Laid low (Starfleet Medical, open)

[letspunchit]

Consciousness. That was different.

White ceiling, white curtains, occasional concerned medical personnel leaning into his field of view to wave a sonic cleanser over him or ask him how are you feeling, sir? or would you like some water? or are you in any pain, do you need me to up your meds? It had gotten to the point where Pike actually welcomed

Comments

[dctr_mccoy]

It took a week but Leonard finally managed permission to get in to see his former patient. Pike was like a Eyes Only document - all top secret and shit. But what little clout he'd managed to scrape together from the Enterprise incident somehow got him a glance at Pike's medical records and a few minutes in his room.

But he wasn't the first visitor... a large basket of fruit on the side table welcomed him as he entered the door and walked toward the biobed. "Afternoon, Captain," he said quietly.

[letspunchit]

Pike was actually awake, this time, staring out the window at the thrilling patch of sky he could see. The interruption was very welcome. "Doctor McCoy, come in. Was wondering what'd happened to you." After days had passed with different doctors seeing to him, he'd asked where McCoy was, thinking it was strange the doctor who'd initially saved him had been taken off his case. Probably some of that fine 'Fleet bureaucracy at work there.

[dctr_mccoy]

"I wrangled myself a trip home after we got back," he told Pike, pulling up a chair. "Got back last week, been trying to get into see you ever since. You're a hard man to see, Captain." He glanced over at the fruit basket, raising an eyebrow. "Guess they're relaxing the restrictions on you a bit."

Then the doctor instinct kicked in. "How you feeling?" he asked, noting the man still looked pale, but that might be from the lack of movement and lack of sunlight.

[letspunchit]

Pike gave a slight smile at McCoy's mention of going home - he'd like that himself at the moment - and at the fruit still sitting at his bedside. "Courtesy of Mr. Spock. Help yourself; there's no way I could finish it all."

"Let's just say I'm better than I was," he added, with a grimace. "They tell me I'm progressing on schedule. Progressing towards what, they're a little more cagey on." He inclined his head. "But I don't think I'd be talking or moving at all if it wasn't for you."

[dctr_mccoy]

It had been the trickiest surgery he'd ever performed. Damned slug wrapped itself tight around Pike's nervous system. "I had the easy part, Captain," he said, reaching for a banana and peeling it. "I'd be hard pressed to name a patient I've had that fought back as hard as you, recovering so much better than any of us expected."

If Bones had been a betting man, his money would have been on Pike suffering significant brain damage and paralysis. As it was, it looked like his nerves were still operating properly, showing reaction to stimuli. "I'm sure if they're not saying much, its because you're progressing faster than anyone expected," he added, taking a bite. "I expect you might be released to a rehabilitation unit soon."

[letspunchit]

"Certain people could have told you I was a stubborn bastard," Pike said with a soft snort. "The sooner I can start the rehab, the better. I've wasted enough time lying here - I need to get back to work, find out exactly what's going on at Command." He looked up at the doctor. "Are you dealing all right with everything? Have you seen Kirk lately - how is he?"

He wasn't allowed a padd (something about eye strain) and still didn't have access to the mission reports, if they'd even been finalized yet, but he'd heard some garbled stories from visitors. How Kirk had gone from the drill over Vulcan to, apparently, Delta Vega, and then back to the Enterprise again, was still a mystery to him.

[dctr_mccoy]

"You're not wasting time, Captain. You're body appreciates the rest, the time to heal, even, if your mind doesn't." Leonard had discovered that like doctors, officers made terrible patients. Always wanted to be moving, planning, flying - and always wanted to be in charge.

"I'm good, Captain, thanks for asking. A lot of people are getting back on their feet. Had a memorial service last week, lots of grief counseling." It was Leonard's opinion that keeping Pike out of the loop only made him more adversarial in his treatment, so why not tell him what was going on. At least give the man something to think about. "Jim's okay. Lots of meetings, inquiries, questions about what happened that day."

[letspunchit]

He knew that. He'd suffered a mishap or two in his day, and hospital rooms just got worse and worse with each consecutive visit.

"I imagine you all are under a lot of stress. I got a report of sorts together and submitted it to the review board - hope it helps. They're gonna be picking every little thing apart, of course."

[dctr_mccoy]

"I think they're grateful for any information you can provide," McCoy told him. Stretching out in his chair, he looked out the window. "Most people have taken some time grieved, I think. Right now, the mindset seems to be turning toward moving forward, getting on with the next mission."

He'd asked about Jim. "Jim's good. He's..." Leonard shrugged. "They're asking a lot of questions about that day, how he got on board, what happened with Spock, why they boarded the Narada."

[letspunchit]

A lot of the same questions Pike still had. He'd gotten bare-bones reports, but he wanted to hear the details from someone who'd actually been there. "I'm rather interested to hear the specifics, myself. Were you there for his altercation with Spock? What happened there? Vulcans don't tend to lash out and start throwing people around, even considering the circumstances."

[dctr_mccoy]

"I was there," Leonard began, then stopped. One of the worst days of his life, on some many levels. Seeing Jim tossed off the ship, then somehow come back and literally wrestle power away from Spock by taunting him...

"Well, sir, Jim provoked Spock." Leonard fiddled with his hands for a moment, then looked Pike straight in the eye. "It was done purposefully, with the intention of taking the ship so he could go after Nero, and get you." There was more to it than that, but it was a start.

[letspunchit]

That bare-bones report had said there'd been a verbal altercation. He hadn't known exactly what that had entailed - so Kirk had provoked Spock on purpose to wrest control of the ship from him. Spock's on-record admission of emotional compromise had come immediately after, and then Kirk's assumption of the captaincy. It was tantamount to mutiny, under normal circumstances, but it had also probably saved them all, and Kirk was technically following orders by returning to get him, and the handing-over of command had occurred legally...what a tangled gray-area mess.

"I don't envy the panel trying to sort this case out," Pike said dryly, reaching up to press his hand to his forehead. "Kirk's always shown an aptitude for creative problem-solving, I suppose."

[dctr_mccoy]

"The kid won't take no for an answer," McCoy agreed wryly. "It wasn't pretty, sir, but it got the job done, and-" Leonard paused, not sure how far to go here, "on some level, Jim was following Spock's orders. Just... a different Spock."

Command had some knowledge of that, Leonard was sure. The full story of Nero and the Narada and the Jellyfish couldn't all be kept under wraps. Too many people knew about it now.