With this Ring

Chapter 3

"Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans."

Allen Saunders

Jim woke from a sound sleep like he always did, completely awake and alert. The room was still dim and for a moment he didn't remember where he was; the usual soft hum of the Enterprise engines was missing, and so was the slightly scratchy feel of his Star Fleet issued blanket. He turned his head to look around and he remembered; he was at the farm with Bones, Spock and Uhura for Violet's wedding. The room was silent except for Peter's soft breathing; he was still sound asleep in his cot. The Star Fleet scratchy blanket had been replaced by the soft quilt that was always at the foot of his bed. It had been quilted for him when he was a small boy by his grandmother and he treasured it. He'd left it behind here at the farm house, worried that something would happen to it on the ship. He ran his hand softly over the now very soft and faded fabric that had been stitched by loving hands especially for him. Sam had been gifted with one also, and now Peter used his dad's and took very good care of it. He lay there relaxed and content, glad that he had no pressing responsibilities on his shoulders, and only the pleasant prospect of seeing Violet and Davy tomorrow, then in a few days, the wedding.

Jim yawned and looked at his chronometer. It was only 6 a.m. and really too early to be up, but he thought he'd go out and feed the animals and maybe ride Ginger before breakfast. Yes, he thought, he'd get a snack and a couple of carrots for Ginger and Dapple and go for a short ride. He also remembered it was Saturday and Jonathon would be by for his usual Saturday breakfast with his mother and Peter. It would be good to see Jonathon again, he thought, and catch up on all that had happened since Christmas when he'd last seen him.

He could hear noises in the kitchen already. His mother was up and probably thinking about breakfast for all of them. He got up quietly so as not to wake up Peter, grabbed some jeans and a denim shirt and headed toward the shower. Ten minutes later (being a star ship Captain, made you a master of quick showers) hair still wet, but dressed, he walked into the kitchen. "Morning, Ma."

His mother, still in her robe, stood pensive and still in the middle of the room.

"Ma?"

"Oh...good morning, dear." She smiled at her son. "I'm just trying to remember if I have everything I need for waffles. I thought I'd make those this morning. Looks like I do."

"Sounds good." Jim rummaged in the refrigerator for carrots and palmed a few sugar lumps. "I'm going out to feed the animals and the chickens," he told her.

"I'll go take my shower before everyone gets up. Waffles need to be nice and warm when they're eaten so the butter and syrup will cover them nicely." She picked up her padd and looked at it. "Lots to do today," she said. "Violet gets in tomorrow morning, so I'd like to take care of a few things today."

"We're here to help you, Ma. So you just tell us what needs to be done and we'll do it." Jim said, stepping outside.

After he fed the chickens, Jim went into the barn and raked the hay in both stalls and gave the two animals their feed. He petted them, gave them their carrots and sugar lumps, and had a satisfactory, if one sided conversation with Ginger and Dapple.

He was on the stoop of the kitchen back door when he heard a sudden loud crash and a muffled shriek followed by a moan. He flung open the door and the sound of soft moans greeted him. His mother was on the floor; her face was very pale and her leg was twisted at an unnatural angle under the fallen shelf that was always situated above the refrigerator. There were pots, pans, and lids scattered all over the floor. Winona looked up at him, her hazel eyes wide with shock.

"Ma! What happened? Are you alright?" Jim was at her side instantly, moving the shelf off her. He knew better than to try to move her until he knew she was not injured.

"Bones! Bones!" he yelled. "I need you."

McCoy, followed by Spock, Uhura and Peter, was already at the door of the kitchen. "Jim! What's the matter? What happened? Seeing Winona on the floor, his eyes widened. "Winona, did you fall? Are you alright?"

Winona visibly pulled herself together. "I don't really know," she said. "I needed the waffle iron and I got on the step ladder to get it, and when I did, the entire shelf just came off the wall and collapsed on top of me. I fell off the ladder." She tried to straighten her legs to get up and whimpered with the movement."

"Don't move, Winona," McCoy said. "Let me get my medical tricorder."

"Just relax, Ma. Don't move around until Bones checks you out," Jim said worriedly, still moving stuff off of her; Spock bent to help him. Uhura kept Peter by her side by putting her arm around him.

Winona looked up at Peter who stood at the door by Spock. His face was pale and his eyes frightened. "I'm alright, sweetheart," she told her grandson, voice firm. "The shelf collapsing like that just startled me and then I couldn't catch my balance and I fell off the step ladder."

Spock went to inspect the area above the refrigerator where the shelf had been. "It appears that the shelf came off the wall because there is an area of wood rot behind it where the brackets were attached. The wood rot weakened the screws of the support brackets and it collapsed." He bent to pick up the old screws to show them.

McCoy came back with his medical kit in hand and pulled out his medical tricorder. He ran it carefully over Winona, starting with her head and down to her legs and feet. "Hmm," he said.

"What, Bones, what?" Jim asked him impatiently. "Is Ma alright?"

"I'm afraid your ankle is broken, Winona. When you fell, you twisted it and then the heavy shelf on top of that caused the break. It is a clean break, but you'll have to have the osteo regenerator on that ankle for the better part of two days. A bad break like that takes a while to knit," he told her. "I don't think we'll need to cast it afterward, but you will have to be immobile while the bone knits."

"No, no, no, Leonard!" Winona told him. "I can't be immobile for two days. I have too much to do, decorating, cooking and cleaning for the wedding and for all of you. Please just put me in a walking cast so I can move around and I'll have the osteo regenerator later."

