Path: newsspool2.news.atl.earthlink.net!stamper.news.atl.earthlink.net!elnk-atl-nf1!newsfeed.earthlink.net!newsswing.news.prodigy.com!prodigy.net!prodigy.com!border1.nntp.dca.giganews.com!nntp.giganews.com!newsread.com!newsstand.newsread.com!POSTED.monger.newsread.com!not-for-mail Newsgroups: alt.startrek.creative.erotica.moderated Approved: ascem@earthlink.net Organization: Better Living Thru TrekSmut Sender: ascem@earthlink.net Message-ID: From: "nyotava" MIME-Version: 1.0 Mailing-List: list ASCEML@yahoogroups.com; contact ASCEML-owner@yahoogroups.com Subject: NEW TOS A Pledge 1/5 [R] (K/U) Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Lines: 426 Date: Tue, 28 Dec 2004 23:55:03 GMT NNTP-Posting-Host: 209.198.142.218 X-Complaints-To: Abuse Role , We Care X-Trace: monger.newsread.com 1104278103 209.198.142.218 (Tue, 28 Dec 2004 18:55:03 EST) NNTP-Posting-Date: Tue, 28 Dec 2004 18:55:03 EST Xref: news.earthlink.net alt.startrek.creative.erotica.moderated:86436 X-Received-Date: Tue, 28 Dec 2004 15:55:27 PST (newsspool2.news.atl.earthlink.net) Title: A Pledge Properly Sealed Author: Nyotava (nyotava @ yahoo.com) Series: TOS Part: NEW 1/5 Rating: [R] Codes: K/U Summary: After Platonius, Kirk and Uhura address some awkardness Archive: ASC and UFF. All others, please ask. Disclaimer: Paramount owns Star Trek. I receive no profits from this. It is just for fun. Beta: A very special thanks to IDIC for her thoughtful beta and inspiration in the form of "Plato's Reprise" and "Realizations Resolved," as well as for permitting me to borrow elements from both stories. Errors due to my last-minute changes. Author's note: This is my very first story and I welcome all manner of feedback and criticisms except flames. The Enterprise was in a lull. Everyone was frustrated by the dull mission they had accepted. They were granting asylum and ferrying Alexander, a former member of the Planet Platonius, to Starbase 15 where the ship was due for routine maintenance. From there he would rendezvous with the Potemkin, which would transport him the rest of the way to Terrastnom, but in the meantime, they were essentially a taxi service. Captain Kirk and the crew were glad to offer asylum to Alexander, also one of Parmen's victims on Platonius, but would have preferred a more exciting task. Nyota Uhura awoke every day with disgust in her heart. She was positively bored out of her mind with things lately. Everything was the same. She woke up, got dressed, went to the bridge, performed diagnostics and then--nothing. Thankfully, the maintenance would allow for some down time, but oddly, that was the problem--all their official up time was actually down. After the ordeal on Platonius, everyone was understandably relieved to have a breather, but that was over three weeks ago. Since then, they had not seen an anomaly, a new alien species, or a breach in the time-space continuum. It bored Uhura to tears. She had once told Spock that she thought if she heard the word "frequency" once more, she would cry. It was hyperbole at the time. She was dismayed to know that the remark was now quite apt. The maintenance would allow for some shore leave to be scheduled, which would be a relief to many, herself included. Anytime was a good time for shopping, but Starbase 15 was not her idea of a shopper's paradise. She decided that she would settle for some time alone in her cabin. All she wanted was to get away from the Captain. Ever since being sent by force down to Platonius, and made to kiss one another, to the delight of sadistic onlookers, Uhura and Captain Kirk had not been the same around each other. More to the point, she had not been the same around him. She could scarcely look him in the eye and her uneasiness was probably obvious to most, including him. The last thing she wanted was for him to feel embarrassed or uncomfortable around her, but she just could not help it. The intimacy on Parmen's planet was relatively mild. Uhura was certain it would not have remained so had the Captain and Spock not been able to access the kironide's power. They had held each other tightly, Kirk's grip on her shoulders leaving impressions of his fingertips as he tried to get control on his movements. They had pressed their cheeks together while their bodies became closer. Finally, he took her by the hair, leaned her back and pressed his lips to hers. It held not the passion of lovers but the confusion, frustration and fear of two abused animals forced to mate. She was understandably jumpy when she beamed back, as were all the sex-show victims, but there was something else. It was as if Pandora's Box had been opened. It was more than the understandable shame of being manipulated, and forced on someone, or the humiliation of being observed by a delightedly cruel, catcalling audience while doing so. It was more than that. It was more private than that. It was as if someone had been watching her dreams of the past and taking notes. It was as if the scene had been the result of her own secret desires and fantasies. She blamed this entire ordeal on a love for him that she thought was long dead. It began as a crush, a romanticizing of his command and notoriety and especially his atractiveness. Over time it had developed into something more that she refused to acknowledge. The trust and admiration she felt for him grew with each successful mission. They could be in grave danger and one glance at him assured her that everything would be all right. Being so close to him, even showing forced affection, reminded her of all the times they had been in trouble together, when she had to follow his every instruction, trusting his every word with her life. And with her life she entrusted his hands when they helped her reach safety. In his arms she had never felt more safe. Yet the erotic nature of what they had just experienced together held more than she thought she could handle. Like an old flame thought long burnt out, the feelings had returned to ignite an unrequited passion. Yet it had only been a kiss. A forced, unromantic, essentially innocuous kiss. Feelings she had buried were now returning to the surface, sometimes at the most inopportune times. He would stand beside her giving instructions and she would imagine him bending down, gently removing her earpiece and whispering erotic words, breathy in her ear, making her shiver. She noted that more recently even his manner had changed around her but she found it that more difficult to discern. Lately he always seemed to be either smiling at her or looking very uneasy around her, which only made her newly returned attraction to him harder to handle. He almost treated her as if she were a new recruit just visiting the bridge. She noted that he was not at all unprofessional, just not quite as cool and detached as he usually was while on duty. The worst was when they found themselves alone together. She was certain that she never wanted to be alone in a turbolift with him again. Every time it happened she would spend the most awkward few seconds of her career. He was distracted and she could scarcely look at anything but her boots. What was happening between them? ********** This morning was no different than recent others. She woke up, got dressed and headed to the bridge. In the turbolift she laughed to herself at the thought that once, just once, she would have liked to enter the bridge and do something outrageous, something to make everyone laugh. An ice-breaker. She knew no jokes and even if she did, her delivery was dreadful. She rarely got more than a grin or an uncomfortable chuckle out of her audience and vowed to stick to riddles and bawdy drinking songs if anything at all. Stepping off the turbolift and seating herself at her station, she reflected on the fact that lately, the crew was barely even saying hello at their start of shift. Morale had been waning with everyone. Captain Kirk was even affected by the ennui the entire ship seemed to be feeling. He would sit in his command chair and sigh quietly, with an occasional swivel in her direction. Sadly, it was just about the only sound she heard that was not a beep or whir from someone's console, yet was not particularly comforting to her. When she heard him exhale, all she could imagine was his breath, hot against her skin. This morning, Spock looked up and gave her a nod and the Captain glanced over at her with a weak, almost apologetic grin on his face. She allowed a tiny smile and sat down, put in her earpiece, and began testing her board. ********** Her shift nearly over, Uhura was happy to have had something to think about besides the Captain. What could possibly liven up things around the ship? With a twinkle in her eye, she decided--a party. That would change the pace a bit. Even if something exciting finally did happen, some casual inter-space fun never hurt. Their five-year mission would be over in a matter of months and this would be a nice way to lead into the final festivities of a mission accomplished. And she was just the person to do it, and Christine Chapel could help, maybe even Sulu and Chekov. She would talk to the captain about it at dinner this evening. //I won't be alone with him. I can handle it.// ********** Uhura entered the officer's mess and scanned the room for the Captain. She was not sure if he would take his evening meal in his cabin since his mood today had been decidedly unpleasant. She spotted him sitting with Spock, Scotty and McCoy. After picking up a tray and making her selection, she pivoted and headed in their direction, trying her best to appear that it was not a B-line for their table. Scotty was the first to look up. He always was. It was as if he had antennae when it came to her. The Captain beat Scotty at being the first to speak. "Good evening, Lieutenant. Care to join us?" Scotty glanced quickly at the Captain before adding: "Aye, lass. Have a seat. We were just talking about this silly busy work we've been assigned. I know your job hasn't been any more interestin' than ours. It doesn't make sense, really. There's usually *something* afoot." "I know," she agreed and sat next to Scotty. "That's just what I wanted to talk to you about, Captain." Kirk tilted his head toward her, appearing intrigued. "Just what did you have in mind, Lieutenant?" Uhura felt herself blush. "Short answer, a party. Slightly longer answer: an interesting party, maybe with a theme." The men looked at one another dubiously, then McCoy chuckled and gave her a sideways look. "A theme party? Like what, Uhura, Toga?" Uhura almost cringed. Glossing over McCoy's mention of anything even resembling ancient Mediterranean clothing so soon after the incident on Platonius, Kirk nudged him, trying to diffuse the comment. "Come on, Bones. She's trying to break the monotony around here, and I for one am very appreciative." Captain Kirk shrugged and added, "I'd say I've had enough of Grecian clothing, although the ladies looked lovely in their costumes. And aside from Spock's chicken legs, I don't think we looked too bad either... So Toga it is, although you might have to remind me how to tie one," he said and concluded by giving her his crooked smile and hazel-eyed sparkle. Uhura, stunned and slightly embarrassed by the captain's joke, smiled nervously, sensing the heat rise to her face and ears again. She suddenly felt on the spot. She should have thought this out a little more, and she was not expecting to be reminded of the encounter with the Platonians so soon, or so lightheartedly. She knew Kirk meant nothing by it, merely playing off McCoy's knee- jerk reply, and she almost agreed that it was probably about time for her to stop languishing over the experience. He was trying to make light of a situation that no one really was quite comfortable with. McCoy dropped his head a little and tried to change the subject briefly. Kirk glanced reassuringly over at him. "Captain, I believe the ancient Greek attire that we wore were known as Chlamys, not togas, togas being Roman in origin. As for my 'chicken legs,' on Vulcan the epitome of aesthetics and good health is a lean yet defined physique, whereas those with more... bulbous figures are considered quite unsightly." Spock rejoined with a raise of his eyebrow, causing the other men to look at one another. "Gentlemen, I don't know about the rest of you, but I think I've just been insulted." "Aye." "Boy howdy." Although she smiled warmly, she was not paying much attention to their banter. Her thoughts went back to the idea of a get-together. As much as she enjoyed planning parties, themed ones could easily fall flat if the right atmosphere and enthusiasm of the partygoers were not at optimum. In fact, she wondered whether or not she would receive any cooperation at all, considering the crew's collective bad mood. "I'll come up with something. I just wanted to see if you were receptive to the idea of a party at all," she said somewhat uneasily. "Well, Lieutenant, you have my full authority to plan a get- together. Feel free to recruit anyone you need. I'm sure Spock is fairly handy with streamers, aren't you, Spock?" Spock raised an eyebrow and nodded slightly. "Indeed. I am familiar with the custom of using colored paper and balloons to decorate for a festivity. The Lieutenant has requested my assistance in the past." McCoy saw an opportunity to add to the minor change in topic, and chimed in with a derisive chuckle. "You don't say?" Spock paused a moment, tilted his head slightly and lowered an eyebrow, looking confused. "I am not certain I understand. It is evident that I *do* or rather *did* say, in view of the fact that I and all in attendance can attest to it." Kirk chuckled and looked at McCoy. With a sly grin, McCoy looked at the others, picked up his glass and gestured toward the science officer with it. "Anyhow, I'd pay admission to see Spock blowing up balloons. I'm in, Uhura. Besides, I'd decorate with the devil himself, no offense, Spock, to get me away from that damned busy work Starfleet has me swamped in." A light bulb popped on in Uhura's mind. "Well, since Halloween isn't too far away, how about a costume party?" Uhura gingerly offered. "That's a wonderful suggestion, Lieutenant," the Captain said sincerely. "But be sure to make clear to everyone that togas are not permitted," he paused, sipped the last of his coffee and looked directly at her. "I'm sorry, not togas. Chlamys, but then you'll have to explain to everyone what you're referring to." He smirked at Spock. "If there's anything you need, you know where to find me," the Captain assured her with a crooked grin and rose to stand. "Now, speaking of which, that's exactly where I need to go right now. Have a good evening." ********** The next day was just as the previous one. Quiet. Uhura monitored subspace frequencies while thinking about what she would like to wear for the party. Then she wondered what everyone else would come as. The Captain and Spock had been Chicago gangsters, Greeks, Organians, Nazis, and countless others. New and exciting costume ideas should be easy for them to imagine. Scarcely forgetting, even for a moment, the forced show she and the captain were subject to on Platonius, she felt the heat rise to her face. It had been nearly a month ago, but she was still unsettled by the experience. Humiliating, frightening yet erotic at the same time. She was privately embarrassed that she gleaned any sensuality from the incident at all. She was not supposed to. She could have been killed. She could have been injured. She could have been raped by the captain. But if she secretly longed to make love to him, would it really have been rape? "Lieutenant. Lieutenant?" The captain's second attempt carried an edge to it. "Yes, Captain?" She turned to face him. "Where were you just now?" //On Platonius, in your arms.