Baker Point

Admiral Janeway certainly had a nice home, Neelix decided. And Earth, from what he’d seen of it, certainly was a nice place; he could understand why his friends were so anxious to return.

He appreciated the admiral’s invitation to stay with her family. He was glad to be out of the Medical Center and away from the Doctor. But he wasn’t home, and more and more he found himself thinking about his family. How was Alixia coping with this?

His thoughts were interrupted by the arrival of Beth Herrick, who was carefully holding a box.

“Uncle Neelix, this came for you. Grandma said I should bring it in.”

“Why, thank you, Beth; it was very kind of you to deliver it. Would you like to help me open it?”


“Oh, yes,” she said, giving him a smile that definitely reminded him of her mother.

They made short work of the wrapping, and Neelix lifted out a familiar object.

“A Kadis-Kot board? It looks like someone’s been playing it.” Beth said, clearly puzzled.

For a moment, Neelix was puzzled, too. Then he remembered. “You’re right Beth … I was playing it, long ago with a very good friend.”

“There’s a PADD,” Beth said helpfully as she lifted it out and turned it on. “Looks like a vid code.”

“Think your mother would mind if we called?”

Beth’s curls rustled as she shook her head.

It took a moment for the code to connect … then suddenly, the image of a very familiar blond woman filled the screen.

“Hello, Neelix,” Seven said warmly. “I was hoping that you’d like to finish our game.”



***

“So do you enjoy Australia?” Neelix asked as he fiddled with a game piece. Truth be told, they’d played very little in the past hour.

“I do,” she said, “the Outback area reminds me a bit of Vulcan.”

The comparison didn’t mean much to him, but he nodded agreeably. He started to say something else, only to interrupt himself with a fit of coughing.

“Are you recovered?” Seven asked

“Yes, I believe so,” he said when he finally caught his breath. “I’ve probably picked up some exotic bug; I haven’t been around humans for a while, so my immune system is playing catch-up.”

“Of course” Seven said quietly. Something in her tone seemed a bit too knowing, so he decided to change the subject. “You know, the last time we talked, you were planning a date with Commander Chakotay.”

Seven merely smiled. “Circumstances changed,” she said simply.

“So you two didn’t …”

“No,” she said. “Our lives changed dramatically once we arrived on Earth. It did not seem prudent to maintain a dating relationship.”

He considered asking how she announced that, but thought better of it. “Do you hear from him?”

She shook her head. “I do not. I have not seen him in many years. Has he contacted you since your arrival?”

“No,” Neelix admitted. “B’Elanna says he is a trade envoy for his home planet and travels a great deal. But it’s very strange; no one mentions him unless I ask, and they don’t seem to know much. Admiral Janeway hasn’t said a word about him, and they were so close on Voyager.”

Seven considered. “It is unusual. In the past, she has mentioned Chakotay. About four years ago, she said he had been in San Francisco for a conference. But since then, she hasn’t talked about him. Perhaps she no longer hears from him, either.”

“Seems a shame,” Neelix said, mostly to himself. Seven merely nodded.











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