#I’m tired and I wanted to see a cute new vulcan human post so I made this

[theshadowrealmitself]

I’m not sure how to word this, but my new hc is that the reason why Vulcans seem to be so upset at Humans specifically being emotional is that because we look so similar to them it affects them when we show emotion

Like, other aliens crying or physically showing distress? Vulcans can block it out, doesn’t phase them

But Humans crying and/or physically showing distress? Invokes emotions in Vulcans which they find awful so the Humans need to follow their steps and take up the path of logic™️

[empressdrega27]

Mechanical Cuddle-Bug

This is the long awaited one-shot requested by @startreklife. I had started writing it earlier, but my computer crashed and I lost all of my progress. Anyways, the prompt for this is, A cute scenario with Data cuddling the reader! Kinda long so it’s under the cut.

 *Yawn* Wow, was that really the time? You must have really been in the zone, though that tended to happen when it came to your work. You were a science officer aboard the U.S.S Enterprise, specifically, you were the ship’s xeno-zoologist. It was your job to document and study the fauna of the various planets that the Enterprise visited. You loved your job and you took it very seriously, after all, if the away team found a strange animal, you were the one who would know how much of a threat it would pose. Currently, you had been taking advantage of an unexpected opportunity. Recently, a freighter headed to the Esperudine system was found to be smuggling goods to various buyers, one of the “goods” happened to be a Cardassian riding hound. Apparently an adventurous Ferengi businessman had taken a liking to them, and wanted one of his own.

 Everyone on the ship knew of the Cardassians, but very few had ever heard of any Cardassian animal species. Though, knowing the hound was native to Cardassia was enough of a reason for many that the beast was too dangerous to stay aboard the Enterprise. You strongly disagreed. Your boyfriend Lt. Commander Data, also disagreed. You and Data could tell that the hound was only a juvenile, it wasn’t fully grown. You could also tell that the creature was starving, it was unlikely that it would be dangerous, once it was fed. Still, your opinion went unnoticed. So Data suggested you go directly to the captain.

 Captain Picard trusted you. He trusted you as much as he trusted any of his senior officers, because without you, a lot of his crew would be dead. You knew so much about animals and their behavior, and you were an invaluable member of the crew. You were also very important to Data, and the captain enjoyed seeing Data experiencing more of humanity through you. You figured that Captain Picard would be on the bridge, so that’s where you went. As soon as the turbo lift doors opened you marched onto the bridge. You were a bit nervous, so you looked for Data at the helm. He turned and looked at you as you walked toward the captain. He could tell that you were nervous, so he decided to try a human method of reassurance; he winked at you. Well, it wasn’t quite a wink, it was more of a stiff half-blink, but you appreciated the thought nonetheless. You approached the captain, but he spoke before you could.

“Lieutenant L/n, I thought I’d be seeing you today. You wish to protest the decision to put the Cardassian riding hound to sleep, I presume?”

“Yes sir. I have several reasons why killing the hound would be a mistake”, you affirmed. 

“Well, let’s hear them”.

As you explained the various reasons to Captain Picard, Data watched you as you spoke with such clarity and with such authority and intelligence, that he couldn’t help but feel very proud of you. Only Counselor Troi noticed the fond smile on Data’s face.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 As it turned out, Captain Picard had never planned to put the hound to sleep. He too agreed that studying an animal native to Cardassia would be an opportunity that was too important to pass up. So, you started to work. You were having a great time studying the massive beast; it looked like a reptile, but it behaved much like a large puppy! It was rather cute. At least, you thought it was cute, Data didn’t. He couldn’t understand how you didn’t  see the danger that the creature posed to you. You were in the makeshift pen that had been set up to house the hound, taking measurements while he (with Data’s help you determined that hound was a male) ate. You were startled out of your zone by Data’s com badge, it was the captain ordering Data to report to his post.

“I am needed on the bridge Y/n”, Data informed you.

You stood up and stretched, “Yeah, I heard. It’s a shame, but you’re needed elsewhere.”

You went to grab a new tool and noticed that Data hadn’t left.

“You know the captain hates it when anyone’s late, you’d better get a move on.”

Data seemed...conflicted about something. You hopped out of the enclosure and made your way over to him. You wrapped your arms around him and asked,

“Hey, what’s wrong?”