// She swallowed too hard. "I'm sorry, sir. I thought I heard a faint signal, but it was nothing," she answered and sat up straighter and crossed her legs. "All right, if you're certain. Please send a status report to Starfleet Command..." "Aye, Captain," she said with an imperceptible sigh. Even when he was impatient with her lately, he seemed uncomfortable showing it. To her, his look had carried concern more than it did anger or annoyance. She collated the day's reports on their current "mission" if it could be called that, and when she glanced up from her padd he had swiveled in her direction. //Damn, he is fine.// Uhura was not one to utilize slang much in her speech, yet within the confines of her thoughts, she occasionally summoned the humorous, but effective descriptive expressions used by an Academy friend and actors on old holovids. This particular one pertaining to James T. Kirk was quite appropriate. Wishing him to turn back around, so she could keep her mind on her task, she completed the mundane report without even glancing at the board, gave him a nod and turned back to complete the rest of the day's work. ********** After her shift, she decided to have her evening meal in the Officer's Lounge. She thought she would look for Christine and start in on the party ideas. Making her selection, she picked up her tray, glanced around and saw the Captain, Spock and McCoy at their usual table. "Uhura!" McCoy called from the table. She sighed quietly to herself and walked over with her tray. "We have some suggestions for the party," he said in a conspiratorial tone. "All right," she whispered as she took a seat next to McCoy, "Let's hear them." "Spock here wants to bob for apples," McCoy said proudly. Uhura rolled her eyes and laughed. Experiencing genuine amusement for the first time in about a month, she wiped a small tear from her eye as she imagined Spock, his head dunked into a pail of water and popping back up with an apple held proudly between his teeth. Kirk watched her appraisingly. "I do not *wish* to, Doctor," Spock said with a sigh. "I merely wondered if the Lieutenant would be offering this tradition at her festivity," Spock retorted, then looked over at Uhura. "Yes, I had considered it, Mr. Spock but I'm not sure whether or not I spoke too soon about this party idea. Do you think anyone would want to go? There's nothing worse than 'forced fun.'" "Lieutenant, you must plan this party," Kirk said firmly but with warm, smiling eyes. "We mentioned it in passing to several people and they already sound very excited about it. I'm sorry, but you're committed," he said with a wink. "Besides," he continued, "It's never forced fun when *you* plan the event." //Stop being so cute!// end of part I ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ ASCEM messages are copied to a mailing list. Most recent messages can be found at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ASCEML. NewMessage: Path: newsspool2.news.atl.earthlink.net!stamper.news.atl.earthlink.net!elnk-atl-nf1!newsfeed.earthlink.net!newsswing.news.prodigy.com!prodigy.net!newsfeed.cwix.com!border1.nntp.dca.giganews.com!nntp.giganews.com!newsread.com!newsstand.newsread.com!POSTED.monger.newsread.com!not-for-mail Newsgroups: alt.startrek.creative.erotica.moderated Approved: ascem@earthlink.net Organization: Better Living Thru TrekSmut Sender: ascem@earthlink.net Message-ID: From: "nyotava" MIME-Version: 1.0 Mailing-List: list ASCEML@yahoogroups.com; contact ASCEML-owner@yahoogroups.com Subject: NEW TOS A Pledge 2/5 [R] (K/U) Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Lines: 693 Date: Tue, 28 Dec 2004 23:55:05 GMT NNTP-Posting-Host: 209.198.142.218 X-Complaints-To: Abuse Role , We Care X-Trace: monger.newsread.com 1104278105 209.198.142.218 (Tue, 28 Dec 2004 18:55:05 EST) NNTP-Posting-Date: Tue, 28 Dec 2004 18:55:05 EST Xref: news.earthlink.net alt.startrek.creative.erotica.moderated:86431 X-Received-Date: Tue, 28 Dec 2004 15:55:14 PST (newsspool2.news.atl.earthlink.net) Title: A Pledge Properly Sealed Author: Nyotava (nyotava @ yahoo.com) Series: TOS Part: NEW 2/5 Rating: [R] Codes: K/U Summary: After Platonius, Kirk and Uhura address some awkardness Archive: ASC and UFF. All others, please ask. Disclaimer: Paramount owns Star Trek. I receive no profits from this. It is just for fun. Beta: A very special thanks to IDIC for her thoughtful beta and inspiration in the form of "Plato's Reprise" and "Realizations Resolved," as well as for permitting me to borrow elements from both stories. Errors due to my last-minute changes. Author's note: This is my very first story and I welcome all manner of feedback and criticisms except flames. ********** Uhura managed to get through her meal without thinking anything obscene about the captain but now that she was back in her cabin, she doubted the ability would continue. "Computer, music. Chet Baker, vocal performances. Lights, half power." She removed her uniform and undergarments, put on a caftan and ran water in the bathtub, adding bubble bath to it. Lighting tiny candles around the rooms and the tub, she stood in front of her mirror, pulled out the clips holding her coif together and brushed her hair. She stopped suddenly, looking directly at the thick locks falling loosely about her shoulders and gave it one last shake. Running her fingers through it, she pulled out the remaining pins and lifted it up and back, mimicking the style the Platonians had arranged for her while on-planet. She did not particularly care for it, but now, it only reminded her of him. She clipped it in place then unzipped her caftan and let it billow to the deck. Stepping out of it, she walked nude to the tub and noticed that suds had reached over the edge and spilled onto the floor. "Mavi!" She turned off the water and wondered for a moment what had happened. Then she recalled the spa attachment she had purchased. She must have engaged it accidentally. She switched it off and vowed that from now on she would be more cautious around the controls. Remembering that she had some extra towels in her old quarters, she put on her robe and stepped into the corridor. She stopped in her tracks when she caught the back of Captain Kirk's head as he was strolling down the hall in his gym shorts and a tee, carrying a small duffel. //I do not believe it. I just can't get away from him.// When he heard the door open, he turned around. "Lieutenant, what are you doing up?" he asked casually, running his hand through several slightly damp hairs that fell onto his forehead. His face assumed a puzzled _expression and he glanced around the corridor. "Since when have you been staying in these quarters? These suites are for visiting dignitaries." "My room was having repairs, sir." "I see. Anyway, what are you doing up at this hour?" "Oh, I just... couldn't sleep, sir." "I guess it's contagious. Neither could I. You look worried. Something wrong?" He took a few steps toward her door. Shortly he was standing at her doorway. "Uh, no, not really." She looked at the deck, then to his bare thighs, then back up slowly at his face with a nervous chuckle. "I'm sorry, I'm just a little embarrassed. I had a little accident with my bubble machine." "Why, Lieutenant Uhura, you actually look like a damsel in distress. I could hardly leave you stranded with a 'bubble machine' incident without at least offering to help. Let's see the damage." He noticed her hairstyle. //Odd, that looks like the same hairstyle that the Platonians had given her.// "Oh, that's all right, sir," she began as nonchalantly as she could, trying to ignore the amused look on his face. "I couldn't ask you for help with this." "It's nothing, I insist. I was only teasing. You're hardly a damsel in distress. Besides, I don't think I'll be getting back to sleep soon anyway. That workout was more energizing than I'd hoped it would be." "Oh... All right. If you insist." Uhura hesitantly backed away to let him in. Kirk stepped into her quarters and futilely scanned the room for the bubbles in the dim light offered by the candles. "I don't see any bubbles. Perhaps you've already fixed the problem." "No, sir, in there," she said and pointed. "Bath bubbles!" Kirk colored with embarrassment. "Oh my God," he said when he glanced into the 'fresher. The small room was waist high with sudsy foam and was spreading. They looked at each other for a moment and then both broke up into fits of laughter. "But I turned the water off! And the machine!" Uhura cried between giggles. "The automatic controls don't seem to be working on the water removal. Let me take a look at it. What are you doing with a tub anyway?" He comically cleared a path to the tub, gobs of foam tossed behind him in his wake. "This one was installed for the Nemons when we ferried them to that summit on Hydra Three." Once Kirk reached the tub, he put towels down and gingerly leaned behind it to access a very small panel in the back. After two beeps, the water that had leaked slightly beyond the edge of the tub began to recede away. "Sure, Lieutenant. What, did Scotty owe you credits from your last poker game?" She smirked at him. "I seldom use it anyway, sir. I promised him I wouldn't. He never showed me that little panel. If he had, I certainly would've used it." "Luckily, it seems that there was very little water overflow. Just suds, and lots of them. The controls usually work, but... well..." he said, then paused and looked up at her with an impish grin and the faintest hint of a blush, "you must've distracted them." She had been leaning over him to see what he was doing, clutching the closure of the robe at her waist, yet unwittingly allowing him a clear view of her full cleavage. Uhura grimaced; embarrassed that she did such a brazen thing without even realizing it. She backed up a few steps tying the sash of her robe, suddenly forgetting all about the bathroom of bubbles and only seeing him. Kirk cleared a spot on the edge of the tub and sat down, shaking his head sadly. "Uhura," he said and dropped his head onto his hand tiredly and lifted it back up to look at her, "I've wanted to talk to you for a while. It's about Platonius." Uhura exhaled slowly. "You already did, sir and I appreciate it," she said as sincerely as she could, suddenly feeling terribly self-conscious. She realized why and reached up to her hair and started pulling the pins out of it. //Here I am playing Platonius dress-up!// She was certain that if it were not for her lovely, dark skin, she would look just like a Denebian tomato. Kirk pretended not to notice her discomfort and focused his mind on getting out what he did not want to say but had to say. The conversation he was referring to was the cursory "Are You Gonna Be OK?" talk he had had with her almost immediately after beam-up from the planet. It had lasted only a few minutes because she was still too upset to really talk about it. He was polite, concerned, yet exhausted and still fighting the side-effects of the kironide. It was his duty and that was exactly all it seemed to Uhura, a necessary but essentially meaningless conversation. "I tried to but I know you weren't completely honest with me. You were only telling me what I wanted to hear--that you were fine and we'd be fine, and I wanted to believe it was true. Uhura, it's going to be difficult but things won't get any easier until we straighten out what it is we're both feeling." //What we're feeling? You have no idea what you're getting yourself into, Mister, and neither do I. Let's just leave it alone.// She hoped that the severe look she gave him would convey all of that. Apparently it did not because he continued to look at her expectantly. She did not want to talk about this. She wanted to duck behind the great wall of bubbles and disappear but simply sighed and remained standing in the foamy corridor, wishing the conversation would end. "Captain, I understand what you're trying to do but I don't know what to say," she said finally, taking another step back and holding together the collar of her robe. "Just tell me what's going on, what's on your mind. This is all off the record, of course," he added with a tilt of his head and an almost smirk. "I don't think I can, sir." It was almost a whisper. "Uhura," he sighed sadly, "I thought we've been through enough and that we're friends enough to get past this. I know that I've left you to deal with this alone for too long but the fact is, you're distracted and uncomfortable around me. I know because I've been feeling the same way myself lately. So I tease and try to reduce the tension but it's not working." He glanced down at his hands, then back up at her. "Nyota, I hate this... distance... between us." Caught off guard by that voice speaking her given name informally for the first time in years, she just glanced down and adjusted her collar. "Sir, I'm fine." Suddenly Kirk dropped his fist onto the edge of the tub. "You know, you and Spock have a lot in common. Both of you are highly capable crewmen, diligent officers and poor liars. But as with him, I won't force the issue," he said abruptly and stood. "Sir, I'm not certain what you want to hear," she urged. "You are my captain. You ordered me to talk to you. I did. You ordered me to talk to Dr. McCoy or the therapist. I did. But unfortunately, you can't order me not to... " She eyed the ceiling as if it were giving her the strength she needed to go on, her voice threatening to crack. //Keep it together, girl. Don't say something you can't take back.