T*R*E*K: "I would not presume to debate you"

[scarfman]

Summary: Decades before I started asking myself questions like, What if King Arthur were a starship captain, or a MASH surgeon?, I asked, What if James T. Kirk never existed but Hawkeye Pierce was born 300 years late? The title of a T*R*E*K piece is a line from the original scene which doesn't appear in the T*R*E*K version. (Here's an overview of the T*R*E*K chronology.)

Setting/spoilers: This is a scene from The Wrath of Borelli. Crossposted to scarfman mash_fic trek_fanfiction trekfics

I would not presume to debate you

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Hawkeye found Potter in the V.I.P. cabin with Radar.

"There's been a distress signal from Regula One," he said.

"Regula One?" Potter, of course, knew what the deal was there.

"That's a scientific outpost, isn't it, sir?" Radar said.

"I told Starfleet it was probably just garbled communications," Hawkeye said. "But they want it checked out, and - just like old times - we're the only ship in the quadrant."

Potter grimaced thoughtfully. "How good are these cadets of yours, Hawkeye? How will they stand up under real pressure?"

"There's only one way to find out." Hawkeye bit the bullet. "Of course the ship is yours."

Potter looked up, surprised. "That's not necessary."

"I'm just a teacher," said Hawkeye. "If we're going on actual duty -"

"You are a talented command officer -"

"Well, I learned from the best -"

"You were both pretty stupid," Radar interrupted, "to let yourselves get kicked upstairs like you did."

Hawkeye and Potter both stared at him as if he had bit them.

"Sorry, sirs. But it's true and you know it."

Hawkeye turned to Potter. "Well, I'm not going to argue with him."

"Hawkeye," said Potter, "the Enterprise was your ship before I even assumed command after Henry Blake."

"I didn't object then, did I?"

Potter looked from him to Radar, where he saw no help. "Oh, very well," he said. But there was a familiar spring to his step when he stood, that hadn't been there earlier.