The relief Dr. McCoy had felt when the landing party had beamed aboard from Triskelion had quickly turned to rage upon hearing Uhura’s request for Nurse Chapel to conduct her checkup in her quarters. At first, McCoy couldn’t understand why Uhura would want that, but then he saw Chekov’s head hang and Kirk’s jaw clench (he didn’t even deign to look at Spock), and then the reason hit him in the gut like a photon torpedo.

McCoy forced himself to look at Uhura, hoping compassion was hiding his other, more volatile emotions. “Would you mind if I checked on you later myself?”

Uhura gave him a small, shaky smile and shook her head. McCoy nodded and pierced Chapel with a look that said he wanted a full report when she was done with the examination.

Aside from the normal beeps and whirs of the ship and sickbay, it was eerily silent. Chekov all but high-tailed it out of there when McCoy deemed him physically fit and Kirk granted his request to return to his post. McCoy still had yet to look at his other patient or the First Officer.

“Bones—”

“Don’t, Jim,” McCoy said quietly, swallowing thickly. He wanted to cuss out someone; he wanted to throw something; he wanted to make sure Uhura was all right. But she didn’t want that right now, because something had happened to her.

“She had a thrall,” Kirk said quietly. “Big, huge guy, strong as hell. I heard—”

He stopped talking and cleared his throat.

“Captain, do you require me on the bridge?”

Kirk breathed deeply. “No, I don’t think so.”

“Then I shall be in my quarters,” Spock said, then left without explicit permission from anyone. His face was the ever-present mask of nothingness, and McCoy wanted to throttle him. Instead, he tightened his hand over the back of a chair and listened to the door hiss open and closed at Spock’s exit.

“He’s either going to meditate or do some Suus mahna down in the gym,” Kirk muttered. “Probably wishes he could do that tal-shaya thing on someone.”

“I know I do. Not supposed to do harm, but I’d feel much better if I could snap somebody’s neck!” McCoy ground out through clenched teeth.

McCoy heard Kirk breathe deeply. “Bones…there was nothing I could do—”

“I’m sure.”

“She seemed all right—”

“You should know by now Uhura wouldn’t let on something was wrong. This is the same woman who would’ve kept working with a concussion if it hadn’t caught up to her! Same woman who you let go off by herself on a hostile Enterprise so we could get back home! She’s as dedicated to the mission as you are, Jim.”

“But at what cost?”

McCoy finally turned around to look at Kirk. He appeared tortured, but McCoy didn’t have any grand words of wisdom for his captain right then. Kirk turned troubled gold eyes to him, but McCoy only shook his head and shrugged.

“I’m good to go?” Kirk asked.

McCoy glanced at the readout above Kirk’s bed. “Yeah, just…give Spock a wide berth.”

“As wide as possible.”

“And apologize to Uhura,” McCoy said.

Kirk opened his mouth to say something, but then closed it and nodded, leaving sickbay like someone had kicked his puppy right in front of him before dropping it off a cliff.

McCoy holed himself in his office, just sitting there and waiting for Nurse Chapel to return. He recalled the scene that had come up on the viewscreen when the Enterprise had reached Triskelion. He could remember his knees weakening in relief, then that brief irritation that Spock had been right again, and then trepidation at the bargain Jim had struck with the Providers and anxiousness because he wasn’t down there to give immediate medical attention. He had only spared bare worry for Uhura and Chekov as they’d looked fine to the naked eye. But what scars did they carry? Chekov was all right physically and, from what he could see, mentally as well. But Uhura?

McCoy sat up straighter when Nurse Chapel entered his office. Her mouth was set into a thin line and her cheeks were flushed. Her eyes were a little watery, and McCoy balled up his hands into fists.

“She wasn’t raped,” Chapel said immediately.

McCoy didn’t relax a muscle. “But?”

