Without Coffee: [Sequel to Together at last]
By Sadie
Disclaimer: All characters owned by Paramount, but its my idea.
"My, my Kathryn Janeway, you are looking marvelous."
"Why thank you Admiral."
"So are you and Chakotay ready for the USS Voyager A?"
"That's what I've been meaning to talk to you about."
"Oh?"
"Yes," Kathryn explained, "you asked me if I wanted to captain another ship about four months ago. Well, you see, before that Chakotay and I were trying to start a family, but it wasn't working. So, we went to our doctor but nothing worked. Then you asked me about the ship and Chakotay and I decided to except the mission. We figured that once we got back that we would try to adopt a child."
"I already knew that."
"Yes, but you don't know this. About two weeks ago I was starting to become sick in the mornings and just did not feel like myself, so I went to the doctor. He told me that I was a month and a half pregnant at the time."
"Wow, so you still are... um..."
"Yes, I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner, but the doctor said that there was a very high risk of a miscarriage in the first two months and that only family and close friends should be told."
"Oh, well we'll have to make do the ship can't be stopped from leaving port now."
"I guess not."
"Well, congratulations."
"Thank you."
"We'll have to have a doctor on board that knows what they're doing."
"We will sir. The doctor that is taking care of me is the same one who will be onboard the USS Voyager A."
"Good. Well, have fun at the party and I will see you and your crew tomorrow."
"Okay, good bye."
"Bye."
After the Admiral had left, Chakotay came up from behind her.
"Did I ever tell you that you look beautiful in that dress?"
"I think so, just a few times. You know I had to get more use out of it than just our wedding night. Besides, it is very comfortable and I think it looks good on me."
"I agree with you."
"Good; I told the Admiral."
"The sooner the better."
"I suppose you're right, but he didn't take it the greatest."
"It's not his business telling us whether we can have children or not."
"I know, but still..."
"Come on, let's enjoy the party."
"Okay." At that they walked into the room arm in arm, together, as they should be. Everyone noticed the weight Kathryn had lost, but they did not know that it was from the stress of not being able to become pregnant. She was finally happy now. That was what they both wanted.
Just then Tom spotted them.
"Hi! God, I haven't seen you in ages. How are you doing?"
"I'm doing great, Tom. You?"
"Pretty good. It was hard for a while when Miral was a newborn and all, but we made it through that just fine. How are you doing Kathryn?"
"Never been better."
"I can see that, my goodness you've lost a good deal of weight and are looking the best I've seen you in a long time."
"Thanks. I think I'm going to go find B'Elanna and a few of the others and catch up with them."
"Okay, I'll see you later."
"Kay, bye."
That night Kathryn finally got to see B'Elanna and Miral. Kathryn had only seen pictures of Miral when her birth statement had arrived in the mail. She also chatted with people like Tuvok, Seven of Nine, and Harry. It had been so long since she had last seen them all. It had been one year and four months to the date that Voyager had landed. It seemed like an eternity. As the night ended Kathryn was sure she had made the right choice in deciding to captain the USS Voyager A. Chakotay walked her home, and they got a good night's rest before their departure tomorrow.
* * *
"Good morning everyone," Kathryn said as the rest of the crew boarded the ship. Once again they would be out in space defending territory lines, identifying new creatures, and things of the sort.
"Morning Captain," Tom replied.
"Is Mr. Paris the only one awake without a hangover this morning, by the looks of it I would say so?"
"Captain you have to remember some of your senior staff has yet to board the ship."
"Oh, yes. Let's see here, I think we are still missing Tuvok and B'Elanna."
"B'Elanna should be here any moment, she was just making sure that a few of the last minute things were taken care of."
"Okay, Tom, but where's Tuvok? He and his wife were going to come on board."
"His wife?"
"Yes, she has graduated from the Star Fleet Academy and has decided to join us."
"Oh."
"It's not like Tuvok to be late."
"No, it's not," Chakotay replied just coming out of a daze.
Just then B'Elanna entered the room with Miral hiding behind her leg. Tuvok was in back of B'Elanna.
"I apologize for being late Captain. Our flight was late coming into San Francisco, sorry. I was told to notify you that I was last to board. We are ready to leave."
"Thank you. Please take your place."
"Yes Captain."
After everyone was settled in the USS Voyager A, it took off. Over three-fourths of the Voyager A's crew was with the Voyager when it took off over eight years ago. It was almost like a reunion. The USS Voyager A was supposed to be in space for about eight to twelve months, but then again, look at what happened to the USS Voyager.
* * *
Once the ship was past the outer planets of the Sol System, Captain Janeway let Ensign Harry Kim and his crew take over the bridge. The senior officers and their families, which had come aboard with them, gathered together.
"You know Chakotay," Kathryn whispered to him, "now would be a good time to tell them."
"Okay, tonight it is."
But before Janeway could speak Tom said, "For old times sake, how about a game of Charades."
Everyone agreed, except for Tuvok and his wife, of course, who later joined in.
"I'll go first," Tom volunteered.
He held up four fingers.
"Four words," Kathryn said.
Then he held up one finger.
"First word."
He pointed to Miral.
"Baby?"
"Child?"
He shook his head.
"Miral!"
He nodded and held up two fingers.
"Second word."
Then he held up one finger. This confused everyone.
"One?"
"First word?"
"First?"
He nodded again.
"So we have Miral and first; Miral's first what?"
Tom acted like he was blowing something.
"Bubble?"
"Candles?"
"Blowing out candles," Kathryn mumbled, "Birthday party!"
"Yep," Tom said, "I thought we could act out what's gone on in our lives since we last saw each other."
"Okay. Hey Tuvok, you're next."
"I still think this is a very illogical game. We could just talk to each other."
"Come on Tuvok, it's fun," Tom jeered.
So Tuvok and his wife got up and after a while of really bad acting B'Elanna said, "Oh, I know, you renewed your wedding vows."
"Yes."
"Captain, Chakotay, it's your turn."
"This it?" Kathryn asked in a very hushed voice.
"Yea, I think so."
Kathryn held up five fingers.
"Five words."
Then Chakotay held up one finger.
"One word."
Chakotay pointed to himself and then to Kathryn.
"The two of you, or you?"
They nodded as Kathryn held up five fingers.
"Fifth word?"
As they nodded again Kathryn rocked her arms back and forth as if she was rocking a baby.
"Baby," B'Elanna said, "You're having a baby!"
