Title: A Need to Touch
Author: Brigid
Email: brigidandmike@juno.com
Rating: [PG]
Series: Voyager
Part: 1/1
Synopsis: A father's need to touch his child.
Some of this will make more sense if you've read
the preceding story, "A Question on Love."
Disclaimer: Paramount owns the characters. I thank them
for letting me play with them.
Date: February, 2003
Thanks to First of Five, Briarrose and Dasia for the beta!
Dedicated to 40th birthdays.
A Need to Touch
"Kim to Janeway... Captain Janeway, please respond."
The frantic call of her operations officer caused Captain
Janeway to smile and shake her head. Harry had grown up a
lot but in many ways he was still the boy she had taken on
his first mission, seven years ago. They were docked at
McKinley Station, nothing could be as desperate as his tone
of voice suggested. Smiling, she tapped the combadge which
was as much a part of her as her own voice. "What is it, Mr.
Kim?"
"Captain, I've had a request for someone to transport over
from the station."
"Are you sure, Harry? No one is supposed to be here until
0900." Starfleet had promised her crew some privacy before
the interrogations began and she wasn't about to let anyone
deprive them of that time. The period of adjustment was
going to be difficult enough without Starfleet shoving
people down their throats at this early hour.
Ensign Kim's voice became even more agitated, "It's Admiral
Paris, Ma'am. He's asking permission to board early."
Kathryn smiled at the anxiety she heard in his voice,
"Harry, we can hardly tell a Starfleet Admiral no.
Permission granted."
"But what about Tom, Captain?"
"Tom will be fine, Harry. Tell the Admiral that I will meet
him in the transporter room in 5 minutes." Kathryn frowned
slightly as she broke the connection. Tom would be fine,
they all would be fine, she'd see to it no matter the cost
to her own agenda. Still frowning she continued dressing and
made her way to the transporter room.
***
Tom Paris felt a gentle shaking and slowly opened his eyes
to see his wife sitting on a chair and looking at him
strangely.
"Why are you sleeping out here, Tom?" she asked softly.
"Miral was finally asleep and I didn't want to wake her."
His answer was equally soft as he craned his neck to look at
his daughter, sleeping soundly on his chest.
"Okay, why are you sleeping on the floor?" B'Elanna was
having trouble keeping a straight face at the sight of her
six-foot plus husband sprawled on the floor surrounded by
the cushions he had pulled from the couch. Their newborn
daughter was still strapped in the pouch across his stomach,
sleeping peacefully.
"I'm too tall for the couch."
"Why are all the cushions on the floor?"
"Well, I didn't want to take a chance of rolling over on the
baby."
"Why didn't you just put her in her crib?"
"She was sleeping better this way," Tom answered from his
spot on the floor.
"You're crazy, you know that, don't you? Let me have the
baby, she's getting hungry." Miral's eyes had opened just
enough to study the situation at hand.
"How do you know she's hungry? She's not complaining." The
sleepy question muffled up to B'Elanna as she watched Tom
rub the tiny back.
"I just know." B'Elanna's answer was accompanied by a
withering stare.
A glance at the dampness seeping through the front of her
gown reminded Tom that while B'Elanna was probably still in
some discomfort from the delivery, there was another area of
distress which only Miral could relieve. He quickly rose and
unstrapped the baby carrier while B'Elanna found a
comfortable position in their tiny living area.
Miral knew the routine pretty well by now and found her
mother's nipple without too much help. Tom remained long
enough to stroke her downy cheek and to give her mother a
warm kiss.
"I'd better get cleaned up before the parade of Admirals
starts," Tom groused as he stretched his arms above his
head, loosening the kinks that come from sleeping on the
floor. "Can I get you something before I get in the shower?"
With unlimited replicator rations at her disposal, B'Elanna
could have asked for anything but all she really wanted was
a Raktajino. Looking down at her nursing daughter, she
decided that wasn't such a good idea... "How about a glass of
orange juice?" she finally answered.
