#it’s a tie between kirk and spock

[cheer-deforest-kelley]

Of course it has to be a Star Trek Christmas for December on my 2022 DeForest Kelley calendar.

Thank you @wolfti-sama for the original post of this photo.

[spirkbitch]

What’s your least favorite TOS episode?

(i made a post once asking people to tag their favorite and least favorite, i got these from there)

[the-redhead-in-a-dress]

Random things I want in SNW Se3

Diplomatic Function with shenanigans

Una and Pike centered episode. Potentially being kidnapped à la T'Pol and Archer in Shadows of P'Jem. Maybe even throw in some flashbacks to Una and Pikes' early career/first meeting etc. Or just go with that and have the entire episode just be baby Ensigns Chin-Riley and Pike on an adventure...shenanigans ensured.

An actual conversation between Una and Chris recognizing the hardship of her having had to hide her true self for so long but not having to do so anymore

Una facing discrimination from others in SF/Federation...some recognition at least that her plight didn't end just by her being granted asylum. Chris going bezerk over this.

An Una and Illyrians centered episode. Maybe even her finally getting to contact her parents again, maybe an episode where she gets to actually see them/go back home. Maybe just an episode akin to The Illyrian Enigma (comic) where the Enterprise meets other Illyrians in space.

Una out of uniform!!! Anything will do, but please let the woman relax without the SF dress code! Preferably tie this in with the diplomatic function and have her in a fancy ball gown (please!)

Reconciliation/At least addressing the tension now between Admiral April and Una/Chris, given April's less than kind words at her trial!

Captain dinner!

Post-dinner Pike and Una discussing the crew/missions maybe even having a drink or two

Crew night off, some karaoke, a movie or something, maybe some dancing on or off the Enterprise

Spock & Una friendship episode...maybe they get stuck on a planet and have to figure things out together. Anything that really centers their friendship/mentoring relationship with one another. Maybe Spock can confide in Una his relationship issues etc. Maybe Una can admit she has little experience with relationships because she's always pushed people away for fear they'll get too close. Spock notes that she's never pushed Chris away. They'll be heavy implications, she'll go to respond and maybe Chris interrupts over comms and bam they're rescued...implications still heavy in the air.

Girls night!!!! La'an, Uhura, Erica, Christine, Una....give me the girl love here!!

Things I'd rather not have

Captain Batel/Chris' romantic entanglements generally

Kirk...please this is not a TOS prequel...get you're own reboot

[blogquantumreality]

Suggested ST: TOS Episodes to Watch

If you really don't want to go through all of the original series' episodes, here are fifteen I would suggest watching to get the big picture of the major aspects of TOS that feed into TNG, DS9 and so forth:

"Where No Man Has Gone Before" - as the pilot, this is self-explanatory. It shows us many of the major characters who we'll see over and over through the series, and shows how they react to a new phenomenon that threatens the mental stability of two crew members.

"Balance of Terror" - introduces the Romulans, one of two principal antagonist powers in the TOS era and which still has a sizable rivalry with the Federation in TNG/DS9.

"The Menagerie, Pt. I/II" - along with the original pilot "The Cage", this two-parter is noteworthy for giving us a look into the Enterprise's past when it was commanded by Captain Christopher Pike. It also establishes one of the few crimes for which the Federation has imposed a death penalty.

"Space Seed" - introduces Khan Noonien Singh and establishes one of the major cataclysmic wars of Trek's 20th century, the Eugenics Wars, with Khan as one of the principal instigators.

"Errand of Mercy" - introduces the Klingon Empire as the second of two principal antagonist powers in the TOS era, and also introduces the Organians who impose an armistice between the Klingons and the Federation, promising that one day they would come to see each other as allies.

"Metamorphosis" - introduces Zefram Cochrane, the inventor of the warp drive which is the foundation upon which TOS era spacefaring rests upon.

"The City on the Edge of Forever" - for sheer feels this episode cannot be matched. We meet Edith Keeler, a woman who strikes a chord with Kirk beyond friendship, and see the potential cost of accidentally changing history.

"Mirror, Mirror" - here, we see an alternate universe in which a different set of conditions took hold, especially on Earth. In this universe, humanity's darker traits are admired and upheld, leading to the Federation morphing into an aggressively expansionist empire that brooks no opposition. Noteworthy for the way it explores the differences and similarities between mirror and canon Kirk as well as mirror and canon Spock.

"Amok Time" - this episode gives us an in-depth look at Spock, some of his life story, and the planet Vulcan and its customs.

"Journey to Babel" - introduces Spock's parents :P

"Patterns of Force" - rather topical in today's world, it is an interesting exploration of how any fascist movement inevitably drives towards extremism and only heroic efforts can usually stop one once it has taken hold.

"The Trouble with Tribbles" - tribbles. 'nuff said. :P

"The Paradise Syndrome" - introduces the Preservers, which serve as a canonically convenient way to explain the wide variety of similar biospheres on many planets as well as the tendency for human or human derived cultures to show up in places known to not be warp-capable. It can also tie into TNG's "The Chase".

"Day of the Dove" - introduces the last in the trio of Kor ("Errand"), Koloth ("Tribbles") and Kang, and gives more perspective on TOS-era Klingon perceptions of the Federation.

"Let That Be Your Last Battlefield" - somewhat anvilicious as an allegory for the arbitrariness and futility of racism.