"B'Elanna, you're way too good at this," Tom said, "Wait, you're having a baby? Congratulations!"
"I'm so happy for you," B'Elanna exclaimed.
"Congratulations," Tuvok said.
"How far along are you?" Tuvok's wife asked.
"About two months."
"Wow."
"I'm going to make an announcement to the rest of the crew tomorrow morning."
That night everyone talked to each other. Everyone knew almost as much about their baby as they did themselves. They both felt relieved now because they knew that they didn't have anymore secrets to hide.
* * *
The next morning Kathryn and Chakotay made their announcement to the crew and then Kathryn headed off to her pre-scheduled appointment with the doctor. The rest of the day went on without anything unusual happening.
* * *
Their first two months on Voyager A passed by very quickly. Kathryn began having mood swings every so often and her stomach was beginning to show. It was time for her next visit to the doctor.
"Hello."
"Hello Captain, how are you feeling?"
"Other than the fact that I have to go to the bathroom every two minutes and that I feel like I'm going to vomit almost every morning, great."
"Well, all that seems normal. I'll give you some pills to stop you from feeling nauseated. But for now, let's start with the tests."
"Okay."
The doctor scanned her a few times over and exclaimed, "Wow!"
"What?"
"There are two things that come to my attention. Good or bad first?"
"Bad."
"I hate to inform you, but I'm going to have to tell you that you may not drink any more coffee."
"Damn! Why?"
"There's too much caffeine in your system."
"So couldn't I just have one cup a day?"
"No. One cup would turn to two and two to three. Before you know it you would be drinking your normal amount. Which by the way is what?"
"Don't even ask. You have good news?"
"The good news is that your babies are in perfect condition," the doctor announced with a smirk on his face.
"Babies, as in the plural form?"
"Yes, two of them."
"Oh my God," she said as she dropped into a sort of daze.
"Earth to the captain. Hello? Are you okay?"
"Oh, yea, I'm okay. I just need to sit here for a few moments, take it all in."
"Good idea. I advise you to go to your quarters and catch on some of that rest that you've been depriving yourself of. I'll go inform Chakotay."
"But..."
"No buts about it; that's an order."
So, the doctor went to the bridge and told Chakotay that the captain was in her quarters and was not to come back to the bridge until the next day. After that he returned to sickbay thinking to himself, "You know, I should probably follow the captain around for the next few days, shadow her, and make sure that she doesn't get her hands on any coffee. It will be one of my most challenging missions yet, but I'll do it. If I tell Neelix, he won't give her any coffee, and that will be a big help. Kathryn hates getting her own coffee." But the doctor forgot, and Neelix went on with his daily routine, uninformed.
* * *
"Hello Kathryn," Chakotay said as he walked into their quarters.
"Hello."
"You seem excited, like you're going to burst at the seems if you don't tell anyone. How'd the appointment go?"
"Pretty good. Guess what!"
"What?"
"We're not going to have a baby!"
"Why are you so excited then?"
"Because we're going to have two of them!"
"Wow!"
"I know, but there's bad news too."
"Uh oh. How bad?"
"Not that bad. Just I can't have any more coffee for the next six or seven months."
"Shit."
"What, you don't think I can do it?"
"Oh, no. I didn't mean it that way; it's just going to be really tough. That's all."
"You don't think I can do it. Let's make a bet."
"Okay, if you even attempt to get a cup of coffee how about you have to spend an entire day with Neelix, learning how to cook and become a morale leader. And I'll be nice, you only have to go two weeks to prove me wrong."
"Fine, but if I win, which I will, then you have to spend a full day with my Godson, Q."
"You're on."
* * *
The next morning the captain appeared on the bridge just as Neelix was walking in the room.
"Captain, here's your coffee."
"Thank you Neelix."
As Kathryn raised the mug to her lips the doctor came up from behind her and took it away.
"Uh, uh, uh. I told you, no coffee. Sorry Neelix, I forgot to tell you, she can't have coffee for the next five or six months."
"Give me back my coffee."
"No."
"Are you refusing my orders?"
"Yes, for your own good."
"To the Brig!"
"Sorry captain, I only came to check up on you, I'm needed in sickbay. Naomi caught a virus from somewhere on this ship. I'll be back. And remember, no coffee! Chakotay would you keep an eye on her?" At that the doctor turned and left with her cup of coffee.
"Uh, that's not fair. He can't come in here and take my coffee like that. "Neelix, another cup please."
"Sorry captain, that would be against the doctors orders."
"Chakotay?!"
"No, and besides, you just lost our bet."
"Uhh. Tom or Tuvok?"
"It would be very illogical to disobey the doctor's orders."
"No can do."
"Well, make some logic out of this. All of you, Chakotay, Tom, Neelix, Tuvok, to the Brig. Now!"
The four of them were put in the Brig by four of the ensigns on duty, but as they were walking Chakotay used his Comm Badge to talk to the doctor.
"You've got to come down here and let us out of the Brig. And, my goodness, you've got to sedate her or something. She's throwing a temper tantrum!"
"On my way."
Once Captain Janeway was sedated and the four of them were let out of the Brig, they went back to the bridge and enjoyed a somewhat relaxing day, without any other problems from the captain or the ship.
* * *
That evening the captain returned to her quarters from sickbay and went right to bed. It was actually quite early, but she needed it.
A few hours later Tom and Chakotay walked back to their quarters together.
Tom said, "Pregnant women can be a handful. If you ever need to talk or just need a little help just ask, okay?"
"Yea, thanks."
They split their way and Chakotay entered his quarters. Better safe than sorry. He decided to sleep on the couch that night.
When Kathryn woke up she looked over at her clock. It was just about one in the morning. Chakotay still wasn't in bed. She decided that she couldn't sleep and should just go for a walk. This way she could find Chakotay, too. She only had to walk into the living space to find Chakotay lying on the couch. She covered him up with a blanket and went off on her walk. She ended up on the bridge.
"Hello Harry."
"Hello Captain. What are you doing up at this hour?"
"Couldn't sleep."
"Oh."
"Anything interesting happening?"
"Nope."
"Okay. Well, I should probably be getting back to my quarters. See you later in the morning."
"Sleep well."
* * *
"Good morning everyone."
"Morning Captain," a few of the crewmembers replied.
"Tom, are we still on the same course that we were on yesterday?"
"Yes, Captain. We are headed towards a single planet that is revolving around a star in the distance. A ways after that there is a planetary system out there, but we won't reach that for about a month and a half."
"Good. We can stop there and refuel."
