’s nothing...Spock. I‘m okay."

"Doctor, avoidance of the issue is not logical. It would be beneficial to divulge the information—"

"—No Spock! I said it was nothing!" McCoy said, a little too harshly. At the silence, McCoy said, "I’m just having a little trouble sleeping is all."

Spock didn’t have the heart to tell McCoy that since they were nearly touching, he knew he was being lied to. He laid his head back and listened to the Doctor’s increased heartbeat next to him.

-----------------------------

Morning came with another hypo from the doctor. Spock opened his eyes.

"I can’t keep giving you these things, I‘m running out," said McCoy. "Look at your fingernails."

Spock held his hand up and noticed the blue-green color. "Interesting," he rasped.

"The cyanosis indicates you’re not taking in enough oxygen; I’m under-dosing you. Harder for you to speak?"

Spock nodded.

"Well then," the doctor said. "The time has come for you to shut-up."

Spock shook his head. He did not feel well enough to protest.

"Are you hungry? Here, eat this." McCoy shoved a vegetarian ration from the medi-kit towards the Vulcan.

"I am not hungry, Doctor."

"Eat it anyway," McCoy demanded. "You need to keep up your strength."

Spock opened his mouth to remind the doctor that he was quite capable of fasting for long periods when he got the "EAT!" from the good doctor, thought better of responding and picked up the ration and had a tentative bite. "Are you not going to eat?" he enquired.

"After you." McCoy tore open up a water packet and thrust that at the Vulcan. "This too." As Spock drank it, McCoy observed. "Y’know this stuff isn’t gonna last forever, maybe ten days at the most. We’ll eventually have to find food and water outside. I already looked around out there this morning, it’s still raining."

Spock shook his head. "I must have been in a deep sleep as I did not hear you leave. It is dangerous to go out on your own. If you desire to go out again I will accompany you."

"Oh no you don’t. You’re not going anywhere. I’ll see to our immediate survival. You can’t go out in this damn rain."

"It has been raining since our arrival."

"I know. How long have we been here? A week? It must be." McCoy’s face itched. It took a week for his beard suppressor to wear off. He munched on a dental tablet and sulked.

-----------------------

Spock had dozed off but his lungs were becoming rather heavy and woke up gasping and clutching his chest.

McCoy noted that the tips of Spock’s ears were turning greenish-blue. He pulled the Vulcan to a sitting position then checked his bag. "Spock I’m seriously low on anything that would help. I’m sorry." McCoy leaned over to listen to Spock’s chest, pulled out his medi-scanner, used it and frowned at it.

Spock nodded coughing. "Then...Doctor...I will have to make due without."

"Eventually you won‘t be able to breathe at all if we don‘t get back to the ship for treatment."

"Thank you,” Spock managed to say. “Your uncanny ability to keep a running commentary on my situation is most...irritating."

McCoy sat back on his haunches. "Alright, alright, fair enough."

"Perhaps, a positive attitude might be beneficial."

"How about if we see the Enterprise again and you live, I‘ll have reason to be positive. Until then, I‘ll grouse if I want to!” McCoy snapped, once again a little harsher than he'd meant to.

A cold wind whipped in the shelter. McCoy folded his arms and shivered. "Dammit...Spock...I'm sorry..."

"Continuing apologies are unnessary. You are adversely affected by the plummeting temperature."

"What Spock? You mean, Am I cold? Well of course! You do have my uniform on. We have no way to make a fire. Any wood we do have is sopping wet. If you have the ability to rub two wet sticks together and start a fire that would be handy, because I haven’t been able to do it."

"I thought everyone in the Earth American South could start a fire with two sticks. Are you not familiar with the Earth custom of camping?"

"Very funny Spock. I already told you. The wood is fucking wet--"

"Have you a laser scalpel?"

"No! Don’t you think I would have used that to start a fire already? I don’t have that in this kit."

"You do not have a calcium nytrate tablet?"

"Dammit...I'm gonna clobber you!"

Spock glanced over at the glaring, shivering McCoy, clad only in the regulation black undershirt and thermal underwear and announced: "It is imperative that you share my body warmth."

McCoy shook his head. He didn‘t want Spock reading his thoughts any more. "No. Stop trying to mother hen me. That's my job."

Evening fell and the two men lay silent in the dark. When McCoy started to cough under his breath, Spock’s ears pricked up. The good doctor was catching the affliction too.
_________________________

END OF PART 3, LINK TO PART 4

AEGRI SOMNIA--Part 2

2008-12-08T23:22:00.000-08:00

AUTHOR: T'Prillah
CODES: TOS, S/Mc
RATING: NC-17

______________________________

AEGRI SOMNIA--Part 2 LINK TO PART 3

"What happened!? Where are we?" McCoy shouted to Spock as they materialized into pounding rain and wind.

As Spock whirled about he also realized something was terribly wrong. "Unknown Doctor!" They could not see in front of them but for the wet coming down in droves.

"I thought you said this planet was nice?!"

"As usual, your recollection of my report is incorrect! I merely stated it was Earth-like!" Spock prodded McCoy onward, and together they staggered through the gale.

The winds grew stronger knocking McCoy to the ground.

Spock unable to see him, wound up tripping over the doctor and sprawled on the other side of him. "You okay?" yelled McCoy in his ear.

Spock nodded and huddled close to the doctor on the sodden ground. He pulled his tri-corder up to his face and attempted to read the scan. "It appears that there is something in the vicinity for us to wait out the rain and contact the ship. Over there."

The two of them staggered upright and pressed on with the tri-corder directing the way. There was a large rain shelter nearby, a sort of cut out in the hills. It wasn’t much but it would have to do. Spock pulled McCoy and himself inside, where they sat on the ground bewildered.

"I’m soaked to the bone!" observed McCoy, shivering and teeth chattering.

"Doctor, I highly doubt that your epidermis would allow outside fluids to seep to your skeletal system."

McCoy couldn't help but crack a smile as Spock pulled out his communicator and desperately hailed the ship. There was no response at all. Spock tried a second time, then a third, and a forth. McCoy pulled out his communicator and copied Spock also with negative effect.

"The communicator's seem to be operating properly," McCoy noted.

Spock pointed his tri-corder up in the direction of the sky. "It does appear that the ship is no longer orbiting this planet." He popped his communicator shut and let his tri-corder fall to his waist.

"Are we even certain that we're on the same planet we thought we were transporting down to?"

"I am unable to correlate the scans. Yes, it is possible we transported somewhere else. Or, it is also possible that we are indeed on the correct planet and that the Enterprise has been destroyed."

"Destroyed, huh? Well, leave it to you to come up with an even worse scenario than I‘d come up with."

"Logic dictates one must consider all possibilities."

"Yes, and couldn't logic also dictate that our tri-corder doesn’t register the ship and our communicators have no signal just because of the storm?" McCoy asked dryly.

"Certainly. That is another such possibility. Or the ship has been merely thrown out of sensor range."

"Right, see, there’s lots of theories as to what happened. So don't be such a damn fatalist," McCoy growled, then muttered under his breath: "I bet we did transport somewhere else...damn transporter gonna beam us into open space one of these days...you just wait."

Spock let a sigh escape his lips and said nothing.

In an effort to escape McCoy's grousing, he focused on a precursory investigation of the shelter. He found that it was approximately three meters in an imperfect cube and appeared to be uninhabited. There were no life-form readings of any kind in the vicinity.

McCoy perked up from his pensive mood and busied himself with the first order of business: survival. They were obviously going to be here awhile. He yanked his medi-kit off his hip and opened it. He checked a few things he’d packed, and shook out a metallic blanket. All things aside, they were indeed soaked through their uniforms and in danger of hypothermia. He pulled out his phaser, aimed and fired at a medium sized rock.

As Spock attempted yet another scan of the area, the graceful head beneath the black bangs tilted to one side. "Doctor, I have noticed that you have been rather out of sorts lately."

McCoy snorted to hide his shock. "Have you? That’s unusually observant of me on your part."

"Is there anything troubling you?"

McCoy glanced into the dark eyes and saw a genuine concern that touched him. He softened for an instant then snapped back to his usual demeanor. "You ask me that right now? When we have more important things to worry about?"

"If you are affected by something it is of importance. Besides, there is nothing for us to do now, but wait out the storm."

"Wait out the storm? That's it? So you enjoy doing absolutely nothing about our situation."

"Negative. Your accusations are ridiculous."

"Kind of like your supposed sensor sweeps."

Spock nodded in agreement. "You do having something there, Doctor. If we are on the same planet, which I emphatically assume to be the case, it is indeed odd that my shipboard scans of the weather patterns were so conflicting to reality. Life signs were shown in the vicinity of our transporter coordinates. However, with this tri-corder the area appears to be uninhabited."

"Yeah, that *is* odd. Damned odd. And darkness is falling fast. I thought we were supposed to be on the daylight side."

"It is in our best interests to be especially vigilant on this mission. You might as well get some rest, Doctor." A slight cough escaped from the Vulcan’s lips. "I shall take the first watch."

"Didn’t think to bring any survival gear, did we... Commander," McCoy smirked.

"It should not have been necessary."

"Inomnia paritis, Spock. Alright, I’ll take first watch, you get some sleep. You’re coughing."

"I was merely clearing my throat."

"Whatever you say. I’ll stay up." McCoy pulled his wet tunic off, lay it near the glowing rock then motioned the Vulcan over. "Here, share this blanket with me."

"Are you certain?"

"About what, staying up? Or sharing the blanket?"

"Both. I am quite capable of forgoing--"

"Spock, don't give me that crap about being able to stay awake for four days at a stretch. You know you need sleep to stay at optimum performance."

Spock considered this for a moment, then dove under the blanket next to the doctor. "I will awaken in four hours."

"Yeah, fine. Go to sleep."

After a few long moments, Spock said: "You did not tell me what has been troubling you."

"Spock, go to sleep before I make you tell me a bedtime story."

-------------------------------

"Doctor McCoy." Spock nudged him.

"Hmmm?"

Spock noted with half amusement that McCoy was curled up next to him with his head on his shoulder and half annoyance that the doctor had shirked his duties. "I have overslept my watch. Did you give me something?" To underline his irritation, Spock yanked the blanket off of McCoy. "Doctor, please get up. It is morning."

"Spock...uh..." McCoy rubbed his eyes, groggy from constant interrupted sleep. However, it had been rather cozy and warm next to Spock. "Did anyone ever tell you that you're like a walking heating blanket?"

"Landing party survival procedure dictates that on an alien planet, without an emergency sensor beam, one of us must stand watch in the night."

"Spock, dammit, will you listen?! I'm fully aware of the landing party procedures. You were coughing during the night so I thought it better if you just slept through. Yes, I gave you something to sleep. It was so warm next to you that I accidentally dozed off too, right before morning. Okay?"

Spock stopped. "I was not coughing during the night."

"Well, you would know, right? Being as you are a physician and all!" At Spock's sigh McCoy softened. "This weather is getting to your lungs rather quickly I might add. I know your Vulcan hide absorbs all this moisture. You’re probably just developing some sort of cold. I’ll take care of it when we get back to the ship." McCoy paused, then added for emphasis, "If we get back."

"A cold indeed. Most likely you are utilitizing that as an excuse to give me a complete physical."

McCoy moved to the entrance of the structure. "Well, that is part of my job."

Spock remained from comment and joined the doctor to gaze outside.

"It’s still raining," McCoy muttered.

"It is," the Vulcan acknowledged with a slight grimace.

"I’m gonna try to contact the ship."

Spock held up his communicator. "I already did Doctor. There is still no response. In the meantime, I shall inspect this shelter further."

After a few minutes of watching the Vulcan, McCoy pulled his dry tunic on and decided to re-check his medi-kit. "Well Spock, I don’t know about you but my uniform certainly is wrinkled," he said to lighten the mood. He glanced at his arm.

"Then it is no different to your usual shipboard appearance," replied Spock.

As McCoy opened his mouth for a sarcastic response a high pitched transporter beam noise sounded with earsplitting intensity.

Spock, caught in the beam, promptly disappeared.

"Spock!" McCoy’s breathing became rapid with fear. "SPOCK! Spock!” He stood rigid.

Now what?

The shelter became very lonely with Spock’s absence.

There was a loud popping nose.

McCoy whirled around but found it was only the dripping of the rain coming inside the structure. His breathing became very loud in his ear as he swallowed the rising fear and ignored the prickling of the hairs on the back of his neck. He pulled his communicator off his belt with a snap. "McCoy to Enterprise! Somebody answer up there!"

It was in vain. He waited. Spock didn’t return.

McCoy picked up his own tri-corder and scanned the interior of the structure, then moved to the mouth to scan outside. Nothing was there. No Spock. No other life forms of any type.

The rain outside grew ferocious; a hurricane style wind started up and howled through.

He dashed outside in the wind and rain in a rash attempt to locate Spock but it was simply too intense and drove him back. Re-entering the shelter dejected, he slumped down on the ground, threw his tri-corder down and pulled the metallic blanket around his head.

Suddenly, another transporter hum sounded. McCoy picked up his tri-corder and slung it over his shoulder and lunged toward it. He disappeared into the beam.

Solidifying, he found himself sliding down a steep metal sounding embankment covered in ooze. "Uhhh..."

He reached for the tri-corder and felt that it was gone. His phaser and communicator were also gone, dropped in the muck somewhere. He gingerly dipped his hand in the ankle deep gelatinous substance, resisting the urge to recoil back. He reached around, touching the bottom, frantically searching for them but could find nothing. He cursed loudly in frustration. The slime was disgusting and smelled just like boiled bones. Bones that had been boiling for days.

McCoy scrambled up and immediately slipped and fell onto his back. He clambered up again onto his feet not letting the desperation seep into his psyche. He felt the slime soak into his uniform and sting him a bit. Hopefully Spock was in this hellhole...somewhere, if he could only get to him.

McCoy managed to stay upright and cautiously moved many meters further along. He realized, as his eyes adjusted to the greenish low light level, that he could not figure out just what the hell this place was. Disorientated, he could feel an eerie buzzing sensation in here. He felt through his boots an intermittent pulse like a heartbeat. Possibly the pulse was an engine of some type, his mind surmised. Perhaps he was in a space craft? It was difficult to tell. Covering the walls of the corridor he found himself in, were interlocking metal tubes with a primordial ooze-like substance pushing out and dropping to the floor.

The smell in here was nauseating, along with the smell of bones, there was a stench of rotting garbage. Worse than that. It was an odor possibly worse than he’d ever smelled in his many years as a doctor, but he couldn't place it.

His velour blue tunic was now completely covered in a slime that he dearly hoped wasn’t poisonous. He brought his hand up to wipe his forehead and he found he was sweating buckets. It was unbelievably hot and humid in here. And...was that mildew he could smell? Ughh.

"Spock!" he cried, his voice swallowed up in the damp walls. "Spock! Where the hell are you?!" He coughed to get the dampness out of his lungs.

McCoy shuffled through corridor after corridor. He set one foot in front of the other so he wouldn’t slip and fall again. His footsteps clanged loudly on the metal floor. It was eerie, this huge ship with nobody around. He shivered, even thought the heat was becoming oppressive.

Noting a slant downward, he trudged down a series of corridors running deeper into the ship. These did appear to be inhabited. Lining the walls were half human, half machine-like creatures. They stood at attention. The eyes stared into space and focused on no-one. Apparently lifeless. McCoy stared at them and quickly hurried past.

He came upon a chamber.

As McCoy entered it, he paused, troubled. This area was different. It was filled with numerous glass tubes, like upright transparent tombs. Bodies were suspended in a liquid inside. What the hell...

"My God," he noticed. "There are people...humanoids in these."

He crept up to one of the tubes and peered inside. The poor hapless humanoid inside was floating in the liquid with a terrified expression frozen onto its face. It seemed to be in storage for something. "Fucking hell..." he gasped as he left the tube with the humanoid in it and went from tube to tube searching.

Finally, he managed to find what appeared to be...Spock.

The Vulcan seemed to be intact, albeit nude, unconscious and floating inside some nasty green liquid.

McCoy placed his palms against the glass and slumped his face against it. "Spock..." he gasped. He slammed his fists on the glass. "Spock?" A small cry escaped McCoy’s lips as he realized with a sinking heart that there was no way to get the Vulcan out of there, or no indication that Spock was even still alive.

He tried to figure out how the hell Spock managed to get into this predicament and who had put him in there as he searched the vicinity for something that would help.

There was nothing.

McCoy resumed pounding his fists in desperation on the glass tomb. "I can’t do it. I can't get him out of here," he muttered to nobody in particular as his eyes roamed around the chamber.

His foot kicked against a reasonably large metal object. He picked it up. Examining it quickly, he discovered with contempt that it was an arm and quickly dropped it with a loud curse. Pulling himself together, his eyes fell on a set of controls next to the tube. He started punching; a transporter hum sounded and the glass tube disappeared leaving Spock crumpled onto the floor.

McCoy dropped to his knees next to Spock and noted the greenish purple tinge to his body. Spock was in full cardiac arrest. McCoy pulled the Vulcan up, expelled a water like fluid from him, then pumped Spock’s chest.

As he did so he intoned under his breath and continued till his arms were nearly numb and he was certain the Vulcan was dead. He tilted Spock’s head back; breathed for him and kept up the resuscitation attempt. 'Come on Spock," he thought desperately, 'you can’t leave me...my God...don't leave me...not now...’

Suddenly, Spock gasped, then retched and vomited. McCoy tilted the Vulcan’s head so he wouldn’t choke. "We need species 3259," Spock moaned, "...we need to assimilate his body..." The weak voice coming from Spock was so low McCoy could barely hear it.

"Spock?" McCoy lay his hand on the Vulcan’s face. "Hey, Spock. Come out of it. It‘s only me."

The touch of the human’s cool hand brought Spock back. "McCoy...".

“Yeah," McCoy smiled with relief. "You’re alright now." Spock looked into McCoy’s eyes and nodded.

McCoy glanced around the chamber, in case they were to be discovered. "Spock I have to get you out of here somehow."

The weak voice acquiesced with an equally weak nod. "Yes."

"Can you stand up? I don’t think I can carry you."

In between hacking coughs, the Vulcan nodded and realized with a raising eyebrow that he was completely nude and sat up with difficulty. He took McCoy’s proffered arm and raised himself up to a shaky standing position. McCoy slid his arm around the Vulcan’s thin waist. Together, they staggered down the murky, dank corridor, back the way McCoy had come.

The pair continued for what seemed like hours trying to find their way. The further they went it appeared Spock was moving slower and slower till they both collapsed onto the ground. Spock shivered violently. He stoically tried but could not stop. McCoy knelt down next to him and cradled him in his arms.

"Leave me here..." Spock said, softly.

"I'm not leaving you, stupid. We’ll just rest a bit."

"Leave me...find the Enterprise...that...is an order."

"My medical authority overrides your orders," grumbled McCoy. Resting his aching back reluctantly against the nearby wall, McCoy pulled Spock’s head into his lap. "Shut up, goddammit, and rest." Spock gave up his protestations and McCoy eventually leaned his head back onto the metal wall, too exhausted to care about their surroundings.

McCoy felt himself sway and dizzy, and started to panic. They needed to find a way out of here and fast. But, he reasoned, they could rest for just a few more moments...

He started awake. He felt groggy. The view was fuzzy. He found himself unable to focus and wondered what was wrong. He tried to draw a breath and found it wanting. He realized with alarm that they were losing oxygen in here. He looked down at Spock. The Vulcan with his head still in McCoy’s lap was unconscious. McCoy roused him sharply by slapping him.

Spock’s eyes fluttered open. The doctor sighed in relief and scrambled up pulling Spock up with him in desperation. "Come on! We're losing air. We have to get out of here now! NOW!" Spock blindly obeyed him and they carried down the passageway till McCoy spotted a transporter pad. "You came in on a transporter beam, let’s see if hopefully that one takes us out of here."

They staggered desperately towards the transporter pad, till Spock’s bare foot caught on a metal grating causing his legs to go out from under him and collapsing McCoy on top in a giant heap. McCoy let out a grunt as his hip connected with Spock’s leg.

"McCoy!" gasped Spock.

"Ow. I’m gonna have one nasty bruise. Dammit. Are you okay?"

"Affirmative."

McCoy stood up, dragging Spock with him. "Come on Spock, lets get the hell out of here."

Together they made for the transporter pad and vanished.

_________________________

END OF PART 2, LINK TO PART 3

THE RHAPSODY-Part 4

2008-12-08T22:23:00.000-08:00

TITLE: The Rhapsody--Part 4

AUTHOR: T'Prillah

CODES: TOS, S/Mc

RATING: NC-17

_________________________

THE RHAPSODY--PART 4

"Ah. There you are, Doctor," Spock called out as the door to his quarters opened to admit Doctor McCoy. "I have been looking for you."

"Evening, roomie. I heard you paging me. I was in sickbay, where'd you think I went?" sulked McCoy as he entered.

"You managed to avade Doctor M'Benga. I have re-programmed the doors to your quarters to deny you admittance from the outside. The Captain and I are the only ones who can now override it."

"I know," McCoy replied sheepishly. "I...tried to enter them before I came down here."

"I thought you might. You cannot break this particular code."

"Well...I do have a medical override," McCoy said. "I should have. But, for some reason, it wouldn't work."

"I was aware of your medical override. You still will not be able to override my code. I have made certain of that."

"You know...I appreciate that Spock," McCoy grinned. "Hey, you know that nobody's noticed that I'm wearing full commander's stripes? But, same size my ass." He tugged at the collar. "This thing's a little tight. Your collar sits higher up and I'm slightly more muscular than you."

"I had not noticed."

"Very funny. Well, if you're now cracking jokes at my expense, then I think I really do need a drink."

"I have no alcohol."

"Somehow, I figured that. Which is why I hope you don’t mind I brought my own office supply." McCoy slammed down a bottle of Bourbon.

"Doctor, you will damage my desk."

"So what. Get me two glasses."

"Must you always insist on pressuring me to imbibe?"

"Come on, dammit. Don‘t make me drink alone."

Spock sighed and moved out from his desk. He opened up a cabinet, pulled out two glasses and set them in front of McCoy. "You know what happened the last time I had a drink with you."

"Yes I most certainly do. You were puking your guts out."

"Affirmative," said Spock. "Which begs the question, why do you want me to have an additional episode of what you call: ‘puking my guts out’?"

"I like holding your head?"

Spock turned sharply so McCoy couldn't witness the slight smirk.

"Come on Spock, a little suffering is good for the soul. Even a Vulcan one. As they say on Earth, misery loves company. Plus, as I recall, you had more than one drink last time."

"Due to what humans would call ‘peer pressure’."

McCoy chuckled. "From little old me? Nah."

Spock shook his head and said pointedly: "It was the night you decided you did not want to be my bondmate."

Touché. McCoy nodded understanding at the Vulcan, then lowered his head and managed, after a beat: "Uh...maybe I should stay with Jim. I’m not going to pretend this is isn’t a little uncomfortable between us."

Spock shrugged slightly. "If you would rather not share a bed with me, I can forgo sleep. I have reports to work on."

"No, no. You need sleep too. I don’t mind sharing a bed with you. If you don’t."

"Not at all, Doctor McCoy."

"Good, I'm glad we got that settled. Is it hot in here or is it just me?" McCoy remarked nervously as he poured himself, then Spock a drink.

"You are not comfortable, forgive me. Computer, reduce temperature to 25 degrees centigrade." That was even lower than the 28 degree's centigrade he'd normally set it when the doctor had visited in the past.

"Since when do you care if I’m comfortable or not?" McCoy joked as he plunked himself down in the chair on the other side of Spock’s desk.

"You are an overnight guest in my quarters."

"I was only making a little joke Spock."

"I see. Is it wise to drink whilst in your condition?"

McCoy snorted. "I’m not pregnant, just accidentally bonded to a woman I don’t even want to be with."

"You would if she was standing here next to you."

"Yeah, only against my will, Spock."

"If you believe that alcohol will lessen your 'will', Doctor, you are mistaken."

"Don't tell me about how my body reacts to booze. Believe me, I can handle it Spock. Don't worry."

"Have you noticed any more ill effects?" asked Spock, watching him.

McCoy slowly nodded. He could feel the woman’s presence in his quarters creeping up on him. He felt a siren call for him to return to her. He wanted to return. He wanted so much to push Spock out of the way and bolt down the corridor and straight into his own quarters and into her arms. His mind kept flashing back to making love to the woman, feeling his own pleasure in her through the bond and how good that felt...that addiction of it....it frightened him down to the very core of his being.

This woman, a complete stranger to him, could reach into the dark recesses of his mind and read who he really was. And she was...doing exactly that...reaching in...he felt absolutely helpless. He was unable to hide from her. He was losing himself bit by bit, hour by hour, to this woman.

He was damned scared of anything remotely close to bonding or joining minds. Even the rare times that he'd had to mind meld with Spock had completely unnerved him and unsettled him for days.

He could feel the flutter of someone else.

And this was what a bond with someone felt like? A struggle to keep his identity intact? If this was what it was all about he didn’t even want this with Spock.

He could feel himself slipping and needed to keep a hold on his normal habits. Like drinking himself into oblivion.

"Doctor McCoy," Spock grabbed McCoy's arms and shook him out of it.

"I have to go back to my quarters, now, Spock," McCoy suddenly gasped with eyes blazing.

"You cannot."

"Please...you have to stop me!" McCoy begged, as he pushed Spock aside with an odd strength and lunged out through the doors. He managed to get a few feet down the corridor till the Vulcan grabbed his arm and pulled him back towards the cabin, garnering a stare or two from a passing crewman.

"Computer!" snapped Spock as he thrust McCoy back in through the doors and into a chair.

"Door lock, from the inside, on my voice print, only! Doctor, you do that again and I will sedate you."

McCoy sagged with the stress of conflicting emotions coursing through his veins. “Perhaps you should nerve pinch me. It'll be the only way to stop me obsessing about what I think I want to do."

"Believe me doctor, you do not wish to compound the situation with the sensation of the nerve pinch."

McCoy shuddered. "You're probably right. Let's just say, I’ll be glad when this over." He reached over to pick up his glass and motioned for Spock to pick his own up to clink it with. "Drink your drink. Cheers, Spock."

Spock took a sip reluctantly. The Bourbon stung his throat as he swallowed it.

Eager to change the subject to avoid constantly thinking about the woman, McCoy said: "So, what’cha been reading?"

"A journal on Deltan physiology."

"Oh." McCoy quickly downed his glass and looked for something else to talk about to change the subject. "So, uh, what’s that you got over there?" He motioned over by a sheet of real paper. "That looks antique."

"It is the sheet music for 'Hungarian Rhapsody no 2' by Linz for Earth Piano. My mother sent it to me. I picked it up at the last star base."

"Isn’t that piece kinda difficult to play?"

"Not for a Vulcan."

McCoy chuckled. "If I know you, I bet you’d give anything for a piano right now."

"I would," Spock was forced to admit. "However, I have been transposing the tune for my harp."

"Really? Let's have a listen." McCoy poured himself another drink and nodded encouragingly to the Vulcan, as Spock picked it up and started to play the lassan. The dark, somber introduction sounded otherworldly on the Vulcan lyrette. The doctor was mesmerized as he absorbed the tune and studied the long fingers.

Spock stopped after playing his sample and McCoy smiled approvingly. "I like that. That was nice. I miss how you used to play for me."

"Indeed?"

"Hmmm. It was known as the most overplayed tune in Earth's history, but still very enchanting. Even more so on your ka'athaira."

"Fascinating. You know the Vulcan word for harp."

"Yeah," McCoy said glumly. "I've been learning some Vulcan words."

"From her," said Spock, quietly.

In response, McCoy gently rested his empty glass down. He glanced at the Vulcan, then filled it back up to the top.

After a long awkward silence, Spock tilted his head and cleared his throat. "Well, Doctor McCoy, I'm surprised you enjoyed the tune so much. I hadn’t figured you would appreciate something like that."

"Don’t be so damned patronizing. I love classical music."

"Yes, but with the bizarre sounds you are fond of listening to, I was starting to wonder."

"Bizarre sounds?!" McCoy retorted a little too forcefully. "Twentieth century rock and roll is not bizarre! When I was a resident that's all we listened to. You just have no taste, I suppose!" He glared at Spock then softened and smiled, "Heh..."

Spock eyes lit up. "An argument would be successful in taking your mind off your predicament for the moment, would it not?"

"Ahhhh, Spock. You’re deliberately trying to goad me into an argument to make me feel better. Why are you being so kind to me?" laughed McCoy as he knocked back the Bourbon then poured himself yet another.

"'Kindness' has nothing to do with it, Doctor. I have been ordered by the captain to look after you. I can also see you are struggling to remain in control," said Spock. "However, I do not believe you should consume so much alcohol in your condition. It will have a detrimental affect on your altered nervous system."

Tired of the constant harassment from the Vulcan, McCoy got up defiantly and topped up the Bourbon into his glass. Spock grabbed onto the doctor's arm, swung the man around to face him and pulled the glass out of his hand.

"Then you drink it, Spock," McCoy snapped. "Don't let it go to waste."

The Vulcan met the human's eyes. He held the glass to his lips and downed the lot in one gulp.

As he watched the Vulcan drink from his own glass, McCoy suddenly felt his breath quicken. Spock was oddly attractive when he consumed anything. Whether it was food, drink or at one time, pleasure from McCoy's own body. Through this altered state, McCoy felt it very deeply. Spock appeared to sense the arousal through touching McCoy and caught a glimpse of lust in the doctor's eyes. He let go of the doctor and hastily set the glass down.

"I’m going to get ready for bed," McCoy said tightly. "Mind if I use your bathroom?"

"It is all yours, Doctor McCoy."

"Fine. I'll just be a few minutes." McCoy walked though the bed chamber to the bathroom. As he did so, his eyes fell onto Spock's bed. 'All the things we used to do right there...if that fire god he has sitting there, could talk, we'd be in trouble'.

Letting himself into Spock’s bathroom, he removed his uniform (or rather, Spock's uniform) and stepped into the shower. He was again overcome with another dizzy spell and held onto the wall of the small cubicle. He had hoped the booze would help calm him, but it was not helping...not at all. It also didn't make it any easier that he could fully remember everything he and Spock used to do in here too, crammed into this small space.

