A.N. This is a bit short but forgive me. I am still trying to get my Trek legs back. After such a long time, feedback would be much appreciated. Now, on with the show!
B'Elanna flinched at Jake's hardened tone.
The room had grown silent, pre-empted by Captain Janeway's surprised gasp and Tom and the Doctor's look of shock and utter disbelief.
If there was anything the three of them knew it was that no one, amnesia be damned, spoke to B'Elanna Torres that way. No one. Not unless they wanted to keep their tongue in mouth and not wear it as a belt.
A moment passed. They could hear B'Elanna's faint breathing as she tried to control her temper, even as Aron made a move to stand next to her.
But when he reached her side, she took a step closer to the screen and…sighed.
"I'm sorry" she said
Behind her, everyone suddenly seemed to explode into life.
"What!" Tom sputtered, his eyeballs nearly popping out of his head
Next to him, Captain Janeway and the Doctor looked equally shaken. This was something out of their wildest dreams, and that was saying a lot.
"Aron and I are on the Voyager's ship" she explained, in a rather controlled tone "Father knows where we are, but I know I should have told you"
"Was that an actual apology?" the Doctor asked while the Captain looked on like a confused but proud mother
"Yes, Doctor I think it was" she deadpanned, turning her attention to the man on the screen
His look softened a little after B'Elanna's explanation but still didn't lose its guarded expression.
"Forgive me then" he said, before looking at the rest of them "My apologies especially to you, Captain. I was just worried when B'Elanna and my cousin disappeared off the planet."
"Apology accepted" Captain Janeway answered "Mr.--"
Aron, ever the diplomat, decided to do the introductions, thankful that the tension had eased somewhat in the room.
"Jacobian Von Ghetti" he interjected "Pardon me Captain, for not doing the introductions earlier"
"That's quite alright" the Captain answered, ignoring the snort from Tom, mumbling something about endless apologies
"Jake, as we have taken in calling him, is one of my father's aides. He also serves in our defense force as one of best fighter pilots and will be representing Malta in one of the races"
Jake bowed his head in greeting. "Welcome to Azara, Captain."
Janeway nodded in response, as Aron continued with the introductions.
"This is Captain Janeway, who represents Starfleet and the Federation of Planets here in the Delta Quadrant" he went on "Their Chief Medical Officer, Doctor…"
"Just the Doctor, please" the Doctor answered "I haven't quite chosen a name yet"
The Maltans' gave him a rather blank look, most probably wondering why someone of his age and stature still hadn't yet chosen a name.
"It's a long story" Tom explained "And please don't ask him to elaborate, we will never hear the end of it…"
Both the Doctor and the Captain gave him a hard stare. Even though he stopped himself from rolling his eyes, he knew that he would be in trouble later on. Not that he cared.
The day was proving to be more difficult for him as time wore on, and all Tom wanted to do was to bury himself on his bed and hope to hell that this was just a bad dream. Or a holodeck malfunction. Or just about any excuse.
Anything that didn't have B'Elanna not remembering him.
But she's alive Tom, at least she's alive…
His frustration made him glance at B'Elanna, who was studiously avoiding everyone's stare by looking at her surroundings with a patented glare.
Tom almost smiled. He knew that look. B'Elanna wore it every time she was uncomfortable. It was something familiar and it gave him hope.
"And this is Lt. Tom Paris" Aron said "Voyager's Chief Helmsman"
"Hello" he said, careful not to reveal the edge in his voice, even with Jake's suddenly critical look
"Yes, hello" Jake nodded in greeting, matching his glare "I've read about you, you're in the same race as I am. In fact, we're in the same heat."
Tom's eyes narrowed "That's good to know"
Jake was about to say something when Aron cleared his throat, reminding him of the nature his call.
"I will look forward to competing with you then" he said rather politely, before turning to look at B'Elanna
"I'm sorry to interrupt you in your meeting, but the Prime Minister wishes to speak with B'Elanna"
The mention of the Prime Minister seemed to perk her up, and B'Elanna's eyes lit up as she turned to look at the screen.
"Secure the channel" she said, giving Aron a slight nod, indicating that she wished to be alone "Then put him onscreen"
"Understood" Jake concurred, giving her a small, almost imperceptible smile before signing out
It almost went unnoticed, but Tom saw. And somehow Tom knew. And now Tom was worried.
"Aron…" he was about to ask when B'Elanna turned around and pinned everyone with a stare.
"Leave us" she ordered
And for once, the Captain, even the Doctor, complied. They marched through the door, Tom lingering for awhile before he felt Aron's hand on his arm, gently ushering him out.
He looked up and his eyes met with compassion.
"Now is not the time" Aron told him
"Yeah, but when is?" he said, trying hard to stop the angered scream that wanted to erupt from his throat
"That's insane!" B'Elanna seethed, her eyes burning
She paced around the small room like a caged animal, trying to contain her anger against the calm and collected matriarch on the screen.
"No, it isn't" the Prime Minister explained "And if you calm down, you will realize that this is a perfectly good idea"
"It's ridiculous! You can't leave me in this…this ship of fools! I don't even know these people and yet they all pretend to know me!"
"That's because they do know you" he answered "And you won't be alone, Aron and Asher will be with you"
"What!" she cried "Do you even know what a huge security risk that is! Jake would never even go for it!"
"Too bad I happen to outrank him then" he cut in firmly "And yes, I do know what I'm talking about, and I still think this is good for you. For all of you."
B'Elanna opened her mouth to argue but quickly changed her mind. Her father's expression showed that he wouldn't be swayed, no matter how hard or how loudly she complained.
