L'shanah tovah [for losthunter]

[boldygoing]

Jim Kirk has not celebrated any holidays with his family for a very long time.

Sure, they started talking again after his enlistment in Starfleet made its way into several Earth newsfeeds, the usual media vultures seeking attention for their coverage of George Kirk's son returning to the fold, so to speak. Confined mostly to text-based messages, and a few short video calls, his grandparents have reached out to him over the past few years, trying to reconnect, to mend old fences, and giving a standing invitation to come visit whenever he's ready.

He's always had an excuse for not going, citing existing plans to spend time with Bones, to study for upcoming exams, or being out of the solar system on Starfleet business, among other things. But with the Enterprise still out of commission as her repairs and overhaul nears completion, and having spent several weeks sharing living space with his mother again, he can't really wiggle out of it this year.

Not that he's even sure he wants to, anymore.

His family life has never really been the poster child for well-adjusted people, but... they're still his family. And maybe it's time to stop running away from his problems and pretending they don't exist. He's not a traumatized thirteen-year-old anymore, overwhelmed and isolated in the knowledge that none of them can truly appreciate the horrors he lived through, lashing out at a world that allowed such things to happen to him. He's turned his life around, cleaned up his act, and started down a path that is far more important than just fulfilling his own wants, regardless of the legality. And this particular holiday seems like the appropriate time to try to make amends.

Fortunately, he doesn't have to deal with it alone.

Jim patiently waits just outside a public transporter terminal in the Chicago suburbs, sitting on a park bench. While still wearing civilian clothes, he's on the slightly more formal side of things today in a white dress shirt and dark pants, though he's not bothered to wear a tie. It's about mid-afternoon, and the streets are mildly busy with people out for a stroll or out running errands of some kind, a steady flow of foot traffic both on the sidewalks and beaming in and out at the transporter platforms. He idly watches them pass by, keeping an eye out for his expected guest, whose PINpoint coordinates should bring him out exactly where everyone expects people to appear out of nowhere.

Comments

[boldygoing]

"Not called to the Starfleet lifestyle, eh?" James says knowingly. "I imagine you see all sorts of folks in New York, even without leaving the planet."

Whether or not Hunter's New York has any aliens living there, it sounds accurate enough, a hodgepodge of Earth cultures of all sorts, and that's not even counting the even wider variety of people in the Nexus.

[losthunter]

"I do get to see a lot of different people. It keeps me busy, since I mostly specialize in portrait work."

[boldygoing]

"Well we're glad you had the time to spend the evening with us," Ruth says.

Winona and Jim have both been somewhat quiet thus far, though in Jim's case it's more because he's focusing on the meal than because he doesn't want to talk, as well as seeing how well Hunter is getting along with his grandparents. So far, so good. "Got any thoughts on the food?" he asks, curious to see whether Hunter's going to have any favorites.

[losthunter]

"Everything is really delicious. Except for when Verity comes and visits me, I don't get a chance to get any home-cooking like this."

"I won't be able to choose my favorite dish..." He nudges Jim's shoulder.

"I love the bread especially. Something about the smell of fresh bread... it is reassuring in a way."

[boldygoing]

"A meal is hardly a meal without bread," Ruth agrees enthusiastically. "It's one of the oldest things mankind ever learned to make. These days, it's easier to buy or synthesize it, but I like making it by hand when I can. It's what our ancestors did, and it helps me appreciate the work they put into feeding their families."

[losthunter]

"That is one recipe I definitely would get a lot of use from. There is something quite soothing about making your own bread."

"Just working with the dough..."

"But I feel the same way when I work with clay."

[boldygoing]

Jim's feelings about breadmaking are... less than straightforward, to say the least. Wheat was the first of the crops to fail, back on Tarsus, and he can never entirely forget that. But he also appreciates the completed product for what it is, a symbol of sustenance, among other things.

"I've had some of Hunter's cooking before," he says instead, as he serves himself another helping of latkes and leeks. "He'll do the recipe justice. Although from what I've heard, maybe Verity would want it too?" he asks, glancing over to Hunter.

