Thorn in the Garden of Life

[losthunter]

Hunter paced his apartment, his phone in one hand, and a list of phone numbers in his other hand. He just got off the phone with Marcus, one of the six other people who had been given a gift by Kendra. And had learned that Marcus had been attacked by Austin.

Luckily, Marcus was able to get away, without any major side effects.

But Hunter was now worried about the others. And so he was making calls to everyone else who he had talked to, and warned them about Austin so they could stay safe.

And he knew it was time to face Austin again. But even though he felt like it was an emergency, Hunter knew that it would be better to make sure someone else came with him. He also knew exactly who he wanted to have by his side.

Jim. Austin attacked another person. I feel like I need to deal with this. Are you available to come with me?

Comments

[boldygoing]

Jim puts his arms around Hunter, not sure which one of them he's trying to reassure right now. "You can't plan for everything."

[losthunter]

Hunter wraps his arms around Jim in return. He just needs to know it is okay to hold Jim. That perhaps by holding him, they can make through this without another flashback.

"And some of those unplanned moments are great life experiences, like when we met." Hunter smiled.

[boldygoing]

"That was one of the good ones," Jim agrees quietly. He's had a lot of unpleasant surprises in his life, but Hunter isn't one of them.

[losthunter]

"Just focus on me for a little bit." Hunter hopes that it will help keep away any further bad memories.

[boldygoing]

Jim can tell what Hunter is trying to do. It's a nice gesture, though he's not sure if it's going to work in the long run. His mind is always wandering, and he can't always help where it goes.

Worth a shot, though.

He smiles a little at Hunter. "All right, you've got my attention."

[losthunter]

Hunter gently runs his fingers through Jim's hair. And smiles. He is not certain that he can be enough to keep Jim's focus. But he hopes that maybe, he can be a little bit of a distraction.

"I remember the excitement in your eyes, when you were in the Nexus market."

"And it was nothing to compare to the excitement in your eyes, when you received the news that your were going to be on a five-year mission."

[boldygoing]

He smiles a little, amused at how much Hunter likes to play with his hair. It makes sense, though he only regrets he can't reciprocate. "It's what I've wanted, ever since they announced the mission," Jim admits. "I don't know what we're gonna find out there."

[losthunter]

Even though Hunter does not have any hair for Jim to run his fingers through, he does enjoy it when Jim follows the tattoos with his hands.

"Think about that. All the possibilities for the future."

[boldygoing]

"A lot's changed because of Nero," he says quietly. "I've been wondering whether we'll go on any of the same missions. Meet any of the same people."

[losthunter]

Hunter tilts his head. He can figure out who Jim is talking about. "I don't think it matters."

"I think this is your opportunity. Your mission. Your chance to explore the universe. You will find your own path."

[boldygoing]

"I know." That's not something that's been weighing on him, especially not after Samus gave him one hell of a talking to. His destiny is in his own hands, not the version of himself that Ambassador Spock knew so well. "I'm not worried about whether I'll measure up. It's just... interesting to think about."

[losthunter]

Hunter can't imagine how difficult it is for Jim. He only knows that he tried so hard to measure up to the expectations of Rob Kingson, and failed. Jim not only has an alternate version of himself, who had a great career, but now Jim also has met another version of who he is now in the Nexus.

No wonder there are so many memories plaguing Jim. Why this curse could have destroyed him, if it had been given the chance.

"Good. Because you are a great man. A wonderful man."

[boldygoing]

Jim smiles a little. "Don't go overboard now." It's the closest thing to teasing he's done since being cursed. It's hard to be in the right mood for it, when so many memories are lurking in wait.

[losthunter]

"I am not saying anything I don't believe." But if Jim isn't in the right mood to be complimented, Hunter will go easy on him right now.

"What was your first impression of the Enterprise when you saw her for the first time?"

[boldygoing]

He brings the motorcycle to a stop on the hill, just on the other side of the fence. On the other side, lit up by countless bright lights, the dark bulk of the starship looms high. Her hull plates have yet to be installed, showing great gaps in the structure, and it's clear that she has a lot of work to be done before she's ready to fly.

