Prompt: CJ - "We need a different enemy." - 'The West Wing'

Sitting on the couch, going over his report for the morning, Billy was enjoying having the quarters to himself for a few hours. Though his new Maquis roommate was quieter than his original roommate, Billy didn't particularly care for Gerron. There was something about the sullen Bajoran that made him uneasy. Truth be told, all the Maquis made him uneasy. He didn't think taking in the rebel fighters they had been sent to capture had been a wise move. For all they knew, they would all wind up dead in their beds one day as the Maquis took over the ship.

Okay, so perhaps that was a bit over dramatic, but still, Billy didn't trust his new crewmates and was happy to give them as wide a berth as he could. Of course, rooming with a Maquis made that difficult at times, so Billy was relieved that Gerron had decided to spend the evening somewhere else for the evening. The swish of the opening door told him that the reprieve was about to come to an end though.

Automatically, Billy's eyes lifted from the PADD he was holding to the door. Despite their lack of interaction with one another, the young Starfleet officer was instantly on his feet as soon as he saw Gerron. The Bajoran had multiple bruises on his face, was holding his right arm against his body with his left, and didn't seem too steady on his feet. Even from the couch, Billy could hear the Bajoran's labored breathing. All thoughts of steering clear of the Maquis were out of his mind as Billy got to his feet.

"Stay away from me," Gerron said, seeing Billy advancing on him as the Bajoran leaned momentarily against the wall just inside their quarters.

Hearing the fear in his roommate's voice, Billy stopped his advance. Though his natural instinct was to offer assistance he also didn't want to make the situation worse. "What happened?" he asked, standing midway between the couch and the door.

"Starfleet hospitality," Gerron spat out.

Stiffly, the Bajoran pushed off the wall and took a couple of staggering steps forward. Billy watched, feeling helpless. He might not be friends with his roommate but Gerron had never actually done anything to him. The Bajoran tended to keep to himself, speaking only when asked a direct question. He wasn't one to go causing anyone any trouble.

Whatever happened, Billy knew that Gerron hadn't started or provoked it. It just wasn't in the Bajoran's nature.

"Let me help you. We'll go to sickbay," Billy offered, resisting the urge to close the distance between himself and Gerron.

"I don't need any of your kind's help," Gerron managed to get out, taking a few more steps before collapsing to his knees.

Billy could only assume the former Maquis was referring to his Starfleet affiliation, which, with Gerron's previous statement, gave him an idea of what had happened. He knew some of the other Starfleet officers had been given Gerron a hard time. More than once he had hurried by a scene that looked suspicious but that he hadn't wanted to get involved in. Billy hadn't expected it to get physical though.

In a few steps, Billy was kneeling next to his roommate. "I don't know exactly what happened, but I'm not your enemy," he said, tentatively reaching out to touch Gerron's shoulder. He felt the Bajoran tense under the touch but as he didn't lash out, Billy didn't remove his hand. "I know we're not exactly friends, but I am your roommate. At least let me help you to the bed."

Gerron nodded, grudgingly accepting the help. With a lot of effort, Billy got the Bajoran to his feet. Approaching the beds, he didn't think the top bunk was a viable option under the circumstances. "Why don't you use my bed for tonight," Billy suggested, pushing the thought of what kind of germs might be lingering afterwards, to the back of his mind.

Gerron didn't bother protesting as Billy reached out to pull the blankets back. With a groan of pain, the Bajoran collapsed onto the bed. As he reached out to pull the blanket up over his roommate, Billy debated on whom he should go to, knowing he couldn't just let this situation go, no matter what Gerron wanted. Billy could tell that Gerron's injuries were more than just some bumps and bruises.

Tuvok was the natural choice, seeing as the Vulcan was head of security. However, giving Gerron's detest for Starfleet right now, Billy didn't think the Vulcan would get anywhere with Gerron. Not to mention, the one officer Billy had seen giving Gerron a hard time was a security officer. If that officer was involved in this incident, then Gerron was going to be mistrustful of any security officer.

