"Thundery Rain" (Voy, all crew)

[sorlak]

Have you ever thought of entering that short story contest that Pocket Books does every year? I really think you'd have a good chance of winning.

[Voy_Girl]

[Voy_Girl]

"I see you're finished," Harry stated after glancing at the completely empty plate.

"Does your species take two hours to eat one helping?" Tessa chuckled and began to dangle her short, but shapely legs over the edge of the bed.

Her species may be shorter then the average human, but they were slender-limbed and graceful. If Tessa suddenly would grow a foot or so, and be of a female human's medium height, she would still be slim, with long legs and well-balanced proportions.

"No... I just came to... get your tray," he stuttered and swallowed repeatedly a few times, hoping the red veil over his cheeks would go down with the saliva.

"Well, please sit down for a minute," she said cheerfully and pushed a strand of dark hair away from her eyes.

"I'm amazed. You don't seem bothered at all by this situation."

"I'm not. I'm just glad I'm aboard a starship, going away from that place. At first I was a little worried for Agi, I admit that, but now I know he's fine here."

"I've been told that he's sleeping in a set of empty quarters."

Tessa nodded and picked warily up a PADD which was lying next to her on the thin mattress.
"Your ambassador, Mr..?" She turned to Harry, a pleading look in her eyes.

"Neelix", Harry inserted helpfully, savoring her pleased smile.

"Yes. Mr. Neelix. He gave me a PADD with a little varying information. About this ship, about your quadrant, planet, every species on board."

"Did you find anything interesting?"

"Yes. That I'm about as tall as an average young teenager on your planet." The curve of her lips was soft, but without actual sharpness or meaning. A smile with a sad undertone. "Does that disturb you?"

"No, not at all. I don't think of you as a child, if that's what you think. I doubt anyone here does."

"How about your Captain? Do you think she feels like she's put a child into jail?"

"No, I definitely don't think so. Captain Janeway takes no consideration to height, weight or appearance."

"I'm glad to hear that. On Zatric there were three dominating species, as you may have noticed at the market. The Ragar, the Seenap and the Ceruhel, my species. Both of the other species are so tall. A young teenager from any of those two are almost as tall as you are.
Therefore the Ragar and the Seenap children are often treated as adults by my people, while our adults are treated like children by them."

"That's horrible!" Harry exclaimed, genuinely moved.

"I'd like to think that's why I wanted to go with your ship." She appeared distant, lost in thought.

"Is it?"

"What rank are you?" Tessa suddenly looked up.

"Does it matter?" Harry was startled; he unconsciously withdrew from her glare.

"No... I'm just...curious."

"My name is Harry." After much doubt he continued, "And right now, my rank is... friend."

*
Tessa eyed him, obviously startled and confused. "It all began one rainy night..." she started after a heavy, heartbreaking sigh.


***

[Voy_Girl]

"You just got yourself out of here." Harry said softly after the last shivering word had passed her lips and faded away.

Tessa looked at him with tears in her eyes. "I just got myself a friend."

One single tear had fallen from her eyes during the whole story. It had landed on the PADD, which she still clutched in her small hands. Harry stood up and signaled to the man on the other side of the field to lower it. Then he turned to Tessa again, offering her his hand.

As they left the brig, he couldn't help to wonder if the tear had been liquid gold.

***

The quarters were way too big for them; a huge living room, a bedroom and even a cozy bathroom. Tessa was awestruck, realizing that the people on board had a set of rooms like that each, approximately sharing in with another.

"Agi..." She stroked gently over the sleeping boy's unruly hair.

"Tessa," he whimpered and slowly opened his heavy eyelids.

The bed was also way too big. The little boy resembled to an island where he lay curled up in the middle of the bed. He hadn't dared to turn the covers down; instead he slept in his new clothes, on top of the bedding.
And now, Tessa was free to sleep there too; if she just told Janeway what she already had shared with Harry.

