Author: Christy Anderson
You can contact me at kittyunlimited@go.com.
Disclaimer: All characters belong to Paramount minus Ensign Christy Anderson and a few selected insignificant characters
This is the 3rd part of Stars of Night. I continue to thank you for all of your encouragement. I hope you like this part just as much.
Stars of Night (Sterne der Nacht): Part 3
The sweet aromas of the foreign cuisine and the light music that glided in the background created a wonderful scene at the banquet. The Moheelean home world was green and lush, a world without pollution. And their cities were as beautiful as they were amazing. The wonderful architecture that painted every building was intertwined with their latest technology, and I could see why it was such an astounding place to be. The food was as heavenly as it was foreign, and Neelix could tell that he had some competition as Tom playfully threatened to abduct the cook. The chatter around the table was ceaseless and broached a wide variety of subjects. Besides the Ambassador's parliament, the Ambassador had extended his invitation out to some of the renowned scientists of the day. Captain Janeway, who was sitting across from me next to Chakotay and the Ambassador, pulled me into the conversation as she introduced me to the Ambassador and some of the surrounding people.
"And Ambassador, this is Ensign Anderson, our youngest crew member. She is one of our finest scientists on board," the Captain said matter-of-factly.
I blushed as she paid me the compliment. Without delay, the Ambassador kissed my hand. "Pleased to meet you, Miss Anderson. At being such the brilliant scientist, perhaps you would find it interesting to talk to Doctor Migfay; he is one of our best scientists on this world. I will introduce you to him." The Ambassador looked down the large dining table searching for Dr. Migfay, and after circling a few times, he sat down dismayed. "He has not arrived yet, but when he does, I will personally make sure that you meet him."
I nodded. "It would be an honor," I replied thankfully. Quietly, I turned my attention back down to my plate and resumed eating. Suddenly I felt Tom nudge me on my left side.
"Hey, Christy, enjoying this?"
I nodded. "Yes," I said as I raised my eyebrows, "are you?"
Tom shook his head. "Not really… I'm beginning to think that the only person worth talking to here is Neelix!" he said sarcastically. I followed his gaze down the table. B'Elanna and Harry were heavily in conversation with one of the scientific engineers. Following him was the Commander and Captain talking with the Ambassador and a few members of the parliament. Tuvok stood engaged in conversation with the Ambassador's aide. That left Tom, Neelix, and myself at the end.
"Tom, at least you can enjoy the cuisine. When we get back on Voyager, there will not be anything like it."
Neelix's face frowned as he overheard my comment. "No, Ensign Anderson, when we get back, I'll make everybody their favorite, my leola root stew. You both know what a culinary hit that is!"
Tom and I burst out into laughter at his naïve comment. I turned all of a sudden as I heard the doors open. An old and wise looking man walked in the room.
"Welcome, Dr. Migfay!" the Ambassador called out.
Dr. Migfay acknowledged the Ambassador and began to walk over to him. Behind was a handsome younger man, following steadily.
"And who is this?" the Ambassador questioned preposterously.
"This is my apprentice. In such short notice, I was unable to make other arrangements for him, Ambassador. I hope you do not mind."
The Ambassador looked troubled at the situation, but smiled. "No, of course not, it's fine." Turning to the Captain and myself, he began to start the introductions. "Captain, this is our world's best scientist, Dr. Migfay. And Dr. Migfay, this is Captain Janeway."
Dr. Migfay took a small bow and kissed the Captain's hand.
"And Dr. Migfay, this is Miss Anderson, one of Voyager's scientists," the Ambassador continued.
"Pleased to meet both of you fine ladies," he said as he kissed my hand in the same fashion.
Without hesitation, the Ambassador called one of the servants to furnish a chair for the two people. When they had been situated across from me, the scene reverted back to its natural state. Dr. Migfay, uncomfortable by the silence, attempted to nervously smile as he turned to the younger man and ordered him to eat.
"So, Dr. Migfay, what field of science do you work in?" Tom asked suddenly.
"I work in ecology."
Ökologi…das Feld, das mein Vater liebte, aber wurde immer verweigert… Ecology... the field my father loved, but was always denied. The very remembrance of my Father brought back the momentary pain. We had been away from earth for over six months now, but the wound of pain was still fresh and very real. Wie ich wünsche, waren Sie hier, hervorbringen… how I wish you were here, Father.
"Ensign Anderson, I asked you to tell me what is your field of science..."
Dr. Migfay's stressed tone of voice brought me back into the room. I was unable to concentrate, and I could not remember my English. Tom slowly put his hand on my shoulder. "Christy is an astronomer. And I am afraid that the stars have captured her attention now," Tom answered for me. He gave me a small shake. "Christy, are you all right?"
A few familiar notes of music, a few familiar phrases, was all that was needed to shove me off balance. I tried to fight back the tears that were coming to my eyes, while recovering my English at the same time. As of yet I had not accomplished either goal.
"I'm fine," was all I could squeak out.
Dr. Migfay and Tom looked concerned, but Dr. Migfay continued with his questions. "Astronomy, I think that would be a most rewarding field of science."
I nodded slowly. "Astronomy has become a complement to my life. I learned most of it from my Father, who I left on earth."
Dr. Migfay slowly understood my previous actions. "You must miss him a great deal."
"Yes."
Tom perceived my approaching tears and turned the attention away from the sensitive subject. "Dr. Migfay, who is your assistant?"
The Doctor pointed to the younger man. "This is Tre'kent. He is a good friend of mine, and I am training him for his studies at the higher academy. Tre'kent will become a famous scientist one day."
