4
They were still speaking, but just barely, when Melissa arrived in the shuttlepod to pick up them and Yimar. Yimar chatted happily and asked about everything on the shuttle. Melissa explained how the thrusters worked, and they generally had a great time. Lili and Doug just sat in the back with the luggage. She stared out the window. He sighed, "I'm sorry," he finally said again.
"We'll talk later," she said, and they were silent for the remainder of the trip.
Jennifer and Joss were waiting at the shuttle bay, "'Ommy! 'Ommy!" he called out when the ramp came down.
"Don't hug too hard, Joss," Doug reminded him.
"Go over and say hi to Daddy," Lili said, straightening up, "Daddy missed you, too, yanno."
Kick.
"Big big ..," Joss said to Doug.
"What's he trying to say?" Doug lifted Joss up and asked Jennifer.
"We saw the kitchen this morning. Lots of big pots and pans. At least I think that's what he's talking about. He also got to sit in the big Captain's chair. It might be about that," she smiled.
"I hope he wasn't too much trouble," Lili said.
"Not at all. He only cried a little. But what's 'Duck Duck'?"
"Oh, ha, it's O Pato. It's an English-Portuguese song about a duck," Lili pointed to Joss, "a goose," she pointed to Doug, "and a swan," she pointed to herself, "even though right now I think I want to change the lyrics to a duck, a goose and a whale."
"Portuguese? I thought you were French."
"I am. My grandmother taught me that song, and a bunch of others. She had a job running a day care center for the European Union delegation to Titan. So I know Spanish and German songs, too."
"We did go through Frère Jacques," Jennifer said, "I figured that would calm him down, and I think it did. Or maybe he just wondered about my pronunciation."
Brian Delacroix came in, "Sorry I'm late, it took me a while to get done with the breakfast dishes. Can I help with the bags?"
Lili hugged him, teary again, "I'm so glad to see you. Are you making good sauces?"
"Yes. Just the way you taught me," he looked at Yimar, "Uh, hello," he stammered out, unused to seeing bald, alien teenaged girls.
"Oh, bad manners," Lili said, "Yimar, this is our friend, Brian. He has my old job."
"Hiya," she said, hanging back a bit. She took Joss from Doug. Joss started to fuss a little, "I think it's time for some quiet play."
"Here, you'll be staying in, well, it's actually Crewman Cutler's old quarters," Jennifer said, "And you'll have next door as well. So one room for you two", she smiled at Lili, who looked away a little, "and another for Joss and Yimar."
"Did you get a new roommate?" Lili asked as they made their way through the hallway.
Kick Kick Kick.
"Yes, your pilot. She's a lot quieter than you were," Jennifer said, "Here we are. The Bridal Suite, I suppose."
There was a large fruit basket on a desk, with small plastic baggies next to it, "Oh, look!" Lili called out, "It's from Chef! And you, too, Mr. Delacroix! And look, there are bags, we can save the seeds and bring them back to Lafa II!" she smiled, "I gotta," her voice got emotional, "I gotta go hug and kiss Chef. Excuse me a sec," she left.
"She's all over the place emotionally," Doug explained, "C'mere, Joss. Let's go see your room. Yes, you can bring your dinosaur."
=/\=
Malcolm's PADD was flashing. A letter. He was on duty but the moment was quiet. The Calafans were friends, no one was about to start shooting at them. He could take a peek at Pamela's note.
Reed, I'm so glad you wrote. It just so happens that I will be totally free on the twenty-eighth and the thirty-first and all of the days in between. But not too much before – there was a mining accident on Io – perhaps you saw it in the news? They need any doctor they can get, so I'm off to get some serious overtime and help, but I'll be done by the twenty-eighth. I'll be doing regular surgery, not just plastic, so I'll be putting eyebrows back on and taking care of crushed ribs and all of that. Nothing too specific, I know you don't like hearing about that. Tell me whether it's a day or evening wedding, and a day or evening reception as that'll define what I wear. And, uh, I have some special things for when it's just you and me. I can tell you're smiling, I can see you through the page. Plus of course I don't need the scarf back but I will spritz it with a lot more – Pamela
He turned off the PADD and, despite himself, could tell he was reddening.
"Are you feeling all right, Malcolm?" Jonathan asked, "You look a little flushed."
