K'hat'n'dlawa

Trust and Lust

Neither of them had spoken since entering the apartment. They were seated on the sofa- as always- but other than their knees and shoulders touching lightly, she had not moved any closer to him. Her hands were folded in her lap, and both of them stared straight ahead.

Tension was thick in the air...it reminded her of the day when they had met up in the lift shortly after he announced his intentions of leaving for Vulcan. She sighed...she had to say something, even if it would hurt him.

"Sarek...to resume our conversation from earlier...you need to remember that there are two people in this relationship. You can't make every decision by yourself. And that includes the decision to keep things from me. I don't keep secrets from you."

"Amanda, I am not sure what information you seek. There are aspects of my culture that Vulcans do not speak of to outsiders." Sarek replied, finally looking at her.

"Outsiders?" Amanda drew away from him slightly, hurt. His brows drew together.

"I did not mean..." he stopped. "Amanda, I will answer any questions you may have."

"First of all...how am I an outsider to you?" she asked, folding her arms as she always did when upset.

"You are not. I misspoke." Sarek replied. "Amanda, when you become my wife-"

He stopped short, and she could have sworn she saw him flush green for a split second.

"If you become my wife." he amended. "It will be as if...you are becoming Vulcan. I do not mean that you would follow the ways of Surak, but according to my people you would nevertheless become a member of my clan. Therefore...you would not be an outsider. Even now, I do not consider you to be one. That is why I am willing to answer your queries."

"Any of them?" she asked. He hesitated, and she sighed, moving fully away from him. Their stance was now similar to what it had been two nights before- except this time, she didn't think there would be any fun after their argument. "This relationship needs more work than I originally thought." she muttered.

He did not reply, and she chewed on her lip for a moment.

"Sarek, you need to work with me. Help me to understand you a little more. I'll start with something simple...this biting thing. Why do Vulcans do it?"

He looked at her, his eyes wandering to the area where he had bitten her.

"It is a way to mark one's mate- to show that they are taken. A claim, if you will." he replied. Her eyebrows shot up.

"So Vulcans do see women as possessions." she stated coolly. She wasn't sure if she liked that- at all.

"It is...complicated." he replied. "Vulcans are intensely monogamous. We mate for life. Marking is simply a way to show that our mate is taken. I consider you to be mine- yet, I also consider myself to be yours."

"So you would be fine with it if I bit you?" she asked.

"That would be desirable." he said thoughtfully. "Perhaps you should try to do so."

She stared. That was not the answer she had expected.

"But you do see me as a possession." she stated, deciding to ignore what he had suggested.

"Do you not see me as one?"

"Stop twisting it around!" she said, irritated. "I don't get it- Vulcan is supposed to be a matriarchal society, yet your men see women as property. How does that work?"

"The eldest female members of clans- the matriarch- have much power. They make marriage alliances with other clans- thereby keeping peace between families. They oversee important ceremonies, and give sanction for decisions that are made by younger members. This is only logical, as females are the givers and savers of life."