Love's Labor Multiplied
By Pari106
Chapter 6
When Tom ventured forth again (feeling a lot better, but nonetheless determined to get this mess with Q straightened up - now that he and B'Elanna were on better terms he didn't want anything to jeopardize that) he was dangerously close to being late for his next shift, but knew he couldn't waste any more time in reporting the situation to the Captain. After having the computer confirm the Captain's location as being Engineering - and after having sidestepped B'Elanna's questions on what had him in such a rush (he didn't have the time to try and explain such an inexplicably unbelievable situation to her at the moment) - Tom reluctantly left his true lover and headed towards Engineering before anymore other-dimensional, would-be lovers could manage to deroute him.
B'Elanna walked him to his door, unashamedly clothed only in one of his bed sheets. He was just stumbling out of their passionate goodbye-for-now kiss, and hurriedly pulling on his uniform jacket, when a small group of junior crewmen just happened to wander upon the intimate scene. There were 4 officers in all: 2 women, who took in the scene with slightly embarrassed yet wildly amused looks of surprise; and 2 men, 2 very familiar young men, who seemed to simply freeze in place at the sight.
Tom froze as well, both not believing and believing all too well in the would-be-comically ironic scenario that now presented itself. The 2 young men - Markwell and Barelli - recovered fairly quickly under the curious stares of their companions, but Markwell looked decidedly uncomfortable as they hurried past Tom and B'Elanna. B'Elanna, too satisfied with their recent reconciliation to feel as awkward as she might have, just smiled - looking very much like the cat that ate the canary. Tom, on the other hand - having seen the wide grin on Barelli's face as he passed by, was closer to resembling the canary.
'Of all the crewmen on the entire ship, why is it that I just can't seem to get away from those particular two?' he lamented silently to himself. B'Elanna looked at him curiously, but he merely sighed and assured her it was nothing - with another long, longing kiss goodbye, then headed off once again towards Engineering.
'The Captain,' he thought to himself as a sort of reassurance, 'I just need to find the Captain. She'll help me work through this mess.' Or so he hoped. By now he figured Markwell and Barelli had fully filled in their two companions on what they'd witnessed earlier in the holodeck - and no doubt their companions would do some filling-in of their own. If he was lucky, by the end of the day only half the ship would be gossiping about all the notches in Tom Paris' bedpost - which, if he'd had one, he was sure B'Elanna would soon be using to beat him severely.
'Don't count your concussions before they're dispatched, Tom,' he thought to himself, "Just find the Captain; she'll help.'
**** **** **** ****
The Captain wasn't going to be of much help, Tom soon began to fear.
Once he'd located Captain Janeway in Engineering he'd thought all his problems were over - he'd explain this whole crazy mess to her, she'd raise an amused brow at it all and maybe poke a little fun at him just to tease, then she'd throw every bit of her intimidating I-am-Captain routine Q's way and it would all be over.
That didn't happen.
Instead, the second he came upon her, Tom found himself being dragged into the bowels of engineering as the Captain began outlining her plans for upgrades in the engineering systems and Tom wondered why she was telling him all this. And all the while he couldn't get a word in edgewise.
Finally, after about fifteen minutes...and after they'd ventured into a sector of engineering so neglected Tom doubted even B'Elanna spent much time there, Tom felt he could wait no more. Every moment he didn't tell the Captain about what had happened was another moment spent dreading the next incident, and the sooner Tom could get all of this out in the open the better. Captain Janeway had chosen that moment to take a break from her talk of engineering upgrades, and Tom made his move.
"Look, Captain. Something's happened, and I know it sounds ridiculous, but I think you should know..."
But, alas, the Captain wasn't listening. Tom resisted the urge to sigh as Captain Janeway peered around the corner they'd just turned, looking for...he didn't know.
"Well, I think that went pretty well, don't you? I mean, noone seemed to notice, did they?"
"Notice what?" he asked, puzzled, now peering in the same direction as she was - which meant he had to move up rather close behind her...which became a problem when the Captain turned back around and they ended up brushing against one another in a way ensigns generally tried to avoid brushing up against their captains. Tom immediately stepped back, hoping he wasn't blushing.
He opened his mouth to apologize, but never got the chance, because Captain Janeway was answering his question with one of her own.
"You don't think they noticed anything was out of the ordinary, do you? With me calling you off the bridge like that, so suddenly?"
