Recovery

Posted on Sun Apr 20th, 2025 @ 5:50am by Lieutenant JG Syvar MD & Lieutenant Faith Hawkins

1,962 words; about a 10 minute read

Mission: Fortuna
Location: Sickbay

"good morning lieutenant," resounded cheerfully as Syvar approached the bed of the ship's chief engineer. "How are you feeling today?"

Not that question again, thought Faith. She felt the same as she did the day before. Or did she? "You asked me that yesterday." she replied, groggily. A few seconds' pause. A blink of her eyes. That sharp, throbbing pain in her hip wasn't there today. Had it gone for good? "Actually." she began, adjusting her position on the bed. She longed for her own. This one was worse than lying on the cold, sterile floor of main engineering. "Maybe I feel a little better."

"Maybe?" Syvar arched a single eyebrow at her in very Vulcan like fashion. "Tell me, what feels different today that you maybe feel a little better?" He flipped open his tricorder, occasionally glancing at it while awaiting her answer. "What do you remember of what happened? Any new insights?"

Did she remember what happened? Not really. The last thing Faith remembered, she was trying to repair something. What though? "I can't remember." she answered. "My side doesn't hurt any more though." Faith's memory was still, well. Patchy. Meredith came to see her yesterday. With Keira. But she couldn't remember what was said.

"The last thing I remember. Other than yesterday." began Faith. Yesterday was the first time she'd woken up since she was blown from the upper level of main engineering to the lower. A faulty conduit exploded. "I was fixing something. I don't know what. After that...Meredith coming to visit yesterday." she said. Pauses were frequent. But, now in less pain, Faith was starting to make progress.

Syvar nodded in understanding, reaching out with a gloved hand to reassuringly touch her shoulder. "You shouldn't be in any discomfort after all the medication we gave you," he smiled, "give yourself time, your memories will return to you when your mind is ready to. Trust me, I have been in such a situation. Perhaps your fellow engineers can help with the reconstruction of the event?"

Maybe they could, thought Faith. Who though? She couldn't remember who was on shift that day. How long had she even been here? All she could recall was the previous day with Meredith, Keira visiting. "How long have I been here?" she asked.

Syvar cast his patient a look of concern. "Three days at the least," he informed her, "I don't know how much time passed before you were brought to sickbay. But I do know that the body has a way to protect the mind and recovery by blocking the memories of certain events. I speak of personal experience. Give it time, and see the counselor when you are ready to do so." He reached out and helped her sit up more comfortably. "Meanwhile, can I get you anything? You must be starving about now."

Three days. Well. There was a starting point. She could check the rota and see who was on duty that day. "Yeah. I will. Thanks." replied Faith. Once she was sat up, the subject turned to food. She hadn't realised how hungry she was until Syvar mentioned it. "Erm. Yeah. Food. Could you get me some Scotch pancakes please?" she asked. Her favourite breakfast. One Faith enjoyed making with Meredith from scratch.

"I'm sure the replicator knows what they are," Syvar smiled, "I'll be back shortly." A few minutes later, he returned with a plate full of pancakes, hoping dearly the replicator had gotten it right. In his other hand he held a glass of orange juice. "Vitamins, doctor's orders," he explained as he handed both to her. "But I must ask, what is Scottish about these pancakes?"

Oh the smell. Faith's mouth, which had been as dry as a desert just seconds ago, was now watering. The pancakes were there. They were so close. Faith accepted them, expressing her thanks. A sip of orange juice. "Oh. That's so good." she said, beginning to tuck into her breakfast. "They're called scotch pancakes." a bite, then swallow. Yes. Perfect. "...because they're smaller. These are so good. Thank you." confirmed Faith, going in for a second bite of the cherry.

Syvar arched a single eyebrow at her. "Them being smaller makes them Scottish? How...odd .." he watched her dig in. "You really are ravenous," he marveled.

'Ravenous' was an incredibly good choice of word. No doubt she would be indulging in quite a large pizza when she was discharged. "Mm. Yes." said Faith, another mouthful. "Human cuisine is full of similar...oddities." another mouthful. "Take the scone." yet another mouthful. "They're Devon scones if you put the cream on first. Cornish if you put the jam on first."

"I grew up on earth, but I never knew this," Syvar marveled, "not that I know what a scone is... perhaps I should ask Amelia, my wife. I don't think my parents ever differentiated food with local names, I don't recall them doing that and they were Human."

"You've never heard of a scone?" responded Faith, pretending to be offended. Albeit, not very well. She took another sip of her delicious, refreshing orange juice. "You need to try them. Personally, I recommend the Devon method."

Syvar shook his head. "No ma'am. I grew up on toast and Vegemite, for breakfast that is. Perhaps I should replicate a few and you can show me?"

Her mouth full, Faith nodded. The pancakes were delicious. But they weren't even touching the sides. At all. Apart from during her pregnancies, Faith couldn't immediately recall a time she had been this ravenous. Then again. She hadn't eaten for three days.