// "...feel the way I do about you. If so, you'll have to put me in the brig because there's nothing that I can say to you right now that will improve matters." She folded her arms tightly, wishing her hands to stop trembling. "But look at you, Nyota," he said, gesturing toward her, instantly softening. "You look like a frightened little girl, not the strong, competent officer and friend I've come to rely on." He paused for a moment, thinking. "I'm worried that this could affect your performance on the bridge." Uhura bristled at the suggestion. He sighed resignedly. "Then just tell me, is there anything I can do to help you... to make things... less difficult for you?" He captured a mound of bubbles in his hand. "I guess my being here in your bathroom isn't helping," he said defeatedly, almost to himself. "I don't blame you at all for what happened down there," she continued, not hearing him. "I was unafraid. I trusted you with my life and always will. That's the only way I've managed as well as I have these past weeks." She paused for a moment. She began again uneasily, "But... I can't pretend that what happened had no effect on how I feel about you." She pushed a hair out of her eye. "I think our friendship will survive. I just have some realities to deal with first." She glanced around the room and finally back at him. Her eyes becoming moist, she smiled weakly as a tear rolled out of her eye. She closed her eyes and cursed herself for not keeping it together. He stepped toward her, reached for her hands, lifted them to his lips and gently kissed them. Then, lifting her chin, he looked into her eyes, while hers refused to return his penetrating gaze. He touched her cheek. "Look at me." His voice was soothing but firm. Essentially an order but the kindest one Uhura had ever heard. She finally held his eyes. They were so close. She could feel his heat. Uhura was sure her legs would give out or she would faint if this contact did not end soon. The way he was looking at her... there was tenderness, compassion, and what she thought sure was desire. //Oh God. I can't handle this. Make him stop. If only he knew what this was doing to me.// Her robe began to feel as if it weighed a thousand pounds. With her hands in his, she could no longer hold it closed yet it still remained together by the sash. "Nyota, I don't mean to push you, but do you think this is easy for me? I care for you... very much and I'd be lying if I said that this has had no effect on my feelings about you as well." He took her shoulders and glanced down at her and back into her eyes. "But we have a job to do, and a big part of its success rests on our comfort level with each other, which up till now has been excellent. I've depended on it and... I must demand it." He gave her shoulders a gentle squeeze and smiled warmly. "We make a pretty good team when we're not dancing around each other." Uhura began to relax in his hands. "Then please understand that I need more time, sir." She stepped closer to him and reached up to touch the side of his face. He took a step back, his smile dimming slightly. "I will. It's just hard to see how uncomfortable you look around me now." "I understand, sir but I just didn't think you needed to be concerned about me so soon after we returned. You have a ship to run. I didn't want to give you more than you could handle." She smiled, slowly coming to enjoy the nearness of him, her nervousness beginning to ebb. Feeling more like herself, she stepped forward again. He took a small step back. "I beg your pardon," he challenged with his cocky smirk, "since when do you know what I can handle?" She took one last step towards him so that her chest was touching his. She could smell his musky scent, an erotic combination of activity and desire, which made her weak. "Uhura, wait..." He stumbled. There was a splash and a soaking wet captain looked up at her through a Kirk-shaped break in the bathtub of suds. //Uh-oh. Now I've really done it. Isn't pushing a superior officer into a bathtub a court martial offense?// "Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry sir. Are you all right?" Uhura asked, bending while on the brink of bursting into a fit of giggles. She was occasionally punchy at this time of night, so his tumble was no help to her at all. "I'm just fine, thank you, Uhura," he said with the most authoritative voice one could muster with a pile of bubbles on one's head. "Le-, let me help you, sir." "No, no, no... I'm fine. No thank you." He frowned. "You know, if you wanted me to leave, all you had to do was ask." //You know good and well I didn't want you to leave.// "Here, take my hand, sir." She almost squeaked out a giggle while offering her hand to the drenched officer. "So you think this is funny, Lieutenant? I assure you, this is a most grave offense." "No, sir!" she exclaimed, inhaling a snigger as a hand reached out of the bubbly depths and drew her into the water with a slosh that poured more sudsy water over the edge and put out several candles. She shrieked and he shushed her with a finger as she fell onto him in a wet, fizzy heap. //This is not happening. Captain James T. Kirk is not in my bathtub-- with me. I'll be waking up any moment now.// "Come on in, the water's fine, if a little cool and receding somewhat," he quietly teased while adjusting to accommodate the woman he now had atop him. "It's all right. I needed a shower anyway." Now it was the Captain's turn to laugh. He was nearly in hysterics when, after wiping the water away from his eyes, he saw Uhura's half- furious, half-aroused look, which was confused even further by a mass of bubbles that had given her a sort of frothy halo. "I've just decided... I think you should plan a pool party. Water suits you," he said between chuckles and removed suds from eyes that were only inches from his own. "Or I suppose bubbles suit you." Pushing up on his chest, Uhura tried to gain some leverage in the slick tub. "Sir, I can't get up," Uhura struggled with her robe that had begun to fall open with much more of a flourish this time. "I'll help you if you'll do me one favor: we're in a tub together. Please... don't call me sir." "Thank you, sir, I mean..." "Jim. My name is Jim, Uhura," he said looking pensively into her eyes, a candle's reflection dancing in them. "My name's Nyota, Jim," she said, tracing wet swirls around on his chest, her breasts laying directly in front of him, nearly completely exposed. "Now that we know each other's names..." Kirk said, almost a whisper. Uhura felt herself melt into the swelling she felt pressing against her. She lowered her head an inch and pressed her full, wet lips against his. He startled her with how powerfully he reached up, put his hand in her hair and rolled her over, gently pressing her head against the bath cushion, his lips and hands demanding more and more of her. She felt as if she were being consumed. Uhura knew this encounter was wrong, but refused to acknowledge it, instead only perceiving the warmth, wetness and contentment she felt all over. It was much more comforting than the nagging voice in the back of her mind that told her unequivocally that this sensual tussle was not supposed to happen. //How could this be? How could anything that felt this good and right...be wrong?// She told herself that it could not be and gave in to the luxuriousness and delight of his hard, slick body against her own, the feel of his lips, kissing her deeply, probing her with his tongue. Uhura's body was overcome. His hands slid down her side, down her hips and down her right thigh. Pulling it up at the crook of her knee, he caused her back to arch slightly, allowing him room to run his lips and tongue across her now exposed neck. Imagining the feel of his growing hardness inside her made her nipples harden. She felt wild with a desire she had not felt in years. It was maddening. Her body felt so hot that she thought the water would begin to simmer at any moment. The air felt thick and she found it difficult to breathe. "Cap... I mean, Jim..." "Hmmm...?" Kirk mumbled, while nipping and licking her neck and shoulder. Uhura moaned and softly placed his hands on her bobbing, silken breasts. Now Kirk began to moan. "God, Nyota... you feel... incredible. Just as I've always imagined you to look... to feel," he said breathlessly, bending his head to pay proper attention to her right breast, "I've fantasized..." then stopped. //What the devil am I doing? I was just about to tell her that I fantasized about her, that I wanted her the first moment I saw her. I'm her commanding officer, a Starfleet Officer. How could I be so...// She responded to his attentions by gripping the back of his head and wrapping her legs around his waist. Her breath rough, she was about to slide her hand up his shirt when she heard a beep that cut through the lush and beautiful sounds of classic jazz and passion. Kirk, without breaking a kiss used his right hand to lightly tap the control, silencing the computer's untimely and redundant reminder. She let out a tiny startled sound. "Shh, Nyota. It's all right, just the 'fresher letting you know..." He laughed. "...that the water level is getting too high." "Now it tells me," she replied dolefully and scooted out from under him. "I think I just lost my nerve," she said quietly, believing that she had only thought it. He stood and led her carefully out of the tub. "Obviously, that tub needs some work," she mumbled quietly to herself, pulling the soaking wet robe around her once again. Smiling, Kirk watched her from beside the tub. "You certainly don't. Here, I don't think that's doing you much good anymore." He stepped over to her, trying to be nonchalant with a massive erection clearly evident through his shorts. He stopped behind her, slipped his fingers under the collar of the robe and slid the drenched fabric back over her shoulders, letting it fall into an unceremoniously soggy heap behind her. He held a large towel out wide behind her, glanced up to see them both in a mirror before them, admired her a moment, then wrapped it gently around her and held it with his arms in a tender embrace. The vision in the mirror was too much for her, such a familiar, easy pose. It looked and felt so natural, like they had stood there and held each other like that a thousand times. Yet to see it there with her own eyes... She leaned back into him, this hazel-eyed Adonis and feeling him throb beneath her skin made her knees threaten to betray her. The sight of him holding her in his arms was one she wanted to remember forever. She would probably never see it again. There she was naked, save for a towel, leaning her head back against the chest of the one man in whom she trusted implicitly with the sanctity of her life, and perhaps now, her heart. "You're...you're extraordinary, Nyota," he whispered into her ear and lovingly kissed her neck. Kirk wondered why he could have stood there admiring her all evening. He wanted so badly to do just that. //Such a beautiful, confident, intelligent woman. How could I have been so blind?// The job of a Starfleet Officer demanded a certain level of trust in one's captain whether one truly felt it or not. Thankfully, she always felt that trust and even more, but now? Now, she was actively and lovingly testing that trust in him by offering him her mind, body and soul. No contracts to sign, no oaths to swear. For her this was not fraternization. To her this was a voluntary, yet unspoken tribute to the almost five years they had spent as coworkers and friends. She would think no more about it--tonight. As if he had read her mind, a gentleness washed over his face as he swept her up in his arms and laid her on her bed. He kneeled and gently patted her with her towel and went back to get another for her hair. When he returned, she was wrapped in the towel and sitting up with one knee pulled up in front of her, the other leg, twirled around her bottom. She faced slightly downward but her eyes, hidden behind thick, lush lashes, looked directly up at him. He was almost startled, she looked so delicately striking, like some fantastic creature out of a fairytale. Like an Ethiopian nymph who held mysterious powers that it was his quest to discover. He had never seen her look more dear than at that moment. Her towel clung pleasingly to her breasts and her hair hung straight along her bare shoulders. //I wish she'd wear her hair like that every day.// The water from it still dripped off her chin and into her cleavage. Her skin left no trace of makeup, yet she was more beautiful than he had ever seen her. He wished he were an artist because he desperately wanted to paint or take a holo of what he saw curled up before him. "Nyota, here, your hair's still wet," he said quietly as he stepped toward her with the towel, directing it toward her shoulders. He suddenly realized that he was still soaking wet himself. Something else occurred to him: he could not turn back from what was about to happen. He knelt down in front of her and kissed her thigh. "Uhura, what are we doing?" She tenderly touched his cheek and smiled. She unwrapped her legs and took his hands, urging him to stand back up. She kneeled on the bed, slid her hands up under his shirt and slipped it over his head. Kirk felt a chill pass through him as her fingers touched his damp body in the coolness of the room. "I'll need those too," she said, pointing a perfectly manicured finger at his lower extremities. He just stared into her eyes, allowing her to do as she wished. She smiled sweetly and reached out to his waist, slid his shorts down off his hips and pushed them to the floor. He slowly stepped out of them. Uhura acknowledged his tremendous erection by slowly removing her towel. "I think I just got my nerve back." Nerves and butterflies had betrayed her too many times already so she attempted to put herself on erotic autopilot. //He's just a man, just like any other man...Right. // With that last thought, she wrapped her arms around his neck and began sucking ever so gently on his lower lip. She heard him groan and pull his head back a little and look at her with a pleading _expression. "Nyota," he moaned, his voice husky. "Yes, Baby?" "Regulation 7852.9 paragraph 7 strictly forbids exactly what we're doing now." "*Exactly* what we're doing now? Wow. That book must know me very well." She smiled suggestively. "What does it say I'm going to do now?" He groaned, ending with what Uhura thought might have been a tiny whimper. "You know what I mean, Nyota. We shouldn't be doing this." "Baby, I want this... and I *know* you do too," she said, giving his rock-hard member a delicious stroke for confirmation. "No one has to know. You won't regret... or forget it," she purred into his ear and began pulling the lobe into her mouth and nipping it gently. "No (bite) strings (lick) required." "Strings are the last thing on my mind," he said quietly sliding onto her and giving her fluttery kisses down her throat to her breast bone. She let out a tiny giggle. The nuzzling effect and his eyelashes were making her giddy and sending delightful shivers through every nerve, his fingers emitting tiny electric charges to her body. "Shhh..." he whispered into her ear as he put a finger to her lips and continued trailing kissing down her chest, stopping over her left nipple for a moment, as if contemplating its beauty. Then she licked the tip of his finger and pulled it into her mouth, swirling it with her tongue and lightly sucking it. A low groan escaped from Kirk. "Shhh..." she whispered sweetly with a tiny smile of satisfaction. A devilish grin Uhura could not see crept across Kirk's face. //So she wants to play that game, does she? I'll make her *almost* regret it.