"Watcha doin'?"
"Working."
"Oh."
{small pause}
"Watcha workin' on?"
"Reports."
"Oh."
{small pause}
"How long ya gonna be?"
"Not sure."
"Oh."
{Small pause}
I laughed and spun around to see Tom kneeling on the couch, looking over the back of it at me. "Are you, by any chance, bored, little buddy?"
"KOTAY! I'm not LITTLE!!!"
I laughed at the eleven-year old, "Sorry! But 'big buddy' doesn't have the same ring to it."
Tom rolled his eyes at me and then sighed, "Yeah, I'm bored, Kotay. Can we go and do something?"
I looked to my reports, I had a hell of a lot to do- most of it overdue thanks to hours of playing with Tom. I really couldn't afford to get further behind on this work. I turned back to Tom and suggested, "How about you go and play with Harry?"
Tom shook his head, "Played with him this morning when you were on the bridge."
"B'Elanna?"
"Last night, when you were at Kathy's."
"Neelix?"
Tom sighed and clambered up into my lap, "I wanna play with *you*, Kotay. Not Haz or Lanna or Neelix, *you*."
I sighed and ran my hands through Tom's soft hair, "Tom, I would love nothing more than to come and play with you, but I've got so much work to get done. I can't, I'm sorry."
"But, Kotay! You haven't played with me proply in ages! Days!"
"I know. But one of our agreements to you living here was that I sometimes have work to do and you have to understand that. I'm first officer on board this ship, Tom, that means I'm gonna have to work." I hugged the suddenly sulky boy a little, "Hey, don't be upset, I spend loads of time with you."
Tom raised an eyebrow at me and I could here his unspoken "not enough". He sighed loudly and slid off my knee miserably, "Fine. I'll go and play with Neelix in the Mess then." He pouted and walked out.
I turned back to my reports for about two minutes before kicking myself. Hard. This was one of the reasons Tom had lost faith in his father- they never spent any time together because he was always doing something at work. And now I was confirming his suspicion that this was true of all people he was close to. Sure, I had work to do, but I'd been doing that work non-stop for the past three days, spending no time with Tom.
I knew what happened now, Tom stopped wanting to play with me so much, accepting that I would be working. He got lonely, started looking for someone else to hang out with and either found that person or stayed lonely. I didn't want either of those things to happen to this angst-ridden little boy.
I stood up, made a few calls and headed for the Mess Hall.
*** Chakotay walked into the Mess Hall to see Tom sitting alone at a table, sucking dejectedly at the straw in his drink and staring out at the stars. He sighed heavily at himself and walked over to the small boy, surprising him by lifting him out of the seat and holding him in his arms.
Giggling, Tom wrapped his arms around Chakotay's neck and said softly, "I thought you were working, Kotay."
"I had a choice between doing boring reports and spending time playing with my best friend, which one would you choose?"
Tom smiled broadly and said, with the expected Tom Paris wit, "I'd spend time with me of course!" He squirmed excitedly in Chakotay's arms, "What are we doing then, Kotay?"
"Surprise." Chakotay said warmly, knowing full well what sort of a groan it would induce in the small child.
"Kota-ay!!! I can't wait!"
"Sure you can." Chakotay smiled and carried Tom out of the Mess Hall, "It's not that far, and I promise that you will love it."
Tom beamed and lay his head on Chakotay's shoulder, sparkling eyes watching every movement intently, wondering where they were going. Eventually they stopped outside the holodeck doors, and Tom frowned when he saw Kathryn waiting there. "What's Kathy doin' here?" he whispered into Chakotay's ear.
Smiling mysteriously, Chakotay nodded at Kathryn and simply said, "We need a witness for what we're about to do, Tom."
Tom frowned again and looked even more confused as he was put on the floor. He followed Chakotay and Kathryn into the holodeck, looking around at the simple replica of Voyager's shuttle bay that had appeared. He grinned widely, "We're goin' flying!!!" he exclaimed.
Kathryn indicated to Chakotay that he could tell Tom, while she programmed in the flight path. Chakotay knelt down to Tom's height and said softly, "Tom, you're an excellent pilot, you know, and I think you're ready to get your license."
