Copyright 2000, Susan S. McCrackin  Reprinted with permission of the author.

Seven of Nine and Kahkar were sitting on the semi-circular sofa on the darkened observation deck, the ship now moving away from the site of the Event and traveling at transwarp speed toward Voyager. The scene in front of them was a swirling mass of color and light. They had been sitting, close together, and watching the scene out of the window for the better part of an hour. Kahkar had not known Seven to sit so still for so long and just watch. 

Finally, she spoke, "That was beautiful."

He stayed quiet, his eyes focused on the view in front of them.

She spoke again, "Thank you, Kahkar."

He turned his head to her. Her eyes were more alive than he had seen them in a long time. Her color was high and the look in her face was still a mixture of the awe and excitement she had exhibited during the Event. He said to her, "You are welcome, Seven. I was glad you were here to witness it with me." He paused, taking her hand, "I will never be able to tell you how much that meant to me, having you there." He squeezed her hand tightly.

She squeezed back and he could tell she was being careful not to squeeze too hard. Her strength was coming back. He could feel it. 

She turned her attention back to the observation window, silent for a moment. Then, she spoke again, "It is funny."

"What is that?"

"I lived in a Borg cube for a great part of my life, and we often traveled at transwarp speed but I never knew how…spectacular it was until now. It is…ethereal." She once again thought about the Event and then looked back to the swirling world outside the observation window before looking back at Kahkar. She hesitated, not quite comfortable with expressing herself, but said, "The last time I felt like this was when I first held Kathryn B’Elanna."

He smiled at her, warmly, "Your life has changed much in the last few years, hasn’t it?"

She nodded, her eyes on the view before them, "Yes. And mostly in good ways."

"Seven," he hesitated a beat before speaking, "it seems to me you have become…more human than when I first met you."

She gave herself a moment to think about his comment. "I feel more human now. There are times when forget I am Borg. Especially when I hold Kathryn B’Elanna," she closed her eyes, thinking, her voice almost dreamy, "or when the Doctor and I are…." She caught herself and blushed deeply, not daring to look at Kahkar, then added, "spending time together."

At that, he laughed heartily and pulled her to him, wrapping her in his arms, "My dear child. Do not be embarrassed with me or at the love you have for the Doctor." He held her tightly to him and was pleased she did not resist him, but allowed herself to relax into his embrace. He took a breath, "Seven, do you realize how much Ketaria and I love you?"

Her response was instantaneous and unguarded, "Yes."

That pleased him.

He felt her sigh, "I…love both of you, also."

"I know you do."

They stayed still, watching. After a few minutes, Kahkar said, "Seven, I know you have an important family on Voyager and that you consider that your home but, I want you to know, if you ever find that you need another home, you have one here."

She did not reply but wrapped her arms around him, hugging him tightly. It was all the response Kahkar needed.

**

They were slowly making their way back to awareness. Flotter was following Ketaria’s lead but was taking full advantage of the opportunity to be leader for the three people behind him. Kathryn B’Elanna’s laughter was touching all of them as they moved around the special place, in and out and under and over code. Ketaria closely monitored B’Elanna for signs that they were at risk for altering the program but allowed Flotter full reign over them as their leader. She could feel B’Elanna working to control her anger as the blue holodeck character led them through slow tumbles and gyrations specifically designed to prove to B’Elanna that he was the leader. She was careful not to let B’Elanna know how hard she was laughing at some of the antics. 

The Doctor was throwing himself into the game and seemed to actually be enjoying the adventure with his daughter. Now that they were headed "home," he was allowing himself to relax and enjoy the special feeling of being able to share with her what had been denied him. She could even feel the Doctor’s happiness in this place. The realization of that surprised her and she concentrated on it a moment.

She could actually feel his…emotions. She turned back for a moment to look at him and confirmed that his face reflected the feeling she was getting. She could feel his happiness in the same way she could feel Kathryn B’Elanna’s. She reached out to Flotter to see if she could feel the same from him but could not. She had to work to pull her attention back to the business of leading them all back to awareness. She would have to think about what she was feeling from the Doctor later. It was important not to allow herself to be distracted right now.