She hushed softly and waited until the boy had crawled into her eyes. Shifted slightly on the bed, finding that the half-lying, half-sitting position strained her neck. "I'm going to leave you again now. But don't worry, I'll be back... later."

***
***

[sorlak]

[Voy_Girl]

[Voy_Girl]

***

"So! You're ready to tell me about..?"

"Everything, Captain." Tessa placed her hands around the replicated cup with warm milk. It was actually not so bad after all; and it served to soothe her.

She discreetly let her gaze sweep over the room. The Captain had placed her in a simple armchair, with a coffee table and a sofa in front of her. An occupied sofa. Voyager's captain had her lower arm leisurely placed on the right elbow rest. She had a cup in her hand, and was still in uniform.

"What do you think of my quarters?" Janeway suddenly asked, probably realizing that she should have stated with something more welcoming than what she actually had. "Harry told me you finally were ready!"

Tessa looked around the room again, this time more thoroughly; mostly because she felt pressured to. "Nice enough."

Kathryn seemed a little crushed, but accepted the one word of praise. "Took a long time furnish. For months I didn't have much time to spare between first contacts, gunfights and warp core breaches... I immediately discovered that it takes a fair amount of time to restore
everything to its usual place after a rigorous fight - or anything that makes the ship shake, for that matter."
She chuckled, throathy, and took a sip of her coffee. "I barely have enough spare time to tend to that plant over there."

Tessa turned in the direction the older woman's finger offered her, followed it with her eyes. In a corner she spotted a straggling green plant on a pedestal. "Would it be awfully rude to point out that it
looks a little... thirsty?"

Janeway laughed at the tricky expression which split Tessa's face; the right eye was almost closed, while the corner of her mouth, on the same side, had frozen in an upturned curve.
"It's not exactly what you can call blazing, I know."

The younger woman relaxed, the expression was smoothened out and she even laughed a little. "It is a nice little plant, though."

"Indeed. Now that the ice is broken, I'd like to hear your story."

"All right." Mentally, Tessa braced herself for the coming struggle. She would have to tell the same, heartrending story twice in one day. As she had never told it to anyone before; not even Agi had heard the details. But on the outside, she showed nothing. She even gave the plant a
small smile. "You might want to find a comfortable position, Captain. This can take a while..."

***

[Voy_Girl]

Harry took a shiny green apple from a bowl on the counter, then he approached the replicator and ordered a glass of mineral water.

"Midnight snack?"

He spun around with his full glass, almost tipping the content over one of his best friends.
"Tom! You scared me! A snack is apparently what you're here for," Harry added when he saw the two sandwiches Tom balanced on a plate.

"What's so unusual with being in the mess hall after midnight?"

"I'll get a table," Harry chuckled while Tom turned to the replicator. No big problems finding a free table there, since the mess was completely empty.

"What are you really doing here this time of night?" Tom placed his plate and a cup with something steaming on the table, and took a seat in the opposite of Harry.

"I couldn't sleep. Kept thinking about Tessa."

"So, you're on first name basis," Tom smirked suggestively and took a bite of one of the soft sandwiches.

"She only has one name. Besides, it's not what you think. It wasn't Tessa alone I was thinking about." He took a big bite of the apple, which crunched delightfully. "It was mostly the rest of her family."

***

[Voy_Girl]

”My sister, Riana, and I were born and raised on a planet called Aldo. It was first after I had taken care of Agi for almost a year that I decided to move to Zaltric. It’s actually the planet closest to Aldo. I should have gone further, but Zaltric was as far as my meager savings of the
Aldoan currency got us.”

”Your parents?”

Tessa sighed, and began to finger at a loose strand of hair. ”My mother died in an accident four years before Agi was born. My father passed away only a few months later, after a short
time of crippling illness.” She had let go of her hair, leaving the strand curly and untidy. Instead, her hands twisted and turned in her lap.