As much as he'd rather just avoid them, Billy knew he needed to get one of the former Maquis. They would have the best chance of convincing Gerron to get the medical help he needed. The first person that Billy thought of was Kenneth Dalby. Though the engineer scared him, he also knew that Gerron spent a lot of time with the older man, especially as Dalby had stopped by their quarters for the young Bajoran quite often.

Leaving the sleeping area, Billy spoke to the computer. "Computer locate Lt. Dalby for me."

"Lt. Dalby is in his quarters."

Billy looked back toward the bunk beds. He knew he couldn't just let this go. Gerron might not want him to get anyone but he wasn't exactly in the position to stop him from doing so. Turning, he hurried from his quarters and quickly made the trek to Dalby's quarters.

Reaching Dalby's quarters, Billy rang the chime. It didn't take long at all for the door to slide open, revealing Lt. Dalby.

"What do you want?" Dalby asked gruffly.

Billy took a small step back as he replied. "It's Gerron. He came back to our quarters looking like he was beat up but he refused to let me help him to sickbay."

The last words were barely out of his mouth before Dalby was out of the doorway and hurrying down the corridors. Billy quickly followed the older man, jogging to keep up with Dalby's hurried, long strides. The closed doors of the quarters was the only thing that slowed the former Maquis down, and Billy quickly reached past Dalby to key in the entry code.

Following Dalby into his own quarters, Billy stood in the doorway to the sleeping area, watching as Dalby knelt down by the bunk. From his spot, Billy could hear the Bajoran's labored breathing.

"Ral," Dalby said, his voice gentle as he tried to gain the young man's attention, even as he reached out a hand toward him. "What happened?"

"Nothing."

Dalby placed his hand on Gerron's chin, turning the Bajoran's head so he was looking at him. "This doesn't look like nothing to me," Dalby grumbled, taking in the bruises on Gerron's face. Dalby looked back at Billy. "Why isn't he in sickbay?"

"I told you, he refused to go and Voyager's medical staff is kind of limited," Billy said defensively.

"I'll be fine. I don't want their doctor touching me," Gerron protested, getting the words out between short, gasps . . .

Dalby glanced back at Gerron before hitting his combadge. "Dalby to Lt. Paris."

Dalby recalled that Voyager's helmsman had some experience as a field medic from Paris' short stint with the Maquis. As Paris had served with them briefly on the Val Jean, Dalby was hoping that Gerron would be receptive of the helmsman's presence.

There was a moment of silence before Paris acknowledged the call. "Lt. Paris here."

"Paris, can you get a medical tricorder from sickbay and come to Gerron's quarters."

There was a slight pause before Paris' voice came through the open connection. "Wouldn't just taking him to sickbay be the more logical choice."

"It's complicated," Dalby replied, trying to reign in his frustration at the pilot. "Just get down here."

"I'll be there shortly."

Relieved that Paris wasn't continuing to be difficult, Dalby turned his attention back to Gerron. "Who did this?"

"It doesn't matter," Gerron replied, turning his head so that he was looking at the wall again.

"Was it Ashford and his pals again?" Dalby asked, not about to let it go. He had kept the earlier harassment to himself at Gerron's request, thinking that it would pass as the crews continued to integrate. From the looks of things, that assumption was wrong.

Gerron remained silent, the silence answering Dalby's question for him.

"Gerron, this has gone too far," Dalby replied, starting to get to his feet.

Sensing more than seeing the movement, Gerron reached out with his left hand and grabbed Dalby's wrist. Though he could have easily pulled his hand out of Gerron's grasp, the engineer did not do so. Instead he looked down at his friend as Gerron spoke.

"Don't," Gerron said, his voice no more than a whisper. "You'll just get in trouble."

Dalby didn't bother trying to deny that he had been about to go confront Ashford himself. He did however, crouch back down.

"I can't let this go," Dalby said, his eyes taking in the bruises on Gerron's face once again. The only thing that had been harder to deal with than this was seeing his wife's battered body after the Cardassians had raped and beat her to death. "I'll call Tuvok."

Gerron gave a short, dismissive laugh. "Ashford's one of his own men. He'll take his side."

Dalby doubted that assessment. Their Vulcan security chief wasn't one to side with a person just because he was in his department. Still, he doubted he would be able to convince Gerron otherwise just now, which left one other option.

