Sideways Logic
Title: Sideways Logic
Author: jaune_chat
Fandom: Firefly/Star Trek
Characters/Pairings: Spock, Kirk, River
Rating: PG
Wordcount: 831
Spoilers: none
Warnings: none
Disclaimer: Firefly and Star Trek aren’t mine.
A/N: Written for crossovers_las for the prompt: [character] meets [character] who is the exact opposite of himself/herself from another fandom.
Summary: Spock meets a girl with a decidedly different viewpoint.
“Captain, I disagree with this course of action.”
“’Course you do, Spock, because you didn’t think of it.”
“Your logic is flawed. The plan is inherently dangerous, no matter the source.”
Kirk got a mischievous expression on his face. “Do you have an alternative ‘course of action,’ Commander?”
Spock remained silent.
“Then we’ll go with mine.”
Spock turned and disappeared into the crowd in the opposite direction of the Captain, both of them attempting to find the parts they needed to repair their shuttle. The space station was crowded by Federation standards, but according to all reports, Alliance space did not hold to any interpretation of Federation standards, despite their human origins.
Very xenophobic, the ancestors of the Alliance planets had participated in a mass exodus from Earth four hundred years ago in the belief that their planet could no longer sustain them. The evidence of their isolation was apparent in the antiquated technology, the peculiarity of their speech and dress, and their ignorance of the wider universe.
“But we’re very good at making the most of what we have and repairing it with non-standard materials.”
Spock turned around so suddenly he almost dislodged the cloth around his head that hid the most obvious signs of his Vulcan heritage. Spying the speaker in the colorful crowd was not easy. Rich hues and odors assaulted his senses, and his ears were filled with the twittering of a sing-song language only Nyota may have been able to interpret. But the speaker (young and female) had employed a variety of Standard.
“You seek the most obvious source. Non-standard thinking will aid you in this quest.”
Spock finally looked up and saw a pale human female with long, unbound dark hair crouching on an overhead support beam.
“Your friend is like sunlight. Burns if you get too close. Don’t like getting burned. Simon can fix it though. Can’t fix me.”
Spock continued to watch the girl, trying to determine how she fit into this crowded marketplace. Her words were contradictory, bordering on the possibility of illness…
“I don’t fit in here. Neither do you. Stranger in a strange land.” She paused cocked her head sideways to stare at him from a new angle. “Kaylee found synchronizers once. Still has them. They enable eight-five percent of engine equilibrium. Without them the harmonics will be unstable.”
The girl began to walk along the beam as if it were a public walkway. Spock followed, by turns irritated and mildly curious as to the truthfulness of her comments.
“Walking on the beam is illogical,” Spock said.
“I’m not wearing shoes. I don’t want someone to step on my toes.”
Spock frowned slightly. “Why are you not wearing shoes in this environment?”
“They’re not important. You are. Stand sill.” The girl leapt down from the beam to land in front of him, craning her neck to look into his face.
“You knew what I was looking for to repair my shuttle. How did you know this?” Spock asked firmly.
“It’s all over your nose.”
“My nose does not provide a readable surface.”
“I don’t always read with my eyes.”
Spock frowned deeply, his sense of logic deeply offended.
“Be careful or your face will stick that way,” the girl said seriously.
He did not frown further, and repressed a desire to do so very firmly.
“If you have synchronizers for sale, I wish to purchase them, if they are compatible.”
The girl smiled unexpectedly.
“The captain will be glad to get money, or else we’ll have to move bobble-head dolls again, and he won’t live down the shame in front of Inara. My name is River.” She turned towards the ship docks and began to slide through the crowd in stylized movements, similar to dancing, and beckoned for him to follow.
Logic dictated that Spock should attempt to find a vendor of synchronizers in the main market, instead of accompanying a girl with dubious mental balance to the docking ring.
Then River turned back towards him and smiles mischievously. Silently blessing his human heritage for the illogical but emotionally satisfying practice of cursing inside the privacy of one’s own mind to relieve tension, Spock followed.
Two hours later…
“Captain, are you entirely intact?”
Kirk looked up at him through two black eyes, a bruised cheek, and a split lip stretched wide in a grin. “Probably not, but Bones can sort it out later.”
“I believe your initial plan did not include physical combat.”
“Well, it didn’t start out that way.”
“Logically.”
Kirk eyed the synchronizers in Spock’s hand. “How’d you get those anyway? I tried to ask nicely, and someone tried to break my face for it.”
Spock considered attempting to explain River, and disregarded the notion. His interaction with her had strained the bounds of logical by at least a factor of five compared to any interaction with Jim Kirk.
“They were found for me. Frustratingly and illogically,” Spock said, allowing the barest of smiles to cross his face.
