=/\=
Icheb went to find Tom the next evening, intending to ask him if he'd finished the Yellowstone Park Trail program he'd promised to create for Naomi and Icheb. Naomi was especially looking forward to seeing Old Faithful and the other geysers Tom had promised to include.
Tom and B'Elanna were planning to have a quiet dinner in their quarters that night, but they invited Icheb to come by once they'd eaten. When Icheb arrived, he added, "I'd like to ask Q if he'd like to come along with us, if he's finished his essay for the captain."
"Oh, it's finished, all right," Tom said, with a strange expression on his face. "He presented it to the captain this afternoon. Icheb, did you write that essay for Q?"
"Oh, no. I just gave him some notes to get a start on it. He told me he'd never written an essay before, so he had no idea how to do it."
"Those 'notes' - were they written in full sentences, by chance?" B'Elanna asked.
"Well, yes, I guess so. I usually try to write that way whenever I write anything. For the practice. I've only spoken and written in Federation Standard for about a year now, you understand, just since I arrived on Voyager."
"Uh, huh," B'Elanna said, laughing. "And I'm sure you did your usual thorough job, too."
Icheb began to feel a little uncomfortable. "Why are you asking me this?"
"The captain came onto the bridge afterwards," Tom replied. "She told Chakotay that when Q read 'his' essay, she recognized your style. Q didn't write anything. He just read your notes."
"And Chakotay sent me to the holodeck this morning to check on the diplomatic program he'd set up for Q," B'Elanna added. "Q modified the personality subroutines governing the holographic characters to make them super friendly and come to an agreement quickly."
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to cause Q trouble. I was only trying to help him."
"Oh, I'm sure that's all you thought you were doing. He manipulated you into doing exactly what he wanted - so he could slide by without breaking a sweat," the pilot explained.
Icheb felt his face grow hot. That comment about Icheb's "Kirk fixation" - Q still had his powers then. "He must have heard my Early Starfleet History presentation to the captain. I included what Kirk did when he was a cadet at the Academy, when he modified a computer program to beat the Kobayashi Maru scenario. The 'unwinnable scenario' is a test of character. No one's supposed to be able to win it. That gave him the idea. It's my fault Q cheated."
B'Elanna stood up and put her arm on Icheb's shoulder. "No, it's not your fault. It's his. From what I hear, he didn't need any help in learning how to cheat. His father does it all the time!"
"What's going to happen to him? Is he going to be turned into an amoeba?"
"Who told you that?" Tom asked.
"The Doctor told me. That's what will happen to him if his behavior doesn't improve."
"Then he's fortunate his 'Aunt Kathy' is looking out for him," Tom replied. "She's giving him one more chance to prove he means he's willing to behave. The captain set him to work scrubbing plasma conduits this afternoon."
"He did a decent job of it, too," B'Elanna admitted. "But Icheb, be careful if he asks you to 'help' him again. The Q are master manipulators, and he's no exception. If he slips up, you may be the one to pay the price. Do you understand?"
"Yes, B'Elanna, I do," Icheb replied. He would still help Q if asked, but he wouldn't be quite so trusting next time.
=/\=
During a break in his schedule the following morning, Icheb ducked into the mess hall to pick up a snack on the way to a tutoring session with Naomi. Q was there, busily punching at a PADD. While Icheb was standing in front of the replicator (which was no longer recalcitrant about providing the comestible ordered by a crew member), Q got off the couch and approached Icheb. "I'm sorry I pretended I wrote what you gave me, Icheb. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but the captain knew immediately you wrote it."
"Lieutenant Paris always says not much gets by the captain."
"He's right. She knew I'd modified Chakotay's diplomatic holodeck program, too. She was going to make me stay in my quarters until my father came back. I had to beg her to let me continue my training. She said she would, as long as I cooperated with the program. If I step out of line again, though, it's eternity in a petri dish for me - or 'circular city,' as my father put it."
"I'm pleased the captain is giving you another chance. As long as you don't try to trick me into writing any more essays for you, I'm willing to help you adjust to life on Voyager. I know how hard it can be. I had to do it after Seven saved me from the Borg cube."