// The fluttery kisses stopped and Uhura wondered what he was going to do next. He gave her a look of mischief and his head disappeared under the covers. She cried out and arched her back again. "Shhhh..." he whispered. "Computer, last of the lights, out." ********** "I have to leave, Nyota," Kirk said with a tender kiss above her. He was already dressed, still in his gym clothes. "What time is it?" "0400. I didn't want to leave without letting you know. I thought it might be...unsettling." "Thank you, that's thoughtful. Can I help you with anything?" "Just promise not to look *too* lovely on the bridge this morning. I don't know how much I could take. You've made me a weak man, Uhura." "That's not the way I remember it at all," she kissed him back. "Well, you're in luck. I'm off duty today," she said with a playful grin. "Get going... sir. I don't want you to run into anyone at this hour." He looked at her with a defeated _expression, sighed, and bit her neck. "What am I going to do with you, Nyota?" "After last night, whatever you want." He winked at her. "See you on the bridge, Beautiful." When the computer confirmed that the hallway was empty, Kirk left her quarters and the doors shut behind him. Uhura rolled over in the sheets and gently rubbed the space where he laid just moments before. She squeezed her long pillow between her legs, remembering how he felt within her, making her wet again. //I might as well get ready, myself. No harm in an early breakfast.// She groaned when she sat up and stretched, noticing that she was pleasantly sore and exhausted. She was not sure if they would ever get to sleep. A girl could get used to that kind of rapt attention. She sat up and looked at the wreckage in her quarters. Wet towels, a robe and suds still littered the rooms. Laughing, she said out loud, "I'm going to kill him!" She shook her head and imagined creative ways she could "kill" him with kindness. end of part II ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ ASCEM messages are copied to a mailing list. Most recent messages can be found at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ASCEML. NewMessage: ath: newsspool2.news.atl.earthlink.net!stamper.news.atl.earthlink.net!elnk-atl-nf1!newsfeed.earthlink.net!newsswing.news.prodigy.com!prodigy.net!prodigy.com!border1.nntp.dca.giganews.com!nntp.giganews.com!newsread.com!newsstand.newsread.com!POSTED.monger.newsread.com!not-for-mail Newsgroups: alt.startrek.creative.erotica.moderated Approved: ascem@earthlink.net Organization: Better Living Thru TrekSmut Sender: ascem@earthlink.net Message-ID: From: "nyotava" MIME-Version: 1.0 Mailing-List: list ASCEML@yahoogroups.com; contact ASCEML-owner@yahoogroups.com Subject: NEW TOS A Pledge 3/5 [R] (K/U) Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Lines: 717 Date: Tue, 28 Dec 2004 23:55:08 GMT NNTP-Posting-Host: 209.198.142.218 X-Complaints-To: Abuse Role , We Care X-Trace: monger.newsread.com 1104278108 209.198.142.218 (Tue, 28 Dec 2004 18:55:08 EST) NNTP-Posting-Date: Tue, 28 Dec 2004 18:55:08 EST Xref: news.earthlink.net alt.startrek.creative.erotica.moderated:86433 X-Received-Date: Tue, 28 Dec 2004 15:55:18 PST (newsspool2.news.atl.earthlink.net) Title: A Pledge Properly Sealed Author: Nyotava (nyotava @ yahoo.com)=20 Series: TOS Part: NEW 3/5 Rating: [R] Codes: K/U Summary: After Platonius, Kirk and Uhura address some awkardness=20 Archive: ASC and UFF. All others, please ask.=20 Disclaimer: Paramount owns Star Trek. I receive no profits from=20 this. It is just for fun. Beta: A very special thanks to IDIC for her thoughtful beta and=20 inspiration in the form of "Plato's Reprise" and "Realizations=20 Resolved," as well as for permitting me to borrow elements from both=20 stories. Errors due to my last-minute changes. Author's note: This is my very first story and I welcome all manner=20 of feedback and criticisms except flames.=20 =20 =20 Uhura showered, dressed and headed for the Officer's lounge.=20 Assuming that the Captain would not be there, she felt confident in=20 her decision. She scanned the room and did not see him but saw Spock=20 and McCoy. She stepped in line at the replicators and while making=20 her selection, she was relieved to see Christine Chapel nearby.=20 She beamed as Christine waved her over.=20 "Hey, how are you, Ny? I haven't seen you in a month of Sundays!"=20 Uhura smiled at her curiously.=20 "Dr. McCoy taught me that. Apparently, where he's from it just means=20 a long time." "Thanks for the explanation." She giggled and sat down across from=20 her friend. "That's what I guessed, but what a cute way to say so.=20 He sure has some colorful ones, doesn't he?" "I reckon he does," Christine said with a laugh. "Shhhh... He'll hear us!" Uhura turned back quickly pretending she=20 was telling secrets on the Doctor.=20 McCoy lifted his head nosily with a squinty, suspicious look on his=20 face. She turned around just as she saw the Captain sauntering over=20 to McCoy's table. Saunter really was not a good word for it. Neither=20 was strut, but it did amuse her. She tittered to herself. //Some=20 people referred to him as a Cock of the Walk. She was happy to have=20 a valid opinion now. Damn straight, he is.// She laughed out loud. "What's so funny? You sure are in a good mood this morning!" "Oh, I'm all right," she said with a wave of her hand. "You're better than all right. This is the best I've seen you=20 since... well, you know since." "Yes, I suppose it is," she agreed. "Maybe it's just the idea of=20 planning this party. You have heard about it, haven't you?" "Absolutely! I meant to bring it up. I'm already excited. What can I=20 do?" "We should just have dinner one of these nights and talk about it.=20 But of course you know the most important decisions have to be made=20 first. So think of as many as you can." "You mean costume ideas for us." "Of course! We have to be the most divine creatures there!" She=20 leaned in and added, "You'll have to be extra-gorgeous for Mr. Spock=20 and I just have to be... well, gorgeous!" she laughed.=20 Christine laughed with her.=20 "Well, I can't wait. I'll be brainstorming in the meantime. How's=20 Saturday night in the Officer's Lounge?" "Sounds like a date. Hey, how about instead we meet in my quarters=20 and you bring your pajamas. We can have a few margaritas while we=20 giggle about boys. I haven't had a slumber party in, what? A whole=20 year?" She laughed.=20 "Gee, it has been a while, hasn't it? Great! Ooh, can we play Truth=20 or Dare?"=20 Uhura thought about this question for a moment.=20 "Sure! It wouldn't be a slumber party without it!" She bit her nail=20 at the thought of being asked anything about the Captain.=20 "I'm so glad you're doing better. I'm glad we're both doing better,"=20 Christine reached over and squeezed her hand with a smile. "Well,=20 I'm sorry but I'd better be getting back to sickbay. I told Dr.=20 McCoy that I was just going to grab a bite and go back to work on=20 some of our 'confounded busy work!'" "Sure thing, Chris. Have a good one and I'll see you tomorrow night,=20 around 1900?" "Perfect. See you then," Christine said as she took her tray away,=20 smiled at McCoy and left the mess. Uhura sat there alone thinking about spending some time with=20 Christine. Since everything happened, Uhura had almost been avoiding=20 her, not wanting to talk about the incident on Platonius. She was=20 glad to be doing something with her again, and something as fun as=20 planning a costume party! She sipped the last of her coffee, got another cup and put away her=20 tray without looking in their direction. She was relieved that she=20 did not have to be on the bridge today. She was convinced that she=20 still smelled like him. ********** Kirk sat at his computer and read through the communiqu=E9s from=20 Starfleet concerning Alexander's transfer to Terrastnom and=20 imagining Uhura sorting through all of them at her console the next=20 day, her gentle, yet strong fingers gracefully adjusting the=20 controls on her communications board. He remembered when he had=20 sucked the tips of them causing her to moan quietly and arch her=20 back ever so slightly, allowing him ample opportunity to smother her=20 breasts with succulent kisses.=20 //I want to look at her, hear her voice saying something to me=20 besides "Hailing frequencies open, Captain." I want to call her, ask=20 to see her here, in my cabin. I want to...// His door chimed. He sat up and adjusted his tunic. "Come." Spock stood in his doorway.=20 "Captain, you asked me to meet you for a game of chess in recreation=20 room four. You are approximately 15.7 minutes late." "Spock," Kirk rubbed his temple. "I'm sorry, I got sidetracked. Give=20 me a moment and we can head over there." Spock gave a slight nod of his head.=20 Kirk finished reading the last two documents, scrolled down and saw=20 another with a flag. He opened it and read that he had to prepare=20 for a visit to Terrastnom, as he had been requested personally to=20 accompany Alexander to meet with their high chief for Alexander's=20 induction ceremony. When the high chief discovered that it would be Captain Lassiter of=20 the Potemkin escorting Alexander instead of Kirk, she immediately=20 informed Starfleet and demanded to see him. Starfleet wanted to=20 improve relations with the planet and saw Kirk's personal invitation=20 by their high chief as a perfect opportunity to do so. The ship's=20 maintenance could not be rescheduled, so he was ordered to take a=20 shuttlecraft with Alexander the rest of the way. He scanned the brief protocol data, informed McCoy that he was to be=20 in the away party, requested his yeoman to prepare his gear, and=20 followed up with Alexander's liaison on the ship. He sighed, turned=20 off the terminal and left his cabin with Spock. "I can't play long. It seems that I'll be taking a little trip in=20 the morning." Spock glanced at him curiously and they left his quarters. //I hope she doesn't get the wrong idea if I'm not on the bridge=20 tomorrow.// ********** The chess game had been a waste of time. Kirk could not keep his=20 mind on it and lost, and way too early in the game for his tastes.=20 Even Spock had to hide his surprise at how quickly Kirk was=20 defeated. Kirk left the recreation room and decided it had been too=20 long since he and McCoy had had a drink together.=20 ********** "Hey Jim Boy...It's been a while, hasn't it?" Dr. McCoy said when he=20 stepped into Kirk's cabin carrying a tall bottle.=20 //I wonder if something's up, it seems like that's the only time Jim=20 invites me to his cabin. I hope he gets to the point instead of=20 tiptoeing around it all night.// "Hey Bones, I see you brought something of your own. I thought you=20 might be tired of bringing the beverages. So I suppose you don't=20 want this Mint Julep." McCoy walked over to him and poured some Saurian brandy into Kirk's=20 glass.=20 "Nah, but thanks for thinking of me. The synthesizers just don't=20 quite do them justice." "Bones, we have the best replicators in the galaxy. They're designed=20 to taste perfect." "Maybe that's what's wrong. They're just a little too perfect. Maybe=20 I oughta tinker with the program a little." He sat down across from=20 Kirk.=20 //So, what's on your mind, Jim?// "You all ready to head out tomorrow?" "Sure, Jim. We've done this sorta thing more times than I can count.=20 I ran into Alexander and he's real excited we'll be joining him." "I'm glad he is. Well, I was only making sure. I know all that busy=20 work has been keeping you up nights," he said with a grin. "How's=20 that nurse who just transferred from the Potemkin?" Kirk asked after=20 taking a sip of brandy and walking over to sit on the sofa.=20 "Just transferred? That was... what, five months ago, Jim, and he's=20 been a nurse in Starfleet for six years. He knows the ropes, no=20 trouble at all." //Since when do you care about my nurses?// "How's Hallarand's sprain doing?"=20 "Oh, she's doing fine. It was a real minor sprain," he said with a=20 frown and a wave of his hand.=20 //You know she's fine. She just reported back to duty this morning.// "Jim, we should get together next weekend--the three of us. I think=20 Spock's been feeling neglected. I know I have." Kirk laughed.=20 "Bones, you're the only person I know who keeps track of weekends=20 while we're out here." "Jim, a weekend's a weekend. The fact that we're in space makes no=20 difference to me."=20 "I suppose you're right. Anyway, that sounds like a great idea." //Come on, Jim. You didn't bring me here to talk about the days of=20 the week. Out with it.// Kirk took a sip of his brandy.=20 "So are you still seeing Barrows?" "When we can. Our schedules have been clashing lately," he said with=20 a furrow of his brow and then smiled to himself. //Eureka! Women problems.// "So what about you? You seeing anyone?" he asked with a twinkle in=20 his eye.=20 "Bones, you know Captains can't date their crew," he said with an=20 edge.=20 "You know, I've never really agreed with that policy. I may be just=20 an old country doctor, but I do know that it's just not right for=20 you to be alone so much. Blasted, Jim," he said with a=20 frown. "You're a man, in the prime of your life. You don't just turn=20 that off because of your job. It's not healthy!" McCoy said with his=20 signature drawl.=20 "I'm not alone, Bones. I have you. And Spock." Kirk smiled sadly. McCoy guffawed.=20 "Jim, I love ya and Spock does too, in his own way, but in case you=20 didn't know, there are things that a woman can do for you that *we*=20 wouldn't for all the credits in your account," he said with a=20 playful laugh.=20 Kirk chuckled and took another sip of his drink.=20 "I admit, every now and then I see someone that I might like to get=20 to know a little better... but I either follow regulations and not=20 pursue it, or... well, there... is no 'or.'" He frowned and drank the last of his brandy and poured another,=20 thinking about the "or" he had already allowed to occur. "Anyone I know?" McCoy grinned impishly, mentally rubbing his hands=20 together, eager to get to the real reason he had been called to=20 Kirk's cabin. Kirk looked up quickly, wondering if he had thought out loud. "Oh no... no, no." Kirk shook his head. "No, actually, another=20 crewman came to me about it. He has this... attraction to someone in=20 his chain of command. You know my policy on these situations. Yet=20 sometimes I... just feel for some people. They have an obvious=20 affection... they care deeply for each other. It grows over time and=20 then they have to end it or get transferred to another ship," he=20 said wistfully. "Wow, Jim. You really seem bothered by this boy's plight. Who is he?