AN: Hey guys! It's been a very long time since I've posted a story on here. So I guess you can see this as me posting as a new writer (it's been so long I'm practically a novice). To be honest, I wish I had a little more time on this story, but I started it the other day and needed to have it ready in time for Christmas Day. I promise my future stories (which I'm working on) will be better ;) I just felt like a little bit of festive fluff was needed, considering how horrible 2016 has been. Thanks to my friend The Missing Twin (check this one out, a brilliant writer!) for inspiring me to restart my passion. Merry Trekking Christmas, live long and prosper! xxx

Bones should have known that it was too good to be true. He should have realised that his moment of happiness would be short-lived. Earlier in the day, it was revealed that the Enterprise crew had been granted four whole weeks of shore leave back on Earth whilst the ship underwent emergency maintenance. They were only three months into the five year mission when a technical failure was detected in the warp core. Rather than risking another Khan-like incident, the decision had been made to return to Earth and have the core repaired and thoroughly investigated.

Bones was delighted at the unexpected opportunity to head home and spend some quality time with his daughter over Christmas. He hadn't managed to see her when he was last on Earth as she had caught a nasty viral infection and was unable to travel, and Starfleet had denied him permission to visit her in Georgia. That meant it was almost a whole year since he had seen her in person, and he missed her terribly. So when he received the good news, Bones decided to take an early lunch in order to contact his ex-wife to discuss arrangements. However, he had not anticipated that his news would not be taken well. Not only did Jocelyn have no intention of letting him see her for the next month, she was considering ceasing all contact between father and daughter.

"Come on Joss, be reasonable!" Bones pleaded, trying not to let his frustration bubble over. "It's Christmas! I haven't seen my daughter in months –"

"And whose fault is that?" Jocelyn replied coldly. "It wasn't Joanna's fault you decided to take a job in outer space. You took that decision, even as she cried in your arms and begged you to stay with her. You made the choice to abandon her."

"How dare you say that I chose to abandon my daughter!" He yelled, unable to contain his anger. Some of the nurses peered into his office as his voice raised, but Christine Chapel shooed them away to give her boss some privacy.

"Well then, how would you describe it? You could've taken a job on Earth, but instead you chose to have your adventures with Captain Kirk. You made your bed, so lie in it."

Bones took several deep breaths, knowing from past experience that getting into a shouting match with his ex-wife would never end well. "Look, I know my work situation is far from ideal, and it kills me to see how much Jo misses me. But do you really think cutting me out of her life completely is really the best option?"

"Better she gets used to never seeing you, than to be hurt every time you leave."

"Please don't do this," he begged, his voice low and quiet. "I love Jo more than life itself. I know you just want what's best for her, but I'm begging you to reconsider. Look, can you just let me see her when I return? Then, if you still think it's best to keep me out of her life, I can at least say goodbye." His breath hitched as he said that, wanting to try everything to avoid the possibility of never seeing his little girl again.

Jocelyn let out a sigh and turned away from the screen. She may have fallen out of love with Leonard McCoy, but as Joanna's father, she still cared for him. Rarely did he show such emotion, and hearing the pain in his voice made her question her decision. "I'll… I'll think about it," she muttered, not daring to look at him.

"Thank you," he replied, and she couldn't help but wince at the sound of his voice. Before he could say more, Nurse Chapel cautiously entered the office, knocking on the door as she did. "I'm so sorry to interrupt Doctor McCoy, but you're needed in the medbay."

"Alright Christine, I'll be right out. Sorry Joss, I have to go. We should be back on Earth tomorrow, I'll call you from the hotel?" Jocelyn nodded, still not quite meeting his gaze, and ended the video call.

Bones let out a groan and buried his face in his hands, trying not to fall apart in front of his staff.

"Leonard?" Chapel called softly, approaching her boss.

" 'm fine," Bones grumbled, sniffing loudly and rubbing at his eyes, hiding all trace of emotion and putting on his stern mask once more. He moved towards the door, and Christine closely followed. "What's the problem? And I swear to God, if Jim's done something stupid again…" he trailed off as he left his office, spotting the man in question lying on one of the biobeds, left leg turned at an awkward angle. Chapel tried to stifle as laugh as she saw the look on the doctor's face.

