Reunion

Chapter 1

June 10th, 2117, Riverside High School.

Nyota Uhura pushed a lock of her dark hair behind her ear and lay back on the grass of the football field, shutting her eyes and feeling the hot sun beat down on her face.

Beside her, she heard Christine's anxious voice: "Ny, what time is it? Is she late?"

Nyota opened her eyes, cupping her hand over her forehead, and looked up at Christine Chapel, as petite and white-blonde as ever in her sixteen years of age, looking out across the Riverside High School football field.

Nyota dug her cell phone out of her shorts and checked the time, squinting in the sunlight. "Not yet," she said, "Don't worry about it, Chris, Janice will be here. You know how she hates being late. Just sit back and enjoy the sun."

"Maybe she came early and we missed her," Christine bit her lip, twirling a strand of her hair between her fingers.

"I doubt it—someone wearing a bright red Starfleet uniform would stand out. We would've seen her," Nyota answered, "C'mon, Chris, just relax." She tugged on the back of Christine's shirt. "This might be the last time we get to do this."

"Huh. Easy for you to say," Christine told Nyota, looking back and rolling her eyes. "I still have a year left in this boring place. And I have to suffer through it alone."

Nyota didn't respond, but merely laid back down on the grass, thinking.

She felt a little bad for Christine. All of Christine's friends were either out of school or, like Nyota, graduating today.

But still.

There was a part of Nyota that felt like she was missing something—like if she left Riverside too soon, she'd lose something forever. She almost wished she could take Christine's place.

At that moment, Nyota was snapped out of her thoughts by Christine:

"Wait, is that—I think it is! It is! Janice! JAAAANIIIIICE! OVER HERE!"

Nyota opened her eyes to see Christine waving wildly to a tall, young woman standing across the field with long, dark blonde hair, wearing a red Starfleet cadet uniform.

The dark blonde woman waved back and started over to them from across the parking lot, and Christine jumped up and started running over, her flip-flops slapping against the soles of her feet.

Nyota smiled and stood as well, ambling over as Christine tackled Janice in a hug.

"You got taller!" Christine was pouting as she let go of Janice and stepped back to examine her taller friend.

Janice smiled, shaking her head. "Nah, s'the boots," she said, gesturing to her feet, tucked into a pair of shiny, black, knee-length boots. "Women's standard issue have two-inch heels."

Nyota walked over, smiling and spreading her arms, hugging Janice tight, noting that her friend felt somehow harder than before. Leaner.

"It's great to see you," she said. She let go of Janice, stepping back to get a good look at her, a thoughtful look on her face. "Jan, have you been working out?"

Janice nodded. "Yeah," she answered, "All incoming cadets were required to take some form of physical training or another. I joined the drill team." She drew the back of her hand across her forehead and unzipped her jacket to reveal a white undershirt, and shrugged the jacket off. "God, it's hot. I'd forgotten how hot it gets here; San Francisco's always covered in fog—"

"Ooh! Flex for us, Jan!" Christine interrupted, giggling madly and wrapping her small hands around one of Janice's lean arms. "C'mon, c'mon, do it! Flex for us!"

"Aww, no, Christine, I—" Janice protested modestly.

"Pleeeeease?" Christine made a puppy face, sticking out her lower lip, widening her already-huge blue eyes.

Janice exchanged a look with Nyota, who shrugged, giving Janice a wry smile.

Janice caved. "Weeeeeell…okay," she said, and flexed her biceps.

"Wow," Christine marveled. She looked up at Janice. "That's better than most of the guys I know."

At this, all three of the girls burst out laughing.

They walked out to the middle of the field again and sat down, basking in the sun, chatting, and listening as Janice told stories of her experiences at Starfleet.

"So then," Janice said, recounting a nasty bit of drama she'd witnessed in the dorms, "the door slides open and this guy stumbles out, dressed in nothing but his boxers, and somebody from inside tosses his uniform at his head, and the door slides shut. Just like that."

"Wow," said Christine, wide-eyed, lying on her stomach, propped up on her elbows, her chin in her hands, "After all that yelling and whatnot?"

Janice nodded sagely. "Yep."

"That's crazy."

"So what's been going on around here?" Janice asked, turning to Nyota, "I haven't talked to you guys since the advanced placement exams."

Nyota shrugged. "Ah, y'know, the same-old same-old. It's hot, we had to suffer through finals—"

"Hey, I'm still suffering through finals!" interjected Christine, mock-indignantly.

"—graduation stuff's been going on…I dunno. Although they postponed the graduation dance—it's this Saturday," Nyota added. "And we can bring guests."

"Lucky," Janice grinned.

