Is anybody reading? TELL ME TELL ME TELL ME! I don't REALLY want to wait 59
billion years. Review anything. Even, oh, what's it called, "constructive
criticism"? REVIEW, people, REVIEW! Ok, On to happy happy stuff, that is,
Delta laughing so hard that one of these days she'll go into a coma, I
swear!
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
As Delta stepped into the Mess, she smelt something. Smelled good. "Mmm, smells good, what's cooking?"
Neelix, who had been rather thrown off when DA collapsed in the hall, smiled a robust Talaxian grin. "My Leola root stew!" He answered enthusiastically.
"Well, I'm so hungry I'll eat anything. Even a stew made from the infamous Leola Root."
"Infamous?"
Delta grinned. "Long story for someone so hungry to tell. May I have some?"
"Of course! Why do you think I brought you down here? You know," Neelix kept chattering as he dished out a bowl of the hearty soup, "I was quite worried when you had that little laughing fit in the hall. What was so funny?"
"Just the irony of meeting you all, I guess," answered Delta as she reached for the bowl of proffered soup.
Walking over to the view-port in the half-full Mess Hall, she suddenly realized how many stares she was getting. Well, nobody had seen her, obviously she wasn't part of the crew, and they were in a human-free part of the Galaxy. No wonder people were curious. But Delta just shrugged off the looks. Sitting in a chair, she motioned for Neelix to sit in front of her.
As Neelix sat down, Delta dipped her spoon into the stew in front of her. Giving it a whiff, she remembered Ensign Kim once saying that nothing smelt worse than something made of Leola Root. But this smelt really good! She carefully brought the spoon to her mouth and took a hesitant sip. He eyes lit up as she realized that the soup was like a. . . she didn't know the word. She didn't remember food. Trying to recall what it was, a word popped into her head.
"Chicken!" she exclaimed. "And beef!"
"What?"
"That's what this tastes like! That's the word. . . I think. I can't quite recollect food, but. . . well, suffice it to say that this stew is excellent! I don't know WHAT Ensign Kim was talking about!" And with that she went back eagerly to her meal.
Neelix watched with a glowing fondness. The girl liked his food, and actually complimented him on it! Nobody had done that for him in. . . well, he couldn't remember. *Chalk one up for interdimensional travelers* thought Neelix happily as the girl devoured half of the bowl in a matter of minutes. She paused for a second.
"You know, I never did find out much about the beginning of this journey. Can you tell me what happened? I mean, I know the basics, Voyager chases Maquis ship into badlands, gets picked up by Caretaker looking for mate, gets thrown into Delta Quadrant, ship crews merge, start heroic journey home, but I'd like to know the details. And also, about the Talaxians and the Okompa. What can you tell me?"
Neelix was all too happy to explain for the next 45 minutes as she ate two more bowls of soup, a Grisian lettuce salad, a slice of replicated chocolate cake, and drank two cans of a drink she'd suddenly remembered and asked the computer to find in the databanks. It was called "Pepsi" and the computer had given a 'lack of nutrients' warning which Delta had proceeded to ignore.
The whole crew had been amazed. Unnamed Ensign 27 whispered to Unnamed Crewman 98, "That girl must be indestructible!" Unnamed Crewman 98 had promptly answered, "I heard she fell on a warp core!" to which Unnamed Ensign 27 replied swiftly, "No, I mean, three bowls of LEOLA ROOT STEW! I'm surprised she's not dead!"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Meanwhile, the Senior Officers were listening to B'Elanna.
"As she fell on the core, I saw something through all that orange. It was blue sky and green trees. And a cat."
"A cat, B'Elanna?"
"Yes Captain. A tabby-something cross. And then I heard someone yelling. I couldn't hear the words, but whoever it was they were clearly distressed. A name. . . I think it was Delta's real name. But I didn't see anything after that. The orange portal closed."
"Thank you B'Elanna. Ensign Kim, what can you give me on that. . . interdimensional temporal anomaly, as our guest called it?"
"Well, Captain, there isn't much to say. It was consistent with a time- travel temporal portal, but there was some odd frequency, as I said, in the background. It made locking onto origin impossible. The other odd thing, Captain, is that when I scanned where the anomaly appeared, using part of the background frequency I managed to isolate, there was a rift of some sort. Not subspace, and not temporal. It was only partly scannable, and the readings I got indicated that it existed outside normal space-time."
