A Small Space in Time

The woman brushed black lace from her face, and Ruth stared up at him, looking sad. He sat down in the empty chair in front of her. Ruth held up a card in front of her face, and somehow it became her face, a black ragged hole in space, glinting with a thousand dead eyes-he jumped back in horror, ran from her, ran into the trees, he had to find something, something to save her. The trees were dark and dead, and tore at his shirt.

A hand came out of the trees, black and blood-spattered, looking like it was made out of the wood. Somehow it was Spock as well, he looked at him and Kirk knew, he knew Spock was about to die and he cried out, reaching for him. Spock was reaching, he had a card for him, and just as he handed it to him Jim saw that he was wearing his mother's wedding ring....he ran out of the woods for Ruth, holding the card tight.

When he got to the beach Ruth was gone, and the card had turned into a little red rock. It was glittering in his hand....suddenly his mind was clear, so clear and he thought he understood...he thought...

Kirk woke with a shudder and a quick stab of guilt- he was supposed to be on watch. Spock was sleeping uneasily, curled up close to him, head on his shoulder. He prodded at his memory, knowing he'd dreamed. He was left with some vague impression of Ruth and a thought that something...important had happened. He was never good at recalling that kind of thing.

On his shoulder, Spock pressed himself closer. Locked in intense dreams, Spock shook his head a little and clutched at him. Kirk felt a quick stab of sympathy. This wasn't the best spot for a peaceful sleep, and he had nightmares of his own on occasion...opening his arms a little, he accepted the desperate embrace.

"Spock." He said gently, quietly, giving him a slight shake. " Wake up." Spock moaned, and several things happened at once.

Kirk reached out and clamped his hand over Spock's mouth, hard. Spock woke up, gasping, right out of dream country. And pressed his erection into Jim's thigh.

Kirk hissed in a surprised breath, stiffening.

Spock jerked back from him like he'd been scalded, and did his damnedest to push his body up against the corner hard enough to actually squeeze through it and come out the other side.

Well, hell, Kirk thought.

His chest tightened a bit in sympathy. Embarrassing enough for anyone. For Spock...he sighed. Hell for Spock.

"It's all right, Mr. Spock," he murmured, going for lightness. Man of the galaxy and all that. "Happens to everyone."

"Captain," Spock said in a sick, strangled kind of voice. The look in his eyes was painful to see, the shredding of carefully constructed shields as shocking as seeing a Ming vase shatter.

There was a picture, he'd seen once. First looking at it, it seemed to be an old man. But after a moment, he saw that if he looked at it differently, it was a lighthouse. The picture didn't change at all, the person looking had to change, to see the lighthouse inside the man. Watching Spock, watching him fight his way back to equilibrium, Kirk felt some ominous stirrings in his subconscious, and saw the picture start to shift.

Quietly, in the dark, James T. Kirk had a revelation.

"I see." He said softly, and Spock flinched.

There was something he'd dreamed of, he was reminded of it now, something he'd...seen...

Spock was patching himself together, smoothing his face, insisting on the control even in the dark. Even in the dark. Jim felt oddly lightheaded for a moment.

"Spock." He said then."I can see you." Spock looked at him sharply, and he saw his eyes move. The crate did not grow any brighter. Jim couldn't see the hand in front of his face. But he saw Spock.

"That is....highly unlikely, Captain." Spock said flatly. Kirk stared at him for a moment, juggling perceptions. He knew it was dark, he could see it was, but he could see Spock as well, like a...like a layer behind the darkness, or just to the side of it....He had an odd notion he was using parts of his brain he wasn't generally familiar with.

"Nevertheless, Spock, there you are." Kirk murmured with narrowed eyes. Spock looked at him for a long moment, then slowly turned his head to the side.

"You moved your head." Kirk said quietly."To the right. My right."

Spock looked mystified.

"Mind meld?" he prodded. Spock looked down, thinking about that.

"Perhaps....there have been instances of intense stress on one member of a...pair...re-forming a previous mental stucture..." He raised his eyebrows. "Perhaps the prolonged physical contact." He shook his head minutely. "I am not certain."

There was a slight catch in his voice at the end, and Kirk noted it.

"Speaking of physical contact..." He trailed off, watching his first officer closely. He wanted to know if he was right. He thought...he knew...but he wanted to be sure.

For an instant, just an instant, Spock looked like a desperate man. Then it rolled away, wiped almost the moment it showed.

But he'd seen it.

In the distance, a voice called out, and moved on. Spock's head came up, listening, on point. They waited in silence for any other noise. Nothing.

"I believe they are moving off." Spock said quietly, distracted. Kirk nodded to himself.

"Good." He said. Then he reached over, and with casual innocence put his hand on Spock's leg.

Spock turned to stone. A carved imitation of himself. Very lifelike.

Hmmmm.

Deliberately, he moved his hand up. Spock shut his eyes, his head dipping a little.

"Captain-" Spock said weakly, and Kirk rested his hand on his first officer's crotch. Spock made an interesting choking sound, and got HARD under Kirk's offending hand. Kirk gave the area in question a friendly little squeeze.