Part Two

When Tom and Eris arrived in Tom's bedroom, she pulled out of her
Aunt's arms and started to undress. Eris took one look at her tired
face and waved Her hand, dressing the Demi-goddess in a light blue
nightgown. Tom smiled gratefully and slid into her bed. "Thanks,
Aunt Eris," she said as she pulled up the covers.

Eris smiled and sat down on the edge of the bed. "You're welcome,
Tom," She said distractedly, pushing a strand of hair out of Her
niece's eyes as She considered the best way to bring up the subject
on Her mind.

Hearing the distraction in Eris' voice, Tom studied her Aunt for a
moment. "What is it, Aunt Eris?" she finally asked.

Eris met Tom's eyes and smiled ruefully. She hadn't realized that
Her niece knew Her so well. "I think that you might want to change
your name to the female form," She said hesitantly, not sure how
Tom would react to that idea.

"The female version. That would be Thomasina Eugena," Tom said.
When her Aunt nodded, she considered it for a moment. Eris had a
point, but.... "I like 'Eugena', after all, it's my mom's name, but I
*really* hate the name 'Thomasina'." The disgust in her voice was
obvious.

"Well," Eris said thoughtfully. "You can still have it shortened to
'Tom'. It'll save you, and other people, from having to get used to a
new name."

Tom considered it for a moment, then smiled. "And that way I only
have to use 'Thomasina' on official documents," she said. Her smile
widened. "I can live with that. I'll talk to Captain Janeway about it
tomorrow." She frowned as another thought occurred to her. "But I
suppose I have to keep my last name."

Eris nodded in agreement. "For now, anyway," She said. "Of course,
you won't need a last name when you're made a full goddess."

Tom blinked in shock. "When I'm made a full goddess?" she
repeated in a daze. Then she shook off the shock and met Eris' eyes.
"What makes You think that I'll be offered godhood? And for that
matter, what makes You so sure that I'd accept it?"

Eris sighed softly. "I know that you'll be offered godhood because
your powers are very strong. So strong, in fact, that even when they
were suppressed you were still able to use them to some extent."

"What powers?" Tom asked, then held up a hand to prevent her Aunt
from answering. "No, wait. I think I know. You mean my empathy,
right?"

"You're an empath, yes, but that was not what I was talking about,"
Eris replied. "You're also a telepath, but you should know that. After
all, you used it to talk to Ares in sickbay earlier."

Tom's face registered surprise. "Yeah, but... Father is a god, so it's
only natural that I'd be able to talk to Him telepathically."

"True," Eris conceded. "But, He didn't initiate it, you did. Not all
demi-Gods can do that."

"Oh." Tom digested this information for a moment. "So, I'm an
empath *and* a telepath," she concluded. "Anything else?"

Eris hesitated for a moment, not sure if She should reveal Tom's last
ability. Then She decided that it was better that the young woman
knew. "You also have 'the Knowledge of Truth'."

"Is that what it sounds like?"

"Yes, it is," Eris answered. "And it explains why you knew that Ares
is your Father, even though no one told you."

Tom frowned in slight confusion and asked, "How could I use any of
my powers when they were suppressed at my birth? I mean, I wasn't
able to use my telepathy or my empathy until I woke up in sickbay
after my change."

Eris was silent for a moment, considering how to answer. Finally,
She took a deep breath and told Tom the truth. "We activated your
powers when We changed you."

"On purpose?" Tom asked.

"Yes," Eris replied. "Ares would've done it in a couple of weeks
anyway, so We decided that We might as well activate them now.
It'll save you from the effects later on."

Tom frowned. "What effects?"

"When your powers has been suppressed from birth, it hurts when
they're activated. Not to mention that you feel unwell. Migraines,
nausea, stomach cramps. It usually lasts for seven to ten days."

Tom winced at this news, then smiled at her Aunt. "In that case,
thank you. And give my thanks to the others as well. I'm grateful
that You decided to spare me that," she said, then returned to an
earlier question that Eris hadn't answered. "Anyway, back to the
question of my becoming a goddess. Assuming that I *am* offered
godhood, what makes you so sure I'd accept it?"

Eris studied Her niece for a moment. When she realized that Tom
was serious, She blinked in shock. She couldn't imagine *anyone*
declining an offer of godhood. Not even *Hercules* had done that,
and he had never liked or trusted the gods when he was just
immortal. "No one has ever turned down a chance to become a god
or goddess," She said when She'd managed to shake off Her
surprise.

"Well, there's a first for everything," Tom said, her voice distracted.

Hearing the preoccupied tone of Tom's voice, Eris decided to leave
the question Tom's godhood for now. However, She resolved to
bring the subject up with Her twin the next time She saw Him. Not
that She really expected Him to do anything about it. He might be
disappointed, but He'd let Tom decide for herself. Ares had *never*
pushed any of His children to do something that they truly didn't
want.

Eris shook off Her thoughts and turned Her full attention back to Her
niece. "What's on your mind, Tom?" She asked, curious what could
distract the demi-Goddess' thoughts from what was a serious
conversation.

Tom looked up at her Aunt with a slightly troubled expression.
"Aunt Eris, would You do me a favor?"

"Of course, Tom. What is it?"

"I need to get a private message to someone before Janeway makes
the official announcement about my change of gender, and I don't
want anyone else to know," Tom began. "Could You deliver it for
me?"

Eris nodded Her assent. "Do you need something to write it down
on?"

Tom considered it briefly, then nodded. "Yeah. I think that what I
have to say will be better coming from me, even if it's just in
writing. I would, however, appreciate it if You'd explain about my
sex-change before you hand over my message," she added.

"I'll do that," Eris said, then, with a slight flex of Her powers,
materialized a padd in Tom's hands.

While Tom wrote her message, Eris flexed her powers again, this
time creating a suitable wardrobe for the daughter of War. Tom
would later discover that even though she now had a few dresses,
most of her wardrobe now consisted of leather pants and skirts, shirts
in cotton and silk, a couple of leather vests and silk lingerie. Eris had
also given her a pair of shoes or boots that matched every outfit.

The last thing Eris created was a couple of Starfleet uniforms. She
didn't want to, but knew that it was necessary. Captain Janeway was
not the kind of woman who would allow one of her crew to wear
anything other than a uniform when they were on duty.

"All done."

Eris had just finished when Tom's voice caught Her attention. She
turned back to the demi-Goddess to find her holding out the padd.
She moved over to the bed and took it. "Okay. Now, if you tell me
who it's for and where I can find this person, I'll go deliver it."

Tom smiled at her Aunt and told Her what She needed to know, even
going so far as to answer Discord's unvoiced question. Namely, why
it was so important that the message was delivered *before*
Janeway's official announcement.

As soon as Eris had the information She needed, She left Tom's
quarters in a flash of light, only to appear in another cabin a moment
later, startling the occupant. "Hello, Ken. I'm Eris, Tom's aunt," She
said with a smile. "Tom asked me to explain a few things to you and
then give you a message."
 

The End