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

B’Elanna Torres-Paris was halfway between the turbolift and the door to the living quarters when she broke into a panicked run. The doors opened for her, and she flew past the people there and into the bedroom, slamming the door behind her.

Kathryn B’Elanna stood up, her eyes focused on the closed door. Seven of Nine and Ketaria watched her, amused looks on their faces. Finally, she crossed her arms in front of her and sighed, puckering her lips.

"Bala sick ‘gin." Her voice was emphatic.

Ketaria dropped her eyes and covered her mouth with her hand. Seven smiled at her child, thinking about how much Kathryn B’Elanna reminded her of B’Elanna at that moment.

"Yes, Aunt B’Elanna is sick again." She rose from the rocking chair and spoke, "Mama will go see about Aunt B’Elanna."

She walked into the bedroom, closing the door behind her. She could hear B’Elanna retching in the bathroom. She entered the bathroom and went to wet a washcloth. By the time she turned, B’Elanna was sitting on the floor with her head resting on her arm, which was perched on the edge of the toilet. Seven handed the wet cloth to her.

"Thanks." She accepted the cloth and put it against her face. 

"Are you okay?"

"Yes. The Doctor assures me this will not last forever." She gave Seven a wry grin, "I’m afraid it won’t be over until this pregnancy is." Suddenly, a strange look crossed her face, and she quickly grabbed for the toilet again.

Seven watched as her body jerked. She wet another cloth, then tentatively lowered herself to her knees and placed her hand on B’Elanna’s back. After a few minutes, B’Elanna rested, her head once again perched on her arm, exhausted. Seven shifted so she was sitting on the floor next to B’Elanna and gently pulled her sick friend toward her. When B’Elanna gave her a questioning look, she shrugged slightly. B’Elanna took a second, then leaned back to rest against Seven’s body. Seven held the cloth in her hand against B’Elanna’s forehead.

After a moment, B’Elanna asked, "How did you manage this, Seven?"

She paused, then replied, "I…do not remember."

B’Elanna closed her eyes, covering them with her hand, "Oh, Seven, I’m so sorry."

"There is nothing to be sorry for. I do not remember, but I know what the Doctor has told me." She sighed, "We used to sit on this floor, like this, and talk about Kathryn B’Elanna. Apparently, I, also, had a rather difficult time."

"You and your Borg implants and me and my Klingon/human physiology." B’Elanna gave a short laugh, "We are a pair, aren’t we?" They sat quiet, then B’Elanna continued, "I hope our children will grow up together."

"I would like that."

Another period of silence passed, then B’Elanna asked, "Can I ask you a question?"

"Yes. And I will answer, if I know what the answer is."

B’Elanna glanced up at Seven’s face, seeing the smile there. She allowed herself time to gather her thoughts, then asked, "Aren’t you ever angry, Seven?"

The question surprised her. "Angry?"

"Yes." B’Elanna searched for the right words, "Angry over everything that has happened to you."

"I do not understand."

"Your parents took you into the Delta Quadrant and practically delivered you to the Borg. The Borg took away your life, your childhood. Then, you find your way to Voyager and, just when you are finding true happiness, the Borg take away your memories. Doesn’t all of that make you angry?"

She felt Seven go still behind her, and she held her breath, waiting on Seven’s response. Finally, she felt Seven sigh, "There have been times when I was…angry. But, what happened happened. I could not control it." 

"I do not think I could be so…accepting. I think I would be furious."

"And what good would that do?"

"I don’t know. It probably wouldn’t do any good. But, I know it would fuel me. It would…make me feel."

"I feel." Her voice was quiet and tinged with sadness.

B’Elanna glanced back at Seven, "I know you do."

Seven dabbed at B’Elanna’s forehead with the cloth a couple of times, then spoke, "What has happened has not made me happy, but being angry over it would be inefficient."

B’Elanna thought about Seven’s words carefully. After a while, she laughed, "Inefficient. Well, the next time I get angry about something, I’ll try to remember that."

The Doctor rounded the corner to see Tom Paris climbing down from a ladder just outside the sickbay.

"What in the world?" His eyes were focused on the newly installed object, now hanging beside the sickbay doors.

"You caught me, Doc," said Tom sheepishly, "I was hoping to get this up without you seeing me."

The Doctor walked around and looked at the object, almost speechless. Finally, he spoke, the wonder in his voice apparent, "Tom, I don’t know how to thank you. That is wonderful."

Tom grinned, "I’m really glad you like it."

