Disclaimer: I do not own Star Trek Voyager, I do however own this plot and the original characters.

Soft, irritated beeping tickled Naomi Wildman's ear that morning.

Just what on Earth was that annoying sound? Beeping? ...Phone? No, not that. ...Badge? No, she didn't have one yet. Wait, Com. Badge, that thought seemed to spark something in her for a second, but that's all she needed. Naomi woke up with a start, moving over to turn the alarm off, looking around. At first she was disorientated and didn't recognize where she was. This was certainly not her parents house... or the barracks she had been staying at for almost two months as a recruit.

That's right! She was a full-fledged Cadet now! She hoped the alarm wasn't loud enough to wake her new roommates, but as it happened, they were both dead asleep. They were probably worn out by the first day as well, which just made it easier for Naomi. Said girl stretched her arms out and arched her back, trying to rid herself of sleepiness and muscle aches. She knew she was much too young for aches and pains, but most people her age didn't put in as much physical effort to be considered eligible to join a military! Most had to wait another year unless they got their parents' consent. 'Two weeks after basic training and I'm still sore.'

Naomi groaned quietly in dismay when she assessed her situation, or rather, her state of dress. She had fallen asleep with her uniform on. She would have to hope she wasn't inspected by an officer or she could be in trouble! She remembered going through hell one day in basic training after she hadn't pressed her uniform to perfection, failing the surprise inspection. One of these days she would have to buy a sonic scrubber. Great for removing impossible stains and improvised ironing! ...And now she sounded like a commercial. It was way too early.

Hopping off of her bed, she tried to remain as quiet as she could, rushing on her toes to the bathroom and quickly getting ready. She fussed over her tangled hair as she stripped for the shower. What she wouldn't give for a water shower to wake her up! She had had one or two before, when she visited Kathryn at her home in Indiana a few years ago. They had had one especially designed to offer both sonic and water options. Feeling the hot water on her skin was magnificent. She settled for what she had and hurriedly finished, hoping her roommates would not wake up and question her leaving so early in the morning. Once she was finished, she sighed in relief that the two girls were still asleep and got her things, eager to see her old friend. She flinch in preparation for the door to make a racket, but was again relieved that it did not. Sneaking out, she rushed out and breathed in the rich smell of the morning air. Oh she was still half asleep to be sure, but it was still kind of nice to be awake before most people.

As she walked the streets, glancing down at her PADD she had written the directions down on, she marveled at how quiet it was. This was probably one of the busiest cities in USA! It suited her just fine though, less chance someone from the Academy would spot her and question her out and about this early in the morning. When she made it to the cafe, she smiled at the retro circa 1950's design it had going. It was more like a small, sophisticated diner than anything else. Stepping inside, she found her "new" instructor seated in one of the booths facing the window. "Icheb?" she called to him, and watched him turn in his seat and smile.

"Good morning, Naomi Wildman" he smiled, standing to greet her.

"Icheb Hansen, good morning yourself," Naomi grinned, walking over. "You have to tell me what's up with the last name..."

Icheb seemed to loom over everything in the cafe, being a good two or three inches over six feet tall. His height had been impressive as a teenager at his age, but then, Naomi had been a little girl so she might have been remembering their vast differences. Annoyingly enough though, that perception hadn't changed so much as Icheb was still probably a foot or so taller than her. He still looked very much the same as he had though, barring in mind the sharper lines in his face, physical development and less prominent nose ridge. It almost seemed like he grew into it? Maybe it was like bears grew into their ears? Brunali grew into their ridges? The result was that he looked... how could she put it? Fully formed? Complete? ...Attractive? Naomi shook her head of her silly thoughts as she reached him.

Apparently it was too early in the morning for rational thoughts.

"Perhaps..." Icheb smiled lightly. He gestured for her to have a seat and then joined her, straightening his uniform and resting his hands on the table. "-If you behave yourself," he added teasingly, unwilling to give away the 'secret' just yet, having fun with it all.

"Behave myself? Really Icheb, do you remember me ever getting into trouble?" Naomi batted her eyelashes innocently.

"Is that a joke?" he laughed softly, making her smile. "I don't remember a time you didn't get into trouble."

Naomi ducked her head down in playful bashfulness. "Hey... I was a curious child..." she muttered in mock offense, playing with the salt and paper shakers on the edge of the table.

The former Borg raised a disbelieving brow. "Was?"

"Well, okay. So I still can't keep my curiosity to myself," Naomi rolled her eyes. "Alright, keep your mysteries to yourself." They smiled at each other. "By the way, you don't have to stand to greet me you know."

"I was attempting to be a gentleman," Icheb's brow rose a second time.

"Thank you, but it's easier for both of us if we just act like Icheb and Naomi, right?" Naomi suggested.

