Rating: R
Genres: angst romance humour
Keywords: bond
This story has been read by 1389 people.
This story has been read 2110 times.
Genre: Romance, humor, angst, sex toys
Rating: R for adult themes, nothing explicit
Disclaimer: All things Star Trek belong to CBS/Paramount, not me.
Author's Note: Mulder and Scully had vibrator stories (not written by me), and by gum I think it's about time Trip and T'Pol have one. Well, maybe they already do, but I haven't come across any. And seeing as how Trip is an engineer, I think he'd tend to imagine possible mechanical solutions to problems...
"What is it?" T'Pol was staring down at the smooth metal object in her hand. It looked like...
"It's called a vibrator," Trip said.
She raised an eyebrow.
He reached over and twisted the base. Indeed, it began to vibrate.
"What purpose does this serve?"
Tucker smiled and raised his eyebrows. "Can't you guess?"
She had learned some time ago that it was not a good idea to guess about anything having to do with sex. Trip might dissolve into a fit of hysterical laughter, or he might sulk for days. It was impossible to predict. So she just looked at him and waited.
He turned pink. "It helps a woman have a good time. Thus the shape. Well, not just women, I guess."
"Why would I require such an item?"
"I'm not saying you do. At all." He smiled. "But, um..." He swallowed hard. "With this, you definitely don't need me to have a good time."
She stared at him. Was he - what was the word - dumping her? And providing this... this tool in return?
He brushed his hand softly on her cheek. "I'd like to know that we're together because the whole relationship matters to you, not just this. So... here's another option for you. If this does the trick, and you don't really need all the rest of it...."
She sank down onto the bunk.
"T'Pol?" he said.
"If you do not wish to continue our relationship, I hardly require a mechanical substitute."
"I didn't say I didn't want to continue our relationship. I just want to know that we have a relationship that consists of more than sex."
"I would have thought that was self-evident."
He stared sadly down at her. "Not to me. I mean, I know we have this bond, and I know we're friends and colleagues, and I know we had Elizabeth... I guess I just want to know if we're more than just ... you know, all that ... with benefits."
She looked up at him. The vast gulf between Vulcan and Human was so wide sometimes that it filled her with pessimism. "And all that is not sufficient?"
"I thought it would be," he said, gesturing with his hands. "But I'm not sure anymore. Because I'm not sure what all that is. Two Humans would talk about how much they love each other, but you can't do that. Humans would make plans to have a family together, or they would get married, or at least announce to the world that they are couple, and you don't seem too interested in any of that, either. I don't know what Vulcans do, but whatever it is I don't see any sign that you're doing it with me. So I figured a logical test would be to see what happens if you have a way to achieve sexual satisfaction without me."
"Sexual satisfaction is largely irrelevant in Vulcan relationships. Vulcans mate for life."
"Okay, but I'm not Vulcan."
"But I am."
"So what are you saying, T'Pol? That we're mated for life? End of story?"
"I don't know, because you are not Vulcan, although you do seem to suffer some of the symptoms associated with a mate bond. However, you also seem to feel a metal object can serve as a satisfactory substitute for a mate. Apparently, among humans one's relationship depends largely upon the satisfactory achievement of orgasms."
He rolled his eyes. "You're not getting it at all. For a mate, maybe yes - or maybe getting a kid out of it, if you want to look at it biologically. But for the love of your life, that's not what matters. At least, that's not what it's all about. It's about commitment. "
"Commitment is irrelevant among Vulcans. You are mated, or you are not. Commitment implies a choice."
Tucker's face scrunched up in frustration. "Which is exactly what's driving me crazy! Here I am, and I'm supposed to commit to a woman who doesn't have the freedom to choose me - she's just stuck."
"I suppose that is essentially the case," T'Pol said. "And this bothers you."
"Yes!"
"So, you wish to 'break up' and give me this tool instead."
"No. No. That's not what I wish. Of course not. This is just an ... an... exploration."
For the first time, T'Pol understood how insulting that word must have seemed to him at that breakfast table so long ago. "And I am your lab rat," she said.
He stared at her for a long moment. "Look. I love you. I love you with all my heart. I just want to know that you love me too. Is that so much to ask?"
She considered just saying, "Of course I love you," since that apparently was all he needed to hear, but she just couldn't bring herself to do it. It would feel too false. "I can try to show you exactly what you mean to me, but it will mean that you will have access to all of it - not just the affection, but the frustrations and the disappointments as well. And I will see the same from you. Are you truly willing to experience this?"
"You're talking about a mind meld?"
"Yes. I am not sure it is a good idea. I am not sure our relationship will survive. It is possible that there are some things better left unknown about one's partner."
"All I know is that I need more than this."
She swallowed. It seemed there was no other option. She lifted her hand to his face, spread her fingers, closed her eyes, felt for that ineffable whisper of another's katra. "My mind to your mind..."
She felt her consciousness slip into that essence that was so familiar but so much stronger here and immediately she felt the love the need the hurt the anger the hunger to know the immense frustration the helpless desire to possess and yes she wanted to be possessed she wanted him to possess her so she gave a little gasp and let her own barriers down, gave him access to all of it, to the great shameful naked morass of her own needs and wants.