The Doctor looked up at the shingle hanging on the wall and read the words out loud, "Doctor Hansen, Family Physician." He turned to look at Tom, "Doctor Hansen. I’ve never thought about referring to myself as that."

"Well, that’s your name. Perhaps you should consider using it."

The Doctor looked back at the shingle, "Family Physician." He grinned at Tom, "I like that, also."

Tom gathered the ladder and his tools, "Well, it fits. Especially now."

They walked into the sickbay together, and Tom put his equipment down, then put both of his hands to the small of his back and bent backwards. 

"Are you feeling okay?" The Doctor asked, a hint of concern in his voice.

"Oh, my back is hurting a little."

The Doctor moved to scan his back, "Any other symptoms?"

"I’m tired all the time, and I have been a little nauseous."

The Doctor was starting to smile, "Any swelling in your ankles?"

"Yes."

"Unusual cravings?"

"Yes!" Tom was looking at the Doctor with a growing look of amazement and a hint of concern, "What is it?"

"Oh, nothing serious, Tom." The Doctor placed his medical tricorder on a nearby tray. He crossed his arms, looked at Tom seriously and said, "You are just pregnant."

"What?"

Doctor Hansen, Family Physician, laughed lightly, "You are simply experiencing sympathy symptoms. It’s normal. There is nothing to be concerned about." 

Tom blushed, "You’re kidding."

"No. Sympathy symptoms." The Doctor grinned at him.

Tom groaned, "Do me a favor, and don’t tell B’Elanna?"

"Why not, Tom? It is a way of understanding what she is going through."

"Yes, but…"

"Tom," he patted Tom on the shoulder, "you shouldn’t be embarrassed. Actually, it is…sweet."

"I don’t think that is how B’Elanna will think of it."

The Doctor laughed, "You might be surprised. And," he raised his head, checking his program’s chronometer, "speaking of B’Elanna, I’m about to be late. I’d better hurry." He grabbed a hypospray, "Thanks for covering in the sickbay for me today."

"Anytime, Doctor Hansen," Tom was rewarded by an ear to ear grin from the Doctor, "Good luck with your…‘little trip.’"

"Thanks, Tom. I’ll let you know how it goes." He waved and quickly left the sickbay.

He would not admit it to anyone, but he was nervous about what they were going to try to accomplish today. He and Ketaria were going to enter Seven’s mind to see if they could determine how extensive the damage was to her memories. Even Ketaria was not certain if it was possible, but Seven really wanted them to try.

He slowed as he thought about his wife’s desire to regain her memories. Many nights, he had found her in their living room, working on a computer, researching her personal and the ship’s logs, trying to reconnect with her past. While what they would be attempting to do today was not dangerous, he was worried about the impact of the outcome on Seven. 

She had starting exhibiting symptoms of depression. He knew she felt isolated with so many of her memories gone. Even most of her life with the Borg was gone. The destroyed implant had not damaged the organic brain tissue, but had seemed to selectively affect other Borg implants, wiping out her memories. At the time, he had been surprised the destroyed implant had not killed her. In retrospect, he had realized that had never been the intention.

He remembered how surprised he had been when he learned her life had never been at risk. The placement of the implant had been such that it would do the least damage to organic tissue. It was obvious that the purpose of the implant had strictly been there to interfere with her memories. It had been a "new" implant. When he compared bio-scans of her with older scans, he was finally able to see that this implant had not been there before. He had immediately understood why Seven had reacted with such fear every time he had tried to run a full diagnostic scan on her. He had always rushed those diagnostics because of her reaction. It had been by design.

She had been programmed to react with fear when a diagnostic scan was run on her. Plus, the implant had masked itself from the scans, and his rushed scans ensured that he would not find it. The thought of that made him angry. If he had found the implant earlier, he might have been able to save her memories.

Suddenly, he realized he had arrived at his living quarters. He stopped for a moment, gathering himself, then walked forward through the opening doors.

"Hello, all." His voice sang out.

"Dada!" She was standing just inside the door, waiting on him with her arms outstretched.

"She has been there, waiting on you, Doctor." Ketaria was smiling at him, "She felt you coming."

He was hugging his daughter when Seven and B’Elanna came out of the bedroom. He noticed immediately that B’Elanna looked pale.

"Are you okay?" He crossed to her, pulling out his medical tricorder as he did so.

"I’m fine, Doctor," responded B’Elanna. "Just a little day long morning sickness."

