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

Kathryn B’Elanna looked up from where she was playing and focused on the door. Then she stood and walked up to it, waiting.

"What is it, Kathryn B’Elanna?" 

She turned only slightly toward B’Elanna, "Mama."

B’Elanna gave her a smile, "I should have known."

It was only a second later when the doors opened and Seven walked in, arms already reaching out for her daughter.

"Oh, Kathryn B’Elanna," she pulled her daughter to her, "I have missed you."

"It has only been a few hours, Seven."

Seven brushed the hair back on her daughter’s head, not looking at B’Elanna. Slightly embarrassed, she finally said, "I guess I am anticipating missing her."

"Now that I can understand." B’Elanna laughed, "We haven’t even started the journey, and I am missing Tom already."

Seven crossed to sit in the chair next to B’Elanna’s bed, "How are you feeling today?"

"Wonderful! No aches, no pains, no contractions. Everyday without one of those is a good day. With any luck, I’ll give birth to this baby on Earth." She saw the look on Seven’s face immediately. She knew better than to ask Seven to talk about it. Instead, she asked, "Is everything ready?"

"Yes. We are ready."

"I’m glad you were able to slip away for a few minutes."

"I wanted to see Kathryn B’Elanna in case…." She did not finish her sentence.

"Seven, nothing is going to happen this time. I know you will do everything possible to ensure a safe flight. I’m glad engineering is in your hands."

"And I am glad Kathryn B’Elanna is in yours." She looked at the child in her arms, kissed her on the forehead, then looked to B’Elanna, "B’Elanna, if something happens to me, I need to know that you will love and care for Kathryn B’Elanna"

B’Elanna’s eyes narrowed as she blinked them, "What is this all about?"

"Just promise me, B’Elanna. If something happens to me, promise me you will be there for her." She lowered her head a moment, then looked back up to B’Elanna. B’Elanna was shocked to see Seven had tears in her eyes. "Please, B’Elanna. Promise me."

"Of course, Seven. You don’t remember this, but I have already made you that promise. I will always be there for her. You don’t have to worry about that." She stared intently at Seven’s face, "But I want you to tell me what this is all about."

Seven looked at her daughter and hugged her tightly. "I will see you soon, Kathryn B’Elanna. You be a good girl for your Aunt B’Elanna."

"Seven, wait…."

"I must go, B’Elanna. It is almost time for us to start our journey. I cannot be late." She put Kathryn B’Elanna on the bed next to B’Elanna and walked quickly toward the door. Kathryn B’Elanna immediately started moving toward her. Seven turned, giving her child a strange look, "Good bye. I love you, Kathryn B’Elanna." Then, she left.

Kathryn B’Elanna started crying immediately, calling for her mother to return. B’Elanna had never heard her do that before, and she wasn’t sure what surprised her more, Kathryn B’Elanna crying after her mother or what Seven had said. She pulled the crying child to her and stared at the door.

Kathryn Janeway’s hand was held poised over the send button on the messages she had composed. The first would tell the Federation of their transwarp coil and of their immanent arrival home. The second would tell Admiral Paris about Seven and Kathryn B’Elanna, asking that he provide special protection for them. She had encrypted the message to Admirable Paris and tagged it as high priority, for his eyes only. She knew she could trust him to do the right thing.

She dropped her hand down to her computer, hitting the send button. She allowed her face to break into a smile. She had done everything in her power to ensure that Seven and her daughter were given safe haven. Now, it was time to concentrate on getting them to Earth.

"Is everything go in engineering?"

"Engineering is ready, Captain." Seven’s voice was clipped, firm and confident.

Janeway sat in her chair, "Mr. Paris, engage, transwarp speed." She watched as the scene in front of them dissolved into the now familiar spectrum of colors. "Report." She sat and listened as all stations reported normal conditions. Kahkar’s ship was pacing theirs. They were underway. She sat back, allowing herself to enjoy the view and the ride.

Seven of Nine watched the scans carefully. Everything was functioning within normal parameters. She reached out to make a small adjustment and noticed her hand was shaking uncontrollably. Quickly, she looked around to see if anyone had seen it. Relieved that no one had, she gave herself a minute to close her eyes and take a couple of deep breaths in an effort to gain control, the act of breathing deeply causing her body to also shake. She grabbed to the console in front of her, forcing herself to calm down and her body to stop shaking. Concentrating on her console, she focused all of her energy on her task.