"One OJ coming right up!" Tom answered cheerfully.
He set the glass down next to his wife and paused for a
moment to watch the miracle at hand. "I can't believe it,
she's here and we're in the Alpha Quadrant. The whole thing
seems almost surreal," he whispered.
"Want me to pinch you?" his pragmatic spouse asked.
"Nah, I'll take your word for it," he answered with a grin,
"I'm getting into the shower."
B'Elanna watched Tom as he went into the small bathroom in
their cramped quarters. She looked around at the room that
had been their home for the last year and sighed. *Home, were
they really home or were they losing their home in a cruel
twist of fate?*
The familiar surroundings would soon be overrun with
strangers, Starfleet brass and engineers and technicians who
would literally take her apart. Their logs would be studied
to determine how they had performed their duties in the
Delta Quadrant. The crew would be poked and prodded and
questioned endlessly. And then they would be separated. The
Voyager family would be no more. She felt the tears start to
form and shook her head roughly to dispel them. *We'll be
fine, we have to be. We've survived the Borg, the Hirogen,
and hundreds of others, we sure as hell aren't going to let
Starfleet defeat us.*
***
Tom emerged from the shower to find his wife solemnly
contemplating an equally somber Miral who lay in her lap,
hunger sated and again curious about the world around her.
He knelt next to the chair and leaned in to comfort B'Elanna
with a kiss to her cheek. "We'll be okay. It won't
necessarily be easy, B'Elanna, but it'll be okay."
She nodded in response. "At least we have a little souvenir
of the Delta Quadrant." Looking at her husband, she gave him
a genuine smile. He looked like a big kid with his hair
still wet and tousled from the shower. He wore his gray
undershirt and his dress uniform pants. Today's meeting with
the admirals would be in dress uniform, dated uniforms to be
sure but still worn proudly.
A small frown crossed Tom's face. "I had the strangest
conversation with Chakotay last night. He asked me how I
knew I was in love with you."
"You're kidding."
"No, he was serious."
"Do you think he's in love with Seven?"
"I don't think that's who we were talking about." After a
pause Tom asked, "What was the first thing you thought about
this morning?"
B'Elanna looked at him quizzically, "Well the first thing I
did was reach for you. When you weren't there I checked
Miral's crib then I came out here looking for the two of
you. Why?"
"Just checking," was his enigmatic reply.
A soft buzz announced a visitor at their door. Tom
automatically called "Enter" without taking his eyes off his
daughter, assuming it was Harry joining them for breakfast.
A gasp from B'Elanna caused him to look up. In the doorway
stood Captain Janeway and behind, her Tom's father, Admiral
Owen Paris. Tom slowly stood and stared.
B'Elanna knew that the next few moments would determine
whether she loved or hated this man for the rest of her life
and she felt some fear, gathering Miral to her tightly as
she watched.
Owen Paris recognized immediately that he was going to have
to make the first move and, with only a moment's hesitation,
he crossed the room to where Tom stood immobilized by shock.
"I had to see.... I had to know ... for myself..." Reaching out he
touched Tom's shoulder. "My son... my son is home," he
whispered.
Tom's face was a canvas for his emotions, shock, fear,
comprehension and finally joy were painted there as he
embraced his father whispering, "Dad."
Kathryn Janeway watched from the doorway as the two men made
a stab at bridging the gulf between them. She looked at
B'Elanna and saw the same emotions as had been on Tom's face
racing across the younger woman's. But there was also a
fierce protectiveness in her posture. B'Elanna would let no
one, not even a Starfleet admiral, hurt her mate. Kathryn
smiled her reassurance while the men struggled to regain
their composure.
Tom managed to speak first. Clearing his throat of a
suspicious lump he asked, "How did you get here? I thought
no one was allowed on until 0900."
"I've been in Starfleet for 35 years, son. I pulled a few
strings. In fact my only real obstacle was a young ensign
who seems to be in charge of your bridge right now."
With a grin, Tom answered, "That would be Harry Kim. He
plays strictly by the book."