The Doctor scanned her, nodding, "I think your diagnosis is correct." He closed his tricorder, "Is it getting any better?"

"Maybe," she looked at him weakly, then admitted, "Maybe not."

He helped her sit on the sofa and lifted her legs up so she was stretched out, "Just rest here a moment. I am going to give you something and then, I want you to try to eat some crackers."

She wrinkled her face at him, but nodded.

Seven sat in the rocking chair and watched as Kathryn B’Elanna approached B’Elanna, reaching up to pat her face between her hands; then to rest her hands on B’Elanna’s face and stand quietly. B’Elanna’s eyes widened, but she stayed still, not interrupting the child’s concentration. The Doctor turned back to them, hypospray in hand, but stopped when he saw his daughter. He watched until he saw her take a deep breath, then smile and drop her hands.

"Bala betta." She turned and went back to play with her toys.

B’Elanna looked up at him and nodded, somewhat surprised, "She’s right. I do feel better."

Ketaria and the Doctor looked immediately to Seven, who was sitting with her eyes locked on her daughter, her expression strained. The Doctor glanced back to Ketaria, and she closed her eyes in concentration, trying to envelop Seven in a feeling of calm. 

They had not yet told Seven everything there was to know about her daughter. Seven knew Kathryn B’Elanna was telepathic, but she was not aware of the extent of her powers. Both Ketaria and the Doctor were concerned about how much they could tell her. 

Ketaria glanced over at the Doctor. It would soon be time to tell him about the real power of his daughter. She hoped Kahkar would be back before that time would come. Still, she was prepared to tell him if she had to. She was prepared to tell both of them. She was not certain, however, if Seven was ready to hear what she had to say.

She was worried about Seven. She could sense the fragile hold Seven had on her situation and was concerned that Seven was already fighting a deep depression. It would not take much to tip the delicate balance she had. These last few weeks had been tiring for Ketaria, and she knew she needed a break to refresh herself. But Seven needed her more.

Kathryn B’Elanna looked up from her play and focused on her mother’s face. She pushed herself off the floor and walked over to her mother, patting her on the knee, "Up, Mama."

Seven blinked, then, hesitantly leaned over and lifted her daughter into her lap, obviously uncertain as to what to expect. But Kathryn B’Elanna just folded herself close to her mother’s body and stayed still. Seven gave a little smile and wrapped her arms around her daughter, relaxing slightly. 

B’Elanna had been watching everything carefully, giving a silent breath of relief when Seven appeared to relax. Another crisis averted, she thought. She looked up at the Doctor, "So, did you happen to see Tom this morning?"

The Doctor’s face broke into a big grin, "Actually, I did. I caught him putting up the shingle."

"Oh, no," B’Elanna groaned, "he really wanted to surprise you with that."

"Well, he did surprise me," the Doctor assured her, "and he pleased me. That was a wonderful gift." When Seven gave him a questioning look, he continued, "Tom installed an old fashion shingle, uh, sign, outside the sickbay. It says ‘Doctor Hansen, Family Physician.’" When Seven frowned, he gently asked, "What is it, Seven?"

She looked at him, puzzled, "Doctor Hansen?"

The room went still, and he worked to put a smile on his face, "It is my married name, Seven. It was a wonderful gift you gave me." He crossed to his wife and leaned over her, giving her a kiss on the check, while also hiding her reaction from the others in the room.

By the time he had straightened, she had recovered her composure, "Of course. Now I remember." She glance briefly around the room, then dropped her head, locking her eyes on her daughter.

B’Elanna quickly looked to Ketaria, then asked the Doctor, "When you saw Tom, was he okay?"

The Doctor gave her a questioning look, but responded, "Yes. He was fine."

"I’m surprised."

"Really? Why?" 

She grinned at him, "Tom has been having sympathy symptoms."

"You knew?"

She laughed, "Doctor, it would have been hard to miss. He has almost been worse than me." She looked up at Seven, her eyes bright with merriment, "I’ve had to hold his head a few times!"

The Doctor sat down at the end of the sofa, amazed, "I didn’t realize you would know what was happening."

"I remember my mother telling me about my father going through the same thing when she was pregnant with me." B’Elanna was starting to sit up on the sofa, laughter full in her face, "You should probably be glad you are a hologram and were immune to such."

At her words, the Doctor’s face took on a sheepish expression, and he quickly looked away from B’Elanna. But it was not quick enough for B’Elanna to miss the look.

"What?" She demanded.

"Nothing."

