Changes part 11 -14


As the Chief sat on the couch with Tas; once again left alone as the rest of
the dinner party had left for the holideck. Naomi, had convinced Mor to be
her instructor to get her class 3 shuttle pilot license the first step in
her goal of becoming a Captain herself one day is how she had explained her
ambition to all that asked. She knew it would just worry those here that
cared about her if she let them know about her deepest fears and guilt.
Chief realized after the fact she had agreed to this endeavor internally
chastising herself for her lack of concentration this evening; but, she
admitted to herself, her concentration around the captain was as usual of
late atrocious and with this afternoons conversation fresh in her mind it
was completely gone. She wondered what affect her presence was having on the
beautiful woman so close to her on the coach and tried to clear her mind to
pick up any thoughts that might give a clue as to what was going on behind
those dark eyes.  She found herself reliving many of the occurrences of the
last 270 days. 
The first being Captain Tas finding her helping to repair a hull breech on
deck 4 the day after arrival. It had been hard manual labor to repair the
damage and she had found it took her mind off of the danger Naomi had been
in and the circumstances around it. She had been aware of the Captains
presence long before she actually saw her down the corridor talking to Tri.
The next memory was of the argument they had over her treatment on Voyager.
Tas had been so upset by the report she had submitted and questioned her
endlessly about it. Defending the actions of her former crew mates had been
easy; although, she had conceded to Tas� point of view where Star Fleet was
concerned. Than it was memory of her and Naomi playing Kadis Dot after
dinner one evening.  It had actually taken some effort to program the
replicator to produce the game; but, it was definitely worth the effort. She
had just lost a round to Naomi who was now wearing a United Front uniform
having been made an official member of the crew as a junior officer. Nik
remembered her initial fear at the rank till she realized it was like being
a bridge assistant a previously unheard of rank to keep the too intelligent
for her own good girl on her toes.  Abruptly it was another disagreement
between the 2 strong willed women. Tas had wanted her to take a commission
and officially become a member of the crew. She had considered it; however,
she was happy assisting in engineering and chain of command was never
something she wanted to grasp. She had agreed; but, only if the commission
was Captain and had been terrified when it appeared Tas might actually grant
the commission. The argument ended abruptly with Tas reminding her to be
careful what you wish for. Their were brief flashes of herself. The time she
had spent planet side helping with negotiations, watching over Naomi as she
overcame a bout of the local version of the chicken pox. Trying to teach
various crew members how to play pool or velocity. Two games on which the
wagering would never cease to amaze her.  She realized throughout all these
memories she felt contentment mixed with a certain amount of longing. She
wondered briefly what was causing this emotion. It was not until the
thoughts switched again showing an older couple of a species she was not
familiar with appeared that realization came to her. These were not her
memories since her arrival; but, were those of the Captain. She was
surprised by how much trepidation these two older humanoids caused her
usually unflappable friend. She was startled out of her connection by the
realization that she and Tas were good friends confiding in each other their
hopes and fears. She knew from experience that Captains were unlikely to
confide fear to anyone and it made her smile that Tas did so with her. She
looked over at Tas and asked, �Are you looking forward to arriving home�
�Yes and No�, was the cryptic reply.
�Why No� , this answer surprised Chief she had come to believe that everyone
missed their home. Especially due to the ferocity with which the Voyager
crew was committed to returning to their respective homes.
�Well it will be great to see my family and I love them dearly; but, after a
couple of days mom will start in on me again��
�What will your mom start in on you about�, Nik hoped if she knew the
problem she could help formulate a solution.
�Oh, it will be subtle at first, you will see I know Qel invited you and
Naomi to stay with our parents and I am glad you will be staying there
perhaps Naomi�s presence will help provide a distraction for my mom�
Nik was still at a loss, � What will start out subtle, as you know subtlety
is not my strong point�
Tas chuckled lowly �Very true, No my mom wants me to �Meet Someone Special
and settle down�
Nik was even more at a loss, �You have, Qel, Mor, Naomi, and myself in your
life are we not special enough?�
�Uhhh that is not what she means, by special she means a bond mate� the
unflappable Captain managed to finally say. Relieved she heard Naomi
skipping back to the quarters returning the greetings of her shipmates and
promising her Math instructor that her homework was already logged into the
computer. �Naomi�s back�
Before the door slid open Nik asked quickly,�Is their someone like that
waiting for you either on this world or elsewhere�?
Tas managed to say, �I hope their is someone; but, no, not in the literal
sense�
Naomi�s arrival gave Tas the opportunity to slip out before she added that
the someone out there was right in the room. She shook her head slowly as if
trying to clear it as she walked back to her quarters.
After Naomi had gone to bed Nik stayed up replaying the conversation in her
mind. She needed advice and hoped for another slow day in engineering. After
the conversation earlier in the day with Tri, she felt she could trust her
to help her decide what to do.
TBC
part 12
I am taking some liberties with Naomi�s age, Star Trek time line, and
Nanoprobe technology.
Disclaimer: I�m retaining water for a couple of people, and I�ve got to
return it by midnight (Carrie Fisher)

