The surroundings around McCoy faded into darkness except for that pool of light behind him casting the shape of a doorway. Spock realized he was sitting on the edge of his bed seeing the doctor bend down toward him. Spock's brain was working slower than usual. It had to be the short term memory loss medication leaving behind some lingering side effects. He may have to note this to Doctor Cameron at a more relevant and pressing time. His usually sharp vision was blurry. Had he gotten that old? Spock was appalled at that thought. He cleared his throat.

"Wear again?" Instead of, "Where again?"

"Up!" McCoy lifted the Vulcan up off the bed by the hand, tightly.

Spock's brain was overwhelmed with the sensation. Skin touching skin. Fingers clasping onto his knuckles. He could feel the panic coursing through the doctors mind. And a million thoughts running around the doctors mind which was a different variation of 'I don't want want to be late' at each time. It amazed Spock, really, at how fast the doctor was thinking per second at this late of night. The feeling he got by McCoy's hands clenching against his knuckles was rather arousal. It was a good thing that McCoy could not see that Spock's eyes were dilated.

"Leonard, please," Spock said. "Do not clench my hand tightly."

"Oh, why, we makin' out?" McCoy asked. "You bright eyed than you were one second ago?"

"No, but it is very inconvenient." Spock said.

It was a good thing that McCoy could not see the Vulcan's cheeks were blushing a shade of green. It was very inconvenient to feel turned on by a old human. Spock slipped on his pink, fluffy slippers. McCoy had on a pair of slippers that resembled Turtwig. McCoy wrapped his hand around Spock's waist then aimed his right hand toward the sky with a closed fist. It reminded the Vulcan of a signature pose done by The Green Lantern Corps when in use of their rings. His daughter Erin took a liking to it and so had Shawk when they were children. Spock would find them sitting on the couch side by side with legs crossed and their noses buried deep into the comics. Spock collected the new additions for them during his time as Captain of the USS Deforest including a few Orion Slash Romance Novels for T'Pring because she asked. It was named after a well known actor who loved to play in westerns and didn't live to see World War 3. He lived through the Eugenic Wars much as a surprise as it was for whoever wrote it. It said he was in Georgia mot of the time with his wife Carolyn during the Eugenic Wars in a small town that wasn't bothered by the war. Deforest Kelley, research had indicated he was a natural sweetheart, and-- . . . McCoy looked just like Deforest. Now that Spock thought of it, they looked strikingly alike. That was strikingly odd.

"Shouldn't we have gone at nine thirty?" Spock inquired.

"Nah uh, because Nurse Pallet would have seen our departure." McCoy said. "Hang on! And don't get sick!"

There was a blue light emitting from the ring that shot through the stars. And they were engulfed by a blinding bright light. His secondary eyelid covered his eyes at the sheer blinding light. He felt like his atoms were being transferred. And his entire being was floating in space within the darkness. He felt McCoy's hand let go of his waist and then he experienced a landing on the rugged floor. Spock did not feel sick but he felt around hearing the sounds of what seemed to be grown men screaming and then running out of the room. Which was highly illogical. He estimated it would take two hours for his secondary eyelid to peel back. It was a thin layer that wasn't visible to the naked eye but it was visible to whoever was dealing with it.

"Doctor?" Spock called, hearing the sound of what seemed to be puking. "Leonard? Leonard!"He turned around then came onto the transporter pad to feel around on the transport "LEONARD?" He could hear his heart beating against his torso. Panic started to go through Spock. He came to the center of the transporter pad. Spock's hands met the ending edge of the wall. He could feel a sinking feeling coming down from his brain that didn't feel very comfortable. Could he be gone? No, that was not acceptable. Spock would not accept that. He couldn't have lost McCoy on the same day as Jim. Suddenly Spock heard a loud thud from behind him. "Oh there you are Leonard."

And then there was puking as he turned himself around.

"This is why I hate transporters," McCoy said. "Urgh." He spat out something else that landed on the floor. "No wonder Scotty was so coy about the side effects."

