Title: The Exchange Student
Creator(s): chibifukurou, deesarrachi , larawander5, linstock, and misplacedmama
Universe: TOS & AOS
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: Amanda/Sarek
Wordcount: 10,000 + 4 Art Pieces

ship olympics: event 3: team kalifarr

Summary: In order to understand humans better, Sarek of Vulcan participates in an exchange student program. While staying with the Grayson family, he unexpectedly finds himself developing a close relationship with their daughter Amanda.

Disclaimer: Team Kallifar and its affiliated members do not own Star Trek or any related images, characters, or stories. We're taking part in the Ship Olympics for entertainment purposes and no copyright infringement is intended.

=

January 8th

=

Sarek looked out of the spaceship's window. Earth, the small blue planet where he'd be spending the next few months of his life, was only a few minutes away.

While he understood his father's instance that he come to Earth before he committed himself to working with Earth Ambassador T’Prell, he couldn't help the small amount of apprehension that made his body tense and restless.

He accepted this physical reaction as signs of logical emotional responses. Spending time on an alien planet was daunting for seasoned explorers. This was not only his first off-world mission, but a mission that he would have to accomplish with minimal Vulcan interference. He would be completely without support should human emotions overwhelm him. Of course, that was the point of this test, to prove that he was strong enough to handle such strains.

"Sarek, we are approaching Earth. I suggest you prepare yourself to disembark," T’Prell called from the front of the ship.

"Yes, Ambassador." He put away the reader he was supposed to be studying, and strapped himself in.

A few moments later, T’Prell strapped into the seat across from him. "I am sure that you are quite logically concerned about the effect humans may have upon your mind."

"I have no such concerns." He was still unused to her casual way of speaking of emotions. His father assured him that it was acceptable given the amount of time T’Prell spent among humans, but Sarek found her behavior aberrant. "I will learn from these humans without letting them affect me, as my father requested."

T’Prell gave him a faintly mothering look. "I am sure you will do your best. The Grayson family are close friends of mine from when I first began spending time on Earth. They will see that you get support, should you require it."

"Thank you for your diligence in caring for my needs."

"It is the least I could offer as you will one day take my place as our people's ambassador to Earth."

Sarek nodded. He did not want to discuss such an advantageous posting. Within his own mind he could admit that he desired the position of Ambassador, but to discuss such prideful thoughts would be distasteful.

The ship's impact with Earth's atmosphere caused it to jolt and shake. He found the violent motion unsettling, and suppressed such negative reactions by forcing himself into a mild meditative state. He only allowed himself to regain full awareness once the ship had stopped moving. A most unusual space port could be seen from the window.

It was large and open, made almost completely of glass that would have easily been worn away by Vulcan's desert winds. But it was the land surrounding it that was truly disconcerting. A thick layer of frozen precipitation blanketed the area. Underneath this covering were signs of greenery like that of the most bountiful oases on Vulcan. He turned to question T’Prell about this strange sight.

She answered without turning her own eyes away from the window, "Beneath the snow, trees and plants lie dormant, and hidden in their dens and lairs animals sleep. You will find it hard to believe the amount of life that comes forth once winter has passed.

"I look forward to the experience."

She nodded and gave him that unusual look again, part pride and part amusement. Sarek understood his father's insistence that he be exposed to humans while he was still in his adolescence, if this was the reaction adult Vulcans had to spending large amounts of time in their presence.

January 10th
=

Amanda had written "Sarek's Arrival" in the little calendar square that marked January tenth. The writing was so big and blocky that it barely fit, but she really couldn't care less. This was the day a Vulcan was coming to invade her home and ruin her life. Marking up her calendar was the least dramatic thing she felt like doing.

She flipped open her cell phone when it buzzed, frowning when she read the text message from her best friend, Emma. "Where r u grl? Party @ Travis place iz ON!"

Great, she thought, just great. She was missing the party of the year because her parents decided to take on some Vulcan exchange student. The boy, Saki or something like that, arrived on Earth a couple of days ago, but of course he wasn't ready to come over until Friday night. Now Amanda was going to have to spend the evening hanging out with adults and stuffy pointy-eared aliens. Boring. Boring. Boring. T’Prell wasn't so bad, but the ambassador had been working with humans forever. Any other Vulcan Amanda had met over the years had been super dull. Sorkan, or whatever his name was, was probably going to bore her to tears.

Backing away from where her calendar was pinned to the wall, she flung herself on her bed and groaned. "I hate my life!" Why did her father have to be a diplomat? Couldn't he have been something normal like Emma's dad, a lawyer? "Gah!"

She texted Emma back. "Cant. Stuck w/ Vulcans. Kill me now." Amanda didn't even want to think about the girls who would be sidling up to Travis at the party. She could see her chances with him slipping away every minute that she wasn't there.

"Sux 2 b u," was Emma's reply.

Amanda snorted. So much for her best friend's sympathy.

A knock came to her bedroom door. "Amanda?" her mom’s voice said. "Our guests have arrived."

Amanda rolled her eyes. "Coming." She would behave and make Daddy proud. Amanda had learned long ago that her freedoms were directly related to keeping her parents happy. She thought her friends who threw temper tantrums were only shooting themselves in the foot. She gave herself a cursory glance in the mirror, pasted on a polite smile, and threw open the door. Maybe, if she was lucky, her folks would let her catch the tail-end of the party.

When Amanda walked down the stairs, she saw the elderly ambassador standing in the entry with a tall, young Vulcan male. Amanda's first thought was that he was the hottest alien she had ever seen—and she had seen a lot, thanks to Daddy's work. She could imagine the text she'd be sending Emma later (with photographic proof): "ZOMG. V boy is freakin HAWT!" It wasn't until T’Prell spoke that Amanda realized that she had been staring.

"Miss Grayson," said the ambassador, "this is S'chn T'gai Sarek."

Amanda blushed, and almost held her hand out to shake before she remembered proper protocol. "Pleased to meet you, Sarek." She held her hand up in the ta'al. "Sarlah etek dvin-tor." We come to serve. T’Prell gave her an approving nod, making Amanda blush again.

