A/N: I really appreciate the feedback. I hope everyone is enjoying the story even if the chapters are getting shorter.

Time Enough Chapter 8

"And here it is!" Nelix called out. He was hidden behind a massive sheet cake. Paris ran over and helped place it on a table. It was decorated with sugar stars and the words "Goodbye Kretani."

"Well done, Nelix," Janeway said. "Okay, we are officially out of Kretani space and back to routine duty schedules." The crew cheered, the most energy many had displayed in days. The constant alerts were draining.

Nelix dished out cake. "Come on, Seven," he cajoled. "Just try it."

"The nutritional value of that food product is negligible," Seven protested.

"Oh, eat the cake," Janeway said the put a forkful in her mouth. "That's delicious, Nelix. Nutritional value be damned."

Seven furrowed her brow. "Very well," she consented. She took the plate and ate a small bite. It was, as expected, overly sweet. There was nothing to recommend a second bite and yet she took one. And another. It felt oddly good. She remembered her research, the reading suggested by Cavanaugh, and recalled a couple of scenes where food was used as a prelude to acts of sexual intimacy. Seven had been baffled by the notion but now felt she may understand it. She filed the information away for later use.

Janeway smirked a bit as she watched Seven eat the cake. The former Borg looked almost orgasmic. Her mind ventured to Seven's face in other possible situations and imagined.. Oh, time to stop. "Thank you, Nelix. Everyone, enjoy the party." She smiled and headed out with a purposeful stride calculated to make bit seem she had important business. She did, in fact. A cold shower was first on her agenda.

Janice and Mio arrived in the cafeteria. They had been in no hurry to get to the party. Arriving late would lessen the odds of running into Seven or Chakotay. Janice breathed a sigh of relief when she saw neither present. She picked up a plate of cake and cup of punch from the table and turned to hand then to Mio. Mio did not seem to notice Janice. Her eyes were locked on a table past Jan at the back of the room. Janice turned and saw Carol sitting very close to Nels.

"Oh, hell no," Janice growled. She set the plate and cup back down and started toward the two.

"Don't," Mio said as she reached for Jan's shoulder. "Can we just leave? Please?"

Jan saw Nels and Carol make eye contact. Carol was smiling nastily. Nels pointed at her, or perhaps at Mio, in "finger gun" fashion and laughed. "Yeah, let's leave." Jan turned and followed Mio out to the corridor.

"How did it happen?"

Tuvok winced slightly in the face of Janeway's anger. "My investigation has found that the guard assigned to Crewman Nels allowed him to go to the party to meet with a friend. The guard was present and maintains that he kept watch on Crewman Nels the entire time. The guard does not recall seeing Ensigns Cavanaugh or Sato."

"I thought we agreed to have an alarm alert Security if he came near either of them."

"The guard disabled the alarm. He informed me that it was 'a party after all.' I have asked Commander Chakotay to reassign him to another department."

"Good," Janeway said. "Instruct your men to keep him away from those two. If they run into each other, he leaves." She flashed a rueful smile. "I was worried Cavanaugh might come through the vid screen and choke me. I'd rather not do that again."

"Nor this, Captain."

"No, nor this. Thank you, Tuvok. Dismissed."

"So how are things going?"

"Good," Mio replied to the Doctor. "I'm still having occasional flashbacks."

"How are you dealing with them?"

Mio sighed. "Mostly I'm just working around them. Jan knows not to touch me if I can't see her. Two nights ago, I punched her when she hugged me while we were both asleep. We keep a couple of pillows between us now. When will this stop?"

"In time it will get better," the Doctor said. "I think it might help if I gave you some medication to help you control your fight-or-flight response." He noted Ensign Sato's frown. "It shouldn't impair you in any way. Try it for a couple of days."

"I don't want to have to drug myself to not hurt my girlfriend," Mio said with tears threatening.

"It won't be forever," the Doctor assured her. "Just for a little while. Think of it as an antibiotic for your psyche." He'd have to remember that turn of phrase. He programmed the delivery implant and injected it into Ensign Sato's upper arm. "This is a two week supply. The dosage will automatically lower the last few days. Come immediately if you have any adverse reactions."

Mio thanked the Doctor and hurried away. Maybe she had moved too fast reuniting with Jan. She stepped into the lift and, alone for a moment, released the sob trapped in her throat.

"Enter," Janeway said, not looking up from the computer readout when the door buzzed.

"I would like your permission to perform an experiment, Captain," Seven said as she strode over to Janeway's desk.

Janeway leaned back in her chair. "Does it involve changing course?"

"My experiment will not require any course change," Seven replied.

"Permission granted."

Seven walked around the desk, leaned down and kissed Janeway full on the lips.

Janeway remembered thinking that Seven had lied to her. Their course had changed quite dramatically.