reunions

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Standard Disclaimer : I'm sure you've all heard this one before, but Paramount owns Voyager, her crew, everything, and ---wait a minute *I* own the story, and the characters I invented. So, maybe they aren't so all powerful after all. Who am I kidding, thay are all powerful. sigh! ;-P

AUTHOR'S NOTE : Contains foul language and implied adult situations, and is strictly P/T. This story takes place sometime in the fourth season of Voyager. There is some mention of Kes' departure. Also, I have included the character 7 of 9. Oh, and by the way, I am a horrible speller. Please forgive me!!!!!

<Voy, Pg-13, P/T>

The stories in the Welcome to Your Life series :

Reunions
The Photo Album (coming soon)
Typical Male (coming soon)
Been in the Sauce (coming soon)

"REUNIONS"
Ó September 16, 1997
Laura C

Tom Paris stirred slightly in his bed. Something was missing, oddly enough. His eyes gradually fluttered open. He glanced over at his chronometer. It read 04:30. He rubbed his eyes, trying to wipe away some of the sleep, and realized he was alone.
     "B'Elanna?" he called sleepily, but she wasn't in the bedroom.
She couldn't have gone very far, because her uniform was still in the crumpled heap she left it in beside his bed. Tom pulled the cover off him and strolled clumsily into the next room, wearing only a pair of boxer shorts.
     "Computer lights," he ordered.
The suddenly illumination caught him off guard and he stumbled a little.   He blinked several times, trying to ajust his eyes to the light. It was then that he noticed someone on his couch. It was B'Elanna Torres. She sat silently, staring out the tiny window into to the blackness in space. She had once told Tom that she liked to watch the stars streak past the window when the were going at warp nine because it told her that her engines were working. But at warp two,they were hardly streaking. Jus bra (Which would normally be an enormous turn on for Paris), looking more vounerable and sad then he has ever seen her before. He decided he owed it to her and himself to find out what was bothering her.
    "B'Elanna?" he said softly, putting his hand on her shoulder.
Her body jerked suddenly when she felt his hands on her bare skin. But she didn't turn to face him.
    "What do you want, Tom?" she asked wryly.
He was taken slightly aback by her tone. He sat down on the couch next to her.
    "B'Elanna, what's the matter?"
    "Nothing is "the matter". I just felt like sitting out here," she finished lamely.
    "Liar." he said dryly.
    "What?"
    "You heard me. I want to know what's wrong. You can tell me. Is it me? Are you ashamed that we've been -- that we're together?" he demanded.
She sat silently for a moment before responding, "No Tom, of course not. It's not you it's -- it's just that--" she couldn't finish. Her eyes were welling up with tears. But she pushed them back inside. hoping that Tom hadn't seen them. But he did.
     "Tell me. Please?" he asked softly, "I want to know what's making you so upset. Is Freddie Bristow bothering you again? Because if he is, I can go down to engineering and tear him a new belly button."
Tom's humor always had an effect on her. She stiffled a giggle before falling into his embrace. "No, I've kept Freddie at bay. And I can take care of myself."
    "Then what is it? You can tell me."
B'Elanna drew in a deep breath. "What is the date today?"
     "The date? It's 376.46 --"
     "No, not the star date. The old calander style date."
     "Hmmm, I'm not sure. If my memory serves me right, I do believe it is March 3rd."
     "Wrong. It's May 23rd," she corrected.
     "And the significance of this date would be --" he left it open.
B'Elanna's eyes were misting over again. She broke free from Tom's arms and looked him straight in the eyes. This time however, the tears fell freely. "It was twenty years ago today that my father left me."
Paris' eyes widened with this revelation. "Oh my god. B'Elanna, I had no idea. I am so sorry. I should never have pushed you to tell me, --"
     "No Tom, it's not your fault. You shouldn't blame yourself for anything. I shouldn't be crying," she said tearily as she wiped her eyes.
     "B'Elanna, you have everyright to cry. Hell, I still cry when my mother's birthday comes around, or the day she died."
     "You do?"
     "Yes, I do," he said, wrapping his arms around her,"I still miss her, and I still love her. Do you remember that time with the Vidians, and you told me about when your father left? You thought it was because you looked to klingon."
     "I guess I was just a horrible child, and no father would want me."
     "Don't say that. You are a wonderful woman. And I'm sure you were just as wonderful as a kid."
She buried her face in his chest. "Thank-you." she said meekly.
     "We still have a few hours before we have to go back on duty," said Paris, trying to change the subject, "Why don't we go back to bed?"
    "Actually Tom, I need sometime alone to think. Would you mind if I went back to my quarters?"
    "Of course not," he consoled her, "I understand." He planted a kiss on her forehead.
She went to Tom's sleeping area, got dressed and returned about five minutes later. "Meet me for dinner?" she inquired.
     "Sure. 1900 hours in the holodeck. I have a new program I've been dying to show you."
     "Sounds great." She reached up and brushed her hand on his cheek, and brought his face down to meet hers. Their mouths met in a deep, passionate kiss. After B'Elanna finally broke it off, she sauntered over to his door. "See 'ya, helmboy," she said half-heartedly, using the deragatory name that the female Q had given him. "Later, my warp core vixen," he replied. Tom watched her depart after thouroughly scanning the halls. If any member of the crew saw the pilot trying to sneek the Chief Engin
                                                    *********************************

