Not A Shred Of Honor - A Little Sequel to *A Day Of Honor*
(ST: VOY; PG; P/T)
By Jane Griffen

AUTHOR'S NOTE: I decided to write a little sequel to the episode *A Day Of
Honor* becuase I loved it! (not so much the sappy parts but the first forty
minutes :-) I hope you like this story! I decided to give the character I
made up (Lt. Heather Whitney) a break so she's not mentioned in this one.

DISCLAIMER: Paramount owns the characters (except Lt. Whitney) and the
ship, I just fiddle with their computer, beam in without setting off any
alarms, and fool around in the holodecks! (it's fun, too :-)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    B'Elanna held on tight to Tom. The computer's voice came through.
"Warning: Oxygen level at 104 milibars." They didn't have much time left. 
    B'Elanna pulled back and looked at Tom. His eyes were closed. She
panicked for a brief second, "Tom. Open your eyes!" B'Elanna called.
    His eyes opened. The computer's voice came through again, "Warning:
Oxygen level at 87 milibars." "I was having a dream." he said groggily.
B'Elanna wondered what he had been dreaming about. 
     B'Elanna knew that we didn't have much time left. She had never really
thought about dying. The thought had never really occurred to her. Now it
raced through her mind. 
    The two lieutenants only had a few minutes left, and they both knew it.
    "There's something I have to say." B'Elanna said, hesitantly, not
really
knowing how to tell him the truth about how she felt about him. 
    "Me, too," he replied, "I'm glad the last thing I'll see is you."
B'Elanna could see her brown eyes widen in the dim reflection in the glass.
    B'Elanna sighed inwardly. "I've been a coward about
everything-everything that really matters." she said truthfully. 
    He smiled, "Naw, you're being a little hard on yourself." he said,
trying to comfort her. It was no use. 
    "I'm gonna die - without a shred of honor, and for the first that
really bothers me." B'Elanna said, "I have to tell you something." 
    The computer's voice came through for the third time in a few minutes,
"Warning: Oxygen level at 71 milibars." *That stupid computer!* B'Elanna
thought, It was getting really annoying for two reasons. One, it was
interrupting her when she was about to say something and two, it kept on
reminding her that she would die in probably less than a minute. B'Elanna
took a breath, and was vaguely surprised at how stale it seemed. She
continued, "I have to tell you the truth." 
    Tom looked puzzled and he sighed, "The truth about what?"  
    "I...ah...I love you." There. She had said it. The words had come out
haltingly, for B'Elanna had been struggling for air. There wasn't much
left. He knew. He didn't say anything but his crystal clear blue eyes
widened. "Say something!" she said, frantically. He smiled. "You picked a
great time to tell me." he said. We started into each other's eyes. Tom
drew B'Elanna close and she held on tight. B'Elanna closed her eyes and
took
a breath, which she thought would be one of her last. She had her eyes
closed so she couldn't see Voyager pulling out of warp nearby. 
    "Voyager to Tom Paris. Tom, do you read me? Respond." Captain Janeway's
voice came through the comm. system. 
    Tom held B'Elanna tight. "We're here." he replied. 
    "Prepare to beam aboard." Captain Janeway told them, and soon they were
transported right to Sick Bay. 
* * * * * 
    B'Elanna felt her EVA helmet being ripped off. She gasped in the cool
air, wheezing. Blinding light surrounding her. She heard voices around her.
The Doctor's, Captain Janeway's and Chakotay's.
    "Tom." she said, barely in a whisper. Nobody heard her. She tried again
- louder. This time, Captain Janeway heard her. "He's fine." she told
B'Elanna. B'Elanna barely nodded.
    "10 ccs of cartranoid." the Doctor yelled. B'Elanna heard the hiss of a
hypospray and felt it being injected in her neck. More voices. 
    "We're losing her. 15 ccs of tranazoid. Now." the Doctor said. B'Elanna
felt cool and light. She closed her eyes. The light was too bright. She
felt yet another hypospray and lapsed into unconciousness.
* * * * *
    B'Elanna opened her eyes. She was on a biobed in Sick Bay. At first she
didn't remember what had happened. Then it all came back to her. The lights
were dimmed in Sick Bay and the Doctor was working in his office. Tom lay
on another biobed in Sick Bay. They were both out of the Eva suits they had
had on. Her hand flew to my head. She had a major headache. B'Elanna pulled
herself into a sitting position. She glanced over and saw that Tom was
awake as well.
    The Doctor came out of Sick Bay, a smile on his face. "Lieutenants!
