Author's notes and acknowledgements follow.
Chapter 30: Finding Home
As her son grew into a young man, Éowyn began to show signs of advancing age. She retained her beauty, but it became the beauty of maturity. Seven traveled less frequently, preferring to stay close, but she still encouraged Legolas and Gimli to travel. When Legolas was gone, Seven spent most of her time with Éowyn. Her friend required increasing assistance with common tasks, so Seven tried to stay nearby.
On Voyager, events had passed quickly—quickly enough that age had not worn significantly on any member of the crew. Certainly there had been changes, but old age was a stranger to Seven. Éowyn's children grew strong, but their mother gradually declined. Faramir supported his wife as well as he could, but his Númenorean blood eased the passage of time for him, too, and it was hard for him to watch her age so much faster than he.
Eventually, word came that Éomer had passed away. Éowyn's health was poor, but she wanted to go for the funeral, so Faramir, Legolas, and Seven went with her back to Edoras. Éowyn's daughter and youngest son also accompanied them. The oldest stayed to rule in his father's stead while they were away. Despite the grief over her brother, Éowyn enjoyed the return to Edoras. She loved Ithilien, but it was good to see the place where she had grown up. Merry and Pippin met them there. They laid Éomer with his father and forefathers, riders surrounding his burial mound as they had Théoden's. After the funeral, the visitors spent a few days resting in Edoras, then they escorted the two hobbits, who were growing old themselves, to Gondor after the funeral.
Éowyn lingered on for most of that winter, but passed away just before spring. Seven grieved for her, but it was not unexpected. They had known the time was coming, and it was no great shock. Expected or not, it was a difficult time for Seven. She had never fully learned to deal with such emotions, but she had come a long way since Chakotay's death. She spent many nights crying in Legolas' arms, but eventually the pain faded. Éowyn had been her closest friend, and she would always miss her, but it was bearable.
A few years later, Seven became pregnant. No one was more shocked than she. Legolas didn't understand her shock, but she had never tried to explain to him the exact nature of her "slavery" with the Borg. She bore a daughter prematurely. Legolas sent a messenger to Minas Tirith as soon as she went into labor, and Elessar was there even before the child was born. The girl was small and weak, but the King cared for her, and after a few anxious days, she grew stronger. After a few weeks, she was nearly as strong as a child who had been carried to term. Motherhood was a strange experience for Seven—intimidating, but infinitely rewarding.
The baby waking in the night was not a burden for Seven since she slept only a few hours each night anyway, but caring for her own child was far different than helping care for other people's children. She had spent a lot of time around children, but those children had always gone home to their parents at the end of the day. As her daughter grew, Seven came to realize how wonderfully rewarding it was to have her own child. She loved the girl more than she could have imagined, and enjoyed simply playing with her and teaching her. They named the child Kathryn.
Q brought Admiral Janeway to visit one more time only after the baby was born. Legolas was in Minas Tirith for a few days, but Seven had remained in Ithilien. The baby was still too young to travel. Janeway literally dropped from the sky a few meters in front of Seven. She only fell a couple feet, but as she got up, she muttered, "Thanks, Q," sarcastically. Looking up, she saw Seven, and the annoyance faded. "Seven!"
"Admiral. It is good to see you. Is it still Admiral?"
"Yes, it is. Q told me he thought you could use a drop-in guest. I didn't realize how literally he meant it. Whose child is that?" Janeway walked over to look at the baby.
"Mine."
"Yours? I didn't think that was possible."
"Nor did I, but here she is."
"Seven, that's wonderful!" Janeway hugged her awkwardly, careful not to crush the baby. To her surprise, Seven didn't shy away, but rather smiled down at the child. "How old is she?"
"Four weeks. Would you like to hold her?" Janeway nodded, and Seven handed her the child. Janeway cuddled the baby for a while, amazed. The girl had Elvish features and blond hair; she was strong and healthy.
"She was born prematurely. It is only now that she is becoming strong."
"I'd never have known. The Doctor will love hearing about this."
"I can offer no explanation. Like you, I did not think it possible." The baby started fussing and Seven took her back. They moved to Seven's chamber, where Seven nursed the baby. Janeway tried not to show her amazement, but the change in Seven was amazing. They spent the rest of the day chatting and catching up. Janeway was a little embarrassed to hear that they'd named the baby named after her, but it was a pleasant surprise. Only about three years had passed for Janeway. Seven found it was increasingly difficult for her to remember how many years it had been for her, but it had been more than a century since she'd moved to Ithilien. The number shocked Janeway, but she accepted it with as much grace as she could—as well as she accepted magic and the other oddities of Middle Earth. The vast difference in time scale partially explained the change in Seven, but even with the time, it was more than Janeway would have ever hoped for.
Janeway updated Seven on the rest of the former Voyager crew. Tom and B'Elanna had another child, a son, and both children were doing well. The Doctor was involved in several research projects and Harry had a post on a starship. Janeway was teaching at the Academy. Seven enjoyed hearing about them, but the events of that realm seemed increasingly distant. Q returned that evening to take Janeway back; it was a good visit, even though it was short.
Kathryn grew quickly. The little blond had elven features, but also her mother's determination. She took everything from discipline to skinned knees with the same adaptability and determination. She learned quickly and was never satisfied until she understood why—why something existed, why it was the way it was, why something was done one way instead of another way. Sometimes she exasperated her parents, but more often that not she was a delight to the entire community. It wasn't until little Kathryn started slipping out on her own and hiding from her parents that Seven realized just how quickly children grew. She had heard it many times from others, but now she understood it. Time had been kind to her, but there were limits to its mercy.
While Seven's daughter was still young, word came of Elessar's death. With him died an era, and the Elves made ready to depart. Legolas, Seven, and Gimli built a ship together. Accompanied by the Elves of Ithilien, they sailed down the Anduin and to the Sea. The world had been bent after the Númenoreans tried to sail against Valinor so that Men could never reach it, but a straight path still remained for those who could find it. In her time in Middle Earth, Seven had found fulfillment. In her marriage and family, she had found a return to the humanity she'd lost among the Borg. There in the West Seven of Nine, Tertiary Adjunct to Unimatrix Zero, finally found her home.
A/N: My deepest thanks to everyone who has read and especially to those who have reviewed. Thank you for your time and attention. I hope you've enjoyed this story. I have posted several other LOTR stories, including one other Star Trek crossover. All are on this web site and are available through my author page. Again, thank you and God bless!