"Really, Kathryn, it was the most amazing thing I’ve ever seen. It was amazing and yet it was also heart breaking," Chakotay amended after a brief pause.

"How do you mean?"

Captain Janeway was seated at her ready room desk while her first officer occupied the chair in front. She had been so relieved to be back aboard Voyager, especially now that she had been released from medical, but at the moment all of that was shadowed by other more powerful emotions. She honestly didn’t know if she could refrain from throttling the commander. He’d begun briefing her on all that had occurred onboard after a flash flood carried her away and she because be couldn’t be found. After searching for almost a week Chakotay had made the decision to carry on without her because they thought she was dead.

In fact she had been killed, but no one remembered it because somehow the timeline had been altered. A spatial anomaly had caused a communications signal to be sent to the past and her Astrometrics officer had been able to make contact and warn her in time to avert disaster. It was only due to a freak pulsar-induced time rift that Seven had located her.

Seven had been able to call back through the spatial tear, to contact her a day before the fatal flashflood and warn her in time to prevent disaster. No one else in the crew besides Janeway remembered the altered time line and she was unsure why she did. The briefing Chakotay was giving her reflected the changed events. At the moment he was telling the captain how absolutely devastated Seven had been when the decision had been made to move on and his obvious dislike of the young woman was reflected by his poor word choice.

"Well," he shrugged negligently, "she was a Borg. I guess I didn’t expect her response to be so…emotional. She was like a ghost walking around the ship and it was almost impossible to get her to respond to anyone with something other than sarcasm."

Kathryn clenched her teeth momentarily. "You don’t think Seven has emotions? You don’t think she might have been responding to the loss of a friend?"

"Sure, no doubt about it. You two have always been close. I guess it just caught me a little off guard. It did change my perception of her though. I’d always thought the Collective managed to rid her of emotions entirely, but this incident showed me I was wrong."

Kathryn thought perhaps there was hope for him yet and decided she would let him live a while longer.

"I’m glad to hear you’re warming up to her. It’s only been three years that she’s been on board. You’d think all those times she saved the ship would have been a bit more of an ice breaker."

The irony was lost on him. "Yeah, I’m glad too. But better late than never, right? Say, I should let you get to work. You sure you’re ready to come back so soon? You could take a few more days off to rest."

"Want to hang on to the captain’s seat a while longer?" Janeway teased.

Chakotay threw up his hands in mock surrender. "No, thank you! If I ever imply I want to be captain of this ship just remind me of this incident. I don’t mind filling in for you on occasion, but I’ve had all I want of that particular honor."

Janeway smiled without feeling and waited until Chakotay had left her to her thoughts. She stood slowly feeling the pull of still-sore muscles and walked over to the replicator for a mug of hot coffee. After three days in sickbay the doctor had pronounced her fit to return to duty and she wasn’t about to admit to any residual stiffness. That was doubly true since the pulsars responsible for Seven being able to save her still posed a threat to Voyager, albeit a minor one. Rather than going nova as predicted by the science team they had begun absorbing massive amounts of gravitons and radiation, both gamma and tetryon, and were building up to a detonation.

The explosion would have catastrophic results for the region, destroying entire planets and throwing stars spinning into space like billiard balls on a table. Since there weren’t any m-class worlds close enough to the pulsars to be affected, Janeway wasn’t concerned with trying to rescue alien species. What worried her was the effect the blast would have on the space/time continuum itself. Even at maximum warp Voyager would have trouble outrunning the ripples in time that would be formed and if the detonation wave caught up with the ship she wasn’t sure the shields would hold.

Voyager might never be warp capable again, or even worse…the ship could be destroyed. Unfortunately it was far too late by the time they discovered the buildup to change course. All they could do was fly as fast as possible for the outer rim of the star system and hope for the best. Seven of Nine had predicted that the explosion wouldn’t occur for another six hours so at this point there was nothing to do but wait. The crew worked hard to come up an emergency plan but so far they had nothing viable.

Actually there wasn’t really much they could plan for, Kathryn thought, unless you counted holding on to the edge of your seat while the concussive shock wave washed over them. With that in mind she had encouraged her crew to record any messages to loved ones or spend time preparing just in case.

Blue eyes flashed in her mind and she suddenly saw Seven’s beautiful face again in the transporter room. Three days ago she had returned to Voyager and Seven had been waiting. There had been too many people to tell the younger woman what was in her heart so Kathryn had settled for a cryptic comment about ‘just this once I’m open to all there can be’.

She had seen the joy and love blossom on that beloved face and had meant every word. Unfortunately that was as far as things had gone. For three days the doctor had kept her under constant surveillance although Janeway thought her injuries were really minor. A cracked rib, dislocated shoulder and minor lung infection hardly seemed valid reasons for keeping Seven from her. Nevertheless that was exactly what the doctor had done and as chief medical officer he had that right if he thought it was necessary for his patient’s well being.

