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Harry followed Tom into Tom's empty quarters. The furniture remained, but all Tom's personal items had been either recycled or packed up and stored in the cargo bay. Part of his cover, when he was pretending to be disgruntled enough to leave Voyager.
Harry had volunteered to clean out Tom's quarters. Partly so he could save as many of Tom's possessions as possible, as mementos for his friends and family, partly as a way to say goodbye to his friend.
Who was now back. Tom had returned to Voyager a hero, and Harry was helping Tom move his stuff from the cargo bay back to his quarters. On another ship, they'd just use the transporter, but Voyager had to watch its power expenditure, and site-to-site transport used a lot of energy.
"Are these the last of them?" Tom asked, placing the crate he was carrying on the small pile in his living area.
"I think so," Harry said, adding the crate he was carrying to the pile. "Except your plants." Tom had collected a lot of plants, some quite large. "I put them in the Airponics Bay. Kes has been taking care of them. Oh, and your replicator rations."
Tom had given all his replicator rations to Harry before he left. There were a lot. Harry knew Tom had been profiting off his gambling scheme, but he didn't realize how much.
"Keep them," Tom said.
"I can't do that. You're going to need them. You lost a bunch of your clothes and stuff on that Talaxian freighter, and most of clothes you left here have been recycled."
"Don't worry about it. The captain has given me extra rations to replace my possessions."
"They're your rations, Tom." Harry went to Tom's computer terminal, to transfer the rations back to Tom's account.
Tom followed, grabbing his hand. "Don't, Harry. I want you to keep them."
"Why?"
"Look, Har…I felt really bad about leaving without explaining what was going on. I saved up those rations so you'd have something to remember me by. If I didn't come back."
Harry pondered that. They weren't just left over from Tom's gambling scam. Tom had saved up the rations. It made him a little angry. "You think rations would make up for the loss of my best friend?"
"No…yes…Harry, I couldn't leave without giving you something. And I didn't have anything else. All I had was the exit kit they gave me when I left New Zealand, and various cheap junk picked up here in the Delta Quadrant on shore leave."
Tom had meant well, Harry realized. Still… "I can't take your rations."
"Please, Harry." Tom was rarely so sincere.
Harry didn't want to keep the rations, but clearly, Tom didn't, either. "Tell you what," Harry said. "How about we use to the rations to throw you a big welcome back party?"
A slow smile spread across Tom's face. It was like a sunrise. "Make it a pizza party, and you're on."
"Pizza it is."
"I can't think of a better use of the rations than 50 pepperoni pizzas with Kavarian olives."
Harry wouldn't mind that, but… "Tom, you know some people hate olives."
"I don't trust anyone who hates olives. They can pick them off, or buy their own pizza."
"We're not making all of them pepperoni with olives. Some people are vegetarians."
"They can have vegetarian pepperoni…what are you smiling about?"
Harry found he was grinning like a idiot. "I never realized how much I missed arguing about stupid things like pizza toppings with you, Tom."
"I missed you too, Harry." Tom was also grinning like an idiot. Then the moment passed, and the argument resumed. "Okay, sausage and mushrooms are okay. And some plain cheese. But no Hawaiian pizza. Pineapple on pizza is an abomination…"