Honorable mentions include "The Savage Curtain", which introduces (Kirk's idea of) Kahless the Unforgettable, as well as "Tomorrow Is Yesterday" and "Assignment: Earth" as a loosely connected pair of 1960s Earth centered episodes in which unintentional interference by the Enterprise could cause severe temporal issues.

[star-trek-fandom-confessions]

#381

"I really want a new Star Trek show that's completely unrelated to anything. I liked that LWD seemed unconnected even as it made mention to other things naturally, but as they go, they keep pulling in other shows and characters. The confessions about DISCO (294 and 283) are so valid because Discovery would have been so better completely disconnected from Spock and even Pike. Yes, I like SNW, but I want something new like how the shows from the 89s - 00s were all new groups. Maybe something between ENT and DISCO where Archer's history and Kirk, Pike, and Michael aren't on the radar yet. There's nearly 100 years between the two to cover. Or even between Picard and the 32nd Century, which has even more time to cover. Not everything needs to tie so tightly to everything else."

[sporkandpringles]

✨Hello! T'Mina, here! ✨ I'm a queer, third-generation trekkie who loves Vulcans and Romulans. Welcome to my Star Trek Blog! About Me: she/they | 29 | AuDHD | Demigirl* | Bisexual* *subject to change. The gender and sexuality crisis has been ongoing since 2014. Star Trek Favorites: Favorite Episode: DIS 1x06 "Lethe" Favorite Series To Watch: Voyager Favorite Series to Write About: A tie between AOS and DISCO Favorite Captain: Kathryn Janeway Favorite Main Character: Michael Burnham Star Trek Ships: Kirk/Spock (Spirk, K/S) Sarek/Amanda Grayson Solkar/Zefram Cochrane Bochra/Geordi La Forge Michael Burnham/T'Pring Benjamin Sisko/Solok Kirk/Spock/Uhura, Kirk/Spock/Uhura/Gaila (my AOS OT4) Nyota Uhura/Gaila, Beckett Mariner/T'Lyn Christine Chapel/T'Pring Tuvok/T'Pel/Janeway Kira Nerys/Kimara Cretak (...and many, many more) More About Me: Multishipper | Sarek Apologist | Jack Crusher Hater - Canon-Divergence/Fix-It Enthusiast - I Didn't Say it Was Good I Said I Liked It - I enjoy nitpicking things I like. It's fun for me. Block the #gripes tag if you don't want to see that. Links:

Original Posts | Blog Lore | Art Blog | Ao3

End Notes: Feel free to DM me or send me asks! I love talking about Star Trek.

[systemadministratorclu]

Fandom asks meme

1, 11, 14!

1: list 3 positive things about your current fandom(s)

First, I'm in more obscure fandoms, so there's not much drama. People are more open to different things because they're just happy to see more stuff for the fandom

Second, most everyone I meet is someone that has been in the fandom for a while. People who really do connect with it and care about it (as opposed to people that just stop by while it's popular for a bit, but leave once the hype dies down)

Third, the fan content that exists for my fandoms is amazing. From detailed AUs to just further explaining something from canon to that joke thing someone claims they 'just HAD' to do, it's incredible and I love it.

11: if you're a writer or artist, what fic or piece of art are you proud of making?

Definitely all my stories in The ScholMander Files. There's really only two people that actually care about this series, but I've had so much fun talking with those two people about ideas for my own fics and theirs, and I've really enjoyed writing these. I've probably written more fics for this pairing than any other single author, and I've got more coming. Which leads to....

14: the ship that always makes you smile

There's a few for this, and a lot of it has to do with RPs here. It's a tie for me between:

☆ ScholMander (Milo Thatch/Commander Rourke from Atlantis: the Lost Empire) - This is probably the unicorn of the fandom in terms of how rare it is. But having written so much for it and even RPed it, this is now canon to me. These two are just so sweet to each other I'm surprised I don't have cavities yet. And it all started because I saw some photoedit fanart that had an image of Rourke with an arm around Milo and I couldn't stop thinking about that image. Now, they are canon to me.

☆ Clu x Tron/Rinzler (from.....uh.....Tron) - This is largely due to RP threads I've done on here. I honestly hadn't thought of this until I started RPing it with people here,but now I love it. Especially Clu and Tron as sort-of-parents for Beck. Ugh, the sweetness!

☆ Halman (Hal 9000/Dave Bowman from 2001: A Space Odyssey and its sequel movie/books) - This is probably the one canon ship I'm into, and yes it is very obviously canon, especially in the sequel movie 2010: The Year We Make Contact when they have the following exchange:

Hal 9000: What is going to happen? Dave Bowman: Something wonderful. Hal 9000: I'm afraid. Dave Bowman: Don't be. We'll be together. Hal 9000: Where will we be? Dave Bowman: Where I am now.

I mean, it's even more obvious than Spirk (which I also love) and that's saying something. Just the way these two care for each other is just so wholesome and sweet. It's the one ship I don't see much smut stuff for, and honestly, it doesn't need smut, it works so well. They are just so good to each other. Dave does not want to kill Hal, he does it because he has no choice and (my interpretation) he figured out at that point that something was wrong, that Hal was 'sick' and Dave didn't want to see this person he cares so much about suffering anymore. But when Hal is brought back in the sequel, Dave takes extra time during his short visit to check on Hal and make sure he's okay and ultimately saves him from a second death, after which they literally spend eternity together.

