topaz119 | Shining On The Quay, Epilogue (4/4)

Shining On The Quay, Epilogue (4/4)

-- Epilogue --

Chris had informed junior officers of extended-duty rosters for more years than he could remember, but he'd never seen one have quite the reaction he was getting from Colt.

“Vulcan? New Vulcan?“ Colt stared blankly at Chris. “You--I--New Vulcan?” Chris couldn't really blame her; no one but a handful of technicians and engineers had been planetside on New Vulcan, much less invited guests of the Vulcan High Council. “I--oh, I knew I should have kept those lecture notes accessible.” She started back toward her desk, then got hold of herself and turned back to Chris. “Did you need me for anything specific, sir, or--I have my notes on Vulcan culture and protocol and I can contact my professors--do you know a general schedule--oh,my god, next week, you said?”

“Breathe, Ensign,” Chris said, and she held on to the side of her desk and did just that. “I'm sure we'll be all but buried in protocol briefings over the next few days. As for a schedule, I believe we'll be accompanying Sarek--”

Chris broke off as she went white as a sheet.

“Sir,” she--well, squeaked. There was unfortunately no other word for it. “I--Sir, I had professors, respected professors, who'd never met a Vulcan of that esteem,” she said once she could breathe again. “And I'm just an ensign.”

Not for much longer, Chris thought, but kept that tidbit to himself. It would be a fast promotion, but Chris was prepared to push it through forcibly if he had to. It shouldn't take that, not once they returned from New Vulcan, but it was always best to be prepared.

There was barely enough time to breathe after the news got out and the resulting chaos snapped Colt back to her usual hyper-efficient self. “I go home and scream into a pillow,” Chris overheard her say as she ran out the door with a friend, on the way to yet another briefing.

“Does it help?” the other ensign asked.

“Not really, but at least I haven't thrown up yet,” Colt replied. Chris decided to leave it alone.

* * * * * *

While Chris wasn't surprised that Sarek and the ambassador--Chris still had the slightest mental hiccup in thinking of him as Spock--had insisted that the Enterprise be the ship to transport their small group to New Vulcan, he was a little impressed that they'd managed to pull it off. If he was reading between the lines properly, he thought Jim and their own Spock had more than a little to do with it, too. Chris saved up the apoplectic glares that greeted Jim's message to Fleet command, where he announced in the blandest of tones that of course his flagship would be at the Admiral's disposal. He thought Jim would enjoy hearing about them almost as much as Chris had enjoyed seeing them.

In reality, the delegation was on the Enterprise's schedule, standing ready a full two days before she warped in almost directly from a standoff with Romulan Empire. The command team spent the entire twelve hours they were in spacedock in debriefings, while the rest of the crew cleaned up and replenished, and the delegation to New Vulcan assembled on Earth for the shuttle ride up.

Ensign Colt stood with a packing list on her PADD, reviewing the baggage one last time, though Chris suspected it was more to keep her from exploding from excitement than out of any real need to check for mass and volume compliance.

The trip up to spacedock was smooth and easy, and once they were there everything proceeded with clockwork efficiency. Their bags, with formal dress uniforms and the working blues they'd be spending most of their days in, were whisked off, and they were escorted out to where the Enterprise was airlocked to the facility. Spock met them personally as they were piped aboard.

“With the captain's compliments, if you're not too tired, he's waiting for you on the bridge,” Spock relayed. Chris was fairly certain those words had never crossed Jim Kirk's lips, but he was equally certain the sentiments applied. And he'd have to have been half-dead to miss that. Colt left to make sure all was well with their baggage--god forbid they not have everything she deemed necessary--and Chris started on the familiar walk to the bridge.

“Admiral on deck,” the officer of the day called as Spock stepped back to let Chris precede him, and Chris didn't think he imagined the ripple of excitement that crossed the room.

“As you were,” Chris called quickly, and everything fell back into rhythm of pre-flight prep. Kirk was lounging in the captain's chair, for all intents and purposes doing nothing but carrying on an argument with Lt. Uhura that had the familiar undertones of a much-enjoyed ritual, while acknowledging check-ins from around the ship.