"Oh, no, I won't try to trick you into anything again. I'm rewriting my essay now. Aunt Kathy didn't ask me to do it, but I thought I owed it to her for letting me stay."
"You know, Q, you'll do a much better job than I did. I researched the Continuum in our database, but no one in the Federation really knows what it's like the way you do."
Q was silent for a few seconds, then said, "I think I've underestimated you, Icheb. Maybe all the people on this ship, too. You're not stupid . . . wait. That didn't come out right . . ."
"I heard you said you were on an 'antiquated flying machine run by primates.' I guess from the Continuum's perspective, that's true. But we aren't stupid." Icheb grinned to soften his comment.
"Where did you hear that?" Q asked, visibly agitated.
"We have a very active gossip network on Voyager. Naomi Wildman likes to say, 'it's a small ship.' She's right. If you don't want anyone to hear something you've said, don't say it at all."
"I'll have to remember that."
"Well, Q, I'll leave you to your work. I'm on my way to give a lesson to Naomi, but I have to speak to one of my tutors about something else first."
Q waved his hand awkwardly as he sat back down on the couch. Icheb decided it was Q's attempt to wave good-bye and returned the gesture. Grabbing his nutritional nachos and shake from the replicator, Icheb left the mess hall, intending to ask for a favor from one of his own tutors.
=/\=
Once Icheb was in the corridor outside the mess hall, he contacted Tom and asked him when Tom had scheduled Icheb's next piloting lesson.
"I'm here in Sickbay until noon, but I'm off after that. We can do it anytime this afternoon. B'Elanna will be in Engineering working until 1800 - at least."
"I have to give Naomi a genetics lesson now, but if you take me out in the Delta Flyer this afternoon, can Q come along? I think he's really trying to cooperate with the captain. I just saw him. He's rewriting his essay for her right now."
"Maybe he is," Tom mused. "I hope so. I'll need to get clearance from Chakotay to use the Flyer for the lesson. If he says it's okay, I'll let you know. As long as Q-boy agrees to behave himself, he can come along."
"Thanks, Lieutenant Paris."
Tom laughed. "I'm back to Lieutenant Paris now?"
"When you're my Academy teacher, then yes. I have to set a good example for Q."
"I understand, Cadet Icheb. As soon as I get clearance, we'll schedule a time to meet."
Icheb was certain Tom would work things out with Chakotay. When he really thought about it, the lesson in spatial causality had been more stimulating than usual, and not just because he already knew most of what Seven had covered. It was kind of nice having someone else "in class" with him yesterday.
=/\=
Icheb was about to enter the mess hall but stopped when he overheard the captain say, "I, Q: An Insider's View of the Continuum. "
Q answered, "I know you didn't ask for one, but I felt I owed it to you for giving me a second chance."
After a brief pause, Captain Janeway said, "If the essay is half as clever as the title, I'm sure I'll enjoy it."
Icheb entered the mess hall after her comment and said to Q, "Lieutenant Paris has offered to give me a piloting lesson. I thought you might like to join us."
Resignedly, Q said, "Oh, thanks, but I have to help Crewman Chell scrub the plasma conduits." Having scrubbed plasma conduits in the past himself, Icheb was familiar with the distasteful task. He was disappointed Q would miss going out on the Flyer. He was sure he'd enjoy it.
The captain was in an expansive mood, however. "I think you've earned a break. This is the only time off I'm giving you," she warned him. "I suggest you take advantage of it."
"Yes, ma'am," Q said eagerly as he followed Icheb out the door. "Piloting lesson, huh? Where are we going?"
"Lieutenant Paris will pick out something interesting," Icheb assured him.
=/\=
"Steady. Ease up a little on the thrusters," Tom said, from his position in back of the pilot's seat Icheb was currently occupying. Icheb did as he was instructed, and just in time. On inertia alone, the Delta Flyer whizzed a little too close to a chunk of rock almost as big as the shuttle. If the thrusters had still been at the level they'd been before Icheb had eased off the controls, the little craft's shields might easily have collided with it. While that alone shouldn't have damaged the shuttle, if the asteroid's established path through the asteroid field had been altered, the rock might have rammed into another of the bodies. A chain reaction, uncomfortably like the cue ball breaking the massed balls on the pool table at Sandrine's, could have been the result. And that would have complicated Icheb's piloting through the field immeasurably.
