She had been in a shuttlecraft with Commander Chakotay and Lieutenant Torres as they made their way back to Voyager from helping a ship that was in distress while Voyager went on to the planet Vhenzaa to barter for supplies.  The trip had been a short one.

"I don't know about you two, but I can't wait to get back to Voyager.  Another night on those aweful bunks and I'd have to visit the Doctor," B'Elanna was saying as she absently scanned the area.

Chakotay smiled.  "I'm sure Seven and I both agree on that point.  Report?"

B'Elanna bit her lip.  "I'm getting a ship on shortrange scanners."

Seven peered at her consol.  "They appear to be on an intercept course."

"Is it the Keranni vessel?" Chakotay asked.

"Negative," Seven answered.  "They are powering weapons."

"Raise shields.  Open a channel," he commanded.

"Channel open," B'Elanna replied.

"Unidentified vessel.  I am Commander Chakotay of the starship Voyager.  Is there something I can help you with?"

"No reply," B'Elanna reported....

From then on it had been a short-lived, brutal fight.  In two shots shields were down and in three, communications.  The last thing Seven heard was B'Elanna yelling something about the alien vessel powering their transporters.  Then she appeared in a small brig.  She never saw her captors, never knew why they had taken her.  An indeterminate amount of days later she was beamed into a cold cell that only had a pallet, a refresher and some coats.  She was transported a small amount of food almost everyday, though sometimes a day was missed and she went hungry.  At some point her captors did show themselves, coming in black robes and examining her.  She quickly learned not to ask questions that day. All she asked was, "Why?", and they had beaten her until she couldn't move, couldn't even think straight.  After they finished their exam they left and never came back.  Now all she could do was try to keep warm and ignore the pain of the bruises.  To keep herself occupied she usually sang the short songs that she and the Doctor had practiced together.  She had stared with Kel'torei, a Vulcan opera, but as her strength decreased, her songs were simplified.  Now she barely thought she could make it through Oh My Darlin'.  The Doctor.  She bit her lip and wondered what he was doing.  No doubt complaining to a patient who had come in with a sprained ankle or a scratched arm.  Maybe sickbay was trembling at the volume of his favorite opera as he scanned a recent test.  Maybe he was missing her.  Without her notice a tear escaped down her cheek.  She whimpered, her bruised side hurting as she started over the moonlit snow as it made her ice blue eyes twinkle.

He paced sickbay, waiting for some kind of news from the bridge.  They had been searching for Seven's captors for days now with very few leads.  Tom stood there with his tricorder, raising his eyes to watch him every so often.  He knew how the man felt.  When B'Elanna had almost died when she was saving her mother from the Barge of the Dead he had been going out of his mind and he knew what was happening.  The Doctor had no clue whether Seven was dead or alive, well or mistreated.  Tom could imagine how helpless the Doctor felt.  He sighed and glanced at the door, his eyes caught Captain Janeway standing in the sickbay doors, watching.  His eyes then went to the Doctor who, he just noticed, had stopped pacing and was staring off.  "Hey, Doc, are you ok?" Tom asked quietly.

"Hmmm?  Oh, fine Mr. Paris."  His eyes didn't leave their gaze.

Tom and Kathryn exchanged looks.  "You don't act fine," Tom observed.

The Doctor stood straight and moved to grasp a tricorder.  "I'm just a hologram, Mr. Paris.  You needn't worry yourself."  Ever since she had been kidnapped he had started to refer to himself as, "just a hologram."  Whether or not he was trying to convince himself he'd be all right or whether he was trying to be sarcastic, Tom couldn't tell.  "Captain," he was saying.  "Can I help you?"

She sighed and grasped his hand.  "We found her.  At least we think we have.  We've talked to some people who've seen this happen before.  She was taken by slavers to a planet called Mag'resh.  We're sending Chakotay and Tuvok with a transport to the planet and they are going to see if she's there.  If she is we'll get her out."

His eyes glowed in relief.  "Captain, please, I beg you, let me go," he said, continuing as she opened her mouth to argue.  "Captain, they might recognise the commander's voice if he goes and she might need medical attention.  Please...she could be dying."

She stared for a moment, surprised by his vehemence.  But looking into his eyes she couldn't refuse him.  "You could be right about them recognising Chakotay.  And if she is hurt, the sooner she gets attention, the better.  All right, you have my permission to go."

He smiled for the first time in days.  "Thank you, Captain."

She returned his smile and nodded, turning and leaving.  Tom grinned.

