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

Raffi closed her eyes to simply enjoy the still perfection of a moment.

Coffee in hand, she felt the warmth of it seeping through her fingers—warmth she needed, especially when Seven's body had decided the best temperature for their quarters was cold enough that Raffi thought they could house Barylian Ice Weedles without the need of bringing in the usual refrigeration chambers that were necessary to help the species as they fought against extinction from their home-planet's over-hunting.

Raffi's coffee smelled like heaven, and everything in her world simply felt right.

After so much "wrong" in her life, Raffi sometimes thought that she appreciated "right" more than the average individual.

She didn't have to do much searching of their quarters to know where she would find her wife. The door to the nursery was cracked, and Raffi eased it open. Seven rocked in the rocking chair, her own coffee cup in hand, with her eyes closed as though she, too, was simply enjoying the perfection of a moment.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Raffi offered.

Seven jumped, not expecting Raffi's presence. Raffi laughed to herself and whispered an apology. Seven looked at her and immediately furrowed her brow.

"Why are you referencing currency that's no longer in circulation?" Seven asked.

Raffi laughed again and eased herself down to sit on the floor in front of Seven's legs. She was proud of herself for executing the move smoothly enough that her coffee didn't spill and, in fact, barely even sloshed like it might consider spilling.

"It's just a saying, Seven. An old one. I simply wanted to know what you're thinking."

Seven smiled at her and then she smiled at her own belly as she ran her hand over the swell.

"I've been thinking a lot this morning, Raf," Seven said.

"I'd pay a dollar to hear all of it," Raffi offered with a laugh.

Seven smirked and her ocular implant rose with her gesture of amused questioning.

"Another old saying?" She asked, drawing circles on her belly with the hand not holding her coffee cup.

"No," Raffi admitted. "Just teasing. Is she moving?"

Seven nodded. Raffi offered her hand out in that direction, and Seven caught it. She placed Raffi's hand on her belly, presumably where she felt the little cricket movements that she called the baby's kicks. Raffi's pulse kicked up immediately, when she felt something—or, rather, someone—nudging her from inside Seven's belly.

Seven's smile told Raffi that her face had given her away. Seven's face lit up.

"You can detect her movements," Seven said.

Raffi smiled back at her and nodded. Her heart pounded in her chest. It was one of the greatest feelings in the world, and Raffi felt a little like she might drown with the flood of affection that filled her.

"Very well, actually," Raffi said. She moved her cup out of the way, got to her knees, and placed a hand on either side of Seven's belly. Only the one that she placed back where Seven had guided her could feel the movement, but Raffi still gently moved both palms over Seven's stomach.

Seven closed her eyes, a hint of a smile playing on her lips, and Raffi smiled softly, knowing that she was enjoying the touch and the interaction between them—between all three of them.

"I believe she's grown a bit more," Seven said, opening her eyes again. "I am becoming increasingly aware of her presence in everything I do. This morning, I felt it necessary to change how I got out of bed. Her presence practically impeded my ability to simply sit up."

"It'll continue to do that," Raffi said, laughing to herself. "Soon, you'll need help getting out of the chair or anywhere, really." She continued to affectionately rub Seven's belly. "You'll start to…to waddle, Seven."

"Waddle? Like the side-to-side movement of a…"

"Duck," Raffi supplied with a laugh. Seven echoed her laughter, but her expression said that she was simply confused. Raffi sucked in a breath and let it out. "Your hips…expand? They spread. She'll settle down a little deeper in there, and you'll start to sort of move more from side to side when you walk. You'll waddle."

"I recall a change in B'Elanna's gait when Miral and Owen were nearly due to be born," Seven said. "Kathryn, as well, showed a significant change in gait."

"I did, too," Raffi said. "I think everyone woman does. If not every woman, pretty close to it."

"Perhaps the Borg do not waddle," Seven offered. Her expression changed slightly. "Maybe I won't experience the same change in gait."

Raffi's stomach tightened. She couldn't tell if Seven was feeling insecure about the prospect of waddling, as so many women did, or if she was feeling sad at the thought that she might, somehow, miss the experience because of the modifications that had been made to "perfect" her body and remove anything that could be seen as an imperfection.

