Space Husband - marriage of convenience
~1600 words. R-ish? (The sex isn’t super explicit but it is there.)
Kirk was warned the planet had some interesting customs. And he had been excited by the prospect of new and different things. Especially after he had ascertained that none of these customs involved murder, maiming, or anything else once might consider just, you know, completely awful and immoral.
It’s going really well until the Luosians are telling him that in order to continue their peaceful relations with the Federation, a member of the crew must be bonded to one of them.
“Like, ‘hey, let’s bond’ or...?”
“Your soul to the soul of one of ours,” the leader tells him and she’s pretty and he’s not that picky, but he doesn’t think she’s looking for a simple roll in the hay.
“Some, uh, soul on soul action, huh?” Kirk says, trying very hard for nonchalant.
“Yes. And we request that it be you as you are not bonded of your own traditions and you are of higher importance”--rank, Kink mentally corrects--“than the other members of your crew.”
Kirk is starting to panic. “Now, that all sounds well and good, but what if I’m already...engaged to be bonded?”
She seems to consider this a moment before she nods. “I have communed with my bondmate and if you are willing to go through the process here, where the planet’s essence will coalesce with your souls, you may bond with your intended and we will accept it.”
“I just have to get married here? Now?”
She nods, and it’s both easy and unyielding.
“Right,” Kirk says. “I’ll go discuss it with my...intended.” He gives a respectful bow and heads to Spock and McCoy.
After he explains, the two stare at him with equally incredulous expressions--given that incredulity looks incredibly different on each one. Kirk knows, however, that Spock’s tilted head and raised eyebrow is the equivalent of McCoy’s gaping mouth and bugged out eyes.
It’s the little things.
“They expect you to enter into some kind of-- of telepathic soul bond with someone you’ve only just met?” McCoy growls.
“No, no, no,” Kirk corrects. “I convinced them I was already engaged so it can be anyone.”
“I find it fascinating that the Luosians would accept any bond rather than one with a Luosian.”
Kirk shrugs, screws up his face. “I guess the planet has some sort of energy or something that, well, bonds to anyone who bonds here. Which is special to them.”
Spock nods his understanding. “I see. Luosian bonds work best when the individuals are emotionally tied. Of course, that is not always the case--as they asked--and these ties may be romantic or platonic. If you have told them that you are engaged, it will be difficult to explain if the bond does not take.”
“Right,” Kirk says. Then, again, “Right.” He bites his lip. “So someone I’m emotionally attached to.”
“I--” McCoy starts, like he wants to take the bullet, but the space mumbo-jumbo thing is making him paranoid and Kirk waves him away before he can even get the words out.
“I will do it, Captain.”
Kirk and McCoy both stare at Spock, then exchange glances.
“You, Spock?” Kirk asks.
Spock gives a curt, professional nod and Kirk could swear that Spock was blushing. “I believe it to be similar to our tradition on Vulcan.”
“And you want to bond your soul to mine?” Kirk asks, goggling.
“For the sake of the Federation, yes,” and Spock does the equivalent of rolling his eyes.
~
Once they’re back on the ship, everyone makes their jokes, but Kirk and Spock pretend like it’s no big deal.
Kirk just has to rein in his thoughts because Spock looks at him like he’s yelling even when he’s not talking and Kirk gets it. Spock is silent on his end, but of course he is. Vulcans are all about control and, in this, Spock is no different.
After a while, they can get this undone. There is nothing that can’t be destroyed and this will end up just a blip in the story of Captain Kirk and the Enterprise--which is the story Kirk is writing in his head about his adventures, because he has to do something to keep himself sane in space.
Kirk just has to keep a firm lid on his thoughts, particularly his sometimes rampant thoughts and feelings about his First Officer. Which are completely normal because they’re together a lot, right?
Kirk has no control of his dreams, however, and maybe he’s dreaming about being trapped on a desert island with Spock...or maybe they’re actually just back in Iowa staring at cornfields. Either way, it’s a nice dream.
Until it isn’t.
The dream shifts and Kirk is caught in a storm and the Enterprise is shaking like an old barn door and he thinks he can see the panicked looks on everyone’s faces but then they’re all gone and it’s his fault and--
“Captain! Captain!” And Kirk is being shaken and then he hears, “Jim!” It seems to come from outside and inside and everywhere and then Kirk is opening his eyes to find Spock staring at him, can feel where Spock’s fingertips are pressed to meld points.