And it was at that moment that Tom realized the Captain didn't even seem to notice their close proximity, nor did she mind it when she did. In fact, when Tom took another step back, she took two steps forward.
Tom's hope for anything being normal ever again was fast diminishing. He back-stepped again, stumbling rather ungracefully against a supply cabinet.
"Uh...called me off the bridge?" he repeated, his voice sounding unnaturally high even to him.
"Yes. You don't think anyone will find it...odd that I'd call you all the way down here right now just to show you engine room modifications, do you?"
'Engine room modification,' he thought, 'Yeah, that's all that's going on here. Your just being paranoid, Paris. Jeez, this is the Captain we're talking about. Q wouldn't dare...would he?'
'Um, Captain, you...you didn't call me off the bridge." But once again Kathryn wasn't listening.
"Of course, what I really brought you down here to show you is something entirely different."
Captain Janeway's eyes sparkled as she looked up at him, smiling at Tom in a mischievous way the Captain had never smiled at him before. It was the prettiest...and most frightening...expression he'd ever seen on her lovely face.
'Oh, no, not again!'
Tom swallowed, his mouth going dry. This had to be a bad dream.
"What was it you wanted to show me, Captain," he squeaked, inching away along the wall. She was so close he could her breath against his chin. Janeway looked at him with a bit of a question when he called her 'Captain', but her smile didn't falter.
She leaned in even closer...looked him straight in the eye...and in a husky voice said, "How much I love you, Commander."
If Tom Paris had a weak heart he'd have died right there.
He started inching away faster...and nearly tripped over a nearby storage canister.
Captain Janeway pulled back, just slightly, with a puzzled look. "Are you okay, Tom? You look...nervous."
"Nervous?" Tom replied, a little too quickly. "Me? No. No, why would I be nervous?"
The Captain's smile still held a bit of puzzlement, but she'd obviously decided his behavior was nothing to worry about.
"Just thought I'd ask, because if that made you nervous... this is really going to get you!" The Captain Kathryn Janeway pressed up against him...and kissed him full on the mouth.
For a moment Tom froze in shock, then he did what he thought any strong, healthy young man in his position would do: He fainted.
By Pari106
Chapter 6
When Tom ventured forth again (feeling a lot better, but nonetheless determined to get this mess with Q straightened up - now that he and B'Elanna were on better terms he didn't want anything to jeopardize that) he was dangerously close to being late for his next shift, but knew he couldn't waste any more time in reporting the situation to the Captain. After having the computer confirm the Captain's location as being Engineering - and after having sidestepped B'Elanna's questions on what had him in such a rush (he didn't have the time to try and explain such an inexplicably unbelievable situation to her at the moment) - Tom reluctantly left his true lover and headed towards Engineering before anymore other-dimensional, would-be lovers could manage to deroute him.
B'Elanna walked him to his door, unashamedly clothed only in one of his bed sheets. He was just stumbling out of their passionate goodbye-for-now kiss, and hurriedly pulling on his uniform jacket, when a small group of junior crewmen just happened to wander upon the intimate scene. There were 4 officers in all: 2 women, who took in the scene with slightly embarrassed yet wildly amused looks of surprise; and 2 men, 2 very familiar young men, who seemed to simply freeze in place at the sight.
Tom froze as well, both not believing and believing all too well in the would-be-comically ironic scenario that now presented itself. The 2 young men - Markwell and Barelli - recovered fairly quickly under the curious stares of their companions, but Markwell looked decidedly uncomfortable as they hurried past Tom and B'Elanna. B'Elanna, too satisfied with their recent reconciliation to feel as awkward as she might have, just smiled - looking very much like the cat that ate the canary. Tom, on the other hand - having seen the wide grin on Barelli's face as he passed by, was closer to resembling the canary.
'Of all the crewmen on the entire ship, why is it that I just can't seem to get away from those particular two?' he lamented silently to himself. B'Elanna looked at him curiously, but he merely sighed and assured her it was nothing - with another long, longing kiss goodbye, then headed off once again towards Engineering.
'The Captain,' he thought to himself as a sort of reassurance, 'I just need to find the Captain. She'll help me work through this mess.' Or so he hoped. By now he figured Markwell and Barelli had fully filled in their two companions on what they'd witnessed earlier in the holodeck - and no doubt their companions would do some filling-in of their own. If he was lucky, by the end of the day only half the ship would be gossiping about all the notches in Tom Paris' bedpost - which, if he'd had one, he was sure B'Elanna would soon be using to beat him severely.