”As you might have figured, Riana is the older one. When she had finished school, she got a job at the local park management.” Tessa’s eyes didn’t leave her busy hands for a second.
Perhaps is was to avoid the steady, thought more and more compassionate, look Kathryn gave
her. ”Raking the lawns, pruning the bushes, planting flowers and so on. She didn’t care all that much for it; it was a necessity. Until one day, when a young Ceruhel man and his father came strolling through the park.”

”I think I can see where this is going,” Kathryn hurried to put in when Tessa fell silent for a moment. She smiled at the young woman, who gave her a shallow twist of the lips in return.

”They were quite wealthy and loved to travel. For some reason, they ended up in the society I had spent all my life in. So, father and son were enjoying the sights; especially the many statues
placed pretty much everywhere in the park. They came from one direction, and my sister from the other. She carried a basket filled with flowers; she was on her way to decorate one of the
statues. I guess she must’ve held the basket in one hand and rummaged around in it with the other, while she was walking. She didn’t look up.”

At this point, Tessa abruptly stopped speaking. Janeway immediately started in her sofa, realizing that her companion needed a small push. ”Please, go on. I could almost feel the smell
of the flowers filling the basket!”

The thought of the flowers seemed to ginger up Tessa; she picked up on the trail she’d left.
”Yes, as I was saying... She didn’t look up. She was trying to find the prettiest flower; she had promised to bring it home to me. And, as you might have figured out, it didn’t end in any other
way than that she ran right into the Ceruhelans. dropping the basket with all the flowers on the younger man’s feet. That was the day I lost my sister.”

”Was she kidnapped?” Kathryn asked as soon as Tessa’s entire appearance had stopped shaking under the force of a deep sigh.

”No!” Tessa protested, shaking her head until the dark wisps danced. During the course of the story, she had let out her hair, and when she leaned forward, it almost covered her face
completely. It made her look utterly small, pale and miserable. After a moment of thought, she gave a sad smile. ”Maybe she was kidnapped, in a way. See, that young man would later become Agi’s father.”

”Oh,” Kathryn quickly pulled herself together. ”You lost your sister to him.”

”When she came home that night, to the house she shared with me, she had forgotten all about our plans for that weekend. She had even forgotten about the flower she had promised to
bring me. You see, we had a blue vase on our dinner table. I took it with me to Zaltric when I moved. But since that night it has always been empty.”

”Were you mad at your sister?”

”No, I wanted her to be happy. And she was, but he, her sweet, sweet boyfriend, could never be good enough in my eyes. He could never settle down; always wanted to go someplace he’d
never been before, do something he’d never done... And Riana began to go with him on the greater part of his travels. They were never long, but... so frequent.”

[Voy_Girl]

Kathryn rose from the sofa. ”I’m just going to replicate some more coffee. Do you want something?”

Her guest didn’t answer; she kept staring blankly at the tabletop, her hands never stilling. A moment later, Kathryn returned with a steamy cup of coffee, as well as a small plate.
”I replicated us a Danish each. It’s a piece of pastry the Doctor thought you’d appreciate.”

”Thank you!” Tessa seemed to awaken from an inner slumber, accepted the Danish pastry and immediately took a bite. The sound it made assured them both that it was crispy and fresh.

Janeway sat down in the sofa again, discarded her boots and pulled her feet up, tucking them underneath herself. ”I’m curious, did you and Riana live in the home of your childhood? I mean, after --”

”Yes, we did.” Tessa interrupted fiercely. ”Until I graduated from school. Riana and Agor, the boyfriend, had been together for over two years.” She stopped to make a face, like an upset child. ”After my graduation, she seemed to think that I was grown enough to take care of myself. And of course I could, but it seemed as if she just had been waiting for that during that last year. Because two months later, she moved to Platik Two with Agor.”

”Did they just leave you?”

”Agor did offer me to go with them. But I knew he just tried to play the perfect brother-in-law to be.”

”So they got married?”

”Yes. Almost immediately after they had moved. I couldn’t even get to the wedding.”