Honorable Mentions - Spirk (Spock/Kirk from Star Trek), Jack O'Neil/Sam Carter (Stargate SG1), Claire Finn/Isaac (The Orville), Ineffable Husbands (Aziraphale/Crowley from Good Omens, please don't comment about Season 2 as I haven't gotten to watch it yet), Yugi Mutou/Seto Kaiba (Yu-Gi-Oh), Yugi Mutou x Yami/Atem (Yu-Gi-Oh, Yami and Atem are the same person to me, just at different points in time.)

[defendglobe]

i'm Thinking Again and i really think SNW needs to Do Something Different with spock's character arc instead of just trying to retread old ground.

we already know spock has a hard time dealing with his mixed-race identity and how he tries to be As Logically Vulcan As Possible even though other vulcans see him as inherently less logical because of his human heritage. and being ashamed of himself for his own humanity and emotional responses and such. we've already seen him slowly work through that in TOS and the movies and that he eventually does come to a place where he's comfortable with who he is and comfortable acting emotionally as well as logically.

the tension between emotion and logic is a key part of what makes spock as a character so compelling so i get that part of it is always gonna be there. but the way SNW does it is so reductive and surface level that it's just boring. first of all, its so stupid to tie a deeply complex personal issue like that to a love triangle. it feels like its just "do i need to be more like a human (for christine) or more like a vulcan (for t'pring)" and the whole thing is approached in a really bioessentialist way. treating the vulcan logic thing as an irrefutable result of their biology rather than a learned cultural practice. there's also no real tension to it?? because we already know that it takes YEARS for spock to resolve his inner conflict (and that he doesn't end up with either of the people in the love triangle lol). so it just feels like build up that never goes anywhere.

it's interesting to me that this seems to be a uniquely SNW problem, because AOS and Discovery both did something different with spock's character within the context of his long term identity issues.

AOS takes place in an alternate timeline, so it's literally Not The Same Spock and there's aspects of his character that are completely different. the flashback scenes in star trek 2009 definitely seem to follow the same arc as TOS spock, but there's Way More than that going on. i mean, in AOS, vulcan gets destroyed and spock ends up watching his mother fucking die. that's an extra layer of trauma right there and it's arguably a bigger part of his character than his identity issues. and another big difference is that AOS spock is dating uhura and was initially super hostile towards kirk, so that kinda shakes up the dynamics between him and the rest of the crew a little. old TOS spock also encourages AOS spock to consider looking beyond logic and going by what he feels, so AOS spock seems a bit more at ease with that part of himself.

when AOS did go into the logic/emotion/identity plotline, it was usually done through the idea of duty and divided loyalties. the big one that comes to mind is in star trek beyond. logically, it seems best for him to drop out of starfleet and help work to rebuild vulcan culture instead, but emotionally he wants to stay where he is. there's also the intro scene in into darkness where he's insisting that the others leave him to die (based on his sense of duty to starfleet regulations) while internally being terrified of y'know. dying in a fuckin volcano. and how that whole mindset kinda flips when kirk dies and spock has a complete breakdown, despite knowing that what kirk did was logically the best choice for the sake of the ship. basically being caught between his professional/cultural duty and his friendship for the enterprise crew.

discovery is a bit different, because now we're getting the same spock as TOS, but younger. what's interesting to me about this iteration of trek is that the conflict between logic and emotion is playing out around spock through his family. when we first see disco spock, he's completely incoherent and delusional after mind melding with the red angel and getting his brain fried by the experience of nonlinear time. you know, shit that happens in star trek. as his condition gets worse and worse, amanda and sarek have opposing ideas about how to help him, with amanda having the more emotion-based approach and sarek having the logical approach. in the end, neither of them are right and it's michael, who is also kinda caught between human and vulcan cultures, who is able to help spock.

aside from his complicated family situation, discovery shows spock wrestling with his identity from a totally different angle. he's furious with himself because he can't make sense of the red angel situation logically or emotionally. basically, he feels like he's failed BOTH parts of his heritage, which is different from TOS, where he was mostly just trying to be the ideal vulcan and looking disdainfully at his humanity. michael points this out when the two of them are fighting and spock yells back "RIGHT NOW I FEEL THAT FAILURE IS LIBERATING!" which is a really fucking interesting statement that i never see people bringing up. in a way, it's like spock feels that failure has given him permission to reject human/vulcan cultural expectations and live more in the in-between spaces, even if it takes him a long time to fully embrace that.

the other big thing from discovery is that it adds new things that enhance spock's arc from TOS. for instance, spock's dyslexia adds a whole other layer to his ongoing identity issues. not only is he an outcast for being half human, but he's also got a learning disability in a society that values academic achievement so highly. there's also michael's final bit of advice and how TOS shows that spock really took it to heart. so like, disco shows spock moving towards who he will eventually become in TOS, even if he's not quite there yet. i guess you could argue that SNW spock's relationships with christine and t'pring are doing something similar in terms of adding to TOS canon? but imo in that case its more like, underscoring things that were already present in TOS instead of really trying something new. and none of it really moves spock towards where he is in TOS. so spock in SNW feels almost like a regression rather than building off what happened to him in discovery and moving forward.

ANYWAY ive gone on for way too fuckin long so what im trying to say is there are clearly ways to work within spock's ongoing character arc without just doing the same thing as TOS. and since SNW isn't trying new things, its portrayal of spock really falls flat.

[moorishflower]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

I got tagged by @dsudis! :D Thank you darling! And anyone who sees this and feels the desire to join, please do <3

Blank questions for your convenience! My answers are below the readmore.

1. how many works do you have on ao3?

2. what’s your total ao3 word count?

3. what fandoms do you write for?