Silence fell for a moment, then Nyota spoke up. "So, have you heard anything from Gaila?"

Janice's grin faded slightly. "No," she said, shaking her head, "Not since she left last August. You guys remember. She said she'd gotten some kind of off-planet job. I guess she must be really busy."

"But you'd think she'd call or something, at least!" Christine spoke up, frowning.

"Well, yes, Nyota began, diplomatically, "but Gaila could be anywhere."

"Yeah, Chris, I mean, who knows what kind of contact she'd be able to make in deep space," Janice shrugged, "She might be exploring another galaxy for all we know, or…or…" Janice trailed off, a grin spreading across her face.

"What?" Nyota asked, frowning, "Jan, what?"

Suddenly, a pair of hands clapped over Nyota's eyes and an excited female voice sounded from behind: "SURPRISE!"

In darkness, Nyota heard Christine gasp beside her, and someone lunge to the side, half-hissing, half-laughing, "SHHH!"

"Gueeeeess who!" said the voice in Nyota's ear, accompanied by the familiar scent of classic, pink bubble gum…

Nyota's stomach turned over and her heart started to race. Is it... Oh, God, it is!

She took a breath, composing herself and putting on a wry smile. "I don't know," she said, coyly, "…who is it?"

The hands lifted from Nyota's eyes and Nyota turned to see the familiar, green-skinned, red-haired figure of Gaila standing there, her hands on her hips, a grin on her face.

Janice, who had had her hand clamped over Christine's mouth, let Christine go, standing.

"GAILA!" shrieked Christine, jumping to her feet and throwing her arms around the newcomer.

Nyota stood, her mouth gaping open in a smile.

"Oh my God, what have you been doing for the past year?" demanded Christine, jumping up and down on the grass.

"Well, I'll tell ya, Chris, as long as I can get a hug from everybody else first!" Gaila grinned, ruffling Christine's short hair and looking at Nyota. She spread her arms. "Ny, c'mon, you know you want some!"

Nyota laughed and stepped forward as Gaila embraced her in a rib-cracking hug.

"Gaila, it's been too long," Nyota said, her eyes starting to fill as she hugged Gaila back.

They broke apart, Nyota's smile quivering.

"Aww, Ny, c'mon, don't—you're making me feel guilty," Gaila protested, "C'mon, unless you want a kiss too."

Despite herself, Nyota snorted.

"Well, you were out of contact for almost a year," Janice interrupted dryly, stepping forward and hugging Gaila.

"Yes, but you had no trouble finding me a week ago to tell me to get my ass back here for Ny's graduation," Gaila laughed.

"Wait—what?" asked Nyota.

"You two set this up?" demanded Christine, looking between Janice and Gaila, wide-eyed.

"Of course we did," Gaila told Christine, "How else would I know where to sneak up on you?"

Nyota gave an incredulous laugh.

"Did you get taller, Jan?" Gaila asked, looking up at Janice.

"No, it's the boots," Janice replied, gesturing to her feet.

"I thought so," Gaila laughed.

"But she got muscles!" Christine interjected.

"Is that so?" Gaila looked back at Janice, who shrugged and flexed. "Very nice."

Nyota smiled, feeling her tears recede. It was just like old times. "So what happened to you?" she asked Gaila, "For crying out loud, you look like a pirate!"

She gestured to Gaila's outfit, which consisted of a tan pair of ripped jeans, a white, sleeveless undershirt, and a tight, brown, leather lace-up vest, not to mention the myriad bracelets around her wrists, the silver hoops in her ears, and the heavy leather boots on her feet.

Gaila shrugged, looking over her choice of clothing. "Just an off-planet fad, I guess," she said, smiling.

"Well, tell us about your job!" Christine prompted, tugging on Gaila's arm and taking a seat on the grass.

Nyota, Janice and Gaila all sat down in a circle, and Gaila began to describe what she'd been doing for the last eleven months.

"Well," she began, "I've been off-planet, first of all, and I haven't really had the opportunity to contact anyone. I got a job for Galactic Outdoor Adventures, as a guide, and a pilot."

"Galactic Outdoor Adventures?" asked Janice, raising her eyebrows, "Sounds a bit cheesy."

"Well, it is a tourist service," Gaila shrugged. "Basically what I do is I pilot a small ship carrying a group of usually six to eight passengers to different locations throughout the galaxy, and then I serve as their guide, depending on what we're doing at the location—white-water rafting, rappelling, solar-surfing—"

"Solar-surfing?" Nyota interrupted.

"Like hoverboarding, only better," Gaila said dreamily, "You guys have not lived until you've surfed at the solar cliffs on D'zaren Four."

