The Stone That Sings, Chapter 17

Connection

The one thing I don't have in my outline is chapter titles. I chose 'Connection' if only because that seemed to be what was going on, but I realized that the title is quite ironic.

 I wanted to hit:

• More information about the Raptor Badge and those involved
• Juliette's meddling in the relationship between T'Mar and Danek
• More information about what happened with the sehlat
• Danek's growing interest in Juliette
• Juliette increased distrust, yet continued reliance on P'Nem

There're a couple of threads on Scribophile about love triangles. I hate them because they become what people write when they don't have a story. Still, its hard to have a story about three young people and not have relationships defined, and if there is any ambiguity, you have the possibility of a triangle. But how can I avoid making yet another crappy love triangle?

My strategy in a nutshell: Juliette is not the apex of the triangle, and Betazoids lean more toward the middle of the Kinsey scale than the extremes. Contrast this with Vulcans -- who are almost forced into a binary situation -- and we're back to aliens being alien rather than Juliette Sri turning into Katniss Everdeen.

The binding, at least my take on it for this story, is to 'synchronize' the seven-year cycle between a pair of Vulcans. It also serves as a 'homing beacon' since uncompleted ponn farr is fatal. We'll push all the various complications of that bit of canon aside and just say "okay." 

Because, in this chapter, Juliette connects with Danek, then 'hops' to T'Mar, and while Vulcans are binary (we'll say primarily here, and also make the call that yes, Vulcans can be bound to the same gender, and it would serve the same purpose? Why? Because it makes as much sense as ponn farr. One might even go further and say that there might be Vulcans that go through a lighter or non-existent ponn far. There, now we've covered the Kinsey and polyamorous scales. Someone will complain about this, but that what the internet is for)

But, back to Juliette, so probably has a better hold on her sexuality than the Vulcans do. There is a downside to centuries of repression. So, hopping the bind creates complications, and also sets things in motion more between Danek and T'Mar -- especially for T'Mar, who wasn't sure she wanted to spend the rest of her life with Danek. Juliette's mother warned her about playing matchmaker.

In the end, Juliette has no one with whom to connect. The sehlat tried to kill her. P'Nem is a Tal'Shiar spy. Danek and T'Mar are bound to each other and a binary species. All Juliette has is the ESH and unlike humans, intimacy is a very telepathic thing for Betazoids.