god mcspirk is so terrific. i love when jim and spock scheme together (ok jim schemes but he ropes spock into it too and spock just can't say no to his captain) to fluster bones.
sometimes jim just wants to see his boyfriends make out with tongue... is that too much to ask?
prompt fill for @mcspirkevents' mcspirk bingo prompt "sloppy kissing" ←(>▽<)ノ
you guys just dont even. understand Him. hes NOT super overly sweet and affectionate with his partner(s), although he does love them very much. he reluctantly accepts a kiss on the cheek from jim, melodramatically rolling his eyes and kicking him out of the sickbay. but he looks back at jim as he walks away, a soft smile on his face and an added pep in his step for the rest of his shift.
he grumbles about "ridiculous vulcan voodoo" and makes a face as spock offers him an ozh'esta. but when their fingers touch, spock can feel the overwhelming affection underneath his icy exterior; his armor protecting him from getting hurt again.
the armor isn't going to fall off the moment he falls in love. it may not ever fall off; not all the way, at least. spock and jim aren't there to "fix" him, they're there to love him as he is. he doesn't have to outwardly express his love to show that he loves. he loves and cares deeply, all he ever wants is for everyone around him to be safe and to feel better.
I've been seeing more posts exalting the positive impact McCoy plays on the triumvirate and it had me wondering what would Spock and Kirk be like if McCoy had simply never joined up?
(I am ignoring everything but tos canon, and I am fully making this up lol)
I like the pov that Spock is more comfortable in himself because McCoy needles and pushes him, but never tries to force him to change. So, Spock knows one human who will hear the most Vulcan stuff he has to say, will disagree and fight him on it, but will ultimately say it's alright that you think that. It's nice to have friends who listen to you without making you change
Spock also gets to learn what McCoy's thought processes are and understands what humans want through that. While a lot of their interactions are about what being Vulcan is like, a lot are also McCoy giving Spock a clear example of what being human means.
Can't find the gifs, but I'm thinking of scenes like when McCoy has a drink while Spock complains and McCoy's like, "you don't have to drink with me Spock, but at the very least dont disapprove of me" which is a clear instruction on how to spend off duty time together. Even the wish me luck scene has a "how can I grant you what I don't understand" which is also, hey, Spock, I'm human. Remember that.
And all of Galileo! All McCoy does is walk around and inform Spock why humans are responding the way they are
I think it helps Spock learn how to interact with his colleagues. He learns what he can expect of them, and what's too much.
All that's to say I think Spock'd be a right asshole to work with if he didn't have McCoy holding his hand and helping him chill tf out
And then Jim! I mean, we know that the Spock and McCoy bickering is how Jim thinks through problems. It also means that Spock and McCoy can disagree with Jim without directly challenging their captain's authority which would help the chain of command feel solid
On top of helping Jim make decisions, he's an old friend. He knows everything. And McCoy makes him eat, I know his Yeoman does as well but I feel like McCoy's thing of "I eat when the crew eats, that means you" is pretty unique. And medical command has the capacity to give orders to the captain like no one else does, but McCoy wields it as a friend not a colleague and that's gotta be helpful to him
Of course, part of why Spock and McCoy work is because Jim is there to show Spock not every human will jump down your throat, but that's for another post.
I think a Jim without McCoy would be all work no play. I think he'd be thinner, he'd have a terrible habit of falling in love then actually being devastated that he chooses the ship because he doesn't get the chance to relax and laugh onboard as he does with McCoy
I don't know, I'm sure other people will come up with other ideas but I'm just thinking today. I wonder if, without McCoy, would Jim and Spock even be friends? Or would they just be remarkably productive colleagues who like get each other but don't actually spend time together
Please feel free to add to this if you have thoughts, mine are very unformed
It's been a while since I put one of these together! Under the cut are a selection of great spirk, mckirk, spones, and mcspirk fics I've read in the past few months with a brief description of what I liked about them. Enjoy!
SPIRK
Tomorrow’s Circus by Borealisblue. TOS. Explicit, 56,084 words (as of 6/20/24). Work in progress. Circus au, 1930s, everyone’s human. The friends-to-lovers and pining in this is SO GOOD and I really think that everyone needs to be reading this fic. I haven’t been this invested in a fic in a long time; getting that subscription email letting me know this fic has updated can literally fix me when I’m having a bad day. Cannot rec this fic enough if you’re in the mood for a slowburn, plus the art in it is phenomenal.
A Perfect Fit by ThereBeWhalesHere. TOS. Teen and Up Audiences, 7,097 words. Role swap: Captain Spock and First Officer Kirk. Spock’s POV, admittance of feelings, first kiss. This fic is so lovely, I love a fic where I get to just watch these two get to know each other and fall in love.
Time After Time by spaceisgay (ChancellorGriffin). SNW and Disco. Explicit, 138,921 words. I loved this fic. The pining and sexual tension is so good, and this fic has a good balance of humorous fluffy scenes and angst and incredibly hot smut. It’s a spirk fic, yes, but it really dives into sibling dynamics as it explores the Kirk brothers’ relationship as Spock continues to process the Michael-shaped hole in his life. I love this take on this era’s Spock, there’s so much he doesn’t know about himself yet. I also really adore how this fic writes all the characters—you really get a sense of everyone’s personalities in this fic, the entire crew feels so ALIVE. Just fantastic characterizations of everyone!
