Fic: A Cat May Look at a King (Kirk/McCoy, STXI AU, R)
Title: A Cat May Look At a King
Author:
sail_aweigh/sail_aweigh
Rating: R, for nudity and swearing
Word count: 9200
Prompt: Washing
Summary: All Leonard wanted was a hot bath. He got a little bit more than he bargained for when he walked into Kirk's Emporium and Aquardrome looking for one.
Warnings: Apparent slavery, Tarsus
Author's notes: STXI/Firefly fusion. Written for round two of the km_anthology. Many thanks to my lovely beta lindmere, without whom this fic would be very much the poorer.
Leonard took a quick glance around his new lodgings before dropping his satchel on the floor next to the door. The room was spartan: a bed, one chair next to a small occasional table and a wardrobe against the far wall. He took a quick look under the bed and saw a chamber pot and a pitcher. Better than nothing.
Better, by far, than some of the accommodations he’d been subjected to since leaving Capella and returning to the massive clusterfuck surrounding Earth-that-was and the Core worlds. This planet, this city, was about as far from the shattered remnants of the Federation and the burgeoning Alliance as he could get with his limited funds.
He wished morbidly that Nero had shown up to destroy the Earth before Jocelyn and her lawyers had taken him to the cleaners. To make matters worse, like a cockroach, Jocelyn had survived the holocaust and continued to try to make his life hell from her new husband’s residence on Ariel.
At least now he was in a place where he could lay low for a while and start acquiring some credits again. This little backwater dirt-ball was perfect; Tarsus had only recently begun welcoming outsiders after years of isolation imposed by the planetary government. Leonard had worked his passage out in cash on the barrelhead and trade, keeping his name off of passenger and crew manifests. It was time to relax and get some of the travel dust off.
Opening his satchel, he took out the wallet and hand-piece he had tucked away inside. There was relaxed and then there was stupid. Leonard carried the satchel over to the wardrobe and tossed it onto the floor inside. He'd hang up his clothes later. It didn't do to go around looking like he had anything of value, it just begged for trouble and notice if you didn't have the actual wealth and fire power to back it up. The less cared for his clothes looked, the better off he was.
Pocketing the wallet and stuffing the small gun into his boot, he locked the door behind him and strode down the hallway toward the front lounge of the small rooming house. Since there was no bath attached to his room, they must have some other kind of arrangement for travelers wishing to get allover clean. Checking the doors as he walked, he saw nothing indicating wash facilities. Hell, this place might not even have indoor plumbing.
Leonard came to a halt in the lounge. Seeing no one there, he turned back until he found another hallway branching off, perpendicular to the first one. He was walking down this one, past a dining room and another lounge, when he heard muffled voices coming from the next room down. Through an open door he saw a middle-aged woman he recognized as the landlady standing at a stove, attending to a pot of something fragrant she was stirring desultorily. A teenage girl was sitting at a table in the middle of the room, chopping vegetables.
Leonard rapped on the doorframe. "Excuse me, Mrs. Riley?"
The cook's hand stilled over the pot while the other darted towards her apron pocket, but stopped at his words. “Bless my soul, Dr. McCoy, you near scared half a life out of me. Just can’t be too careful around here these days. Haven’t had so many ruffians running loose in the streets since we run Kodos out of town. Don’t know what this ‘verse is coming to.”
"Terribly sorry, ma’am; never meant to scare you or your helper here. I'm looking for the bathing facilities. Is there some kind of accommodation for the guests of this fine establishment?" Leonard kept his hands out to the side where they could be seen to let her know he was harmless.
"Most people use the pump out back." Mrs. Riley used the spoon to point to a door that apparently led outside.
"I was thinking of something a might more comfortable, and private." Leonard wanted something he could sit in and let all the tension of the past three weeks be leeched out of him in heat and steam. Didn't have to be fancy, just hot.
"Well, now. There's a house down the way, rents out baths and other entertainments. You'll know it when you see it." She appeared to relax, the spoon taking up its rhythm in the pot again.
Leonard’s eyebrows shot up at the “other entertainments” portion of her statement. “What kind of entertainments would that be? Card games, billiards, shuffleboard? Don’t think I could handle anything more exciting than Dominoes right now.”
A stifled titter came from the seated girl. “More like entertainments of the flesh, mister.”
“You hush, now, girl. Don’t be speaking o’ nothing you ain’t supposed to be knowing about yet at your age.” Mrs. Riley sent a disapproving glare her way.
"Well, that’s all good to know, thank you kindly. Will there be food served at some particular time, tonight? Something smells mighty good." Leonard wasn't hungry yet, but he wasn't sure what was available in town. Better to ascertain a sure thing before striking out on his own.
"We have two seatings; one at six and one half-eight. The one at half-eight is cold dishes, serve yourself. You want hot food served family style, come at six. Darla, I need those carrots now, girl." The knife took up its own rhythm against the cutting board, the wielder's head bent assiduously over her task, although Leonard could see her eyes peaking at him through a fringe of hair.
"That's good to know, ma'am. I'll keep it all in mind. You all have a nice day." Leonard touched the brim of his hat and backed out of the kitchen. Once clear of their sight, he headed towards the front door, his thoughts turning to speculation on what type of “fleshly” entertainments might be offered by the bathing establishment. Nothing he was interested in today; he just wanted a damn bath.
oOoOo
It didn't take long to find the bath house at all.
Leonard stopped and looked at the variety of transport parked in front of the building: hovercars, motorbikes, a couple of mules, and even a bicycle. The popularity of the place wasn’t in doubt. What services were provided and the level of skill therein, though, he might consider investigating at a later date.
The sign on the front of the building read Kirk’s Emporium and Aquadrome. Pretty fancy wording for a bathhouse, if you asked Leonard. The building wasn’t any bigger than a typical residential house, maybe 50 feet of frontage, tops. The putative aquadrome couldn’t be all that large and he wasn’t there for a communal cleansing or exercise, anyway; he wanted a bath, in private.
Well, he’d come for a bath and he was damn well going to find one. It was a quick two steps up to the porch and then he was opening the single wooden door to let himself in. Closing the door behind him, he took off his hat and looked around.
A fairly large room, dimly lit by lamps placed strategically around the perimeter, spread out before him. There were a number of chairs and sofas arranged by twos and threes to make comfortable conversation groupings isolated in their own little pools of light. Many of them were occupied by a variety of folk dressed in everything from laborer’s overalls to fancy duds meant for a party. His quick glance around assured Leonard he looked no more or less remarkable than anyone else.
Another scan of the room located a reception desk made of a dark wood polished to a glossy sheen, behind which a green-skinned Orion woman was writing in a ledger. Leonard made his way toward the desk over a plush carpet whose pattern was left obscured by the dim lighting. He wasn’t sure, but he thought he could make out a variety of humanoid shapes in the design, all unclothed and posed in some mighty unlikely sexual positions. One nearly made him stop to stretch his neck--were those tentacles?--but he figured he'd have time for a more leisurely look at it later. If the images were an indicator of the type of services they provided, he thought they might just have something to suit his particular appetites. If anything, it gave him the impression that IDIC was a well-practised philosophy in their establishment. At least that was one thing the Vulcans had gotten right, poor bastards. But for him, right this instant, all he wanted was to get into a tub of hot water as fast as he could.
Leonard saw the Orion look up as he approached the counter, her eyes roving over him in a quick assessment. He gave her a small smile and hoped she saw him as mostly harmless. Keeping his piece in his boot, out of sight, was one of the ways he encouraged that image. People tended to be more agreeable when you didn't look like you were carrying. Leonard noticed her gaze linger over his belt buckle and he made a note to double-check the way it was seated. The buckle doubled as the knife handle; perhaps that was a little too obvious or she was just more knowledgeable than most in the ways of hiding weapons in out of the way places.
"Good afternoon, sir. Welcome to Kirk's Emporium. My name is Gaila. How may I help you today?" Her voice was sweet and high, the words chiming out like bells.
Leonard placed his hands on the counter and leaned in toward the receptionist. He gave her his most charming smile, the one that showed off the dimple in his right cheek. In a low voice he confided to her, "Well, Miss Gaila, I'm understanding from the sign outside that you provide bathing facilities. Would it be possible to get a private bath?"
She smiled right back at him, her blue eyes sparkling. "By all means, sir. While our communal bath is definitely a large draw in our town, we do like to provide our customers with the type of service they most desire. Would you be requiring a personal attendant for your bath?"
Leonard straightened up in a huff. “What the hell would I want one of those for?” he groused. “Been dressing myself since I was three.”
The hostess suppressed a giggle at his words. "I’m sure you have, sir. Some people just find the personal attentions during their bath more relaxing. Many of our attendants are skilled in massage and other esoteric practices. And while we don’t have any licensed Companions on staff, we do have folk that have had training in their techniques.”
“Not today, Miss Gaila. I’ve just got off a ship where I was crammed in like an animal at a slaughter house. Space travel, nothin’ but danger and disease. I don’t feel like I’ve slept but six hours in the past six weeks. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” Leonard pulled a credit chip out of his pocket. It was wiped of identity, but still carried a non-traceable balance. He’d had to make sure of that, so Jocelyn and her sharks couldn’t track him down.
“I’m sorry, sir. We don’t take credit chips here; we only take the local currency for personal privacy reasons. Do you have anything else? We do accept precious metals, gemstones, other valuable objects or services in trade. We’ll even let you set up a credit account if you have something you’d like to leave on deposit?” Leonard could see her eyebrows draw down in sympathy as he felt around in his pockets for something suitable while he thought about what he might have that he could use for trade. He didn’t just want a bath, he needed a bath to get the stench of the ship off him and make him feel like he belonged on the good, black dirt of this planet.
Leonard’s hands stilled in his pocket and he looked at her very carefully. “Would you be needin’ the services of a doctor? I’ll be opening my practice next week, once I find a suitable habitation to hang my shingle.”
Her face lit up at that. “Yes, sir, we could definitely work out a deal with you for your services. You’ll be a much welcomed replacement for Doc Sarah, poor woman.” The last words came out in a near whisper and her eyes glistened damply.
“Well, I am mighty sorry that the loss of the good doctor has been to my gain. You have my sympathies.” Leonard hastened to console her more as she looked at him with big eyes. “I’m sure the community lost a much loved member. Was she a close personal friend?”