It had been an unusaully quiet day on the bridge. The only thing out of the ordinary had been a minor problem with a power coulping at the Engineering console. Which meant that B'Elanna Torres had spent most of her shift on the bridge.   Captain Kathryn Janeway surveyed the various crew members from her perch on her comfy command chair.
     "Mr. Paris, increse speed to warp six," she announced.
     "Yes ma'am," he replied, "Ah, there's nothing like flying in a straight line to get you motivated."
The captain chuckled a little at his remark. "Where would we be without you liven things up Tom?"
     "I don't know Captain. You could end up having to endure with the comedy stylings of Tuvok."
Unfortunatly, this set most of the bridge crew off laughing. Even Chakotay was laughing. The only one not grinning was an irritated Vulcan.   Tom's comment earned him an arch of the 'ole Vulcan eyebrow.
     "I fail to see the humor in the Lieutenants remarks," he said in his monotone voice.
     "I do not understand," added Seven of Nine, Janeways latest pet project. The former Borg was spending some time on the bridge, as per the captain's request.
     "Then you haven't been spending enough time with Tuvok," Torres blurted out. By now, everyone was practcally rolling on the floor laughing. Except for Seven of Nine, who was still confused.
     "Okay, I think we've had enough fun for now," said Janeway, holding in her laughter.
In a few moments the laughter ceased and all was normal on the bridge. Ensign Kim, who was the last to compose himself, noticed something on the censors. "Captain, long range censors are picking up a ship on an intercept course, bearing 167.372."
     "I've got it too," said Chakotay, "I'ts at 900,000,000 kilometres and closing."
     "What kind of ship is it?" queried the Captain.
     "It's -- I don't believe it. Confirming -- yes it is. It's a federation ship Captain. According to Starfleet data bases it's a -- Barnart class vessel? I'm only picking up 25 lifesigns on board," informed Harry.
     "Hail them Harry," ordered the captain. She fixed her hair and ajusted her uniform before addressing them, "Attention vessel, I am Captain Kathryn Janeway of the Federation Starship Voyager."
     "They are responding," informed Tuvok.
     "Onscreen." On the main veiwscreen, the image of a much smaller and obsolite bridge came into view. A young woman with long red hair and big green eyes sat at the helm. She spoke, "I can't believe we finally found you. I am Lietenant Fuller of the U.S.S Phoenix. We've been looking for your ship Captain."
B'Elanna had her back to the view screen during the greeting. It hadn't quite clicked in at first, but that voice -- it sounded so -- familiar. She turned to face the view screen, and nearly had a heart attack. All she could do was stare at the woman. Her mouth started moving, even though the part of her brain that would normally tell her to do so was still shocked. "Sable?"
At the sound of her name, the woman turned in B'Elanna's direction. Her huge green eyes widened (If that were possible) and her jaw dropped. "Oh my f*cking God. B'Elanna? B'Elanna Torres. I - I don't believe it. Is that you?"
B'Elanna got up from her engineering station and absent-mindedly started to walk over to the view screen. A smile spread across her face from ear to ear. "Sable Fuller. I never thought I would see you again."
     "I never thought I would see you again either, " said Sable, "Wow. I still don't believe it."
     "Who's your friend B'Elanna?" asked Chakotay.
Not realizing that this little reunion was being watched, B'Elanna turned. The entire bridge crew was watching them. She felt her face turn crimson. "This is Sable Fuller. She was my best friend since I was like, five years old."
     "This is thee Sable? asked Chakotay. "In the flesh," replied the woman, smiling.
Janeway got up and walked to B'Elanna's side. "It's nice to meet you Sable. What are you and your crew doing out here?"
     "The samething you are. And I'm not the captain or anything. He's," she hesitated and looked over at B'elanna, "Sleeping -- right -- now."
     "Well, I want to meet him as soon as he wakes. Miss. Fuller, I've never heard of a Barnart class star ship before." said the captain.
     "I'm not surprised," replied Sable, "this ship is so old it's not even funny.
We've lost alot of people, and this damn thing is falling apart. I'm not sure how we survived out here for so long. This ship is so small it may as well be a shuttle."
Janeway thought for a moment. B'Elanna recognized her I-Just-got-a-really-good-idea-face. A slight smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. "Miss Fuller, what do you think your Captain would say to you and you crew joining us for the journey home?"
     "I say that's a great idea. I'm sure he would agree. But do you have room for our crew?"
     "Of course we do," exclaimed Torres, "we could always use more people in engineering, or maintenece, or sickbay --" her voice trailed off at the word 'sickbay'. Her thoughts drifted towards Kes, the Ocampan girl who's mysterious departure had a disaterous effect on the crew. B'Elanna missed her. She was a excellant officer, and an good friend.
     "Excellant," exclaimed Janeway, "we'll arrange for your ship to dock in our shuttle bay in fifteen minutes."
    "Great! I'll inform my captain of your proposal.," she said, leaning out of view. A few seconds later, she returned, pulling with her a young man, "This is Charl - I mean, Ensign Delgato. He can help you with your preparations from our ship. Well, don't just stand there, say hello Ensign."
     "Hello Ensign," replied the young man smartly.
Sable frowned. "Don't get smart with me, smart-guy," she said, and shooed him out of sight.
B'Elanna's smile grew larger. "Still keeping the men in line, Sable?" she giggled.
     "Hey, I learned from the best, 'Lanna," said Sable, "Phoenix out." And with that the transmission ended. B'Elanna blushed. No body had called her "'Lanna" since she had ended up on Voyager. It was an old nickname Sable invented when they were in the fifth grade. Tom, seeing the colour in her face, looked over at her and gave her one of those incredible smiles he was famous for. She returned the smile discreetly, so no one would notice, and then returned to her engineering station. This would p
                                                             ***********************************

