#spock representing cold logic and kirk and mccoy as the passionate emotional ones

[anghraine]

I know it's well-understood at this point that Kirk/Spock is much more of a nerd4nerd ship than a nerd/jock thing, but it's just been kind of percolating around my mind that both of them aren't just space nerds but space nerds who were personally bullied.

Like, 18-year-old Kirk was targeted by an older bully who combines "total asshole" with "the most grating man in existence":

MCCOY: Well, yeah, I'm beginning to feel a little bit picked-on, if that's what you mean. KIRK: I know the feeling very well. I had it at the Academy. An upperclassman there. One practical joke after another, and always on me. My own personal devil. A guy by the name of Finnegan. MCCOY: And you being the very serious young— KIRK: Serious? I'll make a confession, Bones. I was absolutely grim, which delighted Finnegan no end.

This was five years after Kirk survived a genocide, btw, and likely well before his stint as an Academy instructor known to be strict and demanding (which is the period the "stack of books with legs" description of him comes from). By the time he's 33, fifteen years after all this, it turns out one of his deepest fantasies is just beating the shit out of his bully, but only if he can do it According To The Rules (the replica of Finnegan sneers, "Always fight fair, don't you? True officer and gentleman, you").

Spock, meanwhile, is viciously targeted by his Vulcan peers for being biracial from at least age 5; he's described as being tormented by other boys by that age, and "at home nowhere except Starfleet." I think he'd have been 18 or 19 when he left for Starfleet and it's... the least bad of his options, but he seems to have spent his entire career among humans and being persistently subjected to raw racism and profound disrespect for his culture at every turn.

Like, their histories of being metaphorically shoved into lockers are not identical or anything, but I think it's interesting that they both have them.

[speedygal]

Not a logical intervention - part 61

Kirk’s eyes slowly opened.  He felt a cold front pressed against his back. A pair of arms wrapped around his waist occupied by purring. Through the bond, Kirk felt Spock’s content. Joyful, delighted content. Every day since their reunion on the USS Shran. Kirk smiled, trailing his hand toward Spock’s icy cold fingers. Kirk noticed his black shorts were on the side of the bed. The marathon had become heated, as it always did, with all that passion. The events of last night crashed into his mind. Kirk shifted himself over facing Spock.

“Good morning, baby,” Kirk said, with a smile looking back at the aged brown eyes.

“Good morning, T’hy’la,” Spock said, grazing his fingers along the side of Kirk’s left cheek.

“I am not getting up until you get up,”  Kirk said.

“No, how about you?” Spock said.

“I love you more so you should,” Kirk said.

“Hm, perhaps.” Spock said.

“But?” Kirk asked.

“I love you more than you love me,” Spock said.

“Well, I still am not getting up first,” Kirk said.

“We are . . .” Spock said, then deliberately paused. “in a pickle.”

Kirk shed a tired smile toward his husband.

“I feel lazy,” Kirk said. “Let’s not move.”

“Preferable,” Spock said.

“Let me be the big spoon,” Kirk said.

Spock obeyed turning toward his side. Kirk’s hands remained on Spock’s side. Kirk’s left hand traveled toward Spock’s faced open palm then clenched onto it, squeezing it. Kirk earned a familiar gasp from the man. Taluhk nash-veh k’du. I cherish thee. Words came from Spock’s side of the bond bringing a wider smile on the admiral’s face. The bedroom was a acceptable temperature for both Kirk and Spock. The room was warm enough to make him sweat. The room had been programmed to increase temperature by a certain hour.  Spock’s eyes were closed.  Spock felt Kirk’s lips touch his neck. I love you, so much, so very much. You’re the most beautiful Vulcan  I ever met. You’re gorgeous. A large, wide smile grew on Spock’s face. The feelings of love traveling between the two was recepticated and old. 

Suddenly, their comn terminal to their personalized bedroom chimed.

Italian then decided to meow loudly.