Sarek lifted an eyebrow—which, Amanda thought, only made him cuter. He returned the hand salute and said, "Vu dvin dor etwel, Miss Grayson." Your service honors us. He had a penetrating gaze, and Amanda felt goose bumps prickling at the nape of her neck. Maybe missing the party wasn't so terrible after all.

"Welcome, Sarek," Daddy interjected. "I hope you find your stay with us to be agreeable."

Sarek bowed to Amanda's parents. "I am…grateful…that you have allowed me live in your home during my studies." While his accent was flawless, Amanda noticed that the phrasing seemed awkward for him. She remembered her mom telling her that Sarek had never been to Earth before.

Mom smiled. "Sarek, we're glad to have you." She turned to Amanda. "Why don't you show our guest his room while we finalize things with T’Prell?"

Amanda nodded. "Sure thing, Mom." She waved at the boy. "This way, Sarek." He picked up his two bags and followed her up the stairs.

"So, how was the trip here?" Amanda asked, feeling uncomfortable with his silence as they ascended the staircase.

"The duration of the trip was fourteen point three days by Earth reckoning," he replied evenly. "The ship experienced no technical difficulties. The crew was efficient, and there were no spatial anomalies to interfere with the journey."

A burst of laughter escaped Amanda before she could clamp her mouth shut. She forgot how literal Vulcans could be. "I take it that your trip was uneventful then?"

He turned to her with his brow slightly furrowed. "I believe that is what I said."

This time she was able to bite her chuckle. "You did," she said. "Very thoroughly."

He stared at her for a moment, as if processing her words. "Concision in conversation is preferable, then, to humans? I was told that your people have a predilection for discussions that serve no useful purpose."

Amanda shook her head. He was so clueless it was kind of adorable. "We like to talk or, at least, I do. Details aren't so important, but every conversation has a useful purpose. I'm just trying to get to know you."

"I fail to understand how my journey to Earth would help you 'get to know me.'"

Deciding that they were just going around in circles, Amanda waved her hand. "Forget about it." She opened the door next to her parent's master suite. "Here's your room. It used to be my older brother's, but he's off mapping some quadrant of space."

The room still had a whiff of fresh paint, despite having been gutted a month ago. Knowing the Vulcan preference for stark surroundings, Amanda's parents had changed Michael's walls from royal blue to white. The white bed frame, white comforter, white pillows and white dresser reminded Amanda of a hospital. She couldn't stand to live in something so lifeless, but whatever. If that's the way Sarek liked it, then that's the way he got it.

"The bathroom's straight down the hall." She pointed to show him. "And you're next to my parents' room. I'm on the other side." She gave him a smile. "Is there anything else you need?"

He shook his head. "No, I believe that is sufficient." He paused. "Thank you, Miss Grayson."

"Anytime," she replied. "I'm going to head back downstairs." To see if Daddy will let me off the hook, and give me the keys to the car. "Holler if you have any questions."

Amanda didn't wait for him to reply before walking away. Sarek didn't seem so bad—maybe a little green (she snickered at her unintended pun), but definitely not the same as some of the other snobby members of his species she'd met before. Maybe this wouldn't be as awful as she'd thought. It might be fun watching him adjust to life with humans—and the boy was certainly not hard on the eyes.

Speaking of which… Amanda turned around at the top of the staircase, pulling out her cell phone. She was startled to find Sarek still standing outside his door, his intense gaze on her. The goose bumps came back. She smiled and waved at him, trying to break the weird tension she felt as he stared at her. He nodded and then turned away. She still managed to snap a picture of his profile. This was so going on her calendar, after she sent it to Emma.

Later that night, when she was getting ready for bed, Emma sent a reply. "OMFG!1!! UR SOOO LUCKY!!!"

=

January 13th

=

She never did make it to the party, which was a shame. Her parents made her play nice for the rest of the night with the diplomats. Her father even left for work early the next morning to go to the embassy to meet up with the other Vulcans that came in on the transport.

There was one particular Vulcan who was throwing her for a loop, though.

Amanda didn't know what to make of Sarek. She'd watched him throughout the night and his reactions constantly surprised her. While he spoke perfect Standard, it was always with an odd structure that was far too concise for normal conversations. She'd heard Vulcans speak that way before, but it seemed so bizarre in someone her own age.

Another odd thing was how he constantly jumped at the smallest sound. Though he would probably call it something a little more dignified like, "Responding to the changing conditions of his environment." There were occasional sounds from outside that caused is eyebrows to scrunch up in a way that was, frankly, adorable. It made her wonder what Sarek would make of things when it warmed up and all of the insects, birds, and rodents were awake.

Still the weirdest thing was how he stared at her. He did quite frequently and without any prompting. It was like he never seen a teenage girl before. Whatever...she had bigger fish to fry.

Which is how she found herself quickly preparing for school and grabbing some junk food for breakfast.

"Now, Honey," her mom said, "Sarek has been ready for the past five minutes. You're going to make him late for his first day."

Sarek was sitting at the table quietly sipping a cup of tea and following the conversation with undisguised interest. It seemed like he was making mental notes of things to ask Amanda.

"We have plenty of time, Mom!" she responded. "It takes five minutes to get to school, probably be ten minutes at the office, and then we'll have another fifteen for me to show Sarek where his classes are. It'll be fine." She started scarfing down her breakfast.

Uh oh, it looked like her mom was going to start up again. "I'm just going to grab my coat, Mom, and then I'll be ready to go. Are you ready, Sarek?"

He raised one of his eyebrows in response. She rolled her eyes at him and her mom. She turned, throwing away her trash, and went to grab her coat. Sarek gracefully got up from the table and followed her.

Amanda threw on her jacket and turned, only to run smack dab into Sarek. Luckily no one fell, but they both reached out to stabilize themselves. It was then she realized that their hands were touching. There was a strange tingling in her hand, but that was probably from static electricity.

