Disclaimer: Yo, what's up, the Voyager stuff is not of my own creation, so there.
Sorry it took so long everyone, and sorry that this isn't the end, writers block shall be the
death of me. Hope you enjoy, I know I can't wait to see what happens with Finnegan and
Seven, cause I'm not quite sure yet.
Please read and review, the more reviews I see the more motivated I get!!
Tom Paris was nervous, not that he would ever admit that to anyone. He was
nervous because he would have to pilot the large Intrepid-Class ship known as Voyager
into an asteroid belt for a long enough period of time to transport his two friends and
shipmates off of the planet they were currently stranded on. He was nervous because his
skills would be tested and if he failed then the 150 or so members of the Voyager crew
would be destroyed in horrid collision of asteroid and metal. But this is what Tom Paris
thrived on; the anxiety and the fear would allow him to do his job best.
The plan was simple, in theory. He would simply have to move the ship into the
clearing that Tuvok established with the phasers. Then he would have to make sure that
Voyager moved along with the current of the asteroids and minimize the amount of
collisions. In theory it was almost obvious, but in reality it was not that simple. The hull
could only take so many collisions, and Tom had to make sure that it was there long
enough to get a lock on Finnegan and Seven through the radiation. Tom had three days to
prepare himself for this task, and he was more then ready for it.
Seven's eyes fluttered open and she found herself face to face with Finnegan. In
their sleep they must have rolled into this precarious position. Seven's forehead was
pressed against Finnegan's; their noses touching, their lips dangerously close. Seven
could feel the stubble on Finnegan's unshaven cheeks. The thought of staying there, just
like that for the rest of the day brought a smile to Seven's face, but it was quickly wiped
away when she remembered all that she had said last night. She carefully pulled her head
away from Finnegan's, embarrassed by how she had acted, but quiet enough not to wake
him. She had revealed too much and would apologize for placing suck a burden on
Finnegan with all her emotional problems.
Seven waited till he woke up. For a half hour she simply watched him sleep. It
was probably the most soothing half hour of her life, since the time she had been
disconnected to the Borg. She watched him as his chest rose and feel with each breath.
He was so peaceful, and that peace transcended itself to her. Soon his eyes began to
flutter, and he awoke.
"Good morning," he said as he opened his eyes to see Seven looking back at him.
Finnegan could think of a better image to wake up to. Last night had been a big step for
Seven, and he was so glad that she had taken that step with him. She had opened up, and
talked about some of the problems that had been plaguing her since she regained her
humanity.
"Good morning," she replied.
"What time is it?" he asked, sitting up in the bed and smacking his head against
the low ceiling above the medical bed. "Ow, son of a…"
Seven smiled, "It is 8:30," she said as he got out of the bed, rubbing the pain away
on his head.
Seven stepped off the bed and walked toward the other side of the ship, she
tapped at the consul. "According to my calculations the warmest time of the day will be
at 13:14. We would want to emerge from the lake at some point before this time," she
said.
"Sounds like a good plan, I guess we should head out of here around 12:30. We
can get our stuff together till then," he replied, opening on of the compartments and
browsing it with his eyes.
"Mr. Finnegan, I would like to talk to you about last night," she said looking
down.
Finnegan stopped looking in the cabinet and directed his attention to Seven,
"What about it?"
"I would like to apologize for my behavior, and to thank you for your patience, it
was unprofessional and immature of me to tell you of my personal problems," she said.
"Don't you get it?" he said.
Seven looked up at him, surprised by this response, " Get what?" she asked.
"That's what I want to be," he said, a smile across his face.
"You want to be part of my personal problems?" Seven asked, confused.
Finnegan chuckled, "No, I want to be the person you tell your personal problems
to. Seven, I know that what you did last night was something that you don't usually do,
especially to someone that you have only known for two months. I was honored that you
trusted me enough to say all of that stuff. You don't need to apologize for talking to me,
and listen, if you ever just want to talk, to vent, or just hear the sound of you own voice
for a while, don't give a second thought about coming to see me, it would be my
pleasure," he said, smiled at her, and then went back to scanning the cabinet for supplies.
"I do not understand you," she said.
Finnegan again paused from his work and looked at her, "Why not?"
She walked closer to him, almost up in his face, "You and I constantly antagonize
each other. Our relationship is at best comparable to two small competitive children that
are constantly at edge with each other. Several weeks ago I did, with regret for your
feelings, something that I believed to have hurt you a great deal, yet you remain friendly
and kind to me, despite our past. It confuses me. A logical response would be anger or
resentment, yet you show none of these reactions."