"Hey Bones!" Kirk cried out cheerfully. "Funny story! So Sulu was telling us about all of his martial arts training, and I thought it sounded pretty easy. Chekov was like 'yes Keptin, you could do zat' but Spock was all like 'illogical Captain' and then I stopped listening. So Scotty dared me and we had this bet going, but then Sulu just threw me around – I'm sure those were illegal moves. But then we fell off the table we were sparring on and my leg sort of twisted…" At this point, Bones tuned out from Jim's rambling and ran the tricorder over his body.

"Well, thanks to your idiocy, you've dislocated your knee, fractured your tibia and broken your ankle. I'll need to run the osteo-regenerator for the breaks, but I need to manually manipulate your knee back into place. Do you want an anaesthetic?" Bones knew that Jim hadn't been listening to a word he had said, as he was too preoccupied with flirting with the nurses.

"I'll take that as a no," he muttered, gripping Jim's injured leg. Before Jim could make a comment, Bones yanked the leg (probably more harshly than necessary) and manipulated the joint back into place. He struggled to suppress the smirk as Jim let out a high-pitched scream.

"WHAT THE HELL BONES?!" he squealed, his hands tightly clenched around the bed sheets. "Why didn't you warn me?"

"He did, Captain," Chapel chuckled, administering a hypospray of pain relief and patting him on the head sympathetically. "You were just so enthused about telling your fascinating story."

"You think I'm fascinating?" he flirted, seemingly forgetting the agony he had just suffered. "Careful there Chris, you're starting to sound like Spock."

"Alright Casanova, think you can ignore your penis for a second and pay attention?" Bones interrupted, and Christine was finding it increasingly difficult to suppress her laughter.

"Bones!" Jim spluttered, trying to hide his embarrassment. "Geez, what's eating you?"

"Nurse Chapel, think you can convince the Captain's fanbase to return to their duties?" he ignored the question, not really wanting to go into what was actually bothering him.

Once the giggling nurses had left, Christine helped Bones set up the osteo-regenerator. Once everything was set up, she gave the Captain a sympathetic farewell and left the two friends to it.

"Right Jim, you know the drill. This will only take a couple of minutes, but it will hurt like Hell. Then I'm wheeling you back to your quarters and you will stay in bed for the rest of the night, since I know you'll make everyone's life a living Hell if I tried to get you to stay here. You should be fully recovered by the time we dock tomorrow. You ready?"

"Sure. Thanks, Bones." Bones nodded and turned on the regenerator. Although Jim had had several bones regenerated over the years, he would never get used to the pain. He cried out and grabbed onto Bones, who held a hand out expectantly.

"Easy, Jim," his friend soothed as the machine did its work.

After the two and a half minute procedure – which Jim insisted lasted two and a half hours – Bones carefully strapped his leg and moved him to a wheelchair. He then wheeled Jim to his quarters, despite the protestations that he could "walk perfectly well thank you very much", and moved him to the bed.

"Stop whining, Jim," said Bones, feeling a headache forming due to his friend's constant complaining. "You need to rest that leg, and I know you. If I let you make your own way back to your room, you'd end up challenging Sulu to a rematch… No, Jim! You are not having a rematch!" he gently smacked Jim's arm, who looked as though he was contemplating that idea.

"Ow! Yeesh, you have the worst bedside manner, you know that? Mr Sensitivity my ass!" he grumbled, reluctantly complying with the doctor. Bones didn't respond, instead opting to inject him with a mild sedative.

"I'll be back after my shift to check on your progress. Idiot," he muttered fondly as his friend started to doze off. Without thinking, he pushed back some hair that had fallen onto Jim's face, and let his hand rest there for a few moments.

"Couldn't I have fallen for someone who wasn't a complete moron?" he whispered, receiving a loud snore in response. With a sigh, Bones cleared up his supplies and headed back to the medbay for the rest of his shift.