"Sorry, Sarek!" Amanda grinned apologetically. "We are leaving, Mom!"

Sarek seemed bewildered by something for a moment, but snapped out of it to finish getting ready while she was saying farewell to her mom. Now, not only was he wearing gloves, he also was wearing a pair earmuffs that completely covered his pointed ears.

He looked so friggin' cute, that it just made her smile. With a final wave to her mom, the two were off into the blistering cold. She set a brisk pace, and Sarek seemed more than willing to keep up. In fact, he matched her stride for stride as they went down her path in the snow to the road.

While maintaining the brisk pace, Sarek looked around with curiosity, and Amanda could just tell that, if they had more time, he would like to go over and see what exactly those squirrels in the trees were doing. Then again, maybe not, he was looking a tad green around the cheeks.

"Do you not require more nourishment, before your day? You ingested only 57% of the recommended amount of nutrients, and the food you consumed had an unusually high glucose content." Sarek's voice startled her. "Your mother even recommended that you to ingest more glucose in the form of called 'honey.'"

With their pace and the wind, it took Amanda a few seconds to decipher what he was saying. She laughed as soon as she understood. "She wasn't recommending honey for me. It's actually a very common term of endearment. It probably comes from the phrase 'As sweet as honey,' where people who are inordinately sweet are called 'Honey,'" she explained. "Anyway, I never eat much for breakfast. I'm not that hungry in the morning. Plus, I'll probably have a big lunch to make up for it later."

Sarek nodded as if he understood her logic, though he still wore a slightly baffled expression on his face which made her smile. They turned the corner, and in front of them loomed the school.

"The trip took three minutes forty-one seconds," Sarek informed her as if accusing her of lying for saying it would take five minutes. She rolled her eyes; it totally would have taken longer if it hadn't been so damn cold outside that they had to almost run.

She saw students filing to the entrances. The school would have no idea what would hit it. Sarek was the first Vulcan to ever attend a human school. If he was this precise with time and speech, she just knew that the teachers were going to have a field day, and that thought made her grin all the more.

=

Sarek's first day had been all Amanda thought it would be. She was only sorry that she had to hear about most of it second-hand. Sarek was doing all science subjects, except the compulsory physical education, and English, while Amanda was in humanities. English was the only class they shared. But she had heard…

About the janitor's startled expression when Sarek politely told him to, "Live long and prosper."

About the totally embarrassing incident in chemistry.

About Sarek finishing the day's work in mathematics in fifteen minutes…in his head.

About him catching the medicine ball—the thirty pound medicine ball—that Travis had maliciously thrown.

About Sarek throwing it calmly and effortlessly back to Travis, and flattening him against the wall.

About Sarek debating the morality of dissecting a frog in biology and prevailing.

Amanda hated animal cruelty, and treasured the tale of how Sarek informed the bemused Mr. Seow-Woo of Surek's teaching: "Vah mau vah tor-yehat ri stau. Kup-fun-tor ha'kiv na'ish du stau? Dom nam-tor vohris nem-tor ha'kiv" which he translated as, "Whenever as possible, do not kill. Can you return life to what you kill? Then be slow to take life." Mindful of the potential for a cultural incident, the teacher cancelled the lesson.

Not bad for a first day.

=

The image of Sarek playing Moses and leading a posse of frogs out of the Biology room wouldn't leave her brain, and before she noticed what she was doing she'd started doodling pictures of him in her notebook.

When she realized what she was doing, she slammed the notebook shut. She couldn't believe she was actually acting like one of those girls who doodled pictures of their crushes on their schoolwork. NOT that she had a crush on Sarek, even if he did save a bunch of frogs.

=

January 13th-19th

=

Amanda started collecting "Sarek-isms," scribbling them on bits of sticky-paper so she could keep track of them. They were just too funny to forget.

"Never say 'hop to it' to a Vulcan."

"Oh, Nos…'stick it where the sun don't shine'!! I nearly died laughing!"

"Never say 'Bite me' to a Vulcan…I mean NEVER."

"Avoid saying…'pull the other one'…to a Vulcan. Mr. Bryant was not impressed."

"'Like water off a duck’s back.' He actually got it!! His first human metaphor. Success!"

"Spent 2 hours (!!) Explaining how I 'deduced' that Tilly really likes Josh." The Sarekian verdict was "most illogical."

Amanda found Sarek's honest confusion endearing, but it led to conversations that were just impossible. She tried, but there were some things that didn't translate into Vulcan concepts…

"Today, in mathematics class, Mr. Smithy stated that the next chapter of study was basic. This was true. Samuel Corrigan responded saying, 'My fat aunt.' This provoked giggles, nudging and other disrespectful and inattentive behavior among the other students. I fail to understand why Samuel Corrigan's aunt is relevant. He referred to her seven times in the past week. She is not a member of the school faculty or board and, while she is entitled to her opinion, I do not know why it is continually invoked by Samuel in reference to his studies."

Amanda tried to conceal her grin. Sarek was so earnest when he was struggling to understand. She loved the way his eyebrows scrunched up in that almost-frown. "It's an expression, Sarek. By saying 'my fat aunt,' Sam was his expressing disbelief of the previous statement." She looked at Sarek's expression, and did laugh this time. "If I say, 'everything is just fine,' and you say, 'my fat aunt,' that means you do not believe everything is fine. See?"

"I do not have a fat aunt. My mother's sister is an average of five percent underweight for a woman of her age and height."

Amanda sighed. "Sarek, forget your real aunt. She just confuses the issue"

"I am not capable of forgetting my aunt. My memory is eidetic and my aunt—"

"All right Sarek, I get it. You'll always remember your aunty, but she isn't relevant to this conversation. This is a hypothetical aunt."

Sarek took a deep breath. "I fail to comprehend how a reference to a hypothetical, overweight female sibling of one's parents can convey disbelief in a statement."