You're finally awake. You'll both have a bit of a headache but this should
help." he said, giving Tom and B'Elanna each a hypospray. 
    Tom sat up, "How long has it been?" he asked. 
    The Doctor thought a second, "Five hours and fifteen minutes. The time
is 3100 hours. The Captain said to inform you both that you are off duty
for the next twenty-four hours and should go to your quarters and rest." he
said, turning around as if to walk back to his officer, but paused, as if
he remembered something.
     "Oh, Lieutenant Torres, you'll be happy to know that the Captain,
Commander, and Seven of Nine were able to negotiate with the Kawtawti and
that the warp core is in its rightful place in Engineering, although Lt.
Carey told them that it was badly damaged," he paused, seeing that the
chief engineer was about to run right down to Engineering, "But your
Engineering staff are perfectly capable of repairing the damage it took.
You are ordered to not set foot in Engineering until the day after tomorrow
when you go back on duty." he told B'Elanna, glaring and stressing the word
'ordered'. 
    B'Elanna sighed, "All right, Doc. You win, this time." she added,
smiling mischieviously at him, "But I do think you're right. I'm exhausted.
I'm going straight to my quarters and resting." She hopped off the biobed
and headed out the door, Tom at her heels and the Doctor observing
carefully. * Probably to see if I meant what I said. * B'Elanna thought,
smiling at the times she remembered when she'd specifically disobeying the
Doctor's orders. * At least he didn't confine me to my quarters. *   
    "What's so funny?" Tom asked, walking next to her, trying to break the
cold silence that had settled in between them. Obviously, he needed some
time to think, like she did. They entered the turbolift and gave the
computer their deck numbers. 
    "Just that I'm glad he didn't confine me to my quarters after all the
times I've disobeyed his orders before." B'Elanna replied truthfully. 
    He smiled, "Like the time you played hoverball an hour after you left
Sick Bay after he treated you for a broken ankle?" he asked.  
    B'Elanna laughed, "I remember that. I have to admit, that hurt." she
said, "I was limping for days. I knew better than to go and get the Doctor.
He'd have confined me to my quarters forever if I had!" Tom laughed, too,
remembering when she had haltingly walked into the conference lounge for a
staff briefing a few days after the incident. The turbolift stopped first
at Tom's deck. He got out, "See you later." he called. The doors shut
before B'Elanna was able to say anything. She waited impatiently for the
turbolift to stop at her deck. It did. B'Elanna walked into her quarters
and went to her bed. She collapsed, and, before she even knew it, she was
fast asleep, even though she was still in her uniform.
* * * 
    The next day, B'Elanna requested some holodeck time.  She had nothing
better to do and needed to think about what had happened. Tom knew now that
she loved him, which had been a secret since... she didn't know. Since she
first saw him? Since the time the Vidiians split her in half and he had
comforted her? Since he told her he had feelings about her in the shuttle
and wanted to be more than just friends? Since the time he had been willing
to 'help' her when she had had Ponn Farr? She didn't know. And yet he
hadn't approached her with the subject, but from the way he had acted, she
had a feeling he really cared about her, too. Her life was a muddle and she
needed to straighten it out. 
    B'Elanna reached the holodeck, put on the privacy lock, and then
realized that she had to choose a program. She picked a program randomly,
and the yellow triangles on black walls disappeared. Instead of standing on
the control part of the holodeck, she stood on a modern beach house's
floor. B'Elanna opened the glass door and stepped out onto the porch, which
looked out onto an ocean. Seagulls flew in the distance and the waves
lapped at the beach, some crashing against rocks and others whispering over
the sand. The sun was setting in the distance over the ocean. B'Elanna sat
down in one of the chairs and closed her eyes, listening to the sounds
created for the program. Something was missing. Music. 
    "Computer, play some music." B'Elanna said.
    "Please state type of music." the computer replied. B'Elanna sighed,
for she knew there were thousands of different types of music. 
    "Play some discontemperary music from twentieth century." B'Elanna
said, remembering one time she, Harry, and Tom had been talking about
music. Tom had said that some of the best music he had heard was from the
late twentieth century. * I might as well try it. * B'Elanna thought. Soon
music played and she closed my eyes.