The only difference,
that I see,
Is you are exactly the same,
as you used to be.

- The Difference
(The Wall Flowers)

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Several crew members had gathered in Cargo bay two. They found out that The Phoenix wouldn't fit in the shuttle bay, on account that it was full of shuttles. All five of them. Anywho, most of the senior staff was there, including Seven of Nine. Well , almost everyone. Tuvok insisted that he stay on the bridge. To the best of Tom's recolection, the Tactless, oops! I mean Tactical officer had dubbed reunions as "...silly and meaningless. A ridiculous celebration."   But he couldn't wait. B'Elanna's       "Nervous?" asked Tom from behind her. They had to be careful to keep physical contact to a minimal as Harry Kim was standing right there. "Is it that obvious?" she asked.
     "What are the odds of running into a life long friend in the Delta Quadrent?" asked Harry Kim.
     "About the same chance of Neelix cooking something that the average humanoid can stomach," joked Tom. The three friends laughed.
Captain Janeway and Commander Chakotay stood and surveyed the site before them. Groups of the crew had already begun welcoming the new "recruits" as the came off of the ancient ship through a rusty airlock. Kathryn Janeway was exceptionally pleased with the hospitality of her crew. Truth beknown, she was only down there for one reason. She wanted to see when Sable and B'Elanna would meet. Plus it wouldn't hurt to meet their mysterious captain. The truth was, neither Janeway or Chakotay knew what k      "B'ELANNA!!!" screamed Sable
Torres whirled around at the sound of her name.
     "SABLE!!!!" she screamed in response. Sable dropped the bag she carried and ran towards B'Elanna. They met with a hug, screaming incoherently , and were now jumping up and down. Several crew member were clapping and cheering.
After the initial shock of Sable's arrival had worn off (and they stopped screaming), they both calmed down.
     "Wow," said Sable, "I can't believe it's really you! 'Lanna, I thought that I would never see you again."
     "Never say never, Sable," joked B'Elanna.
      "'Lanna, aren't you going to introduce me to these fine looking gentlemen," her friend asked, motioning towards Tom and Harry. The two men blushed, so that their faces matched the shade of red on Tom's unifom. "This is Ensign Harry Kim, our Operations guy," said B'Elanna, pointing to Harry, who smiled polietly, "And this -- this is Lieutenant Tom Paris," and then, quoting Captain Janeway she added, "The best damn pilot to ever come out of Star fleet Acadamy." Tom noticed that B'Elanna was giving      "Since we got stranded out here. The Maquis crew joined the Star fleet crew," explained Torres. "It's not as bad as I thought it would be. Captain Janeway made me Chief Engineer."
Sable looked like she was going to have a heart attack. "No way, *you* get to be Chief Engineer? That is so cool. I just have one thing to say."
     "Oh, yeah? What's that?" asked B'Elanna.
     "BITCHIN'!!" she cried, and gave her a high five. Unfortunately, she picked the wrong time to say this, as Captain Janeway and Commander Chakotay came within earshot. "Pardon my language," she said sheepishly.
     "Quite alright," said Janeway, somewhat -- shocked, "Just try not to do it again. Anyway, It's good to meet you in person, Miss. Fuller. Tell me, when wll this mysterious captain of yours be gracing us with his presence?"
