Path: inforamp.net!news.nstn.ca!news.dal.ca!torn!csn!news-1.csn.net!magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu!math.ohio-state.edu!howland.reston.ans.net!vixen.cso.uiuc.edu!newsfeed.internetmci.com!usenet.eel.ufl.edu!news.ultranet.com!bigboote.WPI.EDU!transfer.stratus.com!news.bu.edu!acs.bu.edu!crime From: crime@bu.edu (mary self) Newsgroups: alt.startrek.creative Subject: VOY: Casualties 2/3 Date: 16 Mar 1996 18:38:29 GMT Organization: Boston University Lines: 324 Message-ID: <4if1r5$ggb@news.bu.edu> NNTP-Posting-Host: acs.bu.edu X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL2] Status: N DISCLAIMERS: See part 1. THE PARIS JOURNALS, vol. V Casualties Part 2 By Carly Hunter copyright 1996 "Tom. Hey, Paris." Harry shook my shoulder. "C'mon. Wake up. If you leave Cait at the altar, there won't be a star system far enough away to escape her wrath." "Huh? What?" I sat up dazed. Marriage? To Cait? He pulled back the covers. "You know, your wedding. C'mon. Neither Cait, nor B'Elanna will forgive me if I don't have you there on time. Your uniform is all ready and waiting. C'mon, Paris. Shake a leg." "Sure. Sure. I'm coming." I sat on the edge of the bed, trying to get my bearings. He grinned. "Still feeling the effects from last night? That was some bachelor party, huh?" "Yeah, no kidding." Too bad I hadn't been there. I stood up slowly and stumbled towards the bathroom. "Give me about ten minutes, Harry. I'll be ready." My friend laughed. "Wrong. You've got five." "Damn!" I dashed into the bath. Five minutes! And you don't get married every day, especially not to Cait. I glanced down as I hurriedly scrubbed my body. They were gone! The scars were gone. Well, that explained it. "Hey, Paris. Two minutes." "Yeah, yeah." I rinsed off and stepped out. In the blink of an eye, I checked my reflection in the mirror behind the bar. A little pale, but it was probably just nerves. So, we were tying the knot at Sandrine's; it was appropriate. I looked over at the proprietress and smiled broadly. She walked over. Smoothing the uniform across my shoulders, she glanced up with tears in her eyes. "I cannot believe it. My Thomas is getting married. Cait is a very lucky lady. She will make you a good wife, no?" I kissed her softly on the forehead. "Yeah, she will, Sandrine, and I'm a pretty lucky guy." The hologram smiled sadly. "Will you still visit your old friend from time to time?' "Of course," I grinned, chuckling slightly. "Yours is still the only pool hall on the ship. Cait and I are only getting married; we aren't retiring our cues." She laughed through her tears, turning as the doors opened. "Here comes your bride, Thomas. Now, you treat her well." She stood on tiptoe, planting a quick kiss on my cheek before returning to her customary place behind the bar. My eyes ran appreciatively over Cait. Her auburn hair cascaded over her shoulders, and her cheeks were flushed with excitement. Oh gods, she looked lovely, and my pulse began to race. "Mr. Paris," the Captain called. "I believe your presence is required over here." She looked almost as exuberant as Cait. "Yes, Ma'am." I quickly stepped across the room and took my place beside my fiancee and soon-to-be wife. Cait's green eyes glowed. I hadn't seen her this happy in a long time. A whole swarm of butterflies attacked my stomach. Was this the right thing to do? Could I be a good husband? I looked down at the beautiful person beside me. Yeah, I could. "Only recently have I had the privilege of joining couples in the vows of marriage," the Captain began. "But it is one of the duties of my office that I have looked forward to performing. . ." I barely heard a word; all I could think of was that somehow I was marrying Cait. It had to be a dream. I just couldn't be this lucky. "Do you, Thomas Eugene Paris, take Caitlin Rowan Matthews to be your lawful wife?" *That's your cue, Thomas.* I glanced at Cait. "I do." "And do you, Caitlin Rowan Matthews, take Thomas Eugene Paris to be your lawful husband?" *Come on, Cait. Come on.* "I do." *Whew!