Kathryn sighed and sipped from her mug as she looked out the view port. She could have fought the doctor, could have insisted on seeing Seven. Instead she had allowed herself to slip back into fear and hesitancy. She simply hadn’t been able to face the other woman yet. Now it might be too late for all of them, although there was a strong part of her that refused to believe they wouldn’t find some way out of this.

While on Bentha Kathryn had been worried she would try to ignore the love that raged between them and here she was proving herself right. She knew she loved Seven. Hell, love wasn’t even the right word! Obsessed and devoted were probably closer to the truth. She could lose herself in Seven completely. What had caused her to hesitate was everything she had gone through on Bentha. The whirlwind ride on the tsunami of floodwaters, being injured and struggling against infection in an underground cave had been traumatizing enough, but listening to Seven on a ruined combadge had been her undoing. She had never heard so much emotion in the other woman’s voice before, emotion that spoke directly to her own heart. She needed time to process all that had happened before she could seek Seven out and explore the relationship she had promised.

Kathryn shook her head and placed the lukewarm coffee back into the replicator. No, that wasn’t true. She had needed to talk to Seven. She needed to be able to share the experience with the one person who would understand completely. Unfortunately no one else remembered that she was supposed to be dead and had been saved through a miracle of science and converging technologies. Not even Seven. How, then, could she possibly discuss it with the one person who mattered most?

Finally she decided that none of that was important any longer. Only Seven mattered and if time was running out she needed to let her know the truth. After that Kathryn would have to return to the bridge and care for her ship and crew. Seven would understand that when the critical moment came, Janeway would have to be the captain.

*************

The holodeck grid disappeared; yellow lines and stark white spaces were replaced with cold, somber blackness. Gravity followed the grid lines, receding into nothingness and the environment became weightless. All around stars winked into existence. Nebulae formed, planets were born whole as multicolored masses. Some were imbued with cloudy, friendly atmospheres. Some environments were a deadly combination of methane gas and gamma radiation. All were beautiful viewed from the quiet of space.

Here, in this place, there were no sharp demands of duty and responsibility. Here there were no voices clamoring for attention. Here in this mock infinity of galaxies she could simply be without distraction.

On this day her haven of photons contained inside a force field was not meant for relaxation. Today she needed to think, to understand why Kathryn had yet to approach her and try to clear her mind. Kathryn had promised upon her return that she was interested in a relationship with Seven. In an impressively succinct sentence she had let Seven know she would not resist, that she desired a more intimate connection. That had been three days ago and Kathryn had yet to call her. Hurt and confused Seven was left to float among the stars as she grappled with a most perplexing question: What should she do now?

Should she have kept her true feelings to herself? Doubt and fear warred with her desire for Janeway’s love. While the captain had been marooned on Bentha it had been so easy to tell her everything over the safety of a communications frequency. Admitting the love she felt had been as natural as breathing. Unfortunately, now she was left to wonder if that had been the correct course of action. Kathryn had responded when she came back aboard the ship, but the woman had been injured, ill and malnourished. What if she had changed her mind since then?

In addition to these troubling thoughts Seven was trying to clear her mind and develop a strategy that would protect the ship from the pulsars. Even with all the collected memories of the vaunted Borg she could come up with nothing. The Collective had never encountered anything like the phenomenon about to occur and she was left with only speculation at her disposal. Would the mounting energy result in an explosion that would create a black hole, pulling all surrounding matter into the crushing gravitational field?

She just didn’t know.

The sound of the holodeck doors opening caused Seven to look away from the celestial bodies before her. The stark outlines of the outside corridor were an unwanted intrusion until the object of her thoughts stepped into the doorway.

Seven loved Janeway every minute of every day, but there were times they were separated because of their duties. Her eidetic memory precluded forgetfulness but it almost seemed that in the span of time that they were apart she would fail to remember how the other woman’s features would affect her. This time was no exception. The doors closed behind the captain and the light of a nearby sun reflected off her coppery locks, setting fire to the thick mane and causing Seven’s breath to catch. Slate blue eyes looked around the landscape briefly in confusion until Kathryn looked up and their gazes locked. A slow, loving smile graced her lips and her eyes crinkled slightly at the corners. The computer incorporated the newcomer into the program and slowly adjusted the captain’s gravity to match the simulation.

Janeway instantly knew what had happened and her legs relaxed as her body floated upward. Her eyes never wavered and Seven felt her heart ricochet off her breastbone from the intensity of the look.

"This is unexpected."

Kathryn’s voice was soft, tender in a way that Seven didn’t understand logically, but that her body understood. She found herself leaning toward the woman who had so confused her such a short time ago. Her body was taut in anticipation; for what she was unsure. Her breath came in short; staccato bursts and she found she could not look away as Kathryn floated nearer.

"Captain. My apologies. I realize I should be at my post."

Kathryn raised a hand, silencing Seven immediately. "I checked the logs and even you need a break after forty-nine hours straight. I know you’ve tried everything you can think of. I just meant this setting is unexpected."

"How so?"

"Most people create holodeck programs to feel the earth under their feet, to smell fresh air and hear birds sing or water flow."

"I…I am not most people." Seven responded as Janeway came nearer, not even realizing how much she revealed by her admission. "I was born in space. It is in space that I find comfort."