Reaching up, Dalby tapped his combadge. "Dalby to Commander Chakotay."

"Chokatay here," came the first officer's reply after only a short pause.

"Sir, we have a situation. Can you come to Gerron's quarters please?"

If the first officer was phased by the request, his response didn't show it. A short, clipped "on my way," was the only reply before the line went dead.

"We'll let Chakotay deal with this," Dalby said, catching Gerron's gaze and holding it. "We're still his crew. He'll see that this is handled correctly."

Gerron gave only a brief nod in reply before closing his eyes as the door chime sounded. Still hovering in the doorway, Billy moved to answer the chime. Knowing there was no way the commander could have answered the summons that Dalby had just put in. Billy was not surprised to find Lt. Paris standing in the corridor when he opened the door.

"What's going on?" Paris asked, even as he stepped uninvited through the open door. Not seeing anyone else in the living area, he started toward the quarter's sleeping area, listening to Billy's answer as the younger man followed him.

Paris didn't like the answer he received, although he had a pretty good idea of who was responsible for the injuries Gerron had suffered. He had witnessed some questionable behavior first hand, and although he had stepped in at the time, it apparently hadn't been enough.

Entering the smaller room of the quarters, Paris asked Dalby to stand back as he approached the bed. Perching on the edge, Voyager's helmsman switched the medical tricorder on as he began to scan Gerron, his eyes taking in the bruises on the young man's face. Paris didn't like what he saw.

"Several cracked ribs and a spiral fracture of the right humerus," Paris said out loud as he put the tricorder down and reached into the med kit he had brought with him. "Ral, I'm going to give you something for the pain and then I'm going to take care of the cracked ribs right here before we try to move you," he told the Bajoran as he got out the tools he needed.

"You're not taking me to sickbay," Gerron replied.

"I've got to," Paris said, firmly but still with a touch of compassion in his tone. He understood the young man's reluctance and could see his fear. Paris could even understand the Bajoran's feelings. Gerron was probably the one person on this ship that could empathize with the way Paris had felt when he had first come onboard Voyager. Even on the Val Jean, others had given Gerron a hard time, though none of the Maquis had ever taken it this far. "The cracked ribs are easy enough to treat but the spiral fracture is a bit trickier," Paris told him, even as he pressed the hypospray of pain medication against Gerron's neck. "Not only do we need the scanners in sickbay, but the Doctor should really be the one setting the arm."

"No," Gerron protested, struggling to sit up. Despite his injuries, once in a sitting position, Gerron moved himself away from Paris, cowering into the top corner of the bunk.

Paris was sure that if the bed wasn't against the wall, Gerron would have been fleeing from the other side of the bed.

Moving close again, Dalby crouched down by the bedside again. "Ral, I stay with you the whole time. I won't let anyone hurt you."

"I don't want their doctor touching me," Gerron said again as the door chime sounded again.

Slipping out of the sleeping area again, Billy headed to answer the door.

"Then I'll do the procedure," Paris told him, moving down toward the foot of the bed as Dalby moved from his crouched position so that he was sitting on the edge of the bed. "The Doctor can talk me through it, but it still needs to be done in sickbay. I'll sedate you and transfer you if I have to, but I'd rather not do that. I'm not trying to add to your stress right now, we just want to help you."

Dalby had managed to slide onto the bed so that he was sitting next to Gerron. Carefully, he slid his right arm around Gerron's shoulders pulling the young man into his side.

"You're safe, Ral. I promise you that. I'm sorry I let the situation get this far out of hand."

"It's not your fault," Gerron said, relaxing against Dalby even as the pain medication started to take affect.

"What's going on?" Chakotay asked, walking into the room ahead of Billy.

Dalby and Paris started filling Chakotay in on the situation, at least the parts of the story that they knew. Even as they talked, Paris used the other medical devices to start the healing process of Gerron's cracked ribs, working around Dalby. The engineer's presence was having a calming affect on Gerron and Paris wasn't about to do anything to disrupt that right then.

"And why is this the first I'm hearing about this situation?" Chakotay asked, after both Dalby and Paris had told him about previous incidents they had witnessed. He caught the gaze of Dalby, Paris, and Telfer, having a pretty good idea of why Gerron hadn't said anything.