She was so cold that she didn't even realise that she hadn't moved in an hour.  She hadn't even thought anything past stray images in an hour.  Right now she was remembering the time the Doctor had given her lessons in dating.  It had been quite a pleasurable experiance.  No one could have guessed that she was actually having fun.  A small smile found her lips, remembering how dedicated the Doctor had been to assisting her.  He was always assisting her it seemed.  Whenever she needed tips on interacting with the other individuals or when she just needed company, she could count on him to be there for her and assist her without making her feel uncomfortable.

She gasped, her smile stretching her dry lips.  It was then she realised she was stiff and chilled to the bone and needed to move.  It was starting.  Very soon would come the time where she would stop moving all together.  Then the cold would take her.  She would close her eyes and never open them again.  She would never see her family on Voyager again.  Never reach Earth, never find out if she had family there.  Some tears fell down her cheeks as she slowly walked to the front of her cell, the farthest from the cold window that she could get.  Leaning into the corner she slid down the wall until she was sitting comfortably.  She was too cold today.  Too tired.  The vision in her left eye was dimming, her eyepiece nearly frozen.  Numbly she began to move her lips as she whispered the words to You Are My Sunshine, but in her near delirious state for all she knew she was singing as beautifully as ever.  Her last thoughts as she drifted off to sleep were of the Doctor as she softly said, "You are my sunshine..."

If he had a heart, he would swear it was racing.  Each second closer they were was not close enough.  When they entered orbit they had immediately displayed their interest in buying a slave, and the slavers were eager to show them what they had to offer.  Changed into civilian clothes, Tuvok and the Doctor beamed down the the surface where a tall and muscular man who introduced himself as Xelandre Ne'Cmal waited to show off the Mag'reshi's vast variety of slaves.  His pale green lips were curved into a smile that made the Doctor want to detach them from the man's face.  But he kept his temper in check for Seven's sake.  "Welcome to Mag'resh.  Finest slaves in the galaxy.  What can I do for you gentlemen?"

Tuvok stepped forward.  "We're looking for a female slave, preferably tall and light in coloration."

The man considered.  "Any particular race in mind?"

Tuvok made a show of considering and conferring with the Doctor.  Then he turned and looked.  "Just something that is similar to our appearance, with my partners skin pigment, but lighter hair and eyes."

The Doctor stepped forward.  "Something beautiful...sensual?"

The man grinned.  "I think I know what you mean.  We have several of that description to choose from.  If you will follow me, we separate our slaves usually by coloration, and I will take you to our lighter pigmented girls."

The Doctor and Tuvok exchanged looks and followed the man down a series of halls in what the man referred to as, "The Girls' Dormatory."  Tuvok and the Doctor appeared to consider each girl that wasn't Seven until they came to the last door.  Xelandre stopped.  "This is the last one.  We got her about a couple weeks ago.  She's alittle more fragile than our other girls, so she'll come a bit cheaper."  He opened the cell and motioned for his customers to join him.  She was huddled in the corner, sleeping and the Doctor fought the urge to run to her.  Instead he walked slowly to where she was, each step seeming an eternity until he knelt before her and shook her gently.  She didn't stir.  He felt for a pulse and found a very faint one.  He stood abruptly.

"She's barely got a pulse!  Is this how you treat good merchandise?"

The man was taken aback, but held his ground.  "Sir, I assure you, this should not have happened.  I will find the person resposible for the treatment of this group and see he is properly punished."

Tuvok eyed the Doctor, warning him not to get too free with his anger, and said, "One of the healthier girls?  Did any of them please you?"

The Doctor recovered his temper and absently turned.  "They weren't as pretty as this one," he said in a considering tone.

Xelandre looked down.  "What's your best offer for this one?  She's not very healthy it appears and I can't imagine why you wouldn't want one of the healthier ones, but if this is what you want, perhaps I could sell her for a bit less than usual."

Tuvok raised an eyebrow at the Doctor and said, "I think perhaps my partner and I should talk about that.  Could you give us a moment alone to examine her and discuss an offer?"

Xelandre looked uncomfortable with the idea, but nonethless retreated out into the hallway.  The Doctor knelt and took out his tricorder and scanned her.  "She's in bad condition.  We need to get her back to Voyager as soon as possible or she might not make it."

Tuvok nodded.  "I'm going to offer him replication technology and perhaps some of the dilithium crystals we brought."

"We're actually going to pay them and let them get away with this?" the Doctor whispered.