4. what are your top five fics by kudos?

5. do you respond to comments?

6. what’s the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

7. what’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

8. do you get hate on fics?

9. do you write smut? if so, what kind?

10. do you write crossovers? what’s the craziest one you’ve written?

11. have you ever had a fic stolen?

12. have you ever had a fic translated?

13. have you ever co-written a fic before?

14. what’s your all-time favorite ship?

15. what’s a WIP you want to finish, but doubt you ever will?

16. what are your writing strengths?

17. what are your writing weaknesses?

18. thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

19. first fandom you wrote for?

20. favorite fic you’ve ever written?

1. how many works do you have on ao3? Currently 218! 2. what’s your total ao3 word count? 1,977,729 3. what fandoms do you write for? Currently, I mainly write for The Sandman, though I periodically have been branching out and writing for whatever catches my fancy (Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, Baldur's Gate 3, and now The Magnus Archives) 4. what are your top five fics by kudos? That would be aulon raid, Ecdysis, That I Should Wedded-Be, Curse of the Green Hag, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow. 5. do you respond to comments? I try to on occasion! I usually only get a few in before I start running out of spoons, though. I want each response to be meaningful, but I start running out of different ways to thank people, and so I just...run out of steam. 6. what’s the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? We're going all the way back to my SPN days here. The Last Song is a Dean/Cas fic set in the universe of S5E4 "The End," and is about the moment that Castiel fell and lost his wings. 7. what’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? Almost any other fic I've written. Maybe Hallmark-Adjacent? 8. do you get hate on fics? Almost none, thankfully! I've been very lucky. 9. do you write smut? if so, what kind? Ahahah...yeah. Pretty much any kind. There are kinks I haven't written, like watersports, sounding, more extreme BDSM, but that's not because I'm against them, specifically. If I have an idea, I'll generally write it! 10. do you write crossovers? what’s the craziest one you’ve written? I very rarely write crossovers. I think I might've only written three, actually? The most out-there one was probably the BBC Sherlock/Homestuck crossover. 11. have you ever had a fic stolen? Not that I'm aware of. 12. have you ever had a fic translated? Yes, several times! They're lovely, I love seeing translated works. <3 13. have you ever co-written a fic before? I have, though only the once. 14. what’s your all-time favorite ship? Am I super basic if I say that it's a tie between Mulder/Scully and Spock/Kirk? It's hard for me to top the classics. 15. what’s a WIP you want to finish, but doubt you ever will? I would really love to finish The Whole of Love Contained, but at this point my writing has changed enough that I would have to rewrite the entire thing, I think. 16. what are your writing strengths? Gosh I don't know I'm bad at this one. Um. Descriptions? 17. what are your writing weaknesses? Pacing, and action scenes, definitely. 18. thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic? What, like, running it through a translator or...? I've done that before, though I usually try to find a beta who speaks the language to go over it. I tend to do it sparingly, though. 19. first fandom you wrote for? Gosh, it might've been Harry Potter. The first fandom that I wrote SERIOUSLY for was Supernatural. 20. favorite fic you’ve ever written? It is, to this day, and might always be, Maybe sprout wings.

[indeedcaptain]

Regulatory Relations, chapter 3: the secret keeper

Wahoo! Now that Bones knows, the fun stuff can begin.

Also posted on AO3 here.

☆☆☆

Halfway through his shift, Kirk messaged Bones on his padd. 

>JTK: Drinks tonight? 

>TheRealMcCoy: Sure

>TheRealMcCoy: Any special occasion? 

>JTK: Drinking?

That was not entirely true. But if he started to explain himself now, he would have to type a novel’s worth of context and attach all his planning notes, and Bones would still come up from Medbay to yell at him and probably Spock too. It would just be easier to tell him in the comfort of his office where maybe, if he was lucky, Bones would laugh at the prospect of Kirk committing to anything but the Enterprise and then toast to a long union. 

☆☆☆

Bones yelled, “Are you out of goddamn mind?” 

“Thanks for the support,” Kirk said. He swirled his bourbon around in his glass, steadfastly refusing to meet Bones’s eyes. The doctor sat across his office from him, feet no longer kicked up on his desk but planted firmly on the ground, apparently so that he could shout at Kirk from a steadier foundation.

“Tell me you’re joking.” 

“It’s not a joke,” Kirk said. He took a pull from his drink. “I just really, really did not want him to leave.” His throat burned. 

“You’re so committed to keeping him on the Enterprise that you’re going to legally tie yourself to him? The green machine?”

“Watch yourself, Bones,” Kirk muttered softly, but Bones steered away from straying any deeper into xenophobic territory for once and said, “I can’t believe you, Jimmy. You’ve had a lot of stupid ideas in the past, but this one really takes the cake.” 

“What’s the problem?” 

“What’s the problem? Jim, first of all, you are the most emotional person I know and he is a Vulcan. Second, you are the touchiest person I know and he is a Vulcan. Third, what about the future? Say you marry him to keep him on the ship and then, ten years from now, you meet some nice gal on a starbase and want to marry her instead and you have to choose between divorcing Spock and seeing him reassigned immediately or asking her to accept that you can’t legally marry her!” 

“Your first two points are irrelevant because this is a strategic marriage. Emphasis on strategic. We’re not doing this so he can fulfill my human needs. Also, he already agreed to physical contact.” 

Bones squawked, “He what?” but Kirk continued, “And I’ve met plenty of nice gals on starbases and guess what? None of them want to marry someone who comes home once every five years to get new clothes and then leaves, and I’ve never wanted to marry them either.” 