"Possibly in another dimension." Commented Torres
"Exactly." Said Kim, before sitting back down.
"No other ships in the vicinity?"
"Not on scanners." Answered Chakotay.
"So, what are we going to do with her?" mused Janeway.
"Well, we can't get rid of her!" protested B'Elanna.
"No, of course not. She has given us no reason to doubt her, and apart from her inability to age there seems to be nothing wrong with her. If only some of us could be so lucky." The Captain attempted a grin. "So, what do we DO with her while she is on this ship? She knows out FUTURE, supposedly."
"Temporal Prime Directive, Captain. The less we know about the future the better," advised Chakotay.
"I know that, Commander. But if we become her friends, she may be more inclined to step in if we need help."
"Not to sound impertinent, Captain, but I think that trying to fool her isn't exactly a proper plan. She already counts us as her friends. It's us she is willing to please. I sensed a eagerness from her. She is just so happy to be here, Captain! All she wants is to be accepted." Kes said wisely.
"Are you sure about that Kes?" questioned Janeway.
"Yes Captain. And personally, I'm not going to have to pretend to like her. She is a beautiful young girl, Captain, and she deservers our respect. You can like her or not, but don't PRETEND to so you can get information out of her!" Kes replied heatedly.
"I'll have to agree with Kes on this one, Captain. She was very trusting when she was with me, and she seems to believe we have given her reason to be so faithful. And I think she knows us well enough to know if we're faking. She has got your measure, Kathryn, and I don't think you like that!" Chakotay was as ticked as Kes.
"Is that an act of insubordination, Commander?" Chakotay opened his mouth to deny, but Janeway held up her hand. "Hold on. That is not what I meant, and you know it. I just meant we should be respectful and try to at least make her feel at home."
"Well, THAT won't be hard." Muttered Tom.
"Excuse me, Mr. Paris?"
Tom turned red. If Chakotay hadn't been so livid at the Captain he might have started laughing. "Well, er. . . she feels comfortable enough to. . ."
The Captain raised an eyebrow.
"She laughed at me. Very loudly. For a long time. I had to give her a sedative."
"A sedative for LAUGHING, Mr. Paris?"
"She was in danger of asphyxiating!" objected Tom.
"Why was she laughing, flyboy?" Teased B'Elanna.
"I have no idea. After we went to see her about that nightmare, I was leaving and she says 'By the way, Tom,' and then starts laughing like a maniac! And after I gave her the sedative and the awakener, she says 'Never mind, It won't happen for another two or three years'. It was an odd situation, Captain!"
"Well, she probably knows more things about us than we care for her to. But she seems smart enough to know when to shut up." The Captain recovered from her outburst at Chakotay. "Tuvok has suggested we give her a commbadge so we know where she is all the time."
"I think we can trust her with one, Captain. If my vision is any indication, she is not from anywhere hostile. And giving her a commbadge would make her feel even more accepted, if that is what Kes and Chakotay are worried about." Torres said, leaning back.
"I agree." Said Kes and Chakotay.
After a look from Janeway, Harry shrugged. "I haven't really had an experience with her. But the scans indicate that her story is verifiable, and that's good enough for me." Harry was nervous at being asked for input. As the youngest and most inexperienced member of the senior staff he often felt this way.
Tom shrugged along with Harry. "Personally, I think she might be slightly crazy. But on this ship, it'll go unnoticed." The Captain gave him a sarcastic look. "Hey, Being stranded out here, Kazon encounters, tensions run high. Maybe we need some fresh blood. She seems cheerful enough. And obviously has a good sense of humour." Tom finished under his breath.
"Well, that's settled then. She gets her commbadge and we all try our best to make her happy and comfortable. What do you all think of a holoparty? Neelix has been badgering me about one for 'Crew Morale' as he calls it."
"Sounds good to me. We can all use a little bit of fun," commented Chakotay.
"Agreed. Tom, Harry, organize a holoprogram. B'Elanna, arrange a ship-wide meeting in the mess hall. I want to inform them about our, arrival. Dismissed."
As everyone left the room, Kathryn stopped Chakotay. "I'm sorry for snapping at you like that. Maybe my intentions weren't exactly. . . honourable."
"Apology accepted, Captain, but not necessary. I was borderline insubordination."
"Well, you coming to this party?"