"Why do you need comfort?" Kathryn was closer now and she reached out toward the woman she loved.

Seven responded instinctively. Her hands reached out and suddenly Kathryn was there, in her arms. Lean, strong arms wound around her neck as Voyager’s intrepid leader released her mantle of command entirely to show the strength of her heart. To show how love was more important than any perceived responsibility or duty or anyone they had been before they came together in this time and place.

For long, exquisitely precious moments Kathryn held Seven close. Their hearts pounded in tandem. Love and support were freely given and returned, asking nothing more. Finally Kathryn began to speak and Seven could focus only on the sound of the magnificent voice, the breath in her hear and the warmth of this one being she held that was more dear than anything in any universe.

"I am so sorry. I promised you I would be here, that I would be open to all there could be between us. I needed time to work through all that happened on Bentha. Can you forgive me?"

"There is nothing to forgive." Seven’s answer was honest, a reflection of the soul housed inside. She could never be judgmental or unforgiving. As long as Kathryn could see how she felt when she looked into her eyes she would be grateful.

Soft fingers cupped Seven’s chin gently. Her face was urged upward. She felt the moist heat of Kathryn’s mouth before it arrived and her lips parted in innate understanding. Hunger overcame her and Seven caressed soft lips in a kiss that was demanding, loving, full of need.

Lips touched, tongues tasted, breath exchanged and Seven felt all of the years of horror as a Borg drone melt away. In Kathryn’s loving embrace she was whole, cleansed…forgiven. Here she was accepted for the individual she was without excuse. In that moment she truly knew what it was to be loved; what the entire definition of the word love truly was. Finally the kiss ended and they looked out into the wonders of the universe together.

"I thought you had changed your mind. I was worried that revealing how I felt had frightened you, caused you to rethink loving me."

Janeway’s arms tightened around her neck and she responded without thought. "That could never be farther from the truth. It was all just so overwhelming. First I got a call from someone I just couldn’t believe was you, warning me of my death. Next thing I knew I was being swept down an old creek bed by a flashflood."

"You remember everything?" Seven pulled away to look at her in astonishment. "I did not believe you would remember the alternate time-line."

There was a brief hesitation before Kathryn responded in shaky voice. "I didn’t think you would. No one else remembers anything different."

"Perhaps it is because only we were involved in both time lines."

"Maybe; I never have been very good with temporal paradoxes." Kathryn was silent briefly before her embrace tightened. "I’m so glad you remember. I thought I was alone."

"You will never be alone. Even if I had not remembered you could have talked with me. I would have listened. I will always be here for you."

"I believe you." Kathryn’s heartfelt response was followed by another kiss. Seven luxuriated in the feel of satiny skin before the caress slowly ended.

For long, sweet moments they floated together and looked into the vastness of space. The silence was broken when Kathryn asked in a mischievous voice, "So, how often have you lain in my bed?"

"On eight separate occasions," Seven answered readily and Kathryn chuckled at the fact that her love didn’t think to be embarrassed by such an admission. "At first I could not bear to go near your quarters. Then I realized there was no other solace for me. Your essence was contained in those rooms, your scent, the sound of your laughter. I found that after a time there was no where else on the ship I wished to be."

Kathryn swallowed the lump in her throat with difficulty. One thing she had to remember was that Seven was like no other person she had ever known. With her there was no artifice, no deception. There would only be unwavering honesty and if she wasn’t prepared for that then she shouldn’t be involved with her. Even as the thought occurred to her she knew it could never be. She would never turn away from this angel who had reached back in time to rescue her, who would risk everything during any timeline to keep her safe. Not because she was required to, but because she wanted to. Seven loved her and even after forty-three years Kathryn Janeway, born and raised human, was only now discovering what those words truly meant.

Silently she cleared her throat before she began to voice the thoughts in her head. "Seven, just in case I have difficulty saying this in the future or in case time runs out for us…I love you. I have loved you since the beginning. If we survive these pulsars there will be times when I find it difficult to say how I feel or even when I am in the position that I can’t voice my emotions. That doesn’t mean they have changed. I will never love anyone but you."

Seven looked up and found the truth of those words shining in Kathryn’s eyes. Her heart was so full she didn’t believe she could be happier until Kathryn spoke again.

"On that note, as much as I enjoy your simulation I really wish we had time to take this back to my quarters. Unfortunately I have to be back on the bridge but I would do anything to be able to spend this time with you."

"Nothing would make me happier… Kathryn."

Kathryn smiled at her again and Seven recognized it as the one Janeway displayed when something particularly pleased and touched her. It was the smile she hoped to see repeated every day of their lives together.

"Computer, end program."

The simulation ended and the women dropped slowly to the deck. When their feet touched the floor their arms were still wrapped around one another. Kathryn released her hold reluctantly before she led the way to the exit with Seven close behind. She intended to draw out their time before they were forced to separate at the corridor.