*** And in your eyes, I see ribbons of color
     I see us inside of each other
     I feel my unconcious merge with yours
     And I hear a voice say, "What's his is hers."
    
     I'm falling into you
     This dream could come true
     And it feels so good falling into you

     I was afraid to let you in here
     Now I have learned love can't be made of fear
     The walls begin to tumble down
      And I can't even touch the ground... ***
	
    The music continued and B'Elanna just sat there in the sun. It was so
peaceful. The holodeck door chimed. B'Elanna opened her eyes and jolted
forward, nearly falling off the chair. She had forgotten that she had put
the privacy lock on.	
    "Computer, end music." B'Elanna said. The music ended. "Come in." she
called, sitting back, thinking it was probably Harry or Chakotay. The sun
as almost set, and B'Elanna could see the moon towards the east. The first
stars were appearing and the clouds, which had been white, were now
different shades of orange, turquoise, purple, and pink. The sun was a ball
of orange. B'Elanna got up and walked to the edge of the porch. The view
was breathtaking. She heard the doors open but didn't bother to turn and
look. A hand gently rested on her shoulder. B'Elanna turned around and, to
her surprise, stared into Tom's blue eyes. The two lieutenants just stood
there for a minute, looking deep into each other's eyes, trying to find the
answers, like they were caught in a spell. Then Tom brought them both back
to reality by stepping away and withdrawing his hand, breaking the spell. 
    B'Elanna took a deep breath. She knew what I had to say, but that still
didn't make it any better. B'Elanna walked over to him and took his hands
in hers. He gripped her hands tightly. They sat down, both a little unsure.
    "I wanted you to know something." B'Elanna said, pausing and looking
worriedly into his blue eyes, "About what I said out there..." she took a
deep breath. She had started and she was going to finish, "I meant every
word. Even though we were running out of oxygen and we both thought we were
going to die soon, it was the truth." Tom remained silent for a second,
then said softly, "I love you too." He leaned in and kissed her. She kissed
back. They sat there kissing for a minute. Then Tom drew away. His eyes
were
shining. 
    "I was wondering. You free tonight for dinner?" he asked.
    B'Elanna smiled, "I'd like that." she said. He got up, "1900 at my
quarters sound okay?" he asked. 
    B'Elanna nodded, "Sounds great." she replied, getting up as well. They
walked out of the holodeck hand in hand, heading for the turbolift. 
    "Deck 13." B'Elanna said. She needed to go to Engineering and pick up a
PADD she had left there before. *So what if the Doc told me not to set foot
inside Engineering until tomorrow.* she thought. Now if she could just get
there and not have Harry or Lt. Carey there, for they would bring her back
to Sick Bay. *And that's the last place I want to go.* B'Elanna said. Tom
got off at Deck 3. She waited for the turbolift to stop at Deck 13, her
thoughts straying somewhere else. She decided she would finish the 'Day Of
Honor' holodeck program she and Tom had made. She might as well give it a
second chance. Besides, she could always end the program if she wanted to.
    B'Elanna got off at Engineering's deck. She walked into the Engine
room. Lieutenants and ensigns were dashing to and fro. Joe and Harry were
standing at a console in front of the warp core, gesturing randomly at the
core, which stood in its rightful place, although it was still and the
normal hum that she normally heard in Engineering was gone. 
    B'Elanna quickly went to a side console and grabbed the PADD from its
place on a side shelf, where someone had put it. She was about to turn and
