AN: Here we are, another piece here.
I hope you enjoy! Please don't forget to let me know what you think!
111
Raffi placed the mug of coffee on the bathroom counter so that Seven could drink from it while she finished manipulating her hair into the off-the-collar style required of both of them for their upcoming shift. Raffi had let Seven sleep in a little, and she'd been the first to prepare for the Alpha shift. As was their practice, the fact that she was dressed first meant that she was the "honored coffee bringer."
"Thank you," Seven said, around the bobby pins that she held in her mouth.
"You're welcome," Raffi said, leaning and kissing the side of Seven's face, as she often did, close enough to feel the cool metal of the implant near Seven's ear as it brushed her lips. In the mirror, Seven closed her eyes for a fraction of a second like a cat enjoying an affectionate touch. Raffi smiled in response. Seven finished securing her hair and drank a swallow of her coffee. She hummed in satisfaction and closed her eyes again. The sound sent a jolt through Raffi's body—it was not entirely unlike some of the sounds she frequently coaxed out of Seven.
"Good?" Raffi asked, smirking at Seven.
"Perfect," Seven assured her.
They both agreed that preparing each other's coffee correctly was a way of communicating their love for one another—especially when both of them could also clarify their orders given the different moods that came with different mornings.
"What time is it?" Seven asked. "I do not wish to be late. Janeway and I are working on the catalog today, and I want to make some really good progress."
"We have plenty of time for breakfast," Raffi said. In response, and practically as if on cue, Seven's stomach growled loudly. Raffi laughed, and Seven did, too. "And Baby M clearly thinks that's top priority."
Seven brought the coffee pot to the table. Raffi replicated breakfast. Elnor didn't have a shift today, so he was sleeping in and spending his day studying. They wouldn't wake him to meet them for breakfast. Raffi put the breakfast burrito on the table in front of Seven with a bowl of fruit, before she sat down to her own breakfast plate, overflowing with nearly everything she could think of that might constitute a perfect breakfast.
"Are you hungry, Raffi?" Seven asked with some amusement, looking over the mountain of food that Raffi had selected for herself.
"You're doing this to me," Raffi said with a laugh. "Baby M's doing this to me."
"I am the one who is pregnant, Raf," Seven pointed out.
"And I'm the one who is—suffering from Couvade Syndrome," Raffi said, around a mouthful of food. Seven's face was incredulous, but amused. Raffi swallowed down her laughter with the food she'd been chewing through. "You know—I would expect a little more sympathy from you, Seven, for my suffering."
"What is that?" Seven asked. "That's not real."
"It's absolutely real," Raffi said. "Couvade Syndrome is real. It's from the French term "couvee." It means to…to brood. To hatch. I looked it up in the database last night, Seven, when I couldn't sleep and you were regenerating."
Seven was laughing quietly as she ate.
"Are you joking, Raf?" She asked, finally. It was nearly impossible for either of them to keep from laughing, at least a little, and therefore Raffi didn't feel entirely serious, even though she had researched what they were discussing.
"I promise," Raffi said, "it's real. The heartburn I've been having, the extra emotions…the fact that I want to eat everything. The weight gain and anxiety. Seven—it's Couvade Syndrome."
Seven's amusement faded.
"Is it something serious?" She asked, suddenly concerned. Raffi swallowed at the tightening in her throat and laughed at the very sudden prickle of tears behind her eyes.
"Son of a bitch!" She said, laughing as she spat out the words. "You see? You—look at me like that and…here come the waterworks."
Seven touched her arm sympathetically.
"Are you OK?" Seven asked, no less concerned than before.
"Eat your burrito," Raffi said. "If my middle-of-the-night, self-diagnosis is correct, it's just a way of saying I have sympathetic pregnancy symptoms. Basically—I'm too damn sensitive to you." She wiped at her eyes and winked at Seven as Seven relaxed a little, absorbing the information.
"You could ask for something to treat it," Seven offered.
"The database said it's not really something they diagnose," Raffi offered, returning to her food. "Just—something that happens when you're really in-tune with your partner, I guess. They can treat the symptoms, but it's just antacids, extra sleep, that kind of thing."
"You could ask Dr. Crusher," Seven said. "She is highly sympathetic to pregnancy-related discomforts."