She touched B’Elanna’s mind again and smiled that the anger was starting to dissipate. Despite herself, she, too, was starting to enjoy the game a little. At the moment, they were slithering like snakes. Ketaria shook her head and pulled herself back from them. They were transitioning out of the Doctor’s program and she could feel her ability to reach and hold Kathryn B’Elanna strengthening. 

It would not be long before they were home again.

**
 

Kathryn Janeway was pacing back and forth in the living room of the Doctor’s and Seven’s quarters. Every once in a while, she would stop and look into KB’s bedroom at the two women, sitting on the floor, cross-legged, knees touching, holding hands with their eyes closed. KB was still sleeping. Janeway did not think the child had moved since this started. She turned back and saw that Tom was watching her. He was stretched out on the sofa, his eyes droopy with exhaustion. He had not slept since this entire thing had started. She could see that he was worried about B’Elanna but he gave her a confident smile when he caught her eye.

She thought about how much he had changed since she met him the first time. She had instinctively known he was the man she had wanted to be Voyager’s pilot. It made her feel good that she had been right about that. She could not imagine being here without him. 

How many times, she wondered, had she questioned whether or not she had done him any favors by recruiting him to Voyager? 

But she knew he had found a peace within himself that he would never have found had he not been a part of this journey. And he had found the love of his life in

B’Elanna Torres. No, B’Elanna Paris. They were so good for each other and she was glad they had each other. If there was one thing she did not doubt, it was their love for each other. Just as she did not doubt the love the Doctor and Seven shared. 

Thinking that only reminded her of the battle she was waging with the Federation to respect the relationship they shared. Even though she thought she had at least backed them off, she was extremely worried. How is it, she thought, that the Federation would celebrate the marriage of Tom and B’Elanna and be so willing to tear the Doctor’s and Seven’s apart.

We will fight for them, she promised herself. And we will find a way to win.

Suddenly, Tuvok’s voice filled the room, "The Doctor has materialized in the Sickbay." There was a moment of silence, then the voice continued, "And so has…Flotter."

Janeway looked at Tom and grinned, "Thank you, Tuvok. Transport the Doctor to his quarters immediately. And Flotter, too."

A second later, the Doctor and Flotter materialized in the center of the room, the Doctor still sputtering he didn’t have his mobile emitter. 

"Captain!" He spoke, amazed, "How can this be? My mobile emitter is still in engineering."

"Where is this?" Flotter grabbed to the Doctor and hid behind him. "Where am I?"

"I’m sorry, Doctor, there wasn’t time to explain. I wanted you here when Kathryn B’Elanna woke up." She walked up, noticing that Flotter was peeking out from behind the Doctor. "We installed holo-emitters in here so you could be here without your mobile emitter." She peeked around him to Flotter, "You are in KB’s home, Flotter. Don’t worry."

"Holo-emitters? In here?" He looked at her, "Thank you, Captain. That is wonderful."

Flotter was coming out from behind the Doctor, "KB’s home? This is where KB lives?"

"Yes, Flotter," the Captain answered him gently, "this is where KB lives. She is asleep in her bedroom, right there. Hopefully, she will be awake in a few minutes and you will be able to see her." He was starting to tiptoe over to the bedroom door to see if he could see her, so she turned her attention back to the Doctor, "It is really good to see you here. I though it would be best if KB saw you as soon as she woke up."

"Of course, Captain," he looked to his daughter’s bedroom door, "do you think I can go in there now?"

"I would imagine so."

He barely glanced at her as he crossed to enter the small bedroom, grabbing his medical tricorder along the way. He slid past Flotter, who was still peering into the small bedroom, obviously trying to decide if monsters were in the room, and moved quickly to his daughter’s crib, examining her with his eyes. After a second, he scanned her, then glanced back at Janeway in the door. "I think she is waking up."

Janeway breathed a deep sigh of relief. "Thank goodness!"

About that time, Ketaria sighed and slowly raised her head, her eyes still closed. Then, she opened them and broke the hand hold she shared with B’Elanna, reaching up to take the younger woman’s face in her hands and hold it gently, working to carefully bring her back to awareness. 