Gaila looked at him aghast. “Oh, she didn’t die! She got married! How awful is that?”
Feeling a bit like a fool for jumping to conclusions, his next words came out a bit sharper. “Based on my experience, I would say it could be the seventh circle of hell. I surely hope it’s not where your Doc Sarah ends up.” Leonard tapped his hat against his leg impatiently. “Now, unless you have some really riveting news from the Core that you feel you must tell me, what I would really like is a bath. Could you have someone show me to one before I asphyxiate in my own travel dust?” The last words came out in a near growl.
Gaila looked at him dejectedly. She leaned in close to him, then, and spoke in a low voice. “Sir, please, if you’ll agree to take a personal attendant for your bath, we’ll be happy to offer you this first one on the house. I think once you’ve sampled everything Kirk's Emporium has to offer, you’ll find the difference an attendant makes well worth having one, no matter how much you value your privacy.”
Leonard tilted his head to look at her, trying to figure out her angle. He had no money on him; he didn't think they wanted to rob him. Were they a set up for a press gang of some kind? He hadn’t heard any rumors of that kind of activity around here; it was one of the reasons he was here. They were hard up for a doctor, so it would be a waste of valuable resources to sell him out to someone else. He could see the other people in the room were all relaxed and enjoying themselves; they obviously felt safe in this joint. But he couldn’t shake off a feeling of portent, that there was more than just making a larger sale at a later date behind her offer. Still, a good massage wouldn’t go amiss. Didn’t even have to be sexual in nature, as he fully expected they normally were. He’d been hoping to take a few matters in hand in the bath, but it could always wait until he retired for the night. Hell, his muscles probably needed the work out more than his cock did. He just was not in the mood to accommodate anyone else’s needs, physical or emotional, until he’d had a chance to sleep and recharge.
“Fine, send an attendant along. But as soon as I tell them to leave, they leave, got it?” He pointed his hat at Gaila and shook it at her for emphasis. He was about damn ready to find that bath in the shortest time possible if he had to start exploring the halls on his own.
“You won’t regret it, sir. May I have a name for our ledger? It doesn’t have to be your real name; we accept pseudonyms since many folks don’t want their real names on a record for certain services, but we do have to have a way of identifying you in our bookkeeping system.” The hostess picked up a pen and dipped it into the inkwell on the counter, her hand poised to make an entry in her ledger.
Leonard thought for a moment. If he set up as the colony doctor, he was going to get known anyway, there were no ifs, ands or buts. He was counting on the lack of technology and advanced communication systems to keep his presence here away from Jocelyn’s notice. Did it matter to him if it was his real name in their ledger?
“Put down Leonard McCoy. It’s my name and I’ve never been ashamed of it, not changing that now. The only thing I’ve got left besides it are my bones.” Leonard plunked his hat on his head and glared at her. “So, where’s this attendant, I want my bath, dammit.”
Gaila smothered a smile at his words and wrote down one word in the ledger.
oOoOo
Leonard followed Gaila down the hall, passing a number of chambers with closed doors along the way. Towards the end of the corridor, the hostess stopped and opened one more nondescript door and held it while Leonard passed through to the inside of the bathing chamber.
“There you are, Bones; your attendant will be in directly. I can’t wait until Jim sees you.” Gaila left him with a giggle and a wiggle of her fingers in a brief wave, closing the door behind her while he sputtered in her wake.
“What the hell...” The words dropped uselessly in the air, the door closing before Leonard could make his displeasure at the sobriquet clearly and succinctly known. Giving up his protest as a lost cause, he looked around the room to suss it out.
A large porcelain-lined copper tub sat in the middle of the room, faucets hanging over the rim at one end. The tub was already full of water, steaming into the small room, the scent of something grassy and refreshing rising into the air. Looking around he saw shelves and a coat rack along one wall. Against the other wall was a hip-high table covered with terrycloth and towels stacked at one end. It really was a massage table. Leonard grunted at the thought and started undressing, wondering just where this much-vaunted personal attendant was hiding himself. Didn’t matter, there was hot water available and he wanted in that tub, now.
Leonard was just lifting one leg to put it into the tub, when the door flew open and a loud voice called out, “Hi, Bones! I'm Jim and…”
“Fuck!” Leonard’s foot descended into the tub with a splash as he overbalanced and he felt his foot start to slide on the slick porcelain interior. He flailed his arms around, searching for the sides of the tub to halt his precipitous descent into the container head first. A strong arm wrapped itself around his chest and helped pull him back from the brink.
“Goddammit all to hell, what kind of jack-ass startles a man like that when he’s in a delicate position? You trying to kill all your clients so you can keep their belongings and resell them in your undoubtedly overpriced, pretentiously named Emporium?” Leonard pulled his foot back out and, once he had regained his equilibrium, pushed the arm off where it had settled at his waist and turned to look at the source of both his discomfort and his rescue.
It didn’t surprise him that the attendant was strikingly good looking: bright blue eyes set under thick high-arched eyebrows; a slender nose that tipped up pertly at the end; full, bowed lips made for kissing or cock-sucking and a mop of bright, bronze-colored hair that was artfully tousled and touchable. What did surprise Leonard was the very direct look into his eyes that the attendant maintained, because under a broad jaw and delightfully pointed chin was a heavy silver collar. He’d never anticipated that a personal attendant might be a slave. Well, crap, that might shoot his whole plan to hell and back. There was no way he could settle on a planet that allowed slavery; the thought scraped long his nerves like fingernails on a chalkboard. Had he missed one on Gaila’s neck, too, the whole time he spoke with her? He started worrying that he would have to scrounge up yet another uncomfortable ride to another frontier planet where he could use the barrier of distance and anonymity to shield himself from pursuit.
The attendant-Jim, he remembered hearing-smiled at him. “We wouldn’t stay in business very long if we did that. I’m very sorry if I startled you; most of our clients like the personal attentions of the attendant while they’re undressing and wouldn’t even be ready for the tub yet. Normally, I would have been waiting for you when Gaila brought you in, but we had a bit of an emergency with the aquadrome. One of the flues of the hypocaust backed up into the main room and I had to unblock it so it didn’t contaminate the air in the main bath.”
Leonard was startled at the thought of such primitive technology being used to heat the water of the communal baths, but then realized that nearly all the lighting he’d seen in the buildings he’d been in had been natural: candles, oil lamps, kerosene maybe. He wondered if the regression in technology had happened before the fall of Earth-that-was or if it was a result of something else. He should have studied up more on the history of the colony before he came, but all he’d really cared about was getting as far away from the influence of the Alliance as he could. Leonard was starting to kick himself for that lack of foresight. And, damn it, he’d been standing here for long enough, he was starting to get goosebumps. He scowled at the attendant.
“Fine. Glad you got it fixed. Now, you just going to stand there jacking your jaws or are you going to help me into this bath the way I was anticipating, and not by scaring half a decade off a me?” Leonard placed one hand on Jim's fabric-clad shoulder to balance himself while he started to lift one leg into the tub, this time without the acrobatics.
“Wait, Bones. Don’t you want a massage before your bath?” Jim placed one broad palm on his hip to hold him back.
“I came here for a bath and I’m going to get a damn bath. Once I’m in the water, you can go. I was fully prepared to pay for someone’s services today, but I don’t take any truck with slavery. Nothing against you, but I will not contribute to the exploitation of a sentient being. I’m only sorry I can’t do anything to help you out of this mess as I’m new here and I got no money.” Leonard didn’t really understand why he was apologizing to this man for something he didn’t do, but he felt he had to explain himself or be found as complicit in the crime as the people perpetrating it.
There was silence from Jim as the hand on Leonard's hip moved up to his elbow to steady him as he finished stepping into the tub with both feet, one after the other. It stayed there as he lowered himself into the hot water and leaned back against the sloped support of the tub.
Once seated, Leonard looked up at the attendant. “Give me soap and you can leave, all right?” Leonard closed his eyes as he sank neck deep into the fragrant water. Whatever had been put into it had a slightly oily feel to it; no wonder he had skidded like a greased pig being chased at a state fair. The warmth of the water started soaking into his muscles and he could feel the tension between his shoulder blades start to ease.
When he didn't hear the attendant leave, Leonard opened his eyes and saw that instead of doing as asked, Jim was over by the storage shelves where he bent over and presented to Leonard’s view a very toned backside under the knee-length robe he wore, along with clean, strong limbs with toned muscles and a light dusting of golden hair. Pure temptation in silk, Leonard thought, but off limits. Jim picked up a stone container with a cork stopper, before retrieving a short stool which he dragged over to the side of the tub, seating himself on Leonard's right side. Pulling the stopper out of the jar, he scooped some of the contents out into his palm.
Looking at Leonard, Jim spoke with a business-like tone. "We’re starting with a sugar scrub. Are you allergic to citrus products of any kind?” Leonard shook his head, while Jim leaned over the edge of the tub and plucked his right arm out of the water. He started spreading the gritty substance on Leonard's arm and then used both hands to scrub it in to his shoulders and down his arm to his hand. Despite his reservations, Leonard relaxed into the strong fingers that were massaging the sugar into his skin. The abrasive substance didn’t hurt, but it woke the nerves up and left them tingling just slightly, the lemony scent prickling his nose pleasantly.
Leonard was, nevertheless, starting to get a little impatient and tried tugging his arm away from the grip that he wasn't willing to admit actually felt pretty damn good. "Kid, I can do this myself. Please stop treating me like an infant and go do whatever it is your owners have you do around here. But not with me."
Jim dropped his arm with a huff. "Listen, take your misplaced sympathy and give it to someone who deserves it. Now, will you let me do my job or am I going to have to hog-tie you to give you this bath?" Leonard felt his cock twitch a little at the words, but he willed the response away. He wasn't here for that, today, or maybe any day, until he found out more about the people here. Leonard had no beef with paying for sex, but when a person couldn't consent, that took it off the table.
Having said his piece, Jim once more picked up Leonard's hand and started massaging the scrub into the back and palm of his hand, using strong thumbs to sweep long, relaxing strokes over the tense muscles. Leonard quit struggling and decided to let the kid do what he felt he had to do. He didn't want him getting in trouble because Leonard's conscience was pinching him.