* Janeway smiled. "Then, as Captain of the USS Voyager, it gives me profound pleasure to pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride now, Mr. Paris." I shot the Captain a quick grin of thanks before taking Cait in my arms. Dream or not, this was proving to be a very happy occasion. As our kiss ended, everyone crowded around us, hugging us and shaking our hands. Chakotay clapped me firmly on the shoulder. "I know we've had our differences in the past, Paris, but I think you're going to make Cait a fine husband." *Cait? Why was everyone calling her that? Only I used that nickname.* "Uh, I'm going to try my best, Commander." "Tom!" B'Elanna threw her arms around my neck, planting a big kiss on my cheek. "I'm so happy for both of you; I don't know what to do." "Well, you could start by not choking the bridegroom," I gasped. "Whoops. Sorry." "S'okay," I replied, adjusting my collar out of reflex. "I'm a little excited, too." "Champagne, anyone?" Sandrine moved among us with a tray full of sparkling glasses. "Ahem," Harry cleared his throat as he snagged a glass. "I believe as best man it's my duty to give the first toast, so I'll keep it short and to the point. To Tom and Cait, may both their lives and their marriage be long and successful." He raised his glass and winked. "Congratulations, old man. I knew you'd get her one day." Beaming, I slipped my arm around Cait's waist in preparation for giving her a kiss. BEEEEP!! *Damn alarm. After all that happened yesterday, you couldn't let me have one last kiss, could you? Well, back to reality, Thomas.* Cait joined us late for breakfast. She was looking rather pale and acted as though the slightest noise bothered her. "You don't look so well," B'Elanna remarked as Cait placed her tray gingerly down on the table. On it was juice and toast, nothing else. "I'm a little tired. Didn't sleep too good last night." Hesitantly, she took a bite of toast. "Are you sure that's all?" "Yeah." "Maybe you should eat something else," I suggested. "You know, bolster the ol' energy level." "I said I'm fine," she snapped. Hmmm. So this was what she was like hungover. I had always wondered. "Okay, okay," I backpedaled. "Just trying to help." Cait glanced up at me. No, it was more than a simple hangover. You could see it in her eyes, tired and more than a little glassy. "Cait," I began again. "Maybe you should stop by sickbay and-" "Dammit, Paris!" She tossed down the toast. "I said I'm all right. Now, drop it." Quickly rising, she stormed out of the mess. "Way to go, Thomas," I muttered under my breath. A few minutes later, Harry and I headed for the bridge to assume our duties. Everything went relatively smoothly. No subspace anomalies. No distress calls. Not even a sensor alert. At 1230 hours, Grimes, my relief, took over allowing me to join Harry for lunch. Glancing at my friend as we waited for the lift, he appeared to be a little paler than he had been at breakfast. "Hey, Harry, you feeling okay?" "A little tired. Why?" His brown eyes were glassy, just like Cait's. "Well, to be honest, you don't look so good. Kinda washed out." "I'll be okay once I get some food in me." The lift doors opened and we stepped inside. "Look, let's take a quick trip by sickbay before lunch. If something's wrong, it's better to nip it in the bud now, than wait. Sickbay," I requested. "Okay, mother hen." He flashed me a weary smile. "Unlike Caitlin, I'm not really in the mood to argue." Within seconds, we reached sickbay. Kes was bending over someone on a biobed, but the position of her body prevented me from seeing who it was. The Doctor came out of his office. "Gentlemen, I'm very busy. What is it you need?" "Um, I don't feel so good, Doc." Harry mumbled. "Kinda wiped out." Kes turned to look at us, and I caught a glimpse of auburn hair. *Cait!* Leaving Harry to the Doctor, I quickly crossed the room. "What happened?" My Ocampan friend gazed down at the wan face. "She collapsed on duty with a temperature of 38.8C degrees. We've managed to bring it down a little, and right now, she's sleeping. What's with Harry?" "I forced him to come. He was starting to look like Cait did at breakfast; although if I had had any idea she was this bad, I would've carried her in here this morning kicking and screaming." Kes smiled gently at the image. "You can't force some people to seek treatment, Tom; you should know that." "Yeah, I know." I grasped Cait's right hand and brushed some damp strands of hair off her