Suddenly, starting small and getting larger and larger, there was a tingling in his mind, a strange feeling breaking up his thoughts.

And then he felt it. A thought that was not his own.

//Mah-koi//

Feeling this caused blind panic to swell up within him. It was her!

He screamed loudly in his mind. //No! Please don't do this to me! I don’t want this with you//

It wasn’t natural to talk to somebody like this. Not natural for him to be talking to a complete stranger like this. The room heaved.

//Return to me...Mah-koi//

He summoned up all his strength to communicate back to her: //I want to...God...I want to...but...I can't, believe me. You've caused us a lot of trouble, but my cabin's a lot more comfortable than the brig. So, just stay there.// He felt himself double up in pain and paused, panting. //Who are you?...Why... did you do this to me?//

She would only answer: //It was unintentional.//

Somehow he did not believe her, but he was too ill to pursue the matter. //Just stay there. Let me be...please!//

Nausea was overtaking him and he found himself shaking. He white knuckled the shower cubicle door.

//You do not want me...// The voice in his head was angry and insistent.

//No//

//Come back// She sent her arousal though the link. He could only stand by and watch as his own body responded.

//No...please stop it// He gritted his teeth to keep his hand from traveling downward. He was unsuccessful. He touched it. //Stop...// He circled his hand around it, and found his rhythm. He stroked back and forth, smoothly, till he ejaculated into his other hand. //God...stop this...I can't function...//

//Why not? You want another? You do...I can feel it. You cannot hide it from me.//

Oh God. Yes he did. He swayed. Spock...

"Spoooock!" he collapsed in the shower.

______________________

END OF PART 4

STAY TUNED FOR PART 5

STORY INDEX

2008-12-07T22:22:00.000-08:00

Read the warning first

AEGRI SOMNIA (Complete)
AUTHOR: T'Prillah
Series: TOS
Pairing: S/Mc
Rating: R
hurt/comfort
SUMMARY: McCoy is having terrible dreams. Meanwhile, Spock and McCoy are beam down on a routine survey mission. They wind up in a fight of of their lives.
Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5

BEAUTIFUL DAYS (Complete)
AUTHOR: T'Prillah
Series: TOS
Pairing: S/Mc, S/f (Zarabeth, implied),S/f
Rating: NC-17
hurt/comfort, angst
SUMMARY: Spock and McCoy deal with the fallout of each other's choices in life.
Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4

FRICTION
AUTHOR: McCoySpockLove
Series: TOS
Pairing: S/Mc
Rating: PG-13
hurt/comfort, A/U
SUMMARY:

INTO HIS ARMS (One shot-complete)
AUTHOR: T'Prillah
Series: TOS
Pairing: S/Mc, K
Rating: R
hurt/comfort, Warning: character death
SUMMARY: The last thoughts of an injured comrade.

THE JOINING (One shot-WIP)
AUTHOR: T'Prillah
Series: TOS
Pairing: S/Mc
Rating: R
Romance
SUMMARY: A Spock and McCoy wedding story.

THE PHYSICAL (One shot-Complete)
AUTHOR: T'Prillah
Series: TOS
Pairing: S/Mc, K
Rating: R
humor
SUMMARY: To settle a score, McCoy gives Spock an 'old style' physical. Humor.

THE RHAPSODY (WIP)
Series: TOS
Pairings: S/Mc, Mc/f, S/f, S/Mc/f
Rating: NC-17
hurt/comfort
SUMMARY: McCoy is acidentally bonded to a strange woman. Spock takes McCoy to Vulcan to break the bond, but things are never that easy. Hurt/Comfort, implied threesomes, Mc/f
Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5

THE RUNES (WIP)
AUTHOR: T'Prillah
Series: TOS
Pairings: S/Mc, K/Mc, K/S/Mc, Sc/f
Rating: NC-17
SUMMARY: McCoy buys some cursed sex Runes. Written in FIRST PERSON, McCoy's POV. Explicit Sex.
Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8

THE SECRET (One shot-Complete)
AUTHOR: T'Prillah
Series: TOS
Pairing: S/Mc
Rating: NC-17
SUMMARY: Spock and McCoy indulge in some mischief on the bridge. Explicit sex (described) Humor.

THE RHAPSODY--Part 3

2008-12-06T15:42:00.000-08:00

Author: T'Prillah

Codes: TOS, S/Mc, Mc/f

Rating: NC-17

THE RHAPSODY--Part 3

"Of all the reckless and stupid things to get yourself into, Bones!" fumed Captain James T. Kirk as he paced the sickbay deck. "Why are you always thinking with your goddamned glands?"

"Me?!" McCoy shouted, then backed down at Kirk’s glare and shook his head ruefully and laughed. "Dammit, I did get myself into it bad this time."

"I’ll say--"

"Captain," interrupted Spock. "This could have happened to anyone in the crew. Especially you. I seem to recall, that you yourself had quite a reaction to her."

"Alright, Spock, let’s not bring that up," said the captain, amused that the Vulcan had noticed.

He flipped the sickbay viewer to 'on'. "Kirk to occupant in CF-127, acknowledge." There was no response in McCoy's quarters. "Have you overridden McCoy's doorlock voice-print so she can't escape?"

"Affirmative. I did so immediately after I discovered him."

Kirk flipped another switch. "Kirk to Bridge."

"Chekov here, sair."

"Ready Galileo II to depart immediately."

"Jim," nudged McCoy. "Can't we leave tonight? I can hardly see straight. I need to sleep. I can't sleep on that damned shuttlecraft."

Kirk looked over at Spock. "Is it safe to delay a few hours?"

The Vulcan nodded. "Yes, however, the sooner we leave the better."

"Belay that order Chekov, ready it to depart at 1800 hours." Kirk flipped the viewer button to 'off' and turned to the doctor. "I would have thought you’d wanted to leave now, Bones."

"Sure I do...Jim...but...a few hours won‘t hurt. Right?"

Kirk glanced the doctor quizzically and turned to Spock. "Do you need to take her with you?"

"No Sir. The bond can be broken without her presence," said Spock.

"Good. She and that one-man disabled ship we're towing of hers will be taken to the nearest star base and turned over to the prison authorities. Her ships registry checks out: Deltan. Her story when she beamed aboard seemed to check out, also. But are you sure she's a Vulcan and not something else? Like a Half-Romulan?"

"She's a Vulcan and a Deltan, just like she claims," sighed McCoy. "I know that from the physical exam, not from the bond."

Spock quickly pulled the captain aside, nodded towards the doctor and said quietly: "Captain we must exercise caution, she will know what we are saying though McCoy."

"What?"

"He is a security risk, whatever he hears or sees, she will know. He cannot hide anything from her."

"Yeah, but why would a Vulcan do this to someone? I don't understand."

"Apparently her natural proclivities are led by Deltan sexually aggressive behavior patterns. And, it is logical to assume she was fully aware of what would happen when she mated with a human."

"Bones," Kirk stalked back to the CMO and demanded: "What does she want from us?"

"I don't know," stammered McCoy.

"You can't or you won't tell us?" Kirk suspiciously regarded the man.

"Jim," said Spock. "She would be able to block some of McCoy's access to her own mind."

"Are you gonna throw me in the brig, Jim?"

Kirk glared at the CMO. "No, but lord knows I should. You're on report, Doctor McCoy. But, I'll just have you watched till you two depart."

"It's a good thing she's not coming with us," said McCoy, glumly. "If we did have to bring her along, I'd just want to do her the whole way over to Vulcan."

"Bones!" Kirk shook his head.

"That would be, unfortunately, quite true," agreed Spock.

Snapping his fingers, Kirk said, "Uniform. He's out of uniform. Bones, I'm not having you wandering around," he eyed the doctor's pale legs warily, “wearing nothing but your robe. Got any sickbay tunics and trousers stowed here you can wear?"

"No, not really. All my gear is in my quarters. Even my off-duty clothing."

"Nothing? Nothing here in the sickbay you could wear?"

"No, Jim."

Kirk sighed and looked at the Vulcan. "Spock?"

"Doctor McCoy and I wear the exact same size, so I've already summoned Nurse Chapel to retrieve a complete set from my quarters."

"How 'bout that Bones," said the captain, forcing himself to smile. "You get an instant temporary promotion to full commander for your trouble."

"Humph. And where, pray tell, am I going to sleep?" McCoy wanted to know. "I'm exhausted, but the Sickbay beds hurt my back and I can’t sleep in my quarters if she's in there."

"Well, you certainly wouldn‘t be sleeping."

"That's not very funny, Jim."

"Well, Spock and I are on duty for two more hours. Stay here with Doctor M'Benga for awhile. And don’t you dare touch the nurses!"

"God dammit Jim..."

"Then, later, if you're feeling okay, you can bunk with Spock, that way he can keep an eye on you."

McCoy rolled his eyes, "Oh, well, that'll be comfy." But secretly he was very glad about that.

____________________

END OF PART 3, LINK TO PART 4

THE RHAPSODY--Part 2

2008-12-06T15:04:00.000-08:00

Title: The Rhapsody
Author: T'Prillah
Codes: S/Mc, Mc/f, S/Mc/f (implied)
Rating: NC-17, non-con, threesome
Time: Star Trek, TOS, towards the end of the Five Year Mission.
Summary: McCoy finds himself accidentally bonded to a strange woman. Spock takes McCoy to Vulcan to break the bond...but things are never that easy. Their luck just keeps getting worse and worse.
Beta: TEMPEST (thank you!); all errors are my own, an additional thank you goes to Ellen, for her helpful feedback regarding content. I took that feedback and rewrote parts of this story hopefully for the better.
Acknowledgements: Thanks to Tempest for: 'Ka'athaira'. The character of 'Sorel' comes from 'The Vulcan Academy Murders' by Jean Lorrah.

THE RHAPSODY-part 2

"Why the hell am I wearing my robe?" Lying on a sickbay bio-bed, McCoy stared up though a haze.

"What is your name?"

"Huh?"

"Tell me your name, rank and serial ," the voice demanded.

"It's uh...it's uh...uh...McCoy. Leonard, H...my uh...I'm Chief Medical Officer; USS Enterprise...right?"

"Do you remember what has happened to you?"

"I've been in sickbay all evening, working, why?" McCoy struggled for his vision to clear.

"Incorrect. What time is it?"

The doctor narrowed his eyes. The face of Spock standing over him, finally materialized into view. "What time is it? You don't know the ship's time with that internal computer you call a brain? Well, the last time I checked it was 2100 hours." He worked his jaw and felt a buzzing all over his body, right down to his fingertips.

"You are mistaken. Listen to the ship's bells. It is not 2100. It is 0810. The next morning."

Unease spread to the pit of McCoy's stomach as he propped himself up on his elbows. "It’s the next day? Why am I missing a whole--Am I concussive? How about filling me in Mister Spock?"

Spock cleared his throat in an imitation of McCoy. "I do not know whether you will believe this or not, Doctor. I caught you, as you would say: 'en flagrante delicto' with the passenger we are carrying."

That was the most ridiculous thing in the universe McCoy had ever heard. Spock couldn't possibly know what he was talking about. "En flagrante delicto? That means caught in the act of sex, Spock."

"I know what it means, Doctor McCoy."

"But that's crazy. With the half-Vulcan, half-Deltan woman?" A chuckle escaped McCoy's lips.

"You do not remember?"

"No! What the hell are you talking about? Where was I supposedly engaged in this? Here?"

"In your quarters."

"Well then, tell me, how'd I get back to sickbay?"

"I pulled you off of her, got you out of your quarters and brought you here."

It had to be a joke. He'd probably just blacked out, hit his head somehow and now Spock was giving him a hard time about it. McCoy couldn't help himself and giggled madly till he was in hysterics; slapping his hand against the pad of the diagnostic bed. "Good one, Spock. You had me going there."

"Doctor, I am absolutely serious."

"This is ridiculous. I'm getting up...wait a minute...my god," McCoy said as every muscle in his body warned against his rising up. "I feel like I've been in a shuttlecraft accident." He hopped down, touching bare feet to the deck and staggered, holding onto the side of the bed for dear life. As he tried to walk, the deck did a flip flung himself face forward unto the bed and grasped onto it for dear life. "Jesus! What the hell is wrong with me?!" he gasped. "Are you sure I didn’t hit my head?"

"Doctor you are in serious trouble. I have something to tell you," Spock's far away voice through McCoy's haze sounded insistent as he dropped the bombshell: "You are bonded to her."

McCoy shook his head. "To who?"

"To our one you were caught in bed with," Spockrepeated patiently. "You are bonded."

"What?!," came the suddenly frightened, muffled response into the bed as McCoy struggled to process it. Somehow he knew, maybe bythe the tone of Spock's voice. This wasn't a joke. "What do you mean, bonded? Bonded as in...bonded? Like you were to T’Pring? As in: I'm married to her...Vulcan style?"

"Yes, you are... married to her."

It was too much for McCoy to deal with. "No...that can't be. You must be mistaken. I can't be bonded."

"Doctor McCoy. Listen to me. I can sense the bond. Very strongly... I might add. As you are well aware, I am telepathic."

"I'm going to be sick Spock. Help me up. I want to go to the toilet." Spock nodded and pulledhim to a standing position. He supportedMcCoy as he wavered andwalkedthe hapless doctor to the W.C.

As Spock watched, (and McCoy was beyond caring about that fact) the doctor knelt at the toilet and proceeded to lose everything he'd ever eaten or drank in the past three days. The dry heaves set in, pushing him to convusions and finally leaving him gasping in pain.

Finally it was finished. McCoy sank down, shattered, to a fetal position on the deck against the toilet, and felt the welcoming coldness of the deck against his face.

As he did so, he could feel a bizarre sensation in his mind. Something that moved the other way, when he moved one way. A scatter of fleeting alien emotions flooded him. He could hear a faint buzzing…Tinnitus? Or did he feel it?...he could not ascertain which. The nearest thing he could compare it to was an insect flying in his head. Fluttering, like a butterfly. Whatever it was it was making him dizzy, like nothing else ever had.

McCoy lifted his head up a few centimeters, and felt the deck spin over after a delayed second, then felt it flip over a little too far. He overcompensated the other way and realized that was a very bad idea. Finally helet his head loll back onto the deck andlooked straight up at the upside down figure of Spock.

"I can feel something…is that her?" McCoy breathed in sharply. He put his hands to his temples. Spock nodded down at him. Weak and unable to believe what was happening, McCoy repeated in dismay: "Oh my God. I can feel her floating around in my head!"

Spock pulled the ailing CMO off the deck, carried him through the Sickbay and laid him back onto the diagnostic bio-bed. As he did so Nurse Chapel poked her head in.

"Doctor McCoy you’re here! Is everything all--"

"Get out of here!" McCoy screamed.

Spock laid a hand on the doctor to calm him down. He jerked his head sharply at the panicked nurse. She took one look at the pair and fled.

"How'd this happen?" McCoy moaned. "I know a few things about Vulcans and in no way, shape, or form did I consent to bond with anyone!"

"That is apparent. However, you know absolutely nothing about this hybrid woman's chemical make-up."

"I examined her in sickbay--I think--I don't know--"

"This woman," Spock interrrupted gently, "has seduced you with Deltan pheromones and bonded with you as a Vulcan female would."

"How is it possible to bond with me against my will?"

"A Vulcan female’s psycho-physiological makeup is quite different than a male's," Spock explained. "A Vulcan female, even presumably a hybrid such as she, will form a psychic bond with a partner after sexual intercourse. Unbonded Vulcan females are celibate for this very reason."

"I'm absolutely stunned..." McCoy muttered, eyes closed. "I need--gimme-- a glass of water. And while you're over there…2 cc’s Althmazine."

"Spock nodded and fetched him what he asked, handing him the water and pressing the hypo against his skin. "That is not all, Doctor."

"No?" The doctor's voice was pure anguish as he sipped. "More bad news?"

"I do not wish to further alarm you, however, a forced and unprepared bonding with a stranger is a very serious situation for you to be in."

"No kidding..." McCoy sipped more water, grateful for it's soothing coolness. "Understatement of the year..."

"I am concerned with your functioning capabilities. You are in now in danger of not being able to complete your assigned duties. You are now compromising the ship's security. The woman will be able to access the ships medical records, science records, sensitive information and classified information."

McCoy swallowed hard. Shit. As he lay back on the bed, he suddenly felt a tingle in his groin and an insistent droning in his head. He wanted...something... he wanted...what? and he wanted it now. "Spock," he said. "Something very strange is happening."

"Doctor?"

"I feel really…You aren't going to believe this but I really, really want to...have sex with her, right now. The thoughts are consuming me. I can't help it."

McCoy felt the stirrings of an erection, and he covered his crotch with his hands and thought of the role of Bacillus Anthracis spore structures in macrophage cytokine responses...and felt himself calm down. That was more like it...anything to keep the sexual thoughts away.

The sexualthoughts immediately returned.

Spock raised his eyebrow at McCoy suddenly grabbing his crotch. "Last night you examined her in Sickbay. Try to remember. Was there a duty nurse here with you last night?"

McCoy tried to focus. "I remember now. Nope, just me on night watch! After she was beamed aboard, I was supposed to give her a physical. And, I started to, but, I couldn‘t resist escorting her to my quarters...and, once there, I took her... like an animal..." McCoy trailed off, disgusted with himself. He felt his penis become rock hard.

"Repeatedly?"

The doctor gave the Vulcan a sharp look. "Yeah, I guess so. Why?"

"Pon farr," said Spock suddenly. "You are exhibiting similar signs. I can sense it in you."

"WHAT?!" McCoy gazed over at the Vulcan, horror-struck, then barked out a nervous, high pitched laugh. "I'm in… pon farr? But... I'm...not a Vulcan...I'm human. That's absolutely ridiculous."

"This is not a true pon farr, but it is a condition very similar to it. Your scent is different than normal."

"Flip the scanner on," McCoy commanded. "What does it say?"

"Elevated testosterone and adrenalin levels. It seems to confirm my suspicions. The only logical answer is because you are bonded to a half-Vulcan female you will respond like a Vulcan male to her. However, because of the Deltan pheromones compounding the situation you might be trapped in this way continually, instead of in a seven-year cycle."

The anti-nausea/anti-dizzyness drug kicking in, McCoy found himself at last able to attempt to sit up. He sat up with difficultly, waved off Spock’s attempt to help; he was determined to do this on his own. He swung his legs down and stood on the deck. He was still a little shaky, but this was much better.

He thought for a moment, wondering if he should also take something to counteract the adrenalin in his system, but ultimately decided against it. However, there was something he needed. He stumbled over to the set of hyposprays and found an ampoule to treat sexually transmitted diseases. He snapped it in and shot himself in the hip with it. The drug stung. He grimaced as it entered his bloodstream.

"We have to get her out of your quarters, however, I am at a loss as to how we will get her to the brig without affecting another member of the crew," Spock was saying, as he followed McCoy through the sickbay.

"What about an all female security detail?" McCoy suggested.

"Negative. Her pheromones willaffect women equally strongly."

"Oh..." McCoy smiled at that visual.

"Who was present in the transporter room when she beamed aboard?" asked Spock.

"Just Jim and myself."

"No one else?"

"No I don't think so. Where were you?"

"I was off duty, Doctor. Do you not remember?"

"Oh, yeah... now I remember. Well, you're a Vulcan. Surely you can control your sexual impulses enough to put her into the brig!" McCoy found himself snapping back at him. He felt so much on edge, he felt like strangling somebody, anybody.

He looked at his hands and found they were shaking.

"As you are so fond of reminding me; I'm half human. Whilst I would not bond with her as she is now already bonded to you, the pheromones are affecting my olfactory glands as well. When I went to rescue you, it took everything for me not to...join in with you. I will not be able to resist upon further contact with her."

McCoy laughed faintly. "You nearly joined in? Yeah right. That would have been interesting. Actually why not? It might be fun. We could still do it…come on Spock.” His expression changed to one of deadly seriousness.

Spock said nothing, finally glanced at McCoy and shook his head in disgust.

"You can‘t have her, she‘s mine! I‘ll kill you if you touch her!" McCoy suddenly yelled, then caught himself. Embarrassed. "Sorry... it must be the pon farr,” he said sheepishly. Not knowing what else to do but shrug and laugh. "Well, I definitely can't escort her to the brig." He sank down into a chair, defeated.

"I am a fool for not quickly realizing what would happen if somebody were to be in close quarters with her. I should have warned the captainbeforehe beamed her aboard," said Spock, closing his fist.

"You were off duty. I should have looked up the file on Deltans, before her exam."

"As you are often fond of saying, Doctor: 'Hindsight is always twenty/twenty.'"

"I never say that!" McCoy huffed, then suddenly stood up. "I just thought of something. I'm able to impregnate her. Right?"

"You are not on a contraceptive schedule?"

"No! What the hell would I need the shots for? I haven't been with a woman in years. Who the hell do you think I am, Jim Kirk? You don't think--"

"Vulcan women are always fertile. It is possible for a human to impregnate her. However since she is half-Deltan she may very well be using a contraceptive. Were you not able to ascertain this in your physical exam?"

"I hadn't gotten that far," mumbled McCoy. "Spock, We have to undo this, I can’t stay in this condition. Can you break the bond?"

"I cannot. I tried whilst you were unconsious. It is too strong."

McCoy gulped. "Can it even be broken?"

"Affirmative Doctor. An accidental or forced bonding can be broken by a Vulcan priestess of sufficient ability. That is...assuming we make it to Vulcan on time."

"This has a time limit?"

"Correct," Spock replied. "The longer you remain in this bonded state, the more difficult it will be to undo. Eventually it will be impossible."

"Oh," said McCoy, glumly. "A Vulcan divorce. Painful?"

"Painful," agreed Spock.

"Well anything’s better than what I’m going through right now." McCoy shifted uncomfortably. "How are we gonna break this to Jim?"

"He already has been apprised of the situation. He shall return here, shortly."

McCoy sighed. "Wonderful."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

End of PART 2, LINK TO PART 3

THE RHAPSODY--Part 1

2008-12-05T03:02:00.001-08:00

AUTHOR: T'Prillah
CODES: S/Mc, Mc/f, S/Mc/f (implied) non-con, implied threesomes, voyerism
RATING: NC-17
TIME: Star Trek, TOS, towards the end of the Five Year Mission.
SUMMARY: McCoy finds himself accidentally bonded to a strange woman. Spock takes McCoy to Vulcan to break the bond...but things are never that easy. Their luck just keeps getting worse and worse.
BETA: TEMPEST (thank you!); all errors are my own, an additional thank you goes to Ellen, for her helpful feedback regarding content. I took that feedback and rewrote parts of this story hopefully for the better.
Acknowledgements: Thanks to Tempest for: 'Ka'athaira'. The character of 'Sorel' comes from 'The Vulcan Academy Murders' by Jean Lorrah.

THE RHAPSODY--Part 1

Leonard McCoy panted and moaned into the pointed ear; felt the ecstasy of climax as warm hands caressed his bare back. He couldn't believe how wonderful this was and how good it'd felt. And...how much he'd wanted it. "More," he growled. "I have to have more."

Suddenly the buzzer to his quarters sounded.

"No! Go away!" he groaned to the insistent noise. He finally struggled up out of bed and mindlessly shrugged a robe on. He tripped over his clothes on the floor as he staggered over to the door.

He popped the button, hard, with a closed fist, and the doors swooshed open; revealing the form of First Officer Spock.

McCoy froze. "Oh...hi..., what'cha doing here?" he wondered, his Georgia accent coming though very thicky to Spock's ears.

"Ah. Doctor I‘ve been..." Spock trailed off and looked the doctor over suspiciously. Expecting to view a wrinkled blue medical tunic, Spock was instead witnessing McCoy’s hastily donned black silk robe which was slightly askew. For Spock knew that the doctor normally slept in his uniform in case he was suddenly called to sickbay during his sleep period. Or that was at least what the doctor had always claimed.

Spock also noted the light in the doctor's quarters was lowered down to five percent. That was extremely unusual. For Spock also knew that the doctor was irrationally frightened of the dark and usually wound up sleeping with his lights set to at least fifty percent. Spock had always considered that action to be illogical as it was an unnecessary power drain, but McCoy had always insisted that he had his reasons. The cabin, additionally, seemed much warmer than usual for McCoy's own comfort level. The heat from the cabin hit Spock's face as it escaped into the cooler corridor.

The Vulcan dropped his gaze and found his eyes traveling down the robe from McCoy’s bare chest, to the legs then to the slightly pink bare feet. He looked up and raised his eyebrow as the chief medical officer gazed back at him blankly. "Yeah, Spock?" McCoy asked dozily. "What's on your mind?"

As the Vulcan attempted to walk past McCoy and inside, McCoy impeded his entry into the quarters by blocking the door with his body. McCoy smiled.

"Did I awaken you?" asked Spock. "Forgive me." His eyebrow threatened to reach the bottom of his bangs.

"Well, not exactly..." stammered McCoy. He met Spock’s questioning eyes, then muttered a, "hey...Spock, listen, I'm not alone, alright? There's somebody here with me."

"Who?" Spock couldn’t help but be genuinely curious and craned his neck in an attempt to see.

"Never mind," cooed McCoy faintly with a smile. "Just go away."

"You're acting very oddly, Doctor. Are you drunk?" Spock wondered. McCoy seemed different. Smelled differently.

"No, I'm not," McCoy whispered back at him. "I’ll...just...see you later, okay? Just go."

The first officer slowly nodded, turned to go, then suddenly staggered perceptively as if a wave had knocked into him. He stopped and gaped at McCoy in barely disguised shock.

McCoy hastily punched the button, shutting the doors on the stunned Vulcan. Letting his hand fall, he banged his forehead against the bulkhead in an effort to clear it. His heart was suddenly pounding, hard, in his ears. The room flipped over on itself. He leaned against the bulkhead to steady himself.

Struggling to get his bearings, he turned back to where a figure lay in the sleeping alcove. Waiting for him to return was a woman. A woman? How’d she get here? He must of blacked out from booze, but oddly he couldn’t remember drinking anything.

"Oh my god." He gasped as his feet suddenly walked him over in the direction of his bunk. “What am I doing? What is she doing here?” He struggled to remember, something, anything. The woman lay on her side, under his covers. An outline of her breast and hips showed very prominently. "Holy...hell..." he stared. He was shocked. She was beautiful.

He felt an urge to return to this woman in his bed. He stumbled forward towards her, then managed fight against it, sitting himself in a chair in the outer part of his quarters. He then felt the stirrings of an erection and found himself wanting her so badly that he‘d kill to have her.

‘God, no... what am I doing? Spock...I should really go talk to him, and explain myself. Yes, I should go explain what happened. Yes...yes...that's a great idea. I need to get out of here...’ he thought, panicking.

But...after a few moments he realized that leaving was unnecessary. He didn't want to leave. What was necessary, came the thought in his brain, was to have her...again and again. He moved over to the bed, as if in a trance. His vision was hazy. 'Tvi'koh'litak!' he thought to himself, using the Vulcan word for 'trance'. 'Wait a minute...how do I know the Vulcan word...?'

His mind froze in horror. He desperately wanted his feet to flee but he could not move.

Eventually, fleeing did not matter anymore. Nothing did, but his desire for her.

His feet took him back towards the bed. His gaze hardened. He roughly shook the woman and snatched the duvet off, revealing her naked body. He smelled the welcoming sent of alien musk as he bit down hard on her neck. She eagerly responded to him, as he pulled her legs apart and lay between her thighs.

As he felt himself enter her, he gasped at the intense warmth. Each time it happened he was surprised at the heat. 'How many times has it been so far?' he thought aimlessly. 'Six, seven times? Ten, twenty? At least.' As his body forced his mind to go through the motions of lovemaking, he lingered deeply, helplessly into the beguiling eyes framed by slanted black eyebrows. The coldness in her steel grey eyes appeared to him to stare down into his soul, reading his very thoughts. And could he read hers? He felt something inside him then realized he could feel himself enter her from her perspective. It was heavenly, or hellish and very addicting. As he moved, he caressed the luminescent skin, traced the delicately pointed ear, then moved his fingers to splay her head. Nary a hair was on her head. 'Or her body', McCoy noted as he felt himself come inside her. 'Or her body.' He felt her own orgasm spill into his mind.

After he had finished with her, or perhaps she had finished with him, (he didn't know which) he stumbled off of her, and away from her, towards the bathroom. Every time, he did this act, he felt disgusted. The room now constantly spinning; he muttered incoherently as he threw up in the toilet.

The door buzzer sounded. "ah've'krenath'!" he snarled from the bathroom. He walked back to the bedchamber, pulled the woman to him and kissed her savagely, eager to be one with her again.

The buzzer sounded again and he ignored it.

He was scarcely aware of someone overriding his door lock, pulling him off the woman, then ushering him out of his quarters.

END OF PART 1 LINK TO PART 2

-------------------------------------------

THE RUNES--part VII

2008-12-05T00:31:00.000-08:00

The Runes part 7
AUTHOR: T'Prillah
RATING: NC-17

---------------------

"Doctor McCoy?"

I glanced up from my monitor. Nurse Chapel was here in my office, pestering me again. "Yes?" I demanded. "What do you want?"

"Doctor, you've been in here all day."

"No kidding." In a huff I snapped off the monitor. "Nurse, do I have any patients needing treatment?"

"Well... no."

"Do I have any pressing duties that I may have... somehow...forgotten about?"

"No sir. I figured you might want to have something to eat or some coffee at least. Would you like me to bring you some coffee?"

"Listen," I said tightly. "If I would have wanted some coffee, I would have gotten up and gotten myself some. Now wouldn't I."

"Well, Doctor, I just thought--"

I stood up. "Let me tell you something... Miss Chapel. Do you know what your problem is? I didn't think so. Your problem is... you think too much. Now go back over to what you were doing before and leave me the hell alone."

"Doctor?"

I exhaled. "Yes?"

"Are you alright?"

"I would be even better if you left me alone. Do you think you can manage that? Nurse Chapel?"

She looked at me, puzzled for a long moment, then finally replied. "Yes sir."

"Then do what I ask of you and go!"

She just stood there.

I'd of thought I'd made it perfectly clear to her. Why didn't she leave? I took a step toward her. Did she need convincing?

She must of caught an odd look in my eyes because she stumbled back and finally left.