"You've got nice hands, very strong," Jim said as he threaded his fingers through Leonard's, palm to palm and then started rotating his wrist, loosening up the tendons and leaving his hand limp and nearly useless at the end of his arm. "I guess it goes with the territory, Gaila says you're a doctor. That's good, we need one here."
"You may still be needing one. I haven't made up my mind if I'm going to stay or not." Leonard couldn't wrap his mind around the concept of owning slaves. It was anathema, but the closer he looked at Jim, the more he started to doubt that it was something that brought the young man pain. He looked well-fed and well-cared for: his skin glowed, his eyes were bright, there was no hesitation in his personal interaction and he was very professional.
After massaging the scrub into each finger individually, Jim lowered his arm back into the water and slowly brushed all the scrub off. Leonard's arm felt heavy and warm, totally relaxed. Jim scooted the stool along the side of the tub, where he picked up Leonard’s right leg and started the same process on it. Leonard jolted a little when he felt the knuckles of one hand brush his cock in passing. It elicited a growl from him, while he tensed his leg up a little in preparation to pulling it away if the kid tried it again.
"Watch your hands. I came for a bath and that's it." Leonard glare was laser sharp, but it didn't seem to faze Jim any. The kid just laughed at him as he started to rub the compound into the skin of Leonard’s thigh.
"C'mon, Bones. You're not the only one good with his hands. And other things. You should give my complete package a whirl." The words came with a distinct leer, but the hands kept up the steady pressure on his leg muscles that soothed him into complacency once more. Despite himself, Leonard could feel the muscles relaxing under the pressure of the heel of Jim’s palm, the scrub energizing the nerves to a pleasant tingle as they had with his arm.
Leonard let his head drop back along the rim of the tub, the rubbing motions lulling him into a mild stupor. He could feel Jim move his hands down to his calf where he commenced to stroke and manipulate the muscle until it felt loose and limp, his foot flopping uselessly at the end of his leg. It felt even better when those strong thumbs started stroking into the arch of his foot. He couldn’t help the low moan that came out of his throat at the feeling.
"Okay, yeah, you're good with your hands. Just, keep it professional, dammit." Despite the relaxing massage, Leonard could feel a low tingle pool in his belly and groin. Damn, this was not what he had come here for today. But what the kid was doing to him was pulling him in different directions, making it hard to concentrate on relaxing everywhere. Why couldn't they have given him a bath attendant that was plug ugly?
“It's all in the wrist, man. The upstroke, the rotation, the curl. And then the final coup de grace of the fingers.” Jim lowered his leg into the water and then threaded those fingers through his toes while applying just the perfect pressure as the scrub was stripped off under the water. Leonard was already sweating from the heat of the bath, but the attention to his feet and Jim’s words had him flushing even more. He could feel his cock start to stand at attention from the images Jim’s words had put in his head. Fucking tease.
Leonard said as much. "You're a fucking tease."
Jim just laughed as he picked up the stool and walked around the end of the tub. He settled on Leonard's left this time.
"You'll have to file your complaint with the Companion's Guild; they're the ones who trained me." Jim picked up his left leg, placing it on the rim of the tub and started rubbing the scrub into the skin of his thigh. There were no inappropriate touches this time and while Leonard was grateful, he was a little sad, too.
"I didn't realize this was a Companion House. How can they allow you to work here, in your position?" Leonard was completely puzzled by the apparent contradictions he was finding in this colony: fiercely independent citizens who espoused IDIC and individuality, yet condoned slavery.
Jim’s hands kept up their steady pace against his skin as he answered. "It's not. Kirk's Emporium and Aquadrome is completely independent. The owner didn't want to have any ties to any type of organization, not even something as outwardly benevolent as the Companion's Guild."
Jim had made it down to his foot, the strong thumbs pressing into the arch of his foot, smoothing out all the tension left in his legs and feet by all the tramping around in his travels. Leonard felt himself relaxing once again. Things still didn't make complete sense, but he could accept the logic in the owner’s thinking. Still, this Kirk person had something to answer for as a slave owner. He'd like to give him or her a piece of his mind.
Leonard was brought out of his musings by the hands that were again manipulating his foot, playing it like some kind of instrument. All the nerves in his leg sang, all the way up to his groin. The hands smoothing and caressing his leg under the water lingered along the inside of his thighs, at the back of his knees, in the arch of his foot, but never once touched any forbidden territory. Damn this kid, sticking to the letter of the law, but still doing everything he could to wring a response out of Leonard. He suppressed a groan at the way his cock wanted to leap to attention despite the fact this bath shouldn't be sexual at all, yet so clearly was becoming just that.
"God, Jim." The epithet was forced out of him. He wanted to tug his foot out of those strong hands so he could pull the kid into the bathtub with him. Leonard struggled to tamp down his desire as far as he could.
His comment elicited a soft chuckle from Jim. "Oh, yes, feel free to call me God, or Jesus, or just plain Jim. I'll answer to any of those."
“Think mighty highly of yourself, don’t you?” Leonard peremptorily jammed his left arm in Jim's face. Anything to get the bath moving along so he could get out of there and take matters into his own hands.
“It’s not thinking highly of myself when it’s what I’m told by my clients. I don’t believe in false humility.” Jim started massaging the scrub into Leonard's left arm, his hands moving rhythmically up and down Leonard’s arm. After giving the muscles a thorough workout, Jim treated his wrist and forearm the same way he had on the right side. Squeezing his fingers together, Jim combed through Leonard’s fingers pulling on them all at the same time, a few of them popping as he went. Jim clasped each finger in his palm one at a time and closing his fingers around it, then used the pad of his thumb to massage along the length of the finger as he rolled his wrist in a circle and pulled gently outward. The release of tension in his hand was sublime.
Jim dunked Leonard’s arm back in the tub while he rinsed the sugar scrub off. Leonard allowed his eyes to close and just enjoyed the sensation of being pampered.
His eyes shot open, though, and his shoulders tensed when he felt strong hands move to his chest and start to massage the scrub into the swells of his pectorals. He reached up with one hand and placed it around one of Jim’s wrists to stop him..
“Getting a little personal, here. I...don’t react well to stimulation in this area, if you get my drift.” His cheeks flushed a little at the confession. Leonard saw Jim’s gaze shift lower to his nipples and the little traitors perked right up at the thought of those strong hands manipulating the sensitive nubs.
Leonard could see Jim’s cheek twitch a little, like he was trying to hold back a larger smirk. But the hands were removed with alacrity and he relaxed his shoulders back down against the bath tub rim, although, if he was honest with himself, he was a little disappointed that Jim didn't persist.
“I’ll let you clean that area yourself, then. When you’re done, let me know and I’ll get your back and then we’ll do your hair.” Leonard massaged the scrub into his chest and stomach while he watched Jim get up and go to the shelves where he picked up a bottle and a metal dipper. He rinsed off quickly, avoiding his aroused nipples and concentrating on relaxing again. Damn, this entire situation would try the patience of a saint, and he was no saint.
“Done,” he announced. Jim sat down again, placing the bottle and dipper on the floor next to the stool. He dug out more scrub from the jar and started massaging it into the skin of Leonard’s back. Again, those skilled hands stroked the muscles into submission, smoothing out knots and kinks in places Leonard would never be able to reach by himself. He found himself slumping further forward in the tub as the hands dipped lower and lower toward the swell of his buttocks. Leonard stifled a groan and tamped down on another surge of arousal. It was hard to keep his needy little utterances to himself, but he figured the kid already knew too damn well how arousing Leonard found his touch. Didn’t need to pander to his ego more than he had so far. He almost didn’t want to get his hair washed because he wasn’t sure how much more he could take without pulling Jim into the tub with him and ravishing him. The man had placed his hands all over Leonard’s body and he wanted the chance to do the same in return, badly.
Leonard felt a hand clap his shoulder and he straightened up a little to look at Jim, his eyebrows raised in question.
“Time to wash the hair, Bones. Close your eyes while I pour water over your hair, okay?”
The dipper in Jim’s hand was poised over the tub, full of water, waiting for his consent. Leonard closed his eyes and bowed his head again. He felt warm water pouring over his hair and running down his face. Jim poured one more scoop and then his strong hand rubbed it into Leonard’s hair, making sure all of it had gotten wet. Leonard heard the muffled clang of the dipper hitting the floor and then both of Jim’s hands were carding his bangs off his forehead. He felt two long thumbs running over his eyebrows and the wiping the water out of his eyes. When they reached his cheeks they stopped.
Leonard opened his eyes and saw Jim staring at him with a rapt look on his face. He felt a flush rising in his cheeks.
“What are you staring at, kid?” He had to clear his throat to get the words out. The heat between the two of them was threatening to rival the heat of the bath water.
The blue eyes crinkled up in a gleeful smile. “You’ve got freckles.” The thumbs on his face kept smoothing lightly over his cheeks.
“Yeah, grew up in the American South. Lots of sun and shit. Never listened to my ma about the benefits of sunblock. Damn lucky I’m not sprouting melanomas right and left on this ugly mug.” Leonard closed his eyes, unable to maintain that intense gaze that left him flustered. He struggled not to lean into the hands on his face, seeking even closer contact. Leonard was aware of Jim's scrutiny for only a few more second, then one thumb brushed a startlingly brief caress across his bottom lip before they let go.
"Mmm, I don't think so, Bones. You're not giving yourself enough credit. I'm sure you have to carry a big stick around with you to beat off all the warm-blooded sentient beings interested in getting in your pants. In fact, I think you'd like to use that big stick on me." Leonard could hear the leer in Jim's voice even if he couldn't see it from where he was seated behind him, now, ready to start shampooing his hair.
Leonard scoffed. "Told you before, kid. Not interested in anyone who can't give me willing consent. Until you can, keep it in your pants. And your innuendo to yourself. You're making things damn hard enough as it is."
"I certainly hope so, it's my specialty." Leonard was briefly startled when hands dropped down on his shoulders and started urging him to lean backward against the rim of the tub. He resisted briefly, knowing that Jim would be able to see his aroused cock in the clear water, but conceded quickly with the dual realization that one, it wasn't anything Jim wasn't used to seeing and two, Jim had worked hard to purposely get him to this state. There was no point in trying to hide it.
