Chapter 21 – Sleepless Nights

A/N: Thank you for all the encouragement to keep going with this story. Special thank you to all the guest reviewers who left such wonderful comments that made me flail around like a fangirl just a little. For now, this story will continue because I can't seem to stop writing it no matter how hard I try. Hope you guys enjoy this latest chapter and please review!

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Chakotay looked down at the two newborns in his arms. Kathryn was probably right, he thought. The twins would most likely be their last children, especially since he wasn't entirely sure that any of them would survive much longer.

He thought back to all the sleepless nights with their other children; rocking Anson to sleep in the ready room, walking the corridors of the ship with Iva, learning that the hum of the warp core was one of the only things that would sooth Rory, and forgetting all of that when it came to Maura. He had thought he knew something about getting babies to fall asleep. After all, he had always had better luck with getting their little ones to sleep than his wife. He was realizing now with some chagrin that he knew nothing, absolutely nothing about twins.

Oh sure, he had read the parenting guides that the Doctor had given them, studying them dutifully in all the spare time he had between running Voyager and raising the four children they already had. He had managed to get the gist of it: get the twins on a schedule. Having them sleep at the same time and eat at the same time would help parents be able to best care for each baby. That idea had sounded so simple in practice but in theory it was becoming a raging disaster. The twins didn't want to sleep, never mind at the same time. He should have known they would be in for a world of trouble when he leaned over their bassinets in sickbay to see that both infants were looking up at him intently, instead of sleeping like their father was desperate to do after their nine-hour labor.

Now Asa and Aeryn Janeway, all of eight days old, were both screaming at the top of their lungs. In a vain attempt to give Kathryn a moment alone, he had offered to take both babies. It was only 1900 hours and he wasn't sure how they were going to make it through the night. So he had called in backup.

He heard the door chime and the twins began crying louder. Apparently, that was enough to activate the door and it swished open, revealing Tom and B'Elanna.

"Oh you poor bastard," Tom muttered, taking in the scene. "When was the last time any of you slept?"

Chakotay just laughed as B'Elanna picked up his daughter in her arms. Aeryn was the fussier of the two. She was younger, only by thirteen minutes, and a little smaller just as she had been when they first found out she was going to be a girl during their first scan. She was now looking very closely at her godmother and her cries gave way to soft whimpering.

"Hey there, little girl," B'Elanna whispered as she rubbed a finger along the baby's cheek. "Let's give your daddy a chance to catch his breath."

"You're a miracle worker," Chakotay sighed as Tom picked up Asa who seemed to be following in his sister's suit of calming down.

"Where's Kathryn?" Tom asked.

"Trying to get this one to go to sleep as well," Kathryn said as she walked into the living room with Maura on her hip. "Apparently, we've decided that if the twins don't have to go to bed, neither do we." Maura seemed to think that was a wonderful joke and giggled as she buried her head in her mother's shoulder.

Kathryn looked absolutely exhausted. She had dark circles under her eyes and her long hair was tangled slightly as her daughter wove her little fingers through the locks. Her body, still recovering from giving birth to twins, was soft and rounded. But she looked beautiful to him. Despite the fact that neither of them had had a decent night's sleep since before the twins were born, her eyes still sparkled and her smile was bright.

"Did we wake her up?" Chakotay asked, groaning a little.

"I don't think she was ever asleep to begin with," his wife sighed. "I see you called in the reinforcements?"

"Guilty as charged," he said, holding up his now free hands. Maura thought this was an invitation to jump into his arms and proceeded to do so, landing on top of her father with a thud and another giggle.

"Well thank god you are here," Kathryn muttered. "I've got their bottles all ready for them but neither one has stopped crying long enough to eat."

"Would you like us to give it a try?" Tom asked as he sat down on the couch, the baby gurgling softly in his arms.

"Please," Kathryn said as she handed each of them a bottle. Chakotay just shook his head and smiled as both babies eagerly started drinking. Of course they would be perfect for Tom and B'Elanna. Of course they would. In his arms, Maura was peering down at her new little sister, watching her closely. Maura still didn't know what to make of the two new loud residents of their home. She had seemed just as excited as her siblings when they first brought the twins home but now she was looking at the baby suspiciously. She yawned slowly and turned back to her father, curling up in his arms and resting her head on his shoulder. Finally, he thought to himself.