Before they could reach the exit Chakotay hailed the captain. "I’m sorry, Captain, but Harry says the pulsars have absorbed quadruple the amount of energy expected in the last four minutes. They’re going nova a lot sooner than predicted."

"I understand, Commander. I’m on my way."

Kathryn swallowed her disappointment with difficulty and turned to look at Seven. "I’m sorry. I have to get back."

"I will accompany you."

Janeway hesitated only a moment. She was tempted to point out that Seven’s place now was in Astrometrics, but she couldn’t bring herself to say the words. She knew the young woman was perfectly capable of performing her duties from any computer console on the ship and couldn’t deny the comfort she would take from having Seven near.

"All right." Looking into Seven’s eyes, she could easily read the fear and uncertainty that would have gone unnoticed by others. "It’ll be fine, Seven. We’ll all be fine."

"You are not worried?"

Kathryn grinned slightly. "When are you going to learn? I’m always worried."

The short journey to the bridge was silent and Kathryn never relinquished Seven’s hand. At one time she would have been extremely uncomfortable for anyone to witness such a tender scene. Dryly she had to admit to herself that she probably would still have been uncomfortable, but it wasn’t an issue as they didn’t encounter another crewman. They separated only when then the turbolift doors opened onto the bridge. Janeway took her command chair and Seven took up a position at the aft science station.

When the captain turned her head to address the communications officer she could just see Seven out of the corner of her eye. "Status, Mister Kim."

Her voice was a study in silence, loud enough to be heard yet soft enough to convey quiet confidence. His response was just as quiet.

"Voyager is at warp 9.975, now sixteen light years from the anomaly."

"Time to detonation?"

"Two minutes, fifty-three seconds."

"We just might have gotten lucky," Chakotay grinned.

"You think we might be far enough away when the shockwave hits?"

"Maybe."

The captain didn’t share his optimism. Even if they were far enough not to be destroyed, the ship would be heavily damaged. In addition subspace itself would be disrupted if not altered altogether. Kathryn knew full well that no one had been able to come up with a plan to mitigate such damage. Without responding to her second in command she hailed engineering.

"Lieutenant Torres here, Captain."

"B’Elanna, in about two minutes I’m going to give the order to bring Voyager to a full stop. When that happens I want you to divert all available power to the shields."

"All power?"

"Everything, environmental controls, life-support and every last neuron from the computer pathways."

"I see where you’re going, Captain. I just hope it’ll be enough."

"So do I. Oh, and B’Elanna? It’s been a privilege."

For a moment there was a startled pause as she realized the captain was saying goodbye. When the engineer responded there was a quaver in her voice. "The honor has been mine, Captain Janeway."

"Harry, let me know when those stars explode and then start a countdown for the approaching shockwave. If this is going to work we need every available second."

He nodded once, eyes dark with grave understanding.

"Activate the viewscreen, aft view."

The overhead viewer winked on and the bridge crew was treated to a sight space in the area they had already traveled. Kathryn could almost believe there was no threat and for a second was tempted to order the crew to abandon ship, but there was no point. There was considerable question whether or not Voyager would survive the shockwave. The escape pods would be vaporized in an instant.

Even in the face of near-certain destruction part of her believed they would survive, the largest part. Her crew was one of a kind and had been through much worse. If the ship was heavily damaged they would be able to effect repairs, at least enough to travel to the m-class planet that was still several hundred thousand kilometers away. At impulse such a journey would take months, if not years, but they could make it. Should it prove necessary they could set up camp there and in time Human-kind would have a permanent colony in the delta quadrant.

Janeway had been captain of a starship for so long that such an idea actually appealed to her. In a way it would be nice to keep her feet on solid ground for a while. Maybe she and Seven could live together there and her days of fighting angry alien species would be over. Perhaps someday they could even have a family, a little girl with very pale skin and auburn hair. Did Seven even want children? A small smile lifted her lips until Harry interrupted a moment later.

"The pulsars are approaching critical. One minute to implosion."

Once the binary stars collapsed in on each other they would release all of the gravitational potential energy that had been building for days. That energy would be forcefully expelled into the surrounding space in the form of a stellar explosion. A supernova radiated as much energy in a matter of seconds as that of a normal sun in its entire lifetime. The resulting explosion would blast the star’s matter into space at one-tenth the speed of light, faster and farther than Voyager could travel in a month.

That was for a typical supernova. But these pulsars were anything but typical. Seven had calculated their destructive force as ten times greater than any such anomaly previously recorded.

"Thirty seconds."

"All hands, this is the captain. Secure all outer bulkheads and shut down all nonessential equipment. Brace for impact. Lieutenant Torres, stand by to reroute power to the shields."

One glance at her helmsman, Tom Paris, was enough for her to communicate her intent.

"Fifteen seconds, Captain."

"Not yet, Tom."

"Five, four, three, two, one. Pulsars have reached critical mass, implosion imminent." A second later, Kim amended his remarks. "Mark; detonation, shockwave approaching at forty thousand kilometers per second. Impact in…twenty seconds."