I rubbed my burning eyes.

What the hell was getting into me? To talk to my staff like that?

I poured myself a glass of Saurian Brandy and with a shaky hand I drank it down.

------------

I entered Spock's quarters at exactly 20:23. Time for the fourteenth Rune. Only two more to complete and we were done. Finally.

I glared daggers at him. My wonderful bondmate. It still made me angry just to think about it. I wanted to have a life after this Rune business was over with. Not a life permanently connected to him.

"You did not wish to stop by my quarters sooner?" Spock asked. I couldn't tell if he was genuinely concerned about me or if he was just being a smart-ass. Actually, yes, I could tell. He was genuine enough. "You have been off duty for quite some--"

"It's none your damn business where I was, Mister Spock," I snapped. I didn't care if he was genuine or not. I'd had it with him. "We're almost through. And it won't be too soon for me."

"Acknowledged, Doctor," he said stiffly.

I could feel the waves of hurt coming off of him. Without even touching him I could feel his emotions. It now worked both ways. However, right now. I didn't care. I wonder if he could sense that. Can you sense that, Vulcan?

"Leonard," he attempted, with widening eyes. "We did not finish our conversation from this morning. I had not--"

"Save it," I snapped. I picked up the velvet bag and shook it. "Let's get this one over with."

"Leonard," he sighed. "If you will let me finish--"

I stopped him with a look. I was ready to punch him. Just one more word out of him. "Are you deaf? Well then, let me tell you again, Mister Spock. Let's get this nonsense over and done with!"

"You are irrational," he said.

That was it. I tossed the bag of runes onto the desk. I rushed forward, pushed him into the bulkhead and got inches away from his face. I was seething. However, I noticed that he didn't resist me or my temper one iota. I knew he could probably pull my arms off if provoked.

Maybe it would be better if he did kill me.

"You bet I'm irrational!" I hissed. "And what about you? Is what you did to me, rational?"

"You must calm down," he said. "For both of our sakes."

"I don't give a rat's ass--"

"Leonard calm down--"

"So help me Spock!" I shouted. "If you--"

He placed his arms on my shoulders. "Leonard. I realize that you are angry. Let me explain what I must to you."

With great effort, I calmed down. Or at least gave some semblance of calm. "Okay, I'm calm! Happy? Now, what are you trying to tell me?" I demanded.

"Our bonding is not permanent--" he began.

"You're just saying that so I'll shut up--"

"Listen to me, Leonard," he said, quickly. "Our bonding is only a temporary one. An accidental bonding of this type, is never permanent."

"How the fuck do you know?" I rasped.

"I know. Just...trust me."

I studied him for a long while, then finally, haltingly found my voice. "Are... you...sure?"

"Yes, I am positive."

"Positive?"

"It will dissipate once we… cease to be intimate. Since we have only two Runes left to complete, you shall not have to tolerate this for much longer. I have been attempting to tell you. All day."

I finally nodded. "You're right. I could feel you. You tried to tell me after I left you…you tried to, in my mind, and I've been pushing you away…"

"Yes. You have."

"Oh… Spock!" I broke into hysterical laughter. "We're not trapped with each other after all!" Intense relief washed over me.

Then, my laughter disintegrated into uncontrollable sobs. He pulled me into his arms and held me tightly as the sobs continued to pour out of me. This bizarre crying fit was getting more and more intense. I needed to control it but I couldn't.

"Thy'la, " he murmured as he caressed my hair. His voice sounded pained to my ears, matching what I felt. "I did not realize this would happen. I should have, but as I have indicated, I have not been thinking clearly--"

"I could feel you," I gasped in between sobs. "In my mind. You've been trying…you've…you've been…I could feel you… holding me…comforting me… in my mind…all day."

"I am sorry, Leonard."

"Do you know how wonderful that feeling, was? It was wonderful--but at the same time--terrifying."

He held me tighter. "I know. I am sorry."

"...Are you...absolutely sure this condition is only temporary... Spock?"

He nodded as he continued to comfort me.

I finally pulled out of his grasp. I sucked in my breath...trying desperately to control myself. Not succeeding very well.

"I realize that this will continue to be a terrible invasion of privacy for you."

I nodded, picked up the bag and handed it to him and managed a: "Come on, let's get this over with." My voice cracked on the last word. The tears were still falling. It was terribly embarrassing.

He reached out to dry my tears as I attempted a chuckle. "I'm not usually this much of a crybaby."

"It is the Runes. As I have already told you, It has affected me in a similar manner."

"Yeah, but at least you're not having constant crying fits, screaming fits nor horrible bouts of paranoia, like I am." I dried my face with my arm.

"Empty conference rooms have come in handy for such occasions." I met his eyes and smiled.

He shook the bag, then opened it as I chose one.

"It is another blank rune," he noted.

I turned away. "Not again, Spock. This whole time it's--"

"The activity is your choice," he said. "But it has to be something new."

I sighed and thought for a moment. Fine. What a game, huh? What could we possibly do sex-wise that we hadn't tried before? We'd done it in his bed, my bed, on the deck in both quarters, in the shower, on his desk, on my desk, used different positions, fooled around in the observation deck, done it with a peach and with a tribble. Hell we'd have probably done it in the Captain's chair had nobody been around. There had to be something else we could try. Bondage? No....

A splash. My mind suddenly snapped to when I used to go skinny-dipping in Conyers back when I was a teen. Now, those were the days.

"Skinny-dipping," I blurted out. "We'll go skinny-dipping!"

"There is sexual contact involved in that activity?"

"Yeah...there can be. Look we're not really spoiled for choice. It'll be fun! Spock…you can swim, right?"

He nodded. "Ordinarily, most Vulcans cannot. However, my mother felt strongly that such as skill was important. She taught me how in Georgia."

I was strangely comforted by that. "You learned how to swim in Conyers?"

"I did," he said. "In a hot spring."

He grabbed my hand, and suddenly, I saw a memory that wasn't mine. I chuckled as the images flashed before me. It looked very familiar, that hot spring. Perhaps he'd learned how to swim in the same one I used to go skinny dipping in. Wouldn't that be something. It might even be a good laugh to take him back to Conyers with me and go skinny dipping, the next time we got a leave on Earth...no...you're not taking him to Conyers with you. Hell this sleeping together thing will be over soon. Soon...

"We could create something adequate in the holodeck," he was suggesting.

"Oh no. I'm not going into the holodeck with you."

"Why not?"

"Because... There's no telling what might happen with a holodeck program…forget it." I knew I was being unduly paranoid again. But I didn't care. However, I knew the computer did monitor everything that happened in there, and I didn't want to chance it keeping a record of me having sex with Spock.

"The swimming pool," he suggested. "However it is after hours. The pool is closed."

"Not to the CMO, it isn't."

We promptly left his quarters, walked down the corridor, matching strides, then very calmly stepped into the lift.

As soon as the doors shut us in, I pushed up against him.

"Are you certain that you are alright?" he asked.

I nodded.

After regarding me for a while with those deep brown eyes, he suddenly held out two fingers in what appeared to be a ritualistic greeting. I looked at him blankly, then caught on and met those two fingers with my own. In spite of everything that was happening, I felt a glow of wellbeing.

-------------------------

The door to the pool was locked as we expected it would be. I waved my hand in front of the sensor and very obligingly, there was a blip and they opened. I grinned with satisfaction, then for some reason I felt a stab of guilt. As a CMO I did have every right to be here, whenever the hell I wanted to. However, it was knowing what I would be doing while I was here that made me feel a little dirty.

As I snuck a mischievous look over at Spock, I felt like we were two teenagers sneaking around. Gods it's been years since I've even done anything remotely like that...I remember the first time... with…what was her name…Eris…something like that.--

"Leonard," he said. "Swimming in the nude with a female at the age of thirteen is rather young for a human, is it not?"

"Spock, stay out of my memories," I snapped.

"My apologies…however you were broadcasting very loudly."

"It's the association," I said sheepishly. I barked out an order to the computer to turn up the heat in the water; to something my Vulcan companion would find at least tolerable.

It had been a long time since I'd been here in the large swimming pool, located here next to the ship's gym in the bottom section of the ship. Been a damned long time. I pulled two towels from the rack and dumped them onto the deck. Standing at the edge, I eagerly pulled my uniform off. I heard the computer's faint voice announcing:

"Swimming costumes are available in the cubicles...located at--"

"Computer, shut up!" I yelled out.

Spock stood with me, looking down at the water. I could feel some uncertainness coming off him. It didn't look like he'd ever been in here. I stood nude before him, grinning. "Are you coming in?"

"Eventually." He eyed me warily.

I shrugged and walked over to the deep end. I took a running jump from the diving board and dove in, not before showing off by doing a back flip before hitting the water. Swimming up to the surface and laughing, I yelled over at Spock: "Gods...I haven't done this in years!"

I watched him as he slowly removed his clothes. I submerged and swam over to the other side. God this felt so good.

Resurfacing at the other end, I called out: "Come on, it should be warm enough for you now."

He very delicately slid into the water.

For a long while we both swam, and almost...dare I say it... played. Played! It was delightful and very relaxing being in this extrememely heated water. The more I swam with Spock, the more I felt that I was experiencing the real him. However, the longer I was in, the more homesick I was also getting. Finally the hour grew late. We needed to do what we came here for.

I sank underneath the surface, inched over to where he was and took his cock into my mouth. He enjoyed that, I could definitely feel that from him. But I could only last under the water for about 30 seconds.

I broke the surface, gasping. "Sit here, on the ledge," I commanded, breathlessly.

He did so, and as he sat up there, and I held on with one hand to the side of the pool, I once again took him into my mouth. I did what I knew felt good to me, what I now knew felt good to him. I could hear him murmur my name, interspersed with "yes...ohhh...yes..."

"Hmmmm," I purred, causing an even louder groan from him. I could listen to that baritone voice make little noises like that for hours. I carried on with whatever I'd learned from every prostitute this side of Wrigley's Pleasure Planet, moving up and down, till he was losing control and thrusting into me. It culminated with him coming deeply down my throat.

But I wasn't finished. I released his softening cock, grabbed his thighs and pulled him down again, into the water and gently bent him over. Oh... to have him, to feel him around me in this amniotic water...I ran my teeth down his neck to his shoulder as I slid a finger into an unresisting rectum. He was already ready for me. I centered my cock and slid all the way in. It didn't take me long to climax, hard, nearly keeling over with the release.

Afterwards, we showered and sauntered back to his quarters.

I was beat after all that activity. Without a word I pulled my uniform off, went and brushed my teeth and climbed into his bunk. Two minutes later he joined me, pulling my head to rest on his chest.

I slowly traced a line into his sternum, trying to spot his nipples covered with all that black hair in this low light. "Spock."

"Yes?" he whispered.

With a voice that was a little softer, higher than usual, I said: "What's going to happen-- after we're done with the Runes, I mean-- things just go back to normal, right?"

"The curse shall be ended."

I continued tracing a circle into the hair. "I know that. I meant...all of this between us...I mean...what's going to happen to 'us'?"

He sighed. I could feel his chest rise and fall with each breath.

I kept up the questions. "This bond. When does it go away, and how do we end it?"

"After the last Rune, we must cease physical contact for the bond to dissipate."

"Completely?"

"Affirmative. In order for the bond to dissolve we cannot touch each other, no matter how casually, or how briefly," he replied. I could swear I could detect a faint hint of...regret coming from him. Regret? Perhaps I felt that...too.

"You mean I can't even touch your arm. For how long?"

"For a few weeks."

"Spock," I said. "I'm your physician, how am I going to completely refrain from touching you? What if something happens in the meantime?"

"As you are fond of saying...we shall cross that bridge when we come to it."

I was too tired to argue. "Well, until then," I said, sleepily. "Goodnight my.... T'hy'la."

He held up his two fingers in response. I hesitated then matched them with my own. He started running them down the length of my hand, down to my wrist and back up again.

"Feels good," I muttered. "All you have to do is that...feels so good..."

"That is entirely the point," he whispered.

--------------

The door chime buzzed loudly in the dark. I sat up, gasping...reaching over for Spock, but he was gone.

The buzzer sounded again. I quickly slipped on Spock's robe, turned up the lights and called out "come".

It was the captain.

"Oh, hi Jim," I muttered. "I was...about to get ready for my shift. How about we meet in ten minutes for breakfast?"

He came over to the desk. "Bones, sit down. I want to talk to you."

I followed him over and sat down across from him. "I'm sure you do, Jim."

"Got any more brandy, Bones?"

I raised an eyebrow. "Brandy? At 05:00 Jim? Isn't that a little early for the booze?"

"Go ahead. I insist," he smiled. I threw him a puzzled glance and noticed that the smile hadn't reached his eyes.

I finally pulled the bottle out from behind me. "It's the same bottle you dropped by here before," I said.

"You didn't finish it."

"Should I have?" I wondered. I fetched two glasses and poured brandy in each. He watched me as I held my glass to my lips and took a long sip.

"Bones, I got another complaint about you."

I sighed. "Oh yeah… that. Look Jim. I don't know what's gotten into me. First thing I'm gonna do when I get to sickbay this morning, I'm going to apologize to Christine."

"You know, Bones," he said. "She's not the one you should be angry with."

"Yeah, yeah, Jim. I know. I know," I smiled sheepishly. I'm sorry about that--Wait a minute. Who should I be angry with?"

He looked at me. "Isn't it obvious?"

"Who... you?"

He chuckled. "Spock."

"Why should I be angry with Spock?"

He smiled at me for a very long time. A knowing smile. "He's lying to you."

"Lying?"

"Drink your drink," he commanded. I downed the contents of the glass in a couple gulps. Then poured myself another glass full.

"Lying?" I narrowed my eyes. "Jim...what is Spock lying to me about?"

He smiled again. "Have some more brandy."

I did, totally forgetting that I had to start my shift in less than two hours.

I finished up the contents of the glass once again. Jim poured me another.

"Are you trying to get me drunk, Jim?" I chuckled. He gave me one of his 'who? little old me looks and didn't answer me. "Jim!" I demanded. "What is going on? What is Spock lying to me about?"

"You know."

I rolled my eyes. "Jim, I wouldn't be asking you if I did. Now, what is he lying to me about?"

He smiled at me again with that cat ate the canary smile, or more accurately a 'cat ate the tribble' smile. "Do you realize that you can't break the bond, ever? You're stuck with him, Bones. You're an idiot for falling for that trick."

"What?" I downed the contents of my glass again and poured myself another. "How did you know that Spock and I are bonded?"

"I know...everything," said Jim. "And... about those Runes you have..."

"You know about them too?" I asked shakily. "What about them? They're... not really... cursed?"

"No they're not. He made all of that up to seduce you."

"Seduce me?" I tilted my head. "Are you sure, Jim? Now why-- He wouldn't--he wouldn't do such a thing. Not Spock. He can't lie."

"He can lie just fine, Bones. Spock's in pon farr," Jim explained. "A Vulcan in pon farr will do and say just about anything...to get laid. Believe me, I should know. Why else do you think he was so eager to fuck you after you bought those Runes? He had to have sex or else he would have died. You're a weak target but you're not that easy. So he made up this whole story about those cursed Runes. You fell for it, hook, line and sinker, Bones." He smacked the side of his head with an open palm. "You certainly are gullible, my friend."

"How... do you know...all of this?"

"Spock told me about everything."

I looked at the figure standing there, incredulously. "He did?!"

"Of course. Late nights… just he and I keeping watch on the bridge. We discuss things... you understand."

I swallowed. Somebody was lying. Either Jim or Spock. Jim had no reason to lie. Did he? But if Spock was in pon farr, then it had to be Spock. I'd seen how he'd been before. "I knew it!" I gasped. "God damn it. I knew it!"

My eyes were burning once again.

I needed some more eyedrops. I stood up from the desk and walked over to the mirror. "Jim ...you're absolutely certain that what you're telling me is actually the truth? You know what you're talking about. He and I are bonded; I can feel Spock's emotions. I should know if he was lying to me."

He snorted. "He can block his thoughts from you, you know. Just like you're doing right now, from him."

"I didn't know I was."

"Oh yes," Jim said. "You are."

How did Jim know that? Odd. But there were more important things to worry about right now. I picked up the bottle of eye drops and put them in my eyes.

Jim came up behind me, very close. I set the bottle down after I finished. The more I thought about it, perhaps Jim was telling me the truth. I leaned against the wardrobe and covered my face with my hands and said very softly: "That fucking bastard!"

"Yes," he said softly.

"How dare he?" I moaned. "I trusted him!"

Jim put his hands on my shoulders and massaged them. God that felt so good. His hands were so warm. I lolled my head back. I never knew he could do it so well. But I should have known. I never wanted him to stop touching me. "I feel bad for you, Leonard," he whispered. "I really, really do."

I felt like I couldn't control my emotions again. Everything...was failing me. "How could Spock do this to me?"

"He wants you for himself… forever," Jim said softly. "The next time pon farr rolls around. He'll use you again and again."

No no no..."What the hell am I'm going to do?"

Suddenly, Jim spun me around and pulled me closer into his arms. I found myself resting my head on his shoulder. Warm shoulder. Somehow, I didn't feel like resisting him like I had before. Maybe it was all the drink. Maybe I never realized how attractive Jim Kirk was. Warm hands. Those lovely hazel eyes. Almost as dark as Spock's...

Jim tilted my head up by the chin and gently met his lips to mine. I froze up in fear at first, then slowly...relaxed.

I opened my mouth up against his letting his tongue in to explore. I melted into him. He finally pulled his mouth away. "We don't need him, Leonard." He kissed me deeply again.

"We don't?," I protested into his mouth. No...I suddenly realized. We sure don't need him.

He kissed me again. He felt so warm, so wonderful. "Take me inside you," he said.

"Yesss," I hissed.

Grinning at my encouragement, Jim picked me up and carried me over to the bed. He laid me down very carefully then rolled on top of me, again covering my mouth with his. "Oh...yes..." I murmured. I was putty. We sure didn't need Spock...

"My Leonard..." he cooed at me.

Suddenly I froze underneath him. "Jim."

"Hmmmm?"

"Spock's on his way down here. He's come off duty."

"That's too bad," Jim said as he placed another kiss on my lips.

"If he finds you here--like this--"

"We need to do something about him," Jim said.

'Do something about him?' That didn't sound at all like Jim. But I wasn't sure. I wasn't sure about anything.

Maybe it was all the drink. "What do you mean?"

"You want to be free of him. Now. Don't you?"

"How?" I found myself asking.

"You can sever your bond only by killing him," Jim announced calmly. Then he threw his head back and laughed.

My heart pounded. This wasn't Jim. It couldn't be. Yet, here I was, listening to him. What was wrong with me? Why couldn't I move? "Are you kidding me? You've got to be kidding... Jim?"

"There is… no other alternative, Bones," he smiled. "Surely you should realize this."

I finally pushed Jim off of me and sat up. "Are you insane?!" I was coming to my senses. What the hell was going on?

"No...no....no...Bones. I'm quite sane. And Spock would agree with me. It is logical."

"No way!" I sputtered. "This is crazy...I'm not going to kill him... he's my friend... and...and... right now he's my lover And he's a fellow officer too, as you should realize… Captain. Also...I'd be court-martialed for murder. Hell, I'm not killing anybody for that matter--"

Jim laughed.

"Bones, Bones, Bones," he tutted at me as if I was an errant child. "I'm a starship captain. Nothing will happen to you. There are ways to cover it up. He'll die planet side. Or an accident...say in the shower. Or even better, suicide. Slit his own wrists with a knife. You're a physician. His death could be quick and painless and untraceable. Perfect."

"Exactly. I'm a physician. I will not kill anybody," I insisted, red faced.

"You killed your father," Jim said. "You ended his life. Don't you remember...Bones?"

I gasped. How did Jim know about my father? I'd never told him. How dare he bring up my father. My eyes stung as they began to water. But my anger came out in little more than a groan: "Jim...that was different...my father was in pain..."

"You'd killed him right before they'd found a cure...hadn't you."

"A goddamned cure..." I moaned. "Why Jim, why did you have to bring him up?"

"You are in pain now. Look at you, Leonard. You are suffering. And it's all because of Spock."

"Jim...I don't want him to die. I just want him to sever the bond. He told me--" another sob was forming in my throat. "He told me... it was temporary. It isn't even that bad really. I mean, I kind of like having him in my mind. I'm not alone anymore--"

"You damned fool!"

"Jim...don't call me that. I'm not a--"

"You love him." Jim sounded disgusted with me. I didn't want Jim to be disgusted with me.

"What?"

"Spock. You love him."

"Well... yeah... I guess so. We're... friends--"

"That's not what I mean. You're in love with him," Jim demanded.

"What?"

"Answer me...Are you in love with Spock?"

"I don't--"

"You want to stay bonded to him," Jim insisted.

"No...Jim," I protested. "No."

"You act like you're in love with him."

"I...I don't....I don't know. But... kill Spock? I--"

"It's the only way you'll be free."

"He's getting closer!" I shouted.

"You know what to do, Bones."

He's getting closer. I opened my eyes to find myself laying alone on Spock's bunk. Spock was getting closer, I could feel him. I pulled on his robe and leapt up as the doors swooshed open. "Spock!" I gushed a little too exuberantly. He gave me a sort of half smile in greeting.

"Good Morning, Leonard."

"Morning," I said a little shakily. I glanced back at the bedchamber.

"Was someone here with you?" asked Spock, watching me.

"What…? No..." I said. "There's no one here."

"Are you alright?" He sat down next to me. "I am unable to feel you."

I looked at him sharply. "Feel me?"

"Your emotions." He sniffed the air. "Have you been drinking?"

"Drinking? No." In a swift move I pushed him down onto the bed and rolled on top of him.

"You are exceedingly aroused," he noted.

"I am." I continued my thrusting against his thigh.

"Exceedingly..." he said again reacting against me pushing hard against him. "Is this your typical morning erection?"

"Nope," I sneered.

"Leonard," he said from underneath me. "We have not chosen a Rune for today. Do you not wish to wait till this evening--"

"Shut up," I grunted and pulled off my--his robe and let him see just how aroused I was. I straddled him, inching my hips forward, up his body and slowly moved up to meet his mouth. He looked up into my eyes, questioning.

"Put me in your mouth Spock," I commanded as my breath quickened. To my delight he did exactly that. He lay there on the bunk in his blue uniform and sucked me off as I hovered over him.

Within seconds, I came into his mouth, down his throat. "Yes..." I grunted. "Take it all..."

I got up from him and walked into the shower. "Thanks..." I called back absently.

------------------------------------

END OF PART 7
STAY TUNED FOR PART 8

THE RUNES--part VI

2008-12-04T23:48:00.000-08:00

THE RUNES PART 6
AUTHOR: T'Prillah
RATING: NC-17
_________________________________

I kissed him, gently, then lubed up. I was achingly hard. I centered myself at his anus, grabbed onto his hips and tried to push in, but he was tense. I couldn't even get the head in. "Spock…relax for me… let it happen…" He did let it happen. Let me all the way in, in one stroke. His snug, super warmth around my cock felt wonderful. It was hotter than I was used to, almost too hot for comfort. I was nervous for a short moment that I wouldn't be able to handle it, but I slowly got used to him. During my initial explorations inside him, my finger had discovered his prostate. I shifted angle to hit it. Very gently at first I thrust into him, I didn't want to hurt him, then I went a little faster. He arched his back, gasped, then moaned softly, then louder and louder. My moans matched his. The only sound in the cabin were the ones made by us--

"Prepare to leave orbit around Celus IV, Mr. Sulu." Captain Kirk's voice rang out, breaking though my delightful daydream. "Plot course to Gamma Trianguli VI."

We were off to our next assignment. "Should be nice…heard it's a paradise," I muttered, not a little wistfully. I still missed my shore leave on Barengaria.

"Course plotted and laid in, sir," Sulu called out.

"At our rate of speed, estimated arrival, two standard weeks," Spock announced.

"Doctor McCoy." Jim directed his attention over to where I was leaning very nonchalantly against the red railing in front of the science/library station. "Have you managed to finish your report of the Celus IV plant survey?" he enquired of me, coldly.

I had, of course, noticed that since our little confrontation in the lift the other day, he'd avoided calling me `Bones', or `Doc' or anything other than a curt `Doctor McCoy'.

"What the hell's that supposed to mean, Jim?" I hissed underneath my breath. "Of course I've managed to finish it." I flashed him an equally frosty glare. "I wouldn't be up here, wasting time, if I hadn't."

"Then how about heading down to the sickbay and fetching it for me?"

"Certainly, sir," I snapped back. "I'll have that sent up to you in five minutes. Captain."

I spun around to Spock. At that very same instant, he turned from the library station. We gazed at each other for a long moment. I felt Jim's eyes in my back, waiting.

I turned back to Jim, my face wrinkled into a scowl for an instant. I gathered up what remaining dignity I had, and exited the bridge.

I headed down to my office….to finish that report.

---------------------------

I handed Spock the Rune.

Closing his fist over it, he suddenly got what appeared to be a mischievous glint in his eye. "Tonight, I shall surprise you my thy'la."

I groaned. "Surprise me? Forget it. I don't like surprises."

"You used to," he remarked.

"Well I don't anymore. Just tell me what it says to do and let's do it. I'm not in the mood for games," I snapped.

I'd found I was doing a lot of that lately: snapping at him. And at Geoff M'Benga, at Jim Kirk—though he was equally touchy with me, and at Nurse Chapel, and at whoever got in my way. I felt increasingly on edge.

I rubbed my eyes. God they were killing me.

Spock studied me intently then pulled me into his grasp. I struggled to get away, but of course, I couldn't. Lightly at first, then passionately, he planted kisses on my resisting mouth, till I pulled away. "Just tell me what it says," I insisted.

"You shall enjoy it more if I do not disclose what it is."

"Dammit! Stop teasing me!" I yelled. He sighed and gave me almost a dejected look. I flopped down on his bunk, fully clothed. "Fine. Whatever. I don't care anymore. I'm just along for the ride, it seems."

He sat down next to me. "Self pity. How very unattractive. I believe--"

"I don't give a shit what you believe anymore," I sulked. "Just hurry up so we can be done for the night so I can go to sleep and you can go on duty."

"You are angry that I must stand third watch tonight," he observed.

"Yeah," I admitted with a wry smile. Spock hadn't stood a third watch, affectionately known as the `graveyard shift' since we'd started with the Runes. It was bizarre. Why was I so worried about it? I was a big boy, I should be able to sleep without him next to me. I didn't want to.

As I lay there continuing to sulk, Spock made short work of pulling off my uniform, then stood up to remove his own. I didn't bother to watch him strip like I normally did.

"You intend to be passive, Thy'la," he purred. "Then that is exactly what you shall be, tonight."

I dozed off in the warmth of Spock's cabin. "Yeah fine…whatever…" I felt his weight as he straddled me. "Ease off a little," I murmured.

Maybe I should put him on a damn diet card, like I did this week to the captain. Come to think of it, perhaps that's another reason why Jim's being so pissy with me. I mean, the stress of finding out his beloved Spock is now screwing his Chief Medical Officer compounded by the fact that he has to eat salads for a month, must be absolutely galling to him. Well, besides the fact that I've been day dreaming my life away instead of performing my duties.

Maybe Jim'll end up having me transferred off ship. Maybe that wouldn't be too bad an idea.

Maybe I should put in for a transfer after this Rune business is all over and done with. Maybe Jim--

My mournful reverie was interrupted by the sensation of a hot mouth on the head of my cock. I opened my eyes to see Spock crouched over me.

"Hello, Leonard." He looked up with a devilish glint in his eyes.

"Is that what the surprise is? A blowjob? Big deal." I closed my eyes again and pretended not to enjoy it. However my hardening penis was giving me away.

His tongue slid around my head, reached the nerve endings in the back and I squirmed a little. His tongue, expertly, (yeah, expertly) rubbed those nerve endings in the back of my cock. I was now achingly hard. I moaned and with the tip of his finger he circled the pre-cum around the head. His mouth sunk down, swallowing me up to the hilt. That felt so good that I nearly popped off right there, but sensing this, he pulled up and off. He waited for me to come back from the edge then swallowed me again.

Then he pulled up and suddenly ordered: "Leonard, lie on your stomach."

"No…don't…" I protested, for about two seconds. I finally gave in and rolled over.

He pulled me up to all fours; I grimaced and waited. It wasn't that I was totally adverse to him being inside me, I just didn't like it as much as I did being inside him. But if he wanted it that way, tonight, then he wanted it. I tried to relax as I waited for him to get lubed up.

Except, he didn't do what I'd expected him to. He caressed my ass then crouched under me to put the head of my cock into his mouth. Ohhh... that was good. That was damn good. I arched my back and moaned. He pulled his mouth away, continued stroking me with a hand then took up kissing and running his teeth down my ass. I drew my ass up into that sensation as I thrust down into his hand.

His tongue slid down into the space between my cheeks. Further and further down. And, I'll be damned if that Vulcan didn't start rimming me; gently pulling my cheeks apart and circling his tongue round and round my anus. This was a completely unique sensation that I'd never experienced before in my life. It was wonderful.

"Ohhhh yes," I moaned. "Yes, Spock." He slid a tongue in. "Ohhhhh, yes…" I encouraged him as he slid his tongue in deeper and deeper, as far as it would go. The sounds of my little cries filled the cabin.

More unintelligible sounds came out of my mouth as he continued sliding his tongue in and out of me. It brought me crashing up to the edge. "Spock," I gasped. "I can't hold off… " He hummed in response and the heat of his breath on my perineum, paired with low voice and his hot tongue inside pushed me to come hard, squirting all over the bed sheet. I collapsed down, avoiding the wet spot, panting heavily.

He spooned up next to me and held me for many blissful minutes as I recovered. That had felt so good; I couldn't believe it.

I finally looked over at him and smiled.

He nodded. The corners of his mouth turned up as he gave me one of those famous `smiling without actually smiling' expressions.

"Is that what the Rune ordered?" I finally managed.

"It is a blank Rune," he replied.

I yawned. "What does that mean?"

"It means that one of us can pick the night's activity."

"I think you're full of shit, Spock…you're making this up as we go along." However at this point, it didn't really matter. He lay down next to me, caressing my body.

There was a look in his eyes that unnerved me.

