Title: She Likes Him Next Best
Author: Yami no Kaiba
Fandom: Star Trek TOS
Rating: PG
Pairing: Spock/McCoy
Length: 423 words

Summary: While T'Krill likes her pet best, she likes Darling's pet next best.
Disclaimers: I do not own the characters or the concepts of Star Trek in any of its forms.

Note: While going back through my journal, I re-read this review and want entry. This ficlet will make more sense if you read that first, though it's still cute without it.

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T'Krill liked her pet, loved and adored him because he knew exactly when to feed her, when to pet and stroke her, and when to keep his pleasantly warm hands to himself.

Her pet was the best of the best, and she said so to her seven brothers and sisters, who always complained to each other and Mother at different times of the day about how their pets were too clingy or too overemotional or just too neglectful in their duties in cleaning up their messes.

Of her seven brothers and sisters and Mother, of whom she knows are just beyond the door to her rooms, T'Krill has only ever seen two since her pet took her away from them ten cycles ago. Tiger comes over sometimes dangling in his pet's hand, mewling pathetically at the tight hold on his scruff while swearing vengeance on his pet for the indignity. Her pet and his pet make growl and mewl like noises during those times, and Tiger's pet makes abrupt motions with his arms before being reminded with a yowl that Tiger's there. The blond-haired giant then lets Tiger down so that T'Krill and Tiger can wrestle and play a bit before Tiger's pet takes him back out the door.

T'Krill sort of likes Tiger's pet, but the blonde-haired giant is not her next favorite. Of her seven brothers and sisters and Mother's pets, T'Krill likes Darling's pet the next best.

Darling's pet brings her over sometimes, though more often than not it's T'Krill's pet taking them to Darling's room. T'Krill loves it when that happens, because there are so many new scents and sights and sounds when her pet walks out her room’s door, T'Krill carefully perched on his shoulder.

While Darling and T'Krill get to play and catch-up on the changes in their rooms, their pets play too. Their pets make soft noises and give each other light lingering touches, and this usually leads to them wrestling and making rough growls in their throats. T'Krill's always proud of her pet when he seemingly triumphs in the game by making Darling's pet give these pleased sounding yowls near the end.

Their pets are always limp and sated afterwards, and on those days don't tend to move-about in their sleep like Tiger complains his pet does. This makes them perfect warm cushions to curl up on top of, and she and Darling take advantage of that fact every time.

Darling's grumpy-seeming pet makes T'Krill's pet happy, and for that T'Krill likes him next best.

--Fin.