She would get Voyager safely back to Earth. It was too late to worry about anything else.

Ketaria brought in the tray and placed it on B’Elanna’s lap. "I hope you are hungry. This is a feast."

"Supala?"

"Yes." She sat down in the chair and pulled Kathryn B’Elanna into her lap, picking up the utensil and spooning a mouthful of food into the child’s mouth.

B’Elanna took a bite and rolled her eyes, "Um, this is delicious! You are so lucky you have such a wonderful cook."

"Actually, it is a talent we are just learning about, much to our delight."

"She must really enjoy cooking."

"Well, I think that is part of it." Ketaria was busy feeding Kathryn B’Elanna.

"Oh? What is the other part?"

"I think she is also trying to distract herself."

"From what?"

"From missing a certain special someone."

B’Elanna’s head came up, a grin appearing on her face, "She is interested in someone?"

Ketaria nodded, laughing as Kathryn B’Elanna grabbed her hand to pull the food to her mouth, "This child has such a wonderful appetite. I love feeding her." She reached for another spoonful of food, "Supala made this special for you, sweetheart." Kathryn B’Elanna’s mouth opened as soon as the spoon neared, and she clamped down on it as Ketaria put it into her mouth. "I’ll tell Supala the meal met with your approval."

"Ketaria," said B’Elanna, "who is she interested in?"

Ketaria looked up at B’Elanna, "Oh, I’m sorry, B’Elanna. I lose myself in this child." She reached for another spoonful of food and continued, "She is interested in Harry Kim."

"Harry?!" B’Elanna burst out with laughter. "She’s interested in Harry?"

Ketaria looked at her, puzzled, "Is there something wrong with that?"

"Absolutely not, but he can’t see anyone but Seven." She took a bite of her own food, "Not that it will ever do him any good." She chewed a minute, "Harry, huh? That’s wonderful."

"Don’t tell her I told you." Ketaria warned her, "She is rather shy about it." She leaned her head toward B’Elanna conspiratorially, "He is her first ‘love.’"

"You have my word," B’Elanna raised her hand in promise. "Actually, it would be wonderful if he would return her interest. They’d be cute together." 

Ketaria concentrated on feeding Kathryn B’Elanna, then asked, "Has she napped as much today?"

B’Elanna nodded, "Yes, she has. She was even sleepy when Seven brought her in this morning. I think it’s strange."

"So do I." She gave B’Elanna a look, "I think I will monitor her while she sleeps tonight. Maybe we can learn something about what is going on with her."

"I think that is a good idea." She watched the child on Ketaria’s lap and thought again about how much she looked like Seven. She thought back to her conversation with Seven earlier in the day, wondering what was going on with Kathryn B’Elanna’s mother.

Reginald Barclay rushed into Admiral Paris’ office, barely remembering to pull himself to attention at the Admiral’s test. The Admiral did not even have time to acknowledge the Lieutenant’s presence before he started to speak.

"Admiral, I…I…I…have…."

Admiral Paris stood, "Reg. Calm down. Give yourself a minute." When Reg pulled himself up and took a breath, the Admiral said, "Now, what is it?"

He spoke haltingly, but with great excitement, "They have a transwarp coil!"

"They have a transwarp coil…." He repeated the words, trying to figure out what Reg was talking about. Then, his eyes opened wide as the words took on meaning, "Voyager? Are you saying Voyager has a transwarp coil?"

"Yes!" Reg handed the Admiral two PADDs, "This is Captain Janeway’s full report. They are testing it again, even as we speak. She predicts they will be home in two months if they don’t have anymore problems."

"I don’t believe it!" He looked at the PADD in his hand, "Wait, you said anymore problems. What did you mean by that?"

"They had a slight accident with their first run, but they think that is taken care of now. Everyone is okay and B’Elanna is doing fine, although Kahkar has her on bedrest."

"What?" He quickly came around the desk, "What happened to B’Elanna? Is the baby okay?"

Reg put his hands up to calm the Admiral, "There was an explosion, but she is okay. And so is the baby. But," he pointed to the PADD, "Kahkar Omarahn does have her on complete bedrest right now."

