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- Icheb is the only friend I've ever had.
- —Q Junior
Qicheb is the slash ship between Q Junior and Icheb from the Star Trek fandom.
Canon[]
Q2[]
In her ready room, Icheb gives a presentation on “Early Starfleet History” to Captain Janeway. The presentation was meant to be 20 minutes, but Icheb had prepared over 34 chapters for his presentation to the dismay of both Captain Janeway. However, unbeknownst to both, Q Junior was watching them from the sidelines. Once Icheb leaves, Q Junior exclaims that he would have failed him for the dull speech, saying it was as dull as a Vulcan funeral dirge, nicknaming him ’drone boy’. Q decided that his son required some vacation from the Continuum, leaving him on Voyager’s ship. He observes the crew but quickly gets bored. Eventually, he is sentenced to stay on the ship for a week, devoid of his powers, or else he will turn into an amoeba in a petri dish.
He is giving a curriculum to follow while on Voyager. First, he spends a lesson learning spatial causality with Seven and Icheb, but Q Junior is uninterested. Icheb introduces himself, but Q Junior admits he already knows who he is, calling him a ‘drone with a Kirk fixation’. Seven suggests he should follow Icheb’s example. Later, Q Junior aids Neelix in serving food. Icheb approaches him, asking whenever he would be interested in some ‘recreational activities’. Q Junior refuses, again calling him ‘drone boy’, and says he needs to write a history essay on the Q Continuum instead. Instead, Icheb helps him with writing the essay, though eventually writing all of it. So, Q Junior cheats, submitting the plagiarized essay to Janeway. However, she immediately recognizes Icheb’s writing style.
After Janeway reprimands Q Junior, he becomes more courteous and friendly with the crew, particularly Icheb. Icheb appears to make friends with Q Junior. He aids him with his work. Later, Icheb invites Q Junior to a piloting lesson with Paris. Janeway allows it. Q Junior is nervous, and uneasy with Icheb’s driving, jokily asking him not to drive into a rock, since he is now mortal. So, Icheb takes over the wheel. They both joke that they don’t hear the noises due to the ion imbalance since they don’t want Paris to end the lesson early.
Icheb and Q Junior, with Captain Janeway
- I'll help you on one condition. You won't refer to me as "Itchy" in front of the senior officers.
- —Icheb about his new nickname
Q Junior searches for Icheb, calling him ‘Itchy’, in return Icheb calls him ‘Q-Ball’. Q Junior asks for his help in repairing the ion imbalance in the ship. Icheb is at first apprehensive, since they do not have permission, but eventually agrees to help on one condition. Stop calling him “Itchy” in front of the senior officers. They eventually fix the issue, but Q decides to open a spatial flexure, essentially a tunnel through space, to see the women in the Clevari system. Icheb disagrees and is disappointed with Q since they don’t have permission. Icheb attempts to contact Voyager but with no luck. Instead, Icheb talks to Q Junior, who is nervous about his father putting him back in a petri dish. He wants to run away with Icheb and find a cosmic nook and cranny to hide away from Q. Eventually, they arrive at the Clevari system, but Icheb refuses to leave, insisting they return to Voyager. A vessel approaches them, informing them they are trespassing in Chokuzan space. Icheb insists on following their rules, and Q Junior regrets bringing Icheb along. Icheb is aghast, suggesting they could be killed, but attempts to save them. In their attack, Icheb is critically injured. This prompts Q Junior to return to Voyager to save Icheb.
Once the real Q appears, Q Junior blames Icheb for the fight. But this is quickly dismissed as a lie. Q suggests learning some discipline and the consequences of your actions, he will leave Icheb to die, to teach him a lesson. Janeway asks why he came back since Q Junior could have left. He admits Icheb is the only friend he’s ever had and desires to save him. He takes responsibility and pleads with the Chokuzan. However, the Chokuzan is fake, and is Q in disguise. Icheb made a recovery, due to Q Junior’s actions. Q Junior eventually gains his powers back, and leaves Voyager, leaving Icheb behind.
Star Trek novels[]
In the Star Trek novel, The Eternal Tide, a much older Q, now in his 30s visits Icheb for some advice and help. He admits that he has lived a long time, but the only friend he has ever made was Icheb. At first, Icheb believes he has come purely for dating advice, but in fact, it was advice on comitting a crime and needing to kill someone. He is nervous about the future.
Quotes[]
Q2[]
- “I would've failed him. Kirk may have been a lowly human, but at least he had pizzazz. That report made him sound exciting as a Vulcan funeral dirge.”
- — Q Junior
- “Almost as monotnous as drone boy's essay.”
- — Q Junior
- Icheb – “I'm Icheb”
- Q Junior – “Oh, I know who you are. You're the drone with the Kirk fixation.”
- — Icheb and Q Junior
- Q Junior – “Itchy! Are you in here? Itchy?”
- Icheb – “What can I do for you, Q-Ball?.”
- — Icheb and Q Junior
- “I'll help you on one condition. You won't refer to me as "Itchy" in front of the senior officers.”
- — Icheb about his new nickname
- “Icheb is the only friend I've ever had.”
- — Q Junior
Star Trek novels[]
- Q Junior – “I haven't been alive much longer than you have, met and interacted with countless beings, many of them beyond your comprehension, and in all this time, I only made one friend”
- Icheb – “Who?”
- Q Junior – “You, you idiot”
- — Q Junior and Icheb, The External Tide
- “How is that possible? If you aren't every parent's dream of a perfect son, no one is.”
- — Q Junior and Icheb, The External Tide
Fanon[]
This is a rarepair within Voyager fandom, likely due to the pair only appearing in one episode "Q2". On AO3, they have over 20 fanfictions, and is the most popular ship for both Icheb and Q Junior. The ship name Qicheb and Qichy appears to have orignated by a Tumblr user. Fanfiction of the pair tend to explore the pitfalls and complications of a Q and human relationship. Fans ship Qicheb as they found their interactions and banter in the episode adorable and cute, and felt they would make a good pairing.
Teenage Dream (Icheb-Q Junior)
A fanvid of the pairing called Teenage Dream was posted to LiveJournal and YouTube in 2011. It was reposted by Manu Intiraymi, the actor for Icheb, with a smiley face ":)". He further commented that he found the pairing 'funny'.[1]
Many fans were also hopeful with a Icheb and Q Junior, reunion in Picard. Once Icheb died in Picard, many fans were upset, and suggested Q Junior would have saved him. An fanon edit by Major Grin became popular, which edits Star Trek, so Q Junior erases Icheb's death from the timeline.
Fandom[]
- FAN FICTION
- Icheb/Q Junior tag on AO3