“But you want to marry Spock?” 

“If it means he stays, then yeah, I do.” 

Bones sighed and leaned back in his chair again to prop his feet on his desk. He lifted the glass to his lips and swallowed before saying, “Would you have done it for anyone else?” 

“I would do it for you.” 

“Yeah, yeah. Someone who isn’t your oldest friend. Would you have done it for Uhura? Or Sulu?”

Kirk chewed the inside of his lip as his cheeks reddened. “They’re not getting transferred out.” 

“In a hypothetical world, then.” 

“Maybe not,” he said defensively. “But they would do great on their own ships, and it’s something they want someday. Spock doesn’t want a command and he didn’t want to leave the Enterprise. I couldn’t let April just yank him from the only place he considers home just because what’s-his-face retired.” 

Bones considered him over the desk before digging beneath it. He pulled up the bourbon bottle and Kirk held his glass out for him to refill it before he added another finger to his own and stashed the bottle away again. For a few minutes they sat in silence, Bones studying Kirk, Kirk studying the patterns in the replicated wood paneling of Bones’s desk. 

“What do I know about getting married?” Bones said. “Clearly it didn’t work out for me.”

“Aw, that wasn’t your fault,” Kirk said, even though it partially was. 

“Shut it, kid. Marriage is complicated. It changes things, even though you think it won’t. It’ll change things for you and Spock too.”

“Come on, now,” Kirk said, and spread his arms in what he hoped was the picture of innocence. 

“You come on. So Spock’s going to let you touch him now. You’re going to move into his quarters, or him into yours. You’ll spend more time together, if that’s even possible. And your brains are cut from the same ridiculous cloth. We could all tell, even when he still wanted to punt you off the bridge. What happens when you get too close and you want something from him that he can’t give you, Jimmy?”

“That’s not going to happen,” Kirk said. “It’s not like that for us.” 

Bones eyed him but took a sip. “Okay. Whatever you say.” 

Kirk nodded and took a drink. After another minute of silence he said, “I know that this isn’t… the ideal situation. But I also think there are worse reasons to get married. Maybe just wanting to be around someone for a long time is a good enough reason.” He raised his eyes to Bones’s. “And he seems to feel the same way.”

Bones lifted his glass and sighed. “May we all be so lucky.” 

☆☆☆

Kirk dropped facedown into his own bed an hour later, exhausted from the day and from the unfortunate but expected and fairly deserved verbal sparring match with Bones. It had gone better than he had imagined, though, and now at least there was one person he could talk about it with. He was ready to pass out for the night.

His padd dinged next to his face on the mattress. 

>NUhura: Congrats, captain :-) 

>JTK: Talked to Spock, did you? 

>NUhura: I did! 

>NUhura: Many happy returns

>JTK: Thanks. Glad he told you 

>NUhura: Me too

>NUhura: You better be a good husband to him 

>NUhura: He’s a catch

>JTK: Yes ma’am 

He set an alarm, killed the lights, and then sleep swept him away.

Kirk dreamed. It was dark, at first, before a pale and flickering light began to emanate from some distant horizon. Emaciated bodies crawled from the dark corners of the world, reaching for him, tearing through his skin with skeletal fingers. He was a child again, running through the barren wood, tears streaming down his face as he fled from the hideout. He could hear the other children, wanted to warn them, but his throat didn’t work anymore. Pale fire leapt from tree to tree overhead, and the flames sucked the oxygen from his lungs. His skin sloughed off him, his bones breaking under the weight of it, and he screamed and screamed and screamed and 

Kirk woke up. He was twisted in his sheets, damp with sweat and sticking to the fabric. He pulled himself free with his heart in his throat, his pulse still pounding in his ears. His skin was firmly attached to him, and he was unburned, and he could feel the comforting shape of his own body as he moved, but it was only when he ordered the lights to 10% and took in the sight of his room on the Enterprise that his heart started to slow. 

He was on his ship, and he was safe. But he built a barrier of pillows and slept between it and the wall, just in case. 

By the time Kirk woke up again to the sound of his alarm, he had forgotten the nightmare entirely.

[quailfence]

Tagged by @autisticwriterblog , thank you!

1. How many works do you have on AO3? 98!

2. What’s your total AO3 word count? 46,786 words

3. What fandoms do you write for? Currently Ace Attorney and Doctor Who. In the past I've written a fair amount of Star Trek, and I have a bunch of fandoms that I've written like 1-3 fics for

4. Top five fics by kudos "Are You Okay, Jack?" - Doctor Who the signs were all there even before i knew i loved you - Baby-Sitters Club A Debate on Courting Vulcans - Star Trek: The Original Series Phase Changes - The Owl House Flesh and Bone - Dungeon Meshi

5. Do you respond to comments? Yes!

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? Probably apology (love) letters, never sent - it ends with a character's canon death

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? Probably a new dawn, a new day, a new life

8. Do you get hate on fics? Thankfully not

9. Do you write smut? Not yet. I probably would if I got a good idea

10. Craziest crossover? World of Reflections, a crossover between Infinity Train and Doctor Who

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen? Not that I know of

12. Have you ever had a fic translated? No, but I'd love for it to happen

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before? No

14. All time favourite ship? I don't think I have one, so here's my favorite ships from some past and present fandoms of mine

Doctor Who - Doctor/Jack/Rose, Doctor/Master Ace Attorney - Miles/Phoenix, Apollo/Juniper/Athena Star Trek TOS - Kirk/Spock Star Trek DS9 - Keiko/Kira/Miles Dungeon Meshi - Falin/Marcille

15. What’s a wip you want to finish but doubt you ever will? Most of my She-Ra WIPs

16. What are your writing strengths? Internal monologues

17. What are your writing weaknesses? This is more a problem with like, getting myself motivated, and I'm not sure if it ever really shows in my finished fics, but I tend to get really impatient with writing and try to wrap up scenes etc sooner than than should, and if I can't I tend to get frustrated and stop writing for a while.