B'Elanna and Tom recognized a faint, but visible look of dread flash across her face. Their faces changed from a look of happiness to concern. "Is something wrong, Sable?" asked Tom.
     "Actually --," she couldn't finish. B'Elanna recognized her tone. It was one that meant, *I don't want to tell you because it would really upset you.*
     "Sable -- what is it? I know something is wrong," said Torres curtly.
     "B'Elanna, maybe we should, go somewhere private, I really have to talk to you about --" Sable was cut off when a young man made an announcement, "ATTENTION, CAPTAIN ON THE --uh, umm, --AIRLOCK!"
A figure stepped out of the air lock. All was silent as he made his arrival. A man in his mid - fourties stood before them. His short black hair was graying, and he had these penetrating brown eyes. Tom was so sure he had seen them before, but on someone else. Captain Janeway , Commander Chakotay, and Harry walked to greet him. Paris was going to join them but something was holding him back. It was B'Elanna. He hadn't realized it at first, but she had a tight grip on his hand. He turned to look   Sable was looking paniky aswell. She put a hand on B'Elanna's shoulder, and was trying to clam her. She was well aware of her temper. Tom was still confused. "Sable, what's wrong with her? Who is that?" Sable just looked up at the pilot, with a look that was desperate and anxious and fearful.
B'Elanna turned to look at him. "He's --- my father."
     "Your father??" Tom whipered in an eerie echo. He went white in the face too. *This must be devistating for her,* he thought. Here is the man that walked out on her twenty years ago, today. Of course it was about to get worse.
Across the room, Janeway, Chakotay, and Harry were chatting with the leader from the Phoenix. He introduced himself as Robert Marcos.
     *Robert Marcos,* thought Chakotay, *That name. It's so -- familiar --,* realization dawned on him like a fog. This was B'Elanna's father. She had long ago told him about how her father left her as a child. "Oh Gods, "he said aloud, "You are B'Elanna's father, aren't you?"
Kathryn Janeway and Harry Kim went wide eyed at this accusation. "Chakotay, what are you saying?" asked the captain.
     "Captain, I'm certain of it. You are B'Elanna's father. Aren't you?" repeated the Commander.
Robert drew in a deep breath. "I had a daughter named B'Elanna, yes," he said. And then he spotted her.
A young woman, that was obviously part klingon, had her eyes locked on him. She looked pale, and agitated. Lieutenant Fuller was talking to her, and she was gripping a young man's hand for dear life.
He took a few steps towards her, ignoring the captain and company, and whispered, "B'Elanna??"
She responded by taking a few steps backwards, paused, and then shot out of the cargo bay like a bat out of hell.
Captain Janeway was very concerned on the emotion effects this might have on her engineer, Chakotay was fuming, and Harry was still clueless (as usual). Sable reacted first by running after her friend, calling, "B'Elanna wait." Tom Paris however, was probably more pissed off than he had ever been before in his entire life. *How dare her father do this to her. How dare he.* He stalked over to Robert, glaring at him the whole time, with the full intent to bash him six ways from Sunday. However, he r      "Lieutenant Torres is in her quarters."
Tom made a beeline for the turbo lift. He was so mad. B'Elanna had better be all right, or he was going to have to crack some skulls.