Though Chakotay got three guilty expressions back in response to his inquiry, he had to give them all credit for not bothering with flimsy excuses. He let it go at that, knowing that the discussion about their lack of good judgement could take place after the rest of this situation was cleared up.

"Paris, is it safe to move Gerron?" Chakotay asked, as Paris put the medical devices back into the med kit.

"It will be shortly," Paris replied. "I just need to stabilize that arm."

"Dalby, I want to talk to you for a moment," Chakotay said.

Reluctantly, Dalby moved from where he was, telling Gerron that he would be right back. Without protest, Dalby followed Chakotay back into the main living area of the quarters.

"I know I should've come to you about this," Dalby said as he joined Chakotay on the far side of the room. "Gerron asked me not to. He didn't want it to cause more trouble and I also think he was afraid of not being believed and things getting worse. The last thing I wanted to do was ruin the progress I've made getting Ral to open up to me."

Chakotay shook his head as he spoke up. "I'm not concerned with that right now. What's done is done. What I'm concerned with is you doing something stupid and making this situation worse. I need your promise that no matter what happens, that you let me and Tuvok handle this. Don't go confronting Ashford or anyone else that might be involved."

Dalby nodded, thinking about his initial reaction not long ago. If Ral hadn't stopped him . . .

"I promise, sir," Dalby replied. "I just hope Tuvok doesn't believe his own men over Gerron."

"That's not going to happen. Tuvok may be a lot of things, but partial isn't one of them, which you should know after the boot camp you went through with him. Tuvok will follow the evidence," Chakotay said with confidence. "You and Paris get Gerron to sickbay. I'm going to go inform Tuvok about what is going on. Just stay out of trouble until this is resolved."

"Yes, sir," Dalby replied, knowing that wasn't going to be easy. What he wanted to do was give Ashford a taste of his own medicine. To tell the guy to pick on someone his own size. He knew Chakotay was right though. All that would do would get him into trouble with ship's security and then he wouldn't be able to be there for Gerron anyway.

As Chakotay left the quarters, Dalby went back to the sleeping area of the quarters. He had promised Ral he'd stay by his side through all of this. Staying true to that promise would help him keep his word to Chakotay.

Gerron wasn't sure how much time had passed. What he did know was that his healed bones still ached, though Paris had assured him that was normal. At least he could breathe though without a stabbing pain with every breath.

Gerron found himself yawning again, but sleep wouldn't come. It wasn't that he didn't feel safe. He did, especially with Dalby sitting on a stool right bedside his bed. The trouble was that when he closed his eyes he saw Ashford and the other two guys with him coming at him again. It had been bad enough living through the beating the first time, he had no desire to revisit it.

The door to Sickbay opened up and moments later Gerron heard whispered voices. He didn't try to figure out whose voices they were because he didn't want to know. He knew that eventually Chakotay or Tuvok would come asking questions and he wasn't eager to field questions from either one of them. He had never wanted what was going on to reach them because the thought of not being believed scared him. If he told someone about Ashford and they believed Ashford over himself, then Gerron would know for sure that he truly was alone.

The whispered voices stopped and Gerron could hear footsteps coming in his direction. Gerron continued to stare at the ceiling, refusing to turn his head to see who was approaching. The only person he really wanted to deal with right now was sitting at his side.

"Ral," Paris said, as he stepped up to the side of the biobed, "are you feeling up to answering some questions for Commander Tuvok?"

~No, ~ was the one word that echoed in his mind. Gerron didn't want to face the Vulcan security chief about this situation period. He was sure that Tuvok would take his own security personnel word over his own. After all, he was a criminal. A fugitive that fate had forced Voyager's crew to work with, whether they liked it or not, and it was clear that many of Voyager's crew had not liked it at first. Some made it clear that they still didn't like the situation over a year later.

"I can tell him to come back later," Paris continued when Gerron did not answer the question. "I'll tell him you're not feeling up to it yet."

Which Gerron knew would only postpone the inevitable. There was no avoiding Voyager's Security Chief at this point.