"So…are you a guide for everything you do?" asked Janice, "I mean, you'd have to be an expert in every outdoor sport your tour's doing…"

"I'm not," Gaila said, "There are other guides at the locations who know what they're doing—usually I'm just along for the ride, although I've picked up a few skills."

"What happened to your arm?" asked Nyota, noticing a long, thin, pale-green scar stretching across Gaila's left shoulder.

Gaila glanced down at the scar and ran a finger over it thoughtfully. "That?" she asked, "Oh, just a scratch."

"Looks like a little more than a scratch," Janice said, raising her eyebrows, unconvinced.

"Well," Gaila began, "it happened while I was with a group."

"What happened?" Nyota asked.

"I slipped and sliced my arm open on a rock," Gaila told them, "I actually got really lucky—there was a guy on the tour who specialized in Terran medical history, and he sewed it up for me."

"'Sewed it up'?" asked Nyota, frowning, "Like, with a needle and thread?"

Gaila nodded. "He was really good at it, too. Like he'd done it before."

Christine's eyes went wide. "You mean he did it the old-fashionedway?" she gasped, "Oh my God, Gaila, that's really dangerous! I mean, people were doing that way back in the twentieth century, for crying out loud! You could've gotten an infection from that!"

"Well, Chris, it was either that or bleed out and die," Gaila told Christine, shrugging. "We had no access to a real hospital."

"Oh." Christine went faintly pink and closed her mouth.

"What I'd like to know is what kind of person specializes in Terran medical history?" asked Janice.

"Rich wackos," Gaila declared, laying back on the grass.

When her friends sent her questioning looks, she returned a knowing smile.

"What? It costs a lot of money to go gallivanting billions of miles across the galaxy for a vacation."

"Touché," Janice said.

"So what have you been doing at Starfleet?" asked Gaila of her, rolling onto her side and looking up at Janice questioningly.

"Majoring in logistics," Janice answered, "Not to mention looking after Pavel."

"Oh yeah, he's there too!" Christine realized.

"Chris, he practically got recruited out of his sophomore year," said Gaila. She grinned at Janice. "Didn't know you were a cougar."

"Well, it's not like I'm dating the kid!" Janice laughed back. "I felt kind of bad for him—he's the youngest person in Starfleet, by far."

"What's he doing for the break?" asked Nyota.

Janice looked up suddenly. "I didn't tell you?" she asked.

The others shook their heads.

"Oh. Well, he's here," Janice said, "He came back with me on the shuttle from San Francisco. He's coming for the graduation."

"I haven't talked to Pavel in ages," Nyota said, gazing up at the sky, "We oughta go say hi." She looked back at Janice. "Do you know where he is right now?"

Janice shrugged. "No," she answered, "he's probably off wandering the school, or else with his family. I couldn't say."

"Let me go! I'm warning you, let me go! I am not a student—you are going—oww! You'll regret this! HEY!"

The boy stumbled, his foot catching on the floor as he was shoved into the small space before him.

"Enjoy your stay, kid!" snorted the dim-witted voice behind him, and, with a metal clang, the boy was plunged into darkness.

"YOU WILL REGRET THIS!" the boy shouted as he heard his attackers walking away, laughing.

"The janitor'll probably be back to let you out around midnight!" a voice called back at him, and the group of bullies broke into laughter again, fainter now.

Then all was quiet.

The boy huffed a sigh, resting his head against the locker door, the familiar feel of cold metal on his forehead.

I can't believe it, he thought, It's been a year, and I still fit in these damned things.

As usual, there was only one thing to do.

Muttering a Russian curse under his breath, he shifted to the side, remembering the familiar position, and started to bang on the locker door, shouting:

"Hello? Is anybody there? Hello!"

"Pilot training, eh?" asked Montgomery Scott as he walked through the halls of Riverside High School, his hands in his pockets, a grin on his face.

"Yep," answered Hikaru Sulu, walking beside him. "S'gonna be the best thing that's ever happened to me."

"Well, I always figured ye for an adrenaline junkie," Scotty laughed, "I mean—junior year trip tae Disneyland—ye must have bloody dragged me onto the Screamer five times in a row!"

"Six," corrected Hikaru.

"Either way, I puked," Scotty told him matter-of-factly.

Hikaru snorted. "Well yeah, but it was no fault of mine. You were the one who insisted on stopping for ice cream."

"Whatever. You're still an adrenaline junkie."

They turned a corner into the quad, crossing the empty space and heading for the history wing.

"Yeah," Hikaru agreed, looking up at the sky, shrugging, "…I dunno. It's not just the adrenaline. I wanna be in space."

Scotty looked at him. "Jes' tae be in space?" he asked.

