GETTING INTO TROUBLE
by Katie 
Dedicated to those of you who read the first three stories in this series.  
(I like comments.) 
DISCLAIMER:  Paramount owns Star Trek, the characters and the show Voyager.  
I just like to put the characters into scenes that I would like to see. This 
scene comes shortly after "Regrets."  For those of you who missed the other 
three parts, just let me know, and I'll see about getting them to you.--Katie
*****
     The door to the turbolift shut behind Harry Kim as he entered the 
bridge.  Kathryn Janeway turned to him.  "Mr. Kim, glad you could join us.  
Has the doctor cleared you for duty?"
     "Yes Captain.  He said that there should be no other side effects from 
my," Harry searched for the right words.  Finding none, he continued, 
"breakfast.  My coloration should return to normal by morning."
     "In that case, Mr. Kim, take your station."
     "Yes Captain."
     As Harry took his station at Ops, B'Elanna Torres looked at him from her 
seat at Engineering.  *Boy, Tom wasn't kidding, he really did turn purple.*  
Suddenly, she felt something hit her hair.  Reaching up, she felt something 
hit her leg.  B'Elanna pulled an elastic band from her hair, and retrieved 
its twin from the floor.  "Harry?"
     "Yes?"
     "My readings indicate an energy fluctuation in the Ops Console.  Could 
you take a look at it?"
     Harry knelt down and began to examine his station.  "B'Elanna, I don't 
see anything wrong."
     "That can't be right.  Let me take a look."  Torres walked over to Ops, 
and knelt beside Harry.  "Harry," she whispered.
     "What?"
     "There isn't anything wrong with Ops, I just wanted to ask you a 
question."
     "All right, shoot."
     She held out her hand revealing the two elastic loops.  "What are 
these?"
     "They look like rubber bands, why?"
     "What are they used for?"
     "They use to be used to hold paper together.  They went out of use when 
Data padds came into use.  With everything on computer, there is no need for 
rubber bands."
     "Then why are they on the bridge?"
     "Where were they?"
     "One of them hit my leg, the other one hit my head."
     "Sounds like someone shot them at you."
     "Shot them at me?"
     "Sure, like this."  He held the rubber band in his right hand, and 
wrapped it around the nail of his left thumb.  Stretching the band, he aimed 
at the floor, and let go.  The band flew to the floor.
     "Harry, I would have noticed that.  I didn't see anyone doing that on 
the bridge."
     "Well, you can always do it like this."  This time, he held his hand out 
like a gun.  He hooked the band on his pinkie, and stretched the band around 
his palm and thumb.  He held his index finger out, and placed the end under 
it's nail.  "This way, it only takes one hand, and can be hidden easily.  To 
shoot it, you just let go with your pinkie."
     "Thanks Harry."  She stood up and began to return to her station.
     "B'Elanna," Harry said as he stood, "don't forget that both Chakotay and 
the Captain are between your station and the conn."
     "I won't."  Torres returned to her station, and wrapped the rubber band 
around her right hand.  She slipped her right arm close to her stomach, took 
aim and fired.  The small projectile flew across the bridge and hit...
     Tom Paris was sitting at the helm with a smug look on his face.  
B'Elanna had not even seen him shoot the rubber band in her direction.  As 
his hands played across the console, he felt the sting of elastic hitting his 
right hand.  *Okay, so maybe she did see me.  Good shot Torres*  In 
retaliation, Tom slipped the band around his left hand, and aimed at Torres.  
The elastic slipped from his pinkie, and flew across the bridge toward the 
engineering station.  Then, he pulled a rubber band from his wrist, and took 
aim at a station behind him.
     As the two bands, flew to their targets, Chakotay leaned toward Captain 
Janeway.  "Captain, was that what I think it was?"
     "Yes, I believe it was."
     Behind them, at Ops, Harry Kim felt the rubber band connect with his 
shoulder.  He leaned down, picked it up, and shot it back to his friend at 
the conn.
     Tom Paris felt the elastic land in his hair, as he slipped his last 
three rubber bands from his wrist.  He slipped them around three of his 
fingers, around his thumb, and hooked them onto the nail of his index finger.  
Rapidly, he turned from the conn, and fired three shots in succession.
     The three rubber bands flew toward their respective targets. "Captain, 
are you going to stop this?"
     "I don't know Chakotay.  It's just a bit of harmless fun."
     "On the bridge of a starship."
     "That is 70,000 light years from home.  Sometimes, the bridge crew needs 
a bit of relief from the stress on the job."
     "If you say so."  As he turned away from the Captain, Janeway felt one 
of Tom's rubber bands hit her stomach.  She picked it up, and addressed her 
conn officer.  "Mr. Paris?"
     Tom turned to face the captain.  "Yes Captain?"  As he sat facing 
Janeway, five rubber bands were released, and shot to their target.