Spock's emotions were a mystery. Uhura had become accustomed to having only limited access to the bond; not long after she'd been changed what was once a true blending of their very beings had quickly been reduced to a mere sense of his presence somewhere at the back of her mind. But this was something new entirely. Now, though her hand was engulfed by his, Uhura had no idea what he was currently feeling. His shielding was far more absolute than her bungled attempt to protect their son moments before.

She didn't know if he was punishing her or trying to protect himself, but the pain of the loss was almost physical.

____________________

Spock hadn't been properly equipped to meet the Omo Odùduwà, she admitted to herself. That was her fault. She had been too excited about the mission - one of the few deemed safe enough for them to share since Sanek was born - to realize she hadn't been prepared, either.

Of course no one had questioned Uhura's decision to prepare him for the mission to Gama Ilé-Ifé, herself. Why should they? She was a Wakufunzi on her mother's side. There were no better scholars on African civilizations and languages than the members of that famous family. Moreover, she was Chief Communications Officer on Starfleet's flagship; Spock was its First Officer and her husband.

Although the communications chief often headed the anthropology staff on ships with a general exploration mission, Uhura never worried that Carmen Hargrove, the ship's lead anthropologist, might be reluctant to disagree with her boss. That wasn't how she ran her teams.

"I'm relieved, actually," the woman told her with a laugh. "U.S.A. cultures aren't my specialty. You're saving me nights of research."

Uhura grinned, shaking her head. "You don't get off that easily. The rest of the landing party still has to be briefed."

Hargrove shrugged. "Yeah, but not as intensively as Commander Spock."

That much was true. McCoy and Kirk and the two security officers hadn't needed to learn the intricacies and hierarchies of traditional Yoruba religion.

The baálě of Gamma Ilé-Ifé had specifically requested that "Nyota bint Wakufunzi" be part of the delegation sent to evaluate the colony's need for new manufactured goods and updated technology. As her consort Spock would be made equally welcome.

Had she known more, the mission would have been less work and more like shore leave.

____________________

Sixty-three days ago...
the headman met them as soon as they beamed down.

"T'nar pak sorat, Nyota bint Wakufunzi," he said after welcoming the captain and the doctor.

Smiling as she bowed and replied, "T'nar jaral, Baálě Ayodele," Uhura watched Spock from the corner of her eye. Only she took note of his surprise that the greeting had been in Vulcan. She hoped her own shock was as well hidden.

Federation universal translators all used a Standard base. There had been no telltale split second of hesitation between the movement of the baálě's mouth and sound reaching her ears. Further more, his lips had shaped the words he had spoken.

Spock noticed, as well.

"Your accent suggests you speak my native tongue with fluency, Baálě Ayodele," he said in that language.

Turning to Spock, the baálě reverted to Standard, although he held up his hand in the ta'al. "Of course! You have arrived in time for our celebration of Eshu-Elegbara. It would be an insult to him if we did not honor his paths."

He led the small group through the city to the beautiful home where they would be quartered.

"The orishas are more potent on this planet," Ayodele explained. "They are more present. And in this city, Eshu is felt more than the rest."

"Tradition is very important to the Children," the city chief continued. "Though we are the children of his rival, we honor Obàtálá as our creator at Olódùmarè's will. Just as we honor Olódùmarè as the Supreme.

"But as we are so far from the soils of Yorubaland, we cannot afford to forget Eshu-Elegbara."

Spock nodded his understanding.

Eshu was a deity of many attributes; protecting travelers and facilitating communication were only two of his responsibilities.

Uhura followed her husband's line of thought easily.

"Before you decide that Eshu is a logical choice, remember, he is also a trickster, a bringer of chaos," she whispered, smiling.

The baálě grinned broadly. "Ah, but you must also remember that he is a fertility orisha, and that the Children of Oduduwa must fill this world with children."

"Perhaps," Spock said dryly, "it was not a wise choice to include the captain in this assignment."

Kirk gave a grunt of protest, but the baálě joined Len in laughter, saying, "You are welcome to take part in all of our celebrations, Captain."

__________

The ceremony was fascinating. Uhura wanted to remember everything and was pleased that the Omo Odùduwà had given consent for her to record it.

Colonists praised Eshu in song and dance and stories that showcased his prowess, illustrated his exploits. She felt a kinship with the colonists as they exalted his powers as a linguist. Olódùmarè's messenger knew all the languages of men.

The very air seemed to vibrate with a different kind of energy as they moved on to Eshu's attribute as a bringer of fertility. Predictably, Kirk was caught up in the spectacle. But the rest of the landing party was not unaffected.

Spock whispered in her ear of things he usually left unspoken and augmented the meaning of his words with impressions through their bond.

"That's how we ended up with Sanek!" she whispered back as she leaned into his uncharacteristic public embrace.

Unrepentant, he replied, "Sanek might benefit from a companion."

But eventually, the revelry was replaced by a sense of anticipation.

"The orishas are more potent on this planet. They are more present."

And then Eshu was... there.

As legend described him, he was small, but handsome and visibly wise. He stepped through the silence to stand before the newcomers.

"Welcome, Daughter of Wakufunzi," he said in Kiswahili. "And Daughter of Eshu."

She could feel Spock struggling through the bewildering web of hunger that still held him. "My wife is a daughter Benjamin," he said.

"I am not worthy of your distinction, Eshu-Elegbara," Uhura cut in, hoping that the implied praise would offset her husband's apparent arrogance.

"Do you not carry messages between worlds? Are you not a speaker of many tongues? No matter that you are from the East. You are mine all the same."

She tried to think of a suitable reply. Something that would also give her husband a chance to recover his manners.

But Spock's curiosity proved stronger than his powers of observation and he continued with, "What entitles you to claim that which is not yours? If you are truly Eshu, you are not a Wakufunzi or an Uhura. If you are not a Wakufunzi or an Uhura, how can you claim my wife as yours. Your logic is faulty at best."

Eshu's faced darkened with anger. He turned back to her.

"Because it was your consort's action that truly saved Oduduwa's children, his penalty will be not be harsh. But I cannot resist an opportunity to teach a greatly needed lesson."

She didn't notice the difference right away. There were no flashing lights. No dizziness or pain.

Only the overpowering compulsion to close her eyes.

Even after she opened them again, and saw Spock, Kirk and McCoy all staring at her from what seemed to be a great height, Uhura didn't understand.

But when her gaze floated over to Eshu, and she realized that now he also towered over her, comprehension began to eke its way through her mind. Disbelief and her Starfleet training kept her from panicking.

"You did say your son could use a companion, did you not?" The orisha didn't wait for an answer, just laughed riotously and turned his back on them.

____________________

Uhura gripped Spock's hand as they entered the transporter room. The bond was a shadow of what it had been. His feelings were as indecipherable to her as they were to any of their colleagues.

And she could only blame herself.

_________________________________________________________________

"Omo Odùduwà" means Children of Oduduwa, and is only one of the names the Yoruba people use for themselves. Olódùmarè is the supreme deity. Obàtálá, Odùduwà's brother and greatest rival, created humans at Olódùmarè's direction. But the people's first empire was founded under Odùduwà. Very little of this matter to the story.

Eshu is another deity, or orisha, in the Yoruba tradition. He is a spirit-being connected to (among many other things) communication, fertility, death and chaos.

_________________________________________________________________

Chapter title comes from:

If Blame be My Side, Emily Dickinson

If Blame be my side-forfeit Me-
But doom me not to forfeit Thee-
To forfeit Thee? The very name
Is sentence from Belief-and House-