A Touch of Diplomacy, Part Three

by J. Rosemary Moss

Genre: Slash Fan Fiction (Star Trek; Kirk-Spock-McCoy)

Rating: R

LINK TO PART ONE

~

Kirk took a seat on the edge of his bunk and glared at his first officer. Spock was sitting up now, but he still had the covers pulled up to his waist. Bones, meanwhile, was in the shower—so Kirk had a few minutes of privacy with the Vulcan.

“What I don’t understand, Spock, is why you agreed to this crazy bet,” Kirk began. "I can’t imagine you as anyone’s love slave.”

Not that he minded the thought of dominating the Vulcan—far from it. He was already planning just how he would mete out punishments to his science officer and the good doctor. And he would be sure to make them memorable.

Spock cocked his head at him. “I regard this as a form of research on the sexual habits of humans. I have read, with interest, of what humans refer to as ‘BDSM.’ I am curious to learn just how this consensual bondage and discipline actually function. It should prove a fascinating study.”

Kirk had to force himself not to roll his eyes. Spock had a bad habit of ‘studying’ human behavior from an almost anthropological point of view. “You do understand, Spock, that you’ll be taking part in these games.”

“Of course, Jim. I look forward to experiencing them first hand.”

Kirk leaned in toward him. “And you don’t mind the thought of being disciplined?”

He shook his head. “Should I? I understand mutual pleasure to be the goal of these games.”

“True,” Kirk admitted, grinning. “Well, you’ve got the right attitude, I suppose. Let me ask you this: are you prepared to win?”

Spock furrowed his brow as he considered that. “Yes, Captain,” he said at length. “I believe my research has prepared me to perform adequately and safely as a ‘master.’”

The Vulcan paused and raised an eyebrow at him. “I gather that you, likewise, are prepared to win,” he commented. “But are you prepared to lose?”

“I intend to win,” Kirk said bluntly. “But I can stand to lose. Although, frankly, I’d rather lose to you than to Bones.”

“Why?” Spock asked. “Will you object to Dr. McCoy playing the role of a master?”

The captain grinned again—widely this time. “No. It’s not that—hell, I’d love to see how Bones would act as a dominant. But it’d be embarrassing to lose to the good doctor in a strategy game—he’s not cut out for them.”

Spock’s eyes seemed to bore into him. “It’s true that McCoy does not throw himself into these games, but I believe we are in danger of underestimating him, Jim. The strategy of Diplomacy relies heavily on deceit—and McCoy is, after all, the man who successfully deceived T’Pau…thereby saving both of our lives.”

Kirk stared at him for a moment and then let out a low whistle. “You’re right,” he owned. “Well, that certainly puts me in my place. Spock, we have no choice—you and I will have to work together to defeat Bones.”

“We cannot form a permanent alliance,” Spock reminded him.

“It won’t be permanent,” Kirk said. “We’ll stick together until we’ve eliminated the other players—starting with Bones and Sulu. And then we’ll fight it out to determine the winner.”

Spock pressed the tips of his fingers together as he mulled over that strategy. “Thank you, Captain,” he said at last, “but no thank you. I do not wish an alliance with you at present.”

Kirk caught his breath at that. “Why not?” he demanded. “What are you holding out for?”

“Holding out, Captain?”

“You must want something, Spock. What is it? Do you think I want to defeat Bones badly enough to hand you the win? Is that the deal you’re looking for?”

“I think you would offer such a deal,” Spock admitted. “But winning is no longer my primary goal. I am content to be one of the ‘submissives’ on our forthcoming holiday.”

“But you said you were prepared to win,” Kirk object.

“And so I am,” Spock assured him. “But it is not my preference. In fact, like you, I’m curious to see how Dr. McCoy would behave as a dominant. Therefore, I shall offer him my assistance in this game.”

Kirk narrowed his eyes at him. “Are you bluffing?”

“Vulcans do not bluff, Captain.”

“You, my love, are more than capable of bluffing,” Kirk retorted. He leaned over and kissed the Vulcan passionately. “But have it your way. I meant what I said to Bones—I can win this without your help.”

“Perhaps,” Spock acknowledged. “At any event, I will observe your strategy with interest.”

“Thanks,” the captain said dryly.

Bones chose that moment to step out of the bathroom. “Y’all about ready for bed?” he asked as he took off his robe and slipped on a pair of boxers.

“Yeah,” Kirk answered as he stood up and began to strip down to his boxers as well. “Congratulations, Bones. Spock’s decided to devote himself to your cause. The thought of you as a dominant has piqued his scientific curiosity. And no—he’s not lying or bluffing.”

Bones stared at Spock and then broke into a grin. He all but jumped into the bed to kiss the Vulcan. “You won’t regret this, Spock.”

The Vulcan regarded his exuberance with distaste. “If you mean to use the bed for a trampoline, Doctor, I can assure you that I already regret it.”

Bones ignored that. “We’ll talk in the morning once Jim-boy’s out of here,” he promised.

Kirk rolled his eyes at that. Tomorrow was going to be a long day.