Finnegan's brow furrowed in thought as he thought of his response to Seven's
query.
"I don't know how to explain our relationship Seven, but here's a question that
might help, if you can answer it that is. You mentioned your actions several weeks ago,
you said you regretted hurting my feelings, the question is Seven, is that the only thing
that you regretted about your decisions, that my feelings might have been hurt?" he
asked.
Seven took her eyes from him and looked at the ground. How could he ask her
this? She didn't want to answer him, because she knew that the answer would further
complicate things. She had regretted her decision, the second she told him she regretted
it, and not just because she had hurt him. She regretted it because she wanted to be with
him. Every fiber of her being wanted her to go to him, and admit her folly, but how could
she tell him that now, how could she tell him that she had hurt him for no reason other
then her own small fears and inadequacies. It would sound so stupid, so idiotic. She
couldn't possibly reveal how she felt.
"I… I had no other regrets about my decision, I am sorry," she said.
Finnegan frowned in disappointment. It was as if he knew how Seven really felt,
and was upset by her prideful refusal to reveal her feelings to him. Seven saw this look in
his eyes and was tempted to tell him her true emotions, but quickly quelled the urge.
Finnegan walked back to the cabinet, "Well then never mind, we better find a
swim gill so I can actually make it to the surface, I don't think that I can hold my breath
the whole time.
"I must protest your request to swim unprotected to the surface, you are the
illogical choice to make the swim, my Borg tech…" Finnegan gently pressed his finger
up against her lips, shutting her up.
"There will be no discussion on this," he said. The firmness in his voice caused
Seven, for once, not to argue with him.
Around 12:30 they decided they would begin their ascent. Seven got herself into
the pressure suit and strapped on the bag that would contain their survival tools for the
next three days. The bag contained a hunting knife, a blanket, two days worth of rations,
a change of clothes for Finnegan once he got out of the water, a tricorder, a phaser, and a
flashlight.
"Mr. Finnegan, thought I am aware of the futility of this question, I must again
ask you to let me make the ascent without the suit," Seven said, before she put the helmet
on.
"Well, Miss Seven of Nine, I am going to again have to tell you no, put your
helmet on, and get you ass in the water," he said, with a playful smirk on his face.
Seven rolled her eyes, "Very well, however, you will get in the water first, and I
will swim by your side for the duration on the ascent. You may go into shock from the
temperature and you will need someone to pull you out of the water," she said, staring
him down.
"Sounds like a plan," he said.
Seven placed the helmet on her head and depressurized the suit. They walked into
the depressurization chamber and the door closed behind them.
"Turn around," Finnegan said to Seven.
"What for?" she asked.
"Well I'm not going to go swimming in all my clothes, they would just drag me
down, so I'm going to undress and put my clothes in the bag, is that ok?" he asked. He
wasn't sure, but he thought he saw Seven blush through the Plexiglas of the helmet. She
raised an eyebrow and turned around.
Finnegan quickly stripped down to his boxers, and placed his clothes into the
watertight bag.
"All right, lets get going," he said.
Seven slowly turned and programmed the door to open, keeping a small force
field that would allow them to pass through, but no water. The door would then close 30
seconds after opening. Seven, much to her surprise, could not help but give Finnegan a
glance as he stood there in his boxers. He noticed, smiled, now totally positive that he
had seen her blush, and she cursed herself for taking a peek.
"Did you just check me out?" he asked, laughing.
"You are completely incorrigible, Mr. Finnegan," she said, walking toward the
exit with her back toward Finnegan, there was no way she was going to let him see the
huge smile the had spread across her face.
When Seven had stepped through, Finnegan prepped himself for the cold and
placed the breathing gill in his mouth.
"Here goes nothing," he said as he made a diving leap into the water. It hit him
like a wrecking ball. The shock of the absolute cold in the water was at first invigorating.
He pointed to Seven and they began their climb. They had been swimming for only 25
seconds when the cold started to affect Finnegan. The invigorating feeling had
disappeared and turned into the feeling of thousands of needles stabbing his bare skin. He
could feel his muscles stiffening and his body began to ache. This all happened with a
good two minutes left to go.
