Two weeks after Jim's failed second attempt at the Kobyashi Maru, McCoy and Kirk packed for their biannual visit to Georgia. Since their first trip over winter break in their first year, the two had traveled to visit Bones' mother for her birthday during the summer and the week after finals in the winter. Jim relished the vacation from the stresses of the Academy and, for slightly more selfish reasons, the feeling of being at home for once in her life.

Ellen picked them up at from the shuttle and drove them back to the McCoy residence where she had dinner ready and waiting. Bones took their bags to their rooms upstairs while Jim helped Mrs. McCoy set the table.

"I thought Joanna was supposed to be here," Jim asked while placing forks on the table.

Ellen pulled a chicken out of the oven. "She was," she said, pulling back the foil to check it. "But Jocelyn and Clay wanted to take her to an art exhibit in Atlanta."

"Oh. An art exhibit? For a seven year old?"

Ellen just shrugged her shoulders. "They should be dropping her off sometime tomorrow."

When Bones came back down, they sat at the table and ate. Ellen noticed a bit of tenseness between the two, but didn't approach the subject. Bones brought his mother as up to date as possible on things at the clinic and the Academy but carefully omitted much of the last two weeks for which Jim was thankful.

Towards the end of the meal, Ellen decided to test the waters a bit. "So, Jim, anyone special in your life, besides my son that is?"

Jim blushed slightly. "No ma'am. And Bones is…well Bones is family, so I- I don't think he counts the way you're meaning, Ellen."

"No? No steady men? Or women?" She ignored the glare her son was giving her.

Jim laughed awkwardly. "Not at the moment, no." She stuffed her mouth with mashed potatoes to avoid answering anymore questions.

Ellen turned her attention to her son. "What about you, Leonard? Any special someone you haven't told me about?"

Bones choked on his tea. "No, Ma. No one."

"What about that nice young lady you were telling me about, you were going to take her to your dinner banquet?"

"She's engaged, remember? Besides, we didn't end up even going together anyway. Something came up."

Ellen glanced at Jim out of the corner of her eye and nodded. "Ah."

Jim stood from the table and took her plate to the sink. "I think I'm going to turn in. That flight took a lot out of me."

Bones stood as well. "Me too. Goodnight, Ma. Jim."

After breakfast, Ellen and Leonard decided a trip to the store was necessary. (Bones forgot his toothbrush). Jim declined to go with them. She instead cleared the table, put on Ellen's apron, and set about washing dishes.

She filled the sink with hot water and soap and put the dishes in to soak. She rummaged in the drawers, looking for a dish cloth. "Aha! There you are," she thought. Jim carefully cleaned the plates first, scrubbing off jam and butter, and had just finished with those when the front door opened. "They must have forgotten something," she mused, going about her duty. Needless to say, she was a little startled when a woman walked into the kitchen.

"Ellen?" the woman called. "We're here to drop off Joanna. Ellen?" She rounded the corner into the kitchen. She was a short brunette, with a piercing gaze and dressed in a pantsuit. Joanna McCoy came in behind her.

Jim turned around, almost dropping the plate she was rinsing. "Hi. Can I help you with something?"

The woman raised her eyebrows and looked Jim over. "Who are you?" she asked snidely. "Where's Mrs. McCoy?"

Jim set the plate in the dish rack. "You just missed her. The doctor and Mrs. McCoy went to the store. Is there anything I can help you with?"

"No, thank you. We were just coming by to drop off her granddaughter."

"Oh! You must be Mrs. Tredway," Jim exclaimed with a bright smile. She wiped off her hands and extended one for a handshake which the woman took gingerly. "I'm Jim Kirk."

"Jim?"

"It's a long story. Would you like a cup of tea?"

"No thank you. How much longer are they going to be?"

Jim shrugged. "They didn't need much, so it shouldn't be long."

Mrs. Tredway sat at the table. "Do you mind us waiting until Mrs. McCoy returns?"

"Please. Do you mind if I continue?" She turned back to the dishes.

Joanna plopped herself in the seat across from her mother. She fixed Jim with a grin. "Why do you have a boy's name?"

"Joanna! Remember your manners. You don't speak until spoke to!" her mother chided a little too forcefully for Jim's liking.

"It's quite alright."

"No, it's not. Joanna, you know better."

Jim was taken aback. She grinned and turned to the child. "Joanna, you want to know why I have a boy's name?" Joanna nodded slowly. Jim scrubbed a coffee cup and rinsed it, ignoring the sound of indignation that came from Jocelyn. "My parents served in Starfleet. Unfortunate circumstances, my father assumed command of an attacked ship and evacuated everyone else, including my mother who was going through labor. He ordered the medical shuttle to leave. My mother, knowing he'd never see me decided to give him his wish of a son. They named me after their fathers. James Tiberius, after my maternal and paternal grandfathers respectively." Jim inhaled sharply and turned with a smile towards Joanna. "My brother, George, called me Jim because he had a slight lisp as a child and it stuck."

Joanna looked at Jim quizzically. "Did you get teased?"

"For a while. But then I found an old song by a twentieth century singer about a boy named Sue. After that, I didn't let it bother me. And when they saw that it didn't bother me, they stopped messing with me."

"Oh."

"Want to help me finish the dishes?"

"Sure!" Joanna hopped out of her chair and grabbed a towel. "You wash, I'll dry!"

Jim mock saluted her. "Yes sir!"

Joanna giggled. "Jim! I'm a girl!"

"Doesn't matter. All officers are addressed as sir." At Joanna's look, she shrugged. "Don't ask me. I didn't make the rules."