The Admiral was trying to scan the report for his daughter-in-law’s name, stopping to read the report when he finally found it. What he saw made his legs go weak, and he reached for a chair to sit down on.

"Seven of Nine saved her." He read on, "And, apparently, saved the ship." He read a little more, "And almost died herself doing it." He looked up at Reg, "Her legend will only grow." He concentrated on the report, barely hearing as the Lieutenant continued to speak.

"They are now making another test run, but Captain Janeway is confident that this test will be uneventful, and they will be able to make their way toward home. According to the path mapped out by Seven of Nine, Voyager will arrive at the Alpha Quadrant border in about two months."

Admiral Paris thought quickly. Two months. With any luck, his grandchild would be born on Earth. In two months, he would be able to hug his son and his daughter-in-law. In two months, Voyager would be home. He laughed lightly thinking that in two months, it would be possible for him to retire and concentrate on becoming a grandfather. 

He stood, facing Reginald Barclay, "This is…fantastic. Can we send them a message?"

Reg shook his head, "Not right now. Although Captain Janeway has sent her navigation specs and an estimated flight schedule. We can try to send a message to Voyager’s estimated position."

"Good. Let’s try." He looked at the PADD in his hand, "This is unbelievable news." He shook his head, almost unable to believe what he was hearing. So close. They were so close now. He thought about the crew of Voyager and the battles still to be waged. But, right now, those problems seemed small and insignificant compared to the news he had just received. "Start working on a message. I will work with you."

Reg enthusiastically nodded his hear, then pointed to the second PADD in the Admiral’s hand, "That PADD, Admiral, was marked confidential, for your eyes only."

"What?" The Admiral looked at the two PADDs in his hand, realizing he had forgotten about the second PADD.

"Yes, that one contains an encrypted message from Captain Janeway.

"Oh," he smiled at the Lieutenant, "I’ll read it in a little while." He moved to sit down at his desk, putting the second PADD on his desk and activating the first, "I want to read Janeway’s full report before I work with you on the message. Give me about an hour to study and prepare."

Reg nodded and excitedly turned to leave. He was stopped by the Admiral’s voice.

"Reg."

"Yes, Admiral?"

"You have done a good job."

Reginald Barclay straightened, his face showing his pleasure at the Admiral’s praise, "Thank you, sir."

"Dismissed."

As Reg left, the Admiral turned his full attention to reading Captain Janeway’s report. The second PADD lay on his desk, temporarily forgotten.

Ketaria sat in the darkened room, concentrating on Kathryn B’Elanna. She was careful to keep her distance and was confident the child did not know she was present. She was considering giving up her watch and going on to bed. Nothing had happened, and it was almost morning on the ship. Suddenly, she felt Kathryn B’Elanna leave awareness, and she quickly followed.

They were on Voyager, and she followed the child as Kathryn B’Elanna moved through the ship. Much to her surprise, she realized they were going to engineering. Once they entered, Ketaria looked around, but did not see anyone. She watched as Kathryn B’Elanna moved to the second level, and Ketaria carefully followed. She saw the child slow, and Ketaria settled herself deeper, trying to see what the child saw.

Finally, she saw Seven, sitting at a small workstation off to the side, resting her head against the backrest. Ketaria could tell she had dropped off to sleep. Turning her attention to the child, she observed Kathryn B’Elanna watching her mother carefully, and Ketaria could tell she was reaching out to touch her mother’s mind. Concentrating, Ketaria allowed her own mind to reach out, trying to touch the place where Kathryn B’Elanna was without alerting her to her presence.

But Kathryn B’Elanna turned to her as soon as she entered, giving her a look and not saying anything. Instead, she focused her attention back on her mother, and Ketaria saw that Seven was standing with her back to them, looking deeply into the darkness in front of her. Ketaria could not stop her sharp intake of breath, realizing what it was that Seven was doing. Her hand went immediately to her mouth, stifling her desire to call out.

She heard Kathryn B’Elanna speak quietly to her mind, "Kathryn B’Elanna keep Mama."

She had to give herself a moment before responding. Finally, she said to the child, also speaking only to her mind, "Yes, you are keeping your mother here."

"Mama not go ’way."