"Doctor, help me lay her down." She looked up at him, "We were deep a very long time. She will probably have trouble coming back."

He quickly kneeled down to help lay B’Elanna down on the floor. Ketaria looked back to see Tom at the doorway. She called to him, "Tom, I need your help." He moved to her side immediately. "Get on the floor and hold her head in your lap and talk to her. She will need to focus on your voice to come back. Speak softly but keep talking." She looked up at the Doctor, "Doctor, you should hold Kathryn B’Elanna and talk to her. It will help her come back to awareness faster."

The Doctor lifted his daughter in his arms, sat down on the small bed in the room, and cuddled her close to him, talking to her. Tom sat on the floor with B’Elanna’s head in his lap, brushing her hair with his hand, talking softly to her. Ketaria concentrated, reaching out to B’Elanna and KB, making certain they were coming back. She felt Tom’s concern for his wife, and his love. Then, her head jerked up and she concentrated on the Doctor. 

Yes. It was still there. She could feel the Doctor’s love for his daughter. She concentrated, making certain it was coming from him. How could that be? She looked at him quickly, touching…something. She made herself pull back. She had to give B’Elanna and Kathryn B’Elanna the help they needed. She would have to put the Doctor out of her mind until she could talk about it with Kahkar.

Suddenly, she noticed that Kathryn B’Elanna was stirring in her father’s arms. She stood and walked over, putting her hand on the child’s forehead, listening to her father encouraging her to wake up, his voice soft and loving. 

Kathryn B’Elanna started rubbing her eyes with her fists, then opened her eyes and smiled when she saw her father’s face, "Dada."

"Oh, sweetheart," he pulled her close to him, hugging her, "Dada is here."

She hugged him, obviously still groggy, content to stay close to him.

Satisfied that Kathryn B’Elanna was okay, she turned her attention back to B’Elanna. She walked over to Tom and, placing her hand on his shoulder, kneeled down beside him, and put her hand on B’Elanna’s forehead. She concentrated, then frowned slightly, "Doctor."

He was at her side in a second, "What is it, Ketaria?"

"Can you scan her?"

"Of course." He turned to pick up his scanner, then handed Kathryn B’Elanna to the Captain before turning his attention back to B’Elanna. He watched his diagnostics carefully, then stood and quickly left the room.

Flotter came and leaned over Tom, looking down at B’Elanna, a worried expression on his face, "Is B’Elanna okay?" He looked with a worried expression at Ketaria, "Did she get hurt playing follow the leader?"

Before she could respond, the Doctor returned with a hypospray and quickly pressed it against her neck, administering the medication. He looked up at Tom, "Let’s move her to the bed."

Tom lifted her and laid her on the bed. Ketaria quickly sat next to her, again holding her face between her hands and concentrated. Finally, she pulled back and nodded to the Doctor, "I think that helped." 

"What happened?" Tom was trying unsuccessfully to keep the panic he was feeling out of his voice.

She looked up to Tom, "She will need to come back slower, Tom. We were in very deep and for a very long time. Her consciousness was trying to bring her back to awareness faster than her brain could acclimate." 

"Yes," the Doctor confirmed, "Her brain waves were growing unstable. I gave her a strong sedative to slow her brain down. She will sleep for about eight hours. But," he gave Tom a reassuring smile, "she should be okay."

Tom breathed a sigh of relief and gave the Doctor an appreciate look.

"Is she going to be okay?" Flotter was at the foot of the bed, wringing his hands, "I didn’t hurt her with follow the leader, did I?"

Ketaria walked up to him, "No, Flotter. You didn’t hurt her. As a matter of fact, you did an excellent job. If it hadn’t been for you, we may not have been able to get KB and the Doctor back."

The blue face looked back at her, full of worry for B’Elanna. Even her praise of him did not erase the concern. He lowered himself onto the end of the bed and sat, not taking his eyes off of B’Elanna as she slept.

Ketaria looked in surprise at the Captain, and she shrugged her shoulders, also surprised at the reaction of the hologram. "I have quit trying to figure all of this out."