Even as she heard the information Kathryn realized she had miscalculated. The shockwave was tearing through space much faster than expected, but her voice never wavered or rose higher than her normal speaking tones. "Lieutenant Paris, all stop. Janeway to engineering…shunt all power to the shields on my mark."

"Ten, nine, eight…"

"Now, B’Elanna."

Voyager bucked like a green-broke stallion and slammed to a sudden stop with the squeal of tortured metal. A split-second later the bridge went dark as power was routed to the protective shield that Janeway knew would never hold. She turned her head and her eyes met Seven’s. At least she had taken the chance and told Seven how she felt. To her unmitigated joy and total surprise the young woman returned her love. At least in these precious seconds that remained she had that to hold onto. In her mind the countdown continued.

Four, three, two…

"Seven!" The single breathless word contained all of the love and fear contained in a human heart.

Then the shockwave hit and Voyager exploded in an epic fireball.

************

Kathryn sighed tiredly as she walked up the pathway. Twilight was descending and all around was the comforting, nocturnal sounds of this world she had come to love so much. Her way was illuminated by the porch light seven had left burning. A happy smile lit her features.

"I’m home," she announced as the screen door slammed behind her.

A blond head peaked around the kitchen doorway and Seven easily returned the smile. "Kathryn!"

"You say my name like you’re surprised to see me. I do live here, you know."

Long arms embraced her and full lips met her own. For a delicious eternity Kathryn immersed herself in her wife’s kiss. Seven finally, reluctantly, released her.

"True, but you seem to arrive home later and later these days."

"That’s what happens when you’re the leader of a community."

Something about the words triggered a sense of déjà vu, as though she had spoken them many times before in an entirely dissimilar environment. Yet she knew that was impossible. Kathryn had been the leader of the small human colony for as long as she could remember. She still recalled the pride that caused her chest to swell when Starfleet named her the director of Earth’s first deep space settlement colony. Her people treated her like more of a prophet. At least most of them did. Seven had never been overly impressed with her credentials and never failed to let Janeway know she was just as fallible as anyone else. She had also loved Kathryn fiercely from the moment they met and had never tried to hide it.

"What is it, Kathryn? You seem unsettled." Seven placed a gentle kiss against her temple. In return, Janeway squeezed her waist and released her.

"I guess it’s the Maquis." She sounded preoccupied as she removed her syn-leather jacket and passed it to Seven.

"Has there been trouble?"

"Not lately, but intelligence reports indicate they’re up to something major."

A sour look crossed Seven’s face and Kathryn followed as the young woman turned back into the kitchen. It was rare for her partner to show displeasure toward the rebel group. So rare, in fact, that for a moment she could only watch as Seven laid their evening meal on the table.

When the young woman sat down silently Kathryn finally asked, "Want to tell me about it?" Seven’s eyes were dark, unreadable, but Kathryn thought she saw a hint of regret.

"I’m sorry. You have enough to worry about from the council without me adding to the burden."

Kathryn felt a tightening in her chest at the unexpected words. It was just like Seven to be more concerned with Janeway than her own feelings. She reached out to cup a soft, pale cheek in the palm of her hand and inhaled sharply when Seven placed a kiss at its center.

"Please tell me."

Seven considered the question for several seconds. "Fine, but only if you will sit down to supper."

Kathryn smiled and eagerly did as the other woman asked, filling her plate while she listened.

"I just do not understand these so-called Maquis. They are just as vital a part of this settlement project as anyone. Most of them even volunteered. Why are they creating so many problems now?"

Shrugging, Kathryn swallowed and responded. "I guess Mondara just isn’t what they expected. It’s so far from Earth we couldn’t get very clear sensor readings. All we knew was the atmosphere was ninety-two percent Earth norm. We all thought it would be a gas giant with a central planetary core and we would have to set atmospheric processors. No expected this beautiful, verdant planet we discovered when Voyager dropped us off."

"So they are angry that the gas turned out to be a nebulous ring protecting the planet from solar radiation?"

"No. They think we’re going to defile this planet, exhaust her resources like we did back home."

Seven looked at her in astonishment. "That is ridiculous. There are only one hundred fifty humanoids on this entire world. One third of those are the Maquis and this planet is eight times the size of Earth."

"That’s the thing about fanaticism, honey. It doesn’t have to make sense; it’s enough that they believe."

"I do not understand this Chakotay," Seven said, referring to the Maquis leader.

Blue eyes flashed angrily in the subdued lighting and Kathryn could see a pulse throb in the young woman’s neck. Her thoughts took an unexpected turn southward and suddenly the Maquis were the last thing she wanted to talk about.

Kathryn laid her fork on the plate and said, "I’m not really very hungry right now. Do you think I could interest you in a more physical activity?"

Seven gasped and her expression became more predatory. "Are you sure you don’t require more sustenance?"

A shiver of anticipation flowed through Kathryn. The question had been asked in a breathless voice through half-lidded eyes that ignited a fire in her belly.

"I get all the sustenance I need from you."

Without waiting for a response Kathryn grabbed Seven’s hand and led the way to their room. The lights were off, the bedroom illuminated only by the moonlight. It was Kathryn’s favorite way to view Seven’s graceful figure.