Icheb titled his head to the side before nodding. "So back to how we were on Voyager then?"

Naomi leaned back in her seat and thought about it. "It would be easier, wouldn't it? I mean, you were practically my teacher back then, and my instructor now... so it would fit, wouldn't it?"

"True. However, we've both grown mentally and as people since then. Would it not be, as they say, 'awkward', between us?"

"I think you're making it awkward by just asking if it would be awkward," Naomi laughed, shifting in her seat and feeling a little strange at where the topic was headed.

"Naomi Wildman..." Icheb sighed. "You continue to befuddle me, even now."

Naomi laughed again easily. "Befuddle? Really Icheb, I thought you would relax with your use of big words nowadays. I can't tell you how many times you confused the living daylights out of me whenever you tried to tutor me using big words."

"Yes, I remember, but hopefully you can capture what I'm trying to teach you now. Otherwise it will be difficult for you to go on in the class."

"Don't underestimate me. I may be into my late teenage years, but I can assure you that I can adapt to mental challenges far exceeding my age." She resisted smirking at his pensive, relenting stare.

Naomi 1, Icheb 0.

Icheb had come to terms with this the night before, but it was still surprising and a little troubling to him. "Naomi, you have grown," he murmured quietly, giving her an unreadable look, his eyes searching hers as though he were looking for the little girl he had known long ago.

This drew Naomi's attention and she sobered from her amusement, sitting up straighter. Why did he look at her like that? To her surprise, the focused gaze on her made her heart race a little and had her squirming slightly when she realized it. But another thing caught her from his strange observation, he almost sounded sad. It broke her heart a little. "We all grow, Icheb," she began gently. "That's part of life... I just got to grow past my awkward stages a bit faster than normal people did," she told him, smiling reassuringly. "I'm still Naomi Wildman though."

Icheb let out another breath and rubbed at the corner of the menu on the table idly. He needed to get ahold of himself. "Yes, but the Naomi Wildman I had been picturing was still wearing pigtails and running around causing mischief," the ex-Borg tried to smile playfully, hoping she wouldn't detect his odd behavior toward her. Still, he could not stop himself from complimenting her again, despite knowing he was just digging himself a bigger hole. "She wasn't this elegant young woman at the cusps of her prime seated before me."

Naomi on the other hand tried hard not to react to the compliment, telling herself that the increase in her heart rate was just early morning jitters. Instead she focused on humor, it always seemed to ease whatever unease she had been feeling. Not that it was uncomfortable to be compliment, it was still just... weird... hearing something like that coming from Icheb. "Well you know, I may not be wearing silly hairstyles anymore, but I'm still causing mischief..." she flicked her eyes at him, trying to break him out of whatever weird reflection she sensed he was in. "I mean, no, I don't cause mischief! Certainly not me, I'm a perfectly responsible Cadet!" Naomi grinned, blinking in surprise when Icheb let out another soft laugh. While it wasn't unlike him to laugh, the frequency at which had had been doing so since she reunited with him was interesting. He had a very nice laugh. "So anyway, what is the plan for this class?" she asked, trying to distract herself.

Icheb relaxed a little. "Starfleet has taken a greater interest in Astrometrics with the few modifications I had discovered and implemented on Voyager. They asked me to teach what I had learned in the Delta Quadrant. My hope is that one day, when we are able to return, it will be that much easier to map out the rest of the galaxy," he explained, smiling when the waitress finally went over to them. The young girl apologized for being late to serves them and asked if they wanted complimentary coffee. They agreed and were served a fresh pot immediately. The two old friends sat in companionable silence for a moment, enjoying their fresh sugary coffee. "As I mentioned before," Icheb continued after a little bit, "I expect you to be one of my best students. I hope that isn't putting too much pressure on you."

Naomi shook her head as she prepared her coffee the way she wanted it. "No, it's alright. To be honest I have pretty high expectation for myself. I've always struggled to recognize my own abilities but when I realized I had the drive and aptitude to become an officer, I went for it. I decided early on that I didn't want to just be some assistant. I will be Captain one day, and I will eventually become a Fleet Admiral. I can promise you that I won't stop until I reach my goals," she said firmly, the fires of determination swirling in her eyes.

Icheb was caught by the intense look in her eye and felt unbelievably proud of her in that moment. With that kind of attitude she would go very far, very fast, and woe be it to anyone that got in her way. "I believe you," he said seriously. "Those are high ambitions," Icheb grinned easily. "I admire that in a student. No, I admire that in anyone really. The passion in your voice tells me you're exactly what Starfleet needs. I have the utmost confidence in your endeavors to reach your goals."

"Thank you, Icheb. It means a lot to me hearing that from you," Naomi responded softly, touched by his faith in her.