And all the time in the back of her mind she was thinking that if this didn't work, if this had been a disastrously bad idea, if he left her now, she would just die.
Oh his voice said in her head, oh no, sweetheart beloved darling my heart, and then they were both gasping back to themselves.
"Why didn't you just say so?" he said.
"Say what?"
"That you would want to die."
"I believe that would have had the effect of coercing your continued involvement."
"Then you're not so different after all," he said. "You want me to be here because I want to be here."
"I suppose."
He stepped forward to kiss her. They kissed long and hard. Mind melds were no substitute for this.
They broke apart breathlessly. "I do not believe I will be requiring your vibrating device after all," she said.
He grinned. "That doesn't mean it can't still come in handy," he said, and lifted his hand to unzip her catsuit. "You might just be surprised at what a fine piece of equipment can do in the hands of a talented engineer."
She shivered in anticipation. "Show me," she said.
THE END
I didn't expect that! You took me by surprise and I liked it! Your picturesque description of the mind meld with the omission of commas helped me to visualize the oddity of this event, the streams of their consciousness and the moment of the transfer from their usual dialog to something different. That was a first mind meld between Trip and T'Pol in your story, and a first time could not be a usual talk only inside their brains.
You depicted so well T'Pol's apprehension of the meld results and her realization that it is her best option in the satisfactory solution of this situation. I am not a Vulcan myself but I have often preferred to give my friends a written vision of the crucial issues rather than to have a verbal discussion. There are things that it is difficult to express by word of mouth.
I didn't expect that! You took me by surprise and I liked it! Your picturesque description of the mind meld with the omission of commas helped me to visualize the oddity of this event, the streams of their consciousness and the moment of the transfer from their usual dialog to something different. That was a first mind meld between Trip and T'Pol in your story, and a first time could not be a usual talk only inside their brains.
You depicted so well T'Pol's apprehension of the meld results and her realization that it is her best option in the satisfactory solution of this situation. I am not a Vulcan myself but I have often preferred to give my friends a written vision of the crucial issues rather than to have a verbal discussion. There are things that it is difficult to express by word of mouth.
It caught me by surprise. I thought it was going to be a (naughty) one-shot and it turned to be a more serious fic. No fair ;)
I like their misunderstanding (that's one of the things I feel compelling about TnT) and I think you've done a good job making clear their respective position. Trip must feel that "we're bonded, that's it" isn't enough for him. We Humans need to choose, to know that we've been chosen, not just something that has to happen because nature says so. Hence, Trip's insecurity. Vulcans, on the other side, don't understand why you have to choose. We're bonded, you can't do anything to prevent it. And it's definitive. If you fight it it means that you don't want it. Hence, T'Pol's insecurity.
About the experiment with the meld... well, writting thoughts like with telepathy is always very complicated. It can work or not, that depends on the reader. It worked for me. I would be even less incoherent, writting random feelings in the middle, so imagine :D
Anyway, I like it and I love the ending. So being an Engineer has other advantages too. LOL!
PS: Your comment about Mirage makes it look more naughty than it is :p
LOL!!! :p
Well, I enjoyed it for what it was. A comment on cultural misunderstandings. And also this line cracked me up
She had learned some time ago that it was not a good idea to guess about anything having to do with sex. Trip might dissolve into a fit of hysterical laughter, or he might sulk for days. It was impossible to predict. So she just looked at him and waited.
I'm on board with trying something different. And who knows this may teach T'Pol the value of having plenty of batteries on hand.
I think it's fair to call this little ditty an experiment rather than something I'm deeply passionate about ... and I probably wouldn't consider it my truest portroyal of Trip either. Arguably I should have just kept it comic and ignored the whole do-you-really-love-me thing. On the other hand, I really could see where Trip might begin to wonder if T'Pol mostly just wants to get laid, especially if she resists any official commitments. Or maybe I should have given her some sexual responsiveness issues for them to deal with ... certainly a vibrator would be a fairly common way to deal with that if one consulted any experts on the subject.
The punctuation in the mind meld was an experiment too. Tried it both ways, and ultimately decided I wanted it to be a little disorienting, as I imagine it would be inside someone's brain.
At any rate, onward and upward... right now I'm just indulging in TnT fic while I still can. Thanks for the reviews, all.
Hey Alelou, I really liked this story... like with the caviot that I have sometimes disagreed with how "needy" Trip is portrayed sometimes... even though I'm not even sure that's a fair criticism for me to make because I portray him that way too. And I think I get that it's not really about being needy, it's about being human versus her being Vulcan and the fundamental emotional/relationship incompatibilities, or rather, extreme challenges.
I liked the original idea I had in my head as the story started about Trip trying to spice up their love life... ya know, bringing in a little extra help number 1 because he was sure T'Pol would never express dissatisfaction on her own, and number 2 because for humans, the desire to satisfy a partner is sort of intricately part of the desire to express emotional love.