"You'll waddle," Raffi said, "and you'll be adorable doing it."

Seven's fingers found Raffi's on the swell of her belly. Raffi caught her hand and held it, picking up her coffee mug and sipping from it as she kept her chosen seat.

"I can't believe all of this is here," Seven said, looking around the room. Raffi looked around the nursery and smiled.

"Looks pretty good," she mused.

"This is a nursery, Raffi," Seven said.

"That was the idea."

"For a baby. Our baby. Raffi—this is real."

"It's very real. Changing your mind?"

"Not at all," Seven said. "I just—Raffi—I…"

Raffi smiled to herself. Seven was looking for words to express a feeling. From her expression, Raffi could tell that it was a beautiful, magical feeling. She felt warmed just to see that expression on Seven's face. Her chest ached with goodness—something so welcomed.

"You're what?" Raffi said softly. "Tell me, Baby. What are you?"

Seven's cheeks blushed, but the magic of her expression didn't fade.

"I don't know," she said. "I don't possess the words to efficiently express what it is that I wish to say."

Raffi laughed quietly.

"Then—inefficiently express it," she said. "And we'll put the rest together."

"I guess, I'm just…happy, Raffi. Overwhelmed."

"In a good way?"

"In the best way."

"Then—it's OK, then."

"I never thought that I would be a mother. The Borg don't…"

"I know," Raffi said, when Seven's words broke off.

"And, then, when I was severed from the Collective, I still…I felt…"

"I know," Raffi said, helping Seven again when her words failed her.

"This is her nursery," Seven said.

"It sure is."

"It's ready for her."

"More than that, Seven, it's ready for both of them," Raffi said. She laughed to herself. "We're ready for her and we're ready for…boy or girl, whatever comes next. You don't have to stay awake a single hour, Seven, worrying about if we're ready. However quickly you and the nanonannies do this? We're ready. She could come tomorrow, and we'll be ready."

Seven blew out a breath like she was trying to steady her nerves. Raffi thought she understood. She felt the same way, even though she didn't want to really say much and add to Seven's stress or anxiety in any way.

"We'll be ready," Seven said.

"We will," Raffi echoed.

"Her room is ready," Seven said. "I can't believe everyone did this for her…"

"For you," Raffi said. "Seven—they did this to make you feel more secure. I think you have a lot more people on your proverbial team than you think. No matter what the hell Dr. Spalen says about anything. Everyone who came and…and stayed up way past their bedtime last night, came for you."

Seven considered it and smiled softly.

"For us," Seven said. "They came for you, too, Raffi. They care about you, too."

"It's been a long time since I felt like I had anyone to care whether I live or die," Raffi mused. "Now…"

"We have a family," Seven said, adding her own musing to the moment.

"A big one," Raffi said. "And it's getting bigger and better by the moment. Something tells me we better get used to the love."

"It makes me wish that we could do something," Seven said.

"Like what?" Raffi asked. Seven shrugged and squeezed her hand.

"I don't know," she admitted. "I suppose I'm just feeling genuinely happy, Raffi. I wish that…everyone could feel the same."

Raffi hummed and teased Seven by making a face at her.

"A noble endeavor," she said. "I think that many of our…of our friends…and family…are feeling that happiness. Maybe that's why they feel driven to share it with us. But—I do have a few ideas of how we could help those that might need to do a little catching up." Seven raised her eyebrows at Raffi in question. "Well, among others, our son could use a lesson or two on romancing the half- Ktarian that's got her eyes on him."

111

"It seems as if this activity is not at all indicative of the true nature of anyone's lived experience, and I fail to understand why we are engaging in it," Elnor said.

"What the hell else do we have to do?" Raffi said, "Except work when we're on duty, interfere with the love lives of others, and wait for Seven to finish baking Baby M."

"I'm sorry, Seven is doing what?" Elnor asked.

"It's an expression," Raffi said, waving her hands like she could physically wipe away his confusion. "I just mean—we're waiting for Baby M to grow enough that she's ready to come out and meet us. That's all. And—we have time to kill, and you're on our list of victims…I mean people we intend to help find love and happiness."

