A/N - First, before you go reading through this, I will warn you that A) This is a Star Trek fanfiction. It's not of any specific series or book, rather just in the Star Trek Universe in general. It does, however, take place somewhat after the return of Voyager, so it's the more modern time, rather than before TOS or something. And it totally takes place in the original universe, and not the new movie AU. And B) This is a romance. At first it was planned to be a simple coming together of two different species, but as I keep writing it's starting to shape into somewhat of a love triangle. I'm still not sure whether or not it will be like that in the end, but it's being somewhat hinted at. I'm not even sure of my own story! But yeah, be warned: It is a Star Trek romance! OC/OC... /OC?

Chapter One

Leaving was always the hardest. Whether it was a pleasant trip or something far less so, saying goodbye was never fun. Some planets, such as Risa or Qo'noS, were somewhat of a relief when it was finally time to go, but whether or not you actually had a good time on the planet, you always had friends that made it hard to leave.

Elnora Hart was finding it difficult to make herself pack. She stood in the middle of her room, holding a small stack of neatly folded clothing. She took a deep breath and once again forced her feet to move toward the bed where her suitcases lied. Taking her time, she softly pushed in the pile of clothes, making sure that they wouldn't get bunched up on her trip. Another long look at the suitcase had her plopping down on the bed beside, sighing. I didn't think it would be this difficult, she thought in the silence of her room.

A beeping from the door made her jump out of her thoughts. Wearily, she mumbled, "Come in." It was quiet enough throughout the apartment that she knew she wouldn't have to raise her voice. The door opened then, and a small figure peaked around the edge of the wall. His face, still young, had scales along his forehead and eyes, around his ears and down his jaw onto his shoulders. They weren't quite as prominent as the adults of his species, and the tone nearly blended into the rest of his smooth, grey skin. At the sight of him, Nora smiled. "Hey, Rut," she called affectionately, motioning the young cardassian inside.

Rutinn smiled, padding his way around the door and plopping beside Nora on her bed. "So... You're going now?" he asked, his innocent grin not leaving but his sadness showing through nevertheless. She nodded at him, getting back up to try and force herself to pack again. There was silence for a while. "Do you really have to leave?"

This almost made Nora start crying, but she pushed the feelings back and stood her ground against the oncoming emotions. She would have to get used to doing that. "Rut, you know I do. We knew at the beginning of the year this would happen." But she didn't. She thought Cardassia Prime would be like the others; a fairly neutral trip with good acquaintances and a quick goodbye. She never thought she would become so attached to Cardassia and her people. Nora swallowed the lump in her throat. "Besides, it's not like we won't ever see each other again. I'll call all the time, and I'll probably come back a couple times a year. You know how much I love you guys," she said, her heart thumping painfully.

Rutinn looked down, his lips curling grimly. If she didn't know any better, she'd have said he looked years older in that moment. "I'll miss you though."

Nora smiled painfully, coming back towards the suitcase with another pile of folded clothes. She sat them on top of the rest, not caring how they were placed, and kneeled in front of him. "Rutinn, you're only nine years old. You've got a lot of life left. Don't go worrying about seeing me again when you've got so much ahead of you." She paused, waiting for him to look up into her eyes. "You'll get big and strong and smart, just like your daddy. Then, maybe when you're old enough, you might even get to come to Earth to see me sometimes." She smiled as a spark of hope flashed in his brilliant blue eyes. "How's that sound? Good, right?"

The young cardassian smiled finally, nodding. "You know you're my best friend, right?"

"And you're mine," she said with a smirk, reaching up to ruffle his hair, thinking better of it, and gently patting his cheek. Cardassian hair was fairly greasy, not to mention how touchy they are about it. Just then another beep came from the door and this time it was Rutinn's turn to jump. She giggled softly as she stood up and went to the door. "Come."

Another very familiar cardassian came in. He was a fairly burly man with a square face and strong eyes. His scales were a fair bit darker than Rutinn's, and they stood out much more, showing his superior age proudly. He had a sort of bounce in his step when he saw Nora, and the broad smile he displayed fully reached his eyes. "Ellie!" he exclaimed, taking big steps towards her and grabbing her in such a big hug that it had her lifting off the ground and her breath going short.

