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A gift is waiting with Chekov for Jim to open. There is another note waiting for him too.

Hopefully this will give you a lot of reading material for the journey ahead

Inside the gift is a set of books written by Russian authors.

Chekov is delighted, both to see his captain again, and because of Hunter's choice of gift. He may not know the man quite as well as some of the other crew, but he was more than happy to help be a part of Hunter's holiday plans to bring the captain a little cheer.

"Your partner has wery good taste," he tells Jim, admiring the matching set of famous novels. "Everyone knows the best authors come from Russia. It's where the novel was first inwented, you know."

Jim is pretty sure that's not true, but far be it from him to step on Chekov's regional pride by pointing that out. "Then I hope you're bringing some of your own along. I might need some recommendations once I'm done with these." Not entirely true either, but he knows how much the young navigator likes to help, and seeing his face light up like that makes it worth it.

On the fifth night of Hanukkah, Jim receives another origami animal. This time it is a beautiful crane that greets him. The delicate animal struts across the table, before bowing with its wings, and unfolding into a note.

In the hands of he who is quick on his feet, You will plant a new start for your crew, Delivered by leadership and sass.

Edited 2017-12-17 00:30 (UTC)

Wow. That is one elaborate crane. Jim has only ever seen the classic, basic version, so it's a bit of a surprise to see one so beautifully detailed.

Tonight's riddle needs a little more thought. Scotty has proven to be up to the sort of mad sprints that the job sometimes requires, but he's not exactly in shape for anything much longer than that. Nor is he really in leadership, despite his place in the chain of command. The belly of the ship is where he's the happiest.

So it must be someone on the bridge. Doesn't Sulu do botany as a side hobby? And he's certainly sassy. Fencing means you have to be light on your feet as well. Looks like he's checking in with the helmsman tonight, and this time he doesn't have far to go, since Sulu also lives in San Francisco.

Jim has figured out yet another riddle. Sulu does indeed have a gift addressed to Jim at his residence. Hunter had gone out of his way to find out where each crew member had lived, so that he could make the gift deliveries. And explain about how the gift was not to be opened before Jim showed up. All the crew members were thrilled to help him.

Anything for their captain.

Another gift accompanies the gift tonight too. Remember to plant the seeds of hope and adventure for your entire crew

The gift is hand-blown botany jars. Each of the botany containers contains a different herbs and a few contain flowers, so that they could be grown and flourished in a proper botany garden.

Edited 2017-12-17 03:11 (UTC)

"It's a clever idea, sir," Sulu tells him as they identify the plants one by one, using the helmsman's personal tricorder. "All these plants are pretty hardy ones, and they're all perennials. We shouldn't have any trouble growing them onboard the Enterprise."

Jim smiles a little, looking over one of the little jars, and the sprig of lavender growing inside. "Yeah, he's thoughtful that way."

On the sixth night of Hanukkah, an origami barn owl arrives via Jim's PINpoint. It flies around the immediate space, before swooping down and landing. The owl bows at Jim, and unfolds into another note.

In the hands of he watches the heart of your ship, You will find that time is never ending, Delivered by dedication and innovation.

The answer to this one is very obvious to Jim. Of course it's Scotty, 'he who watches the heart of his ship.' He hasn't spent much time around the engineer since their last mission, although he has been reaching out a little lately, on his older counterpart's advice. It's been slow going, reconditioning himself to that part of the ship, always mindful of the presence of the warp core. But meeting Scotty in a more social setting... that's not as bad.

"Time is never ending," he mutters to himself as he heads out to meet the Scotsman, wondering what that might mean.

There is in fact a gift waiting with Scotty for Jim's arrival. Like the other gifts, it is wrapped simply, with a small note.

Time is what you make it. And I know you will make the most of it

Inside the gift is a hand-made perpetual-motion calendar that he would be able to hang somewhere in the ship.

Edited 2017-12-18 02:13 (UTC)

"Yer lad is wise beyond his years," Scotty tells Jim, when the present is revealed. There's a somber note in the air between them, a reminder that the captain's time in this world is a precious gift, not to be taken for granted. They both know how close this last time was.

"Yeah," Jim agrees, turning the calendar over in his hands, deep in thought. Thinking about opportunities, and second chances.

And where he's going to put this in his quarters, when he's able to go back home. Not the apartment. His real home, made of durasteel and transparent aluminum and stardust.

On the seventh night of Hanukkah, a small and elaborate origami swan greets Jim tonight. It floats in the air, delicately. Then bows its head at Jim, unfolding into another note for him to solve.

In the hands of she who sees the world as an endless possibility, You will find a way to express all your thoughts, Delivered by intelligence and boldness.

So far, all of the gifts that Hunter has arranged have been held safe by Jim's crew, his closest friends and most loyal officers. All people that Hunter would have met during the captain's time at Starfleet Medical, and has gotten to know at least a little better since. But with only two nights left, and no more officers to hold gifts, Jim doesn't think that Hunter would repeat the same people. Who will the origami lead him to tonight?

When the note arrives, he takes his time contemplating it. The only other women from this Earth that Hunter has met are some of Jim's relatives, and he really hopes it's not his mother. She doesn't see the world as an endless possibility, as far as he knows, so he feels fairly confident in ruling her out as tonight's gift guardian.