She smiled at Elnor's face. He clearly wasn't sure if he was confused or horrified. Raffi was on her feet, so she closed the distance between them, took his face in her hand, and kissed his forehead.

"I love you, my sweet boy," she offered. "Now—back to what we were doing. Seven is Naomi Wildman…"

"Seven is Seven…why are we engaging in the overt misrepresentation of reality?"

"We're not. We're pretending. And we're pretending that Seven is Naomi Wildman," Raffi corrected. "And you're asking her out on a date."

"Why?"

"Because you want to spend time with her," Raffi said. "You do want to spend time with her, don't you?"

"I spend time with Naomi daily," Elnor pointed out. Raffi bit her lip.

"You want her to know you enjoy spending time with her," Raffi said.

"The fact that I repeatedly spend time with her is a clear indication that I enjoy spending time with her, and there should be no need for other rituals or practices to express an already understood experience," Elnor said.

"He has a point," Seven said.

Raffi held her hand out in Seven's direction, and then she pointed at her.

"OK—see? I wooed you. I—I wooed you." She pointed at Elnor. "And you? You are—you are her child. Despite the lack of biological material that you have in common? You are her child." Raffi sighed and shook her head. "And this is the real reason that the members of the Qowat Milat don't have children. Elnor—you enjoy spending time with Naomi?"

"Yes, of course."

"You want to spend more time with her?" Raffi asked.

"I assume that I will spend time in her presence with each day, Raffi," Elnor offered.

"But you can't assume that," Raffi said. She smiled at Elnor and she held her finger up, cutting him off before he likely told her that, until now, that assumption had served him well. "You have to let her know that you want to do that if you want to move beyond…eating lunch together. A good, strong, committed relationship is not built solely on consuming meals together."

"You and Seven consume all of your meals together," Elnor said.

"Nearly all of them," Seven interjected. "I do commonly require nutrition in Raffi's absence, and I'm sure that she often eats without me. Particularly when we're both on duty."

Raffi narrowed her eyes at one and then the other. At times, she couldn't be certain when they were being genuine, and when they were practicing the skill of giving her a hard time for their own hidden amusement.

"I give up," Raffi said. "I give up. Elnor—Naomi Wildman is a human woman and, as such, she's going to expect you to do some wooing, at some point, if you want to advance from walking her home from her classes, or what have you, into…into beautiful things like making your own family."

"You are my family," Elnor pointed out.

"And we'll continue to be your family," Raffi agreed. "But maybe you'd like to be a father someday? And if you're going to marry a human woman and have a family, Elnor, chances are she's going to expect you to do a little stereotypical wooing. Flowers, and dates…"

"Ktarian," Seven interrupted.

"I'm sorry?" Raffi asked.

"Ktarian," Seven repeated. "You said that Naomi Wildman is a human woman and, as a human woman, she would expect to be wooed in the typical and expected traditions and practices of the human species." Raffi shrugged and nodded. "Naomi Wildman is, in fact, half Ktarian. Her mother is human. Her father is Ktarian."

"Does that have any bearing on Elnor bringing her flowers?" Raffi asked.

"Has anyone researched the mating rituals of Ktarians?" Seven asked.

Raffi sat down.

"You know what? Fine. Here's what you should do. First—you should…research the mating rituals of Ktarians. Maybe, while you're at it, research the mating rituals of humans—Terrans—and Romulans. Then? Forget all of it. Forget—forget all of this. Elnor—let's go with what you know best."

"I know quite a few things well, especially now that I've joined the Academy," Elnor offered.

"Truth," Raffi said. "Candor. You can do that. It's your—sometimes infuriating and sometimes adorable—specialty. Tell Naomi Wildman you like her. Tell her…you want to spend time with her. If you decide that you want more? A family of your own, a ship full of little Elnors, or whatever it is that you want, and if you want Naomi Wildman to be part of all that, then tell her." Raffi sighed. "Maybe—she'll do the rest."

"That's really all that's required," Seven said. "You find someone compatible with you. You find someone that you value and respect, and who values and respects you. You present what you want, and then you move toward achieving each of those goals, one at a time, together."

Elnor looked pleased by this suggestion.

"I had no idea that relationships were that simple," he said.

Raffi laughed to herself.

"Yeah," she said. "Me neither."