Disclaimer: It me, not owning jack shit like usual.

Jane could hardly think with everyone's eyes on her in a suffocating silence. Her eyes darted about as she tried to recall; perhaps she was named after someone? 'No, that's Sammy…' In the end, she simply shrugged and shook her head, too intimidated by the press of stares to speak.

The strange Vulcan made that same not-frown again, staring intently at her as though he were skeptical of her claim, but what reason would she have to lie? After a brief silence, he turned to Spock, who had finally calmed down enough to set his phaser aside.

"In that case, I do believe you are currently the Acting Captain of the Enterprise, yes?" When his question caused people to mutter and stir, he looked around inquisitively. Uhura looked on in suspicion, her eyes half-lidded as she pressed her hands to her sore head. Just how did he know so much about their crew? Who was this stranger?

"As you have not yet identified yourself, I cannot release such information to you." A feint twinkle seemed to appear in the elder's eyes at this statement.

"Ah, my apologies. You are correct. If you do not mind, I would like for the opportunity to seek refuge aboard your ship." The younger one, Mr. Scott, had already begun removing his cold weather gear and was peering down at the piloting console over Chekov's shoulder, who just seemed baffled.

"Aye, and if ya don' mind I'd love ta get a looksie ah your engines!" Sulu glared over at the man and stood from his chair.

"Neither of you will be going anywhere but the brig until you identify yourselves and explain how and why you're on our bridge." All eyes glued to the pilot as he positively radiated hostility. "You have thirty seconds to start talking before I call security."

The Human, upon removing his second coat, was revealed to be a Starfleet engineer, and an officer to boot. Jane's eyes were wide at the scene unfolding before her, especially when Spock simply stepped down from the center platform to stand near Sarek and herself, his gaze never leaving the strangers. Uhura got up and went over to him, grabbing his arm and muttering lowly to him. The movement seemed to catch the elder Vulcan's eye who turned to Sulu and nodded, conceding the point.

"I bear neither this ship nor the Federation any ill will, and would be most willing to answer any questions you might have in a more private setting." Perhaps the pilot hadn't expected such an easy answer, or perhaps there simply wasn't training for a situation like this, given that the chain of command seemed to still be up in the air. Either way, his mouth fell closed, looking around for some sort of cue.

"I'll take them down to quarters and see what can be arranged for our… guests." Sulu nodded gratefully in Uhura's direction as Mr. Scott perked up.

"Now tha's hospitality; thank you, lass!" The two followed her into the turbolift, the elder Vulcan staring at her oddly most of the way. Everyone then turned back to look at the pilot, who blinked hesitantly before clearing his throat.

"Uh, don't you all have work to do?" They hastily resumed the tasks that they'd been performing when Jane had first walked in to interrupt things. Although he glanced around at first, confused when an Ensign stepped up and went to take his pilot's seat, Sulu swallowed and moved over to the captain's chair, giving Jane a hesitant nod over the back before sitting down. This snapped the blonde out of it and she turned, making for the turbolift with the father-son duo following her in a distinctly ominous silence.

The only words spoken on the way down to her office were to instruct the turbolift where to take them. Spock was staring down at the PADD with the form for his removal, and Sarek seemed to be staring straight ahead in a thoughtful manner. When they arrived at her offices, Jane sat grimly behind her desk, bracing herself for what might come. The half-Vulcan's display of rage on the bridge had rattled her, and even though nothing violent had come of it, the fact that Vulcans naturally had three times the strength of a Human had been sobering to recall. If Spock's emotions grew too turbulent for him to control, and Uhura wasn't around to help calm him down, would he lash out? Several minutes passed in a frosty silence before Sarek spoke up.

"You cannot continue in denying your emotions, my son." That same flash of betrayal from earlier was visible in the hybrid's eyes as he glanced over at his father. His jaw clenched, however, as he seemingly refused to say anything. Sarek sighed. "You are-" Before things could get any worse, Jane cleared her throat.

"My apologies, ambassador, but I'm required to evaluate Officer Spock in private now that he has been removed from his post." The elder male nodded in understanding before heading for the door. "Of course, since it is of great personal concern, I can update you on the proceedings." He'd paused in the frame, and nodded once more at her offer before signing the ta'al.

"I thank you. Live long and prosper." The blonde nodded in return.

"Peace and long life." A few seconds passed after the door closing before Jane looked over at Spock and gestured to the chairs in front of her desk. "Please, make yourself comfortable." She'd been required to take up a residents' internship as one of her courses in order to get practical experience in the field, so settling into her capacity as a psychologist was far easier than that of being an officer aboard a starship. Spock sat stiffly in one of the chairs after a brief moment of consideration, placing the PADD, its frame bent from his moment of anger on the bridge, onto the desk. "Thank you."

