Disclaimer: Paramount *shudder* owns all and I'm just a weakling who is borrowing the charicters but I promise to return the all safe and sound to their beds when I'm done.                                   The Vow                          By: Jennifer Arrowsmith   Kathryn Janeway sat back into her chair, and rubbed the back of her neck.  For the past three years she felt as if she had never had a break.  She and her crew were caught in the middle of someone elseÕs war, and day after day she put her life in dan-ger to save her crew, her family.  She looked over at her first officer, and she smiled at him.  He smiled back as he took her hand in his.  She sighed, and looked over where her pilot sat.  ÒMr. Paris set a course for homeÉwarp factor seven!Ó   The sandy-haired pilot shifted around in his chair.  ÒUm CaptainÉI canÕt do that!Ó   Both Janeway and Chakotay shifted in their seats as she impatiently ask Tom why not.   ÒMy instruments are telling me that we ARE home!ÓThe crew started whispering to each other trying to find out if it was true.  Were they home?  Janeway stood up, and walked toward Tom Paris.   ÒQuiet!Ó she shouted.The crew fell dead silent.  As she looked down at the readings a shimmering light appeared.   ÒQ!Ó hollered the entire bridge crew.   ÒQ Jr.Ó said Janeway in a stern voice, ÒIs this your doing?Ó   ÒWell, actually, we both may have had something to do with that!Ó   ÒWhat do you mean Q?Ó   ÒWell, itÕs not everyday that the godmother of my son gets married (she mar-ried Chakotay).  So I asked Q Jr. what he thought would be the perfect gift for you two, and he decided that the perfect gift would be to send you home!Ó   ÒWhy?  I thought that he wanted us to stay here since he hates visiting the Al-pha Quadrant, and that he wanted us to be near him!Ó   ÒYes, but he also wants his Auntie Kathryn to be happy, and this is the only way that he could think of to make you happy!Ó   ÒWell, thank you, Q Jr.!  You have made me, and the rest of the crew, very happy, and please still come and visit us every once in a while!Ó   ÒDonÕt worry Auntie IÕll visit!Ó he shouted as he ran into her arms.  ÒIÕm going to be six inÉÓ he trailed of as he began to think, Òin umÉ two weeks, three days, eight hours, forty five minutes, and 28, 27, 26ÉÓ he announced as his father inter-rupted him.   ÒWe get the picture son!Ó   ÒSorry daddy!Ó   ÒWell when that time comes you make sure that you come and visit me, so that I can give you a present.  All right?Ó she whispered into his ear so that his father wouldnÕt overhear.   ÒSure thing, Auntie Kathryn!Ó he whispered back.   ÒWe have to go now before the wife gets mad.  If that happens she wonÕt let us come to visit anymore! Bye!Ó   ÒQ,Ó Kathryn said quickly, ÒHow can I repay you?Ó   ÒLet me be the godfather of your first born child!Ó he stated as they shimmered out of sight.  Janeway looked down at her stomach then over at Chakotay in confu-sion.   ÒUm, Captain, weÕre being hailed!Ó laughed Harry Kim, the shipÕs youngest ensign and also their youngest crewmember, who could actually walk, talk, and work!   ÒWell on screen then,Ó she ordered as she sat down once again.   ÒCaptain, we canÕt get a visual, only audio.Ó   ÒWell, that will just have to do now, wonÕt it?Ó   *Hello!  This is Starfleet command, and you are? *   ÒThis is Captain Kathryn Janeway of the Starship Voyager.  May I ask who I am speaking to?Ó   ÒNo need to Captain thatÕs my father, Owen Paris.  Hello sir.Ó  Tom stated flatly.  He turned to look at his fiancŽe, BÕElanna Torres, to see that she was already staring at him.   *Hello Lt. Paris.  Now Captain you have a lot of explaining to do once you get docked.  There will be an opening at dock number three in about half an hour.  If you wouldnÕt mind waiting that is. *   ÒOf course we wonÕt mind waiting!Ó she replied, looking down at Tom.   *End channel! * Owen Paris quickly ordered on the other end.   ÒTom, what was that all about?Ó asked BÕElanna, sounding a little worried.   