Tom's eyes widened incredulously and the beginnings of an ecstatic smile twitched at the corners of his mouth. "Kotay, are you serious." he breathed.
"Completely serious Tom. Complete the simulation today, do a short written exam and a real test flight tomorrow and you are a fully qualified A-class shuttle pilot. Kathryn and I are witnesses. You've done it all before Tom- two regular flights- one at warp, one at impulse- a battle situation and two random emergency landings- they're all the simulations. Then tomorrow it's just some asteroid strafing and a few flashy moves like the sort you're always showing off with. And an exam you can easily pass. Then you're all qualified!"
"Asteroid strafing." Tom whispered dumbly, and for a second Chakotay thought he saw the memories of the strafing at Caldik Prime chasing across his face before the brilliant Paris smile kicked in and Tom jumped into his arms. "Kotay, this is the BEST!!! I love you!!! Man, dad's gonna be so proud, I can't wait to see his." Tom trailed off suddenly
Chakotay physically ached. All Tom wanted to do was impress his father; he didn't miss the man, he didn't want to be with the man, he just wanted to make him proud. Before Chakotay could offer comforting words, Kathryn came up behind Tom and put a hand on his shoulder, saying, "Tom, I know your father is proud of you. He always has been, and your achievements with piloting are beyond anything he could have imagined. He is so proud of you, Tom. He's so sorry he can't be here."
"That's okay." Tom smiled at Kathryn, "So long as he's proud of me. That's all that matters with me and him."
Chakotay suppressed all his anger and hatred towards Owen Paris and concentrated on the fact that the eleven-year old in his arms was happy and smiling. He placed a chaste kiss on Tom's forehead and said softly, "We're all proud of you, honey, you've earned this, you deserve it. I love you."
The warmth in Tom's smile warmed Chakotay's heart and, for one strange second, he felt that Tom understood everything including how he was feeling. He felt that the small Paris was silently reassuring him, comforting him, telling him everything was okay- that *he* was okay. But that was impossible. Chakotay dismissed it.
"Love you too, Kotay." Tom said softly, before straightening and wriggling out of Chakotay's arms, "Now, can we get flying? I wanna show you both just what a great pilot I am!"
Irrepressible, Chakotay thought. Completely irrepressible.
*** "Does this count against me?" Tom whispered from the safety of Chakotay's arms.
"Of course not." Kathryn and Chakotay chorused in unison.
Tom had just performed his second emergency landing. The first had been okay, the computer had picked a pretty tame random flight. All Tom had to do was compensate for a blown out thruster and touch down safely- he had managed that fine. They were so close to the ground when the malfunction occurred that they were never any danger. But the second had been a lot more dangerous and challenging.
The computer had put them in orbit, pretty simple for someone like Tom- but it had suddenly sparked a fire in one of the shuttle's engines, sending them hurtling out of orbit. Chakotay didn't care that it was only a simulation, it was damn real. There were several dangers facing Tom. One- they could now enter the atmosphere too deep and they would burn up immediately. Two- they would enter the atmosphere too shallow and would be sent hurtling top-over-tail down to the ground, where they would certainly not survive. Three- they would make it through the atmosphere but Tom would never be able to regain control of the shuttle and they would crash. Four- Tom would regain control of the shuttle, but the broken engine would cause him to misjudge his trajectories and they would crash. Five- the fire would spread to the rest of the shuttle.
Chakotay knew that the last one would never happen- the sims were meant to test pilot skill not fire control. But the rest? Dangers all too real, all too likely, he wasn't sure if even he could get them out of this one. Had this been real, all of their lives would have been on the line.
But, even as Chakotay was sweating, Tom pulled through, calmly and expertly easing the wounded shuttle down through the atmosphere and coaxing a safe landing out of her broken wings. Once they touched down and the computer declared the assessment a success, Tom had dove into Chakotay's arms trembling wildly, snuffling and burying for comfort and blinking tears from his eyes.
This would not count against the boy for, as with many a tense situation, he was cool, calm and collected when it counted, but afterwards the danger he had been in hit him- when they were safe.
Tom let out a huge sigh and he glanced down at his quivering hands, "How come I'm shakin', Kotay?" Tom asked nervously.