”I understand. Platik Two is pretty far away from your home planet.”

”Certainly. But the main reason was that I had to work to keep the house.”

”Couldn’t your sister have helped you, if the family she was marrying into was wealthy?”

”I’m sure she would have been glad to. I just never let her know how bad it was.”

”Didn’t you have any contact with her for these four years?”

”She came to see me a few times the first months after she’d gotten married, but she never stayed long. Well, once she stayed for three whole days and two nights. That time she’d even had the bridal bouquet dried up. She gave it to me. While I studied the fragile flowers, she
blurted out that she was pregnant. When she’d left that time, I never saw her again until a rainy night over a year later.”

Kathryn gave the young woman a look, which she hoped, was compassionate. She could not understand how Tessa had pulled through her first years as a young adult.

”I met her on the open street that night, but I barely recognized her. she wore a robe with a hood, and looked down at her feet while walking. After we’d nearly bumped into each other, Riana dragged me into an empty alley, showed me the little bundle in her arms while begging
me to take care of her poor, innocent son. She told me his name, date of birth and gave a brief explanation.”

”What did you do?” Janeway had unconsciously begun to lean closer to the woman in the armchair, even though there was a table in-between them.

”Shocked, I accepted the bundle she placed in my arms. The last thing I heard from her was her assurance, given to me on the verge of tears, that she’d be back one day. She didn’t say when, and after a year alone with Agi, I lent the house to a couple of old friends to my parents,
and left Aldo. During that first year, I had to put up with questioning looks from people I met, unknown as well as old friends.”
She made a pause to eat the rest of her pastry, before continuing.

”They couldn’t understand where the baby came from. And it didn’t exactly get better when their eyes fell upon Agi’s cheeks. Those blue freckles, that color scattered over his cheeks put
him even more on the wrong foot in the society; he was an hybrid, and it appeared like he had just popped up from nowhere.”

”Very touching,” Kathryn massaged a temple gently. ”But what I’d really like to know is why?”

[Voy_Girl]

The illumination was ordered to the lowest setting, spreading a comfortable shine over Harry Kim’s bedroom. The young ensign had planned to have enough sleep that night to be as clear as possible in the morning. Who knew what could happen when they got there.

If there was anything worse than a red alert in the middle of the night, it was to mentally prepare for a mission he had an emotional bond to.

If there was anything worse than to not be able to perform his duty perfectly during a complicated situation on the Bridge, it would be to face Tessa’s and Agi’s disappointment if they found nothing on the entire planet.

Groaning, Harry pulled his pillow over his head, pressing his troubled features into the mattress.

Who expected him to take care of the alien woman and the child? He, himself, did.

***


Tessa sighed, pulled up her knees to her chin, and swallowed. ”Agor’s father, Agi’s granddad, was a successful politician in one of three regions on Platik Two. I can’t remember the name of the party he led, but it was veering to the left. He wanted to change things, and had many
followers. Members of Agor’s family had been prominent within this party for generations. Of course, Agor followed in his father’s steps.”

”Would you like something more to drink?” Janeway asked Tessa when she began to cough.
The young woman shook her head fiercely, assuring the Captain that she needed to have hersay.

”Agor quickly rose, within the party and in popularity among the people. His father retired and Agor was unanimously voted new party leader. I don’t fully know what happened next, Riana was not very clear on that point, but somehow the more conservative parties took control over
the other two regions. The people who believed in Agor refused to deprive his party of the power. And then... I don’t know how, but suddenly these were no parties at all, and some sort of organization led the two conservative regions. Agor and his like-minded were pursued by
that organization. He and Riana must have feared for Agi’s life.”

”That does not make sense to me.” Kathryn now rubbed both her temples systematically. ”It’s given me a headache.”

”I only know fragments of events. Believe me, I have spent many nights trying to figure out what happened in-between what I know.”