“There’s bruising,” Chapel said, looking away to take a deep breath. “Her neck, arms, breasts, inner thighs, ribs. Not to mention what her mental bruises look like. I recommend she be off duty for a few days.”

“I hope you didn’t tell her that,” McCoy said.

Nurse Chapel managed a shaky smile. “No, I gave her something so she could sleep.”

“Good. Thank you, Nurse,” McCoy said, looking down at his desk. “I’ll take that into consideration.”

Chapel nodded and left his office.

After McCoy’s “shift” ended, he went to the mess hall to get some chicken noodle soup,two bowls. He carried the tray out and to Uhura’s room, buzzing her door. She didn’t answer, so he punched in the medical override and entered. Setting the tray on her desk, he went around to her sleeping alcove.

Curled into a ball, Uhura’s eyes were furrowed and she shook and jerked abruptly as if she were fighting off something. McCoy clenched his jaw so tightly he was sure he’d break his molars, but he approached the bed anyway and risked a tender touch to her cheek. Uhura opened her eyes immediately, and the tears that had filled them made McCoy sit on the bed and clutch her to his chest.

“You’re all right now, darlin’, you’re safe,” he whispered.

Uhura clutched and clung to him, her breath ragged and hot against his neck. The silk of her nightgown did little to relieve the clammy sweat on her person, but McCoy just rubbed her back in soothing strokes and whispered nonsense into the room.

“I was so terrified,” Uhura whispered.

“That’s understandable, m’dear,” McCoy promised, brushing his lips against her temple.

“He was so big…so strong…gods, I was so scared!” Uhura cried and hiccupped. “All the Starfleet training in the world wouldn’t have been enough!”

McCoy didn’t say anything, just rocked her and kissed her gently and random intervals.

“And the Captain told us to get into our Thrall’s good graces, and I wondered if he truly understood what that meant! But that was the only way we could make a break for it, and I had to…oh, Len, what have I done?”

He wanted to ask exactly what, but he refrained. Instead he said, “You did what you had to do to survive.”

“I let him touch me….do things to me. My skin crawls just thinking about it!”

“Then don’t, Uhura,” McCoy said, pulling back so he could look into her eyes. “You’re here now, safe. Remember when we were lost in space with Cochrane? You all but told Scotty you’d search every rock this galaxy had to find us. Spock was the same way. He even followed a hunch to get to you!”

She blinked at him in confusion. “A hunch?”

McCoy grinned, brushing away a tear with a thumb. “Yes. He cloaked it in logic, but I knew what it was. Gave him grief about it, too, thinking you were back on Gamma II, but he was right…”

Uhura tucked her head in the crook of his neck and breathed deeply. “I hope he forgives me.”

McCoy frowned. “There’s nothing to forgive, Nyota. You aren’t in the wrong here.”

“But—”

“No, and don’t ever fix your mouth to say something so idiotic again!” McCoy warned.

She merely nodded and snuggled further into him.

They sat quietly for who knew how long. Uhura’s hand clutched his tunic while he hummed softly and rubbed her back in soft circles. After an appropriate interval, he spoke again.

“I’d brought some soup, but it’s probably cold now.”

“That’s okay. Thank you,” she replied.

“You will be eating it, darlin’.”

She managed a hoarse chuckle, and the sound gladdened his heart. “Doctor’s orders?”

“Friend’s request too.”

She pulled back and framed his face in her hands. “You’re so good to me, Leonard.”

He nodded, the teasing light in his eyes gone. “I love you, Nyota. You know that.”

She started to speak, but he pressed his fingers to her lips. “You don’t have to say anything. It’s freely given. Few people in the world I’d do anything for, and you’re one of them.”

“The first being Joanna,” Uhura said against his fingertips.

McCoy smiled. “Yes.”

“Then the captain, then Spock,” Uhura added, arching a challenging eyebrow.

McCoy harrumphed but didn’t deny her claim. “Pointed-eared bastard.”

“Oh, Leonard, you know his parents were married!”