He shifted to lie on top of me. He arranged my legs over his shoulders and without a word, lubed up. He centered his cock against my now unresisting body and pushed in.

-----------

The chrono read: 22:45. I reclined on his bunk and watched him anxiously as he moved elegantly across his quarters, showering, then calmly put on a clean uniform. He stood at the mirror calmly combing his sleek black hair. From the looks of him you would have never thought even a strand had ever been out of place.

However, the more I thought about things the more I felt queasy. Tonight something had felt very, very wrong. I felt the whole situation spinning out of my control.

I hadn't really wanted him on top, tonight. Sure, he had been gentle enough with me. But I had noticed that lately whatever Spock wanted, Spock got.

I'd never seen that look of lust from him before. I hated to think it was Pon Farr but I knew instinctively that we'd set something off. It had to be that.

There was something else, much worse. As much as I tried to, I couldn't hide any emotions from him, anymore. I knew he could also read all of my thoughts. It was most likely a by-product from all the intimacy. But it left me feeling violated.

I would be damned glad when these Runes were finally finished. We would be done with the sex for good. We would hopefully get back to our normal lives. But what was supposed to be a normal life for us? How did we go back to being just friends after this? I for one wouldn't be able to look him in the eyes. I would always remember this.

He turned to go.

"Spock," I quickly called out from the bedchamber.

"Goodnight, Leonard."

What? No good night kiss? Nothing? I stood up from his bunk and walked into the office. I was completely nude. I used to be rather bashful about a sex partner seeing me naked, but no more. I made sure he got a good look at me in the low light of the cabin.

It felt a little strange for me to walk into the office chamber, like this. He stared at me. I must admit I now got a perverted pleasure in him seeing the body who kept him warm at night; the body that he was deliberately ignoring right now. The body that he had no more than a couple hours ago, drained all his seed into.

"May I suggest, Leonard," he said, evenly, "that you shower before falling asleep in my bunk. Please change the sheets, as well."

"Spock," I replied hotly, folding my arms. "I'll do one better! I'll take a shower, then, fall asleep in my own bunk! How's that?!"

His expression was stone. "I prefer that you remain here."

"Fuck you!" I spat. I rushed to the sleep chamber, picked up my uniform off the floor and pulled it on.

He was on me in a flash, grabbing onto my wrists. "Leonard," he whispered, "do not do this. Not now."

It hurt where he was grabbing me, but I didn't cry out; I wouldn't give him the satisfaction of knowing that he was causing me any pain. I stared back, stoically. Challenging him. "Do what you want to me, Spock. Isn't that what you always do?"

He released me. "Leonard."

"You knew I didn't want to be penetrated. You did it anyway."

He nodded. "I know. May we discuss this later?" I again saw the fear in his eyes.

I finally nodded and watched him sullenly as he stepped out.

-------------------

The first thing I notice is the smell. I feel the hairs on the back on my neck stand up. That is my only physical response. I inch my way into the overheated cabin. It is no use calling out…I know what I will find. But I still hold onto some irrational hope. As I get closer to the shower, the distinct sickly sweet metallic odor of blood gets stronger… I enter the bathroom, and finally the shower stall. I kneel down among the coagulated pools of blood and feel for the pulse at the neck. Nothing. I feel where the heart is located…nothing. The skin does not yield to my touch. Rigor is beginning to set in… death occurred approximately…14 hours ago. My scanner out…I check for possible minute brain function…nothing… from a precursory visual exam… I can tell the victim has been stabbed at least twenty- eight times along with an initial fatal slash wound at the neck, severing the carotid--

"SPOCK! Who did this to you!?" I screamed. I snapped awake, sweating and panting heavily. I sat up. It was dark here in Spock's quarters. I ordered the lights up. Oddly they would not function.

As I became fully awake, I realized that Spock was still on duty on the bridge. I could feel him there. I didn't know how I could. But, I could. He was safe and sound. I rubbed my eyes.

I glanced over at the demon-like creature on the fire pot. It's red light was the only thing illuminating the cabin. It was always there on Spock's ledge; that fire-pot. Funny, I never noticed it having that expression before. It seemed to be staring straight at me.

An eerie chill moved through my bones. I turned away.

Just then the buzzer sounded. I checked the chrono: 04:01. Who the hell would it be at this hour?

It was Jim Kirk.

"Bones?" He walked in with a bottle of Saurian Brandy and made himself at home by sitting down at the foot of the bed. He stared at me. I could make out his blank stare in the red light. I swiftly pulled the strewn about bedclothes over me for modesty's sake, realizing that I still was completely nude. In the warmth of this cabin, I always slept in the nude.

Now, I felt oddly vulnerable. Jim Kirk never sat on my bed. Maybe he always did that with Spock.

"Jim?" I croaked.

"Yes?" He continued to stare at me, calmly.

"Spock's on duty," I said.

"I know that," he replied.

"So… what are you doing here?"

"I came to see you," he said, still staring at me intently. "I wanted to apologize."

"At this hour? Can't it wait till later?"

"No. It can't," he said softly, still staring at me.

"Something wrong, Jim?"

"Just came by to talk, that's all," he replied. He held up the brandy. "Have a drink with me."

"Now, Jim?"

"Uh huh," he said.

Maybe Jim couldn't sleep. Maybe something actually was bothering him and he needed a friend. "Just a minute," I sighed. I rose up from the bunk pulling the sheet with me. Even with my back turned, I knew that for an instant, he'd caught a glimpse of my naked body as I dropped the sheet on the floor to slip on Spock's black silk robe. I could feel Jim's eyes follow my every move.

With the Vulcan robe now `protecting' me, I padded out to the office area in my bare feet, waving Jim over to the desk. "Sit here, Jim," I said. He seemed to rise up off the bed with great difficulty.

Ah. I knew my best friend very well, and my observations of his behavior right now told me that our esteemed starship captain would be needing a hangover cure in the immediate future.

"Jim." I clucked my tongue disapprovingly. "I think you've had enough booze, but maybe I'll make myself a little drink." I'd cut way down on the alcohol ever since being robbed on Barengaria. But, maybe there wasn't any harm in having just one.

"Computer, Main cabin lights up to forty percent," I ordered. They still would not function.

"You still have a few hours before you go on duty," Jim said, oblivious. "Have a drink. That's an order," he chuckled.

I chuckled too. "Sure, why not?." I fetched a glass and took the bottle of Saurian Brandy out of Jim's hands. Pouring the liquid into the glass, I mused, "So let me guess, you were feeling a little guilty about the way you've been treating your kindly old doctor lately. You couldn't sleep, so you thought you'd have a few too many then come on over and pester me." I drained the entire glass of brandy, then poured myself another.

He didn't respond to my comment. He just stared at me, blankly. I laughed feebly and got up from the desk. I felt the crisp silk of Spock's robe fluttering around me as I went over to Spock's dressing table and picked up a bottle of eye drops. I gazed into the mirror as I put the soothing liquid into my bloodshot eyes.

God, my eyes were killing me.

I felt Jim's presence right behind me. His voice seemed to be right in my ear. "What's the matter? Eyes hurt?"

"Yeah. I need to have them checked out by M'Benga. Maybe they didn't heal prop--" I stopped and stared into the mirror. I couldn't see Jim. I should have been able to, even in the low light of Spock's firepot, but I couldn't see him. I spun around in alarm. "Jim? You have no reflection in the mirror."

"Probably just your eyes playing tricks on you."

That must be it. The acid spill really did do a number on them.

Suddenly I noticed a strange odor wafting in. "What's that smell?" I demanded

"Smell? The spicy- flowery scent? It always smells like that in here, Bones. Doesn't it? You should know. You seem to be spending a lot of time in here."

"It smells like copper… or even…urine." I finished up with the eye drops and sniffed the air.

"No…I don't smell anything like that, Bones."

"I could swear…" I looked around the cabin, walked into the bed chamber, sniffing, and walked back to Jim. "It's all around Spock's quarters."

"Well, perhaps it's a malfunction in the heating duct, but it smells like Vulcan spice to me." He shrugged.

"Okay Jim. Fine. Let's talk, shall we?" I beckoned him over to the desk again.

He remained standing then creeped up a little closer to me. "He doesn't mind you wearing his robe?"

"No. Not really."

"Oh."

I studied him. "You didn't come over here at 04:00 just to ask me about Spock's robe."

"No."

I motioned for him to move back to the desk with me. I picked up my glass and drank a huge gulp of brandy. "Jim?"

"Yes?" He continued to stand there and stare at me.

"Just how much have you had to drink tonight?"

"Drink?"

"Yes. You appear to be highly inebriated," I said. "That's unusual. We aren't on leave." I'd had to carry this guy countless times out of bars on various planets. But on board ship he usually restrained himself to one or two drinks.

"I'm fine, Bones," he said softly.

I sighed and set my glass down. It made a soft tap in the quiet. "Uh, look," I said. "I know you're having a difficult time dealing with…" I made a wide gesture. "All of this going on."

He gazed at me.

"And, I want you to know," I continued. "That--very soon--you get to have him back."

He laughed. "That's very kind of you, Bones."

"As soon--"

"As soon as you're done fucking him," he finished the sentence for me. Then he laughed again. A very hollow, sinister laugh. That was not like Jim at all. Even a drunk Jim. "Isn't that right, Bones?" he asked.

I folded my arms around me. "Jim. Listen. I never meant for this to happen. I'm sorry that-- I'm sorry that we hurt you."

"I miss him."

"I know." I studied my bare feet. "I know you do."

"And, I miss you, Leonard," he said.

Uh... "Sure Jim. I miss you too. You and I haven't had a drink together in a while and I--"

He very quietly inched up even closer to me. "I've known you for fourteen years--"

"Yeah I know--"

"And I never…ever…knew that you liked men. In that way."

"I don't," I replied, honestly. "Not really."

He smiled. I guess not believing me for an instant.

Suddenly, there was a slight pinging noise. Probably the ventilation system. Jim turned his head to investigate and spotted the Runes in the corner, sitting there on Spock's ledge. I had thought they were on the bedside table. Perhaps Spock had moved them. Jim immediately made a bee-line for them. "What are these?"

I didn't feel like giving a long detailed explanation to a drunken Jim. "They're nothing."

"Nothing? They look like something." His hand hovered over the velvet bag.

"Please don't touch them, Jim. It's just a pretty trinket I bought on Barengaria Seven." It would be my rotten luck that he'd come into contact with them, and then I'd probably have to have sex with him too.

"Don't touch them? I'm the captain," he chuckled. However, he finally lost interest in them, luckily without laying a hand on them, and came closer to me. "Leonard."

I stepped back. "I think you should leave. Go back to your quarters. Sleep it off. I'll cert you too ill for duty and come see you later on in the day. Okay, Jim?"

He didn't obey. "What's the matter, Bones?"

"Nothing. I just--"

He leaned in even closer to me. Close enough to where I could smell his breath.

"That robe makes you look very--" He suddenly looked around him, shocked. "I'd better go home." He went towards the doors.

I got up and followed him. "That's a great idea. I'll come by and see you later on today. Here I'll give you back your brandy bottle, hang on." I turned away from him to pick up the bottle off the desk; turned back to where he was standing.

He was gone.

"Where'd he go?" I asked aloud; the hairs on the back of my neck standing up. My hand shook as I poured yet another drink. I downed it then poured myself another.

I would be damned glad when Spock came back.

As I finished up my brandy, I decided not to wait for Spock to return. I would go meet him on the bridge. There was no way I was going back to sleep. Not now.

I pulled on my uniform. The silk of my sickbay tunic was wrinkled from where it had laid folded up on Spock's dressing table. I didn't feel like spraying on anti-wrinkle, nobody would notice at this hour. Till the shift change at 06:00, it was still considered night watch, with a skeleton crew.

I strolled out into the darkened and deserted corridor and entered the lift.

Just then, James Kirk bounded into the lift. Eyes bright as a button and crisp as can be in his golden uniform. "Morning, Bones. Your uniform's wrinkled. More so than usual."

I started. "Jim? I just saw you a half hour ago. You were--"

"I was what?"

"You were…well… you were very drunk."

"When?" he chuckled, mildly.

"Just a half hour ago. You came to see me in Spock's quarters. Don't you remember? I suppose you're headed up to sickbay, wanting me to medically sober you up," I growled.

"Bones!" he snapped in his usual `I've had it with your bullshit' voice. "What the hell are you talking about? I've been in my quarters. Asleep."

"Oh..." I shook my head in bewilderment.

"Smells like you've had a lot to drink, Bones. In fact it looks like you can hardly see straight."

My head snapped up. "Yeah, I guess so."

"Late Reports. Daydreaming. Late for your shifts. Mistreatment of your staff. Now this. You're on report, Doctor McCoy," he snapped. "Report to sickbay and get yourself checked out."

"Yes sir."

----------------------

"What does it say?" I couldn't see it from my vantage point.

"Well sir, there's nothing physically wrong with you. However you are experiencing some fatigue," said Chapel. She hovered the Type II small scanner over me as I lay on the biobed. Then she looked up as she confirmed it with the findings on the bed scanner. "Normal physiological functioning, Doctor."

"Well," I snapped. "You're just a nurse. What the hell do you know?"

She jerked her eyes in my direction, stung. I imediately felt like a jerk. What had come over me to say that to her? I'd already been warned once by the captain.

"Of course, Doctor McCoy," she replied curtly. "I'll return to my duties, sir." She stalked away.

"Christine...I didn't mean..." I groaned in her wake. God dammit.

----------------------

According to Spock, the Rune said: utilize a sexual position that we hadn't tried before. Or something to that effect. I didn't know where he got this stuff, but nevertheless, we did it.

I started out by stripping for him slowly as he looked on. He seemed to enjoy watching me undress. I enjoyed undressing in front of him. Never used to. But now I did. I didn't know if it was because it was him watching me, or now I felt more comfortable in general. I pulled off my boots and let them thud onto the deck. I pulled off my silk tunic, held it up with one finger then let it fall, just like I'd seen a stripper do. There was no self conscious giggles from me, not anymore. Never again.

That look in his eyes as he watched me was pure concentration. Almost as if he was committing all of this to memory. I touched my black undershirt. I pulled it up and off, and dropped it, slowly. I could see myself in his mirror from where I was standing. It caught my intense blue eyes. Is that what I looked like when I gazed at him in bed? I caressed my own chest hair; traced my clavicle with a finger. I didn't have as much hair as he did. His eyes were riveted.

It was quiet here in Spock's cabin, enough to hear a pin drop. My hands slid down my belly to the fastening of my trousers. I teased him by sticking a finger in my waistband and running it back and forth. But I got hard doing that and these damn trousers hid nothing. I swiftly unfastened them, and slid them down. They fell down to the deck with a soft thump. I walked up towards the bed, sat down and removed my underwear and socks. "Take your fucking uniform off, now Spock," I ordered.

He did.

He stood up naked. His pale green cock stood up proudly. I laid down on his bunk. I picked up the bottle of lubricant that he'd made up when we'd first started these Runes, opened it up and sniffed it. Vulcan spice. As long as I lived and breathed, I would never forget that scent. Ever.

Anticipating what I wanted him to do, he took the bottle of lubricant from me. He poured it into his hands; applying the sweet smelling oil generously to my flushed pink, equally proud cock. As he applied the oil, he pulled my foreskin back and forth over the head of my penis. God that felt so good.

He hovered over me and slid a finger inside him. He readied himself, then lowered himself slightly to rest his anus against my head. Oh...I willed him. Now. Do it now. Again I saw the look of intense concentration in Spock's eyes. He let his weight carry him down, enveloping me. As he sank down on my cock, he bent forward to kiss me with those bow shaped lips of his. That kiss was sloppy; hungry. We relaxed into each other.

He pulled himself up, then down, then up, repeating it again, again and again. If there'd been a red alert right now calling us to duty; we wouldn't have been able to stop this.

Then suddenly I was coming and coming deep into his ass. He came too onto my belly. He collapsed forward and I held onto him.

The sex was getting better and better.

I dozed off still holding on to him.

-------

01:00. Spock was on night watch again, so I'd decided to pull an all-nighter in the sickbay. I was exhausted after that latest sexual encounter of ours, hours earlier, but I didn't want to sleep in his quarters without him.

I was in the sickbay mirror putting more eye drops into my burning eyes, (God these things were killing me.) when I heard footsteps pass by.

"Christine," I spotted her tidying up around the sickbay and cleaning slides. All of the orderlies were off duty for the night. "I'll finish that up. Your shift ended five minutes ago. You go get some sleep."

"Thank you, Doctor." She smiled and left me to it. Apparently grateful that I wasn't snapping her head off for a change.

I picked up the box of slides and continued where she'd left off. In the quiet of my sickbay, save for a few hums of the bio- monitors in the main ward, that I'd left switched on, it felt comforting in here. This was my home. It had been for two years so far and now I couldn't imagine being anywhere else.

My subordinates thought I was crazy, but when my reports were done and there was nothing else to do I had no qualms about performing what was considered the most menial of tasks around the sickbay, such as this… simply cleaning up.

I remembered the look Chapel had given me, the first time she'd saw me cleaning my own slides. I suppose they figured physicians normally didn't lower themselves to such things. Especially the CMO. It was awful, but true. We expected everyone else lower in the pecking order to clean up after us, I guess. I mean I wasn't the neatest person in the world, I had my dirty uniforms and bath towels spread about the floor of my quarters and now was doing the same to Spock's abode, but I hated to be picked up after.

I chuckled as I remembered that look of Christine's. That was the same look she had given me when she found out I could knit. And I could. Fast. Without looking down at my fingers. Many surgeons can knit, it keeps our fingers nimble. The art had been around for hundreds of years on Earth. I knitted Christine a scarf for her last birthday. She couldn't believe that, I'd actually hand knitted her a damn scarf. Come to think of it, scarves have been around for hundreds of years, too.

I should knit Spock one. I should make him wear nothing but the scarf…

I felt myself get aroused again and chuckled. Never failed.

It was so blissfully quiet in here that I decided that once I was done here, perhaps I would watch a movie or something in my office. Or perhaps catch up on a medical journal. Or do some knitting. Or sit in a chair and fantasize about my evening with Spock.

I put the box of slides away, sighed deeply.

And turned right into the face of Jim Kirk.

I jumped. "Oh! Jesus, Jim! I didn't hear you come in--"

"Bones?" He grabbed his shoulder. "This is killing me."

At first I regarded him suspiciously but he looked like he really was in pain. I finally beckoned him over to a bio-bed in the deserted main ward. Of course. He didn't need to say anything more. He'd suffered an old injury when we'd first met, fourteen years ago. He'd actually severed that damn arm off right at the shoulder in an explosion when he was a lieutenant. I'd reconnected that shoulder and arm a micron at a time. It took me 26 hours of surgery to complete it, but I did it. However periodically it would give him trouble. That was to be expected. A quick bout of therapeutic massage and he was always good to go. Till the next time I had to patch him back together.

As I watched him pull his tunic off, I couldn't help but notice with amusement that he never wore a black t-shirt underneath it like the rest of us did. Didn't he ever feel cold?

He lay down for me on the bio-bed and I dug my fingers underneath the clavicle, where it had shattered in the original injury, then slid them down and dug into the socket where the arm had severed, and put pressure on them. He closed his eyes. "What are you doing here so late Bones?"

"Just felt like finishing up some work, that's all Jim. "What's the matter? Pain keeping you from sleeping?"

"Hmmmm…I was looking for you."

"You were? You could of summoned me on the comn--"

"Didn't feel like it."

"Oh." I sat him up, finished up with his shoulder then patted him. "Okay. All done."

He continued to sit there. "Don't stop. That feels really good."

I sighed. He was going to weedle a complete back rub out of me. "Alright. Lay back down and roll over."

He suddenly reached out and pulled me to him.

"Jim? Hey, what are you--"

"Bones," he said softly. In a fluid move, all without releasing his grip on me, he hopped down off the bed and pulled me into a crushing embrace. Before I could react he pressed his lips onto mine.

I struggled to pull away, but he had a tight grip on the back of my neck so I patiently waited till he broke the kiss. "Jim?" I laughed in spite of myself as soon as he pulled his mouth away. "What the fuck are you doing?"

"I love you," he said.

I gaped at him in shock. I couldn't move. He tilted my chin up for another kiss, but this time I was successful in averting his mouth. Undaunted, he pushed me back till I smacked into a bulkhead. He crushed his body into mine, pushed his pelvis onto mine.

"Knock it off Jim!" I struggled to break away from him, but he was stronger than I was.

"Leonard…" he leaned over and breathed. "I want you."

I could feel his hot breath on my neck. Ugggghh no.

I was furious. "You want me? Jim? Are you insane? Right here in the goddamn Sickbay?"

"Anywhere," he growled.

I shook my head. "Oh…no…no you don't, Jim. Get off of me. What about Spock?"

"Spock?"

"Yeah. SPOCK. Don't you want him?"

"I don't want him."

"I thought there was something going on between you two."

"No. Who told you that?"

"Nobody. I just thought--"

"Leonard, I'm in love with YOU…!"

"…I'm in love with you!" I snapped awake and bolted upright with Jim's voice reverberating in my head. I was alone here in Spock's quarters. Absolutely alone. God dammit! Why did I just have a dream about Jim? I felt sick. I felt absolutely disgusted and sick.

I went into the bathroom wanting to throw up. I tried hard. But I couldn't. I put my head into the sink and turned on the faucet. I kept my forehead in the water stream till the nausea passed. I glanced over at the bathroom chrono: 0600 hours.

I wasn't on duty till 08:00 but I knew Spock had just gotten relieved off watch by Jim (coming in early) and was now off the bridge. If he got off duty early, sometimes he went and hid somewhere, now that I was staying here with him, using the time to meditate. I took a shower, dressed and instead of heading over to the officer's mess for breakfast, I decided to go looking for him.

I didn't even have to think about it. My feet brought me to the observation deck.

I found him sitting there, staring thoughtfully at the stars. He didn't seem very surprised to see me.

I plunked down on the bench next to him and also stared out into the macrocosm. "I must be psychotic," I announced, bluntly. "I have to be. I've become exceedingly paranoid. I'm smelling strange scents in your quarters. I've just had a lucid dream that Jim jumped me in the sickbay; telling me he's in love with me. I think I spoke to Jim in your quarters the night before, but I'm not certain."

He nodded. "I know."

I looked at him askance. "How do you know?"

"I just do," he replied.

"Spock, I'm going to have myself declared unfit for duty and have a full psych eval run on me."

"Unnecessary. Your apparent psychosis is not your fault. It is due to the Runes."

"Oh... is that all it is," I mumbled.

"This artifact is affecting both of us in various ways which is most unsettling."

"Both of us? You're affected as well?"

"Indeed. My judgment has been off. I am also making many technical errors. My mind is occupied."

"With what?"

"Copulation."

I nodded. "Yes. I had noticed."

"My lust for you appears to be increasing, the longer the Runes reside in my quarters."

I nodded. "I thought perhaps it was Pon Farr. So that's also, the Runes? You're tied to these ancient things, somehow."

He nodded. "We Vulcans share a great psychic empathy with the past. Once in a while, we will come into contact with an object and will subconsciously take on many of the attributes of the ancient society which produced it. In this case, it is the highly sexualized society of the F'Thinrakathi."

"You're becoming sensual just like they were?"

He nodded.

"Well, then it's a good thing I didn't bring home a sword from your violent civil war," I remarked.

"Indeed," he replied. "That would have been most… unfortunate. However there is more to it than that."

Another chill ran though my body. It felt very cold here in the observation deck. "Spock...I...I don't know...I feel afraid. It's irrational. I know that deep down. But...I'm terrified."

"There is good reason for your feelings. However, I cannot do anything to assist us. We must ride out the rest of the Runes and hope for the best."

"Hope for the best? That's not your usual way of thinking."

"Till the Runes are finished, it is."

I cleared my throat. "Listen. I've also been having some nightmares about a newlywed couple. They were stabbed to death. I've been having dreams like that since we started those damn things."

He sighed. "I know. The original owners of the Runes."

"Who were they?"

"In my own research, I discovered that the original owners were a Royal couple who had been brutally murdered. They were in the middle of the course of these Runes. The Runes were a wedding gift created by the Bride's grandmother as an aid in sexual intercourse. The couple were not able to finish the course of the Runes. They shortly after became cursed. As legend has it, In order for the curse to be lifted, a couple must finish them. Not just any couple. One of red blood, and one of green blood, who share dreams."

"How did you discover this?"

"Partially from the VSA, I have access to records that are not in the public domain. And partially from T'Pau."

"T'Pau?"

"That is correct," he said. "For a time in her youth T'Pau had been chosen to carry the katra of the last remaining F'thinrakathi priestess. While it was being moved from one recepticle to another, she was the guardian of it temporarily."

"So...T'Pau knows about the Runes."

"All Vulcan's know of the legend."

"And what does she think about you having sex with a human... man?"

"She agrees, it is logical. It is imperative that we end the curse of the Runes so that they may be safely returned to the museum."

"The sooner we can take them to the museum, the better Spock. I'll be glad to get rid of them. It just seems strange that an object is affecting us so much."

"It is not that unusual. You have a similar occurance in your history. In Kabbalah and Jewish folklore there is a phenonomon known as the 'Dybbuk'."

"A Dybbuk?" I nodded. "I know what that is. It's a malicous possessing spirt believed to be the soul of a person who commited a serious sin while they were alive. But, it's just a myth, Spock."

"Do not be so sure. In the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries there existed an object known as the 'Dybbuk Box'. A Dybbuk had allegedly attached itself to an object. A wine box. The box had been supposedly created before World War II to trap a malicious spirit during seances. The box became cursed. It was rumored to have a hand in many tragic events during that war. Each subsequent owner of this box has also experienced a string of personal tragic events. One had nightmares that an old woman beat him repeatedly. Another had nightmares of attempted rape. Other experienced strange scents of cat urine and flowers. There were instances of burning eyes. Another suffered a stroke. Another, an onset of psychosis and rages."

"I read about that too. Spock. It was just a hoax."

"It was never absolutely proven to be a hoax."

I shifted. "Spock...about that document I read on your terminal..."

"Yes: 'Hear O Israel, the Lord is one. Blessed is the name of his honored kingdom forever'," he said.

"A prayer," I realized.

He nodded. "It is an ancient Jewish prayer said in times of fear or death. I was translating it into ancient Vulcan."

"Spock," I looked at him. "In that document, that prayer was repeated over and over again. You filled up 500 pages with just that one phrase."

"Indeed. Each prayer was repeated fifty two times per page. A total of twenty six thousand times. That should be sufficient."

The thought of Spock performing an action so obsessive was unnerving. "Sufficient for what, Spock?"

"Protection."

"Why?"

"I am also...afraid."

My blood went cold. "If you.... say that... the Runes are similar to this 'Dybbuk Box' then, an evil spirit inhabits the Runes?"

"I believe that they are inhabited by the katra of the murderer of the Royal couple. This person was killed shortly after their deaths. Shortly after that the entire civilization of the F'thinrakathi was irradicated."

"The Runes are haunted?" I breathed out slowly, patiently. This was alot to swallow. "Do you think the Runes caused the death of a whole ancient civilization?"

"I do not know. Quite possibly."

"So you're not certain."

"I cannot be certain about anything," he admitted. "However recent events aboard the Enterprise would point to the validity of my findings."

"So is the Enterprise in danger?" I asked.

"If we do not finish them. There is a chance."

"We only have two days left to finish. So we're okay...right. Just two more days. Nothing terrible will happen in two days."

"Agreed. We most likely have nothing to be concerned about."

I was quite for a few moments; then I realized something. "Spock. You've just said that a 'couple' were fabled to irradicate the curse. We're not really a couple. Is that enough to end the curse of the Runes?"

He grimaced.

"Spock. Answer me. Why would it uh....'believe' that we were a couple? It was purely coincidental that you read the parchment with me. Wasn't it?"

"It is not coincidental. We are indeed the fabled couple. And, we share dreams."

"I thought Vulcan's didn't dream."

"Contemporary Vulcan's do not. The other half of the couple must be one with green blood--one who dreams. That is I. Since I am half human, I possess the capability to dream."

"Spock. How are we able to share dreams? I'm not telepathic."

He looked down. I glanced over to where he was looking. His fingers were tightly clasped together, almost to the point where he was white knuckled. Spock hesitated, then finally said, "You are indeed telepathic."

"No," I protested. "You must be mistaken. I'm nearly psi-blind. I have a very low rating--"

"You most definately possess some telepathic ability. As strong as my mother did even before she bonded with my father. A human must posess some ability if they are to bond."

"Bond?" Then suddenly, it hit me. "Oh my God. You and I are bonded."

"That is correct," he confirmed.

I hit the padded bench. Then I hit it again and again and again. No matter what else was going on... real or not. This was definately real.

He watched my outburst without comment then waited for me to calm down.

He continued on calmly, "Upon our being intimate, a marriage bond was created between us. It was initially a very light link. It formed precisely because of your apparent latent telepathic ability. I had hoped…I had hoped that… you would not notice it. However, it deepened. Slightly. Enough for you to become aware."

I cleared my throat. I felt like I was going to pass out. He'd hoped I wouldn't notice? "So you mean to tell me, we bonded, just from… having sex?"

"Before that. It occured when I merely touched your lips with my fingers."

"The first time you kissed me. The laser beam in my brain. That was you bonding with me?"

"I am sorry."

That bastard. He knew that would happen all along. He did it deliberately. I stood up, eyes blazing. "You weren't going to tell me anything, were you! You were just going to let me wonder why I was going insane. Dybbuk Box! Ancient haunted Runes! Bull! Are you out of your Vulcan mind? Why did you do this to me?! How could you do this to me?!"

"I did not intend for this to happen."

"That is absolute bullshit! You're in pon farr, that's it. Isn't it. You need somebody to take it out on and you decided I would do as I'm the weakest one. You probably tried to bond with Jim and he fought you! I sure as hell would never consent to a bond with you! You knew exactly what would happen! You seduced me!" I screamed at him full volume, got up and made my way to the exit.

He stood up. "Leonard, please--"

"You wanted this from the beginning!" I yelled back. "I didn't want this with you! I feel powerless, like I'm a little lamb about to be sacrificed."