I wouldn't say I "disagree with" Trip bringing it up as like a "this is so you don't need me sexually", but I'm not sure I think he would have handled it the way he did in the story... I don't know, the whole long train of thought that would have had to lead him to thinking "I don't want her to just want to be with me because of sex" isn't typically something you'd typically hear a man say. I don't mean that to sound sexist, as there is a big continuum of emotional sensitivity that you can find a man on... I don't know. Then again, admittedly my YMAM Trip and T'Pol have already melded, and so it's quite conceivable they'd be far less sure of themselves before that.
I loved how briefly Trip had to hear her innermost thoughts to understand...and I'm glad they decide to try it out anyway just to spice things up :) That always cultuvates trust, imo.
In one short, extremely well-written story, you've nicely summed up the cultural gulf that separates Trip and T'Pol. Trip needs to hear she loves him for himself, not just because he's good between the sheets. For T'Pol such protestations of love are unnecessary and irrelevant because they're already mated. At least they're learning to take their conversations a step further and state how they feel and what they want or need. Hallelujah! It's about time. But still words aren't enough -- only through a mind meld do they finally begin to fully understand each other. It makes you wonder if talking will ever be enough for them.
I must say I was glad when T'Pol's little day-after speech from Harbinger came back to bite her. In the long run, it was just as well that she understood how she'd hurt Trip. They both need to quite trying to protect themselves from rejection and just be honest with one another.
This is a great line: "You might just be surprised at what a fine piece of equipment can do in the hands of a talented engineer." LOL! :D T'Pol is one lucky lady.
Thank you, Alelou, for an absolutely marvelous story!
There are certain parts of this story that require a good deal more punctuation. For example:
"She felt her consciousness slip into that essence that was so familiar but so much stronger here and immediately she felt the love the need the hurt the anger the hunger to know the immense frustration the helpless desire to possess and yes she wanted to be possessed she wanted him to possess her so she gave a little gasp and let her own barriers down, gave him access to all of it, to the great shameful naked morass of her own needs and wants. "
I appreciate that you were (most likely) aiming for a particular effect. But, for me, it really didn't work. Experimenting with grammar is all well and good....but not to the detriment of meaning. I found myself having to re-read a significant number of sentences.....all for the want of a comma.
I didn't really like the subject matter, either. Trip seems to have some heavy-duty insecurities. But, instead of talking about them, he presents T'Pol with a VIBRATOR?! I like a cheeky tale as much as the next person....but this just fell flat.
Disappointing.
Yes, Asso, I think I can safely guarantee that no canon in Star Trek would EVER introduce a vibrator into a conversation with Trip and T'Pol, so you have a good point there. Then again they probably wouldn't have them going poo either (although I have hopes/fears that Escriba will break that barrier in Mirage). There are certainly things in the world that are Just Not Generally Spoken Of. (To be honest, I'm still a little surprised JT didn't put this in Decon. It feels like it ought to have a much more furtive location on the page! :p)
Naughtily delicious and deliciously naughty.
I'm not sure I recognize Trip and T'Pol, here. That device probably doesn't really fit for them, in my opinion, but I have to be the last one who can speak.:s
Anyway that device worked, somehow, and this is good.
And then, doesn't T'Pol be a very curious Vulcan female?;)
Ah, Evcake, thanks for the note about the Quinn story. Very cute.
And thanks, all. (And LOL, JT!:p)
I was not sure at the beginning what it was going to be about - I've never happened to read any kind of vibrator stories until now, but if they resemble a little to this, let's have lots of them ;) I can understand Trip very well , wishing to be T'Pol's choice and love, above all, that binds them together and looking for reassurance. And I can see that it's easier for T'Pol to open herself completely through a mind -meld than say a few words. Beautiful story!
<g>nice work<g>
Re: the author's note, see Stimulating by Samantha Quinn. I think you might like it. ;)
Uh, what a beautiful story!:p
Alelou It's nice to see Trip 7 T'Pol work through their misunderstanding. That humnas need to use words to tell therir loved one how they feel. And the use of the mindmeld was nicely used to show each feels about the other.
What a sweet and humorous expression of misunderstanding that ends in accord. I suppose Vulcans are less articulate because they have the mind meld to show their true thoughts and feelings. Humans must rely on the spoken word and develop that more than the Vulcans have to. Makes you think that despite it being looked down on, there must have been a lot of secret melding among Vulcans of T'Pol's time! I like these short pieces better than the longer stories.
I can totally understand T'Pol reaction! I liked that you showed that Trip needs reassurance that T'Pol isn't just in their relationship because by change they are bounded. I liked that they both feel and mind the gulf between them and trying to work things out. The mind meld helped Trip to realize how much she loved him. Seems you and I had the same idea. I would have liked to see a bit more what happened during the mind. Nice story, Alelou.
"Oh his voice said in her head, oh no, sweetheart beloved darling my heart, and then they were both gasping back to themselves."
Nice mindmeld!
The misunderstandings between these two are so frustrating. Hopefully this will help her relax . . . or well, uh . . something.