Ketaria heard the determination in the small voice. She ventured a question, "Kathryn B’Elanna, have you been with your mother every night?" She held her breath, waiting for the answer. She wasn’t even sure the child would understand the question.

"Yes. Mama sleep. Kathryn B’Elanna watch."

"Kathryn B’Elanna, I will watch your mother. You go to sleep."

"No." The little voice was emphatic, "Mama hurt. Keta can’t help Mama. Kathryn B’Elanna help Mama."

With that, she turned her full attention back to her mother, and Ketaria could feel her settling in to watch over her mother for as long as Seven slept. Ketaria stood, unsure of what to do and unwilling to leave.

Voyager sped toward the Alpha Quadrant. The transwarp coil functioned efficiently and perfectly. With Voyager’s own warp drive shut down, all systems were performing according to specs. It was obvious that the transwarp coil had been designed for Voyager.

Each day brought an increasing level of excitement. Seven of Nine noticed the looks in the eyes of crewmembers as they passed her. She could not go anywhere on the ship without an appreciative nod or a quick, happy wink of an eye. Somehow, word had gotten around the ship that she was the reason Voyager had the transwarp coil. A few crewmembers had even approached her, thanking her for speeding their journey home.

They had been traveling at transwarp speed now for the last eight days. She had confidently told Captain Janeway that there was no longer a need to stop for system’s checks. It was safe to travel the last leg of the journey without stopping.

She walked into astrometrics, keying in a command on the console and watching the display appear on the screen. Concentrating on the view, she confirmed that they were almost at the border of the Alpha Quadrant. Unless something happened, they would be there within the next twenty-four hours. She activated long-range scans, then fine-tuned the display. 

Earth appeared on the screen.

Swallowing hard, she stared at it.

"Isn’t that beautiful?"

She turned quickly to see Captain Janeway walk into astrometrics. She did not respond, but gave the Captain a quick nod of her head, raising her eyebrow as she did. Her eyes focused on the display as Kathryn Janeway joined her.

"We are almost home, Seven." 

Seven heard the emotion in the Captain’s voice. And the awe. Looking at the orb filling the screen, she wished she could share what the Captain was feeling. But the picture in front of her did not inspire such feelings in her. It is not inspire any feelings at all.

She finally felt nothing, and it was a relief. It would help her take whatever happened to her when they arrived at Earth.

"I want you to know, Seven," Janeway was still staring at Earth, "that we would not be here without you." She leaned forward, putting her arms on the console and learning on it, "I am looking forward to introducing you to Earth. There are so many things for you to see." She pushed herself off the console and looked excitedly at Seven, "You have a wonderful life waiting on you."

Seven looked at her, but did not respond.

Janeway studied her carefully and took a deep breath, "Seven, you have pushed yourself too hard. You look absolutely exhausted. I want you to go on to your private quarters and get some rest. I’ll take tonight’s watch in engineering." When Seven started to protest, Janeway held up her hand, "No. That is an order." She smiled at her, "You must comply. Besides," she turned her head back to the view of Earth, "it will be a real honor for me if you will allow me to bring Voyager back to the edge of the Alpha Quadrant. It would be a symbolic gesture."

Seven saw the look of longing on the Captain’s face, "Of course."

"Thank you, Seven."

Seven looked towards the doors of astrometrics, "I will go now. You can call me if you need me."

"I will try not to call." Janeway was focused on the picture of Earth, "Sleep well, Seven. You have earned your rest."

Seven stood, looking at the expression on her Captain’s face, then turned and left astrometrics.

She climbed up on the rock where they usually sat, for a moment missing the companionship of Flotter and almost rethinking her decision not to activate him. But, she needed to be alone with her thoughts, and he would only provide a distraction for her.

She stared into the water below the rocks and looked around for Flotter’s fishing pole. Seeing it off to her right, she reached for it and dropped the empty hook into the water, watching the bobbin float on the water.

Allowing her mind to drift, she thought back to that day in engineering and to what had transpired when she had connected to the warp core’s computer program. She had told everyone she had forced the program to shut down. 

It was a lie.

She had not been able to override the program. Nothing she tried had worked. Her lungs were filling with smoke, and her eyes were pouring water. She felt herself failing as the smoke in the room overtook her.

She remembered asking the Doctor and Kathryn B’Elanna to forgive her for failing them. Somewhere deep inside of her, she knew that had she still been Borg, she would have been able to succeed. As a human, she had failed.