"No, Doctor," she persisted, "what is it?" Suddenly, she looked at him, a look of understanding coming over her face, "You didn’t!"

He looked over at Seven before reluctantly nodding to B’Elanna, "Yes, I did."

Ketaria watched their faces, then asked, "Did what, Doctor?"

He cleared his throat and replied, "Well…uh…when Seven was pregnant, I programmed myself to have the same symptoms as she did." He gave his wife a little grin, "I wanted to…understand what you were going through."

B’Elanna whooped with laughter, and Ketaria smiled broadly at him. The Doctor watched the face of his wife, trying to gauge her reaction. Once B’Elanna quieted, Seven spoke, "It is good then, that at least one of use can remember what that felt like."

B’Elanna quit laughing, and the smile disappeared from Ketaria’s face. The Doctor’s concern was starting to become apparent when she spoke again, her eyes going from face to face, "It was a joke." She gave them a tentative smile.

The Doctor gave her a warm smile, and Seven returned it. Then, B’Elanna stood and their attention was drawn from each other to her, "I think it is time for Kathryn B’Elanna and me to go play with Flotter."

At that, Kathryn B’Elanna started to wiggle out of her mother’s lap and raised her arms to B’Elanna, "Go see Flota."

B’Elanna looked up at Seven, laughing, "See, I told you it was time."

Seven lifted Kathryn B’Elanna up to B’Elanna, who took the child and headed toward the door, "I’ll pick up a little something to eat on the way to the holodeck, Doctor." Turning to wave, she said, "Good luck. We’ll be in the holodeck when you are back."

She left the room, and the three people looked at each other in turn. Finally, Ketaria, "Let’s start."

Seven sat on the floor of her bedroom, legs crossed and turned her head for the Doctor to administer the medication.

"This is just a mild tranquilizer. It will…keep you calm." He quickly put the hypospray down and sat next to his wife. 

Ketaria sat cross-legged in front of Seven and reached to grab her hands. "Seven, regardless of what happens, do not worry, and do not panic. This is a journey of exploration, not of expectations. We will be there with you. You will not be alone. Everything we find is good. Not finding something does not mean it is not there. There are many different levels of memories and thoughts. You must remember that we may simply not be on the right level to find anything." She gazed intently into Seven’s eyes, "Are you ready?"

Seven swallowed hard, then cut her eyes to her husband’s, gaining confidence from what she saw in his eyes. She took a deep breath and nodded.

"Doctor?"

"I’m ready."

"Good." Ketaria closed her eyes and concentrated. In a matter of moments, she left awareness.

As soon as she entered, she looked around, smiling as she did so. She could see Seven, and she could see the Doctor. She was still amazed that she was able to bring him into this place. She was starting to suspect that it had much more to do with him than with her abilities. When Kahkar returned, she would ask him to do a complete diagnostic on the Doctor’s program to see if they could determine what adaptions his program had made. Or that Kathryn B’Elanna had made. She did not discount that possibility either.

She pulled her complete attention back to the place where she was, reaching out to touch the emotions of the Doctor and Seven. As usual, the Doctor was enjoying being in this place. This had become a place of feeling and experiencing for him. Here, he was on the same level with Seven, and it was an opportunity for him to experience their relationship on an emotional level. He loved their time in this place.

To Seven, this was almost a new experience, and Ketaria could feel how tentative she was. She reached out to give Seven a feeling of calm and was rewarded with a smile. Then, she watched as Seven suddenly started to turn toward the Doctor, a look of amazement on her face. She watched as Seven stood facing him, and he moved closer to her. Ketaria could feel the love that flowed from the Doctor to Seven.

Seven did not take her eyes from the Doctor’s face, but lifted her head and soaked in the emotion.

This is his love for me, she realized. 

She stood, not quite able to move or fully comprehend the feeling. It was overwhelming. Ketaria felt her emotion and spoke, "We should move. Seven, would you like to lead?"

Seven turned toward Ketaria, almost thankful for the interruption. She looked around her, then shook her head, "I cannot see anything here."

Ketaria tried not to let her concern show. Instead she said, "Then let us just start to move. Come, we will walk. Give yourself a few minutes. I think you will start to feel more comfortable in here."

An hour later, Ketaria sighed, broke her hand hold with Seven, and reached up to place her hands on Seven’s face, slowly bringing her back to awareness. When the Doctor materialized beside her, they exchanged worried glances.

Seven’s eyes opened slowly, and she took a couple of deep breaths, lifting her hands to Ketaria’s, holding them for a moment. Then, she pulled them away from her face and held them, her eyes focused downward,

"There was not much to find."