"Ma! Absolutely not!" Jim said. "You'll do what Bones says." His hazel eyes were mutinous and determined. "Whatever has to be done around here, the five of us will do it. Violet and Davy will be here tomorrow and she'll help too." He smiled down at his mother, whose mouth was trembling slightly both in pain and in distress. "Please don't worry, Ma. We'll get it all done, I promise you. That's why you have minions," he told her. "We'll do exactly what you tell us to do. You can direct us from the sofa, where you'll be able to see everything and everyone." He looked at McCoy. "Shall I move her to the sofa, Bones? She shouldn't be on the floor like this."

"Let me give her something for the pain first," McCoy said rummaging in his medical kit. "That must hurt like the dickens, Winona," he said looking at her pale face. He found his hypo spray and the pain medication ampule and pressed it to Winona's carotid artery. The pain medication hit her bloodstream almost instantly, and her tense body relaxed and color came back to her face. McCoy looked at her keenly. "That's better. It's a pretty powerful pain medication, so it may make you sleepy. Don't fight it." He nodded to Jim and he bent to pick his mother up off the floor.

"Where shall I put you, Ma?"

Winona sighed, resigned for the moment. "On the large sofa, Jim. I think that's the best vantage point for me. I can't believe I was so clumsy," she added mournfully. "I have so much to do."

"It was not clumsiness on your part, Dr. Kirk," Spock said soothingly, as they all followed behind Jim. "The shelf would have come down sooner than later. It is most unfortunate that you were there at the time when it did and you were injured. I will repair it and that will not happen again," he told her.

"Spock! I couldn't ask you to do that! We'll call the handy man to come fix it. You're here to relax and not to work."

"You have not asked, I have volunteered," Spock told her composedly. "It is a small matter and will not take me long. Peter will assist me, will you not, Peter?"

Peter, whose face had regained its color now that he saw his grandmother was being taken care of, nodded. "I'll help Mr. Spock, Noni, we'll fix it right away," he told her. He came and stood by the sofa and patted her softly. "Are you still in pain, Noni?" he asked worriedly.

"No, darling. Dr. Bones' medicine has worked fine. No pain at all. Don't you worry about me, Peter, I'll be up and moving around in a couple of days." She looked at Jim, a wordless plea for reassurance for Peter.

"Not to worry, Squirt. Noni will be just fine. You go on and help Mr. Spock and we'll take care of Noni." He looked tellingly at Spock.

"Come, Peter. Let us begin our work. It should not take more than an hour to have the shelves fixed and all the cookware put back and it will make your Noni happy to have her pots and pans back where they belong."

Uhura put some pillows behind Winona's back and a soft quilt over her lap.

Jim pulled up a chair to sit beside his mother. "Okay Ma, now you'll have to be still while the osteo regenerator does its work," he told her. His mother looked at him knowingly. "Yeah I know. I've had a lot of experience with osteo regenerators," he smiled, "so you know that what I'm saying is the truth."

Bones snorted. "And nothin' but the truth," he added, rolling his eyes. "Alright now, Winona. I'm going to strap the regenerator to your broken ankle as gently as I can. You'll begin to feel a tingle as it starts working; all that means is that it's doing its job and knitting the bone. I'll leave it on for an hour the first time and we'll take it off for an hour. You'll probably have to use the bathroom by then, so we'll have Uhura help you with that. After that I'll strap it back on for another hour and off an hour. I'll also let Jim carry you to the table for lunch if we can prop up your leg on a chair. Are you okay with that?"

Winona sighed. "Yes, thank you Leonard. I guess there's nothing to be done except sit here and let the bone heal." She looked so unhappy, worried, and frustrated, that Jim hastened to soothe her.

"After Bones starts the osteo regenerator, you can tell us what you want us to do first, and we'll do it," Jim told her. "Stop worrying, Ma."

"I was going to make waffles for all of you," Winona mourned. "You know how Spock and Leonard love my waffles; and Jonathon is coming and he loves my waffles too. They were going to be the banana and pecan waffles that you and Sam loved so much." She yawned and laid her head back on the sofa pillow.

Uhura met Jim's eyes above her head. "I'll make them, Winona. I watched you make them over Christmas, remember? Jim can tell me if I'm not doing it right. They may not be quite as delicious as yours, but I bet they'll still be good."

Wynona's head came up. "Thank you, Nyota."

"You go get started, Nyota, and I'll be there in a bit to help," Jim said.

The front door bell jingled and Jonathon's voice could be heard. "Anyone home? I come bearing pastries. Winona?"

"We're in here, Jonathon," Jim called and stood to open the door.

Jonathon walked in still carrying the bag of pastries and looked at the tableau in front of him, at Winona on the sofa, at the osteo regenerator on her ankle, at Leonard and Uhura hovering and his gray eyes turned to Jim. "What happened, Jim?"

"The shelf in the kitchen collapsed on top of Ma, and she fell off the step ladder and broke her ankle. She's in good hands. Bones is using the osteoporosis regenerator on the ankle." He took the bag filled with pastries from Jonathon. "Good to see you, Jonathon," he said and shook his hand.

"Good to see you too, Jim," Jonathon said distractedly. "Are you alright, Winona?" He turned an anxious glance to her.

"I will be, or so Leonard assures me." Winona said sleepily. "I'm afraid breakfast will be a little late. I hope you don't have to go into the office, Jonathon."

"Don't worry about me. I also came by to see if you needed any help. Gavin commed me and asked me to meet Violet at the transporter station tomorrow morning. He thought the Kirks would be too busy. I'll bring Violet and Davy straight here."

Uhura stood up, "I'll go start the waffles, she said.

"All right everyone," Leonard said. "Let's all go in the kitchen and help Nyota. I'll be back when it's time to turn off the regenerator," he told the sleepy Winona. "You just relax and let it do its work."