At her nod, Syvar briefly disappeared and returned barely a minute later with a tray that contained a plate of still warm scones, a jar of strawberry jam and a jar of English clotted cream. It also contained a mug of very fragrant tea which was intended for himself. He reasoned he might as well take a break and enjoy this. Carefully, he placed the tray on the bed. "I really haven't had these before," he repeated, "despite growing up on Earth."

"If you like, I can show you how they're prepared." offered Faith, her mouth salivating at the scones. The ramikins containing the jam, cream. "I'll do one of each method, then we can see which one you prefer."

"Surely, they should taste the same, regardless of the order of addition?" The young Vulcan was genuinely intrigued. "Perhaps I should get my girls so they can try this too... They're half Human. Only if you agree though, they're very quiet children, usually."

"There is a difference. But, I'll let you and your daughters work it out and choose your preference." replied Faith, adjusting herself to a more suitable position for preparing scones. "I'll prepare them so you can tuck in when you get back." It was going to be difficult to resist the urge to eat the scones while Syvar went to collect Aethra, Ahara.

Not much later, Syvar return with two near identical little girls who barely reached his side. The four year olds were giggling and swinging their father's arms as they walked. The Vulcan himself seemed very happy in the presence of his children. "Ahara, Aethra, this is Miss Hawkins. She's going to show us how to eat scones."

He lifted the girls onto the bed then pulled up a chair for himself. "An earth delicacy," he continued to explain, "but one I've never had before."

The girls eyes the little round pastries and Aethra reached out to examine one. "Are they like cookies?" She asked curiously.

With a warm smile, Faith shook her head. "They're more like cakes." she replied, although scones weren't really a cake either. Or a biscuit. They were their own, unique thing. Faith then began to carefully divide the four scones into halves, making sure the fillings didn't spill onto the plate. Once this had been done, she offered the plate to Ahara, Aethra first. "Here you go."

The two girls dug in instantly, visibly enjoying the somewhat sweet treat. Their father was a little more careful, obviously not caring too much about the sweet side. "Perhaps a little less jam," he commented as he continued to try and remove a portion of the sweet confectionery.

Faith observed the reactions of Syvar, his daughters with interest. The latter seemed more enthused with the Cornwall scones than she, Syvar were. Faith helped herself to her half, she too taking her time. A hand held underneath to catch any loose crumbs, currants. Aethra, Ahara's facial expressions suggested they were enjoying the experience, pleasing Faith. Once all had finished, Faith turned her focus to the Devon scones. "Okay." she said. "Shall we move onto the Devon scones?" As far as she was concerned, she'd saved the best till last. Along with Keira, Faith was in a minority of two in the Hawkins household when it came to scones.

The girls nodded, smiling brightly at the woman on the bed. Syvar too nodded though he was still in the process of downing the first one. "Just a little jam for me," he said, "I'm not really a fan of sweets."

Faith nodded, using the teaspoon to delicately remove some of the jam from the portion of Devon scone intended for Syvar. "There we go." she said, licking the surplus jam from the spoon. "Tuck in."

"This does taste better," Syvar notes, an amused smile on his face as he watched his daughters faces get covered in a mix of cream and jam. "A little more savoury. I see the girls seem to prefer the sweeter variants, but I have read that children often seem to have a preference for sweets. Human children, that is. Which variant holds your preference?"

Faith chuckled at the sight of Aethra, Ahara's faces. Every single time Meredith ate cake, a dessert or a hot meal with any kind of sauce, well. A medium percentage of it usually ended up around Meredith's mouth. Ice cream, custard and bolognese sauce being just three examples. "I prefer this one." replied Faith, examining the remainder of her portion. "I think the Cornwall version is too sweet." she then looked at the twins, a warm smile breaking across her face. "It looks you two prefer the sweeter filling. My daughter Meredith does too."

Aethra looked up. "Where is your daughter? How old is she, can we play with her?" She asked curiously. "Does she have a sister too?"

So many questions. It didn't bother Faith though. She was used to it with not only Meredith, but her nieces, nephew too. It brought another smile to her face. "Meredith is four years old. She has a baby sister called Beatrice." she began. "They're staying with my sister at the moment. But, when I'm better, I'm sure Meredith would love to meet you both."

"We're four!" The twins exclaimed in unison, "she could play with us. Can't see daddy?"

Syvar smiled politely, seeing something the children didn't. "Of course," he agreed, " as soon as miss Faith feels better and her children are ready to come aboard." He turned to his patient. "You should get some rest now. I'm going to take the girls home to their mother, and I'll come back to check on you in a few hours."

Faith nodded. "Thank you, Doctor." she replied, feeling much more positive than she had upon waking. Seeing how much Aethra, Ahara had enjoyed the scone tasting had cheered her up a great deal. Hopefully, it would not be too long before they would meet Meredith, Beatrice. "Goodbye for now, girls."

The girls waved as they were led out of the medical facility, leaving the young woman to her much needed rest.

 

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