"Earot!" she wheezed, happy to see her friend but slowly dying from lack of oxygen.

The cardassian heard her gasp for breath and quickly set her back on her feet, his scales turning slightly darker in embarrassment. "Oop, sorry El. I was just a bit excited that I got to see you before you were off," he said with a broad smile creeping up his face. He had such a big brother vibe about him that Nora automatically smiled as well. After the look was exchanged, Earot's smile waned slightly. "So you're well and truly leavin' then?"

Elnora nodded solemnly, looking away from the cardassian's face. "I have to. Gotta finish the research - you of all people should know that," she said as she smiled, nudging him in the arm. She knew about his difficult times as a lab assistant and liked to poke fun as often as she could. "Besides, I'm excited to see what the vulcans' social lives are like. I've heard a lot of stories about how they're almost completely haphephobic. It's fascinating," she said, a hint of a smile playing at her lips. Everyone knew how much she was invested in her research into alien culture - she'd spent almost five years on it. It was the fact that she was leaving Cardassia Prime to continue with said research that had her doubting herself. But she knew she had to keep going; if not for her sake then for the sake of science. She was a pursuer of knowledge - it was kind of default.

"What's that mean?" Rutinn interjected, renewing his presence in the conversation.

Nora just smiled at the younger cardassian, favoring his ignorance. She'd never admit it, but she loved explaining things to people. "It's a fear of being touched. Or, rather, an extreme dislike of physical contact, in the vulcans' case. They're touch telepathic, I've heard. If that's the case I don't blame them for avoiding it..." her voice trailed off as she thought of all the different things she honestly didn't know about the vulcans. It was a large part of her research - to go to a planet without having much information beforehand. Other than some common knowledge things, of course. She didn't trust the information banks; she preferred to experience the foreign culture firsthand.

"A species that doesn't touch?" asked Rutinn again, his eyes widening.

The question brought Nora back down to Eart- Cardassia, as it were. She smiled again. She should have known that the concept of a society that fears touch would boggle the mind of a cardassian. She had learned very early on in the year that cardassians were very physical, even overly so in some occurrences. It was strange, at first, to encounter a species that is more comfortable with touch than humans. Humans were known for being very easy-going with their physical contact and shamefully known for their practice of casual sex. On the first planet she visited, New Romulus, Nora learned that while some species still practiced sex outside of marriage, it was usually under some sort of context such as a ritual, slavery, or even a branch of torture. But it was very clear that the rest of the galaxy seemed to think that humans were the only species to interact in such a casual manner simply for the act of pleasuring both parties before heading separate ways, unharmed and unchanged. It confused almost all species, and if Nora was honest with herself, it was quite funny. She giggled, partially at her own train of thought and Rut's question of shock. "Yes, spoonhead," she said mockingly, giving the young cardassian a smirk.

This brought Rutinn right off the previous subject. His jaw went slack for a moment, then he huffed and narrowed his eyes in challenge. "Pinky," he smirked.

"Scales."

"Squishy."

"Big neck."

"Hairy brow."

"Cold blood."

Rutinn seemed to hesitate then, trying rapidly to come up with a new insult but falling short. "Uh... Three eyes!"

At this, Nora was genuinely surprised. She'd been on the metaphorical road so long without people mentioning it that she had almost forgotten about her eyepiece. She was legally blind in her left eye, so she had to attach a piece to it to allow her to see clearly. Strangely enough it was more convenient to have it rather than to just get surgery to fix the eye because the piece worked as a communicator and camera as well. To be honest it was really handy, and because of this she was never that self-conscious about it. However she feigned offense when Rut said this and he looked genuinely proud of himself before she burst out into laughter. "Ha! Nice comeback," she grinned, dramatically wiping a nonexistent tear from her eye.

This time Earot stepped forward again, putting his hands against both of the insulters' chests. "Alright children, stop fighting or you'll have to go to separate rooms!" he shouted before almost collapsing in laughter as well. God, she was going to miss these people.