There was total silence in the room. No one was talking and nothing was really happening. So, the captain decided to break the endless silence.
"Tuvok, Tom, Chakotay, I'm sorry for yesterday."
"All is forgotten," Tuvok replied.
"No biggie," Tom said.
"I understand," Chakotay followed their leads.
"I really am sorry."
"Just leave it. It never happened."
"Can I make it up to you?"
"Sure," Chakotay said. "First you can just omit it in your log, and second of all, you can apologize to Neelix and spend the rest of the day with him."
"The bet, huh?"
"Yep."
"Well, then I'll see you later."
"Bye."
* * *
"Hello, Neelix."
"Good morning, Captain."
"I'm sorry about yesterday."
"What about it?"
"You guys are way too nice."
"Thank you."
"Could I get you something?"
"Actually, I'm here to try my hand at cooking."
"Well this should be fun. What would you like to make?"
"Well I was thinking something along the lines of spaghetti and meatballs."
"Sounds good. Now, you can start by boiling the noodles and I'll find the ingredients fore the sauce."
"Boil the noodles?"
"Oh my goodness, no one ever taught you to cook?"
She shook her head no.
"Well, than I guess I'll have to. First you need to put the water in the pot. Then turn on the stove to at least 212°F. Once there are bubbles floating to the top at a constant rate you can through in the noodles."
Kathryn only had to sing a few songs with Neelix that afternoon. Mostly Italian. Overall, she actually enjoyed herself, and when the crew ate spaghetti that night, everyone seemed pleased that the captain had helped Neelix. It actually tasted like spaghetti!
"Huh! You didn't think I could do it," Kathryn said to Chakotay as she joined him at one of the mess hall tables.
"I was wrong. You do make a very good chef," Chakotay replied, but then he added softly, "That is, once you learned how to boil the noodles."
Kathryn punched him hard on the arm. "Shut up."
"That hurt."
"You deserved it."
"So I did."
"I'll see you later, Chakotay. I've got to help with the dishes."
"I knew that there would be a down side."
"Bye."
* * *
The next few weeks passed without any problems. They stayed on course, towards the planetary system. The captain was starting another mood swing and everyone knew it. Then, one morning as they were approaching one of the planets the ruler of the planets came over on a transmission.
"Good morning."
"Morning. This is the USS Voyager A NCC-74656," Chakotay took control since the captain was not on the bridge yet.
"You are about to enter the Calpaton planetary system. I am the ruler of Calpaton. Our planets were established as a vegetarian system. We do not believe in the killing or eating of any animal."
"Uh, oh. This is not going to go over very well with the captain. She really took to cooking and the leftovers from yesterday are hamburgers. I advise you not to enforce this on our ship. At the moment she would probably go insane and blow up your entire system if you told her that."
"Told me what, Chakotay."
"Captain Janeway, I presume."
"Yes. Now I'm confused. Who are you?"
"Ruler of Calpaton. The planetary system you are traveling past."
"Now, I would do what, Chakotay?"
"You would not comply," Seven covered for Chakotay.
He whispered, "Thanks."
"I would not comply to what your Highness?"
"To the fact that you may not bring meat past our system."
"Oh, I think that Chakotay might have been wrong."
"What about all of those hamburgers?"
"The crew ate them all between last night at supper and during breakfast."
"Hamburgers for breakfast? Yuck!"
"I thought that they tasted just fine," Harry added.
"That was the last of our meat so we should be able to pass through safely then, right?"
"Yes, Ma'am."
"Well then please let us through."
* * *
Later on the captain and Chakotay went down to the mess hall to eat lunch.
"What would you like?" Neelix asked.
"I don't know. I suppose that it will have to be something with all vegetables."
"Why?"
"Because we got rid of all of our meat. Right Captain?"
"Wrong."
"What?"
"Well, I figured they have no way of checking our supplies except for a manual search. If they were dumb enough to do that I think I would have had a little fun with them. They would never have found any of our food."
"How did you know that they were bluffing then?" Chakotay asked as he passed through the line, ordering a turkey sandwich.
"Easy. I had heard of this system before. They were originally from Earth and departed because they didn't like the way that the government was working there. To tell you the truth, I think that they just want attention. Over half the people in that system probably eat meat."
"Oh."
"So, I heard that there was going to be a party tomorrow evening."
"I heard that too. Would you like to go with me?"
"My pleasure. Do you now if it is going to be casual or formal or what?" Kathryn said as she sat down.
"From what I've heard, ladies are wearing dresses and men are wearing casual clothes."
"My, my, we are being quite the gentleman today."
"So."
"So, I like it."
"Really?"
"Bridge to the captain," Kathryn's Comm Badge beeped.
"Yes?"
"We need you down here right away. One of our engines is down, and if we don't find out what's going on soon, I have a feeling that the other was is going to fail us too."
"Chakotay and I will be there in a minute, Tom."
As they entered the Bridge Chakotay and Kathryn felt a sudden jerk and went tumbling to the ground. Kathryn landed on top of Chakotay.
"This is no time for that you two."
"Shut up Tom, and help me get up."
"Yes Ma'am."
Once the two of them were up Kathryn asked, "What was that?"
"Secondary systems coming back online for the engine down. Now the other engine is starting to go."
"Damn. Captain to B'Elanna, report."
"We are passing through some sort of substance that is giving the engines one heck of a time. It's over heating them."
"Great. Let's find out what this substance is and get rid of it."
"Yes, Captain."
"Report any new information. Out."
"Tom, I have a question for you."
"Yes?"
"Why is it that only one of the engines are down?"
"From what I've gathered, the substance that B'Elanna is talking about is either only on that side of the ship or there is a difference in the engines that makes one vulnerable to the substance and the other not."
"Well, if the substance is only on that side of the ship, which side is it by the way?"
"Starboard."
"Then we need to move at least one width of the ship towards the port."
"Yes, Captain."
Once Tom redirected them the engine began to work on its own, and it went smoothly.
"Captain to B'Elanna, report."
"Well, from what I can tell we just moved through a substance that was like Mercury, but it was transforming from a solid to a liquid."
"That's odd."
"We collected a sample of it. It is now a liquid."
"Of course. Its temperature is now the same as the air where it is being kept. By the way, where is that?"
"In the engineering lab."
"Once you are done we shall have to dispose of it. It is very toxic to most of the life forms on this ship."
"Yes, Captain."
"Janeway, out."
* * *
After Kathryn had been relieved of her duties she went to the mess hall.