"Come on, little one," Chakotay said as he lifted her up off the couch. "You need to be getting back to bed. You might even be able to fall asleep for an hour or so…"

"Babies!" Maura called over his shoulder, pointing at the twins.

"That's right," he said. "The babies are eating right now and then they will be going to sleep just like you." His eyes met his wife's and they shared a tired smile. Maybe, just maybe.

Kathryn leaned over to give Maura a kiss on the forehead. "Good night, sweetheart. We'll see you in the morning."

"Or sooner," Tom quipped and Kathryn gave him a look.

Chakotay brought Maura back to her room and dimmed the lights. He gently set her down in her crib and began to cover her up with her blankets. Maura had a special order that she liked her blankets each night; blue first, then the pink one. He sighed as she reminded him that he was doing it wrong. He corrected the mistake and leaned over to give her another kiss on the cheek.

"Please go to bed, kiddo."

Maura nodded dutifully and he hoped that she understood how vital it was to both his and Kathryn's wellbeing that she actually go to sleep. He closed the door and walked back out into the living room.

B'Elanna was gently whispering to his youngest as she snuggled in close, her eyes closed. Tom was pacing back and forth, bouncing a now sleeping Asa gently. But what made him stop where he stood was that there was someone else asleep in the living room. Kathryn was curled up on the couch, her head resting on one of the pillows, her hair splayed out across it. Chakotay smiled and walked over to her, glancing at Tom who just shrugged. Apparently, the reinforcements were good at helping everyone not just babies fall asleep.

"Kathryn," he whispered, careful not to wake the twins. He knelt down next to her and ran a finger across her cheek.

"Mmmmfff?"

"You fell asleep on the couch," he said as she looked up at him with sleepy eyes.

"So?"

"So, our bed is much more comfortable," he laughed quietly as she turned to go back to sleep. "Come on," he said as he lifted her in his arms. Kathryn barely seemed to notice as she wrapped her arms around him as he carried her to their bedroom. Gently he laid her down on the bed, pulling the covers up around her. He turned off the light and closed the door.

There had been a time when Kathryn would never have allowed a member of her crew to see her like that. She had held herself to impossible standards as she strove to maintain her captain's persona. But something about having children changed all that in her. As a mother, she was just as vulnerable and fragile as anyone, and sometimes there was nothing she could do to hide that. Tom and B'Elanna had been some of the first people that she let her guard down around, in part because of his own friendship with B'Elanna but also because of the strong sister-like affection she had for Tom. She had looked out for him when he was younger and he worked every day not to disappoint her. Somewhere along the line, probably right after Miral was born, Tom had become one of her peers. They could share their worries and their dreams about their children as parents, not as coworkers. It was a special bond that he was entirely grateful for, tonight more than ever.

"Thank you guys so much for coming over tonight," he said as he collapsed on the couch.

"Don't you go falling asleep on us, old man," B'Elanna said. "We won't be able to carry you to the bed."

"Are the kids enjoying movie night?" he asked Tom, giving B'Elanna a look.

"Oh yeah, they should be home in about two hours," he said. "Which is just enough time to get these two back in bed." He glanced down at the soundly sleeping infant in his arms.

"Take Asa back to bed first," Chakotay said. "Let him get adjusted in the crib before we put his sister in there too." Tom nodded and slowly carried the baby over to the nursery. Chakotay smiled as he remembered thinking that after he and Kathryn moved in together, his old quarters could be used as storage. That had worked for about one child. When Iva came along, they expanded again to give each child their own room. Then Rory came and they expanded again. By the time Maura arrived, Rory and Iva were sharing a room so they had a nursery all ready to go. But by the time they had learned that Kathryn was pregnant with twins, they had basically reclaimed all the space from his old quarters. At times it felt like it still wasn't enough space for his growing family.

"Hey," B'Elanna said softly, bringing him back to the present. "You want to catch a nap before the rest of your hellions come home? Tom and I would be fine watching these two."

"Are you sure?" he asked, but he could tell that she meant it.

"Go, sleep. For the love of everyone on this ship, get some sleep."

"Thanks, Lanna."

"They really are beautiful babies, Chakotay," she said as he made his way back to his bedroom.

"I know," he grinned.

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