=20 Maybe I know him." "No, no. He... came to me in confidence." "I see. Well maybe together we can come up with some fatherly=20 advice. How long has he known this woman?" Kirk stood and poured McCoy another drink.=20 "I... don't know all the details. Frankly, they're irrelevant.=20 Regulations are regulations. Hell, I don't even know why I brought=20 it up." "Indeed," McCoy said with a raise of his eyebrow. Kirk caught his eye and let out a tiny groan.=20 "That's very good, Bones. You'll have to do that for Spock one of=20 these days." "Well, somebody needed to say it, and don't you tell him I said that=20 either." McCoy gave him a sideways look. "You've got me curious now.=20 This is interesting." "No it isn't, it's ridiculous," Kirk said with frustration edging=20 into his voice. He was beginning to regret inviting McCoy over. He=20 was losing ground and had no idea how to get it back.=20 //I've gotta ask him.//=20 "Jim, is there something on your mind? You've been kinda tense=20 lately." "No, Bones, everything's fine," he said distractedly. "Hey, do you=20 have a costume for the party yet? It's right around the corner." "I've got a few ideas, but I think Christine and Uhura have=20 something special planned," he said excitedly. "They've been acting=20 awfully sneaky these past few days." "Oh, I'm sure it's just your imagination," he said, wondering=20 himself what Uhura had up her sleeve.=20 "I wouldn't bet on it," McCoy said with a dubious look on his=20 face. "They've been whispering around like two cats in a handbag,=20 and you know Uhura doesn't do anything half-heartedly."=20 Kirk swallowed, thinking about how well he knew that fact. He sipped=20 from his glass with a smile at the thought of Uhura showing up in a=20 towel, the last thing he saw her in. The memory of that image was=20 one that caused him some difficulty when not in the privacy of his=20 own cabin. This was one of those times. He crossed his legs=20 uncomfortably.=20 "Well, Jim, I'd better scram. I've got some last-minute work to=20 finish before I get to bed," McCoy said, interrupting Kirk's reverie=20 of Uhura prancing about in a towel. "Oh, sure... no problem, Bones. Thanks for coming over, and for the=20 brandy," Kirk said. "Anytime, Jim. Hey, do you know who you're coming to the party as?" "Some historical figure. Perhaps Cyrano DeBergerac."=20 "Nice choice," McCoy replied while on his way out the door. //He's=20 going as a great romantic hero. It's worse than I thought. I wonder=20 who the lucky lady is!// ********** The following day, Uhura got to the bridge a few minutes early,=20 wanting to relax a moment with her coffee before tackling her mind- numbing diagnostics. She was relieved that the Captain wasn't there=20 yet, so he would have to be the one to make the "after sex"=20 entrance.=20 She smiled into her coffee as she thought that she should be given a=20 big red F to wear on her tunic. Or perhaps a black one since her=20 tunic was already red. "Fraternizer!" she imagined her coworkers=20 shouting at her, acting as the townspeople-accusers. They would hold=20 her at phaser-point and threaten to have her burnt... vaporized at a=20 stake of some sort.=20 "Lieutenant Uhura." She was broken from her dramatic semi-historical reverie by an=20 ensign with a padd for her to sign off on.=20 //I really have to stop this!// The whoosh of the turbolift doors kept her from desisting as quickly=20 as she would have liked. She signed with the stylus and almost=20 forgot to give it back to the ensign.=20 It was Spock who stepped onto the bridge and he went straight to the=20 command chair.=20 Uhura's heart sank, wondering. She waited a moment and tried to be casual.=20 "Mr. Spock, the Captain..." "...Dr. McCoy and Alexander are in a shuttlecraft en route to=20 Terrastnom." Uhura knew from his curt, matter-of-fact reply that that was all he=20 would offer. She ran her hands across the board lightning quick to retrieve any=20 messages she might have neglected in her quarters. There it was. "Lieutenant Uhura, I had intended to discuss your report with you=20 today, but I've received an unexpected assignment from Admiral=20 Nogura that I have to attend to. I'll expect a follow-up brief in my=20 office upon my return." //Damn him. How did he manage to avoid me so quickly and=20 effortlessly?// She called up the most recent transmissions and=20 spotted one from Admiral Nogura. She imagined that its contents=20 would confirm the assignment. She sighed to herself. //He regrets=20 it. He regrets the other night. So much so that he's managed to get=20 sent on a mission just to keep from seeing me. It's legitimate but=20 for some reason, it hurts just the same.// Uhura had not felt so rejected since she was fifteen years old. All=20 her old insecurities took hold. She felt foolish.=20 "Ye feelin' alright, Lass?" "Scotty! Oh yes, I'm fine," she replied quickly. He eyed her kindly but skeptically.=20 "Ye sure? Ye seem a bit not right today. Can I get ye some more=20 coffee or some water? I'm on me way to get some meself." "Oh no, Scotty. I'm fine. Just have a lot on my mind, I guess." "Well, if ye be needin' anythin' ye be sure to ask, won't ye?" "Yes, Scotty. Thank you." She put her hand on his with a genuine=20 smile. //I've got to get myself together. I haven't just had my brain=20 zapped away by a probe named Nomad. Perhaps the probe has a=20 different name.//=20 ********** That night, Uhura was not in the mood for company but felt it was=20 too late to change her mind. She knew Christine would not take no=20 for an answer and besides, they had to start planning the=20 party. //Buck up, Lieutenant.// She remembered that once, Kirk had=20 quietly said that to her when he thought she was about to fall=20 apart. She had had every reason to, but he was trying to save her=20 dignity, and she was grateful. It was simple advice from him but it=20 came in handy sometimes. Her door chimed. "Come," she said and walked to the center of the room with two full=20 margarita glasses in hand. The doors opened and Christine walked in with a tote over her=20 shoulder, took a glass and a sip.=20 "Yum. Just what the doctor ordered."=20 "Isn't it good? I was surprised the simulator got it so close this=20 time. I have the real stuff for the next batch. Have a seat." Uhura=20 pointed to several large floor cushions in the living area.=20 "Ooh, how comfy!" Christine sat down and popped a few baby carrots=20 in her mouth from a large crudite platter on the cocktail table.=20 "So what'd you come up with? I've got a list but it's not as long as=20 I'd hoped," Uhura said with a sigh and sat down on the floor across=20 from Christine with a padd.=20 Christine pulled hers out of her bag and let out a sigh.=20 "Mine either. I mean they're not bad, they're just not jaw-droppers.=20 Here, let's trade and compare." They swapped padds and read silently=20 for a few moments. "You know what we need? Inspiration. We have to think bigger. Like=20 old Holovids of famous celebrities in roles they played. Computer,=20 compile list of popular female characters from holovids from the=20 period...1950 to... 2150. Include character description and holo of=20 each actor in costume." "Working..." Uhura pulled the data wafer out of the computer and replaced it in=20 her padd.=20 "Now we have something to look at." After several hours of talking, laughing and eating, Uhura and=20 Christine stopped to compare notes. "I know who you should be, Chris!" "Oh no, who?" "It's a famous actor named Marilyn Monroe. Here she is in a vid=20 called 'Gentlemen Prefer Blondes' and just look at that dress! You'd=20 be a knockout!" "I've heard of her. She was one of the first real sex-symbols from=20 the 'Golden Age' of vids. My grandmother told me about her. That is=20 a gorgeous gown, but what about you?" "The only things that keep coming to mind are queens like Cleopatra=20 and Nefertiti, but maybe I want to go in a different direction,=20 something kind of tongue-in-cheek. Like maybe an Orion Slave Woman=20 or a superhero or villain or something. There's this one here=20 named 'CatWoman.' Her costume is out of this world, and here's one=20 named 'Wonder Woman'. Isn't that neat? But more importantly, it's=20 sexy." "It definitely is. You'd look great in that." "Thanks, Chris. She had a bullet-proof costume and wristbands, an=20 invisible jet and a lasso that made people tell the truth!" "That sure could come in handy." "Tell me about it!" "Speaking of which, let's change into our pajamas, do our nails and=20 play some games. Truth or Dare time. There's something I want to=20 know."=20 Uhura snickered and went to her bedroom wondering what Christine was=20 going to ask her, and what she could answer with. //But that defeats=20 the game's purpose, Uhura. Just pray that her 'Dare' isn't too=20 daring.// Christine came out of the bathroom in a pair of pink pajamas just as=20 Uhura walked out of her bedroom in a dark blue caftan and carrying a=20 small cosmetic bag. "Look at these new colors I got, Chris." Uhura sat the bag down and=20 took out three small bottles of shiny paints.=20 "They are cute. Let me try that one," Christine said as she curled=20 up against a cushion and began grooming her cuticles.=20 Uhura began doing the same, waiting for the questions to begin. "So, which do you want, truth or dare?" "Truth." "Okay, what's going on? Honestly, the way you were going for a=20 while, I didn't expect you to bounce back so suddenly." "It wasn't all that sudden, Chris." "Yes, but I know you. Is everything really okay or do you have a=20 thing for someone? You know, you were the same way when you started=20 dating that Lieutenant on the Hood." "No I wasn't," she said then bit her tongue. //The Captain was=20 *much* better in bed!// "I suppose I'm just happy to have a project,=20 something fun to think about instead of what happened down there. My=20 mind is back on the Enterprise and I'm thankful." "What did happen down there? I couldn't see you two through a lot of=20 it. I was busy being forced to dodge hot pokers and watch Spock do=20 ridiculous things." "Oh, the same as with you two, I suppose. It was nothing, really. It=20 was just our charming audience that made it so dreadful." "I know. I had always dreamed of being close to Spock like that, but=20 not against his will. I knew it was hurting him and I didn't want to=20 be part of that." "Exactly." They were both quiet for a moment. "But the Captain is different," Christine said as she raised an=20 eyebrow slightly, blew on a nail, then scrutinized it. "It wasn't as=20 bad for him as it was for Spock." "Of course it was, but in a different way. He felt responsible for=20 everything that was happening to all of us." "Yes, but since he's not Vulcan, what they made him do wasn't nearly=20 as repugnant to him as what they made Spock do." "I sure hope it wasn't," Uhura answered too quickly. "But they're=20 both so different. It was just that they weren't in control of=20 themselves and for Spock, it was just so unnatural for him to show=20 his feelings--especially in front of others. The Captain, well he's=20 such a tomcat." She stopped and looked down at her hands, "But I=20 guess he was just... embarrassed." "To be with you? Never." "Like I said, there was nothing normal about the situation, so we=20 can't apply the same rules to it. Besides, it's neither here nor=20 there, is it, Chris? What happened, happened." //Just like the other night.// Uhura felt her face heat, and worried that her skin would darken.=20 She began to file her nails roughly and continued.=20 "The incident was beyond his control and for a power-freak like the=20 Captain, it was the worst thing in the world to him," she said=20 somewhat bitterly. "If he's going to make love to someone, he'll do=20 it when, where and how he wants to. And the girl will love every=20 moment of it," she stated matter-of-factly, emphasizing the last few=20 words by drawing them out somewhat.=20 Christine was quiet and when Uhura looked up at her, Christine's=20 mouth was open the tiniest bit. //Oh no, what did I say?//=20 "It's the Captain!" Christine's eyes grew larger. "Being down there=20 with him, like that... Of course! We've all thought of him that way.=20 How could you not?" She looked excited.=20 Uhura shook her head, praying to be swallowed by a black hole.=20 "Wh--Chris, what are you talking about?"=20 "Never mind, never mind." She sighed with a devious smile. "Well,=20 you're going to have to choose dare now, since I don't believe a=20 word." "What? What do you mean?" "You're not just happy because you have a party to plan. You were a=20 mess the last time I saw you and then the next, you were giggling=20 like a schoolgirl." //I'm not giggling now.// "You know me, Chris. I bounce back from things very quickly and I=20 always enjoy a good laugh." "You didn't laugh that last time I saw you." Christine pretended to=20 pout. "That's because your jokes are terrible, Chris," Uhura teased,=20 letting her friend off the hook. "No, yours are!" They both laughed.=20 "Guilty. Now where do you get this, 'I love the Captain' stuff from,=20 anyway?" Uhura leaned over to hug her. "I don't know, really. It just popped into my head. It was silly,=20 really. I'm sorry." "That's okay. Well, of course, I love him. He's the captain. We all=20 do," she said with a small sigh. Christine tilted her head and looked at her nails coyly.=20 "So you mean to tell me that kissing him had no effect on the way=20 you feel about him?" When she finished her eyes looked up at Uhura=20 instantly.=20 Uhura looked down and continued filing her fingernails to the quick=20 and said quietly, "Dare, damn you." Christine roared with laughter. After a moment, Uhura joined her.=20 "Hmm. What can we have you do?" They both feigned deep concentration. "Here's an idea. We save both our dares for the party. How's that?=20 That way we'll make fools of ourselves together."