“I will get that,” Kirk said. Kirk reluctantly slid out of Spock’s grip. Kirk put on his briefs and then his bright pink robe. He sat down onto the chair in front of the comn terminal then activated it. On the screen appeared Lyionel petting Maru in his arms in a way glowing, happily. “Lyionel! Morning there!”

“Good morning, dad,” Lyionel said, warmly.

“Can’t miss us that soon,” Kirk said. Spock got up using the pillow to hide is lower half going over to the machine to create the cats food.  “We left Earth yesterday.”

“I am pretty sure Maru misses his playing partner,” Lyionel said.

“I bet he does,” Kirk said.

“You must be mistaken,” Lyionel said. “Maru is a female.”

“Hm?” Kirk asked. “How do you know that?”

Lyionel held the cat up to display the unusual bulging belly.  Kirk slowly started to laugh leaning into the chair folding his arms. There was only one cat around who could get the cat pregnant. Kirk looked over toward Lyionel nombing down at the bowl of cat food in bemusement.

“I believe you define cats have litters,” Lyionel said, earning the admiral’s attention.

“Uh huh,” he looked concerned. “Anything the matter?

“I. . . I think I want to join Star  Fleet,” Lyionel said. Spock’s figure was hidden behind Kirk head as he knelt down and took out the duffle bag. Spock slowly looked over. 

“So soon?” Kirk asked.

“I want to help people,” Lyionel said. “Just like you helped me.”

“Have you decided what track you’re going?” Spock asked, placing his neatly rolled clothes onto the bed. Kirk’s clothes were folded into a square. Easily distinguishable from Spock’s outfits the way they had been handled. Spock zipped up the bag.

“When the academy accepts me, I may,” Lyionel said. “says the reply will come in seven months.”

“2235,” Spock said. “I am sure you shall.”

“Hopefully,” Kirk said. Spock came to the back  of Kirk and placed a cold hand onto his shoulder with his other hand linked behind his back holding onto his neatly folded roll. “In the mean time, you are going to learn reading English. A lot more if you plan on joining Star Fleet.”

“I expect nothing less,” Lyionel said.

Spock let go of the human’s shoulder then made his way toward the bathroom.

“Good,” Kirk said. “Besides. . “ he paused, then added. “you need friends who are your age.”

“I have plenty of friends in town,” Lyionel said.

“Lyionel,” Kirk said. “That is roughly just your therapist and her assistant.”

“Like I said, plenty,” Lyionel said.

“You’re going to make more friends in star fleet,” Kirk said. He paused. “Your name was changed from Kirk to Miller, didn’t it?”

“Yes,” Lyionel said. He shook his head. “I don’t understand your insistence that we fix the ‘grave; error. It’s not like anything alarming.”

“Lyionel, we don’t need more than three Captain Kirk’s out there,” Kirk said. “Most of the Kirk relatives are scientists.”

“Me?” Lyionel said, in disbelief.  “A captain? No way.”

“Captain’s matter more on the bridge and can do more,” Kirk said. “You’re going to make a great name out of yourself, Cadet Miller.”

Spock came out if the bathroom in a matching purple attire that was more or less reminiscent of the current fashion on Vulcan. It was a dress on his figure with frills along his neck. Spock came over then took out the pair of dark boots from under the bed. He slid them forth. He slid his feet into the boots. His hair was up in a scrunchy. Kirk looked over toward the ambassador appearing to be caught off guard. His eyes lingered on Spock.

“I am going to make you proud,” Lyionel said.

“Son,” Kirk said., as Spock exited the room with Lyionel on a leash “you make us proud no matter what you do.”

“Here you go,” the bag was placed onto the table. Spock’s eyes rested on the star fleet decomposable bag. “Why did you need  a pair of rocket boots made in the first place?”

“It is for a good reason,” Spock said, taking the package.

Michelle the Mak’tar raised a arched eyebrow.

“Does the captain know?” Michelle asked. 

“I informed the captain before requesting you to make this,” Spock said. “I would not have asked had it not been approved.”