Jim knows how she feels. His broken nose still throbs from the fight in the bar, his shirt still stained with his own drying blood, and he can feel a dozen bruises blossoming underneath his clothes from the cadets' fists.

Starfleet. Him.

It seems so ridiculous that he should enlist in the organization that killed his father, stole his mother, abandoned him on Tarsus. He owes Starfleet nothing. No loyalty, no belief in their goals or aspirations.

But looking at this ship, still being built into the beautiful creature she's meant to be... maybe he can evolve too. And what the hell, it'd be worth turning the Academy upside-down to see the looks on the faces of those who think that a fuck-up like him doesn't have the first clue what he's doing. And he doesn't know how to back down from a challenge.

Oh-eight-hundred, Pike had said. Plenty of time to make it to the shuttle.

Jim blinks, absently reaching up to make sure his nose isn't still broken and bloody, as he reorients himself to reality.

Right, Hunter had asked a question. "We were both pretty broken," he says, once he has a moment to remember what the question even was. "She had a whole team of people putting her together, bit by bit. I hadn't even been trying. She's what made me decide to enlist after all."

[losthunter]

Hunter pauses for a moment, as Jim just stares into nothingness for a moment. And then he moves, to touch his nose.

He smiles when Jim answers the question, after remembering what it was.

"She is. Why?"

[boldygoing]

A small smile touches his lips. "The way she looked, I figured she'd be done in three years. Cadets are supposed to take four years to graduate. That's what Pike had just told me." It still hurts, speaking of his mentor, but this is at least a somewhat good memory. The way he'd prefer to remember the old admiral, not the bloodied shell that lay on the floor of the Daystrom Conference Room.

And it doesn't seem that this is triggering a new flashback, at least at the moment. So that's something.

"I decided I wanted her," he continues. "I figured what the hell, it'd be an interesting challenge to do four years of education in three. Said as much when I got on the recruitment shuttle."

[losthunter]

"I can just imagine all the other cadets just loved you." Hunter chuckles lightly. He pulls away so he can check on the chicken in the kitchen.

"Let me guess, you had that cocky streak all mastered by then."

[boldygoing]

Jim moves to follow automatically, before visibly checking himself, keeping back from the kitchen. Burn hazard, right.

"Yeah, I was an arrogant little shit. It was worth it to see the looks on some of their faces when I got on the shuttle though. Four of 'em had tried to beat the shit out of me the night before." He doesn't seem to hold it against them, though.

[losthunter]

Hunter takes out the deep fried chicken, placing it on a couple of paper towels so that the oil can drip off beforehand. Then he places the wedges in the fryer.

"Four of them tried? You were able to get out of that situation?"

[boldygoing]

"Well," Jim admits, "they kinda did beat the shit out of me. I was way too drunk to put up a good fight, so they did a number on me before Pike walked in. I was upside-down on a table so I don't know what his face looked like but he was pissed."

[losthunter]

"Remind me... was that the first time you met Pike? Or did you meet him beforehand?" Hunter kept a careful eye on the wedges as they cooked.

[boldygoing]

"First time. I must've made a hell of a first impression on him." Draped across a table, drunk, his face halfway smashed all to hell by angry cadets... it's a wonder Pike thought he was worth recruiting in the first place. Jim's always meant to ask him about that. Now he can't.

[losthunter]

"He must have seen something in you..." Hunter can only assume. He really wishes that he could have met Pike too.

[boldygoing]

Jim's smile isn't quite as bright, as he remembers his mentor. "My aptitude scores, for one thing. Chutzpah, for another. The rest... I don't know."

He doesn't really want to dwell on this all that much, for fear of provoking more flashbacks, so he deliberately changes the subject. "I'm glad you didn't ask me how I felt the first time I saw the Enterprise all put together. It was a lot less appropriately metaphorical and stuff."