She awoke quickly realizing that Naomi was already awake and preparing
breakfast. She was sleeping longer and was actually enjoyed the experience
last night. She found herself blushing as the memory of last nights dream
filled her mind.  Usually her dreams were nightmares, terrifying images of
her time with Borg. One night soon after her arrival she had awoke to both
Tas and Naomi trying to gently wake her. Tas had explained her presence
saying she had been awake when Chiefs terror had flashed into her mind.
Naomi said that her screaming had awaken her along with the Captains request
for entry. Chief was very relieved that she and Tas were not so intimately
connected any longer. The dream had been extremely erotic with she and Tas
the only participants. She took a quick shower to clear her thoughts dressed
for duty she joined Naomi for breakfast.
�Good morning sleepy head�, Naomi giggled as Nik sat down to breakfast.
Nik was pleased to see a nutritious breakfast set on the table. Naomi�s
penchant for sweets was becoming legendary.
All through breakfast Naomi talked about the upcoming 3 month shore leave.
Chief had learned that the United Front was a much loser alignment of
planets than the Federation having no true base of operations. Tradition was
that leave started at the home planet of the Captain and those of the crew
who wanted to remain there did the rest catching shuttles  to there
respected home worlds or different vacation spots.  Nik found herself being
swept up in Naomi�s excitement although spending so long on a planet would
be a new experience for the both of them. Naomi had assured her they would
both adapt. Naomi was still fearful however about being around people her
own age. Qel had received a letter from his parents saying they had adopted
a young girl close to Naomi�s age and had excitedly told Naomi about her and
the fact they would be attending classes together. Nik had told Naomi she
would be just fine and knew that interaction with children her own age would
be beneficial for her. After they finished there meal Naomi stopped to check
her appearance in the mirror, Nik standing behind her straightening Naomi�s
jacket by readjusting shoulder pads. She soon was going to need a new
uniform again obviously Naomi was going through another growth spurt. Naomi
laughed and looked up to catch Seven�s eyes in the mirror.
�What is so funny Naomi?�
�These uniforms I finally remembered what they remind me of�
�And what is that Naomi?�
�Remember all those nights when Tom would have T.V. nights in the mess hall
and he would show those science fiction shows from the 20th Century�
Nik shook her head yes, happy that Naomi was discussing her times on Voyager
without the sadness that usually covered her face.
�This uniform looks almost exactly like the one from that show Bab
something, right down to the wrist communicators�
Nik accessed the proper eidetic memory, �Babylon 5 and you are correct they
are almost identical�
They left their quarters smiling discussing the odds of such an occurrence.
Naomi on her way to the Sick Bay where she would be studying History,
Writing, and Geographical formations today. Naomi disliked anything but the
sciences; but Tas had explained how learning all these things would help her
become a Captain so she endured them knowing tomorrow it would be Math,
Astrometrics, and Physics or Chemistry her favorites.
Chief made her way to engineering wondering what Tas had told Naomi that
made her more willing to work on all her studies just not the sciences. It
seemed no matter how hard she tried her thoughts always strayed to the
Captain and she had given up trying to restrain them. After the Doctor�s
misguided attempt of daydreaming on Voyager, she had researched the
phenomena and found it a inefficient use of time.  Considering who her
dreams and day dreams were now straying to she was going to have to revise
her original belief. She entered engineering seeing today was going to be
even quieter than the day before. She had just completed a new upgrade
proposal when she heard Tri walking up behind her. She felt a hand on her
shoulder as Tri looked at the proposal and than at her asking her to join
her again for lunch.
After they had settled down to lunch, she noticed Tri was looking at her
slightly embarrassed and stated quietly.
�Chief I appreciate the look of your hair down and maybe you are unaware of
the regulation but any hair longer that shoulder length must be pulled back
at least into a pony tail here in engineering�
She found herself blushing as she reached back and began quickly braiding
her hair and was relived when Tri tossed her a clip to hold the braid.
�I was aware of the regulation and forgot to braid it this morning��, Chief
stated and blushing even redder, �I overslept�.
�Chief everyone oversleeps occasionally and since your were not late for you
duty shift I do not see the reason to be concerned�
�I do not oversleep it is inefficient�, was the quick reply.
Tri smothered a desire to laugh, �No, but it is normal�
She noticed the Chief shifting uncomfortable and asked �Something you would
like to discuss�  amazed when Chief turned even a darker shade of read and
picking up some of the younger woman's emotions realized life on board was
about to get real interesting if she was correct and decided to double her
bet.