"Well, Kathryn was able to persuade him to allow me to board
as long as I promised to be gone by 0830." Owen knew he was
trivializing the situation and that his nervousness was
showing but he plunged on anyway. "I talked to your mother
last night, son. She was laughing and crying at the same
time. Your sisters were coming to stay with her until I get
back. They wanted to be sure everything was ready for your
homecoming... "
"Dad," Tom interrupted, "there's someone you need to meet,
two someones, actually..." he stammered nervously. Putting his
hand out for B'Elanna, he helped her to her feet while
expertly scooping up his daughter with his other hand. "This
is B'Elanna and this... this is Miral."
Owen Paris had been so focused on Tom when he entered that
he was momentarily surprised to find there were others in
the room. He stared at B'Elanna for a moment before shifting
his gaze to Miral and then back to his son. A diplomat at
heart his eyes returned to B'Elanna. "B'Elanna, I am
honored to meet the woman who has captured my boy's heart
and is also reputed to be the best engineer in the Delta
quadrant."
B'Elanna smiled in embarrassment as she reached for the
Admiral's proffered hand. He surprised her though by
withdrawing his hand and pulling her into his embrace.
"Thank you," he whispered for her ears only. "Thank you for
loving my son."
Pulling away he reached out to touch the face of his
granddaughter. "She's beautiful. Miral, I'm honored to meet
you also. And won't your grandmother be jealous. May I hold
her?"
Tom looked to B'Elanna for permission. She was still
fiercely protective of their daughter but her nod was all
the affirmation he needed to pass Miral on to her
grandfather.
Owen looked in awe at the pink bundle he held. "When did
this happen? She's so tiny."
"She's 24 hours old." Tom answered. "I was piloting the ship
through a transwarp conduit at the time so it's hard to say
if she was born in the Delta quadrant or the Alpha
quadrant."
"She's a miracle then, isn't she? On a day of miracles."
Owen said softly. "We'll just keep this to ourselves until
you can tell your mother yourself."
B'Elanna knew instantly where Tom got his warped sense of
humor. These two men were silently plotting a shock for
Tom's mother and they were already in cahoots about it, she
could tell from the look on Tom's face. She glanced at
Captain Janeway who shook with silent laughter at their
antics.
The announcer brought them all back to reality as Tom
called, "Enter."
Commander Chakotay stood at the door with curiosity written
plainly on his countenance. "Captain," he began, "Harry
seemed quite anxious for me to find you and remind you what
time it is."
Kathryn Janeway smiled at her first officer, an empty smile
that never reached her eyes. Tom gave B'Elanna a worried
look and saw that she shared his concern. Something here was
terribly wrong.
Her command mask firmly in place, Captain Janeway began the
introductions: "Commander, I'd like you to meet someone.
Admiral Owen Paris, this is Commander Chakotay, my first
officer. Commander, this is Admiral Paris, Miral's
grandfather."
Chakotay spoke first, "I'm honored to meet you, sir." He
grinned as he added, "You have a lovely granddaughter."
Admiral Paris smiled, "Thank you, Commander. Captain Janeway
has nothing but praise for you in her reports. I've been
looking forward to meeting you."
Chakotay looked a little startled but there was no reason
for the captain not to mention him in her communications to
Starfleet. He just found it strange to know that someone was
actually reading those reports. "Thank you, Admiral. It has
been an honor to serve with Captain Janeway. We have a fine crew."
Clearing his throat Admiral Paris turned again to his son.
"Well, I'd better leave and let you finish getting dressed
before your Mr. Kim has heart failure. I'll be on the
station when you officially arrive, son. Try to act
surprised."
"Yes, sir," Tom grinned.
Owen handed his granddaughter back to her mother. "I'm proud
to add you and your daughter to our house, B'Elanna Torres.
You bring us great honor."
"Thank you, Admiral. I am honored to be a part of the house
of Paris." B'Elanna rejoined in an equally formal tone,
softened by a gentle smile.