The last time Leonard left Georgia, Joanna was inconsolable for the first month. She barely ate and cried for her father every night. Jocelyn could do nothing to make her little girl feel better, and she felt great resentment towards her ex-husband. She couldn't understand why the man with aviophobia and a fear of space would abandon the daughter he loved to pursue a career with Starfleet. So when Leonard unexpectedly called and asked to see Joanna over Christmas, Jocelyn snapped. She knew that he loved their daughter, but she couldn't bear to see Jo go through that kind of heartache again. Maybe threatening to ban him from ever seeing her again was a little harsh, but she hoped that it might convince him to give up his career and return to Earth permanently.

After ending the video call, Jocelyn went to check on Joanna in the den. She found her daughter happily drawing at her little table, chatting away to her stuffed animals and dolls filling the surrounding chairs.

"Hey sweetpea," Jocelyn cooed, kneeling next to her daughter. "It'll be lunch soon, so finish up your drawing and get cleaned up. What're you drawing?" She looked at the colourful scrawls, making out two figures – one in blue and one in yellow – with a large, grey scribble on a black background.

"I'm drawing daddy and Uncle Jim!" the child chirped, leaning back to admire her masterpiece. "Can we send it in a Christmas card to space? I think daddy would like it."

Jocelyn sighed sadly, and looked at her daughter. "He would love it honey, but I don't think it would get to him in time for Christmas."

"Oh," the girl muttered dejectedly. "Well, I'll save it for his birthday then!" Nodding triumphantly at her ingenious plan, she made a few adjustments to her father's outfit.

"Jo, sweetheart? What do you think of daddy's job?" No harm in asking I suppose, Jocelyn thought.

"I wish I could see him more," Joanna thought for a moment, "but Uncle Jim needs the best doctor to look after him. I'm glad he has daddy to keep him safe."

"So… would you want him to leave Starfleet and be a doctor here?"

"No," she answered immediately. "I miss him when he has to go, but he wouldn't be happy without Uncle Jim, and I hate seeing daddy sad. Plus, everyone at school thinks I'm super cool because my daddy and uncle are famous!" Jocelyn let out a chuckle and ruffled her hair. She admired her daughter for that. Despite the fact she misses her father terribly, she puts his happiness first. Even at such a young age, she's incredibly selfless.

Just like her father, she thought, without hesitation. At that moment, she knew it would be wrong to keep the two of them apart. As Joanna's mother, it was her job to console her whenever she was hurting, not to keep her away from her father. That was what was best for Joanna.

"Well, we might not be able to get this picture to Daddy, but maybe Santa could deliver it to him!" Jocelyn nearly feel over as her daughter excitedly jumped into her arms.

"Of course! Mummy you're so clever, of course Santa can get it to him!" she squealed. "Will you help me wrap his present?"

"Sure thing, baby. But lunch first. Go clean up!" Joanna nodded and kissed her mother, then hurried upstairs to freshen up.

"Now I've got to break the news to Clay," Jocelyn grumbled as she headed to the kitchen to prepare lunch.

Bones had hoped the video call with his ex-wife would be a blip in an otherwise good day, but then he remembered that Doctor Leonard McCoy was rarely blessed with good days. Thanks to Scotty accidentally spilling some scotch in the electrical system, there was a minor fire and several injuries in engineering – the aforementioned Chief Engineer being the worst affected. Cue an afternoon of treating third degree burns, tripping over Keenser and avoiding Spock as he interviewed the injured engineers. Through his frustration, he managed to make three nurses cry and one Ensign wet himself in fear. Needless to say, he was relieved when Chapel practically threw him out of the medbay as his shift ended at 1800 hours. He was prepared to console himself with a glass of bourbon in his room, but as he removed the bottle from his locker, he suddenly remembered a sedated Captain recovering from a broken leg. With an annoyed grunt, he slammed his locker shut, deposited the bottle in his medical bag and made his way to the Captain's quarters.

When Bones entered, Jim was still fast asleep on the bed. Deciding that he preferred dealing with an unconscious James Kirk, Bones carefully examined the afflicted leg to make sure it was healing properly. Satisfied with the progress, Bones slumped to the floor next to Jim's head and updated his notes on his PADD. Feeling quite comfortable, he poured himself a glass of the acquired bourbon and finished off his remaining reports for the day.

