When Jenna came to again, her mother was there, looking down at her tearfully.
"Hi, honey," Winona whispered softly. "Good to see you awake."
"Mom," Jenna sighed. "You came." She scooted closer to her and smiled sleepily, glad of the company.
"I sure did, and I'm staying for awhile. Most of the Fleet has been called back for now, while they deal with Marcus's terrible legacy. So I get to spend lots of time with my baby."
"Yay," Jenna enthused. "It's been a while. I take it You've been filled in on what...happened?"
"Yes, dear. I don't know whether to say how proud I am of you, or scold you for getting yourself killed."
Jenna shrugged. "You can do both," she suggested. "I'm not going anywhere, trust me."
Winona made a choked noise and leaned over to kiss her daughter's cheek, caressing her hair and soaking up the sight of her very much alive form.
"I've told them for years, they need better safety protocols in place in case something like this happened,"she exclaimed. "One should have a way to realign a core without getting exposed.
I can't even imagine what it must have been like."
"Honestly, I don't remember much," Jenna admitted. "Spock said It only took about ten minutes before I died. Poor guy. I think I messed his Vulcan control up pretty good from what I hear."
"Not just his, baby," Winona said. "But you did the right thing and I AM very proud of you. So is a certain Admiral who's waiting his turn to see you."
Jenna didn't know whether to be overjoyed or terrified. Would Pike still be angry? Could she stand being near him without being on edge the whole time? Stifling her nerves, she tried to look as calm as she could.
"I don't know about that, mom. I've been a pretty big disappointment to him lately."
"That's not what he told me, Is it, Chris?" Winona asked, beckoning a figure into the room. Chris Pike shuffled in with the aide of a cane, very clearly alive.
"No, it certainly is not. Good to see you, Captain Kirk."
Against her will, Jenna's eyes welled up at the sight of him and the fact he'd called her Captain again.
"Admiral," she said weakly, blinking back the tears. "You're really here."
"In the flesh", he nodded, eyes gentle. "I'm sorry to hear you were misled about my status. Alex was one twisted SOB."
"He sure was," she agreed. "But I think I finally understand what you meant by respecting the chair. Some of us have to learn those lessons the hard way, I guess."
He looked down at her with that same expression she remembered from the trashy bar in Riverside, only this time there was more emotion in it.
"Kirk, none of this was how I wanted you to learn that lesson, but I'm glad you understand what I was getting at. You did what a good Captain does:
put the needs of the crew above your own. I told you I believed in you and I still do."
"Thanks, Chris," she whispered, then turned the subject. "You're looking pretty good for a dead man, by the way."
Both Winona and Chris chuckled at this.
"So are you," he retorted, causing her to grin.
"You got me there," she admitted. "I can't believe Bones pulled that off. I know he's insanely gifted, but bringing back the dead? Whole new level. I hope they don't yank his license."
"Me too," he agreed fervently.
"Worth it!" Came a gruff snort from the doorway. "They can throw me in the brig for the rest of my life for all I care. You're alive. That's what matters."
"Aww, Bones," Jenna said fondly to her favorite CMO. "What did I do to get such loyal friends?"
"By being the type of person and Captain that no one wants to live without," Chris told her.
He knew he certainly couldn't endure the thought of a world sans Jenna Kirk.
She flushed. "That's...Wow...they really feel that way about me? I thought I just annoyed everybody."
"Look deeper, sweetheart," Winona told her. "They Love you."
Jenna was quiet for a moment, then turned back to Chris.
"So, how are you doing, Admiral? They patch the phaser hole up?"
"Yeah," he informed her. "Phil's going to let me out of here in a couple days and I'll be back to annoying the admiralty again.
"They need all the annoying they can get right now," Jenna agreed. "We went from being a peacekeeping armada to aspiring war machine in the space of a couple years. What flipped the switch in Marcus to send him over the edge like this?"
"I think it was a gradual tendency, being more worried about having more firepower than the Romulans than actual exploring, but my guess would be Nero's attack convinced him to go all in on the upgrades and Dreadnought class design," Chris explained. "There's still a lot we don't know yet."
"Yeah. You being nice to the nurses?" Jenna inquired sweetly. "I know how cranky you are when you're cooped up having therapy."
One of Chris's middle fingers twitched, but he kept his grip on the cane.
"Says the woman who acts like a three year old every time she gets a hypo," he returned easily. "Lets see if you're still jawing when they're working YOU over."
"Oh, you're on, pal," Jenna responded with more energy than usual. "I'll never forget that poor nurse hiding from you after you bawled him out for bringing you the wrong color jello."
Winona giggled and Chris pretended to glare, but it turned rather sheepish instead.
"And that's the Jenna Kirk we know and sometimes love," he said resignedly. "Not even miraculous resurrection will keep her from disrespecting her elders."
Jenna's heart did a funny flip when he said the word love, but she ignored it. He'd never love her THAT way.
"She knows she can get a rise out of you, Chris," Winona advised him. "Works every time."
Why was that? Chris contemplated later after a very satisfactory visit with the Kirk women. What was it about Jenna that made him act undignified and allow himself to play right into her hands?