Homesick In Heaven

by Omega

Disclaimer: Paramount owns them, yadda yadda yadda. I ain't making one red cent off of this, so don't sue me.

Series: TOS

Codes: K/S, angst

Rated: PG

Summary: A certain captain's a little homesick. Sequel to "The Hardest Thing." and prequel to "Questions and Answers".

Homesick in Heaven
by Omega
***************

Kirk looked at his beloved ship. He could hardly believe that he had her again. It wasn't the imposters that had tried to steal her name. This was the real one. The Enterprise. He felt happiness spark in his heart, a
feeling that he hadn't felt for a long time. Not since he went into the Nexus........

He glanced around the shuttle, hardly believing his crew was with him. They were all with him, all looking as happy as he did. McCoy was standing by him, for once not complaining about the universe. He was grinning like an idiot. Scott sat with Sulu at the helm. Kirk had been surprised when Sulu returned to them after commanding the Excelsior for so long. Sulu had replied, "My loyalty's to my captain. Last time I checked, you were him." Scott had echoed his words, adding, "If ye think ye're gonna take my puir wee bairns outta spacedock without me, ye're sadly mistaken, laddie." Kirk had smiled, remembering all the times when Sulu's imaginative piloting and Scotty's miracles had pulled them out of danger.

Sitting right behind Scotty was the lovely Uhura, a captain in her own right, but like Sulu, she had traded the Big Chair for her old life with her shipmates. Chekov sat behind her, Starfleet's former C-in-C. Despite the fact that he had lived almost as long as McCoy had, Kirk still thought of Chekov as a kid. So did everyone else, so he wasn't alone.

Kirk sighed. He had everything he wanted. Well, almost everything. One thing was missing. It had a name: Spock. Kirk had known that the Vulcan would outlive them. But it didn't make it any easier to bear his absence. Not when his mind was full of memories. Memories of friendship. Memories of love.

Kirk sighed again and straightened up. "Mr. Sulu," he said.

"Sir?"

"Take us home."

"Aye, sir." Sulu expertly piloted the small shuttlecraft into the massive starship. They smoothly touched down into the shuttle bay. They exited the craft.

Uhura touched Jim on his shoulder. She was getting concerned about him. He seemed glad to be with them and certainly glad to be back on his ship. But something was missing. She sighed. *Nyota, he's missing Spock, just like the rest of us are doing. Spock, this isn't the time for you to be late for the first time! Hurry up!*

Kirk looked at her. "Something bothering you, Nyota?"

She smiled slightly. "Yes. You. Are you okay?"

Kirk sighed. "I've got my ship and most of my crew back. But I'm not okay."

"I miss him, too."

Kirk chuckled a little. "I hate perceptive women."

She raised an eyebrow in deliberate imitation of Spock. "Too bad. I'm your comm officer. I'm supposed to be perceptive. Now cheer up before I sic McCoy on you."

He drew back in mock-horror. "Nyota, that's cruel and unusual punishment!" Their laughter echoed down the corridors of the ship......

**************

Spock sat in his ancestral estate on Vulcan. He still clutched the ancient insignia in his hand, his only hold on reality. *I am truly alone now. As it was in the beginning, so must it always be. It will not be long now,* he thought. His breathing slowed as he slipped into meditation. For some reason, he went deeper than normal. He was pouring himself along the bond, desperately trying to solidify it once again.

His heartbeat slowed to dangerously low levels. He continued his search. A very faint thread was tossed into his grasp. He gently tugged on it and felt that it was tied at the end. A vision entered his head. A vision of Jim and his friends on the Enterprise. Jim looked terribly unhappy. Everyone else seemed to be urging him to join them.

Spock didn't waste time on debate. He had nothing left in this reality. In the other, the true one, he had everything. For the first time in over a century, his internal war called a truce. He slipped into eternity's sleep.

***************

Spock opened his eyes, not aware that he had closed him. He was standing in a corridor, a familiar one. He saw a plaque on the wall. His breath caught as he read the inscription:USS Enterprise. "To boldly go where no one has gone before."

He could hardly believe it. He was home. His breath caught again as he felt something caressing his mind. It seemed to tell him where he must go. He set off down the corridor to find his beloved.

************

Kirk walked down the hallway with McCoy. "Jim?" McCoy asked, his voice full of concern.

"What is it, Bones?"

"You okay? You're at least a lightyear away from here," McCoy said.

Kirk sighed. "I've been missing Spock more and more lately."

McCoy sighed. "Yeah, so have I. It's gotten to the point where I even miss his damn logic!"

"Getting soft in your old age?"

"Naah, just cranky."

"Amen to that." The two men continued walking.

*************

Spock approached from the other side. He stopped when he heard Kirk's voice saying that he missed him. *You will no longer have to miss me, t'hy'la.* he thought. He quickened his pace.

Kirk and McCoy rounded the corner, then stopped dead in their tracks. "Oh my god...." McCoy whispered. "It's him!"

Kirk ignored him, simply drinking in the sight of his friend. His t'hy'la.

Spock was equally stunned. Even though he had known it was inevitable, he was unprepared for the emotions assaulting his soul. He swallowed hard, barely resisting the urge to draw Jim to him. "Jim..... Doctor...." he trailed off.

Kirk said nothing, only walked forward until he stood directly in front of Spock, staring into his bottomless eyes. His lips and voice trembled as he finally spoke. "Spock?" he asked, still unable to believe it.

Spock reached forward and laid his fingers against Kirk's temple. He moaned softly as he felt Kirk's thoughts brushing his once again. "Jim...t'hy'la..." he managed to say.

Kirk sobbed his name and was pulled into a fierce embrace. Their lips sought one another as if by instinct. Like animals trying to find water in a desert.

Unnoticed by the two men, McCoy began to cry. Spock heard his friend's sobs and beckoned him to join them. They hugged one another fiercely, not willing to let each other go. They held one another until they stopped shaking.

Kirk smiled his golden smile at him. "Welcome home, beloved."

McCoy grinned. "You two better hurry up and git to your quarters before the masses arrive," he said with a smirk. He then leaned and whispered to Kirk, "I guess you're not homesick anymore?"

Kirk shook his head. "Nope. Now I'm in heaven."

--Finis--