She fiddled absently with the crumbs the Danish had left on the table. She had definitely spent more time than anyone could imagine trying to build bridges between the pieces of information she’d gathered. Lately, Tessa found herself more and more often pondering on the matter
when she saw Agi do something the way Riana had used to. Some days it totally sucked the will to continue out of her.

Janeway stood up, fixing Tessa with determined eyes. ”I have to inform my crew of what we should expect in less that seven hours. Are you tired?”

Tessa rose from her seat and stretched her stiff joints, with clear discomfort. ”Believe it or not.”

”I think Agi’s ‘napping’ still. I take it you can find your way back to those quarters. There’s a crew member posted outside the door. If you need anything, just ask him or her.”

”Captain? What do you mean?”

”Don’t make yourself look stupid. That bed is big enough for two.” She had put on her boots again, while Tessa finished her story. Now Kathryn stood ready at the door, to let her young guest out. ”And one more thing; don’t give up any sleep tonight. When we find your sister we’ll get the answers.”

***

[Voy_Girl]

A hand, used to waking children up after years of practice on siblings and a daughter, was carefully placed on the half-Ceruhel’s shoulder. It shook his little form; not too hard, not too loose, but determined.

Drowsily, the boy opened one eye and then the other, After a little while, he blinked and could finally see his live alarm clearly.

”Good morning, Agi. I’m Samantha Wildman. My daughter and I would be very glad if you and your aunt would have breakfast with us.”

”You have a daughter?” Agi sat up in bed and turned down the covers that he’d been placed under sometime in the middle of the night. He rubbed his eyes a few times, yawned and stretched.

”Her name is Naomi. She’s about two years older than you.” Samantha rose from the side of the bed she’d been sitting on. ”I just know you and Naomi will get along.”

”When do I get to see her?”

”She’s waiting in the mess hall, so you could see her right away, if you just wake your aunt up.”

”Tessa!” He yelled and quickly placed both hands on her back; she slept on her stomach on Agi’s left side.

While he used all of his five-year-old strength to stir his aunt awake, Samantha retreated to the bedroom doorway. When Tessa finally began to murmur something into the depths of her pillow, Agi turned to the blonde mother and smiled. He had almost accomplished his task.

”TESSA!!” Agi leaned forward, over her back, and shouted in her ear.

”What?!” She started, almost knocking him out with the back of her head. ”Oh, it’s just you. I haven’t slept this good in ages.” She yawned, stretched and wiggled out of the covers as soon as the boy had moved.

”What time is it?” Tessa asked as soon as she had placed her bare feet on the floor. She reached out behind her, took the cover and wrapped it around her shoulders. She was cold.

”I don’t know... Samantha woke me up.”

”Samantha? Who’s Samantha?”

Agi pointed to the doorway, obliging. The uniformed woman who stood there squirmed apologetic.

”Who’re you?” Tessa practically jumped up from the bed. She completely ignored Agi’s earnest assurance that ”it is Samantha.”

”I’m Lieutenant Samantha Wildman. Captain Janeway asked me to wake you up and invite you to breakfast with her, me and my daughter Naomi.”

The newly awakened woman seemed to relax a bit, but her voice was laced with a dry tone as she approached the lieutenant. ”I hope you weren’t ordered to dine with us.”

”No. I accepted for Naomi’s sake. She hasn’t got many friends in her own age, except holocharacters.”

”What’s holocharacters?” Agi asked from the bed. He was obviously still listening even though he was busy building something with the pillows he found there.

”The time’s around six in the morning. the Captain wants to have a word with you before we arrive.”

Tessa backed a good ten steps away from Wildman. ”Thank you then, Lieutenant. But it really wasn’t necessary to wake us up.”

”Would you have preferred an armed guard?” Samantha retorted dryly and turned to leave.
”You have access to the ship’s database. Find yourself a set of clothing and replicate it.”

With that, Sam left the bedroom. Though, she couldn’t resist to call out an addition from the main door, ”Don’t let it take too long... I bet the whole Security staff is anxious to pay you a visit.”