Michelle nodded.

“Good point, Ambassador Selek,” Michelle said. “Do not abuse its systems.”

“Abusing a prototype is against logic,” Spock said. “I shall test run the systems in the holodeck and make the required adjustments should glitches show up.” he turned away then was lead out of the room by Italian.

Kirk had a tendency to have a freefall, on duty and off duty. The memory of their frequent camping with their dear doctor was a strong reminder of that. There were little files and documentation of what kind of attack had happened. The floor where the approval process happened on the home planet of the Catalians. Spock would be damned for not be prepared. He lost Kirk once, he was not going to lose him again by surprise. Spock came toward the holodeck doors. The doors closed behind Spock. Spock took his boots off then slid out the white boots with a dark gray sole to them. The familiar panels were around it in a retro kind of way. Spock was given a memory of when he completed construction. It served good use. Kirk once told him of a nightmare where he acted as a elevator holding onto him and McCoy while his brother had taken over the Enterprise. Good use, it had.

“Computer, turn on holodeck safety protocol,” Spock said. “prepare a simulation.”

It was on the third day of the trip to Catalia did Bole get approached by Spock and Kirk. Captain Bole arrived into the mess hall to see eyes were on her. She didn’t lower her gaze. She was the one officer in Star Fleet who had made questionable command decisions. She sensed their mixed feelings about her. Her pitch black pupils swept the room. She came to the machinery. She made her order. In a blue light the synthesizer synthenized her breakfast. She picked it up off the tray then made her way toward a table.  She was temporarily commanding the vessel to Catalia to shuttle off some representatives for a very important meeting. Hundreds of  VIPS.  It was a nightmare. Suddenly, a familiar face sat in front of her cupping his hands together onto the table with a much familiar face beside him.

“Captain Bole,” Spock said. “I recommend you do not come down for the proceedings.”

“Why?” Bole asked.

She sensed nothing from Spock. Controlling his emotions to the point that it didn’t stand out. She couldn’t hear his thoughts just like his husband who she can feel his emotions. Kirk was back inside his white admiral outfit. It was unsettling to fear only anger from Kirk and nothing from Spock. As though they had found something out about her. What it was, Bole had no clue.

“You have a intense dislike over the Catalians,”  Spock informed her. “and you can be framed for anything that slightly goes wrong.”

“I am not the kind of person who can be easily framed,” Lyionel said.  Kirk rubbed his wrist. Spock’s hands were laid on the table placed together.

“I said that myself and look where that got me,” Kirk said. His eyes were like a dagger to her. One look and she was stabbed in the chest by the glare. A piercing, sharp dagger. Spock placed his hand onto the human’s forearm. “You’re biased. You’re better off going back to your old command than staying in orbit.”

Bole raised a eyebrow.

“You really think I am going down there to that planet?”Lyionel said.

“We don’t think,” Kirk said. “we know.”

“You see, we just learned about it through Vice Admiral Robau,” Spock said. “Going down there is a big mistake.”

“You have to make a excuse.” Kirk said. “and leave a paper trail behind it for Star  Fleet to believe.”

“My orders say to escort representatives to Catalia and be part of the landing party,” Bole said. “I cannot go against orders.”

“As your superior, don’t follow through with the last part of the mission,” Kirk said. “That is a order.”

“It is your life or the way you end it,” Spock lied.

“I thought you hate me from what happened to your friend?” Bole asked, raising her thin eyebrow.

“There is one thing we agree on,” Kirk said. “if there is a way we can prevent things and know how it effects the future. Sometimes, we don’t want to change it but it comes into our hands either way. ”

Spock nodded in agreement.

“The future is yours to ruin for yourself after the meeting,” Spock said. “We do not give a damn about what happens afterwards.”

“Besides, compared to me. . .” Kirk said.  “I had to be part of something like this.”

“Did you ever forgive them?”  Bole asked.

Kirk didn’t answer at first.

“Eventually,” Kirk said, standing up from the table taking his plate.  “Now, we’re going to eat with the security detail for the representatives.” 

