madimpossibledreamer | Power of Teamwork

Main Points:
Star Trek (the 2009!movie verse) AU
Summary: This one was an AU where Kirk was half-human and could shapeshift. It's a fanfic sibling to the Cambion AU or maybe a prototype. Kirk still identifies as male no matter the change.
Word Count: 1718
Rating: Teen

         Kirk’s had a lot of experience waking up in strange places. Half the time he’s drunk, or had a little too much of a good time, or managed, somehow, to tick someone off again, in which case, he’s in Medbay or on some alien planet.
         Usually, though…
         Usually, he has a pretty good idea of where he is and how he got there. Right now, even his body doesn’t feel right.
         There’s a voice. The voice sounds familiar. He thinks it might be Bones. He has no idea if he’s hallucinating, or what the voice is saying, though, so he struggles against the touch he feels.
         “Easy now, easy.” He recognizes that Southern accent, and instantly relaxes a little, even as he feels just the slightest hint of resentment at being treated like a wild dog. “’M not gonna hurt ya. I’m a doctor.”
         “…not a farmer,” Jim mutters tiredly into what he suspects might be someone’s arms and realizes that his mouth might not be working right. For one thing, his words come out garbled. For another, his voice doesn’t sound right.
         It’s now that he suddenly starts shivering; abrupt, full body spasms that would almost feel more like seizures if he wasn’t now so aware of the ice pouring through his veins. He’s pretty sure he’s never been this cold in his life, not even on Delta Vega.
         “Hold on, kid,” the doctor mutters, gruff but calming—and, duh, what did Bones think he was gonna do? He’s been charitably described as a stubborn bastard; there’s no way he’s giving up his life without a fight and knowing him he’s gonna find some way to cheat death anyway.
         But then a voice speaks. Spock, probably, considering the words, “Doctor, do you believe that this woman will be able to tell us the whereabouts of the Captain?”
         “How the hell am I supposed to tell? I’m not a telepath, unlike you, you green-blooded—” Bones starts to rant and is cut off. Or, rather, he cuts himself off as Jim starts to panic. “Listen to me. Breathe.”
         But how—how can Jim breathe, knowing his friends don’t recognize him? That as close as he is to them, he could open his mouth and ask them for help, but no one—no one would even recognize him. They think he’s his own latest conquest, for goodness’ sake.
         “Hey, darlin’, I got you. I got you; it’s all right now.”
         He feels a weight settle around his shoulders, feels his shivers ease, just a little, and—
         And then Bones is rubbing his hands, warming him up the old-fashioned way.
         Well, he thinks, grin kept firmly in his mind, not the old old-fashioned way, and suppresses the urge to giggle inappropriately. It’s a sign of shock; he knows that. And then he sits up abruptly, completely the Captain, because one of his crew is in danger and that’s an easy way to get his attention. He ignores that Bones’ ‘woah now’ makes him feel even more like he’s some kind of farm animal and focuses on what’s really important. “They’re extremely xenophobic. Humans, they like. They probably treat you completely fine if you’re pure Homo sapiens. Anything, they said, any drop of blood—”
         Spock gets the warning, he knows his stubborn Vulcan officer does, and he knows that somehow the guy will still manage to ignore his own health in a manner he’s somehow convinced himself is logical but really isn’t. And he can’t give the order like this. Whatever ‘this’ is.
         Oh, right; he’s lucky he slept with that Andorian back at the Academy, because it gave him that much biological knowledge to be able to mimic it, to survive the walk-in freezer.
         Quick on the heels of that revelation is another—that, according to these lunatics, he was half-human, and they had merely ‘awoken suppressed genes’. They might be deluding themselves and have somehow caused this themselves. They might be right. Either way, they had simultaneously put him in grave danger and handed him the keys to his salvation.
         “We will deal with them. There is no need for you to further concern yourself.” And, wow, is Spock always this dismissive with civilians? No wonder he’s not on many diplomatic missions. Jim refuses to lie back down, despite Bones’ warning hand on his shoulder. “Concerned?” he hisses, happy that his vocal range is still deeper than average for a female, if only for intimidation’s sake. “I’m already concerned. They concerned me when they tried to kill me.” He clenches his hands. He’s not persuading them. He needs to calm down. What good is all his Starfleet training if it fails him now?
         “You narrowly escaped hypothermia, Miss. I an’t clearin’ you for runnin’ around, let alone runnin’ around playin’ soldier.” Bones is frowning his Serious Doctor face, and Jim realizes quickly that now’s the tiem he’s got to act.