ÒNothing to concern yourself about.  Once weÕre docked IÕll straighten every-thing out.Ó			                      Forty-five minutes laterÉ   ÒHello, Kathryn.  ItÕs good to have you home finally!Ó said Admiral Paris as the crew of Voyager stepped out of the ship that had been their home for just over eight years.   ÒItÕs good to be home!Ó she replied, shaking his hand.   ÒCaptain, will you please come with me?Ó said one of the medical officers who had been waiting for the ship to dock.   ÒMay I please ask you why?Ó   ÒItÕs just a routine checkup that we do now when ships come back after being away on long missions, and you have been on a long mission!Ó   ÒIndeed!  But what is this routine check up for?Ó   ÒIt is to see if you have any illnesses that you didnÕt know about, or that you could not detect with your inferior equipment.ÓJaneway wondered why the Vulcan was so rude.   ÒWell, then, why donÕt you start with the members of astrophysics?  They are the ones that have been on the most away missions!Ó   ÒActually, Captain, we always start with the senior staff.Ó   ÒOh, well, in that case, I will come with you.  Come along Chakotay!Ó   ÒActually, one of my staff will look after himÓ he stated with a cold tone to his voice.   ÒNo.  My husband will come with me!Ó Kathryn replied as she took his hand.   ÒOf course!Ó he replied.  ÒRight this way.Ó                          In the main Med. Bay...   ÒCaptain did you know that there is a life form growing inside you?Ó the Vul-can asked as he put away the instruments that he had been using.  After the doctor had said this Kathryn got a confused look on her face, and Chakotay fainted.   ÒNo, I didnÕt know that!  What kind of life form is it?Ó   ÒCaptain do not worry it will not harm you, and itÕs a human life form that is about two months old!Ó   ÒYou mean that IÕm having a child?Ó   ÒPrecisely!Ó   ÒVulcans!Ó whispered the Captain under her breath.   ÒPardon me?Ó   ÒOh nothing doctor!Ó by this time Chakotay was starting to come to.   ÒDid he say what I think he said?Ó wondered Chakotay.   ÒWhat about me being pregnant?Ó  With that Chakotay fainted again.                        Meanwhile on the PromenadeÉ   ÒDad, look, I love BÕElanna very much, and no matter what you say, IÕm go-ing to marry her!Ó   ÒNo son of mine is marrying a Maquis, even if you do love her!Ó   ÒOne, sheÕs a former Maquis.  Two, IÕm a former Maquis as well.  Does that mean that you donÕt want me in your family either?Ó   ÒNo, because you are my son, and you always will be, no matter what you do.Ó   ÒYeah, well dad, that is how I feel about BÕElanna, and that is why IÕm going to marry her.  Good Bye!Ó Tom said as he walked away, and went to talk to BÕElanna.  ÒOh, and dad, itÕs Lt. Commander now.  I got promoted!Ó he stated flatly without even bothering to turn around.           At a press conference about an hour laterÉ   The senior staff aboard Voyager stepped onto the stage, and was intercepted by yelling, and screaming from the audience.   ÒGet the Maquis off the stage!  We donÕt want them here!Ó chanted just about everyone in the crowd.   ÒChakotay, BÕElanna, and all of the rest of you, are under arrest!Ó said two of the many security guards that were there to take away all of the Maquis crew,   ÒWait a minute!  That is my husband, and those are our friends that you are dragging away.  He is also the father of my child,Ó yelled Janeway as they started to take Chakotay away.   After she said this two women stepped forward to talk to her.   ÒWhat do you mean heÕs your husband?Ó yelled the taller of the two women.   ÒI mean that I am married to him, mother, and I have been for a little over a year now!Ó   ÒHow could you marry a Maquis officer?Ó yelled the other woman.     ÒIt was easy after I realized that I loved him.  I went to the holodeck, stepped up to the altar, and said ÔI doÕ!  Come on, sis, donÕt tell me that you still donÕt know what love is after all these years?Ó   ÒBut Kathryn, heÕs a Maquis!Ó said her mother.   