As Dr. Migfay introduced Tre'kent I caught his gaze. I could feel the blush creeping into my cheeks. He was certainly handsome. The young man, becoming aware of my attention, blushed and bowed his head. "Dr. Migfay has been most kind."
"Well, you will both have to make sure that you see Voyager in the next few days. I am sure you will find it an aide to your studies, Tre'kent," I said with a grin, hoping that the next few days held interesting surprises.
The transporter beam energized and we materialized in Transporter room 2 at 03:00 hours. Captain Janeway congratulated us on the way we conducted ourselves, then encouraged us to get some sleep. As I turned down an opposite corridor, I could hear her and Chakotay talking about how stuffed they were. Dinner had been wonderful, and I was looking forward to getting to know Dr. Migfay and Tre'kent in the following days.
As I entered my quarters, I saw the PADD on the table that I had been preparing before I had left for dinner. On it were five German lessons for Samantha, who had been restricted to her quarters by the Doctor for two days now. I knew she had found it tiresome, and I had prepared this last minute. I picked it up and walked across the hallway. Quietly, I punched in the entrance code that I had known since my first night on Voyager. The door swished open and I stepped inside. I tiptoed to the table to the side of the room and set it down. I turned to see Samantha sleeping peacefully. "Gute Nacht… Goodnight," I whispered softly as the doors swished shut behind me and I crossed the hall.
As I readied myself for bed, I turned to glance at the telescope in my room. As a gift from Samantha, the item was priceless, and it reminded me constantly of my Father. I walked to the small console in my room and used my security code to get into the ship's database. My homesickness drove me to pull up my Father's file. I stood and looked at his picture- the only thing I had left of him. When I had left home, I had taken few things; another set of clothes, a few instruments from the old lab, but that had been it. "Computer, enlarge image to maximum size."
The computer beeped, and the holo image enlarged. My Father's strong familiar face stared back at me from the screen. Wie ich wünsche, waren Sie hier, auf mich stolz zu sein… how I wish you were here to be proud of me… I turned around to block out the picture, my homesickness stronger than it had ever been in the past few months. I flung myself into my bed, the hot tears pouring down my cheeks. Ich bin gewesen so tapfer für eine lange Zeit… I have been so brave for a long time… I could feel the dampness of my pillow as I let my emotions out, one sob at a time.
Suddenly, I heard the door chimes. "Who is it?" I questioned softly.
"Christy, is that you? Are you ok?" the voice questioned.
I jumped up when I realized that Tom Paris stood behind the door. "I am well. I was just getting to sleep," I lied in an attempt to get him to go away.
"Christy, you don't sound well. Have you been crying? Is there anything I can do to help?"
"No," I managed to squeak out before the new tears came to my eyes. Es gab zu viele Fragen… there were too many questions.
"I'm coming in," he said as I began to hear the tapping of the controls.
But this time, I made no effort to stop him. I turned to see Tom walk in and stare at the console. "Tom Paris, why I could charge you with breaking and entering," I said slowly between sobs.
"I've spent time in jail before, and more time won't matter if I get to help you…" his voice trailed off as he pointed to the console. "Yeah that's him, isn't it? Mr. Anderson, I recognize him. Were you reading up on his psychological profile, or was somebody homesick?"
"Tom," I warned loudly as he made a joke of the situation.
He came and sat down on the bed next to me. "I'm sorry," he said as he put his arm around me. "I know you really miss him."
Tom's words broke down my last defenses from the tears, and I began to cry again as he pulled me close and pressed me to his chest. "Everything will turn out for the best," he said comfortingly as he rocked me back and forth. His comforting actions helped me to cease my tears, and I sniffled a little as he tried to ease my mind. "I heard the Captain offered you a shift on the bridge. I know you have been working hard to get there. Now, you have to begin teaching me German, and we can talk together when we're both on duty. We can drive Captain Janeway nuts."
I let Tom stay, and we talked for hours about different things. He had me teach him some basic greetings in German, and he gave me an oral beginner's pilot lesson. We talked about our families and our lives. Tom talked about Harry and the endless list of jokes he had pulled over on him. I talked about my attempts on Tuvok's test and the episode with Lieutenant Gebhart in Astrometric the other day. We caught up on each other's lives, talked about things we never got to at lunch, until the computer beeped. "Ensign Anderson, the current time is 08:00 hours. Your duty shift in Stellar Cartography begins promptly at 09:00 hours."
"08:00 hours already?" Tom asked as he yawned. He stood up from the chair he was sitting in and stretched. "Computer, increase the lighting by 20%." The computer obliged and the room became very bright. He looked down at his dress uniform that he had been wearing since dinner and sighed. "Guess I should have changed out of this hours ago." He nodded towards me. "You too…"
I looked down and realized I still had mine on too. Tom rose to leave. "I better get going, my next shift starts at 10:00 hours, but I'll be back as soon as I'm changed to take you to breakfast in the Mess Hall."
I smiled at his thoughtfulness. "That would be lovely, thank you Tom. Thank you for helping me through in the loneliest and darkest of times. I'm very glad I had you here with me."
He shrugged it off, "Sure, no problem, that's what friends are for. Guten Tag."
I laughed as he left, a good day in deed. I yawned, realizing I hadn't slept for at least 24 hours; it would be difficult making through my shift in Stellar Cartography, which was quiet, uneventful, and most normally boring. I changed into my uniform, and sat back down waiting for Tom to get back. I heard him ring the chimes and I stepped out on cue. " Die Sterne der Nacht haben überschritten weg, und doch die Dämmerungeinflüsse der neue Tag… The stars of night have passed away, and yet the dawn holds the new day," I quoted cheerfully.
"No," Tom laughed, "The dawn holds breakfast. I'm starved."
To be continued…