"Who's Verity?" Winona asks, frowning slightly. She doesn't recall her son mentioning that name before, but Hunter had mentioned her earlier today.

"Mutual friend," Jim answers. "I met her in the same marketplace where I ran into Hunter."

[losthunter]

"I consider her to be my best friend. She has always been very supportive of me, and my artistic endeavors."

Hunter chuckles. "She will randomly show up to my place, with food. Usually stuff that I can re-heat easily later."

"And she would definitely enjoy trying out any of these recipes."

[boldygoing]

"If she tries anything innovative, be sure to pass it along back to us," James says. "As long as it's kosher, anyway."

[losthunter]

"Oh, she is very respectful, when it comes to preferences like that." Hunter smiled. "She is just very thoughtful."

[boldygoing]

"She's welcome to experiment with the recipe as much as she wants," Ruth clarifies. "But we keep kosher in this household, so anything outside of that, I'd never make. It may be a lot of rules, and not everyone follows them all, but it's traditional and has been an important part of the community for many generations."

That everyone knows Jim doesn't follow those rules right now goes unremarked upon, nor are any judgmental looks sent in his direction. "It's kind of funny... Starfleet has just about as many rules and regulations," he comments.

[losthunter]

"There is usually a good reason for those rules and regulations." Hunter laughs.

[boldygoing]

"Most of them," Jim agrees.

"Have you had any family members in Starfleet?" James asks Hunter, curious. Their guest hasn't said much about his family thus far, and they don't want to pry into any sensitive topics, so it's better to let him volunteer that information if he wants.

[losthunter]

"No." An honest answer.

"My father is a multi-media journalist." He glances down at his plate for a moment. "And my mother passed when I was a child, I never knew what she was interested in."

[boldygoing]

Winona looks down at the table too, the story a sadly familiar one, though with her in the role of the grieving parent rather than the child left behind. "I'm sorry to hear that."

Jim moves his knee to rest against Hunter's in silent support.

"Your father never talked about her?" Ruth asks carefully, respectfully.

[losthunter]

"No. My father sort of buried himself in his work, and kept very busy with it throughout my childhood." Hunter leans slightly towards Jim's presence beside him.

"I didn't even know where she was buried, until recently."

"I have very faint memories of her. And I painted a representation of her, that now hangs in my bedroom."

[boldygoing]

"Grief can be the most difficult thing to face," James says, though he doesn't look directly at Jim or Winona. They're not the only ones at the table who have let tragedy and its aftermath guide their actions in the past. "But family is important, and I'm glad you've found your own way to remember her."

[losthunter]

"Family is important. I have started to look into my own genealogical background, just to find out more about my families history."

[boldygoing]

"Anything interesting turn up so far?" Jim asks, curious. Even though he hasn't been around his family much since he was thirteen, he still knows a decent amount of his own family history.

[losthunter]

"I was able to find my father's parents, and have started tracking down their history. Their parents had immigrated to the States from England."

"But I am having trouble finding my mother's parents."

[boldygoing]

"Are you planning to reach out to anyone that's still around?" Ruth asks. "Once you find them, I mean."

[losthunter]

"I'm not sure..." Hunter doesn't know how to explain his hesitation to them. In their timeline, people don't care about appearances the same way they do in his timeline. And he can't really explain that he didn't always look the way he does, without going into details about Kendra and witchcraft.

"Right now I am just enjoying learning about my roots. Learning about the foods and traditions of those other cultures."

[boldygoing]

"Tracing your family history can be a full-time job in itself," James agrees. "It's fascinating stuff, especially when your roots have come from so many different places."

[losthunter]

"It sounds like you have experience. How many generations back have you tracked?"

[boldygoing]

"On my side of the family, we've been able to follow records back to the mid twentieth century," Ruth says, though as she speaks, she's checking around the table to see if anyone would like more food, and passes a little more challah down to Jim. "On James' side, we've traced back some branches to the eighteenth, though the Lakota didn't leave any physical birth records to dig back any further down that part of the family line."

"My dad's side of the family came over during the American pioneer days too," Jim adds, earning a somewhat startled look from his mom, who hadn't expected him to bring up George.