"Seven, we do not know that. We only know there was not much where we were. It does not mean there is nothing there. As you become more comfortable with being in that place, you will learn how to search on different levels."

Seven looked back and forth between the Doctor and Ketaria, a deep sadness etched in her eyes, "I do not know that I care to do that." Then, she turned her head, looking away.

The Doctor slowly got to his feet and reached down to help Ketaria rise from the floor. Then, he offered Seven a hand. She looked at it a moment, but shook her head, "I think I would like to be alone a few minutes."

The Doctor looked at Ketaria, and she nodded. He kneeled down to try to get his wife to look at him, "Seven, we’ll be in the living room if you need us." She would not look at him. Reluctantly, he got to his feet and, not knowing what else to say, left with Ketaria.

She pulled up her knees to her chest and wrapped her arms around her legs. There had been nothing there. They had been in a place of absolutely nothing. And that place had been her mind. Her memories were gone. Everything that had been her, that defined her as an individual was gone.

What she knew about herself was only what she had been told, what she had learned from her logs and from the ship’s logs. None of what she knew about herself was based on her knowledge. It was all borrowed knowledge. It was…restored knowledge.

She raised her head, casting her eyes around her bedroom. She was married. She had a husband. Together, they had a child. And she did not remember either.

She thought about the love that she felt from the Doctor when they were in that place. It had almost been an overwhelming emotion. She was still overwhelmed by it. It did not seem possible that he was a hologram. 

But then, she was Borg. Her life was based on technology. Without it, she could not survive. Without technology, neither could he. Were they really that much different? Maybe that is what had drawn them to each other. But what kept them together?

Their relationship was anything but normal. As little as she knew, she knew that. But she knew that he loved her. She had known that even before she could accept his love. The strength of that love had been even more apparent to her today. Did she love him? She thought through this question carefully. She did love him. She loved him now. She did not know about before. Her love for him was not rediscovered love. For her, it was new love.

His had been the first face she had seen when she woke up. She had not recognized where she was or the people around her. His manner had been so kind, so caring. He had stayed by her side, doing everything to make her feel comfortable. He had told her that they were married within the first couple of days. Then, he told her about their child.

The child was beautiful. She had seen the two of them in the child immediately. She did not doubt that the child belonged to them. Kathryn B’Elanna. Her first thought was that it was a beautiful name. And then, he told her the story of how their child had come into the world, and how she had come to be named Kathryn B’Elanna. He showed her family pictures and holo-images. There was no doubt they had been a happy family. 

He had done everything possible to give her back her life, and in the process, she had fallen in love with him. It had come so easily to her. She loved the child also. The Doctor and Kathryn B’Elanna had become the focus of her life. Her family was what was keeping her going. 

It was good she had them. She did not have anything else, not even herself.

She closed her eyes and focused on the life she could remember. There was not even much of that. Not only had she lost her memories of her life on Voyager, but she had also lost much of her memories of her life with the Borg. She remembered things but not experiences. She could work in astrometrics. Work came naturally to her. Movement and actions were not lost. She could program with Borg algorithms, but she could not remember things she had done. She had studied Borg data nodes and had decided maybe losing some of those memories was not bad. Still, words would trigger memories, so maybe not all was lost to her. But, in the meantime, she had to learn to live surrounded by the darkness of the void that was her mind.

She sighed and slowly got up from the floor. 

When she walked into the living room they both looked at her with concerned expressions. She smiled at them, and went up to the Doctor. He put his arm around her, and she gave him a hug. Then, she looked over to Ketaria, "Thank you both for what you tried to do today."

"Are you okay?" The Doctor’s voice was both concerned and warm.

"Yes. I am fine." She tried to give him a confident smile. "I am going to go get Kathryn B’Elanna."

"Do you want me to go with you?"

"No, I can find the way on my own."

"No." He was alarmed at her response. "I didn’t mean…"

"Doctor," her voice was laughing, "it was a joke." She leaned over and kissed him on the cheek.

"Oh." He laughed, slightly embarrassed.

"I will return shortly." She looked to Ketaria, "Will you still be here?"

"Would you like for me to be?"

"Yes, I would. Maybe we can enjoy a family dinner tonight."

"Then I would love to stay." Ketaria smiled at her broadly.

"Good." She lifted her head and glanced at them briefly, "I will return shortly." She left her home, back straight, walking with a confidence she did not feel.