"Uh, yes, sir," he squeaked out. Might have to scratch the itch a little earlier than expected, he thought to himself. It was going to be a long four weeks.
=/\=
"Alone at last," Doug said to Lili. Brian had taken Yimar and Joss to go look at the Botany lab's flowers.
"Yes. We should talk," she said.
"I know."
"I, uh, do you know why I'm angry?"
"Well, you want to do it that way, the dream way. And I just can't anymore," he said.
"I can understand if it bothers you that way. What bugs me more is that it was such an unequivocal, unilateral decision on your part," she said, "You just decided it, case closed, and there's no discussion. It's like I have no position at all."
"Lili, it feels like cheating to me. I mean, the Calafans, the way they do things – there are husbands and wives and they, they go to sleep in bed together, maybe even having had lots of hot sex, and they dream about more sex, with other people. I'm like, what the hell? What could possibly be missing that they've gotta do it with someone else?"
"But you and I will be dreaming about each other," she said, a little teary again, "And we are stuck otherwise. Unless you want to do math, well, we are stuck and there is nothing else when we're awake. I thought it would be good to have options," her voice was breaking a bit more.
"Shh, shh. Look, it's a great number – divisible by three and twenty-three. You like to do math," he said, using their word for the act, "And it'll have to be enough. We'll make it enough. And five months will fly by."
"Doug, I was thinking, I dunno if it's a good thing but I had an idea."
"I'm all ears."
"Well, I'm fifty years old. I'll be almost fifty-one when Petey is born."
"Number Two Son."
Kick Kick.
"Yes," she smiled a little, "Number Two Son. And I was thinking, I mean, I'm getting hot flashes throughout this pregnancy. I think I might want to be over and done with everything. I think I'd like for Miva to just tie my tubes, maybe the same time she does the O'Day Reversal again."
"No more kids? I thought we'd have our own team."
"You honestly think, even if I don't get my tubes tied, that we'll have enough for a basketball team, let alone a baseball team?"
"I dunno. I guess not. But it's just, you're really amazing when you're pregnant."
"Even when I'm barfing with morning sickness?"
"Yes, even then. It's kinda why we're in this mess to begin with. Beautiful white hot flame. I just want to be near it," he said, kissing her.
"Then dream with me," she said softly.
"I'm just afraid I'll like it too much. It's not real, it's not true. No dream is like this, like us."
"Math, then?"
"Yeah, we'll do math. Every night and every morning if you like," he said.
Kick.
"I should really see Phlox at some point; ask him about all this kicking," Lili said, patting her stomach.
"Later," he said.
5
Lili stood up and got a change of clothes out of a drawer. And one more thing, a bracelet, from Lafa II, made of the same material as their wedding rings. She slipped it on and it fit, but barely. Her wrists had swollen, along with everything else, "It's Movie Night tonight," she said, putting on fresh clothes.
"Oh? Uh, are you okay with me passing? The game is on."
"Ah, yes."
"Well, it's another reason why this is a superior universe," he said, catching clean boxers that she tossed to him, "You have football. It's preseason and all."
"Ah, yes, very important meaningless games," she smiled, "I didn't know you'd make me a football widow."
"You watch sometimes."
"Yeah, I do," she admitted, "But I can't get into it until it gets a lot later on."
"Well, watch with me and maybe I can persuade you to change your mind," he said.
"Or, you can go to Movie Night with me."
"What are they playing?"
"A French film - The King of Hearts," she said.
"A chick flick? Uh, no thanks," he said, making a face.
"All right, suit yourself," she said, "I'll take Joss so you can watch with a lot of sound and Yimar can get a little peace."
"Thanks," he said, "And I'll see you after, for the second half of your double feature," he kissed her.
Kick.
=/\=
Jonathan yawned. First shift was basically done.
"Clear of the Lafa System, sir," Travis said.
"Good, steady on to Earth."
"Captain," T'Pol said, "I'm picking up some EM radiation."
Jonathan punched on the console on his chair, "Tripp, we're getting signs of EM radiation."
"I see it, Cap'n," Tripp replied, "Origin is a little difficult to detect. Could be from the Lafa System's equivalent to our Kuiper Belt. I'll keep an eye on it. Might wanna polarize the hull plating."