***

Forgive me if you think the part when Tessa's explaining to Janeway is way too long. I couldn't see another way to get all the information in.

[Voy_Girl]

Earth in all its glory. Naomi and Agi studied the round model with big eyes. Neither of them had even set foot on it, though they found that they shared a dream to do just that.
Naomi wanted to visit the real Earth, back in the Alpha Quadrant. Agi wanted to settle down with the family he hoped to find in an environment just as inviting as the blue and green sphere on the round table.

To the children’s sides sat their mothers, biological or mental. On Agi’s left sat a nervous Tessa; on the verge of becoming anxious. To Naomi’s right side had the politely cold Samantha Wildman been placed. And finally, in-between the Ceruhelan woman and the Starfleet lieutenant, sat Captain Janeway enthroned.

In the middle of the table was a bowl of bread placed, as well as a tub with butter, a plate with slices of cheese and a jug with sweet orange juice.

Kathryn’s commbadge suddenly chimed, just when she took the first bite of her sandwich.
In his seat, Agi started in surprise. Full with amazement, he studied how the Captain brought up an accustomed hand to the multipurposeful Starfleet emblem on her chest.

”Janeway here. Go ahead.”

The voice that appealed to their concentration over the comm system was Commander Chakotay’s.
:::: I have spoken to a Platik customs officer aboard one of the shuttlecraft that are circulating this area. He brought the matter to a higher official who gave us permission to enter Platik
space.::::

”Good work, Commander.” She smiled a little, mostly to herself. ”When do we reach the planet?”

:::: With maximum impulse... Approximately ten minutes. ::::

Janeway glanced at Tessa, who stared at the stars streaking by. A muscle close to her cheekbone twitched nervously. ”Lower the speed to half impulse, Commander. Our guests needs a minute to prepare.”

***

[Voy_Girl]

***

Five minutes before arrival, Tessa and Agi walked out on the Bridge hand-in-hand, both very nervous.
Tessa had accepted the Captain’s offer to replicate a set of clothes and now presented herself in a pair of dark pants with a matching jacket, lavendel blue top and dark shoes without any semblance of heel. She wore her hair loosely fastened in a messy pony-tail.

Kathryn sat in her chair, waving to the pair to come to her. They reluctantly obeyed, on what Chakotay rose and offered his seat, next to the Captain, to Agi.

The little boy hesitated, until both Tom Paris and Harry Kim hurried to prompt that he should cease the opportunity. Agi faced the floor, gnawed a little on the soft inside of his cheek and quietly asked if Tessa could share the seat with him.

After several scattered, but warm and reassuring smiles, the young woman placed herself in the seat. When Agi saw that the chair did not swallow his aunt, he quickly climbed up into her lap.
For the few remaining minutes of their bittersweet journey, the child and his guardian held each other like they were the most precious the other had. And indeed, that was the truth.

***

[Voy_Girl]

They had followed a Platik man of few words into a very small, and very run-down office in a building that did not give any hope for the interior to be anything else than just small and run-down. Hoping for a breakthrough in their search, Kathryn asked for Agor as soon as she got the chance.

”Have never heard of him.” The man shrugged, and took a huge bite of something big, brown and square.

”That was unfortunate. After all he’s just been the leader of the biggest party in this sector!”

He wiped a few crumbs off his plump cheeks, which had the same blue dust, streaks and spots as Agi’s. Though this man was not half-Ceruhel, and therefore his cheeks were absolutely smooth. In fact; one couldn’t even notice the cheekbones in his round face. ”I believe you
heard me the first time.”

”Mister Gaskin --”

”Miss Janeway! If there was nothing else, I would appreciate it if you left now.” Gaskin distributed a cold glare amongst the five people who had come to him with a hope. He liked to think of himself as a cold and fair man, though his eyes still lingered on Agi for a moment longer than they had done on the rest.