The smile was returned as Owen turned to his son,
"Congratulations, son."
Tom nodded and followed his father to the door. Janeway and
Chakotay were waiting in the corridor. "Dad," Tom asked
softly, "what's going to happen down there?"
"There will be a parade for the brass and then there will be
hearings, probably for a week or so. The admiralty has had
time to read Voyager's logs so it shouldn't take more than a
week. Then decisions will be made and people will be allowed
to go to their homes and families."
"What about the Maquis?" Tom asked urgently.
Admiral Paris glanced at his daughter-in-law and
granddaughter then back at his son, "It won't be easy, Tom,
but it will be okay. I promise you it will be okay."
His father's reassurances didn't totally dispel the concern
on Tom's face but he smiled and said, "Okay... I'm holding you
to that." With a final smile and touch Owen left to
accompany Captain Janeway to the transporter room.
Tom stood rooted to the floor, staring at the now closed
door. He felt warm arms envelop him from the back and the
comfort they brought broke his reverie.
"Hey, Flyboy, what's a poor lowly engineer have to do to get
a hug?" his wife whispered.
Turning in her arms he pulled B'Elanna to him in a firm
embrace, "We're home, B'Elanna. I mean, really home, in a
place where we can put down roots and raise a family."
Glancing at their daughter, now laying quietly in her crib,
Tom realized how badly he wanted roots.
B'Elanna recognized his need as well as her own. "I know,
Tom. I know." She desperately wanted to believe that this
week of hearings would exonerate them all and allow them to
begin this new chapter of their lives.
Sensing her thoughts he pulled her tighter, "My Dad said it
was going to be okay, B'Elanna and if you can't believe a
Starfleet Admiral who can you believe?"
Incredulity was on her face as she looked up at Tom. "Don't
even go there, Thomas Eugene Paris."
Tom laughed as he released her with another kiss, "Get
dressed, lieutenant. We have a parade of admirals to
impress, then we've got to find a little piece of earth and
make ourselves a home!"
T
H
END
***
Author: Brigid
Email: brigidandmike@juno.com
Rating: [PG]
Series: Voyager
Part: 1/1
Synopsis: A father's need to touch his child.
Some of this will make more sense if you've read
the preceding story, "A Question on Love."
Disclaimer: Paramount owns the characters. I thank them
for letting me play with them.
Date: February, 2003
Thanks to First of Five, Briarrose and Dasia for the beta!
Dedicated to 40th birthdays.
A Need to Touch
"Kim to Janeway... Captain Janeway, please respond."
The frantic call of her operations officer caused Captain
Janeway to smile and shake her head. Harry had grown up a
lot but in many ways he was still the boy she had taken on
his first mission, seven years ago. They were docked at
McKinley Station, nothing could be as desperate as his tone
of voice suggested. Smiling, she tapped the combadge which
was as much a part of her as her own voice. "What is it, Mr.
Kim?"
"Captain, I've had a request for someone to transport over
from the station."
"Are you sure, Harry? No one is supposed to be here until
0900." Starfleet had promised her crew some privacy before
the interrogations began and she wasn't about to let anyone
deprive them of that time. The period of adjustment was
going to be difficult enough without Starfleet shoving
people down their throats at this early hour.
Ensign Kim's voice became even more agitated, "It's Admiral
Paris, Ma'am. He's asking permission to board early."
Kathryn smiled at the anxiety she heard in his voice,
"Harry, we can hardly tell a Starfleet Admiral no.
Permission granted."
"But what about Tom, Captain?"
"Tom will be fine, Harry. Tell the Admiral that I will meet
him in the transporter room in 5 minutes." Kathryn frowned
slightly as she broke the connection. Tom would be fine,
they all would be fine, she'd see to it no matter the cost
to her own agenda. Still frowning she continued dressing and
made her way to the transporter room.
***
Tom Paris felt a gentle shaking and slowly opened his eyes
to see his wife sitting on a chair and looking at him
strangely.