"It's called adrenaline, Tom." Chakotay said softly, rubbing Tom's back, "It helps you when you're in danger, but afterwards it's not so good."
Tom nodded, sniffed a little more and whispered, "I was scared in that one. Does that mean I can't be a pilot?"
"No!" Chakotay quickly assured him, "I was scared too, Tom."
"Tom, we would have been worried if you weren't scared." Kathryn said gently, reaching across to place a comforting hand on Tom's shoulder, "The important part of this was that you got us through it alive- and that's what you did. When you touch ground your job as a pilot is over, you can do whatever you want then- like you. You were professional in the air, and then expressed everything we were feeling in the air on the ground. You were fantastic, Tom."
Tom smiled a little, "Thanks, Kathy. So do I pass?"
"You sure do." Chakotay said softly, "Just got to pass tomorrow and you've got your wings, hon. Hopefully you'll never have to cope with that in real life, hmm?"
"Yeah." Tom agreed, contenting himself with curling up in Chakotay's arms, letting the final traces of the trembles dissipate.
Kathryn smiled at the pair, praying that this friendship between the two would continue when the pilot returned to normal. Just over eleven weeks he had been like this- and he had been close to Chakotay for just seven of those. Except it felt like years to Kathryn and, no doubt, to Tom and Chakotay too. She laughed quietly when she noticed that the day's excitement had taken its toll on Tom, and he was drifting off to sleep in Chakotay's arms. "He's sleepy." She whispered to Chakotay, who seemed unawares- on the account he couldn't see Tom's face from his position.
"I know." Chakotay replied, with a smile, "I can tell when he's tired- he does certain things." He lifted his hand to show that one of those things was Tom's hand curled firmly around his thumb.
"Still awake though." Tom whispered groggily.
Chakotay laughed, "It's very late, you should have been in bed hours ago, you know? But this is the only time both Kathryn and I were free to test you out. Better than spending the night in the Mess Hall?"
"Much better." Tom whispered, "You're the best, Kotay."
Chakotay smiled and stood up with Tom in his arms, ending the program. "Say goodnight to Kathryn." He said to Tom as the three of them made their way to the exit and prepared to go their separate ways.
"Night, Kathy." Tom yawned, "Thanks for testin' me."
"It was a pleasure, Tom, you were a delight to watch." Kathryn replied, "Sleep well, won't you? Goodnight, Chakotay."
"See you tomorrow." Chakotay said softly, heading down the corridors towards his and Tom's quarters. Once there he let Tom quickly change and then put the small pilot to bed.
Chakotay perched on the side of the bed and stroked Tom's blonde hair for a while, knowing that the boy found comfort in any sort of physical affection. Eventually he leant down and murmured, "I am so proud of you, Tom."
"Thanks, Kotay." Tom smiled sleepily, "Kotay?"
"Yes, Tom?"
"Will you tell me a story? I know you haven't done it in ages, but I used to really, really like it."
Chakotay smiled and adopted his soft, story-telling voice- proven to lull the small child gently to sleep. That night he began a new tale, which turned into one of Tom's all-time favourites, of Tommy- the youngest pilot ever- who's mischievous escapades across the galaxy were sometimes for a good cause, always brave and eternally fun.
*** Chakotay stood outside Shuttle Bay One, leaning against the wall and tapping his foot nervously. Tom was in the second part of his piloting exam- except this time he had to have different examiners, so Harry and Tuvok were testing him. The small blonde had already passed his written exam with (pun completely intended) flying colours. Tom had been gone for three quarters of an hour now and was expected back any second. Chakotay prayed that Tom would pass, he didn't know what he would do if he had to console that kind of disappointment.
When Chakotay heard the definite sound of a shuttlecraft touching ground, he stood up from the wall and tapped the access panel until it decided it was safe enough to clear him entry. He had barely taken two steps inside the door before he was ambushed by a fast moving Tom Paris fuzz-ball. This told Chakotay absolutely nothing about the results of the exam; Tom would dive into his arms whatever the result. But the wide smile on Harry's face told Chakotay everything he needed to know before Tom's loud, "I DID IT, KOTAY!!!" penetrated his hearing.
Chakotay laughed and spun Tom around the shuttle bay, exclaiming, "I knew you could do it!"
