In Star Trek 2009, after Captain Pike talks to Kirk about joining Starfleet while sitting in the bar, Jim picks up a small model of the Enterprise and tilts it, studying it. If you look carefully, you'll see salt coming out of it as he turns it; here's my take on what happened to that Salt-shaker after Jim Kirk set his sights on it.

BTW, if you haven't watched this movie, SPOILER ALERT, AND I MEAN MAJOR, MAJOR SPOILER ALERT.

Disclaimer: Only in my dreams do I own Chekov. Or any of them. But especially Chekov.

"I dare you to do better."

And honestly, when James T. Kirk heard that, it made him angry. Do better? He had done fine. Sort of. Besides the almost constant bar-fights and… other things. Well, certain adventures hadn't turned out so great. But he'd masked his anger well, replacing it with an annoyed fake front.

He waited until Pike was gone before he picked up the little salt-shaker on the table. U.S.S. Enterprise. His? Perhaps not the real one- oh, Kirk got what he wanted usually, but a starship was a lot to ask for. And though he wasn't generally prone to stealing, he slipped an extra credit onto the table, and tucked the salt-shaker into his pocket. It wouldn't leave there until Jim donned a red cadet uniform two days later.

Bones saw Jim fingering the salt-shaker on the ride to the Academy, and found out later that he barely went anywhere without it, thought James Kirk would hardly admit it outright. It held a special importance to him.

The salt shaker never made it off Jim's bedside table when he boarded the Enterprise, but by the time he was captain of the Enterprise, it had migrated into his quarters, where it took up residence in a place of high esteem; Jim's sock drawer. It was his lucky charm, and since acquiring it, he'd almost cheated death several times.

When he saw Bones the afternoon after they rescued Spock from the Volcano, it was in his left pocket, snugly against his hip. It came with him when he spoke to Pike.

And it stayed there when his mentor died.

The morning after the attack of Starfleet HQ, Kirk sat alone in his quarters, holding the shaker in his hands, resting in his lap. His Comm beeped, and he set it down to answer. When he got up to respond to Scotty's beckoning, he left it lying on his desk.

Bones came up to find Jim, to check on him after the fire-fight last night, but only found an empty room when he peered into the cracked open door. A ticking chromo-calculator sat idly on the desk. Bones stepped into the apartment, checking the bed to make sure Jim wasn't drunk and unconscious, and peered into the bathroom for the same purpose. He shook his head. The absence of Jim was draining; he was like a titanium wall, taking the pain, and the joy, and making them bounce off and all around him, giving his energy to others.

Something caught Bones' eye as he left the apartment. A little model of the Starship Enterprise. He recognized it from many years ago. Well not so many. That little salt shaker…. he wasn't sure if he was thinking of Jim or the model Starship.

He picked it up, and gave it to Jim later that day on the transport, on the way to the Enterprise. He would meet Carol Marcus on that very shuttle.

Jim would carry it with him until the day he died. He felt it pressing into his hip as he slumped away from Spock's gaze. Bones found it when Jim was brought to him, cold, stiff. Gone. And the little salt shaker was a bit warped from the radiation. But it was so beautiful to him, that he almost kissed it. Instead he held it in his care-worn hands for a moment, rubbing his thumbs over the tiny hull and engine pods. Then he handed it to Spock.

Four weeks later, when Jim opened his eyes, Spock was there, hands clasped behind his back.

"Thanks."

He held out on of them and opened it. "You are welcome, Jim."

He smiled.

Please tell me what you think! Thanks so much for reading this crazy old thing. I apologize for any mistakes, I have no beta. Hope you liked it.