~

Bones spent much of the night in that comfortable, hazy state that was in between waking and sleeping. It was his turn to be in the middle—a position that had both advantages and disadvantages.

And the middle could mean almost unbearable pleasure. Bones remembered one night in particular when Kirk had kissed him roughly, almost painfully, while that damn pointy-eared elf had teased him, cupping his balls and suckling his cock, only to draw back and taunt him lightly with his tongue. Where the hell had Spock learned to do that? He was supposed to be new to all this. But Bones didn't care, especially since he could feel fingers kneading his nipples now...when he finally came, he felt like he was ready to die from sensory overload.

God, it had felt strange in some ways. And he had been embarrassed as hell the first time. Maybe Bones was a little more bourgeois than he liked to admit. But if so, he was fast getting over it.

There was no sex tonight—but that was all right too. Bones couldn’t complain; after all, he’d had one-on-one intimacies with both Kirk and Spock in the past two days. A man had to rest sometime.

The only real disadvantage to the middle was that it was harder to get up out of bed—at least, not without waking up one of the other two. But it was damned cozy with Jim’s hard muscles on one side of him and Spock’s intense body heat on the other. Bones smiled to himself. A fellow could get used to this.

At the moment, Bones was leaning up against Spock’s side while Jim was using the doctor’s shoulder for a pillow. Bones grinned at that while he tousled his captain’s hair. He’d say this much for Jim: he wasn’t one for hard feelings. And if he lost the game—well, he’d hate losing, but he’d manage to be gracious about it. For his pride’s sake, if for no better reason.

But Jim hadn’t lost yet, Bones reminded himself. Even with Spock on his side, Bones couldn’t afford to underestimate Kirk’s chances.

But the doctor had a big advantage—he didn’t care if he lost the game. He just wanted to make sure that he outlasted Spock and Jim….especially Jim. But Jim wanted to win the whole damn thing. He was playing for higher stakes.

Bones wasn’t sure how to turn that fact to his advantage yet, but he was pretty certain it could be done. He’d have to talk to Spock about that in the morning.

Who’d have thought that he’d end up teaming up with Spock against Jim? But, come to think of it, he and Spock had made a habit of teaming up against their captain when necessary. And they were surprisingly good at it.

Bones grinned again and let out a contented sigh. He felt Spock stir at that. And somehow, even in the dark, he could tell that the Vulcan had just opened his eyes.

“Is something keeping you awake, Doctor?” he whispered.

“Yeah, but it’s a good thing,” Bones assured him. “I like this, Spock. The three of us, I mean. It feels right. I want it to last.”

Spock was silent for a moment. “I, too, find our relationship stimulating.”

Bones raised his eyebrows at that. “Stimulating?”

“Indeed, Doctor.”

Bones bit back a grin. “Well, I suppose ‘stimulating’ is a good word for it. Tell me something, Spock—do you want this relationship between the three of us to last?”

“I see no reason why it should not,” the Vulcan answered cautiously, “Although—” he broke off.

“Although what?” Bones prompted, still whispering.

“I—I do not know how a marriage bond would function between three partners…or if, indeed, it is even possible to forge such a thing.”

McCoy bit his lip. “I suppose three way relationships aren’t the norm on Vulcan.”

“No, Doctor. However, there are a few records of them from antiquity. Moreover, there have been other types of telepathic links forged between three minds—and that leads me to suspect that a marriage bond between the three of us is not impossible.”

“Well, assume for a moment that it is possible. How would they feel on Vulcan when they heard the news? Do you think T’Pau will welcome us with open arms?”

“I think that highly improbable.”

“I suppose I’m not her favorite person to begin with,” Bones muttered.

“On the contrary, Doctor, you saved both my life and Jim’s. I believe T’Pau honors you for that—even though you employed deception against her.”

“Do you think she likes me enough to approve of a three-way marriage for you?”

“No,” Spock answered flatly.

“What about your parents? Your Mom liked me and Jim. And your father—well, he didn’t hold us in contempt.”

There was a long moment of silence. “Perhaps we should wait until the captain is awake before we discuss this further,” he said at last.

“I am awake,” Jim muttered, nuzzling closer to Bones. “You two aren’t nearly as quiet as you think you are.”

Bones smiled. “Sorry about that. But what about you, Jim? Do you want this to last?”

Jim kissed his neck. “Yeah,” he said. “I do. But we’ll have to figure out the logistics—and how to sell this to Spock’s family—later. For now, let’s get some sleep”

Bones nodded. “Aye, Captain.”

“Very well, Captain,” Spock echoed.

Bones grinned again. Wasn’t that just like Jim? He wasn’t worried that ‘selling’ this relationship to Spock’s family would prove impossible—because, as far as Jim was concerned, the word ‘impossible’ didn’t exist. He hadn’t met a challenge yet that he couldn’t force, cajole or trick his way around. Hell, Bones wouldn’t be surprised if Jim figured out a way to make Sarek and Amanda proud of Spock’s unorthodox choice.

The doctor shook his head. It was just as well, he supposed, that Jim hated to lose. It might be hell to play Diplomacy against him—but in real life, he liked having the captain’s determination on his side.