Hi again! Read on and enjoy.

BadWolf63- Thanks, I'm so glad you like it!

djhay4- LOL, I hope so as well! But you never know… ;)

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Ryos; 2293

"Good God."

"You sure you don't want some more water?"

"No, thanks. I've made too many trips to the bathroom in the last hour."

Within only four months, Laken's midriff had grown to the point where she looked like she was just about ready to give birth. But for Ryosians, gestation was exactly five months. She certainly wasn't very thrilled about being in this state for too much longer. If it weren't for Rafal's care and devotion, the poor woman surely would've gone mad.

"At least let me get you another pillow."

After helping his pregnant wife onto the living room sofa, the man got a pillow from the chair and adjusted it beneath her feet.

"Thank you."

"I'm gonna have some lunch. You want anything?"

"Oh, some more of those yogurt-covered strawberries from Amanda."

"Didn't you just have…?" Rafal suddenly caught himself. "Right, the cravings. I'll be right back."

"Thanks."

"No problem!"

Laken turned to look out the long glass window. One of her favorite things about this mountainside house was the view of the field. They were far away from her in-laws, and the landing station was near their hill. Sometimes, she'd sit and watch shuttlecrafts and smaller starships taking off into the sky. Now, the woman could picture doing that with her child in the oncoming years. After a few minutes, she heard Rafal coming back into the room. Things were quiet, prompting her to glance at him.

"What is it?"

He was staring at the PADD with a concerned look on his face. Eventually, he noticed Laken's voice and brought it over to her.

"Starfleet's asking for you."

"Is that so?"

She sat up a bit and fumbled with the PADD, going over the mission details.

"Wait, you're thinking of going?"

"Hmm?" Laken gazed up at him. "Why wouldn't I? It looks like it's just an escort trip."

"For Klingons."

Though the Ryosian had her doubts, she knew how strongly Spock felt about building a peaceful relationship with the Klingons.

"Maybe it's about that explosion from a couple of months ago."

"Right, I know. But with the baby…I don't want you to get hurt."

"That won't happen." She looked into his eyes as he sat down by her. "I'm just about to retire anyways. It'll be a relaxing end to my career."

Despite his obvious misgivings, Rafal let himself smile.

"Well, I'd feel better if I came along with you."

Laken nodded, flattered by his protectiveness.

"I'm sure Jim won't mind."

So they sat there, relieved at the lack of danger this mission contained.

That's definitely a nice change.

OOOOOOOOOOO

Upon seeing Bones and Jim condemned by a Klingon court for assassinating Chancellor Gorkon, the Ryosian cursed herself for thinking so optimistically before. Every fiber in her body wanted to help the crew in discovering the truth. However, Spock had other ideas.

"Putting yourself through undue stress will do you more harm than good," he told her. "As you can see, an investigation is already underway."

"But Spock—"

"Return to your quarters. I'm afraid that's an order, Laken."

He went back to the search, leaving his sister standing there in anger. The woman could only storm out into the corridor. She'd always hated feeling useless, but to be flat-out told that she was too fragile to help…

"Whoa, whoa."

Before she even got back to the room, Rafal had felt her ire radiating through the link. He gently took her shoulders in an attempt to calm her.

"God, I…sorry, this damn uniform is so tight. I want it off…"

She removed the red coat and relished the feeling of her remaining T-shirt and shorts. Her husband immediately escorted her to their bed, moving back so she could lie against him.

"Shh, easy. Easy."

The woman felt somewhat better in a matter of seconds. The feeling of his hands grasping hers sent plenty of soothing thoughts through her body. Their wedding night, moving into the house, finding out that they were expecting a baby girl…

A few minutes later, she was calm.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be. Your body's going through a lot—"

"No, I just can't stand being treated like an invalid."

"Spock doesn't want you to get hurt. Neither do I."

"But I'm not getting into a fight or anything."

