Xavier opened the door to see that no one was coming. "Come on," He told his sisters. They left their quarters and made their way to the turbo lift.
They were fifteen feet away from the turbo lift when the doors of the turbo lifts opened, and Captain Janeway and Commander Chakotay came off. All three children stopped in their tracks, and all smiled up at the captain and commander.
Janeway placed her hands on her hips and smiled down at the three of them. "What are you three up too?" She asked.
The three Paris children traded a look before turning back to the captain. "We are going to holodeck two," Xavier smiled. Janeway lifted one eyebrow at him. She didn't know if she should believe him or not.
"Why aren't you in school?" Chakotay asked.
Selena rolled her eyes. "School ended an hour ago," There was a school on the ship for all the children on the ship.
After Miral was born, many members of the crew had come up to Janeway to get married. The children started soon after that. Janeway and Chakotay knew they were going to have to set up a day care and school for all the children. Some of the crew became teachers to the children. With them in contact with the Federation, they were following their plan for the children.
"Do you have homework?" Janeway asked.
"Finished it," Miral said.
Janeway didn't know if she believed them. She knew that the Paris children were very intelligent and had a way of getting in trouble. "What are you planning on holodeck two?"
Again, the three children exchanged a look. Janeway knew not to believe them. "We are going to play a game with some of the other children." Xavier said.
Janeway nodded. She knew that they were up to something and wondered if she should tell her parents about it. "Alright, continue on," Janeway waved to the turbo lift.
"Captain, Commander," Miral said as she followed her siblings on the ship.
Janeway waited until the door was closed before saying. "They are up to something, should we tell their parents."
"No," Chakotay smiled. "They are children and as long as they don't break the ship, we are good," The captain laughed. They started to walk down the hall again.
"That was close," Selena fell back against the turbo lift. "I hope they don't tell Mom and Dad that we left the quarters, or we will be in so much trouble."
Xavier and Miral let out a breath and they both agreed with their sister. The turbo lift opened, and two boys entered. Xavier smiled at them because he was friends with them. "Max, Jeff."
The boys turned to Xavier and smiled. "Xavier, what are you doing?" Jeff asked.
"Going to holodeck two with my sisters," Xavier rolled his eyes because he made it seem that he didn't want to be with his sisters. "My parents are making us."
"That sucks," Max turned towards Miral and gave her look. Miral rolled her eyes at him. Xavier didn't understand but Miral and Max didn't like each other and were always fighting in class about one thing or another. Max smiled at her. "Are you going to make your brother play dress up?"
Miral barely reacted to him. "No, I was thinking about Klingon game that might kill him. I'm sure my parents won't mind if I kill their only son."
Jeff laughed but Max frowned. Before he could say anything, the door to the turbo lifts opened. Max and Jeff stepped off. "Later, Paris," Max said to Xavier. The door closed again.
"Why don't you like him?" Xavier asked.
"I don't have a problem with him. He has a problem with me," Miral said.
"Do you know what his problem is with you?" Xavier asked.
Miral shrugged her shoulders. "I do not know," She said each word slowly that her brother would understand to leave the subject alone.
Xavier sighed and nodded. He felt that there was something that his sister wasn't telling him. He knew he should leave the subject alone because she would kill him and make it look like an accident.
The turbo lift opened, and they got off. They looked around and didn't see anyone. They walked down the door to the shuttle bay. Xavier looked both ways before opening the doors. They entered and the doors closed behind them. Xavier smiled when he looked up and saw that the Delta Flyer was in the bay. No one had taken it out. He sighed.
"Come on," He started for the delta flyer. "We'll be fine as long as we don't fly it off the ship." Selena and Miral followed their brother as he punched in a code to get in. Xavier turned to his sisters. "I saw dad do it once," The door opened, and they entered.
"And this is what he remembers," Selena mumbled to her sister. Miral smiled as they looked around the Delta Flyer.
Xavier took a seat in one of the chairs in front. Selena took the chair next to him. Miral took a seat behind them. Selena looked at the controls. "What do these buttons do?"
"These buttons turn the shuttle on?" Xavier started to press buttons.
"Xavier," Miral warned her brother.
Xavier turned around and smiled at his sister. "As long as I don't touch this button, we'll stay right here," Xavier pressed the button.