The remaining reports took an hour and five whole glasses of bourbon. He closed the last report and was faced with the background image of his PADD – a beautiful young girl with chestnut curls and a dazzling smile.

"I'm sorry Jo-bear," he whispered sadly, pouring himself a sixth glass and dropping the PADD to the floor, unable to look at the face of his daughter.

"You know, most people who have the privilege of getting into the Captain's quarters are far happier," a voice chirped from behind his head, causing Bones to jump and spill his drink.

"Dammit Jim, you scared the crap outta me!" he growled. "How long have you been awake?"

"Ah, only a few minutes," he smirked, pushing himself up on his side. "Wanted to see how long it would take you to notice me."

"Right, well, you've been noticed. How're you feeling?" he spun around to face his friend.

"Never better!" Jim exclaimed. "Which is a good thing, considering at how much bourbon my physician has gone through." He raised an eyebrow at the doctor, who turned away in embarrassment.

"Well, technically my shift's over, M'Benga's on call if there's an emergency," Bones grumbled.

Jim laughed, "ah come on Bones, I'm just teasing. What's gotten into you? You were so excited this morning."

"Yeah, well, you should've known my good moods don't last."

"Well, there's the Bones we know and love," Jim muttered sarcastically. "What happened? Is it about Jo?"

Bones nodded. "Yeah. I spoke with Joss, and she's pissed. She doesn't want me to see Jo this month, after what happened last time I left. She's even threatened to cease all contact between us."

"What?!" Jim yelled. "She can't do that!"

"She's got primary custody, technically she can."

"Why the Hell would she do that?" Jim was seething.

"Calm down, Jim. She hasn't actually done anything yet, and I'm going to do everything I can to convince her not to. She's just thinking of what's best for Jo. Last time I had to leave her, she cried for weeks, and she doesn't want to put our girl through that again."

"So she thinks stopping her from ever seeing her father again would help? No, that's ridiculous, and the opposite of what's best for Joanna."

Bones sighed and rubbed his palm over his face. "I know, Jim. Look, I'm calling her tomorrow when we get to the hotel, she'll hopefully have calmed down a bit by then."

"How can you be so calm about this?" Jim growled.

"Honestly? I'm not. I'm angry and upset. But what good would it do if I showed that? You think yelling at Jocelyn is going to convince her to take my side?" Jim said nothing, knowing that his friend was right.

"I guess not," he mumbled.

"Don't think too badly of her, Jim. In the end, I know whatever decision she makes, it'll be for Joanna. Even if we don't agree."

"It's not fair. You're her father, and a great one at that. I hope she makes the right decision," he looked at Bones, hating to see the pained expression on his friend's face. "Do you need anything?"

"You're still coming with me to Georgia, right? Cause if I don't get to see Jo…" he trailed off, trying to swallow the lump that had suddenly developed in his throat.

"Wouldn't wanna be anywhere else." Bones turned to Jim and nodded in thanks, blinking furiously to clear the moisture forming in his eyes. His head flopped forward so that his forehead rested on the mattress next to Jim's shoulder, hoping that his moment of vulnerability had gone relatively unnoticed. Of course, the ever-observant Jim will always notice when the best friend he loves is especially emotional. Making himself comfortable leaning on his right side, he rubbed a comforting hand over Bones' back, occasionally running his fingers through his friend's hair. Jim's touch was enough to break the damn, and Bones couldn't contain the tears as the emotion from the day spilled over.

Neither man spoke, even as Bones' shoulders shook through the quiet sobs and a damp patch formed on the sheets beneath him. Jim simply continued the comforting motions and offered his silent support until Bones had calmed himself down. When Bones finally pulled away, Jim handed him a tissue and softly said, "I think you should get some rest, we've got a long day ahead of us. It'll turn out Ok, I'm sure of it."

"I'm due a Christmas miracle," Bones scoffed bitterly, as he wiped away all traces of the tears that had just fallen. He collected his belongings and rose from the floor, swaying a little on his feet. "Crap, overdid the bourbon. You're right, I should go to bed." Jim chuckled and watched the doctor stagger to the exit. "Thanks, Jim," he turned to face Jim once he reached the door.