At that, Ketaria had to laugh. Her laughter brought a shared giggle from Kathryn B’Elanna who stretched her arms out for Ketaria to take her. As soon as Ketaria had her in her arms, the child said, "Mama?"

"Soon. Your Mama will be home soon."

"And not soon enough for me." The Doctor walked up and Kathryn B’Elanna slid easily from Ketaria to him, cuddling close to him, a big smile on her face.

**
 

She was aware of someone holding her face. Then, she heard words coming to her out of a fog. She opened her eyes to see Ketaria looking down at her, her lips moving. That was where the sound was coming from. She frowned but could only make out a mumble of words. After a moment, she spoke.

"I have a headache."

"I would be surprised if you didn’t have a headache after what you have been through."

B’Elanna tried to sit up but Ketaria pushed her back down on the bed, "No, B’Elanna, you need to stay still for a little while longer. Your body needs to adjust. You will need to move slowly.

She gave Ketaria a small nod then looked for Tom. He slowly lowered himself to the bed next to her, a worried grin on his face. "Hi, sleepyhead. How are you doing?"

"I’m alive." She put her hands to her head, gently cradling it. "Ouch. My head hasn’t hurt this much since I had too much Klingon blood wine." 

Suddenly, a blue face appeared in front of her. "Are you okay, B’Elanna?"

She groaned, "Oh, no. Why couldn’t I have just died?"

Ketaria reached out and pulled Flotter away from B’Elanna’s bed, "Flotter, I know you are worried about B’Elanna, but she needs a few minutes to wake up. Let Tom help her right now. I think KB needs for you to play with her."

"She does? I didn’t hear her call me."

"Yes she does. You should go into the living room and play with her a little while. Tom and I will take care of B’Elanna. You can visit with her in a few minutes." She was leading him out of the door by the arm, then gently pushed him out. "Kathryn B’Elanna, Flotter is ready to play with you."

Flotter was immediately distracted by the young child running in his directions, calling to him, "Flota, Flota." 

As soon as he moved away from the door, Ketaria shut it behind him and turned her attention back to Tom and B’Elanna. B’Elanna was sitting up in the bed, leaning heavily against Tom, her face still pale.

"What was he doing here?" B’Elanna’s voice was weak and a bit shaky.

"The Captain thought he would be helpful to have him around. She thought he would keep Kathryn B’Elanna in this world." She sat down on the bed, being careful to do so slowly, "He has proven himself quite helpful with her."

"Yes," said Tom, "he has even played babysitter for the Doctor to transport to Sickbay for an emergency."

At that, they heard Kathryn B’Elanna yelling in the living room. Ketaria turned slightly toward the door, "I think the Doctor must have returned."

The door opened and the Doctor walked in, his daughter in his arms and Flotter close behind. "Well, how are you feeling?"

"I’m okay, Doctor. I have a bad headache, but that’s all." She was quiet while he scanned her, waiting for him to finish. When he read the scans and smiled, she said, "I told you."

"That you did. Would you like something for that headache?" When she nodded, he left the room for a moment, then returned with a hypospray. After administering the medicine, he said, "I think you probably need to eat. Why don’t we go into the living room and I’ll make you some dinner."

Tom helped B’Elanna from the bed, and they made their way to the sofa in the living room with Flotter hovering behind her. Tom helped B’Elanna stretch out on the sofa, and Flotter covered her with a blanket, trying to tuck it in around her legs.

"Can someone please do something about him?"

"B’Elanna," said Tom, "he is just trying to help." 

"Here," the Doctor put a plate on her lap, "eat as much as you can."

"B’Elanna, do you want me to feed you?" Flotter was peering down with soulful eyes.

B’Elanna gave Tom a pleading look, and he turned to the blue hologram, "Thanks, Flotter, but she will be just fine. We just need to give her a little time."

The doors opened up and Captain Janeway walked in, "Well, you are up. How are you feeling?"

"Except for a very bad headache, I am doing fine." B’Elanna leaned back against the sofa arm. "I’m glad to be home."