At times like this, when Vulcan logic and human language clashed, Amanda accepted that some things couldn't be adequately explained. She sighed and said, "It just does Sarek. It just does. Accept it and move on."

"We are seated, Amanda. Where should we move to?"

Amanda sighed. Sometimes talking to Sarek was just too exhausting for words.

=

Over the next few days, Amanda was amazed by the number of times she had to stop herself giggling. She spent more time laughing in Sarek's quiet and thoughtful company than she did with other boys…even the ones she'd had crushes on before.

She had noticed from the beginning that Sarek was hot. Not classically "handsome", not really, for a start his nose was too beaky. (She really liked his ears, though.) Despite his alien features, Sarek was compelling. When he looked at her, his intense dark eyes caused a strange fluttery tension in her stomach.

By now she'd learned how "hot" he actually was. She could feel the heat of his body when she sat beside him, and it made her want to lean in and luxuriate in his warmth. His scent, freshness with a faint spiciness like cinnamon but different, only strengthened this impulse. It made her want to rub up against him like a cat with catnip.

January 30th - February 11th
=

Amanda was having the time of her life introducing Sarek to the nuances of high school and life on earth. They began to hang out together more and more often, and the more time they spent together the more she liked him.

She could tell that Sarek was enjoying himself as well. She could see it in the undeniable enthusiasm that showed in his eyes whenever he talked to her. But more telling was how he'd begun to seek her out to ask her an ever increasing number of questions.

Then again, he could be doing so because he was incredibly bored when not in her company. Human school wasn't challenging to a Vulcan. His eidetic memory allowed him to memorize facts and words instantly. He was always the first to finished math assignments, and the calculus teacher began assigning him extra advanced work just to keep him busy. Whenever Amanda passed by one of his classes, he had a look shear boredom that she never would have thought a Vulcan to be capable of.

She'd tried everything she could think of to alleviate his boredom. She'd taken him to various band and athletic events, introduced him to video games, and even gotten him to join the chess team. These attempts had gotten her a lot of new entries on her calendar, but hadn't accomplished much else.

Rather than paying attention to the band or sports team, Sarek preferred to watch the crowds' reaction. After a few tries he could master any video game they played, from Mass Effect (popular again due to the fact that it was now the year it was portrayed), to Guitar Hero 2180 (a game that remained popular for almost two centuries). The only good thing that came from the games was some interesting discussions about alien evolution and Sarek's ability to play the lyre.

Chess was the most successful, but even that hadn't been able to hold Sarek's interest for long. People had been so arrogant about besting Sarek when first joined the chess club, before he knew how to play. After getting the rules and sitting down for a weekend playing on his padd, he started to develop some awesome strategies. Two meetings later, when no one—not even the adviser—could beat him, he was asked to leave so that the other students could regain some confidence and become adaptive to different styles. Amanda had been so angry with the advisor that she'd wanted to scream.

She'd begun to teach Sarek other board and card games so that chess, and that horrible advisor, wouldn't be his only experience. She'd been forced to give up that plan too after she'd taken him to the local casino. With a hat on his head and his diplomatic visa, they were able to last a whole two hours before they drew too much attention to themselves. Sarek had started to beat the house so much that the owners had accused him of cheating. Of course, he did have the perfect poker face, could count all of the cards and usually knew with incredibly high certainty what the other players had. They'd been "asked" to leave by the casino security, and told if they ever came back again, the owners would not hesitate to contact the law enforcement.

After that, Sarek became more careful about drawing attention to himself in public. He held himself back, even when nobody would care if he won.

Then, after watching Sarek carefully angle his bowling balls to take out nine pins out of every set, Amanda got an idea. She took it upon herself to teach him how to play pool. They ended up hogging a pool table at a local bar all night long. Sarek even started to relax when he realized that nobody cared how well he played. They got home so late that Amanda's parents were more than a little annoyed.

After that they went back often, and Sarek even got to play against other pool buffs, all in good fun. Amanda had a blast. She loved deliberately ruining a shot that he had been planning for several moves, just so she could watch his eyebrows bunch up cutely. Almost as fun was when other people in the bar would gather around to watch Sarek sink the impossible shots that Amanda set up for him.

=

February 12th

=

Sarek was always doing impossible things. In their English class, they were studying the Shakespeare play, Merchant of Venice, and reading it to each other. Sarek put down his book, looked straight into Amanda's eyes and began quoting his lines right to her. With his deep voice and his eyes meeting hers, she could almost believe that he was the character.

"If you prick us, do we not bleed?
if you tickle us, do we not laugh? if you poison
us, do we not die? and if you wrong us, shall we not
revenge? If we are like you in the rest, we will
resemble you in that. If a Jew wrong a Christian,
what is his humility? Revenge. If a Christian
wrong a Jew, what should his sufferance be by
Christian example? Why, revenge. The villany you
teach me, I will execute, and it shall go hard but I
will better the instruction."

His monologue seemed to have a similar affect on everybody else in the class as well. Everything was quiet for a moment then someone began to clap, and soon the whole room erupted in applause. Sarek cheeks turned a slight green, but he kept his head up high. Amanda had never seen him looking so passionate before.

When class let out, Sarek was asked to stay behind by the English teacher.

She waited for him outside the classroom door. When he came out his eyebrows were scrunched together in that cute way Amanda loved. He said, "The teacher has requested that I participate in the Drama Club's newest production."

"What did you say?"

"I agreed, with the stipulations that I was allowed to ask my caretakers, and that you were allowed to join me at practice."

"Cool! You were so passionate in class! I can't wait to see how you do on stage." It would definitely be worth giving up her Wednesday afternoons to see Sarek in costume. Maybe she'd even be able to get a picture for her calendar.

=

February 14th

=

Sarek really did not understand the point of this strange holiday. Everywhere he looked there were cut-outs of diaper-clad babies and sparkly hearts. They didn't seem to serve any useful purpose save to allow the young human females to gossip. He decided his best course of action was to ignore the entire event.