The ship lifted off the floor of the shuttle bay and headed out of the doors. "Xavier!" Miral yelled at her brother as they saw space all around them. "We are going to be in so much trouble," She reached over and hit her brother on the back of the head.
"Captain, shuttle bay one doors were opened, and the Delta Flyer is gone," Harry Kim said.
Janeway looked back at him like she didn't believe him. "Open a channel and hail them," Harry nodded and opened the channel. "Delta Flyer, come in."
After a couple minutes the bridge heard. "Hm…Hi, Captain."
Tom's head shot up after he heard the voice of his son. Tom wanted to say something, but Captain Janeway held up a hand. "What happen, Mr. Paris?"
"I might have pressed the button that Dad told me not to," Xavier sounded scared.
Tom had to take breath. He watched as Janeway traded a look with Chakotay. "Are your sisters with you?"
"Yes," Xavier said. There was a catch in voice. Xavier didn't know how to fly the shuttle, only how to start it. It was going to be his next lesson.
"Hold still," Janeway said. Janeway turned to Tom. "I think you should talk him through it and it that doesn't work, we'll beam you to the ship." Tom nodded.
"Xavier," Xavier heard the voice of his father. The voice was calm right now, but that didn't mean anything because Xavier could be in so much trouble when he got back to Voyager.
"Yeah, Dad," Xavier said passed the lump in his throat.
"I'm going to talk you through you flying the shuttle back on the ship," Tom said.
"Okay," Xavier hands were shaking. He didn't know if he could do this. He was a Paris; he could do this.
"Alright," Tom talked him through how to fly the shuttle.
Xavier did as his father told him too. He brought the shuttle back in the shuttle bay and landed the shuttle. Xavier took a breath before moving his hands from the counsel. "Thanks, Dad."
"Don't thank me yet, the three of you are in serous trouble," All of Tom's children knew that they were in trouble by the tone of his voice. "Lieutenant Torres to Shuttle Bay One," The three Paris children traded a look because they knew that their father did that deliberately. Their mother was closer to Shuttle Bay One and they didn't think that their mother knew what was going on. "You three stay in the Shuttle Bay," Tom warned them.
Miral made sure that they were off the channel before saying. "I think that we should stay on the shuttle. Mom will be here sooner than Dad and she might not know what is going on," The other two agreed.
B'Elanna entered the shuttle bay, only seeing that the Delta Flyer was in its place. She wondered what Tom needed. She didn't have to wait long before her husband entered. She raised an eyebrow at him. He didn't look happy.
"What is going on?" B'Elanna asked.
Tom looked around and didn't see their children. "Our offspring is in serous trouble," Tom made his way to the Delta Flyer.
B'Elanna followed him. "What did they do?" She asked.
"I'll let them explain," Tom opened the door to the shuttle bay and all three children were sitting in their seats. "You three off the shuttle now," Tom watched as all his children got off the shuttle. "Tell your mother what you did," Tom crossed his arms as the children stood in front of the shuttle.
All three children looked up to their mother. They could see the disappointment in her eyes. Selena and Miral looked from their mother to their brother. Xavier took a breath. "We might have accidently taken the shuttle out for a drive." He gave a fake smile. He knew that his mother wasn't going to believe him.
"How do you accidently take out the Delta Flyer?" B'Elanna asked.
Xavier took a quick glance at his father before turning back to his mother. "Dad has been teaching me how to pilot the shuttle and I pressed a button that I wasn't supposed to. All we wanted to do was sit and play in shuttle." The last sentence was louder than the others.
B'Elanna rubbed her temple. She was getting a headache. She looked at her husband and she could tell that he was just as mad at their children as they were. They were going to have to punish them. She took a breath. "Start walking," She pointed to the doors.
It was quiet all the way back to their quarters. The Paris children didn't like that their parents didn't say anything the whole way back. If they were in trouble there would be a lot of yelling, but not this.
"Go to your room," B'Elanna pointed to the kids' bedroom. She watched the door close before she fell into a chair. "What were they thinking?"
"I don't know," Tom kneeled between her legs. He placed his hands on her thighs.
"Something could have happened to them. We could have gone into wrap, and we could have lost them forever," B'Elanna covered her face.