It was actually a bit of a surprise when he felt Jim’s hands rub shampoo into his hair, working up a lather. Leonard figured Jim would have wanted to press the advantage at this point, but the man stayed silent as his fingers pressed into his scalp, scrubbing in circles that woke every inch of skin up until it tingled. They started at his forehead and worked their way to the back of his neck, where they dug into the thick muscle that ran from his occipital to his shoulders, loosening it up and making his head feel so heavy on his neck that he didn't want to lift it.
“Close your eyes.” Leonard felt Jim’s hands on his shoulders, urging him to sit up and lean forward. When he complied, he could hear the dipper scraping on the floor before it dipped into the bath water. Warm water ran down over his head and one of Jim’s hands started running through Leonard’s hair, stripping the shampoo out with the water. After two more dippers of water, Jim appeared to deem his hair sufficiently rinsed. Squeezing the last of the water out, he felt Jim’s hands rest on his shoulders and then Jim’s breath at his ear.
"I could help you with that not-so-little problem you've got there, Bones. Take the matter into hand, as the saying goes." Leonard felt a shiver start in his toes and work its way all they up his spine at the words. He desperately wanted to take Jim up on the offer, but just couldn't let himself succumb. It was plain wrong and he wouldn't be able to look himself in the mirror in the morning if he did.
"Not going to say it again: no. Now give me a damn bar of soap so I can wash my face and get out of here." Leonard gritted his teeth and did his best to will his erection away, while he waited for Jim to do as he asked. The kid always did as he asked, but made it damn difficult not to ask for more than he knew he could have right now.
Unsurprisingly, Jim handed him a bar of sweet smelling soap and a facecloth. "It's made locally out of ochoanut butter and honey. Leave your face as smooth as a baby's bottom my mo...master always says."
Leonard lathered up the cloth and rubbed it over his face, the resulting foam creamy and fragrant. After scrubbing behind his ears, he rinsed the cloth out and splashed his face with the bath water to get all the soap residue off. When he looked up again, Jim was standing by the side of the tub holding up a large bath towel. Putting out one hand, Jim helped him step out of the tub without slipping on the oily bottom. Once he was out and stable, Jim wrapped the towel around him, tucking it under his chin. He started rubbing the cloth against Leonard’s arms, drying him off. Leonard reached a hand out to stop him.
"I'll be doing this for myself, thank you very much. You've helped more than enough for today." Leonard patted the water off his chest, arms and legs, then held the towel in both hands while he scrubbed it over his back. The rough nubby texture sliding against his skin did nothing to calm his excited nerves; the sooner he got back to his room at the boarding house, the better. The matter he needed to take care of just might make him late for the first seating at dinner.
“You better not be thinking I need help dressing, either. Wouldn’t have a medical degree if I couldn’t do that for myself.” Leonard scrubbed the towel over his hair, leaving it standing up in peaks. He hoped there was a comb or brush on one of those shelves, otherwise he’d be leaving here looking like a hedgehog. When he looked out from under the towel, he could see Jim coming over with the stack of folded clothes that had been sitting on the clothes rack.
Jim snickered. “Have you ever let anyone do anything for you where you didn’t bitch and moan like a banshee at a funeral?” Leonard snatched his underwear from him and stepped into it. He looked up at Jim while he adjusted the waistband and did his best to settle his uncooperative prick in a way that it wasn't strangled by fabric.
“Tell me you’ve got a brush or comb around here I can tame this haystack with?” He pulled his undershirt over his head while he waited for Jim to bring him the requested utensil.
Leonard took the brush from him and used it to quickly comb his hair down flat, sweeping it back from his forehead, letting his widow's peak part the hair where it wanted and then behind both ears. It was a little longer than he was used to; one of the first things he was going to have to do was find a new barber. When he was done he handed the brush back to Jim who put it back on the shelf.
“Hand me the rest of my clothes, kid. Can’t wander around in my skivvies.” Jim gave him his pants first, which Leonard took from him to put on by himself, thank you very much. While he was fastening the fly, delicately, and buckling his belt buckle, Jim got his shirt and was standing with it, holding it ready for Leonard to slide his arms into.
Sighing, he acquiesced and turned around, letting Jim position the arm holes for him. The man just wasn’t going to give up. Leonard would strive for grace, dammit. Jim lowered the shirt onto his shoulders and Leonard started buttoning it up without waiting for his attendant to do it. The less he let Jim touch him, the easier it would be to walk out of here wanting more than he could have. He could hear Jim pulling another garment off a hanger; his vest, probably. A quick look over his shoulder confirmed his suspicion. When he was done buttoning his cuffs, he held his arms out behind him and felt the armholes of the vest slide along his shirtsleeves. He grumbled at Jim as he buttoned up the vest.
“Just hand me my damn shoes, I can put them and my socks on by myself. Not a baby, even if you want to treat me like one.” Leonard sat down on the stool Jim had been using and waited for him to bring his shoes over. Quickly donning his socks and shoes once they were handed to him, he stood up ready for his coat. When he returned to vertical, Jim was standing there with his coat held out, waiting patiently for Leonard. He was in the process of getting into the coat when the chamber door opened without any announcement.
"James Tiberius Kirk! What have I told you about using my garden rake to clean out the flues of the hypocaust?" An older woman with upswept blonde hair burst into the bathing chamber, her blues eyes shooting death rays at his attendant. He looked on in amazement as the kid cringed at the words.
"Ma! I'm with a client, you can't just be bursting in here and interrupting. What if we'd been in the middle of…well, you know what it would have been the middle of." The whine in his voice was more worthy of a ten year old than a twenty something.
"It's not like I've never seen it before. You've been a exhibitionist since the day you were born. Now, are you going to clean that rake off for me so I don't get my hands filthy the next time I use it?" A foot tapped impatiently on the floor, while she stood there arms akimbo.
"Later, Ma. Let me finish up with this client." Jim put his hand on her shoulder, urging her out the door. "I'll do it as soon as I'm done here."
Leonard just gaped at the two of them, his head turning back and forth, from one to the other like he was watching a tennis match.
"Wait. Your mother? You're Kirk?" Leonard felt like his head was going to explode with the new information he'd just received. All his anguish over the status of this young man, his attempts to do right by both of them, his dismay at having his plans disrupted had all been predicated on falsehoods?
"Why you little liar! I oughta bust you one right in the chops." Leonard strode over to the coat rack and pulled his hat down off the shelf, jamming it on his head carelessly. He started to brush by Jim and his mother, but was stopped by a hand on his arm. He kept his face turned away from Jim, not willing to look at him and see more lies coming from that shapely mouth.
"Bones. It wasn't a lie, not really. I just let you keep a false impression without correcting it. I was in a scene with a client before you and I didn't get around to taking the collar off before coming in here. You mistook it for something else. I let it go because I needed to find out what kind man you were, what your limits were and if you were someone who would fit in well in our community. We really need a doctor." Leonard listened to the words, assessing them for sincerity. His glance fell on the mother and she nodded her head.
"We send all our new clients to Jim first; he's a very good judge of character. He's also very pretty and it can tempt some to abuse their authority or try to manipulate him. We know those who try to do that aren't meant to stay here." She held out a hand. "I'm Winona Kirk, the governor. Welcome to Tarsus."
"McCoy, Leonard McCoy." Leonard shook her hand in a daze, thinking this was the most bizarre day of his life, bar hearing that Earth had been sucked into a black hole. When he looked over at Jim, he was beaming at him, bouncing on his toes and practically clapping his hands in glee like a five year old confronted with all the chocolate cake, ever.
"Damn, you two can be pretty damn ruthless. I guess in the long run I should be flattered? A little confused, still; hell, a lot confused, but flattered." Leonard let go of her hand, only to have it taken by Jim, who turned to his mother.
"Bones and I aren't done here yet, if you don't mind, Ma." He put his other hand on the small of her back and didn't so much guide her to the door as push her at it. "I'll take care of the rake later, I promise. Now, leave."
As soon as the latch clicked shut, Leonard found himself pushed up against the door by a warm body. He had his arms full of long, strong limbs and silky fabric; he didn't know if he wanted to kiss Jim or kick him. He also didn’t realize he said it out loud until Jim laughed at him.
"I'd prefer if you kissed me, much more pleasurable for both of us." Jim lifted one hand and brought it up to the side of Leonard's face, brushing the corner of one eyebrow, stroking his stubble, fingering an earlobe and tugging at the ends of his hair where it curls around his ears. It was like he's reading his features in Braille despite the fact the blue eyes were focused in on him, looking into his eyes like he was looking into eternity.
"What I should do is take you over my knee and whale the living tar out of you. Leading me on like that and getting me so wound up I thought I was going to have to limp all the way back to the boarding house." Leonard didn't know where to put his hands first, he wanted to touch everything he could reach; but at the same time, he was still pissed as hell for being made to look like a fool. As much his own fault as Jim's; the right questions would have elicited the truth if he hadn't been so hell-bent on misinterpreting what he saw. His hands slid up and down Jim's sides, feeling out all the sleek muscles veiled by the silk fabric.
Leonard nearly bit his tongue when Jim leaned back in his arms and tugged at the collar around his neck, fingering it contemplatively. "That can be arranged, you know."
"Christ, Jim, I don't know if you're my dream come true or my worst nightmare." He leaned in to kiss him, but found himself stopped by a hand on his chest. He was surprised at the delay; all the signals he'd been given were that Jim was raring to go.
"I don't put out on the first date, and you haven't even offered to take me to dinner, Bones." Jim actually pouted when he said that, and had he just fluttered his eyelashes at Leonard?
"First date? What about all that crap in the bathtub?" Leonard wound his arms around Jim's waist, pulling him in tight, knowing he'd be able to feel the way he was still half-hard.
Jim sighed. "That was my job. And while I like sex, sex with a lot of people, this is something I want to keep separate from my job. This is me and you, Jim and Leonard. Nothing I'm being paid to do or doing as a favor for the governor. Can you deal?"
"All right, you brat, I can deal. Come to Mrs. Riley's boarding house at six sharp. You keep me waiting and I have to eat cold dinner, that spanking may become part the menu." Leonard could feel Jim shiver at those words and had to grin to himself at the reaction. It was nice to know that he wasn't the only one being affected by their banter or the other's proximity. And while nothing today had turned out quite the way he'd planned--all he'd wanted was a bath--he wasn't going to complain, because he might have found just what he needed.