"No Leonard," he replied. "Ancient Vulcans only sacrificed virgins--"

"That's not very goddamned funny!" I stormed out of the observation deck, kept going down the corridor till I made it to the lift.

In the lift I began shaking uncontrollably. I hit the `stop' button and sank down to the deck into a crumpled heap.

I rested my head onto my knees. "No…" I groaned. "This wasn't supposed to happen. I never wanted this to happen. Not with him. Why me? Why now?"

I should have never bought those damn Runes. I should have left them there. I'd only come in the damn shop for the Romulan Ale, but it had been too expensive. These Runes were so cheap. I should have known. Should have bought the Romulan Ale anyway. Anything but the Runes. They were so enchanting. So beautiful. Now I'm trapped. All because of me.

I should have known.

I'm trapped with this lunatic Vulcan. Forever.

The tears came. I didn't even bother trying to stop them from rolling down my cheeks.

I sobbed into my knees.

I sobbed and sobbed and sobbed till the silk of my sickbay smock was drenched with my tears.

Then… I felt something.

Something in my mind. Intertwining around my thoughts.

He was trying to comfort me. In my mind.

Leave me alone! I screamed out in my mind as loud as I could. Then I screamed it out loud, just in case he'd missed it.

I sat there for long minutes, feeling sorry for myself. Knowing he was right here with me. Not letting myself feel him.

/no please it's too much...all of this is too much...I can't handle this…/

/leonard/

/leave me alone, Spock…/

Drawing up all my strength, I was able to clamp down and shut him out. If I just didn't think. I could shut him out.

I eventually heard the soft chime accompanied by the emergency light and the computer's pleasant, non-committal voice asking if I needed assistance. It always happened if you stopped the lift for too long.

I finally gathered myself together, stood up, popped open the door and exited.

I walked with a stiffly controlled expression, along with my red face and wet tunic, past a few curious glances in the corridor. I stopped in at my quarters--my own quarters, which, oddly, seemed very cold.

I quickly changed my uniform then went on to my duties in sickbay.

---------------------------

End of Part 6.

THE RUNES--part V

2008-12-04T02:12:00.000-08:00

AUTHOR: T'Prillah
RATING: NC-17

_________________

THE RUNES PART V

"Have you any…lubricant?" Spock asked me, once again.

"Hmmm?" I struggled out of my satiated stupor to glance over at him.

"Lubricant," he breathed into my ear. "I wish…I wish to be within you."

Oh… "You'll have to make a req from stores," I muttered.

He nodded, rose up out of bed; walked into the other room with his erection leading the way. My increasingly widening eyes followed him, nervously. Calm down McCoy. You knew it all was leading up to this. However, I noted with alarm that his penis was a little too big for what was about to happen. It had never seemed much bigger than mine before, but right now this second, it looked huge.

After a few moments Spock beckoned at me from the other side of the partition. "I need your chip."

"My what?" I asked, in a daze.

"Your data-chip."

Right…he needed my card to requisition an item from the ship's stores. And knowing me, I probably threw it absentmindedly over in the corner with all of my reports and I was going to have to get up out of my bunk and help him look for it.

With food, an Enterprise officer or crewman could synth up anything they wanted, though I'd put many of the crew on special diet cards. However with any kind of toiletries or other personal articles, we had to requisition each item from ship's stores. Any item was then immediately beamed over by the Enterprise computer. And…there was a record kept of all requisitions, so I knew that meant the duty officer will know the CMO is asking for sexual lubricant...and the duty officer--Lt. Commander Jones, was one of the biggest gossips on board ship.

Okay…I certainly had a right to order sexual lubricant if I wanted to. I might be asking for some for medical reasons, (however I'd really be req'ing that from the sickbay.) "The chip is--uh--over there--somewhere behind my desk," I said, hesitantly. "I think. You'll have to look around for it."

After patiently digging through my stuff on the ledge, Spock found the chip. He scrolled through the menu with his thumb. "There is nothing entirely satisfactory in the ships stores," he called out. "For future couplings, I shall have to create my own lubricant from scratch."

Future couplings? We're going to do this again? "They've gotta have something adequate," I called back. "Just hurry up and pick something."

He returned with a small bottle and handed it to me. "This shall do for now."

I looked at it. "What's wrong with this?"

"The scent is not pleasing to me. Appropriate scents during love making are very important to Vulcans. Especially ancient Vulcans." He lay down on the bed next to me, pulling me close to him again. "Are you ready, T'hy'la?"

He wasn't wasting any time, was he? I gulped, "I...uh... suppose so." Now things suddenly seemed very awkward between us.

"Turn over," he commanded.

"Wait, wait!" I laughed and laid a hand on his chest. "Slow down. You have to get me warmed up again, first. Kiss me."

He pulled me to him by the chin. Even after a few minutes of kissing him, I still felt my heart pounding terribly.

"Relax…" he whispered into my ear.

"Listen Spock. Ordering me to relax isn't going to just suddenly make me relax," I found myself snapping at him. "I'm trying to, okay? This is a new experience for me, you know."

"I can sense your reluctance to do this."

"You're right, I am reluctant," I admitted. "But, I know we have to do this." I smiled in an attempt to sooth us both. "I'm sure it'll be fine. Come on Spock."

He laid his hands on me again and sighed. "Leonard."

I laughed again. "What?"

"I can still sense your reluctance."

I looked away, ashamed. "Don't worry about it, Spock. It's nothing personal. It's just--"

"You are frightened of being penetrated."

I nodded. I was fucking terrified of being penetrated.

"Do you trust me?" he asked.

I didn't answer him. Instead I asked him, "Why can't I penetrate you?"

"You have already achieved sexual satisfaction," he replied calmly. "I wish to penetrate you in order to achieve mine."

"Great," I huffed and folded my arms. "So, we have to do it your way!"

He pulled my arms out of their folded position and said, "This is meant to be pleasurable. I will not injure you."

"I know that." I kissed him. "It's okay." Then I thought of something. Maybe it was silly but it was worth a try. "Hey, Spock, you know when you kissed me for the first time with just your fingers and it felt like you were really kissing me with your mouth? Can't we do that with sex?"

I actually got a smile from him for that one. With teeth showing. Well, almost. Fascinating. I guess for him that was akin to a laugh. "There is," he said. "However, the Runes demand real physical copulation."

"Do they, now?" I said and rolled my eyes. How the hell did he know?

"Will you lie back?"

I finally did what he asked of me. He sat between my legs and rubbed my thighs for what seemed like an eternity, then gradually he inched my legs apart, squirted some lube on his fingers. He gently touched a warm finger to my asshole. I groaned softly, closed my eyes and forced myself to enjoy the touch. Then, I felt him slowly slide a finger in. My eyes flew open. "Oh…no..."

He pulled it out. "Relax."

"Look. I'm trying…"

"You are extremely tense."

I sat up on my elbows and glared at him. No kidding. Yes, I'd had internal exams performed on me in the past. I'd also performed hundreds of them on patients, when a scanner wasn`t cutting it. However, a clinical exam was nothing like Spock touching me like this, right now. I'd never felt anything remotely like this before.

Finally, I gave in and flopped back down, nodding at him to continue. His overheated finger inside me gave a weird combination of pleasure combined with the urge to defecate. I'd never had a woman do this to me. I probably never would have let her.

Spock left his finger in place for a moment letting me get used to the sensation. Slowly he drew it out. Equally slowly he slid it in again. "huhhh," I gasped. It was starting to feel good. I hoped to hell he knew what he was doing. With his other hand, he began stroking my penis. This was even better and eventually, I began writhing; enjoying his invading finger and surrounding hand.

I felt the finger move across my prostate gland. I jumped, "It's too much."

"Shhhhh," he said, continuing to stroke my cock and gently probe my rectum for long long minutes. I did appreciate that he was taking all the time in the world, too. Then it was two fingers, then later three. Starting to really enjoy it, I squirmed up then back onto his fingers.

He inched up, so I could grab onto his cock, so I did, stroking him, very softly. I could feel the pulsing.

Suddenly, slowly, he pulled his fingers out of me. "Flip over," he commanded softly. I nodded and rolled over onto my stomach. I felt his hands on my waist inching me up onto all fours. He leaned over me, biting me on the shoulder, murmuring softly in my ear, to the point where I could barely hear him: "Your physique is agreeable, you feel cool to the touch, your skin is soft…" then he bit on my ear, then my shoulder, then onto my other ear.

He bit my shoulder again and I leaned my head back into the sensation as he did so. I wanted him to bite me harder, and as if sensing what I wanted, he bit onto my shoulder, hard this time, till he could probably taste blood.

He rubbed my shoulders again for awhile, tending to the knots; I loved the feel of the commanding heat radiating from his long fingers. I wanted him to bite me again, and he did. I groaned this time.

He moved his hands down my back down to my lower back, to my waist. I heard him pour more lube into his hands. I moaned as I felt hot fingers caress my scrotum. God...he acts like he knows what he's doing. How does he know what he's doing...just from watching porn? Wait a minute--he never said he actually did watch it... he just said he had done research...but... what kind of research...? "Uh...Spock... are you a--?."

"Shhhh," he ordered again. He pushed a finger up inside me. I moaned again and looked back at him to watch him lube his own penis with his other hand.

I kept my breaths even, and tried not to think. He remarked softly: "I anticipate that you will feel slightly uncomfortable at first--"

"I know," I grimaced.

"I am not going to injure you. Will you remember that?"

"Yes--yes--get on with it," I grunted.

He hesitated and carried on telling me, "If you feel any serious discomfort, I shall feel it too and stop. Is this acceptable to you?"

"Uh huh," I agreed into the pillow. Get on with it.

He inched his hips up to me, placing the tip of his cock to my ass, but merely kept it there, rubbing the entry with it, and reaching round to stroke my own penis with his other hand. I concentrated on relaxing my muscles. After pushing, he managed to slip the head in.

It hurt. A lot. Oh...Jeezus!... did it ever. I cried out sharply in pain, but he held it there, waiting for me to calm down. I struggled to move away, off of him, but he grabbed onto my hips and held me still. "You are fine," he reassured me. Yeah right. Trying to adjust to the unique feeling of him inside me, I tried to relax again. I was absolutely willing myself to do it. I knew that my tension was causing it to hurt more than it probably should. I had expected there to be some pain, however, just not this bad. Why didn't he let me move off of him? "Spock…" I gasped.

"Leonard," he said. "Trust me."

After a few minutes, he slowly slid in a little more. I tensed up again, then caught it and forced myself to relax again. He inched in a little more. I tensed again. This was going to take a lot of getting used to.

"Tell me what you are feeling," he said, softly.

"Don't…you…already...know?"

"I wish you to vocalize it."

"It's not too bad." To my embarrassment, my voice cracked on that last word. Immediately knowing I was being untruthful, he pulled out of me then positioned me to lay on my right side. Spooning me, he held me close for a few minutes enveloping his arms around me.

I lay back into his arms, feeling his chest hair tickle the back of my neck.

I laughed ruefully. I was actually trembling. "God… I'm sorry," I smiled. He didn't answer me, but caressed my hair for a few long moments with long fingers. "Go on. Try it again," I insisted.

I guess was, by now, determined to get through this.

Pulling my leg over his, he applied, (very generously I noted) more lubricant, then with a hand he centered his cock on my asshole once again, and gently pushed his head in. This time it was better, alot more comfortable, and I let him get it in further.

"This is…immensely pleasurable…Leonard," he murmured.

He was feeling immense pleasure? Because of me. Upon hearing him tell me that, an intense wave of passion crashed over me. "Huhhh," I moaned. I relaxed immediately and let him get the rest of the way in. The pain dissipated and his cock inside me started to feel really… really good. I moaned louder as his penis suddenly hit my prostate. The prostate putting pressure on the back of my penis felt like nothing I'd ever experienced before.

I couldn't believe I'd never done this before.

Spock continued to gently thrust into me, continuing the rub on my gland with a slow steady pace. I felt his hand closing around my cock.

I was touched by the care he was taking with me. He wasn't letting passion overtake him; he was going slowly. Though, now, he could go a little faster...Oh! Now he was. He could tell instantly what I was feeling and obey my commands.

"Yes, I can," he confirmed, out loud.

The motion of us together propelled his hand clasped around my penis. It was wonderful to hear soft moans coming from him, first sporadically, then continuously. That low voice of his, making noises I'd never heard him make before, joined with the sounds I was making, was highly arousing. Knowing I was the reason for his moans pushed me closer and closer to climax.

I came first, gasping a: "Ohhgod…" probably waaaaay too loudly... then about two seconds after me, he came too, inside me, clutching me and gasping.

He lay his head on my sweaty shoulder for a long while, then as he got soft, he gently pulled out of me. Both of us fell back onto the bed.

He scooped me up and I lay in his arms, exhausted and satiated. I realized that I'd climaxed twice in one night. I'd never done that before. Ever. Never before had sex felt so… "Spock, that was wonderful…" I murmured and drifted off to sleep.

I woke up, looked over at the chrono, gazed over at him and snuggled closer to the sleeping Spock. I wanted to keep waking up and snuggling closer. It was bliss. I felt so loved and cared for. I fell asleep again. This was what I always wanted. Never to be alone again.

I woke up again; checked the chrono. Two hours till I had to go on duty. Noted that I was held firmly ensconced in the sleeping Spock's arms. I gently touched his face to wake him up. "Spock..."

"Hmmm?" came the dozy baritone voice in the dark.

"That was wonderful."

------------------------------

In Spock's quarters, I handed over the Rune I'd chosen for tonight.

"Fascinating." He closed his fist over it.

"What?" I asked impatiently. "What is it?"

"a'T'lehsai. Use of an object to facilitate lovemaking," he replied.

"Sex, again?" I groaned and cradled my head in my hands. He looked at me askance, till I chuckled, "I'm just kidding. So, sex utilizing an object, huh?" This was getting more and more interesting. "It shouldn't be the same object we've used before during just foreplay, correct?"

"Affirmative. However I am at a total loss as to what we should use… this time."

I came over and slid my arms around him. "It should be...something sensual," I breathed.

"I have nothing suitable in my quarters for us to use."

I thought back to my shore leave exploits on Barengaria and on Wrigley's. "I know what we could use!" For some reason I was very excited about this. "Hang on. I'm nipping over to my cabin; I'll be back in seven minutes," I said, then added. "Seven point two to be exact."

I saw his eyes dart up to the ceiling at my choice of words as I darted out of the doors. My laughter trailing out with me.

I was back in five.

"Hey, look what I've got," I pulled a little something out from my medi-kit. (Well I didn't know where else to stick it while I transported it over here) "If Jim Kirk knew I had this--"

"What is it?" Spock gazed at the cooing little ball of fur in my hands. He was as intrigued as I knew he would be.

"Why my dear Mister Spock." I flashed him my most seductive, sultry smile. "This little ball of fluff is called a tribble."

"A tribble?" He continued to stare at it, entranced by the purring. I placed it into his hands. "I… am unfamiliar with such an..."

"This is an animal, Spock."

"I see that, Leonard. However, it is unlike any one I have ever seen. How does it eat or breathe?"

"I don't know, I haven't figured that out yet," I chuckled. Spock stared down at it, then immediately started to pet it. It was as if he was in a trance. I nodded as I noticed the effect it was having on him. "Well Spock, the Rune didn't specify if it had to be an inanimate or an animate object, did it?"

"What is its function?" Spock asked as he continued to pet it.

"Does everything have to have a damn function to you?"

"Yes."

"Its purpose, Mister Spock, besides staying alive, is that it loves."

"Loves?"

"Sure `nough," I confirmed in the thickest drawl this side of Atlanta. Then I asked him sweetly, "Have you ever made love… using a… tribble?"

"No… I have never--" He couldn't finish. He was entranced by the trilling noise. "I have… never...." He swallowed, hard. "Is this not--considered---"

"Bestiality?" I finished his thought. "Well, maybe it is," I chuckled. "Well....no...not really. We`re not having sex with it. Just using it to have sex."

"There is…a difference…?"

"Don't think about it."

"Len?"

Len. He must really be out of it. "Yes?"

"I am… finding it difficult to form any… coherent thought."

I laughed. "Yeah...I know. There's a tranquilizing effect in the trilling noise. Directly affects your central nervous system. Don't worry; it wears off in a few minutes if you put it down. I've examined it already with a tricorder. The effects are not permanently damaging, not even to that Vulcan brain of yours."

He kept on petting the soft brown fur even as he said, "A tranquilizing effect? Yes...I find that I am severely… affected by this creature."

"I know," I smiled, evilly. "More so than I was."

"How...how… did you acquire this?"

"From a prostitute on Berengaria," I said innocently.

He looked up me with an undisguised shocked expression, not even trying to hide his emotions anymore. "A prostitute gave you this?"

"Yeah, this is what I found in my pocket, instead of my credit chip."

He swallowed. "I see."

"And being as she helped herself to my credit chip and I`m still upset about it the more I think about it, I figured I'd better put this little tribble to good use. Right, Mister Spock?"

He swallowed again. "I do not know…I am not certain--"

I came closer to him. "Spock, do you trust me?"

"Implicitly."

That hit me right there. Somehow that was the greatest compliment anyone had ever given me. Especially since it came from Spock. "Want to try something probably a little out of your comfort zone, but some harmless fun?"

"Fun," he repeated.

"Yeah. But I know you're able to tell what I'm thinking at the moment, so can you block out my thoughts for a little while? Block my thoughts out. Completely."

"If you wish."

"Then do it, and hurry up." He eyed me suspiciously, then reluctantly disengaged a hand from the tribble and placed that hand on his temple for a few seconds.

I put my arms on his shoulders as he resumed petting the tribble. "Now. You won't be able to anticipate every time I touch you tonight."

He raised an eyebrow. "What have you got in mind?"

"Shhhhh," I commanded. I pushed him backwards, him still holding onto my dear little tribble; pushed him all the way back into the sleeping chamber and down onto his bed. I climbed on top and straddled him.

"Are you still blocking me out?" I asked. He nodded again. I fished a black cloth out of the medi-kit that still hung at my waist. I tied the cloth around his eyes, blindfolding him.

To test his vision, I waved my hand in front of his eyes, then suddenly dove my hand underneath his tunic and tee-shirt, causing him to twinge perceptively. I smiled, satisfied. I took off my medi-kit and gently lay it down on the bedside table and removed my uniform. I wanted to get all of that out of the way. I let my boots slowly and deliberately drop out of my hands and onto the deck, one right after the other, so he could hear it and know what it signified. I saw his breathing increase slightly in response and he waited, expectantly.

"Keep petting the tribble," I commanded. He obeyed. I didn't have to order him twice. "Are you okay?" I asked.

He breathed. When he finally spoke his voice was dozy and pitched higher than usual. "I am blind. In more ways than one. I cannot sense your thoughts with your touch. The effect is slightly disquieting, but tolerable. From the tribble…I feel a…large sensation… of pleasure and calmness radiating up to my cerebral cortex from my spine."

"Good," I said. Amused at the long winded response to my simple question. I pulled the zipper down at his neck then swiftly removed his blue tunic and the black t-shirt and then tossed them both very deliberately onto the deck. He had released his hold on the little breathing ball of hair only to facilitate their removal, and then once again he stroked the creature, as I'd commanded him to.

I looked at the rise and fall of his bare chest as I caressed the black hair on his sternum. I felt him jump again. "I keep catching you by surprise, do I?"

"I am--"

"Quiet," I said. I traced a finger down the thin strip of hair to rest on his belly. I watched him as he slowly stroked my little tribble.

Yes of course, I was already aroused as hell and I noted that the same thing was happening to him, I could see the trapped erection in the black trousers he still wore. But I wasn't going to remove his, not yet.

I took the tribble out of his hands and gently set it on the bedside table as I bent down to kiss him. At first he was startled by the contact then responded to me, rather hungrily, I might add.

I roughly pulled away from him.

I thought for a moment, then decided to just go ahead and do it. I pulled out some restraints that I had in my kit for patients that fought me; remembering that once or twice I'd even had to use them on him in the past. But, this time would be different.

I tied his wrists to each side of the bunk.

"Have you done this before?" he managed.

"What, in bed? No I haven't," I whispered back. "But, I've always wanted to try something like this."

With Spock now properly restrained and blindfolded to my satisfaction, and him appearing... oh.... so very vulnerable, I picked up the tribble. Still straddling Spock, I touched the ball of warm breathing fur to his face, very gently running it down his cheek, under his chin, to the other side. I heard a low gasp come from him and saw his arms flex against the restraints. Excellent. The tribble started to coo louder, it obviously liked all this attention too.

"Are you enjoying my little tribble, Spock?" I asked him softly.

"Hmmmm," he murmured. I kept up rubbing his face with the tribble, over his lips and dragged it up to tease his ear. He leaned into the sensation, moaning softly. I couldn't get over that. The sound of his soft little moans of pleasure. As I was stroking his ear with the tribble, I traced other ear tip with my fingers. I saw him flex against the restraints again, and moan softly again. Taking his ear into my mouth, I alternated sucking on his ear and tickling the other ear with the tribble.

"Leonard," he gasped. "I cannot--"

"Shhhh, you're doing fine." I did back off a little bit, to allow him time to recover from the sensation, then I dove in again. Just so I could hear him moan again, softly. This time I also got from him a sharp intake of breath.

Lying down along side of him, I pulled his face over and covered his mouth with mine, biting down hard on his lower lip as I traced the ball of fur down his neck to his chest, circling the nipples I could never see because of all that black chest hair.

I moved the tribble down to his belly, then back up to his pectorals, then back down to the belly. His penis moved in response, trapped by his trousers, diverting my attention. I could tell he was so very achingly, hard, as I was. I detected the telltale spot of pre-cum, but I wasn't going to touch him there, not yet. I traced the tribble up one of his bound up arms, to his fingertips. Somehow that was more intense for him then it being on his chest. He gave a soft cry out.

"Okay?" I pulled it away for a bit. I wanted to pleasure him, not torture him. He nodded. "Want me to touch your fingers again?"

He nodded.

"Ask me, Spock."

Without missing a beat, he asked. "Will you touch my fingers again?"

I giggled. Yes I did, this time. "Do you like that, thy'la?"

He nodded again. I complied and slid the soft little tribble up his other arm, tickling the hair under his armpit, then up his forearm to his wrist, to his long fingers. He writhed and moaned again. Then I slid it down, to his chest to his other arm, up to the fingers.

God, we could do this all evening, just this. However I knew it was starting to be too much for him.

I decided to finally pull off his trousers. In the meantime I rested the little ball of fur on his belly, watched as it moved across his body on its own. I say, move, because I don't know how the tribble propelled itself. Walked? I don't know. I smiled at that. Meanwhile, I busied myself with divesting Spock of the rest of his uniform, especially his underwear.

I heard his voice, very high pitched, very soft, suddenly say, "Leonard. I need a release. Touch me."

"Where?" I asked.

"You know where," he gasped.

"No...I don't know," I teased. I slid the fluffy tribble down his hips, avoiding his penis, then down one of his legs, all the while hearing his moans get louder. Then I moved it down to his feet. As as I tickled them, he jerked them, nearly kicking me in the face. "Careful," I chuckled.

"My apologies," he panted.

"Shhhh." I moved up his other leg, again avoiding his cock then down the other leg, to the other foot. He seemed to be beyond caring what I thought or whoever heard in the next cabin and was starting to moan even louder. "For fuck's sake, be quiet...Jim might hear you," I shushed him.

"Leonard," he repeated. "I need a release."

"When I get good and ready, Spock."

"Leonard."

"I want you to beg," I insisted.

He paused and said very softly: "Leonard, I cannot. I fear...I fear...I am losing my dignity."

Dignity? Dignity? That’s a laugh. "Spock, you and I both left our dignity at the door when we decided to use these Runes. Now,” I said. “Do what I wish or you won't get anything."

"What…what…” He still couldn’t form a sentence without stuttering apparently. “What…"

"Beg me," I demanded. And smiled. Like the devil himself. "Go on. I want to hear you beg. Now."

"Leonard..."

I picked up the tribble and held it away from him. "Beg me, or you get nothing."

"Leonard..." Flex..

"Do it!" I demanded.

"Please, give me a release," he said. "Please." I paused and looked at him. He groaned: "Please."

I chuckled. "That was very nice of you to ask. Thy’la.” Now. I decided to end his misery. However, at this point, I was unsure. Do I touch his cock with the tribble? Is this crossing the line into bestiality? Do I dare? Who cares? I went ahead and set the tribble back down onto his belly.

I watched my darling little tribble move on its own, slowly, down to his thigh. It moved very close to the vicinity of his black pubic hair. As I saw him once again flex against the restraints, It gave me a thrill to see how he was powerless to do anything to help the situation, he could not touch himself or me, as bound up as he was. His arms flexed again and I heard him groan even louder. "Do you like that sensation, Spock?" I cooed. So did my little tribble.

"Yes..."

"Tell me how much you like my tribble, or I pick it back up."

"I like your tribble a great deal," he gasped.

“A ‘great deal’ doesn’t sound very logical my dear Mister Spock,” I chuckled.

I rewarded him, by picking up my dear little tribble, and rubbing her soft little fur onto the length of his penis.

He jerked his head back and came instantly with a strangled cry out, his cock jerking hard and shooting a large amount of wetness onto his stomach. As all of this was going on, he managed to free an arm, ostensibly to reach for me, but instead brought it down viciously onto my face, effectively punching my lights out.

I flew off the bed and collapsed onto the deck along with the bedclothes into a tangled heap.

I believe was actually out for a few seconds, maybe a few minutes... I don't know. "Shit..." I muttered in a daze as I dabbed at my eye.

"Are you injured? I cannot see you." He felt around for me, till I sat up and grabbed his hand.

"Damn lunatic." I untied his other arm and took off his blindfold.

"I have injured you, Leonard." He noticed, eyes wide and fingers reaching out to touch my face. "I apologize."

Laughing hysterically I said, "I guess that's what I get for tying you up!" I could feel the spreading warmth on my face where it was starting to swell up.

"You should have it attended to in sickbay."

"What? Now? Are you kidding me? I have my kit here. I'll take care of it...later." I took the tribble off of Spock's belly. "Good girl," I cooed at it, kissed my tribble and laid it very carefully on the bedside table.

I reached over, grabbed a towel to mop up Spock’s belly and to pick up the new lube Spock had made up the other day.

I opened the tube and allowed the scent of the lovely spices to waft though my nose. "Now..." I commanded as I looked down at my still very prominent erection. "Flip over, Spock..."

"Doctor McCoy."

"Hmmmm?" I looked up directly into the face of Geoffrey M'Benga.

"You were a million light-years away just now."

I looked around the deck 7 science lab and to where I was standing, at my microscope studying slides of the various flora and fauna found on Celus IV.

I chuckled at him and touched my eye. It still hurt from last night.

-------------------------------------

"Morning Jim." I nodded politely at the captain as he joined me in the lift.

"Hi Bones." He graced me with the biggest smile I`d ever seen from him. "Coming up to the bridge?"

"Yeah, why not?" We rode on in silence for a few moments.

"Wonder where Spock is this morning," Jim said casually. "I didn't see him at breakfast."

I grew quiet for a moment, suddenly found myself searching inward, found myself replying: "He's in the hydroponics lab." My eyes widened. How the hell did I know that? Spock hadn't told me where he was going this morning before his shift. "He will be present on the bridge in four point three minutes," I added, succinctly.

"Oh," said Jim. "Thanks." He studied me. Then he said, again very casually: "I've missed playing chess with him, but he's been rather…you know. Busy."

I was getting sick of this already. "Jim," I said. "Do you remember our conversation from the other day? I meant what I'd said before. Spock and I are sleeping together. Okay?"

He laughed. Laughed! "Bones…please."

"Jim!" I insisted. What the hell was his damn problem? Was he that obtuse? My voice getting a little louder, I snapped: "Jim...listen to me... I'm not joking!"

Just then, the lift doors opened up to the bridge.

And...right before walking out, Jim turned to me and hissed into my ear: "Don't you think I already… fucking know that… LEONARD?"

With his face this close to mine, I could see the pain radiating from his eyes.

I gaped at him, stunned. I watched him turn on his heel and exit curtly, leaving me gaping in his wake. I felt about four centimeters tall.

I stumbled over, punched the button to close the lift doors and immediately rode back down to the Sickbay.

---------------------------

I entered Spock's quarters after a long thirteen hour shift. Still absolutely seething. "Spock!"

"I am in the shower," he called out, calmly. I already knew that, but I didn't want to know that.

I stalked into his bathroom. "Jim knows!"

"If you will be patient, Leonard, I shall discuss that with you when I have completed my ablutions. Unless you wish to join me in the shower."

"No. I do not wish to join you in the shower, Spock!" I stalked out of the bathroom and went over to Spock's desk to dig around for his data-chip. I needed some eye drops; my eyes were killing me. "Where the hell's your fucking chip, Spock?"

He came out and stood behind me. "Where it usually is. Right here." He picked it up and handed it to me. Glaring daggers at him I made a selection from the stores.

When I turned around again, I realized that Spock was completely nude. I found myself lost in thought, staring at his body, then becoming highly aroused. Then remembered I was still angry. I pulled my scanner out of my medi-kit and aimed it at him. I looked at it and frowned. His heart rate was slightly elevated. Was that because I was here with him, or was it because of some other reason...

"I want some answers out of you. Everyone on this ship is acting bizarrely," I snapped. "You, Jim. Especially me. I don't feel like myself. I've been having strange dreams. I'm also obsessing about sex with you. When I'm supposed to be on duty, I'm fantasizing about you."

"Fascinating."

I paced the length of the cabin, pausing once in awhile to shoot a glare at him. "No it's not 'fascinating'. Worrying is what it is. I'm slowly not being able to function properly. And… what's worse, I can sense where you are in the ship. I can feel your location, without you telling me where you`re going. How do I know that, Spock?"

He didn't answer me.

"Spock! What the hell is going on with you? Jim already knows about us."

"Of course," he replied. My eyes widened as he continued: "You are aware that Jim's quarters are right next door."

"He can hear us. I figured that. He was telling me as much in an indirect way. Probably because you make so much goddamn noise in bed--"

"As do you."

I studied Spock. He seemed very unconcerned about it all. He pulled me into his arms.

"Don't you care?" I tried to pull away from him but he held on very tightly. And when Spock held me tightly there was no getting away.

"Am I concerned that the captain knows about us? No," he replied calmly.

There was something that had been bugging me all day, and now was the time to confront him about it. "Spock? There's something going on...between...you and Jim. Isn't there."

"We have more Runes to get through," he replied.

I finally managed to push him away from me. "Were you lovers?" I asked. Then I realized... "Wait a minute....you still are. Is that it? Am I right? I get to have you just until these Runes are over and done with, then he gets to have you back. Isn't that right? Mister Spock?" I found myself screaming at him. "Isn't that right, you fucking bastard--"

"Calm yourself, Doctor."

"Why is your heart rate and adrenalin up?"

"Time grows short," he said.

My hands flew up. I felt myself starting to panic. "If I didn't know better I would swear you're slipping into pon farr again."

"Take a shower," he ordered. His eyes flashed in anger.

"No!" I shouted. "Answer me! You're conveniently using me to satisfy your sexual urges, good thing I found these Runes. Huh? No wonder you were so keen on using them with me!"

"Take a shower. Now is not the time for this discussion."

"No." I said defiantly. "I will not. You bastard! Why didn't you tell me about Jim?"

"Leonard," he said softly, pulling me close again and bringing a hand up to caress my hair. "I am not his lover. I will explain many things to you, however, now is not the time. We have another Rune to get though, which we must do, before 2400. Do you understand?" I stared a long time at him. I found myself calming down and capitulating. "Fine," I said. "I'll take a damn shower." I went towards the bathroom.

------------------------

I entered Spock's quarters.

I knew he wasn't there. I knew he was still up on the bridge. I tried not to think about him though. I took the opportunity to finish some work at his terminal and slowly finish writing some of my overdue reports.

After about an hour of this my eyes started to go buggy. I'd spent too long in the sickbay and now I was pushing it. Before I signed off, I noticed something on the right hand side of the monitor. Labeled `The Runes`.

I hesitated, then clicked on it.

And read.

And read

And read some more.

My blood went cold at what I'd read but I forced myself to finish the document.

Stumbling up, my mind reeling, I closed down the monitor and went to bed trying to process the information.

Somehow, I must have dozed off. Because a short while later my eyes shot open.

I knew he was in the corridor outside. The doors swooshed, he entered, walked over and sat down at the foot of the bed. I continued to lay there for awhile, eyes closed, wanting to ask him about what I'd read. Wondering if he'd knew I'd seen it. Expecting him any minute to say something, to join me in bed. I wondered if he knew I wasn't asleep.

But, he just sat there.

Staring into nothingness.

I propped up onto my elbows and caught a glimpse of him in the low light, sitting there at the foot of the bed, still in uniform.

He continued to just sit there. "Spock?" I attempted, very softly.

He behaved as if he hadn't heard me and kept staring off. This was totally unlike him. "Spock?" I said a little louder. He turned to me, shocked, for an instant, his normal control slipped.

For an instant I saw in his eyes…cold fear.

Then the control was back, like nothing had happened. He said nothing to me. He just sat there. I was at a loss as to what I should do. Do I comfort him, or not? I wanted to ask him about the document. But something held me back.

"Spock?" I ventured again.

After a few more long moments of silence, I made a decision.

I shifted to sit behind him and simply... put my arms around him.

--------------------------------------

END OF PART V

THE RUNES--part IV

2008-12-04T01:19:00.000-08:00

AUTHOR: T'Prillah
Rating: NC-17
Author's Note: A 25th Wave story. In response to the challenge: "Write a S/Mc that delves into the culture of one of the boys." Written in FIRST PERSON, McCoy's POV. Takes place about a month after Amok Time. Part four features graphic m/m.

_____________________________

THE RUNES--PART IV

"Doctor?"

"Hmmm?"

"Your report, please." Jim Kirk drummed his fingers on the table. Twelve pairs of eyes in the Level 3A conference room, were suddenly trained on me.

I grinned sheepishly. I must of dozed off... actually...I knew my mind had been on something else.

"Doctor M'Benga is fitting in nicely," I grunted. "He's fantastic. He's a godsend. The flu epidemic is eradicated." I took a long swig of my now cold coffee; polishing it off, wondering, why in the world did Jim have to make this thing at 2000, instead of 0900 in the morning, the time the 'Department Head' meeting was normally scheduled.

Unless he...

I played with my empty coffee cup. "Other than that," I continued on, nonchalantly. "There's nothing."

"That's all you have to add, Bones?" he demanded.

"Yep," I grunted again. Oh...come on...Jim. Call it a night. I snuck a look over at Spock across the table. At that instant our eyes met with a laser beam of desire. My stomach lurched and I looked away. We definitely had other things on our mind. "Until we're in orbit around Celus IV," I mumbled. "There's just not much going on. We make orbit in two more days...right Spock?" I grinned over at him.

"That is correct, Doctor."

Oh yes. That is correct Doctor...Doctor. Lately, I'd been loathing the occasions when Spock had to call me by my title, and that was whenever we were out in public-- away from our bedroom--uh--out of Spock's quarters. I was getting used him using my first name so sensually. I closed my eyes, sighing softly.

Then I realized that my little sigh had been louder than I thought. I caught a sharp look from Uhura. I needed to be careful.

Meanwhile, I could still hear Jim's droning on and on about something. God...I wanted to get out of here. I found my thoughts shifting to the other evening. That erotic massage Spock had given me.

I never knew Spock was capable of performing such a wonderful act. I was never usually capable of receiving such a pleasurable act. I knew that erotic massage was often used in sex therapy to treat a variety of sexual dysfunctions and anxiety. Since I was not the greatest lover in the world, at least Jocelyn had reminded me of that on a weekly basis, I had to admit that I was feeling a great deal of trepidation in eventually having sex with Spock. So it seemed rather--uh-- logical, for this Rune to introduce us to touching each other, really exploring each other's bodies without the pressure of sex.

I could still feel him expertly combing my hair with his fingers, massaging my scalp. He'd poured some spicy scented oil on his hands and kneaded the tense spots in my shoulders, then worked on my arms and hands, turning me into putty. Then he wound his down my back, to my ass. Kneading my cheeks. Then, I felt those hot fingers working on my thighs, shifting to my inner thighs, then down to my calve muscles and finally to my feet. Being on the receiving end; it drove me to weeping hardness. He knew it, and at first I'd been terribly embarrassed, but not anymore. Simply by touching me he knew what I liked. He straddled me. I was on my stomach, pinned against his bed, and so damn aroused. I got aroused at even the slightest touch from him these days.

Then we switched over. I did the same to him, or at least I tried to, as well as he did. And, just as I thought I couldn't stand the arousal anymore, Spock had said something about my needing a release...or however'd he put it...oh so calmly as he usually did. With that slight smile, he now favored me with he said he had to leave his quarters while I masturbated, otherwise he would be able to hear me. Apparently he wasn't supposed to see me or hear me yet.

After he'd left, I'd dove into his bathroom, grabbing hold of myself as soon as I could get underneath the water in his shower. The resulting orgasm had been so powerful that it nearly knocked me off my feet. And yes, I hated to admit, the whole time I had been fantasizing about Spock secretly listening to me on the other side of that door. I'd moaned a little louder than normal just in case he was. Which he wasn't. At least I don't think he was. Maybe he was. Secretly. Oh wouldn't' t that be something. I wondered if he'd needed a release too. Oh, to have been able to secretly spy on him.

I was getting hard again. Right here in the conference room. I shifted in my seat and crossed my legs the other way in an attempt to stifle it. I cursed these damn tight trousers, they hid nothing. What the hell was I doing, fantasizing about Spock in a staff meeting? What happened to concentrating on my job? My professionalism that I'm such a stickler for? Gone out the proverbial window. I guess. I'm supposed to be paying rapt attention to Captain James T. Kirk, not sitting here lusting like a hormonal teenager; exchanging sly looks with the first officer.

I caught another look from across the table. Oh Spock...

"Doctor McCoy..." A throat being cleared brought me back to the present.

"Yes, Jim. I'm with ya. Till we make orbit, I've got nothing else to say," I continued. "Unless you want me to make something up."

Jim sighed, loudly. "Alright. Then, if no one else has anything further?" Everyone in the room, the captive audience, it seemed, emphatically shook their heads 'no', "Meeting adjourned. Dismissed," said the captain.

The entire company of department heads shot out of the conference room and I noticed Jim Kirk rolling his eyes at them in their swift wake. Spock and I nodded our goodbyes to the captain and began to make our way out. "Uh...Spock," said Jim.

Spock turned back. "Yes, Captain?"

"How about a game of chess tonight? We haven't started a new one in weeks."

Spock glanced towards me, then back at the captain, with an uncertain look in his eyes. "Forgive me, Jim. I am...fatigued this evening. Perhaps another time."

"Fatigued? Oh..." said Jim. He narrowed his eyes. He knew Spock was fobbing him off. Spock never fobbed off his captain. Dammit why didn't Spock just say he was working in the lab? Well, that would be a lie and he never lied, and but he also never turned down a chess match. Jim tried me. "Bones? How about joining me in my quarters for a drink?"

"How about another night, Jim?" I muttered. "I'm...uh...fatigued too."

"Uh huh."

I could feel Jim's eyes boring into my back as Spock and I made our hasty exit.

--------------------------------------

"He's on to us, Spock." I stood brushing my teeth at Spock's bathroom sink. "We might as well have skipped out of that conference room arm in arm. You should have played chess with him."

"Time grows short," Spock replied. He came up close behind me, his chest touching my back, chin resting on my shoulder as he watched me through the mirror. "We have business to take care of."

I got tingly at that little comment. "Yes...we sure do," I smiled. I finished up, turned round in his grasp and planted a kiss on his lips. I wriggled away from him; and lay my toothbrush down on his dressing table, where my toothbrush seemed to be living lately. "We do have only two more hours."

"It is getting late," he said.

"And you're getting eager," I noticed. I checked the chrono and nodded. It was nearly 2200. We never dared start even a minute over 2400. I grabbed the velvet Rune bag, shook it and pulled out a stone.

I anxiously watched Spock squint over it. "Well?"

"acharie'll," he said. "Use of an inanimate object--"

Oh come on. I slapped a hand on my thigh in frustration. "You're killing me! That's it?"

"In a manner befitting of foreplay," he finished.

"Foreplay? So that excludes sex?"

"Affirmative."

My eyes went electric in wonder. Foreplay, utilizing an object? An object? What kind of object? This was going to prove interesting. My sex life had been so average before. Never done this before. With a snort I realized that in this short time, I'd done a lot of things that I never would have dreamed of doing before. And I would do much more.

An object. I found myself thinking of a Wrigley's Pleasure Planet stage show I once saw. Jim had been with me that time, as we'd sat there, blowing our pay on Romulan Ale and probably a couple of lap dances. As we'd watched this show our eyes nearly popped out of our skulls. Damnedest thing I'd ever seen. Three girls with a piece of fruit. God that was hot... what fruit was it? A banana...

Yeah it had been great to watch, but actually doing it yourself with a piece a fruit... "Damn... kinky... ancient... Vulcans!" My voice was harsh, but my dirty smile betrayed me. "What kind of object are we supposed to use?"

He gave a slight smile in return. "We can use anything. I have no preference. I also have no experience in this area."

I raised an eyebrow in a perfect impression of him. "You sure about that?"

"Positive."

"Well, I've never done this before either. Who the hell do you think I am?"

"Not even on Wrigley's pleasure planet?"

I laughed, feebly. It seemed like I hid nothing from him. "No...."

"Then, have you any specific ideas, Leonard?"

I thought about that one. What could we use? A feather? Oooh that might be nice. Tickling Spock with a feather could prove interesting. But my mind kept going back to those three girls with that banana. Something edible. Whipped cream? maybe, chocolate?...hmmmm. "Fruit," I declared. "I did see a stage show on Wrigley's, you're right about that. It looked like alot fun. But Spock I don't want to use your Pla-savas fruit...it took me ages to get rid of that blue stain on my teeth."

"That is the only fruit I can offer," he said.

"I know. I know. Here, permit me." I walked up to his food re-constitutor and expertly typed in a code that I had memorized and used on occasion. The doors opened up and revealed a big, ripe, velvety peach. I picked it up and hefted it. Nice big, heavy. Perfect. "This, my thy'la, is a genuine re-constituted, Georgia peach." I plopped it into Spock's outstretched hand.

"Fascinating."

"Obviously the taste won't be as great as a real one. But this'll have to do in an emergency," I said. He examined the fuzzy fruit closely as I quickly pulled off my blue tunic and black undershirt and trying not to appear too excited or too nervous about what we were about to do. "I love eating a nice ripe peach with a glass of Saurian Brandy," I snickered, then looked down, self-consciously.

"How does it taste?" he wondered.

"Here, find out." I pulled the peach out of his hand and took a bite out of it. With one arm, I pulled him roughly to me and kissed him deeply. The juice dribbled down my chin as I did so. He responded by licking up the juice with his tongue.

"Hmmm. It is rather good," he agreed.

I laughed. Then to my amazement, he pulled the peach out of my hand, took a bite, grabbed my by the scruff of the neck and kissed me just as roughly. I found myself sucking the juice from his mouth; tasting him, tasting the peach. He pushed me against the bulkhead, kissing me passionately, grinding his erection into my hips.

It was amazing...Spock was becoming more erotic and sensual than I'd ever imagined our logical first officer to ever be. I'd been trying for two years to get him to loosen up and now... "Spock..." I noted as he handed the peach back to me, with a satisfied look on his face. "You seem... so different somehow. You seem like you are really enjoying-- this."

"I am."

"Yeah, but I never thought--"

"Shhhh--" he said and ripped off his own tunic and undershirt in one move all the while still pushing his hip into mine. I stared at his chest. I mean really stared this time. I knew he must have nipples but I couldn't see them, not under all that black hair. I reached out and traced his very prominent clavicle; ran my finger down to his thin but very strong arm. He shivered slightly at my touch. "Your hands are clammy," he said. He placed his own warm hands on my chest, running them through my own chest hair, then down my belly to the fastening of my trousers. "Your skin is so cool to the touch, Leonard."

"I'll warm up if you--"

"Quiet.." he commanded. ohhh God...whenever he ordered me like that.... Now my swiftly painful erection was trapped in my underwear. He knew I liked being commanded like that. He undid the fastening of my trousers, and inched them down.

One handed, the peach still clutched in my left, I worked simultaneously at the fastening of his. Took me longer than it had taken him. Finally, successful in getting it undone with some help from him, I pulled down his trousers revealing his fleet issue underwear. Kneeling in front of him, I noticed that this guy had absolutely no hair on his legs but a healthy amount on his chest. Go figure. I stood up awkwardly.

I had deliberately avoided checking out the hard bulge in his underpants. To be perfectly honest, it still made me just a little squeamish to think about what we were going to eventually do one of these days. Well I did sneak a little look...it was like a flitter crash..you just had to look at it, even if you didn't want to.

Both of our black trousers around our ankles; we simultaneously stepped out of them. He gathered me up in his arms, like I'd often picked up Jocelyn, and carried me over to his bed with me still clutching this wonderful peach. He gently laid me down and worked on pulling off my boots. He let one then the other drop onto the deck. My breaths got more intense with each drop. I watched him pull off his own and drop them. One after the other; very deliberately. Both of us were clad only in our underwear, and very very hard. He laid down next to me and pulled me close.

"Spock," I whispered. "Here's a question."

"Yes?" he murmured and gently kissed my neck. I shuddered, feeling that dry, hot mouth of his on my skin.

"I'm not going to be able to--you know--hold out for very long. Can I--uh--" somehow, even though we were in bed together, it still felt odd asking him something so intimate. "How far can we go with this?"

"I do not understand your phraseology."

"I mean, the difference between foreplay and sex. There's kind of a fine line."

"Is there?"

"Yes."

He stopped kissing me and looked at me.

"Great," I said. "Neither one of us really knows what we're doing. Do we. Neither one of us has been with a man before. I mean...how are you going to know how to--"

"Give you pleasure?" He finished and nodded. "I will know."

"You're that certain, huh?"

"Yes. By touching you, I know how."

"Really? Just by touching me?"

"I have also, taken the liberty of doing some research."

Suddenly the visual of Spock viewing a porn-vid sprang into my mind, but I shook it away. "That's great, but--"

"You will again have to have a release, privately. However, I will make certain that you do not achieve an orgasm in my presence," he stated, and resumed kissing my neck.

I'm glad he was so confident about it, because I sure wasn't. "Uh...not if you keep doing that."

"I am a touch telepath," he reminded me for what seemed the hundredth time. "I will be able to feel when you are at that point."

"And then what?"

"I will stop it."

"Stop an orgasm? Oh..." I gasped as he bit down on my neck. This was going to be torture. "When we finally do get to fuck," I managed to get out. "I'm going to pop off like a torpedo."

"Quiet," he ordered again. I moaned at that. He pulled the peach out of my hand, took another bite, and kissed me hard, forcing his tongue into my mouth. Well, he didn't have to force very much...I opened up to take that juicy tongue in. Pulling off some of the peach and mashing it in his hands, he ran the juicy mess down my body. Then proceeded to lick it all of it up with his warm tongue, in-between bites on my skin. I was amazed at the loud moans coming from my own mouth. His mouth clamped down onto my left nipple, then my right.

I lifted off the bed, my head tilted back. Satisfied with my response, he started kissing farther and father down my body. Nuzzling my chest hair, then kissing down to my belly. He moved further till his face rested on my public hair. He looked up at me with those beautiful brown eyes and murmured as he grasped my penis. "There is an ancient Vulcan word for oral ministrations...called mi`Inoah."

"Mmmmm. Gotta love those ancient Vulcans…" I gasped.

"Indeed. It is very rare for contemporary vulcans to engage in this act. But for the FthinraKathir, it was an integral part of the sexual act." He bent down and kissed the head of my cock, gently teasing my foreskin with his teeth and running his tongue around the head.

"Don't.." I tried to pull away. "It's too much. I can`t control it. I''ll--"

He kept it up. "I can feel where you are," he insisted. "You are close but not yet." He took my full length into his mouth.

I groaned. "Spock don't...I'm going to--" Without stopping the action of sucking me, two fingers from his free hand pushed onto a pressure point in my thigh. An energy from that touch shot up my body and into my brain. I felt a presence intertwining in my mind, controlling my physical responses. It immediately took me way back from the edge. I gazed at him, panting, amazed. He was going to keep pulling me back, as long as he wanted.

The peach a sticky mess all over me, the bed, everywhere, he continued his assault on my skin. Touching, caressing, kissing, and biting till I couldn't stand it any longer. Then back to my cock. I pushed him off of me, and ran into the bathroom. I stepped into his shower to take care of business and leaned my head back in the cool water spray.

I came out, grinning like the Cheshire cat and looking at the mess on his bed. "I'm synthing up another peach. This is too much fun. It's your turn to fight off an orgasm."

---------------------------------

It was late the next evening when we were finally able to adjourn to Spock's quarters with about two hours to spare.

Sweaty from working in the sickbay all day, I took a shower, toweled off then pulled on one of his vulcan robes I'd brought with me into the bathroom. I'd deliberately picked one with a bunch of tricky fastenings to give him something else to undress. Took me a few minutes to figure out how to fasten it. The silk fabric of his robe felt nice against my skin. It would take forever for him to undo this. And, I did like it when he methodically stripped me.

I exited the bathroom, his robe brushing the door as I moved through to the bed chamber.

"You look agreeable in my robe," he noticed. He grabbed me into an embrace and nuzzled my wet hair. "Your scent is also, pleasing."

"Come on, times- a- wasting." I wriggled out from his grasp, picked up the velvet bag, pulled a rune out and handed it to him.

"KuhAuh'Sail," he said, softly, in that Vulcan tongue of his.

"Sex," I murmured. I nodded in agreement. I knew. Finally. We just stared off into space, me in a certain amount of shock. "Well... this is it." I plunked down heavily onto his bunk and continued staring into nothingness.

"It is." He sat down next to me.

For a few long moments we did nothing. Said nothing.

I waited for him to make a move, then decided that I would. I took a deep breath, wondered where to begin and just dove right in. I pulled him to me by the chin and into a kiss. "I'm really glad... to be honest," I murmured as I broke off the kiss, slid my arms around him and admitted, "I don't think I could stand much more foreplay, could you?"

He shook his head. We stopped to just gaze into each other's eyes. As I held onto him and regarded the doe-eyed first officer... I wondered if he knew how much I respected him, loved being around him, being with him. "Yes. I do," he said in response.

"Stop reading my mind," I laughed. Then sobered. How was he able to read my specific thoughts? I thought he could just sense my emotions. I made a mental note to ask him about it...later.

Extremely nervous, but eager to get this under way, I shifted on his bed till I was sitting directly behind him. My legs on either side of his. I moved my hands up to his shoulders, kneading them. I played with the tunic zipper at his neck, pulled it down, exposing his black undershirt and more of his neck. My mouth found its way over to that neck and bit down, getting a response from him.

With a single finger I touched the point of his ear. 'These ears are so big', I noted as I traced the ear back and forth. Encouraged by him turning into me, I decided that those ear points would look much better if they were in my mouth. Plus I wanted to see if they qualified as a Vulcan erogenous zone. They did. I heard a soft intake of breath from him as I sucked on them, then a soft little moan from him as I bit down. `God, I love these things,' I thought to myself, the ear still in my mouth.

"You stated... on a previous...occasion... that... my pointed ears were un-attractive," he managed in between sucking in his breath, every time I bit on his ear.

"I never said that..." I pulled his face close to me and into a kiss.

He pulled away to protest, "You did. You distinctly stated--"

"Spock...Shut up and kiss me."

Just then the bosun's whistle sounded. I jumped up like I had been prodded with a branding iron.

"Bridge to Spock." It was Jim. I moved away from Spock so I couldn't be seen.

He flipped on the viewer next to the bed. "Spock here."

"I need you on the bridge."

Spock sighed deeply. A little too deeply to be perceived as normal. "Is there something wrong, Captain?"

"We're achieved orbit around Celus IV. I thought you might like to do some preliminary scans of the planet." I flopped down on the bunk, stiffleing a groan. Spock looked back at me then back to the viewer. "Are you sure this cannot wait till the morning, Sir?"

"No...Spock. Come up to the bridge."

"Is that...an order...sir?"

"Why? Were you in the middle of something?" Jim, was growing more and more suspicious at this strange response Spock was throwing at him. Granted, it was late, but, Spock normally would have jumped to do some preliminary scans, no matter what time of day or night it was. He and Jim often stayed up all night, minding the store. I shifted uncomfortably on the bed and bit my lip.

"I was," Spock answered truthfully. "In the middle of something. You are correct."

"Like what?" Jim laughed. "You're weren't mediating, you've still got your uniform on. You're obviously not asleep. Get your ass up here. And yes. That's an order." Spock glanced over at me, looking for assistance.

"Just go, Spock," I said softly, trying not to have my voice detected. But the computer picked it up anyway.

"Bones?" I knew there was the unspoken: What are you doing in Spock's quarters at this hour?

"Yes, Jim." I darted my eyes. I knew he couldn't see me; just hear me. Go on Jim. Ask me. What am I doing in Spock's quarters at this hour? I debated whether or not I should move into view so he could witness me wearing Spock's robe. If I tell you the truth will you just leave us alone?

He didn't ask.

Spock stood up stiffly. "I shall be on the bridge in four point seven minutes. Sir. Spock out." As the viewer turned to grey he turned and saw my agitation. He mirrored it in his own eyes. "I shall return to you shortly."

"Can`t you have a private life Spock? Must you jump whenever he calls you?"

"Doctor McCoy," he said formally. "May I remind you that we both have our duties. We are on-call no matter what the time. I cannot refuse a direct order from the captain."

"I know, I know" I sighed in dismay. I wondered why I had forgotten that again. It was becoming very easy for me to forget that we were Starfleet officers first and foremost. I was a doctor, on top of that. What was happening to me? "But... please Spock..." I found myself begging. "Make it quick up there. We don't know what will happen if we start even a minute after 2400."

With a kiss on my lips Spock was out of the cabin in a flash.

I flopped down on Spock's bunk, staring for a while at his firepot. Then dozed off.

I woke up with a start after what felt like just a few moments later.

I checked the chrono. It was now 0745. The morning! I was still alone. Spock hadn't returned. And I was going on duty in fifteen minutes. Shit! We'd skipped the Rune. Now what the hell were we going to do?

I got up from the bunk and flipped on the viewer. "McCoy to bridge," I growled.

"Spock here."

"Good morning... Mister Spock."

"Good morning, Doctor McCoy."

"McCoy out."

As I toggled the button to off, the bosun`s whistle sounded: "Sickbay to Doctor McCoy."

The onslaught was returning, already.

------------------------------------------

Celus IV.

I stood anxiously in the transporter room, to see off Kirk and Spock.

There was nothing inherently unusual in my own behavior, except that Spock and I appeared to be intently studying one another.

It was enough for Jim to notice. He glanced back and forth between us quizzically. "Gentlemen?"

"Hmmm?" I shifted my anxious gaze over to the captain.

"Is there something wrong? What's going on?"

I shook my head uneasily. I sneezed into my stripe and a half on my velour clad arm, swallowed with my sore throat and reluctantly walked back to where Scotty stood at the controls.

"Bones," said Jim. "You look like hell."

"You try having to run yourself ragged to treat everyone on this ship and see how you look!" I thundered back a hundred times too forcefully.

"I meant," Kirk said kindly. "You're falling ill."

"Yeah, well. Was bound to happen sometime."

Spock and Jim stepped onto the platform. "Take something for it, Bones."

"Yeah, yeah, Jim. I will." I resumed my staring at Spock. Spock returned my intense gaze.

"That's an order, Bones. Take care of yourself." Jim nodded to Scotty. "Energize."

I watched Scotty's hands to verify that there was nothing amiss in the beam down, then watched Jim and Spock sparkle and disappear.

Damn transporter shifting molecules, sending them god knows how far and expecting them to reassemble just like that. It was unnatural.

"When are they supposed to return?" I demanded of the chief engineer.

"In exactly fifteen minutes."

"I'll wait." I sneezed again. Then again and again.

"That's some powerful sneeze you've got there, Lenny," laughed Scotty.

"Scotty, don't start with me." I gazed intently at the empty transporter platform, clenching my fists. Please be safe.

"Well," smiled Scotty warmly. "It'll make the time pass quicker if I wait with ya."

"I thought you were supposed to be fixing the warp drive," I muttered absently. It had gone out again.

"I am!" Scotty retorted. "But--I'll be needin' Mister Spock's assistance, when he returns."

"IF they do."

"Just what in the hell are ya meanin' by that, Doctor McCoy?"

"Nothin' Scotty. Just my usual unfailing confidence in the transporter."

Scotty snickered and shook his head. After a beat he asked, very softly, "I've been meanin' to ask you somthin' Doctor. Did I get ah--" he cleared his throat, "--a blowjob from the--ah-- green skinned woman with a red eye in the center of her forehead?"

"Scotty," I admonished. "If you can't remember what happens to you on leave, perhaps that's a sign you should cut down on the booze a little."

"Aye." I could tell that Scotty meant it, too. We fell into an uneasy silence for the rest of the wait, both of us intently staring at that god-damned platform.

Jim and Spock re-materialized in exactly fifteen minutes to the second.

"Well, that went well. Nothing too terrible," Jim said happily as he hopped off the pad.

"Everything okay, Jim?" I stepped up and frantically performed a visual inspection of the captain. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

"Fine, Bones. Status report, Scotty?" Jim sauntered out of the transporter room, with Scotty following him, giving him detailed explanations of the warp core status.

With Kirk gone, I turned my attention over to Spock who stood there quietly, hands clasped behind his back. "Well? Did anything happen?"

"This," said Spock as he pulled his hand around for my inspection. On his wrist, there was a small green scratch.

A scratch? By a poisonous plant? Maybe a poisonous creature? Oh no…there was antidote to be cooked up, we were running out of time, but first I had to ascertain just what sort of creature attacked the Vulcan. "What scratched you?"

"I did it on my tri-corder."

"Oh…" I furrowed my brow in thought. "Your tri-corder? As you were being attacked by a poisonous creature?"

"No. When I pulled it out to scan a leaf, I accidentally caught my wrist on a exposed metal portion of it."

"Oh.... OH!" I suddenly laughed like a hyena and gratefully lunged over to embrace him. "That's fantastic!"

The lift doors swooshed open. Jim walked through them and froze as he spied my arms around the Vulcan. "Bones? Spock?" Jim continued to stare at us in shock.

"Yeah?" I smiled and turned my head around. I didn't even bother to release Spock. Spock didn't bother to move away. I kept holding him tightly and smiling broadly.

Jim shook his head. "I've never seen anyone get that excited over a little scratch."

---------------------------

We traveled down the lift from the bridge to the sickbay, Jim and I; all the while Jim eyeing me warily. He noted jokingly, that I was in an especially crabby mood. Good, I'm glad he noticed. I wonder why.

I'd spent a full ten hours in sickbay mostly treating broken bones and also some rather contrite Gonorrhea victims. Some of the ensigns who were afflicted were just kids really, on their first tours of duty and possessing absolutely no sense when it came to shore- leaves on friendly alien planets. It irritated me, the chances people took with their own health. All these young crewmen had paid a visit to the brothels on Berengaria and were now drifting into the Sickbay to get treated for that particular strain. I'd mused that whoever was in charge of the girls would have watched them for signs of disease but I guess not.

That'll teach these damn kids to take care of themselves.

Then later, I hung around the bridge for the better part of an hour, picking petty fights with Spock as if to show the bridge crew or mostly Jim that there was nothing out of the ordinary between him and me. Then I wondered if I'd fooled anyone. Then I wondered why I was being so paranoid. My sneezing was getting worse, and now I guess Jim was taking it upon himself to escort me back down to the sickbay, to make sure I got something for this damn virus I'd managed to contract.

"Everything okay, Bones?"

"Fine Jim," I said tightly.

As Jim kept his eyes pinned on me, I could see the wheels turning in his head. He was dying to ask me a personal question in the relative privacy of the lift, but he seemed hesitant. Debating whether or not it was his command prerogative to inquire about his officer's personal life.