She walked into the holodeck and stopped to look around her, trying to remember if she had ever been in this program before. It was not familiar. She wondered why she expected it be. 

Moving slowly into the forest that surrounded her, she allowed herself to feel the place she was in rather than think about it. Then, she smiled. It was a quiet place and, somehow, comforting. She stood and listened. There was the soft sound of water running off to her right and a bird singing in a tree above her. She looked up and saw a brightly colored bird singing, oblivious to the person listening below. 

Then, she heard a child’s voice, singing. Quietly, she moved toward the song, suddenly not wanting to alert anyone to her presence. She wanted to see what B’Elanna and Kathryn B’Elanna did in this place that they both seemed to love.

She came up to a rock cropping and peered around it, finally seeing her child, standing at the edge of a small stream, squatting down to pick up a rock and standing to throw it into the water. Then, she squatted down to find another rock. She would laugh each time the rock created a splash as it hit the water. She was singing a song to herself, the song broken by her intermittent laughter when the rock would splash into the water. B’Elanna was sitting on a rock, leaning back against another rock, a fishing pole in her hand. But Seven could see that she was not seriously fishing. She was watching Flotter as he leaned over B’Elanna with his ear pressed against her abdomen. 

"Flotter, the baby is too small for you to be able to hear it."

"But I can hear it, B’Elanna. It is telling me about itself."

Seven could hear the laughter in B’Elanna’s voice as she asked, "Okay, Flotter, what is the baby telling you?"

"He is telling me…."

"He?"

"He." The blue head came up for a moment, nodding seriously at her.

"Okay. He. So, what is HE telling you?

"HE is telling me HE is happy where HE is, but HE wants me to tell HIM a bedtime story so HE can take a nap."

"So," replied B’Elanna, "I guess you are going to tell HIM a story."

"Of course," the blue head came up and gave her a serious look, "that is what I do. Let’s see, what would be a good story?"

Seven watched as Kathryn B’Elanna came over and B’Elanna picked her up, settling her into the crook of her arm. They looked up at Flotter, who started his story, directing his face at B’Elanna’s abdomen. Seven was taken by his innocence and marveled at how much B’Elanna seemed to enjoy the experience. It did not seem possible that the person she had come to know as a strong emotional being could react with such delight and tolerance toward this holodeck character. B’Elanna was going to make a good mother.

She looked at the head of her child, curled up in B’Elanna’s arm and wondered again what kind of a mother she had been to her – and what kind of mother she could be to her. She loved Kathryn B’Elanna, but it was still difficult for her to believe she was the child’s mother. She envied B’Elanna the natural closeness she shared with Kathryn B’Elanna. B’Elanna and Kathryn B’Elanna seemed to enjoy a closer relationship than she, herself, had with her own child. 

Will it always be like this? Will I always feel like such an outsider in my own world, in my own life, in my own mind?

The thoughts chased themselves in her mind, and she felt herself sinking into a deep despair. 

"Mama?" She looked up to see Kathryn B’Elanna start to push herself up to stand next to B’Elanna and saw the immediate look of delight that came into her daughter’s face when she saw Seven. Kathryn B’Elanna was excitedly waving her arms, calling to her, "Mama! Mama!"

The blue creature raised his head and called to her, "Mama Seven!"

B’Elanna turned her head, blushing slightly, "Hello, Seven."

She walked up to the trio, lifting her bouncing child, who immediately wrapped her arms around her mother’s neck and gave her a grunting hug. "Mama Seven?" She gave B’Elanna a questioning look.

"It is what he always calls you." B’Elanna laughed as she explained. "I have threatened to delete him if he calls me Mama B’Elanna."

"And I have promised never to do that," Flotter shook his head. "I don’t want to be deleted."

"No, I do not imagine that you would." Seven smiled at him. "You were telling the baby a bedtime story."

B’Elanna blushed again, "So, you did hear that."

"Yes. It was…sweet. I was enjoying the story."

"Good," Flotter clapped his hands, "then I’ll finish!" 

Before they could protest, he started telling his story, once again addressing his words to B’Elanna’s abdomen. The two women exchanged amused glances, and B’Elanna settled back for the rest of the story. Kathryn B’Elanna nestled close to her mother and sighed her contentment. Seven watched and was able to admit to herself that she was enjoying the moment. It was the first time she had a sense of belonging and of peace. Here, she could feel the love of her child and the love of her friend. Here, it was possible to believe in good things.

She looked around her, sighed, and settled back to enjoy the rest of the story.