The Contract

You may be looking for The Contract, a story in the House, M.D. Contractverse.

K/S Fanfiction
Title:	The Contract
Author(s):	Dana Austin Marsh
Date(s):	1989
Length:
Genre:	slash, m/m
Fandom:	Star Trek: The Original Series
External Links:
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The Contract is a K/S story by Dana Austin Marsh. It was first published in the print zine Naked Times #23.

Summary:

"Problems arise when Kirk and Spock need to have a marriage contract written up after Starfleet denies them a dependency posting for their bonding."

Reactions and Reviews

All the exotics are nice, new worlds, new adventures, but don't you once in awhile just love to see Kirk and Spock thrown into an ordinary everyday situation? Other than those pesky domestic chores, of course, it gives you a perspective on how the guys would handle an event that we 19th century mortals can relate to. This is a great example! In order to be granted a dependency posting by Fleet, the already bonded Kirk and Spock must have a formal marriage contract drawn up by — you guessed it — attorneys. One for reach. Attorneys are paid to take care of their own clients, period. And that's where the fun starts. If s fun because of the oh-so-believable way in which the characters are written. I'm not sure fun was the author's intent, though, because the bickering between the members of the bar brings out some very wonderful dialogue between the members of the Enterprise command team. Witness when Kirk's attorney learns a Vulcan Bonding can allow one mate to follow the other into death. "How can you possibly agree to such a situation?" she queries, clearly astonished. "Counselor, you're not listening. I didn't say I agreed. I said I chose." She persists, asking why he chose this alien concept. "Because I have no desire to continue living if Commander Spock dies." There is so much power in that very simple statement, and it is made more so by the context in which its stated here, not as a declaration of undying love made in the throes of passion, but as a fact. We are not deprived of the private moments of revelation, either, as the events cause Kirk to voice his concerns at robbing Spock of half his lifespan. Spock replies, "Before I met you, before we bonded, I simply existed. I worked, I functioned. There was no joy or warmth in my life. One hundred years of that empty existence without you is a sentence I have no wish to endure." Many potential areas of concern that may have raised their ugly heads later in the union are unwittingly brought in to the light by the warring attorneys, allowing much better communication between the pair and making for a very satisfying read.

An interesting story which had elements of love, anger, jealousy and humor. What else could you ask for? It shows what can happen when outside elements are brought in to a relationship and how they can screw things up. Kirk's reaction when he found out what was in the contract was very believable. And Spock's anger when Kirk cut off the bond quite startling. All this led to a surprising and touching scene in Spock's quarters. Ms. Marsh has once again delivered an excellent story.

I think this is the author's best yet. It was unique, warm, made a point, and was very well-balanced. There were no wasted words and no questions left unanswered. I liked the plot very much. It covered important ground realistically, and didn t drag on and on, as so many stories with a 'misunderstanding' theme do. What I liked best is that Kirk and Spock were presented as two mature adults who are each individuals with their own unique feelings and viewpoints. If there is any flaw it may be that the lawyers were treated unfairly, but I—thankfully—haven't been around lawyers enough to make a clear judgement. A very nice, fresh read.

Kirk and Spock are lovers, but they need a dependency posting from Starfleet for some reason, I forget why, so they need to go to some lawyers to draw up a contract between them. They get into all sorts of discussions about marriage kind of things, like kids.... It was funny on the surface, but under it there were some really important issues being discussed, and I liked that.