"Coffee, black."
"Unable to comply."
"Damn machine. I want my coffee!" Kathryn said as she started kicking and pounding on the replicator.
"Kathryn?" Chakotay asked as he walked into the room.
"What?" she snapped. "Oops. Seven programmed the replicator not to give me any coffee."
"It's okay. I'll get you some hot chocolate. Wait, how did you know it was Seven who reprogrammed it?"
"It used the Borg's famous words, unable to comply. I just want my coffee," she sobbed.
"Come here," he said and cradled her in his arms. "I know it's been rough, but we'll make it through this."
By this point, Kathryn had almost made it through every emotion in the book. If not for the fact that Kathryn couldn't have alcohol or coffee, you would have thought that she was drunk.
She looked up at him, "Really?"
"Really. I love you Kathryn."
"I love you too."
She rested her head on his chest and he ran his finger through her hair.
"All better?" he asked while raising her head up towards him.
"I guess, but I still don't have my coffee."
"I'll get you a cup of tea."
"Fine."
"Did you find your dress for tonight?"
"For what?"
"The party."
"Oops, I forgot all about it. What time is it at?"
"20:00 hours."
"Let's see, that's two hours from now. I should probably go look for it."
"I'll see you in our quarters then."
"Okay, bye," Kathryn said as she walked out with her cup of tea.
* * *
Under ordinary circumstances Kathryn's quarters would have been spotless, but with her mood swings and every thing else that had been going on with the ship, it was atrocious.
"Now, to find that dress."
She started rummaging through piles of dirty laundry. She couldn't find her dress.
"Damn it!"
"Damn what?" Q said as he appeared in front of her in a flash of light.
"My stupid dress. Q!"
"What I can't stop in for a visit?"
"No! I mean yes. I mean...I don't know what I mean."
"Kathy it's alright, don't cry. Why don't you sit down and tell me what's wrong."
She looked at the bed and the chairs in the room. They were covered in clothes and a whole bunch of other things. She didn't feel like moving anything so she sat down on the floor.
"Now, what's wrong? Is Chakotay being mean to you? If he is I'll..."
"Q, shut up."
"Are you defending him?"
"Of coarse, he's my husband."
"Your what?!"
"I thought you knew," Kathryn said calmly although, on the inside she was thinking, "Oh, shit. I've got to tell him everything now, about us getting married and me being pregnant. Wait is he oblivious? He hasn't noticed? My stomach sticks out so far I probably couldn't make it through the Jeffries Tubes anymore."
"The least you could have done was sent me a letter or something, but I wasn't even invited to the wedding," Q said. Kathryn was surprised. He looked like he was offended, like he wanted to be there.
"It was a spur of the moment sort of thing. We got married on Pluto the night before we made it back to Earth."
"I guess you really couldn't have contacted me very easily, so it's alright. But, is there anything else that I need to know?"
"Since you haven't noticed, I should probably tell you that...well...um...I'm pregnant."
"With his child?" Q asked with a hint of disapproval in his voice.
"No."
"Good."
"His children."
"More than one?"
"Yes."
"Kathy, how could you do this to me? First you marry the guy and then you get pregnant with his children?!"
"I'm didn't do anything to you. Now I'm fed up with your childish reactions. I have to find my dress. I'm going to a party tonight and I need it," she said as she crossed her arms.
"Let me help you up then."
"I don't need your help," Kathryn said as she tried to get to her feet. It was useless. She kept on falling over. "Okay, so maybe I do."
Q lifted Kathryn up off the ground and handed her the blue gown she was looking for. "Would this be your dress?"
"Thank you, Q. I've got to get changed."
"Okay, I will see you later. And if I don't see you by the time the babies arrive do let me know. I am expecting to be one of their Godfathers."
"Okay Q, We'll think about it."
With one snap of a finger Q was gone. His visit had lasted less than ten minutes, and it hadn't gone as bad as Kathryn had expected. Q hadn't blown up, and he actually wanted to be a Godfather of one of her children. That couldn't be a bad sign. He had also saved her a lot of time by finding her dress for her.
* * *
About an hour later Chakotay showed up at their quarters. He was ready to go.
"You look simply ravishing, Kathryn. Like an angel."
"Why thank you."
Her dress was pastel blue in color. It had a loose fitting from the bottom of the bust line down. Kathryn almost looked like she could float on air in that dress.
He escorted her to the party and they went off and mingled. Harry had gathered a few people that could play musical instruments and made a band. Kathryn and Chakotay, like Tom and B'Elanna, danced the night away. It was a beautiful evening and the room was decorated with fresh flowers. For a while Harry even got Seven to dance with him while the rest of the band played. Everyone's jaw dropped when they saw her dance. She was magnificent. But after one dance she returned to her old self and decided to go regenerate. Harry and Seven actually made an okay couple, or at least for dancing. The doctor was pleased too, her social skills were definitely improving. The party was an overall success and everyone had a good time.
* * *
The next morning it was time for Kathryn to pay another visit to the doctor. The only thing was that she couldn't stand up on her own to feet. So Chakotay tried to pick her up so that he could carry her, but she had gained too much weight. Chakotay couldn't figure out what to do so he talked to the Doctor.
"Well I suppose we could beam her from her quarters to sickbay."
"Nope, transporter beams are down. Maybe you could make a house call?"
"How is she going to make it to the bridge and the rest of the places on the ship that she needs to go?"
"Good question."
"Well, we could replicate something that they used for getting around in the 20^th century."
"Oh, I've heard Tom talk about the things that people traveled in back then. What did he call them... oh, yea, cars."
"Not quite."
"I could have sworn he said that they were called cars."
"They are called cars, but they are much too big. The width of one of the corridors or wider."
"So what are you talking about?"
"It's called a wheelchair."
"Never heard of it."
"It's like a chair on wheels."
"Explains the name."
"I'll go replicate one and bring it up to Kathryn. That way she can get around the ship if she would like."
"Thanks. I'll go tell her that you'll be up in a few minutes."
"Okay."
* * *
The Doctor checked out Kathryn and couldn't find anything wrong, so he gave her a pill for the pain. As she was walking out the door she turned back and said, "Isn't there a way to tell if the babies are boys or girls?"
"Yes, but I didn't think you wanted to know. I thought you liked surprises. But, if you like, you can drop by tomorrow morning and I can run a test to tell. Think about it, talk to Chakotay, surprises are fun."
"Thanks. I'll see you later."