Softly, slowly, she removed the young woman’s clothing, lovingly revealing each exquisite detail before moving on. Seven didn’t try to assist. She didn’t urge Kathryn to hurry. They both enjoyed this ritual too much for that; the slow stoke of desire, the renewal of their love.

The white, button-down shirt parted. The full curve of pale, shadowed breasts were revealed, restrained only by an insignificant wisp of cotton. Kathryn’s tongue darted out to swipe at the moisture beaded above her lip. Already she could taste the ripe nipples, feel Seven’s fingers in her hair urging her to bite harder.

Her eyes traveled upward and she saw Seven’s lips were parted, the young woman fairly breathless with need.

Kathryn pushed the shirt backward and it dropped to the floor, already forgotten. Fingers mapped the contours of soft skin as her eyes followed enviously. Her thumb skimmed over an erect nipple and she watched as it hardened even more. Seven’s body twitched in reaction and her breathing grew more ragged.

"Kathryn." A soft exhalation that let Janeway know what she was doing to her wife.

"Soon, darling."

She hardly recognized her own husky voice as she dropped to her knees and parted the opening of Seven’s jeans. The scent of arousal hit Kathryn like a photon burst and her eyes clenched as she fought the urge to take Seven standing up. With trembling hands she removed Seven’s remaining clothing and encouraged her to lie back on the bed.

Seven liked to watch Kathryn undress and it was a struggle for the smaller woman not to rip her own clothing off and pounce on her waiting wife. Instead Kathryn drowned herself in Seven’s gaze, watching the appreciation in soft blue eyes as each part of her body was revealed. Finally free of the restraining garments, Kathryn slid onto the mattress and into Seven’s arms. Full lips had already parted in anticipation of her kiss.

Janeway loved Seven’s kisses, how each touch, each stroke of the tongue, was a study in perfection that could raise her to the level of Mondara’s two moons. But tonight she was hungry for more than kisses. Her pulse pounded between her legs, her nipples felt like they were hard as diamonds. When she sucked the flesh of Seven’s neck into her mouth she felt almost desperate, but Seven didn’t seem to mind. She pushed into the contact and her fingernails dug into Kathryn’s back.

Janeway didn’t linger. Her thoughts had been on Seven’s breasts since she walked into their home and she quickly moved down the lithe form. Her lips closed over a hard nipple and Seven cried out as she arched into the moist heat. Just as in her fantasy, long fingers pinned her against the breast. Kathryn turned her head and chewed gently on the hardened bud, driving Seven to frenzy.

"Please, Kathryn. Suck them, bite them."

Janeway eagerly complied until they were both shaking with restrained passion. When she could no longer stand it she abandoned the pliant masses and moved down Seven’s body, kissing and tonguing flesh and implant alike. Seven’s legs parted as she moved between them and Kathryn grasped the strong thighs, anchoring herself in place.

One swipe of her tongue across the engorged clitoris was enough to send Seven over the edge. Kathryn held on, her tongue furiously stoking the aroused bud until the young woman finally began to quiet.

Then Kathryn was moving up, straddling a thigh as Seven’s hand rose to meet her. Strong fingers pressed against her sex, braced by Seven’s leg as Kathryn began to move rapidly back and forth.

"Do it, Kathryn. Take what you need!"

"Inside," Janeway grunted, feeling like she would explode if she didn’t come soon.

Two long fingers penetrated her and Kathryn groaned as she surged forward, her hips driving as she strove to reach her release. She didn’t realize how hard she had fastened onto Seven’s shoulders, her fingers almost bruising in their intensity.

"Oh, baby…gonna…come…so…hard!"

When it hit Kathryn flung her head back and cried Seven’s name out unabashed. For several exquisite seconds she continued to move until the shudders finally released her. Then she collapsed forward onto Seven’s chest. One arm circled her shoulders while Seven’s fingers remained inside her. Neither moved until Kathryn had finally caught her breath and moved to her wife’s side.

"That was so incredible." Her voice felt hoarse from shouting and Kathryn swallowed thickly.

"You always say that."

"It always is."

Seven snickered in the darkness and Kathryn looked over at her in astonishment. "Did you just giggle?"

The young woman only continued smiling at her in response. It wasn’t like Seven to be silent after lovemaking. If anything, the young woman would still be speaking when Kathryn fell asleep. Suddenly Janeway realized something had been off all evening. Even while they were talking in the kitchen there had been a glint of excitement in Seven’s eyes.

"Is there something you want to tell me?"

Seven kissed her swiftly and then pulled away. "You are very perceptive, Kathryn."

When that was the only response she got Kathryn said, "Well? Am I going to have to pull every word out of you? Spill it."

"I went to see the EMH today."

Kathryn’s eyes went wide and she gave Seven her undivided attention. She tried to ignore the way her heart hammered against her rib and waited breathlessly for her wife’s news.

"The procedure was successful."

Seven’s grin would have been earsplitting by anyone’s definition. For an instant Kathryn could see the young woman she would have been if she’d never been assimilated by the Borg.