"Malcolm ..?" Jonathan said.
"Ah, yes, done," he said, fiddling with controls, "I think we'll be all right."
"Radiation is within tolerable limits," T'Pol said.
"Keep an eye on it when the shift changes," Jonathan said, "And let me know if it gets intolerable."
"Of course, Captain," said the Vulcan.
=/\=
Melissa sat in her and Jennifer's quarters, alone. She punched in to her console, "Madden to Hoshi Sato."
"Yes?" came Hoshi's voice from the Bridge.
"Can you put me through to Ceres, to Leonora Digiorno?"
"Sure. Hang on a sec," Hoshi clicked a few times, "There, go ahead," she got off the line and left Melissa to her call.
"Norri!" Melissa called out when Leonora's face came into view.
"Ah, good to see your pretty face," Norri said, "How're things going? Ya miss me?"
"Buckets," Melissa said, "Wish I was home with you again."
"Well, you gotta do assignments so we can eat. Being an editor isn't as lucrative," Norri admitted.
"Any really funny typos?"
"Nothing much lately. Just the usual 'there' for 'their'. I've been reviewing a lot of dull romance novels. Boy meets girl. Very little girl meets girl."
"Well, we write our own love story," Melissa said, "With a few twists."
"Yeah, the twists," Norri said, "I'm not so sure I like the twists."
"This is what you get for falling in love with someone who's bi. Temptation is all around."
"Sure. But you don't have to give in to it."
=/\=
Movie Night was well-attended. Lili took an aisle seat. When people noticed she had Joss in her arms, and he was squirming a bit, they gave her some room.
"Good evening!" Chip Masterson called out from the front of the room, "Welcome, as always, to Movie Night. In honor of our own Jennifer Crossman getting married in a few weeks, we have some romantic films. Tonight is Philippe de Broca's 'King of Hearts', starring Alan Bates and I can't figure out how to pronounce this actress's name so I'll just mangle it. Gen –"
"Geneviève Bujold," Lili called out.
Kick Kick Kick.
"Ah, thank you from the Peanut Gallery," Chip replied, "This is not just a romance, it's an anti-war story. Talk all you like; it's subtitled. Roll it, Aidan."
The lights dimmed, and a figure sat down next to Lili. Joss squirmed a little, "Unka," he said.
"Shh. Later, Joss," Lili said, adjusting him in her arms and handing him the all-important dinosaur toy.
Joss only spoke one more time during the picture, when there were canaries on the screen, "Elekai," he said.
"Yes, kind of," said the figure next to Lili. It was Malcolm.
"Shh, shh," Lili said, "Play a little with Dino," she said to her son as the film continued.
"Want some popcorn?" Malcolm asked her quietly.
"No free hands," she said, "Unless, here, if you don't mind," she handed him the sleeping child for a second, took a few kernels, passed the bowl and took Joss back.
"You're rather quick with that," he said.
"You get that way."
Kick.
"I didn't realize this picture would be about the First World War," Malcolm said, "Will you stay for the discussion afterwards?"
"Only if he doesn't start to fuss. Or if he needs a change, then we vamoose."
"Yes, of course. Motherhood seems to truly suit you."
"I really love it," she said, "But it is tiring. We may end up leaving even if he doesn't start to fuss," she yawned, "I'm kind of a cheap date these days. I can't party like I used to."
"I'm finding I prefer a quieter life now, myself," he admitted.
"Oh, c'mon, it must be fun to be the bachelor around town," she said.
"Only sometimes," he said quietly, and then turned his attention back to the film.
=/\=
The game got dull, and Doug ended up snoring in a chair.
She was there, darker than Lili. He was younger than he was. Younger and stupider, he would have said, but it was a dream and you can be stupid in dreams. She was touching him. He remembered what that was like. It felt like it used to, two decades before. She stopped what she was doing for a second. He kissed her. Same old feeling, the excitement. She smiled at him, "Susan," he said. "Yes, Doug?" "I like the way you do things." "Oh? And what if I do them some other way?" "I get the feeling I'd like that, too." She smiled again, dark brown eyes, short black hair in the tightest, kinkiest curls, small gap between her two front teeth, "When are you leaving again, Soldier Boy?" "I don't know," he said, "Come on. Leave Titania and come along." "They don't need schoolteachers on your ship, Soldier Boy." "You can do something else," he said. "You just wanna get some," she said, then went back to things. He didn't speak anymore. He couldn't. It felt too damned good to ruin it with talk.