Gerron felt a hand come to rest reassuringly on his shoulder. He didn't have to look in that direction to know it was Dalby.

Gerron shook his head. "I'll talk to him now. I just want this over with, but I want Dalby to stay," he added, knowing that he couldn't do this alone. He needed someone beside him who believed in him.

Paris nodded. "I'll let him know."

As Paris walked away again, Gerron closed his eyes. Taking a deep breath, he let it out slowly trying to calm his nerves.

"I'm right here, Ral and I'm not going anywhere," Dalby assured him as he gave the Bajoran's shoulder a reassuring squeeze.

Gerron nodded an acknowledgment to the engineer's words but remained quiet. It wasn't long before he heard approaching footsteps again. Opening his eyes, Gerron saw the stern face of Voyager's Security Chief approaching. However, Tuvok wasn't wearing his black and gold Starfleet uniform but was instead dressed in civilian clothing. It wasn't almost like it had been when Tuvok had been a part of the Val Jean's crew.

Almost.

They knew now the truth that Tuvok had infiltrated the crew as a spy for Starfleet.

However, for a time, he had been a part of their crew, just as now they were a part of his. Tuvok had also always been predictable in his reactions with the Maquis crew. He had his regulations and a code of ethics, which he let dictate his actions. Perhaps there was a chance Tuvok wouldn't dismiss what he said after all.

"Gerron, the Commander has informed me of the situation and I am taking it seriously. I want to assure you that lt. Ashford has been removed from duty for the duration of this investigation."

"He should be in the brig," Dalby said gruffly.

"That may be so, but until I can make an official charge that is not an option. I will reevaluate the situation after this interview," Tuvok replied, appearing unruffled by Dalby's outburst. In fact, the Vulcan security officer had expected it.

Focusing his attention back on Gerron, Tuvok began asking questions, being careful not to try to lead the young man in any certain directions but trying to get him to open up. By the time he was through with the interview, having gotten Dalby's statements as well, Tuvok had the name of two others who had been involved in the incidents. He was relieved to find out that Ashford remained the only member of his security force that had been involved. It was bad enough that he had one officer involved in this situation. If there had been more, Tuvok knew his job wouldn't end with just an investigation into the allegations. As it was, he intended to give all his officers a refresher course on the code of conduct and ethics for security personnel.

"Unless there is something more either of you want to add, those are all the questions I have for now," Tuvok said, looking from Gerron to Dalby. Though he was anticipating further comments from Dalby, it was Gerron who spoke up.

"You don't believe me, do you?"

Tuvok did not miss the reassuring pressure that Dalby applied with the hand that had been resting on Gerron's shoulder the entire time.

"It is not a matter of belief," Tuvok replied, his gaze returning to the young Bajoran who had surprised him during the extra training session he had conducted with the Maquis only a short time ago. "I follow where the evidence leads. Your injuries and what others have told me about what they have seen back-up what you have told me. My next step is to ask Lt. Ashford and Crewman Gavin about their whereabouts at the time in question and see what evidence ship's sensors provide. I will then go from there. In the meantime, I have assigned Ensign Colby to stand guard to assure no one else bothers you while this investigation continues. Should you be released from sickbay, he will shadow you. I assure you Mr. Gerron that I am taking this situation seriously, and will get to the truth no matter what that truth may be."

Gerron nodded, relieved that at least the security officer assigned was one of the few Maquis that had been integrated into Starfleet's Security force. He wasn't sure he trusted any of the Starfleet personnel right now.

"And I'm going to be with you to," Dalby assured his friend.

"Try to get some rest, crewman. I will give you an update when I have one."

With that, Tuvok turned and left, leaving Gerron and Dalby alone again.

"Tal to Billy."

The call over his combadge woke Billy, who had ended up falling asleep on the couch. Even after changing the sheets on his bed, he still found he couldn't get the image of how Gerron had looked when he came back to their quarters the night before out of his mind. He had retreated from the sleeping area in the hopes that would help.

It hadn't. At least not for a long while and as he rubbed the crick in his neck, Billy regretted the position he had fallen asleep in. Still, he guesses he'd had a better night than his roommate had.

"Tal to Billy. Are you alright?"