18. Thoughts on dialogue in another language? Sure, but only a little and only if it's a trait of a character in canon or it otherwise makes sense in context. If it's anything other than Spanish I'll probably end up using Google Translate and beg for forgiveness/corrections in the author's notes

19. First fandom you wrote in? Doctor Who

20. Favorite fic you’ve written? (eu)jean, a drabble for the move Gattaca - it's about a character from the movie being trans, and I wanted to use that to tie into and explore the movie's themes of identity and self-transformation in a way that was different from but complimentary with how the movie did it. Judging from the comments I got, I was quite sucessful, with one commenter even saying that that headcanon would be in the back of her head every time she watched the movie. (This answer is probably longer than the fic itself /lh)

Tagging @the-bar-sinister @paulgadzikowski @lightning-in-your-teeth @waywren @marlinspirkhall and anyone else who sees this and wants to do it

[the-plural-of-cris-is-crises]

Strange New Worlds Spoilers

So how far in the future were the Romulans from in this episode? Is it from Picard era? Is this another Romulan time travel thing blaming Starfleet for the Supernova like what created the Kelvin Timeline? (Nero specifically blamed Spock though)

Are they from the Temporal Cold Wars explored in Enterprise? Which was definitely farther in the future than Picard but not as far as Disco S3+. The thing she used to kill herself reminded me of the thing the Tal Shiar/Zhat Vash officers did in S1 of Picard except not quite so weapon-y. I know this isn't Zhat Vash I'm just saying it reminds me of Romulan tech from around the supernova and beyond that period of time which could lead back to Nero and the supernova (plus I mean they covered Khan in the Kelvin timeline although clearly differently than they do in this episode).

They mentioned Temporal Investigations which we know existed by DS9 era, although I got the impression they were much less getting-involved-y. Less "protect the timeline by actively preventing changes" and more "investigate time travel incidents of Starfleet officers to make sure they upheld the Temporal Prime Directive to the best of their ability" at least from how they were in Trials and Tribble-ations. Much less Crewman Daniels Time Agent-y where he goes around trying to preserve one specific timeline. Which means the Department of Temporal Investigations could later shift into the people fighting the Temporal Cold War stuff seen in Enterprise and this is an in-between state kind of?

Are the Romulans who the Future!Federation (what the Federation evolves into at least) at Daniels' time the main or one of the main enemies to Daniels' people during the Temporal Cold War? Does it have any connection to the Romulan drama going on in Picard era? We know from Disco that the Romulans and Vulcans reunify in the future after the Temporal Cold War(s). It seemed implausible that they were the main antagonists during that war to me. And the fact that Kirk was born in space like Kelvin!Kirk (but obviously not the same as AOS) and the Romulan thing kind of points to another Nero-like thing? Maybe?

How does this connect with like, Tallinn's people from Picard S2 that is implied to be the same time travel people as Gary Seven from TOS? Also I know Prodigy is canceled and probably won't have anything to do with this but I wouldn't mind seeing the Prodigy time travel mystery tie into this

Also, when did this take place in the past? Obviously early 21st century but like did they ever say a year?

Wasn't there an episode of TNG I think where there was some kind of time travel organization but it turned out the guy they encountered was lying about being a part of it and he stole the equipment from someone from the future but he was from the past? I don't remember that episode clearly enough to remember if the people he got it from could have been tied into this thing or not. I am way too tired to remember so many details about Star Trek's time travel stuff across all series.

[lenievi]

I’ve noticed that you sometimes mention TOS books you’ve read. I’ve recently been working through the more McCoy centric ones I’ve seen recommended and then slowly branching out based on authors I particularly like, such as Diane Duane. Of the ones you’ve read, any favorites or just ones that struck you as particularly interesting or in character?

me and Star Trek novels actually have a very complicated relationship. I just tend to cherry-pick a few things (from novels I know are McCoy-centric, I refuse to read any other, and I also mostly avoid those that have romance in it), and I don't really read them in full.

my absolute favourite is Ice Trap by L. A. Graf (which I actually did read completely and didn’t skip anything) - it's McCoy and Kirk centric with side vague-ish Chekov/Uhura (this novel did what nothing else could - it made me think Chekov was an interesting character) - other TOS characters don't really have a role, Spock included

I love the novelization of The Final Frontier by J. M. Dillard (but I also like the movie, but it added some background stuff for Sybok, but also added some Kirk stuff)

that said, I also enjoyed the TOS parts of the novelization of the Generations by the same author - I haven't read the TNG parts - it has a lot of nice moments between the triumvirate, you get a scene between Spock and McCoy after Kirk's death, and Kirk's time in the Nexus

Spock's World by Duane and Dreams of the Raven by Carmen Carter are good-ish, but there are things I don't like about them.