"Why are you sleeping out here, Tom?" she asked softly.
"Miral was finally asleep and I didn't want to wake her."
His answer was equally soft as he craned his neck to look at
his daughter, sleeping soundly on his chest.
"Okay, why are you sleeping on the floor?" B'Elanna was
having trouble keeping a straight face at the sight of her
six-foot plus husband sprawled on the floor surrounded by
the cushions he had pulled from the couch. Their newborn
daughter was still strapped in the pouch across his stomach,
sleeping peacefully.
"I'm too tall for the couch."
"Why are all the cushions on the floor?"
"Well, I didn't want to take a chance of rolling over on the
baby."
"Why didn't you just put her in her crib?"
"She was sleeping better this way," Tom answered from his
spot on the floor.
"You're crazy, you know that, don't you? Let me have the
baby, she's getting hungry." Miral's eyes had opened just
enough to study the situation at hand.
"How do you know she's hungry? She's not complaining." The
sleepy question muffled up to B'Elanna as she watched Tom
rub the tiny back.
"I just know." B'Elanna's answer was accompanied by a
withering stare.
A glance at the dampness seeping through the front of her
gown reminded Tom that while B'Elanna was probably still in
some discomfort from the delivery, there was another area of
distress which only Miral could relieve. He quickly rose and
unstrapped the baby carrier while B'Elanna found a
comfortable position in their tiny living area.
Miral knew the routine pretty well by now and found her
mother's nipple without too much help. Tom remained long
enough to stroke her downy cheek and to give her mother a
warm kiss.
"I'd better get cleaned up before the parade of Admirals
starts," Tom groused as he stretched his arms above his
head, loosening the kinks that come from sleeping on the
floor. "Can I get you something before I get in the shower?"
With unlimited replicator rations at her disposal, B'Elanna
could have asked for anything but all she really wanted was
a Raktajino. Looking down at her nursing daughter, she
decided that wasn't such a good idea... "How about a glass of
orange juice?" she finally answered.
"One OJ coming right up!" Tom answered cheerfully.
He set the glass down next to his wife and paused for a
moment to watch the miracle at hand. "I can't believe it,
she's here and we're in the Alpha Quadrant. The whole thing
seems almost surreal," he whispered.
"Want me to pinch you?" his pragmatic spouse asked.
"Nah, I'll take your word for it," he answered with a grin,
"I'm getting into the shower."
B'Elanna watched Tom as he went into the small bathroom in
their cramped quarters. She looked around at the room that
had been their home for the last year and sighed. *Home, were
they really home or were they losing their home in a cruel
twist of fate?*
The familiar surroundings would soon be overrun with
strangers, Starfleet brass and engineers and technicians who
would literally take her apart. Their logs would be studied
to determine how they had performed their duties in the
Delta Quadrant. The crew would be poked and prodded and
questioned endlessly. And then they would be separated. The
Voyager family would be no more. She felt the tears start to
form and shook her head roughly to dispel them. *We'll be
fine, we have to be. We've survived the Borg, the Hirogen,
and hundreds of others, we sure as hell aren't going to let
Starfleet defeat us.*
***
Tom emerged from the shower to find his wife solemnly
contemplating an equally somber Miral who lay in her lap,
hunger sated and again curious about the world around her.
He knelt next to the chair and leaned in to comfort B'Elanna
with a kiss to her cheek. "We'll be okay. It won't
necessarily be easy, B'Elanna, but it'll be okay."
She nodded in response. "At least we have a little souvenir
of the Delta Quadrant." Looking at her husband, she gave him
a genuine smile. He looked like a big kid with his hair
still wet and tousled from the shower. He wore his gray
undershirt and his dress uniform pants. Today's meeting with
the admirals would be in dress uniform, dated uniforms to be
sure but still worn proudly.
A small frown crossed Tom's face. "I had the strangest
conversation with Chakotay last night. He asked me how I
knew I was in love with you."
"You're kidding."
"No, he was serious."
"Do you think he's in love with Seven?"