And its sequel: A Rose By Any Other Name.
Author:
sail_aweigh/sail_aweigh
Rating: R, for nudity and swearing
Word count: 9200
Prompt: Washing
Summary: All Leonard wanted was a hot bath. He got a little bit more than he bargained for when he walked into Kirk's Emporium and Aquardrome looking for one.
Warnings: Apparent slavery, Tarsus
Author's notes: STXI/Firefly fusion. Written for round two of the km_anthology. Many thanks to my lovely beta lindmere, without whom this fic would be very much the poorer.
Leonard took a quick glance around his new lodgings before dropping his satchel on the floor next to the door. The room was spartan: a bed, one chair next to a small occasional table and a wardrobe against the far wall. He took a quick look under the bed and saw a chamber pot and a pitcher. Better than nothing.
Better, by far, than some of the accommodations he’d been subjected to since leaving Capella and returning to the massive clusterfuck surrounding Earth-that-was and the Core worlds. This planet, this city, was about as far from the shattered remnants of the Federation and the burgeoning Alliance as he could get with his limited funds.
He wished morbidly that Nero had shown up to destroy the Earth before Jocelyn and her lawyers had taken him to the cleaners. To make matters worse, like a cockroach, Jocelyn had survived the holocaust and continued to try to make his life hell from her new husband’s residence on Ariel.
At least now he was in a place where he could lay low for a while and start acquiring some credits again. This little backwater dirt-ball was perfect; Tarsus had only recently begun welcoming outsiders after years of isolation imposed by the planetary government. Leonard had worked his passage out in cash on the barrelhead and trade, keeping his name off of passenger and crew manifests. It was time to relax and get some of the travel dust off.
Opening his satchel, he took out the wallet and hand-piece he had tucked away inside. There was relaxed and then there was stupid. Leonard carried the satchel over to the wardrobe and tossed it onto the floor inside. He'd hang up his clothes later. It didn't do to go around looking like he had anything of value, it just begged for trouble and notice if you didn't have the actual wealth and fire power to back it up. The less cared for his clothes looked, the better off he was.
Pocketing the wallet and stuffing the small gun into his boot, he locked the door behind him and strode down the hallway toward the front lounge of the small rooming house. Since there was no bath attached to his room, they must have some other kind of arrangement for travelers wishing to get allover clean. Checking the doors as he walked, he saw nothing indicating wash facilities. Hell, this place might not even have indoor plumbing.
Leonard came to a halt in the lounge. Seeing no one there, he turned back until he found another hallway branching off, perpendicular to the first one. He was walking down this one, past a dining room and another lounge, when he heard muffled voices coming from the next room down. Through an open door he saw a middle-aged woman he recognized as the landlady standing at a stove, attending to a pot of something fragrant she was stirring desultorily. A teenage girl was sitting at a table in the middle of the room, chopping vegetables.
Leonard rapped on the doorframe. "Excuse me, Mrs. Riley?"
The cook's hand stilled over the pot while the other darted towards her apron pocket, but stopped at his words. “Bless my soul, Dr. McCoy, you near scared half a life out of me. Just can’t be too careful around here these days. Haven’t had so many ruffians running loose in the streets since we run Kodos out of town. Don’t know what this ‘verse is coming to.”
"Terribly sorry, ma’am; never meant to scare you or your helper here. I'm looking for the bathing facilities. Is there some kind of accommodation for the guests of this fine establishment?" Leonard kept his hands out to the side where they could be seen to let her know he was harmless.
"Most people use the pump out back." Mrs. Riley used the spoon to point to a door that apparently led outside.
"I was thinking of something a might more comfortable, and private." Leonard wanted something he could sit in and let all the tension of the past three weeks be leeched out of him in heat and steam. Didn't have to be fancy, just hot.
"Well, now. There's a house down the way, rents out baths and other entertainments. You'll know it when you see it." She appeared to relax, the spoon taking up its rhythm in the pot again.
Leonard’s eyebrows shot up at the “other entertainments” portion of her statement. “What kind of entertainments would that be? Card games, billiards, shuffleboard? Don’t think I could handle anything more exciting than Dominoes right now.”
A stifled titter came from the seated girl. “More like entertainments of the flesh, mister.”
“You hush, now, girl. Don’t be speaking o’ nothing you ain’t supposed to be knowing about yet at your age.” Mrs. Riley sent a disapproving glare her way.
"Well, that’s all good to know, thank you kindly. Will there be food served at some particular time, tonight? Something smells mighty good." Leonard wasn't hungry yet, but he wasn't sure what was available in town. Better to ascertain a sure thing before striking out on his own.
"We have two seatings; one at six and one half-eight. The one at half-eight is cold dishes, serve yourself. You want hot food served family style, come at six. Darla, I need those carrots now, girl." The knife took up its own rhythm against the cutting board, the wielder's head bent assiduously over her task, although Leonard could see her eyes peaking at him through a fringe of hair.
"That's good to know, ma'am. I'll keep it all in mind. You all have a nice day." Leonard touched the brim of his hat and backed out of the kitchen. Once clear of their sight, he headed towards the front door, his thoughts turning to speculation on what type of “fleshly” entertainments might be offered by the bathing establishment. Nothing he was interested in today; he just wanted a damn bath.
oOoOo
It didn't take long to find the bath house at all.
Leonard stopped and looked at the variety of transport parked in front of the building: hovercars, motorbikes, a couple of mules, and even a bicycle. The popularity of the place wasn’t in doubt. What services were provided and the level of skill therein, though, he might consider investigating at a later date.
The sign on the front of the building read Kirk’s Emporium and Aquadrome. Pretty fancy wording for a bathhouse, if you asked Leonard. The building wasn’t any bigger than a typical residential house, maybe 50 feet of frontage, tops. The putative aquadrome couldn’t be all that large and he wasn’t there for a communal cleansing or exercise, anyway; he wanted a bath, in private.
Well, he’d come for a bath and he was damn well going to find one. It was a quick two steps up to the porch and then he was opening the single wooden door to let himself in. Closing the door behind him, he took off his hat and looked around.
A fairly large room, dimly lit by lamps placed strategically around the perimeter, spread out before him. There were a number of chairs and sofas arranged by twos and threes to make comfortable conversation groupings isolated in their own little pools of light. Many of them were occupied by a variety of folk dressed in everything from laborer’s overalls to fancy duds meant for a party. His quick glance around assured Leonard he looked no more or less remarkable than anyone else.
Another scan of the room located a reception desk made of a dark wood polished to a glossy sheen, behind which a green-skinned Orion woman was writing in a ledger. Leonard made his way toward the desk over a plush carpet whose pattern was left obscured by the dim lighting. He wasn’t sure, but he thought he could make out a variety of humanoid shapes in the design, all unclothed and posed in some mighty unlikely sexual positions. One nearly made him stop to stretch his neck--were those tentacles?--but he figured he'd have time for a more leisurely look at it later. If the images were an indicator of the type of services they provided, he thought they might just have something to suit his particular appetites. If anything, it gave him the impression that IDIC was a well-practised philosophy in their establishment. At least that was one thing the Vulcans had gotten right, poor bastards. But for him, right this instant, all he wanted was to get into a tub of hot water as fast as he could.
Leonard saw the Orion look up as he approached the counter, her eyes roving over him in a quick assessment. He gave her a small smile and hoped she saw him as mostly harmless. Keeping his piece in his boot, out of sight, was one of the ways he encouraged that image. People tended to be more agreeable when you didn't look like you were carrying. Leonard noticed her gaze linger over his belt buckle and he made a note to double-check the way it was seated. The buckle doubled as the knife handle; perhaps that was a little too obvious or she was just more knowledgeable than most in the ways of hiding weapons in out of the way places.
"Good afternoon, sir. Welcome to Kirk's Emporium. My name is Gaila. How may I help you today?" Her voice was sweet and high, the words chiming out like bells.
Leonard placed his hands on the counter and leaned in toward the receptionist. He gave her his most charming smile, the one that showed off the dimple in his right cheek. In a low voice he confided to her, "Well, Miss Gaila, I'm understanding from the sign outside that you provide bathing facilities. Would it be possible to get a private bath?"
She smiled right back at him, her blue eyes sparkling. "By all means, sir. While our communal bath is definitely a large draw in our town, we do like to provide our customers with the type of service they most desire. Would you be requiring a personal attendant for your bath?"
Leonard straightened up in a huff. “What the hell would I want one of those for?” he groused. “Been dressing myself since I was three.”
The hostess suppressed a giggle at his words. "I’m sure you have, sir. Some people just find the personal attentions during their bath more relaxing. Many of our attendants are skilled in massage and other esoteric practices. And while we don’t have any licensed Companions on staff, we do have folk that have had training in their techniques.”
“Not today, Miss Gaila. I’ve just got off a ship where I was crammed in like an animal at a slaughter house. Space travel, nothin’ but danger and disease. I don’t feel like I’ve slept but six hours in the past six weeks. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” Leonard pulled a credit chip out of his pocket. It was wiped of identity, but still carried a non-traceable balance. He’d had to make sure of that, so Jocelyn and her sharks couldn’t track him down.
“I’m sorry, sir. We don’t take credit chips here; we only take the local currency for personal privacy reasons. Do you have anything else? We do accept precious metals, gemstones, other valuable objects or services in trade. We’ll even let you set up a credit account if you have something you’d like to leave on deposit?” Leonard could see her eyebrows draw down in sympathy as he felt around in his pockets for something suitable while he thought about what he might have that he could use for trade. He didn’t just want a bath, he needed a bath to get the stench of the ship off him and make him feel like he belonged on the good, black dirt of this planet.
Leonard’s hands stilled in his pocket and he looked at her very carefully. “Would you be needin’ the services of a doctor? I’ll be opening my practice next week, once I find a suitable habitation to hang my shingle.”
Her face lit up at that. “Yes, sir, we could definitely work out a deal with you for your services. You’ll be a much welcomed replacement for Doc Sarah, poor woman.” The last words came out in a near whisper and her eyes glistened damply.
“Well, I am mighty sorry that the loss of the good doctor has been to my gain. You have my sympathies.” Leonard hastened to console her more as she looked at him with big eyes. “I’m sure the community lost a much loved member. Was she a close personal friend?”
