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When Uhura called out of the blue asking if we could take Amanda for a week, I quickly agreed no questions asked. Late the next morning, I looked out the window watching my almost seven-year-old granddaughter be escorted out of the car by one of our Vulcan guards. Her smile faded upon seeing the stoic expression of the guard and I watched her force her face into the same stoic expression as they walked up the pathway.
With her dog-shaped backpack hanging off her shoulder, she reached for the hand of the male guard and walked beside him up the walkway to the main door. When I opened the door, the little girl’s stoic expression quickly faded and turned into a beaming smile as she ran up the rest of the walkway and into my arms.
“Grandma!”
Goodness, she had grown taller.
“Hello, Amanda!” I smiled, bent down and wrapped my arms around her. “My goodness you’ve grown.”
“Look, Grandma!” She pulled away from my embrace and smiled, showing me the gap where her two front teeth would be.
“Oh my goodness, two more teeth gone. When did you lose those?”
“Ten days, three hours ago. Uncle Jim and I were playing, and they fell out, but they were loose already.”
“They were becoming loose the last time we saw you.” I remarked and rose to my feet, taking her hand into mine. “Thank you, Savek.” I smiled to the guard, accepting the suitcase in his left hand.
“It is no problem to me, Lady Amanda.”
He bowed before closing the main door behind him.
“Where is Grandpa?” the little girl asked as I placed the suitcase by the main door.
“He is meditating, but he will be out soon. Here, you must be hungry from your journey. I just made some barkaya marak for lunch. Would you like some?”
“Yes, please.”
Taking her backpack from her shoulder, I carried it to the kitchen which was next to the main door.
She skipped with excitement the entire way to the kitchen. She was a ray of sunshine, reminding me very much of her Aunt Michael when she was her age. Placing her bag on the table, we walked over to the high counter top. I bent down and lifted her up and onto the barstool.
“Goodness you are getting heavy!” I groaned, placing her on the barstool.
“How hungry are you? Would you like a small bowl or big bowl?” I asked her, walking over to the refrigeration unit.
“Small, please. Grandma, why don’t you use a replicator?”
“Because cooking relaxes me.” I commented simply.
“How is that possible?” she asked, “Due to all of the smells it would alert your brain to send the signal to your stomach to signify hunger.”
“Indeed, but, I find that focusing on something else for a while helps me keep my emotions in check. Besides, one doesn’t have to do what everyone else is doing now, do they?”
“I suppose not.” she replied. There was a moment of silence before she asked suddenly as I placed the dish of food on the counter in front of her, “Is Father mad at me?”
“Why would you think such a thing?” I asked, plating the small bowl of food.
“Because he was angry when I left…. he yelled at me.” Her face dropped in sadness. “He never yells at me.”
I drew in a breath and found myself rather focused on the spinach soup before me. I cleared my throat awkwardly deciding if it were wise for me to broach the delicate topic with my not-yet seven-year-old granddaughter.
Deciding it wasn’t my topic to discuss, I smiled, scooped a spoonful of soup into the dish and slid the bowl of slightly warm soup in front of her and handed her a spoon.
“Your father is… not himself right now, Amanda. However, I promise you he is not mad at you. Your mummy and him need to… talk for a couple of days and then your father will be better.”
“What do they talk about?” she asked, taking in a spoonful of soup.
Her pointed ears, jet black hair and button nose stared at me with curious dark brown eyes. Her father’s eyes. No, my eyes. I felt my stomach drop.
“They talk about why he is so angry.” I smiled.
“And then he will feel better?”
“Yes.” I smiled, wiping the corner of her mouth gently with a napkin. “Then he will be better.”
I observed her eat her soup for about a minute, and just when I was in the process of deciding who she looked like more, Spock or Nyota, she suddenly looked up and asked,
“Am I like my father?”
A question that made my brow raise in curiosity. “What do you mean?”
“Do I do anything he did when he was my age?”
“You know that your father follows the Teachings of Surak like your grandfather. So unfortunately, at the age of six your father was very reserved.”