He left Amanda speaking with a large number of girls of similar age, and went to his locker. He stared in confusion. The locker was adorned. Red, heart-shaped balloons floated from the lock and a red spotted cloth heart dangled from one hinge. There were eight stickers, one read, 'Vulcan Love God', while another proclaimed, 'Love the ears'. Irrationally embarrassed, he decided to ignore the embellishments and as he opened the door, a flood of white, pink, and red envelopes fell out onto the floor. He stared down at them, unsure of how he was supposed to react.

"It looks like you've become pretty popular, Sarek."

He was startled, not having heard Amanda come up behind him. "What do you mean by 'popular,' and what do these envelopes have to do with popularity?"

"Popular means that people think you are cool."

"I find that illogical. My body temperature is higher than that of a human. It is impossible for me to be 'cool.'"

Amanda rolled her eyes, a sure sign that he had misunderstood yet another human saying. "It's just an expression, Sarek. It means they think you're an interesting person to spend time with."

He poked at the envelopes with his toe. "I still do not understand what these envelopes have to do with spending time in my presence."

"They're Valentines."

He quirked an eyebrow at her.

"Valentines are notes you give to people you want to spend time with. They're like invitations. If the person likes you back then they will accept your invitation."

"Does that mean I should give you a valentine?" It still seemed like an illogical practice, but Sarek thought he understood it now. "I enjoy spending time in your presence."

Amanda's mouth opened and closed in what appeared to be an imitation of a fish, and blood rushed to her face.

"Did I say something incorrect?"

She waved her hands in a placating manner. "No, no it's fine. I just seemed to have explained things badly. Don't worry about it."

"Perhaps you could explain it more clearly?"

"Um, you know what, I better get to class. Maybe we can talk about this later." She left, walking towards the chemistry labs at a rate at least twice as fast as she her typical gait.

Sarek stared after her in confusion for a few moments before turning his attention back to the envelopes that were still scattered around his feet. Perhaps they would explain Amanda's strange behavior.

=

February 20th

=

Amanda came down the stairs in her pajamas and socks. She knew she'd left her favorite pen on the hall table. She'd caught Sarek playing with mom's cat and she just had to write about it in her calendar. She wanted to have some sort of proof, since Sarek was getting better at dodging her attempts to take his picture. At least she'd managed to get a picture of the cat.

She'd just picked her pen up and headed back to her room when she heard her parents talking in the kitchen. She could hear her mom chopping vegetables for soup. First there was the rhythmic chopping, and then the dragging sound as she used the side of the knife to scrape the vegetables into the pan. Amanda knew her father would be leaning his hips against the center island, and steeling bits of vegetable when Mom looked away. If she caught him she would tap his hand with the flat of the knife blade.

The words that made Amanda pause half turned to go up the stairs were, "I'm worried about Amanda."

"Oh?" replied her father. "Why?"

There was a clatter that indicated her mom had put the knife down. "It's the way she looks at Sarek. Don't look at me like that, you know what I mean. She looks like she did when she wanted that blue teddy when she was five. "

"I remember! Every time we went to the shops she'd make us stop at the toy shop, and she'd just stand there, looking through the window. She never asked for it, she just looked." Amanda could hear the smile in her dad's voice. She smiled too.

"That's the look. The 'I want' look."

Amanda pursed her lips. That was so untrue. Sure, she looked at Sarek, it wasn't like she could talk to him without looking. Her mom was blowing things out of proportion. She liked Sarek and hoped they were friends but Mom was way off base with the "I want look."

"She's a girl. He's a boy. They'll look. That doesn't mean anything will happen." At least Dad agreed with Amanda.

"She's not just 'a girl' anymore, James, she's a woman."

"Oh come on, Sarah!"

"It's true, she's in her senior year. Do you remember senior year?" There was a heavy silence, and Amanda guessed that her parents were both lost in their memories. "Next year she'll be gone," continued her mom. "Out in the world, studying what she chooses, eating what she chooses, sleeping with who she chooses."

"Sarah, you're getting—"

"No I'm not!" Mom snapped. There was a clack, like the knife slamming into the cutting board. "Your little girl grew up, James, and I recognize that look in her eyes."

Amanda was stunned. Next year, she'd be leaving. She'd known she was going, but until that moment she hadn't really understood what that meant.

She would leave, and when she returned things would be different. For the first few times she would be coming home, and then she would be visiting and where she belonged would be somewhere else. The idea was too big to take in. She could feel the changes to come, moving like tectonic plates in her mind, slowly and inevitable changing the shape of her world.

Amanda heard her father sigh. "I trust Sarek and Amanda. And he's Vulcan and that means he will treat Amanda honorably no matter what happens."

"I know. It's just so hard to tell what he's thinking or feeling. And don't give me that line about Vulcans not having feeling, I know better. They have feelings all right—big time." The sound of chopping had stopped, and Amanda thought that her mom was probably pointing the knife at her dad, using it to emphasize her point.

The steady sound of chopping began again.

Her dad said, "Then you also know he's probably already betrothed or bonded."

The chopping stopped, and so did Amanda's breath. She was shocked.

"I am not at all comfortable with that idea. Child marriages seem so barbaric," said her mom.

"That's because you are thinking of it as a human. They're not human, they're Vulcan. It's not a marriage with all those nasty overtones of child abuse, and it's not forced. Vulcan children are usually bonded at seven or eight. Not all of them, but most."

"Is Sarek?"

"I don't know Sarah. I didn't ask. It would be totally inappropriate of me to ask. You know how deeply private Vulcans are."

"Yes, I know."

"Just think," her dad continued, "they always have the comfort of knowing they have a partner. They don't date, and they don't have all the stresses and uncertainty."

"And fun and joy and excitement."

"How do you know?" Her dad's voice was soft and intense. "It might be wonderful. It's something no human can ever understand because it's alien. We can't bond like they do, and we shouldn't pretend to understand or pass judgment"

"You're right," said Amanda's mom. She sounded almost sad. "But don't you see, this just increases the chances of Mandy being hurt?"