Q, in the co-pilot's seat, had already been a little apprehensive when Tom instructed Icheb to fly them through the asteroid belt. This almost-collision was a bit too close for comfort for him, and he reminded Icheb, "In case you forgot, I'm mortal now. I'd appreciate it if you didn't pilot us into a rock."
Icheb had enjoyed a sufficient number of Lieutenant Paris's piloting lessons that he wasn't nervous. He had already decided he had to ease up on the thrusters before Tom mentioned it to him, but he wasn't offended by the advice offered by the expert pilot. After successfully dodging a few more rocks, Icheb flew the craft where the rocks were much further apart and suggested, "Maybe Q could take over for a little while."
"What do you say? You want a turn at the wheel?" Tom asked Q.
"Ordinarily, a Q wouldn't demean himself by operating primitive machinery," Q airily commented, in that know-it-all tone a Q often utilized to beings they considered their inferiors (which was just about everyone), but he had trouble maintaining his superior attitude. A little too eagerly, he tacked on, "but these aren't ordinary circumstances."
At Tom's nod of agreement, Q switched places with Icheb. Almost immediately, an alert sounded. "Uh, did I do something wrong?" Q asked, as he looked over the control panel to try to identify the cause of the alarm.
After checking several readouts, Tom reassured them, "Just a little imbalance in the impulse drive. Nothing to worry about."
"It's very distracting. Can't you fix it?" Q asked.
"Well, I could, but we'd have to go back to Voyager and run diagnostics. If you two don't mind cutting your lesson a little short . . ."
Q and Icheb exchanged glances. "That won't be necessary," Q answered. "In fact, I can barely hear it anymore." Looking towards the co-pilot's seat, he asked Icheb, "Do you hear it?"
What's a little honking in your ear if you're having fun? With the slightest of smirks, Icheb responded, "Hear what?"
Icheb glanced back at Tom's chuckle. He was grinning, so Icheb knew there really wasn't any malfunction endangering them at the moment. He had to admit it was nice to have a chance to spend a lesson with someone who was a lot closer to his age than Naomi and Aimee were. Icheb thought he could get used to having a buddy on Voyager. It was unfortunate Q would be leaving them soon, if the Continuum accepted that he really had become a more disciplined Q. He didn't want Q to fail, however. If Q's father and the Continuum weren't happy with his progress, he'd be turned into an Oprelian amoeba. Icheb didn't want that to happen to his new friend.
=/\=
Icheb had hoped to work on the Delta Flyer for a while with Tom and Q once they arrived back on Voyager. He was sure Q would be less derisive of their "antiquated flying machines" if he had a chance to do a little maintenance work on one. Icheb knew performing hands-on repairs to Voyager had enhanced his appreciation of Federation's technology. Just before they approached Voyager's shuttlebay, however, the captain contacted the Flyer and requested Q's presence in her ready room once they arrived. She had a "surprise" for him.
"I hope it doesn't have anything to do with petri dishes," Q said waspishly.
Tom snickered, "I wouldn't worry about that, Q. I've had the dubious pleasure of being called on the carpet by the captain on multiple occasions. The captain's tone of voice is much too cheery for anything unpleasant. Maybe it's good news from the Continuum."
"Doubtful. If it was, my father would have flashed right on board the Delta Flyer and whisked me off on an adventure. "
"Just stay positive," Tom advised. Icheb nodded his agreement. "Now, do you want to fly her into the shuttlebay entrance, or do you want Icheb or me to take over?"
"Just tell me what to do, Lieutenant Paris," Q said confidently. Icheb was glad to see Q's spirits revive quickly, once Tom gave him the chance to exhibit what he'd learned on this flight. He noted, however, that Tom had surreptitiously activated the homing protocol, which provided extra shielding around and inside the bay entrance, providing an extra layer of protection to both ships when an injured pilot was at the controls. Q didn't need to know that, though.
=/\=