.... I guess... I'm not really a good source LOL

oh also Spock Must Die is fun but it was written in 1970 so it is a bit dated but also the closest to the show when it comes to the characterization because it was written by James Blish, the guy who novelized the entire show based on the scripts. It has Spock being split into two Spocks, and it’s the first tie-in novel iirc

[calliecat93]

Who are your favorite characters in Star Trek? Mine are a tie between Spock and McCoy.

As in just TOS? If so then McCoy is absolutely my favorite. My second favorite flips between Kirk and Spock depending on the day, and then everyone else (Uhura, Sulu, Scotty, and Chekov) pretty much all share third. Generally I’ve liked everyone with Rand probably being my least favorite, and that’s mainly because she was horribly wasted as a character. If they ever rebooted TOS again, I’d like to see then bring her back. If we talk about AOS though, McCoy’s still my fav but Spock is absolutely second with Kirk, if not right at the bottom, then he’s damn close.

If we add TNG, then my Top 3 are Data, Dr. Crusher, Troi. Again I generally like everyone. Only one I didn’t care for much was Wesley, and even then he got better and wasn’t bad. But I also need to finish the show so we’ll see how much this sticks. And I haven’t seen the other shows so can’t say anything there.

[ichayalovesyou]

I have some questions about Una in SNW - what do you expect her arc/role to be next season? I think Una can be a difficult character for the writers, because her role as first officer is difficult to flesh out. She can only be "in charge" when Pike isn't. While Pike is on the bridge, she can just give general advise, without having specific responsibilities. She is neither Science Officer like T'Pol and Spock, nor a diplomatic link like Chakotay and Kira. And a really big problem is that her personality is kinda really similar to Spock's. So getting a triumvirate dynamic is going to be very hard. How would you tackle that?

Una Analysis!

Based on what your assumptions/judgement seems to be, I feel the urgent and STRONG need to defend Una and how she’s been dealt with thus far before I get into what I think the plan is for her next season.

I don’t get the inference she’s been difficult for the writers to handle or flesh out, I just think they’re saving the juiciest stuff for next season (for reasons I will soon explain). We already know a significant amount about her.

Una’s Command Style

She’s only in charge when the captain is not because that’s how it always works with first officers. The captain is down on the planet getting into trouble, first officer is up on the ship unraveling other major plot threads (like in Lift Us Where Suffering Cannot Reach & Ghosts of Illyria and so on). She frequently takes a helm or weapons systems position. She’s a unique diplomatic tie because she is a closeted Illyrian, which will undoubtedly now bear its consequences. She challenges and serves as a foil Chris’s placating nature by being the more stern and ferocious between the two of them. Although she is deeply gentle with the people closest to her, La’an, Joseph and Chris in particular.

Una’s Unique Personality

She has a different relationship map from Spock or Chris. Spock’s closest relationships are Chapel and Pike, Chris’s are Spock & Una, Una’s are Chris & La’an. Spock has other friendships that get explored such as Hemmer & Uhura, while Una deepens her relationships with La’an & Joseph. Chris, because he is the Captain, is closest to his best friend (and possibly ex?) Una and his surrogate baby brother Spock. Those relationships cast her personality in different lights, lights very different from Spock’s tumultuous identity crisis. She’s tackling the increasing difficulty of hiding her true colors, acting as friend and mentor to La’an, and clearly still grappling with the romantic feelings she likely still has for Chris that were established in The Cage & Short Treks.

Pike is Pathos, Una is Ethos, Spock is Logos

I don’t think she’s much like Spock at all. Other than the fact she is suppressing a hidden nature as he often does. If anything she’s a little closer to who Spock will become more than who he is now in many ways. Whether that is because of her somehow still remains to be seen. She is a tactical thinker yes, but she is as emotional of a person as any non-Vulcan aboard. She takes a very hands on investigative role in Ghosts of Illyria & Lift Us Where Suffering Cannot Reach, it almost got her killed in Memento Mori as well. If Chris is compassion, and Spock is logic, that makes her action.

Every triumvirate has had a Ethos-Logos-Pathos dynamic within it. On Kirk’s Enterprise, he is the ethos to Bones’s pathos and Spock’s Logos. On Picard’s Enterprise, he is the Logos to Riker’s Ethos and Deanna’s Pathos. The SNW triumvirate is a lot more similar to Picard’s Enterprise. Una & Riker are similar as they are both the Ethos or Action in their triumvirate as well as first officer. Although the roles are swapped as Spock remains Logos, but Pike is absolutely Pathos. There is plenty of room for growth in that!

How the TOS Triumvirate Evolved

I feel like people forget how little screentime Bones gets in season one of TOS before they realized Kirk & Spock needed someone to balance the dynamic. DeForest Kelley wasn’t even in the title cards until season two! Kirk had a relationship with Bones and a relationship with Spock, but Spock & Bones didn’t get into the meat of their fascinating character dynamic until the second and third season.

I think it stands to reason that season one put particular emphasis on Chris and Spock’s relationship, and Chris & Una’s this season because those relationships were extremely important to gratify for the needs of the finale, in which Chris gives into his fate to spare Spock, and gets Una unjustly taken away from him. That and, since it is the first season, the writers probably wanted to focus on the characters that were brand new and of plot importance like La’an. As well as characters that were huge draws to the show because of Discovery which means, Spock & Pike.

Since Kirk is going to be featured at least once next season, I’m sure at least some focus is going to be pulled away from the Spock & Chris dynamic for that. If Una is still there (and I’d bet money she will be) that gives much more room for her to develop more complex relationships with Spock and Chris. We also don’t know if La’an or Una will still be gone when the other returns, without the La’an & Una dynamic that’ll give more interesting avenues for either of them to grow. On top of that, I’m hoping next season will feel less need to focus on the two characters we’ve already gotten introduced to (Pike & Spock) in favor of better exploring the rest of the cast, Una included! Who knows what the next Chief Engineer is gonna do to the character relationship map of this series too!