"You mean…?"

"Yes, Kathryn. We are going to be parents."

Kathryn rose up on one elbow and placed a gentle hand against Seven’s stomach. "Are you sure?"

"Absolutely sure. The child will bear both of our genetic material."

"The girl," Kathryn corrected in a trembling voice. "It’s girl."

"Of course. She cannot inherit a Y chromosome from two mothers."

"That’s what I love about you, darling," Janeway laughed. "You’re always so logical."

"Is that the only reason?"

"Oh no, there are many reasons I love you." Kathryn leaned over to kiss her wife when she remembered how strenuous their lovemaking had been. "Did I hurt you? Maybe we should lay off a little until after she’s born."

Seven easily read the growing fear in Janeway’s voice and rushed to reassure her. "Kathryn, I am barely three weeks pregnant. There will be time to worry about such things later. You did not hurt me."

"That’s a relief!" Kathryn lay back and smothered a yawn.

"Sleep. You need to rest."

"You always take such good care of me." If Seven responded Kathryn did not hear. She was asleep in moments.

An hour both were sleeping soundly. Kathryn’s eyes began to move rapidly back and forth as she dreamed, but the images were not of the coming addition to their family.

The scene shifted abruptly and they were all onboard an interstellar vessel. It was Voyager, the transport ship that had left them on Mondara. This time Kathryn was sitting in the captain’s chair, but still wearing the unfamiliar uniform. Seven stood behind her and someone she couldn’t see was shouting at her.

A massive radiogenic field encompassed the vessel and the resulting explosion caused Kathryn to sit up panting in fright.

It took a moment to come back to her surroundings and realize she was sitting up in bed. Seven of Nine lay peacefully at her side and there was no sight of the military uniform she had been wearing. Slowly her heart rate returned to normal.

"Kathryn, are you all right?"

"Sorry, darling," she said patting Seven’s leg. "It was just a bad dream. Go back to sleep."

Seven sighed and rolled over. Kathryn lay back down but sleep eluded her. Seven had called her ‘captain’. Even as she tried to tell herself it was a dream she knew there was more to it. Kathryn had never felt completely comfortable on Mondara. She loved Seven and her life with Seven, but being on a planet felt…wrong. In the dream she had been the captain of a starship and even in her waking state she had moments where that felt more real. What was going on here?

Was she losing her mind?

No. She knew better. For the last few months odd little flashes of a previous existence would come to her at the most unexpected times. In a few of them there had been a dark-haired man with a receding hairline who possessed unusual powers. His name was right on the tip of her tongue but it just wouldn’t come to her.

Although the half-remembered images were troubling, Kathryn couldn’t hold onto them in the face of her personal happiness. Her reality was right here in the bed with her and soon they would have a baby girl to make their lives complete. That was all she really needed to know.

Pushing the nightmares away Kathryn slipped back into sleep with a smile on her face.

*********

In the predawn hours the moons had already set. The settlement was completely dark save for the lantern where a lone sentry stood guard. He never saw the figure that slipped into the storage compound at the edge of the encampment. Twenty minutes later an explosion blew the roof off the massive warehouse and shook the ground for miles.

Kathryn was out of bed and pulling her clothes on before her eyes were properly open.

"What is it?" Seven asked in a startled voice.

"It sounded like the storage building."

"The Maquis!"

Kathryn nodded, but was unsure if Seven could see her in the darkness.

"I am coming with you."

"You’re pregnant!" Janeway felt a cold chill run down her spine at the thought that something would happen to Seven and their unborn child.

"I will not allow you to go alone."

Seven refused to listen to any arguments and raced out of the house beside her wife. Janeway was worried about what might happen, but if the Maquis were finally attacking there was no time to debate the issue.

Everyone in the settlement was up and racing toward the fire raging inside the warehouse area. Many were shouting for water and attempting to manually fight the fire. Kathryn jumped in and began shouting orders, bringing the melee under control and coordinating their efforts. Fortunately they had the best of firefighting equipment and it wasn’t long before the blaze was manageable.

No one saw the man standing at the edge of the forest or could guess the fire had been a ruse. The real target was Janeway. As Kathryn stood congratulating her people on a job well done the lone figure stepped out from behind a tree and leveled a phaser rifle.

"Kathryn!"

Seven saw him at the last moment and threw herself in front of her wife. Chakotay slipped back into the forest, but Janeway had eyes only for the woman in her arms as Seven crumpled slowly to the ground.

It didn’t take a trained physician to see that the chest wound was fatal.

"Someone get the doctor!" Janeway screamed through her tears.

When no one responded she looked up and started to shout for the EMH when she noticed that everyone seemed frozen in place. The air was still and only one being stood out; the strange, dark-haired man from her dream.

"Q!"

All of the memories of her previous life came flooding back and Janeway was astounded at the tidal wave of rage that boiled through her blood with them.

"How dare you play with us like this!"

"Play with you? My dear, Kathy, you insult me. This is your doing, well, you and your little humanoid friends. I saved you from those pulsars; put you on a nice, out of the way planet and you still manage to find a way to start a war."