Jocelyn was silent for a long time and the only sounds were the clinks of the dishes as Jim and Joanna finished. She observed Jim with a critical eye. "I didn't realize that Ellen had hired someone to help around the house."

"I'm not a house keeper. I'm a guest of Ellen's."

"Oh? How do you know Ellen?"

From Jocelyn's tone, Jim thought it best to keep it simple. "Friend of the family."

"Hmm. How long have you known her?"

"A few years. With all due respect, Mrs. Tredway, what's with the third degree?"

"Forgive me for trying to get to know the woman that will be staying in the house that my daughter is."

Jim untied her apron and slipped it over her head. "You're forgiven."

McCoy and Ellen entered the front door and came into the kitchen, saving Jim from Jocelyn's hostile retort. Joanna cried out joyfully and ran into her father's arms.

"Hey baby girl! I've missed you!"

"I've missed you more!"

He ruffled the hair on her head. "I doubt that. Jocelyn." He stood up.

Jocelyn stood up and said coldly, "Leonard, I need to speak with you."

McCoy motioned to the kitchen door and let Jocelyn walk through it first. Ellen looked at Jim and mouthed "What happened?"

Jim shrugged. "She doesn't approve of me, I think."

Ellen sighed. She turned her attention towards her granddaughter who regaled her with stories of school and vacations. Ellen oohed and ahhed at all the appropriate times.

In the living room, McCoy waited for Jocelyn to speak. She was silent for a while, pacing the living room floor while he sat on the arm of a chair.

"If I'd known you were going to be bringing someone with you, Ellen and I would have arranged for another week," she said finally.

McCoy exhaled slowly. "We're not together, Jocelyn."

She snorted. "Oh really, so you bring just anyone home to meet our daughter?" She turned to face him.

"No, Joss. She's… well, she's my roommate. Got assigned to me the first day. I've been stuck with her ever since."

"Stuck?"

He chuckled, "Yeah, stuck. She never really had a place to go, no home life to speak of. Bad childhood. I brought her home for Ma's birthday one time when I realized she never left the dorm during any break. Ma loved her, has given her a home really." Behind the kitchen door, Jim smiled.

Jocelyn smiled at McCoy. "Doesn't hurt that she's pretty too."

"Beautiful. But we're just friends." Behind the door, Jim's smile fell. In the living room, Bones looked at Jocelyn. "Oh, now don't tell me. You're jealous. That's rich."

Jocelyn's smile fell. "Absolutely not. I'm a happily married woman. I'm only concerned about my daughter's wellbeing."

McCoy let out a huge belly laugh. Jocelyn fumed and stamped her foot. "Leonard McCoy, I hate you." She called a farewell to Joanna and Ellen and stormed out the door.

Jim came from the kitchen as McCoy wiped tears of laughter from his eyes. She eyed him warily, as if looking at an insane person. "Are you okay?"

McCoy slowly calmed down, letting out one final chuckle. He put an arm over her shoulders. "Jim girl, I've never been better." He turned his head towards the kitchen and called, "Who wants ice cream?"

They were both knocked over by an enthusiastic eight year old.

The next day the foursome went horseback riding across the McCoy farm and had a picnic lunch under a giant oak tree. Ellen told Jim and Joanna several stories about her son as a child, how he would climb trees and hide in the barn for hours on end. One story ended with Bones falling from a tree and breaking his arm.

"David and I rushed him to the emergency room, and Leonard took it all very bravely. He didn't cry or anything. When the doctor came in, he pestered him with questions. What are you doing? Why? What's that for? How does it work? Just absolutely fascinated with everything. He listened to the doctor with wide eyes and a thirst for knowledge. David and I just knew that when we got home, Len's new favorite game would be 'Doctor'. And it was." She turned to her son. "You even gave the cat a cast with paper mache. Do you remember that?"

Bones' blush made it obvious he did. Jim roared with laughter.

Ellen turned to Jim. "Did you ever break any bones as a child?"

Jim's face turned cloudy, and McCoy shushed his mother gently. "I did. I'm going to take a walk, if you'll excuse me." She pushed up from the blanket and walked towards a fence."

Joanna looked from her father to her grandmother, confused as to what was going on. Mother and son whispered back and forth between each other.

"I didn't know! You never said it was physical!"

"Well I didn't exactly think you were going to bring it up, now did I?"

Joanna got up from the ground and walked to Jim. Jim was standing at the fence watching the horses graze silently. She felt a small hand grab hers.

"I love horses," the girl said.

"Me too, Jo."

"Why are you said, Aunt Jim?"

Jim looked at their hands, at a loss for words. Her eyes began to water. "Sometimes the past hurts, Jo."

"Then why think about it?"

Jim laughed sadly. "Because sometimes we don't have a choice."

Joanna leaned into Jim's side. They were quiet for a while. Finally Joanna looked up at Jim. Jim sniffled a bit, blinking back the tears that refused to fall. "What, Jo?"

"We won't hurt you."

The tears threatened to fall again. She bent down and wrapped Joanna in her arms. "I know, Jo. I know." The hug lasted for a long time until Jim felt steady enough to rejoin the meal. She stood up and wiped her eyes. "Let's go back, huh?" She held out her hand, which Joanna took with a smile.

McCoy looked up from packing the blanket. He met her eyes and she gave him a small nod. Ellen packed the basket and handed it to her son. He attached it to his horse, and the group rode back to the house. When the horses were put away, Jim gave Ellen a tight hug which was returned with equal enthusiasm.