=/\=
The film was maybe three-quarters of the way finished when Joss woke up and began to fuss a bit, "That's my cue," she said, and left.
She found Doug sleeping in the chair. He said the word 'Titania'. Hmm.
She noticed his condition, and brought Joss into the other room, where Yimar was already sleeping.
"No dreaming, huh?" she said to herself.
"'Ommy, Duck Duck," Joss said sleepily.
"Sleep now," she said quietly.
She returned to their room in time to see Doug jolted awake.
"Huh, oh, didn't see you come in," he said.
"You didn't hear me, either, I see."
"It was not a Calafan-style dream. Just a regular dream," he said, "Didn't mean to, you know."
"I know. So, wanna tell me about it at all?"
"It was Susan Cheshire," he said, "I dated her a good quarter of a century ago. Haven't thought of her much in the past twenty years."
"Does she look like me?"
"No. She's as dark as Travis," Doug said.
"Oh. Hmm."
"Are you jealous? I mean, it was just a dream," he said.
"No, not jealous. I don't like jealousy. It's toxic."
"It wasn't like, like the dreams you and I shared when we first met," he said, "Nowhere near as good. You have nothing to be concerned about."
"How did it end with, uh, Suzanne?"
"Susan. She turned out to be a raging alcoholic. It took me a few months to really recognize that."
"She was probably a very hard person to love."
"I don't know that I loved her," Doug said, "It wasn't anything like us. I wonder why I dreamed about her at all."
"Maybe you miss a little of that," Lili said.
"No. I don't miss any of it," he assured her, "Come to bed."
"I just, uh, I just want to sleep. I've had a very full day. Okay?"
"Of course it's okay," he said, watching her slip off the bracelet, "You and Number Two Son need to sleep."
Lili crawled into bed and kissed Doug, "If I talk in my sleep, don't hold it against me," she said drowsily.
"I never do."
=/\=
She was her age, but not pregnant. She knew him, kind of. He was someone she'd known a good thirty years before, but aged to the present. It was the big town square at New France, on Titan. Crazy dreams. "Paul?" she asked, "Paul Mayer?" "Yes." "You look good." "So do you. Your grandparents around?" he asked. "Paul, they've been dead for over twenty years." "Oh, well, then I guess you're free." "I guess so," she hugged him, and it turned into a French kiss. Suddenly they were in the back seat of his car, parked somewhere dark. There were trees nearby. "What is this leading to?" she asked. "Whaddaya think? I got stuff." "I bet," she said. He brought out a fifth, and they both drank from it, "You know I love you," he said. "That stuff is rancid," she said, after taking another swig, "You sure your parents know you're out this late?" "They won't be looking for me here," he said, "C'mon, let's get that tee shirt off." "You ever do this with anyone before me?" she asked. "No," he said. The dream jump cut and everything felt hot and friction-y. It hurt a bit, but that was more bulk than anything else. It was all over in a few minutes. "Don't, um, don't tell anyone we did that," she said. "Not to worry," he said.
=/\=
"Don't, um, don't tell anyone we did that," Lili said in her sleep.
She awoke, "Ugh," she said. Doug was awake, looking at her.
"Active dream, huh?"
"I lost my virginity again."
"Oh. Didn't turn out so well, eh?"
"No. He, Paul, uh, I told him to keep it quiet. I knew my grandfather would kill me. And it was, like, a day or so later and it was all over my High School."
"It was a long time ago," Doug said.
"It's a little fresh in the mind sometimes."
Kick.
"Like Susan," he said, "I'd fix them up with each other but they're in different universes."
"I suppose so," Lili said.
=/\=
"Commander," Melissa said as she piloted the Enterprise in the middle of the night, "I think that EM radiation is worsening."
"Are we still within tolerance limits?" asked T'Pol.
"Yes, but the concentration is climbing."
"Can you tell where it's coming from?"
"I think it's coming from all around us. I can't get a fix on it."
"I'll alert the Captain," T'Pol said.
6
Early morning, alarm going off.