ÒWell, in my eyes, heÕs the man that I love, and always will love!  Now weÕll talk about this later.  I have more important things to take care of first.Ó she stated as she walked off the stage toward the Admiral.   ÒDad, let them go!  If youÕre going to arrest them for things that they did a long time ago, you might as well arrest the entire crew of Voyager, because we all have done things that are against the FederationÕs rules,Ó yelled Tom to his father who was sitting in the front row.   ÒYes, but son, I only know about what they did!Ó   ÒSo!  That was over eight years ago.  Are you going to arrest me too?  I used to be part of the Maquis as well!Ó   ÒYes, but you paid for what you did.  They havenÕt!Ó   ÒYou were willing to have me stay in that jail for the rest of my life to pay for what I did, and now youÕre saying that IÕve already paid?  Dad, you are such a hypo-crite!Ó   ÒDo you realize who you are taking to?Ó   ÒYes!  A father who doesnÕt even care about anything except rules.  Not even your own family matters more!  What about Seven of nine, are you going to arrest her, because she used to be Borg?"   ÒNo, because she has changed!  Plus, she is not Borg anymore!Ó   ÒThey have changed as well, and theyÕre not Maquis anymore!Ó   ÒThey are going to pay just like you did!  Now, son, this discussion is over with!  Take them away!Ó   ÒDad, they have paid!Ó he yelled as they took the woman that he loved away.   ÒAdmiral Paris may I please speak with you in private?Ó asked Janeway as she watched her husband get dragged away from her.   ÒOf course, Kathryn, come right this way!Ó   ÒAdmiral Paris?Ó   ÒYes?Ó   ÒItÕs Captain Janeway to youÉsir!Ó                         In the AdmiralÕs officeÉ   ÒNow, Captain, what would you like?Ó   ÒI want my husband and the rest of my crew back.  If I had known that we were going to be separated when we got home I never would have let Q bring us home!Ó   ÒLook KathÉCaptain Janeway, I just canÕt let them go.  Besides, you knew when you went out on the mission that you couldnÕt get close to any of them, because they would have to go to jail!Ó   ÒBut Admiral, they have proven themselves time and time again that they can be trusted.  Plus, most of them are more talented than any Starfleet officer that I have ever seen.  Take BÕElanna, for example.  You know the one that your son wants, and is going to marryÉÓ   Janeway went on to tell Admiral Paris of all of the achievements that the Ma-quis and also her original crew had accomplished over the past eight years.   ÒNow, do you see why we need them as part of our crew?Ó   ÒNo, I still donÕt understand why they are so important!Ó   ÒThey are important because they helped us!  If it werenÕt for them we never would have made it home or even half as far as we did!  We still need them!  That is if you want the crew of Voyager to stay in Starfleet!Ó   ÒCaptain, you canÕt possibly say that!  Your entire crew canÕt feel the same way!Ó   ÒOh, but they do, Admiral!  WeÕve had over eight years, to decide as a crew, that we all want to stay together, no matter what!Ó   ÒOkay, since you are so persistent, IÕll let them go on one condition!  If they all take a standard Starfleet test, and if they pass it, then they can become a part of Starfleet.Ó   ÒThank you, Admiral!Ó                              Conclusion   Three months later, Tom and BÕElanna finally got married with Admiral ParisÕs blessing.  Four months after that Kathryn gave birth to a beautiful baby girl, and Janeway and Chakotay named her Melissa.  At the same time, BÕElanna found out that she was pregnant with twins, one boy, and one girl, who Tom, and BÕElanna later named Mike, Cheyenne.    All of the former Maquis from Voyager took the test, and they all passed with ease.   Although Starfleet tried to separate them, the crew of Voyager stayed together, because they had vowed to keep the crew together in the beginning, and they vowed to stay together until the end.                                FINIS