Why This Candle? Why This Cake?
Chapter 22
Epilogue
"You get a strange feeling when you're about to leave a place...
like you'll not only miss the people you love but you'll miss the person you are now at this time and this place,
because you'll never be this way ever again."
Azar Nafisi
The birthday party was going strong. Jim looked around with pleasure; all the guests were having a wonderful time. The party was, in his totally unbiased opinion, a huge success. The spring evening was clear and cool, the stars bright above, and the outdoor lights added a festive golden glow to the yard. Violet's centerpieces were beautiful, the roses, sweet peas, lilacs, and baby's breaths, adding their sweet fragrant scent to the evening. The china, silver place settings, and the crystal gleamed softly under the lights.
The food, even if it wasn't from Mama Salvatore's restaurant, was excellent. Unable to resist temptation, Jim had surreptitiously taste tested several dishes. Winona had insisted on hiring different caterers for the party, so the Salvatore's, mama, papa, Gio, Marie and her family could enjoy the evening without having to work.
Marie's three children, dressed a little more formally than usual, were sitting with the equally dressed up, Joanna, Peter, and his two best friends at a separate smaller table. Joanna's new kitten was safe and sound in the cat carrier in Peter's bedroom.
It seemed that every single person who'd received an invitation had come, Tom Jeffries had flown in from New York, Sarek, Amanda, and T'Lane came by Vulcan shuttle from San Francisco. Father Joe, Serena, Jonathon, Jerry and Harry Blackwell their families and parents, Admiral and Mrs. Nogura, and of course Gavin, Violet and Davy, Bones, Uhura, Spock, Scotty, Sulu and Chekov, and all the Davis and Kirk kin were present. Guests had come from near and far to celebrate Winona's birthday.
Appetizers and drinks were being passed around by the wait staff, and the guests were congregating in small groups laughing, eating, drinking and talking. Winona, dressed in her favorite lilac tunic and flowing pants, drifted from group to group, greeting every guest, laughing, chatting with everyone.
Jim looked around. It was time, he thought. He walked over to the front of the head table, clinked his glass, raised his command voice, and asked for everyone's attention. He called Peter over to come stand beside him, gave him a small glass filled with apple juice, beckoned his mother to his side, put his arm around her, and raised his champagne glass to offer a birthday toast to her.
"Good evening everyone. Welcome! My mother, Peter and I want to thank you from the bottom of our hearts for being here on this very special occasion. It's heartwarming to see so many of our dear friends and family gathered here at the farmhouse on this beautiful evening to help us celebrate my mother's 60th birthday."
Under the many twinkling lights, Jim's hazel eyes glowed with pleasure as he gazed at the assembled guests. "At this time I'd like for all of us to raise our glasses in a toast to my mother." He turned to face his mother who looked back at him, eyes filled with love and happiness. "Mama, you have been an exemplary wife, mother and grandmother. You're a woman who possesses the attributes of honesty, love, integrity, gentleness, and devotion. Along with the immense joy and adventure you've brought into our lives, you've taught us by example the real value of love, family, friendship, and kindness. You've shown us how to appreciate what we have, never taking it for granted. You have been, and always will be, an inspiration to all of us here. I know if my father George, and my brother Sam were here with us tonight, they would agree with me whole heartedly. So tonight we are gathered here to honor, cherish and love you." He raised his glass high. "To Winona Kirk! Happy Birthday, Ma"
"Here, here! To Winona, Happy Birthday!" The guests chorused loudly.
Winona stepped forward from the circle of Jim's arm and smiled up at him misty eyed. "Thank you, sweetheart. Looking at all of you here, my wonderful friends and family, sharing my birthday evening with me, I feel profoundly thankful and very blessed." She turned loving hazel eyes to her son and grandson. "Thank you, Jim, thank you Peter. A mother couldn't ask for a better son and grandson. I love you both very much. Now my dear ones, I want to give credit where credit is due. It was Jim's idea to have this birthday party, and I think it was a pretty good one." The crowd laughed and clapped. Jim took a small bow, grinning, and Winona dimpled.
"I also want to give special thanks to my dear, dear friends, Violet Bradford and Nyota Uhura, without whose help all this wouldn't have been accomplished. Also, Jim, Gavin, Leonard, Jonathon and Mr. Spock who climbed all over to put up these festive beautiful lights." She looked around at the guests. "Thank you, my dear friends and family for sharing this wonderful evening with me. I'm very happy all of you are here with us so let's all sit down and eat some of this delicious food."
