Banner For Where They Find Life's Completion By Merfilly

Banner for Where They Find Life's Completion by Merfilly

Protector by @kingstoken

Ship: Adam/Michael (or Platonic)

The more we learn about Vulcan culture in Star Trek the more we know how terrible what Mirror!Spock did to McCoy is.  It is against the law on Vulcan for someone to mind meld without a person's consent, except in emergency circumstances, although one could argue that Mirror!Spock thought his ship might be at risk, but it is still probably highly ethical, (but of course rules are different in the mirrorverse).  Also, it not unusual for people who have experienced a forced mind meld to have temporary or permanent damage to their minds, so it is a god damn miracle that McCoy is able to function at all.  I always head-canon that McCoy, when he realized what might be coming, let it happen, not that it isn’t still a horrendous violation, but McCoy didn’t have a lot of choices, and he had to weigh the costs of fighting Mirror!Spock.

I think the fact that McCoy allows a mind meld in a later episode is a testament to how much McCoy trusts Spock, even if he does look understandably uncomfortable with the process, and by this point he must not associate his Spock with Mirror!Spock, However, I do agree that the few weeks or months after their return from the Mirrorverse must have been very difficult for McCoy, to see the face of your abuser in your friend’s face everyday could not have been remotely easy.  

To your other point, I think that McCoy is a big part of the reason that there are counselors on ships during deep space missions in TNG.  We know that later in life McCoy is very influential in Starfleet Medical, rising to rank of Admiral.  I think he took his experiences and realized what was lacking, and that you can’t expect the CMO to be all things to all people, including themselves.

So this post, this post and this one have all inspired me to analyse Bones.

So the third post shows Bones being forcibly melded with by mirror Spock in Mirror Mirror (tos), and the second one talks about how Bones can barely walk after this meld. And the first post is when Spock has to meld witj Jim, Scotty and Bones so they don’t die in a simulation.

My first point is how scared Bones looks in mirror mirror, which is completely expected when such a private man is having his mind forcefully entered into. And this look carries onto the other time (in the show at least) we see Bones’ melded with.

So this raises this question of how much trauma Bones holds, and doesn’t tell anyone, about that event. Because, as I said before, he’s such a private man. Was it difficult for him to undergo another meld at the hands of the same man who’s only physical difference is facial hair?

Does this mean that it was difficult for him to come to terms with Spock’s meld in the Search for Spock? Because it’s stepped up from a meld to actually holding someone’s consciousness and the process of transferring it was even more dangerous than a meld. Or had he healed and talked about it by then?

Did he avoid Spock for weeks after mirror mirror just because it’s the same eyes he stared into as all he is was reluctantly shared to a man who could bribe him with all his being? Because the pain of someone pushing their way into your soul like a deep stab wound hadn’t healed and there’s no psychologists on board to help?

Did this influence him in any way? It’s said in a star trek book that there wasn’t anything in a modern medical bay thay he didn’t influence and some fans have suggested that the reason in tng why there’s a cmo and a ship psychologist is because of Bones.

Does anyone else have thoughts on this?

Rowena Sunset Portrait, created as part of the 2020 Sunset Challenge 

Michael Burnham wallpaper, created for 2020 Fandom Giftbox

Meg Sunset Portrait, created as part of the 2020 Sunshine Challenge