Tal's second call seemed a bit more frantic. Reaching up and touching his combage Billy replied quickly.

"I'm fine. I just woke up."

"Well that explains why you weren't at breakfast," Tal replied, her voice sounding relieved over the open line. "Gerron wasn't their either. You know anything about that?"

"He's probably . . ." Billy paused in his reply. Blurting out that Gerron was in sickbay out of the blue probably wasn't the most tactful method of telling Tal what happened. "Where are you?" Billy asked instead.

"On my way to your quarters actually," Tal responded, a trace of confusion now in her voice. "I know I'd never be able to concentrate on anything if I went right to my duty station without making sure you were okay."

"I'll explain things when you get here then," Billy told her.

"Okay."

Standing up, Billy hurried to change his uniform and freshen up a bit before Tal's arrival. Oversleeping meant that he was going to have to skip breakfast if he wanted to check in on his roommate before his duty shift, but it was something he was willing to do. Seeing Gerron in that condition last night, and seeing the Bajoran's fear, had changed something. He hadn't just seen one of the Maquis last night but had seen someone who needed a friend. Someone, who was apparently having a rougher time on Voyager than he himself was having.

~And I probably haven't been helping matters any, ~ Billy admitted to himself, as he splashed water on his face to rinse off the cleanser. ~Maybe I haven't physically done anything but I haven't exactly been friendly either, ~ he thought, making a promise to himself that he was going to attempt to change that.

Billy was waiting outside his quarters when Tal made her way down the corridor. He didn't wait for her to reach him before he started walking in her direction. There wasn't much time to make his planned trip to sickbay before both of them were supposed to be on duty.

"Where are we going?" Tal asked, as Billy walked toward her.

Reaching her, Billy looped his arm through Tal's and started leading her back down the corridor she had just come up.

"To check on Gerron before both of us need to be on duty," Billy told her. "When he came back to our quarters, last night he was in rough shape. Apparently, one of the Starfleet officers beat him up."

"Was it Lt. Ashford?" Tal gasped.

Billy could tell she was alarmed even before he glanced over at her expression. He also wondered how she had known who it was, as Billy had intended to leave the offending officer's name out of it until he knew for sure it had been him.

"That was the name mentioned between Dalby and Gerron," Billy admitted. "Why do you ask? Did you see something?" he asked, remembering Tal saying that she was planning to meet Gerron in the mess hall for movie night last night. It had been part of the reason he had chosen to skip movie night.

"Possibly," Tal admitted as the two of them stepped onto the turbolift. Billy gave the computer their destination even as Tal continued to talk. "I'm not exactly sure what went on. During the break between the two movies they showed last night, Ashford walked by where Ral and I were sitting. He leaned in and said something to Ral, but I didn't catch what it was. However, shortly after that Ral said he didn't feel like staying for the second movie after all and left."

"Did Ashford stay for the second movie?"

"I couldn't really say one way or the other."

"I think after we check in on Gerron, you need to find Lt. Tuvok and tell him what about the exchange. Commander Chakotay said last night he was bringing Tuvok in to investigate and that sounds like something he should know, even if it turns out to be insignificant."

"Can you come with me?" Tal asked nervously as the turbolift came to a stop not far from sickbay. "Tuvok makes me nervous. He never smiles."

"I'll come," Billy said without hesitation, not caring that it would make them both late for their duty shifts. He hoped Tuvok would let their supervisors know they had been talking to him. If not, Billy supposed, he could live with a late mark on his record. It wasn't like he made a habit of it.

Stepping into sickbay, the two noticed a security guard standing just within the doors. Billy also didn't miss the fact that it was one of the former Maquis, even though he couldn't think of the guy's name. Remembering his roommate's comments about 'Starfleet Hospitality', Billy didn't think that was simply a coincidence.

The security officer simply nodded as Billy and Tal walked by. Kes looked up from the computer screen she was looking at. Before the Ocampa could say anything, Tal spoke up.

"We came by to see, Ral."

Kes smiled as she directed them to where Gerron was.

As they approached the biobed Gerron was on, Billy took note that Dalby was still sitting by the Bajoran's side. Billy noted that his roommate looked better this morning than when he had returned to their quarters last night. The bruises were gone and the color had returned to his face.