"Just to be out there," Hikaru nodded. "Surrounded by the unknown. Somewhere where I can look out a window and see nothing but stars, stretching on forever. That's gonna be the coolest thing." His pace slowed and he stared up at the sky, just stared, and fell silent.

Scotty blinked at him. "Ah…ye still with me, Hikaru?"

Hikaru looked back at Scotty as if snapped out of a daze. "Yeah. Sorry. Just a little caught up."

Scotty grinned. "I think ye've got a little bit o' sailor blood in ye, lad, if ye know what I mean. Call o' the sea, an' all that?"

"So to speak," chuckled Hikaru.

"So how's your family taking it?" Scotty asked. "I mean, it's not as if it's gonna be all fun and games. It'll be dangerous."

"I know that," Hikaru said, "After years of my dad coming home with crazy stories about his missions? Do I ever." He shrugged. "They're used to it. My mom wants to move onto my dad's ship once Yumiko's out of the house."

"How's Yumiko takin' it?" asked Scotty.

Hikaru grinned. "She's insanely jealous. Keeps saying how lucky I am. But she's used to it too. We all are."

There was a short pause, and then Hikaru asked, "So what about you? What are you majoring in?"

"Engineering," Scotty answered.

"Might've known," Hikaru said. "How's your family taking it?"

Scotty shrugged. "They want me tae go," he said, "All of 'em. I mean, you know me dad… always talkin' 'bout university and getting' an education and whatnot, and me mum's right behind him, a'course…Me older brother and sister keep sayin' it's the greatest thing they've ever done." He shrugged again.

Hikaru looked at his friend, waiting. When Scotty said nothing, he asked, "So what about you?"

"Me?" asked Scotty, "Oh, I dunno…"

They turned the corner into the locker hallway.

"…I'm the first one in me family who's been tae Starfleet," he told Hikaru, "I'm kind of takin' everybody's word for it that it's gonna be fantastic. I jes' dunno what tae expect…" Scotty trailed off, hesitating, but then continued: "…but I guess I canna imagine meself anywhere else, can I?" he asked, smiling at Hikaru.

They stopped in the middle of the hall.

Hikaru put a hand on Scotty's shoulder, smiling back.

"Scotty," he said, "I know it's gonna be fun."

There was silence for a moment as they resumed walking, Hikaru removing his hand from Scotty's shoulder.

Then Scotty stopped again. "D'ye hear that?" he asked.

Hikaru stopped as well, listening. "Yeah," he said, "I do."

Coming from somewhere down the hall was a faint, metallic banging.

"What is…" Scotty trailed off, recognition dawning on his face, "…oh. I know what that is. It's some kid what's got himself stuck in a locker." He put on a grimace. "Come on—he's probably missin' a final or somethin'."

Hikaru nodded and they started off in the direction of the banging. He smiled a little.

"What?" asked Scotty, noticing.

"Oh, I was just thinking," said Hikaru, "Remember how Pavel used to get stuffed into lockers? Back before he went to Starfleet?"

Scotty grinned, remembering. "Oh yeah," he said, "seemed like he'd be in there once a week, at least."

"And yet he still managed to be the best in all of his classes…"

"And all that stuff he did with Tobias? Hacking into the system and putting a load of porn ontae the hologram in his locker? Genius, that. Kid's got spirit."

"You're telling me. I had him tutoring me in differential equations."

At that moment, Hikaru and Scotty both trailed off, stopping in their tracks as they heard a familiar voice to accompany the metallic banging:

"Hello? For the last time, I am not a student! It is wery dark in here! Hello?"

Scotty and Hikaru exchanged a glance.

"Ye don't think—" Scotty began.

"I think so," Hikaru finished.

Grins spread across their faces.

"Come on!" Hikaru said, and started running toward the source of the banging.

Scotty followed, and the two of them arrived at a locker at the end of the hall, once impeccably clean, now slightly dented and plastered with stickers.

"This used tae be Janice's locker!" Scotty said as he jogged up beside Hikaru. "Somebody sure screwed it up, didn't they? I'll call her, see if she ken remember th' combination. It's been a year, but she jes' might—"

"No need," Hikaru answered, punching in the code on the keypad, "I know it."

"How d'ye know it?" Scotty asked, curiously.

"Ah…well…" Hikaru grinned sheepishly, "Maybe some other time."

The light on the keypad shone green and the lock clicked, and Hikaru pulled open the locker.

His and Scotty's faces lit up, and they exclaimed in unison: "Pavel!"

Sure enough, his shirt rumpled, his hair askew, a thoroughly irritated expression on his young face, Pavel Chekov stepped out of the cramped space, huffing:

"You would not believe what I have been through today!"