"Good bye, Captain."
By Sadie
Disclaimer: All characters owned by Paramount, but its my idea.
"My, my Kathryn Janeway, you are looking marvelous."
"Why thank you Admiral."
"So are you and Chakotay ready for the USS Voyager A?"
"That's what I've been meaning to talk to you about."
"Oh?"
"Yes," Kathryn explained, "you asked me if I wanted to captain another ship about four months ago. Well, you see, before that Chakotay and I were trying to start a family, but it wasn't working. So, we went to our doctor but nothing worked. Then you asked me about the ship and Chakotay and I decided to except the mission. We figured that once we got back that we would try to adopt a child."
"I already knew that."
"Yes, but you don't know this. About two weeks ago I was starting to become sick in the mornings and just did not feel like myself, so I went to the doctor. He told me that I was a month and a half pregnant at the time."
"Wow, so you still are... um..."
"Yes, I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner, but the doctor said that there was a very high risk of a miscarriage in the first two months and that only family and close friends should be told."
"Oh, well we'll have to make do the ship can't be stopped from leaving port now."
"I guess not."
"Well, congratulations."
"Thank you."
"We'll have to have a doctor on board that knows what they're doing."
"We will sir. The doctor that is taking care of me is the same one who will be onboard the USS Voyager A."
"Good. Well, have fun at the party and I will see you and your crew tomorrow."
"Okay, good bye."
"Bye."
After the Admiral had left, Chakotay came up from behind her.
"Did I ever tell you that you look beautiful in that dress?"
"I think so, just a few times. You know I had to get more use out of it than just our wedding night. Besides, it is very comfortable and I think it looks good on me."
"I agree with you."
"Good; I told the Admiral."
"The sooner the better."
"I suppose you're right, but he didn't take it the greatest."
"It's not his business telling us whether we can have children or not."
"I know, but still..."
"Come on, let's enjoy the party."
"Okay." At that they walked into the room arm in arm, together, as they should be. Everyone noticed the weight Kathryn had lost, but they did not know that it was from the stress of not being able to become pregnant. She was finally happy now. That was what they both wanted.
Just then Tom spotted them.
"Hi! God, I haven't seen you in ages. How are you doing?"
"I'm doing great, Tom. You?"
"Pretty good. It was hard for a while when Miral was a newborn and all, but we made it through that just fine. How are you doing Kathryn?"
"Never been better."
"I can see that, my goodness you've lost a good deal of weight and are looking the best I've seen you in a long time."
"Thanks. I think I'm going to go find B'Elanna and a few of the others and catch up with them."
"Okay, I'll see you later."
"Kay, bye."
That night Kathryn finally got to see B'Elanna and Miral. Kathryn had only seen pictures of Miral when her birth statement had arrived in the mail. She also chatted with people like Tuvok, Seven of Nine, and Harry. It had been so long since she had last seen them all. It had been one year and four months to the date that Voyager had landed. It seemed like an eternity. As the night ended Kathryn was sure she had made the right choice in deciding to captain the USS Voyager A. Chakotay walked her home, and they got a good night's rest before their departure tomorrow.
* * *
"Good morning everyone," Kathryn said as the rest of the crew boarded the ship. Once again they would be out in space defending territory lines, identifying new creatures, and things of the sort.
"Morning Captain," Tom replied.
"Is Mr. Paris the only one awake without a hangover this morning, by the looks of it I would say so?"
"Captain you have to remember some of your senior staff has yet to board the ship."
"Oh, yes. Let's see here, I think we are still missing Tuvok and B'Elanna."
"B'Elanna should be here any moment, she was just making sure that a few of the last minute things were taken care of."
"Okay, Tom, but where's Tuvok? He and his wife were going to come on board."
"His wife?"
"Yes, she has graduated from the Star Fleet Academy and has decided to join us."
"Oh."
"It's not like Tuvok to be late."
"No, it's not," Chakotay replied just coming out of a daze.
Just then B'Elanna entered the room with Miral hiding behind her leg. Tuvok was in back of B'Elanna.
"I apologize for being late Captain. Our flight was late coming into San Francisco, sorry. I was told to notify you that I was last to board. We are ready to leave."
"Thank you. Please take your place."
"Yes Captain."
After everyone was settled in the USS Voyager A, it took off. Over three-fourths of the Voyager A's crew was with the Voyager when it took off over eight years ago. It was almost like a reunion. The USS Voyager A was supposed to be in space for about eight to twelve months, but then again, look at what happened to the USS Voyager.
* * *
Once the ship was past the outer planets of the Sol System, Captain Janeway let Ensign Harry Kim and his crew take over the bridge. The senior officers and their families, which had come aboard with them, gathered together.
"You know Chakotay," Kathryn whispered to him, "now would be a good time to tell them."
"Okay, tonight it is."
But before Janeway could speak Tom said, "For old times sake, how about a game of Charades."
Everyone agreed, except for Tuvok and his wife, of course, who later joined in.
"I'll go first," Tom volunteered.
He held up four fingers.
"Four words," Kathryn said.
Then he held up one finger.
"First word."
He pointed to Miral.
"Baby?"
"Child?"
He shook his head.
"Miral!"
He nodded and held up two fingers.
"Second word."
Then he held up one finger. This confused everyone.
"One?"
"First word?"
"First?"
He nodded again.
"So we have Miral and first; Miral's first what?"
Tom acted like he was blowing something.
"Bubble?"
"Candles?"
"Blowing out candles," Kathryn mumbled, "Birthday party!"
"Yep," Tom said, "I thought we could act out what's gone on in our lives since we last saw each other."
"Okay. Hey Tuvok, you're next."
"I still think this is a very illogical game. We could just talk to each other."
"Come on Tuvok, it's fun," Tom jeered.
So Tuvok and his wife got up and after a while of really bad acting B'Elanna said, "Oh, I know, you renewed your wedding vows."
"Yes."
"Captain, Chakotay, it's your turn."
"This it?" Kathryn asked in a very hushed voice.
"Yea, I think so."
Kathryn held up five fingers.
"Five words."
Then Chakotay held up one finger.
"One word."
Chakotay pointed to himself and then to Kathryn.
"The two of you, or you?"
They nodded as Kathryn held up five fingers.
"Fifth word?"
As they nodded again Kathryn rocked her arms back and forth as if she was rocking a baby.
"Baby," B'Elanna said, "You're having a baby!"
"B'Elanna, you're way too good at this," Tom said, "Wait, you're having a baby? Congratulations!"