"What about the race" she asked dejectedly
"You will still be participating" he said reassuringly "You will still see your shuttle and harass your crew. You will still be performing all your official duties, but spend all your free time on Voyager."
"Alright" she said "Not that I've had any free time, anyway"
"You will" he answered quickly "The engineers tell me that the calibrations to the Argo have been going ahead of schedule, so I'm sure you'll be able to accommodate a few hours preparing a gala for our guests from the Alpha Quadrant"
She didn't say anything beyond a snort, but nodded anyway.
"Good" her father said, pausing for a while, his face graced with a reflective smile "Now call your brother; we have some things to discuss."
"What!"
Kathryn Janeway stood her ground and tried hard not to flinch, even if Tom's voice and behavior had become increasingly shrill in each passing minute.
"Some bozo linebacker tries to put his claims on B'Elanna and I am supposed to just sit here and--"
"Captain Von Ghetti has made no indication"
"No indication!" he yelled "You all saw the look on his face, that was a pretty clear indication to me"
"Lieutenant!"
"And what are we doing! For the past five hours all we've done is stare at each other exchanging pleasantries, while these people can further brainwash her with--"
"Stand down Lieutenant Paris" she barked "And need I remind you that I am this close to putting you on report."
Tom, recognizing a major reprimand, calmed down somewhat, but did nothing to extinguish the fire in his glare.
"I believe them" she said, putting a hand up to keep him from speaking "And deep down, I know you do, too. Seeing B'Elanna like this is frustrating for all of us, but I'm sure you of all people are aware of how important it is to maintain protocol"
His shoulders slumped slightly, and she realized that this was the only apology that she was ever going to get.
She knew that he still harbored some sort of resentment towards her…towards all of them really, for not staying back longer to search for B'Elanna.
How things must have affected him, finally seeing her after so many agonizing months of trying to forget, only to find out that she had forgotten him.
She knew the painful questions of regret that must be going through his head: what if I'd searched longer, what if I'd tried harder, trusted my instincts for this given situation…what if, what if, what if. She asked the exact same questions herself, as were Chakotay and the rest of the senior staff, and she was sure the guilt weighed heavier on all of them.
Because at least Tom could sleep knowing that he had never lost his belief.
"We'll get her back Tom" she reassured him "You've met a lot of extreme situations before, and the two of you have always come through it"
"Not this one though" he admitted, hurting "Doesn't matter what happens, things will never be the same, and I can't say that they'll all be good"
He'd looked at her then, so lost and so small that her heart broke just looking at him.
And neither of them could stop from themselves from breaking down when she reached her hands out to hug him, not entirely sure if she was giving comfort or taking it herself.
"I'm not sure what's worse" he said, his voice breaking "Living with that empty feeling thinking that she's dead, or hating myself for resenting her in not being able to remember"
"Tom--"
"Because how could she forget" he cried "After all we've been through, all I've ever done…I tried so hard for her."
"I know that, we all know that" she said "And deep down, I think she knows that too…even if she can't…remember"
They clung to each other then, like a man who had lost his lover and a woman who had lost a child, soothing each others pain.
Neither of them knew for how long they stayed that way until the doors opened and the Doctor stepped in.
"Doctor" Janeway asked, briefly wiping the corners of her eyes
"They've come out of my office, Thank God"
"Doc--"
"Might I remind all of you that sickbay isn't a briefing room?" he muttered "Three hours…I could have gathered a lot more data--"
"Doctor!" the two disgruntled officers cried in unison, making him wince in surprise
"Well they're done, and I believe Lieutenant Torres wants to see you Captain"
She blinked, surprised. "She does?"
"I do" a voice said from the doorway
They all looked up to see a tired but clearly infuriated B'Elanna standing by the entrance of the room, flanked by Asher and her brother.
"And please Doctor, just call me B'Elanna" she informed him bitingly, before turning back to the Captain "My father wishes to speak with you"
She nodded "Alright, Doctor, if you could reroute the communiqué here…if that's okay with you, Lieu—B'Elanna?"
"That would be fine"
The Doctor moved to reroute communication to the nearest panel, muttering once again about how this was his office, and not the ships conference.
A moment passed before the face of a regal old man appeared on the screen, his handsome face presenting that of a kind yet still intimidating monarch.
"Captain Janeway" he smiled in greeting
"Prime Minister, thank you for allowing us to dock in your orbit"
"That is no problem. In fact, we'd like to extend our hospitalities by inviting you to our world"
"That would be an honor" she answered warmly "If this wouldn't be an inconvenience…"
"Not at all" he reassured her "B'Elanna has been preparing so much for the race that we are well ahead of schedule, and there is nothing there that our engineers cannot handle"
"Then we would be glad to accept"
"Good" he said, pausing "Good…In the meantime, my children have planned a welcoming gala for you, and I'm sure B'Elanna could use your help in telling us more about your customs."
"Of course" she said, casting a rather surprised look at B'Elanna, who was sulking in the corner
"Good, then I'm sure, in order to facilitate this further, that you wouldn't mind if B'Elanna stayed with you?"
For a moment, she was quit taken aback, but quickly recovered as she tried to ignore the slight ruckus behind her.
"Why yes, Prime Minister" she answered tentatively at first, then firmly, happily "Yes, we would be happy to have B'Elanna on our ship"
"Excellent" he said, smiling at them, his eyes lingering for a moment on B'Elanna before continuing "We will send you the coordinates as well as an escort to Maltan space"
"Thank you" she replied, probably for more things than the obvious
"You are welcome, Captain Janeway" he answered sincerely