Life and Weather-- Chapter 2
Life and Weather-Chapter 2
Title: Life and Weather
Author: zeezeelive
Characters/Pairings: Spock/Uhura
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: I do not own Star Trek or any of the characters appearing in the Star Trek universe owned by Paramount Studios and the Roddenberry Estate. This fictional work is made for love, not made for profit.
A/N: I love Spock, Nyota and the entire Star Trek universe. The idea for this story came from a picture I saw that will be explained in a future A/N.
Summary: Spock and Nyota, while still at the Academy, receive an unusual assignment that forces them to rely on each other.
Life and Weather
Chapter 2: Good Observations
December 21
The two-hour flight was smooth and uneventful. The Falcon 20 shuttle was made for speed and was capable of making the trip from west to east coast in less than an hour, but Pike had opted for a more leisurely cruising speed, advising air traffic control of their location at several points along the way. Now as they approached their destination, Pike requested landing authorization and released the controls to the tower for an automated descent.
The small landing pad grew larger and larger until the craft made a perfect landing in the middle of the letters NCUC emblazoned on the pad. The North Carolina University Consortium had spared no expense in creating the small shuttle field. Once the shuttle was down an automatic concierge with a friendly southern accent southern accent welcomed them to North Carolina and gave them directions to ground transportation. Pike wondered how friendly they would be if anyone knew that they were there to recruit one of the state’s best students. Pike lowered the stairs for exit and they emerged from the craft to find a petite woman with striking hazel eyes waiting for them. Her brown hair was cut into a short, flattering pixie style. “Welcome to North Carolina, Captain Pike,” she said extending her hand.
Pike shook her hand enthusiastically, but quickly averted his gaze from the woman’s compelling eyes. “ Thanks for inviting us, Ms. Elliott. This is Commander Spock and Cadet Uhura.”
“Hi. Nice to meet all of you. My vehicle is right over here.” Deirdre Elliott starting walking away from the landing area and towards the parking area on their left. “And Pike,” she said as they walked, “Thanks for doing your homework and knowing that the name is Elliott, not Corman. A lot of people call me Mrs. Corman just to annoy me and remind me that I was married to the demented Daniel Corman; they want to cut me down to size. I don’t give a damn, but Kelly doesn’t need her father’s crusade thrown in her face every day.”
“We’re looking forward to talking with Kelly,” Pike said avoiding any discussion of Daniel Corman. The folders he had given to Spock and Uhura when they left San Francisco had summarized the life and times of Daniel Corman and his family. Lt. Corman had been the pilot for one of the escape shuttles deployed from the Kelvin. Despite his hero’s welcome and his subsequent promotion to commander, he and Starfleet had not parted on good terms.
Commander Corman blamed faulty evacuation policy for the Kelvin’s high number of casualties and dedicated his post Starfleet career to criticizing Starfleet and pushing for better emergency policies. His conspiracy theories about a cover-up of the “real reason” for the Kelvin disaster made him unwelcome in the Starfleet community. The bad news for Starfleet, however, was that with his stellar record, when Corman complained, people listened. One of his favorite lines on the lecture circuit was “I wouldn’t risk my dog’s life on anything that Starfleet sends into space.” That corny, but effective line was one of Corman’s many strategies that led to government inquiries and reduced Starfleet funding. But now his firstborn was considering Starfleet Academy and a life as a Starfleet officer. Finally, Starfleet had a chance to neutralize Daniel Corman.
Pike knew of the tension that still existed between Corman and his ex-wife. She had been a young reporter working on a story about Starfleet when she interviewed the former officer as a background source. Daniel’s charm and good looks swept the levelheaded reporter off her feet resulting in a hasty marriage that started floundering right away. She watched him fall deeper and deeper into his obsession with Starfleet as all of their conversations inevitably drifted to his intricate theories about conspiracies to silence him. She stuck it out for several years, only filing for a divorce when she found out she was pregnant. She could not justify exposing a child to the chaos that revolved around Daniel. The divorce became final two months before Kelly Corman was born. Deirdre won sole custody of their daughter, but Daniel got unlimited visitation, which to everyone’s surprise he utilized. He became a consistent presence in his daughter’s life. Pike, who had endured his own divorce, sympathized with the whole family, especially Kelly. If she was anything like his two daughters who still bore the scars from an amicable divorce, Kelly probably had some deep wounds.
After a short drive they pulled into the driveway of a classic brick colonial house with a manicured lawn that stood in the middle of a row of similar houses. When they entered the house they were greeted by a ruddy-faced man who stood a little taller than Deirdre. She introduced him only as Pete and welcomed everyone into the large, tastefully decorated living room. A wall-length bookcase filled with scientific texts dominated the room, while the vibrant colors of the stylish furniture added dramatic flair.
