Harry sighed as the site-to-site transport finished. He appeared in the
middle of New York's Central Park. He had known Seven would run after him,
he didn't know the reason, but he knew it would happen. He had setup the
transport while downloading the holo-programs.
He had no intention of going to visit his parents, he didn't intend on seeing anyone. He just wanted to lose himself in the thrall of humanity in a city that knew no names. He wanted to forget everything and everyone that had been a part of his life for the past 7 years.
He had requested a few weeks off from Starfleet, they had granted it with no questions asked. Now he stood ready to disappear. With a steadying breath he took a step towards the city, getting swallowed by the crowds.
He wasn't sure if he would go back to Starfleet, he thought about going AWOL, but his sense of duty prevented that. At the end of his leave he would return to San Francisco and take whatever job they assigned him.
==
Three weeks after his arrival Harry Kim left the city of New York, his transport heading for Starfleet Headquarters.
After several hours he arrived at the terminal. Grabbing his one bag he left the shuttle and walked to the assignment office.
"My name is Harry Kim, I've come for my next assignment," he told the receptionist.
"One moment please," she replied as she put his name into the computer, his datafile appearing instantly. "You're from Voyager, aren't you?"
Harry sighed, he knew this would happen, he never wanted the attention. So he merely plastered on his fake smile as he answered.
"Yeah."
"Well, according to this Admiral Paris wants to see you personally."
Harry was startled for a moment before nodding and turning from her. He silently left the office as he made his way to where the Admiralty had their offices. After announcing himself to the receptionist there, he was ushered up to Admiral Paris' office.
"Admiral." Harry said with a salute as he entered the office, Paris returning the salute.
"Sit down Mr. Kim"
"Thank you Sir." Harry said as he sat in the chair the Admiral indicated.
"I am sure that you're wondering why I wanted to see you, correct?" Harry only nodded, "Well, I have a special mission for you. How would you feel about serving as Ops officer on a deep space mission? I know you've just returned from the Delta Quadrant, but at least consider it. At present you are the most qualified person for the position, having already been at the job for 7 years."
"Sir, may I ask where the mission will be sent?"
"I won't lie to you Harry, we're sending a mission to the fringes of the Delta Quadrant. We want a report about what's closest to us there. Voyager passed by the fringe due to the Transwarp conduit."
"Sir I'll take the assignment. Have any other Voyager crewmembers been offered this mission?"
"No, you're the only one," Paris replied. "They all requested assignments in this Quadrant. You'll be the only one with Delta Quadrant experience on the mission."
"Understood Sir, when does it leave?"
"0700 tomorrow, report to Space Dock pad 3, your XO will meet you, his name is Franklin. I'd advise you say any good-byes tonight. Please remember that this mission is classified. The general view is that we just got you people back, so why send anyone else back there. This mission is very important Harry."
"Understood Sir, and thank you." Harry said as he stood and saluted.
"You're welcome Mr. Kim. Dismissed."
With that Harry turned and left the office. Admiral Paris returned to his computer, Harry's file on screen. The request for deep-space duty highlighted.
"Why did you request Deep-Space after returning from there? What happened to you Mr. Kim." Paris wondered as he closed and sealed Harry's record. Setting about getting the young man granted top secret clearance for the mission.
==
Harry looked up at the building that housed his parent's new apartment. After his disappearance in the Delta Quadrant they had sold the house, there were too many memories there. Now they lived overlooking San Francisco Bay.
Ringing the buzzer his mother answered the door.
"Hello young man, can I help you?" she asked, not having seen Harry for seven years.
"Mom," was all he said as he wrapped her in a hug.
"Harry!" his mother practically yelled as realization dawned, bringing his father from the other room in a heartbeat.
"Dad," he said as his father hugged him.
They stood there for several minutes before moving to the living room.
After making sure he was real and not an illusion, they sat on the couch, asking him questions.
"We had heard that Voyager had gotten back three weeks ago, why didn't you come to see us then?" his mother asked as she held his hand.
"I needed to put my life in focus. I needed time to sort through all that I've seen over the past 7 years."
His mother looked worried, but his father nodded.
"Well, we're glad you're back. There was a young woman here a week or so ago, said she knew you from Voyager. She didn't leave her name." His mother said after a few moments silence.
Harry took the information in stride, only one person would seek him out Seven of Nine. His disappearing trick on the ship must have really messed with her.
"Seven," he whispered after a moment, barely loud enough for his parents to hear.
"7?" his father asked.
