[For lt_cmmdr_scott]

[nyota_uhura24]

Fat snowflakes were still drifting slowly to the ground, meaning that the crowd at Uhura's was perfectly content to keep sipping spiced apple cider and chatting with Nyota and her sisters. Since it was Tuesday there was no musician, but at least the regulars seemed to think the snowy day called for music and kept feeding coins into the jukebox.

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[lt_cmmdr_scott]

Scotty was, to put it mildly, absolutely and utterly lost. He wasn't entirely certain what had gone wrong - his last memories before beaming off the Enterprise were a blur. He vaguely remembered a crackling arc of blue light, the sound of electrical popping and hissing, and then... Nothing, because he'd dematerialized, and when he'd come to, it felt like he'd been out of it for hours, which shouldn't have happened. He'd woken in an alleyway, cold and wet and his phaser and communicator were missing. The only thing he had left was his uniform

[nyota_uhura24]

The man's coat looked a little frayed, but there was nothing particularly unusual about it. The trousers she could see underneath, however, were styled a little differently than anything she'd seen before. He definitely looked out of place, and not just because he was a white man in a Harlem diner.

When he spoke, her eyes widened a little. She didn't hear accents like that very often, but she was fairly certain it was Scottish. He looked surprised to see her, and a little uncomfortable as well, but she kept smiling, hoping to put him at ease. He also seemed to think it was necessary for him to rush off, and she hurried to dispel that thought, wondering if he was uncomfortable being in a predominantly black neighborhood. "You can sit here as long as you like," she said gently. "It's awfully cold out there. You should at least let me bring you a glass of water."

[lt_cmmdr_scott]

He pulled his coat a little tighter around himself, just praying that it wouldn't fall open and reveal his uniform shirt. The young woman, who couldn't have been Uhura, no matter how much she looked like her, offered him a glass of water, and he smiled thinly, grateful for both that and the offer that he could sit in the diner as long as he liked. He ought to give her some explanation, but he was at a loss as to what to say. "I'd appreciate that, lass, thank you," he replied, wondering if he ought to make up some story to cover for why he hadn't got any money.

[nyota_uhura24]

"Then you're more than welcome. It's Miss Uhura, by the way." As she turned to walk back into the kitchen, it clicked that he might not have money to spend. She didn't at all like the idea of him going hungry around the holidays, and there was something vaguely familiar about him, even if she couldn't place it and was fairly certain she'd never seen him before. When she walked back into the restaurant a few minutes later, she had a glass of water and a hot toddy. At the very least she could offer him that, but she wanted to make sure he was fed as well. She set both down in front of him. "I hope you don't mind that I brought you a hot toddy and a glass of water. They're both on the house."

[lt_cmmdr_scott]

It was a good thing she'd turned around by the time it registered that she'd said her name was Uhura, because he couldn't help but glance up sharply in surprise. It couldn't be. If she were really Uhura, surely she'd recognize him, right? It had to be some coincidence. When she returned, with something more than just a glass of water, his smile was a little less thin, although still incredibly grateful. "That's awfully kind o' you, miss," he said, reaching for the hot toddy first.

[nyota_uhura24]

She was glad to see his smile turn a little more genuine, and smiled warmly in response. "Not at all." A glance around the diner told her that none of the other patrons needed her, so she lingered a moment longer. Chatting with the customers when she had time was a normal part of her day, and she was curious and a little concerned about this one. Besides, she still wanted to offer him food even though she didn't want to seem pushy about it. "Do you live in New York?"

[lt_cmmdr_scott]

He sipped at his drink, trying not to shiver; his shirt was still damp from where he'd been laying in the snow, and the coat wasn't really matters in that respect. "No," he answered her, when she asked if he lived in New York. "No, I..." His expression fell a bit, then, and he retreated to the relative safety of taking another sip, giving himself time to think. "I'm... somethin' of a traveler. Long way from home." And without any idea how to contact home and get back where he belonged.

[nyota_uhura24]

She hummed sympathetically when he said he was a long way from home. A part of her envied the fact that he'd had the chance to travel, but he seemed to miss home a lot right now. In fact, she was willing to bet he hadn't exactly planned to end up here in Harlem. "I wish I could travel. I've been to Philadelphia a few times, and to New Orleans twice, but that's it. Do you think you'll be in New York long?" She paused for a moment, and then added, "Home wouldn't happen to be Scotland, would it?"