Lili lay on top of a strong left arm, with a powerful chest behind her that was breathing regularly. She opened her eyes and followed the arm to its wrist and hand and fingers, to the wedding ring she'd given Doug a year and a half before. It was a dull grey metal, a plain but tall band, "'Morning," she said softly.
"Ah, here, the alarm's on my side," he said, "Lean forward a sec," he took his arm away, rolled over and shut off the alarm, "Got, I think a little while before Joss and Yimar are up."
She kissed him, "I've still got a little sleep in my eyes," she rubbed them.
"Can I wake you up a bit more?" he asked.
"Sure," she said, "But I think we'd better be a bit quick about it, before someone gets it in his head that he wants breakfast."
They kissed. "You first," she said.
"Oh?"
"Yeah," she smiled at him, "Unless you object."
"Nope," he said, lying back and folding his arms behind his head.
Doug thought to himself, even a bad one of these is good.
There was a chime at the door.
"Damn," he said.
They straightened up in bed and made sure the blanket was around them, "Uh, come in," Lili said.
"'Ommy! 'Ommy!"
"Sorry, we, uh, he's hungry," Yimar said.
Joss got onto the bed between them. He patted Lili, "Milk?"
"No. We have to save that for Petey. Petey's going to be very hungry when he comes out," Lili said.
"Joss, do you know where Petey is?" Doug asked his son.
"Uhhh," Joss thought for a minute, then touched Lili's belly.
"That's right," Lili said, "And he'll be here in five months. I know that's a long, long time from now," she glanced at Doug, "but the time will go by quickly. And then after that you'll have a playmate. Would you like that?"
Joss nodded.
"I don't know how much of that he got," Doug said.
"Well, maybe not much," Lili admitted, "He just needs to know this is a good thing that's happening."
"I'll, um, I can take him to breakfast," Yimar offered.
"It's okay," Doug said, "We're getting up anyway. Gonna see Doctor Phlox this morning," he got up and hustled himself into the bathroom. The shower started running.
"He's the cleanest human I've ever known," Yimar said, "Not that I have a lot of experience with such things."
"Yes. Very clean," Lili said.
=/\=
Shift change on the NX-01. Oh eight hundred hours.
In Engineering, Tripp Tucker and Jennifer Crossman replaced José Torres and Josh Rosen, "EM radiation is still climbing. We can't quite find the cause," Torres said.
"Okay, you're on that, Crossman," Tripp said.
"Yes, sir," she replied.
At the pilot's station, Travis arrived to relieve Melissa, "Hiya," he said.
"Going steady," she said, "That radiation doesn't seem to be affecting our course or our speed."
At Tactical, Malcolm replaced Aidan MacKenzie, "Ensign, stand down," Malcolm said to MacKenzie.
"Yes, sir. Hull plating is still polarized, with no fluctuations."
At Security, Deborah Haddon relieved Azar Hamidi, "All is secure," he said to her.
"Thank you," she took her usual place several meters in the back, with a clear view of the Captain's chair and the remainder of the Bridge.
At Communications, Hoshi greeted Chip, "Nothing much is happening," he yawned, "It's just radiation. No one's trying to talk to us. We can still ping the closest buoy in the Lafa System."
T'Pol got up from the Captain's chair when Jonathan arrived, "EM radiation is increasing steadily but still within acceptable tolerance limits. Etiology remains unknown. I can perform an analysis later."
"When you get a chance," he said, "Thanks."
=/\=
Sick Bay was lively with active animals. Lili sat on a bio bed, fiddling with her bracelet.
"Ah, how's my favorite Obstetrics patient?" Phlox asked.
"You mean your only Obstetrics patient," she replied.
"Well, I didn't want to say," he smiled at her, with that slightly too wide Denobulan grin that was a tad unnerving to most humans, "Having any troubles? I have your records from your Calafan physician, Doctor Miva."
"I'm really, really er, interested. All the time. And so is Doug," Lili said.
"Well, for some human males, the pregnancies of their partners can be quite stimulating," Phlox said, "You must enjoy the fact that you're responsible for her condition," he said to Doug.
"Yes. Definitely," Doug said.
"As for you Ens – uh, Mrs. Beckett," Phlox said.
"Please, just call me by my first name," Lili said.