"Kotay, that one was easy!" Tom smiled, hugging Chakotay tightly, "I did it! I'm a proper PILOT, Kotay!"
"I know." Chakotay said happily, "Solo flights, huh? Am I going to be able to stop you booking a shuttle every day?"
"Nope." Tom beamed, "I'm qualified to fly by myself, you CAN'T stop me, Kotay! And that's the best part!" He giggled, "But I'll still take you flying sometimes."
"Oh, thanks." Chakotay said sarcastically. He shook his head incredulously, "You would not believe how ridiculously proud I am of you at this moment in time, Tom Paris."
Tom hugged Chakotay tightly, "Thanks for letting me take the exam, Kotay, I know you had to sign the 'sponsibility form."
"Never had any doubts." Chakotay said surely, "How about we celebrate?"
Tom looked up from Chakotay's shoulder into the man's eyes and asked curiously, "How?"
"Well." Chakotay pretended to think hard, even though he already had it all planned, "How about we take the Delta Flyer out? Hmm? You can fly her all the way. Then Sandrine's for dinner?"
"Pizza?"
"Sure." Chakotay laughed.
"The Flyer? I'm allowed to fly her all by myself?" Tom breathed, his eyes sparkling. This was what he had been looking forward to, getting his hands on that beautiful shuttle without compulsory supervision. He still couldn't believe they would let an eleven-year old pilot her.
"Of course." Chakotay smiled and headed over to the Flyer, nodding to Harry and Tuvok, "You're a fully qualified shuttle pilot, Tom, and the Delta Flyer is a shuttle." He put Tom down and watched him scramble for the pilot's seat. His eyes widened, seeing the back of that blonde head at the helm was almost too much, the old Tom was still in that little boy somewhere.
Chakotay was snapped out of his trance by a teasing, "Kotay? You don't fly with me if you don't get in! This flight is scheduled to leave NOW!"
I laughed and took the seat behind Tom, "Take it away, Cadet."
Tom grinned and lifted the shuttle off the ground, configuring the force field for our exit, "Aye, Sir." He breathed as we sped off into space.
"Working."
"Oh."
{small pause}
"Watcha workin' on?"
"Reports."
"Oh."
{small pause}
"How long ya gonna be?"
"Not sure."
"Oh."
{Small pause}
I laughed and spun around to see Tom kneeling on the couch, looking over the back of it at me. "Are you, by any chance, bored, little buddy?"
"KOTAY! I'm not LITTLE!!!"
I laughed at the eleven-year old, "Sorry! But 'big buddy' doesn't have the same ring to it."
Tom rolled his eyes at me and then sighed, "Yeah, I'm bored, Kotay. Can we go and do something?"
I looked to my reports, I had a hell of a lot to do- most of it overdue thanks to hours of playing with Tom. I really couldn't afford to get further behind on this work. I turned back to Tom and suggested, "How about you go and play with Harry?"
Tom shook his head, "Played with him this morning when you were on the bridge."
"B'Elanna?"
"Last night, when you were at Kathy's."
"Neelix?"
Tom sighed and clambered up into my lap, "I wanna play with *you*, Kotay. Not Haz or Lanna or Neelix, *you*."
I sighed and ran my hands through Tom's soft hair, "Tom, I would love nothing more than to come and play with you, but I've got so much work to get done. I can't, I'm sorry."
"But, Kotay! You haven't played with me proply in ages! Days!"
"I know. But one of our agreements to you living here was that I sometimes have work to do and you have to understand that. I'm first officer on board this ship, Tom, that means I'm gonna have to work." I hugged the suddenly sulky boy a little, "Hey, don't be upset, I spend loads of time with you."
Tom raised an eyebrow at me and I could here his unspoken "not enough". He sighed loudly and slid off my knee miserably, "Fine. I'll go and play with Neelix in the Mess then." He pouted and walked out.
I turned back to my reports for about two minutes before kicking myself. Hard. This was one of the reasons Tom had lost faith in his father- they never spent any time together because he was always doing something at work. And now I was confirming his suspicion that this was true of all people he was close to. Sure, I had work to do, but I'd been doing that work non-stop for the past three days, spending no time with Tom.