"If the need arises, I'll talk to her," Raffi assured Seven. "I don't mind being—connected to you? I guess. Even if it's just a hormonal reaction." Raffi switched gears quickly, steering the conversation where she wanted it to go. "Seven—I noticed you've been touching your belly today. Are you—feeling OK?"
Seven's cheeks blushed. She might have been able to keep an entirely neutral expression, but the blood still rose to her cheeks. She finished the bite of food she was eating.
"I believe I feel your crickets," Seven said. "However—when I try to feel them with my hand, they're not there."
"You can feel her moving?" Raffi asked.
"I don't know," Seven said. "I don't have any proof, Raffi, that I'm feeling anything at all. I could simply be imagining it."
Raffi smiled.
"You remember what Dr. Crusher said. If you think you feel it, you do. That's all there is to it, Seven," Raffi said. She reached her hand over and patted Seven's arm. "You feel her. She's growing. Getting stronger."
"It is likely the accumulation of digestive gases," Seven said.
Raffi openly rolled her eyes at Seven, an act which amused Seven.
"You feel her, Seven," Raffi said. "It's not up for further discussion."
"Is the nursery up for further discussion?" Seven asked, moving her empty plate out of the way and moving the fruit bowl closer to her so that she could eat her way through the pieces she liked while rejecting the ones that Raffi put in to try to expand her palate.
"Did you choose a paint color?" Raffi asked.
"I retain the opinion that you should be the one to choose," Seven said. "However, I accept that you're not going to do so."
"I gave you options," Raffi said. "You can choose the rest of the way."
"I like the yellow," Seven said.
"Which one?"
"The light one," Seven said. "It is a soft, soothing color. Though none of our potential children will have any opinion about the color of the walls for a long time, I agree with what you said about the color potentially influencing their mood."
"I like the yellow, too," Raffi assured her. "I think it's a perfect choice."
111
Raffi sat on the bridge of the Soñador and read through the almost constant updates on her PADD. She held the conn while Chakotay was off answering some questions in Engineering. The Soñador was a busy ship. They had seen very little trouble since arriving in the Delta Quadrant, and they'd had only a few positive encounters with local species, but the ship itself always had plenty going on. There were researchers of all types aboard, and someone was always working. In addition, there were constant plans being made for course changes and future encounters. Starfleet wanted nearly continual updates, as well, so the contact between the ship and Starfleet Headquarters barely ever seemed to stop.
Raffi could read the incoming information on her PADD from the moment she woke until the moment she went to sleep without so much as a lag.
The bridge, however, was quiet and subdued, honestly—at least for the moment. Janeway had basically been given the right to hand-pick the crew of dreams for the dream ship. Because the mission was one that fascinated a lot of people, the Alpha crew was, really, a thing of beauty. Raffi might as well have been sitting on the bridge of Voyager, from what she knew of the ship. Everyone there was so attuned to their jobs that there was hardly need for anyone to stress too much, especially in peaceful skies. Raffi could let her mind wander a little and feel entirely secure doing so—she was surrounded by experts at their fields, and all of them were truly thrilled with the idea of the entire mission on which they were all serving.
Raffi had let herself drift slightly, so it surprised her to hear Tuvok's announcement.
"Unidentified vessel has just appeared on our long-range scanners. The signature is unknown. It does not appear in our database."
Raffi took to her feet the moment that she comprehended what was being said.
"Is it moving toward us or away from us?" Raffi asked.
"It appears to be moving toward us," Tuvok said.
"The course appears to be direct," Harry Kim offered, "and it's moving quickly."
Raffi touched her combadge.
"Captain to the bridge," she said. "Seven to the bridge," she added, already knowing that, despite what some of the scientists aboard the ship might think, Seven's input was some of the most valuable that they had.
Janeway and Seven were the first to arrive on the bridge, given their proximity. Even as Janeway stepped through the door, she relieved them all from the quick announcement of "Admiral on the bridge." Janeway had notoriously little need for protocol when it came to something that she found much more important.
"Report, Tuvok," Janeway demanded.
Tuvok repeated what he'd already told Raffi. Chakotay caught the tail end of it as he came quickly through the door, but he didn't seem to need clarification for what little bit he'd missed.
"Where are they now?" Chakotay demanded.
"Approaching quickly," Kim said. "They'll be on us in less than four minutes. There appear to be no charged weapons on the vessel."
"Seven—a little help," Janeway said. "Do you recognize them?"