“I am concerned for your safety. If I leave, the beast may attack you. I do not know what to do.” 

Aww, he was worried about you! Well, as worried as an android could be anyway. 

“Data, I appreciate your concern, but I’ll be fine! This”, You gestured to the hound, “is nothing. When I was an ensign, I went to Vulcan to study sehlats. We went into the mountains and we were attacked by a pack of le-matyas. One of my classmates died, and the others abandoned me. I managed to get into a cave and waited for the le-matyas to get bored. That was my first real look into xeno-zoology. I knew right then that I had to learn everything I could about every animal I encountered. Do you know why I knew that Data?”

Data replied, “No. I do not. Why?”

You smiled and answered, “Because nobody else knows. I was the youngest student, and only I knew that le-matyas are poisonous. I knew that le-matyas are impatient. I knew what was in those mountains, and I knew the risk. I still know the risks in my job, just like you know the risks of yours. I’ll be fine, trust me”.

You gave him a quick kiss and said, “Now go, before they send someone to find you!”

“I will see you later. Be careful Y/n. I love you.”

You stood shocked for a moment, that was the first time Data said he loved you outside of your quarters.

A huge grin adorned your face, “I love you too, and I promise I will.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 It was late. Time to stop working. You’d made incredible progress and you were really proud of yourself. And for the most part, you kept your promise to Data. Unfortunately, you did get a few scrapes and bruises. It was inevitable though. After being hungry for so long, the hound was so happy to be fed that he spent a solid 10 minutes nuzzling into your side and licking you. It was really sweet, but he was still a 5 foot tall 1000 pound reptile.

 When you got to your quarters, you were surprised to find that Data was already there waiting for you. He was fluffing your pillows. 

“Ah, You are here. I was waiting for you. I know that you have had a very long day, so I thought you would enjoy my company”, Data said when he saw you.

“You thought right. I could definitely use some company, especially company as good looking as you.” You wiggled your eyebrows.

“Is this the human custom of ‘flirting’?”

“Yep, you can tell by the eyebrow wiggle”, you said as you collapsed on your bed. You groaned, your joints felt like they were on fire. You closed your eyes and rested for a moment. As you laid there, you felt the bed dip with the weight of another person. You opened your eyes to see Data sitting on the bed.

“Do you need anything? A drink, a food item perhaps?”, Data inquired.

“Nah, I’m not hungry or thirsty. Thanks for asking though”, you replied.

Data sat still for a moment, he was thinking about something. Finally, he looked at you and asked,

“Would you like to cuddle?”

Your eyes shot open and you stared incredulously at him. Data had never asked to cuddle before, but it did sound really nice.

“I’d love to cuddle with you Data”, you replied.

You scooched over to give Data enough room to lay down. When there was enough space, he stretched out beside you. 

“What should I do now Y/n?”

“Just lay the way you are right now, I’ll come to you”.

You slid over a bit and wrapped your arms around him,

“Okay, now you put your arms around me”, you explained.

Hesitantly, he wrapped his arms around you. You shifted slightly so you could rest your head on his chest. When you got comfortable, you sighed contentedly.

“This is nice Data. We should do this more often.”

“I agree. I am enjoying the experience”.

You chuckled and replied, “Me too.”

Together you both laid, content and happy. You felt like you had finally found the one person who you belonged with. You smiled to yourself. You shifted a bit and yawned. Data heard and said,

“If you are tired, you may go to sleep. I do not mind.”

You yawned again and said, “You mean you’d be okay with staying here with me, all night?”

“Of course darling”.

You smiled, that was his favorite pet name for you.

“Okay. Good night Data”, You gave him a kiss before snuggling closer to him. You were asleep in minutes. Data watched the steady rise and fall of your breathing, and smiled. He never thought that anyone would love him as much as you did. He never thought anyone would love him at all, but here you were. He knew that he had no emotions, but as he looked at your face, and how serene and beautiful you were, he felt something. A sensation in his chest. Was it... love? Data couldn’t say, but what he did know was this; even if he had no emotions, he knew he loved you somehow. Maybe someday he’d be able to feel love the way you did, but until then, he’d watch over you and keep you safe. As Data initiated his dream program, one final thought crossed his mind, cuddling was great, especially with you.