Spock wasn't counting the days, or hours, or seconds. His food consumption did not go down 12.3 percent. He didn't know that I'd been exactly 15 days, 3 hours, 24 minutes and approximately 24 seconds since his father took up the task of finding a suitable mate. No, that would be illogical.
And the way his heart beat just a millisecond faster then normal when given the news of a match was just a coincidence.
"Her name is T'pring." He announces soon after Spock arrives home from school.
Spock recognizes the name but does not speak right away, he first makes sure his thoughts were clear and voice even. "We are acquainted."
Sarek nods. "I was made aware."
"When will the ceremony commence?"
"Two days time."
Now both men nod, concluding the conversation and returning to their previous activities.
"Come on now, is that all you two have to say on the situation?" Amanda walks into the room casually, as if she wasn't just eavesdropping.
"Yes." Sarek answers. "There are no other details that needed to be addressed in this very moment."
Spock easily recognized the scornful face his mother was making, and what it meant. She used it very few times, only when she wished to speak to her mate...alone. This was Spock's que to leave. "I wish to be excused. There is an assignment that needs my immediate attention."
Sarek nods. "You are dismissed."
Spock walks quietly to his room, sits on the floor, and takes out his PADD, for there really was an assignment, Vulcans do not lie.
He had every intention of completing his work, but one glance at the first question and Spock knew his mind was not in peak concentration mode. Forcing his brain to calculate while in such a state would not be beneficial for anyone.
As quickly as he grabbed his PADD, Spock sets it aside. There were other things on his mind, more urgent, illogical things.
In approximately 48 hours his mind was to he joined with another. The dark void in Spock's mind soon to be filled with T'Prings presence.
T'Pring, he ponders. She was a year younger than himself. Spock would occasionally she her in the halls of school, or on his way home.
She was pretty - scientifically - her features pleasantly symmetrical and of a healthy, average build. T'Pring will do just fine.
~ 2 Days Later ~
T'Pring arrived punctually, dawning identical ceremonial robes with Spock. She crossed the threshold with an air of elegance and poise. Her parents closely followed.
Spock greets her with a polite nod, escorting her into the living area where T'Pau and his own parents were already seated.
"The intended have arrived. We shall begin." T'Pau stands, signally everyone else to do so as well. "Greetings to everyone present. We are gathered on these sands for the bonding of Spock and T'Pring." She turns towards Sarek. "Sarek, son of Skon, is your child of age for bonding?"
Sarek glances quickly at his son. "He is."
T'Pau moves on to face T'Prings father. "Sorek, son of Sutok, is your child of age for bonding?"
Sorek nods. "She is."
"Let it begin." T'Pau motions the children forward. "Spock, son of Sarek and Amanda, are you prepared for bonding?"
Spock's heart rate was gradually rising, even against all his control. His mind was attacking his body in desperation, it needed this bond as much as it needed water. "I am."
"T'Pring, daughter of Sorek and T'Luba, are you prepared for bonding?"
T'Pring doesn't look over
to Spock. "I am."
"We will processed to a mind-link." T'Pau reaches out, fingers splayed out effortlessly on the meld points of both the children, their eyes close instinctively. "Our minds, one and together...touching; yet not touching, apart but never apart..."
"Touching, yet not touching; apart but never apart..." Spock and T'Pring chant in unison and all of the sudden they weren't alone in their minds.
Spock's mind was immediately seized with a hot and red presence. For a moment they maintained their shields, taking time to acquaint themselves with the new sensation.
Even through his shields, he could sense when she was ready to initiate a full mind meld.
If Spock's mind was already flooded with T'Prings during a shielded surface meld, he pondered what a deep meld would feel like.
Gradually they pulled their defences back, as not to cause shock and trauma to the mind. The first true meld of a Vulcans life was very important, but very dangerous.
As touch telepaths, it was natural to feel others thoughts and - lack of -emotion. It had been long proven that while still in the womb, Vulcan fetuses can project and sense feelings from their mothers, even if they were psi-null like Amanda.
But that was just experiencing something through someone else's eyes. In a meld, you don't simply see through someone's eyes, you become the eyes, and a memory feels as if it was one of your own, and it is your own, because in a meld two separate minds become one.
This is why the first meld of a Vulcan child was to be supervised by an elder and silently coached through. The shock alone to the brain, of an entire being with their own thoughts, memories and desires being thrown together would be enough to cripple a Vulcan mentally for life.
It took time but eventually Spock and T'Pring fully melded. A wave of satisfaction came over him, but it did not originate from him. Here, no secrets could be kept. She was everywhere, well almost.
'Spock...?' The voice was clear in his mind.
'T'Pring, I believe we should establish a link now.' Spock replies. 'I am unsure how to proceed but I believe that it will come naturally.'
She hesitates, even in thought. 'You are still blocking my presence. You must fully give yourself before the link can be formed.'
Spock wasn't holding back, not intentionally and certainly with not anything he was aware about.
T'Pring projects the exact location of the emptiness. 'Here'
Why was his mind subconsciously shielding the one part that longed for contact. Spock tries to remove the wall that was blocking the establishment of a crucial link.
Any attempt he made was futile.
T'Pring reaches out to test the wall. Her mind touches it and Spock was overwhelmed with dread.
No. No. No. No. This is not right. This is not how it is supposed to be.
She ignores the frantic protests and pushes harder.
Spock gasps in pain. The harder she pushed the more excruciating the feeling. He felt as if someone had poured a failed chemistry experiment into his mind. The friction that T'Pring mind was causing the experiment to set on fire. Now flames were licking the inside his skull, singeing every nerve ending and neural pathway.
'I've almost got it.' T'Pring says. Every syllable of the words felt like a wildly slashing lipra.
'Please! No!' Spock begs, screaming both mentally and physically. His logic was not compromised in this moment, the pain was indeed so great that expressing it was the most logical action.
He could feel in now. The wall had a crack. It wouldn't be long before it crumbled.
No.
No.
She can not.
This is wrong.
Everything was wrong.
The crack started to split -along with his brain- and with one last frantic attempt, Spock collects all his remaining strength and yanks himself from the meld and directly to the floor.
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[A/N: I'd like to note that the official ceremony was taken from the The Vulcan Language by Mark R. Gardner & The Vulcan Language Institute which you can find here: http://www.vli-online.org/vlif.htm
And I couldn't find any official names of T'Prings parents so I just made some up. It you do know, then just let me know so I can change it.]
- PeaceAndLongLife