Title: Love ain‘t for WIMPS!
Rating: PG-13 (For ‚naughty‘ language)
Disclaimer: I don‘t own these here characters, they belong to 
Paramount Studios.  I‘m just taking them out for a little fun!
Spoilers: Up to Season Five finale... Nothing specific
Summary: The Deltaquadranlaunes (DQLs) decide to buck Valentine‘s Day  tradition and spend the day with their friends, rather than their 
lovers.  Challenge Response to ListMommy Ki‘s V-day challenge.
Note:  Character thoughts, as always are contained within the //
Note2: Set in my "Welcomes" and "Beginnings" universe, but not a 
pivotal plot piece.  
Note3: Words of the Challenge are in capital letters for emphasis
Valentine‘s Day challenge, issued by Listmom Ki: Write a short story, about 1000 words long. Must include the words: ‚rose‘, ‚chocolate‘, ‚oyster‘, ‚whips‘, ‚chains‘, ‚bridge‘, ‚orgasm‘, ‚turbolift‘, ‚red‘, ‚blue‘, ‚white‘, ‚rainbow‘ and ‚art‘.
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Seven of Nine enters the TURBOLIFT, grateful that her presence on the BRIDGE was only needed during the brief firefight with the most recent group of Delta Quadrant beings to decide to pick a fight with Voyager. The tension she could feel emanating from the senior staff was enough to power the warp core for a few days. With a sigh she steps off on her deck and walks to Cargo Bay 2.

She eyes the doors warily as she sees a single ‚Arizona Sunrise‘ breed ROSE taped to the door. She pulls it down and reads the accompanying card.

    "Angel--
    It seems that you are going out of your way to avoid me recently.
   No matter, I *always* win in the end.

            -- Tom"

Seven shakes her head at Tom‘s most recent attempt to get her to agree to "a night of love, laughter, and song". //He *knows* the DQLs decided to get together tonight. It‘s not like the four of us made a secret of the fact that we‘d rather have dinner together, than be tortured by our lovers plying us with CHOCOLATE or an OYSTER dish. That reminds me, I need to get ready.// Seven takes the rose with her and enters the cargo bay.

At 1830 hours, Seven presses the chime at the quarters of Jenny and Megan Delaney. From behind the doors she hears, "Joseph Carey, that better not be you! I don‘t care if you have the entire inventory of the Museum of Modern ART on holocube for me, you‘re *NOT* getting inside!"

Seven has to contain her laughter, and she calls out, "Sorry to disappoint you, Jennifer! It‘s *just* Seven!"

The door open quickly and Jenny Delaney grabs Seven‘s forearm, dragging her inside. She locks the door behind Seven, and turns to smile at her friend. "Sorry about that. But you would *not* believe the number of times that Joe tried to get me to agree to go out with him tonight!"

"Probably about as many as Thomas tried to ask me out tonight. I sent him to the poker game I *know* is occurring in Commander Chakotay‘s quarter‘s tonight." Seven looks around the room, and notices the nearly complete RAINBOW patterned dresses the DQLs had agreed to wear on their next shore leave together. She does not; however spot the other two members of the DQLs. "Where are the others?"

"Megan went to *rescue* Sue from Engineering. It seems our *favorite* Chief Engineer is trying to keep her second in command happy, by making it difficult for me to have fun with *my* friends!"

"Why would Lieutenant Torres care?"

"Oh please! Ever since Joe and I got together, she‘s been making it tough for me to avoid him. I think beneath all that bluster she‘s just a romantic at heart. But then, I *also* think if she chould just get a lover to make her ORGASM, all would be right with the world."

Seven does not answer, because Megan and Sue enter the quarters at that moment. Megan looks a little angry, but only says, "Crank up the volume! The DQLs are in the quarters!"

Jenny snorts at her sister‘s announcement, and waves to Sue. "Well, let‘s begin the vid."

Sue takes her uniform jacket off, and tosses it onto a chair. She rolls her shoulders and smiles. "What vid are we watching tonight?" She sits cross-legged on the floor and dives into the spinach dip and carrots on the coffee table.

Seven sits behind her on the couch, and reaches for some spinach dip as well. "A vid Ensign Kim recommended. It‘s from the 20th century. ‚Weird Science‘."

"That‘s a great movie! Let‘s start it!"

After the movie is over, the DQLs are lounging around the Delaney quarters discussing the movie. Sue throws out the next challenge, "What about that line, ‚Chips, dip, CHAINS, WHIPS. You‘re normal Teenage party‘? I could just *see* Lieutenant Torres saying something like that!"

The others laugh, and Sue gets some more wine. Seven continues. "I was rather partial to the BLUE kitchen myself. That must have been *quite* the Doppler effect."

Jenny shakes her head. "Seven, only *you* could watch a classic movie like *that* and remark on the science!" Seven just raises an eyebrow at her friend, and Jenny grins back. "I liked those cars. Does anyone know what kind they were?"

"I think the RED one was a Corvette, and the WHITE one was Porsche," Seven replies.

"Dating Tom Paris *is* good for something!"

Seven smiles over her single glass of wine. "Yes, it is Megan. But I‘ve never been one to kiss and tell."

Sue snorts. "Yeah right. Weren‘t you the one who practically floated into the recording studio the night Tom Paris first kissed you?"

"I refuse to answer that question on the grounds that it *might* incriminate me!"

"Oh save us from Smart ass ex-Borgs!"

Sue and Megan share a look at Jenny‘s last statement, and grin. Megan speaks up, "So, what do you ladies say to watching another movie?"

"Just as long as it‘s raunchy and some guy‘s bare butt is shown!"

"Seven!"

"What? Only Jennifer allowed to say such things, Megan?"

"No, but..."

"Oh shove it, Megan! What‘s the next movie?"

"Well we have a choice, ‚Interview With A Vampire‘ *or* ‚When Love Comes‘."

"The second one. It‘s been awhile since we last drooled over Dean O‘Gorman!"

"Right." Megan answers Sue, then speaks to the air. "Computer, play vid ‚When Loves Comes‘ from the New Zealand Film Commission in 1999."

The four women settle down to watch the movie, and only the sighs of contentment escape their lips. Sue looks around at her closest friends, glad to be away from her lover tonight, even though it is Valentine‘s Day. //I can claim one thing, Love sure ain‘t for Wimps!//

End!