Thirty seconds later it was almost unbearable. Every push of his arms shot pain up
and down his spin. It was about the time that Finnegan thought he was going to have to
give up when Seven tapped him on the shoulder and pointed behind him. When he turned
he saw a large eel like creature, only ten seconds from them, approaching fast with its
teeth bared.
Instinct clicked in, the cold and pain disappeared. He swung himself around
Seven and grabbed the knife hanging from her pack. When the eel creature was just about
to strike he pushed Seven upward and out of the way. With the momentum from Seven
he pushed him self under the eel creature right as it struck. He gripped the knife with both
hands and with an over the head motion plunged it into its underbelly.
The blood from the creature began to spread through the water. Finnegan's vision
was obscured by the red ink that was clouding the water. He couldn't see anything;
especially the creature's tail the swung out from the convulsing animal and smacked
against his head. Finnegan was jerked back in the water, totally taken by surprise. The
breathing gill flew out of his mouth. He grappled for it, but it was lost. He shock of the
head wound that was making him drowsy, he knew that he had to try to make it to the
surface or he wouldn't make it. If he had taken a full breathe before the gill was knocked
from him, he might have been able to make it, but he was caught off guard and didn't
have lungs full of air.
He pushed himself to the maximum. He cleared the cloud of blood and looked up
for Seven, she wasn't there.
"She must have made it to the surface," he thought to himself, "Thank God she
made it."
He pushed and pushed as the air slowly exited his body. He had only 50 m to go,
but their was no air left in him. He could feel his consciousness slowly slipping away
from him. His vision would flash from the surface of the water, the sun glaring through
the top, and to a dream like place. Soon the surface stopped flashing into his vision and
he was in the dream totally.
He was back on the Borg ship, the explosion heading toward him, but this time
the explosion was just darkness, and he could feel the cold flowing toward him. Betsy
was their, reaching out to him. And Seven was there too, in the blue gown she had worn
the night of the party. She was reaching out to him as well.
"Give me your hand," she said to him.
Finnegan was torn with indecision. The darkness was almost upon him, reaching
to him. It was touching him, he didn't know which way to go. Then it hit him, he realized
everything. He remembered the dream he had before, whose hand he had grabbed. The
darkness was on top of him. It was too late, his chance had passed. He called out her
name, and then someone grabbed his hand.
Sorry it took so long everyone, and sorry that this isn't the end, writers block shall be the
death of me. Hope you enjoy, I know I can't wait to see what happens with Finnegan and
Seven, cause I'm not quite sure yet.
Please read and review, the more reviews I see the more motivated I get!!
Tom Paris was nervous, not that he would ever admit that to anyone. He was
nervous because he would have to pilot the large Intrepid-Class ship known as Voyager
into an asteroid belt for a long enough period of time to transport his two friends and
shipmates off of the planet they were currently stranded on. He was nervous because his
skills would be tested and if he failed then the 150 or so members of the Voyager crew
would be destroyed in horrid collision of asteroid and metal. But this is what Tom Paris
thrived on; the anxiety and the fear would allow him to do his job best.
The plan was simple, in theory. He would simply have to move the ship into the
clearing that Tuvok established with the phasers. Then he would have to make sure that
Voyager moved along with the current of the asteroids and minimize the amount of
collisions. In theory it was almost obvious, but in reality it was not that simple. The hull
could only take so many collisions, and Tom had to make sure that it was there long
enough to get a lock on Finnegan and Seven through the radiation. Tom had three days to
prepare himself for this task, and he was more then ready for it.
Seven's eyes fluttered open and she found herself face to face with Finnegan. In
their sleep they must have rolled into this precarious position. Seven's forehead was
pressed against Finnegan's; their noses touching, their lips dangerously close. Seven
could feel the stubble on Finnegan's unshaven cheeks. The thought of staying there, just
like that for the rest of the day brought a smile to Seven's face, but it was quickly wiped
away when she remembered all that she had said last night. She carefully pulled her head
away from Finnegan's, embarrassed by how she had acted, but quiet enough not to wake
him. She had revealed too much and would apologize for placing suck a burden on
Finnegan with all her emotional problems.
Seven waited till he woke up. For a half hour she simply watched him sleep. It
was probably the most soothing half hour of her life, since the time she had been
disconnected to the Borg. She watched him as his chest rose and feel with each breath.
He was so peaceful, and that peace transcended itself to her. Soon his eyes began to
flutter, and he awoke.
