Jim had no idea how long he and Sam were locked in their embrace before he felt Sam stiffen. Curious, he looked up into his brother's face to see his gaze fixed on something behind him. Turning, he saw Winona standing there, staring at the pair of them. Unsure of just what to think, he turned and regarded her wearily, waiting for her to speak.

"I didn't know."

Jim felt Sam huff from behind him but his brother said nothing. He knew Sam was leaving the choice of what to say up to him. Didn't make it any easier to figure out what that should be.

"Don't know if that makes it better or worse."

Jim saw the first shades of defiance begin to rise up in his mother's eyes only to die out as quickly as they had come. "I suppose I deserve that."

Jim remained silent.

"If I had known… things would've been different."

Jim shook his head. "And if other things had been different? If Frank hadn't turned out to be such a sleazeball, you'd have been fine with cutting us out of your life?"

Winona looked down at the floor, remaining silent for a moment before replying, her voice tired and weary. "I regret the choices I made, but that doesn't always mean they were the wrong ones."

Jim shook his head ruefully. "No, I suppose it doesn't. Took me a long time to learn that lesson myself. Not until I met my family, actually," Jim gestured towards his officers hovering on his immediate left, providing the support of their presence. "But do you really feel you did the right thing? Leaving us in the lurch? Cutting off any part of Dad's legacy?"

Winona flinched violently and said nothing. Jim sighed tiredly.

"The honest truth is, as much as you clearly don't know what to say to me, I really don't know what to say to you. I have plenty of years of resentment built up that I could let fly with, but what would that accomplish? Not enough to be worth what little energy I have left. If you're looking for absolution I can't help you. If you're looking for something else… it's really not the best time."

Winona stood there, simply staring at her son for a few seconds, her features unreadable. Finally, she turned and strode out of the courtroom without another word. For several seconds the only thing remaining in the wake of her departure was silence, before Sam spoke up.

"I gotta say, Jimmy, you're a bigger man than I am. Don't know that I could have let her go just like that without getting in a word edgewise."

Jim shook his head slowly. "I'm no big man, just a tired one."

Sam nodded. "Makes sense. This was hard enough for me, can't imagine what it must have been like for you. You got one of those Starfleet apartments in San Francisco?"

"I do, but I'm not going there."

This elicited a questioning stare from his brother, prompting Jim to chuckle.

"After the past few days, going to that apartment is so not what I need," Jim stated, looking at his crew with a smile and a gesture for them to follow him, his gaze resting for an extra moment on a warm pair of chocolate eyes.

"I need my own home," Jim said, swiveling his head back to his brother. "I'd love to show it to you. I have some pull with the landlord."

Sam smiled and nodded, his eyes filled to bursting with gratitude and a not-so-small amount of relief. Nodding, Captain James Tiberius Kirk turned and strode out of the courtroom, present and older family following his lead towards the ever-present siren call of his home amongst the stars.

And that's a wrap! Thank you all so much for the incredible support you've given this story! I have an idea in mind for a sequel, but there are other story ideas I'm working on too, so how quickly it comes about is all up to the response.