I knew what happened now, Tom stopped wanting to play with me so much, accepting that I would be working. He got lonely, started looking for someone else to hang out with and either found that person or stayed lonely. I didn't want either of those things to happen to this angst-ridden little boy.
I stood up, made a few calls and headed for the Mess Hall.
*** Chakotay walked into the Mess Hall to see Tom sitting alone at a table, sucking dejectedly at the straw in his drink and staring out at the stars. He sighed heavily at himself and walked over to the small boy, surprising him by lifting him out of the seat and holding him in his arms.
Giggling, Tom wrapped his arms around Chakotay's neck and said softly, "I thought you were working, Kotay."
"I had a choice between doing boring reports and spending time playing with my best friend, which one would you choose?"
Tom smiled broadly and said, with the expected Tom Paris wit, "I'd spend time with me of course!" He squirmed excitedly in Chakotay's arms, "What are we doing then, Kotay?"
"Surprise." Chakotay said warmly, knowing full well what sort of a groan it would induce in the small child.
"Kota-ay!!! I can't wait!"
"Sure you can." Chakotay smiled and carried Tom out of the Mess Hall, "It's not that far, and I promise that you will love it."
Tom beamed and lay his head on Chakotay's shoulder, sparkling eyes watching every movement intently, wondering where they were going. Eventually they stopped outside the holodeck doors, and Tom frowned when he saw Kathryn waiting there. "What's Kathy doin' here?" he whispered into Chakotay's ear.
Smiling mysteriously, Chakotay nodded at Kathryn and simply said, "We need a witness for what we're about to do, Tom."
Tom frowned again and looked even more confused as he was put on the floor. He followed Chakotay and Kathryn into the holodeck, looking around at the simple replica of Voyager's shuttle bay that had appeared. He grinned widely, "We're goin' flying!!!" he exclaimed.
Kathryn indicated to Chakotay that he could tell Tom, while she programmed in the flight path. Chakotay knelt down to Tom's height and said softly, "Tom, you're an excellent pilot, you know, and I think you're ready to get your license."
Tom's eyes widened incredulously and the beginnings of an ecstatic smile twitched at the corners of his mouth. "Kotay, are you serious." he breathed.
"Completely serious Tom. Complete the simulation today, do a short written exam and a real test flight tomorrow and you are a fully qualified A-class shuttle pilot. Kathryn and I are witnesses. You've done it all before Tom- two regular flights- one at warp, one at impulse- a battle situation and two random emergency landings- they're all the simulations. Then tomorrow it's just some asteroid strafing and a few flashy moves like the sort you're always showing off with. And an exam you can easily pass. Then you're all qualified!"
"Asteroid strafing." Tom whispered dumbly, and for a second Chakotay thought he saw the memories of the strafing at Caldik Prime chasing across his face before the brilliant Paris smile kicked in and Tom jumped into his arms. "Kotay, this is the BEST!!! I love you!!! Man, dad's gonna be so proud, I can't wait to see his." Tom trailed off suddenly
Chakotay physically ached. All Tom wanted to do was impress his father; he didn't miss the man, he didn't want to be with the man, he just wanted to make him proud. Before Chakotay could offer comforting words, Kathryn came up behind Tom and put a hand on his shoulder, saying, "Tom, I know your father is proud of you. He always has been, and your achievements with piloting are beyond anything he could have imagined. He is so proud of you, Tom. He's so sorry he can't be here."
"That's okay." Tom smiled at Kathryn, "So long as he's proud of me. That's all that matters with me and him."
Chakotay suppressed all his anger and hatred towards Owen Paris and concentrated on the fact that the eleven-year old in his arms was happy and smiling. He placed a chaste kiss on Tom's forehead and said softly, "We're all proud of you, honey, you've earned this, you deserve it. I love you."
The warmth in Tom's smile warmed Chakotay's heart and, for one strange second, he felt that Tom understood everything including how he was feeling. He felt that the small Paris was silently reassuring him, comforting him, telling him everything was okay- that *he* was okay. But that was impossible. Chakotay dismissed it.
"Love you too, Kotay." Tom said softly, before straightening and wriggling out of Chakotay's arms, "Now, can we get flying? I wanna show you both just what a great pilot I am!"
