There was a call as soon as B'Elanna entered the house. She thought that it might be one of her children. She barely saw her daughters with them living on ships and another world. She answered the call waiting to see someone smiling at her, but instead it was a stone-faced Starfleet officer. B'Elanna looked at his lapels to see that he was a Commander.
"Hello," B'Elanna placed her bag down.
"Is B'Elanna Torres or Thomas Paris there?" He asked like he didn't know who she was.
"I'm B'Elanna Torres," B'Elanna was nervous about what this could be about. She wondered if something happened to Selena, but then Stephen would have called them and not left it for the official channels. Unless something happened to both. B'Elanna had take a breath because she thought about her grandsons. They were only eleven and seven. She knew that Tom and she would take the first ship they could get to their grandsons. B'Elanna knew who had legal guardianship of her grandsons if something happened to Selena or Stephen. It was Stephen's older brother and his wife.
"I am sorry to inform that Admiral Kathryn Janeway has passed. You and your husband are some of the first to be informed." The Commander said.
Tears came to her eyes. The woman she had come to respect over seven years was gone. "Thank you. Please let us know when the funeral is," B'Elanna knew that Tom and she would want to be there.
"Admiral Janeway wrote in her will that she would like either you or Thomas Paris to say a few words at the funeral."
"I will talk to my husband, and we will let you know, Commander…." She left it alone because she didn't know who this man was.
He gave a brief smile. "Collins. Thank you, Dr. Torres," B'Elanna nodded. He hung up soon after that.
B'Elanna stood in her kitchen and didn't know what to say. She knew that one day that everyone she spent seven years would not live forever. She heard of some of the deaths that happened, but Admiral Janeway was going to hurt her the most. She was a good woman and believed in B'Elanna. B'Elanna was glad that they had became friends. She thought that Janeway would outlive them all.
"Hey," B'Elanna turned to see her husband coming in the backdoor. There was a smile on his face until he saw her face. "What is wrong?" He gathered her in his arms.
"Janeway is gone," Tears continued to fall down her face.
B'Elanna watched as tears started to fall down Tom's eyes. "No," He wiped his face. "She was to live forever."
"No one lives forever," B'Elanna took a breath before speaking again. "They would like either you or I to speak at her funeral."
"I'll do it," Tom looked at a corner so he didn't see his wife because he would start crying again. This woman had believed in both. He doesn't think that he would be here if it wasn't for her.
B'Elanna nodded and just held on to her husband.
Tom and B'Elanna the grounds to find multiple rows of chairs in front of platform with several chairs on it. A little man came running up to them. "Are you Thomas Paris and B'Elanna Torres?" He asked. Tom nodded. "I am Ethan Pater; I will take you to your seats." Tom took a hold of B'Elanna's hand as they followed him to their seats. They were in the front row. Mr. Pater nodded at them before running off.
B'Elanna looked around to see who else was sitting with them. She saw Tuvok and his wife sitting a couple chairs away from them. Next to them was Harry Kim, B'Elanna wondered what he had to do to get here. B'Elanna nodded at each of them. She wondered who was seating next to them. She looked across the aisle to see Janeway's family sitting there. It looked like her sister and her nieces and nephews. B'Elanna didn't know much of Kathryn's family, but she knew that they would miss her.
The little man came back with the doctor, who hasn't changed. He smiled at them before taking his seat next to Harry Kim. B'Elanna continued to look around to see the other seats were filling up with others. A lot of them were from Starfleet. She saw Captains, Admirals, and many others finding seats. B'Elanna knew that Xavier and Peata were somewhere in the crowd because her children thought that Tom and B'Elanna needed someone there for them because her daughters couldn't make it.
Mr. Pater can back with Chakotay and Seven. Chakotay was leaning on to Seven as they made their way to their seats. B'Elanna smiled at her old friend as they took their seats. She reached over and gave his hand a squeeze. Chakotay gave her a small smile before turning to the front. B'Elanna knew how close Chakotay was to Janeway and couldn't think how much he was hurting now that Janeway was gone. She knew that they stopped talking for a while but came back together later in life.
B'Elanna didn't have to wait long for the service to start because Mr. Pater stood on the platform. B'Elanna saw the people behind him take their seats. There was a picture of Janeway on the platform from her younger days. B'Elanna wondered what was going to be said today. She didn't know what Tom was going to say today because he wouldn't let her see what he wrote.
"Everyone, please take a seat," Mr. Pater said in the microphone. B'Elanna turned and saw that all the seats were taken, and that people were standing in the back. A lot of people wanted to pay their respects to Kathryn Janeway. "We will start in a little bit," Mr. Pater looked around the crowd.