"Can't win," said her dad and Amanda heard the slap as his hands landed on the counter. "One minute you're afraid they'll be 'inappropriate', the next you're afraid they won't even date."

"I just don't want Mandy hurt, or Sarek either."

"At last, something we agree on." Amanda heard the kiss her dad planted on his wife's cheek. She turned and fled up the stairs.

Amanda felt like her mind was filled with bees all buzzing and milling around in her brain; every now and then, one stung. She didn't end up writing about Sarek's meeting with the cat, instead she just kept writing and rewriting, "Is Sarek betrothed?" She finally had to stop when her pen punched a hole in the paper. Unfortunately, that didn't mean she stopped thinking about the question. Sarek might be betrothed, and where did that leave the two of them?

He had feelings? Yes, she'd sort of known that, but hadn't suspected that they were intense. She'd thought they were shadowy suggestions of emotions, just enough to give him a little understanding and life to his face sometimes.

What was that stuff about a bond? The way Dad spoke about it, with longing in his voice, was disconcerting… It might be wonderful. We can't bond like they do.

It was all so confusing. Amanda curled up on her bed and pulled the duvet over her head. She reached out and grabbed her blue teddy and held it tightly in her arms. She had loved the bear from the first minute she had seen him and now it seemed like he was the only constant in a changing world.

March 17th
=

Sarek found Saint Patrick's Day even more illogical than Valentine's Day. While both holidays were said to be based on the celebration of saints, neither holiday resembled a religious ceremony.

Even after attending eight different human churches, he hadn't seen any service that relied upon either the passing around of oddly-colored invitations or the drinking of oddly-colored beverages.

"What's wrong, Sarek?" Amanda came up behind him, and slung her arm around her neck.

He stiffened, but didn't push her away. She'd grown increasingly intoxicated since consuming the strange green beverage served by the boy who was hosting the party. He feared that she would fall to the ground and injure herself if he didn't support her. "Perhaps you should refrain from drinking any more of that drink." He pointed towards the rounded cup of frothing green drink she had clenched in her hand.

"Don't be silly, Sarek. It's just lime punch." She broke out into a gale of giggles. "Punch. PUNCH! That's a funny name for a drink, don't you think, Sarek?"

"I concur, but I have to disagree with your assertion that you are simply drinking punch. You are inebriated, and while my knowledge of human drinks is limited, I do not believe that punch has intoxicating qualities."

Instead of replying logically, she just leaned more heavily on his shoulder. Finally, after a few moments of silence, she said, with more weight than the statement required, "You're green."

He looked at her askance. "The pigment of my skin does have a green cast."

"Green is a good color."

"Yes." He agreed. "It is a sign of good health in Vulcans."

"No silly! It's a good color 'cause it's Saint Patty's day!"

"I do not see what the day has to do with the pigment of my skin."

She began giggling again before moving closer to him and whispering in his ear. "Green is good 'cause it's lucky."

Sarek was uncertain how to reply to that, but he felt justified in taking the cup of "punch" away from Amanda.

"Do you know what else is lucky?" she asked.

"I do not." He carefully began guiding her around the kissing and dancing couples, and towards the door. It was time for them to return to the Grayson house.

"Kissing somebody green."

"I am unsure what that has to do with the present situation."

"This!" She used him as a prop to get up onto her tiptoes and press a kiss to his lips.

He froze. This was not something he had been expecting. He was unsure of the proper way in which to react.

=

March 24th

=

Things with Sarek had been uncomfortable after the St. Patrick's Day party, and Amanda hated the weird tension between them. She remembered very little from that night—besides kissing Sarek. He had gotten them both home somehow, and managed to keep her parents from freaking out (after all, it hadn't been Amanda's fault that she was drunk), but since then, they'd both pretended that nothing happened.

But it did happen. She had planted her lips on his. And he hadn't kissed her back.

Amanda sat on her bed, squeezing her blue teddy and frowning. The drunken smooch had forced her to face facts. She had a raging crush on Sarek, and he was probably already betrothed to some girl who wasn't stupid and impulsive like Amanda. The thought made her stomach twist into knots. Oh yeah, she had it bad for a completely unattainable boy.

After an hour of brooding (and trying not to imagine Sarek kissing some Vulcan chick), Amanda decided that she'd live—just barely—if she couldn't have Sarek. If he couldn't be her boyfriend, then she at least wanted him to be her friend. After the last couple of months, he had become her favorite person to hang out with, and she'd be damned if she was going to let a silly infatuation get in the way of that.

"Well, what do you think, George?" she asked her bear. "Should I go tell Sarek I'm sorry and get it over with?" The little teddy stared back at her. "Yeah, I know. But if I don't come back, it's because I died of embarrassment."

She set the George down and stood up with a deep breath. "Here goes nothing," she said to no one.

=

A soft knock on the door interrupted Sarek's meditation. He assumed that it was Amanda since Mr. and Mrs. Grayson were attending a diplomatic function—one that, thankfully, did not involve the Vulcan embassy. He paused before opening the door, considering what Amanda might want. She had been avoiding him since the Saint Patrick's Day party, and he found that he missed their time together.

When he opened the door, Amanda spoke first. "Hey, Sarek," she said, "Do you have a minute?"

"I have several. How many do you need?" When Sarek had discovered a certain affinity for Amanda's laughter, he had begun looking for ways to elicit that pleasant response from her.

Amanda flashed him a smile that didn't reach her eyes. She looked past him, and asked, "Did I interrupt your evening meditation?"

"Yes," he answered reflexively. When she started to turn away, he realized she believed he found the intrusion disagreeable. "However, I can meditate later."

She nodded and bit her lip. Sarek was uncertain why that expression made her more comely, but then he had been uncertain about many things since meeting her. "Would you care to come in?" he asked, stepping back.

"Sure." She crossed the threshold, but didn't enter his room any further. "So, I'm just going to come right out and say it," she said with a sigh.

Sarek raised a brow. He almost replied that logically anything she said would be "coming out," but sensed that it was another human euphemism.