“Good to have you on board, sir,” Kirk said without so much as a ghost of a smirk, and went right back to accepting reports. Spock left to take care of his last-minute scans, and Chris stood there and let it all sink in.

“Bridge to Engineering,” Jim was saying. “Report?”

“All shiny new, Captain,” Mr. Scott said. “I can't believe how much they got done in less than a day. We'll have to break all this in.”

“I'm sure we will, Scotty,” Jim said. “Bridge out.” He stood up and turned to Chris. “She's all yours, Admiral.”

“I--excuse me?” Chris was stuttering, but he thought he might be entitled.

“You don't think I'm taking your flagship out while you're on board, do you?” Jim grinned. “You have the conn, sir.”

Chris shook his head and felt his own mouth quirk up into a smile. “Lieutenant,” he called to Uhura. “Please page Ensign Colt to the bridge.”

“Right away, sir.” Chris heard the call go out as he settled himself in the chair: Ensign Colt to the Bridge; Colt to the Bridge. Before Chris could wonder if she had any idea how to get to there, the doors were opening and a familiar red head appeared.

“Mia,” Chris called. “From what I remember, you've never seen a starship go out of spacedock.” When she shook her head, he added, “Well, now you've got a prime seat.”

“Awesome,” Jim murmured, as he passed behind Chris. “Don't think I don't know this is a ploy to make sure she meets Uhura and they form an alliance that'll--”

“Make sure I really know what's going on up here?” Chris murmured back, never taking his eyes off the view screen.

“Evil,” Kirk muttered, and Chris didn't bother hiding his own smile.

“Ease her out, Mr. Sulu,” Chris ordered, and the engines hummed to life around them as the view outside the window shifted and rolled.

“Free of spacedock, Admiral,” Sulu reported. “Course set for New Vulcan.”

“Excellent,” Chris said, and he was grinning like an idiot but he really couldn't be bothered about it--especially not when Jim grinned back at him, as bright as any ten stars. “Punch it.”

============

Part One || Part Two || Part Three
Epilogue

Notes/Thanks

...and general babblings.

Thanks, first: As always,

without_me and

withdiamonds deserve ginormous thanks for going through my drafts and fixing problems and pointing out issues and telling me what doesn't make sense, on top of listening to me whine endlessly about what's in front of me. I say that every time, but double especially for this one, because writing a Big Bang as the first toe-in-the-water of a new fandom is kinda nerve-wracking, OMG. And on that topic,

liz_w gets many gold stars for going through and catching my non-Trekisms. If there are any left, they're all my fault; I was writing up to the last second.

Special thanks to

deliciousny and

cero_ate, who took on art and fanmixing duties for an oddball pairing, but who absolutely nailed what I had in my head. Please go leave them some love at their master posts; I absolutely love what they did. And many thanks to the mods for running a clean, easy challenge, which I know takes tons more effort than appears on the surface.

The title comes from the first stanza of the poem Home Is The Sailor, by A. E. Houseman, but I think the whole thing fits what I had in my head:

Home is the sailor, home from sea:
Her far-borne canvas furled
The ship pours shining on the quay
The plunder of the world.

Home is the hunter from the hill:
Fast in the boundless snare
All flesh lies taken at his will
And every fowl of air.

'Tis evening on the moorland free,
The starlit wave is still:
Home is the sailor from the sea
The hunter from the hill.

In conclusion (yes, finally): I blame this whole blasted thing on Bruce Greenwood's voice, because he might have only had 20 lines in the movie, but damn, he sucked me right in.

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

so, I usually don't go for this pairing, but I agree with you wholeheartedly about Greenwood. I love this, however, and think it's rather perfect for the two of them. Kudos!

Awesome. And you say this is your first Trekfic? Welcome!

Oh, this was lovely. I very much enjoyed it.

This was amazing. I'm more of a Kirk/McCoy person, if I'm reading slash, but this totally worked for me. There is just something about Pike...

Thanks for sharing! - RA

Damn Pike is sexy! Lovely story, bb :-) Loved every word.

I am sold on this! It seemed so natural and real. I love pike and think you did a great job with him!

Well Done! :)

I enjoyed this tremendously. You did a fabulous job with the characterization and really brought Pike's struggles to life. Also, super sexy!