"How are you doing?" Tal asked, as she hurried to the side of the bed that Dalby was not sitting on.

"I'm ready to get out of here," Gerron told her.

"I wish I had left with you last night," Tal added as Billy stepped up behind her, more than willing to let Tal do the talking right then.

Gerron shook his head as he told her, "this isn't your fault."

"I feel like it was. Maybe it wouldn't have happened if I had simply been with you."

"Or you could've got hurt too," Gerron told her. "Don't blame yourself."

"Ashford made a threat to you last night, didn't he? That's why you left?"

"You saw that?" Gerron asked.

Tal nodded. "I saw him whisper something to you. I didn't catch what he heard. I'm going to go talk to Tuvok after this."

Gerron opened his mouth to speak but Dalby spoke first.

"Good. It'll help to have someone back up part of Gerron's story, even if you didn't hear what was said."

"Do you need anything?" Tal asked.

"No but thanks for stopping by to check on me."

"Of course. That's what friends are for," Tal replied, leaning down and placing a quick kiss on Gerron's cheek.

"We should be going," Billy said, not missing the embarrassed flush Gerron's face had taken. "We both need to be on duty shortly," he said not about to mention that they were likely going to be late for those shifts. He didn't want his roommate to feel guilty about that.

"Can I talk to you alone, Billy?"

The question took Billy by surprise. Tal was definitely more of a friend to Gerron than he had been. Still, he couldn't find any good reason to refuse the request, so he simply nodded in reply.

"I won't go far," Dalby told Gerron as he stood up and walked with Tal back toward where Kes was working, to give Billy and Gerron some privacy.

Left alone with Gerron, Billy felt awkward. He wasn't sure what to do with his hands and not for the first time wished that Starfleet uniforms had pockets for his hands. He wondered if he should speak, but he wasn't sure what to say. Not to mention, it had been Gerron who had asked to talk to him. Apparently, something was on the Bajoran's mind.

However, the seconds that it took for Gerron to speak, seemed to last a lifetime.

"About last night, I'm sorry."

Billy found himself shaking his head as Gerron spoke. The last thing he had expected was an apology, when as far as Billy was concerned, Gerron had done nothing wrong. However, Gerron continued.

"I shouldn't have lashed out verbally like I did, when you asked what had happened. You weren't a part of what happened last night and granted, the two of us haven't interacted much despite being roommates, but that goes both ways. You've never done anything overt to make me feel unwanted."

"I haven't exactly been welcoming either. Nor did I come to your defense when I saw some of those other guys giving you a hard time."

"I didn't expect you too," Gerron told him. "However, despite me pushing you away last night, you still did what you could to help me. I appreciate that."

"You're welcome," Billy told him, knowing it would be rude to even attempt to brush off that part of the apology. He could have easily done what Gerron had told him to do and leave him alone last night instead of getting Dalby. Still, Billy knew he had done the right thing getting Dalby last night.

Now Billy wanted to continue doing the right thing and that meant getting past seeing Gerron, and the rest of the Maquis, as outsiders and as members of the crew. Maybe he hadn't been as vocal about his displeasure as other members of the Starfleet crew had been, but he knew in heart that he had resented them being here. He had seen them only as the criminals they had been sent to hunt down and not as people who were caught in the same exact situation as he, and the rest of Voyager's original crew, was.

The simple fact was, they needed each other out here. It was time he accepted that.

"Though maybe if I had been a bit more welcoming, things would have been different. I never even really tried to get to know you. I just accepted what I had heard about you and the rest of the Maquis."

"We may be criminals by Federation laws, but we're not necessarily bad people. Yes, we have different reasons for joining the Maquis but some of us felt that it was our only choice. We had seen enough brutality at the hands of the Cardassians, enough deaths, that we couldn't ignore what they were doing like the Federation chose to."

"I never really considered that side of the situation," Billy admitted, wondering for the first time whom his roommate had lost. He knew a little bit about the Cardassian occupation of Bajor from Tal, knew that Tal had lost family during that time, but hadn't thought much more about it. He supposed that for the Bajoran Maquis, helping the cause of the colonists of the colonies in the demilitarized zone that were under Cardassian rule was a way of continuing to fight against the Cardassian oppression they had suffered.

