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[ he's been deliberating where to begin with these thoughts for some time now, but Spock has never been the type to follow impulse in place of old fashioned consideration. when the feed begins, he's seated as he always is, meticulously composed, with his fingers steepled in his lap. for anyone who's come to know him thus far, it's a sign in and of itself, of how carefully he's treading. ]

Tranquility, this is Spock.

In light of recent events, I find it relevant to suggest that the vessel's security team, while consistently reliable, is only one variant thereof. Recent transmissions from an anonymous source largely referred to as smiley, have illuminated the insufficiency of our attempts to both locate the source and individual responsible. I am aware that we have several individuals aboard who consider technological security and the bypass thereof- a specialty, and I am equally aware that despite these assets, we have gleaned, comparably, very little.

I believe we would benefit significantly from teaching these skills to others and forming a technical security network, for the express purpose of tracking, locating, and attempting to engage this individual.

I can offer no personal guarantees regarding the success or, at this interim, the establishment of such a unit. However, I would not be averse to conversing with interested parties. If you possess technical proficiency of any kind or the inclination to learn, your participation would be welcome.

[ it's here that his mouth tightens marginally at the corner. when Spock speaks again, his focus has changed, and his tone sobers. not that he isn't perpetually dry to begin with. ]

At this time, I believe I should clarify that while these anonymous messages are most engaging, I am not of the opinion that we should offer them exclusive focus. The Tranquility remains in a state of perpetual disrepair and remarkably little is intimately understood about it's origins and technology. While a surveillance team will likely provoke further questions, it does not eliminate those we have failed to answer thus far.

Passenger OPR»002»035, Issac Clarke has requested assistance in the exploration of our engineering systems, but we would also likely benefit from investigation of any and all available historical records on board.

Spock out.

[ Private filter to Ward, Resnik, and Kirk ]
Captain, Commander.
If I may have a word?

[ ooc; this would be a ping for aberdeen, todd, tali, atton, ismene, sulu, buffy, am, chase, caprica &anyone else willing to offer themselves up as a teacher. if it's alright with you kids- i'm handwaving that he's sent you all private requests to teach- either because he knows you, or has seen your capabilities thus far.

innnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn the interest of speeding some of the cr building along i threw a sign up over here :3 ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[the question, somehow, catches him off guard. tilts him on axis and Jim blinks, once, at the small image of his first officer.

not for the first time, he thinks of the Ambassador. the relief (obvious relief) on his face when he looked at Kirk, spoke to him. he thinks of how easily he closed the distance between them when the Spock he knows remains rigid and cold and distanced. the onslaught of emotion that pooled like rain in him, and a longing he couldn't name.

his memory flickers to a warm smile on his own (not his own) face. to Spock looking at him across the bridge. to hands on shoulders, to running across foreign landscapes, to plomeek soup (and how Jim doesn't know what that is).

the smile, the half laugh, he gives his raw around the edges, an attempt at flippancy that scrabbles and misses the ledge.]

No way.

[ the words come slowly- in their own time and measure- because Spock does nothing rashly, if given the opportunity to avoid it. he prefers methodology. consideration. assessment. it is impossible to miss the flicker that moves as a ripple over the young captain's face- but it is, in the end, indecipherable.

Jim Kirk is a being wholly his own, something dynamic, vibrating at a frequency no other can match. he frequently speaks in a language that teases at understanding, while remaining wholly beyond Spock's ability to translate. this- is no different.

something is passing between them.

an unspoken conversation that they have lighted on, however briefly, between file exchanges, reports, chess games and discussion. when the man's gaze wavers and he pinches the bridge of his nose and looks beyond his years. looks at Spock as though he is a stranger, and not wholly strange at all. ]

And your preferred method to rectify this, is the excessive ingestion of alcohol.

[he doesn't quite catch his grip after the moment passes. after his own words have hit the air and Spock's methodical response has joined them.]

I find it works swimmingly, yes.

[he says, then tilts his head, redirects because as much as he likes attention, somehow with a few words, Spock is brushing against raw nerve endings.]

You know I've never see you drink anything but tea, though.

[ the tension prior- the unspeakable knotting- the tangle that he could not hope to explain that worked it's way between them, is released with such ease and by so simple a thing, that it is difficult to believe it had existed at all.

there is plenty of room for Spock to pursue it.
instead, he lets it go. ]

Vulcans do not imbibe alcohol.

[he'd almost expected the Vulcan to change the topic back, and tension he hadn't known he was holding seeps out, just slightly.]

I guess that's probably the smart thing to do.

[ the flicker of a brow. is he having a laugh at your expense?

...maybe. ]

Thank you.

[Jim glances away because the laugh that grabs him dissuades his anxiety and it does so quickly, sharply, enough to leave him off kilter for the span of a heart beat.]

I'm convinced you're hiding a sense of humor in there somewhere.

Is there a preferable place in which to do so?

Don't ask me, you're the genius compartmentalizer. [is that a word? he doesn't seem to care.]

And you, are the one with a surplus of humor. [ don't get sassy with me captain. ]

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