"Yes, Seven of Nine, Tertiary Adjunct of Unimatrix 01."
"That sounds almost like a Borg designation," his mother said, wringing her hand sin worry.
"It is," Harry replied as he leaned back against the couch, his eyes closed. "We severed her from the Borg almost 4 years ago, since then she's been a member of the crew."
"Oh," his mother replied as she looked at his father.
"So, where you staying Harry?" his father asked, changing the subject.
"No where, I leave for my new assignment tomorrow morning. I just wanted to come by and let you know I was ok." Harry stood up, getting ready to leave. "It's a deep-space mission, 5-years. I can't tell you any more than that, it's classified. Mom, Dad, it was good seeing you again."
He then hugged and kissed his mother, and gave his father a hug before walking to the door.
"Harry, would you like to stay for dinner?"
==
Harry ended up staying the night, he left early the next morning, leaving a note for his parents.
Arriving at the terminal he presented his transport papers. Stepping onto the pad he was soon standing in the transporter room of the Space Dock, his assignment waiting for him.
Reaching pad 3 he found a man in hid mid-thirties waiting for him. He had a red hair and a beard to match. His eyes sparkled blue with curiosity. He was about 5 foot nine and was an athlete by his build.
"Commander Franklin?" Harry asked as he approached.
"You must be Lieutenant Kim, we've heard a lot about you and Voyager. Yes, I am your XO, Commander Franklin. Welcome to the NCCX-5147 USS Columbia."
"Columbia, Sir?"
"Yes, named after one of the shuttles from the early 21st Century apparently. Burned up on re-entry, sad really. I'll tell you more about her later, But this ship won't burn up," he said with a grin. Harry could tell he and the Commander would get along fine.
After walking through several hallways, each of which required a higher security clearance, they arrived at a small shuttle pod. Franklin stopped them before the pod's door.
"Now Harry, do you mind if I call you Harry?"
"No, that's what everyone called me, even on duty."
"Good," Franklin replied with his ever present smile. "The Columbia is an experimental craft, that's the reason for all the security and secrecy. You may not know it but we are deep inside the Space Dock, in the Restricted sector reserved for classified vessels. Are you ready to see the ship?"
Harry only nodded as Franklin opened the door leading to the shuttle pod. Harry followed, getting a brief glimpse of the ship.
As the pod detached from the dock, Harry was able to see the entire ship in its magnificence. Its hull design was a modified version of Voyager's, the Generated Ablative Armor that Admiral Janeway brought from the future installed, along with, Harry assumed, the Transphasic torpedoes as well.
The over hull design was further swept back than Voyager's, giving it a more graceful appearance. The saucer section was nestled deeper into the body of the ship, almost looking like a spoon. But it was the body and nacelles that caught his attention. The body was angled to a blunt point at the aft, the nacelles were mounted in a fixed position to the body, no wings this time. The nacelles had a green glow rather than the normal blue.
"What is she?" he managed to ask once the shock wore off.
"She's a hybrid science/scout vessel based off a modified version of Voyager, she's called the Voyager class. As you can tell she has the Generated Ablative Armor and Transphasic Torpedoes brought from the future as well as a working hybrid slipstream/warp drive, there are also a few Borg modifications installed." At Harry's astonished look he held up his hand. "All will be explained by the Captain once you meet him."
Harry only nodded as the shuttle pod reached the hanger door located in the blunted point. Once the docking maneuvers were completed, the hatch opened and they stepped out.
"Follow me I'll take you to that Bridge," Franklin said before heading off, Harry following behind him as a construction crew rushed to take the pod they just vacated.
"Why aren't the transporters being used?" Harry asked ass they walked.
Franklin appeared to sort of cringe at the question.
"Ah, you see, they're classified as well," he replied, drawing a raised eyebrow from Harry.
After that silence prevailed until they reached the Bridge. Harry looked around him, it was almost a duplicate of Voyager's Bridge, only more compact and streamlined.
In the Captain's chair sat a man in his early fifties, his graying hair shaved close to his scalp. He was of African decent, but Harry could hear him speaking with absolutely no accent except for a hint of New York City.
"Captain Sharif, may I present Lieutenant Harry Kim, our Ops Officer." Franklin announced as he and Harry stood in front of the Captain.
"Mr. Kim," he said in a soft yet powerful voice.
"Sir," Harry said with a salute. The Captain returned the salute and sat for a moment, sizing Harry up.