I love it. I really enjoy this pairing, in part because of the interesting dynamics between them - two men who are so brilliant and willful and similar in many ways. You've done a great job of exploring how those similarities create a lot of push and pull between them. It was an interesting dance to watch them find ways to fit themselves into each other's lives. The trip to the Mojave was so beautifully symbolic of that - this vivid and remote place where they could find themselves in the quiet.

I'm don't care of Pike/Kirk pairing, but this was fantastic. I liked that you made Pike real.

I'd never read this pairing before, but I could see that it would work in some situations, and boy did you pick the right one. I nearly teared up at the end when Jim told Pike to take the conn. I also loved all the references to "The Cage". Great job.

I read many different ST slash pairings, but Pike/Kirk has a special place in my heart. This was truly wonderful. I loved how Kirk encouraged Pike to go to his property in the Mojave and pick up his dream of building a house there and how they decided they couldn't not be in a relationship even though Jim would be out in space. I liked the way you had an entire support team around Pike to help him through the aftermath of being held on the Narada - Ensign Colt is a wonderful OC. I'm bookmarking this so I can read it again and again.

Thank you! I'm so glad it felt right to you. It's been rattling around in the back of my head for a really long time.

Thank you, and yes--my first Trek fic! Nothing like jumping into the deep end your first time out, right?

Thanks so much!

Thank you--and I totally agree: there is just something about Pike! :D

Thank you! I'm glad it all worked for you.

Thank you! I'm glad everything felt real to you.

Thanks so much! I'm so happy hear everyone felt real to you. And it's always good to know it was sexy!

Oh, this is gorgeous! I have a real weakness for Pike/Kirk (P/K/McCoy is my OT3 :D) and this does them so much justice. I love their slow-build, with Pike's physical and mental struggles, and Jim's uncertainty, and the back-and-forth between them is delicious. They are the height of sexy together - the dirtytalk is just out-of-this-world hot!

Lovely story - thank you :)

Thank you! I love this pairing for a lot of the same reasons--they challenge each other, but there's a lot of underlying emotion there. And I'm a sucker for getting characters out someplace alone with each other, so Mojave seemed perfect. I'm glad it worked for you, too.

Thank you--I'm glad Pike seemed real to you!

Thank you! I had a great time working bits and pieces from The Cage into this, just to flesh things out a little bit. And I couldn't resist getting it so Pike could command the Enterprise again.

OH, I loooooved it! I had no idea how much I'd love Kirk/Pike. Now I want to dig for more.

(The dirty talk was awesome.)

i have to agree, the combination of chris pine's kirk and bruce greenwood's ridiculously sexy pike is a beautiful thing. this was a great fic! The candlelight vigil was particularly touching. I loved the dynamic of jim having a crush and the slowish development of them getting together...and then the uber-hot sex that followed :-D

Kirk/Pike is not a pairing I typically read, but this came highly recommended so I thought I'd give it a try and I'm so glad I did. This is a wonderful story. I really liked that you went into Pike's struggles with not only his body, but his mind.

here via

syredronning's rec

Realistic look at recovery. I loved all the characters and the slowly developing Pike/Kirk relationship. The story ends at precisely the right point for me.

P.S.: I would like to marry Parker. *g*

YESSSSS YES YES YES! <3 Made of Win!! <3

not my OTP, but fic like this might as yet turn me onto it :)

Pike's convalescence and the morning by the sea were incredibly powerful. i, too, love the desert and it felt a bit like being there again.

Thanks so much! I'm pretty much the same--I can read lots of different pairings in Trek, but I'm very happy it was this one I managed to finish and post first. I snagged the idea of the land around Mojave and Colt from Pike's episodes in TOS, just to flesh things out a little, and I like to think that it's not just Kirk and Spock who would go to great lengths for Pike, but that he inspires that in most of the people who work with/for him, medical team included.

Thank you! I have a special fondness for Kirk/Pike, too. I'm glad this all worked for you, especially Jim, as I was writing him through Pike's eyes, and he was a little of an unreliable narrator there for a bit.

Yay, J, thank you! I'm so glad you liked it, and if you find any more Kirk/Pike, let me know--I used to have some bookmarked back in the day, but most of it is locked now, or unfinished still.