~oOo~

Later on that evening, Nora stood outside of her apartment, her bags draped around her feet as she waited for the transport. It was nearing nightfall, and the soft trilling of the native insects soothed her nerves slightly. They were nothing like her home's locusts, but the repeated beat of a small tweeting reminded her of them nonetheless. This is what she was out here for - to go to such alien places, learn the little quirks that nobody else notices, compare and contrast, discover things that normally wouldn't be interesting, and just... live a different life.

She took in a deep breath, reveling in the night's crisp air. Cardassia Prime was an overall humid place throughout almost the entire year. A constant heat coupled with the dense liquid in the atmosphere made it a difficult place to bare sometimes, and she had never expected these last few nights to be so cool and clearing to her poor lungs. It was like a quiet summer night after a hard day's work out in the sun. Come to think of it, it was strange how similar Cardassia was to Earth. The overall atmosphere was almost identical, save for the temperature, and the people were so warm and welcoming - much like a tropical vacation spot. Except, y'know, the giant cities and industrial feel. ...Maybe not so tropical. Or, really, touristy. Or the best place to get a vacation. ...Whatever.

While Nora was lost in thought, a tall figure had crept up behind her. He wrapped his long arms around her shoulders, making her jump in surprise. Cardassia wasn't really the kind of place you'd want to get snuck up on all the time. In fact, it was near Qo'noS. Or maybe even worse, since a klingon would simply whack you with a bat'leth. But then Nora realized she had lost her train of thought once again and forced herself back into reality. She grounded herself, and after only a few seconds knew exactly who it was that had snuck up on her. The tension she had been holding eased completely and she leaned into the embrace.

Earot shifted, a bit awkwardly with her weight, and brought his face closer to hers, leaning so his breath tickled her neck. He was silent for the longest time, and Nora was quite happy to just stay in the silent presence of her friend. Soon, though, he started to speak in a voice that reverberated through her spine, "I'm going to miss you."

It was the typical phrase she had been hearing for the past week. Nora smiled, shaking her head. "And I will miss you."

"I wish I could come with you," he mumbled into her shoulder, his chin bumping against her neck as he spoke.

Nora sighed. They'd talked about this too many times in the past few months. She pulled away from him, leaving the comfort of his warmth to look into his eyes. "You know you can't, Earot. You've got your nephew to take care of," she paused as she saw a flash of grief in his eyes. She decided to push that feeling, wanting him to understand the weight of what she was trying to say. "Your sister wouldn't want you to abandon him for the sake of some ginger. Rut's a good kid, Earot. Besides..." she trailed off, turning her gaze so she didn't have to see the hurt in his eyes again. "We've already talked about... us." Another pause. "You know I love you, but... you're like a big brother to me. I don't think I could..."

He cut her off, stepping away from her but reaching up to grasp her arm. "I know. I'm sorry. I just... I don't want you to leave."

A small smile couldn't help but twitch at Nora's lips. "I'll call you all the time, and I'll come back so much that you'll be begging me to stay on vulcan," she said, smirking. She was happy to see his face lighten at that, and he smiled as well. Suddenly a strange beeping came from behind them, and Nora turned to see her transport. "God, I guess it's time to go now..." she said, wishing it weren't so.

There was a pause as Earot gave her a long look. "I... You want help with your bags?"

Nora smiled, feeling her eyes prickle slightly at the flood of emotions. "I'd be very grateful, thank you."

After a hard time trying to stuff everything into the transport, finally they were able to look back proudly at their work. For a moment, they both forgot why they had been doing it to begin with and were just happy to have gotten it done. Then reality flooded once again and Nora immediately leaped into Earot's arms. The hug was short, but it said all it needed to say. Nora craned her neck slightly to the side, planting a small kiss to his cheek. "I'll see you later?"

Earot smirked, then, putting back on his facade of easy confidence. "You can count on it."