"Stress is bad for the baby." Laken nearly rolled her eyes, but she knew he had a good point. "This crew has never given up on one another. We'll get them both out of there somehow."

The woman leaned backwards into his arms, trying to make herself believe that their luck hadn't run out.

OOOOOOOOOOOOO

It was too much for her to process. She had to leave the bridge to keep from vomiting. They'd just been able to get Jim and Bones off of that awful prison planet, and to make things a bit better, everyone knew who the traitor was: Lieutenant Valeris. But the Ryosian could feel how hurt Spock was over the betrayal. Still, the way he'd ripped into the other Vulcan's mind, the way she'd screamed at the invasion…

Laken's stomach had calmed by the time she made it into the hallway. Though she could feel her husband's concern from the other part of the ship, the woman couldn't bear the idea of anyone talking to her right now. Everything was so chaotic. Yes, they had the location of the peace conference (courtesy of Sulu), and with a bit of good fortune, they'd probably make it in enough time to stop the other conspirators. But the lows they had to stoop to were hardly worth it. This side of Spock unsettled her greatly. He hadn't even told her about this beforehand; his thoughts were blocked before it happened. Is that what their relationship had come to?

For the next few hours, she could only sit in the rec room by herself. In an odd type of way, going back to her quarters almost felt too familiar. But eventually, Laken was able to pick herself up and wander back to the room. It seemed darker than usual, even when she glanced at Fluffy as he sat on her pillow. She picked him and sat, staring down at the brown beads that made up his eyes. This entire situation was just so ugly. There were good intentions behind the mission, but perhaps it was in vain.

Then, she felt her sibling's presence outside her door. Despite her reluctance to be near him at the moment, his mood was that of the man she knew, rather than the one she saw on the bridge. The panels slid open, allowing Spock to walk into the room. There was a shadow upon his face, but he regained his composure and spoke.

"You are…unsettled by what occurred today."

"Yeah." It was difficult to not feel upset at the memory. "I am."

The Vulcan took a few steps forward until he was standing next to the bed. He remained there for a couple of seconds before sitting down beside Laken.

"I am also unsettled. It was not an action that I hold in high regard."

Though she knew deep down that he was being truthful, the woman still felt doubtful about the whole affair.

"That shouldn't have happened."

"You are correct. But Laken, I am responsible for all of this. What's done is done, and now that we have reached this point, I have to right my wrongs, regardless of how disagreeable the process is."

"Your intentions were good."

"Perhaps the time wasn't right."

"Is there ever a wrong time for peace?"

"Logical." Spock paused for a moment. "But there is never a right time to put you in danger, especially when you are in this condition."

"You're not going to get all weird again, are you?"

"Laken, you are carrying a child while aboard a targeted starship. It would be illogical for me to not take precautions."

"I know."

"And I do not wish for you to doubt my respect for you, as both an officer and a person."

"No, I don't. You always follow protocol."

"I didn't do so today."

It wasn't long before Spock had to report to the bridge, but up until that point, the siblings were able to regain their common ground. Despite the conflict that was yet to come, Laken felt better than she had in a while.

OOOOOOOOOOO

"Please, please, let's not ever go through this again."

"No, I'm done. I promise."

Rafal couldn't keep from laying a protective hand on his wife's belly as they boarded the shuttlecraft heading for the spacedock. The Enterprise had just been through hell…again. Chang's attack shook the ship hard enough for the Ryosian man to nearly fly into a panic over Laken's safety. Her insistence in joining the crew's storming of the Khitomer conference didn't really ease his worries either.

But that was all over now. The couple had stood on the bridge as they sailed towards that "second star on the left" for the last time. It was such a surreal moment for everyone there. The starship had been a large part of their lives (physically and emotionally) for so long. Thinking about a different group of people piloting it in their stead was a bit sad, but Laken was quite ready to step away, especially with the baby coming.

"You okay?"

"Yeah, definitely."

And she truly meant it. Every soul aboard that vessel was prepared to step into the next chapter of their lives.

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