By Diane Klepper
(Author's Note: The Paris family, celebrate their first Halloween on Earth.)
Tom Paris entered Miral's nursery and saw his daughter sitting up in her crib playing with her space shuttle. The minute Miral saw her father enter she stood up holding the side of the crib for support and said, "Da…Da."
Tom smiled at his little girl and took her out of the crib. Holding her Tom smiled. "I hope my little Warrior Princess had a nice nap."
Miral pointed to the replicator on the wall of her nursery. "Ba…Ba."
Tom smiled and carried her to the replicator and said, "Miral formula one."
A few seconds later a bottle of formula appeared on the replicator tray and Tom picked it up and gave it to Miral. She happily drunk from her bottle as Tom put her down on the dressing table. Tom walked to the closet keeping a close eye on Miral making sure she didn't fall off the table. Tom took a pink dress out of the closet and walked over to Miral with the dress. Smiling at his daughter Tom said, "Guess what Sweetie…Today is Halloween…its an old Earth holiday that many people do not really celebrate anymore but Starfleet Command always throws a party every year to celebrate."
Miral dropped her bottle and pulled at the dress.
Tom gently pulled the dress away from her little hands. "No Sweetie…you mustn't rip your Princess dress." Tom kissed Miral on her forehead ridges. "In the old animated Disney movies the Princess always wore dresses like this …When you're a little older we will download them on the television. Mommy built for the television for Daddy when I was on an away mission. Maybe we can convince Momy to join us and we will all watch them together."
Tom changed Miral's diaper and started putting the dress on her. Miral squirmed a little but Tom patiently said, "Sweetie stay still…I want you to look beautiful when Mommy comes home.
B'Elanna Torres entered her apartment and put down the two pads she was carrying on the table by the front door. She looked around the apartment looking for Tom. She noticed that the light of Miral's room was on. B'Elanna speaking loud enough that Tom would hear her said, "Tom…I'm home."
Tom called out, "B'Elanna…don't come in…We'll be right out."
B'Elanna gave a slight smile. She knew Tom was up to something. Tom ran out of the house early this morning because he had to something to do before he went to the Academy to teach his morning flight class.
She walked over to the replicator and said, "Tom what do you want for dinner?"
Tom came out of the room carrying Miral. Miral was dressed in a long pink gown that came all the way down to her feet. On her head she wore a gold colored crown. Even though Miral looked beautiful B'Elanna frowned, "It's tonight…the Halloween party."
Tom placed Miral on the couch and walked over to B'Elanna and put his arms around her waist. "Yes it tonight…I have your costume laid out on your bed…I told you about the party for the last two weeks."
B'Elanna pulled away from her husband's grasp. "Tom I'm not feeling to well…I think I might be coming down with a cold…Why don't you take Miral and I'll stay home."
Knowing that something was bothering his wife Tom said, "B'Elanna what's wrong?"
B'Elanna walked to the bedroom and sat on the bed and she pulled off her boot. "Nothing's wrong…I'm just tired."
Tom followed his wife into the bedroom a few minutes later. He sat down next to his wife and took her right hand into his. "B'Elanna you complain when I try to hide my feelings…you are doing the same thing. Tell me why you hate Halloween."
B'Elanna stood up and walked over to the dresser and picked up her comb. She looked into the old fashion dresser's mirror and started combing her hair. "Tom it's a stupid holiday…dressing up in costumes and pretending you are someone else…On Kessik Four we never celebrated Halloween…I never heard of the holiday until I entered the Academy." B'Elanna turned to face her husband, "Where's Miral…you didn't leave her alone on the couch…she feel off couch last week."
Tom smiled, "She's fine…I put her in her playpen…B'Elanna you can't worry about every time she falls…My mom said when I was six months old I tried to climb out of my crib and fell on my head."
"That's explains a lot."
Tom smirked, "Very funny…You are just trying to change the subject."
B'Elanna frowned, "Why is this party so important to you?"
Tom was about to make a joke but he knew that if he wanted B'Elanna to tell him what was wrong he would have to be honest with her. Tom took a deep breath and said in a quiet voice, "My parents were very strict when I was a kid…I was only allowed to attend well chaperoned school events or Starfleet functions…At the Starfleet functions everyone knew who I was…I was an Admiral's kid…I was expected to always behavior properly…I was suppose to be the perfect future Starfleet officer."
B'Elanna frowned. "That's a lot of pressure to put on a kid."
Tom smiled. "It was…but once a year I could put on a costume and just act like any other kid…In fact I first played Captain Proton at a Starfleet Halloween party…my best friend Charlie played Buster…Don't tell Harry…I never told him he wasn't the original Buster."
B'Elanna smiled, "I won't."