When everyone was seated she gave a little shrug and said, “I’ll get ‘the recruit’.” She made little finger air quotes around the last two words. The plump young woman who returned with her barely looked up to acknowledge the introductions. The same pixie haircut that made Deirdre look fun loving and vivacious created an awkward little helmet on Kelly’s head. Kelly pushed her blue-framed glasses up and settled herself into a chair in the corner away from the guests. Despite her daughter’s apparent discomfort, Deirdre immediately excused herself and Pete, explaining that they would be in the kitchen preparing brunch.
After Pike made a few unsuccessful attempts to get the reticent young woman to say more than a few words, he excused himself, ostensibly to go offer his help in the kitchen. Uhura realized that Captain Pike thought that she and Commander Spock might have better luck getting to know the young woman without his presence. Removing the imposing authority figure from the room often made the recruits more relaxed. However, Uhura had never envisioned Commander Spock as part of the relaxation team. Uhura sighed. The commander was not one for social conversation, so she thought that with Pike’s departure she would have to be responsible for wooing Kelly to Starfleet. To her surprise, just as she began to formulate a question, Spock asked in a soft but emotionless voice “What does your father think of your interest in Starfleet Academy, Miss Corman?”
Uhura had not expected Spock to raise such an emotionally charged subject, nor had she anticipated the young woman’s response. For the first time Kelly looked up and actually made eye contact. “Daddy wants me to go to the Vulcan Science Academy. He has more confidence in their ability to keep me safe.” Her relief at being able to talk about her father was obvious. “ I guess my father has been the elephant in the room. I know that Starfleet hates him.”
Spock cocked his head slightly. “I take it that this reference to your father and a pachyderm is some sort of idiom?”
Uhura answered for Kelly. “Yes, sir. It means an obvious or difficult problem that is ignored for the comfort of others.”
“Fascinating,” said Spock. “ This metaphor is quite colorful and yet amazingly descriptive of certain situations wherein an uncomfortable fact is not mentioned, yet its existence remains paramount in the psyche of those involved in the conversation.”
With amusement twinkling in her eyes Kelly looked at Spock and then at Uhura. The cadet smiled knowing that Kelly was having the same reaction to Spock that many female cadets had - amazement that someone so attractive could converse in such an odd way.
“Do your other professors find metaphors as fascinating?” Kelly asked returning Uhura’s smile.
“Definitely No,” Uhura said. “ Not even the linguistics professors. Commander Spock’s interest in human idioms is unique among the faculty members. But some of the others have some quirks you would not believe.” Uhura began to tell Kelly about the idiosyncrasies of the Starfleet faculty and Spock offered a few observations about particular faculty members.
The three of them spoke easily and at length about several other topics including the differences between SFA and VSA before Deirdre called them for brunch. At the table Kelly remained relaxed and talkative despite Pete’s frequent comments about her posture and table manners. Ignoring him, she finally admitted that she was having trouble making a decision.
“Perhaps you would be interested in spending a period of time on Vulcan to determine if life on Vulcan would be acceptable to you,” suggested Spock “With your permission I will contact my mother and make arrangements for you to stay with her for a brief visit.
Deirdre and Kelly were both enthusiastic about Spock’s offer and he promised to contact them once he had made the arrangements with his mother.
*******************
Back onboard the shuttle Pike sat in the pilot’s seat and immediately pulled some tools from beneath it. As Spock and Uhura settled into their seats he opened the instrument panel casing and began to work.
“Do you need my assistance, captain?” offered Spock.
“No. By the way, congratulations on suggesting the visit to Vulcan.” Pike continued to work as he spoke “A week on Vulcan and that young lady will beg us to let her into Starfleet.”
“Sir, should I be insulted by your premature conclusion that Miss Corman will not appreciate life on Vulcan?”
“Of course not, Spock. It’s just a good idea for young people to be able to fully explore their options,” Pike said with just a hint of humor.
“She does seem to have remarkable options. Only a few exceptional Terran students are admitted each year to the Vulcan Science Academy. Additionally, I have observed that although Miss Corman may have difficulty meeting the physical requirements for Starfleet recruits, you appear to be certain that she will be admitted there as well. I can only conjecture that her certainty of admittance to both these institutions has something to do with the groundbreaking scientific paper on terra-forming recently submitted by an unidentified student from North Carolina?”
“You don’t miss much do you Spock?” Pike said.
