full_of_wrath | captivity

"He is, perversely, safer if you keep him from his family. We will never succeed in teaching him not to kill in their service."

She says, head inclining.

"My fear is that all the same, he will simply begin to kill in yours."

"What-- mine? My crew hates him."

Not as deeply as Kirk has reason to, but many of them served Pike once.

"And look, I can't go in there and tell him it's always wrong to kill. It's always unfortunate to kill, but I've taken lives for my crew and I'll do it again. He knows that, he's seen me do it."

"You haven't noticed his compass point swing into your pull? His memories are of charging an irradiated room to save you, giving his blood and body to strengthen you. Other things besides that the men and women here struggled, at first, to understand."

Reminding him of their first few encounters in the cell.

His jaw clenches tight, not out of anger but out of some rather deeply conflicting feelings.

"I think I can help him, counselor. And if I can, don't I have a responsibility to try? As Pike's friend? As someone Khan hurt?"

"No, Captain. You have no responsibilities, here. You have done everything that could be asked of you."

She absolves him, very quietly.

"All you need now do is decide what would be right."

It doesn't take a lot of consideration. Kirk usually does pick a course of action and stick with it.

"I still want to teach him how to live in our time."

"Then I would suggest leaving him here a month more. That will enable us to give him the tools he needs to travel with you safely, and the trust he needs to come to us if he must."

She proposes, quietly.

"I would also suggest you ask him if he wants to go with you, and honour his answer."

"Okay."

A deep breath, and then a nod. He can do that.

"Thanks. You're not bad at this."

"It gives you the time you need to brace your crew. Play with him, and you'll lose him."

She warns him, as well.

"I mean what I'm trying to do."

And he knows his crew trusts him enough to go along with it, but yes, he should let them in on it now.

"I'll check in tomorrow and see what he says."

"The day after would be better. He needs to rest, and by then, you will have answers concerning Marcus."

Reminding him, quietly.

He looks again at Khan's door, and then nods.

"But I want updates."

Khan had looked...awful.

"I'll contact you personally."

She says, seriously.

"He will be safe."

"I appreciate that."

He smiles for her, and has the Enterprise take him back on board.

There are a few people on board with something to say about the idea of taking Khan in. A few vociferous things to say.

Bones, surprisingly, isn't one of him. Jim, I'm a doctor, I know better than anyone that the only reason you're alive is because of that fish looming bastard. I'm not nuts about the idea, but I'm not going to pitch a fit.

Spock is logical enough that, between his support and McCoy's, Jim feels this is the right call. That doesn't mean it's any easier to listen to the dissenting opinions. That angry, grieving part of him still agrees with most of them--but he's made the decision not to act off of it.

Ultimately what he tells the crew is that they are trying to promote compassion through the universe, and if they can't do it in their own lives they have no business trying to encourage it anywhere else.

By the end of the month he even has Starfleet Command behind his idea. The hard part now will be convincing Khan.

When he comes back, Khan will be different. He'll be on his feet, standing on one of the building's balconies, hands laced behind his back. He's still gaunt, still in hospital things, but he looks less rent apart.

"Hey."

Kirk knows what he wants, but--thanks to Spock--has reasoned his way to being all right with whatever the outcome here is.

"Looks like you turned things around."

"They decided I deserved a little easy. For admitting you to about the twelve that were lost."

Explaining, quietly.

"They're believers in expressing sentiment, here."

He sounds too worn down to be truly scathing.

"Well...that's not the technical term for it."

He moves to lean against the window, facing Khan.

"I need to ask you something."

"What do you need to know?"

He looks over and down at him. His eyes are still hollowed. There have been a lot of tears. He feels wrung out beyond all belief.

"You can stay here, and continue the therapy they have laid out, for however long it takes. Or you can come with me, and work between therapeutic sessions. You strike me as the kind of person who needs something to do."

Like Kirk, really.

He glances over at him in shock. That isn't what he'd expected, in terms of offers from him.

"Marcus?"

"He's doing therapy, too. That's mandatory. But he's also working in what you'd probably call a penal colony, or he will be, when he's stable enough."

Which is also an option for Khan, but not one Kirk remotely wants him to choose.

"He has it rougher than you do. He earned a tougher penalty than you did, and Starfleet knows that. So I told them to let you choose."

A lot can change in a month for Kirk, especially when he's actively taking the advice of Khan's counselor.

"Of course I'll come."

He says, breathlessly. He hadn't known it was 'of course' until the moments the words crossed his lips.

"They want me to ask if there will be touch points, contact between them and me."

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