Disclaimer: Paramount owns all, 'xcept Shannon 'o course.

A/N: Hey everybody. Thanks for the reviews. Here's another, one, I'm

Taking good advantage of the summer hols.

"Just what exactly is going on here?"

Shannon glanced at Renee. What was Chakotay talking about? Nothing was going on, she has just asked Renee if it was alright for her to have ice-cream. She looked at her mother's shocked face and turned back to Renee.

"Oh," she gasped silently, as realization dawned on her. She's been listening to everything Renee had told her. Renee had turned her against Starfleet, but Renee was right, wasn't she? Renee was always right, she'd said so herself.

She watched as Chakotay took two big strides and stood face to face with Renee. "What are you doing to her?" He asked.

Renee broke away from Chakotay's eye-lock and shouted to her, "They're doing it again, trying to cover up their lies. Don't listen to them, Shannon."

"Shannon?" Kathryn spoke for the first time.

Shannon looked at her and then back at Renee.

"Shannon, whatever Renee has been telling you it's not true."

"That's wrong Shannon, Starfleet just wants to use to, to get clone you. Create other smart people like you. Why else do you think she left you alone in the Alpha Quadrant? She doesn't care about you – she's using you. She doesn't love you. Join me, we'll show her."

Shannon blinked, confused. She had come here for her mother, hadn't she? But Renee was right; her mother had left her in the Alpha Quadrant, all alone. But that was because of the caretaker? Right? Or was that a lie? Shannon had never really looked it up in the logs before. Everything she knew about he caretaker she'd learnt from members of the crew, but Renee had never told her about the caretaker. She'd told her it was lie from the start. Maybe the whole crew was under her mother's orders? She could throw them in the brig for not listening to them. But join Renee? Where, they were stuck on Voyager?

She looked at Kathryn; her mother loved her, didn't she? She was so confused? What was wrong with her, she was never confused.

She glanced back at the people in the hall, Renee, seemed to have grown taller, she was looking Chakotay in the eye.

Everything seemed to happen in slow motion. She felt something around her shoulders and a soft familiar voice trying to talk to her, but she couldn't tear herself away from Renee and Chakotay.

Shannon heard a soft cry beside her as Renee flung Chakotay across the room before turning back to face her. Slowly, her skin began to crumple away as if she was being burnt, but Renee wasn't in any pain, but she wasn't Renee anymore either, she was green with ridges down her neck and along her ears.

------

Kathryn tore her gaze away from Chakotay and watched stunned as Renee, melted – the only word she could think of describe what she was seeing was melted into an alien life form. Next to her, Shannon seemed transfixed. What was happening to her daughter?

"Janeway to bridge, intruder alert," she heard herself saying. Reflex, her brain told her. Thanks, she answered silently.

She searched for a phaser. The closest one was in the bedroom. Renee, or whoever she was, would notice if she moved. The other was behind this alien. This entity.

She focused her attention on Chakotay's limp form and noted the rise and fall of his chest. She probably would've thanked god, if not for the moment next to her. Shannon had fallen on her knees and was clutching her head in pain.

Where were the security teams?

"Janeway to..."

"It's no use Captain Janeway. I've disabled communications from this room with the rest of the ship."

Kathryn's eye flickered to the bedroom, her only hope was the phaser.

"What do you want? What have you done to my child?"

"Do you remember, not long ago, you rescued a little boy from the Borg? That little boy was my son, but you took him away from me."

"You sent him on a death mission, I had to save him."

"Let's forget that for a moment," the alien's voice was crisp and clear, but she spoke in a slight sing-song tune. "And focus on what happened next. I sacrificed myself in his place, to save my people, my villager, but what you told my husband seemed to have some sort of effect on him. He stopped me half way, we never did save our people, but the poison never left my body. It turned me, into... this." She looked down at her own body.

"My husband shuddered to look at me. He left me, and it was soon after that, I realised I could change how I looked. I tried turning into you Captain, but I realised that I couldn't be you. Your crew would suspect it if you started acting differently. So, I decided to attack you the way you attacked me."

Both women peeled their eyes off each other to stare at Shannon, writhing on the floor.

"You took away my son, my life, my husband, and I would turn your daughter against you. She would be your undoing. I implanted a cortical device in her head, she would think me god, but Shannon, this measly human child was very strong, but questioning proved that it was because of some chemical in her body and I soon compensated." She paused, "Shannon still broke free of mind control, but not as often. I was going to drive her against you; it would have upset you, wouldn't it? You would have been less capable. Look at you know, you helpless being, sitting there and staring at her as if your world has collapsed around you. Now you know how I feel and you cannot escape Your daughter is dying and so will you."