Spock came to the side of the human. He came to the edge where he could feel the small staircase begin. He then moved his legs forward then slid himself forward to the edge of the stair-step stretching his legs out. He knew his slippers were not in the puke because the stench came close right by the doctors side.

"Are you all right?" Spock asked, placing a hand on the older man's shoulder.

"Fine," McCoy said. "I don't know how Scotty can zip back and forth with this rin'."

"At least one of us is not sick." Spock said.

McCoy had a fond laugh.

"Yes, that is a good thin'." McCoy paused. "Spock,why are you looking at my feet?"

Spock turned his head in the direction of the doctor's voice.

"I am momentarily blind due to the transport we had." Spock said.

"You looked into the light." McCoy said.

"Yes." Spock said.

"I should have warned you about that." McCoy said.

"Leonard, you almost did not come through." Spock said.

"No, it was only a second." McCoy said. "Scotty assured me no one gets lost in that rin' transport."

"By my estimation we had been in space for one hour and a half." Spock said.

"You got that all by your internal biological clock?" McCoy asked.

"Indeed." Spock said.

"Well. . . that is fascinatin'." McCoy said. "I never should underestimate a Vulcan's impeccable timing. Where are the engineer officers anyway?"

"They left after the impromptu arrival a minute ago." Spock said.

"You've been here for five minutes?" McCoy said. "But you just said . . ." Even though Spock could not see, he could picture the doctor's face was slowly turning a shade of red and his fists were rolling up into fists. It was to be expected when lying to a human, specifically to McCoy, and then telling the truth afterwards in the same conversation. "You pointy eared liar with pants on fire!"

"Ooops?" Spock said.

"Do you really have a internal biological clock?" McCoy asked,eying the blind Vulcan.

"Affirmative." Spock said.

Spock felt cold, very cold, all over. He noticed how his back was aching. How long had it been aching anyway? He rubbed his hands together warming to warm his hands. It was a gift and a curse to be born on a heated planet. Researchers assumed that the temperature of the average Vulcan was suited to the planet because Vulcan's temperature was so hot that the Vulcanian body adapted to it. Which was logical. The blood became colder as the Vulcan aged. It was their greatest weakness. That was the curse. The gift was in the youth that Vulcans can could withstand the coldest temperatures. Spock heard the doors woosh open. The sound of footsteps approach them ranging in soft and heaviness.

"Who are you?" Came a new, thick Romulan accented voice.

"Doctor Leonard McCoy, friend of Montgomery Scott, and this is Admi--Ambassador Spock." McCoy said.

"Greetings." Spock said, turning his head away from McCoy then held his right hand up in the shape of the ta'al. It came natural to the Vulcan. "Are you S'Chess by any chance?"

"That I am." S'Chess said. "Men, lower your phasers."

"What happened to your ears, Mr S'Chess?" McCoy asked. "Did someone chop them off? You know most studies say Romulan heads are adapted to Romulan ears rather than prosthetics because they had natural ears for so long. They are capable of rejectin' the prosthetic. . . like yours for example."

There was a distinctive growl.

"That is none of your concern." S'Chess said, as the sound of the phaser disarming followed after the unanimous sound of phasers turning off. "I heard Ambassador Spock retired."

"I am retired." Spock said. "And so is my companion."

"It is my concern when you are wearin' prosthetic ears," McCoy said. "You haven't been replacin' them as recommended by your doctor. Don't you know that you can get a ear canal infection?" McCoy took Spock's shoulder then helped him up. "For a Romulan, you have human ears. Romulans have pointy ears."

"Doctor." Spock said. "It is likely a touchy subject."

"You are one lucky bastard that you can't see them," McCoy said. "His entire ear is bein' rejected."

"Then why not replace it?" Spock asked. "It is illogical to keep what is obviously being rejected."

"I agree with your logic." McCoy said.

"Are you well, Mr S'Chess?" Spock inquired.

"He is fine," Came another voice that was female in nature. "And you will not speak toward him that way."

"Mr Green and Mr Konnerway please escort . . . . The McCoy's to the conference room." S'chess spoke, in a rushed voice. "Miss Sevill . . ." He head the sound of some one with heavy feet turning. "I will be right there. Please escort them, men."