And eat they did, the party going strong until very late. It had been decided that the children would be put to bed in sleeping bags on the living room floor. Violet had hired a baby sitter for the evening and Davy was now sound asleep in his cot in Winona's bedroom under the watchful eye of his minder. Gavin would fly the four of them to the hotel after the party. Having the children spend the night was easier than trying to get them all home. The children's parents would pick up Peter's guests after a late brunch the following morning.
Thankfully the catering staff took care of all the clean up. Jim had been adamant that his mother would do no work on her birthday, and everyone finally got to sleep in the wee hours of the morning. The Kirk household declared the party a resounding success as they took themselves happily and tiredly to bed.
Joanna's week with Leonard flew by. The house was full of laughter, games, horseback and donkey rides, cooking, baking, and of course learning to take care of the kitten.
The second day of Joanna's visit a very important meeting to name the kitten took place in Winona's study. Choosing a good name was a responsibility which weighed heavily on the two children. To the amusement of the adults, that had been the sole topic of conversation between Peter and Joanna since the kitten's arrival. Names had been bandied back and forth with no decision having been made yet.
On the third day of Joanna's visit, Joanna, Bones, T'Lane, (present by comm) and Jim (who was asked to sit in as the tie breaking vote should one be needed) sat in the study for the naming discussion. Winona had provided milk and cookies for sustenance should the naming session become prolonged.
"Good morning, T'Lane," Jim said to her on the comm.
"Good morning, Captain, Doctor, children. I am gratified to be present on this important occasion, the naming of Queen Cleopatra's kitten," she responded solemnly, but her dark eyes were twinkling.
"Peter, you're in charge here," Jim told him. "So let's get this meeting started."
Peter nodded. He and Joanna had discussed at length the importance of finding the perfect name for the kitten who was presently sound asleep on Joanna's lap. Occasionally she'd look down and smile, her small hand petting the baby kitten gently. Jim surreptitiously pulled out his comm to take a picture of the sweet tableaux. It would be one of his gifts to Bones for his birthday.
"Okay," Peter cleared his throat. "Joanna and I did some research the last couple of days. Abby's are originally from Egypt, so I thought an Egyptian name like Nefertiti, Isis, or even Cleopatra like her mama would work pretty well."
"Those names would indeed be appropriate," T'Lane agreed, "however, Peter and Joanna, the possibilities for an appropriate name for the kitten are endless. I suggest you narrow the kitten's name down to something you like Joanna, without any preconceptions, expectations, or narrow constraints. Is there a name that comes to your mind that you particularly like, or that you think is appropriate for the kitten?" T'Lane asked the child directly.
Jim watching T'Lane, thought bemusedly how Spock, Sarek, and T'Lane all seemed to respond so positively to human children. He wondered if it was because they had no expectation of human children conforming to proscribed Vulcan standards of behavior, so the Vulcans were all much more relaxed and at ease, not nearly as rigid or controlled in their interactions with their own children.
"There is a name I kinda like," Joanna confessed.
"What is it, sweet pea?" Leonard asked. "She's your kitten after all."
"I kinda like the name Saffron," Joanna said. "I heard Miss Winona say it to Miss Nyota when they were cookin' something in the kitchen. I liked it when I heard it 'cause it sounds good with Sorrel, and they're brother and sister. The sounds sorta go together. What do you think, Peter? Do you like it?"
"Saffron...Saffron...," Peter nodded, his small face serious. "I do like it, JoJo. Saffron and Sorrel," he murmured. "The name does sound good with Sorrel."
T'Lane nodded. "I agree. It is a good name," she said. "Lady Amanda will be pleased with your choice."
"Well that's it, then. The kitten's name is Saffron. Thank you, T'Lane, for sittin' in on this important occasion," Leonard said, his blue eyes twinkling back at her black ones. "Please give Lady Amanda our thanks again for giving Joanna...Saffron."
"I will. Goodbye Captain, Doctor." She raised her hand in the ta'al. "Live long and prosper, Joanna. Peter, I will communicate with you soon by letter. I believe it is my turn to write."
"Yep, it's your turn. Bye, T'Lane. Thanks again for helping us."
With the kitten now named, the rest of the week passed in a blur, and then it was time...time for Joanna to go home. Traveling arrangements were made and Winona helped the little girl pack. Goodbyes were difficult, but having both Peter and Winona ride with Jim and Leonard on the shuttle trip to Des Moines eased the sadness. Leonard was content; his week with his little girl had been perfect.
