I've gotten 100 reviews! Thank you so much to everyone who is sticking with this story. I'm honored you're following along!
I had finals all week, and now I'm in Florida, so that's why it's taken me so long to update. That's also why it's so short.
Chakotay lifted his head slowly.
For the past five years, he had only seen that shade of blue in the eyes of his daughter. He had never expected to see it anywhere else, but there it was. Two blues eyes, staring at him, begging for answers. Two eyes he had never thought to see open again.
"Kathryn," he breathed. "Is this real?"
She frowned. "What?" she rasped. Then she started coughing.
He quickly poured her a glass of water form the pitcher the doctor had left for him. "Drink it slowly." He said, his mind still numb to what was happening.
He held her head up as she took a small sip. Then he put the cup to the side as she lay back down and gazed at her surroundings.
"Did I dream it?" she whispered. "Did we live on that planet?"
He swallowed as a tear trickled down his cheek. "Yes," he said softly. "Yes, we did. We lived there together for two years."
She winced. "Why does my throat hurt so much? Why am I in so much pain?"
"I don't know. You haven't used your voice for some…for some time." He was losing the battle, and more tears were falling to join the first one.
She weakly lifted her hand to touch his face. "Why are you crying?"
He finally caved and gathered her to him. "I'm just so happy." He sobbed into her neck. "I'm so happy."
She stroked his hair while he cried. He had never thought to feel these sensations again: the feel of her skin, the way her hand caressed his neck, the scent of her hair – even after five years! – still fragrant and intoxicating. Everything about her was intoxicating at that moment. She was here, alive and breathing and touching him, and he couldn't believe it.
"If this is a dream, I never want to wake up," he murmured into her hair.
Her hand stilled. He heard her sharp intake of breath, and he lifted his tear streaked face to look at her. She was staring at the ceiling. "Kathryn?" he asked.
"This is sickbay." She whispered, her eyes darting back and forth as she took everything in.
"Yes, it is."
She turned to look at him. "The last thing I remember, we were on New Earth. We..." she gasped and struggled to sit up, but he held her down. "The babies! What happened to the babies?"
"Calm down! Kathryn, the babies are fine. Computer, activate EMH."
The Doctor shimmered into existence as the lights in sickbay came on full. He opened his mouth to say his standard greeting, but his mouth stayed open instead as he saw Kathryn still trying to get up past Chakotay's arm. "Captain!"
"Doctor!" Kathryn looked equally shocked. "I haven't seen you in years!"
The Doctor recovered quickly. He snatched a tricorder from a shelf as he went quickly over to the biobed. "Captain, please don't try to get up. Your body is very frail right now and frankly, I don't know what to expect from your condition."
"Condition? What condition?"
"Please, Captain. Let me examine you first, and then we'll talk about what has been going on."
Kathryn met Chakotay's eyes. "Chakotay, what is going on? Where are my babies? How did we get here?"
Chakotay gripped her hand, tears still in his eyes. "Let the Doctor work first. Please, Kathryn."
She frowned but gave him a short nod. The Doctor rolled his eyes.
"Thank you for your cooperation, reluctant though it may be." The Doctor muttered.
"I see some things don't change." Kathryn snapped.
The Doctor closed the tricorder. "She's fine." He said to Chakotay in disbelief. "I can't believe it. I hesitate to say this, especially considering my vast medical expertise," He ignored Kathryn rolling her eyes. "But this almost seems like…well, like a miracle."
"What does?" Kathryn exploded, forcing her way into a sitting position past Chakotay's arm. "What the hell is going on?"
The Doctor and Chakotay exchanged a look. "Doctor, would you mind giving us a few minutes alone?"
The Doctor nodded sympathetically "Of course." He said softly.
Chakotay waited until the Doctor left, then he gently pressed on Kathryn's shoulders. "Please, lie back down. We have a lot to talk about."
She exhaled sharply, but did as he said. "What's going on?" she asked quietly, fear beginning to show in her eyes. "How did we get here? Are the babies really fine?"
Chakotay took a deep breath and squeezed her hand. "I'm sorry if I don't tell you this properly, but you have to understand that this is a huge shock for me. I never expected to speak to you again. I thought you were dead."
Kathryn's eyes widened. "That's right…I remember now. The labor…It was so painful. I felt like I was being torn apart."
"You pretty much were." He said ruefully. "It was a complete disaster. The babies were absolutely fine, but you weren't."
"I thought I was going to die." She murmured. "I don't understand. What happened?"
Chakotay took a deep breath. "You did die, Kathryn. You died a long time ago."
TBC
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