So who is it?

Intelligence and boldness... Gryffindors are bold, right? Jim seems to remember Hermione saying something about that, when he'd asked about the Houses. He doesn't want to just show up without any warning though, especially since she's had uninvited guests in recent days, so he shoots off a quick message as he prepares to head out.

It's Jim. Mind if I drop in?

Edited 2017-12-19 00:52 (UTC)

I was actually expecting a visit from you today. Come on over. I have some tea made!

Looks like the riddle was hinting that Hermione was included in safe-keeping a gift.

Well, that’s good enough for him. Jim still has the coordinates for her cottage from the last time he paid a visit, so it’s a simple matter to call them up and step through.

“Permission to come aboard?” he calls out, a small smile on his face. Her place is much cozier and welcoming than the basic flat he’s currently living in, and despite his usual holiday mood, he’s looking forward to spending a little time with a friend, away from the responsibilities of Starfleet.

Crookshanks comes racing down the hallway at the sound of his voice... moving as fast as his old cat legs can carry him. He is chirping a greeting. Over here! I'm over here!

When he gets closer, he rubs up against Jim's legs.

"Permission granted Captain!" Hermione's voice comes from the kitchen. There is the smell of fresh-baked bread wafting down the hallway.

Crookshanks will lead the way. He chirps again. Follow him!

“Hey, Crookshanks.” Jim bends for a moment to pat the kneazle’s head in greeting, before following the feline towards the kitchen. Jim may not have a ton of happy memories with most of his family, but the smell of fresh bread is one of them, a warm comfort that reminds him of his grandmother’s cooking. Better days, perhaps. Younger days, anyway.

It’s enough to make him relax a little, as he and Crookshanks seek out the lady of the house.

As he enters the kitchen, Hermione is pulling out fresh hot-cross buns from the oven. There is a nice selection of jams and jellies on the table.

"Hi Jim! Take a seat!" There is a light covering of snow in the garden right now. Crookshanks jumps up on a cat perch, that is near the table.

There is a small gift-wrapped package on the table too.

Jim has never really had a problem making himself comfortable in unfamiliar places, so he doesn’t hesitate one moment before claiming a seat at the table. “I didn’t know you baked, too. Those smell pretty good.”

He casts a curious glance at the gift. It’s pretty small, as most Hanukkah presents tend to be, though it doesn’t give him any hints as to what it might be. After six nights, he still isn’t entirely sure what to expect. But maybe part of the point is for him to get out more, stop holing up at his apartment so he doesn’t have to deal with the same old nonsense he usually gets from people this time of year. Pitying looks, ‘your father was a hero,’ ‘tell us what it’s like to follow in his footsteps,’ that kind of thing. Whether or not that’s what Hunter meant to do, the break from all that has been a relief.

"I learned how to bake from my mother. And without my parents around, it just became second nature for me." Plus it was a handy skill, when Harry and Hermione were on the run from the Dark Lord. It meant that they could enjoy a good dessert, even when times were tough.

She sees him measuring the gift with a look. "It is your gift. You do not have to wait for me to open it. I am here to explain a little about it."

The note on the gift express Hunter's deepest desire for Jim.
I hope you can always feel free to express your thoughts

Well, that just gets him even more curious. "It needs explaining?"

Jim pulls the gift closer, reading the note scrawled on the package, before he begins to unwrap it. He's never really gotten many gifts before, so he's not sure if he's supposed to be all careful and methodical about it... but that's not really his style anyway. He tears at the paper, intrigued to see what Hunter has chosen for him this time.

"There are a few enchantments on it..."

Hermione brings the baking to the table, and waits for Jim to unwrap his gift. She smiles, watching him tear at the paper. Crookshanks jumps onto the table, attacking a stray piece of wrapping paper. He is helping.

Inside the gift is a empty journal. The cover is painted with the star constellations (as seen from Earth). As soon as Jim touches the book, the constellations move, floating across the journal cover.

"The journal is bonded to you, and only you Jim. No matter what you write in it... no one else will be able to read what you write. Not even me. Not even Hunter."

An actual paper book. Not quite as rare in Hunter's time as it is in Jim's, but still a treasure nonetheless. The moving stars catch his attention immediately, and he watches in fascination as they drift across the cover only to reappear on the other side, like watching the night sky wheeling overhead.

Jim has kept a captain's log, during his time in command of the Enterprise, but it's something that's audio only, spoken aloud, and subject to review by Starfleet at their leisure. He runs his hand over the cover, flipping it open to see the blank pages inside, just waiting to be written.

"That's... really cool." He honestly doesn't know what to say. "I'd bet you helped with that, right? Thank you."

"I did."

"It has an extension charm on the pages, so you can write for years without running out of paper. It also has several protection charms, so it can not be destroyed by any physical and magical means. And if you ever have to leave it behind... you just have to think about the journal, and it will reappear at your side."

Years? He'd thought it was impressive before, but that's... above and beyond anything he would've expected from a present like this. And being able to summon it at will? "I'd ask you how that works, but I'm pretty sure the answer is 'magic.'"

"Actually... my gift to you is this..." Hermione places a binder onto the table, which has a little red bow on it. Inside is a detailed report about the science, behind the magic, which made the gift possible.

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