Harry was doing the same thing, Sharif had brown eyes that spoke of an inner peace, and he wore a close shaven goatee, also in the early stages of graying.
After a moment of deliberation the Captain stood up and grasped Harry's arm.
"Welcome to the Columbia Mr. Kim, please accompany me to my ready room. Franklin, please come too."
He was met with a chorus of 'Aye Sir' as he led them to the ready room.
"Have a seat gentlemen and we can begin briefing Mr. Kim." He sat at his desk as they found places in the chairs before him.
"Now, Mr. Kim, most of what we are about to tell you is classified, but since you are already familiar with most of it, your security clearance is almost higher than mine." Sharif replied with a smile when Harry looked embarrassed. "Now I'm sure Franklin has told you a few details, but we'd like to explain more now. Mr. Franklin you may begin."
With a nod Franklin stood up began the briefing on the viewscreen.
"Now Harry, what I told you was just the basics. This ship is armed with Quantum torpedoes in addition to the Transphasic ones Voyager brought with her. The Generated Ablative Armor that you noticed has also been integrated along with several Borg shield modifications, our shields are 130% stronger than they were before. Now this part is only between you, me, and the Captain. The Warp Drive is equipped with a working Transwarp Coil. However it is only to be used to get to the Delta Quadrant and back, the power drain is too great. You're probably wondering how we can have all this technology working when Voyager only returned three weeks ago, correct?"
Harry could only nod, dumbfounded as he took all the advancements in.
"We've been working on most of these since we established contact with you via Pathfinder, the boys in R&D were very eager to get to work on most of these modifications, they were finished by the time Voyager returned home. The ones that we needed to wait on Voyager for were finished in the last 3 weeks. Admiral Paris insisted that Captain Janeway send as much of the technological advancements that she could. As for the technology brought by the future Admiral Janeway, that was simply based off technology developed onboard Voyager. Now, the Astrometrics Lab that you built has been added as a basic design to all new starships. As for the transporters, they too have been modified by both Borg technology and the research done by the Hansen's. The ship uses bio-neural jel-packs with an isolinear secondary system, just like Voyager, and like her, we have modified the EPS conduits and other plasma flow systems with Borg technology. All of the modifications are, I believe, ones that you yourself, helped to install. Any questions?"
Harry could only look at him stunned before he picked his jaw up off the floor.
"Yes, I know, she's impressive. She's also the prototype, so you can see why all the security and clearances are required." Sharif asked after Harry assimilated this information.
"Yes Sir, I would like to say that I look forward to our mission Sir. May I ask what it is exactly?"
"You may, our mission falls under the Pathfinder Project, that's why Admiral Paris choose you himself. He actually had several reasons, your familiarity with the technology and the Delta Quadrant, but I digress. Our mission is to explore the fringes of the Delta Quadrant and to strategically place relay stations for Pathfinder. It is the Admiral's hope that we may be able to eventually contact a few of the more friendly races that you encountered."
Harry only nodded as he took this in as well.
"May I respectfully ask where my quarters are Sir?" Harry asked once he was able to.
"Yes you may, Franklin, please escort him to his quarters. Harry, get some rest, you look exhausted."
"Thank you Sir, I will." Harry replied as he followed Franklin.
==
Seven looked around the quarters she was sharing with her roommate. She had, as expected, been accepted into the Starfleet Science Academy. While she didn't like the idea of sharing quarters with another person, she believed that she could 'adapt'.
As she placed her books on her desk, she looked around her sparsely populated corner. She had very little in the way of personal effects, a few books from the Captain, a framed picture or two and various little items given to her over the years. One of the most prized possessions in her collection was hidden away from view. Hidden so only she could see it.
It was a small bear, holding a little plastic sign with the words "I Missed You" written on it in red ink. She smiled as she thought about it. Harry had given it to her shortly after she had been rescued from the Borg. She smiled as she remembered how it happened.
She had been in the Cargo Bay, working at her console when Ensign Kim walked in. He was smiling and hiding something behind his back. As he approached her, his smile began to fade and a look of apprehension replaced it.
"Hey Seven, how are you feeling?" he asked as he leaned against her console, the object still behind his back.
"I am ..." she paused, having been about to say 'undamaged' but was she? "unsure."
"About what?" he asked.
"When I was taken by the Borg, they wanted me because I was regaining my humanity. They felt I would be able to assist in assimilating humanity. Yet the entire time I was at Unimatrix 01, all I could think about was escaping and returning to Voyager."
