Never a Bride

Fanfiction
Title:	Never a Bride
Author(s):	Rae Trail
Date(s):	2005
Length:
Genre(s):	slash
Fandom(s):	Star Trek: TOS
Relationship(s):	Kirk/Spock
External Links:
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Never a Bride is a Kirk/Spock story by Rae Trail.

It was published in the print zine T'hy'la #25.

Summary

"When Starfleet finds out Kirk and Spock are planning to official announce their bonding, they persuade the two to also marry Earth-style."

Reactions and Reviews

Beautifully done. I liked the dynamics of the Winona/Tadpole relationship, also the well observed picture of how difficult it can be to introduce a prospective partner to parents. I really liked the way that Winona wasn't set in stone but came round to seeing things differently. All in all, it was a good ensemble piece - lots of characters interacting, all very well done with exactly the right tone.

This author, who like many others began writing K/S on the internet before turning to zines, has in that time churned out a plethora of stories, not all of which are to my liking. The reason for this has little to due with her skill as a writer, rather, she has a tendency to place Kirk and Spock in what I can only describe as "alternate realities" to those seen in TOS, "realities" that are sometimes difficult for me to swallow. When she chooses, however, to pen a tale set in the "real word" of TOS, I find her work nothing short of brilliant. And this

story, in my opinion, is one of her best. Here Kirk and Spock are already bonded, although they choose to keep this knowledge between themselves until their bond is formally recognized by Vulcan. They also hope that once that knowledge becomes public, they'll be far out into space to avoid all the publicity such news was bound to generate. But when an anonymous source "spills the beans" to Starfleet at the same time both are on Earth as the Enterprise is being refit, the two are forced to endure that publicity, and so much more, as Starfleet makes the most of the situation. I think one of the things I really like about this story, notwithstanding the excellent characterizations of Kirk and Spock, is the portrayal of our favorite captain's mother, Winona. Kirk, unwilling to have her hear the announcement about his upcoming nuptials from the news, arranges to visit the family farm with Spock in order to introduce one to the other. To his surprise, Winona's reaction to Spock is not what he is expecting, due to her previous encounter with a Vulcan scientist who proved to be the antithesis of Spock. It is her journey from distrust to acceptance of her son's bondmate which I found to be one of the most enjoyable aspects of "Never a Bride" as it proves that old adage prejudice is almost always based on ignorance and when that ignorance is replaced by knowledge, prejudice disappears. It is a lesson TOS has always strived to tell us, a lesson we K/Srs have taken to heart, and a lesson Winona herself soon learns.

Highly recommended.

This author blew into fandom, wrote a few stories and then disappeared as suddenly as she arrived. I really wish she had hung around a hell of a lot longer. I‘ve liked all her stories, but Never A Bride is a favorite.

No torture, no rape, no death, no mayhem of any kind, just an utterly delightful read. Kirk and Spock are bonded and are planning to be married in the human way with a small reception on the Enterprise with the senior staff afterward. However, the best laid plans and all that. Someone sends an anonymous note to Nogura spilling the beans. At first the admiral doesn‘t know what to do about this, of having his best command team, who happen to both be male, married, but finally decides it could be a public relations coup if done right. So Starfleet is going to throw them a wedding whether they like it or not and they don‘t... And then the fun begins. She captures Kirk and Spock to perfection. Her descriptions are so vivid I almost felt like I was there. The dialogue is absolutely wonderful. I especially love the line when McCoy is telling the senior staff about what‘s going on and Security Chief Giotto says referring to Kirk, ―I thought he liked women.‖ And McCoy answers, ―He does, he just likes Spock more.‖ Isn‘t that just a perfect line? Kirk takes Spock home to meet his mother and to tell her about the marriage before she sees it on the news shows. She is not pleased, doesn‘t think Spock is good enough for her son, but finally comes around when she realizes how much the two men love each other. Then becomes positively incensed when she finds out that Spock‘s parents don‘t think Jim is good enough for Spock. Actually it‘s only Sarek, not Amanda as we find out later.

Kirk‘s bridge crew and McCoy are present and accounted for and have things to do in this story, but I‘ve probably told more than enough of it. When you‘re in the mood for a light, feel good story, give this one a try. You won‘t be disappointed.