‘Seven is dying!"

"Through no fault of my own."

"I don’t care whose fault it is. Save her!"

"Oh, all right." Q waved his hand and Seven was whole again though just as immobile as the others. Kathryn felt relief flood through her, but didn’t have time for more than that as Q started speaking again. "You know, if it hadn’t been for me you all would be space dust. I was doing you a favor."

"Of all the ridiculous, unmitigated…! Q, what were you thinking?"

"That a little gratitude was in order?"

"And I wouldn’t think that an omnipotent being could suffer from male pattern baldness. I guess things aren’t always what we think." Kathryn couldn’t prevent the remark from coming out since all she wanted to do was grab him and shake him until his teeth rattled.

"Really, Kathy, this is what was in your miniscule mind right before your vessel exploded."

That comment was enough to make her stop and she realized he had said earlier that he has saved her, Kathryn Janeway. "You did this…for me?"

"Well, you are my son’s godmother."

"You couldn’t have just moved us out of the way?"

"I could have, but humans are so unpredictable. You would have been angry if I had done that too; interfering you’d call it. So I gave you the thing you wanted most. Come on, you can say it now; two tiny little words."

"You ass!"

"Those aren’t the words."

"You want me to say thank you?" Kathryn’s voice was trembling in anger. "You give us fake memories of a life that never happened, Seven is my wife and we’re at war with the Maquis?"

"Oh, there was nothing fake about it. This is real, as real as your limited minds can understand. I thought you’d be happy. You got the girl, after all."

"The girl, as you put it almost died! And in case you hadn’t noticed I was doing quite well with Seven before you meddled in things!"

"Oh, all right! You want me to put you back on your ill-fated ship right before the pulsars exploded?"

"Can’t you just push us out of the way a little bit?"

"Why don’t I just send you all the way back to Earth?"

"Could you?" It was worth a shot.

"No."

Q suddenly waved his arm and Kathryn was blinded by a flash of light.

Suddenly she was back aboard Voyager with the red alert klaxons sounding in her ears. All around she could see the bridge crew, but she had eyes for only one person. Swiveling around her gaze met and locked with Seven’s. The young woman was uninjured but there was knowledge in her eyes. In fact, everyone looked stunned and she could only guess that they all remembered their time on Mondara.

"Status?" she barked. There would be time enough later to sort through everything.

Tuvok was the first to recover. "The shockwave has dispersed. No damage to the ship."

Q must have moved them just enough to avoid the explosion after all. Kathryn didn’t know if she would ever understand him and she was furious with him, but there was no question that they owed him… this time.

"Stand down red alert. Continue on course for the edge of this sector. I want to put as much distance between us and that black hole as possible."

"Aye, Captain."

Chakotay had yet to speak and Kathryn looked at him curiously. "I feel like I need to apologize."

Her heart leapt in anger at the man responsible for Seven’s death, but she had to remind herself that the young woman was just fine. It was all so confusing but there was no way to let go of the rage so quickly.

"We’ll talk about it later. I’ll be in my ready room."

Kathryn walked toward her inner sanctum, aware that Seven was following her. As soon as the doors closed she turned and flung herself into the other woman’s arms.

"I thought you were dead."

Seven merely held her while she sobbed, stroking her hair and making comforting sounds until Kathryn finally began to quiet.

"Kathryn, I remember everything." In her voice there was confusion and pain.

"I know, darling. So do I. I suspect we all do."

"Why would Q want us to remember each detail of a reality he fabricated?"

"Maybe it was his twisted way of trying to make a point, that humanity is barbaric and that no matter where we find ourselves we find a way to wage war."

"War was not all that was waged." Seven’s voice was soft and hesitant, but filled with the love they had recently shared on the planet.

"Seven?"

"I remember the love we made, the child we created." Seven placed her hand on her stomach and tears glinted in the blue eyes before one let go and streamed down an alabaster cheek.

"Oh, my love, I am so sorry."

Kathryn pulled Seven into her arms and searched for a way to comfort the younger woman. "Maybe it doesn’t have to be all or nothing. We don’t need the perfect life on a little planet. I choose to think that part of that existence can be created here on Voyager."

"You mean we could still have a child together?"

Janeway chuckled slightly and pulled away to look into Seven’s eyes. "I think you’re getting a little ahead of yourself, but I do think that whatever happens is our choice. I know I was as happy as I have ever been on Mondara and if you’re willing, I’d like to try creating some of that happiness here."

"I am willing."

Seven held Janeway closely against her and for several long moments they were content with the feel of one another’s heartbeat. Finally it was Seven who broke the silence.

"Kathryn, do you believe we will ever reach home?"

"We already have, darling. Wherever you are will always be home to me, but I do know one thing. I’ve had enough of time travel and alternate realities to last a lifetime."

It would take a long time for all of them to recover from recent events, but Kathryn knew if anyone could it was her brave crew. More importantly she had been shown a glimpse of something wonderful and there was no force in the universe that would make her let Seven of Nine go.