"About last weekend—the party, I mean." Her face took on a pink hue. "I'm sorry about kissing you. I know I was drunk, but still…it was a dumb thing to do. Can we just forget about it, and go back to being friends again?"

Sarek was unsure how to respond. He recalled the party, of course. After kissing him, Amanda had thrown her arms in the air and yelled to the other attendees, "I'm a lucky girl!" Sarek had assumed this behavior was a typical part of celebrating the holiday. Her words now seemed to imply that the kissing had been abnormal—which led him to consider her motivations at the time. Did she desire a more…intimate…relationship with him? He would have to ponder more on that.

"At no time have I not been your friend, Amanda," he said, not wanting her to think his silence meant that he was offended. "There is no need for an apology." She smiled once more, bright and exuberant this time, and Sarek felt something inexplicable grow warm inside of him. Fascinating.

"Thanks," she said. "I guess I should let you get back to your meditation." She started to exit when she paused and turned around. "Sarek, can I ask you a question? You don't have to answer if it's too personal."

"Of course." Sarek had been inundated with many "too personal" questions by others since coming to Earth, but Amanda had always been respectful.

She hesitated for a moment before speaking. "I heard that Vulcans were betrothed as children. Do you…" She bit her lip again. "I mean, are you betrothed or bonded?" She cringed. She was correct, the question was very personal, and he pondered how to answer. However, before he could respond, she cut him off. "Never mind. It's none of my business." She blushed and turned away.

"I am not bonded," he said as she walked down the hall. He did not know why he was compelled to make sure that she knew this, he would have to mediate over that later as well.

Amanda stopped and glanced back at him. They looked at each other for a protracted moment until she spoke. "Okay," was all she uttered before entering her room.

Sarek closed his door. There were so many things to consider, and he knew the night would be long.

=

March 28th

=

Sarek went over his mental checklist of "how to ask a girl out." He had been stunned but grateful to find such a guide on the internet. Things wouldn't have been so simple on Vulcan.

It had taken some serious consideration of the repercussions involved in asking a human "out" (as well as the logic of such an endeavor), but he had finally decided that it was a valid reaction to his physical and emotional attraction to Amanda. He had been unable to find a suitable bond-mate on Vulcan, so it was logical to consider Amanda as a potential mate, even if they were not of the same species.

He closed his eyes for a moment, to push the unexpectedly strong feeling of fear that twisted through his stomach back to a reasonable level, before reaching forward to knock on Amanda's door. He had to wait seventy-two seconds for a reply.

When Amanda came to her door she was dressed in a light-pair of summer shorts and a sleeveless pink shirt. He found himself staring at her bare legs.

"Did you want something, Sarek?" she asked drawing his attention back to her face.

He felt heat rise in his cheeks and the tips of his ears. He needed to remain calm, and follow the checklist. "Yes, I wished to know what flavor of ice cream you favor?"

She stared at him, her jaw slack. "You knocked on my door in the middle of the night to ask me what my favorite flavor of ice cream is?"

"Yes, that is what I asked. Was my question unclear in some way?"

She rubbed her hand over her hair, and rolled her eyes to look up towards the ceiling. "No, it wasn't unclear. It's just not the sort of question you get somebody out of bed to ask."

Perhaps he had misunderstood the list of questions one was supposed to ask before requesting a romantic appointment with a female. "I was told that this was the proper question to ask in this situation."

"And what situation is that?"

"I wish to ask you to go with me on a 'date.'"

All of Amanda's attention was suddenly on him. "You're asking me on a date?"

"I believe that is what I am doing. Am I perhaps confused about how one goes about doing so?"

The question seemed to amuse Amanda in some way. Her body became relaxed as she leaned against the doorframe. "I don't know, why don't you try again and we'll see."

"All right." That seemed like an illogical request since the question would not change because he asked it a second time. But he did as she asked. "I wish to know your favorite flavor of ice cream."

"Strawberry,” she replied, crooking her eyebrow.

"Would it be permissible for me to treat you to a scoop of strawberry ice cream tomorrow afternoon?"

Amanda blinked at him a few times. Then she started laughing, hard. Her mirth was so great that she had to hold onto the doorframe in order to stay upright.

Sarek was unsure if this was a good reaction. "Is everything all right?"

"Ye—s," she said breathlessly, before giggling again. "It's just—just—where did you hear that question, Sarek?" she finally managed to ask.

"I researched how to ask a woman out on a date using the internet, and this was one of the suggested manners in which to ask."

She shook her head for no apparent reason, still chuckling quietly to herself. "Okay, Sarek. I'll accept your request to treat me to ice cream—on two conditions."

Conditions? The Internet had not said anything about conditions. "What are these conditions?"

"First, we go to a movie after the ice cream. And second, you don't research dating tips on the internet ever again."

He considered for a few moments. "Very well, I accept these conditions."

"Great!" Amanda replied. "So we'll try dating tomorrow and see how it goes. But for now, I need to go to bed. And you probably should too."

"That is a logical recommendation. I will see you tomorrow." He backed away from her door, planning to head back to his room.

Only before he could make it more than a few steps, she grabbed him by the shoulders and pressed a kiss against his check. "I'll see you tomorrow."

=

March 29th

=

This wasn't how it was supposed to go. Sarek was supposed to take Amanda on a romantic evening of ice cream, movies and undying declarations of love. Well, okay, maybe not the declarations part—though she wouldn't mind a clinical, "I prefer your company above all other females," or something like it. Amanda hadn't been able to fall asleep after Sarek's visit the night before. She kept imagining how this date might go. None of her fantasies were anything like what actually happened, though.

Things turned south right at the beginning as they were on their way to the ice cream shop. At a stoplight, her car was rear-ended by a little old lady who had failed to brake soon enough. Fortunately, there was very little damage to the vehicles, and no one got hurt. Unfortunately, exchanging insurance information took some time, and they found themselves rushing to avoid being late for the movie.