=20 "I'll drink to that," Christine held aloft her half-empty margarita=20 glass. "To fools, friendship, and fun." Uhura clinked her glass against=20 Christine's with a chuckle. "Need a refill?" "Sure, why not?" end of part III ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ ASCEM messages are copied to a mailing list. Most recent messages can be found at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ASCEML. NewMessage: ath: newsspool2.news.atl.earthlink.net!stamper.news.atl.earthlink.net!elnk-atl-nf1!newsfeed.earthlink.net!newsswing.news.prodigy.com!prodigy.net!prodigy.com!border1.nntp.dca.giganews.com!nntp.giganews.com!newsread.com!newsstand.newsread.com!POSTED.monger.newsread.com!not-for-mail Newsgroups: alt.startrek.creative.erotica.moderated Approved: ascem@earthlink.net Organization: Better Living Thru TrekSmut Sender: ascem@earthlink.net Message-ID: From: "nyotava" MIME-Version: 1.0 Mailing-List: list ASCEML@yahoogroups.com; contact ASCEML-owner@yahoogroups.com Subject: NEW TOS A Pledge 4/5 [R] (K/U) Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Lines: 548 Date: Tue, 28 Dec 2004 23:55:10 GMT NNTP-Posting-Host: 209.198.142.218 X-Complaints-To: Abuse Role , We Care X-Trace: monger.newsread.com 1104278110 209.198.142.218 (Tue, 28 Dec 2004 18:55:10 EST) NNTP-Posting-Date: Tue, 28 Dec 2004 18:55:10 EST Xref: news.earthlink.net alt.startrek.creative.erotica.moderated:86432 X-Received-Date: Tue, 28 Dec 2004 15:55:15 PST (newsspool2.news.atl.earthlink.net) Title: A Pledge Properly Sealed Author: Nyotava (nyotava @ yahoo.com) Series: TOS Part: NEW 4/5 Rating: [R] Codes: K/U Summary: After Platonius, Kirk and Uhura address some awkardness Archive: ASC and UFF. All others, please ask. Disclaimer: Paramount owns Star Trek. I receive no profits from this. It is just for fun. Beta: A very special thanks to IDIC for her thoughtful beta and inspiration in the form of "Plato's Reprise" and "Realizations Resolved," as well as for permitting me to borrow elements from both stories. Errors due to my last-minute changes. Author's note: This is my very first story and I welcome all manner of feedback and criticisms except flames. The following week lingered on like the last week before Christmas does for a child. The Captain had been gone for days and Uhura wondered when he would return. She was at least relieved to be busy with the party preparations. She had several party games planned, apple bobbing, music, and decorations all ready. She had put most of the bridge crew to work on minor tasks while she and Christine took care of the major ones. There were very few details she had not addressed. For decorations, she asked Christine to borrow specimen jars and a model human skeleton from sickbay and the labs, while Spock, Sulu and Chekov were tasked with balloons and streamers. The food would be an assortment of Terran finger foods made from autumn fruits and vegetables along with apple cider to drink. Uhura was sure not to forget Halloween supplies such as "Trick-or-Treat" bags and small, individually-wrapped candies. Uhura had strictly forbidden anyone but her helpers from entering the Rec deck for the last three days. She oversaw and spent the majority of her off-duty hours making sure everything was to her specifications. Christine Chapel walked up behind her while she was directing the placement of some fibrous material intended to represent cobwebs. "Oh hi, Chris. What do you think? Too much? Not enough? "Too much. As in, you're doing too much, period. Have you slept in the past week?" "Of course I have. I'm just trying to stay busy," she said with her winning smile, but tired eyes. "But now that you mention it, I should be putting the finishing touches on my costume. Oh, I'm going to need your help with it the night of the party. Is yours finished?" "Yes, it's done. I hope I don't bloat up before I can get into it," she said with a smirk. "But as a health care professional, I am recommending that you get back to your cabin and relax a little. The boys can finish up with the spider webs, can't you, Pavel, Hikaru?" "Da. Ladies, did you know dat..." Chekov began with a gleam in his eye. Sulu did not allow him to continue. "Give me a hand with that corner, 'Mr. It was a Russian Invention.'" "Da," he said in mock defeat. Uhura and Christine laughed. "Thank you both. You've been wonderful," Uhura said to the men and turned to look at Christine. "Okay, I'll go back to my quarters on one condition: if you'll read a ghost story for the party. That'll be your dare." "Fine. Now go!" "Excellent," Uhura said in her witchiest voice and rubbed her hands together fiendishly. "You are all under my spell, my pretties!" Uhura cackled mischievously and gathered up the decoration remnants, said good night to everyone and walked back to her cabin. The next day would be two days before the party, and she was still tying up loose ends while wondering if Captain Kirk and McCoy would be back from their mission in time to attend. She assured herself that it was his intention to miss it, and even if he returned in time, would he beg off the party on fatigue from the trip? //Who cares? So what if he's not there? As if I can't enjoy myself without him around!// She put the finishing touches on her costume and went to bed saying a silent prayer that he would be there to see it. ********** She walked onto the bridge at the start of her shift the next day, and saw the profile of a blondish man in the captain's chair. She took a seat at her station and began calibrating her board. There he was and divine as always. She decided with a smile that although he looked good, she looked better than he did. She was glad she had done a little extra this morning, just to give herself a boost. Her hair and nails were perfect, and she wore boots with a slightly higher length and heel, the ones Christine had talked her into buying on one of their shopping expeditions. She liked them because they made her look taller and her already shapely legs appear even longer and sexier. She also wore for the first time an expensive "special occasion" perfume she recently purchased on Rigel 7. She had bought it because she loved the smell but could not resist being intrigued by the salesperson's recommendation that it also had aphrodisiac effects on males. The bridge seemed busier than usual today. There were more people and everyone seemed a bit on edge, as if no one had expected the Captain to return, even though Spock was often a stricter commander. Kirk turned his head slightly to his right, curiously. He had smelled the most exquisite scent. He swung around to the science station, when he noticed a high-heeled boot attached to hosed legs out of the corner of his eye. He acknowledged the longer heel with a heavy swallow and continued slowly around until he faced her. //Those boots aren't regulation, are they? If not, they ought to be. But only for her.// She was facing her left, signing off on an ensign's padd. He stole a quick glance at her and then lowered his eyes casually to appreciate her legs again. She saw him out of the corner of her eye and smiled to herself that he was looking at her. //God, she smells good.// Kirk would be glad when his shift was over. He suddenly had a craving for some of McCoy's brandy and perhaps a relaxing game of chess with Spock. Yes, he would be glad when the day was over. He swung around to the front. //Damn Spock for being able to see her and be near her without being as obvious as I have to be. What's he saying to her?// "Lieutenant," Spock walked over to stand beside her station with his hands behind his back. "Yes, Mr. Spock?" she looked up with her padd and stylus in hand. "Are you wearing a new perfume? Perhaps the one you purchased on Rigel 7?" "Why, yes it is, Mr. Spock. It's not too strong, is it?" she asked as low-keyed as she could. "No, it is most agreeable, yet I am concerned for... the others. Although my sense of smell is superior than that of humans, it seems that I am less susceptible to the... effects of that particular plant derivative." "You don't believe that it's really an aphrodisiac, do you?" she whispered. "I'm sure that was just a sales ploy." "Are you two done chit-chatting? We are trying to run a starship here," Kirk said with a head tilt in their direction. "Yes, Sir," they both replied in unison. "I would not be so certain if I were you, Lieutenant," Spock said to her almost silently. On his way back to his station he subtly glanced in the direction of the rest of the bridge crew, which today happened to be all-male. Uhura swiveled to follow Spock's eyes and was amused to see Chekov and Sulu both adjusting their collars and looking twitchy and dazed. Kirk addressed the other side of the bridge. "Scotty, is there a problem with environmental controls?" "Nae... they're operating at optimum. Mr. Spock can confirm, I'm sure," Scotty said, despite his glistening face. "Affirmative, Captain. The bridge temper-" "Never mind, Spock," Kirk snapped. Suddenly, Kirk spun around and stopped directly in front of Uhura with an aggravated look on his face. He eyed her warily, which only made her want to wriggle in delight, and wonder if he were going to scold her. //Save that for private, Baby.// "Lieutenant," he began, rubbing his chin and staring at her darkly. He wiped a bead of perspiration from his brow. "Yes, sir?" she smiled demurely at him. "Lieutenant, I know that Cyrano Jones isn't the only disreputable merchant in the galaxy but he should be quite occupied at the moment with tribble clean-up. But I must ask: have you purchased anything unusual from any other disreputable merchants I should know about?" She looked shocked. "No Cyrano Jones and no tribbles, sir. Of course not," she said with an innocence Kirk knew first-hand she did not possess. Spock turned slowly toward them with an exasperated look on his face. "Excuse me, but Lieutenant, you purchased that fragrance, on Rigel 7. Their merchants are not particularly known for their trustworthiness." "Mr. Spock, that's precisely why I did not believe him when he said it was an aphrodisiac," she said in mock defense. She faced Kirk. "Captain, I assure you that it isn't contraband. Spock was with me when I purchased it." "Really?" Kirk grinned like he had just been told a dirty little secret. He turned in Spock's direction, feeling a slight pang of annoyance. "I wasn't aware that you were a frequent guest on Lieutenant Uhura's legendary, not to mention, bulky shopping excursions." "Not frequent, Captain, but I have enjoyed her company briefly on shore leave in the past." "From what I understand, Mr. Spock, the Lieutenant's shopping trips are never brief," he said with a chuckle. "It was an agreeable time," Spock added and turned back to his view screen, appearing to be unaware of the bristling Uhura was occupied in. Uhura gave Kirk a look that made him swallow hard and wipe more perspiration from his forehead. "Either way, Lieutenant," a smile only for her spread across his lips, "please save that *particular* perfume for off-duty gatherings, such as the Halloween party... tomorrow, is it not? I don't care for the effect it's having on my crewmen," then mouthed the words, "or me" and turned back to the front. "Would you please... take care of that?" he asked her over his shoulder and with a wave of his hand. "Aye, aye, sir," she replied, grinning devilishly to herself as he tapped the arm of his command chair and snapped at an unsuspecting Yeoman. ********** Uhura had read the words in a daze. She thought she had made them up in her mind, she was so thrown by the message, but she read and re- read it and indeed, he had asked for her in his quarters. She was both excited and wary as she walked in the direction of his cabin. Thankfully, she ran into no one she knew on the way. She was certain that her face held the look of a woman up to no good. She stood in front of the door and sighed, adjusted her tunic, pulling it down a bit. She still wore the longer boots and was glad of it. She had taken a shower to remove the intoxicating scent as the Captain had asked, and even tested it on Sulu to make sure it could be eliminated with simple sonics. Pulling a hair around her ear, she hit the door chime. "Come," she heard from the interior. She stepped into the front room, glanced around and pulled in her bottom lip. She could not understand how a room, a simple officer's cabin could arouse her. She had come to realize that almost everything associated with him represented sex to her. His face, his voice, his clothes, his walk, his command, and now his quarters. They were his. What was contained therein was his. They were... "Lieutenant, you received my message," he said walking out of the sleeping area. "Please, have a seat," he said gesturing toward the sofa. //I am the Communications Officer, after all. Of course, I received it.// "Yes, sir. Thank you." She slowly sat down and crossed her legs, smoothing out the hem on her thigh, paying undue attention to it. "Lieutenant Uhura, this conversation is off the record, unless you choose otherwise," he began grimly. "I know that what happened the other evening wasn't planned by either of us. We were caught up in the difficulties between us that were never properly addressed immediately after beam-up from Platonius. That... was entirely my fault. I failed you as your captain and... as your friend. You should not be subject to the indiscretions of one that you receive orders from and hopefully, trust. For that I sincerely apologize." Uhura clenched her fists and held them beside her on the sofa. "Apologize?!" Kirk looked startled although he knew he should not have been. "Permission to speak candidly, Captain," she said, her voice rising slightly. "Granted, of course," he replied softly. She stood and began to pace, as Kirk often did when under stress. "You are free to apologize, of course, sir," she said bitingly, "but I was never sorry for what happened, and frankly, I don't believe you are either. Perhaps you're feeling just a little..." Kirk watched her move back and forth. "A little what, Uhura?" "Nothing. Captain, I don't believe that this was just a result of some silly kiss and petting that some sick people forced on us. It's much more than that for me." She stopped and looked directly at him. "Please just tell me the truth. Is that all I am to you? A mistake? An indiscretion?" She heard her voice quaver. "Nyota," he said, standing and walking to her. "Of course not," he smiled. "But don't you see? What I want is beside the point. My foremost duty is to my command, this ship, and I've breached that and it's just not acceptable." She began pacing again. "To you or to Starfleet?" she asked, stopping dead in her tracks and glaring at him. "Uhura, you're not being fair," he said, sitting down on the sofa roughly. "Starfleet will always come first. You know that. That fact has no reflection on you whatsoever." His voice was sharp. "You're telling me that you have no feelings for me." "Of course I'm not saying that. What I'm saying is that my feelings... are irrelevant. The fact is, what happened the other night... can never happen again. And I think you know that. You wouldn't expect anything different from me." Uhura thought her ribcage was stuck in a vise. She felt out of breath for a moment and not entirely sure that she could remain standing much longer. She did not know what she had expected when he had called her here. She knew this conversation was bound to happen; she had just tried not to think about it. She was thankful for the party. It was an excellent distraction. "I would if you cared anything for me. Captain, I..." She looked lost. He stood quickly and grabbed her by the arms, as if he were going to catch her. "I do, damn it, it just doesn't matter. Don't you see? Are you... even listening to me?" She looked up at him, searching his eyes, trembling. She pulled from his grasp, walked away from him and sat back down. //Keep it together, girl. Don't you dare cry.