Chapter 10: Epilogue added on 21 Dec 2001
Disclaimers are in part 1.
Rating: NC17
They stood facing one another. A slight breeze ruffling their hair and clothes as the midday sun beat down, warming the rocks on which they stood. All of their friends and shipmates gathered around to watch. It was amazing to see the changes in both of the women. In the past few months Seven and B'Elanna had grown closer to their fellow travelers than they had ever imagined possible. Once they learned to accept the love and friendship of one another the gates were irrevocably opened, allowing to them see acceptance and friendship in the most unexpected of places.
They looked completely happy and relaxed. They were both dressed casually and the small white scars of their mating bonds were faintly visible on their smiling cheeks. It seemed that neither of them had stopped smiling for very long since they returned from their vacation. Even when they were arguing over the proper procedure for fixing ships' systems, you could hear a laugh bubbling just beneath the surface of the raised voices.
Captain Janeway stood before them in her dress uniform. She too was smiling broadly as she performed this most ancient of rituals for her two friends. She read a few words from the book was carrying, and then led the two women in their marriage vows.
When the union was sealed with rings and kisses they broke apart and turned to accept the congratulations of their peers. They had often returned to their cabin in the woods, but today was the first time they had shared this paradise with anyone else; it would not be the last.
If anyone had looked closely, they would have seen a tear of joy in more than one eye that day. Janeway had never been prouder of these two women who had endured so much before finding one another. Chakotay was gratified to see the angry young Maquis girl he once knew become the self-confident, happy and caring woman before him today. Neither Neelix nor the doctor could believe the changes that had come to pass in Seven's life. From an emotionless and taciturn drone she had become a young woman who cared deeply for her friends and whose laughter frequently echoed throughout the ship.
The crowd gathered around the newlyweds, laughing and talking, eager to share in this most precious of moments. Champagne was poured and toasts were offered. People were drinking and eating as they explored B'Elanna and Seven's holographic haven. The joy and laughter continued long into the night...
The End
Of the beginning......