“I observed the large number of scientific books in the living room bookcase. Eleven of those volumes concerned terra-forming.”
“I only know the basics about Terra-forming,” Uhura said joining in the conversation. “You’re talking about engineering planets to make them habitable?”
“Simply put, yes. One of our young scientists, Carol Marcus, really wants to work with the person who wrote that paper. Only a few people know that Kelly Corman is that person,” Pike explained.
Spock hesitated for a moment, considering the propriety of the question that he wanted to ask. “Is that the reason you have been less than forthcoming about this trip, Captain?”
Pike finally closed the instrument panel casing and turned to look at Spock in a manner indicating that he had anticipated the question. “No Spock. It is not. But if either you or Cadet Uhura is ever forced to give a reason for the secrecy surrounding this trip, I expect you to say that it is.”
He buckled into his seat and Spock and Uhura followed suit. “Spock, I’m going to need you to fly co-pilot and do visual navigation for me. I’ve disengaged all the navigational and tracking devices, so everything is seat-of-the-pants. Are you okay back there, Cadet Uhura?”
“Yes, Sir.” Uhura answered with enthusiasm she was not actually feeling.
The shuttle quickly lifted to the sky. For the first time since they had started on this trip Spock and Uhura stared into each other’s eyes. They were silently communicating the same question. Why was the shuttle now headed south instead of west back to San Francisco?
New York
He was glad that the meeting ended early. Things had gone well. Already he had made great progress that would seal his position. People sought him out to introduce themselves. Strangers became acquaintances, acquaintances became friends and casual friends became dear. His importance was now known and felt. He now had to focus on other important matters. The prolonged lack of information had left him in limbo back home. But a recent sliver of a clue had set things in motion. He hoped to know more soon. The Terran holiday season made everyone talkative and the alcohol, which flowed freely, loosened lips. Gentle, probing questions posed in the form of jest to drunken fools would surely reveal more information than direct questioning. Suddenly across the street he spied someone he recognized entering a tavern. He was someone well acquainted with the Federation. He ran across the street and nodded to the muscle-bound man holding the door open. He could see his target inside, already perched on a stool. As he strode through the door, he smiled, shook the young doorman’s hand and cheerfully said, “Happy Holidays.”
Chapter 3:
http://zeezeelive.livejournal.com/#post-zeezeelive-1633
Title: Life and Weather
Author: zeezeelive
Characters/Pairings: Spock/Uhura
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: I do not own Star Trek or any of the characters appearing in the Star Trek universe owned by Paramount Studios and the Roddenberry Estate. This fictional work is made for love, not made for profit.
A/N: I love Spock, Nyota and the entire Star Trek universe. The idea for this story came from a picture I saw that will be explained in a future A/N.
Summary: Spock and Nyota, while still at the Academy, receive an unusual assignment that forces them to rely on each other.
Life and Weather
Chapter 2: Good Observations
December 21
The two-hour flight was smooth and uneventful. The Falcon 20 shuttle was made for speed and was capable of making the trip from west to east coast in less than an hour, but Pike had opted for a more leisurely cruising speed, advising air traffic control of their location at several points along the way. Now as they approached their destination, Pike requested landing authorization and released the controls to the tower for an automated descent.
The small landing pad grew larger and larger until the craft made a perfect landing in the middle of the letters NCUC emblazoned on the pad. The North Carolina University Consortium had spared no expense in creating the small shuttle field. Once the shuttle was down an automatic concierge with a friendly southern accent southern accent welcomed them to North Carolina and gave them directions to ground transportation. Pike wondered how friendly they would be if anyone knew that they were there to recruit one of the state’s best students. Pike lowered the stairs for exit and they emerged from the craft to find a petite woman with striking hazel eyes waiting for them. Her brown hair was cut into a short, flattering pixie style. “Welcome to North Carolina, Captain Pike,” she said extending her hand.
Pike shook her hand enthusiastically, but quickly averted his gaze from the woman’s compelling eyes. “ Thanks for inviting us, Ms. Elliott. This is Commander Spock and Cadet Uhura.”
“Hi. Nice to meet all of you. My vehicle is right over here.” Deirdre Elliott starting walking away from the landing area and towards the parking area on their left. “And Pike,” she said as they walked, “Thanks for doing your homework and knowing that the name is Elliott, not Corman. A lot of people call me Mrs. Corman just to annoy me and remind me that I was married to the demented Daniel Corman; they want to cut me down to size. I don’t give a damn, but Kelly doesn’t need her father’s crusade thrown in her face every day.”