Spock picked up his plate with one hand while the other was linked with Kirk’s arm holding onto the leash. Italian was purring loudly guiding the two away.  Bole watched the two elderly men leave her behind. The boiling anger faded away from the admiral as he looked over toward Spock with a smile. Bole still could not read what Spock was feeling.

[tocautiouslygo]

#i feel like kirk and mccoy are generally seen as more temperamentally aligned despite kirk being emotionally closer to spock #spock representing cold logic and kirk and mccoy as the passionate emotional ones #but i feel like a) spock is wildly emotional just repressed. and coolly utilitarian in philosophy. and usually undemonstrative. #b) mccoy is highly intelligent and sometimes VERY much the voice of reason #(not typically cool rationality but certainly reason - he puts together clues that the others don't see on multiple occasions #he's not as easily derailed by obscuring details or over-cerebral analysis paralysis as the other two imo) #c) but mccoy sometimes struggles with the really big emotional shit and spock is more on kirk's emotional wavelength there #(this is especially obvious in conscience of the king and turnabout intruder but not only there - in both mccoy resists seeing #the full horror of the violations of the most basic rights that kirk has endured while spock is much more sensitive to those things) #and d) kirk is emotionally expressive but typically more cautious and measured in judgment than either of the others #more likely to formulate positions in terms of philosophical principles than mccoy's kneejerk sense of decency #(which sometimes is exactly what's needed and sometimes disastrously lacking in rigor and reflection) #or spock's often brutally utilitarian focus on outcomes that runs roughshod over... like. everyone. #that's why kirk is the mediator; he's not at the exact midpoint in every dispute #but broadly his personality and strengths/weaknesses fall pretty evenly between spock and mccoy #(interestingly i think this is especially noticeable with kirk's infamous seductions - which are rarely motivated by simple desire #they combine the focused perception and expressiveness of mccoy and the brutally self-denying calculations of spock #when sylvia exclaims that he seems warm and passionate but his mind is cold it's like... yeah. softly lit femme fatale james t kirk #it's like the unholy side of kirk's overall approach borrowing pretty equally from both mccoy and spock) #ANYWAY the point is that i don't think kirk is actually more similar to mccoy than he is to spock #and in particular his tendency to repress the horrors and focus on useful concrete action are very akin to spock

(tags via op)

I know it's well-understood at this point that Kirk/Spock is much more of a nerd4nerd ship than a nerd/jock thing, but it's just been kind of percolating around my mind that both of them aren't just space nerds but space nerds who were personally bullied.

Like, 18-year-old Kirk was targeted by an older bully who combines "total asshole" with "the most grating man in existence":

MCCOY: Well, yeah, I'm beginning to feel a little bit picked-on, if that's what you mean. KIRK: I know the feeling very well. I had it at the Academy. An upperclassman there. One practical joke after another, and always on me. My own personal devil. A guy by the name of Finnegan. MCCOY: And you being the very serious young— KIRK: Serious? I'll make a confession, Bones. I was absolutely grim, which delighted Finnegan no end.

This was five years after Kirk survived a genocide, btw, and likely well before his stint as an Academy instructor known to be strict and demanding (which is the period the "stack of books with legs" description of him comes from). By the time he's 33, fifteen years after all this, it turns out one of his deepest fantasies is just beating the shit out of his bully, but only if he can do it According To The Rules (the replica of Finnegan sneers, "Always fight fair, don't you? True officer and gentleman, you").

Spock, meanwhile, is viciously targeted by his Vulcan peers for being biracial from at least age 5; he's described as being tormented by other boys by that age, and "at home nowhere except Starfleet." I think he'd have been 18 or 19 when he left for Starfleet and it's... the least bad of his options, but he seems to have spent his entire career among humans and being persistently subjected to raw racism and profound disrespect for his culture at every turn.

Like, their histories of being metaphorically shoved into lockers are not identical or anything, but I think it's interesting that they both have them.