leave when she felt a tap on her shoulder. She sighed and turned around,
right into Harry Kim's smiling face. Obviously, he found it funny that she
had come down to Engineering despite the Doctor's constant orders.
    "Well, well, well, what do we have hear, Carey?" Harry asked. Lt. Carey
walked over, "Lieutenant, I thought you weren't supposed to set foot in
Engineering until your shift starts tomorrow." he said, grinning. 
    B'Elanna sighed, "Look. I was just coming to get this PADD I left
here." she said. "Sorry, B'Elanna, but I can't let you go. Everyone in
that's been in Engineering has been told that if they spot you in here,
that you are to go straight to your quarters for the rest of the day and be
confined there if necassary." Harry said.
    "I don't think so." B'Elanna said, edging towards the door. Too late.
Carey was already blocking it.
    Harry leaned closer, "You know, there's only one thing that could make
me let you go." he said, "And you wouldn't even have to do anything." 
    B'Elanna raised her eyebrows in suspicion, "And what is that, Ensign?"
she asked, stressing his rank. Harry wanted something, and she wasn't sure
what exactly that would be.
    "I want to know if you and Tom are still on for dinner tonight." he
whispered in B'Elanna's ear, grinning. 
    B'Elanna stepped back in rage, "Ensign Harry Kim! How DARE you question
me about my personal life!" she yelled. She turned on her heel, and pushed
past Carey at the door, who immediatly jumped out of her way. He already
knew how it felt when she got angrey at someone from a past experience, but
paused when they opened, "Yes, we are, although THAT is none of your
business." she 
answered. She walked out quickly, and
started to laugh as soon as she was alone in the corridor. Trust Harry to
ask a question like that!
    In Engineering, Harry smiled. So it was true. Joe had told him about
Tom coming down to Engineering earlier that day and reminding her about
dinner, but she had said given an excuse. He loved to watch the outplay of
his two best friends' budding relationship. It was very interesting. He
turned to Carey, "You owe me a weeks worth of replicator rations, Joe." he
said. Carey just grinned, and the two got back to repairing the warp core.
* * * * *
    B'Elanna stood outside the holodeck door and took a deep breath. She
started to program and walked in. The Klingon walked over to her. She had
started the program from where she had left it. He walked over to her. What
Tom had said was true. He had one heck of a black eye.
    "So, you have come to finish the test. Have you changed your mind? Have
you done anything to distinguish yourself from everyone else?" he asked.
    B'Elanna grinned slyly, "Actually, I've given that some thought, and
yes, I have. I'm a chief engineer on a starship and I'm known for my temper
- which I inherited from my klingon mother. I can solve almost any problem
that is thrown at me, I..." and she went on, listing a lot about who she
was, what she could do, and her life on Voyager. When she was done, she
glared at the Klingon.
    The Klingon burst out laughing. His laughter was deep and cold *But
aren't all Klingons'?* B'Elanna thought. At first she had no idea why he
was laughing.
    "B'Elanna, I see no need to continue this test. You are quick with the
toungue and very sly. Go now and show that you are a true Klingon - er,
half Klingon." he said. B'Elanna smiled and exited the holodeck. Even if
the Klingon hadn't told her that she had distinguished herself, she hd what
she needed. A true friend and lover. And she had a date with him that she
needed to get ready for.

T
H
END :-)

Yeah, yeah, I know, Paramount owns 'em, except for Lt. Heather Whitney, an'
I just borrowed them. Comments are welcome at tgreenle@gwi.net

Copyright September 1997 by Jane Griffen