         “They also concerned me,” he continues softly, dangerously, “…when they put a member of my crew in danger.” They might not actually believe him, but they’ll have to, and he can’t imagine solving all of this without them. For a few moments, he has the idea that he could play pretend, play the role they believe him to be, take advantage of the unique opportunity to see how they act when he’s not supervising.
         But that’s the sort of action Jim would take, not Captain Kirk. He trusts these two with his life, and they’ve dealt with weirder. If anyone can solve this, it’s all three of them.
         “Why don’t I introduce myself? Captain James Tiberius Kirk, currently assigned—along with you two—to the very lovely ship, the Enterprise.” He quickly holds up a hand before Spock decides to neck pinch him or Bones decides to hypo him. “I know it sounds crazy, but Spock here can verify my identity pretty quick.”
         If he’s not mistaken, Spock looks worried as well as skeptical. Bones just looks skeptical.
         “Logically, you can’t afford to ignore this. You lose very little if I’m lying, or in shock, or whatever, but if it’s actually me—” His hands are still shaking. He’s probably in shock, still, despite Bones’ efforts. “Please, Spock—” he begs, because if he’s insane, if he’s really—
         Well, he’d love to know.
         “If you think about it, it’s the kinda crazy thing that would happen to Jim,” Bones drawls, still skeptical, still sarcastic, and Jim feels like kissing his friend. He doesn’t, though.
         “For once, doctor, your logic is sound,” Spock agrees, eyebrow raised, and breathes in quietly. He’s probably trying to hide the human worry beneath training. He places his hand on Jim’s head and incants, “My mind to your mind…my thoughts to your thoughts…”
         And then, they breathe as one, think as one, are one.
         “Spock?” Bones-doctor asks, and he replies with both mouths.
         “A true if incomplete description, doctor,” he—they?—reply.
         Bones-doctor rubs his hands more. Warm-safe-friend. “Jim?” he asks, more gently than usual, and part—
         Part of him isn’t used to that tone being used toward him, but another—
         He buries part of himself in Bones’ arms, knows that he’s babbling, knows it’s shock. “God, Bones, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t—I’m the Captian, I can’t—but nothing feels right and the last time I was so alone was Tarsus and you looked at me, you looked right at me, but you didn’t see me—”
         “I’m right here, kid.” Gruff, compassionate. Every inch what he expects.
         “It’s not logical to—I’m sorry—” he continues, shaking, and feels Bones hold him carefully.
         Bones-doctor growls. “That’s the Vulcan talking, not you. There’s nothing wrong with needing to process.” He pauses and looks away. “Goddamn, Jim, I wish I could just let you work this out, but if you’re right, you and the hobgoblin and innocent tourists are all in danger.”
         “That’s kind of rude,” he says, and then looks shocked.
         Bones-doctor blinks, like he’s been slapped, then rueful. “Guess I deserved that,” he drawls. “But I’m gonna need the two of you individually, so you can stop that mind meld at any time.”
         It takes a moment for them to separate, and there’s more of a lingering…aftertaste?...in his mind. If he reaches out he could—probably—mimic the Vulcan’s mind—
         What’s he doing? He doesn’t have time for that.
         “Jim, you all right?” It’s pitched low, meant for his ears only, despite the fact that Spock was right there, too. He takes stock of the situation and realizes he’s only desperately cold, now.
         And then another thought from the Academy intrudes, only this time he seems to be missing that filter that stops him from just blurting it out. “I wonder if Andorian females have a high fat content.”
         When he glances up, he’s met with matching raised eyebrows from Bones and Spock.
         “To keep me warmer. Not that being a woman isn’t interesting and I’m totally going to experiment later, but I went for the Andorian—I think—to keep me alive, and the whole biological sex exchange is probably for the same reasons. I’d guess.” He pauses. “Bones, do I have a concussion?”
         Gentle hands take ahold of his face, and concerned brown eyes peer into his own. He’s not really a woman, but the doctor can’t help but treat him nicer, apparently.
         “Think so. You probably got knocked out before y’got stuffed in the cold box like an overstuffed goose.” He pulls out some medical equipment Jim’s having issues identifying by sight, and after a minute of holding it to Jim’s head, device humming, his head feels a little bit clearer.
         “Thanks, Bones,” he remarks, because, y’know, he doesn’t say it enough.
         “When you’re sure the Captain is able to move, we should do so.” Spock’s impatient, but then, he no doubt feels awkward, if that’s an emotion he even allows.
         “Spock.” McCoy actually sound a little pained, but then, he’s not quite used to talking to the scientific officer in a friendly way. “I’m sorry.”
         “While that implies you hurt my feelings, which is an impossibility, I appreciate the gesture.” Completely in character for both of them.
         Jim claps them both on the shoulder as he makes it to his feet. “I’m proud of you both. Let’s stop them.”