She looked down, a look of disappointed came over her face before she adjusted herself in her seat. She sat up and looked at her bowl of soup.
“I see.” she said stoically.
“But you don’t want to follow the Teachings of Surak.” When she was silent and simply continued to look at her bowl of soup with the same stoic expression of her father and grandfather, I placed my finger under her chin and lifted her head up gently. “You told your mother, did you not?”
“I should.” she said with a sigh. “Father does… and Grandfather too.”
“You shouldn’t do anything you don’t want to do, Amanda. You should choose your own path.”
“But I’m not like my father. He’s not proud of me, if I follow the teachings, he will be proud of me and I… I will be like him.”
“Amanda, how could you think such a thing? Your father loves you very much, he may not show it the way your mother or I do, but he does love you and I can assure you that he is proud of you whether you follow the Teachings of Surak or not.”
She was silent.
“You may not be entirely like your father, but you do look like him. You have his eyes,” I leaned in and pressed her little nose, wanting desperately to see her beautiful smile, “you have his nose,” which made a small smile appear on her lips. “And you have his smile.”
“His smile?” she asked, suddenly confused.
“Even children sometimes slip up during their training.”
I walked around the counter and embraced her, “You are like your father, Amanda.” I told her softly stroking the back of her head, “And your mother, and your grandfather, me, and even Uncle Jim. You are a little bit of everyone around you and that’s what makes you, you. So please don’t ever doubt yourself.”
“Will you still love me even if I choose to follow the Teachings of Surak?” she asked, leaning against my chest.
“I will love you no matter what you choose.” I smiled, caressing her soft hair. “There isn’t anything in the world that will make me stop loving you, I promise.”
“I see our granddaughter has arrived from the Enterprise.”
I turned to see Sarek standing in the doorway.
“Grandpa!” Amanda beamed, jumping down from the high counter she ran over to him and wrapped his leg into a hug. “I missed you, Grandpa!”
Sarek looked up at me for a moment before looking back down at the little girl hugging his leg.
“Granddaughter,” Sarek said simply “I see you fared well on your journey to New Vulcan.”
“Yes, Grandpa!” she beamed, wiping her mouth on his robes.
“Amanda, don’t do that.” I coaxed softly, handing her a napkin. “You know Grandpa likes his robes neat and clean.”
“The child means no harm, Amanda.” Sarek said flatly.
“Amanda.” the girl smiled and cuddled closer to her grandfather.
“My comment was directed to your Foremother.” Sarek said.
“I know.” she smiled, looking up at me.
“Wife.” he offered his forefingers.
“Husband.” I smiled, accepting.
“Amanda!” she beamed, holding her forefingers up.
I smiled and bent down, kissing her balled up hand gently.
“Have you finished mid meal?” he asked.
“Yes, Grandpa. Can you show me the stars now?”
“Certainly, do you have any objection to your grandmother joining us?”
“No. She can point out Andromeda.”
Lifting her arms up to her grandfather, he picked her up and into his arms. She wrapped her legs around his hips and cuddled her head in the crook of his neck. There was a wave of peace through our bond before it vanished as quickly as it came on.
We looked out in the horizon on the balcony in silence, the calm orange sky beckoning in the wind.
“Granddaughter,” Sarek suddenly said, “have you given any thought to my question from your previous visit?”
“About what I wish to do when I am of substantial age?” she responded.
“Not in this occasion. Do you wish to follow the Teachings of Surak?”
She looked over at me, before looking back at her grandpa and smiling, “I don’t want to follow the teachings.” she said, hugging her grandpa’s neck. “I just want to be me.” She crooked her head up to meet her forefather’s eyes, “Will you still love me if I don’t follow the Teachings of Surak?”
He tightened his embrace around her. “Your decision will not change my feelings for you.”
As I wrapped my arm around him and held him close as we looked out into the horizon of the orange sky, I could feel that he meant it. He had certainly come a long way since our son was born.
~*The End*~