Irrepressible, Chakotay thought. Completely irrepressible.
*** "Does this count against me?" Tom whispered from the safety of Chakotay's arms.
"Of course not." Kathryn and Chakotay chorused in unison.
Tom had just performed his second emergency landing. The first had been okay, the computer had picked a pretty tame random flight. All Tom had to do was compensate for a blown out thruster and touch down safely- he had managed that fine. They were so close to the ground when the malfunction occurred that they were never any danger. But the second had been a lot more dangerous and challenging.
The computer had put them in orbit, pretty simple for someone like Tom- but it had suddenly sparked a fire in one of the shuttle's engines, sending them hurtling out of orbit. Chakotay didn't care that it was only a simulation, it was damn real. There were several dangers facing Tom. One- they could now enter the atmosphere too deep and they would burn up immediately. Two- they would enter the atmosphere too shallow and would be sent hurtling top-over-tail down to the ground, where they would certainly not survive. Three- they would make it through the atmosphere but Tom would never be able to regain control of the shuttle and they would crash. Four- Tom would regain control of the shuttle, but the broken engine would cause him to misjudge his trajectories and they would crash. Five- the fire would spread to the rest of the shuttle.
Chakotay knew that the last one would never happen- the sims were meant to test pilot skill not fire control. But the rest? Dangers all too real, all too likely, he wasn't sure if even he could get them out of this one. Had this been real, all of their lives would have been on the line.
But, even as Chakotay was sweating, Tom pulled through, calmly and expertly easing the wounded shuttle down through the atmosphere and coaxing a safe landing out of her broken wings. Once they touched down and the computer declared the assessment a success, Tom had dove into Chakotay's arms trembling wildly, snuffling and burying for comfort and blinking tears from his eyes.
This would not count against the boy for, as with many a tense situation, he was cool, calm and collected when it counted, but afterwards the danger he had been in hit him- when they were safe.
Tom let out a huge sigh and he glanced down at his quivering hands, "How come I'm shakin', Kotay?" Tom asked nervously.
"It's called adrenaline, Tom." Chakotay said softly, rubbing Tom's back, "It helps you when you're in danger, but afterwards it's not so good."
Tom nodded, sniffed a little more and whispered, "I was scared in that one. Does that mean I can't be a pilot?"
"No!" Chakotay quickly assured him, "I was scared too, Tom."
"Tom, we would have been worried if you weren't scared." Kathryn said gently, reaching across to place a comforting hand on Tom's shoulder, "The important part of this was that you got us through it alive- and that's what you did. When you touch ground your job as a pilot is over, you can do whatever you want then- like you. You were professional in the air, and then expressed everything we were feeling in the air on the ground. You were fantastic, Tom."
Tom smiled a little, "Thanks, Kathy. So do I pass?"
"You sure do." Chakotay said softly, "Just got to pass tomorrow and you've got your wings, hon. Hopefully you'll never have to cope with that in real life, hmm?"
"Yeah." Tom agreed, contenting himself with curling up in Chakotay's arms, letting the final traces of the trembles dissipate.
Kathryn smiled at the pair, praying that this friendship between the two would continue when the pilot returned to normal. Just over eleven weeks he had been like this- and he had been close to Chakotay for just seven of those. Except it felt like years to Kathryn and, no doubt, to Tom and Chakotay too. She laughed quietly when she noticed that the day's excitement had taken its toll on Tom, and he was drifting off to sleep in Chakotay's arms. "He's sleepy." She whispered to Chakotay, who seemed unawares- on the account he couldn't see Tom's face from his position.
"I know." Chakotay replied, with a smile, "I can tell when he's tired- he does certain things." He lifted his hand to show that one of those things was Tom's hand curled firmly around his thumb.
"Still awake though." Tom whispered groggily.
Chakotay laughed, "It's very late, you should have been in bed hours ago, you know? But this is the only time both Kathryn and I were free to test you out. Better than spending the night in the Mess Hall?"
"Much better." Tom whispered, "You're the best, Kotay."
Chakotay smiled and stood up with Tom in his arms, ending the program. "Say goodnight to Kathryn." He said to Tom as the three of them made their way to the exit and prepared to go their separate ways.
