Space Minus Zero/No Limit
It was a well known fact that Vulcans had a greater capacity for detecting sounds than humans did. Working and living with them had ‘conditioned’ Spock to expecting certain advantages (and yes, even disadvantages) over his peers. So it wasn’t until he had already silently stepped inside that he realized T’androma would be able to hear and see him in the dark.
He intended to ‘sneak’ in to observation deck to.. observe, as its name implied. From his vantage point in the back of the room, he could simply watch T’androma for a moment— he was three point six minutes earlier than their appointed meeting time after all. Humans— and Vulcans— were often different creatures when they didn’t know they were being watched. They were more relaxed and one could plainly see the little things they did to pass the time. He hadn’t deliberately sought out to know T’androma’s idle habits, but he did witness her kneading the pointed cartilage of her ear on more than one occasion.
With his plan to sit and observe thwarted by those very ears, Spock stepped out of the shadows and approached, his bootheels clacking along at an even pace.
"Good evening, ensign. The tea you have prepared smells exquisite. Have you used a different blend?"
Or was he simply succumbing to the perception altering effects of affection.
The crew's endearing attempt to stimulate holiday cheer by placing poinsettias in a few of the ships numerous rooms marked approximately 392 days since T'androma's arrival aboard the Enterprise. Subtracted by thirty days, and it would equate to nearly the amount of time she'd had to thoroughly analyze her commander's behavior on a basis more personal than all work-related exchanges they'd had up to the day she'd worked up the nerve to introduce herself.
That meant that T'androma had been given 372 days -- with an error margin of about 10, and not including the days they didn't talk, of which there were few -- to interpret the various voices Spock used when speaking to her. There were three, and they were normally associated with their respective locations of use. There was the voice he used when on the bridge, and the voice he used when he was on the observation deck. The difference between the two would be lost to anyone who didn't know Spock as well as she. The third voice, however, had only been used on three occasions. Their gift exchange a year ago, the day of the Terran New Year, and their mind meld in sick bay. Strange how that was the voice she preferred to the rest.
"Yes. Well, no, not technically. But... yes. I've altered the replication recipe slightly. The difference is undetectable to almost everyone on the ship, the exception being you and I, of course." She handed him his cup as he stepped closer into the room. Tendrils of steam rose from the hot tea, creating an insignificant veil between the two Vulcans.
