To everyone's great relief, Tasha had not had a miscarriage, after all. Dr. Crusher diagnosed her with a hormonal imbalance and put her on bed rest for a week. Data, devoted husband that he was, took that week off from work to take care of her.

The day finally arrived that the Enterprise reached Dr. Bashir's laboratory on Deep Space Nine. Soren examined the artificial womb with wonder. If the in vitro fertilization was successful, this would be her baby's home for approximately nine months. The J'naii gestation period was assumed to be near that of the averae human gestation period, and Dr. Crusher would be able to tell exactly when the baby was ready to be born with her tricorder.

Back on the Enterprise, Will and Soren prepared themselves for the in vitro procedure itself. Retrieval of a reproductive cell from Soren's body would require a minor surgical procedure under a local anesthetic. Retrieval of a semen sample from Will was, of course, a much simpler matter.

"Nervous?" Dr. Crusher asked Soren as Soren lay back on the table in sickbay.

"A little bit," Soren admitted.

"This won't take long at all, and I'm sure you'll do fine." Dr. Crusher smiled and patted Soren's arm. "You're going to feel a big stick in your belly now, similar to a bee sting."

Will held Soren's hand and spoke soothingly to her during the procedure.

"All right, that part's over," Dr. Crusher said brightly. "Your turn, Daddy-o." She handed Will a specimen cup and he disappeared into an adjoining room.

Soren lay on the table in sickbay, relieved that the surgical part of the procedure was over. A few minutes later Will returned, specimen cup in hand, looking a little sheepish.

"What a lousy date," he quipped. "She wouldn't even kiss me good-bye."

He winked at Soren and she burst out laughing.

"Take it easy for the rest of the day," Dr. Crusher advised Soren. "You may experience some cramping; if so, that's perfectly normal. We'll know in about eighteen hours whether or not we have an embryo."

Will helped Soren off the table, she dressed, and they went back to their quarters.

"Would you like a little lie down?" Will asked gently, as soon as they were indoors.

"That sounds like a good idea." Soren suddenly did feel extremely tired. Whether from the procedure itself or the left-over stress leading up to it, she didn't know. She lay on the bed and Will sat beside her, rubbing her back.

"Mmm, that feels delicious," she murmured.

"Well, my dear, you are fortunate enough to be married to the man with the magic touch," Will chuckled.

Later, Will prepared dinner and served it to Soren in bed.

"You're really spoiling me today," Soren laughed. "Not that I'm complaining, of course."

"As a future potential mother, you'd better get all the spoiling you can while you still have the chance," he teased her.

"I can just imagine you with a little girl," Soren said dreamily. "She would have you wrapped around her little finger in no time."

"Oh, I"m sure," Will laughed. "But I'll just be so thrilled with whatever we get."

"Me too."

The much-anticipated call from Dr. Crusher came a couple of days later.

"Congratulations! The insemination was successful, and we have an embryo which appears to be perfectly healthy and is ready to be transferred to the artificial womb."

Will whooped with joy, gathered Soren in his arms, and twirled her around with glee. Soren laughed with joy, tears of relief in her eyes.

Soren watched with interest as Tasha's pregnancy progressed, her body subtly changing over time to make room for the new life growing inside her.

"I felt the baby move for the first time yesterday!" Tasha told her excitedly one day.

"What did it feel like?" Soren was curious.

"It felt like a tiny bird fluttering it's wings inside me," Tasha replied.

"That must be so special, to be able to carry your baby inside your own body," Soren said wistfully.

"Well, at least you don't have to worry about things like morning sickness," Tasha consoled her.

Dr. Crusher gave Will and Soren progress reports regularly on their own embryo. The artificial womb was transparent, but for the first several months the embryo was too small to be seen in any real detail.

The gestation period was about a third of the way along when Will and Soren were able to see their precious baby in detail for the first time. Soren could see its blood vessels through its translucent skin. Its eyes were squeezed shut, and she could see the tiniest dark hairs sparsely covering its head. Soren thought that she had never seen anything so perfect. Her heart was filled with an overwhelming love for this tiny being who was both a part of Will and a part of her.

"Well, hello there, little one." Will smiled and waved playfully. His attitude was light, but Soren suspected that deep down inside he was every bit as overwhelmed as she herself was.

By now Tasha's belly had grown so large that her walk had become ungainly. She had frequent heartburn and backaches, and her legs and feet became slightly swollen. The baby inside her was so large that it's movements could now be seen through Tasha's clothing.

"Do you know its gender yet?" Soren asked her.

"Data and I have decided that we want to wait and be surprised at the delivery," Tasha answered. "What about you and Will?"

"I haven't actually discussed it with him yet, but I think that it would be a lovely idea to wait and be surprised, and I suspect that Will feels the same way."

One evening Will and Soren were visiting Data and Tasha in their quarters when Tasha gripped her abdomen and winced in pain.

"Are you again experiencing those false labor pains you have been experiencing frequently?" Data asked.

"I think it's the real thing this time," Tasha told him. Suddenly she dashed for the restroom, leaving a wet trail behind her. "Now I know it's the real thing," she shouted back to him.