The Last Son of Skon
Author: Elizabeth Leicester
Code: Amanda, Sren
Series: TOS
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: Star Trek et al is owned by
Summary: Amanda talks about Sarek's 'other brother'—the one we never hear
about.
Author's Notes: Sometime back Terry said
something about me writing a S'hmo
story. Well, here is my version. Watch out for the abrupt ending--
I'm not completely happy with it—but... I don't think there will be any more
and I didn't want to just chuck it.
I've never done this on Yahoo and y'all know my track record with cutting and
pasting, so please bear with me. BTW, could someone post something about
the ratings system we're SUPPOSED to use?? I think people use the MPAA
one because that's what everyone knows and pooh on them for saying it's 'their's' and no one else's. (Hey, I should put THAT
in a disclaimer!!)
Amanda
Notes: If this story feels incomplete, that's probably because it
is. There seems to be more to Sren than Amanda
is willing to tell, so this is all we're getting—at least for the time being.
~~**~~
Poor S'hmo. I
always feel sorry for him. He is Sarek's youngest brother. His name
is really Sren, but someone at the
He is the baby of the family, the last child. I don't think his parents
were actually planning on him, despite the Time and all those Vulcan myths and
'doing your utmost for your planet.' The kindest that might be said of it
all was that he was a 'superfluous accident.' But we don't discuss such
things. It isn't polite. It's also irrelevant. I may be
giving you the impression that Sren was 'unwanted'
and that would be erroneous. All children on Vulcan are welcomed in the
family with ceremony and ritual that bespeaks of longing and thankfulness at
the safe delivery of both mother and child. As this is true, even of
mongrel children, it is just as true of 'shmos.'
I was not there, but I imagine that Sren's Welcoming
Ceremony was just as rich and full as that of his siblings.
He was ten when Spock was born. I remember this because he was the first
to Visit after we brought our Halfling home. As part of the Welcoming, it
is customary for family to Visit, to offer a Touch—a blessing to the new child
who has been brought into this world. But Spock, for all the planning and
genetic manipulation and general acrobatics that had to occur in order to
ensure his conception and development, seemed to be wanted only by his
parents. When I looked at him, I saw his father and my heart. The
same could not be said of Sarek's family. When they gazed upon this newling's visage, they could only see komihn—except
for Sren. He has a way of looking beyond the
physical—most of the time. I do remember when this gift seemed to have
failed him, however.
After Spock's birth, Sren had taken to hanging out at
our house whenever we weren't off-planet somewhere. I think he took
comfort in being with us, the other outcasts of the family. While Sarek
compensated for his family's censure by being 'Super Vulcan,' Sren protected himself by withdrawing. At family
gatherings, he was almost invisible. I've always said Sren
would have made an excellent human. He is honest, intelligent and
gentle. But logic and emotional control have always eluded him and while
he would test as 'bright normal' on a human scale for intelligence, it was not
quite up to Vulcan standards. So, while they cared for him and cherished
him, he could never fulfill his parents' expectations. I, on the other
hand, didn't have such expectations and Sarek, while not uncaring, was rather
indifferent. So we could provide a rather stress-free environment.
He was also an excellent baby-sitter. Sren
would often collect Spock on his way home from school and the two of them would then take the public transport to the house.
When I arrived, Spock would usually be asleep and Sren
would be in the communal area, studying avidly.
One day, after grading one essay too many, I decided I'd had enough and went to
start on dinner. I was in the middle of chopping up fruits and vegetables
when Sren came into the kitchen and sat on a high
stool to watch. He was about fifteen then, I think. He snagged a
couple of tarin
root slices and sat, munching.
'There's a girl at school,' he said quietly. It was a statement no other
Vulcan would ever make. It was illogical for one thing. Of course
there was a girl at school. By this time in his life, his family had
little patience for him. But since this would not have been an unusual
opening statement for a shy, human teenager, it didn't throw me.
'Indeed,' I stated, trying to hide my smile. Sometime back, I had
recommended that Sren leave his staid private school
and attend the Federation run school at the Terran Embassy. He had always
been ridiculed but his studies had begun to fall off. While he was none
too pleased, even Skon could see this might be better for his youngest son and Sren had been attending the Fed school ever since. It
didn't hurt that I taught there as well.
'Yes, she is my lab partner in physics class,' he told me. 'She is also
in my trig class, but it is not so easy for her. Could I, perhaps, invite
her here to study?'
'I suppose,' I said. Since Sren was not your
average Vulcan, I wondered how much studying they would actually do. I
also realised that it would fall on me if they were to engage in any activity
which might be viewed as unseemly. 'Who is this girl?'
'Kayla Patterson,' he stated. 'She has jade green eyes.'
'I bet she does,' I grinned as I sliced up some cone fruit. Poor S'hmo. He would develop
a crush on a dyke. 'Uh, Sren, I think it's fine
for you to invite Kayla over to study, but I don't think you should—expect
anything more.'
Sren cocked his head at my statement, looking, for a
moment, more Vulcan than he ever had, or probably ever would. 'Kayla
requested my assistance,' he stated, a bit confused. 'Is it not my duty
to help her?'
'Yes,' I agreed. 'And you should. But...' I trailed off, uncertain
as to what I should say, what I could say. Vulcans have so many taboos in
this area and while Skon and T'Lara were more than content to have Sren out of their proverbial hair, they would not be so
forgiving if I were to overstep my bounds.
Suddenly the light seemed to dawned for Sren. I could see it on his face. 'Oh,' he
said. 'You think that I would take advantage of a study period to.' Not
even he could go there. 'Amanda, I would never-it would not be
honourable.'
I gently patted his hand, something else one usually couldn't do with
Vulcans. 'I know,' I said. 'You're a good kid, just be careful.'
Poor S'hmo. It took
six months for him to discover that he wasn't the wrong species, he was the
wrong gender. To his credit, I don't think anyone ever saw his anguish
but me.