She walked over and sat on the end of the sofa, " I am glad that all of you are back safely." Kathryn B’Elanna came toddling over with her arms raised and Janeway laughingly lifted her in her arms. "Tell me, little girl, how in the world did you manage to get in such trouble?"

The child stood in the Captain’s lap and patted her face between her hands, laughing. The Captain played with her a few minutes, then looked at Ketaria, "Do you think you can explain any of this to me?"

"I can tell you what I think." Ketaria spoke slowly, "I have known for a while that Kathryn B’Elanna had some special…sensitivities but I did not have any idea she was as strong as she appears to be. She seems to be a very talented telepath."

"Ketaria," asked the Doctor, "do you have any idea how she managed to get into my program?"

"No. I do not. I have never known any telepaths who could do that." Ketaria looked at the child in her lap, "I do not have an explanation for how she could do that."

"Do you think she will do it again?" B’Elanna was sitting with her hand on her forehead, almost shading her eyes.

"I would imagine she will try. I know she has been trying to touch her father’s mind and it had been frustrating to her that she could not." Ketaria looked at the Doctor, "Now that she has learned how to do it, I think she will probably try it again."

"Now that is wonderful news," the Captain sat KB in her lap. "Any ideas how we can keep that from happening?"

"Kahkar may be able to devise a dampener for her to wear but we will have to work with her to teach her how to use her skills in a responsible manner."

"But, Ketaria," the Captain was looking at her skeptically, "she is just a baby. How can we teach her how dangerous her abilities can be?"

"It will not be easy but she seems to understand things more that you would think she could. I will work with her and with the Doctor and Seven to teach them how to manage her." She turned her attention to the Doctor, "I think you and I will need to start working together and with Kathryn B’Elanna so you can deal with her if that happens again."

He nodded but the Captain spoke, "I’m sorry, Ketaria, but I do not understand how the Doctor can work with a telepath. With all due respect, Doctor, you are a computer program. You do not have…mental abilities."

"Excuse me, Captain," Ketaria interjected, "but his program processes information in much the same way your brain does." She added, laughingly, "Although his program is probably more linear than your brain." She saw the smile on the Captain’s face and continued, "I think the Doctor’s adaptive programming has modified itself in someway – or Kathryn B’Elanna has managed to modify it for him – but my sense is that it is possible to work to develop the Doctor’s "mental abilities," as you put it. Don’t forget, I was in his program with B’Elanna and Kathryn B’Elanna. While I could not see it very well, B’Elanna could." She looked between the Doctor and B’Elanna, "We will have to work together to see what is possible. And," she looked back at the Captain, "Seven will also work with us. With her intimate knowledge of technology and her own mild telepathic abilities, she could probably enter into his program even easier."

The Captain glanced over at B’Elanna, "I think I am getting your headache." She lifted the child up to look at her, "I have to tell you, little girl, you have me worried."

"I understand, Captain," said Ketaria soothingly, "but I think we can work with her to teach her what is right and what is wrong. Now that we know she can do this and what might trigger "a little adventure," we can work to head off such an event."

The Captain nodded somberly, then said, "Oh, speaking of Seven, that is what I came to tell you. We heard from Kahkar and they are about two hours away." She directed her attention to KB, "Your Mama will be here soon."

The Doctor’s face was a mixture of delight and concern, "It will be wonderful to see her, but," he looked at the other faces around him, "does anyone have an idea exactly what it is we are going to tell her?" 
 

**
 

Kahkar was on the bridge of his ship, sitting in his captain’s chair. Seven was standing directly behind him, on an observation console, running through a series of scans. Kahkar smiled to himself, knowing that what she was really doing was trying to keep herself occupied during the last couple of hours of their trip. He stood, relinquishing command to his second in charge with a slight nod of his head and moved up to Seven, gently taking her by the arm.

"Why don’t you and I go to my lab. We have enough time to me to give you a good check up before we return to Voyager."

"But…"

"No, buts." He pulled a little more insistently, "To my lab."

She glanced back down at the console and exited her work before nodding to Kahkar and following him into the turbolift. Once the doors closed, she said, "You are trying to occupy my mind."

"So, what if I am?" He laughed at her.