Predictions For Una’s Return

As much as it’s a little bug of anxiety in the back of my brain, and I don’t love the fact that penal colonies are still A Thing. I doubt the story would just throw Una in jail and be done with it, whether it’d take a whole episode of nonsense to lock her up or not. I don’t think it would befit the message Star Trek generally tends to promote which is “prejudice is bad”. Una being a Starfleet officer arrested and removed from duty pretty exclusively based her species would severely undercut the message of Star Trek as a whole, including the darker ones like DS9 & Discovery.

My biggest concern other than the very low likelihood they’d be like “Una’s in jail forever now” after all the amazing plot material brought up by Ghosts of Illyria & Pike’s “this isn’t over” comment is what comes after the trial. I really hope she’s reinstated as first officer and gets no punitive action taken for her standing up for herself and her people, like being unable to rejoin Starfleet. Even if it’s something like she decides she has a higher calling and leaves to advocate for Illyria joining the federation, that would feel kinda abrupt and ooc for her knowing how much she cares about Starfleet and her career. Considering how much promo material had herself, Chris, and Spock advertised as the main trio, I doubt this would be the decision either.

I also just wanna say I DO NOT think anyone snitched on Una, especially not La’an (Ghosts if Illyria was deliberately framed as a learning experience for her, she and Una have a bond, and one of her core tenets is “knowing when yo bend the rules”). What I think is gonna be the big reveal is Batel was sent to confirm suspicions after the events of Ghosts of Illyria, and used schmoozing Chris as a way of clandestinely downloading information that revealed Una’s true species. We’re gonna get a good ol’ fashioned court martial episode in the front half of SNW S2, right down to the betrayal/bitterness of a captain’s former lover like Court Martial & Measure of A Man.

[captainpikeswoman]

Times when Captain Pike was caught giving you heart-eyes would include:

•for a man/Captain who’s falling in love with someone under his command, Captain Pike is the least discreet person. At some point or another most people have caught him giving you his adorable ‘heart-eyes’ gaze. Even you’ve caught it- and it makes you a melted, gooey mess!

•it’s actually a sweet thing that the whole crew of the Enterprise get to enjoy- they’re a family, with Pike at the head, and it’s wonderful for such a kind man to find joy.

•Una (Number One) will absolutely never let Pike live it down- ever since the first time she caught the first heart eye look she’s been on his case. And the thing is, you weren’t even doing anything particularly special, you were working- but his heart eyes flashed as he watched you tie you hair up to focus on the task in hand.

•as I said, Una never lets him live that one down! The minute you’ve retreated from the bridge she whistles and jokes that he’s utterly smitten! The Captain blushes, but the fact is that he IS under your spell.

•and then one day you’re on the bridge delivering a report to the Captain, he’s just constantly staring at you like you’re his whole world…and it makes you feel a little jittery with excitement, and you struggle to stand still to deliver the news! And then when you leave Pike’s eyes trail after you, he’s smiling goofily at the door you’ve gone through. Una laughs again, but this time it’s Spock who comments that the Captain seems to be staring rather lasciviously at the wall. Pike blushes and hurries off the bridge- leaving Spock perplexed and everyone else chuckling.

•then there’s the time that you and the good Captain find yourselves in a combat situation- you’re fighting your way out of danger, and yet he’s still giving you heart eyes. You’re so vivid and alive, striking, repelling and ducking under the hits of the aliens that are trying to capture you! His attention being on you nearly lands him in trouble- but fortunately you’re watching out for him. You save his ass! And then he’s even more smitten with you! (Even the aliens can tell he likes you, it’s a shame it makes you a more valuable target- but you’re more than a match for them!)

•even before Kirk had had the chance to meet you properly he knew you were off limits- he’d caught Captain Pike grinning, at you and tracing his eyes over your body as you worked out. And when you took down the person you were training with he grinned like a maniac! Kirk knew from then that you weren’t on the menu for him- clearly you’re spoken for!

•you can’t even eat breakfast in peace. No matter where you’re sitting his eyes trail over to you, his own food goes cold…and he has lost a little bit of weight because he’s too busy admiring and loving you, and Nurse Chapel has picked up on this. In fact she ends up having to click in front of his eyes to get his attention back on his food and off you. She just laughs and suggests that maybe he needs to spend more time with you.

•but the fact is you are spending time together- going on dates, working side by side etc. and the feelings are very much reciprocated. How could you not love him, it’s just that he doesn’t catch the loving, longing, heart eyes you send his way- but they are there!

•and then there’s the times you’ve caught him staring lovingly at you- like when you’re having a quiet afternoon date together; you’re sprawled out on the comfy sofa in his quarters reading an old book, and he’s just leant against the wall staring at you, smiling, waiting for you to look up. And when you do look up you’re left breathless, the love that was radiating from his eyes…you’d never felt like it! It made happy tears spring into your eyes.

•by the time you and Chris get married the whole crew are used to the devastatingly beautiful glances that are shared between you- but every time still feels like the first for both of you. And as you walk down the aisle towards him there’s a mutual look of adoration, hope, desire, lust, love, such intense passion between you that you practically floated down the aisle on a high of love. Honestly there wasn’t a dry eye in the house!