**************************************

Sable wandered around the vast corridors of Voyager. This ship was so large compared to the Phoenix. Plus it was shiney and new. It had that 'new ship' smell to it.
She had forgotten just how fast a runner B'Elanna Torres was. Her friend had easily out run her. She quickened her pace as she rounded a corner -- and ran into Tom Paris.
     "HEY, watch it you big -- oh, Tom, it's you. Sorry," she apologized, "Scared the hell out a me."
     "Sorry Sable, on my way to see B'Elanna," he explained.
     "Do you know where she is, because I have been looking for her, like forever."
     "She's in her quarters."
     "Oh, duh, her quarters. I am so mentally challenged. Of course, her quarters. Umm, say Tom, would mind showing me where the hell that is?" she asked in her own special way. "Sure, come on." He led her down the hallway for a few moments before stopping in front of a mechanical door that look exactly like all the others.
   Tom entered the door sequence.
     "Unable to comply. There is a level four security lockout." said the computer in it's polite, yet feminine tone.
     "LEVEL FOUR?!" cried Tom, "Only Captain Janeway has level four clearence."
     "That's bad, isn't it?" asked Sable, in a tone that could be classified as *I don't wanna know."
Tom thought for a moment. He racked that corners of his mind for a solution to their technical problem. But he was a pilot, not an engineer. So he utilized a more practical, predictable answer. He tapped his comm badge. "Paris to Torres." There was no reply. "B'Elanna, it's Tom. I'm standing outside your quarters and I know you're in there. Let me in, please? I just want to talk to you."
Then Sable leaned towards Tom's badge and added, "'Lanna? It's Sable. I'm out here to. Drop the security lock out for a while and let us come it."
There was still no reply. But from within the quarters, Sable and Paris could here the sounds of shuffling. Then, the doors slid open, and there she was. B'Elanna looked like she was going to break down crying any second. Tom and Sable scuttled into her quarters quickly, so no one would see her like that.
     "B'Elanna, I --," started Sable, but Torres interupted.
     "Sable, why the hell didn't you tell me?" she cried, "Why didn't you tell me he was there?"
     "What would you have done in front of everyone the bridge if I had told you B'Elanna? You would have had a fit and screamed me stupid. I was just trying to protect you," replied Sable.
B'Elanna paused to ponder this for a moment. She realized that Sable was right. But she was too angry and upset to say anything.
     "B'Elanna, do you wanna talk about it?" asked Tom softly. He moved closer to her and put a arm around her. But she broke free from him and retreated to her sleeping quarters, yelling, "I DON'T NEED YOUR PITY!!"
Tom and Sable exchanged a worried glance and cautiosly followed her into the bedroom. B'Elanna sat on her bed, knees drawn to her chest, sobbing loudly. Paris and Fuller sat down on either side of her. Torres stopped crying for a moment and looked up at Tom. The look in her eyes broke his heart.   Tom wrapped his arms around her and drew her into his chest. This time however, she didn't resist him. B'Elanna buried herself in his embrace and just cried. Tom rocked her gently whispering, "It's okay      "I'm sorry Sable. I know it's not your fault."
     "That's okay 'Lanna, we're none of us perfect," Sable smiled weakly , "But you know, you are going to have to face your father sometime."
     "Maybe -- or I could just get Tuvok to throw him in the brig," spat B'Elanna.
     "You don't mean that B'Elanna," replied Sable, her voice was the epitome of concern, "Your father isn't quite as evil as you think."
     "Yes he is," shouted B'Elanna, "He abandoned me, Sable. Remeber?"
     "No -- no he didn't. You -- don't know the whole story B'Elanna," said Sable hesitantly.
Tom, who had been listening with avid interest to the conversation, asked, "What are you talking about, Sable?"
     "Yeah," added B'Elanna, "What do you mean *the whole story*?"
Sable drew in a deep breath. Her face was contorted to an expression of deep thought. Recolection. "Where do I begin? All right B'Elanna, it's like this. Did your mother ever tell you why he left?"
     "No."
     "When we were five, apparently your mother thought that he was having an affair with a friend of his -- Umm, Mierielle, I think her name was -- but he wasn't. Your dad tried to explain to your mother that Mierielle was just a friend. That he really loved her. But she didn't believe him. She told him wanted him to leave and never come back. That this was the end of their relationship," explained Sable.
B'Elanna had a look of shock on her face. "How do you know all this?" she demanded.
