"Janeway to Seven."

Seven of Nine, standing at a console in Astrometrics, tapped her badge to respond. "Yes, Captain?"

"Seven, when you have a moment, please come to my Ready Room."

"I will come right now if that is acceptable. I have completed my calculations for today."

"That will be fine, thank you. Janeway out."

Seven was unsure how to classify how she was now feeling. The captain had not spoken directly to her in 68 hours and 23 minutes, not even in the senior staff meetings, and now she was summoning her to what Seven assumed was to be a private meeting in her Ready Room. Seven didn't know whether to be relieved or worried. She knew she had committed a serious social faux pas, but she didn't understand why the captain seemed so distressed over it. Seven would normally go to the captain herself with such questions, and she didn't want to make the situation worse by discussing it with another member of the crew, so she was left to try to figure it out on her own. None of her conclusions satisfied her.

Seven nodded greetings to a few passing crewmen as she made her way to the turbolift. She was not accustomed to what her crewmates referred to as "nerves," but she found a gnawing feeling growing in the pit of her stomach as she neared the bridge. Crossing to the Ready Room, she pushed the door chime to announce her arrival.

"Enter."

Seven released the breath she realized she had been holding and crossed the threshold into the captain's private room. Not immediately seeing the woman in question, Seven looked around and finally spotted her to the far left, looking out at empty space with her back to the door.

"Captain."

"Hello, Seven." She did not turn from the window. Seven could just make out her face in the reflection, but her expression was unreadable. "Thank you for joining me. I'm sure you know why I asked you to come."

"On the contrary, Captain. I am not sure why you have summoned me. I can only surmise that you are ready to punish me for my infraction three days ago."

The captain finally turned to face Seven with a look of surprise. "Punish you? Why on earth would I do that?"

Seven was now more confused than ever and allowed her brow to furrow. "Because I breached protocol; I invaded your privacy. You certainly seemed angry at the time. And you haven't spoken to me since, until summoning me here."

Folding her arms protectively across her chest, the captain once again faced the window. "I was angry, Seven, but not at you."

"I do not understand."

A deep sigh heaved the captain's shoulders. "I was angry with myself. Angry that I let myself get carried away and lose track of time. Angry that I forgot to seal the holodeck. Angry that I felt the way I did."

Seven tilted her head, studying the older woman. "How did you feel if you were not simply angry at me or yourself?"

Another sigh, and the captain began pacing along the bank of windows. "You're asking a lot, Seven. This is an extremely personal topic. I didn't call you here to discuss my innermost thoughts. I called you here to apologize to you."

"To me? Why? You did nothing wrong." Seven was flummoxed. She had invaded the captain's privacy and upset her, yet here she was apologizing as if she were in the wrong.

"I feel as though I should apologize for allowing you to witness what you did. It was stupid of me to not seal the holodeck. I'm sorry if you were confused or upset by what you saw."

For a moment, Seven was unable to formulate a reply. She could not fathom why the captain would feel the need to apologize for her personal recreation. "I was upset, Captain."

Hearing this, the other woman turned again and, judging by her chagrined expression, would have apologized further, but Seven interrupted. "I was upset that I caused you to become angry. I was even more upset that you seemed to be so angry with me that you refused to speak to me for over 68 hours." Seven could see that the captain was now the one confused. Seven drew a deep breath and stepped closer. "The only confusion I feel now that I know your true feelings about my actions is why you think you did anything wrong. I was not confused by what I witnessed; I was intrigued."

The captain stared at Seven with an incredulous expression. She opened her mouth a couple of times but no words were forthcoming.

Seven took the captain's silence as an opportunity to step even closer, moving within arms reach. "I was intrigued by what I saw, Captain. I may not have practical experience with human sexuality, but I assure you I am quite knowledgeable." Seven took another step toward the captain and watched bemused as the other woman took a step back. "You never answered my question. What were you feeling when you saw me in the holodeck that made you angry with yourself?"

The captain shook her head and took another step back, reaching behind her back to brace her hands on the window. A strangely captivating flush that had begun at the base of her neck was making its way up to her face. "I can't talk about this with you, Seven. I'm sorry."

Seven realized she was going to have to be brave for the both of them and took the final three steps that brought her right into the captain's personal space. She gazed down at the object of her fascination and frequently her consternation. The face looking back was full of trepidation, but was attempting to look stern, despite the blush. "You 'cannot' discuss it with me, or you 'will not'?"

Another head shake. "Both." The captain looked surprised by her own answer.

"Perhaps I can assist you. You are aware that I possess eidetic memory. I will describe what I saw, and you will tell me how you felt at that moment."

The captain's squared shoulders slumped and her eyes slammed shut. Shaking hands moved from the glass behind her to cover her face. "Oh, gods, please, no."

Seven reached up and gently grasped the trembling hands, slowly drawing them away from the captain's face. "Captain, you must look at me." She kept the deceptively delicate hands between her own, endeavoring to provide a source of strength in what seemed to be an extremely difficult moment.

When after several tense seconds stormy grey eyes finally met her own again, they were watery with unshed tears. "I don't think I can do this, Seven. It's too much. You're asking too much."

Seven shook her head and squeezed the captain's hands. "You need to do this, Captain. This is not something that we can pretend did not happen." She took a deep breath. "At least, I cannot."

The captain's chin dropped to her chest. Her eyes closed and a single tear escaped to run down her cheek. "I'm so sorry, Seven. I never meant for you to see me that way."

"No, Captain, do not apologize to me. Never apologize for being who you are." Seven's hands dropped the still-trembling pair she was holding and grasped the captain's chin firmly and raised it so her face was inches from her own. Grey eyes opened with a flash and something sparked in them that almost stole Seven's breath. "I will tell you exactly what I saw that day and you will listen. You will listen and then you will tell me what you felt and why you think it is so wrong. Then maybe you can help me understand what I am feeling."

Reaching down with her unoccupied hand, Seven once again took one of the Captain's hands and pulled it close to her. She pressed the palm of the reluctant woman's hand to her chest just above her left breast, knowing the captain would be able to feel the wild beating of her heart.

A gasp. "Seven?"

Seven curled her thumb around the captain's chin and pressed it over her lips. She nearly let her eyes close just so she could savor the softness of the lips she had stared at so often. "Just listen."