"Very well. Pregnancy comes with a rush of hormones and a flood of emotions. For some women, if they continue to feel attractive – and if their partners continue to assure them of their attractiveness – those women can become very interested in relations. More so than usual. Stimulus and release probably come rather easily."
"Definitely," she said, "But things are frustrating right now."
"This is a high-risk pregnancy. I've been looking at your records and I see that Miva says while you don't have placenta previa, the placenta is still rather large and is in a rather vulnerable position. Plus of course you already have a little one running around. Privacy must be rather difficult to come by. I have children; I know what that is like."
"What's placenta previa?" Doug asked.
"It's a condition whereby the placenta grows in the lowest part of the uterus and covers all or part of the opening to the cervix. Intercourse is not recommended at all, of course."
"But you said Lili doesn't have that. So why is Miva telling us we can't do anything?" Doug asked, although he pretty much already knew the answer.
"First, Lili's age. Fifty is not a young age for a pregnancy, although it does not break records for the oldest natural pregnancy. But it is, by definition, high risk. Second, the placenta isn't covering the opening to the cervix but it is close. And, the third part you know. You have issues with controlling your own strength, even under the best of circumstances, never mind during the throes of passion. Plus, as you are well aware, the O'Day Reversal – the operation I devised to make everything fit properly – it has been temporarily dismantled to accommodate the growth of the fetus. There is no room, the placenta is too close, and you can harm either Lili or the fetus if you puncture either the placenta or the uterus," Phlox stated.
"Well, it didn't hurt to ask," Lili said, putting her hand on Doug's arm. The bracelet glinted a tiny bit in the light of Sick Bay.
"Here, let's have a look," Phlox said.
She lay back and he placed her in the scanner.
"Ah, there it is," Phlox said, showing Doug on the screen, "There is your baby."
"Huh. Crossed legs – he must be modest, eh? He's small."
"Well, he should be. This is only the twenty-first week after all. Very interesting, I would not have believed it myself if I were not seeing it. The placenta is enormous! How much weight would you say you have gained, Lili?" Phlox asked.
"Maybe thirty-five, thirty-six kilos. This happened last time, with Joss. During the first trimester, I alternated between barfing and eating everything in sight – mainly meat. Then I stopped gaining for the rest of the pregnancy."
"According to Miva's records, your placenta and your son shifted in terms of weight. So if Joss was a quarter of a kilo to begin with, eventually he became about, let's see, ah, over eight kilos when he was born. A rather large baby – I see you had a Cesarean. I suspect you'll need to have another one," Phlox clicked a control on the bio bed and it brought Lili out of the scanner.
"Yes, I have one scheduled for January," Lili said, "He's very active, kicking all the time."
"Well, that's good. But I can see where that would be troublesome," Phlox said, "It's probably, huh, let's see if we can induce a kick," he pressed on her abdomen.
Kick.
"That is rather powerful," Phlox said, "At twenty-one weeks, you should not be feeling that much. After all, what we refer to as kicking is usually just the fetus turning over. I suspect the enormous placenta is amplifying everything. Most unusual, but you have other unusual things going on."
"Other unusual things? Bad things?" Doug asked.
"Oh, no," Phlox said, as Lili got dressed again, "I took the liberty of running an experiment – I do hope you don't mind, but I was rather curious about this."
"About what?" Lili asked.
"Your age. The chances of having a child with Down's Syndrome is increased. Yet neither Joss nor this fetus appears to have the syndrome. I did an investigation as I still have a sample from you, Doug."
"Oh?" Doug asked.
"Yes. I mixed your sample with, well, I must explain: human eggs that carry Down's Syndrome and other genetic issues can emit a different hormonal signature than eggs that don't have such issues. I checked. Your sperm only gravitate in the direction of eggs without such issues. Otherwise, they turn tail and die."
"You didn't make fetuses or anything, did you?" Lili asked, a little alarmed.
"No, I didn't use eggs – just the hormones. But it's a fascinating window into the overall concept of Survival of the Fittest. In the universe where you originated, Doug, there must be very few genetic issues. The figure is likely not to be, absolutely, zero. But the incidence is probably a lot less than we have here. That has carried over, of course, to here, because you are here. It appears that you are introducing a rather powerful bit of evolutionary biology into the human gene pool."
"I remember you once referred to Doug as the super male," Lili said.