// Kirk stood there miserably wondering what he could do to repair the damage he had done. Not knowing what else to do, he turned to look at her tenderly and asked, "Can I get you anything? Some water?" "Some Saurian Brandy sounds pretty good right now," she said with a cynical chuckle. She put her head in her hands for a moment, summoning her strength, telling herself that she could handle this. She adjusted her uniform and regained her composure. "I could use a glass myself," he said tiredly and took a seat at his desk and poured two glasses. Uhura sighed, stood and walked over to stand in front of him. He handed her a glass. She took a sip, never taking her eyes off him. Kirk gazed up at her, appreciating her beauty, his slacks beginning to feel more snug. //God, she's sexy. How does she do this to me? Her voice, her eyes... her legs. Five years and hundreds of women on this ship and she's the only one who...// He stopped, realizing his mind had wandered and she was staring back at him. "You know, those boots, they aren't regulation, are they?" He asked with a glance and pointed toward her legs with his glass, instantly regretting the question. "No, not exactly," she replied with a seductive smile. Stretching her leg out in front of her and placing her toe on the base of his chair between his legs, she asked, "What are you going to do, Captain? Counsel me for uniform violation?" Adjusting the tops of the boots and pretending to check for runs in her tights, she gave him a sly look. "Very funny, Lieutenant. I can see you're not going to make this easy for me, are you?" "Why should I...sir?" "Because I'm your friend. Isn't that reason enough?" he said with a flash of his charming smile. "That's all you've got?" Kirk lowered his eyes for a moment and then stood up suddenly, grabbed her by the arms, spun her around and sat her down in his chair. Startled, she let out a little shriek. He held her there, while she simply looked up at him helplessly. He bent down and kissed her long and deeply, nipping her lip when he came up for air. She relaxed in his grasp, sinking into the chair a bit. Wanting more access to her, he lifted her up by the arms and moved her to the edge of his desk and stood between her legs. "Just tell me you don't want me," she whispered while running her hands over his chest and kissing his neck gently. "Uhura," he began but she caught his tongue between her teeth and kissed him. "You know my name, Jim." "Nyota?" "Yes, Baby?" "You're not wearing that perfume are you?" he asked breathlessly. "Not a drop, Sweetie," she replied with a throaty laugh. "Computer, lights one quarter power," she said as he picked her up and carried her to his bed. ********** Uhura slowly slid out from under the Captain's arm and got out of the bed, tiptoed over to the 'fresher and got a towel to wrap around herself, since her uniform was nowhere in sight. Kirk was still asleep and had rolled over onto his stomach in a tangle of bed sheets. One of the sheets draped gently over his bottom, leaving the tiniest part near his hips uncovered. She noticed it and bit her finger, to prevent herself from biting it instead. //Why shouldn't I?// She walked over to the bed, bent over him and grabbed a tiny biteful between her teeth and nipped him gently. His hips bucked just faintly and he turned over onto his back, revealing what was to become a taunting erection. He reached up and pulled her down onto him, kissing her, pulling off her towel and tossing it roughly. "That's probably what happened to my uniform, sir," she said at her first opportunity. "Your uniform? You don't need that now, do you?" he asked beginning to lightly caress her breasts. "As much as I absolutely hate to say this, I really have to go. The Alpha crew will be up soon." Kirk dropped his head back onto the pillow in resignation. "Alright, I'll let you go. This time," he said with a smile. "Do you mind telling me what you did with my uniform?" "Me? Um... I'm sure it's around here somewhere," he said with a glance around the room. "There it is," he said and pointed to a corner of the other room that he could see. "You should be more careful. Suppose we didn't find it?" Kirk was watching her put on her uniform with an admiring look in his eyes. "Please tell me your costume is a towel. I think that's my favorite thing to see you in." She leaned down and gave him a quick kiss. "Well, it's not as if you've seen me in a lot of things. I think my uniform, a towel and nothing are basically it." "No, I've also seen you in a robe. A soaking wet one that..." He reached up and grabbed her again, tossing her down on the bed and laying on her with a mischievous laugh. She shrieked giddily, responding to his kisses. Kirk heard his alarm go off. He turned it off giving Uhura a defeated look. "I told you I had to go," she poked him in the nose. "But you wouldn't listen. Now if I have to run into everyone and their mother on the way back to my cabin, I'm going to kill you." "I guess I'll just have to take that chance." He gave her tiny kisses up her arm. "I'm sure you could come up with ways to kill me kindly..." Uhura threw her head back and laughed, remembering that she had had the very same thought about him not long ago. "What's so funny, Nyota?" "Nothing, Jim. I should go." "Yes, you're right, of course." He stood and wrapped a sheet around his waist and walked her over to the door. He asked the computer if the hallway was vacant. "You are coming to the party, aren't you?" Uhura asked him with a caress of his chest. "Nah. I've got a date." She kissed him quick. "You're terrible to me!" He grinned. "What are you coming as? How will I find you?" The computer confirmed that the hallway was deserted. "Don't worry, I'll find you," she said with a kiss and left. end of part IV ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ ASCEM messages are copied to a mailing list. Most recent messages can be found at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ASCEML. NewMessage: ath: newsspool2.news.atl.earthlink.net!stamper.news.atl.earthlink.net!elnk-atl-nf1!newsfeed.earthlink.net!newsswing.news.prodigy.com!prodigy.net!newsfeed.cwix.com!border1.nntp.dca.giganews.com!nntp.giganews.com!peer01.cox.net!cox.net!newsread.com!newsstand.newsread.com!POSTED.monger.newsread.com!not-for-mail Newsgroups: alt.startrek.creative.erotica.moderated Approved: ascem@earthlink.net Organization: Better Living Thru TrekSmut Sender: ascem@earthlink.net Message-ID: From: "nyotava" MIME-Version: 1.0 Mailing-List: list ASCEML@yahoogroups.com; contact ASCEML-owner@yahoogroups.com Subject: NEW TOS A Pledge 5/5 [R] (K/U) Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Lines: 602 Date: Tue, 28 Dec 2004 23:55:12 GMT NNTP-Posting-Host: 209.198.142.218 X-Complaints-To: Abuse Role , We Care X-Trace: monger.newsread.com 1104278112 209.198.142.218 (Tue, 28 Dec 2004 18:55:12 EST) NNTP-Posting-Date: Tue, 28 Dec 2004 18:55:12 EST Xref: news.earthlink.net alt.startrek.creative.erotica.moderated:86434 X-Received-Date: Tue, 28 Dec 2004 15:55:22 PST (newsspool2.news.atl.earthlink.net) Title: A Pledge Properly Sealed Author: Nyotava (nyotava @ yahoo.com)=20 Series: TOS Part: NEW 5/5 Rating: [R] Codes: K/U Summary: After Platonius, Kirk and Uhura address some awkardness=20 Archive: ASC and UFF. All others, please ask.=20 Disclaimer: Paramount owns Star Trek. I receive no profits from=20 this. It is just for fun. Beta: A very special thanks to IDIC for her thoughtful beta and=20 inspiration in the form of "Plato's Reprise" and "Realizations=20 Resolved," as well as for permitting me to borrow elements from both=20 stories. Errors due to my last-minute changes. Author's note: This is my very first story and I welcome all manner=20 of feedback and criticisms except flames.=20 ********** "They did the mash, they did the monster mash!" the sound system on=20 the Rec Deck sang.=20 Uhura was checking hors d'oeuvres while Christine oversaw the apple=20 cider preparation. The human model skeleton that Christine had=20 borrowed was prominently displayed dressed in a medical tunic,=20 complete with a welcome sign and featuring a medikit in one bony=20 hand and a hypospray in the other.=20 "I hope Dr. McCoy thinks it's funny," Uhura called out to Christine. "Oh he will. He'll love it, and so will the Captain! We'll have to=20 be sure to get holos of the two of them posing with our version=20 of 'Bones.'" "Definitely," Uhura agreed with a laugh while she tried to imagine=20 what the captain would be coming as.=20 A few hours later, when she had completed all that she could think=20 of, she stood in the middle of the main room and gave it a once- over.=20 "Christine, when you have a sec, would you help me see if we've=20 missed anything?" Uhura held up her padd and checked off a list while Christine called=20 them off visually. When they were done, Uhura held the padd at her=20 side and beamed.=20 "Looks like we've done everything, Ny," Christine declared with a=20 satisfied sigh.=20 "All right then. Looks like it's showtime! Let's lock up and get=20 ready. Did you remind Hikaru and Pavel to open the doors for us=20 early so we can make a... fashionable entrance?" "All arranged. They know what to do. They'll also be in charge of=20 holos." "Beautiful. Thanks so much, Chris. I couldn't have done this without=20 you!" She said and gave Christine a hug. "You're welcome. It was a lot of fun. Now come on, let's get=20 ourselves ready!" ********** Kirk, Spock and McCoy had agreed to meet in Kirk's cabin before=20 going to the party. Spock was the first to arrive, wearing a black=20 ceremonial robe.=20 "Very nice, Spock. See? It is possible to do something fun and human=20 while maintaining your dignity," Kirk teased.=20 Spock's response was a patient sigh.=20 McCoy arrived next and both Spock and Kirk were impressed by his=20 costume. He walked into Kirk's quarters with a stovepipe hat and=20 black suit.=20 "Honest Abe!" Kirk shouted when he saw him. "Indeed." Spock raised an eyebrow when he saw McCoy in his=20 costume. "I never would have expected you to emulate a man of such=20 distinction." McCoy opened his mouth to retort, but Kirk stopped him. "Don't start. The night has just begun." "Where's your costume, Jim?" McCoy asked, adjusting his tie in the=20 mirror.=20 "Just a second. I'm wearing most of it already. I was going to ask=20 you to help me with the finishing touch, but figured you were busy,"=20 he said, with humor in his voice. He was already dressed in slim=20 black slacks and an ornate white shirt. He walked into the sleeping=20 area, put on a cape, a hat and an elongated false proboscis and=20 returned to the main room. "Cyrano deBergerac, if I am not mistaken?" Spock queried Kirk. Kirk poked himself on the tip of his nose and McCoy laughed. Spock looked confused. "That's an... _expression of sorts, Spock," McCoy said with a=20 laugh. "It means, 'Right on the nose,' or 'you're right.'"=20 "I see." McCoy sighed.=20 "Come on, Jim. I refuse to let him keep me from enjoying myself=20 tonight. By the way, have you heard anything about what Christine=20 and Uhura have planned?" "Not a thing," Kirk admitted. "Me neither. Christine was tight-lipped all week." "Well, let's go find out, shall we?" Kirk made a dramatic bow,=20 ushering the men out of his quarters.=20 ********** The three headed to the Rec Deck when they heard whistles and a=20 great deal of applause. McCoy and Kirk looked at each other and=20 quickened their step down the corridor. Spock followed. There was a=20 large group of people lining the bulkheads leading into the main rec=20 room.=20 "What is all this?" Kirk asked, to no one in particular. The people in the hallway heard the Captain's voice and quieted down=20 and stepped aside. Kirk managed his way to the door to see what all=20 the fuss was about.=20 A young man spoke up nervously.=20 "We think Lt. Uhura is about to perform, sir." The room was dark, save for a spotlight on a small stage where a=20 microphone and stool stood. A smile crept across Kirk's face. He=20 turned back to his friends and waved them in. The enormous room was=20 packed, standing room only. Near the stage there were several tables=20 and chairs set up, cabaret-style.=20 Kirk stepped into the room and when others realized that the person=20 entering was the Captain, they broke up to allow him, Spock and=20 McCoy through the mass of excited people. McCoy shouted to=20 him, "These folks were here first. What're you gonna do? Just tell=20 them to get out of our way?" "No, those people up there," he said with a point towards the=20 stage. "We're taking their seats. Captain's privilege," he shouted=20 back to him.=20 The three politely took the seats of three ensigns sitting to the=20 right of the stage.=20 A fishnet-clad calf appeared in the spotlight followed by a=20 similarly clad thigh. Kirk exhaled loudly. McCoy looked over at him=20 inquisitively, then realized he was missing the show and immediately=20 turned back to the stage with an excited grin. Spock merely looked=20 uncomfortable and distinctly warm in his robe.=20 The first notes of a swing-style jazz tune keyed up. After the thigh=20 appeared and planted itself on the stool, a long piece of vinyl=20 material along with another leg and the person within it followed.=20 The gown had a skin-tight bodice with a lace-up feature and gathered=20 bust. The decolletage and neck were highlighted with tiny=20 luminescent sparkles. Uhura's face finally appeared to a host of=20 shouts and whistles. She wore dramatic, black eye make-up and blood- red lipstick along with a jet black bone-straight hairpiece that=20 hung well past her shoulders in a glamorous fall.=20 The crowd roared with more whistles and applause. Kirk had to admit=20 that their enthusiasm was contagious while he tried to ignore the=20 awareness he thought he felt in his slacks. He laughed delightedly=20 and had to hold back from applauding too vigorously and whistling=20 with his fingers between his teeth. He was glad when McCoy did so=20 for him.=20 The applause quieted when they heard her voice begin to sing. She=20 reached her hands up to her head in a seductive pose while singing=20 into the microphone.