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From: "Keith & Jessica Bratcher" <campbratcher@psci.net>
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Date: Mon, 14 Jun 2004 10:41:22 -0500
Subject: [ASCEM-S] NEW TOS: Homecoming. K/S (R) 1/1
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Title:     Homecoming
Author:    jenolas
Series:    TOS
Code:      K/S
Rating:    R
Summary: On their return to Earth at the end of STIV, Spock finally 





Kirk was floundering in the stormy water of the bay desperately 
reaching for a solid handhold as he attempted to lift his body clear 
of the roiling waves. The driving rain only made the wet metal of 
the partially submerged hull of the Klingon vessel even more 
slippery, allowing no purchase for fingers numbed with the cold. As 
his hand again failed to grasp anything but thin air, he fell back 
into the freezing water, only to suddenly feel a warm grip around 
his wrist, and a steely strength lifting him clear. Kirk found his 
anchor in the strong grasp of the Vulcan, and with a contented sigh 
he allowed himself a moment to simply savour being pressed against 
his side, listening to the sound of Spock's rapidly beating heart.

The steadfast presence was a comfort as always, so too was the 
unmistakeable hint of affection and deep concern for his safety that 
flowed into his mind with the intimate contact, filling Kirk with 
warmth he had missed terribly in recent times. Their long standing 
bond of t'hy'la had attained its full meaning when they finally 
became lovers on the eve of the fateful training cruise but 
subsequent events had allowed no chance for further exploration or 
affirmation of the love that had been expressed that night. Their 
future had been torn from them so early in its beginnings and it was 
the cause of deep regret and sorrow for Jim, but it was nothing 
compared to the heartache caused by the fear of rejection he had 
felt while on Vulcan.  Spock could not remember anything other about 
their relationship than that which he had already acknowledged.

As soon as the fal-tor-pan had been successfully completed, the 
admiral had made it his business to ensure that T'Lar and the others 
who saw to Spock's retraining aware of this, hoping that knowledge 
of their strong relationship would help Spock regain all his 
memories but they had allowed the admiral only minimal contact with 
his First Officer during the Vulcan's recovery. Intellectually he 
understood the logic in allowing Spock to remember his personal 
history in his own time, after all, how could Vulcans who claimed to 
have purged themselves of all emotion possibly assist him in dealing 
with his past relationships? Kirk took some heart in the knowledge 
that even though Spock's recollections of their shared history and 
friendship were somewhat incomplete, there was no denying that he 
had been immediately drawn to Jim by the invisible link deep within 
their minds. Now there seemed to be a glimmer of hope.

Despite the fact that his retraining in the mental disciplines had 
been performed with typical Vulcan efficiency, at the first touch of 
their hands, Spock was disturbed to find that his shielding was 
severely lacking.  As he continued to support the human with his 
body, his mind opened willingly to him, and the hot breath of the 
Vulcan desert wind mixed with the cooler, misty air laced with the 
faintest scent of the sea, swirling wildly through their minds, 
until finally a balance of calmness was achieved that was more than 
acceptable to both. 

Spock was unsure of why this was happening, yet as the clouds that 
veiled the true depths of his feelings for the admiral were slowly 
pushed aside, the yearning for a nameless `something' that he had 
felt missing from his new life hovered on the edge of his 
consciousness. The urgency to find the answer slowly dissipated with 
the realisation that what he sought was still buried deep within his 
mind, just waiting to be reawakened. It was no wonder that his 
retraining had dismissed this need as unimportant for these memories 
were not of logic or science or those things revered by his Vulcan 
heritage, they were of the emotions that surely belonged instead to 
his Human half. 

//No, they belong to you, my t'hy'la, to one who is neither wholly 
Human nor Vulcan// whispered a faint but insistent inner voice that 
was so unexpected, and filled with such an intensely powerful and 
everlasting love that it felt almost painful. 

//T'hy'la! Parted from me, yet never parted. // How could he have 
forgotten?

// Never and always touching and touched.// the beloved voice 
responded. 

Those were the memories hidden deep within, memories that were 
released as suddenly as a lover's climax. Spock closed his eyes and 
momentarily lost himself in the pleasure of the final ecstasy felt 
only in minds bound together in the act of love. 

//Jim, t'hy'la ,you are here with me!// 

//Always. Where else would I be, my t'hy'la? // 

Kirk's merry chuckle of relief silently accompanied the words, and 
when he looked up into Spock's eyes, his own filled with tears of 
joy at the smile of complete recognition of all they meant to each 
other he found in the glittering dark pools. The longer they 
remained close, the easier it became for them to sense the return to 
full strength of the silver thread of the bond that had been severed 
but not destroyed. 

The intensely personal reunion of their souls was shattered by the 
delighted laughter of the rest of the crew as they spotted George 
and Gracie swimming freely. The humans playfully released their 
tension by unceremoniously dragging each other into the water, 
almost drowning each other in the process. Kirk was granted no 
immunity and, unwilling to suffer even such an insignificant 
separation from Spock, he immediately proceeded to subject his 
t'hy'la to the same treatment.

The arrival of the Starfleet shuttle signalled the end to the 
frivolity and provided a sobering reminder to the renegades that 
they would now be required to face the consequences of their 
actions. A stirring round of applause greeted the bedraggled, but 
highly elated Enterprise officers as they were quickly hustled 
through the gathering crowd that lined the passageways from the 
shuttle berth to the Starfleet Medical Centre. The Starfleet 
Commander tolerated the display of public loyalty with undisguised 
disdain, and was severely tempted to comment on the 
inappropriate `hero worship' of military personnel who were facing 
courts martial but his voice was stilled by a glance and a subtle 
shake of his head from the Federation President. 

The veteran crew were well accustomed to such attention and smiled 
politely at the well wishers as they made their way to attend the 
routine medical examinations that were standard procedure following 
a crash landing. Once all were declared undamaged and in good 
health, they were ushered into a private waiting room to hear a few 
brief words from their superiors. The Federation President 
congratulated them on a job well done, while the Starfleet Commander 
notified the rebel officers that they were relieved of their duties 
until the date of the official hearing of the charges against them 
was set. As soon as they had been dismissed,  Chekov and Sulu 
decided to join Scotty in a `wee one or two', as the engineer put it 
while Doctor Taylor accepted Uhura's offer of accommodation and a 
little sight seeing before Starfleet decided what to do with their 
anomalous guest.

"Well, that was a lovely welcome home. thanks for saving the planet, 
but you are all facing possible court martial," commented McCoy 
dryly to his two remaining companions.

"I am not facing any charges, Doctor," corrected Spock in the 
manner that Mc Coy liked to think of as Vulcan smugness.

"Well you should be!" He exclaimed unreasonably.

"Bones, you know as well as I that Spock did nothing wrong. We were 
all well aware that we were breaking rules so none of us have cause 
for complaint. Look on the bright side, at least we are not going to 
be thrown in the brig," said Kirk in an attempt to placate McCoy 
with his usual charming levity and dismissive shrug.

"I guess we should be grateful for small mercies," the Doctor 
grudgingly agreed.

"Rest assured that I appreciate the sacrifices made on my behalf and 
I fully intend to stand with you at the hearing," said Spock, his 
words eliciting a smile of affection and pride from Kirk.

"That's very `human' of you, Spock." As ever McCoy was unable to 
resist the temptation to tease his friend and Kirk smiled with 
amusement at the familiar banter. 

"As you so often point out, Doctor, I am half-Human," replied Spock 
with a typical raised eyebrow.

"And I was part Vulcan for a while, thanks very much for that 
headache!"

"Perhaps you should seek the services of a Healer to relieve it," 
suggested Spock, deliberately misunderstanding the friendly jibe, 
and ignoring McCoy's snort of disgust.

"Even though I have great respect for your Healers, I would rather 
have Chapel look me over to make sure I am not suffering any after 
effects of being the keeper of your katra," he replied. "Care to 
join me, Spock?" 

Whilst he shared the Doctor's scientific curiosity about the process 
of the rejoining of body and mind, Spock had had his fill of medical 
examinations and also had no intention of having his privacy invaded 
by Doctor Chapel or any of Starfleet's Medical Officers. 

"I must decline the invitation. I have been thoroughly examined by 
the Healers at Gol and have been declared fit for duty. Any further 
testing would be a waste of resources," he stated adamantly with 
typical Vulcan logic. What he did not say was that his objection was 
also based on his awareness of his human side which had reached the 
point where he understood his mother's questions regarding his human 
companions. He was content to accept that he felt friendship towards 
his shipmates and an even deeper affection and love for his t'hy'la, 
but he remained Vulcan enough to insist his emotions were not for 
public scrutiny.

"OK, Spock. I understand." McCoy had not expected any other 
response, but was unable to resist a friendly taunt as he turned to 
leave. "If you change your mind, call me!" Kirk winced and both 
Spock's eyebrows disappeared beneath his bangs as the chuckling 
Doctor left the room.

"Well, that leaves just you and me, Spock. I am afraid it will not 
be possible for you to return to your officer's quarters. When you 
were declared. dead," said Kirk, hesitating to use the word that 
still held painful connotations, "Starfleet exercised its customary 
efficiency and reallocated the accommodation." 

"As is only logical." It was a totally unemotional statement of fact 
that nonetheless made Kirk even more uncomfortable and somewhat 
annoyed.

"Yes it may be logical but it is also a disgrace, if you ask me. It 
takes weeks of arguing to have requisitions for the ship approved, 
yet barely a day after we docked I was informed that your quarters 
needed to be cleared immediately. I intended to send your personal 
effects from both the ship and your quarters on to Vulcan, but a 
more pressing issue took precedence," admitted Kirk with a 
melancholy smile at the reference to recent events. 

"Of course. Am I to understand that you are still in possession of 
those items Jim?" Spock was strangely pleased that it had been his 
t'hy'la rather than his father who had seen to the task. Sarek would 
no doubt have been dismayed to find that his staid, Vulcan son had a 
whole container full of cherished gifts given by his friends in 
celebration of his birthday, not to mention the box that contained 
an assortment of  plastic mistletoe, cardboard `party hats' from New 
Year's Eve celebrations and mementoes of other human holidays.

"Yes, everything is stored in my guest room as a matter of fact. You 
are more than welcome to move in with me, unless you would prefer to 
stay at the Vulcan Embassy until new quarters can be assigned," 
offered Jim, his eyes alight with a silent plea that the answer 
would be in favour of sharing his apartment as they had fully 
intended to on their return from the training cruise. 

"I believe it would be most satisfactory to live with you," 
acquiesced Spock, compelled by an unnamed force to give in to his 
own desire and need to remain as close as possible to the one person 
who would always be an integral and important part of his life.  As 
soon as he uttered the words, a slight frown creased his brow as he 
vaguely recalled having said them before. 

"So you told me the last time I asked," the admiral acknowledged, 
touching Spock lightly on the arm. Through the bond that was growing 
ever stronger, the touch filled Spock's mind with erotic images of 
their first night together as lovers and he gasped as the intense 
feelings threatened to overwhelm him. "You remember, don't you?" 
Kirk asked, unable to control his elation as he gripped Spock's 
shoulders and playfully swirled he around in an action very 
reminiscent of a similar scene in sickbay long ago after Jim had 
apparently `miraculously returned to life. A raised eyebrow and the 
subtle smile of affection that was given to no-one else but Jim was 
answer enough.

"Indeed. It was your birthday, and after visiting you, McCoy 
contacted me and told me you were `feeling sorry for yourself" as he 
put it, and suggested a game of chess might improve your mood." 

"You mean you went AWOL from the ship just to play chess with me!" 
exclaimed Kirk.

"I was on my rest period, and not required to spend it aboard ship 
while in Space dock as you well know," replied Spock, feigning 
affront at the accusation. "Also, I had fully intended to pay you a 
visit to discuss a personal matter that had nothing to do with chess 
before we went on the training cruise. The good Doctor merely 
provided me with an acceptable reason for my absence, had it been 
questioned."

"Entirely logical," laughed Jim.

"Indeed."

"I cannot tell you how happy you made me that night, Spock although 
we neither played chess, nor managed to get much rest after we 
declared our love for each other and decided to become full bond 
mates."

"Also an entirely logical decision, as was deciding to live 
together," said Spock allowing his lips to curl in the affectionate 
smile that he only ever displayed in private.

"Of course, and I thoroughly approved of your method for improving 
my mood," replied Jim as he drew Spock into his arms and held him 
close.

"It was a mutually enjoyable experience, as I recall. I also clearly 
recall the depth of my love for you," said Spock in a soft whisper 
as he reached out to ever so gently trace Jim's cheek with a single, 
graceful finger. A sweet reassurance of eternal love filtered 
through the link even as he uttered the words. 

