AN: Here we are, another piece to this one.
I hope you enjoy! Please don't forget to let me know what you think!
111
Seven materialized in Picard's waiting area and, before everything could come into focus entirely, she found herself face-to-face with Raffi. She smiled immediately, and Raffi mirrored the expression.
"Were you expecting someone else?" Raffi teased. "You looked surprised. Or was that disappointed?"
Seven recognized the heavy teasing in her wife's voice, but she also knew that Raffi had some soft spots deep down where her insecurities lie. Raffi didn't deny her involvement—or even her guilt, since she carried a great deal of it with her, buried inside—in the break-up of her last relationship and the estrangement from her son. From those separations and losses, though, she had learned to fear, perhaps, that there would always come some moment when Seven would throw her hands in the air and simply say that she couldn't do "this," whatever "this" might be. Seven knew these things from their past discussions and, though she'd always done her best to dismiss Raffi's concerns, she held onto that information as something of a key into her wife's inner thoughts.
She used the knowledge, too, to help her sometimes navigate when certain responses were better chosen than others.
She renewed her smile and leaned in close enough to Raffi that none of the other individuals in the waiting area—and there were quite a few individuals waiting there and others somewhat steadily transporting in—could overhear or object.
"The face I most wanted to see," Seven said. "And the face that I am always happiest to see."
She winked at Raffi because, no matter how she might try to keep her expression steady, Raffi's eyes gave away that she couldn't have heard words she treasured more at the moment. Seven gave her a moment to savor them before she asked a question.
"Raffi—what's going on?"
"I don't know," Raffi admitted, a smile playing at her lips. "I think it's good, though. JL's been in meetings all morning. Something's been going on behind-the-scenes. All hush-hush, you know. But, apparently, today's the day they bring it all to light, and some of us got a front-row seat."
The waiting area to Jean-Luc Picard's office was growing crowded—almost suffocating. Seven knew nearly everyone there. Either she had worked with them on Voyager, or she'd met them through other Starfleet functions. She found herself moving closer and closer to Raffi as the room filled. Some small distance away, she did catch sight of B'Elanna—Owen in her arms—with Tom, her husband, standing close-by.
Everyone was asking each other about what was going on. Everyone wanted to know why they'd been gathered together, but it was clear that nobody knew. Seven hoped they wouldn't have to wait long, especially since she wasn't sure exactly how many more bodies the space could support without some individuals beginning to respond negatively.
Seven turned her head quickly when she heard someone call her name. Immediately, Seven knew the person who had called her, though she hadn't seen her in quite some time.
"Naomi Wildman!" Seven declared. Naomi made her way through the crowd and wrapped her arms around Seven, squeezing her hard. Despite the fact that Naomi's Ktarian heritage had made her age quickly when she was very young, the rapid aging seemed to slow almost to stopping when Ktarian's reached puberty. As they developed an adult body, they also seemed to settle into their chronological age. Naomi Wildman was probably about twenty years old, and she finally looked that age instead of looking six or seven years older than she actually was.
Seven saw the slightest tinge of jealousy on Raffi's features when she pulled out of the hug and smiled at her. Raffi was doing her best to disguise it, clearly planning to keep the jealousy to herself, and Seven found the hint of it endearing.
"Raffi, this is Naomi Wildman," Seven said. "She was born on Voyager. I've told you about her. We were—are—very good friends." Naomi beamed at those words, a hint of the child she'd been shining through. Seven felt Naomi's hand rubbing up and down her back—an affectionate sort of petting. "I haven't seen her since she was transferred."
"I've been working onboard the Mirage, recently," Naomi Wildman offered.
"Naomi Wildman, this is Raffi Musiker," Seven said. "My wife."
For a moment, the announcement clearly needed to register. As soon as it did register, though, Naomi looked excited, and she hugged Seven again before practically launching herself at Raffi. Raffi was as shocked by the hard hug as Naomi Wildman had clearly been by the announcement, but she returned it.