The alien turned around and grabbed the phaser off the table, when she turned back, Kathryn was gone.

"You stupid human. You should know better than to mess with me."

She marched into Kathryn's bedroom, to find Kathryn wasn't there.

"Come out, come out wherever you are." The alien sneaked a glance at the control panel next to the door. Her code was still in place, there was no way the Janeway woman would be able to leave. She would get her revenge.

The child's room next.

Yup, there the Janeway woman was. She'd march up to her, the woman would suffer.

Kathryn reached into the drawer and pulled out the phaser she'd made Shannon promise to keep there, but never use unless in dire situations.

Both woman fired at the same time, but the alien was unsuspecting, unlike Kathryn, she hadn't thought to move out of the way.

Kathryn sheltered her head as bits of alien flew all over the place. "Janeway to sickbay," the urgency of the situation wasn't lost on her. Not all was over. She moved to Shannon's side. The girl has stopped moving, she felt for a pulse. There wasn't one.

"No," she said softly, "No."

"Yes Captain?"

"Three to beam out, medical emergency."

-----------------------

"She forged the file. It would look like she'd been here forever and that we'd forgotten her because she stayed out of the way so much," explain B'Elanna. "I'm sorry Captain, I should have noticed."

"I should have as well B'La, but we were so busy with communications from Earth and."

"What's important is that Shannon is safe." B'Elanna regretted her words immediately. Shannon was still in a coma. "I'm sorry Kathryn, I shouldn't have."

Kathryn looked away, "It's alright."

"Sickbay to Janeway, Captain I have good news."

"On my way," Kathryn ended the communication, "Coming?"

"Oh, I hope she's alright."

"Chakotay," the door opened to reveal Shannon trying to sit up and face the Commander. She gasped as the world span for a moment.

"Shannon," the Doctor reached out to help steady her.

"Oh no, I'm alright. Just moved too fast that's all. Happens to the healthiest of us."

"I've never heard that excuse before."

Shannon gave him a small smile, before turning back to Chakotay. "Are you alright? I mean, you should have seen the way she threw you against the wall. It was straight out of one of those 21st century movies."

Kathryn laughed, "You remember, huh?"

"Yeah, I remember... and I'm sorry. I should have realised didn't want me for experiments."

"You were brainwashed." B'Elanna added.

"Oh, that explains the headache."

"Shannon, you said you were fine," Kathryn was next to her in a moment.

"Hey, you lie all the time too."

"Like mother like daughter," teased Chakotay.

"I did enjoy having someone my age to hang out with though."

"Hang out?"

"That's 21st century slang for someone to be about, do activities with," explained B'Elanna.

At everyone's shocked expression, she laughed, "I am married to Tom, you know."

"Well next time Shannon," said Kathryn, "I think you shouldn't stick to people your own age."

"I'm not so sure about that Captain; Tom isn't exactly what we might call mature."

"Hi folks, I heard the good news," Tom Paris was surprised when everyone started chuckling.

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"I think I've had about enough undercover aliens for a year or so," sighed Kathryn as she cleaned up the bowls from their 'coffee-ice cream' dessert. Chocolate for Shannon though. Kathryn wanted her well rested, and from experience, she was sure even coffee ice-cream kept you up longer than it should have.

"Oh, and I thought this would be the prefect opportunity to reveal my secret identity to you."

"Very funny," she slapped Chakotay on the shoulder.

"I think you might like what you get."

"Oh really?" she asked as he backed her up against a wall.

Her reply was a kiss. She relaxed into his arms, and deepened it, her hands trailing...

beep boop

She pulled away, "Enter."

"Yes Commander," she asked the Vulcan, making sure she was on the opposite end of the room from Chakotay. The closure might have revealed what they were up to.

"Good evening Captain, Commander."

"Tuvok," acknowledged Chakotay.

"Here is the report you asked for Captain."

"Thank you Commander, I'll see you tomorrow."

"Yes, Captain."

As the doors slid shut behind him, Chakotay turned back to face Kathryn.

"Need a hand?" he asked, helping her pull off her boots.

She sighed and snuggled up next to him, "Mmm," she said softly, "You smell good."

"Thanks... Kathryn?"

A soft sigh was his only reply as Kathryn held him closer.

He sighed and leaned his head back, "Damn that Vulcan."

A/N: So whaddaya think. I'm not sure I got the part about what happened in Icheb completely right, but that's the best I remember that episode. If I went wrong anywhere, tell me. And I'll correct it. Thanks... KayB