I know the characters are property of Paramount and I can't capitalize on them, I just want to borrow them for a good story. First Day Jitters Written By Nicole Phillips Email: lil_sf_gal@earthlink.net Synopsis: When it's time to enroll Miral in school, B'elanna feels anxiety about her daughter fitting in as a Klingon child in an Earth prep school. Set when Miral is five years old. Rated: PG The sun beamed into the back office as a mother sighed over a padd. While the hot sun was pleasant on her skin, BÕelanna Torres-Paris was not exactly in a pleasant mood. She was irritated by the complexity of the forms she had to fill out Ð "I work with warp cores and transporters but these school entrance forms are impossible!" "You know, B'elanna I can finish those forms." Her husband replied. "Besides, you've had a rough day." "It's fine, Tom." She replied. "Just give me a few more minutes. It's not like it will take me all night to replicate dinner." "Well, that's what I came in here for. Miral wants to go with Christy and her parents to that pizza place. Flodder's going to be making an appearance. I said it's okay if you did. I can just replicate a sandwich." Tom patiently awaited his wife's answer as she tapped in a few more answers to the entrance forms. After pulling a lock of hair back behind her ear she mumbled "That's fine" barely looking at her husband. "Great." Tom said. "Then it's settled, I'll get her ready." He said leaving his wife to the task at hand. Tom was worried about his wife, ever since they found out Miral was accepted into the James T. Kirk Preparatory Academy, B'elanna had been moody and irritable when she wasn't blindly distracted. She kept telling Tom she was happy that their daughter was getting a full scholarship into such a prestigious school but it only sounded like what he wanted to hear. Every child in the Paris family went to this school, it was THE prep school to send your child to. Why wouldn't B'elanna be happy their child was so privileged to go? B'elanna couldn't help but worry about her daughter. She was after all, one-quarter Klingon. While the child was generally easy-going and friendly, she could be stubborn and willful. How would that play out in school? What would the other children think of a girl with Klingon ridges and a temper to boot? She couldn't help but have flashbacks to her own childhood. "Someone told me Klingons don't bathe." A red-haired boy said. The little girl with long brown hair and the ridges of a half-Klingon tried to ignore the boy's response, hoping he would go away. "I also heard they like to sit in the dirt." The boy's dark-haired friend said. The next thing little B'elanna knew, she was being shoved in the dirt. It was the last straw she turned towards her tormentors and flipped the red-haired boy over on his back, when his friend tried to help him, she tripped him and put her foot and his throat. "They also should've told you a Klingon can kick your ass, p'tok!" she said and spat in the boy's face. By this time, several other children had surrounded the three. They had all seen B'elanna's portion of the fight but not the provoking insults. "B'elanna Torres!" an adult was now standing over the children and breaking up the fight. "How many times does a teacher have to break up one of your little skirmishes? I know you Klingons love to fight but this is ridiculous. There's probably no point in calling your mother, I'm sure she would condone this type of behavior." "But they started it." B'elanna replied sheepishly. "They were calling me dirty." "Well, you look like you are to me." The teacher snapped. "They pushed me!" "After you provoked them." The teacher replied. "You're going to pay for this. For the rest of the day, you'll be sitting in front of the class with a dunce cap for the rest of the afternoon. Only a dunce would use that kind of language. I know what p'tok means!" B'elanna shuddered at the memory of that punishment. It was so humiliating to sit in front of everyone with that dunce cap. She didn't start the fight: why did she have to suffer for the provocation? Now there was a chance Miral was going to share the same fate. Despite the progress of Klingons and the Federation, people didn't exactly see them as equals. They were still a race of savages in the eyes of many people, how were the other children going to respond to a girl who was a quarter Klingon? She still had the ridges, and the occasional temper. It was tame compared to B'elanna's but how would teacher's treat her? The girl was after all, a descendant of Admiral Owen Paris, one of the school's most noted contributors. On the other hand, she still had Klingon blood in her veins. "Miral won't go to the school. That's all there is to it." B'elanna said to herself and left the padd in the study as she left to get ready for bed. "All done?" Tom said with a flirtatious smile. "Miral won't be home for at least two hours." "We're not sending her to that school." B'elanna said flatly "What?!? So when do you plan on telling my father that? Every Paris childÉ" "Every other Paris child is not Miral!" B'elanna snapped. "I don't want my daughter around those preppy little snots. She'll be fine going to a local school." "You and I both know those kids are not all stuck up, Miral will be fine." "The school is too far away and I don't think she's ready for such a rigorous academic environment. She's only five." "B'elanna, she already knows the ins and outs of a replicator, she can fix them better than I can, she can read the newspaper. She's ready for the school!" "Well, maybe I'm not!" B'elanna replied hotly. "Look, I know it's normal for a mother to have a little anxiety about sending their child to school. I'm scared too!" "It's not that I'm worried about her going to school." "Then what is it?" B'elanna looked at Tom in silence. She didn't want to say that she didn't want her daughter around children who might treat her differently. She knew it wasn't logical to assume the worst. Miral was not her mother, she was not going to have the same problems. She had two parents who loved her and loved each other; Miral already had one advantage B'elanna didn't. Tom looked at his wife with sympathy and compassion and finally asked softlyÉ "Are you worried about how the kids will treat a quarter-Klingon classmate?" B'elanna refused to meet her husband's gaze. He was right, just like