'Don't count your concussions before they're dispatched, Tom,' he thought to himself, "Just find the Captain; she'll help.'
**** **** **** ****
The Captain wasn't going to be of much help, Tom soon began to fear.
Once he'd located Captain Janeway in Engineering he'd thought all his problems were over - he'd explain this whole crazy mess to her, she'd raise an amused brow at it all and maybe poke a little fun at him just to tease, then she'd throw every bit of her intimidating I-am-Captain routine Q's way and it would all be over.
That didn't happen.
Instead, the second he came upon her, Tom found himself being dragged into the bowels of engineering as the Captain began outlining her plans for upgrades in the engineering systems and Tom wondered why she was telling him all this. And all the while he couldn't get a word in edgewise.
Finally, after about fifteen minutes...and after they'd ventured into a sector of engineering so neglected Tom doubted even B'Elanna spent much time there, Tom felt he could wait no more. Every moment he didn't tell the Captain about what had happened was another moment spent dreading the next incident, and the sooner Tom could get all of this out in the open the better. Captain Janeway had chosen that moment to take a break from her talk of engineering upgrades, and Tom made his move.
"Look, Captain. Something's happened, and I know it sounds ridiculous, but I think you should know..."
But, alas, the Captain wasn't listening. Tom resisted the urge to sigh as Captain Janeway peered around the corner they'd just turned, looking for...he didn't know.
"Well, I think that went pretty well, don't you? I mean, noone seemed to notice, did they?"
"Notice what?" he asked, puzzled, now peering in the same direction as she was - which meant he had to move up rather close behind her...which became a problem when the Captain turned back around and they ended up brushing against one another in a way ensigns generally tried to avoid brushing up against their captains. Tom immediately stepped back, hoping he wasn't blushing.
He opened his mouth to apologize, but never got the chance, because Captain Janeway was answering his question with one of her own.
"You don't think they noticed anything was out of the ordinary, do you? With me calling you off the bridge like that, so suddenly?"
And it was at that moment that Tom realized the Captain didn't even seem to notice their close proximity, nor did she mind it when she did. In fact, when Tom took another step back, she took two steps forward.
Tom's hope for anything being normal ever again was fast diminishing. He back-stepped again, stumbling rather ungracefully against a supply cabinet.
"Uh...called me off the bridge?" he repeated, his voice sounding unnaturally high even to him.
"Yes. You don't think anyone will find it...odd that I'd call you all the way down here right now just to show you engine room modifications, do you?"
'Engine room modification,' he thought, 'Yeah, that's all that's going on here. Your just being paranoid, Paris. Jeez, this is the Captain we're talking about. Q wouldn't dare...would he?'
'Um, Captain, you...you didn't call me off the bridge." But once again Kathryn wasn't listening.
"Of course, what I really brought you down here to show you is something entirely different."
Captain Janeway's eyes sparkled as she looked up at him, smiling at Tom in a mischievous way the Captain had never smiled at him before. It was the prettiest...and most frightening...expression he'd ever seen on her lovely face.
'Oh, no, not again!'
Tom swallowed, his mouth going dry. This had to be a bad dream.
"What was it you wanted to show me, Captain," he squeaked, inching away along the wall. She was so close he could her breath against his chin. Janeway looked at him with a bit of a question when he called her 'Captain', but her smile didn't falter.
She leaned in even closer...looked him straight in the eye...and in a husky voice said, "How much I love you, Commander."
If Tom Paris had a weak heart he'd have died right there.
He started inching away faster...and nearly tripped over a nearby storage canister.
Captain Janeway pulled back, just slightly, with a puzzled look. "Are you okay, Tom? You look...nervous."
"Nervous?" Tom replied, a little too quickly. "Me? No. No, why would I be nervous?"
The Captain's smile still held a bit of puzzlement, but she'd obviously decided his behavior was nothing to worry about.
"Just thought I'd ask, because if that made you nervous... this is really going to get you!" The Captain Kathryn Janeway pressed up against him...and kissed him full on the mouth.
For a moment Tom froze in shock, then he did what he thought any strong, healthy young man in his position would do: He fainted.