Seven explained that they'd recently announced and celebrated their marriage, but she'd been unable to get information about Naomi in time to send her an invitation. The little reunion may have continued, but it was interrupted when Picard appeared and called them all to order with a booming voice that declared that they would all understand why they'd been called together soon enough, and would they please make their way with him to one of the large conference rooms that had been prepared just for the occasion.
Naomi broke ahead in the crowd as they moved. Seven wasn't in a hurry, and she didn't feel like bumping her way through the crowd. She took her time, moving slowly, with her arm brushing against Raffi's every now and again as they walked.
When they finally reached the large conference room, they were ushered inside, and Seven took a seat beside Raffi. Everyone was still making eye contact with each other, exchanging glances and a few whispered words, still looking for someone who might have some insight into what was happening. Picard, though he'd been one of the first to head in the direction of the conference room, was one of the last to come through the door. As he entered, Seven noticed that Kathryn Janeway entered just behind him, and her husband, Chakotay followed her in.
In the presence of two admirals, everyone around the table rose to their feet—even though the space was overly crowded and hardly allowed room for such a movement. Seven's own chair hit hard against her thigh and she bit back the desire to spit a curse word or two for the fact that it hit just right to be a rather unpleasant sensation.
"At ease," Picard said. Everyone sat. "Please, get comfortable. I'm Admiral Jean-Luc Picard. I know nearly everyone gathered here personally. It has been my great pleasure to serve with many of you, and it has been my honor to serve all of you as a member of Starfleet. I'm sure that you're wondering why I've called you all here. I am going to allow my colleague—my friend—Admiral Kathryn Janeway, to explain the reason for this gathering. I hope that you'll find what she has to say as absolutely exciting as I do."
Everyone gave the second admiral their attention. Seven felt her pulse pick up, as it often did, when Kathryn Janeway rose to speak. They had had their difficulties at times, especially owing to the fact that Janeway had often been responsible for helping Seven learn how to be more human and less Borg when she'd been removed from the Borg Collective, but Seven often considered Janeway to be the closest thing to a mother that she could clearly remember having—her memories of her actual mother were, unfortunately, quite blurry and almost lost to her entirely with the constant passage of time.
"I'm Admiral Kathryn Janeway. Firstly, I want to thank you all for coming—many of you on quite short notice. I know all of you in one way or another. For many of you, we served together on the Starship Voyager. We were shipmates, but we were also family. For others, we are family through Starfleet. I know you're all wondering why it is that I've gathered you here today. I won't waste your time. I've brought you here for an exciting new mission that is about to take place. In a week, the Federation Starship Soñador—a Galaxy-class Starship—will be leaving for a diplomatic mission in the Delta Quadrant, using the newly stabilized wormhole for our purposes. Our purpose in the Delta Quadrant will be multi-fold. We'll be checking on the new space station that is currently being constructed inside the wormhole. We will also be mapping the Delta Quadrant with more precision, and we'll be reaching out for first and, in many cases, second or third contact situations to try to bring news of the Federation and its ideals and goals to the inhabitants of the Delta Quadrant. This is why we've gathered you all here together. Everyone in this room, along with your families, has been hand-selected as someone to whom we would like to extend an invitation to join this mission."
"I will also be joining the mission," Picard said. "Kathryn and I have had a great many conversations about who would temporarily take the role of Vice Admiral while on this journey and, though she fought hard, I fought harder—and I won."
There was a rumble of laughter that rolled through the people gathered there—especially since the look of affection that the two exchanged could not be mistaken.
"It is no secret that I've never loved being tied to a desk," Picard said. "My retirement is ever-approaching…"
"And ever-being pushed back," Raffi teased. She was one of the few people who would have dared to tease Jean-Luc Picard in front of any and everyone. He laughed.
"You're right about that, Raffi," he said. "And—I don't want to finish out my career sitting behind a desk and dreaming about the stars. El Soñador means dreamer, and I find that a fitting place for me to spend the final years of my commission. This mission belongs to Admiral Janeway, really, but she has graciously granted me the grace of accompanying her on this monumental voyage."
The look that Janeway gave Picard was purely affectionate.