The blonde took it and pulled up the next series of forms. On it was a list of questions that she was supposed to ask. They were generally inane, and several of them were questions that a doctor might ask at a regular physical with slightly different phrasing. As she went down the list, she paid close attention to his responses, body language, tone, eye movement, expressions, noting down anything that seemed out of the ordinary or forced. The last part of the form, she remembered, was purposefully left blank. Since the situations in which an officer might be emotionally compromised could be vastly different from one another, the final section was intended for a more personalized conversation with the crewmember, which she was absolutely not looking forward to. Things had gone too far for it to be avoided now. She put the PADD down, regulating her breathing like T'Remberale had taught them in tai chi, and looked Officer Spock in the eye for the first time since they were on the bridge.

"As I'm sure you're aware, my offices are always open if you need them, and if you specifically need to… calm down, you're free to pet it", Janie gestured to the tank containing the purring fur ball at the far corner of the room. "so long as you don't feed it or leave the room with it." His attention shifted to the Tribble when she pointed, and he paused very briefly before turning back to her, offering no comment. She'd hoped to remind him that this was a safe space so that he'd feel a bit more comfortable opening up, but seeing as circumspection didn't elicit a reaction, she figured she'd have to be more direct. There was no way she could out-wait a half-Vulcan. "So… who did you lose that was so close to you and your father?"

Had she not been watching him closely, she would've missed the skin across his forehead going taught briefly. There was the briefest of hesitations, as though he wasn't quite prepared. He expected the question, but not so soon. It was a logical one to ask, after all.

"My mother." Of course, she'd suspected as much, but having him admit it was best. Judging by his emotional state, he'd skipped denial. He also could've blown right through it before she'd gotten to him. From what she could recall, Vulcans' deeper emotions tended to bog them down during the various phases of grief, and so the bereaved would often spend a few days in quiet contemplation and meditation to work through everything, a luxury they couldn't afford right now.

"What was her name?"

"Amanda Grayson." The words came out stilted, so Janie gave him a gentle nod and smile to indicate that he was doing well and that it was alright for him to open up.

"What did she smell like?" Tilting her head slightly, she was careful to keep her expression calm and placid. While it seemed a very odd question, she knew that most humanoids' olfactory senses were deeply linked to their memories. When she saw the muscles in his arms tense just so, she knew she'd hit upon something. His gaze flickered down and then his hands relaxed after a moment. Why would her scent make him look at his hands? Had he been there when she died? Touched her?

"Lavender… talc… and, favinit…" She marked the Vulcan word down as best she could phonetically to ask Uhura about later.

"Did she make it on board?" Spock's eyes met hers with a sharp glance as his arms tensed again, likely resisting the urge to clench his hands into fists. His reactions were quite Human for all that he put up a Vulcan front most of the time.

"No." The blonde chose her body language carefully to show that she wasn't intimidated, and hopefully to prod him into talking further, tilting her head forward slightly and furrowing her brows. "She was unable to be brought up with the High Council, whom I had gone to retrieve myself."

Spock's stare pierced right through her, though it was clear that his thoughts had turned inward. His posture stiffened with what was likely a storm of anger at being unable to save her, though whether it was directed entirely at himself, she couldn't be sure. She certainly hoped it wasn't, or it might pose a problem later in his recovery. They were in a crisis situation; perhaps having a way to channel and spend his anger would be helpful for both himself and the rest of the crew.

"From our… contact with the Romulans on the bridge, this Nero seemed to know you personally. Do you know him?" He blinked.

"I fail to see how this is relevant." Janie took a deep breath and pulled up a freeze-frame of Nero's face on the PADD from when he was addressing Spock.

"It seemed to me, before the Ambassador had even brought… the nature of your… struggles to my attention, that the Romulan seemed to have been targeting you." He hardly glanced at the image, not much of a reaction; most likely he had no idea who he was. "You're angry." Preemptively, she held up a hand to stop any objections he might've made on the matter of possessing emotions. "I see it in the way you addressed your father, the way you reacted to our… guests, to the way your self-restraint has bent." Here she cast a significant glance at the PADD's damaged frame. "I can't tell who you're angry at, though I can only assume by Uhura's pain that it's yourself. You do share a bond, correct?"

It took him a moment to respond, his eyes flickering, and posture further stiffened at her analysis; bingo. Declining to answer verbally, he merely nodded. The blonde smiled ruefully.

"Then you're well aware of the fact that the vast majority of humans are unequipped to deal with telepathic overload, let alone an overload of emotions that are far stronger than their own. As a psychologist, I would like to elevate the matter of your mental health to rise above all others, but as a member of Starfleet, I cannot ignore the crisis we find ourselves in." Doing this went against so many of the philosophies she'd been taught as a medical professional, perhaps even the Hippocratic Oath itself, though she wouldn't be asked to take it until she became officially licensed. Spock's eyebrow rose.