"Any time, Bones. Good night!" the friends nodded to each other, and Bones left for his own quarters.

As soon as the door closed once more, Jim reached for his own PADD perched on his bedside table and set up a video call. After a few moments, an elderly lady's smiling face appeared on screen.

"James Kirk, what a lovely surprise!" Eleanora McCoy cried from the screen. "I wasn't expecting to hear from you for another couple of days!"

"Hey Ellie!" he grinned at his friend's mother. "We might have to see you earlier than planned. I need your help giving Leonard the best Christmas present ever."

The arrival on Earth the following day went without a hitch, and the crew were excited about being able to surprise their families for Christmas. Spock would of course accompany Uhura, and Chekov decided he would much rather spend the holiday with Sulu, Ben and Demora than his own family back in Russia. Although Bones was feeling a little better, he couldn't handle the enthusiasm of his friends at this time. But he put on a smile and joined Jim in wishing them a fond farewell.

When just the two of them remained, Bones picked up his bag and started to head for the neighbouring hotel.

"Come on Jim, we should check in." Before he could go any further, Jim grabbed hold of his arm.

"Change of plan, Bones! We're grabbing a shuttle to Georgia tonight!"

"What? No, we're heading out in the morning. I've got to call Jocelyn this evening, remember?"

"You can call her when we arrive at your mother's house. Come on, don't you think the lovely Eleanora McCoy should have her two boys with her on Christmas Eve?" Jim flashed a devilish grin, knowing that Bones would struggle to say no to any plan involving his mother.

As expected, Bones gave a heavy sigh and agreed to Jim's plan. "Fine Jim, for Ma. But we better get back in enough time for me to call Joss."

"Everything's gonna be fine Bones. D'ya trust me?"

"Yes, course I do. Lord help me, but I trust you, Jim." The younger man jumped triumphantly, punching the air and whooping loudly, earning a few displeased stares from other travellers. Bones rolled his eyes and followed the excited Captain to the departure point.

A few hours later, as night fell, the hovercar pulled into Eleanora's driveway, the woman in question waiting patiently at the front porch. As soon as the car came to a stop, Bones immediately exited the driver's side and raced to his mother's outstretched arms, whilst Jim retrieved their bags from the trunk.

"Merry Christmas, Mama!" Bones cried as he held his mother.

"Merry Christmas baby!" his mother hugged him tightly and kissed the side of his face. "And Merry Christmas to you too, James."

"Happy Christmas, Ellie!" James practically shoved Bones out of the way to hug the woman he classed as a second mother, much to his friend's irritation.

"A simple 'excuse me' would've been appreciated, Jim," Bones muttered, picking up the bags Jim had unceremoniously dropped to the ground in his excitement. Eleanora just laughed and she pulled away from Jim's embrace.

"My goodness, I have missed you both. But come, let's not stand out here in the cold, come on in! Leave your bags by the door, there's something I need to show you!" the older woman hurried indoors and motioned for the two men to follow. Bones shot Jim a confused look, but the other man merely smirked and motioned for him to go inside. They both entered the house closely behind Eleanora and dropped their bags.

"Shoes off!" she called as she entered the living room. The men did as instructed and followed her into the lounge, Jim letting Bones head in first.

The sight and sound that greeted them was the most amazing thing that Bones had ever encountered, and it took every ounce of strength he had not to fall apart on the spot.

"Merry Christmas Daddy!" Joanna squealed excitedly as she ran to her father.

"JO!" Bones cried out, and he scooped the young girl into his arms. "What are you – how did you – oh sweetpea, I'm so glad to see you!"

"Mama said you were coming home, so I wanted to surprise you for Christmas!" her voice was muffled by Bones' shoulder that her face was currently buried in. He planted several kisses onto the top of her head. "Are you surprised?"

"Baby, I'm very surprised, but so happy!" this time, he didn't care that tears were flowing down his face. Besides, from the sniffles surrounding him, he was certain that there wasn't a dry eye in the room.

Eventually, the little girl pulled away from her father's arms and ran to the man standing behind him. "Merry Christmas, Uncle Jim!" Jim picked her up and welcomed her embrace.

