The Scalp Hunter

K/S Fanfiction
Title:	The Scalp Hunter
Author(s):	Sara S. Reynolds
Date(s):	1982
Length:
Genre:	slash
Fandom:	Star Trek: The Original Series
External Links:
Click here for related articles on Fanlore.

The Scalp Hunter is a Kirk/Spock story by Sara S. Reynolds.

It was published in the print zine Duet #5.

art for the zine story by Virginia Lee Smith

Summary

"Kirk shuns Spock after being used for pon farr while they were camping together on Vulcan, but begins to understand himself more after a friend from the academy seduces him merely for conquest."

Reactions and Reviews

The characters have homophobic attitudes and use terms like "latent homosexual" that were current forty years ago, but are no longer considered useful. This in itself wouldn't bother me if the characters grew and changed, but they continue to hold these disturbing prejudices, and there is no indication that anyone might think otherwise. In fact, McCoy delivers a homophobic "diagnosis" of Spock quite authoritatively. McCoy also violates patient confidentiality and minimizes Kirk's feeling of trauma over being raped by Spock. I consider both of these serious violations of good medical practice. Spock is unVulcanly melodramatic when Kirk fails to wish him luck as Spock is going into mild danger. He compares it in his mind to "The Immunity Syndrome". The danger levels are not comparable. In that episode, Spock was going on a mission that appeared to be suicidal. Surely Spock would have noticed this. But Spock goes on to think of how cruel humans are. We are supposed to feel sorry for Spock even though he is the rapist. It also bothered me that Kirk seemed more traumatized by consensual sex with a man who turns out to be cynical that he'd been about being violently raped. Why is that worse? Then there's the odd concept of pon-farr in this story. We are told that only the first pon-farr can result in death if not satisfied, but there is no explanation as to why this should be so. I did enjoy the unintended reference to STIII:TSFS. (This was written well before that movie. McCoy says to Spock, "The day I declare you dead, you're going to come back just for the pleasure of proving me wrong." Spock responds, "Do you think that would be difficult, Doctor?" McCoy's involvement in Fal-Tor-Pan makes this question even more piquant.