TBC
pt. 13
Disclaimer: Nothing in my closet but my clothes <Suzanne Westenhoffer>

Chief walked down the corridor considering the advice Tri had given her.
What it all boiled down to is she was to be herself and only approach the
Captain when both were off duty. In exchange for this information Tri had
made an unusual request of her. A request she had agreed to fulfill if the
situation ever arose.  Be herself she thought ruefully who else could I be.
She was running back to engineering even before the level 5 alert registered
in her mind. She and the rest of the crew were confused when the alarm
abruptly ended and the Captain came onto ship wide communication system.
�All hands false alert, and yes Naomi that is the command to set a level 5
alert� The Chief let out a sigh of relief and amusement as she altered her
course to retrieve Naomi from the command center noticing the laughter of
her fellow crew mates. Naomi was still apologizing when she arrived; but,
from the amused look on the Captains face she could tell Naomi was not in
real trouble. Naomi looked relieved when the Chief arrived making a quick
exit at that moment leaving so quickly she left the Chief on the Command
deck. Tas laughed as she met Chief at the lift�s closed door, �Well I wonder
how long it will before we see her up here again?�.
They both entered the next lift. The Chief looked at Tas and suddenly felt
nervous, but asked �Are you off duty?�
�Yes I am�
�I was wondering then, if your not busy�, Chief realized her voice was
quavering, �Well you see Naomi is having dinner with Mor and the rest of the
pilots tonight and would you join me for dinner, I understand if you have
plans already�
It seemed to the Chief as though an eternity went by before Tas answered.
She truly wished she was someone else at that moment and suddenly the advice
she received earlier made some sense.
Tas was absolutely struck mute, she did not have any plans for the evening
and realized even if she had a dinner planned with the Fleet Admiral she
would have rescheduled for this dinner. Finally finding her voice, �I would
enjoy having dinner with you, Chief�
Chief was startled, she had a date. Suddenly she realized that Tas was
waiting for specifics,�Uhh lets have dinner in my quarters say 6:30�
�That sounds terrific see you than�, Tas replied as she exited the lift the
deck below the Chiefs.
Dating on this starship was difficult to say the least. The 3 holidecks were
constantly in use on games of skill and chance, with wagering  running
rampant. One had to set holideck time well in advance like Naomi did for her
shuttle races. For this reason having Tas to dinner in her quarters for
there date was not unusual. Chief nervously tried on another shirt and
sighed to herself, Tas had been to dinner at least twice a week since she
had come on board; but, she had come to realize this was very different.
Naomi, had told her to have a good time when Nik had told her Tas was
joining her for dinner this evening. A good time at this point she just
wanted to survive the evening.
Tas could not believe she had spent so long replicating an outfit, she had
never been one to dwell on her appearance, except for those rare occasions
when she had to appear in dress uniform. Finally, the lack of time decided
the outfit as she walked to the Chief�s quarters she tried to ignore the
looks her outfit and the bottle of wine she was carrying were generating.
She was relieved when she saw Naomi�s smiling face realizing the trip
between quarters had seemed much longer than normal with the crews glances.
Naomi wished her a good night as she entered the lift Tas had just left. As
Tas waited for permission to enter the Chiefs quarters, Naomi was running
the rest of the way to Qel and Mor�s quarters squeezing through the doors as
they opened. Tas hesitated a moment before entering noticing crew traffic
seemed unusually heavy on this deck and finally entered just to leave the
inquiring looks behind.   Qel looked up alarmed at Naomi�s breathlessness
asking her what was wrong. Naomi between gulps of air said nothing was wrong
and relayed the fact that Nik and Tas had a date this evening. Qel smiled
broadly at Mor and said one pool down many to go.
Chief and Tas stood in the center of the room both unsure what to say. Tas
handed her the bottle of wine mutely and glanced around the quarters as if