Big Me (But It's You I Fell Into) by waketosleep. AOS. Mature, 38,728 words. This is the fic that got me to care about golf. I wish I was kidding—now I join my in-laws when they’re watching it on the TV. This fic has a scene between McCoy and Kirk during Kirk’s first tournament with him that had me laughing my ass off. Never not thinking about this fic; the dangerous part about reading a sports au is suddenly you care about that sport. Don’t think it can happen to you? Give this fic a try.
Consume by the_moonmoth. AOS. Explicit, 1,139 words. Must be logged in to read. Very hot smut. Dirty talk, mind melds, Bottom!Kirk and Top!Spock. This fic just hits.
You Could Call It Love by lurikko. TOS. Mature, 45,791 words. Fake marriage, slowburn, getting together. This fic is SO good, just a whole bunch of tropes that I adore.
SPONES
That Which Lingers by stanzas. TOS Movies. Teen and Up Audiences, 1,008 words. Takes place after The Search for Spock. Established relationship with some very sweet moments as they deal with the lingering side effects of the fal-tor-pan. This fic is just everything to me, it absolutely melted my heart.
So Hold Me Close and Say Three Words by Rusoe. TOS. Mature, 1,103 words. Omegaverse. Nesting, Omega!McCoy and Alpha!Spock. I absolutely wasn’t expecting this fic to dive into insecurities about aging when I clicked on it. Loved this!
Stop Making Sense by therev. TOS. General Audiences, 13,775 words. Spock is severely injured as a result of a decision McCoy had to make in order to save the lives of others. McCoy carries a lot of guilt over his actions, even as Spock recovers from his injuries. Very good.
it’s all downhill from here by strangenewwords. AOS. Teen and Up Audiences, 2,082 words. McCoy takes Joanna sledding. Joanna gets overtired, and McCoy gets overwhelmed and panicky. Love this fic’s take on Dad!McCoy, and the spones in this is so damn sweet.
MCKIRK
and i can lend you broken parts that might fit (like this) by jeyhawk. AOS. Explicit, 17,461 words. Academy era, first they hookup, then get to know each other, and then their relationship grows from there. I’m a sucker for fics with this setup.
Resistless is your charm by fangirlandiknowit. AOS. Explicit, 6,031 words. After hearing about Uhura’s awful first date with Kirk, McCoy decides to text him. Includes some mini-golfing and a very good car hookup scene. Loved this.
MCSPIRK
Tex-Mex Eggrolls and Spinach Dip by Ncc1701ohno. TOS. Explicit, 3,746 words. Smut, light bondage. The setup for this fic is that Spock, McCoy, and Kirk find themselves stuck in the 21st century and work at the Cheesecake Factory in order to make ends meet. I desperately want this fic to become a multi-part series, because the concept is endlessly amusing to me (which is pretty obvious since I partially inspired the idea). A very funny and very hot fic.
Everything That Disappears by sagesiren. AOS. Mature, 19,748 words. Academy era, kid fic, Trans!McCoy, fluff and emotional hurt/comfort. Absolutely loved this, McCoy being a single dad is everything to me. A very entertaining get-together fic for the three of them while exploring parenthood and being trans.
Approximation by liadan14. AOS. Explicit, 15,167 words. Mutual pining, hot smut, and a really interesting plot told non-chronologically. I especially enjoyed Spock’s characterization in this fic, but I love how all three of them are written!
It's here! My NSFW McSpirk fic, "How Wisdom Might Be Loved," is finally up on ao3. If you remember that erotic hand touching scene I posted a while back, this is the full fic!
This was a labor of love, and I'm so excited to finally share it with everyone.
I love that bones x kirk are just a walking ao3 fic in the 2009 film. the writers said spirk has had enough time in the sun time for MY otp, and had them meet at the lowest points of their lives. mccoy is drunk and threatening to puke on jim, jim is hungover/looks like shit, and then mccoy, the most dramatic man on the shuttle who has been spouting about imminent death, goes “all I got left r my bones” and offers him a drink from his flask. instead of being like ok this guy is mental he goes this guy is my new best friend. and then they spend their entire time at the academy as best friends! and when jim isn’t allowed onto the ship, bones risks his entire career to bring him along. because not only is it jim’s dream to see the black (not his), but he can’t imagine going out there without him. they started their relationship at rock bottom, and grew together. they rebuild their lives together. and they are a part of each other’s foundations
what are your thoughts on bones ring (no need to be normal about it) (im not)
jim got both of them promise rings within 5 minutes of them meeting each other. they did the whole “you got me a promose ring?” “you don’t have to-” “no i’m keeping it” thing. jim proceeded to lose his ring approximately 2 days later. bones thinks it’s the funniest thing ever and will constantly bring it up to annoy jim. he also never takes it off.