She felt herself giving up her hold on life, surprised to realize it was almost a relief. Then, she felt it. Deep inside her head, she felt it. She felt the command travel through her Borg systems, felt as it connected with the program, and felt as the program responded. She knew when the program shut down.

Her human mind turned inside of itself, and she searched for the source of the command codes. 

She was there.

"Your family is safe now, Seven of Nine. And so is Voyager." She came closer, "Isn’t it time you finally came home? There is no peace for you here. You can only find peace and safety with us."

"No, I would rather die."

The black eyes held her in their intense gaze, "That might be preferable to what you will face if you go back."

"How do you know that?"

"We have many allies. Even in the Alpha Quadrant. We know many things. You should stay with us, Seven of Nine. We can protect you."

"I cannot leave Kathryn B’Elanna."

"She will not be harmed."

"I do not understand."

"She is imperfect. She cannot be…used. She is too strong and cannot be controlled. We need another child. If you return to us, we will give you another child. You will be free to raise it, Seven of Nine. We will not reassimilate you, unless you desire it."

"Never."

"You value your individuality too much, Seven of Nine."

"I prefer to die an individual than live as a part of the collective."

She sighed, "That is what I expected you to say." She turned to leave.

Seven stopped her, "Wait."

The eyes looked back at her, expectantly.

Seven glanced around her, then asked, "How did you know?"

The eyes focused on her, their look almost warm, "Our thoughts are one."

Seven caught her breath, "I am still part of the collective?"

"No. Not of the collective."

Seven’s eyes narrowed in confusion, "I do not understand."

"I said, our thoughts are one. Yours and mine, Seven of Nine."

"No."

"Yes." The eyes turned away, then moved back to her, "They have been, on some level, since I placed you on Voyager. I did not think I would lose you to them." The look grew more intense, "You are unique. I should have realized." There was almost a look of sadness as she added, "Goodbye, Seven of Nine."

She could not respond. She watched as the queen left. She knew then, there was no safety for her, either behind her or in front of her. She turned toward the darkness, now knowing that was the only place that could provide her with comfort.

She had been walking toward that darkness when Kathryn B’Elanna found her. Shaking her head, she realized she should have fought harder to keep going. It would have been for the best. 

Now, she was going…home. As least her child would be safe. She believed the queen. She had no reason not to. The Doctor would be safe. The Federation had promised him autonomy. And, she had resigned herself to whatever fate held for her. Ultimately, she knew there was comfort in the darkness.

It was her last night in the Delta Quadrant. It would be the last night of the life she had come to know on this ship. It would be their last night in the Delta Quadrant. She dropped the pole, not even seeing it slide into the water and quickly left the holodeck.

Her living quarters were dark when she walked in. Somewhat disappointed, she entered her bedroom, hearing his soft snore before she did. She stood at the end of the bed, watching him sleep before going into the bathroom to change. 

Emerging a few minutes later, she crossed to the bed, trying to crawl in without waking him. As she settled herself, his snoring stopped, "Seven?" His voice was gravely and broken with sleep.

"Yes, Doctor."

"You finally came to bed. I don’t believe it." He pulled her to him, "It’s good to have you here for a change." She heard the warmth of his voice, the lightness of his tone. She turned in his arms, and he leaned his head forward to kiss her softly on the lips. "I have missed you."

She pushed herself up to a sitting position on the bed and stared into his eyes.

He frowned, now wide awake, "Seven, what is it?"

She forced herself to give him a smile, "Nothing. I just wanted to look at your face." She reached out to trace the lines around his mouth. He reached to grab her hand and pulled it to his mouth, kissing her fingers. She focused on his mouth, "I love you, Doctor."

"I love you, too, Seven." 

She heard his desire in his voice. Suddenly, she realized she felt a desire for him.

"Doctor?"

"What, Seven?"

She reached down to grab his left hand, raising it to the implant on her right arm, "Touch me." She reached with her Borg hand to take his right hand, "Hold me." Then, she leaned her head down, putting the implant over her left eye to his lips, whispering hoarsely as the feeling of love that flowed from him filled her, "Love me."

Then, she raised her head to cover his mouth with hers, and he pulled her to him.