"Indeed," Phlox said, "Your sons will likely inherit this tendency from you."
"That probably explains why I didn't get pregnant immediately after we began to do it again after Joss was born," Lili said.
"That was a good eight months," Doug said, squeezing her hand.
"There were probably a few less than optimal eggs in the pipeline," Phlox said, "Oh and another thing, which probably also should help to explain the huge placenta and the powerful kicking – you are awash in testosterone."
"I'm pregnant. How is that even possible?"
"Another bit of survival strategy, most likely. Probably makes the mother stronger and faster as needed."
"I'm waddling around like a whale."
"You can probably move quickly if you have to," Phlox said, "And the fetus is awash as well. It's affecting every test and every instrument I've got."
"The super male makes super babies," Lili said.
=/\=
Yimar and Joss sat in the cafeteria. Everyone else had left. He was still struggling a little with a bowl of oatmeal, but was refusing to let her help him.
Brian walked in, "Ah, company," he said. He had a bowl of his own in his hands, "I usually eat alone after the breakfast rush."
"Do you want us to go?" Yimar asked.
"No, no, of course not. Is he okay?"
"Oh, sure. He just wants to try to feed himself. And, as you can see, he's not too good at it. But he does try."
"Yimar, can I ask you something?"
"Sure."
"What's the silver stuff on your arms? And, uh, Lili has some silver on her arms, too."
"Oh, well, for me, it's normal," Yimar explained, "It's called calloo. We start off solid silver and then, when we hit about thirty or so, you start to get white spots and before it goes away completely it eventually becomes this kind of elaborate scrollwork. Lili's tattooed like that – she doesn't really have calloo. It's on our legs, too. Wanna see?"
"Uh, huh. I'll take your word for it," Brian swallowed hard. Girls didn't normally offer to show him their legs.
"Oh, it's no trouble, really," she said, hiking up a pant leg, "See? All silvery."
"How, um, how old are you, Yimar?" he was a little uncomfortable.
"Old enough," she said, "I get night offers. I can act on them if I want to."
"I don't understand what that means."
"We sleep with nighttime people," she said, "Here, Joss let me help you."
"You what?"
"We go to sleep and we dream of nighttime people," she said, "Wait, Lili told me you don't have nighttime people."
"Well, we do have sleeping with people," Brian said, "Maybe it's not what you're talking about. I, uh, I don't think we should be talking about this in front of Joss."
"Ohhhhh," The light dawned, "It's sleeping, not sex. Well, it can be. And I am old enough now. Are you old enough?"
"Uhh, yeah," he said. Not that that did him any good usually, "I'm, uh, I'm twenty-one."
"Oh, I thought you were older. It's all that hair. I'm sixteen," she said.
"Six-sixteen? And you're, um, old enough?"
"Yes. I am," she said, "Can I ask you something? Since you asked me and all."
"Uh, I guess so."
"Why is everybody so hairy? Is this a ship full of really old people?" she asked.
"No. I mean, most of them are older than me but nobody's really old."
"See, when you're a Calafan, you start off totally hairless like I still am," she explained, "It's another thing, you hit about thirty or so and you start to get fuzzy. You get really furry when you're really old. My Father is pretty furry. My Mother is still a great beauty, lots of pretty calloo and not too hairy. I feel like I'll never be pretty like her," she complained.
"I dunno," he said, "Maybe you just need to grow into it."
"What about that really tall guy? He doesn't have a lot of hair, or at least it looks kinda thinner in the back. Is he younger than you are?"
"José Torres?" Brian asked, "I think he's around ten or more years older than I am. And, uh, he's losing his hair, not getting it."
"You humans are weird," Yimar said.
=/\=
On the Bridge, Hoshi dropped her Communications earpiece, "Agghhh!" she cried out.
"Hoshi!" yelled Jonathan, and then they all heard it – a high-pitched whine.
"We're being scanned!" T'Pol yelled over the din.
=/\=
In Sick Bay, Phlox, Lili and Doug covered their ears.
Just as suddenly as it had started, the whine stopped.
"You'd better stay here," Phlox said.
"Where are you going?" Lili cried out to Doug.
"To the Armory. I can help there."
"Be careful!"
He kissed her and ran out, but he didn't get far.
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