"Seven, that's a normal feeling when you're taken from the place you consider home. You want to get back there as soon as possible, in any way possible. That's the way I felt about Earth."
"Felt?" she asked, aware as ever to his phrasing of words. "But I was under the impression that you, along with the rest of the crew, considered Earth home."
"I did, but after all these years, I consider Voyager home, and that home, I feel, belongs in the Delta Quadrant." He paused a second to gather his courage. "But I do know that it wouldn't be 'home' without you Seven, here."
He then handed her a small red bag, which she carefully took.
"What is it?"
"Open it and find out," he replied, not giving her any clues.
She opened the bag to find a small white bear staring out at her. She reached in and gently pulled it from the bag. She read the sign he was holding and looked at Harry for an answer.
"You were gone for awhile, and I missed you. So I got you that bear to say 'welcome home'" he said with a cheesy grin.
"Thank you Ensign, it's ... cute," she replied with a quirk of her eyebrow and the faintest hint of a smile.
"That's what friends are for Seven, to cheer each other up and welcome them home after they were away. Well, I'd better get going, see you later."
He then left, Seven just looked at the bear before hugging it close to her. It even smelled like him, she smiled at this thought.
She was awakened from her daydream by her room mate returning. Seven's eyes wandered over her meager possessions before landing on an image. Picking it up she examined it. It was a photo of the entire Senior Staff at one of Neelix's 'morale parties,' Seven was there, along with the Doctor. They had all posed for this image, the entire staff receiving a copy. She looked happy standing next to Ensign Kim, who was smiling as he held an umbrella drink in his hand.
Shaking herself from her dreams she looked at the Chronometer, she only had a few minutes to get ready for her date with Chakotay. With a sad sigh she replaced the picture, wishing that it were Harry she had the date with and not Chakotay.
==
The three sat around a small table in a café.
"Thank you for coming," Janeway said as she sipped her coffee.
"Thank you for inviting us Captain," Tom replied as B'Elanna nodded.
"Where's your daughter?"
"With Neelix, since they made him a 'Liaison to Starfleet on the Delta Quadrant', he's been able to hang around more. He's so good with the children, that he thought about opening a daycare center." B'Elanna said with a laugh at the thought.
"So long as they don't let him serve Leola root, they'll be fine." Janeway replied, herself laughing at the thought.
"But that's not why I asked you here. I wanted to see how you were doing."
"Us? We're fine. Tom has a teaching job at the Academy, he's gonna train the next generation of 'Ace pilots'. Meanwhile I have a design team job at Starfleet Engineering Research."
"That's not what I meant B'Elanna, I mean how are you doing away from the Delta Quadrant?"
"We're adjusting, but it's hard. After all, out daughter was born there."
"We don't really miss the Delta Quadrant itself, Captain," Tom said. "It's the close community of Voyager that we miss. We miss not being able to go down the hall and talk to Harry, or Neelix. We miss seeing Naomi playing with Miral."
Janeway only nodded, she understood completely how they felt.
"But we are home now, we can't go back. But we can keep that community spirit alive. If you ever need anything, please don't hesitate to call me. Tuvok and Chakotay wanted me to say the same. Now for the question that's been bugging the entire former Senior Staff. Where has our young Harry gotten himself off to?"
"I haven't seen him since he was promoted," B'Elanna said, looking at Tom who confirmed.
"No one has, that's the problem, and it's been over a month, almost 2. I've asked around Starfleet HQ, but his files appear to be sealed, and no one will answer any of my questions."
"Don't worry about it Captain, I'm sure we'll hear something from him. So how is Tuvok?" Tom asked, changing to a less complicated subject.
"He returned to Vulcan, T'Pel and his children meeting him when he arrived. He too put in for a teaching position at the Academy. And Chakotay has taken the Captaincy of the USS Belmont, a Defiant-Class Escort vessel, he's been running Escort for the Admiralty."
"You know, thinking about Chakotay, I think that's why Harry disappeared. You should have seen his face when he learned that Chakotay and Seven were 'romantically affiliated' he was crushed, it was like all the life was sucked from his body."
Janeway nodded before answering.
"Yes, I noticed that too, his work never suffered so I never said anything about it. now I wish I had."
B'Elanna put her hand on top of the Captain's.
"Captain, there was no way you could know what would happen once we got back. For all we know Harry could be holed up in a bar somewhere in Paris right now, or he could have put in for Deep-Space duty."
"Harry wouldn't do that, he just got home." Janeway said, startled by that thought.