     "He told me 'Lanna. When the crew for the Phoenix was being drafted for this mission, which is an entirely different story that I'll tell you later, he recognized me. He remebered that we were friends. He wanted to know how you were -- if you were all right. I told him about your ship getting lost in the badlands, and his mission divided into two two parts. He wanted to find Voyager and the Maquis
ship -- and you. He confided everything in me. About his break up and how much he still loves your mother, and about how he misses you. B'Elanna, when your mother told him to leave, he had thought he lost you forever. It crushed him. He loves you and misses you so much. You owe it to him to hear what he has to say. "
B'Elanna sat silent for several minutes. It took her that long to soak in what Sable had just revealed. Maybe she should give him a chance. She did still love her father - in spite of what she thought had happened before - but with Sables revalations, she felt the anger she had towards him fade away.
     "I think you should see him," added Tom.
     "I think I will," she replied. Her attitude had greatly improved. In fact, she was smiling. Just then, the trio heard the chime of B'Elanna's door. "I'll see who it is," offered Sable. "Thanks," replied B'Elanna.
Tom and B'Elanna watched Sable leave. "Feeling better?" he asked her. "Much," she replied. B'Elanna turned in his lap to face him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him close.
     "What would I do with out you?" she laughed.
Paris took this as a sign to commence kissing. Their lips met with a passion that made his heart want to leap out of his chest. Unfortunately for them, they didn't see Sable return to the room -- followed by Captain Janeway, Commander Chakotay, and Lieutenant Tuvok. Sable watched Tom and B'Elanna with a huge grin on her face, which lessened quickly when she saw the reaction of her company. Captain Janeway and Commander Chakotay had a mutual look that seemed to scream *What are they doing?*. Tuvok w      "What is going on here?" demanded Janeway.
     "Uhh, I was -- uh-- just checking out Tom's dental work. I think he needs a cavity refilled," replied B'Elanna. She had never been one for making up excuses.
     "I see," answered Janeway, none too amused, "And exactly how long have you two been examining eachother's dental hygene?"
Tom and B'Elanna, now thouroughly emabarrest, couldn't answer. "Well?" asked Commander Chakotay.
     "Two months," the said in unison.
Kathryn and Chakotay shot each other backward glances and then looked from Paris to Torres then back at each other. "We will discuss this later," said Janeway, and flashed them *the look*, the Captain's ultimate weapon, "But now," she added, "we have a more pressing concern. B'Elanna, your father wants to see you. I understand if you don't want to, but he really wants to talk to you."
     "I'll see him," replied Torres.
This surprised Janeway and Chakotay, for they feared B'Elanna would want nothing to do with her father. But they suspected that Paris and Sable had something to do with convincing her.   Actually, Janeway didn't object to Tom and B'Elanna having a romantic relationship. She had been all for it, thinking they would make a cute couple. The thing that cheesed her off was the fact that they were sneaking around about it, and didn't tell anyone. *I doubt Harry even knows about this* she thought.
    "He's waiting for you in my ready room," replied Janeway.
B'Elanna nodded in response, got out of Tom's lap, and out of bed. He stood up to join her. "Do you want me or Sable to come with you?" he asked, putting his arms around her waist.
     "Yeah, Tom and I will come too if you want," offered Sable.
She looked at the two of them. They were great friends, doing all of this for her. But she knew this was something she had to do on her own. "No, but thanks anyway. I have to do this myself."
     "All right," whispered Tom. Then he leaned in to kiss her, forgetting about the captain and Chakotay and Tuvok. The four others watched with different reactions. When they stopped, B'Elanna moved out of his embrace and towards her door.
     "Would you like for myself or a security officer to accompany you, Lieutenant?" inquired Tuvok.
     "No, that's all right Tuvok," she replied.
     "Are you sure?" he asked.
     "She said No," responded Sable, moving in front of Tuvok, "And you should respect her wishes."
     "I was just trying to help," said Tuvok, shifting his weight to his left foot.
Sable took a few steps back and said, "Then may I suggest a minty mouthwash."
This caused all present (except Tuvok) to start laughing.
     "Good one," laughed B'Elanna.
     "Thanks," said Sable smiling.
"Well, wish me luck," said B'Elanna to Tom.
"Good luck," he replied, "I'll be in the Mess Hall, okay?"
B'Elanna smiled at her boyfriend turned and left, leaving him with Sable, Captain Janeway, Commander Chakotay, and Tuvok, who had just got slammed twice in one day.
"Come on Sable, let's go to the Mess Hall. You can meet some more of the crew. Say, have you ever tried Leola root ...."