"Wouldn't miss it." Affirmed the First Officer, flashing his dimples as the two exited the briefing room.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Word to the Wise: always and never are two words you should always remember never to use. Oh, and NABELLETHEY: Crazy? You don't KNOW crazy. . .
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
As Delta stepped into the Mess, she smelt something. Smelled good. "Mmm, smells good, what's cooking?"
Neelix, who had been rather thrown off when DA collapsed in the hall, smiled a robust Talaxian grin. "My Leola root stew!" He answered enthusiastically.
"Well, I'm so hungry I'll eat anything. Even a stew made from the infamous Leola Root."
"Infamous?"
Delta grinned. "Long story for someone so hungry to tell. May I have some?"
"Of course! Why do you think I brought you down here? You know," Neelix kept chattering as he dished out a bowl of the hearty soup, "I was quite worried when you had that little laughing fit in the hall. What was so funny?"
"Just the irony of meeting you all, I guess," answered Delta as she reached for the bowl of proffered soup.
Walking over to the view-port in the half-full Mess Hall, she suddenly realized how many stares she was getting. Well, nobody had seen her, obviously she wasn't part of the crew, and they were in a human-free part of the Galaxy. No wonder people were curious. But Delta just shrugged off the looks. Sitting in a chair, she motioned for Neelix to sit in front of her.
As Neelix sat down, Delta dipped her spoon into the stew in front of her. Giving it a whiff, she remembered Ensign Kim once saying that nothing smelt worse than something made of Leola Root. But this smelt really good! She carefully brought the spoon to her mouth and took a hesitant sip. He eyes lit up as she realized that the soup was like a. . . she didn't know the word. She didn't remember food. Trying to recall what it was, a word popped into her head.
"Chicken!" she exclaimed. "And beef!"
"What?"
"That's what this tastes like! That's the word. . . I think. I can't quite recollect food, but. . . well, suffice it to say that this stew is excellent! I don't know WHAT Ensign Kim was talking about!" And with that she went back eagerly to her meal.
Neelix watched with a glowing fondness. The girl liked his food, and actually complimented him on it! Nobody had done that for him in. . . well, he couldn't remember. *Chalk one up for interdimensional travelers* thought Neelix happily as the girl devoured half of the bowl in a matter of minutes. She paused for a second.
"You know, I never did find out much about the beginning of this journey. Can you tell me what happened? I mean, I know the basics, Voyager chases Maquis ship into badlands, gets picked up by Caretaker looking for mate, gets thrown into Delta Quadrant, ship crews merge, start heroic journey home, but I'd like to know the details. And also, about the Talaxians and the Okompa. What can you tell me?"
Neelix was all too happy to explain for the next 45 minutes as she ate two more bowls of soup, a Grisian lettuce salad, a slice of replicated chocolate cake, and drank two cans of a drink she'd suddenly remembered and asked the computer to find in the databanks. It was called "Pepsi" and the computer had given a 'lack of nutrients' warning which Delta had proceeded to ignore.
The whole crew had been amazed. Unnamed Ensign 27 whispered to Unnamed Crewman 98, "That girl must be indestructible!" Unnamed Crewman 98 had promptly answered, "I heard she fell on a warp core!" to which Unnamed Ensign 27 replied swiftly, "No, I mean, three bowls of LEOLA ROOT STEW! I'm surprised she's not dead!"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Meanwhile, the Senior Officers were listening to B'Elanna.
"As she fell on the core, I saw something through all that orange. It was blue sky and green trees. And a cat."
"A cat, B'Elanna?"
"Yes Captain. A tabby-something cross. And then I heard someone yelling. I couldn't hear the words, but whoever it was they were clearly distressed. A name. . . I think it was Delta's real name. But I didn't see anything after that. The orange portal closed."
"Thank you B'Elanna. Ensign Kim, what can you give me on that. . . interdimensional temporal anomaly, as our guest called it?"
"Well, Captain, there isn't much to say. It was consistent with a time- travel temporal portal, but there was some odd frequency, as I said, in the background. It made locking onto origin impossible. The other odd thing, Captain, is that when I scanned where the anomaly appeared, using part of the background frequency I managed to isolate, there was a rift of some sort. Not subspace, and not temporal. It was only partly scannable, and the readings I got indicated that it existed outside normal space-time."
"Possibly in another dimension." Commented Torres
"Exactly." Said Kim, before sitting back down.
"No other ships in the vicinity?"
"Not on scanners." Answered Chakotay.