Author: jaune_chat
Fandom: Firefly/Star Trek
Characters/Pairings: Spock, Kirk, River
Rating: PG
Wordcount: 831
Spoilers: none
Warnings: none
Disclaimer: Firefly and Star Trek aren’t mine.
A/N: Written for crossovers_las for the prompt: [character] meets [character] who is the exact opposite of himself/herself from another fandom.
Summary: Spock meets a girl with a decidedly different viewpoint.
“Captain, I disagree with this course of action.”
“’Course you do, Spock, because you didn’t think of it.”
“Your logic is flawed. The plan is inherently dangerous, no matter the source.”
Kirk got a mischievous expression on his face. “Do you have an alternative ‘course of action,’ Commander?”
Spock remained silent.
“Then we’ll go with mine.”
Spock turned and disappeared into the crowd in the opposite direction of the Captain, both of them attempting to find the parts they needed to repair their shuttle. The space station was crowded by Federation standards, but according to all reports, Alliance space did not hold to any interpretation of Federation standards, despite their human origins.
Very xenophobic, the ancestors of the Alliance planets had participated in a mass exodus from Earth four hundred years ago in the belief that their planet could no longer sustain them. The evidence of their isolation was apparent in the antiquated technology, the peculiarity of their speech and dress, and their ignorance of the wider universe.
“But we’re very good at making the most of what we have and repairing it with non-standard materials.”
Spock turned around so suddenly he almost dislodged the cloth around his head that hid the most obvious signs of his Vulcan heritage. Spying the speaker in the colorful crowd was not easy. Rich hues and odors assaulted his senses, and his ears were filled with the twittering of a sing-song language only Nyota may have been able to interpret. But the speaker (young and female) had employed a variety of Standard.
“You seek the most obvious source. Non-standard thinking will aid you in this quest.”
Spock finally looked up and saw a pale human female with long, unbound dark hair crouching on an overhead support beam.
“Your friend is like sunlight. Burns if you get too close. Don’t like getting burned. Simon can fix it though. Can’t fix me.”
Spock continued to watch the girl, trying to determine how she fit into this crowded marketplace. Her words were contradictory, bordering on the possibility of illness…
“I don’t fit in here. Neither do you. Stranger in a strange land.” She paused cocked her head sideways to stare at him from a new angle. “Kaylee found synchronizers once. Still has them. They enable eight-five percent of engine equilibrium. Without them the harmonics will be unstable.”
The girl began to walk along the beam as if it were a public walkway. Spock followed, by turns irritated and mildly curious as to the truthfulness of her comments.
“Walking on the beam is illogical,” Spock said.
“I’m not wearing shoes. I don’t want someone to step on my toes.”
Spock frowned slightly. “Why are you not wearing shoes in this environment?”
“They’re not important. You are. Stand sill.” The girl leapt down from the beam to land in front of him, craning her neck to look into his face.
“You knew what I was looking for to repair my shuttle. How did you know this?” Spock asked firmly.
“It’s all over your nose.”
“My nose does not provide a readable surface.”
“I don’t always read with my eyes.”
Spock frowned deeply, his sense of logic deeply offended.
“Be careful or your face will stick that way,” the girl said seriously.
He did not frown further, and repressed a desire to do so very firmly.
“If you have synchronizers for sale, I wish to purchase them, if they are compatible.”
The girl smiled unexpectedly.
“The captain will be glad to get money, or else we’ll have to move bobble-head dolls again, and he won’t live down the shame in front of Inara. My name is River.” She turned towards the ship docks and began to slide through the crowd in stylized movements, similar to dancing, and beckoned for him to follow.
Logic dictated that Spock should attempt to find a vendor of synchronizers in the main market, instead of accompanying a girl with dubious mental balance to the docking ring.
Then River turned back towards him and smiles mischievously. Silently blessing his human heritage for the illogical but emotionally satisfying practice of cursing inside the privacy of one’s own mind to relieve tension, Spock followed.
Two hours later…
“Captain, are you entirely intact?”
Kirk looked up at him through two black eyes, a bruised cheek, and a split lip stretched wide in a grin. “Probably not, but Bones can sort it out later.”
“I believe your initial plan did not include physical combat.”
“Well, it didn’t start out that way.”
“Logically.”
Kirk eyed the synchronizers in Spock’s hand. “How’d you get those anyway? I tried to ask nicely, and someone tried to break my face for it.”
Spock considered attempting to explain River, and disregarded the notion. His interaction with her had strained the bounds of logical by at least a factor of five compared to any interaction with Jim Kirk.
“They were found for me. Frustratingly and illogically,” Spock said, allowing the barest of smiles to cross his face.