"Oh, Spock, I love you more than." any further response was silenced 
with a feather light kiss. Not satisfied with such a chaste but 
loving touch, Kirk hungrily claimed the lips he had thought lost 
forever. The searing heat of passion engulfed them as the kiss 
deepened, the flames of desire burning the anguish and pain of their 
separation by death to ash. "This is not exactly a very private 
location, but I am sorely tempted to simply lock the door and show 
you just how much," Kirk said in all seriousness when they finally 
parted for air.  "Come on Spock, let's get out of here and find out 
just how much more of your so far excellent memory has returned," he 
suggested with a playful swat to the attractive backside of his 
First Officer.

                                                          **********

Spock wandered slowly around the apartment for the first time since 
his `death', pleased to find that everything from the antiques 
displayed on the wall to the location of the various rooms seemed 
totally familiar.  Jim watched in silence, savouring his lover's 
mere presence as he reacquainted himself with his surroundings. 
Spock stopped at the table where their unfinished chess game stood 
waiting for the next move and contemplated the situation. 

"You appear to be losing this match, the white king is in imminent 
danger of checkmate," he said allowing his eyes to smile as he 
turned to face Jim.

"Do not be so sure, Spock. Would you care to finish the game later?" 
he asked with the unmistakeable hint of a challenge.

"Indeed. I seem to recall that you employ the most illogical, but 
often effective strategies, not to mention distractions," Spock 
commented as Jim came to stand beside him, wrapped his arms around 
his waist and rested his head on his shoulder.

"That have been used to successfully assist me to win many a game," 
he boasted with a relaxed smile. In an act of remembered intimacy 
that sent a thrill directly to Jim's groin, Spock turned to kiss him 
lightly on the brow before moving away to continue his exploration. 
He stopped at Jim's desk to pick up the antique spectacles McCoy had 
given the admiral as a birthday gift.

"It appears you were correct in your assumption, Jim. Apparently the 
time line remained unaffected by our presence in the twentieth 
century. These are indeed the same glasses that you sold to that 
dealer in San Francisco," he said.

"Yes, and I suppose I should see about having the lenses repaired. 
That book beneath them was also a birthday gift... from you." 

"So I recall. You thought there was some hidden meaning in the 
choice of title," acknowledged Spock as he picked up the tome and 
turned to the first chapter. 

"Well, you certainly made sure it was the best and worst of times," 
replied Jim, shivering at the sudden image of Spock dying in the 
radiation chamber and noticing for the first time that the Vulcan 
was beginning to look a little pale. He lightly grasped a hand that 
should have felt warm to his touch instead of cool and kept hold 
while he led the Vulcan to the bedroom. "You are freezing, Spock. I 
will light the fire while you shower and change, and since you are 
obviously still feeling the cold, use the hot water, it will bring  
your body temperature back to normal more quickly than the sonics," 
suggested Jim with obvious concern. 

"Thank you, I will do as you suggest," replied Spock who was indeed 
beginning to shiver, but not only from the residual effects of 
exposure to the cold water of the bay. 

Although he was not fond of real water showers, Spock was surprised 
to find he relished the warmth that gradually suffused its way into 
his body as it drove away the last of the chill. The immediate 
relief from the cold was an intensely pleasurable experience and the 
warm water spraying over his naked body made his skin tingle, 
unexpectedly evoking  a brief image of a body pressing wantonly 
against his, causing a barely audible moan of need escaped his lips 
just as his t'hy'la opened the bathroom door. Jim stood for a moment 
simply drinking in the sight of Spock and he wanted nothing more 
than to be one in body and mind with his returned bond mate. Sensing 
this, Spock sent a silent invitation through the bond.

//You are most welcome to join me, Jim. //  

Unable to resist the temptation, Jim eagerly discarded his clothes 
and stepped into the cubicle and when he reached out to lightly 
trail his fingers across the damp skin, tendrils of fire lanced 
through Spock's body, sparking the flame deep within his heart. The 
Vulcan remained motionless, unwilling and unable to move away, 
mesmerized by the hazel eyes that glittered with the same intense 
desire that filled his own dark gaze.

Love starved lips were crushed together and Jim's tongue probed ever 
deeper into the sweet moistness of his lover's willing mouth with 
unbridled passion that lead to lovemaking that was both brief and 
intense. Finally their bodies collapsed into stillness, remaining 
entwined as they waited for their racing hearts to settle in the 
aftermath of their ecstasy. 

"Spock?" whispered Jim as he caressed the black silky hair, damp 
with perspiration from his exertions that now rested on a glistening 
shoulder.

"Yes, Jim," sighed Spock with contentment as he tightened his arms 
around his lover's waist, drawing him closer as his soft lips 
nuzzled the curve of his neck.

"Welcome home."






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