Slowly, Spock extricates, pulls back. He gives Kirk space and Kirk tries to just breathe even though part of him is crawling about artificial atmosphere failure and what he’s even doing out here and--
“Jim,” Spock says again.
Kirk breathes now, really. “Spock,” he says finally, “what?”
Spock hesitates, then sits down beside him on the bed.
Again, Kirk says, “What?” This time, with even more confusion.
“You seem more at ease with me here,” Spock explains. “When I use your name.”
It clicks and Kirk groans. “Was I projecting? I was projecting.” He buries his face in his pillow. Then, he pulls back, quirks an eyebrow. “Wait.” He looks at Spock, who is still dressed for sleep, and down to where Spock is currently sitting on his bed. “Were you offering to stay?”
“I was merely--”
But Kirk cuts him off, wide grin forming. “You were offering to stay.”
“You keep answering your own questions,” Spock chastises, but Kirk is already making room, pulling open the covers.
Spock settles in and Kirk tries not to cuddle him, but Spock does allow his foot to touch Kirk’s, the point sending a spike of reassuring contact.
“Hey, Spock.”
“Yes, Jim?” He must still be coddling him, but Kirk doesn’t mind so much right now.
“Why did you volunteer to bond with me?”
Spock’s response is curt and immediate. Logical. “Because we have strong emotional ties.”
Kirk doesn’t let him off the hook that easily. “And what does that mean? Does that mean...” And Kirk is really pressing his luck here. He blames interrupted sleep and the Vulcan in his bed. “Does that mean you want to kiss me?”
“Jim-- Captain--”
And yet Kirk feels Spock shift on the bed, not away but closer. “Does that mean yes?”
Spock presses his lips to Kirk’s, grabs Kirk’s hand in his own, his fingers gently caressing Kirk’s in a way Kirk doesn’t quite understand.
Kirk pulls back, surprise bleeding into contentment. “Oh.” He kisses Spock again and finds that Spock is greedy for it now, is kissing him like he could die if he stopped and Kirk hadn’t really thought Spock could be that way about anyone. Even when his pon farr had come on, he’d burned it off elsewhere.
Spock shows no sign of stopping and Kirk is great with that. Really.
Kirk swings his legs over Spock’s and straddles him. “We’re already married,” he says. “Do you--”
But Spock kisses him again, grinds up against him, and Kirk practically crushes Spock--like he even could--trying to grab lube.
It only takes another minute of grinding and fumbling before Kirk is sinking back onto Spock’s length.
“Yep,” he murmurs. “I can die happy.”
And now that he’s not so actively searching and scrabbling and considering, Kirk realizes that all this energy, this desire, this drive... It’s not just him.
It’s him and Spock and Vulcan mind melds meeting strange soul bonding ceremonies and Kirk can feel so much it’s overwhelming, but Spock twitches his hips and Kirk’s focus is back on the task at hand.
He chuckles. “This is going to be a lot of fun,” he promises, but then he starts to move, dragging himself up only to slide back down onto Spock, who is looking at him like he’s the sun and Kirk takes both of Spock’s hands in his if only for a moment. He squeezes and Spock makes this noise that’s so hot Kirk wouldn’t be able to fathom it had he not just heard it. Spock’s hips rut up into the meat of his thighs and Kirk lets out his own unfathomable sound in response.
When Kirk’s hands leave Spock’s, Spock’s hands find Kirk’s hips and Kirk finds himself because this is intense and awesome but it’s sort of too intense and too awesome and he needs relief.
Kirk spills onto Spock’s chest and Spock spills into him and they’re so in sync it hurts.
After minimum clean up, they ready themselves for sleep again. This time, much closer.
“Bones is going to have a field day with this,” Kirk murmurs before kissing Spock goodnight and turning to settle into his arms.
There’s silence. Then, Spock says, “I was enjoying your dream. The one in the field.”
Kirk hums in agreement. “Maybe one day I’ll really take you there.”
He falls asleep in Spock’s arms, thanking the Luosians for their strange customs and his new husband and he thinks Spock does the same.

