"Thought you'd forgotten about your Uncle Jim there!" she giggled at his pretend offense. "Merry Christmas, sweetheart."

As Jim and Joanna were reunited, Bones stood and wiped at his face.

"Hello, Leonard. Glad you got back safely," Jocelyn cautiously approached him. To everyone's surprise, Bones threw his arms around her. "Thank you, Joss."

Although stunned, she eventually returned the hug. They parted within a few seconds, feeling a little awkward.

"Ok. Jo honey, I know you're excited to see Daddy and Uncle Jim, but it's bedtime. Santa won't come if you're awake," Jocelyn finally broke the slightly uncomfortable silence. Jim lowered Joanna to the ground, and she swiftly returned to her father's side.

"Can daddy tuck me in tonight?" she looked up at him with large, bright eyes, and he smiled lovingly down at her.

"I insist, darlin'" he replied, and lifted her into his arms. She wished everyone goodnight, and Bones took her to her room.

After 45 minutes of stories, cuddles and "I missed you" kisses, Bones crept out of the now-sleeping-girl's room and carefully shut the door behind him. He bumped into Jocelyn as he made his way down the corridor.

"Thanks again for letting me see her," he said quietly, ensuring he didn't wake Joanna.

"It's Ok," Jocelyn responded, equally quietly. "Look, Leonard… I'm sorry for what I said before. I was upset, and I made some unfair comments. But after talking with Jo yesterday, it's obvious that the worst thing I could do would be to keep her father away from her. She's so proud of you – in fact, she idolises you. I won't say it's easy to watch her heart break every time you leave, and I'm dreading her reaction when you have to go back on your five year mission. But I'll let her spend every possible moment with you, and I'll be there to comfort her when you go. I've cleared it with your mother, she can stay with you until you have to leave again. If you don't mind, I'd like to spend tomorrow with you all, then Clay will pick me up in the evening and you can have her for the next month."

Bones was silent for a moment, trying to push the thought of his little girl being heartbroken as he left. Instead, he focused on the knowledge that he could spend the next month with his daughter, and he couldn't suppress a smile. He hugged his ex-wife again, and this time there was no awkwardness. "Thank you. This means a lot to me. Of course you can spend Christmas Day with us." He pulled back, and planted a friendly kiss on her cheek. "Merry Christmas, Joss."

She blushed at the kiss, "Merry Christmas, Len. Now go and save your mother, I believe your friend is slowly emptying the kitchen. I never knew one man could eat so much pie…" Bones groaned and uttered a few curses, quickly heading downstairs to make sure that there would still be enough food for Christmas dinner. Jocelyn let out a chuckle and headed to the spare room.

Once Eleanora had convinced Bones that she had more than enough food to feed all of them and satisfy Jim's terrifying appetite, she kissed them both good night and headed to her own room, leaving the two men relaxing on the sofa.

"I've been thinking," Bones spoke after a long, comfortable silence. "You insisted that we take a shuttle back to Georgia tonight. That's an awfully big coincidence."

"Huh, guess it is," Jim responded, trying to appear innocent.

Bones turned his head and looked at his friend. "You wouldn't have had anything to do with this, would you?"

Jim shrugged, "I may have made a call to your mother. I may have suggested that she invite Jo and her mother over for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. I may have mentioned your desire to see her for that month, and the conversation you had with Jocelyn."

Bones groaned, "Oh God, you set my mother on my ex-wife."

"I did no such thing. I merely provided her with certain information and told her that we would arrive on Christmas Eve. Anything else was entirely your mother's doing," Jim smirked, and Bones couldn't help laughing.

"Well, thank you, Jim," he swung his arm around the younger man's shoulder and pulled him in for a hug. "You couldn't have given me a better Christmas present."

"Aww geez, don't get sappy on me, old man," Jim laughed as Bones punched his arm, and pulled out a sprig of mistletoe from his pocket. He held it over his head and smiled flirtily at Bones. "Come on, it's Christmas. Think of it as a thank you present." Bones rolled his eyes, but leaned over and gently kissed Jim on the lips.

"Merry Christmas, Jim."

"Merry Christmas, Bones."