"Nero is clearly targeting you. He left us alive. He destroyed Vulcan and attempted to destroy its people. He addressed you directly, despite not you being the commanding officer at the time." Her fingers tap the image for emphasis, but her eyes don't leave his. "If there's anyone you should be directing your anger towards, it's him. Your father has pointed out that even your mind healers are struggling right now. You must learn to properly channel and express your feelings in a more Human way if you are to heal, for both your own and Uhura's good." His jaw had clenched now, his arms held just slightly away from his body as though he were resisting the urge to hunch his shoulders or curl in on himself.

"I believe that you can do so on this mission, that, in fact, you must do so in order to clear your mind of grief. Nero-" Before she could finish, her attention was caught by the door chime.

"No, sir, you can't go in there." Puzzled, Janie walked out from around her desk and gestured for Spock to stay where he was, though he raised a brow at her doing so. They both stood as the tawny-skinned woman scowled and threw up her hands. The blonde's gaze flicked between the Lieutenant and her charge, who rolled her eyes and pressed a palm to her forehead with an aggravated sigh. She let her features relax into a politely neutral expression and flashed the stranger, now stripped of his cold weather gear and changed into Starfleet blacks, the ta'al.

"Greetings. Is there something that you require of me, sir…?" The lines in his face seemed drawn in a faint confusion, but there still seemed a gleam of determination in his eyes. He returned her gesture.

"Only some time to converse with you and…" He nods towards Spock. "The Commander. I have information would be of concern to you." Janie frowns, not having anticipated something like this, and, frankly, not wanting that much to do with it. She wasn't a commanding officer. Actually… She technically was, but she definitely was not trained to handle tactical information. He sees her skeptical expression and cuts her thoughts short. "It is detrimental that the two of you know, and the two of you alone."

Now that was bizarre. Looking up, she found that Uhura's frown mirrored her own. The blonde looked back to Spock, who was on edge, but had taken her direction and remained where he was, expression passive but eyes probing. Lips pressed thin, she sighs and steps aside, bidding the strange Vulcan enter, before turning back to Uhura, who tilts her chin and smirks slightly as if to say "Good luck." Returning the sentiment with a weary nod and a smile, she watches the Lieutenant turn, with clenched jaw and strained eyes despite all her bravado, and make her way down the hall towards the nearest turbolift before closing the door to address the strange Vulcan who had made his way over to the tank with the tribble in it and was gazing at it with the faintest of amusement.

"You're welcome to sit, since it seems we have much to discuss." Putting word to action, the blonde takes a seat herself. Both of the males take their seats, the elder of the two hardly sparing the Science Officer a glance before staring at her in that same odd way that he had when exiting the bridge.

"Although I anticipated there being some slight differences, never did I think that you would change so drastically in your form and demeanor, my old friend." There's something in his gaze that she can't quite place, something bittersweet. Spock looks to Janie for a split second, but all of her attention is focused on the person with the silvered bowl cut. "In any case," He leans back into his chair a bit to indicate that he's now addressing the both of them. "I have faith enough in your character to trust that you will do what's right." Then he sighs.

"I am S'chn T'gai Spock, and Nero has my ship, the Jellyfish." Seeing Spock's eyes widen for a fraction of a second, he knew he had their attention, but couldn't afford to stop to answer questions. "When I'd come out of the wormhole, I had only brief moments to register that I'd come back in time before he was on me. As he'd gone into the wormhole before me, he came out before me, and had anticipated my arrival. You see, he bears me a grudge for the destruction of his home world, Romulus. They'd come to the Federation with a cease fire, imploring us to help find a way to keep their system's star from going supernova. The Vulcan Science Academy had found a solution in the form of red matter, a liquid material whose molecular structure is so dense as to be unstable, and when removed from its stasis tube, is designed to collapse on a specific timer and create a temporary black hole. Due to my time serving in Starfleet, and to my being the ambassador who negotiated the treaty, I felt that it was my responsibility to fly the Narada in its mission create a small enough black hole that it would absorb the supernova without endangering Romulus; however, we were too late. I flew the Jellyfish in any way to reduce the overall impact of the supernova to save the other nearby systems, but Nero returned from his mining expedition aboard the Narada to find his planet destroyed and blamed me. With the larger ship, he was pulled first into gravity well."

"2233…" Both of the Vulcans looked to her, surprised at her utterance. She looks to the elder. "The day I was born. My father was First Officer on the USS Kelvin and sacrificed himself to keep the rest of the crew alive after Captain Bodau was taken. They must have extracted the defense codes to Vulcan from him." Their time-travelling guest offers her a sympathetic glance before continuing.

"He determined to have his revenge on me, by marooning me on Delta Vega, forcing me to bear witness to the destruction of my home world as he had, helplessly. Now, as it is well-known that I am also half Human, I have come to the conclusion that he intends to do the same to Earth."