He sighed and patted Uhura lightly on the bum. “Yes, well, bully for Lady Amanda having to put up with that Vulcan logic and unemotionalism all the time.”

“They make it work,” Uhura said quietly.

McCoy heard the doubt in her voice and he wrapped his arms around her waist from behind. “So will you and Spock,” he said softly into her ear.

Uhura squeezed his wrists before going over to the soup to eat.

Every night for the next few days McCoy took his meals with Uhura in her quarters. She’d not been on duty for the same length of time; and though she wasn’t entirely pleased to be off work, she understood why he’d ordered it. It wasn’t just for her benefit, but for the captain’s and Chekov’s as well. The Ensign had stopped by the night before to play cards with them, but neither the captain nor Spock had visited to his knowledge. Uhura didn’t seem to mind the absence, and McCoy reminded himself everyone dealt with situations at his own individual pace.

He just wished those two would quicken their steps a bit.

In the meantime, after a dinner of beef stroganoff, Uhura took out her lute and began to sing. If it was a song he knew, McCoy would join her, and he’d smile at the delight that would infuse Uhura’s features. After the second impromptu duet, Uhura spoke.

“You have a lovely voice, Len!”

McCoy blushed and shook his head. “Yeah, well…yeah…”

Uhura laughed and gave him a pointed look. “You’ll have to perform with me one day.”

McCoy’s scowl was immediate. “What do I look like singing in front of a crowd?”

“Very handsome and talented,” Uhura insisted.

McCoy’s expression softened and he shook his head. “You could charm the bark off a tree, couldn’t you?”

Their laughter abruptly halted when her doors swished open to reveal the captain and first officer. McCoy stood while Uhura remained sitting, holding her lute tightly against his chest. Spock’s eyes went directly to Uhura right before he himself did, and he dropped to his knees before her. Neither spoke when Spock removed the lute from her grasp so he could hold her hands in his. His mouth pressed a firm kiss to her knuckles before he dropped his forehead upon them. Letting out a shuddering breath, Uhura rested her forehead against the top of Spock’s head and started to hum, of all things, “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star”. What shocked McCoy more, however, was when Spock released Uhura’s hands to wrap his arms tightly around her waist and pressed his cheek against her chest, eyes closed and his face pinched with such emotion McCoy couldn’t even begin to fathom of what.

“C’mon, Bones, let’s give them a minute,” Kirk said.

He wanted to grab the dishes, but he didn’t want to break their moment. Nodding, McCoy followed Kirk out of Uhura’s quarters and onto the lift.

“Sickbay,” Kirk said.

McCoy’s eyebrows rose. “Sickbay?”

Kirk’s grin was wry and flashed of discomfort. “Went to talk to Spock; he invited me to spar.” Kirk grunted and gingerly touched his side. “Said everything he needed to say.”

McCoy only barely managed to keep the smile from his face and indicated for Kirk to precede him out the lift. “And what about Uhura?”

Kirk snorted and entered sickbay. “I’ll be sure to have you with me when I go apologize to her for emergency resuscitation!”

McCoy allowed himself to chuckle. He didn’t bother to say Uhura didn’t blame him and never would; besides, Kirk put enough blame on himself for seven Uhuras.

Sighing, Kirk got onto a biobed and McCoy tended to his injuries. When done, Kirk remained reclined and put his hands behind his head.

“I don’t think I can go through that again, Bones,” he said softly. “Her screams…” Kirk shuddered. “I don’t think I could go through that again.”

“She’s a trained Starfleet officer, Jim,” McCoy said roughly, even though in his heart of hearts he completely agreed with Kirk’s train of thought.

“She’s much more than that, Leonard,” Kirk said, pinning McCoy with those golden eyes. “And all the gender equality in the galaxy won’t change that fact for me.”

McCoy nodded. “Or me.”

“Or Spock.”

They let that affirmation settle in silence.