”It is Captain Janeway to you, because the last time I checked you were in charge of the Sector Teta department who searches for lost persons!” Kathryn spat, ready to bring up the condition of his office too.

The piece of square cake in Gaskin’s hand quickly turned to mucky crumbs when he squashed it with a remarkabely strong hand. ”Leave!”

”We might as well. Since we didn’t get any help here!” Captain Janeway turned on her heel and left the glaring man and his office, including the symbolic crumbs on the floor.

When the door had slammed shut behind her, Tuvok, Harry, Tessa and Agi who posed as her away team, Kathryn straightened her uniform out and tried to calm down after her unusual and erratic behavior in there.

***

[Voy_Girl]

Tessa looked out one of the big, smoky and oval windows when harry came up behind her.
They had checked in on a big hotel, which was white on the outside and seemed to have stupefying light blue corridors running everywhere and nowhere on the inside.

Together with a few older Platik gentlemen, Harry and Tessa were the only ones who occupied themselves in the place of sojourn their floor offered.

On the other side of the window, in front of Tessa’s invert appearance, the rain came down steadily, running in streams down the window.

”Listen,” Harry began softly, tentative. ”I don’t know much about this, but I do know that nothing is right here. That man should have heard of Agi’s father.”

”He had, I’m sure. He’s just too scared or corrupted to admit he has. Everyone is.” She turned around and looked him in the eye. ”But Agor is here somewhere, and with him Riana.”

”Are you sure about that... They might be... deceased.”

Tessa gave Harry a stare that made him freeze to the very marrow. Their conversation met a dead end. Tessa left immediately she noticed it.
And shortly afterwards, so did he.

***

[Chakotays Angel]

Awsome Story Voy_Girl , Next Chapter Please

[Voy_Girl]

[Link]

WOW



I think it is awesome.

[Voy_Girl]

[Voy_Girl]

Harry returned to the cozy, but dark room he shared with Tuvok, who was nowhere to be found. Kim assumed that the Vulcan was talking to his old friend, the Captain, and would do so for well into the night to come.

*

There was a small, dull button placed next to the single window, smoky and round. When Harry pushed the button, it almost slid into the wall completely, and Harry found that it controlled a rolled blind. The blind was constructed by big pieces of something that looked like beige leather, so frequently used that various spots had become transparent.

When the window was so big and the blind enrolled so slowly, Harry had time to catch the last glimpse of the Platik night life before he would be enclosed in the lusterless room that would be his comfort for an unknown amount of days.

His and Tuvok’s room was located on the backside of the hotel. They could see straight into a neat alley, as well the closest houses and their undisturbed inhabitants. This night, when everything seemed to evolve around the rain, heavy clouds made the three-storied house
closest to Harry’s window to appear dark and hostile.

Trem City, the place Tessa had chosen to start their search in, was overcrowded everywhere they turned. Thus, the nearest corner of that dark house was less than twenty feet away from the backside of the hotel.

Harry sighed, wishing himself something little to gnaw on. He didn’t feel too appealed to go back to the gentlemen again, thereby suppressing the hunger.

Mere seconds later, something caught his eye and eliminated any thought of food. There were almost three inches of smoky transparent left until the blind would cover the window completely, and he still had a little time at the pane.

Something had fluttered way down on the ground. It appeared to be a person crouching under something dark and billowing. Harry realized with a pang that the hotel had a backdoor about where the flutter first had appeared.

The figure disappeared around the dark corner. Then; the blind covered the glass fully, and something that only can be described as a simile to a room through a softened camera lens sheltered him in.

Harry sank down on the edge of one of the beds. He felt strangely worried for the sake of Tessa and Agi. He wondered how safe they really were in the confinements of the hotel. Wrapped in an agitated haze, he stood up to change into a pair of regulation pyjamas.

***

[Chakotays Angel]

WOW super

[tom_88_2]

very good

[Voy_Girl]

Thanks,

[Voy_Girl]

*FOTW* w. 31