"Good morning," he said as he opened his eyes to see Seven looking back at him.
Finnegan could think of a better image to wake up to. Last night had been a big step for
Seven, and he was so glad that she had taken that step with him. She had opened up, and
talked about some of the problems that had been plaguing her since she regained her
humanity.
"Good morning," she replied.
"What time is it?" he asked, sitting up in the bed and smacking his head against
the low ceiling above the medical bed. "Ow, son of a…"
Seven smiled, "It is 8:30," she said as he got out of the bed, rubbing the pain away
on his head.
Seven stepped off the bed and walked toward the other side of the ship, she
tapped at the consul. "According to my calculations the warmest time of the day will be
at 13:14. We would want to emerge from the lake at some point before this time," she
said.
"Sounds like a good plan, I guess we should head out of here around 12:30. We
can get our stuff together till then," he replied, opening on of the compartments and
browsing it with his eyes.
"Mr. Finnegan, I would like to talk to you about last night," she said looking
down.
Finnegan stopped looking in the cabinet and directed his attention to Seven,
"What about it?"
"I would like to apologize for my behavior, and to thank you for your patience, it
was unprofessional and immature of me to tell you of my personal problems," she said.
"Don't you get it?" he said.
Seven looked up at him, surprised by this response, " Get what?" she asked.
"That's what I want to be," he said, a smile across his face.
"You want to be part of my personal problems?" Seven asked, confused.
Finnegan chuckled, "No, I want to be the person you tell your personal problems
to. Seven, I know that what you did last night was something that you don't usually do,
especially to someone that you have only known for two months. I was honored that you
trusted me enough to say all of that stuff. You don't need to apologize for talking to me,
and listen, if you ever just want to talk, to vent, or just hear the sound of you own voice
for a while, don't give a second thought about coming to see me, it would be my
pleasure," he said, smiled at her, and then went back to scanning the cabinet for supplies.
"I do not understand you," she said.
Finnegan again paused from his work and looked at her, "Why not?"
She walked closer to him, almost up in his face, "You and I constantly antagonize
each other. Our relationship is at best comparable to two small competitive children that
are constantly at edge with each other. Several weeks ago I did, with regret for your
feelings, something that I believed to have hurt you a great deal, yet you remain friendly
and kind to me, despite our past. It confuses me. A logical response would be anger or
resentment, yet you show none of these reactions."
Finnegan's brow furrowed in thought as he thought of his response to Seven's
query.
"I don't know how to explain our relationship Seven, but here's a question that
might help, if you can answer it that is. You mentioned your actions several weeks ago,
you said you regretted hurting my feelings, the question is Seven, is that the only thing
that you regretted about your decisions, that my feelings might have been hurt?" he
asked.
Seven took her eyes from him and looked at the ground. How could he ask her
this? She didn't want to answer him, because she knew that the answer would further
complicate things. She had regretted her decision, the second she told him she regretted
it, and not just because she had hurt him. She regretted it because she wanted to be with
him. Every fiber of her being wanted her to go to him, and admit her folly, but how could
she tell him that now, how could she tell him that she had hurt him for no reason other
then her own small fears and inadequacies. It would sound so stupid, so idiotic. She
couldn't possibly reveal how she felt.
"I… I had no other regrets about my decision, I am sorry," she said.
Finnegan frowned in disappointment. It was as if he knew how Seven really felt,
and was upset by her prideful refusal to reveal her feelings to him. Seven saw this look in
his eyes and was tempted to tell him her true emotions, but quickly quelled the urge.
Finnegan walked back to the cabinet, "Well then never mind, we better find a
swim gill so I can actually make it to the surface, I don't think that I can hold my breath
the whole time.
"I must protest your request to swim unprotected to the surface, you are the
illogical choice to make the swim, my Borg tech…" Finnegan gently pressed his finger
up against her lips, shutting her up.
"There will be no discussion on this," he said. The firmness in his voice caused
Seven, for once, not to argue with him.
Around 12:30 they decided they would begin their ascent. Seven got herself into
the pressure suit and strapped on the bag that would contain their survival tools for the
next three days. The bag contained a hunting knife, a blanket, two days worth of rations,
a change of clothes for Finnegan once he got out of the water, a tricorder, a phaser, and a
flashlight.
"Mr. Finnegan, thought I am aware of the futility of this question, I must again
ask you to let me make the ascent without the suit," Seven said, before she put the helmet
on.