Nora couldn't help but let out a small laugh, though it sounded strangely like a hiccup. She shook her head softly, then turned around and stepped gracefully into the transport. It wasn't the last time she would see him, she had to remind herself. You'll see him and Rut all the time. You'll call and visit, and they might even come to Earth when all this is over... Her thoughts strayed as she settled into the transport, forcing herself to not look back.

"Are you ready to go ma'am?" The voice of the driver caught her off guard for a moment, however she recovered quickly.

She let out a small breath, closing her eyes for only a small moment. She then turned to the driver with a grim smile. "As ready as I'll ever be."

~oOo~

The journey was one of the longest she had taken in her course across the stars. Most of her previous trips had been only a few days transport - her longest being a week from Earth to New Romulus, though Risa to Cardassia was a close third - but it seems that this would be the largest of them all. The ship itself wasn't that bad, and neither was its crew, but it was small and a bit dank - the best she could afford on her budget. Of course she'd saved up quite a bit of money for this journey, but she'd been frivolous the first couple years, and now had to get by with the basics. She'd be fine, if she was smart. Still, that didn't mean she had to like being on small ships that packed you in like crates of luggage.

Eleven days is what it turned out to be in the end. She had to admit, the time did seem to slip away when you couldn't be arsed to get up and do your daily routine. But she couldn't quite pin the blame on the ship for that, could she? No, what really kept her from doing what she needed to do was the emotions clouding her thoughts. She had promised over and over again that she would keep in touch with her friends on Cardassia, but now it didn't seem like a thing she could do. She knew she was going to be overly busy throughout her stay on Vulcan, and even more so because of the mental strain.

Oh yes, she knew what she was getting into in that playing field. Lack of cultural knowledge about the species or not, it was quite common information that vulcans were strictly pro-logic. She wouldn't be able to express herself through touch or feeling, and she was quite certain she would become aggravated on more than one occasion. Of course she mustn't be bothered with any preconceptions she has about the species. She can't be bothered with what other people have said about the race. She draws her own conclusions, and makes her own theories. She'd done it before with every other species she'd visited - and it turned out quite well, really.

The romulans had been a bit stuffy, but kind overall, if you knew where to look. The klingons did seem to want to kill her quite often, but she managed to crack the shell of a few here and there, and she didn't die by the end of the year (though that visit, she had to say, was her least favorite so far). Risa wasn't nearly as peaceful and sex-oriented as the stereotypes had suggested, and she had learned quite early on that Risa's actual native community was in poor shape, as well as its economic power, and that many of their resorts were misleading to the public eye. Bajor was, actually, quite like she had heard it to be. There wasn't much mystery behind the way the bajorans lived after the Occupation and the Dominion War, and were fairly open-book. They were a religious species, relying on their Prophets and the wormhole, and also quite a feisty bunch. Truly, Nora was the most relaxed and well taken care of there, and almost felt as if she were on vacation, as it was a very lush and prosperous planet, despite its previous hardships. Cardassia Prime was probably the most mislead of them all. She was told, before going there, that cardassians were sneaky and sharp. They weren't to be trusted, whether or not their being polite. Of course she had not listened to those rumors, and once she had got there, the cardassian people were warm and welcoming, enveloping her with a grace and ease that she had not seen before. She truly felt as if she was welcome there, a feeling she had not gotten from any of the other planets.

And so, with a stride in her step, Nora obliterated any negative thoughts she had been having about Vulcan. She forgot about all the terrible things she had heard about their staunchy attitude and their overbearing nature. She stomped on the stereotypes that told her they were stuck-up and aloof. She threw caution out the airlock and steeled herself for the landing that was coming in a few - now.

God. She hadn't thought they were landing so soon... Deep breaths as the rest of the passengers (only two other vulcans who had been on the other side of the ship the entire time) passed by, and some crewmembers unloaded some cargo. After a few minutes, Nora steeled herself, as if going to battle, and stood up abruptly, startling a few crewmembers who were chatting by an airlock. "Sorry," she mumbled automatically, then turned toward the docking bay.

And then she was there. It was the last door that separated her from this big, rusty cargo ship - and Vulcan. A steadying breath: in... out. No expression, even breathing, and a steeled mind. She took a step, and the door opened.

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