"So, what are we going to do with her?" mused Janeway.
"Well, we can't get rid of her!" protested B'Elanna.
"No, of course not. She has given us no reason to doubt her, and apart from her inability to age there seems to be nothing wrong with her. If only some of us could be so lucky." The Captain attempted a grin. "So, what do we DO with her while she is on this ship? She knows out FUTURE, supposedly."
"Temporal Prime Directive, Captain. The less we know about the future the better," advised Chakotay.
"I know that, Commander. But if we become her friends, she may be more inclined to step in if we need help."
"Not to sound impertinent, Captain, but I think that trying to fool her isn't exactly a proper plan. She already counts us as her friends. It's us she is willing to please. I sensed a eagerness from her. She is just so happy to be here, Captain! All she wants is to be accepted." Kes said wisely.
"Are you sure about that Kes?" questioned Janeway.
"Yes Captain. And personally, I'm not going to have to pretend to like her. She is a beautiful young girl, Captain, and she deservers our respect. You can like her or not, but don't PRETEND to so you can get information out of her!" Kes replied heatedly.
"I'll have to agree with Kes on this one, Captain. She was very trusting when she was with me, and she seems to believe we have given her reason to be so faithful. And I think she knows us well enough to know if we're faking. She has got your measure, Kathryn, and I don't think you like that!" Chakotay was as ticked as Kes.
"Is that an act of insubordination, Commander?" Chakotay opened his mouth to deny, but Janeway held up her hand. "Hold on. That is not what I meant, and you know it. I just meant we should be respectful and try to at least make her feel at home."
"Well, THAT won't be hard." Muttered Tom.
"Excuse me, Mr. Paris?"
Tom turned red. If Chakotay hadn't been so livid at the Captain he might have started laughing. "Well, er. . . she feels comfortable enough to. . ."
The Captain raised an eyebrow.
"She laughed at me. Very loudly. For a long time. I had to give her a sedative."
"A sedative for LAUGHING, Mr. Paris?"
"She was in danger of asphyxiating!" objected Tom.
"Why was she laughing, flyboy?" Teased B'Elanna.
"I have no idea. After we went to see her about that nightmare, I was leaving and she says 'By the way, Tom,' and then starts laughing like a maniac! And after I gave her the sedative and the awakener, she says 'Never mind, It won't happen for another two or three years'. It was an odd situation, Captain!"
"Well, she probably knows more things about us than we care for her to. But she seems smart enough to know when to shut up." The Captain recovered from her outburst at Chakotay. "Tuvok has suggested we give her a commbadge so we know where she is all the time."
"I think we can trust her with one, Captain. If my vision is any indication, she is not from anywhere hostile. And giving her a commbadge would make her feel even more accepted, if that is what Kes and Chakotay are worried about." Torres said, leaning back.
"I agree." Said Kes and Chakotay.
After a look from Janeway, Harry shrugged. "I haven't really had an experience with her. But the scans indicate that her story is verifiable, and that's good enough for me." Harry was nervous at being asked for input. As the youngest and most inexperienced member of the senior staff he often felt this way.
Tom shrugged along with Harry. "Personally, I think she might be slightly crazy. But on this ship, it'll go unnoticed." The Captain gave him a sarcastic look. "Hey, Being stranded out here, Kazon encounters, tensions run high. Maybe we need some fresh blood. She seems cheerful enough. And obviously has a good sense of humour." Tom finished under his breath.
"Well, that's settled then. She gets her commbadge and we all try our best to make her happy and comfortable. What do you all think of a holoparty? Neelix has been badgering me about one for 'Crew Morale' as he calls it."
"Sounds good to me. We can all use a little bit of fun," commented Chakotay.
"Agreed. Tom, Harry, organize a holoprogram. B'Elanna, arrange a ship-wide meeting in the mess hall. I want to inform them about our, arrival. Dismissed."
As everyone left the room, Kathryn stopped Chakotay. "I'm sorry for snapping at you like that. Maybe my intentions weren't exactly. . . honourable."
"Apology accepted, Captain, but not necessary. I was borderline insubordination."
"Well, you coming to this party?"
"Wouldn't miss it." Affirmed the First Officer, flashing his dimples as the two exited the briefing room.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Word to the Wise: always and never are two words you should always remember never to use. Oh, and NABELLETHEY: Crazy? You don't KNOW crazy. . .