Gaila looked at him aghast. “Oh, she didn’t die! She got married! How awful is that?”
Feeling a bit like a fool for jumping to conclusions, his next words came out a bit sharper. “Based on my experience, I would say it could be the seventh circle of hell. I surely hope it’s not where your Doc Sarah ends up.” Leonard tapped his hat against his leg impatiently. “Now, unless you have some really riveting news from the Core that you feel you must tell me, what I would really like is a bath. Could you have someone show me to one before I asphyxiate in my own travel dust?” The last words came out in a near growl.
Gaila looked at him dejectedly. She leaned in close to him, then, and spoke in a low voice. “Sir, please, if you’ll agree to take a personal attendant for your bath, we’ll be happy to offer you this first one on the house. I think once you’ve sampled everything Kirk's Emporium has to offer, you’ll find the difference an attendant makes well worth having one, no matter how much you value your privacy.”
Leonard tilted his head to look at her, trying to figure out her angle. He had no money on him; he didn't think they wanted to rob him. Were they a set up for a press gang of some kind? He hadn’t heard any rumors of that kind of activity around here; it was one of the reasons he was here. They were hard up for a doctor, so it would be a waste of valuable resources to sell him out to someone else. He could see the other people in the room were all relaxed and enjoying themselves; they obviously felt safe in this joint. But he couldn’t shake off a feeling of portent, that there was more than just making a larger sale at a later date behind her offer. Still, a good massage wouldn’t go amiss. Didn’t even have to be sexual in nature, as he fully expected they normally were. He’d been hoping to take a few matters in hand in the bath, but it could always wait until he retired for the night. Hell, his muscles probably needed the work out more than his cock did. He just was not in the mood to accommodate anyone else’s needs, physical or emotional, until he’d had a chance to sleep and recharge.
“Fine, send an attendant along. But as soon as I tell them to leave, they leave, got it?” He pointed his hat at Gaila and shook it at her for emphasis. He was about damn ready to find that bath in the shortest time possible if he had to start exploring the halls on his own.
“You won’t regret it, sir. May I have a name for our ledger? It doesn’t have to be your real name; we accept pseudonyms since many folks don’t want their real names on a record for certain services, but we do have to have a way of identifying you in our bookkeeping system.” The hostess picked up a pen and dipped it into the inkwell on the counter, her hand poised to make an entry in her ledger.
Leonard thought for a moment. If he set up as the colony doctor, he was going to get known anyway, there were no ifs, ands or buts. He was counting on the lack of technology and advanced communication systems to keep his presence here away from Jocelyn’s notice. Did it matter to him if it was his real name in their ledger?
“Put down Leonard McCoy. It’s my name and I’ve never been ashamed of it, not changing that now. The only thing I’ve got left besides it are my bones.” Leonard plunked his hat on his head and glared at her. “So, where’s this attendant, I want my bath, dammit.”
Gaila smothered a smile at his words and wrote down one word in the ledger.
oOoOo
Leonard followed Gaila down the hall, passing a number of chambers with closed doors along the way. Towards the end of the corridor, the hostess stopped and opened one more nondescript door and held it while Leonard passed through to the inside of the bathing chamber.
“There you are, Bones; your attendant will be in directly. I can’t wait until Jim sees you.” Gaila left him with a giggle and a wiggle of her fingers in a brief wave, closing the door behind her while he sputtered in her wake.
“What the hell...” The words dropped uselessly in the air, the door closing before Leonard could make his displeasure at the sobriquet clearly and succinctly known. Giving up his protest as a lost cause, he looked around the room to suss it out.
A large porcelain-lined copper tub sat in the middle of the room, faucets hanging over the rim at one end. The tub was already full of water, steaming into the small room, the scent of something grassy and refreshing rising into the air. Looking around he saw shelves and a coat rack along one wall. Against the other wall was a hip-high table covered with terrycloth and towels stacked at one end. It really was a massage table. Leonard grunted at the thought and started undressing, wondering just where this much-vaunted personal attendant was hiding himself. Didn’t matter, there was hot water available and he wanted in that tub, now.
Leonard was just lifting one leg to put it into the tub, when the door flew open and a loud voice called out, “Hi, Bones! I'm Jim and…”
“Fuck!” Leonard’s foot descended into the tub with a splash as he overbalanced and he felt his foot start to slide on the slick porcelain interior. He flailed his arms around, searching for the sides of the tub to halt his precipitous descent into the container head first. A strong arm wrapped itself around his chest and helped pull him back from the brink.
“Goddammit all to hell, what kind of jack-ass startles a man like that when he’s in a delicate position? You trying to kill all your clients so you can keep their belongings and resell them in your undoubtedly overpriced, pretentiously named Emporium?” Leonard pulled his foot back out and, once he had regained his equilibrium, pushed the arm off where it had settled at his waist and turned to look at the source of both his discomfort and his rescue.
It didn’t surprise him that the attendant was strikingly good looking: bright blue eyes set under thick high-arched eyebrows; a slender nose that tipped up pertly at the end; full, bowed lips made for kissing or cock-sucking and a mop of bright, bronze-colored hair that was artfully tousled and touchable. What did surprise Leonard was the very direct look into his eyes that the attendant maintained, because under a broad jaw and delightfully pointed chin was a heavy silver collar. He’d never anticipated that a personal attendant might be a slave. Well, crap, that might shoot his whole plan to hell and back. There was no way he could settle on a planet that allowed slavery; the thought scraped long his nerves like fingernails on a chalkboard. Had he missed one on Gaila’s neck, too, the whole time he spoke with her? He started worrying that he would have to scrounge up yet another uncomfortable ride to another frontier planet where he could use the barrier of distance and anonymity to shield himself from pursuit.
The attendant-Jim, he remembered hearing-smiled at him. “We wouldn’t stay in business very long if we did that. I’m very sorry if I startled you; most of our clients like the personal attentions of the attendant while they’re undressing and wouldn’t even be ready for the tub yet. Normally, I would have been waiting for you when Gaila brought you in, but we had a bit of an emergency with the aquadrome. One of the flues of the hypocaust backed up into the main room and I had to unblock it so it didn’t contaminate the air in the main bath.”
Leonard was startled at the thought of such primitive technology being used to heat the water of the communal baths, but then realized that nearly all the lighting he’d seen in the buildings he’d been in had been natural: candles, oil lamps, kerosene maybe. He wondered if the regression in technology had happened before the fall of Earth-that-was or if it was a result of something else. He should have studied up more on the history of the colony before he came, but all he’d really cared about was getting as far away from the influence of the Alliance as he could. Leonard was starting to kick himself for that lack of foresight. And, damn it, he’d been standing here for long enough, he was starting to get goosebumps. He scowled at the attendant.
“Fine. Glad you got it fixed. Now, you just going to stand there jacking your jaws or are you going to help me into this bath the way I was anticipating, and not by scaring half a decade off a me?” Leonard placed one hand on Jim's fabric-clad shoulder to balance himself while he started to lift one leg into the tub, this time without the acrobatics.
“Wait, Bones. Don’t you want a massage before your bath?” Jim placed one broad palm on his hip to hold him back.
“I came here for a bath and I’m going to get a damn bath. Once I’m in the water, you can go. I was fully prepared to pay for someone’s services today, but I don’t take any truck with slavery. Nothing against you, but I will not contribute to the exploitation of a sentient being. I’m only sorry I can’t do anything to help you out of this mess as I’m new here and I got no money.” Leonard didn’t really understand why he was apologizing to this man for something he didn’t do, but he felt he had to explain himself or be found as complicit in the crime as the people perpetrating it.
There was silence from Jim as the hand on Leonard's hip moved up to his elbow to steady him as he finished stepping into the tub with both feet, one after the other. It stayed there as he lowered himself into the hot water and leaned back against the sloped support of the tub.
Once seated, Leonard looked up at the attendant. “Give me soap and you can leave, all right?” Leonard closed his eyes as he sank neck deep into the fragrant water. Whatever had been put into it had a slightly oily feel to it; no wonder he had skidded like a greased pig being chased at a state fair. The warmth of the water started soaking into his muscles and he could feel the tension between his shoulder blades start to ease.
When he didn't hear the attendant leave, Leonard opened his eyes and saw that instead of doing as asked, Jim was over by the storage shelves where he bent over and presented to Leonard’s view a very toned backside under the knee-length robe he wore, along with clean, strong limbs with toned muscles and a light dusting of golden hair. Pure temptation in silk, Leonard thought, but off limits. Jim picked up a stone container with a cork stopper, before retrieving a short stool which he dragged over to the side of the tub, seating himself on Leonard's right side. Pulling the stopper out of the jar, he scooped some of the contents out into his palm.
Looking at Leonard, Jim spoke with a business-like tone. "We’re starting with a sugar scrub. Are you allergic to citrus products of any kind?” Leonard shook his head, while Jim leaned over the edge of the tub and plucked his right arm out of the water. He started spreading the gritty substance on Leonard's arm and then used both hands to scrub it in to his shoulders and down his arm to his hand. Despite his reservations, Leonard relaxed into the strong fingers that were massaging the sugar into his skin. The abrasive substance didn’t hurt, but it woke the nerves up and left them tingling just slightly, the lemony scent prickling his nose pleasantly.
Leonard was, nevertheless, starting to get a little impatient and tried tugging his arm away from the grip that he wasn't willing to admit actually felt pretty damn good. "Kid, I can do this myself. Please stop treating me like an infant and go do whatever it is your owners have you do around here. But not with me."
Jim dropped his arm with a huff. "Listen, take your misplaced sympathy and give it to someone who deserves it. Now, will you let me do my job or am I going to have to hog-tie you to give you this bath?" Leonard felt his cock twitch a little at the words, but he willed the response away. He wasn't here for that, today, or maybe any day, until he found out more about the people here. Leonard had no beef with paying for sex, but when a person couldn't consent, that took it off the table.
Having said his piece, Jim once more picked up Leonard's hand and started massaging the scrub into the back and palm of his hand, using strong thumbs to sweep long, relaxing strokes over the tense muscles. Leonard quit struggling and decided to let the kid do what he felt he had to do. He didn't want him getting in trouble because Leonard's conscience was pinching him.