"I know, that's what makes it so unrealistic," B'Elanna replied with a smile as she leaned back in her chair.
==
He had no intention of going to visit his parents, he didn't intend on seeing anyone. He just wanted to lose himself in the thrall of humanity in a city that knew no names. He wanted to forget everything and everyone that had been a part of his life for the past 7 years.
He had requested a few weeks off from Starfleet, they had granted it with no questions asked. Now he stood ready to disappear. With a steadying breath he took a step towards the city, getting swallowed by the crowds.
He wasn't sure if he would go back to Starfleet, he thought about going AWOL, but his sense of duty prevented that. At the end of his leave he would return to San Francisco and take whatever job they assigned him.
==
Three weeks after his arrival Harry Kim left the city of New York, his transport heading for Starfleet Headquarters.
After several hours he arrived at the terminal. Grabbing his one bag he left the shuttle and walked to the assignment office.
"My name is Harry Kim, I've come for my next assignment," he told the receptionist.
"One moment please," she replied as she put his name into the computer, his datafile appearing instantly. "You're from Voyager, aren't you?"
Harry sighed, he knew this would happen, he never wanted the attention. So he merely plastered on his fake smile as he answered.
"Yeah."
"Well, according to this Admiral Paris wants to see you personally."
Harry was startled for a moment before nodding and turning from her. He silently left the office as he made his way to where the Admiralty had their offices. After announcing himself to the receptionist there, he was ushered up to Admiral Paris' office.
"Admiral." Harry said with a salute as he entered the office, Paris returning the salute.
"Sit down Mr. Kim"
"Thank you Sir." Harry said as he sat in the chair the Admiral indicated.
"I am sure that you're wondering why I wanted to see you, correct?" Harry only nodded, "Well, I have a special mission for you. How would you feel about serving as Ops officer on a deep space mission? I know you've just returned from the Delta Quadrant, but at least consider it. At present you are the most qualified person for the position, having already been at the job for 7 years."
"Sir, may I ask where the mission will be sent?"
"I won't lie to you Harry, we're sending a mission to the fringes of the Delta Quadrant. We want a report about what's closest to us there. Voyager passed by the fringe due to the Transwarp conduit."
"Sir I'll take the assignment. Have any other Voyager crewmembers been offered this mission?"
"No, you're the only one," Paris replied. "They all requested assignments in this Quadrant. You'll be the only one with Delta Quadrant experience on the mission."
"Understood Sir, when does it leave?"
"0700 tomorrow, report to Space Dock pad 3, your XO will meet you, his name is Franklin. I'd advise you say any good-byes tonight. Please remember that this mission is classified. The general view is that we just got you people back, so why send anyone else back there. This mission is very important Harry."
"Understood Sir, and thank you." Harry said as he stood and saluted.
"You're welcome Mr. Kim. Dismissed."
With that Harry turned and left the office. Admiral Paris returned to his computer, Harry's file on screen. The request for deep-space duty highlighted.
"Why did you request Deep-Space after returning from there? What happened to you Mr. Kim." Paris wondered as he closed and sealed Harry's record. Setting about getting the young man granted top secret clearance for the mission.
==
Harry looked up at the building that housed his parent's new apartment. After his disappearance in the Delta Quadrant they had sold the house, there were too many memories there. Now they lived overlooking San Francisco Bay.
Ringing the buzzer his mother answered the door.
"Hello young man, can I help you?" she asked, not having seen Harry for seven years.
"Mom," was all he said as he wrapped her in a hug.
"Harry!" his mother practically yelled as realization dawned, bringing his father from the other room in a heartbeat.
"Dad," he said as his father hugged him.
They stood there for several minutes before moving to the living room.
After making sure he was real and not an illusion, they sat on the couch, asking him questions.
"We had heard that Voyager had gotten back three weeks ago, why didn't you come to see us then?" his mother asked as she held his hand.
"I needed to put my life in focus. I needed time to sort through all that I've seen over the past 7 years."
His mother looked worried, but his father nodded.
"Well, we're glad you're back. There was a young woman here a week or so ago, said she knew you from Voyager. She didn't leave her name." His mother said after a few moments silence.
Harry took the information in stride, only one person would seek him out Seven of Nine. His disappearing trick on the ship must have really messed with her.
"Seven," he whispered after a moment, barely loud enough for his parents to hear.
"7?" his father asked.
"Yes, Seven of Nine, Tertiary Adjunct of Unimatrix 01."