[lt_cmmdr_scott]

"I don't know," he answered honestly, when she asked if he'd be in New York long. "I'm afraid I..." He trailed off, not entirely certain what to tell her. I'm from about two hundred years in your future just wasn't going to cut it. "Aye, Scotland, originally," he added, pausing again to sip his drink. It was a good way to buy himself some time to think. "I'm afraid I might be stuck here awhile," he said eventually, and that was the truth too. He racked his mind, trying to remember what sort of documentation they had in the twentieth century. "My... my wallet got stolen, an' my... my passport." That was right, wasn't it?

[nyota_uhura24]

She silently congratulated herself on correctly identifying his accent, but emotions besides concern and sympathy were quickly wiped from her mind. He sounded completely lost, and having one's wallet and passport stolen in a foreign country must be absolutely terrifying. "That's awful. I'm so sorry. Have you talked to the police?" Surely they could help his situation, but he'd probably already talked to them. Of course, there would probably be more complicated procedures for getting his passport replaced if he was a foreigner. "In the meantime, you're not going hungry at Uhura's. What can I bring you?"

[lt_cmmdr_scott]

The police weren't going to be able to help him, but it would probably sound strange if he said that he hadn't gone to them. "Aye, I spoke with them, but they're not too hopeful about gettin' the wallet back. As for the passport... I don't know." He felt a bit badly about lying, but there wasn't really anything else he could. He couldn't tell her the truth; she'd think he was insane.

Her offer of food took him by surprise, though, and his first inclination was to decline the offer, because it was bad enough that she'd brought him the hot toddy on the house. He could have paid for it, had he been in a time and place that accepted Federation credits. Still, he hadn't eaten in a while, and a good hot meal sounded heavenly at the moment. "I'd hate tae be a bother..."

[nyota_uhura24]

It didn't sound as if the police had been very helpful. Her frown deepened. In this neighborhood no one expected them to be, but she thought they treated whites better. If he really was lost without a wallet or passport, she hoped he at least had friends here or a place to stay. Unfortunately it seemed a little too forward to ask.

He sounded like he didn't want to accept the food but could definitely like it. "It's no bother at all. I was just about to ask the chef to make me something. If you want to pay me back, you can tell me about some of the places you've traveled. If you feel up to it, that is. It would almost be like seeing a little more of the world."

[lt_cmmdr_scott]

His smile returned then, at least a little. "Well. If you're certain it's not any trouble... I'll have the same as you're havin', aye?" By this point, anything would be good, and he wasn't much inclined to be terribly picky. He wasn't entirely certain what to tell her as far as places he'd traveled, though. He hadn't been around Earth much. Still... With a little tweaking, he supposed, he could adjust the stories to sound like they could have happened on Earth.

[nyota_uhura24]

"It's no trouble at all. It shouldn't take the chef more than a few minutes." With another reassuring smile she turned and walked back into the kitchen to give Mr. Maathai instructions. He grumbled, as usual, but she simply smiled and walked back out again with a few drinks for other tables. After clearing some dishes and taking a few more orders, she returned to the kitchen to find that the food was ready.

"Asante," she said with a cheerful smile, picking up the plates. Predictably, Mr. Maathai told her that this was America, and they ought to be speaking English.

Once she was back in the restaurant again, she set both plates down on the counter and sat next to the man. There was plenty of time now for her to take an actual break. "This should help," she said. "And now you owe me a story."

[lt_cmmdr_scott]

The sight of Miss Uhura - it had to be a coincidence, he kept telling himself - coming to join him with two plates of food was a welcome sight. A hot meal would do wonders for getting him back on track, he was certain. "Alright," he said agreeably, trying to keep from absolutely stuffing his face, "A story. How about... oh... let's see..." He sat for a moment, just eating, glad that he had the excuse of food to buy him some time to think. Most of his stories involved planets far from Earth, but

[nyota_uhura24]

She started to eat as well, waiting patiently while he thought. It was nice to be off her feet for a few minutes. There was a time when most of the regulars probably would have given her strange looks for eating with a white man, but now that they had a white musician most of them didn't seem to think much of it. She very much approved of this development.

The next words he spoke made her eyes widen in surprise. She'd never heard of anyone traveling to the Arctic before. “What were you doing out there?” she asked curiously. Given the opportunity, she'd want to see any part of the world she could, but the Arctic wasn't exactly a typical travel destination. “I can't even imagine...” She shook her head, fascinated and amused. “Was anyone out there with you?”