"I'm so happy for you," B'Elanna exclaimed.
"Congratulations," Tuvok said.
"How far along are you?" Tuvok's wife asked.
"About two months."
"Wow."
"I'm going to make an announcement to the rest of the crew tomorrow morning."
That night everyone talked to each other. Everyone knew almost as much about their baby as they did themselves. They both felt relieved now because they knew that they didn't have anymore secrets to hide.
* * *
The next morning Kathryn and Chakotay made their announcement to the crew and then Kathryn headed off to her pre-scheduled appointment with the doctor. The rest of the day went on without anything unusual happening.
* * *
Their first two months on Voyager A passed by very quickly. Kathryn began having mood swings every so often and her stomach was beginning to show. It was time for her next visit to the doctor.
"Hello."
"Hello Captain, how are you feeling?"
"Other than the fact that I have to go to the bathroom every two minutes and that I feel like I'm going to vomit almost every morning, great."
"Well, all that seems normal. I'll give you some pills to stop you from feeling nauseated. But for now, let's start with the tests."
"Okay."
The doctor scanned her a few times over and exclaimed, "Wow!"
"What?"
"There are two things that come to my attention. Good or bad first?"
"Bad."
"I hate to inform you, but I'm going to have to tell you that you may not drink any more coffee."
"Damn! Why?"
"There's too much caffeine in your system."
"So couldn't I just have one cup a day?"
"No. One cup would turn to two and two to three. Before you know it you would be drinking your normal amount. Which by the way is what?"
"Don't even ask. You have good news?"
"The good news is that your babies are in perfect condition," the doctor announced with a smirk on his face.
"Babies, as in the plural form?"
"Yes, two of them."
"Oh my God," she said as she dropped into a sort of daze.
"Earth to the captain. Hello? Are you okay?"
"Oh, yea, I'm okay. I just need to sit here for a few moments, take it all in."
"Good idea. I advise you to go to your quarters and catch on some of that rest that you've been depriving yourself of. I'll go inform Chakotay."
"But..."
"No buts about it; that's an order."
So, the doctor went to the bridge and told Chakotay that the captain was in her quarters and was not to come back to the bridge until the next day. After that he returned to sickbay thinking to himself, "You know, I should probably follow the captain around for the next few days, shadow her, and make sure that she doesn't get her hands on any coffee. It will be one of my most challenging missions yet, but I'll do it. If I tell Neelix, he won't give her any coffee, and that will be a big help. Kathryn hates getting her own coffee." But the doctor forgot, and Neelix went on with his daily routine, uninformed.
* * *
"Hello Kathryn," Chakotay said as he walked into their quarters.
"Hello."
"You seem excited, like you're going to burst at the seems if you don't tell anyone. How'd the appointment go?"
"Pretty good. Guess what!"
"What?"
"We're not going to have a baby!"
"Why are you so excited then?"
"Because we're going to have two of them!"
"Wow!"
"I know, but there's bad news too."
"Uh oh. How bad?"
"Not that bad. Just I can't have any more coffee for the next six or seven months."
"Shit."
"What, you don't think I can do it?"
"Oh, no. I didn't mean it that way; it's just going to be really tough. That's all."
"You don't think I can do it. Let's make a bet."
"Okay, if you even attempt to get a cup of coffee how about you have to spend an entire day with Neelix, learning how to cook and become a morale leader. And I'll be nice, you only have to go two weeks to prove me wrong."
"Fine, but if I win, which I will, then you have to spend a full day with my Godson, Q."
"You're on."
* * *
The next morning the captain appeared on the bridge just as Neelix was walking in the room.
"Captain, here's your coffee."
"Thank you Neelix."
As Kathryn raised the mug to her lips the doctor came up from behind her and took it away.
"Uh, uh, uh. I told you, no coffee. Sorry Neelix, I forgot to tell you, she can't have coffee for the next five or six months."
"Give me back my coffee."
"No."
"Are you refusing my orders?"
"Yes, for your own good."
"To the Brig!"
"Sorry captain, I only came to check up on you, I'm needed in sickbay. Naomi caught a virus from somewhere on this ship. I'll be back. And remember, no coffee! Chakotay would you keep an eye on her?" At that the doctor turned and left with her cup of coffee.
"Uh, that's not fair. He can't come in here and take my coffee like that. "Neelix, another cup please."
"Sorry captain, that would be against the doctors orders."
"Chakotay?!"
"No, and besides, you just lost our bet."
"Uhh. Tom or Tuvok?"
"It would be very illogical to disobey the doctor's orders."
"No can do."
"Well, make some logic out of this. All of you, Chakotay, Tom, Neelix, Tuvok, to the Brig. Now!"
The four of them were put in the Brig by four of the ensigns on duty, but as they were walking Chakotay used his Comm Badge to talk to the doctor.
"You've got to come down here and let us out of the Brig. And, my goodness, you've got to sedate her or something. She's throwing a temper tantrum!"
"On my way."
Once Captain Janeway was sedated and the four of them were let out of the Brig, they went back to the bridge and enjoyed a somewhat relaxing day, without any other problems from the captain or the ship.
* * *
That evening the captain returned to her quarters from sickbay and went right to bed. It was actually quite early, but she needed it.
A few hours later Tom and Chakotay walked back to their quarters together.
Tom said, "Pregnant women can be a handful. If you ever need to talk or just need a little help just ask, okay?"
"Yea, thanks."
They split their way and Chakotay entered his quarters. Better safe than sorry. He decided to sleep on the couch that night.
When Kathryn woke up she looked over at her clock. It was just about one in the morning. Chakotay still wasn't in bed. She decided that she couldn't sleep and should just go for a walk. This way she could find Chakotay, too. She only had to walk into the living space to find Chakotay lying on the couch. She covered him up with a blanket and went off on her walk. She ended up on the bridge.
"Hello Harry."
"Hello Captain. What are you doing up at this hour?"
"Couldn't sleep."
"Oh."
"Anything interesting happening?"
"Nope."
"Okay. Well, I should probably be getting back to my quarters. See you later in the morning."
"Sleep well."
* * *
"Good morning everyone."
"Morning Captain," a few of the crewmembers replied.
"Tom, are we still on the same course that we were on yesterday?"
"Yes, Captain. We are headed towards a single planet that is revolving around a star in the distance. A ways after that there is a planetary system out there, but we won't reach that for about a month and a half."
"Good. We can stop there and refuel."