she had never seen them before. Mor quickly asked Naomi if she would like to
stay over after the meeting that night and after receiving Naomi replied yes
sent a private message to the Chief. The silence seemed to go on forever
neither knowing how to break it, finally the chirp of an incoming message
allowed both woman to chuckle slightly. Nik read the note and sensed some
sort of conspiracy going on; but, agreed to allow Naomi the opportunity to
sleep over.  Nik chuckled again as she joined Tas bringing with her two
glasses of wine.
�What�s so funny�, Tas asked.
�Mor, just invited Naomi to spend the night in their quarters after the
meeting tonight it seems they are going to make Naomi an honorary member of
the pilots association. I also fear that you and I maybe the victims of a
conspiracy�, she added cryptically.
It only took Tas a moment to put all the pieces together, Qel, Mor, or
Naomi�s constant insistent request that she join them for dinner or other
recreational activities than immediately leaving her alone with the Chief,
not that she minded the opportunities. But, she felt a certain amount of
guilt since she was sure her brother had initiated this conspiracy and felt
the need to apologize for his actions.
�I am sorry if their actions have made you uncomfortable, Chief, and
certainly hope you did not feel compelled to invite me to dinner in response
to their actions�
�Their actions had no part in me inviting you to dinner; except, in the
sense that their persistence in getting us together has given me an
opportunity to know you and come to enjoy your company� was the quiet reply.
Tas found herself blushing at the compliment, �I also enjoy your company,
and you look exquisite this evening�
Now it was Chiefs turn to blush and rising from the couch motioned for Tas
to join her at the table for dinner. They ate in companionable silence,
listening to the music.  After dinner they once again returned to the couch
with Tas telling Nik stories of her childhood most involving Qel, and Nik
could never remember laughing so much in her life. Now the fact that she had
only began laughing 2 months before did not provide her much of a time frame
for comparison; yet, she knew for a fact she was having a great time.
�This is going much better than my first date I ever had did�, Nik said with
a chuckle.
�Well, I am certainly glad to hear that, Chief�
�Please call me Nik, Chief sounds to formal to me�
Tas realized the grin on her face was very uncaptain like; but, than she had
not felt very captain like all evening.
�So Nik, would you care to share this awful dating experience with me?�
Nik had than relayed the events of the evening to her and although once
again she found the actions by some of Voyagers crew members infuriating.
She had to admit that it was a funny story.
�Well perhaps on our next date you will have an opportunity to break one of
my limbs�.
It was only after the comment, that Tas realized she had implied their would
be a date after this one.
�That is if seeing me again would be acceptable�, Tas said nervously.
�More than acceptable�, was Nik�s reply.
�Well than, how about 2 days from now same time, I believe I can finagle
some holideck time�, Tas said as she stood to leave suddenly realizing the
lateness of the hour.
�I would enjoy that� , Nik said following her towards the door.
They both stared at each other suddenly uncomfortable.
�Well, I will see you then, Nik�
�I had a great time, get good nights sleep,Tas�
�You too�
Abruptly Tas grabbed Nik�s right hand and after giving it a gentle squeeze,
left.
Nik slowly drifted to coach realizing that touch had suddenly brought Tas�
thoughts back into her mind. She knew with absolute certainty it was a
feeling she wanted again soon.

TBC 

part 14
Time, it is the last day of leave.
Disclaimer: The day my ship came in, I was at the airport.

Tas was startled to realize the house was empty except for her mother after
she arrived home from her final new mission briefing. Her mother smiled and
motioned for Tas to sit at the kitchen table. Tas laughed as her mom relayed
how Puma and Naomi had conned the rest of the family into taking them to the
beach today, even though it was a school day.
Her mom gently took her hand and smiled saying, �I do not think I have ever
heard you laugh or seen you smile as much in your whole life with us as you
have in the last three months�.