She smiled at him, then shrugged, "It will occupy my mind."

"You are excited about going home."

"Yes."

"You should be."

The doors opened and they walked out. Their arms brushed against each other and Seven took Kahkar’s hand as they walked toward his lab. Once inside, he indicated she should lie on the examination table, and he prepared his equipment. 

He turned to her, scanner in hand, and talked to her while he started his examination, "This is the first time you have actually been away from them, isn’t it?"

"Yes."

"And you are very anxious to get home."

"Is that a diagnosis, Kahkar."

He read his scans, "Actually, I think I could make that a diagnosis."

"I am anxious to get home," she admitted. "I cannot wait to see the Doctor and Kathryn B’Elanna."

"Well, it will not be long now." He looked at her, "So, that part is done. Now, we will begin the rest of our tests." 

For the next couple of hours, Kahkar ran Seven through all of his exams, now a well-practiced part of this ritual. Finally, he looked up at her and said, "Perfect!"

She sighed. It was always a relief for him to make his pronouncement at the end of the exam. The last few exams had ended in a similar fashion as today’s. She watched as Kahkar put his instruments away.

He turned to her, "Soon, I think we will be able to stop these check-ups and I will release you fully to the Doctor’s care."

Her expression was pleased. Then, a voice filled the room.

"The bridge to Captain Omarahn. We are dropping out of transwarp. We will be in transporter range within five minute."

"Thank you. bridge. Omarahn out." He reached out his hand to her, her excitement and anticipation now clearly obvious, "Shall we go to the transporter room?"

She nodded, taking his hand and they quickly walked out of the lab.

**
 

Ketaria was holding Kathryn B’Elanna and was standing slightly in front of Janeway, B’Elanna and Tom. B’Elanna was still pale, but was regaining her strength. All of them were nervously waiting for the transport to begin.

"Remember," she turned to the trio behind her, "we try to downplay the fact that the Doctor isn’t here. We just try to get her back to her quarters before we tell her everything."

Tom shook his head, "I don’t think this is going to work. She is going to pick up on the fact that something went wrong while she was gone." He looked down at B’Elanna, "I don’t think this is going to be pretty."

B’Elanna nodded carefully, her head still pounding, "Tom’s right, Ketaria. Be prepared."

Janeway added, "She will be upset but the fact that Kathryn B’Elanna is here will help. We’ll just have to find a way to redirect her attention away from the Doctor’s absence until we can get her to her quarters, and she can see that he is okay." She took a breath, "This will work. Just be positive, and keep a smile on your face."

From behind them, the ensign on the transporter controls announced, "Transport is beginning."

In front of them, Seven of Nine and Kahkar began to materialize. As soon as they solidified, Kathryn B’Elanna starting yelling in excitement, holding her arms out to her mother, "Mama. Mama. Mama."

Seven practically leaped off the transporter platform toward her daughter, almost having to catch the child who was trying to propel herself out of Ketaria’s arms. Seven grabbed her in a hug, "Oh, Kathryn B’Elanna! I have missed you so much!" She lifted the child up into the air and turned circles, talking to her, "I have so much to tell you about the stars!" She pulled the child back to her, "Mama missed you." She looked up at Ketaria, her face bright with excitement, "Ketaria, it was beautiful. I can not wait to tell you about it." She reached out impulsively and hugged Ketaria, then turned to Captain Janeway, "Captain, we brought back so much data. You are going to be thrilled." 

Then, she reached out and hugged the Captain fiercely. "I wish you could have been there. You would have loved it!" She let go of a shocked Janeway and grabbed for B’Elanna, giving her an equally fierce hug, "Oh, it is good to see you." Then, she turned to hug Tom, asking, "Where is the Doctor?"

Ketaria found her voice first, "Um, he is in your quarters…."

Before she could say another word, Seven grabbed her hand, "Then let’s go find him. I can’t wait to see him. Come on." She started pulling her out of the transporter room. "Come on, Kahkar, Ketaria. Hurry." And then she was out of the doors, with Ketaria and Kahkar in tow.