“We’re looking forward to talking with Kelly,” Pike said avoiding any discussion of Daniel Corman. The folders he had given to Spock and Uhura when they left San Francisco had summarized the life and times of Daniel Corman and his family. Lt. Corman had been the pilot for one of the escape shuttles deployed from the Kelvin. Despite his hero’s welcome and his subsequent promotion to commander, he and Starfleet had not parted on good terms.
Commander Corman blamed faulty evacuation policy for the Kelvin’s high number of casualties and dedicated his post Starfleet career to criticizing Starfleet and pushing for better emergency policies. His conspiracy theories about a cover-up of the “real reason” for the Kelvin disaster made him unwelcome in the Starfleet community. The bad news for Starfleet, however, was that with his stellar record, when Corman complained, people listened. One of his favorite lines on the lecture circuit was “I wouldn’t risk my dog’s life on anything that Starfleet sends into space.” That corny, but effective line was one of Corman’s many strategies that led to government inquiries and reduced Starfleet funding. But now his firstborn was considering Starfleet Academy and a life as a Starfleet officer. Finally, Starfleet had a chance to neutralize Daniel Corman.
Pike knew of the tension that still existed between Corman and his ex-wife. She had been a young reporter working on a story about Starfleet when she interviewed the former officer as a background source. Daniel’s charm and good looks swept the levelheaded reporter off her feet resulting in a hasty marriage that started floundering right away. She watched him fall deeper and deeper into his obsession with Starfleet as all of their conversations inevitably drifted to his intricate theories about conspiracies to silence him. She stuck it out for several years, only filing for a divorce when she found out she was pregnant. She could not justify exposing a child to the chaos that revolved around Daniel. The divorce became final two months before Kelly Corman was born. Deirdre won sole custody of their daughter, but Daniel got unlimited visitation, which to everyone’s surprise he utilized. He became a consistent presence in his daughter’s life. Pike, who had endured his own divorce, sympathized with the whole family, especially Kelly. If she was anything like his two daughters who still bore the scars from an amicable divorce, Kelly probably had some deep wounds.
After a short drive they pulled into the driveway of a classic brick colonial house with a manicured lawn that stood in the middle of a row of similar houses. When they entered the house they were greeted by a ruddy-faced man who stood a little taller than Deirdre. She introduced him only as Pete and welcomed everyone into the large, tastefully decorated living room. A wall-length bookcase filled with scientific texts dominated the room, while the vibrant colors of the stylish furniture added dramatic flair.
When everyone was seated she gave a little shrug and said, “I’ll get ‘the recruit’.” She made little finger air quotes around the last two words. The plump young woman who returned with her barely looked up to acknowledge the introductions. The same pixie haircut that made Deirdre look fun loving and vivacious created an awkward little helmet on Kelly’s head. Kelly pushed her blue-framed glasses up and settled herself into a chair in the corner away from the guests. Despite her daughter’s apparent discomfort, Deirdre immediately excused herself and Pete, explaining that they would be in the kitchen preparing brunch.
After Pike made a few unsuccessful attempts to get the reticent young woman to say more than a few words, he excused himself, ostensibly to go offer his help in the kitchen. Uhura realized that Captain Pike thought that she and Commander Spock might have better luck getting to know the young woman without his presence. Removing the imposing authority figure from the room often made the recruits more relaxed. However, Uhura had never envisioned Commander Spock as part of the relaxation team. Uhura sighed. The commander was not one for social conversation, so she thought that with Pike’s departure she would have to be responsible for wooing Kelly to Starfleet. To her surprise, just as she began to formulate a question, Spock asked in a soft but emotionless voice “What does your father think of your interest in Starfleet Academy, Miss Corman?”
Uhura had not expected Spock to raise such an emotionally charged subject, nor had she anticipated the young woman’s response. For the first time Kelly looked up and actually made eye contact. “Daddy wants me to go to the Vulcan Science Academy. He has more confidence in their ability to keep me safe.” Her relief at being able to talk about her father was obvious. “ I guess my father has been the elephant in the room. I know that Starfleet hates him.”
Spock cocked his head slightly. “I take it that this reference to your father and a pachyderm is some sort of idiom?”
Uhura answered for Kelly. “Yes, sir. It means an obvious or difficult problem that is ignored for the comfort of others.”
“Fascinating,” said Spock. “ This metaphor is quite colorful and yet amazingly descriptive of certain situations wherein an uncomfortable fact is not mentioned, yet its existence remains paramount in the psyche of those involved in the conversation.”