"Well, Miss Seven of Nine, I am going to again have to tell you no, put your
helmet on, and get you ass in the water," he said, with a playful smirk on his face.
Seven rolled her eyes, "Very well, however, you will get in the water first, and I
will swim by your side for the duration on the ascent. You may go into shock from the
temperature and you will need someone to pull you out of the water," she said, staring
him down.
"Sounds like a plan," he said.
Seven placed the helmet on her head and depressurized the suit. They walked into
the depressurization chamber and the door closed behind them.
"Turn around," Finnegan said to Seven.
"What for?" she asked.
"Well I'm not going to go swimming in all my clothes, they would just drag me
down, so I'm going to undress and put my clothes in the bag, is that ok?" he asked. He
wasn't sure, but he thought he saw Seven blush through the Plexiglas of the helmet. She
raised an eyebrow and turned around.
Finnegan quickly stripped down to his boxers, and placed his clothes into the
watertight bag.
"All right, lets get going," he said.
Seven slowly turned and programmed the door to open, keeping a small force
field that would allow them to pass through, but no water. The door would then close 30
seconds after opening. Seven, much to her surprise, could not help but give Finnegan a
glance as he stood there in his boxers. He noticed, smiled, now totally positive that he
had seen her blush, and she cursed herself for taking a peek.
"Did you just check me out?" he asked, laughing.
"You are completely incorrigible, Mr. Finnegan," she said, walking toward the
exit with her back toward Finnegan, there was no way she was going to let him see the
huge smile the had spread across her face.
When Seven had stepped through, Finnegan prepped himself for the cold and
placed the breathing gill in his mouth.
"Here goes nothing," he said as he made a diving leap into the water. It hit him
like a wrecking ball. The shock of the absolute cold in the water was at first invigorating.
He pointed to Seven and they began their climb. They had been swimming for only 25
seconds when the cold started to affect Finnegan. The invigorating feeling had
disappeared and turned into the feeling of thousands of needles stabbing his bare skin. He
could feel his muscles stiffening and his body began to ache. This all happened with a
good two minutes left to go.
Thirty seconds later it was almost unbearable. Every push of his arms shot pain up
and down his spin. It was about the time that Finnegan thought he was going to have to
give up when Seven tapped him on the shoulder and pointed behind him. When he turned
he saw a large eel like creature, only ten seconds from them, approaching fast with its
teeth bared.
Instinct clicked in, the cold and pain disappeared. He swung himself around
Seven and grabbed the knife hanging from her pack. When the eel creature was just about
to strike he pushed Seven upward and out of the way. With the momentum from Seven
he pushed him self under the eel creature right as it struck. He gripped the knife with both
hands and with an over the head motion plunged it into its underbelly.
The blood from the creature began to spread through the water. Finnegan's vision
was obscured by the red ink that was clouding the water. He couldn't see anything;
especially the creature's tail the swung out from the convulsing animal and smacked
against his head. Finnegan was jerked back in the water, totally taken by surprise. The
breathing gill flew out of his mouth. He grappled for it, but it was lost. He shock of the
head wound that was making him drowsy, he knew that he had to try to make it to the
surface or he wouldn't make it. If he had taken a full breathe before the gill was knocked
from him, he might have been able to make it, but he was caught off guard and didn't
have lungs full of air.
He pushed himself to the maximum. He cleared the cloud of blood and looked up
for Seven, she wasn't there.
"She must have made it to the surface," he thought to himself, "Thank God she
made it."
He pushed and pushed as the air slowly exited his body. He had only 50 m to go,
but their was no air left in him. He could feel his consciousness slowly slipping away
from him. His vision would flash from the surface of the water, the sun glaring through
the top, and to a dream like place. Soon the surface stopped flashing into his vision and
he was in the dream totally.
He was back on the Borg ship, the explosion heading toward him, but this time
the explosion was just darkness, and he could feel the cold flowing toward him. Betsy
was their, reaching out to him. And Seven was there too, in the blue gown she had worn
the night of the party. She was reaching out to him as well.
"Give me your hand," she said to him.
Finnegan was torn with indecision. The darkness was almost upon him, reaching
to him. It was touching him, he didn't know which way to go. Then it hit him, he realized
everything. He remembered the dream he had before, whose hand he had grabbed. The
darkness was on top of him. It was too late, his chance had passed. He called out her
name, and then someone grabbed his hand.