*****************************************************

B'Elanna Torres stood outside Captain Janeway's ready room doors. She didn't know what to do.
     *What am I going to say to him? What if Sable was wrong? What if he lied and really did just abandon her?* She had contemplaited turning around and forgetting the whole thing, but decided she oweded herself the truth. After all, she had been waiting twenty years for it.
Taking in a deep breath, she entered the door sequence. It opened for her and she stepped inside.
The ready room looked the same as ever. Not that Janeway would ever change it. But the decore didn't interest her as much as it's occupant. There stood Robert Marcos Torres. He stood, staring out the small ready room window into the inky blackness of space.
     *It's now or never* she decided.
     "Daddy?" she said softly
He turned. B'Elanna noted how her father semmed to be one of those people who never aged a lot. He was exactly how she remebered him. Right now, his eyes lit up, making him look atleast ten years younger. "Princess," Robert replied happily. He used to call her princess when she was little. B'Elanna felt a tear approaching but she quickly fought it away. Her Klingon side was winning.
     "Don't you 'Princess' me," she said, "I want to know. I want to know the truth. Why did you leave me? It's because I look to much like a Klingon isn't it?" she demanded.
     *Good choice of words, B'Elanna* she teased herself.
Her fathers features saddened as he took a few steps towards her. "B'Elanna, that is not true. You're a beautiful young lady. I don't care how Klingon you look. Besides, if I thought Klingons were ugly than I never would have fallen in love with your mother and married her. I didn't leave you. I tried to contact you, but your mother wouldn't even let me talk to you. I tried writing you letters, subspace communications to Kessiks, hell, I even tried to visit."
     "Mother never told me that," replied B'Elanna sullenly, "Why wouldn't she let you?"
     "Because she thought I was cheating on her with Mierielle Baxter. She was a good friend of mine from high school, but nothing more. But Khay'la didn't want to hear it. She said she didn't want me anywhere near you."
B'Elanna was still unsure of his explanation.   She eyed him suspiciously (which would have done Janeway proud), and asked, "Are you lying to me?"
Robert was mortified that she would think he was lying to her. *Well what do you expect? Khay'la probably told her that I left because I thought she was too Klingon or something* "B'Elanna, I would never lie to you.   You are my only daughter, and I love you so much. These past twenty years - without you - have been so hard for me. When I heard that you were missing and presumed to be dead, I needed to find out what had happened to you. I never would have forgive myself if something had happened      "I forgive you Daddy."
     "You have no idea how happy I am to hear you say that. B'Elanna," he continued, dropping his embrace, "I was bad father. I'm sorry."
     "You were not. But, maybe you'll have better luck with the next generation," smiled B'Elanna.
Robert caught the drift, and smiled, "You're pregnant?"
     "Yeah. Three weeks," replied B'Elanna.
     "Who's the lucky guy?" asked her father.
     "Tom - Tom Paris. But don't tell him. He doesn't know yet. I just found out yesterday and I have been waiting for the right time to tell him."
     "Paris? That name -- is he Owen Paris' son?
     "Yes."
     "Don't worry, your secret's safe with me," he said, and hugged his daughter again.
They were so lost in the moment, the didn't hear the woosh of the mechanical doors as Captain Janeway and Commander Chakotay entered. They both smiled. "Isn't it wonderful Chakotay? That a father and daughter can put the past behind them and start over?" said Janeway to Chakotay.
Unfortunately, Kathryn didn't seem to understand the concept of subtlety, and said that way too loud.
     "Captain Janeway, nice to see you again," laughed Robert.
Janeway turned an embarrest shade of red, and then replied, "I'm sorry, are we intruding?"
     "Not at all captain," smiled B'Elanna.
     "Well, then if you don't mind Mr. Torres, Chakotay and I would like a word with you."
     "Not at all," said Robert in response.
     "We can catch up later than," said B'Elanna, "If you need me, I'll be in the mess hall," then she whispered to him, "Icks-nay on the egnancey-pray."
She walked absent-mindedly across the room to the doors and left as though the world had been lifted off her shoulders.