Janeway, B’Elanna and Tom stood in stunned silence, looking at the closing doors. Finally, B’Elanna asked, "Does anyone know who that was?"

After a moment, Janeway responded, still staring at the doors, "Well, she looked like Seven of Nine."

Tom added, "But she sure didn’t act like Seven of Nine."

"Well," said B’Elanna, "whoever that was just walked out of here with Seven’s daughter." She cut her eyes up to Tom and then to Janeway, "Guess we’d better go find out exactly who that was."

Once they reached the living quarters, they found Seven hugging the Doctor, Kathryn B’Elanna between them, jabbering away. B’Elanna could make out Flotter’s name and her’s and Ketaria’s, as well as parts of the words of "follow the leader."

The Doctor looked up at them in surprise, obviously as confused as they were. Then, his attention was drawn back to Seven as she pulled his face toward her and kissed him.

"Well," said Tom, "that better be Seven, or else the Doctor is going to be in serious trouble."

They walked up to the couple and Seven finally turned around to them, "I am so glad to be home." She was beaming as she hugged Kathryn B’Elanna to her, "But I am also glad I went." Then, a movement caught her eye and she turned toward Kathryn B’Elanna’s bedroom door, her expression suddenly confused, "Flotter?" She turned back to look at the Doctor, "What is Flotter doing here?" Then she looked to Janeway, "How is Flotter here?"

"Well," Janeway’s words were stumbling, "we installed holo-emitters in here…."

"Holo-emitters?" She turned to the Doctor and, for the first time, noticed he was not wearing his mobile emitters. 

"Yes, Seven," the Doctor started to explain, "I had a little problem with my mobile emitter…"

She turned back to Janeway, "So you installed mobile emitters in here?"

Flotter moved to hide behind the Doctor, watching Kahkar, "Is he a monster?"

Janeway quickly said to him, "No, Flotter. That is Kahkar. He another of KB’s friends." At the look Seven gave her, she quickly corrected herself, "I mean he is Kathryn B’Elanna’s friend."

He came out from behind the Doctor, his attention locked onto Kahkar, "You are big. Are you sure you are not a monster?"

Kahkar gave a booming laugh that sent Flotter back flying back behind the Doctor, who rolled his eyes as Kahkar responded, "No, my blue friend, I am not a monster."

Ketaria walked up, taking Flotter by the arm, leading him over to Kahkar, "Kahkar is my husband. He is a doctor."

Flotter looked at him in amazement, "Do you have a sickbay?"

"Yes, I do."

"I went to the Doctor’s Sickbay."

"Really?"

"Yes." Then, Flotter frowned and added, "B’Elanna has a headache. She got hurt playing follow the leader." He turned to look at B’Elanna, "I was the leader." He turned back to Kahkar, "Can you help her?"

"I can try." Kahkar was getting more and more amused, "You must have led some kind of game to hurt B’Elanna."

"I tried to be careful and not move too fast, like Ketaria told me," he looked to Ketaria, "but I’d never been inside the Doctor’s program before and I didn’t….."

"What?" Seven’s reaction was immediate and sharp.

Flotter ran to hide behind Kahkar.

"Uh, oh," said B’Elanna.

Everyone went totally still. Seven looked at each of them, realizing as she shared eye contact with the Ketaria, Janeway, B’Elanna Tom and finally the Doctor, that something significant had happened while she was gone. 

The Doctor came up to her, taking her arm, "Well, Kathryn B’Elanna and I had an interesting time while you were gone." He smiled at her for a second but, when it wasn’t return, he cleared his throat, "Perhaps you’d better sit down so we can talk."

**
 

It took almost two hours to get the whole story told, with each of them interrupting the other to share part of the story. Seven did not speak the entire time. She just sat and listened. The longer she stayed silent, the more they talked. Ketaria kept touching her mind, trying to determine what she was feeling but all she could feel was a wall. Finally, she glanced at Kahkar with a concerned expression on her face. She had the feeling that Seven had heard enough for the night. She gave him a pleading expression and he shifted in his chair, the movement catching everyone’s attention. Seven turned to look at him, still silent.