"Something on your mind, Jim?" I prompted.

He shook his head 'no'...but I knew he was dying to ask. Go on...ask me Jim.

"Bones--"

"Yeah?" I fixed him with a cold, challenging stare. Go on…ask me.

"I hate to pry, but--"

"Yeah? You want to ask me something, Jim? Well go ahead."

"What were you doing in Spock's quarters last night? Is he okay?"

"He's fine."

"Were you treating him for anything?"

"Nope."

"Oh…I see."

"You want to know Jim?" I snapped, kept up my piercing gaze, adding a sinister smile. "You really want to know? Well, I'll tell ya. We're sleeping together."

He laughed the rest of the way down to the Sickbay interspersing it with: "You? And… Spock? That's a good one Bones!"

I knew even before he and I had stepped into my consulting office that nothing could really be done for this new viral strain, after taking a hypo full of anti-viral I was just going to have to ride it out. I snapped a, "I'll go on the sick-list for a shift. M'Benga can see to any consults."

"That's a great idea, Bones. I think you need some rest." He chuckled a little, remembering what I'd told him in the lift.

I grumbled a response that sounded like: "I'll be in my quarters." That appeared to satisfy Jim and he left me alone to go.

I entered the quarters that I rarely visited anymore, except, periodically, to get a change of clothing when I'd run out of my uniforms I'd now kept in Spock's cabin. I realized how lonely and cold it was in my sparsely furnished quarters, but for a few skulls, books and now yellowing plants. I turned the heat up to a comfortable level and plopped onto my bunk, falling asleep fully clothed, face down.

...They'd called it: 'Alie'tulu'.

The 'horror'...

the guards had found the knife in the princess' hand. The prince and princess were both dead.

'She has dishonored her family' they have said...

The v'LauDuKharir decreed that her people, will also be murdered in this way. Their throats cut from ear to ear. The way the princess murdered her prince... Every last man, woman and child of the FthinraKathir...burn their records, their scrolls, the receptacles of their katras, their music, their art....everything…

I can hear the bone chilling screams of the children as the v'LauDuKhari warriors crash through in a rampage...slitting their throats...the rivers of red blood flows amongst the trees...

I started awake. I found myself in Spock's arms; him asleep. As soon as I opened my eyes, he woke up. I sighed dreamily. "How long have you been here?"

He handed me a glass of water, then hugged me close to him as I drank it. "Six point four hours. You have been feverish. I fell asleep when your fever broke."

"I was having an awful dream..."

"Were you?"

"Mmmm. More crap's been happening because we skipped a damn Rune, isn't it."

"We are merely very late. We are able to rectify the situation," he said.

"How? I'm ill, Spock, I feel like hell. This is a different strain. I might pass it on to you."

"That," he said. "Is a chance that we shall have to take. It is time." He took the empty glass from me and set it down on the bedside table. After a beat, our lips met tenderly, softly. He began gently disrobing me. I gave in to his ministrations, feeling the gentleness, the soothing warmth of his fingertips on me as he removed my uniform.

I no longer felt like hell.

He slid my underwear off, slowly, in a manner that he'd now done many times before. Then I watched as he pulled off his own uniform.

I ran my hands down his warm, naked body, letting my hands explore and caress him, bringing him to arousal. I could hear his breaths quicken with my touch. I let my hands drift down to his hard cock. Slightly bigger than mine, I could feel the buzzing energy in it. I began to stroke it, gently, in a way I would like mine to be stroked, I pumped my hand up and down on his shaft. It had felt so strange the first time I'd done this to him, touching another man in this way. But I had gotten used it, quickly. Now I was rather adept.

As I lay flat on my bunk, he shifted position to straddle me, lining up his own very warm, nearly hot cock, with my own. I grabbed hold of the both of them, and held them together for a while, without moving, the warmth of his nearly bringing me over the edge.

By touching me, he could feel I was close, and he backed off me. He slid down till his face rested next to my cock. He took two fingers and let them rest on my length. A laser beam of desire shot up into my brain and I writhed and moaned. I was nearly in pain as the pleasure was too intense for me to handle. Realizing this he pulled his fingers away and simply took my cock into his mouth. "Ohhh yes.." I hissed. This was gentler, better. I felt his warm mouth, surround me, his tongue teasing my head. He tasted my balls, then moved back to my length. I moaned louder and louder, bucking my hips into his mouth, urging him to take me in deeper and deeper.

My head hit the back of his throat, then he pulled up and circled his tongue around my head, tasting my pre-cum, then dived back down, swallowing me. Then I was at the edge and then over; coming and coming and coming, spurting my seed down his throat as I cried out in ecstasy, lifting my head up; arching my back.

Spent, my head fell back onto the pillow. I lost my hold on reality for a moment. When it returned, I felt him move back up to lay next to me, taking me in his arms. It was a long while before I could string together a sentence. "Oh...my...God..." I panted.

"Feeling better?" he asked, innocently. His eyes were alight.

"Shut up," I laughed breathlessly.

After a few more minutes of holding me, I heard his voice very softly in my ear. "Leonard?"

"Hmmm?"

"Have you any… lubricant?"

----------------------------------------------

END OF PART IV. STAY TUNED FOR PART V...

THE RUNES--Part III

2008-12-04T01:07:00.000-08:00

AUTHOR: T'Prillah
RATING: NC-17
AUTHOR'S NOTE: A 25th Wave story. In response to the challenge: "Write a S/Mc that delves into the culture of one of the boys." Written in FIRST PERSON, McCoy's POV. Takes place about a month after Amok Time.
THANKS TO: Thank you to M. for the feedback and the suggestions. The Vulcan language and culture comes straight from the Vulcan Language Institute. Also, acknowledgements to "Spock's World", and "The Vulcan Academy Murders"

______________________________________________________________

The Runes---PART 3

....oh my beloved prince.

I feel blissful, alive, shattered. Thee hast fully introduced me to the ways of lovemaking.

the stones have seen to that.

My prince is asleep next to me.

I notice a wayward hair on his beard, longer than the rest. I shall trim it for him so he does not have to worry. He must not worry about anything.

I am his ah'shasu.

It is an honor to look after him in every way.

I get the sharpest knife I can find...I hold it to his delicate, olive skinned neck, ready to trim his beard.

Suddenly I hear a shout.

the guard standing outside our bridal chamber....

he has witnessed this...

as he has also witnessed our lovemaking. It is the law.

...and he has witnessed this: "No!"

I feel his knife stab though my skin, deep into my body.

It pierces my lungs. I can feel it. I know.

My blood, bright red, flows from the cut.

My blood pools next to me,

my blood splatters,

on my prince... on the stone walls... on the ceiling.

I look up at the guard.

He keeps stabbing.

--

I jolted awake, breathing heavily. Glancing over, I noticed that Spock was still curled up next to me, asleep, breathing softly with his mouth slightly open. I smirked at the endearing sight. Whoever had originally said it was right. The act of sleeping was one of the most intimate things you can do with someone.

My bladder bursting; I got up and stumbled into the bathroom. We were supposed be leaving orbit around Berengaria in the morning, but I still had a couple more hours of my rest period left to worry about it. I used the toilet, got a glass of water, and went back to bed.

---

My prince awakens next to me in terror: "beloved!"

the guard freezes; realizes his mistake....it was a misunderstanding...

he makes a decision...

...then.... stabs my prince, repeatedly.

My prince instantly falls dead. The passion in his eyes fades away.

His green coppery blood seeps profusely from seventy five sudden wounds.

it pools..

...my beloved...

I watch in fasination. Calm. The stones lay underneath us.

Soaking up our blood.

"Our blood mixes."

I lay my head back. I am ready to die as well.

I feel a knife being placed into my hand before I surrender to the darkness.

---

"Leonard…" A warm hand shook me awake.

"Hmmmm?"

"You are on duty in twenty minutes…you must wake up now. Or you shall be late for your shift."

I opened my eyes and stretched. "Mornin' Spock."

He handed me a cup of coffee and a plate of buttered toast. "Eat this," he insisted. "You have not been consuming enough food." He patted my shoulder and went off to take a shower. I stared into his wake. "Now, how the hell do you know?" I grunted as I bit into the toast. Ahhh. Slightly burnt…exactly how I like it.

As I sipped my coffee (that was perfect, too), I thought about the events of the past three days. The runes I'd picked so far were terribly mundane. I could find no good reason for doing what they ordered, except the obvious one: the curse.

One of the Runes I'd picked had commanded simply: 'ara'shara': Spock translated it as: 'To walk together in an area not normally frequented in silence'. "That's it?" I'd demanded of him. "Why?" What the hell was this supposed to mean? God, I hope he was translating this crap properly. Aparently this also was some damn Vulcan ritual having to do with companionship or something or other. If I didn't know him better, I would think he was pulling my leg.

The funny thing was, the Rune's commands seemed pretty ridiculous, but yet, we obeyed each one without complaint.

We wandered aimlessly together though all the corridors on every deck. Visiting areas we rarely went to. I knew Spock had never wandered 'aimlessly'--illogical probably-- and I never usually had the time. Now we had to.

Eventually after our meander through the ship, we entered the Aboretum, sat there on the bench, side by side among the flora and fauna. We gazed at the flowers Mr. Sulu, had created from cross-typing DNA from the species of the many different planets we'd visited; also many were his own inventions. To my surprise, I'd discovered that many of them were also created by Spock. Funny, isn't it. Well, I knew he grew Vulcan fruit in the hydroponics lab, but our supposedly tightly controlled, logical first officer just didn't seem like the type of guy to grow beautiful flowers. They looked like they'd been patiently tended to. And...I couldn't get over how stunningly beautiful they were, all big and opened up like that. The thought blew my mind. You think you know someone...

After sitting there for about an hour, we looked at each other, communicating soundlessly. We knew what we wanted to do. We went up to the observation deck to stare at the stars. I rarely went up there; Spock never had. We stayed there for a long while, just staring out into eternity.

All of this was done silently, just like the Rune had ordered.

At first this felt so akward, then as the evening wore on, it felt so right. It felt like we'd belonged there together on the Observation Deck. It felt like he'd always belonged by my side. Or was it: I belonged by his? I even grabbed his hand at one point. Well, I couldn't resist it; it felt like we were out on a goddamned date.

I noticed he didn't pull his hand away.

Afterwards, we calmly strolled back to Spock's quarters. I didn't feel like walking the extra distance back to my own, so I just decided to stay the night here. Well, it was late.

Then I slept here again the next night... after we read the next Rune.

Well, I was too tired to go back to my own quarters, all the way over there on deck nine.

Then the next night, the next Rune I chose, commanded: 'cquee'ut': which translated to (according to Spock) 'Ask a question one would not normally dare ask of each other'.

Spock had to be full of shit. Yet, we did it. We stayed in his quarters, ate dinner together, (though he was right, I had just picked at mine as I`d been doing lately) and I let him go first. I permitted him to 'ask me anything'. I should have known better than to do that. That damn Vulcan had the nerve to ask me why I had wore that ring on my pinky. The one I had lost down the drain.

I sighed and admitted (oh, what the hell), "It was a… my wedding ring."

"You are divorced," he observed, rather casually from my standpoint. "From what I understand to be a Terran dissolution of marriage. You have been divorced for fifteen years."

"That's true. You`ve been looking in my personal files."

"Negative. I read an interview you gave in the latest Starfleet magazine."

"Oh…they finally published that..." I cleared my throat, loudly and shifted in his chair awkwardly, I hadn't really wanted to discuss my personal life, not in that interview. But the woman was so attractive, so charming…I'd had a little too much to drink and there you go. I certainly didn't want to rehash it now. "Uh Spock," I began in my best 'I don't want to discuss it right now with you' voice. Hopefully he got the message.

He didn`t. He never did. He kept right on at it. "Is it not the custom on Earth, to discontinue wearing a wedding ring, once you are divorced?"

"Yeeeesss," I supplied, unhelpfully; looking down. "That is correct."

"Then why did you continue to wear--"

"Who cares?! It's nobody's business!" I had thrown that back at him rather abruptly. He stared at me. "Sorry," I muttered. "Some things are… difficult… for me to discuss."

"Then I shall ask you about something else."

My hand hit the desk in frustration. "No. Spock. You know what? Ask away. Ask me anything you want." I gestured wildly at him. He wasn't going to get away now. After what he'd started. I was going to finish it. "Well? Go ahead. You want to know more about me. Go on, Spock!" Now, I glared at him. Challenging him. Finish it!

"Not if it causes you such grave distress."

"No," I said, very delibretly. "I said it's fine. Alright Spock? Ask away." He hesitated. " Ask me, dammit."

"Thank you, Leonard. I am... however… curious about something else."

"What is it?"

"I am intrigued by the concept of a Terran divorce. A dissolution after you are already married. On my planet that concept does not exist."

"So what happens on Vulcan, if say, one spouse is unfaithful to the other?"

"On Vulcan, that does not happen. Once we are bonded there is no other. Ever. We can divorce our betrothed during the Kun-ut-Kalifee before the actual marriage ceremony. Not after."

"I see." I decided to just come on out with it. "Well, the concept of being unfaithful to your spouse is very common on Earth." I took a bite of a piece of fruit. The juice of it dripped a little down my face and to my astonishment Spock leaned over the desk and wiped the juice off my face with his hand.

"Did such an occurance happen to you?" he asked.

I shrugged. Why not. "I caught my wife in bed with another man."

"They were in the midst of copulation?" Only Spock would ask a question like this without batting an eyelash.

"No, Spock. They were in the midst of knitting a blanket." I got a raised eyebrow at that one. "Yes… They were right in the middle of having sex."

"Fascinating. You witnessed this? First-hand?"

"Yes…" I closed my eyes. I told him the story, vaguely at first. Then at his prompting, in more great, gory detail. I had to admit, it felt good to tell someone, unload on someone, finally. About why I'd decided to enter Starfleet. Not even my best friend Jim Kirk knew exactly what had happened. Or if he did, we never talked about it. He knew it was a taboo subject. And as... I had reluctantly relayed the tale to Spock... my voice broke...tears rolled down my face as I stared into the memories. Suddenly Spock's arms were around me, comforting me, as I remembered...

'Jocelyn how could you do this to me? I loved you…

`What did you expect, Leonard? You're a rotten husband…a lousy lover…' she didn't care. I did.

`I'm sorry…'

You fucking loser, you just caught your wife in bed with another man and you're the one who's sorry...

…but I was and I still am…

sorry.

I couldn't help but weep. In front of Spock. Then it turned into a sob. I wish I could have died. I tried to leave his quarters, but he caught me and held me close for awhile, and I forgot that it was Spock holding me. It just didn't seem like Spock anymore.

Then it was my turn to ask him something. I made sure that it was equally difficult and personal; just to see how he liked having to dredge up the past.

Afterwards, I didn't feel like being alone, so I decided to stay here to sleep, in his quarters.

----------------------

The next evening, I pulled out a Rune and handed it over.

"'Ak'eiem.'" he read. "To give one a massage."

"A massage?" I tilted my head in confusion. "When are we supposed to have sex?"

Spock also tilted his head, in amusement. "I thought you were adverse to the idea."

"Well I`m not thrilled about it… but if we have to--"

"Not yet," he said. "We do nothing until we are instructed to do so. There is a progression."

"A massage isn't so bad, I guess. Well, which one of us gets it? Both or just one per night? Do we flip for it?"

"Flip?"

"Ohhh. Nevermind. It's no fun when I've gotta explain it." I motioned for him to take his tunic off. "Lie down." This was no big deal. I'd performed theraputic massage on the crew thousands of times, even on some rare occasions, on Spock when he'd suffered an injury. Though I'd hoped that this time, it would have been pleasureable for me, instead of having to do all the work, but oh well.

"Leonard," he said. "Let me perform it on you."

"Really?" I grinned. "If you insist." I hopped onto his bunk. Long fingers ran along the silk neckline of my Sickbay smock, then darted down to my hem to pull it up.

I pulled his hand away. "I'll take my own uniform off, thank you."

"Relax, thy`la," he whispered.

"Why do you keep insisting on calling me that?"

"I shall tell you in good time. Relax."

Beads of sweat formed above my lips. Relax he tells me. I wanted to, but I couldn't relax. We'd been sharing a bed for over a week, spending time together exclusively; cuddling even. But I was, to tell the truth, very nervous about him taking my uniform off in this very slow, deliberate way. Stripping me.

It also didn't help that the cabin envions was set back up at the usual Saharan temperature in Spock`s quarters. It had to be-- I had insisted on it-- he had so kindly had been suffering for my benefit, but I was a big boy. I could handle a little heat. Otherwise, eventually, I'd be dealing with a hypothermic Vulcan. However, as I felt the sweat pouring down my face and body, right now, the heat seemed much too oppressive. "Spock...I`m dying in your overheated lair."

"Be quiet." He expertly yanked the satiny blue smock over my head, leaving my black undershirt.

I'd felt that command from that baritone voice as a tingle in my belly and suddenly got achingly hard. But... I didn`t want to be aroused…not right now. I forced my breaths to space evenly to calm myself down. He was amused. Damn Vulcan. I saw the slight smile in his eyes. He either was becoming more expressive around me, or I was just simply becoming more attuned to him. I also had a nagging suspicion he could sense many of my emotions by simply touching me.

"You feel ashamed at being aroused in my presence," he observed.

I was right. "It`s not the appropiate time," I explained. "And if you must know, I'm nervous. I'm not used to being with you-- like this."

"You are not used to me by now? We share a bed. You get aroused when you sleep." Oh he'd noticed, had he?

"That's normal for me. The human body is just checking to see that everything is operational. And once in awhile," I admitted sheepishly. "I might have an erotic dream."

"You appear to have alot of those," he noted.

"Spock, just because I get erections in the night doesn't mean I'm constantly having erotic dreams!"

He didn't answer me and instead pulled off my black t-shirt. I was aware of him intently studying my bare chest. He'd seen me every night in my underwear but this was the first time he'd really...looked. I bashfully glanced down, but my chin was directed back up by a single, long finger. "I wish to remove the rest of your uniform."

"Go ahead," I breathed. Evenly. I sank down onto the bunk, resting on elbows and closing my eyes. I felt my boots come off one by one. He let them drop onto the floor. I felt him unbuckle, then slowly pull down the zipper, then inch down my trousers,pulling them all the way off.

When his hands started on my underwear, my eyes flew open in alarm. "No!"

"Yes," he whispered. "This too."

"Why? Why do I have to be completely nude?" I pushed his hand away from me. "You`re just giving me a massage, right?"

"I would not wish to see or touch another in this way, unless I belonged to them and they belonged to me. And as you belong to me, I wish to see you fully nude," he explained.

Belong to him? That spiked an irrational fear in my stomach. Calm down, Lenny. "But we don't really belong to each other," I protested. "We're just doing this because of the curse."

"We do in fact belong to each other. We performed the ritual of the wine," he insisted.

"Yeah but..."

"It is not a bonding," he said quickly; reading the thought that so obviously shone clearly in my light eyes. Everyone could always tell what I was thinking, not just him. My eyes hid nothing. "This ritual is not as common in contemporary times. It is an ancient rite," he was saying to me.

"Does everything have to come with a goddamned ritual on Vulcan?"

"We take comfort in the logic of rituals. Especially where sexual intercourse is concerned."

I didn't like the way he'd said that. Even as frustrated as I was, the gravity of the eventuality of us engaging in sexual intercourse, made me twitch. "We're only doing each activity, once. Right? I mean, once we do something, that's it. We don't have to repeat the activity. Right?"

"We may if we wish repeat any and all activities, however, we are not obligated to do so. If we do not wish to."

"Well I certainly don't. Do you?"

"No." He slid off my underwear.

"Well, good..." I murmered as I felt the warm air hit my skin. He paused; I was very aware of my body under his examination. I knew I was very thin and bony; I was terribly uncomfortable under his intent gaze. "So, what do you think?"

"Your physique is agreeable," he said.

"What does that mean? Do you like it?"

"Yes."

Oh now. Now he'd done it. Tingling, I was so hard I couldn't stand it. Somebody tells me I have a nice body and I'm putty. My dick pulsed and he stared at it very closely. "See?" I laughed softly, wishing there was a hole I could crawl into. "Sorry, I can't help it."

"You have average sized genitalia for a human?" he asked me.

"Well, yeah..." I chuckled. I wish he would stop looking at me like that. Next thing I know he'll want to touch it.

Actually... I kind of wish he would. Maybe it wouldn't hurt just this once. I guided his hand down.

"I cannot." He pulled his hand away as if burned. "Not yet."

"Ohhhhh," I sighed. I am going to die. "This is going to be a long night."

He continued to clinically observe my cock. "You posess a foreskin?"

"Never seen a human male naked, huh?" I laughed and flipped over onto my stomach. "Just get on with it, Spock. We only have till 2400 to obey this damn Rune."

------------------

The next evening, before we read a Rune, we sat down to eat dinner in Spock's quarters which was seemingly becoming our nightly custom.

Spock sat down across from me, saying very softly, "What would you like to eat tonight, Leonard?"

"I don't know. Surprise me." He got up and programmed the food reconsititutor, but glanced back at me. "Something vegetarian, I guess," I muttered. Lately, I'd been eating only vegetarian food as I'd been dining exclusively with Spock. It seemed rude to consume a ham sandwich in his presence while he made do with Plomeek soup. "What are you going to have?"

"Fruit."

"Is that all you ever eat?"

He opened a cabinet in the bulkhead that I had never seen before and brought out another bowl of fruit. "These will be safe for you to consume. Non-reconstituted. The only thing I have that is."

"Where'd you get these?"

"I grew them myself."

"Don't you have any peaches or anything?" I joked.

"Peaches?"

"Yes," I laughed. "Ever heard of a Georgia peach?"

"Yes," he said. "However, I have never eaten one." He studied me with such an intent look that quite frankly to me was unsettling.

"Yeah, big and fuzzy," I joked. "Georgia is well known for it's peaches. You mean to tell me, you came to Georgia as a kid but you never ate a big ripe peach right off the tree?"

"That is correct," he said. He pulled out a large oval shaped fruit, laid it on a wooden board and proceeded to cut it with a sharp knife.

"Well, you are definitely missing out," I snickered, watching him. "One of these days you should grow a peach in that hydroponics lab you're so fond of."

"Perhaps I should," he replied.

I felt increasingly more and more nervous as I continued watching him. Relax McCoy. All he is doing is cutting you a piece of fruit. But he was doing it ever so slowly and methodically. Was he teasing me? He couldn't be. I was becoming aroused again. As he finished, the fruit lay dissected into medium sized pieces on the board. He lay the knife down and held up a piece of fruit. "Would you like a piece, thy`la?"

"Spock--" I began, annoyed once again at the use of the word. Then, I gave in and smiled, awkwardly, "Fine."

He held up the fruit to my mouth so I could take a few bites from it. It was very good; very flavorful and very juicy, of course. I snorted as the abundant juice dripped down my chin. Just like a very ripe Georgia Peach. "Could you please give me something to wipe my mouth with?" I laughed.

He stood up and reached over to wipe my mouth with his own hand. Then he did something that I never thought I'd ever witness, he stuck those fingers into his own mouth to lick the juice. I stared at him, shocked. "What are you doing?"

"This was a fertitility ritual in ancient times," he explained.

"It is not!" I countered. He had a mischevious glint in his eye.

"Indeed it was, Leonard," he said. "Fertility, is the capacity of something to grow and develop."

"I know, what the hell it means. Are you refering to... something between you and I?" He nodded at me. I wasn't sure how to respond to that.

I got a summons to sickbay so I left his quarters.

I walked down the corridor and entered the lift. Suddenly, Jim Kirk bounced in, joining me, before the doors had a chance to swoosh shut. "Hi Bones."

"Oh," I mumbled. "Evening, Jim."

"What have you been up to, Doc?"

"Nothin'. Just headed over to sickbay."

"I see. Well, I've been wondering what Spock`s problem is. He's had the privacy lock on every night for the past couple of weeks."

"Oh, has he? Maybe he`s been meditating."

"He seems to be avoiding me," said the captain.

"Sorry, Jim. I don't know what to tell you."

"Bridge," he ordered to the computer.

"Sickbay," I ordered.

"So Bones," he said as he studied me. "What were you doing on deck five?"

"Just checking up on some ill crewman, Jim. That`s all." I didn't know what business it was of his, or why he was asking me, but I had a right to be on deck five if I wanted to. I hoped my glare let him know that.

"Was it Spock?"

"Why do you ask, Jim?"

"You've got fruit juice stains on your uniform. Pla-sava if I`m not mistaken. The famous blue fruit that stains your teeth blue. When you get to sickbay, look in the mirror."

I shot him a look, got out at the lift, entered the sickbay, looked in the mirror and swore.

--------------

"Come."

"Hi Spock," I muttered as I staggered in. He was in bed. Apparently I had woke him up. Well I had just spent the last twelve hours in the sickbay catching up on reports, then three more in my own quarters tossing and turning.

God, I'm glad I'm here. Somehow a half naked Spock, just woken up, is so damn sexy. Dammit...cut it out Lenny.

"You chimed?" Spock raised a puzzled eyebrow at me. This was a first for me.

"Yeah," I yawned. "Thought I'd be polite." Actually since that nice little episode with Jim, I figured I should chime from now on, just in case. I came over to sit on the bed next to Spock. "Care if I sleep here?" I lay down on the bunk next to him and crashed face first, before he gave me an answer.

"This is becoming redundant," he said. "You may sleep here tonight and every future night. If you wish. You do not need to continually ask my permission."

"Oh…It's just once more. Thanks, but I should really sleep in my own bunk. This is Starfleet not a cruise ship," I muttered; eyes closed. However, I did sleep much better here with Spock. Even after serving in Starfleet fourteen years, I'd never really gotten used to sleeping alone. I was starting to sweat. "God it's hot in here."

"Leonard." Spock reached over to touch me. "You will be too hot in your uniform. Take it off."

"Mmmmmph." I said into the pillow. "I will in a minute."

Spock sat up, then sat me up, and divested me of my satiny sickbay smock, then the black T-shirt. As I fell back down onto the bed, I felt his hands move down my bare chest to the fastening of my trousers. I was used to this by now. It was becoming something of a nightly ritual. As usual he paused and waited for my permission.

"Go ahead," I muttered and fell asleep.

-------------

I thrust the Rune out to him. "Well?"

"A'sharen'," he replied. "To kiss."

I gulped. "Oh…"

Well, this was it. Bit by bit, we were finally heading into the big stuff. My breath quickened.

My heart threatening to pound it's way out of my chest, I took a deep breath and stepped toward him. As I inched slowly closer and closer to him and looked into those obsidian eyes, I was determined to give our first officer the best kiss I could ever muster in these trying times. Realistically, it wasn't going to be the greatest kiss, nor was it going to be with the most ideal partner. But hell, with eyes closed, we could get though it.

But Spock had a trick up his sleeve. He held up his two fingers and pressed them against my lips.

As I felt the pads of his fingers on me. I felt an energy move into my mouth, then up my sinus cavity and shoot into my cerebral cortex. Suddenly, reality faded out of existence. A new one faded in. I felt Spock's mouth against mine. Lush... sensual.... exploring. Me.

He melted into me, then pulled away and solidified. Then he melted into him me again. Then again. Then I melted into Spock. It was unlike anything I'd ever experienced. Ohhhh. I hadn't thought it would be like this. This wonderful…kissing Spock. Spock. Spock? `I'm… kissing… Spock…' The thought idly danced in my brain.

`What were you expecting…' came a fleeting song like response in my mind. It wasn't a thought, more of another presence with me. I felt the presence intertwining around me. Comforting me. I wasn't afraid. I wasn't alone anymore.

Ohhhh. The intense sensation of pleasure suddenly became too much for me to handle. I forced my eyes open.

Spock was standing in front of me, eyes closed, still with his fingertips tracing my lips. He'd never actually kissed me with his own lips. Fascinating.

Wearing a dopey grin, I swallowed hard and managed to get out, "That's what it's like to kiss a Vulcan, huh?" I was completely and utterly aroused. Not only in the body, my mind was electric. I was shaking.

Spock opened his eyes, and dropped his hand. "We have completed this particular task."

Dumbfounded, I inched a little closer to Spock and put my hands on his arms. "Yes, but…" I wasn't ready to complete this particular task, not in a million years. "Have you ever…kissed with your…" I gestured madly but Spock got the idea.

Looking directly into my eyes, he smiled.

I was delighted in his beautiful little smile. All for me. Suddenly I wanted nothing else in the universe than to kiss Spock. I pulled Spock to me by the chin, slowly closing the distance between us. Gently, I pressed my lips to his. I found Spock's mouth to be at first hard and resisting but I kept going till I felt his lips gradually soften and open up for me. I slipped my tongue into his mouth and let it linger there, tasting him, feeling his tenderly meet mine, tasting me.

The kiss growing deeper and deeper, the world leaving us again; my hands slid around his waist. Weeks worth of pent up passion rared it's head. I backed him into his sleeping alcove and pushed him down onto his bed. The kiss became more insistent and passionate by the minute. I nipped at his mouth. I wanted this. I knew he wanted this too.

His mouth against mine; I felt that word dally in my mind, `thy`la`. Rather than feel afraid of the invasion in my mind, or the word he used, I was thrilled. …lover…that's what he's calling me. A lover.

God, I wanted him so badly. With a groan I started to grind my painful erection into Spock's crotch till he pushed me off of him. "No…"

I rolled over to the side of him and complained bitterly into his neck, "Oh… come on…you fucking tease…" I bit down on his neck for emphasis. My hands dove underneath his uniform to rest on his nice flat warm belly. My fingers slid underneath his trousers. I wanted to explore every inch of him.

"We can go no further until we are instructed to do so. Forgive me." He pulled my hands out from his trousers and held me away from him at arms length.

Undaunted, I picked his hand up from my shoulder; kissing his wrist.

I slid his forefinger into my mouth, tasting his wonderfully warm digit. I proceded to suck on every one of his warm, long fingers, one at a time. He stared at me in wonder as I did so. I wanted to taste every part of him, but this is all I could have for now. "Spock…come on...I feel like a teenage boy trying to go all the way with his date."

"All the way?" He pulled his hand out of my mouth.

