TITLE: Valentine Baby
AUTHOR: SANDSOFVULCAN
SERIES: TOS
CHAR CODES: Sa/Am
RATING: G
SYNOPSIS: Sarek is babysitting
DISCLAIMER: Star Trek and its characters are the property of Paramount/Viacom. I make no money from this.
ARCHIVE: Ask first.


"Take her!" demanded Amanda queasily.

Sarek reeled as Amanda's shielding began to fail, but he managed to hold out his arms. Amanda thrust the bundle at him and ran back down the hallway towards their chambers. As he endeavored to aid her through their marital bond, he sensed that Amanda had found relief. Sarek debated whether to follow Amanda. The bundle squirmed in his arms and he realized that in the urgency of the moments the covers had become tangled. He gently tugged and twisted the wrapping until a very full head of dark hair and a small pink face were visible.

The baby stared at him. Sarek raised an eyebrow, preparing for the inevitable very human response, but the baby did not cry. Indeed she seemed fascinated by this new face before her.

"Na'shaular pi'veh," he intoned. The baby in his arms cooed unintelligibly.

"I see you are making your acquaintance," said Amanda coming down the hall, somewhat worse for the incident.  As she neared, Sarek reached with one hand and pushed a stray hair behind Amanda's ear. Amanda smiled impishly. "I didn't want to leave you alone too long."

"I do not understand."

"…with the baby," Amanda added.

"I cannot be alone if I am with the baby, Amanda. Why would you be concerned to leave me with the child?"

"Well...you don't exactly have any experience. She is human."

"On the contrary Amanda, I have a great deal of experience with humans."

"...with babies," Amanda said in the exasperated tone that meant she was tired of his teasing. Sarek relented and turned toward the common area of the house, with the baby still in his arms.

"I'll take her back now," said Amanda as she followed.

"You are obviously not well. I believe it would be best if I cared for her for the evening."

"It's your fault I'm 'not well' if you recall. I shall not be 'well' for almost another twelve months."

Sarek's ambassadorial experience had taught him when to change the subject quickly. "Explain the reason that your friends have entrusted us with their child this evening," he asked. He knew this tactic would work. Anytime he could express interest in a human tradition, custom, or idiom, he could get Amanda to expound upon it and she would forget whatever transgression he had just committed.

Amanda opened her mouth to begin an explanation and then cast him a wary eye. She sat gingerly in her chair.

Sarek raised an eyebrow, "Amanda?"

"Valentine's Day."

That was all she said as she picked up her latest tome from the side table and opened it to read. Sarek looked down at the bundle in his arms. The baby wriggled and cooed. He glanced from the divan to the old wooden rocking chair that Amanda had recently shipped from Earth. He decided to see if her explanation about why such an expense was necessary was correct. He sat and began gentle rocking motion timing carefully so that he rocked forward every 0.76 seconds. To his great interest the baby's eyes began to droop and as he studied this phenomenon, all the wriggling ceased.

"Fascinating," Sarek said as looked up to find Amanda staring at him in her certain way, looking over the top of her book at him. He sensed her amusement.

She ducked back behind her book, but instead of reading, she began to expound upon her earlier statement.

"Valentine's Day is a traditional day that lovers express affection for one another. On that day, gifts are given to those you care about; cards, chocolates in boxes shaped like hearts; the heart shape is a symbol of Valentines Day because traditionally the heart is symbolic of love. I offered to care for Kendall so that the Grahams could go on a date."

Sarek honestly had nothing to say. The entire idea confounded him. Love confounded him. And to "express" this love openly. A Vulcan would never… and yet.

"Would you not wish to celebrate this holiday as well?"

Amanda dropped the book in her lap and stared at him.

Sarek continued. "It seems logical that you should adhere to your customs as a human. I would not deny you this, Amanda. However, this particular Holiday would seem most difficult. As a Vulcan I would not express love. Nor do I see the logic in dedicating a particular day to do this. You have said frequently that you love me. You do not seem to have reserved this expression for this particular day. Indeed, I believe I would find the practice of this holiday most… uncomfortable.

"Indeed," sighed Amanda as she again placed the book in front of her face.

In her silence, Sarek reached his free hand for the padd on the table beside him, carefully maintaining his 0.76 second rhythm. Sarek read the answers to his queries and getting up quietly, baby Kendall in his arms, he headed for his office. Amanda, seemingly engrossed in her book, did not appear to notice his departure.

As he arrived at his office, he placed Kendall gently in the warmth of the rug beside the firepot. He began to search the office as quietly as possible for the things he would need.  He found a piece of parchment, a cutting implement, and some ink made from dark red med'dallu berries. Its color was perfectly suited to his task.

Sarek knelt near the baby and turning the parchment in his hand and he cut until it had the shape demonstrated on his padd. He dipped a nib in the ink. His hand hovered over the parchment as he realized he had no idea of what to express. He lowered his hand.

The flame from his firepot flickered, casting a gentle flickering glow on the beautiful child laying before it. Sarek reflected that in only eleven point six four two months this scene might be repeated with the exception that the child before him would be theirs.

Slowly, purposefully, he began to write. It was logical he conceded. Amanda was human after all.