forehead. She was burning up. "How much did you bring her fever down?" "At least a full degree. Why?" "Because I think it's gone back up." "What?" Kes hastily scanned her. "38.6. Doctor, her fever is climbing." "Lay down, Mr. Kim," the hologram ordered before spinning around. "Let's see. This is impossible. Prepare an IV. I don't want her to get dehydrated. It would appear her body is fighting a battle against some infection; one that is also present in Ensign Kim." "What?" Harry rose up on his elbows. "Lie down," the Doctor snapped. Out of reflex, I took a step backward, but managed to stop myself from releasing Cait's hand. If it was contagious, I had already been exposed. The hologram frowned at me. "Don't worry. It does not appear to be contagious. The two of them must have been exposed at roughly the same time and place. Now," He turned to Harry. "Where have the two of you been lately that might have been the source of this infection?" "Nowhere, except on the away mission, but nothing happened there. We felt fine the entire time we were on the surface. Besides, Neelix was with us. Shouldn't he be showing the same symptoms?" "Hmm," the hologram responded. "Sickbay to Mr. Neelix." "Yes, Doctor." "Could you please report to sickbay right away." "But it's lunchtime. I'm very busy at the moment." "Now, Mr. Neelix." There was a silent pause followed by a sigh of resignation. "Very well. I'm on my way." I touched Cait's cheek. The green eyes blinked slowly open as if lifting the lids took a great deal of effort. "Tom?" Grinning, I squeezed her hand. "See, I told you to stop by. Now, look at all the trouble you've caused. When are you going to learn to listen to me?" I chided softly. An exhausted smile floated over her lips. "About the same time you start listening to me." "I do listen to you. Haven't I continued to see the Commander faithfully for therapy?" Her chest rose slowly. "Yeah, I guess you have. Tom, I'm so sorry. I said some awful things last night." "Shh," I soothed. "We'll have a long talk when you get better, okay?" "Okay." The eyes blinked twice. "Tired?" "Can't focus. I feel so weak." "Then, rest. I'll stay here as long as I can." One side of her mouth rose in an half-smile as her eyes closed. Gently, I stroked the warm cheek. "That's it. Go to sleep. I'll be right here." The doors to sickbay opened revealing Neelix and a concerned B'Elanna. "Harry!" She was by his side in an instant. "When no one showed for lunch, I traced you through the computer. What's wrong?" "I'll be okay," he reassured. "It seems Caitlin and I picked up a bug, that's all." Her hand flew to his forehead. "You're hot." "So you keep telling me, Maquis, but I think I'm also running a fever." Torres gave an uneasy chuckle. "You hang around Paris and Matthews far too much, Star Fleet." Gazing over at Cait though, she quickly sobered. I think she could tell by Cait's pallor and my expression that this was no laughing matter. "How is she?" I shrugged listlessly. Harry knew the extent of Cait's condition, but reinforcing the bad news wouldn't do him any good. Thankfully, B'Elanna caught the drift of my silent gestures, and she and I both spent the rest of our lunch breaks in sickbay, leaving only five minutes before the start of our afternoon shifts. I returned much later when my shift finally ended. Harry was sitting up reading, but he looked worse. I sidled up to Kes, who was running diagnostic comparisons. "How are they doing?" "Not so good," she whispered. "Harry's fever is continuing to climb in spite of our best efforts, and Caitlin's has remained pretty much where it was. She's drifting in and out of lucidity due in large part to the fever." "Is there a chance of brain damage from the fever?" "Not yet, but every hour it stays up, the possibility increases. What's worse is that the infection seems to be respiratory in nature, and her breathing is becoming more labored as time goes along. Eventually, we may have to put her on life support, Harry, too, if he grows progressively worse. If we only knew what was causing the infection. Neelix was completely unaffected and conventional treatments are simply not working." She attempted a hopeful smile. "Why don't you go visit? It might cheer them both up." "I'll give it a