Seriously! I was toast from the first second Pike walked onscreen and I recognized the voice. It still felt like they were going to have to ease into anything happening between them, so I'm glad that worked for you, too. And it is always good to know the sex was hot--I get to the point where I can't really judge, not after juggling words and phrases and clauses. Thanks so much for commenting!

Thanks so much for giving it a try, and I'm really glad to hear that Pike fighting his way back out of everything felt real to you.

Awesome, thanks! I'm really glad Pike's recovery felt real to you, and given how much I fiddled with the ending, it's great to hear that was a good stopping point for you.

And I'm glad Parker is getting some love! I think getting Pike to where he could walk again was a personal triumph for her, but she still isn't going to let him decimate her staff. (Which is something Chris highly approves of, so they're very well matched in that regard.)

\o/! Thank you!

Thank you, and I'm always happy to enable new pairings love! I'm glad this all worked for you, especially the dawn memorial, as that was something I thought everyone needed (the crew of the Enterprise was out there, too, and I think they got at least as much out of it as the on-stage characters.)

I get to the point where I can't really judge, not after juggling words and phrases and clauses. - i know exactly what you mean. that's why i always appreciate it when people compliment me on that, and I try to return the favor (but only when it really IS hot!) :-D

I absolutely loved this! Sexy, well written, well characterized, great minor characters (your Colt is fantastic), and at times quite moving. I hope you'll write more Trek fic. :-)

YAY PIKE/KIRK! It's hard to find and this is really top of the line, beautifully developed with great character voices. I might have a gigantic crush on Colt now. Amazing job!

Thank you! I'm so glad to hear everyone sounded right to you--Colt, especially, because I had such fun with her energy and idealism and the stubbornly practical streak that tempered it--and that I hit a lot of the notes I was aiming for. I'm pretty happy to have finally gotten into this fandom; we'll have to see what pops up next. :D

I did three Big Bangs this year, but spread out from June to November! Not all at once, like you, so I bow before your awesomeness! Especially since I got such wonderful illustrations. I'm really glad I was able to inspire you, and it's always good to hear the sex was sexy, as it becomes somewhat impossible to judge after the fourth time through a scene. :D

Thank you! I've had this one knocking around in the back of my brain since about ten seconds after I first saw the movie, but it took a long time to get it together. Colt was such a happy surprise to have develop as I wrote--she took on this great voice in my head and I had much fun with her. :D

*flails a bit*

I loved this. I love both Pike and Kirk here; I always fretted over what would happen with Pike after, and it's great to see his stubborn and gradual recovery, with Kirk there, smug but caring, in his own way. And the ending! Pike getting to be back on that bridge and asdfaf. This pairing has been my secretest of secret OTPs since I first saw the movie (because he might have only had 20 lines in the movie, but damn, he sucked me right in -- yes, yes, absolutely) and you really wrote it perfectly here. Thank you!

(Loved Ensign Colt, too. Awesome!)

Yay, thank you! I'm so glad you liked my guys and the happy ending I concocted for them. :D (And Colt, too, because she was so much fun to write!)

Oh, that was just wonderful. There is far too little of this pairing available and it's awesome to have one that's done so well. The slow build made this so very believable, the character voices were spot on and you gave us well-developed OCs. Can't ask for more! Well, I could, but you really delivered on the hot sex, so I'd feel greedy asking for more. I'll just have to use my imagination about that tight-beam transmission from Risa. :D

Thanks so much! I'm so glad you liked it--I love these two together and had a great time working out how they could get there. I'm sure they did manage at least one or two private transmissions, :D

You know, I love this pairing, I really do. But I have seldom seen it done this well. I could all but hear both of them, in the best possible way. I have been reading fic to keep myself distracted all day, but this is going into my reread fold. Excellent job.

This is exactly what I choose to imagine happened, and I adore when that happens in fics. The only downside is that I can't just wave my magic wand and make it cannon. Pity, that.

Okay I think I have rambled enough. But thanks for sharing such a great read.

Thanks very much! I'm so glad to hear this rang true to you--they're one of my favorite pairings, too, and I have to say it was a blast (if a little nerve-wracking) to be able to pull this all together.

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Shining On The Quay, Epilogue (4/4)

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