"I know. My heart dropped when I heard Xavier's voice," Tom removed B'Elanna's hands. Tom leaned up and kissed her.
"Was it a good idea to have kids in space?" B'Elanna asked.
"We knew what there was going danger when we decided to have family," Tom ran a finger along B'Elanna face.
B'Elanna sighed and placed a hand over Tom's hand. "How are we going to punish them?"
"Grounded for a month and no personal PADD," Tom said.
B'Elanna nodded. "We are going to have to watch them. So, it means we are going to have rearrange our schedules."
"Yes, and we should tell them why," Tom stood up and helped B'Elanna off the chair.
Tom and B'Elanna entered their children's room. All three children looked up at their parents from their beds. Tom took a breath before saying. "You are all grounded for a month with no personal PADD. Either I or your mom will take you to school and one of us will pick you up after school."
Each of the children moaned. "Do you really?" Xavier asked.
B'Elanna crossed her arms. "Yes, we don't like this either, but you took out the Delta Flyer," B'Elanna closed her eyes. "We could have lost you today. If we didn't know that you left the shuttle bay and had gotten into wrap, we would have never found you. Your father and I don't want to lose you." The children looked between each other, and they didn't like the idea of losing their parents. "Hand over your PADDs," B'Elanna held out her hands. The children didn't argue as they handed over the PADDs. B'Elanna handed them to Tom. "You will stay here until dinner," Tom and B'Elanna left the children's room.
B'Elanna watched as Tom took the PADDs to their little space behind the partition where their bed was. B'Elanna knew that she should get back to Engineering, but someone needed to be with the children. Tom came out of their bedroom. Tom opened his mouth when the children's door open and Selena came running out and hugged B'Elanna's legs. B'Elanna traded a look with Tom before peeling Selena off her. B'Elanna saw tears running down her face.
"What is the matter?" B'Elanna asked as she bent down to Selena's level. She wiped the tears away.
"I don't want to lose you and Daddy," Selena said.
"Oh," B'Elanna glanced up at Tom before looking back at Selena. "You are not going to lose Daddy and me, but there is reason that we don't want you on the shuttle without either Daddy or me," B'Elanna pulled Selena close to her and hugged her. "Daddy and I love you," B'Elanna kissed the side of her head before releasing her. "Now go back to your room," Selena nodded and ran back to her room.
B'Elanna got up and Tom made his way over to her. "If you are needed in engineering, I can stay with the children. The captain already said it was okay not to finish my shift."
B'Elanna shook her head. She still had to reassure herself that her children were in the room. She called Engineering and told them that she wasn't coming back to engineering and that she would see them tomorrow. B'Elanna fell on the couch and Tom sat beside her. He wrapped his arm around her.
"They are safe for now," Tom kissed the side of her head.
"I know," B'Elanna laid her head on Tom's shoulder. "But my mind keeps going back that we almost lost them."
"We didn't and they are safe in their room," Tom whispered against her head. B'Elanna nodded. "Trust me, I didn't like that I almost lost my heart when I found out that they were out there. I had to keep myself calm because I couldn't show how scared I was as I talked Xavier back into the shuttle bay."
B'Elanna let out a short laugh. "They are our children. It sounds like something we would have done."
Tom smiled. "I agree. I now get to why I give my parents so many heart attacks."
B'Elanna looked up at him. "We are only going to many more from those three," She pointed towards the door.
Tom leaned his head on the back of the couch. "Oh, God don't tell me that. Xavier is sometimes too much like me and both of our girls are too smart for themselves," Tom gave B'Elanna a look. "Like their mother."
B'Elanna laughed. She heard the children's room door open, and all three children poked their heads out. Tom and B'Elanna looked at them. "We are sorry, we didn't mean to worry you," Miral said.
B'Elanna nodded and the kids came out of their room. "Can we join you?" Xavier asked. B'Elanna nodded again. Miral and Xavier took a seat on either side of them, and Selena wiggled in the middle of them. Tom reached for the remote and turned on the TV to some old cartoon. As the children watched Tom looked over to see that B'Elanna was looking at him. He smiled and B'Elanna returned his smile. They were glad to have their family here at this moment.