With amusement twinkling in her eyes Kelly looked at Spock and then at Uhura. The cadet smiled knowing that Kelly was having the same reaction to Spock that many female cadets had - amazement that someone so attractive could converse in such an odd way.
“Do your other professors find metaphors as fascinating?” Kelly asked returning Uhura’s smile.
“Definitely No,” Uhura said. “ Not even the linguistics professors. Commander Spock’s interest in human idioms is unique among the faculty members. But some of the others have some quirks you would not believe.” Uhura began to tell Kelly about the idiosyncrasies of the Starfleet faculty and Spock offered a few observations about particular faculty members.
The three of them spoke easily and at length about several other topics including the differences between SFA and VSA before Deirdre called them for brunch. At the table Kelly remained relaxed and talkative despite Pete’s frequent comments about her posture and table manners. Ignoring him, she finally admitted that she was having trouble making a decision.
“Perhaps you would be interested in spending a period of time on Vulcan to determine if life on Vulcan would be acceptable to you,” suggested Spock “With your permission I will contact my mother and make arrangements for you to stay with her for a brief visit.
Deirdre and Kelly were both enthusiastic about Spock’s offer and he promised to contact them once he had made the arrangements with his mother.
*******************
Back onboard the shuttle Pike sat in the pilot’s seat and immediately pulled some tools from beneath it. As Spock and Uhura settled into their seats he opened the instrument panel casing and began to work.
“Do you need my assistance, captain?” offered Spock.
“No. By the way, congratulations on suggesting the visit to Vulcan.” Pike continued to work as he spoke “A week on Vulcan and that young lady will beg us to let her into Starfleet.”
“Sir, should I be insulted by your premature conclusion that Miss Corman will not appreciate life on Vulcan?”
“Of course not, Spock. It’s just a good idea for young people to be able to fully explore their options,” Pike said with just a hint of humor.
“She does seem to have remarkable options. Only a few exceptional Terran students are admitted each year to the Vulcan Science Academy. Additionally, I have observed that although Miss Corman may have difficulty meeting the physical requirements for Starfleet recruits, you appear to be certain that she will be admitted there as well. I can only conjecture that her certainty of admittance to both these institutions has something to do with the groundbreaking scientific paper on terra-forming recently submitted by an unidentified student from North Carolina?”
“You don’t miss much do you Spock?” Pike said.
“I observed the large number of scientific books in the living room bookcase. Eleven of those volumes concerned terra-forming.”
“I only know the basics about Terra-forming,” Uhura said joining in the conversation. “You’re talking about engineering planets to make them habitable?”
“Simply put, yes. One of our young scientists, Carol Marcus, really wants to work with the person who wrote that paper. Only a few people know that Kelly Corman is that person,” Pike explained.
Spock hesitated for a moment, considering the propriety of the question that he wanted to ask. “Is that the reason you have been less than forthcoming about this trip, Captain?”
Pike finally closed the instrument panel casing and turned to look at Spock in a manner indicating that he had anticipated the question. “No Spock. It is not. But if either you or Cadet Uhura is ever forced to give a reason for the secrecy surrounding this trip, I expect you to say that it is.”
He buckled into his seat and Spock and Uhura followed suit. “Spock, I’m going to need you to fly co-pilot and do visual navigation for me. I’ve disengaged all the navigational and tracking devices, so everything is seat-of-the-pants. Are you okay back there, Cadet Uhura?”
“Yes, Sir.” Uhura answered with enthusiasm she was not actually feeling.
The shuttle quickly lifted to the sky. For the first time since they had started on this trip Spock and Uhura stared into each other’s eyes. They were silently communicating the same question. Why was the shuttle now headed south instead of west back to San Francisco?
New York
He was glad that the meeting ended early. Things had gone well. Already he had made great progress that would seal his position. People sought him out to introduce themselves. Strangers became acquaintances, acquaintances became friends and casual friends became dear. His importance was now known and felt. He now had to focus on other important matters. The prolonged lack of information had left him in limbo back home. But a recent sliver of a clue had set things in motion. He hoped to know more soon. The Terran holiday season made everyone talkative and the alcohol, which flowed freely, loosened lips. Gentle, probing questions posed in the form of jest to drunken fools would surely reveal more information than direct questioning. Suddenly across the street he spied someone he recognized entering a tavern. He was someone well acquainted with the Federation. He ran across the street and nodded to the muscle-bound man holding the door open. He could see his target inside, already perched on a stool. As he strode through the door, he smiled, shook the young doorman’s hand and cheerfully said, “Happy Holidays.”
Chapter 3:
http://zeezeelive.livejournal.com/#post-zeezeelive-1633