As they continued to talk about their expectations for their futures and careers, it became apparent that they, in fact, could not fall back to how they behaved as children. They were both very obviously adults and their dynamics were clearly different now. Even so, they found that even though they were basically strangers now, it was amazingly easy to talk to each other, as though they hadn't been apart for ten years. They laughed easily with each other and told playful jokes. They ordered a light breakfast and ate happily, catching up on their recent accomplishments and discovering how much they had in common. They both desired more out of themselves, both strove to reach high positions in Starfleet, and both desired to unite the galaxy. Funny how two of the most unlikely former members of the famed lost ship would run into each other and both have nearly identical mindsets for the future.

Was it destiny?

Was it fate?

Was it a cosmic coincidence?

Neither of them really cared. All they knew was that they had found each other again and were going to make the most out of their re-budding friendship. Icheb checked the old-fashion clock on the wall and his brow rose. "If that device is correct I believe we have reached our limit. We need to head back before we both get into trouble," he mentioned. They tidied up and recovered their belongings. They made their way back quickly, not noticing the odd glances they got. An instructor and a student both making their way hurriedly down the hall. Fortunately, they were not as late as they assumed and slowed. Icheb went in first and found only half of the class was there. Naomi sat by Kav'ain, who had his head on the table. She poked at him a few times until he lifted it and smiled sleepily at her.

The class period went by pretty uneventfully. Unlike normal grade school, the students were all mostly responsible and studious, paying close attention to their instructor and taking in his unique methods and experiences in stride. Naomi found that if she listened close enough, she could hear his passion for space and his love for exploration. He was a brilliant instructor, explaining things in a way that challenged his students, but didn't make it so difficult that he had to stop every ten minutes to explain something. After class ended, the students left with optimistic prospects of passing the class, chatting happily with each other.

"Naomi!" T'Chea approached her new roommate and smiled. "We didn't see you this morning?"

Naomi had been preparing an excuse for her absence, she just hoped they bought it. "Yeah, I was up early exploring the campus and its surroundings. Did you know there's a shopping center close by? I may have to check it out some time, if you or Hannah want to join me." It was true, on her way to the diner she had noticed a boutique close by and she was interested in seeing what they offered.

"Yes, I knew about it," T'Chea nodded. "Not really my style but I'm sure Hannah wouldn't mind going."

"Sure! Just let me know when," Hannah smiled.

"I'll see you around, Wildman," Kav'ain interjected, giving her two roommates a fleeting smile before grabbing his things and leaving.

"I'll be off too," Hannah mentioned, glancing Kav'ain's way. Naomi's brow lifted in suspicion as Hannah left.

"Humans... or well, Humans and Bajorans I guess," T'Chea shrugged. "I'll see you later, Naomi," the Romulan nodded toward her professor and left after Hannah. Naomi shrugged and gathered her things. She stopped by Icheb's desk, where he was going over the subject for his next class.

Icheb looked up at her approach and smiled in greeting. "Naomi, I wanted to ask you something earlier but I forgot to," he began, glancing around to make sure his inappropriate use of her name casually wasn't overheard. While it wasn't exactly frowned upon for a teacher to be familiar with his students, he didn't want to remind anyone the fact that they were once aboard Voyager together. The use of her name as casually as he said it might make people wonder.

"What's that?" Naomi responded curiously, holding her PADD folded in her hands before her.

"I was wondering if you would like a tour of the campus after classes are over?" he asked inquisitively. Fortunately it seemed their schedule was more or less synchronized. Coincidence or not, it was convenient.

Naomi smiled to herself. Well imagine that, here was her chance to not make a liar of herself to T'Chea! Plus the added bonus of spending more time with Icheb. She wasn't blind to the fact that she obviously liked spending time with him. He was turning out to be as good a friend as she remembered him being. Maybe even more so. "That sounds like a great idea!" she nodded happily.

"Good," he smiled. "I'll see you at 17:00 hours at the courtyard?"

"Sounds good to me!" Naomi smiled back. "I'll see you later then!" she waved at him and left.

Classes could not have gone by quick enough for her, and Naomi had to stop and scold herself for being impatient. Naomi's classes were detrimental to her goals. She knew at some point there would be a Captain to Voyager, but so far not many people were willing to command the vessel, and Naomi couldn't understand why. So far as she knew, Voyager had been stripped and upgraded, refitted from a science vessel into a long-range deep-space cruiser. It was one of the smallest cruisers in Starfleet but the brass had decided such a hardy ship with such a hefty history would merit the change. Along with it's increase in advanced armaments, ablative armor enhancements, were a number of other greater improvements. A long-range tachyon scanner was added with components in the upgraded Astrometrics lab as well as deck by deck holo-emitters for the Doctor. Even the Doctor himself had been enhanced, his program expanded and given tactical subroutines. Naomi could not understand why none of the current Captains wanted to command such a state of the art ship, but it just made her goals that much easier to reach.