he was right about her initial fears when they were pregnant with Miral. B'elanna loved how Tom could read her mind, he always seemed to know when to say and do the right things. How did she ever get such a wonderful man for a husband and father to her child? B'elanna nodded sheepishly. "Oh, sweetie." Tom said. "I know that's not going to be a problem." "How do you know? You have no idea how human children treat Klingon children. What if she can't handle it? What if her temper gets the best of her?" Tom sighed at the fear in his wife's voice. It was a natural response he thought to himself. Parents never want their children to suffer the way they did. Now that he thought about it, this explained B'elanna's moodiness and frustration over the school application. It was difficult enough to fill out forms, it was even harder to do them for a task one wasn't ready for. "Do you remember when we took Miral to Golden Gate Park?" Tom asked B'elanna. She nodded slightly. "Remember the brother and sister on the swing set? When they asked her was she a Klingon.. How did she react?" "She said she was." "Did anything bad happen to her after that?" "No. They just kept playing." "Has Miral ever had problems with other children?" "No Tom, she hasn't." "Then what makes you think she will in school?" "I don't know, Tom. I just can't help but worry about her. It was so hard for me when I was her age." "B'elanna, she'll be fine. She knows how to act with other children and she hardly ever fights. Her only problem will be when kids get jealous of her for being smarter." B'elanna smiled. "You're right Tom, she IS smarter than most children her age." "I Wonder where she gets it from?" "Mommy, will Christy be at my new school?" Miral asked as they walked to the transporter depot a few blocks away from their home. "No, honey but Uncle Chakotay's nephew Jamie will be." B'elanna replied. "Good, he's okay. Are there any other Klingons there?" "I'm not sure, there may be." "It's okay if there aren't Mommy, I'll make sure to set a good example." The little girl said proudly. B'elanna stopped in her tracks. She had tried not to let Miral know she was afraid for her but, the child picked up on everything. "I have to keep my honor, right Mommy? And I know some kids think Klingons are mean but I'm not going to be. I'm going to knock 'em deadÉin a good way." "That's good to hear sweetie." B'elanna replied. "Don't worry about being Klingon, just be Miral Paris." "Okay." "Well, we're here. All set for school?" "Yeah, I can't wait!" the little girl beamed. At least she's more excited about this than I am. B'elanna thought. She took a last look at her daughter; her uniform was perfect, her long brown hair was in two neat braids. While Miral was a bit of a tomboy, she was pretty good about not getting too dirty when she was in nicer clothes. B'elanna hoped today would be one of those times. With a kiss on the cheek and big hug, B'elanna escorted the little girl onto the transporter. "I'll see you back here at 15:30. Be good, honey." "I will. I love you, Mommy." Miral said as she faded away. B'elanna left the transporter depot with a mixture of emotions, pride, fear, hope. She said a silent prayer and prepared for her day at Starfleet. For B'elanna the day seemed to last an eternity. Tom knew his wife would be anxious so he met her at work to transport Miral and walk her home. "No matter how Miral's day went, we'll be there for her, together." He assured his wife. She smiled and took his hand as they went to the transporter room at Starfleet. She couldn't wait until after work to see her daughter. At 15:30, Miral Paris was transported to her parents. "Hi Mommy, hi Daddy." Miral said and hugged both her parents. Tom picked up the little girl and placed her over his hip. "So." He asked. "How did it go?" "It was great!" Miral beamed, "The teacher said I would be a good Starfleet Officer. She gave me this for Mommy." She said handing her mother a padd. "What is it, honey?" B'elanna asked with an obvious tone of surprise. "I don't know, she said you might want it." B'elanna took the padd and placed it in her office. Father and daughter followed. "I learned to play freeze tag." Miral said excitedly, I was never 'it' because no one could catch me, I'm the fastest girl in the class." She said with a huge grin. "Just like your mommy." Tom replied. "She used to run track when she was in Starfleet Academy." "Cool, I can't wait to tell my friends, I already told them she was a supersmart engineer." Miral said with a smile. "You're right about that." Tom replied. B'elanna couldn't help but smile at their conversation. Miral adored her mother, something she could never say about herself at that age. "What did you say about me?" Tom asked. "Um, that you're a...really good pilot. And that your daddy is Admiral Owen Paris." Tom shuddered a little. He didn't want her daughter having the Paris stigma, but he knew it was inevitable. "Well, B'elanna we'll be on our way. See you tonight." Tom said and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. The mother smiled as she watched her husband and daughter leave happily. She looked at the padd on her desk and was curious to see what was on it. She sat at her desk and activated the message... "Mrs. Paris, your husband informed me that you had concerns about your daughter and thought you would like to hear a report about her first day. I don't believe Miral will have any problems adjusting at James T Kirk Prep School. While she is definitely a spirited child, she is also intelligent, athletic and very friendly: traits that will win her many friends no matter what her heritage. I've seen Klingons pass through our halls that had difficult transitions into the school because of culture shock. Miral did not seem to have that problem. As the granddaughter of Admiral Paris, we have all looked forward to Miral as a pupil and still do. Warm Regards, Helen Janeway. PS, I will send my regards to my cousin, Admiral Janeway, she also wanted to know how Miral and her parents are doing." B'elanna smiled as she shut down the padd. Her fears were alleviated. Now, she was more excited about Miral's next chapter in life. She was also content with the fact no matter what happened, Miral would have both her parents to get her through the happy times and the scary ones...just as she and Tom had always been for each other.