"I think," he began, "it would be a good idea for me to develop a mental dampener for Kathryn B’Elanna. We will also run some tests to see if we can determine exactly what her skills and abilities are. Doctor, I will work with B’Elanna to examine your program and see what has gone on there. In the meantime, I think it would be a good idea for everyone to retire for the night. B’Elanna, I would like for you and Tom to accompany Ketaria and me to my ship for the night so we can monitor you. Doctor, it would be appropriate to give Kathryn B’Elanna a light sedative so she will sleep through the night." He caught Seven’s eye and added, "I would recommend one for Seven also." When she gave him a look, he returned it. After a moment, she nodded her head slowly. He smiled and stood, "Very well. Tom and B’Elanna, we shall leave now. Captain, will you accompany us to the transporter room?"

"Of course, Kahkar." She turned to the Doctor, "Should I deactivate Flotter?"

"Not yet," he replied, "I’ll let him stay with Kathryn B’Elanna until she goes to sleep. Then, I’ll deactivate him."

"Very well." She glanced over at a still silent Seven, "It’s good to have you home, Seven." When she didn’t get a response, she simply said, "Good night." Then, she turned and led Kahkar, Ketaria, Tom and B’Elanna out of the quarters."

They sat in silence. Flotter was hiding behind the chair and would periodically peek out, look at Seven’s face, then jerk himself back behind the chair. Kathryn B’Elanna was staying very still and close to her mother’s body. The Doctor simply sat and waited. Finally, she said, "She was really inside your program?"

He sighed, "Yes."

She looked down at the child in her arms, who smiled back at her and said, "Mama." 

"Your program." She looked around the room, then back to the Doctor, "How?"

He shrugged his shoulders, "I wish I knew."

She got a slightly worried, incredulous look and said, "Everyone always has said she was special. I guess she really is."

The Doctor nodded in agreement.

**
 

He was watching them sleep. They had decided to bring Kathryn B’Elanna to bed with them, both doubtful that she would make another visit inside the Doctor’s program during the night but still nervous about leaving her alone.

Seven had finally managed to be glad that he had been able to enjoy a special feeling of closeness with their daughter, but he knew she was worried and he knew why.

They were both on their side, sleeping cuddled together. The light from the living room played across their faces and his eyes wandered back and forth from his wife’s face to his daughter’s. Right now, their hair fell around their faces, framing each in the same way. He shifted in the chair slightly and the light reflected off of Seven’s ocular implant. His eyes focused on that a moment, then shifted back to Kathryn B’Elanna’s face.

They looked so much alike.

He looked back at Seven’s ocular implant and wondered what else they might have in common.

**
 

Ketaria looked up when her husband came into the room, "So, are they resting?"

Kahkar nodded, stretching his arms over his head, "Yes. I think B’Elanna will be fine."

"Good." She watched as he quickly changed into his sleep clothes. She reached over and pulled back the covers for him. He got into the bed and pulled the covers up over him, then reached for her, "Sounds like we both had quite an adventure over the last few days."

"I think you are right," she settled into his arms, enjoying the warmth that radiated from his body. "I missed you." They were quiet for a moment, then she asked, "Did you check Seven while you were gone?"

"Yes, I did. Everything was wonderful. I didn’t find any problems."

"So, you think she is out of danger."

He hesitated, "You know how careful I have been about being too optimistic about her, but yes, I think she is. I feel very good about her."

"From one crisis to another."

"Kathryn B’Elanna."

"Kathryn B’Elanna." Ketaria sighed, "Kahkar…."

"I know. But I don’t know what the answer is. I have never found anything unusual when I have checked her."

"But you are going to expand your tests."

"I will run every test I can think of." He tightened his hold on her, "And then I will come up with some new ones."

They fell silent again. Then, Ketaria gave a small laugh, "Our life certainly has been interesting since Voyager came to our rescue, hasn’t it?"

"Yes, I would have to agree with you about that." They settled down in the bed, stretching themselves out, staying close to each other."

"Speaking of interesting," Kahkar said, "exactly who is this Flotter character I met tonight?"

Ketaria laughed and turned to him, propping her head up on her hand, "Well…."

The End