"Yes. Judging from that remark, you are something other than human yourself. What are you?" The being smirked.

"In the human language, I would be called an Elf. However, I should much prefer it if you called me Coren."

Spock frowned. "Elves are creatures of human myth. They do not exist."

"Then how do you explain me, wonder-boy? Ockham's razor. I know I'm an elf, that's the simplest explanation that can't be disproven, and it's true."

"You are insane."

"Nope. I've been tested about a thousand times so far. I'm perfectly sane, not to mention extremely intelligent, according to every mental test humans have devised."

Spock sighed. Coren was irritatingly human.

"I'm less human than you think," said Coren, as if he'd done the impossible and heard Spock's thoughts. "From what I've heard, Mr. Spock - oh, don't look surprised! I'm not Starfleet, but I'm no stranger to 'Frisco, and I pay attention to the identities of important people around here, and you're no exception. Anyway, from what I've heard, there's just about one human you actually like." Coren waited for Spock's reaction. When he got none, he sighed and tried again. "Name of Jim Kirk, I think."

Spock sat, unmoving, increasingly irritated at this stranger attempting to pry into his private life...

"Oh, I'm not prying. I'd just thought I'd found a sort of kindred spirit. I was raised among humans, but I only ever let one of them get too close. His name was Arden..." Coren trailed off, lost in memories. Spock's ears pricked at the mention that the friend was male. Maybe Coren was safe.

"Coren."

"Mmm?"

"If I understand you correctly, you are implying that this Arden was something more than a friend." Coren came fully back to reality and nodded cautiously. "You might say that, yes. There's a reason I came to 'Frisco." Spock nodded, understanding what Coren was implying.

"No doubt you have heard rumors about Kirk and me," Spock began. At Coren's nod, he continued. "Those rumors are... mostly false, but partly true."

Coren raised an eyebrow. "Partly true? How much? Or do you want me to share my little story first?"

"I would like some indication that you are worthy of my trust."

Coren thought about this for a few minutes before replying, something that only raised Spock's opinion of him. "Well, I don't know what that would be. I've got my own code of honor, but you've no way of knowing if my word's worth what I say it is. I trust you, though. Remind me of myself, in a way. Ever been in love? Best thing that ever happened to me, but also the worst."

"I... tend to agree. I have my t'hy'la, yet at the same time, I risk the loss of my people."

"T'hy'la? What's that? Like a soulmate? Someone you know will always be by your side, no matter what happens?"

Spock was startled by Coren's accuracy. "Precisely. That is the best translation I have heard yet."

Coren bowed as well as he could while sitting, which admittedly looked rather ridiculous, but did have the desired effect of producing a half-smile on Spock's face. "I thank you for the great compliment, sir. I understand perfectly. If it weren't for Arden, I would never have known love. If it weren't for Arden, I would still be with my people. They banished me." Coren's face grew dark.

"Perhaps separation from one's people is not such a hardship," offered Spock. "Exile offers many opportunities for learning, whether that knowledge is desired or not."

Coren nodded, brightening visibly. "Would you care to tell me about Jim Kirk? Rumors and hearsay tell half a story at best."

"Only if you will tell me about Arden."

Coren smiled, glad they had come to an agreement. "Done."

"Jim Kirk is the kindest person I know," began Spock. "He gives nearly anyone a fair chance. When I served under Captain Pike, I was always the 'alien', always different. Jim treated me like one of the crew.

"The first decision Jim had to make as captain of the Enterprise was to kill his best friend. He did it. Putting the lives of an unknown crew above that of a close friend, he earned more trust and loyalty from them in a few weeks than Captain Pike ever received.

"The crew, of course, included me. We became fast friends, and often played a game of chess after dinner. We talked a great deal. Jim Kirk is a much more intellectual man than he is given credit for. He is knowledgeable about a wide variety of subjects, and always eager to learn more. I became closer to him in a few months than I had ever been to anyone in my entire life. Now, it's your turn."

Coren decided that if Spock were human, he'd be grinning like a maniac right now. However, he did not have any choice but to accede, and he did want to tell his story.

"When I was growing up, and for some time after, I treated the humans who had raised me as brothers and sisters. We were forever forming and re-forming small, close-knit groups. One day, I discovered a new member of our group named Arden. He was a talented man, more so than most of his elders. He never bragged, though. The women of the group often speculated about what he was like in bed, but never of them ever got past 'friend'.

"I never thought about that possibility. I struck up a friendship with Arden, and we would often talk for hours about nothing at all, which to me is a good ability for a friend to have. There, now I believe it is your turn again."

Spock sighed and took up the thread of his story where he had left off. "Over a period of time I started noticing certain aspects of Jim's personality. He had a strong moral code regarding women, and would be nothing more than a friend to anyone on the ship, though he did have quite a bit of physical contact with his close friends. A hand on a shoulder, a touch on an arm, he didn't seem to care, really.

"I did notice that he touched me more frequently than I ordinarily would have allowed, but he seemed afraid of scaring me off. When I failed to react negatively, his reticence faded. I occasionally touched him for no reason at all other than to touch him. He noticed rather sooner than I had thought he would.

"One evening, he announced that he wished to speak with me. I saw no harm in this. As a point of fact, I readily agreed that a serious conversation between us was necessary. Jim surprised me with his actions. Instead of talking, he put both hands on my shoulders, looked at me, and then kissed me.

"I had heard of the human custom of kissing, though I had never before experienced it. It was quite enjoyable, but I shall not attempt a description. Suffice it to say, the nature of our relationship changed."

Coren just sat there for a minute, then shook himself out of his reverie. "My turn, I suppose. Well, my relationship with Arden did not take as long to change as yours with Jim did.

"Having been raised with no particular prejudices of any sort, I saw no reason to suppress or hide emotions. Thus, I quickly came to realize and accept that, if I was not in love with Arden, I was at least greatly attracted to him. I told him so one night, and was delighted to discover that my feelings were reciprocated. The humans I lived with took our relationship in stride, being ever accepting of various oddities and objecting to fairly nothing.

"There were repercussions of my actions, however. My species, the Elves, are, or rather were very traditional sorts of people, and I rubbed them the wrong way. They thought I was far too human." Spock's lips twitched, seeing the similarity between Coren's situation and his own.

"Yes, Elves are rather like Vulcans. We both even have pointy ears, eh? So anyway. To continue with my story, or would you like to tell of the repercussions of your relationship?"

Spock shrugged. "The Vulcans have already cast me out. They can hardly do more." Spock's voice was bitter. "The only bad consequences were that both Dr. McCoy and Starfleet Command went into shock for two weeks and three days." Coren laughed at this odd parallel.

"At any rate, no one died, did they? The Elves far overreacted. They sent me into exile on a sailing ship, to a faraway land. Halfway there, there was a terrible storm. The ship went down, along with the rest of the crew. I was somehow saved and granted a lonely existence here on Earth. Arden died, and I never saw him again."

Both sat in silence for some time, contemplating each other's stories, one of sorrow and one of happiness. After five point four minutes, Spock broke the silence. "I... am sorry for your loss. I believe I can consider you a friend."

Coren smiled, touched. "Ah, just don't expect me to join Starfleet anytime soon. You are a friend, Spock. I suppose I'll be seeing you around. Are you staying in 'Frisco?"

"As long as Jim Kirk is here, so will I be." ... "Humans are strange."

"Indeed."