Seven stepped forward, looking at the approaching ship that was now within view. She looked at them with a furrowed brow, but that only lasted a half a second before she looked confident and, then, even a little cross.
"Unless the ship is stolen, they are Nerobians, Admiral," Seven offered. "They are a primarily quadrupedal species, but they are able to function as bipedal. They closely resemble species from Earth's Ursidae family."
"Bears, Seven?" Janeway asked, giving voice to everyone else's thoughts, Raffi was sure. Seven nodded her head.
"They are a physically powerful species. They are carnivorous, and they are active hunters and predators. These are not what you may call teddy bears. They have had warp capability for a long time, but they do not engage in much ship-to-ship combat. They prefer to find species that are weaker and hunt them, consuming them."
"Apex predators," Janeway mused.
"They are one of the oldest known species in the Delta Quadrant," Seven said, moving away from the screen and off to the side of the bridge, now that there was nothing more to see. "The Borg assimilated them very early in their existence. They made poor drones. Their brute strength made them desirable, but they suffer from a somewhat limited intelligence in some capacities, though they are quite clever in others. There were many failed attempts to create drones that performed well. Through some difficult periods of drought and cold on their planet, their species has suffered a great reduction in the number of successful, live births, and several peaks in the number of deaths. It was believed that their numbers were reduced nearly to the point of extinction."
"Clearly, they're not extinct," Chakotay said.
"Though they may be close," Janeway said.
"Captain, we're being hailed," Kim offered.
"Weapons?" Chakotay asked.
"The ship does appear to have weapons," Tuvok said. "However, no weapons are armed."
"Onscreen," Chakotay said.
Immediately, a creature very much resembling a grizzly bear with slightly humanoid features filled the screen. Raffi's eyes were drawn to the fierce teeth and visibly dangerous claws.
"I'm Captain Chakotay of the Federation Starship Soñador. We're on a diplomatic mission from the Alpha Quadrant to peacefully meet with the inhabitants of the Delta Quadrant and introduce them to the ideals and practices of the Federation."
It took an obvious moment for the Universal Translator to work out the language of the creature that growled back at them. Chakotay explained this, and the creature seemed to slowly understand. Likewise, when he spoke again, Standard came through instead of his species' growls.
"I am Grous. This is a scout ship. You are entering the border of Nerobian territory. Any threat to our planet will be met with absolute aggression."
"Understood," Chakotay responded. "We don't mean to threaten you in any way. This is a part of the Delta Quadrant that we've never explored before. We are simply mapping the area and meeting with any willing inhabitants. If you would allow us to peacefully study your space and planet, we would appreciate it. However, we're also willing to depart immediately and leave you in peace. I assure you—we want no trouble with anyone, but we're willing to meet any unsolicited attack with countermeasures."
Raffi bit the inside of her cheek. It was a diplomatic way of saying that we won't start the fight, but we'll surely throw the second punch, if that's what needs to happen here.
It was impossible to read the expression of Grous. Trying to read his expression made Raffi shiver, though she suppressed the visibility of that reaction to the best of her ability. Something in her gut told her that this creature could smell fear the same way that its Earth counterparts—maybe some kind of relative thanks to truly ancient ties—could do.
"I will have to contact our Alpha," Grous said.
"Of course," Chakotay said. "Take your time. We'll wait. Offscreen."
The screen blanked.
"All sound is off?" Janeway asked.
"We are currently disconnected from Grous and his ship," Tuvok confirmed.
"Seven?" Janeway and Chakotay said at the same time.
Seven looked slightly concerned.
"We are here to attempt contact with all willing species of the Delta Quadrant," Seven said. "That would mean that we are somewhat obligated to attempt contact and diplomacy with the Nerobians, if they find such contact desirable. However, I would advise that anyone coming into direct, physical contact with the species insist on being armed, at least with a phaser on stun, and that they remain alert." She looked at Chakotay. "Captain—this is a highly predatorial species. They hunt by gaining access to regions dominated by weaker species. They have a variety of tactics for doing so. Once they gain access, and gain the upper hand, they attack. Be advised that the Nerobians do not take prisoners. They attack to kill and consume."
"We'll take that into account," Chakotay said. "Thank you, Seven."
Seven nodded.
"Captain," Kim said, "we're being hailed again."
"Onscreen," Chakotay commanded.