"You've got nice hands, very strong," Jim said as he threaded his fingers through Leonard's, palm to palm and then started rotating his wrist, loosening up the tendons and leaving his hand limp and nearly useless at the end of his arm. "I guess it goes with the territory, Gaila says you're a doctor. That's good, we need one here."
"You may still be needing one. I haven't made up my mind if I'm going to stay or not." Leonard couldn't wrap his mind around the concept of owning slaves. It was anathema, but the closer he looked at Jim, the more he started to doubt that it was something that brought the young man pain. He looked well-fed and well-cared for: his skin glowed, his eyes were bright, there was no hesitation in his personal interaction and he was very professional.
After massaging the scrub into each finger individually, Jim lowered his arm back into the water and slowly brushed all the scrub off. Leonard's arm felt heavy and warm, totally relaxed. Jim scooted the stool along the side of the tub, where he picked up Leonard’s right leg and started the same process on it. Leonard jolted a little when he felt the knuckles of one hand brush his cock in passing. It elicited a growl from him, while he tensed his leg up a little in preparation to pulling it away if the kid tried it again.
"Watch your hands. I came for a bath and that's it." Leonard glare was laser sharp, but it didn't seem to faze Jim any. The kid just laughed at him as he started to rub the compound into the skin of Leonard’s thigh.
"C'mon, Bones. You're not the only one good with his hands. And other things. You should give my complete package a whirl." The words came with a distinct leer, but the hands kept up the steady pressure on his leg muscles that soothed him into complacency once more. Despite himself, Leonard could feel the muscles relaxing under the pressure of the heel of Jim’s palm, the scrub energizing the nerves to a pleasant tingle as they had with his arm.
Leonard let his head drop back along the rim of the tub, the rubbing motions lulling him into a mild stupor. He could feel Jim move his hands down to his calf where he commenced to stroke and manipulate the muscle until it felt loose and limp, his foot flopping uselessly at the end of his leg. It felt even better when those strong thumbs started stroking into the arch of his foot. He couldn’t help the low moan that came out of his throat at the feeling.
"Okay, yeah, you're good with your hands. Just, keep it professional, dammit." Despite the relaxing massage, Leonard could feel a low tingle pool in his belly and groin. Damn, this was not what he had come here for today. But what the kid was doing to him was pulling him in different directions, making it hard to concentrate on relaxing everywhere. Why couldn't they have given him a bath attendant that was plug ugly?
“It's all in the wrist, man. The upstroke, the rotation, the curl. And then the final coup de grace of the fingers.” Jim lowered his leg into the water and then threaded those fingers through his toes while applying just the perfect pressure as the scrub was stripped off under the water. Leonard was already sweating from the heat of the bath, but the attention to his feet and Jim’s words had him flushing even more. He could feel his cock start to stand at attention from the images Jim’s words had put in his head. Fucking tease.
Leonard said as much. "You're a fucking tease."
Jim just laughed as he picked up the stool and walked around the end of the tub. He settled on Leonard's left this time.
"You'll have to file your complaint with the Companion's Guild; they're the ones who trained me." Jim picked up his left leg, placing it on the rim of the tub and started rubbing the scrub into the skin of his thigh. There were no inappropriate touches this time and while Leonard was grateful, he was a little sad, too.
"I didn't realize this was a Companion House. How can they allow you to work here, in your position?" Leonard was completely puzzled by the apparent contradictions he was finding in this colony: fiercely independent citizens who espoused IDIC and individuality, yet condoned slavery.
Jim’s hands kept up their steady pace against his skin as he answered. "It's not. Kirk's Emporium and Aquadrome is completely independent. The owner didn't want to have any ties to any type of organization, not even something as outwardly benevolent as the Companion's Guild."
Jim had made it down to his foot, the strong thumbs pressing into the arch of his foot, smoothing out all the tension left in his legs and feet by all the tramping around in his travels. Leonard felt himself relaxing once again. Things still didn't make complete sense, but he could accept the logic in the owner’s thinking. Still, this Kirk person had something to answer for as a slave owner. He'd like to give him or her a piece of his mind.
Leonard was brought out of his musings by the hands that were again manipulating his foot, playing it like some kind of instrument. All the nerves in his leg sang, all the way up to his groin. The hands smoothing and caressing his leg under the water lingered along the inside of his thighs, at the back of his knees, in the arch of his foot, but never once touched any forbidden territory. Damn this kid, sticking to the letter of the law, but still doing everything he could to wring a response out of Leonard. He suppressed a groan at the way his cock wanted to leap to attention despite the fact this bath shouldn't be sexual at all, yet so clearly was becoming just that.
"God, Jim." The epithet was forced out of him. He wanted to tug his foot out of those strong hands so he could pull the kid into the bathtub with him. Leonard struggled to tamp down his desire as far as he could.
His comment elicited a soft chuckle from Jim. "Oh, yes, feel free to call me God, or Jesus, or just plain Jim. I'll answer to any of those."
“Think mighty highly of yourself, don’t you?” Leonard peremptorily jammed his left arm in Jim's face. Anything to get the bath moving along so he could get out of there and take matters into his own hands.
“It’s not thinking highly of myself when it’s what I’m told by my clients. I don’t believe in false humility.” Jim started massaging the scrub into Leonard's left arm, his hands moving rhythmically up and down Leonard’s arm. After giving the muscles a thorough workout, Jim treated his wrist and forearm the same way he had on the right side. Squeezing his fingers together, Jim combed through Leonard’s fingers pulling on them all at the same time, a few of them popping as he went. Jim clasped each finger in his palm one at a time and closing his fingers around it, then used the pad of his thumb to massage along the length of the finger as he rolled his wrist in a circle and pulled gently outward. The release of tension in his hand was sublime.
Jim dunked Leonard’s arm back in the tub while he rinsed the sugar scrub off. Leonard allowed his eyes to close and just enjoyed the sensation of being pampered.
His eyes shot open, though, and his shoulders tensed when he felt strong hands move to his chest and start to massage the scrub into the swells of his pectorals. He reached up with one hand and placed it around one of Jim’s wrists to stop him..
“Getting a little personal, here. I...don’t react well to stimulation in this area, if you get my drift.” His cheeks flushed a little at the confession. Leonard saw Jim’s gaze shift lower to his nipples and the little traitors perked right up at the thought of those strong hands manipulating the sensitive nubs.
Leonard could see Jim’s cheek twitch a little, like he was trying to hold back a larger smirk. But the hands were removed with alacrity and he relaxed his shoulders back down against the bath tub rim, although, if he was honest with himself, he was a little disappointed that Jim didn't persist.
“I’ll let you clean that area yourself, then. When you’re done, let me know and I’ll get your back and then we’ll do your hair.” Leonard massaged the scrub into his chest and stomach while he watched Jim get up and go to the shelves where he picked up a bottle and a metal dipper. He rinsed off quickly, avoiding his aroused nipples and concentrating on relaxing again. Damn, this entire situation would try the patience of a saint, and he was no saint.
“Done,” he announced. Jim sat down again, placing the bottle and dipper on the floor next to the stool. He dug out more scrub from the jar and started massaging it into the skin of Leonard’s back. Again, those skilled hands stroked the muscles into submission, smoothing out knots and kinks in places Leonard would never be able to reach by himself. He found himself slumping further forward in the tub as the hands dipped lower and lower toward the swell of his buttocks. Leonard stifled a groan and tamped down on another surge of arousal. It was hard to keep his needy little utterances to himself, but he figured the kid already knew too damn well how arousing Leonard found his touch. Didn’t need to pander to his ego more than he had so far. He almost didn’t want to get his hair washed because he wasn’t sure how much more he could take without pulling Jim into the tub with him and ravishing him. The man had placed his hands all over Leonard’s body and he wanted the chance to do the same in return, badly.
Leonard felt a hand clap his shoulder and he straightened up a little to look at Jim, his eyebrows raised in question.
“Time to wash the hair, Bones. Close your eyes while I pour water over your hair, okay?”
The dipper in Jim’s hand was poised over the tub, full of water, waiting for his consent. Leonard closed his eyes and bowed his head again. He felt warm water pouring over his hair and running down his face. Jim poured one more scoop and then his strong hand rubbed it into Leonard’s hair, making sure all of it had gotten wet. Leonard heard the muffled clang of the dipper hitting the floor and then both of Jim’s hands were carding his bangs off his forehead. He felt two long thumbs running over his eyebrows and the wiping the water out of his eyes. When they reached his cheeks they stopped.
Leonard opened his eyes and saw Jim staring at him with a rapt look on his face. He felt a flush rising in his cheeks.
“What are you staring at, kid?” He had to clear his throat to get the words out. The heat between the two of them was threatening to rival the heat of the bath water.
The blue eyes crinkled up in a gleeful smile. “You’ve got freckles.” The thumbs on his face kept smoothing lightly over his cheeks.
“Yeah, grew up in the American South. Lots of sun and shit. Never listened to my ma about the benefits of sunblock. Damn lucky I’m not sprouting melanomas right and left on this ugly mug.” Leonard closed his eyes, unable to maintain that intense gaze that left him flustered. He struggled not to lean into the hands on his face, seeking even closer contact. Leonard was aware of Jim's scrutiny for only a few more second, then one thumb brushed a startlingly brief caress across his bottom lip before they let go.
"Mmm, I don't think so, Bones. You're not giving yourself enough credit. I'm sure you have to carry a big stick around with you to beat off all the warm-blooded sentient beings interested in getting in your pants. In fact, I think you'd like to use that big stick on me." Leonard could hear the leer in Jim's voice even if he couldn't see it from where he was seated behind him, now, ready to start shampooing his hair.
Leonard scoffed. "Told you before, kid. Not interested in anyone who can't give me willing consent. Until you can, keep it in your pants. And your innuendo to yourself. You're making things damn hard enough as it is."
"I certainly hope so, it's my specialty." Leonard was briefly startled when hands dropped down on his shoulders and started urging him to lean backward against the rim of the tub. He resisted briefly, knowing that Jim would be able to see his aroused cock in the clear water, but conceded quickly with the dual realization that one, it wasn't anything Jim wasn't used to seeing and two, Jim had worked hard to purposely get him to this state. There was no point in trying to hide it.