There was total silence in the room. No one was talking and nothing was really happening. So, the captain decided to break the endless silence.
"Tuvok, Tom, Chakotay, I'm sorry for yesterday."
"All is forgotten," Tuvok replied.
"No biggie," Tom said.
"I understand," Chakotay followed their leads.
"I really am sorry."
"Just leave it. It never happened."
"Can I make it up to you?"
"Sure," Chakotay said. "First you can just omit it in your log, and second of all, you can apologize to Neelix and spend the rest of the day with him."
"The bet, huh?"
"Yep."
"Well, then I'll see you later."
"Bye."
* * *
"Hello, Neelix."
"Good morning, Captain."
"I'm sorry about yesterday."
"What about it?"
"You guys are way too nice."
"Thank you."
"Could I get you something?"
"Actually, I'm here to try my hand at cooking."
"Well this should be fun. What would you like to make?"
"Well I was thinking something along the lines of spaghetti and meatballs."
"Sounds good. Now, you can start by boiling the noodles and I'll find the ingredients fore the sauce."
"Boil the noodles?"
"Oh my goodness, no one ever taught you to cook?"
She shook her head no.
"Well, than I guess I'll have to. First you need to put the water in the pot. Then turn on the stove to at least 212°F. Once there are bubbles floating to the top at a constant rate you can through in the noodles."
Kathryn only had to sing a few songs with Neelix that afternoon. Mostly Italian. Overall, she actually enjoyed herself, and when the crew ate spaghetti that night, everyone seemed pleased that the captain had helped Neelix. It actually tasted like spaghetti!
"Huh! You didn't think I could do it," Kathryn said to Chakotay as she joined him at one of the mess hall tables.
"I was wrong. You do make a very good chef," Chakotay replied, but then he added softly, "That is, once you learned how to boil the noodles."
Kathryn punched him hard on the arm. "Shut up."
"That hurt."
"You deserved it."
"So I did."
"I'll see you later, Chakotay. I've got to help with the dishes."
"I knew that there would be a down side."
"Bye."
* * *
The next few weeks passed without any problems. They stayed on course, towards the planetary system. The captain was starting another mood swing and everyone knew it. Then, one morning as they were approaching one of the planets the ruler of the planets came over on a transmission.
"Good morning."
"Morning. This is the USS Voyager A NCC-74656," Chakotay took control since the captain was not on the bridge yet.
"You are about to enter the Calpaton planetary system. I am the ruler of Calpaton. Our planets were established as a vegetarian system. We do not believe in the killing or eating of any animal."
"Uh, oh. This is not going to go over very well with the captain. She really took to cooking and the leftovers from yesterday are hamburgers. I advise you not to enforce this on our ship. At the moment she would probably go insane and blow up your entire system if you told her that."
"Told me what, Chakotay."
"Captain Janeway, I presume."
"Yes. Now I'm confused. Who are you?"
"Ruler of Calpaton. The planetary system you are traveling past."
"Now, I would do what, Chakotay?"
"You would not comply," Seven covered for Chakotay.
He whispered, "Thanks."
"I would not comply to what your Highness?"
"To the fact that you may not bring meat past our system."
"Oh, I think that Chakotay might have been wrong."
"What about all of those hamburgers?"
"The crew ate them all between last night at supper and during breakfast."
"Hamburgers for breakfast? Yuck!"
"I thought that they tasted just fine," Harry added.
"That was the last of our meat so we should be able to pass through safely then, right?"
"Yes, Ma'am."
"Well then please let us through."
* * *
Later on the captain and Chakotay went down to the mess hall to eat lunch.
"What would you like?" Neelix asked.
"I don't know. I suppose that it will have to be something with all vegetables."
"Why?"
"Because we got rid of all of our meat. Right Captain?"
"Wrong."
"What?"
"Well, I figured they have no way of checking our supplies except for a manual search. If they were dumb enough to do that I think I would have had a little fun with them. They would never have found any of our food."
"How did you know that they were bluffing then?" Chakotay asked as he passed through the line, ordering a turkey sandwich.
"Easy. I had heard of this system before. They were originally from Earth and departed because they didn't like the way that the government was working there. To tell you the truth, I think that they just want attention. Over half the people in that system probably eat meat."
"Oh."
"So, I heard that there was going to be a party tomorrow evening."
"I heard that too. Would you like to go with me?"
"My pleasure. Do you now if it is going to be casual or formal or what?" Kathryn said as she sat down.
"From what I've heard, ladies are wearing dresses and men are wearing casual clothes."
"My, my, we are being quite the gentleman today."
"So."
"So, I like it."
"Really?"
"Bridge to the captain," Kathryn's Comm Badge beeped.
"Yes?"
"We need you down here right away. One of our engines is down, and if we don't find out what's going on soon, I have a feeling that the other was is going to fail us too."
"Chakotay and I will be there in a minute, Tom."
As they entered the Bridge Chakotay and Kathryn felt a sudden jerk and went tumbling to the ground. Kathryn landed on top of Chakotay.
"This is no time for that you two."
"Shut up Tom, and help me get up."
"Yes Ma'am."
Once the two of them were up Kathryn asked, "What was that?"
"Secondary systems coming back online for the engine down. Now the other engine is starting to go."
"Damn. Captain to B'Elanna, report."
"We are passing through some sort of substance that is giving the engines one heck of a time. It's over heating them."
"Great. Let's find out what this substance is and get rid of it."
"Yes, Captain."
"Report any new information. Out."
"Tom, I have a question for you."
"Yes?"
"Why is it that only one of the engines are down?"
"From what I've gathered, the substance that B'Elanna is talking about is either only on that side of the ship or there is a difference in the engines that makes one vulnerable to the substance and the other not."
"Well, if the substance is only on that side of the ship, which side is it by the way?"
"Starboard."
"Then we need to move at least one width of the ship towards the port."
"Yes, Captain."
Once Tom redirected them the engine began to work on its own, and it went smoothly.
"Captain to B'Elanna, report."
"Well, from what I can tell we just moved through a substance that was like Mercury, but it was transforming from a solid to a liquid."
"That's odd."
"We collected a sample of it. It is now a liquid."
"Of course. Its temperature is now the same as the air where it is being kept. By the way, where is that?"
"In the engineering lab."
"Once you are done we shall have to dispose of it. It is very toxic to most of the life forms on this ship."
"Yes, Captain."
"Janeway, out."
* * *
After Kathryn had been relieved of her duties she went to the mess hall.