"I don't think that's who we were talking about." After a
pause Tom asked, "What was the first thing you thought about
this morning?"
B'Elanna looked at him quizzically, "Well the first thing I
did was reach for you. When you weren't there I checked
Miral's crib then I came out here looking for the two of
you. Why?"
"Just checking," was his enigmatic reply.
A soft buzz announced a visitor at their door. Tom
automatically called "Enter" without taking his eyes off his
daughter, assuming it was Harry joining them for breakfast.
A gasp from B'Elanna caused him to look up. In the doorway
stood Captain Janeway and behind, her Tom's father, Admiral
Owen Paris. Tom slowly stood and stared.
B'Elanna knew that the next few moments would determine
whether she loved or hated this man for the rest of her life
and she felt some fear, gathering Miral to her tightly as
she watched.
Owen Paris recognized immediately that he was going to have
to make the first move and, with only a moment's hesitation,
he crossed the room to where Tom stood immobilized by shock.
"I had to see.... I had to know ... for myself..." Reaching out he
touched Tom's shoulder. "My son... my son is home," he
whispered.
Tom's face was a canvas for his emotions, shock, fear,
comprehension and finally joy were painted there as he
embraced his father whispering, "Dad."
Kathryn Janeway watched from the doorway as the two men made
a stab at bridging the gulf between them. She looked at
B'Elanna and saw the same emotions as had been on Tom's face
racing across the younger woman's. But there was also a
fierce protectiveness in her posture. B'Elanna would let no
one, not even a Starfleet admiral, hurt her mate. Kathryn
smiled her reassurance while the men struggled to regain
their composure.
Tom managed to speak first. Clearing his throat of a
suspicious lump he asked, "How did you get here? I thought
no one was allowed on until 0900."
"I've been in Starfleet for 35 years, son. I pulled a few
strings. In fact my only real obstacle was a young ensign
who seems to be in charge of your bridge right now."
With a grin, Tom answered, "That would be Harry Kim. He
plays strictly by the book."
"Well, Kathryn was able to persuade him to allow me to board
as long as I promised to be gone by 0830." Owen knew he was
trivializing the situation and that his nervousness was
showing but he plunged on anyway. "I talked to your mother
last night, son. She was laughing and crying at the same
time. Your sisters were coming to stay with her until I get
back. They wanted to be sure everything was ready for your
homecoming... "
"Dad," Tom interrupted, "there's someone you need to meet,
two someones, actually..." he stammered nervously. Putting his
hand out for B'Elanna, he helped her to her feet while
expertly scooping up his daughter with his other hand. "This
is B'Elanna and this... this is Miral."
Owen Paris had been so focused on Tom when he entered that
he was momentarily surprised to find there were others in
the room. He stared at B'Elanna for a moment before shifting
his gaze to Miral and then back to his son. A diplomat at
heart his eyes returned to B'Elanna. "B'Elanna, I am
honored to meet the woman who has captured my boy's heart
and is also reputed to be the best engineer in the Delta
quadrant."
B'Elanna smiled in embarrassment as she reached for the
Admiral's proffered hand. He surprised her though by
withdrawing his hand and pulling her into his embrace.
"Thank you," he whispered for her ears only. "Thank you for
loving my son."
Pulling away he reached out to touch the face of his
granddaughter. "She's beautiful. Miral, I'm honored to meet
you also. And won't your grandmother be jealous. May I hold
her?"
Tom looked to B'Elanna for permission. She was still
fiercely protective of their daughter but her nod was all
the affirmation he needed to pass Miral on to her
grandfather.
Owen looked in awe at the pink bundle he held. "When did
this happen? She's so tiny."
"She's 24 hours old." Tom answered. "I was piloting the ship
through a transwarp conduit at the time so it's hard to say
if she was born in the Delta quadrant or the Alpha
quadrant."
"She's a miracle then, isn't she? On a day of miracles."
Owen said softly. "We'll just keep this to ourselves until
you can tell your mother yourself."