"Guess that I never really stopped to think about the reason behind the fighting but just accepted the fact that laws were being broken."

"Things aren't as black and white as many leaders of Starfleet, of the Federation, would like people to believe."

Billy nodded, having heard such ideas from other, more experienced, Starfleet personnel before. It made him realize how much more he had to learn despite having graduated from the Academy.

Billy held out his left hand, mindful of his roommate's injuries of the night before. "Can we start over? I think we could be friends now that I can see past my prejudices," Billy said to his roommate, not sure how Gerron would react. From what he knew and had seen, Gerron hadn't had the warmest of welcomes from Voyager's Starfleet Crew. Given Dalby's protective instinct toward the Bajoran, Billy wondered if perhaps his reception on the Valjean had been less than welcoming a well.

Gerron hesitated but eventually reached out and took Billy's hand. "I'd like that."

Later that evening, Billy and Tal walked down the corridor together. Once again, Tal needed Billy's help with one of her assignments, though Billy was thankful that she hadn't fumbled around with it on her own until one or two o'clock in the morning and then ask him for help.

Reaching his quarters, Billy came up short as the door opened to reveal Tuvok.

"Sorry, sir," Billy said, quickly stepping aside to allow Voyager's security chief to pass.

Tuvok simply nodded as the Vulcan went on his way. Curious as to what Tuvok's visit had been about, Billy hurried into his quarters, Tal close behind.

"What's going on?" Tal asked, as soon as she spotted Gerron sitting on the couch. Rushing past Billy, she quickly sat down next to her fellow Bajoran.

"Tuvok stopped by to tell me he had concluded the investigation," Gerron said, simply.

"And?" Billy said, already knowing Gerron's habit to not go into a lot of detail. He wasn't leaving it at the investigation was concluded.

"Well, thanks to the information Tal gave him about the incident in the messhall, reports from you, Dalby and Paris about other incidents, the physical evidence, and the fact that Lt. Mumford, the other person with Ashford last night, came forward and backed my story, Ashford has been demoted and sentenced to a month in the brig. After that, Tuvok said he'll be found some kind of assignment onboard, because of Voyager's situation but he'll no longer be on security."

"And Mumford?"

"Because he came forward with the truth, the Captain decided to confine him to quarters except for duty shifts for the next month."

"And you're okay with that?" Tal asked.

Gerron shrugged. "Ashford was the ring leader. I think if he's not around the others will at least limit their activities to glaring and talking behind my back. I'm use to that."

"You're more forgiving than I'd be," Billy stated, moving toward the nearby armchair.

"I'm not at forgiveness," Gerron replied, shaking his head. "Far from it. However, nothing is served from keeping them in the brig indefinitely. I agree with the Captain on that. The one thing Tuvok's boot camp, for lack of a better term for it, taught me, was that we need each other out here, because we have no one else. However, I'll be quite happy if I don't ever have to deal with either one of them again."

Tal put her arm across Gerron's shoulders.

"Well, if you do, you don't have to deal with them alone," she told him.

"Unfortunately, it's a small ship," Billy commented.

Gerron and Tal both looked in his direction.

"Really!" Tal exclaimed. "You always want reassurance because of how you feel, and that's the best you can come up with."

"I'm just trying to be realistic," Billy said defensively, even as he noticed a small smile come to Gerron's face.

"It might be a small ship," Gerron commented, "however, going unnoticed is not impossible."

"Tal is right though. Whatever happens, you're not alone."

"I'm learning that," Gerron admitted. "If you two don't mind though, I'm going to go lie down for a bit. I didn't sleep well last night," he added getting to his feet.

"Of course," Tal replied.

Gerron made his way to the sleeping area of his quarters, and the solitude that it offered. Though he knew he wouldn't be fighting the offers of friendship from Tal and the others quite so much anymore, there were still times when he felt like he needed to be alone and this was one of those times. So much had happened in such a short time and he needed quiet to process it.

However, whether he liked it or not, Gerron knew he wasn't going to be quite so alone on Voyager from now on.