Tas returned the smile, �I know I was not the easiest child to deal with�.

�I was always concerned, you seemed so driven; but, something has changed
and I think I know what or should I say who has brought that about�, her
mother said gently.

Tas sighed, �I am happy and yes Nik has a lot to do with it�.

�Perhaps I will invited to a bonding sometime soon�

Tas laughed, �Usually you are a lot more subtle mother�

�You are avoiding the question�

�Yes, I am. I really do not know we have not discussed it�, Tas said
blushing slightly.

�Well, both your father and I approve and that is all I am going to say on
the subject�

�Mother, I truly doubt that; but, I appreciate the sentiment�

The noise from outside startled both women as Naomi and Puma raced one
another into the house. Nik yelled �no running inside the house you two.�
Nik smiled at Tas stating, �Those two are incorrigible, would you care to go
for a walk?� Tas nodded yes and in companiable silence the two walked to
where the best view of the sunset was. They had explored many vistas before
determining this particular spot was the best.  Their nightly walk before
dinner to watch the sunset had become a ritual they both enjoyed. Tas
thoughts kept drifting back to her discussion with her mom, and as she felt
Nik reach over and put an arm around her she smiled snuggling into the
embrace. It had been almost 2 weeks since either had been able to connect to
the others thoughts. She wondered what her companion was thinking; but,
realized one of the many things she loved about Nik was how comfortable she
was with her in silence. It was only after the last glimmer of pink had
faded that Nik broke the silence,�I shall miss this, I have spent my whole
life in space and this time has given me appreciation of living on a
planet.�
Tas voice shook as she said �You know, you could remain here?

�I am aware of this; however, I would prefer to return with you unless
command has some issue with it?�

�They are concerned about your refusal to accept a commission; but, they are
more than happy to have you serve as a civilian consultant to engineering�

Nik stood extending her hand to Tas, �We need to return Naomi wishes to
speak to me this evening�.

Chief looked around the quarters realizing how quiet they were without
Naomi. Naomi�s request to stay planet side had caused quite a dilemma for
her. The opportunity that she had been offered to attend a special school
with Puma for gifted students was to much for Naomi to pass up. It was only
after Mor had stated that she was taking her 6 months of personal leave to
remain on the planet to teach piloting skills at the school Naomi was
attending that Nik�s resolve had faltered. Naomi had pleaded with Nik to
allow her to remain and than after securing her permission had spent the
rest of the evening convincing Nik to not remain with her. She still was not
convinced until Tas� mom pulled her aside and talked to her. She had
convinced Nik, Naomi would be fine with both her and Mor looking after her;
besides it was only 6 months.

She was still wondering if she made the right decision as she began her
first shift in Engineering. Tri quickly sensed Chief confusion and pulled
her aside after the shift was complete. It was only after discussing the
matter for close to two hours that Chief finally felt secure in her
decision. Tri had pointed out Naomi�s obsessive need to be in Chief presence
only a year before; and, that this separation was a positive sign of Naomi
finding the independence she would need as an adult. Plus, it was not as if
she was not going to have family with her during this time. She would be
staying with Tas parents and Mor, not to mention Puma, Those two had been
practically joined at the hip since Naomi�s arrival.  Naomi had even chosen
to share her birthday with Puma since her date of birth was unknown, so it
had been a joint 10th Birthday party. Chief  returned to her far to quiet
quarters and the recriminations began again 10 was way to young for this
sort of separation. She was still turning all this over in her head when she
realized she had several messages waiting for her. The first was from Tas
asking her if she had any plans for the evening. The second was from Naomi.
Tears formed in Nik�s eyes as she read the note.

Dear Nik,
I just wanted write and thank you again for letting me remain here and do
this. I hope I did not hurt you by practically demanding that you leave with
Tas and Qel. Its not that I wanted you gone. It�s just for the first time
since mom died I feel that you and I are safe. You know I would never leave
you unless I thought you were safe.  And I so much want to become a pilot. .
So know that I will miss you bunches and will write often.
Love, Naomi

Chief smiled through her tears realizing she never would have left Naomi
except for the fact she was sure that Naomi would be perfectly safe there.
Tri, was right they did both need to learn that the other would be safe even
if they did not see each other everyday. But, six months she groaned and
looked around her quarters again. Even though she realized she was not the
best company she wrote Tas back asking her to come join her for dinner.