"That sounds almost like a Borg designation," his mother said, wringing her hand sin worry.
"It is," Harry replied as he leaned back against the couch, his eyes closed. "We severed her from the Borg almost 4 years ago, since then she's been a member of the crew."
"Oh," his mother replied as she looked at his father.
"So, where you staying Harry?" his father asked, changing the subject.
"No where, I leave for my new assignment tomorrow morning. I just wanted to come by and let you know I was ok." Harry stood up, getting ready to leave. "It's a deep-space mission, 5-years. I can't tell you any more than that, it's classified. Mom, Dad, it was good seeing you again."
He then hugged and kissed his mother, and gave his father a hug before walking to the door.
"Harry, would you like to stay for dinner?"
==
Harry ended up staying the night, he left early the next morning, leaving a note for his parents.
Arriving at the terminal he presented his transport papers. Stepping onto the pad he was soon standing in the transporter room of the Space Dock, his assignment waiting for him.
Reaching pad 3 he found a man in hid mid-thirties waiting for him. He had a red hair and a beard to match. His eyes sparkled blue with curiosity. He was about 5 foot nine and was an athlete by his build.
"Commander Franklin?" Harry asked as he approached.
"You must be Lieutenant Kim, we've heard a lot about you and Voyager. Yes, I am your XO, Commander Franklin. Welcome to the NCCX-5147 USS Columbia."
"Columbia, Sir?"
"Yes, named after one of the shuttles from the early 21st Century apparently. Burned up on re-entry, sad really. I'll tell you more about her later, But this ship won't burn up," he said with a grin. Harry could tell he and the Commander would get along fine.
After walking through several hallways, each of which required a higher security clearance, they arrived at a small shuttle pod. Franklin stopped them before the pod's door.
"Now Harry, do you mind if I call you Harry?"
"No, that's what everyone called me, even on duty."
"Good," Franklin replied with his ever present smile. "The Columbia is an experimental craft, that's the reason for all the security and secrecy. You may not know it but we are deep inside the Space Dock, in the Restricted sector reserved for classified vessels. Are you ready to see the ship?"
Harry only nodded as Franklin opened the door leading to the shuttle pod. Harry followed, getting a brief glimpse of the ship.
As the pod detached from the dock, Harry was able to see the entire ship in its magnificence. Its hull design was a modified version of Voyager's, the Generated Ablative Armor that Admiral Janeway brought from the future installed, along with, Harry assumed, the Transphasic torpedoes as well.
The over hull design was further swept back than Voyager's, giving it a more graceful appearance. The saucer section was nestled deeper into the body of the ship, almost looking like a spoon. But it was the body and nacelles that caught his attention. The body was angled to a blunt point at the aft, the nacelles were mounted in a fixed position to the body, no wings this time. The nacelles had a green glow rather than the normal blue.
"What is she?" he managed to ask once the shock wore off.
"She's a hybrid science/scout vessel based off a modified version of Voyager, she's called the Voyager class. As you can tell she has the Generated Ablative Armor and Transphasic Torpedoes brought from the future as well as a working hybrid slipstream/warp drive, there are also a few Borg modifications installed." At Harry's astonished look he held up his hand. "All will be explained by the Captain once you meet him."
Harry only nodded as the shuttle pod reached the hanger door located in the blunted point. Once the docking maneuvers were completed, the hatch opened and they stepped out.
"Follow me I'll take you to that Bridge," Franklin said before heading off, Harry following behind him as a construction crew rushed to take the pod they just vacated.
"Why aren't the transporters being used?" Harry asked ass they walked.
Franklin appeared to sort of cringe at the question.
"Ah, you see, they're classified as well," he replied, drawing a raised eyebrow from Harry.
After that silence prevailed until they reached the Bridge. Harry looked around him, it was almost a duplicate of Voyager's Bridge, only more compact and streamlined.
In the Captain's chair sat a man in his early fifties, his graying hair shaved close to his scalp. He was of African decent, but Harry could hear him speaking with absolutely no accent except for a hint of New York City.
"Captain Sharif, may I present Lieutenant Harry Kim, our Ops Officer." Franklin announced as he and Harry stood in front of the Captain.
"Mr. Kim," he said in a soft yet powerful voice.
"Sir," Harry said with a salute. The Captain returned the salute and sat for a moment, sizing Harry up.
Harry was doing the same thing, Sharif had brown eyes that spoke of an inner peace, and he wore a close shaven goatee, also in the early stages of graying.