B'Elanna knew instantly where Tom got his warped sense of
humor. These two men were silently plotting a shock for
Tom's mother and they were already in cahoots about it, she
could tell from the look on Tom's face. She glanced at
Captain Janeway who shook with silent laughter at their
antics.
The announcer brought them all back to reality as Tom
called, "Enter."
Commander Chakotay stood at the door with curiosity written
plainly on his countenance. "Captain," he began, "Harry
seemed quite anxious for me to find you and remind you what
time it is."
Kathryn Janeway smiled at her first officer, an empty smile
that never reached her eyes. Tom gave B'Elanna a worried
look and saw that she shared his concern. Something here was
terribly wrong.
Her command mask firmly in place, Captain Janeway began the
introductions: "Commander, I'd like you to meet someone.
Admiral Owen Paris, this is Commander Chakotay, my first
officer. Commander, this is Admiral Paris, Miral's
grandfather."
Chakotay spoke first, "I'm honored to meet you, sir." He
grinned as he added, "You have a lovely granddaughter."
Admiral Paris smiled, "Thank you, Commander. Captain Janeway
has nothing but praise for you in her reports. I've been
looking forward to meeting you."
Chakotay looked a little startled but there was no reason
for the captain not to mention him in her communications to
Starfleet. He just found it strange to know that someone was
actually reading those reports. "Thank you, Admiral. It has
been an honor to serve with Captain Janeway. We have a fine crew."
Clearing his throat Admiral Paris turned again to his son.
"Well, I'd better leave and let you finish getting dressed
before your Mr. Kim has heart failure. I'll be on the
station when you officially arrive, son. Try to act
surprised."
"Yes, sir," Tom grinned.
Owen handed his granddaughter back to her mother. "I'm proud
to add you and your daughter to our house, B'Elanna Torres.
You bring us great honor."
"Thank you, Admiral. I am honored to be a part of the house
of Paris." B'Elanna rejoined in an equally formal tone,
softened by a gentle smile.
The smile was returned as Owen turned to his son,
"Congratulations, son."
Tom nodded and followed his father to the door. Janeway and
Chakotay were waiting in the corridor. "Dad," Tom asked
softly, "what's going to happen down there?"
"There will be a parade for the brass and then there will be
hearings, probably for a week or so. The admiralty has had
time to read Voyager's logs so it shouldn't take more than a
week. Then decisions will be made and people will be allowed
to go to their homes and families."
"What about the Maquis?" Tom asked urgently.
Admiral Paris glanced at his daughter-in-law and
granddaughter then back at his son, "It won't be easy, Tom,
but it will be okay. I promise you it will be okay."
His father's reassurances didn't totally dispel the concern
on Tom's face but he smiled and said, "Okay... I'm holding you
to that." With a final smile and touch Owen left to
accompany Captain Janeway to the transporter room.
Tom stood rooted to the floor, staring at the now closed
door. He felt warm arms envelop him from the back and the
comfort they brought broke his reverie.
"Hey, Flyboy, what's a poor lowly engineer have to do to get
a hug?" his wife whispered.
Turning in her arms he pulled B'Elanna to him in a firm
embrace, "We're home, B'Elanna. I mean, really home, in a
place where we can put down roots and raise a family."
Glancing at their daughter, now laying quietly in her crib,
Tom realized how badly he wanted roots.
B'Elanna recognized his need as well as her own. "I know,
Tom. I know." She desperately wanted to believe that this
week of hearings would exonerate them all and allow them to
begin this new chapter of their lives.
Sensing her thoughts he pulled her tighter, "My Dad said it
was going to be okay, B'Elanna and if you can't believe a
Starfleet Admiral who can you believe?"
Incredulity was on her face as she looked up at Tom. "Don't
even go there, Thomas Eugene Paris."
Tom laughed as he released her with another kiss, "Get
dressed, lieutenant. We have a parade of admirals to
impress, then we've got to find a little piece of earth and
make ourselves a home!"
T
H
END
***