"Coffee, black."
"Unable to comply."
"Damn machine. I want my coffee!" Kathryn said as she started kicking and pounding on the replicator.
"Kathryn?" Chakotay asked as he walked into the room.
"What?" she snapped. "Oops. Seven programmed the replicator not to give me any coffee."
"It's okay. I'll get you some hot chocolate. Wait, how did you know it was Seven who reprogrammed it?"
"It used the Borg's famous words, unable to comply. I just want my coffee," she sobbed.
"Come here," he said and cradled her in his arms. "I know it's been rough, but we'll make it through this."
By this point, Kathryn had almost made it through every emotion in the book. If not for the fact that Kathryn couldn't have alcohol or coffee, you would have thought that she was drunk.
She looked up at him, "Really?"
"Really. I love you Kathryn."
"I love you too."
She rested her head on his chest and he ran his finger through her hair.
"All better?" he asked while raising her head up towards him.
"I guess, but I still don't have my coffee."
"I'll get you a cup of tea."
"Fine."
"Did you find your dress for tonight?"
"For what?"
"The party."
"Oops, I forgot all about it. What time is it at?"
"20:00 hours."
"Let's see, that's two hours from now. I should probably go look for it."
"I'll see you in our quarters then."
"Okay, bye," Kathryn said as she walked out with her cup of tea.
* * *
Under ordinary circumstances Kathryn's quarters would have been spotless, but with her mood swings and every thing else that had been going on with the ship, it was atrocious.
"Now, to find that dress."
She started rummaging through piles of dirty laundry. She couldn't find her dress.
"Damn it!"
"Damn what?" Q said as he appeared in front of her in a flash of light.
"My stupid dress. Q!"
"What I can't stop in for a visit?"
"No! I mean yes. I mean...I don't know what I mean."
"Kathy it's alright, don't cry. Why don't you sit down and tell me what's wrong."
She looked at the bed and the chairs in the room. They were covered in clothes and a whole bunch of other things. She didn't feel like moving anything so she sat down on the floor.
"Now, what's wrong? Is Chakotay being mean to you? If he is I'll..."
"Q, shut up."
"Are you defending him?"
"Of coarse, he's my husband."
"Your what?!"
"I thought you knew," Kathryn said calmly although, on the inside she was thinking, "Oh, shit. I've got to tell him everything now, about us getting married and me being pregnant. Wait is he oblivious? He hasn't noticed? My stomach sticks out so far I probably couldn't make it through the Jeffries Tubes anymore."
"The least you could have done was sent me a letter or something, but I wasn't even invited to the wedding," Q said. Kathryn was surprised. He looked like he was offended, like he wanted to be there.
"It was a spur of the moment sort of thing. We got married on Pluto the night before we made it back to Earth."
"I guess you really couldn't have contacted me very easily, so it's alright. But, is there anything else that I need to know?"
"Since you haven't noticed, I should probably tell you that...well...um...I'm pregnant."
"With his child?" Q asked with a hint of disapproval in his voice.
"No."
"Good."
"His children."
"More than one?"
"Yes."
"Kathy, how could you do this to me? First you marry the guy and then you get pregnant with his children?!"
"I'm didn't do anything to you. Now I'm fed up with your childish reactions. I have to find my dress. I'm going to a party tonight and I need it," she said as she crossed her arms.
"Let me help you up then."
"I don't need your help," Kathryn said as she tried to get to her feet. It was useless. She kept on falling over. "Okay, so maybe I do."
Q lifted Kathryn up off the ground and handed her the blue gown she was looking for. "Would this be your dress?"
"Thank you, Q. I've got to get changed."
"Okay, I will see you later. And if I don't see you by the time the babies arrive do let me know. I am expecting to be one of their Godfathers."
"Okay Q, We'll think about it."
With one snap of a finger Q was gone. His visit had lasted less than ten minutes, and it hadn't gone as bad as Kathryn had expected. Q hadn't blown up, and he actually wanted to be a Godfather of one of her children. That couldn't be a bad sign. He had also saved her a lot of time by finding her dress for her.
* * *
About an hour later Chakotay showed up at their quarters. He was ready to go.
"You look simply ravishing, Kathryn. Like an angel."
"Why thank you."
Her dress was pastel blue in color. It had a loose fitting from the bottom of the bust line down. Kathryn almost looked like she could float on air in that dress.
He escorted her to the party and they went off and mingled. Harry had gathered a few people that could play musical instruments and made a band. Kathryn and Chakotay, like Tom and B'Elanna, danced the night away. It was a beautiful evening and the room was decorated with fresh flowers. For a while Harry even got Seven to dance with him while the rest of the band played. Everyone's jaw dropped when they saw her dance. She was magnificent. But after one dance she returned to her old self and decided to go regenerate. Harry and Seven actually made an okay couple, or at least for dancing. The doctor was pleased too, her social skills were definitely improving. The party was an overall success and everyone had a good time.
* * *
The next morning it was time for Kathryn to pay another visit to the doctor. The only thing was that she couldn't stand up on her own to feet. So Chakotay tried to pick her up so that he could carry her, but she had gained too much weight. Chakotay couldn't figure out what to do so he talked to the Doctor.
"Well I suppose we could beam her from her quarters to sickbay."
"Nope, transporter beams are down. Maybe you could make a house call?"
"How is she going to make it to the bridge and the rest of the places on the ship that she needs to go?"
"Good question."
"Well, we could replicate something that they used for getting around in the 20^th century."
"Oh, I've heard Tom talk about the things that people traveled in back then. What did he call them... oh, yea, cars."
"Not quite."
"I could have sworn he said that they were called cars."
"They are called cars, but they are much too big. The width of one of the corridors or wider."
"So what are you talking about?"
"It's called a wheelchair."
"Never heard of it."
"It's like a chair on wheels."
"Explains the name."
"I'll go replicate one and bring it up to Kathryn. That way she can get around the ship if she would like."
"Thanks. I'll go tell her that you'll be up in a few minutes."
"Okay."
* * *
The Doctor checked out Kathryn and couldn't find anything wrong, so he gave her a pill for the pain. As she was walking out the door she turned back and said, "Isn't there a way to tell if the babies are boys or girls?"
"Yes, but I didn't think you wanted to know. I thought you liked surprises. But, if you like, you can drop by tomorrow morning and I can run a test to tell. Think about it, talk to Chakotay, surprises are fun."
"Thanks. I'll see you later."
"Good bye, Captain."