=20 "Those fingers in my hair..." She raised a finger and poised it in a=20 seductive curl towards her lips, then continued. "That sly come=20 hither stare... that strips my conscience bare... it's witchcraft." Her voice was sultrier than he had ever heard it--in public. It was=20 husky and dripped with a quality that was just so familiar. He=20 crossed his legs stiffly. McCoy looked over at him with a smile.=20 Kirk didn't notice him.=20 She continued, in a coo that made him want her terribly. He imagined=20 untying her bustier, slowly, watching it loosen, and her breasts=20 falling free of its hold.=20 "...And I've got no defense for it... The heat is too intense for=20 it...What good would common sense for it do?" She got up from her stool and began to croon, seemingly just to him.=20 He swallowed, hoping it was only his imagination.=20 "'Cause it's witchcraft..." she continued. Kirk wished he had not=20 sat so close. Perhaps he could have handled it better had he known=20 he could escape more easily.=20 He was still lamenting his location when he saw someone walk up to=20 the stage wearing a Musketeer-like costume. The person walked right=20 up and handed her a rose. It was Sulu! Kirk felt a twinge of=20 jealousy at the reality that he could not express his affection for=20 her in the same manner.=20 She smiled seductively at Sulu and Kirk swore, right at him and=20 continued. Then she gently ran the length of the rose between her=20 teeth. "...And although I know it's strictly taboo... " She stepped down from the stage and began heading in Kirk's=20 direction. "When you arouse the need in me..."=20 Kirk began to sweat. //She can't be coming over here to me.// "...My heart says 'yes indeed' in me..."=20 She was now at their table and twisting her hips to the swanky beat.=20 Kirk smiled at the attention their table was receiving and the minor=20 spotlight he received, yet inside he was about to burst. He smiled=20 and laughed, no one was the wiser. "Proceed with what you're leadin' me to..."=20 She walked past him and with a gentle twirl of his hair, ruffled it=20 a bit, encouraging a great deal of whistles, and to his chagrin, one=20 brave, "All right, Captain!" Kirk watched as she played with McCoy's ears and touched his back=20 and shoulders while continuing to sing.=20 She then stopped in her tracks when she pretended to notice Spock=20 suddenly, who was sitting in the middle. The crowd's whistles grew=20 before she did anything at all. Spock wore his trademark rec-room=20 non-smile that delighted everyone in attendance.=20 "... But one I wouldn't switch..."=20 She sauntered over behind Spock and put her arm around his shoulders=20 slinkily.=20 "'Cause there's no nicer witch than you!"=20 She ended the song with a peck on the top of his head.=20 The crowd went wild and was on its feet in seconds.=20 She stood up straight and quickly stepped back up to the stage with=20 a gorgeous smile and gracious curtsey. Chekov came over and=20 presented her with a dozen roses. She looked stunned and genuinely=20 touched when she received them, giving him a peck on the cheek.=20 Sulu went up to the stage with her and grabbed the microphone. "Ladies and gentlemen," he paused waiting for the amusement to die=20 down. "Everything you see in this room tonight was thanks to the=20 hard work of everyone's favorite Communications Officer, Lieutenant=20 Nyota Uhura." The applause continued and she curtsied again, giving Sulu a kiss on=20 the cheek, looking almost embarrassed at all the attention.=20 He handed her the microphone back and applauded. "Thank you. You're all so sweet. Thank you Sulu and Chekov for help=20 with decorating and just being wonderful. And a special thanks goes=20 to Mr. Spock, also on my decorating committee." Uhura had to wait=20 for the laughter to die down. "But please, may I have a very special=20 round of applause for my partner in crime, and general sounding=20 board, Marilyn Monroe over there, also known as Nurse Christine=20 Chapel." There was more applause and a dramatic curtsey by the pink-gowned=20 medical officer. McCoy gave a hearty whistle in her direction and=20 Chekov handed her a bouquet of roses.=20 "But this little soiree would never would have materialized if it=20 weren't for the encouragement and, I must admit, a direct order,=20 issued by our dear, Cyrano de Bergerac, also know as Captain Kirk." She motioned for him to stand, but all he would offer was a polite=20 and understated bend upwards from his chair. A warm round of applause followed along with giggles and general=20 merriment. "Sir?" Uhura looked at him expectantly. The spotlight shone on him. Kirk looked at her, with amused curiosity on his face.=20 "What do you need from me now, Lieutenant?"=20 Again laughter and a few hoots came from on-lookers. "For you to do the honors, sir!"=20 Uhura gave him "come here" fingers. He stood with a sigh and walked=20 over to the stage. "Warp One." Everyone laughed, the music started, and people began dancing,=20 eating and drinking.=20 ********** Uhura stood in the doorway of the refreshment area. Dancing and=20 amused conversations were everywhere. She could not have been more=20 pleased with the results; everyone appeared to be enjoying=20 themselves.=20 Christine walked over to her. "Your dare is acceptable although you could've ruffled his hair=20 more, but your party is a hit, Ny." "Thanks to you," she smiled at her seeing Kirk out of the corner of=20 her eye. "Speak of the devil. Here comes Cyrano to come sweep you off your=20 feet," Christine whispered. "And look who's in tow, Abe and the=20 Vulcan ascetic." "Ladies, you two look outstanding," Kirk said with a charming smile,=20 taking Christine's hand first, then Uhura's and giving them tiny=20 kisses, then he turned and faced Uhura. "Lieutenant Uhura," he said with an alluring gaze.=20 McCoy looked as if he were about to burst at the seams to be the=20 first to speak, but allowed the Captain his prerogative. "Yes, Captain, Cyrano. Mr. Spock and Mr. President, I'm so glad you=20 all could make it. Sir, I hope I didn't embarrass you too much up=20 there." "You didn't embarrass him at all, Uhura! I just have to tell you,=20 you both look *fantastic*!" McCoy took their hands with a flourish,=20 as if to display their beauty.=20 Kirk pretended to look annoyed at the interruption and gave McCoy a=20 mock-exasperated look. So did Spock. "Indeed. This festivity has been quite successful, Lieutenant. And=20 you both look... striking." Spock said the last with a raise of his=20 eyebrow.=20 Uhura and Christine were both certain that the most he would say=20 was "agreeable" and were nearly thrilled with the improvement. The=20 other men appeared to notice the compliment as well and looked at=20 each other.=20 "Thank you so much, Mr. Spock," the two women said delightedly,=20 almost in unison, then laughed. "Ladies, you do look wonderful, and no, Lieutenant, you didn't=20 embarrass me. This is a superb party. I couldn't have expected=20 better, and thank you, Nurse Chapel," Kirk said to Christine.=20 "No thanks needed, sir. Working with Ny, here, is a pleasure, as you=20 probably know better than I," she said with a smile. "I'll see you=20 around later, Sweetie. Gentlemen," she said, excusing herself to=20 talk to some friends across the room.=20 McCoy gave Uhura a big kiss on the cheek and excused himself to go=20 with her. Spock just stood there looking at Kirk and Uhura for a=20 moment, sensing he did not belong.=20 "I too will excuse myself. Captain, Lieutenant." He walked away=20 solemnly. "Captain," she said quietly, "has he... picked up on anything=20 recently?" "No, I don't think so. If so, he's been very good at keeping it to=20 himself. I have been forced to stop playing chess with him, though.=20 He beat me horribly that first night back, and you know I don't like=20 to lose."=20 She laughed. "Oh, this is my favorite song! Captain, Cyrano, please dance with=20 me." "Nyota, I couldn't," he said quietly. "Of course you couldn't," she replied sadly. He leaned into her ear.=20 "Perhaps another time." He paused glancing down at her sparkling=20 skin and shiny black gown. "I've been admiring your costume all=20 evening. What a lovely witch you make." "This old thing?" She laughed. "Thank you sir." She smiled warmly,=20 genuinely elated by his appreciation. He thought her laugh was the thing he found most endearing about=20 her. He just loved to watch her laugh and decided that he wanted to=20 experience more of it. Then he suddenly felt as if everyone was=20 watching them.=20 "Well, Lieutenant, excellent job. You never cease to amaze me." "I'm glad you enjoyed yourself, sir. Thank you for being here. It=20 meant so much. To everyone." He smiled and took her hand, gave it a squeeze and walked away. ********** The music had long since been turned off. The food and drinks had=20 been cleaned up. The decorations and tables would be removed in the=20 morning. Christine had said her goodnights and walked off with one=20 of the newer nurses, who proudly volunteered to escort her back to=20 her cabin.=20 Uhura left the party area and went to a nearby observation room. She=20 had been hugged and kissed countless times all evening. She=20 appreciated the attention normally, but tonight it had worn thin=20 quickly. She realized that she was desperate to hear those adoring=20 words from one person in particular, but for now, she was content to=20 look through the observation room window and appreciate the beauty=20 and majesty of space--and the loneliness of it. Staring into that=20 blackness, Uhura was cold, frightened, and terribly alone. She=20 leaned over and rested her arms on the railing, looking down at the=20 sparkles remaining on her skin. "You know, you should be in your cabin by now. You do have to be on=20 the bridge in a few hours." She sat up, startled, and saw in the window's reflection the=20 familiar shape of James Kirk. She smiled, embarrassed for some=20 reason, and adjusted her bodice. She squinted in the darkness and=20 finally saw the large proboscis of the Captain's costume and giggled. "Are you amused by something, Lieutenant?" "It's your nose, sir. I love it, but it just looks so... well,=20 unlike your own." "I beg your pardon," he said in a grand, foppish fashion, ruffling=20 his cape and imitating Cyrano. "Milady, 'My nose is Gargantuan!... A=20 great nose is the banner of a great man, a generous heart, a=20 towering spirit, an expansive soul --" he paused to look pointedly=20 at her with a winning smile. "'such as I unmistakably am...'" Uhura covered her mouth, trying not to laugh too hard at the comic=20 reading but she had been drinking some of McCoy's "planter's punch,"=20 he had made just for her, which she was unaccustomed to.=20 "Yes, sir," was all she could manage. Kirk casually removed the=20 elongated proboscis. She took a sip of her drink.=20 "What are you doing here, sir? I saw you leave with Mr. Spock and=20 Dr. McCoy hours ago." "I did. We talked and had a few drinks. They called it a night but I=20 still felt restless and thought I'd take a walk." "In your costume?" "It's not every day one is free to impersonate one of history's=20 great romantic heroes." "True. So why are you here?" "Let's just say I saw the light on and thought I'd come see who was=20 here." "Good answer, considering there are virtually no lights on." "Indeed. Perhaps we should put some on just in case," he said with a=20 wink. "Good idea. Computer, lights, one-eighth power. How about some music=20 too?" "I won't be here long. I just wanted to tell you... how much I=20 enjoyed the party... and your performance." "Thank you, sir." She made a tiny curtsey. "Computer, Chet Baker,=20 vocal recordings." "Very nice singer. I was never familiar with his work... until=20 unbeknownst to me, you gave me a music appreciation lesson. Speaking=20 of appreciation, your costume is... incredible," he said, admiring=20 her outline. "Thank you, sir. Oh, I love this song. Would you dance with me now?" "I probably shouldn't, not here. Perhaps in my cabin one night." Uhura felt a chill run up her spine. She took a quick sip of her=20 drink, then eyed the glass skeptically. She did not exactly know why=20 he was here, but she definitely did not expect an invitation. If=20 anything, she expected a tapering off of sorts.=20 "I've been admiring yours too, but with the definitely spiked cider=20 and the Doctor's special punch, I think I'm hearing things." "You're not hearing things, Nyota." He stopped and smiled to=20 himself. "I'm not sure, but you may be inspiring the romance=20 intrinsic to this costume. My Roxanne." He took the glass from her=20 hand and set it down. "I'm glad I found you because I... needed to=20 be alone with you, tonight... if only for a few minutes." "Yes?... Yes," she said quietly, not caring that her eyes showed all=20 the love she felt. "Nyota," he said quietly with his hand on her chin and then followed=20 a kiss behind it. "I believe a transfer is in order." She pulled back and looked up at him, her eyes large and animated. "Do you mean what I...?" "I do. But I don't want you to make any sacrifices for me. Actually,=20 another assignment might do wonders for your career, but I want what=20 you want, what's best for you." He squeezed her hand. "Take some=20 time to think about it. I can't make any promises... but I..." She=20 cut him off. "I love working with you, sir, but much more than that, I love...=20 loving you," she said with a tear escaping her eye. "I need to kiss you tonight," he said, between kisses on her=20 hand. "I suppose 'we' began with a kiss, so to speak. You see,=20 Cyrano had something to say about kissing." "He did? What did he say about kissing," she asked dazed, not quite=20 believing what was happening and relishing the feel of his lips on=20 her skin.=20 "'... What is a kiss specifically?'" he quoted, while kissing each=20 of her fingertips.=20 "'A pledge properly sealed..." He kissed her fingertip. "...A promise seasoned to taste=85"=20 He kissed her palm, then just barely licked it. "...A vow stamped with the immediacy of a lip..." He touched her mouth. "...The pulse rising from the heart to utter its name on a lover's=20 lip... 'forever'". Kirk lifted her chin and tenderly brushed his lips on her face. She=20 wrapped her arms around him as his lips followed her jaw line and=20 down her neck.=20 "But what will it mean if you kiss me now?" Uhura asked, barely=20 above a whisper. "A pledge will be properly sealed." "A pledge to what?" Her eyes searched his tenderly. "To continue loving you, but... as you deserve to be loved." He kissed her gently on the mouth, which marked for Uhura the=20 beginning of their forever. FIN ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ ASCEM messages are copied to a mailing list. Most recent messages can be found at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ASCEML. NewMessage: