Chapter Text
David caught up with Spock on the way to lunch. While Jim had a call with Starfleet Command, Spock had picked his son up from school for an impromptu lunch.
“Why isn’t daddy here?” He asked, skipping next to him.
“He has an important call to make.”
Spock led him over to one of the replicators.
“What would you like?”
David hummed in contemplation.
“I’m soooo hungry.” He complained.
“You may tell me what you want.”
“Can I have spaghetti and cake for dessert?”
Spock briefly considered it, before deciding that cake was acceptable.
“As you are not going to bed after lunch, you may.”
He put in the order, and it wasn’t long until they found a table.
“David, it is likely that your father will not be in the best of moods tonight.” Spock said, carefully considering how to put his words.
“Why not?”
The little boy’s face was already covered in tomato sauce.
“He is having a quite stressful day.”
“Why?”
“Someone at the space station we are orbiting is making his job very difficult at the moment.”
David pulled a face. “We gotta be extra nice to daddy when he comes home.”
“Precisely.”
Spock had been right - when Jim returned, he was in a sour mood. After a cup of coffee and a small snack, he was still rubbing his temples.
“I gotta go see Bones, I’ve had a killer headache since I beamed down.” He explained, popping the last bite of a chocolate chip cookie in his mouth. “This tastes like cardboard.” He mumbled, already on his way out. Spock and David stayed behind, looking at each other helplessly.
After an encounter with the klingon captain Koloth, Jim felt like he needed a bath and an extended shore leave.
And then there were the tribbles. Uhura and Chekov and brought some back from the space station, and had successfully convinced Jim to let them stay.
The captain had agreed on the condition that they may only be brought to the rec rooms.
Now, there were several crew members gathered around a table in the rec room where David was supposed to do his homework.
Curious to see what that gathering was all about, they both went over to look.
On the table, there were at least ten tribbles, all different shapes and colours, all purring.
“Running a nursery, Lieutenant?” Jim asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Oh captain!” Uhura seemed embarrassed. “Well, I hadn’t intended to, sir, but the tribble seemed to have other plans.”
David was by her side in an instant, picking one up and carefully touching it. It purred in his hands and he whipped around, beaming at his father.
“Daddy, can I please keep one?” He pleaded, stroking the tiny tribble in his hands.
Spock was also holding one, watching it wiggle in his hand.
“Most curious creature, captain. The trilling seems to have a tranquilising effect on the human nervous system.”
He stroked it, enraptured.
“Fortunately, of course, I am immune to its effect.”
Jim almost snorted.
“Whatever you say, honey.”
“Daddy, pleaseeee!” David tugged on the sleeve of his green uniform shirt. “Look how small it is, I’m sure it won’t make any trouble.”
Jim exchanged an exasperated look with Uhura. She just grinned.
“Kinda bad for your authority to allow me one but say no to David.”
“Last time I checked, you weren’t my kid.” Jim knew he had already lost this fight.
“Fine. But just one. And you keep it in your room.”
David jumped up and flung himself into his father’s arms.
“Thank you thank you thank you! This is so much better than a Sehlat.”
“Alright alright. Uhura, are you keeping all of these then?”
She got up. “I’ll find people to take them. You boys get back to work. David? Wanna come with me?”
David looked at his father.
“Can I?”
“Sure.” Jim ruffled his hair.
“Be sure that he’s in the mess for lunch, we’ll meet there.”
“Unlikely, sir.” Spock interjected.
“Your presence has been requested on the space station.”
Jim groaned.
“What do they want?”
“They wish for more drastic security measures, considering the amount of Klingons.”
He sighed.
“Do they not understand that I can’t assign more security detail without starting a diplomatic incident?”
“Evidently not, sir.”
Spock lingered by his side on the way to the transporter room.
“Permission to accompany you, sir.”
“Please. I need someone to hold me back when that bureaucratic asshole inevitably provokes me into punching him.”
Spock looked at him like he was briefly doubting whether he was fit for command in his current mental state.
“Affirmative, sir.”
Jim stepped on the transporter.
“Energize, Mister Scott.”
The next morning, Jim was woken up by something fuzzy in his face.
With closed eyes, he picked up the ball of fur and set it on the mattress.
Spock stirred too and wrapped his arms around him tighter.
“David, I told you to keep it in your room.” He complained.
“Daddy…”
Jim lifted his head.
There were about twenty tribbles wiggling around the entire room.
“That is significantly more than we had yesterday.” Spock observed.
Jim huffed.
“What the… You didn’t get more, did you?”
“No, they did it on their own. I promise.” David whined.
“Don’t worry baby, I know you didn’t.” Jim heaved himself out of bed and activated the ship wide communication system.
“Kirk to medbay.”
“Dammit Jim, what are you doing up?” Leonard asked.
“Pot calling kettle. Look, Bones, what’s with the reproductive habits of these things?”
“Things?”
Jim sighed.
“The tribbles. Two days ago we had maybe five in total, and now I’ve got over twenty just in my bedroom.”
“Damn. I’ll examine one to find out how they’re reproducing so darn quick.”
“Thanks. Have you slept at all?” Jim asked, worried about his best friend.
“Yeah yeah. Took the afternoon off yesterday to get some shut-eye. You better not promote Christine behind my back and make her CMO.” Bones grumbled amiably.
“Wouldn’t dream of it. Look, we’re awake, what do you say to breakfast together? I feel like I haven’t seen you in ages.”
“Sorry, kid. The sooner I figure out how to stop this tribble thing, the better. Good luck with the klingons.”
They hung up and Jim waved David over to the desk.
“You okay buddy? You look a bit rattled.”
“I didn’t know there would be so many.” David mumbled.
“Aw baby. It’s intimidating, right?”
His son nodded and wedged himself against him.
“Can you make it stop?”
Jim kissed his forehead.
“Uncle Bones is gonna work out how to do that. How about breakfast and then school? I’ll probably have to negotiate with the Klingons today again.”
He rolled his eyes and David giggled.
“Why do you not like them, daddy?”
Jim smoothed his son’s curls.
“It’s complicated, bud. I’ll explain it to you when you’re older?”
David just raised an eyebrow.
“Yeah, alright, I know that sucks. I know its not completely logical, but I have had a few not so nice encounters with some Klingons, and this particular captain, his name is Koloth, he doesn’t like me very much. They don’t like the federation, and we don’t like them, so every time we run into each other, it gets tense. But he is right, they have just as much a right to take shore leave on the Starbase as we do and there’s nothing I can do about it.”
His son pouted.
“That’s not logical.”
From the bed, Spock made a noise that almost sounded like a snort.
Jim turned around to look at him.
“You hearing this? Unbelievable. Your son is turning Vulcan.”
David giggled.
“Am I gonna have pointy ears too?”
Spock crawled out of bed and pressed a kiss to his husband’s head.
“Unlikely, Sa-fu.”
Jim dropped David off at school and made a quick detour to medbay.
“You’re not looking too good, darlin’.” Leonard announced after taking one look at him.
Jim sank into the chair.
“Yeah, I’m not doing too hot, Bones.”
“What’s troublin’ you?”
“Can’t stop thinking about those things getting into the food supply.”
Leonard’s features softened.
“Oh sugar. You’re alright. With those replicators, we won’t run out of food.”
“Logically I know that.”
Bones leaned against his desk.
“Have you been skipping meals?”
Jim nodded, not meeting his eyes.
“Just in case. I don’t wanna take anything away from anyone.”
“Kid, you aren’t. There’s more than enough for everyone.”
Leonard watched him for a few moments.
“What I’m gonna do is I’m gonna add high calorie drinks to your meal card, and you’ll try and have at least one of them per day, two if you can’t have dinner or lunch. Drinks are better than food, eh?”
Jim looked up.
“You’d do that?”
“Of course.” He tapped away on a padd. “There. All done. Get one before you head to the bridge, alright? Have you talked to Spock?”
“I mean, I’m sure he noticed.” Jim sighed. “I think he’d like to bring it up, but doesn’t know how to?”
“Only way out is through, sugar. Talk to him, it’ll help both of you. And I’m here too if you want to talk about it.”
Jim got up and hugged him.
“What would I do without you?”
“Die in a ditch, probably.” His best friend grumbled.
“Now, get outta here. Look after yourself.”