Finally, when all of her classes were over, Naomi stood in the courtyard, reviewing the assignments that would be due that Friday as she waited for Icheb. She smiled when she heard him call her by her first and last name and looked up to see him walking over. "It's about time, professor!" Naomi teased.

Icheb shook his head and lifted a brow. "Patience is a virtue, Ms. Wildman," was his playful reproof.

"So why don't we get this show on the road?" Naomi gestured for him to lead the way.

As they walked the campus, Icheb told Naomi to watch out for the groundskeeper, as he heard it he was very old and didn't take attitude from anyone, including officers and instructors. "I guess I will have to behave then!" Naomi joked. "I'm still curious about that last name, after all." The walk was pleasant, made even more so as the grounds were beginning to thin from students eager to either go to parties or go back to their dorms to study. A shuttle flew over the campus just then, swinging in a low arc, no doubt showing it off to prospecting attendees or ambassadors interested in where Starfleet educated their future officers, either way, Naomi watched it fly over, feeling nostalgic once more.

If either of them had been paying attention to where they were going, they might have noticed the sign that said that part of the path was being repaired. "Oh!" Naomi gasped, her foot getting caught of broken walkway. Naomi cringed and readied herself to meet the concrete. However, before her body could fling itself to the hard ground, she felt herself held steadfast by Icheb as he quickly stepped in.

Icheb had heard her trip, heard the sharp intake of breath, saw her flinch at the corner of his eye and reacted before he could think. He spun around and his arms reached for her, bringing her flush against his body. Naomi had shot out to grip him for support, one arm circling his wide shoulders and the other resting on his arm firmly. Their position was all at once made aware to them and the sudden intense proximity was a surprise to both of them as they stared up at each other.

Neither were prepared for it and neither could get past how it felt to be held by each other. Icheb could feel the supple feminine curves of the woman in his arms, feel her heart beating rapidly with her pressed against him. He was surprised by the warmth that flooded him with her so close and wondered at his state of mind, surprised by how he was reacting toward his friend. He had noticed before how she had matured, but now it was cemented unavoidably in his mind.

Naomi on the other hand could feel the heat of his strong body against hers, could see the intensity of his stare as his eyes bore down on her, both worry and confusion warring in them. She could smell his unique scent and feel the contours of his matured body. She felt Icheb shift, but had yet to release her for whatever reason. "Are you alright?" Icheb asked, his tone low and concerned, still holding her close.

Why hadn't he let go?

The awkwardness from the first day had return at full force. Naomi was the first to pull away, literally pushing him away at arms length, blushing and brushing non-existing dirt from her uniform. "Thank you, Icheb..." she said softly, unable to look at him, reflecting his earlier concerned for her own mental health. Since when did she feel the need to gawk stupidly and focus on the male anatomy? Since when did she find Icheb of all people so... disarming? So... captivating? Brushing her errant thoughts away, Naomi focused on the situation at hand. "I'm fine, thanks to you. If you weren't so... enhanced-" she ventured to describe him, "-I would have had a very intimate introduction to the grounds of the Academy!" she joked weakly.

"It... wouldn't have been a very pleasant introduction, nor a pleasant way of ending our tour," he agreed. They stood awkwardly for a moment, unsure of how to proceed. "Would you like to continue?" Icheb queried quietly.

"Ah- actually-" Naomi cleared her throat, ruling in her confusingly escalating bout of anxiety around her friend, and smiled tightly, "-it's getting late and I'm getting pretty tired."

"...Shall I walk you back to the dorms?" The ex-Borg Brunali asked, his tone still mildly subdued.

"No, no that's alright," Naomi shook her head, needing to get out of there and fast, needing to clear her thoughts. "I'll see you tomorrow though, okay?" she said fleetingly before all but turning and fleeing away. Icheb was left standing there for a second, shocked by the incident and stressed over the fact that she had felt amazing in his arms. This was bad, very distractingly bad! Her reaction to him had been very clear. He sighed out loud, overcome with worry, knowing nothing good could come of this.

TBC...

End A/N: I didn't intend on updating so quickly, give everyone a chance to read and comment, but I guess I just got too excited! In case you haven't noticed, I'm trying to make Naomi and Icheb's reactions to each other a bit more gradual this time, though of course with obvious complications between them. This chapter wasn't even on my outline before I wrote it, so forgive me if it's a bit short. I was about to make the mistake of rushing things between them again. I'm glad I caught it in time and was able to write this. Hopefully no one minds a bit more character development.

Shout-Outs

MissSarahG1: I'm very happy you're enjoying it so far!

QOP: I know, right? Wait until you see just how much they are!