After a moment of deliberation the Captain stood up and grasped Harry's arm.
"Welcome to the Columbia Mr. Kim, please accompany me to my ready room. Franklin, please come too."
He was met with a chorus of 'Aye Sir' as he led them to the ready room.
"Have a seat gentlemen and we can begin briefing Mr. Kim." He sat at his desk as they found places in the chairs before him.
"Now, Mr. Kim, most of what we are about to tell you is classified, but since you are already familiar with most of it, your security clearance is almost higher than mine." Sharif replied with a smile when Harry looked embarrassed. "Now I'm sure Franklin has told you a few details, but we'd like to explain more now. Mr. Franklin you may begin."
With a nod Franklin stood up began the briefing on the viewscreen.
"Now Harry, what I told you was just the basics. This ship is armed with Quantum torpedoes in addition to the Transphasic ones Voyager brought with her. The Generated Ablative Armor that you noticed has also been integrated along with several Borg shield modifications, our shields are 130% stronger than they were before. Now this part is only between you, me, and the Captain. The Warp Drive is equipped with a working Transwarp Coil. However it is only to be used to get to the Delta Quadrant and back, the power drain is too great. You're probably wondering how we can have all this technology working when Voyager only returned three weeks ago, correct?"
Harry could only nod, dumbfounded as he took all the advancements in.
"We've been working on most of these since we established contact with you via Pathfinder, the boys in R&D were very eager to get to work on most of these modifications, they were finished by the time Voyager returned home. The ones that we needed to wait on Voyager for were finished in the last 3 weeks. Admiral Paris insisted that Captain Janeway send as much of the technological advancements that she could. As for the technology brought by the future Admiral Janeway, that was simply based off technology developed onboard Voyager. Now, the Astrometrics Lab that you built has been added as a basic design to all new starships. As for the transporters, they too have been modified by both Borg technology and the research done by the Hansen's. The ship uses bio-neural jel-packs with an isolinear secondary system, just like Voyager, and like her, we have modified the EPS conduits and other plasma flow systems with Borg technology. All of the modifications are, I believe, ones that you yourself, helped to install. Any questions?"
Harry could only look at him stunned before he picked his jaw up off the floor.
"Yes, I know, she's impressive. She's also the prototype, so you can see why all the security and clearances are required." Sharif asked after Harry assimilated this information.
"Yes Sir, I would like to say that I look forward to our mission Sir. May I ask what it is exactly?"
"You may, our mission falls under the Pathfinder Project, that's why Admiral Paris choose you himself. He actually had several reasons, your familiarity with the technology and the Delta Quadrant, but I digress. Our mission is to explore the fringes of the Delta Quadrant and to strategically place relay stations for Pathfinder. It is the Admiral's hope that we may be able to eventually contact a few of the more friendly races that you encountered."
Harry only nodded as he took this in as well.
"May I respectfully ask where my quarters are Sir?" Harry asked once he was able to.
"Yes you may, Franklin, please escort him to his quarters. Harry, get some rest, you look exhausted."
"Thank you Sir, I will." Harry replied as he followed Franklin.
==
Seven looked around the quarters she was sharing with her roommate. She had, as expected, been accepted into the Starfleet Science Academy. While she didn't like the idea of sharing quarters with another person, she believed that she could 'adapt'.
As she placed her books on her desk, she looked around her sparsely populated corner. She had very little in the way of personal effects, a few books from the Captain, a framed picture or two and various little items given to her over the years. One of the most prized possessions in her collection was hidden away from view. Hidden so only she could see it.
It was a small bear, holding a little plastic sign with the words "I Missed You" written on it in red ink. She smiled as she thought about it. Harry had given it to her shortly after she had been rescued from the Borg. She smiled as she remembered how it happened.
She had been in the Cargo Bay, working at her console when Ensign Kim walked in. He was smiling and hiding something behind his back. As he approached her, his smile began to fade and a look of apprehension replaced it.
"Hey Seven, how are you feeling?" he asked as he leaned against her console, the object still behind his back.
"I am ..." she paused, having been about to say 'undamaged' but was she? "unsure."
"About what?" he asked.
"When I was taken by the Borg, they wanted me because I was regaining my humanity. They felt I would be able to assist in assimilating humanity. Yet the entire time I was at Unimatrix 01, all I could think about was escaping and returning to Voyager."
"Seven, that's a normal feeling when you're taken from the place you consider home. You want to get back there as soon as possible, in any way possible. That's the way I felt about Earth."