"Night, Kathy." Tom yawned, "Thanks for testin' me."
"It was a pleasure, Tom, you were a delight to watch." Kathryn replied, "Sleep well, won't you? Goodnight, Chakotay."
"See you tomorrow." Chakotay said softly, heading down the corridors towards his and Tom's quarters. Once there he let Tom quickly change and then put the small pilot to bed.
Chakotay perched on the side of the bed and stroked Tom's blonde hair for a while, knowing that the boy found comfort in any sort of physical affection. Eventually he leant down and murmured, "I am so proud of you, Tom."
"Thanks, Kotay." Tom smiled sleepily, "Kotay?"
"Yes, Tom?"
"Will you tell me a story? I know you haven't done it in ages, but I used to really, really like it."
Chakotay smiled and adopted his soft, story-telling voice- proven to lull the small child gently to sleep. That night he began a new tale, which turned into one of Tom's all-time favourites, of Tommy- the youngest pilot ever- who's mischievous escapades across the galaxy were sometimes for a good cause, always brave and eternally fun.
*** Chakotay stood outside Shuttle Bay One, leaning against the wall and tapping his foot nervously. Tom was in the second part of his piloting exam- except this time he had to have different examiners, so Harry and Tuvok were testing him. The small blonde had already passed his written exam with (pun completely intended) flying colours. Tom had been gone for three quarters of an hour now and was expected back any second. Chakotay prayed that Tom would pass, he didn't know what he would do if he had to console that kind of disappointment.
When Chakotay heard the definite sound of a shuttlecraft touching ground, he stood up from the wall and tapped the access panel until it decided it was safe enough to clear him entry. He had barely taken two steps inside the door before he was ambushed by a fast moving Tom Paris fuzz-ball. This told Chakotay absolutely nothing about the results of the exam; Tom would dive into his arms whatever the result. But the wide smile on Harry's face told Chakotay everything he needed to know before Tom's loud, "I DID IT, KOTAY!!!" penetrated his hearing.
Chakotay laughed and spun Tom around the shuttle bay, exclaiming, "I knew you could do it!"
"Kotay, that one was easy!" Tom smiled, hugging Chakotay tightly, "I did it! I'm a proper PILOT, Kotay!"
"I know." Chakotay said happily, "Solo flights, huh? Am I going to be able to stop you booking a shuttle every day?"
"Nope." Tom beamed, "I'm qualified to fly by myself, you CAN'T stop me, Kotay! And that's the best part!" He giggled, "But I'll still take you flying sometimes."
"Oh, thanks." Chakotay said sarcastically. He shook his head incredulously, "You would not believe how ridiculously proud I am of you at this moment in time, Tom Paris."
Tom hugged Chakotay tightly, "Thanks for letting me take the exam, Kotay, I know you had to sign the 'sponsibility form."
"Never had any doubts." Chakotay said surely, "How about we celebrate?"
Tom looked up from Chakotay's shoulder into the man's eyes and asked curiously, "How?"
"Well." Chakotay pretended to think hard, even though he already had it all planned, "How about we take the Delta Flyer out? Hmm? You can fly her all the way. Then Sandrine's for dinner?"
"Pizza?"
"Sure." Chakotay laughed.
"The Flyer? I'm allowed to fly her all by myself?" Tom breathed, his eyes sparkling. This was what he had been looking forward to, getting his hands on that beautiful shuttle without compulsory supervision. He still couldn't believe they would let an eleven-year old pilot her.
"Of course." Chakotay smiled and headed over to the Flyer, nodding to Harry and Tuvok, "You're a fully qualified shuttle pilot, Tom, and the Delta Flyer is a shuttle." He put Tom down and watched him scramble for the pilot's seat. His eyes widened, seeing the back of that blonde head at the helm was almost too much, the old Tom was still in that little boy somewhere.
Chakotay was snapped out of his trance by a teasing, "Kotay? You don't fly with me if you don't get in! This flight is scheduled to leave NOW!"
I laughed and took the seat behind Tom, "Take it away, Cadet."
Tom grinned and lifted the shuttle off the ground, configuring the force field for our exit, "Aye, Sir." He breathed as we sped off into space.