"The captain of our transport informed me that an escape attempt was unwise.  From what she told me the only way to get her off this planet is to buy her.  I'll return."  He stood and went into the hall to make his offer.

The Doctor turned his attention back to Seven, caressing her cheek softly.  He increased the temperature of his projection and placed his hands on her cheeks, warming her face.  She moved ever so slightly but didn't awaken.  "My pretty angel," he whispered, looking at her paled face and messy blonde hair.  "When you love someone, you'll do anything," he sang softly.  "You'll do all the crazy things that you can't explain.  You'll shoot the moon, put out the sun, when you love someone."  He sighed and kissed her forehead.  "And I would do these for you, Seven."  He stood as Tuvok and Xelandre came in.

Xelandre smiled.  "We've reached an agreement Mr. Ztar," he said, using the Doctor's alias name.  "This beauty is yours to take home.  I'll give you a 90 day warrenty.  If she dies before then, bring back the body and I'll replace her with your next favorite choice."

The Doctor nodded and bent down, picking Seven's limp body up.  Tuvok turned to Xelandre.  "I'll beam down with your payment."  The man nodded and Tuvok gave the word to beam them up.

When they got back the Doctor carried Seven straight to the medical bay, leaving payment to the Mag'reshi totally in Tuvoks capable hands.  Right now Seven needed treatment.  When he got there she was laid on a biobed and stripped of her coat.  Her skin was slowly turning blue.  The Doctor turned to the nearest doctor and said, "I need a warm bath prepared now."
He turned back, tricorder in hand, and said, "I won't let you die."

She was warm and wet.  It was an odd feeling after being cold for so long.  She slowly opened her senses up to her surroundings, feeling the warm water, hearing the familair beeps of a computer.  The new sensations were almost overwhelming.  She slowly opened her eyes, seeing the Doctor, her Doctor, sitting beside her, reading a data padd.  The room they were in was unfamiliar, but the fact that he was there, part of her family, part of her home on Voyager, overwhelmed her already fragile senses.  Tears started flooding down her cheeks as she absently looked down into the bath.  "You left my clothes on," she observed, breaking into sobs.

The Doctor jumped, startled by her outcry, and dropped his data padd.  "You needed to get warm and water was the best solution to slowly raise your temperature.  I needed to continually monitor your condition and so well, I figured you would be more comfortable with....and I would be too..." he stammered, not wanting her to know that he couldn't have looked at her nudity with a doctor's professional detachment.  It didn't seem to matter to her anyhow.  She was sobbing uncontrolably.  He put his hand on her shoulder.  "It's all right  You're safe.  It must have been horrible being there all that time."

She froze, staring at him and then wrapped her arms around him, dragging him half-way into the tub.  "It was cold," she tried to explain as calmly as she could, unable to understand why her emotions were so raw.  "I was so frightened.  It's so inefficient to fear, but I couldn't stop."

He wrapped his arms around her in return.  "Shh.  I know.  It's all over now.  You're free and we are on our way back to Voyager."

She sniffled and drew back, tears still falling.  "Why can't I control myself?" she asked, half to herself.

"You've been through a very traumatic experiance, Seven, and you're very tired.  You're just releasing all the tension built up within you.  It's quite normal."  He bit his lip and looked at her.  "How are you feeling?  Can you move everything right?"

She looked down into the water and flexed her fingers and bare toes, then moved her arms and legs.  "I believe so, Doctor."
She leaned back against the tub and closed her eyes.  "I need to regenerate."  She sniffled again.

He nodded though her eyes were closed and said softly, "We're close to Voyager.  Then you can rest all you want."

She nodded drowsily and seemed to settle into sleep.  He stared for a moment and then bent over, kissing her lips, thinking her asleep.

"Welcome back, Seven," Captain Janeway said, greeting her in the transporter room.  The captain was there with Harry and B'Elanna, Chakotay, Tom and Neelix.  "We would have thrown you a welcome home party, but we thought you would be tired after your ordeal."

Seven nodded weakly.  "I require regeneration, Captain, though I am grateful that you all have come to see me.  Thank you.  I am very pleased to have returned.  If you will please exscuse me, I must go to my quarters to rest."

With smiles and pats on the back and a few, 'Welcome home's, she retreated to the silence of the cargo bay to rest.  She stopped before her table and grasped her hairbrush, combing through her loose hair.  Setting down the brush she looked at her reflection and touched her lips, where he had kissed.