"Felt?" she asked, aware as ever to his phrasing of words. "But I was under the impression that you, along with the rest of the crew, considered Earth home."
"I did, but after all these years, I consider Voyager home, and that home, I feel, belongs in the Delta Quadrant." He paused a second to gather his courage. "But I do know that it wouldn't be 'home' without you Seven, here."
He then handed her a small red bag, which she carefully took.
"What is it?"
"Open it and find out," he replied, not giving her any clues.
She opened the bag to find a small white bear staring out at her. She reached in and gently pulled it from the bag. She read the sign he was holding and looked at Harry for an answer.
"You were gone for awhile, and I missed you. So I got you that bear to say 'welcome home'" he said with a cheesy grin.
"Thank you Ensign, it's ... cute," she replied with a quirk of her eyebrow and the faintest hint of a smile.
"That's what friends are for Seven, to cheer each other up and welcome them home after they were away. Well, I'd better get going, see you later."
He then left, Seven just looked at the bear before hugging it close to her. It even smelled like him, she smiled at this thought.
She was awakened from her daydream by her room mate returning. Seven's eyes wandered over her meager possessions before landing on an image. Picking it up she examined it. It was a photo of the entire Senior Staff at one of Neelix's 'morale parties,' Seven was there, along with the Doctor. They had all posed for this image, the entire staff receiving a copy. She looked happy standing next to Ensign Kim, who was smiling as he held an umbrella drink in his hand.
Shaking herself from her dreams she looked at the Chronometer, she only had a few minutes to get ready for her date with Chakotay. With a sad sigh she replaced the picture, wishing that it were Harry she had the date with and not Chakotay.
==
The three sat around a small table in a café.
"Thank you for coming," Janeway said as she sipped her coffee.
"Thank you for inviting us Captain," Tom replied as B'Elanna nodded.
"Where's your daughter?"
"With Neelix, since they made him a 'Liaison to Starfleet on the Delta Quadrant', he's been able to hang around more. He's so good with the children, that he thought about opening a daycare center." B'Elanna said with a laugh at the thought.
"So long as they don't let him serve Leola root, they'll be fine." Janeway replied, herself laughing at the thought.
"But that's not why I asked you here. I wanted to see how you were doing."
"Us? We're fine. Tom has a teaching job at the Academy, he's gonna train the next generation of 'Ace pilots'. Meanwhile I have a design team job at Starfleet Engineering Research."
"That's not what I meant B'Elanna, I mean how are you doing away from the Delta Quadrant?"
"We're adjusting, but it's hard. After all, out daughter was born there."
"We don't really miss the Delta Quadrant itself, Captain," Tom said. "It's the close community of Voyager that we miss. We miss not being able to go down the hall and talk to Harry, or Neelix. We miss seeing Naomi playing with Miral."
Janeway only nodded, she understood completely how they felt.
"But we are home now, we can't go back. But we can keep that community spirit alive. If you ever need anything, please don't hesitate to call me. Tuvok and Chakotay wanted me to say the same. Now for the question that's been bugging the entire former Senior Staff. Where has our young Harry gotten himself off to?"
"I haven't seen him since he was promoted," B'Elanna said, looking at Tom who confirmed.
"No one has, that's the problem, and it's been over a month, almost 2. I've asked around Starfleet HQ, but his files appear to be sealed, and no one will answer any of my questions."
"Don't worry about it Captain, I'm sure we'll hear something from him. So how is Tuvok?" Tom asked, changing to a less complicated subject.
"He returned to Vulcan, T'Pel and his children meeting him when he arrived. He too put in for a teaching position at the Academy. And Chakotay has taken the Captaincy of the USS Belmont, a Defiant-Class Escort vessel, he's been running Escort for the Admiralty."
"You know, thinking about Chakotay, I think that's why Harry disappeared. You should have seen his face when he learned that Chakotay and Seven were 'romantically affiliated' he was crushed, it was like all the life was sucked from his body."
Janeway nodded before answering.
"Yes, I noticed that too, his work never suffered so I never said anything about it. now I wish I had."
B'Elanna put her hand on top of the Captain's.
"Captain, there was no way you could know what would happen once we got back. For all we know Harry could be holed up in a bar somewhere in Paris right now, or he could have put in for Deep-Space duty."
"Harry wouldn't do that, he just got home." Janeway said, startled by that thought.
"I know, that's what makes it so unrealistic," B'Elanna replied with a smile as she leaned back in her chair.
==