"Yes. Don't tell me you don't know what that means." I pulled Spock on top of me and into another kiss, moaning softly as I did so. Oh, now I could feel him against me; he was hard too. Oh my god...

And, then, of course I heard the annoying summons of the bosun`s whistle. The bane of my existence.

"Audio only," Spock called out, nearly with a gasp. "Spock here."

"Sickbay summons for Doctor McCoy, sir." Well, well, well, Mr. Connors was back on duty and they knew where I was. How'd they know where I was?

"Emergency?" I said softly.

"No sir. Doctor M`Benga is on board ready to meet with you."

"Oh…perfect timing." I groaned inwardly. "I'll see him in...twenty minutes, McCoy out." I reached over to snap the viewer next to the bed to off and turned to Spock. "You ordered audio only. Somebody is going to suspect something."

He shrugged. "They already do."

"Well fine if you`re not concerned about it. Then, neither am I, Spock." I flashed him a mischevious grin. "It only takes me three minutes to get from deck five to sickbay, which leaves us approximately seventeen minutes to make-out like a couple of human teenagers."

I smiled and pushed him up against the bulkhead. "My…thy'la."

___________________

END OF PART 3 (Stay tuned for Part 4!)

THE RUNES--Part II

2008-12-04T00:01:00.000-08:00

Author: T'Prillah

Rating: NC-17

Author's Note: A 25th Wave story. In response to the challenge: "Write a S/Mc that delves into the culture of one of the boys." Written in FIRST PERSON, McCoy's POV. Takes place about a month after Amok Time. Also features some Sc/f (implied).

Acknowledgements: Thank you to M. for the feedback and the suggestions. The Vulcan language and culture comes straight from the Vulcan Language Institute. Also, acknowledgements to "Spock's World", and "The Vulcan Academy Murders"

THE RUNES--PART II

Famine. I speak the sacred word of the plight, aloud as I look up into the sky. The watcher: T'khut, rises higher and higher. It is nearly time. May the light of T'khut watch over me this night and all other nights. I brush my hair and gaze into my looking glass. My blue eyes shine brightly in the watcher's light. My wedding present…the gift of the stones…lays nearby, ready to present to my groom at the appointed place.

Tonight is my binding to Llarien'Solak, prince of the v'LauDuKharir. My original intended, died shortly after our child bond at year seven and left me without a mate. My house has now betrothed me to be bound to this one. It is hoped, this union will result in a truce with the v'LauDuKhari. We will trade food and supplies. Then, my people, the F'thinraKathir will suffer the plight of famine no more…

----------------------

"Mmmmph," I tentatively opened my eyes and found myself laying on the sickbay biobed. I just could make out a blurry Spock standing over me. "How long…?"

"You have been out: thirty point two minutes." He sat down at my bedside.

I groaned. My entire body ached. My eyes felt like they had been scratched in a million places. I decided to close them again and keep them like that for the time being. I itched horribly, but my fingers were so bandaged up I couldn't scratch it. This synthetic skin Nurse Burke had placed on my wrist and hand made me want to climb the walls…

… or punch the nearest Vulcan who went on about an ancient curse.

I sat up on my elbows, felt the cold hit me, rubbed my bare feet together and realized that under the sickbay sheet; I was clad only in my fleet issue underpants. "Who took my uniform off?"

"I did. My apologies, Doctor. I was forced to rinse you off in the sickbay shower."

"Oh…Aren't you supposed to be on the bridge, Spock?"

"Lieutenant Uhura has the watch this shift. I am off duty."

"How convenient," I said, weakly. I felt warm fingers open up one of my eyes, put some eye drops in, then repeat the action with the other eye. I felt the heat of a palm graze my lips. As the soothing eye drops coated my eyes they felt better but I still kept them closed. The hand lingered on my face, the touch felt nice, comforting…though I was awkwardly aware that the hand belonged to Spock. "You don't have anything else to do, besides bother me?" I murmured, as gruffly as I could muster but it came out only half-heartedly. "No reports to catch up on?"

"Negative." He was still touching my face.

"Want to work on some of mine?" I snorted. After a protracted silence, I noted, "I bet I ruined my lab table."

"The acid damaged a large area on the left side."

"That's just wonderful," I sighed.

"You were nearly blinded." A fingertip traced my eyebrow.

"Hey! Why the hell do you care so damn much?" I lashed out rather too harshly. His hand lingered still on my face. The warmth of his fingertips felt so good that I softened my tone. "Sorry," I said. "Of course you care. You always do." I paused for a moment. Then blurted out, "You always have cared about me. Haven't you. I just never…have…given you any credit for it."

Silence from him. Damn it. What the hell was I doing? I open my big mouth to tell him how I really feel and it makes everything worse. I felt the deliciously warm hand leave my face. Damn.

I cleared my throat. "Listen, I only…uh… had a little accident because, I`m very, very tired. I haven't gotten any sleep lately. Too much excitement going on to sleep. And when human's go without sleep we make mistakes. I`ve worked with acid thousands of times. It was simply pure coincidence that something happened."

"You still believe that it is coincidence?" he said.

I barked out a half exhausted half hysterical noise that caught the Vulcan off guard. "Oh come on, Spock. You're buying into some ancient mumbo jumbo. It's crazy. You said so yourself, curses are illogical." I let my head loll back onto the biobed.

"I did. However, do you not find it unusual, the amount of freak accidents and sudden onsets of illness that have occurred as of late?"

"Dammit, we've had epidemics on board before. I still say, coincidence. Mr. Spock." I held up my wrists to my eye level and confirmed that something wasn't quite right. "Where's Lia Burke? I need her to fix this, the skin is too tight."

"She did not treat your chemical burns. I did so myself," he replied.

I sighed. "It can't get any worse. Now you're running around practicing medicine without a license." He simply regarded me with an amused glint in his eye.

"Alright…" I said begrudgingly. "Thank you for taking care of me. Especially for throwing me into the shower." Eyeing his still damp hair, I grumbled, "Now it'll probably be my luck you'll come down with hypothermia."

"I can assist you in the sickbay today, if need be," he offered.

"No…I'll be fine." I smiled. "Really, Spock. Just help me up."

"Are you certain you are--"

"Yes!"

He reached over to raise me to sitting position and handed me a complete uniform set and boots. After I dressed, with his help, of course, I motioned over by a clean towel for him to pick up. "Dry your hair," I ordered.

I walked over to a mirror to check out my burning eyes. "Jesus! You weren't kidding!" The burns covered my temples too. "I guess I was nearly blinded."

He stood close behind me, drying his hair and saying quietly, "Doctor. What is your decision… regarding the runes?"

"You haven't sent them to Vulcan yet?"

"No."

"Well, what are you waiting for?"

"Doctor." The way he'd said that, made my hair stand up on end.

I spun around to face him. "You know what Spock? If I didn't know you better, I'd say that--" I swallowed hard. "-- you want us to use those runes. Why?"

He took on the expression of a stone, and after a long silence, he finally, hesitantly replied, "I have come to the logical conclusion that using them…might be… necessary to… alleviate the situation."

"Necessary to alleviate the situation? Are you serious? Well... that's damned romantic of you." I snickered to cover up my nervousness. He raised an eyebrow. The opposite to his usual one. "Your mind certainly is made up," I noted. "You're determined to use them. Do they fascinate you?" I hissed. Now, I didn't care if I said something wrong. "I think it's a turn on for you. Ancient Vulcan sex." I leaned over, put my mouth right against his ear and whispered: "Isn't that right?"

He pulled his ear away from me, but kept his face close by. "My concern is merely about the welfare of this ship," he quietly insisted. "Is that not also, your concern?"

"Yes…but…" I darted my eyes back and forth. "I'm not going to have sex with you," I whispered. "I can't." He was about to respond, when we both heard someone come into the ward. "It's time for me to get back to work."

--------------

Personal log Stardate 3712.20. Forty seven more crewpersons suffered minor to moderate injuries during the last couple of days. Everyone who has come into contact with me, appears to have been affected in some way. I'm started to get paranoid. I've become afraid to associate with anyone, lest they be injured or become ill. Twelve more came down with influenza which is now ravaging throughout the ship as fast as I can inoculate people, though First Officer Spock has been a big help in that area. Three crewmen are suffering from food poisoning due to a miscalibration of the food reconsitutor. Our Mess- tech suffered second degree burns while fixing the system.

I lost a week's worth of my medical log entries due to an error in this computer, or perhaps I accidentally erased them…I don't know. Commander Giotto chipped his front tooth when the doors to his quarters failed to open. Fixing his tooth is now my problem since Doctor Needham Gulley, our new ship's dentist, was also stricken with food poisoning. Damn kid just signed on board a week ago and is already sick.

I sighed down at Spock, our latest casualty, now laying on the bio-bed as I gently placed the hybrid Neu-skin on his hand. He'd received second degree burns doing routine repairs on his scanner. I'd already warned him when he'd first come in, not a goddamned word about the curse. And he'd kept quiet. Very quiet.

I was so exhausted taking care of all these calls that I was nearly seeing double. After this I planned to make myself a Red-Eye, if that damned food processor can make a half way decent one up.

"Well, what do you know?" I exclaimed as I grinned at Spock. "This hybrid skin I made up is working like a charm!"

I suddenly looked down at the Vulcan's hands and scowled. "Guess I spoke too soon."

-----------------

"Doctor McCoy?" It was Ensign Chekov, coming into sickbay a little contritely I had to admit. Bet he has an STD.

"Yes, what can I do for you, Chekov?"

"Uh," he stammered and looked around him. "I--uh--am--it burns, when I urinate."

I passed the scanner over him and smirked. Even in our century, they haven't been able to eradicate all the strains of Gonorrhea. "Was it that old girlfriend of yours? Or someone on board ship?"

"It was a prostitute from Berengaria," he admitted sheepishly.

"Oh…Jesus…wonder who else has picked it up, then." They'll be streaming in by the week end, when they finally can't stand the pain. "Don't worry Pavel," I said, as I made up an antibiotic hypo. "This is a mild strain. This will clear right up."

He grinned. "Thank you!"

I smiled back knowingly. "See you in three months, Chekov."

---------------------

"Doctor McCoy?"

I jerked up from my desk. I'd been dozing off. "Hmmm?"

"The strangest thing has happened," Lieutenant Uhura said as she walked over to me. "I've been wearing earrings since I was a baby, but for some reason…look at this." She showed me her earlobe.

"Ohhh," I smiled as I examined her. "It's a little infected. Nothing to worry about. I'll take care of it right now."

She followed me into the dispensary, where she watched me make up an antibiotic hypo.

"I'm sorry to bother you, Doctor," she said. "You look absolutely exhausted."

"It`s okay," I said. I checked that hypo, twice, then again, then I checked it once more to make certain of the dosage, and that it actually was an antibiotic. I couldn't be too careful. Then gently I pressed it against her arm. "There. Should be better in about an hour."

"I'm so glad, Doctor McCoy. Thank you so much."

"You're welcome," I said sleepily as I walked her back into my office. I sat down heavily onto my chair and leaned my head back.

"Do you have to stay here on duty all night?" she asked me.

"Yeah…" I said softly. "I'm trying to finish up these reports. But…I suppose I can… lay down in the ward for awhile."

"Why don't I walk you over there?" she suggested.

"Alright," I said numbly. She took my arm and led me out of my office and over to one of the beds. "Tell me a bedtime story," I joked as I lay down.

"I would," she laughed. "Except I have to get back up to the bridge. I was only supposed to be gone for five minutes."

"The night's getting worse and worse every minute." I muttered. "Who's up there on watch?"

"Mister Spock."

"You have to work the third shift?"

"Yes, I'm covering for Lieutentant Renna, she was injured by the communications earpiece discharging into her ear, remember Doctor?"

"Yeah, of course I remember. Well you'd probably best be getting back. I'll be right here if you need me."

She gently kissed me, on the forehead, in an endearing way that made me smile. Then, she left.

I lay there on the sickbay bed for a few minutes and found…that I couldn't sleep. I was absolutely exhausted, but I couldn't shut my mind off enough to sleep. It just kept on running like it had for the past three days whenever I had a quiet moment… I have come to the logical conclusion that using them…might be… necessary to… alleviate the situation. Necessary to alleviate the situation? Well, that's damned romantic of you. Your mind certainly is made up. You're determined to use them. Do they fascinate you? I think it's a turn on for you. Ancient Vulcan sex. Isn't that right? My concern is merely about the welfare of this ship. Is that not also, your concern? Yes…but…I'm not going to have sex with you…. "Shut up!" I said aloud. I opened my eyes. "Lights to ten percent!" the sickbay lights dimmed obligingly.

Then closed my eyes again. It certainly was tempting. I was getting tired of all this activity in the sickbay. All I had to do was have sex with Spock. Easy. He's seems so damned willing too. I don't know…maybe I'm being selfish. Maybe he's right. Maybe it would solve all the bad luck we've been having…. who knows… the sex might be fantastic. You might really enjoy it. Sex is sex, right? No matter who it's with. You haven't had sex in a long time McCoy… It's not like you have to cut off a limb or give up your firstborn….but it would be like having sex with a fucking computer…who wants that? "Shut up!" I shouted again.

A drop of saurian brandy would relax me. I knew what else would relax me, but I wasn't doing that in the sickbay. I hopped off the bed and staggered back into my office. I reached over to the ledge next to my desk where I normally kept the bottle for the times Jim came by to talk.

I found that I'd actually locked the bottle in the cabinet this time.

Okay, that problem was easy to solve. Key.

Key.

Where in the hell was the damn key?

I looked about my office, slowly at first, then frantically. "Where the hell is it?" I snapped out loud. I was interrupted by the bosun's whistle. I dearly wanted to rip out that viewer and throw it across the room. I punched the button with my fist. "What?" I snapped, throwing all decorum out the window and not bothering to ask why they called. I knew why.

"Bridge to Doctor McCoy." It was Spock.

Oh gods…"What happened?"

"I was enquiring as to Lieutenant Uhura's whereabouts."

"She should be on her way, Spock. Unless something`s happened to her--" My heart lurched. Oh no…

"Ah…Here she is now. Thank you, Doctor."

"Spock! You are going to give me a goddamn heart attack! McCoy out!"

-------------

"Bones!" Kirk jumped a mile in his bunk when I'd entered, unannounced. "Ever heard of signaling?"

"Chief Medical officer's prerogative. I don't have to," I said smugly, then innocently. "Why? Was I interrupting something?"

Then I realized I was. "Oh for Chrissakes, Jim!"

"Oh, like you`ve never done it. I did have the privacy lock on. Bones."

"Well, how the hell was I supposed to know what you were doing?"

"Maybe you should have signaled first."

"I was coming in to check on your illness status. Captain! And I can see that you`re now doing just fine. And that you're a healthy thirty-five year old male."

"Bones. Cert me fit for duty. I`m over the flu. And get the hell out."

"Alright, fine. I pronounce you fit. Congratulations. Boy am I glad somebody's feeling better around here. I`ll leave you to it, then. Have fun," I breezed cheerily. "Have a good rest of the day, Jim."

"Bye…Bones."

------------

I handed the wedding gift to my new husband. The v'Faul or the stones; newly carved by my grandmother, the priestess, from the tree of old. "Thee may use these with me at thy pleasure", I said.

"It will be a pleasure" he said. He regarded me with approval. His delicate pointed ear, the ear of the desert dweller, looked elegant in the light of T'khut. He approached me in our bedchamber.

-----------

With about ten minutes to spare (till I had to return to the sickbay), I leaned my head back under the water spray in the shower in my quarters. It felt so good to wash off the grime of the past couple of days. I was aware of the fact that I probably needed freshening up, when I noticed other officers in the officer's mess moving slightly away from me. Okay so I stank like sweat. They would too, if they had my job. I knew without even looking in the mirror that I looked like something the cat dragged in. Well, I'm a doctor, not a model.

I studied my hands; I wasn't eating enough. Just living on coffee, for the past couple of weeks. My fingers were getting bonier.

I touched my beautiful ruby pinky ring, that I'd gotten when I'd married Jocelyn. I noticed that it was now loose enough to be able to be worn on my ring finger. I could switch it over so it would be more secure, but that would be illogical, wouldn't it. You're not married to her anymore, McCoy. She's with someone else.

In an attempt to stifle the encroaching melancholy, I reached for the soap and concentrated on lathering up my body.

But, before I could react, my ring slid off my pinky and felt onto the floor of the shower. I dived down to fetch it, shampoo stinging my eyes and dripping everywhere. "No!"

The pull of the drainage system of the shower, that so efficiently drained the water with minimum of waste, efficiently sucked my beloved ruby ring down into it.

I knelt down, stuck my fingers into the drainage system, trying desperately to get it out.

But…It was long gone. Just like Jocelyn.

"No…"

--------------------

The doors to Spock's quarters swooshed open sans chime or warning as I rushed unceremoniously through them.

I'd managed to startle him once again; he watched me wide-eyed as I ran forward and pushed against him. He was kneeling, wearing his black Vulcan robe, obviously about to begin meditation, but I didn't care. The momentum of my body pushed the both of us back till Spock fell back against the bulkhead.

Determined, I reached out and roughly pulled Spock to me by the scruff of the neck, ready to pull him into a kiss.

"Wait." Spock turned his head before my lips actually made contact.

"What is it?" I gasped. "Come on, let`s get on with it."

Spock, body still leaning against the bulkhead, held tightly in my embrace, said smugly, "Too many incidents for your liking?"

"Ecce signum," I said with a shrug and a grimace. "Jim's--uh-- finally fit for duty, but the incidents are getting more and more serious. I`ve spent all day tending to Mister Leslie`s broken back. Someone is going to wind up getting killed."

"Indeed," Spock replied. "The warp drive is now mysteriously non-functional."

"I know. Poor Scotty." I nodded grimly. "We'd better get started."

"Indeed," Spock agreed. "However, before proceeding hastily, perhaps you should release me so that I may read the inscription on the first stone."

"Oh…" With an embarrassed snort I released him and stood up. "Sorry."

As I had hastily retreated I noticed that there was an almost smile that had formed on the Vulcan`s lips. I studied his face in disbelief. It was gone now, back to normal but for an instant there had appeared in the first officer's eyes what seemed to be a lustful glimmer. Spock had seemed like he enjoyed my embrace…

He stood up, and faced me.

"Well," I gulped, uneasily. "What precisely does the instructions say we are supposed to do?"

"First, this." He walked up to a decoration hanging on the bulkhead wall next to his bed, and calmly pulled off a ceremonial dagger.

"Ostentatious, those damn ancient Vulcans…" I snickered as I watched him.

"There is a similar ritual for contemporary Vulcans, known as `Blood Meditation`", Spock explained. "However, that ritual is quite rare, and I have never attempted it."

He turned around to regard me with all seriousness. "Lights," he called out to the computer. The light in the cabin blinked out to darkness, leaving only the illumination of the firepot. In the red light illuminating the overheated bedchamber, the shadows accentuating his angular face and part of a pointed ear, Spock suddenly appeared to be the devil himself.

With eyes trained on mine, he swiftly pointed the blade down. He sliced down deeply into his own palm, leaving a trail of green blood.

He reached for my hand.

I backed away from him. "Hey, I`m a surgeon, I have to use these hands…" At Spock's intense glare I caved in, "alright… alright." I let Spock take hold of my hand, then braced myself for the inevitable pain. Pulling my right hand flat, Spock neatly sliced a clean deep line into my palm. "That didn't hurt at all." I realized, shocked. I watched with fascination as my own blood, appearing black in this red light, flowed freely out of the deep cut.

"Now. Choose a stone, with your left hand." Spock held out the bag.

"Oh gods. Do we have to keep cutting ourselves every time we pick a stone?"

"Only the first time."

With a skeptical glare, I dove my uninjured hand into the velvet bag, picked out a stone and handed it over to the Vulcan. As I waited patiently for him to read it, I felt the blood from my cut right palm dripping onto the deck.

After looking at the stone for what seemed to be a an eternity, Spock grabbed my bleeding hand with his own. "Hurry up Spock," I gasped as he did so. "I'm losing a lot of blood."

"Our blood mixes. We now have entered into a blood oath to complete the cycle," Spock murmured then released my hand.

"Aren't we taking this parlor game a little too seriously?" Sweat was pouring down my face in rivers. And I pressed on my palm, now stained with green and red blood. I couldn't stop the bleeding. "Hurry up…"

"Are you aware that some of the ancient Vulcan's possessed iron based blood, Doctor?"

I kept trying to stem the bleeding but it kept coming, running down my wrist. I was definitely going to pass out now, I was lightheaded. "Did they?" I said softly.

I swayed and he caught me.

"Iron based?" I asked softly in his arms. "The FthinraKathir. They had red blood?"

"Affirmative."

"The ones who resided in the forests," I murmured.

He raised his eyebrow. "You have been paying attention."

"Hurry up…and read the stone," I gasped. I was becoming numb. He pushed me into his chair, pressed a cloth to my palm, putting pressure on it to stop the bleeding. "How's your hand, Spock?" My tongue felt too thick to be able to form words.

"My bleeding has already ceased."

"Good…now hurry up and read the damn stone."

The stone in his hand, he studied it. "Patience Doctor, this is an ancient dialect, I must translate the symbol perfectly. Which will take me a few moments. It is unfamiliar."

"Come on, the ship might blow up in the mean time!" I insisted.

Spock finally looked up at me. "This one says: 'Mhanndor'.

"Sex? That means have sex?"

"Drink," he corrected. "Mhann is the noun 'drink' Mhanndor is the verb `to drink`."

"I see. Drink… what?" I couldn`t help myself. "Blood?"

Spock shook his head. "Wine, Doctor."

"Oh," I said, with relief. "That doesn't sound so bad," I grinned. "I could definitely use some right now."

He got two glasses, poured from a bottle of Vulcan wine into both of them. He set my glass down in front of me. I reached to grab it off the desk like I usually did when he offered me something to drink.

Only… this time he stopped me by putting his hand into mine.

"What are you doing?"

"Offering you a drink." Not only did he hand the glass to me, he held it up to my lips.

"Spock--" I sighed then finally, reluctantly allowed him to hold it to my lips. I drank from it; it was so good that I had quite a lot of it. In fact I downed the entire glass.

He set it down on the desk, and locked his gaze with mine, "Did you enjoy that, thy'la,?" he asked, softly in a tone of voice I`d never heard him use before.

I shrank back. "What does that mean?"

"I shall tell you tomorrow. Goodnight… thy'la."

"Spock…tell me now. What does it mean?"

He would not and waved me out. I got up and left his quarters, shaking my head. Sometimes Spock could be so damn weird. This whole thing was so damn weird, but I didn't feel like thinking about it just now. I was absolutely exhausted, the wine making me even more drowsy. Maybe I should head to the captain's quarter's to apologize, but that could wait. I decided to head straight for my own cabin and maybe get some sleep.

I stepped into the lift. Jim Kirk was already in it headed for the bridge. "Oh!" I said, slightly embarrassed. This saves me a trip. "Hi Jim."

"Hi… Bones," he said awkwardly, not really looking at me.

"Jim…" I said. "I'm really sorry about what happened. I should really signal next time--"

"Did you injure yourself?" he interrupted, curiously gazing at my bandaged hand. "There sure has been a lot of injuries and illness around here, lately. They`ve been keeping you in business."

"Yeah, I know Jim. Damnedest thing really…all this unfortunate activity going on. I should… head to sickbay and get this taken care of." To avoid meeting Jim's questioning eyes, I pulled off the bandage off and inspected my palm.

I stared at it…and stared at it again…puzzled. There was nothing there. No sign of a cut, nary a scratch.

I closed my hand into a fist, looked up and grinned.

----------------

The next evening in Spock`s quarters, where it appeared we were going to be using these stones, I held out the bag for him. Like a parent instructing a child, he patiently took the bag and held it out to me. "You must pick each stone," he said. "The runes belong to you."

"Fine, fine," I said impatiently, then did so. I thrust the stone out to him and anxiously waited for him to read it. Of course I was anxious. I knew what was coming.

Spock squinted at the stone. " Fes`uk. To dream, together."

"Dream, together?" I wondered. "You dream when you sleep; or does it mean a daydream, or a mind meld?"

"It could be a mind meld. However, we do not consider a meld, dreaming. More accurately, I believe that it is describing the act of…sleeping together."

"So…just…sleeping. No sex."

"Affirmative."

"Well," I remarked. "One of the most intimate things you can do with someone, besides mind-melding I suppose, is to actually sleep with them. It can be more intimate than sex." I threw a concerned glance towards him. This was going to be awkward. "Will you be alright sleeping with me tonight?"

"I will have to get used to it," he replied. "I seem to recall the last time you fell asleep in my presence, while planet-side. You would not stop talking."

"Sorry." I grinned sheepishly. "When I`m injured I tend to talk in my sleep. I was probably worried about you and Jim." I yawned; exhausted as usual. "This is only for tonight, right? We never have to repeat this: sleeping next to one another."

"That is correct."

"Good. Well. I never thought I`d ever hear myself say this to you, but, let`s get ready for bed. I'm using your shower."

"It is all yours, thy'la."

"Spock," I said, annoyed. "Unless you tell me what that means, I would prefer it if you would just call me `Doctor` like you usually do. Got it?"

"As you wish, Doctor."

I got up and went into the shower. As I turned on the water, I found myself shaking uncontrollably. I was exhausted granted, but also my nerves were shot to hell. It was just sleep. Don't get excited. You are just sleeping with him. Not having sex, yet. Okay?

When I stepped out of the bathroom, I found the Vulcan already in bed.

We were crammed in on his bunk. I was irritated in the heat, even though Spock had so thoughtfully set the temp down for me. But it still was too hot in here. I knew that it couldn't be too low, because then it would adversely affect Spock, so I would have to just deal with it. Even stripped down my underwear, I felt sweaty and wanted to avoid feeling the Vulcan's body heat for any length of time.

I shifted around, trying to get comfortable, eliciting a soft irritated sigh from the Vulcan. I finally settled on my side, back nearly touching the Vulcan's own. "Good night, Mister Spock," I said, formally.

"Good night, Doctor McCoy," he replied, equally formally.

Profoundly exhausted, I swiftly fell into a deep sleep.

"So sweetheart, how much?"

"I'll take you back to my room for a hundred," she smiled sweetly.

"Okay, you're on." I let her lead the way.

She led me into a room hung with rich red velvet tapestries, containing a lush red velvet round bed. My footsteps were deadened in the pile carpet. I sat down on the bed, sank down into its comfort and pulled off my boots, then my tunic, then my black t-shirt.

God, how many times had I done this before while on leave? It was always fun in the beginning, then later on afterwards, after we were finished, I always felt incredibly let down and lonely. It was mostly being held that I'd been looking for. Though, the sex was adequate. Yes. Just adequate. That's all it ever was. Adequate. Even with Jocelyn. It was just adequate. `Leonard, you're a lousy lover,' she used to say. Is that why I found her with him? Nancy…is that why she left me and married Crater?

I removed my trousers and underwear as the woman turned the lights down low.

"What do you want tonight, lover?" she asked.

I thought a moment. Perhaps I should try something new. "I want to fuck you in the ass," I blurted out. I blushed and giggled after I said that. "Sorry…that was a little vulgar of me. I don't know what got into me."

She smiled. "Your wish is my command."

Oh yes, it was. I pulled her to me, kissed her deeply; grateful that I'd paid extra to be allowed to kiss her. I kept my eyes closed, the sex felt better that way. That way I could pretend she loved me.

I ran my tongue down her angular face, tasting her warm skin, caressing her body. She responded to me. I wanted her now. I flipped her over and caressed her firm ass. My erection so achingly hard, I reached for the little bottle. As I lubed up, I could feel my own pulse on my penis. I slid a finger in the ass with a well-lubed finger, heard the moan which exited me even more, I couldn't wait any longer. I pressed my penis against her ring and entered her. Oh it was so warm… "Oh my god…" I moaned as I thrust deep inside. "This is fantastic." I`d never felt anything like this before..

"Yes, it is extraordinarily good…Leonard…" I heard a gasp in return.

I opened my eyes. "Ahhhh. Spock… Spock… you feel so good--"

Wait a minute.

Spock?

"Spock?" I was awake in an instant. "Spock!?"

I found that I had turned myself around in my sleep and had become hopelessly tangled up in the Vulcan's arms. I was laying partially on top of him with my body pressed tightly against his. I also found myself with a decidedly throbbing erection pointing into Spock's thigh. I glanced up and found that Spock was looking at me with an equally decidedly amused expression. Oh shit.

"Were you dreaming?" Came the innocent, aggravatingly smart-ass tone.

Goddamn smug, irritating, son-of a bitch, green-blooded Vulcan. "No kidding!" I snapped. I roughly disentangled himself from the first officer, got up from the bed and padded into the bathroom to calm down. I ran my head under the taps to wet my sweaty hair I waited and waited and waited some more till my erection finally went down. As I sat on the toilet and waited, I knocked back a glass of water, the water dripping down my face. I wiped it off then poured myself another deliciously cold glass full. God was it ever hot in here.

Slowly I came padding out of the bathroom to stand at the foot of Spock's bed. "Sorry about that," I said sheepishly. "Was I keeping you awake?"

"Only when you were grabbing hold of me."

"Oh." I laughed feebly. I noticed that he had set the temp down even more. It was comfortable for me, though now it was down to nearly `artic level' for that Vulcan hide of his. "Hey, you should turn the heat back up," I protested. "You`ll be too cold--"

"I shall be warm enough if you are beside me. Come Doctor."

I reluctantly walked back over to the bed, and sat down on it. I got ready to lay on my side again, till Spock, laying on his back, held his arm out to me. I noted that the black hair of his underarm matched his equally dark haired chest. Well, mine was lighter.

I hesitated for a few moments, then edged myself down onto his bunk. I lay my head in the crook of his arm, against that warm chest. I felt myself enveloped by the warm arms and settled down to sleep with my body firmly against his. It felt good like this, even if I didn't want to admit it to myself. I was being held, like I always wanted. Maybe I never thought about being held by Spock. But his arms were…so very comforting.

"Good night, Doctor," Spock leaned over and whispered into my ear.

"Spock," I whispered back. "If we're going to sleep--like this--" I sighed in acquiesence. "Call me Leonard."

I wound up sleeping better than I'd ever slept in my life.

----------------------------

END OF PART II