try." I strolled over wearing my best grin. "Howzit goin', Harry?" "Lousy, and I'm bored stiff." He tried to smile, but coughed instead. I snickered. "I know how that is. Bet you're tired of seeing the Doc's gorgeous face, too." "Yeah, that's true." He glanced over at Cait. "She's not doing too well, Tom, and to be honest, I'm getting scared for her and for myself." I patted his shoulder. "That's normal. But don't you worry. We'll see you both through this latest crisis." "Sure. Everything's going to be just peachy. Look, maybe you'd better go visit her. I think she needs you more than I do right now." "Fine. Reject my company, why don'tcha?" I winked. "I'll just go find a better audience." I moved to Cait's bed. Kes was right; she was having difficulty breating. Lifting her chest to inhale seemed to take all her strength. "Cait? Cait, can you hear me?" The green eyes opened halfway. "Tom?" "Yeah, it's me. I told you I'd come back. Can I get you anything?" "Unh-unh. Just talk to me a little." "Sure. Any topic in particular?" "Anything." "Anything?" I grinned. "You do realize you're leaving yourself pretty vulnerable to ol' Tom." She smiled exhaustedly. "Would you really take advantage of someone in distress?" "In the past, maybe, but not now. And certainly not you." "Then, I'm fairly safe." My fingers brushed her warm cheek. "Yeah, you are. How about I tell you a story. Chakotay has shared a few beauts with me during one or two of our sessions." "Mmm-hmm." The eyes closed wearily. "All right, let's see if I can remember one. A long time ago, before the two-legged walked the Earth . . ." My voice droned on. At one point, I heard a rustle of covers behind me and looked around. Harry had fallen asleep, too. I wasn't sure whether to take that as a compliment or not. After I finished the story, I remained at Cait's bedside, clutching her hand. Any anxiety I might have felt from being this close to her had long since vanished; I just wanted her and Harry well again. All of a sudden, she began to gasp like she couldn't breath. "Cait? Doc! Kes!" They were both at her side in an instant. "Respiratory arrest. Her organs are no longer receiving the oxygen they need. Prepare the pressure shell." The Doctor commanded. Kes dashed across the room with me at her heels. It was a bulky device and I knew she would probably need help carrying it. I looked down at Cait as they erected the shell. She was fully awake now, her glassy eyes filled with panic. Her left hand grabbed my arm, its fingers painfully choking the flesh. "You'll be fine," I reassured. "We'll have you breathing normally in no time." The Doctor activated the device and in a few seconds her breathing steadied considerably. As the hand slid from my arm, I stroked her forehead. "See, what did I tell you?" The green eyes gradually blinked shut. "That's it. Go back to sleep. I'll stay right here." I glanced up at Kes, who shook her head. *Oh gods, NO!* I stepped away from the bed. "How long?" I whispered. She shrugged. "I don't know. This is such a stop-gap measure. She could hold on a day or perhaps several days. On the other hand, the illness has progressed so quickly; she may not make it through the night." "Um, excuse me," Harry piped up. "I don't mean to sound selfish, but-" He lowered his voice. "Just where does this leave me?" "That's a good question," the Doctor conceded, running the scanner first over Cait, then Harry. "The infection is progressing much slower in your body for any one of a hundred reasons, ranging from your immune system to the amount of infection to which you were initially exposed. We've been attempting to isolate the differences, especially those between you two and Mr. Neelix. However, it could simply be that he is Talaxian and you are both human." Sighing in frustration, he crossed the room to his office. Kes patted Harry's leg. "We're sorry, Harry." "Yeah, yeah," he sighed. "I know you're doing your best." I turned to Kes. "Do you think you can get the Doc's okay for me to stay here tonight. If she goes, I want to be with her." She nodded. "If I can't, we'll simply de-activate him, and he won't know until it's too late." Chuckling slightly, she headed back to her console. She wasn't serious, but I knew she'd make sure I could stay.