Title: Slings
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: Kirk/McCoy
Word Count: 1,145
Warnings: self-betaed
Summary: For the jim_and_bones prompt insubordination and the hc_bingo prompt imprisonment - Like hell Leonard was going to leave Jim alone with the Malgari with his shoulder dislocated the way it is.

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Leonard can tell from the set of Jim's jaw that he's furious, absolutely livid. He's sure some part of that has to do with being locked up in a dank and dirty cell that isn't even big enough for either of them to lie down, even diagonally, but it's mostly because of Leonard himself.

Like hell Leonard was going to leave Jim alone with the Malgari with his shoulder dislocated the way it is. It doesn't matter that Jim had ordered him back to the ship with the rest of the away team. It's not insubordination when Leonard, as the Chief Medical Officer, can overrule the captain because of physical or mental health. Jim seems to be selectively ignoring that bit of Starfleet protocol, though, as he stands by the door with his back to Leonard, who's leaning against the cold wall. He can feel the dirty water seeping into his uniform, the black undershirt not providing enough protection as he'd taken off his blue tunic to hold it, trying to keep it dry, for when Jim stops ignoring Leonard and let's him rig up a sling for his arm.

Leonard's not exactly sure what went wrong. They were getting supplies on Malgar, and the next thing Leonard knew was that one of the bullish aliens had Jim's arm twisted behind his back and had been speaking so quickly and roughly that even Uhura only managed to pick up every other word.

"Jim…" Leonard tries for a third time since they've been locked up and ignored. It's been, what, an hour now? More? Jim's shoulders stiffen slightly at his name, his back getting straighter, so at least Leonard knows he isn't being completely ignored. "Jim, you don't have to talk to me. Just let me fix your shoulder before you cause further ligament damage." The response is silence, so Leonard tries pushing a little harder, not caring if it's too much because he's about five seconds away from just manhandling Jim until his shoulder pops back into place. "Don't make me take you off duty for thirty six hours when we get back to the ship because you'll need a tissue regenerator strapped to your arm for being a stubborn bastard."

Jim lowers his head, nodding ever so slightly, and Leonard takes it for the acquiescence that it is. He moves to stand directly behind Jim, his chest pressed flush against Jim's back to keep his shoulder from rotating too far as Leonard pushes it back into place. He's reminded of the last time he had to do this for Jim, after a training simulation back during their first year at the academy, but Jim had been ecstatic with victory then, grinning through the pain. Now he barely grunts as bones lock back in place.

Leonard ties the arms of his uniform into a loop, resting the knot around Jim's neck and on the opposite shoulder from the one he'd dislocated, knowing it won't keep Jim's shoulder as stable as he'd like, but at least it should serve as a reminder for Jim to try not to move it. He doesn't step away when he's done, keeping his hands on Jim's biceps like a futile effort to absorb his lingering pain. Jim doesn't try to push him away. Leonard can feel his weight shift until they're both leaning against each other, holding each other up. Jim lets out a deep breath then, and his entire body relaxes. Leonard notices that the line of his jaw doesn't seem so hard anymore.

"You wouldn't have left me here alone, either," Leonard says quietly, not wanting his words to carry to anyone else nearby. His mouth is right by Jim's ear, so it isn't hard to keep his voice low but have Jim able to hear him.

"I know," Jim replies, moving his good arm up and behind them to rest on the back of Leonard's head, pushing it down until his chin is resting on Jim's shoulder. The knot of his shirt cuffs is in his face, but Leonard doesn't care. "I just don't know what happened, what went wrong, and all I can think of are those admirals who were against me getting the Enterprise. And then when you don't follow my order in front of the crew…"

Leonard gets it now. And he feels like an asshole for it. Jim's shoulder isn't the only part of him that's been dislocated but his self-confidence too. He's trying to get his crew and the admiralty to take him seriously as a captain, and Leonard's not helping. The CMO can overrule the captain, but it's not like Jim was putting himself or anyone else in mortal peril. And Leonard could've easily fixed Jim's shoulder before the Malgari police took him away.

He opens his mouth to apologize, but he hears the guards coming their way, and when they come into sight, Leonard sees Spock and a security detail in tow.

Jim pulls himself away, walking ahead once the cell is unlocked to talk to Spock about what he and Uhura had figured out. Leonard catches offensive hand gesture and tunes out the rest, satisfied enough with misinterpretation as the reasoning, and Jim's more or less unharmed. Once a joint has been dislocated, it's easier to make happen again, so Leonard doubts it'll be the last time Jim will need his shoulder popped back into place.

Leonard's also too distracted by thoughts about how he's been trying to do nothing but support Jim when he's been unknowingly undermining his authority. Well…in some cases it was knowingly, but he hasn't realized how it makes Jim feel.

Jim stops by sickbay after they get back to return Leonard's shirt and get a more proper brace for the night. Jim looks oddly vulnerable instead of his usual petulance when sitting on the biobed, letting Leonard run all of the tricorder scans he needs to check for damage to nerve, bone, and muscle.

"Everything looks good," Leonard says as he turns the tricorder off and sets it aside. "Use it as little as possible tonight, try not to sleep on it, and you'll have full function back tomorrow." Leonard pauses. "Captain."

There's nothing behind his tone, Jim's rank passing his lips the same way Jim's name would have. It surprises Jim, his eyes wide as they meet Leonard's. Jim knows it isn't for show - there's hardly anyone in sickbay at the moment. If Leonard keeps saying it, though, like it's right and natural, he hopes that maybe Jim himself will start to believe it, and then it won't matter to him anymore what his detractors think.

"I'll see you later, Bones," Jim says, hopping off the biobed with a slight grin on his face.

Leonard is wearing a small smile of his own as he unties the sleeves of his blue shirt.