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MAMA SAYS TOO MUCH
B'Elanna Torres sighed as she picked up toys around her living room. Some days, it felt as if she did nothing but pick up after her husband and two kids. Sure, Tom tried to help, but more often than not, he found himself in the middle of what the kids dreamed up to play. Kids. Really, it was her Miral as at just over a year, Joey did little more than follow his big sister around.
Glancing out the window, B'Elanna spot her former captain, walking up to the house, wearing a long skirt. A skirt usually meant one thing with Kathryn. B'Elanna smiled to herself as she called out, "Miral! Aunt Katie is here!"
"Aunt Katie!" Miral squealed, skipping down the stairs. She reached the front just as B'Elanna opened it. Miral jumped into Kathryns waiting arms. "Aunt Katie! You're here!"
"There's no place I'd rather be," Kathryn told her, giving her a kiss. She turned to B'Elanna. "How are you, B'Elanna?"
B'Elanna smiled. "I'd be better if anyone in this house learned to pick up after themselves."
Kathryn laughed. "You sound like Chakotay. He's always after us to pick up."
"Speaking of Chakotay, Kathryn, you are positively glowing."
"Glowing?" Miral repeated.
Kathryn looked at her sharply. "Don't you start. So, where are Tom and Joey, anyway?"
B'Elanna's expression turned serious. "Joey is with Tom's parents for the day and Tom is helping Harry pack up his and Lily's things. They're moving in here for awhile."
"I'm sorry to hear that," Kathryn said, sadly. "Harry seemed so happy when they got married."
"He did," B'Elanna conceded. "I guess a normal life just wasn't enough for Megan, though."
Miral growled. "PetaQ."
"Miral!" B'Elanna admonished, embarrassment tinging her face. Kathryn turned her head to hide her smile. "What have I told you about that language?"
"Sorry, Mama," she sighed. "Aunt Katie, can we go now?"
Kathryn nodded. "We'll be back in a few hours."
"Thank you so much for doing this, Kathryn," B'Elanna told her.
"It's my pleasure," Kathryn assured her. She squeezed Miral to her. "We haven't had an aunt and niece day in awhile. I've been missing them."
"Me, too," Miral agreed. "Let's go."
Kathryn gave B'Elanna one last dazzling smile before heading off with Miral. She took her to a park situated halfway between their houses. They sat at the edge of the pond, feeding the ducks.
"I like your dress," Kathryn mentioned, eying the purple flower sundress that B'Elanna had dressed her in that morning. "It's very pretty."
"Thank you," Miral replied, settling against Kathryn. "Mama says that purple brings out my eyes."
Kathryn grinned as she was about to be treated to one of Miral's infamous "Mama Says" routines. "Your mama is correct."
"Mama says that when I was a baby, Daddy used to put me into orange because she wore yellow and he wore red."
"You are the perfect combination of your mama and your daddy," Kathryn told her.
Miral pulled on her ear, causing Kathryn to duck to hide her smile. "Mama says that I'm just like Daddy. Uncle Chak says I'm just like Daddy, too, but Mama says that Uncle Chak is jealous because Callum and Aislinn are just like you."
Kathryn cocked her head to the side as she thought about the personalities of her two children. They were both fiercely independent and intelligent, but also incredibly loyal to each other. "I think they're more like Uncle Chak than your mama thinks."
"Can we get ice cream?" Miral begged, jumping up suddenly as a man selling the cold treat walked nearby. She shouted in joy when Kathryn agreed, dragging her away from the pond. "Come on, Aunt Katie! There's ice cream in that cart."
Kathryn groaned. "Who's been telling you stories about Voyager?"
Miral spun in circles. "Mama and Daddy and Uncle Harry and Uncle Chak and The Godfather and-"
"Okay, I got it," Kathryn sighed. "A lot of people." She got them each a cone with vanilla ice cream. She led Miral to a bench where they could watch the people go by. "How's your ice cream?"
"Yum!" Miral exclaimed. "How's your ice cream?"
Kathryn smiled. "It's delicious."
Miral smacked her lips together. "Mama says you're glowing."
"So, I hear. I was there when she said that," Kathryn answered.
"Mama says that when you're glowing that means that you're going to have another baby." Kathryn nearly spit out her ice cream, but Miral continued as if she didn't notice. "Mama says that you and Uncle Chak are trying to repopulate the Markers."
"Maquis," Kathryn corrected, automatically.
Miral nodded. "Yeah, the Markers. Mama says that you must be making up for lost time because you pushed Uncle Chak away for so long." Kathryn began to rub her forehead with her hand. "Mama says that Daddy was going to kidnap you both if you didn't admit that you loved each other before the end of the party."
Kathryn paused for a moment before realizing that Tom must have been referring to the welcome home ball they had attended about a month after Voyager's return. She and Chakotay hadn't had a chance to talk much before then with all of the debriefings. They were obligated, however, to dance the first dance. In the course of those five minutes, every emotion that she had tried to hide, suppress, ignore came flooding out of her and as he went to release her at the end of the dance, she suddenly threw herself into his arms, kissing him passionately.
"Mama says that they almost had to hose you off," Miral said, pulling Kathryn from her thoughts. She realized that she had missed several of Miral's statements. "Mama says that Daddy kinda sad, too, because he had a crush on you."
"Your mama says too much sometimes," Kathryn told her, wiping her face free from ice cream.
Miral nodded, solemnly. "Uncle Chak says that, too."
Kathryn tittered. "Well, little one, we've fed the ducks and had our ice cream. What do you want to do next?"
"Swings!" Miral shouted, running towards the playground, leaving Kathryn to jog after her, a position she found herself in often during the reminder of the afternoon.
"How was she?" B'Elanna asked Kathryn when she opened the door. Miral was sleeping in Kathryn's arms.
Kathryn raised a single eyebrow. "Inquisitive as always."
B'Elanna groaned, raising her hand to her head. "I am so sorry. She has ears like a damn Vulcan."
"It's okay, really," Kathryn reassured her, grinning widely. "We had a good time."
"I'm glad. I can't thank you enough for these afternoon. She really looks forward to them," B'Elanna told her.
Kathryn kissed Miral's forehead as she laid her on the couch. "So do I. If Aislinn is half as brilliant as Miral is, Chakotay and I will be doing something right."
B'Elanna beamed as she walked Kathryn to the door. "You guys are coming to the picnic next Saturday, right?"
"Wouldn't miss it." She placed her hand on B'Elanna's arm. "Please let us know if there's anything we can do for Harry or Lily."
"I will."
Kathryn gave her another smile before turning to leave. She stopped just past the threshold and looked over her shoulder, her eyes twinkling with amusement. "One more thing: stop using the kid to weasel out information. Baby number three comes in just about six months."
END