B'Elanna reached for Tom's hand as tears started to fall. Tom gave it a squeeze and B'Elanna saw tears falling on his cheek. She would have told him that it was going to be okay, but she couldn't find the words.
"We are gathered here to say goodbye to a wonder and amazing woman. Vice- Admiral Kathryn Janeway," A brown haired man got on the platform. He started to talk about all Janeway's achievements in Starfleet and how she found her way to becoming a captain of her own ship. He talked about her time in the Delta Quadrant. It wasn't the same as being there with her, B'Elanna thought. He talked about her seeing her crew home to Earth and getting them home in seven years. He talked about what she did after she got them home. B'Elanna didn't know what to say. He talked about how she retired on a farm in Indiana. "As I'm sure you all would like to say a few words about Admiral Janeway, we have left that for a few people to talk about her." The brown-haired man said. "The first is her nephew, Dean Jergens," The brown-haired man took his seat as a man around Tom's and B'Elanna's age got up.
He smiled at the crowd before he started to talk about his aunt and how she wanted to follow in her dad's footsteps. B'Elanna liked what he had to say about Janeway because it was from the heart. The next person that got up was someone who knew Janeway from her academy. She had them laughing at the stories about what they were up to at the academy. After Janeway's friend a Captain that was an Ensign with Janeway talked about their time on the ship they were assigned to together. There was someone up there that talked about her achievements as she from Ensign to Lieutenant. Someone talked about how she made it to Captain and how she got command of Voyager.
B'Elanna knew that Tom was next. She wondered why they didn't have Chakotay or Tuvok say a few words because they were closer to Janeway than Tom. B'Elanna felt Tom reach for her hand and give it a squeeze. B'Elanna looked at her husband of many years and told him that he got it. Tom smiled before they heard Tom's name being called. B'Elanna watched as Tom stood and made his way to the stage.
Tom looked out to the crowd to see all who knew Kathryn Janeway. He never thought that she would touch so many lives. He made his way back to his wife as she sat with their Voyager family. When he agreed to speak about their time on Voyager, he didn't know what to say about the woman, who gave him a second change.
Tom took a breath, "Good afternoon," He started. "When I first met Captain Janeway. I know that she was an admiral, but to me she will always be captain," A few people laughed at that. "It was on penal settlement in New Zealand. It was only to be a couple week mission to the Badlands but turned into seven years. I took the chance to go with her." Tom smiled at the crowd.
"We got lost in the Delta Quadrant and she gave me a second chance and I can say for many members of the crew of Voyager that they felt the same way. We were on a mission to get home, and everyone wanted that to happen. I could spend all night here telling stories about Janeway, but I think that I will only tell one right now.
"I thought that I figured out on how to get to wrap 10 and I wanted to try it out. I did and then came back. I thought that my name was going to be in the history books," Tom looked at the others from Voyager and they were shaking their heads at this story. "After I came back, things started to change for me and I wasn't myself. I decided to kidnap the captain and we went to a planet. By the time they found us, Janeway and I had three offspring. When we got back on the ship, they changed us back it was unsaid for us not to talk about it again." Everyone laughed at the story.
"Janeway kept us together so we could get home. She made a ragtag group into a crew. I know that every one of us would have followed her to the edge of galaxy, which we did," There was laughter again. "If Janeway didn't take a chance on me, I never would have met my wife or have met my best friend. I wouldn't be here without her. And everyone on Voyager would say the same thing. Janeway had a crew, but she made us a family." Tom thanked them before taking his seat again.
They finished listening to people talk about Admiral Janeway's life. After the last person, Tom took B'Elanna's hand and made their way to reception area. There was a long table with a lot of food and drinks on it. A lot of people were making their way over to it. Tom led B'Elanna to a table in the corner.
"That was a very good speech," B'Elanna leaned over and kissed him.
Tom smiled. "Thank you."
"Did you really need to tell that story?" B'Elanna hissed at him.
"Yep," Tom saw his son and his daughter-in-law make their way over.
Xavier smiled at his parents. "I wonder what happened to my three half-siblings," Peata took the time to hit her husband on the back of his head. B'Elanna thanked Peata for it as the senior crew of Voyager made their way over to them. Xavier and Peata stepped back so Voyager crew could greet each other.
"That was a great speech, Tom," Harry said to Tom after he hugged him. "But did you really have to tell that story?"
"My wife asked me the same question," Tom said. Harry just shook his head.
Someone was handing them drinks. Tom saw that it was Xavier and Peata. Tom turned away from Harry and saw the rest of the senior crew. He wondered who would be next. He knew it wasn't going to Tuvok, he was going to live forever, being Vulcan. Could it be Chakotay or him for that matter. The only one that was going to live forever was the doctor unless someone turned off his program. One day their family would be gone and no one to tell their story.