"I am thrilled to have you going with us," Janeway said. "This mission belongs to all of us. The dream that we have is a dream where we are able to connect with the inhabitants of the Delta Quadrant in a way we never have before. It's a dream in which we're able to bring them into the Federation and find peace, cooperation, and mutual benefit for everyone involved. The name for the ship was chosen for that dream—a dream to bring so many people together. Still, I imagine that there will be a great many dreams that will be dreamed and brought to fruition during this mission."
"What are the details of the mission, Captain?" Tom Paris asked. "Admiral," he corrected quickly, shifting Owen in his lap.
Janeway smiled at him.
"Chakotay will serve as captain," Janeway said. "It is a diplomatic mission, though there will be a great deal of interest in the mapping and exploration of the Delta Quadrant without some of the limitations that we experienced the last time we were there. The first commission is for one year. Anyone who wishes to sign back on, provided that the mission is extended, will be invited to do so as long as they maintain an honorable record of service. I know that my crew from Voyager may feel nervous about this, but the wormhole is stable. We will be frequently returning to the Alpha Quadrant for R and R and shore leave. I also know that many of you who did not serve upon Voyager may feel at some kind of disadvantage or, perhaps, as though we may have some claim to the Delta Quadrant that you do not have. I assure you that Jean-Luc and I have discussed this at length, and we don't want those kinds of feelings. I have blended Starfleet and Maquis crews with success. We believe that, together, we can seamlessly blend the exceptional officers and crew members that we have here, along with some of our fresher faces that will be joining us on their very first mission. Everyone here was hand-picked. Many of you were pulled from other projects, other missions, and other assignments, because we thought you were the best of the best. We have never before had the opportunity to hand-pick a crew quite so completely, but the Soñador is really, so far, a ship where dreams come true."
"Some of you may be nervous about leaving family behind," Picard said. He made direct eye contact with Raffi. Seven didn't miss it. Some of you are—newly married. Some of you have brand new little ones. Others are dealing with teenagers, perhaps, and all the challenges that time of life can bring. The Soñador is a family ship, and this is a family mission. One of the things that we hope to be able to show the people we meet with, when they're brought upon our ship to be hosted and introduced to the Federation, is that family and communion is important in Starfleet. This is a family trip. Your commission includes your family, and we hope that you'll consider bringing them aboard."
"I understand," Janeway said, "that this is a lot to take in. We are not requiring you to sign-on today. We will be leaving in a week. You have until that time to make up your mind, though we do appreciate you letting us know, as soon as you've made a decision, if you'll be joining us on this mission. I do extend my thanks, however, for your time here today—no matter what you decide—and I express my hope to get to know each of you better as we work to introduce Starfleet to the Delta Quadrant in a very big way."
Seven sat beside Raffi and listened to the rest of the parting words given by Janeway and Picard. When they asked if there were questions, nobody had any, but Seven knew that there would be questions. They knew that, too, and therefore told everyone to contact them via their direct lines at any time—day or night—during the coming week.
Seven's heart was beating fast in her chest, and she didn't try to put an explanation behind her feelings. She felt the vibration in her pocket of her personal device—her silenced alarm telling her that she needed a hypospray, soon, to replenish the hormones she was apparently burning through. She reached a hand out and found Raffi's hand, under the table, while they waited for people to finish filing out of the crowded conference room. They remained where they were, determined not to get in the way.
"What do you think?" Seven asked.
"The Delta Quadrant is more your area than mine," Raffi said. "What do you think?"
"I am…not sure what to think," Seven admitted.
"We have time to decide," Raffi said. "We can talk about it as much as you want. Do you know which way you're leaning? Would you have any desire at all to go back to the Delta Quadrant?"
Seven smiled at Raffi. She rubbed her thumb over the soft skin of Raffi's hand. She shrugged her shoulders gently.
"With you? I would go anywhere," she admitted.
She wasn't sure, yet, if that meant that they'd go to the Delta Quadrant, but she thought she saw at least the glimmer of something—wanderlust, perhaps—in Raffi's eyes.
And she found that she didn't mind either way.