**********************************************

When B'Elanna reached the mess hall, she was surprised to find Tom, Sable, and Harry Kim sitting with Seven of Nine. She half -walked half-ran to their table and sat in the empty chair beside Tom Paris.
     "How did it go?" asked Sable hopefully.
     "Great. I talked to him, and found out that you were right Sable, he didn't leave me after all. He was so upset when he heard that the Maquis ship I was on went missing, he said he owed it to me to find out where I was -- and he missed me and still loved me."
     "That is great news," said Tom, putting his arm on her shoulder.
Seven of Nine , to the surprise of all, spoke up with amazing understanding of B'Elanna's situation, "Do you still love him?"
B'Elanna took this into consideration, "Yeah, I do. I love my father. I never hated him to begin with."
Seven of Nine seemed content with her answer. She smiled at B'Elanna, and replied, "I am glad."
     "Thank-you," replied B'Elanna, and returned her smile.
     "Speaking of great news B'Elanna," interjected Harry Kim, "When were you and Tom planning on telling me about this torrid little affair of yours?"
     "You know?" she ventured.
     "B'Elanna, everybody knows, it's all over the ship. Good news travels quickley," answered Harry.
Torres moved her chair so it touched Toms. "Well in that case..." she leaned over and got a firm lip lock on Paris, seemingly unaware of the other three. Seven of Nine watched them with astoute curiousity. She had never seen this before. She asked Sable, "What are they doing?"
Sable laughed internally. She had to explain kissing to a former Borg. "They're kissing. It's a form of --affection."
     "Wow, they are really going at it," Harry whispered to Sable.
Sable frowned. *MEN* Only a man could take something this romantic and turn it into a raunchy seduction scene. "They are not *going at it* Harry. It just happens to be two people who are kissing right in front of us."
Suddenly, a voice caught them all off guard. "Get your greasy lips off my daughter, Paris."
All present looked up at B'Elanna's father. "Kidding," he said.
     "You'd better be," replied Tom, rather agitated because his kissing was interuppted.
     "Mr. Paris, Miss Torres, I don't know if this is the time nor the place for -- personal displays of affection," stated Tuvok, who had accompanied Robert.
Sable couldn't help herself. Tuvok had set himself up for this one, "No offense Mr. Tuvok, but what you don't know could fill a galaxy."
The Vulcan was becoming slightly peeved with these comments, but following Vulcan tradition, he said nothing and showed no signs of being pissed. But he did leave the Mess Hall.
     "Miss Fuller, I'm sure Captain Janeway doesn't appreciate your comments about her Vulcan. Try to tone it down a bit, after all, the Voyager crew is being so hospitible to us," suggested Robert.
     "I'm sorry Captain Torres, I --" started Sable.
     "It's not Captain anymore Sable. I have decided that I'm going to take a well deserved vacation. I have been a star fleet captain for over twenty years and I need some time off. But I will take a few shifts here and there."
     "Then Star Fleet is losing a good officer," replied Sable.
Robert sat down in the last remaining chair at the table - between Tom Paris and Seven of Nine.
     "I want you to meet some other friends of mine," said B'Elanna, "This is Harry Kim," she said pointing at Harry, "and this is Seven of Nine."
     "Seven of Nine?? Where did you get a name like that?" he asked, although he had a pretty good idea just by looking at her.
Seven of Nine looked a little confused at his request, so she thought a moment before explaining, "I was designated Seven of Nine; tertiary adjunct to the unimatrix 01 by Borg when this body was assimilated. You may call me Seven of Nine."
     "Well, that explains it. And who is this?" he asked, grandly gesturing towards Tom (although he already had a good idea who he was)
A wide smile spread across B'Elanna's lips, "This -- this is Tom Paris. My --"
     "BOYFRIEND" chimed in Sable and Harry. B'Elanna shot them a menicing look that quickley dissolved.
"So, this is the one B'Elanna," he smiled, "So, Tom, rumour has it that you've been seeing my daughter. You know, if you hurt her in any way, Commander Chakotay and I are going to come after you with those kick-ass phaser compression rifles Voyager has," he teased.
     "Dad," exclaimed B'Elanna as she leaned over and swatted him on the arm. Tom however, didn't take the joke as well as Robert would have liked him too. He sat silently for a while.
     "He was kidding Tom," informed B'Elanna when she noticed Paris hadn't said anything in five minutes.
     "I knew that," he replied meekly.
A conversation began to start between the occupants of the table. B'Elanna sat back and listened. For once in her life, everything was perfect. She had a great guy, and was having his baby(even though he didn't know it yet), has been reunited with her astranged father and her best friend in the universe, and saw Tuvok humiliated three times in the course of about two hours. Life was taking on a new meaning to her. One that both her Klingon and Human halves understood. And things were only going to

FIN

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Hope you like the story. PLEASE, send me your comments and critisism. If I get a good response to this story, I am going to make a four part series. Aw hell, even if I don't get any response I'll write a four part seres. Why you ask? Because I'm crazy like that. So send your compliments/questions/mindless praise to raven_36@hotmail.com Thank-you. Oh, by the way, I have suffered a majore systems crash on my computer. I lost everything, including my other series, so people who arereading that, I ap
*****I wrote this previously to Day of Honor. Actually, at the time I type this, Day of Honour will be on in exactly 49 hours, 27 minutes, and about five - make that four seconds!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Can't wait. ***************

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