Amanda had never heard of "The Bridges of Madison County," and Sarek admitted that he hadn't either, but was sure from the title that it would be an interesting and educational treatise on bridge engineering. That was not what the movie was about at all. Amanda found herself slipping lower and lower in her seat as the scenes of two middle-aged people getting it on relentlessly continued. She was mortified.

And after the movie, when they finally made it to the ice cream parlor? That didn't turn out so great either. Sarek had never had ice cream before, and discovered that sugar mixed with dairy did not entirely agree with his Vulcan physiology. Amanda could tell that his stomach was unsettled by his pale green pallor. She was just about to suggest that they can the whole thing and (hopefully) try again another night when a man walked in announcing that he was a health inspector and the ice-cream parlor was being shut down.

After that Amanda had turned a little green herself. Their ice cream had ended up in the trash, and on the way home, Sarek hadn't said a word. Amanda was pretty sure that the date had been one giant fail. She felt like her big chance with Sarek was slipping through her fingers. There was just no way that he'd want a repeat of tonight, and she didn't blame him.

"Amanda, a query," Sarek said when they returned home.

She turned to face him as they stood on the porch. "Yes?"

Sarek was looking less pale now. "Aside from the unexpected activities, I do not understand what makes this 'date' different than the time we've spent together previously. Please explain."

Amanda thought about it for a moment. What did make this different? Nothing really. She felt deflated. "Well, I guess people date to get to know each other better—and because they like being in each other's presence." After the racy film, Amanda did not want to mention that romance was a part of dating too. She shrugged. "I don't know. I mean, people who date just want to be together more than they want to be with other people."

"I see."

Amanda sighed. "Well, I guess we did all the traditional date things," she said. "Thanks for the…interesting…evening, Sarek." She reached door handle. Maybe if she went to bed, she'd wake up and discover that this was all just a bad dream.

"We did not participate in all of the traditional dating activities." Sarek looked at her with a lifted brow.

"We didn't?" Amanda blinked. "What did we miss?"

Sarek stepped close enough to her that she could feel his body heat radiating from him. "This," he said before leaning down and placing his warm lips over hers.

The kiss was soft and tentative at first, until Amanda took control, wrapping her arms around Sarek's neck. He pressed his lips more firmly against hers and pulled her against him. She could feel his affection for her, his attraction, his desire emanating through the contact, and it was blissfully overwhelming.

When they finally came up for air, she leaned against him for support—her legs had gotten wobbly. She couldn't help the big, stupid grin on her face. She'd never been kissed like that before. "What was that?"

"I believe it is called a kiss."

"No, silly, I could feel you." She wasn't explaining this well, but she was too punch-drunk from kissing to care.

Sarek quirked his brow at her. "I was not aware that humans could sense touch telepathy."

Telepathy, well that certainly explained a few things about Sarek's behavior.

"I would like to repeat that activity in the future," Sarek said, "If you would be amenable."

Amanda looked up at him and thought about him 'seeing' what she was thinking. But honestly, she couldn't care less, not if it meant he'd kiss her again. "Oh, I'm amenable—very amenable." For the rest of my life.

Best end to a first date. EVER!

=

March 31st: Epilogue

=

Amanda's parents stood in the kitchen, coffee mugs steaming, organizing the day. Sarah Grayson was flipping through her diary on the kitchen island, and James Grayson gazed out of the window.

In the yard, Amanda stood in front of Sarek and straightened his jacket, giving it a sharp pull at the front and then brushing invisible flecks of the shoulders. As James Grayson watched, Sarek raised his arm and softly ran the back of his hand over Amanda's cheek. The smile that bloomed on her face outshone the daffodils that glowed in the spring garden.

"Why are you shaking you head?" Sarah asked.

"Those two," he replied gesturing with his coffee mug.

Sarah looked up, her expression serious. "It still worries me, James. He's so serious and she's…well, she's not." She stopped reading and looked at her husband. "Anyone can see what's happening; they're already almost completely in love." She sighed. "They could get badly hurt. If they choose each other, it won't ever be easy. Soon he'll be back on another planet. They have different cultures, different life spans, and don't tell me his people are going to welcome her. Did I say 'not easy'? Try impossible."

James sighed. "When did the mere fact that something is impossible ever stop our Mandy? Besides, it might just be just a crush. He'll go back home, and Mandy will mope a bit, then find some new interest." He paused, and seemed to look inward before he said, "Then again sometimes first love lasts." He turned his head to smile at this wife. She smiled back and sighed.

James turned to watch the two young people walk down the street. Sarek was calm and composed while Amanda was almost bouncing beside him in her enthusiasm.

Sarah continued, "There is so much she doesn't know about him and about Vulcans. Does she even know they are telepaths?"

At that moment Sarek reached out and took Amanda's hand interlacing their fingers.

James almost dropped his coffee mug. "Oh, I think she knows," he said. "And I'll tell you one thing I know, the next Vulcan ambassador to Earth is going to understand humans in a way none of the others have."

=

They walked all the way to school with Sarek's long fingers twined with Amanda's delicate ones. She felt the heat of his hand and the warmth of his quiet pleasure. His feelings seemed to flow up her arm filling her whole body. Sarek had explained during one of their talks that, if he relaxed his psychic shields a bit so she could "feel" him, he became very vulnerable to her sudden emotional swings, so she must be calm.

They were soon lost in their own world of touch and warmth and feeling. The thought…"This is just holding hands"… flitted through Amanda's mind and she felt Sarek balk. She quickly focused on 'calm'.

They were so intent on their internal experience they weren't aware of the stares they drew. Students stopped and gaped at them. Then a school bus passed, and Amanda saw the reactions of the kids onboard. She felt a surge of excitement, pride and overflowing happiness. Sarek turned to her, his face ablaze, but his eyes censuring.

She let go of his hand and mouthed, "Sorry."

He dropped his head towards her until their foreheads touched softly, and she knew she was forgiven.

Neither of them noticed Travis Jones walk straight into a tree.