There was much hugging, loving kisses, and a few sad tears, then all too soon Joanna was being escorted by the flight attendant, carrying Saffron's carrier, to the shuttle. To the child's delight, Leonard had splurged and bought a regular shuttle ticket so Saffron could be placed in the seat next to Joanna instead of in back of the shuttle. At the top of the ramp, Joanna turned and waved as she went inside the shuttle.
It was a silent shuttle ride back to Riverside. They were already missing the little girl.
At the end of following week the yard dogs declared Enterprise ready for service; the refits of the warp engine and the weapons' array were complete. Scotty and Spock, already back on duty on the ship still docked in San Francisco, checked and re-checked the new warp coils, dilithium crystals, new warp engines, and upgraded weapons' array. They reported to Jim in minute detail everything that had been done to the Enterprise. The warp and impulse engines were the heart of the mighty ship, without them she could neither function nor fly.
The old warp engines, Scotty reported his accent thick with excitement, were replaced with a radically different vertical warp core assembly linked to the new and heavier warp engines' nacelles atop the ship's pylons. The warp engines were now newly integrated with the impulse engines, giving them more power. The new weapons system upgrades included 9 dual phaser banks and a new double photon torpedoes' launcher placed atop the secondary hull. The new weapons were beauties, reported Scotty. "They'll stop any warbird with no problem, Captain."
Both Scotty and Spock had urged the excited Jim to stay home to enjoy his last few of days of leave. He could look over the upgrades in a few days when his leave was over. Surprisingly, and to everyone's delight, Jim agreed. He decided his mother's birthday was important enough that he could delegate for a couple of more days. After all, no one knew the ship's engines and weapons better than Scotty, and Spock came in a close second to Jim himself.
Spock reported that he had begun to recall the crew, they were scattered all over the globe and were slowly trickling back to the ship one by one.
Once Spock reported that the entire crew complement was back on board, it was finally time for Jim, Uhura, and Leonard to say goodbye to the Riverside folks. Jim made his rounds, visiting all his Riverside friends to say his goodbyes. He, his mother, and Peter said their goodbyes in private in her study. Peter shed a few tears, but Jim consoled the little boy by promising him a long comm visit as soon as they were clear of Earth's orbit and back out in the black. It was, Jim knew, a small consolation for the little boy; goodbyes were very difficult for him.
Jim flew the three of them to San Francisco straight to the space dock, and once back on board, they unpacked, settled back in their quarters and then reported to the bridge for duty. Jim settled in the Captain's chair, smiling sunnily at his command crew already at their stations. He looked around the bridge in satisfaction. The ship was sparkling clean and looked splendid.
Uhura at her station, swiveled in her chair. "Paperwork for disembarkation is filed and approved, Captain. Space Central says we're cleared to depart as soon as the robots uncouple us. They add safe journey, Captain.
"Acknowledge and thank them, Lieutenant." Then Jim gave the order. "Take us out, Mr. Sulu."
On the giant view screen, Jim and Spock, with Bones standing at his usual station by Jim's left shoulder, watched with the rest of the Alpha crew as the robots uncoupled the USS Enterprise from her umbilical connections to the station. Under Sulu's experienced hands, the ship expertly turned to face the giant space port maw which opened slowly for the great ship to leave her docking station.
"Easy does it, Mr. Sulu. Half impulse please."
"Aye, Sir."
The ship glided slowly through the giant maw and out into the Earth's outer atmosphere. Sulu then turned her to face away from Earth, aligning her primary and secondary hulls and nacelles readying her for the jump into warp. The bright sunlight, not diffused or dimmed by Earth's atmosphere, played across her primary and secondary discs as she turned making her silver iridium skin glow brilliantly.
Jim looked up at Bones. "Beautiful, isn't she, Bones?"
Leonard smiled and nodded, patting him on the shoulder. "She surely is, Jim."
Jim toggled his comm. "Scotty are our new warp engines on line?"
"Aye, Captain, they be purring like kittens, warp speed at your command."
"Ready, Mr. Sulu?" Jim grinned at his eager helmsman.
Sulu turned to smile back. "Ready, Sir," he responded mischief in his dark eyes.
"Warp one, Mr. Sulu."
The Enterprise rolled slightly from side to side in a victory roll, like the ancient aircraft used to do with their wings, then in a blink of an eye, she snapped into warp, and vanished into the blackness of space.
Fin
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My thanks go out to my friend Carol for all her help with Abby information and for naming Joanna's kitten. Her own beautiful Queen Cleopatra is the inspiration for Saffron's mama.