It was actually a bit of a surprise when he felt Jim’s hands rub shampoo into his hair, working up a lather. Leonard figured Jim would have wanted to press the advantage at this point, but the man stayed silent as his fingers pressed into his scalp, scrubbing in circles that woke every inch of skin up until it tingled. They started at his forehead and worked their way to the back of his neck, where they dug into the thick muscle that ran from his occipital to his shoulders, loosening it up and making his head feel so heavy on his neck that he didn't want to lift it.
“Close your eyes.” Leonard felt Jim’s hands on his shoulders, urging him to sit up and lean forward. When he complied, he could hear the dipper scraping on the floor before it dipped into the bath water. Warm water ran down over his head and one of Jim’s hands started running through Leonard’s hair, stripping the shampoo out with the water. After two more dippers of water, Jim appeared to deem his hair sufficiently rinsed. Squeezing the last of the water out, he felt Jim’s hands rest on his shoulders and then Jim’s breath at his ear.
"I could help you with that not-so-little problem you've got there, Bones. Take the matter into hand, as the saying goes." Leonard felt a shiver start in his toes and work its way all they up his spine at the words. He desperately wanted to take Jim up on the offer, but just couldn't let himself succumb. It was plain wrong and he wouldn't be able to look himself in the mirror in the morning if he did.
"Not going to say it again: no. Now give me a damn bar of soap so I can wash my face and get out of here." Leonard gritted his teeth and did his best to will his erection away, while he waited for Jim to do as he asked. The kid always did as he asked, but made it damn difficult not to ask for more than he knew he could have right now.
Unsurprisingly, Jim handed him a bar of sweet smelling soap and a facecloth. "It's made locally out of ochoanut butter and honey. Leave your face as smooth as a baby's bottom my mo...master always says."
Leonard lathered up the cloth and rubbed it over his face, the resulting foam creamy and fragrant. After scrubbing behind his ears, he rinsed the cloth out and splashed his face with the bath water to get all the soap residue off. When he looked up again, Jim was standing by the side of the tub holding up a large bath towel. Putting out one hand, Jim helped him step out of the tub without slipping on the oily bottom. Once he was out and stable, Jim wrapped the towel around him, tucking it under his chin. He started rubbing the cloth against Leonard’s arms, drying him off. Leonard reached a hand out to stop him.
"I'll be doing this for myself, thank you very much. You've helped more than enough for today." Leonard patted the water off his chest, arms and legs, then held the towel in both hands while he scrubbed it over his back. The rough nubby texture sliding against his skin did nothing to calm his excited nerves; the sooner he got back to his room at the boarding house, the better. The matter he needed to take care of just might make him late for the first seating at dinner.
“You better not be thinking I need help dressing, either. Wouldn’t have a medical degree if I couldn’t do that for myself.” Leonard scrubbed the towel over his hair, leaving it standing up in peaks. He hoped there was a comb or brush on one of those shelves, otherwise he’d be leaving here looking like a hedgehog. When he looked out from under the towel, he could see Jim coming over with the stack of folded clothes that had been sitting on the clothes rack.
Jim snickered. “Have you ever let anyone do anything for you where you didn’t bitch and moan like a banshee at a funeral?” Leonard snatched his underwear from him and stepped into it. He looked up at Jim while he adjusted the waistband and did his best to settle his uncooperative prick in a way that it wasn't strangled by fabric.
“Tell me you’ve got a brush or comb around here I can tame this haystack with?” He pulled his undershirt over his head while he waited for Jim to bring him the requested utensil.
Leonard took the brush from him and used it to quickly comb his hair down flat, sweeping it back from his forehead, letting his widow's peak part the hair where it wanted and then behind both ears. It was a little longer than he was used to; one of the first things he was going to have to do was find a new barber. When he was done he handed the brush back to Jim who put it back on the shelf.
“Hand me the rest of my clothes, kid. Can’t wander around in my skivvies.” Jim gave him his pants first, which Leonard took from him to put on by himself, thank you very much. While he was fastening the fly, delicately, and buckling his belt buckle, Jim got his shirt and was standing with it, holding it ready for Leonard to slide his arms into.
Sighing, he acquiesced and turned around, letting Jim position the arm holes for him. The man just wasn’t going to give up. Leonard would strive for grace, dammit. Jim lowered the shirt onto his shoulders and Leonard started buttoning it up without waiting for his attendant to do it. The less he let Jim touch him, the easier it would be to walk out of here wanting more than he could have. He could hear Jim pulling another garment off a hanger; his vest, probably. A quick look over his shoulder confirmed his suspicion. When he was done buttoning his cuffs, he held his arms out behind him and felt the armholes of the vest slide along his shirtsleeves. He grumbled at Jim as he buttoned up the vest.
“Just hand me my damn shoes, I can put them and my socks on by myself. Not a baby, even if you want to treat me like one.” Leonard sat down on the stool Jim had been using and waited for him to bring his shoes over. Quickly donning his socks and shoes once they were handed to him, he stood up ready for his coat. When he returned to vertical, Jim was standing there with his coat held out, waiting patiently for Leonard. He was in the process of getting into the coat when the chamber door opened without any announcement.
"James Tiberius Kirk! What have I told you about using my garden rake to clean out the flues of the hypocaust?" An older woman with upswept blonde hair burst into the bathing chamber, her blues eyes shooting death rays at his attendant. He looked on in amazement as the kid cringed at the words.
"Ma! I'm with a client, you can't just be bursting in here and interrupting. What if we'd been in the middle of…well, you know what it would have been the middle of." The whine in his voice was more worthy of a ten year old than a twenty something.
"It's not like I've never seen it before. You've been a exhibitionist since the day you were born. Now, are you going to clean that rake off for me so I don't get my hands filthy the next time I use it?" A foot tapped impatiently on the floor, while she stood there arms akimbo.
"Later, Ma. Let me finish up with this client." Jim put his hand on her shoulder, urging her out the door. "I'll do it as soon as I'm done here."
Leonard just gaped at the two of them, his head turning back and forth, from one to the other like he was watching a tennis match.
"Wait. Your mother? You're Kirk?" Leonard felt like his head was going to explode with the new information he'd just received. All his anguish over the status of this young man, his attempts to do right by both of them, his dismay at having his plans disrupted had all been predicated on falsehoods?
"Why you little liar! I oughta bust you one right in the chops." Leonard strode over to the coat rack and pulled his hat down off the shelf, jamming it on his head carelessly. He started to brush by Jim and his mother, but was stopped by a hand on his arm. He kept his face turned away from Jim, not willing to look at him and see more lies coming from that shapely mouth.
"Bones. It wasn't a lie, not really. I just let you keep a false impression without correcting it. I was in a scene with a client before you and I didn't get around to taking the collar off before coming in here. You mistook it for something else. I let it go because I needed to find out what kind man you were, what your limits were and if you were someone who would fit in well in our community. We really need a doctor." Leonard listened to the words, assessing them for sincerity. His glance fell on the mother and she nodded her head.
"We send all our new clients to Jim first; he's a very good judge of character. He's also very pretty and it can tempt some to abuse their authority or try to manipulate him. We know those who try to do that aren't meant to stay here." She held out a hand. "I'm Winona Kirk, the governor. Welcome to Tarsus."
"McCoy, Leonard McCoy." Leonard shook her hand in a daze, thinking this was the most bizarre day of his life, bar hearing that Earth had been sucked into a black hole. When he looked over at Jim, he was beaming at him, bouncing on his toes and practically clapping his hands in glee like a five year old confronted with all the chocolate cake, ever.
"Damn, you two can be pretty damn ruthless. I guess in the long run I should be flattered? A little confused, still; hell, a lot confused, but flattered." Leonard let go of her hand, only to have it taken by Jim, who turned to his mother.
"Bones and I aren't done here yet, if you don't mind, Ma." He put his other hand on the small of her back and didn't so much guide her to the door as push her at it. "I'll take care of the rake later, I promise. Now, leave."
As soon as the latch clicked shut, Leonard found himself pushed up against the door by a warm body. He had his arms full of long, strong limbs and silky fabric; he didn't know if he wanted to kiss Jim or kick him. He also didn’t realize he said it out loud until Jim laughed at him.
"I'd prefer if you kissed me, much more pleasurable for both of us." Jim lifted one hand and brought it up to the side of Leonard's face, brushing the corner of one eyebrow, stroking his stubble, fingering an earlobe and tugging at the ends of his hair where it curls around his ears. It was like he's reading his features in Braille despite the fact the blue eyes were focused in on him, looking into his eyes like he was looking into eternity.
"What I should do is take you over my knee and whale the living tar out of you. Leading me on like that and getting me so wound up I thought I was going to have to limp all the way back to the boarding house." Leonard didn't know where to put his hands first, he wanted to touch everything he could reach; but at the same time, he was still pissed as hell for being made to look like a fool. As much his own fault as Jim's; the right questions would have elicited the truth if he hadn't been so hell-bent on misinterpreting what he saw. His hands slid up and down Jim's sides, feeling out all the sleek muscles veiled by the silk fabric.
Leonard nearly bit his tongue when Jim leaned back in his arms and tugged at the collar around his neck, fingering it contemplatively. "That can be arranged, you know."
"Christ, Jim, I don't know if you're my dream come true or my worst nightmare." He leaned in to kiss him, but found himself stopped by a hand on his chest. He was surprised at the delay; all the signals he'd been given were that Jim was raring to go.
"I don't put out on the first date, and you haven't even offered to take me to dinner, Bones." Jim actually pouted when he said that, and had he just fluttered his eyelashes at Leonard?
"First date? What about all that crap in the bathtub?" Leonard wound his arms around Jim's waist, pulling him in tight, knowing he'd be able to feel the way he was still half-hard.
Jim sighed. "That was my job. And while I like sex, sex with a lot of people, this is something I want to keep separate from my job. This is me and you, Jim and Leonard. Nothing I'm being paid to do or doing as a favor for the governor. Can you deal?"
"All right, you brat, I can deal. Come to Mrs. Riley's boarding house at six sharp. You keep me waiting and I have to eat cold dinner, that spanking may become part the menu." Leonard could feel Jim shiver at those words and had to grin to himself at the reaction. It was nice to know that he wasn't the only one being affected by their banter or the other's proximity. And while nothing today had turned out quite the way he'd planned--all he'd wanted was a bath--he wasn't going to complain, because he might have found just what he needed.
And its sequel: A Rose By Any Other Name.