Title: Immaculation
Author: Singing Violin
Summary: Janeway gets the gift of a lifetime.
Disclaimer: They're not mine.

Kathryn's auburn hair shone in the moonlight, accentuating her graceful beauty against the backdrop of trees and grass. Sadness settled upon Mark's heart as he memorized her features, noting how she seemed almost to glow from within.

"I suppose you should get to packing," he uttered, his voice tinged with regret.

Kathryn cleared her throat. "Actually," she told him matter-of-factly, though there was a hint of nervousness in her voice, "I've turned down Voyager."

Stunned, he stared at her, speechless. Finally, he croaked out a reply. "Why?" He worried even as his heart soared.

She looked directly into his eyes, seeming to check whether he was ready to hear what she intended to say. He wasn't, but she couldn't wait any longer. "I'm pregnant."

He blinked and paled, but recovered quickly. A smile spread across his features and he reached out to her, enveloping her in a warm embrace. "I love you so much," he said, tears welling in his eyes.

"I love you too," she replied without hesitation.

Eight months later…

"Push, Kathryn, push!"

Sweat streaming down her face, she knew she'd come to the end of her arduous journey, and the idea of holding the baby in her arms spurred her to continue, though she felt she had nothing left.

"It's crowning," said the nurse. "Just a few more pushes."

Kathryn groaned, waiting for the next contraction. It arrived massively, and she pushed harder than she ever had before, feeling the head stuck between her legs.

"You're doing great. Two more."

With the next contraction, she pushed again, and felt the head slide out. Even though she was exhausted and in pain, joy filled her as she anticipated seeing her child's face for the first time.

"One more. Push!"

With that, the body was out, and for a moment, she felt empty, before they placed the baby upon her chest and covered them both with a blanket.

"Congratulations, Ms. Janeway, you have a baby girl."

She was too distracted to notice she'd delivered the placenta while they were wiping the baby clean of her fluids. As the child squirmed upon her, she gently embraced it, noting how small and fragile it seemed, but yet how natural, how similar to what she'd felt inside her during the last few months.

Just then, Mark ran in, and she smiled at him. "We're parents," she announced.

A flash of panic crossed his features for a moment. "I missed it? I thought…"

"It's okay," she reassured him. "The puppies needed tending. Just come meet your daughter." She lifted the corner of the blanket so he could see.

"She's beautiful," he sighed. "I'm so proud of you both."

Kathryn smiled.

Six months later…

"Are you sure it's okay to take her into space?" Mark asked apprehensively. "She's still so small."

Kathryn chuckled. "Thousands of human babies have been born and raised in space. She'll be fine. Besides, it's only a short trip. We owe your folks a visit; after all, they made the trip to see us, and they haven't seen her since she was a newborn. She's so different now!"

He peered at his daughter, sleeping peacefully in her crib. "I suppose you're right," he admitted. "When do we leave?"

"Oh eight hundred," she replied. Her voice was eager, betraying her yen to be back in space after a long hiatus. Mark nodded his assent, knowing there was no better pilot than his wife.

Two days later…

Mark peered at his sleeping wife and daughter, wondering whether he should risk waking them. The shuttlecraft shook, and he made his decision.

Gently, he took hold of her shoulder and began to rub it. She moaned, but as another quake almost made him lose his balance, her lids fluttered open and alarm began to register on her face.

"Containment leak," the computer warned. "Evacuate craft immediately."

Still groggy, Kathryn knew what she needed to do. She handed the child to her husband and ordered him to take her to the escape pod.

He objected.

She shook her head. "I think I can fix this, but the fumes are toxic, and I don't want her inhaling them. She'll be safe in there; it's got its own environmental controls. You can wait for me in the escape pod. I'll come if I can't get this working."

"But…" he tried.

"Don't make me order you," she insisted.

"Yes, Captain," he replied bitterly, and obeyed.

The baby screamed.

"Evacuate immediately," the computer insisted.

Feverishly, Kathryn worked at the controls. Suddenly, she felt a hand on her shoulder. Startled, she turned around.

"I couldn't leave you alone," he explained.

The baby's cries were still audible.

"You idiot," Kathryn yelled. "Someone needs to take care of her. I can take care of myself."

"I…"

Just then, the shuttle exploded.

"Captain, I'm reading a rift up ahead," stated Tuvok.

She raised an eyebrow as she walked towards the viewscreen.

"Something's emerging," observed Paris. "It's small…an escape pod. Federation markings!"

"Life forms?" the captain asked.

"One. A human infant. Female," Tuvok answered.

"No adults?" asked the captain incredulously.

"None," was the matter-of-fact reply.

She blinked. "Beam her straight to Sickbay."

Then the captain tapped her communicator. "Janeway to the Doctor," she ordered. At his acknowledgment, she continued. "We are beaming you a patient now, Doctor. She's been in an escape pod for an unknown length of time."

"I've got her," he answered, scanning the baby with his tricorder.

"Captain, you'd better get down here," he told her.

"I'm on my way."

No sooner than she had walked through the doors, he began to brief her on his patient's condition. "She's in good health," he affirmed, "though a bit dehydrated. I estimate she was alone in the escape pod for between twelve and twenty-four hours. But there's something else."

"Yes?" the captain prompted.

"She's…yours."

"What?" asked Janeway, baffled. "You mean, in the sense that she was essentially abandoned on our doorstep?"

"No, Captain," he qualified. "Genetically, you are her mother."

The captain shook her head. "That's not possible. I've never been pregnant. And I've never extracted eggs either."

"Nevertheless, Captain, she is your daughter."

Janeway swallowed. "And who is her father?"

"Nobody on this ship. I can look through the database of…"

The captain interrupted as she peered at the sleeping infant with new interest. "No need. I think I have an idea. She has his nose."

"Whose, if I may ask?"

"Mark's. My fiance's. I…I always wanted a child with him, but the time was never right. My guess is the rift through which she came was a rift in space-time. She's from a parallel universe. And we've got to get her home."

She tapped her communicator. "Janeway to Tuvok. Is that rift still evident?"

"No, Captain, it closed shortly after the escape pod came through."

Her heart sank. "Acknowledged. Did anything else come through it?"

"Only a small amount of debris, apparently from the shuttlecraft to which the escape pod belonged."

Janeway closed her eyes for a moment, realizing that the baby's parents…including another version of herself…were almost certainly dead. In any case, the chances of being able to send the baby home when the rift had also closed were slim to none, especially as they would have no idea which parallel universe to send her back to.

It seemed the captain had a new permanent guest onboard.

As if to reaffirm her conclusion, the baby woke and began to cry. The doctor attempted to soothe her, but she continued to scream in fury. However, when Janeway neared the biobed, the infant reached out her arms. Tentatively, Janeway scooped her up, at which point the cries quieted instantly.

Then the baby began to nuzzle and paw at her breast.

Tears formed in Janeway's eyes. "I have no milk for you," she told the child. "I know you think I'm your mother, but…" Then she stopped. "I guess I am your mother now."