"Besides I kissed my first girl at a Halloween party when I was eleven…her name was Christina and her father was also an Admiral."
"What trying to get another kiss from Christina?"
Tom walked over to B'Elanna and kissed her on the lips and smirked. "No…last I heard Christina was married with four kids…You know you are the only woman I want to kiss."
B'Elanna kissed Tom back and then pulled away, "You better mean that mister or I will break every born in your body."
"Yes ma'am." He gave her another kiss. "It's your turn…Why don't you want to go to the party?" B'Elanna took hold of Tom's right hand and led him back to the bed. After they both sat down she looked into Tom's eyes and she knew she could trust him with anything. "My freshman year my roommate convinced me to go the Halloween party…."
B'Elanna Torres was standing in front of her dresser mirror nervously combed her hair. Her roommate Melinda had convinced her to attend tonight's Halloween party. Even though she had been at the Academy for two months she hadn't really made that many friends. Her roommate Melinda Beckman was very outgoing and insisted that she go to the party with her. Melinda even helped B'Elanna pick out a costume, which consisted of a long flowing blue gown and a pointed hat with a veil on it. The veil covered most of her face but it was thin enough so she could see through it.
B'Elanna put down her comb down on her dresser and put on her hat and veil. The bathroom door opened and Melinda came in wearing a pink dress with a hat and veil. Melinda thought it would fun if they played maidens in the tales of knights in shiny armor that she loved to read. B'Elanna was more into Klingon romance novels but there was no way she was going to wear body armor to a Starfleet Academy Halloween party.
Melinda said, "Come on B'Elanna we have to get there before all the cute guys are taken."
B'Elanna frowned, "Melinda I feel uncomfortable playing dress up,"
Melinda smiled at her. "B'Elanna you can't spend all your time studying…You hardly ever go out." She straightened her hat in the mirror. "We are two beautiful maidens waiting for our handsome knights to come rescue us."
"Melinda this is the twenty-fourth century…we may be rescuing them."
Melinda laughed, "Your right…lets look for some handsome knights to rescue." They both left their quarters giggling.
Two hours and forty-five minutes later B'Elanna had to admit she was having a good time. She was sitting at a large table with Melinda and a number of people she knew from her freshman classes. She was discussing yesterday homework assignment with Brian Williams from her engineering class. Brian said, "B'Elanna I wish I had you head for Engineering…. I barely passed last week's test."
B'Elanna smiled at him. Brian was from a farming planet and he was the first member of his family to go enter Starfleet. He felt out of place in San Francisco and B'Elanna felt very comfortable being around him. Brian also had deep blue eyes and B'Elanna liked men with blue eyes. "Maybe we can study for next week's test together."
Brian smiled at her. "I would like that…Can I buy you another drink?"
"I would like that….I'll be right back….I'm just going to freshen up."
B'Elanna walked into the ladies room and walked over to the mirror to fix her lip- stick. She was about to leave when she head two female voices talking to each other from the other side of the ladies room. One of the girls' said, "Barbara I saw Brian Williams sitting with that Klingon girl…Did you two break up?"
"Of course not Sarah…Torres is suppose to be an engineering whiz….Brian is struggling in his engineering class and he wants her to tutor him….He is just being nice to her to help him pass the class…Why on Earth would anybody in their right mind be interested in that Klingon girl….those ridges are so ugly"
B'Elanna wanted to smash the faces of those two girls in but deep down she felt they was right…her ridges made her ugly. She ran out of the bathroom and back to her dorm-room. When Melinda came back to their room later B'Elanna told her that she left because she had too much to drink and she wasn't feeling well. After that she refused to go to any Starfleet Academy parties no matter how much Melinda begged her to go.
Tom looked B'Elanna in the eyes and smiled. "Those girls were idiots…Your ridges give you an exotic beauty that they were jealous of."
She smiled at her husband. "You are the first person who ever made me feel beautiful."
Tom kissed B'Elanna on the lips. "You are beautiful…you know when I first fell in love with you…It was when Neelix and I found you on the Ocampan planet."
B'Elanna gently slapped Tom on the arm. "Tom I was dirty and sick."
Tom smiled at her. "To me you are always beautiful and I hope Miral grows up to look just like her mommy."
B'Elanna smiled at him. She gave him, a long kiss. "You aren't half bad either Helm-boy…maybe after the party we can put Miral to bed and do some celebrating ourselves."
"I like that…why don't you change into you costume and I'll finish getting Miral ready."
"Okay… don't forget to put on a jacket on Miral…I don't want her to get sick."
Tom smiled, "Yes ma'am." He gave B'Elanna one last kiss on her forehead ridges and said, "Happy Halloween, B'Elanna."