Alyssa Pike had no trouble watching Gretchen as well as Miral. She was a nice young crewman from science who loved children. She had been the only other person Kathryn had known of, other then Neelix, that Sam Wildman had allowed to watch Naomi. Kathryn had worried a bit that both babies, plus Naomi, would be to much for Alyssa, but Seven assured her it would be ok. They would only be a comm call away, and Alyssa had helped Neelix in the past with them, so after kissing both her daughter and goddaughter on the crowns of their tiny heads, Kathryn followed Seven back to their room.
Kathryn stood in the living room of their hotel suite fussing with her dress uniform. The long red tunic that looked an awful lot like a dress, hung crisply over her dress pants, and she couldn't help but tug at it. It was one of the uglier designs to pass through the lineage of Star Fleet uniforms, and she wondered for a moment if Danny Watson had ever gotten his new design for dress whites appeared. The designs she'd seen just before Voyager left for her 'shakedown' flight had been impressive and a whole lot better looking then what she had on now.
"Tugging at it isn't going to make it any more comfortable, Kathryn." Came Seven's voice from the other side of the room.
Kathryn turned to look at Seven and her quick reply was lost completely as she drank in the sight before her. Seven stood just outside the door of their bedroom dressed in a long gold dress, with a slit up the right leg. It was a stunning dress that allowed just enough skin to show to help the imagination, but not to throw it into hyper drive. The color of the dress made Seven's blonde hair, which was down and in spiraling curls, look even more like spun gold. She was a stunning vision and not for the first time Kathryn found herself asking why this beautiful soul was with someone like her.
"You approve then?" Seven asked as she came closer to Kathryn. The look on the older woman's face not going unnoticed.
"Your beautiful, Annika." Janeway whispered.
Seven ran a finger along the gold piping of Kathryn's uniform and smiled. "Thank you my love. Despite it's confining nature you really do look quite stunning yourself when you wear your dress uniform."
Kathryn laughed lightly and then held out her hand for Seven to take. "Shall we?"
Seven took the offered hand and smiled.
The ballroom of the hotel was decorated lavishly in hues of sliver, white, and blue. It reminded Kathryn of the winter formals she'd attended as a teenager. The room was already full of people. Members of her crew, planet natives, guests of all kinds, it didn't matter who they were or where they were from, when Seven walked into the room all eyes were on her. It made Seven feel uneasy and as soon as Kathryn sensed her partner's discomfort she quickly walked them towards a table that seemed out of the way. The Doctor, Tom and B'Elanna, and Harry with one of the Delaney sisters were already sitting there.
"We figured out of the way would be the key term for tonight." B'Elanna said as she watched the Captain and Seven sit across from her and Tom.
Seven gave her a friend a thankful look before scanning the room for Icheb.
"Reminds me of those god awful Admiral's Balls." Tom said with a look of pure dread on his face.
Kathryn laughed. "I highly doubt that it'll be that bad, Tom."
Tom nodded. "Your right, the simple fact that I won't have to avoid Ambassador Troi all night is a plus within it's self."
Kathryn laughed again.
"He's dancing with his date, Seven." B'Elanna said when she realized who Seven was looking for. "Apparently her name is Enogi and she's the daughter of the Vice-Chancellor."
Seven lifted her brow as she looked over at B'Elanna.
B'Elanna laughed. "It turns out that Icheb gets rather chatty when he's nervous. He talked the whole walk over from the transport site."
This surprised Seven but it also pleased her. She was happy to see the young boy coming out of his Borg shell. She also took notice of Kathryn easing into a more relaxed frame of mind, and was glad to see she was no longer brooding over her spoiled plans. Though she had refused to tell Seven what those plans had been when Seven asked.
"Seven," Kathryn said as she looked over at the other woman. "would you like to dance?"
Seven smiled and accepted Kathryn's hand again as she gave her lover a gentle nod. "I would love too, Kathryn."
Soon the whole table had cleared out, heading for the dance floor, even the Doctor had found someone to dance with. The party wasn't as bad as everyone had thought. They were all actually having a wonderful time. The food was wonderful, and the wine made it a lot easier to dance with the Chancellor, Vice-Chancellor, and every other good-natured diplomat who asked. Half way through the Chancellor's wife's story about acquiring some painting or vase or some such thing, Tom's description of this whole affair reminding him of the Admiral's Ball came back to Kathryn and she had to keep herself from laughing out loud. Her sandy haired helmsmen had been dead on in his comparison. The only thing that was truly different was the fact that Kathryn couldn't ever recall enjoying an Admiral's Ball as much as she was enjoying herself at this party. She chalked it up to finally having someone to enjoy it with. A bit of a smirk appeared on her face as she thought about finally returning home and walking into her first Federation function with Seven on her arm. That was bound to turn a few heads indeed.
As the evening began to wind down, Kathryn found herself alone with Seven on a small veranda outside the ballroom. They were standing quietly looking up at the stars, hand in hand, and Kathryn suddenly turned to look at Seven. She drank in every line, every curve of Seven's face.
Seven smiled as she felt Kathryn's gaze washing over her. She turned to look at the other woman and smiled as she led them to a small stone bench. "I'm glad to see your not to overly upset about our plans being ruined." Seven said as she looked into blue eyes that were several shades darker then her own. "Care to fill me in on just what those plans were?" She asked once again.
The bright smile on Seven's face made up for her teasing tone. Kathryn smiled back. "Dinner on the beach." She confessed now that she was done brooding and sulking.
"Oh?" Seven replied. Her tone more then the simple sound pleaded with Kathryn for more information.
Kathryn smiled. "It surprises you that I'd want to surprise you with a romantic dinner?"
Seven's smile brightened. "Wasn't surprising me the desired result?"
"Mostly." Kathryn replied.
"Well you achieved that desired result. What other outcomes were you hopping for?" Seven asked, gently trying to get Kathryn to admit to what's been playing in her mind that causes the odd looks Seven's seen in her eyes.
Kathryn was surprised by the nature of the question. Had Seven been able to tell that she'd had more planned? Or was she just so readable to the other woman that Seven knew what she was trying to attempt. As Kathryn sat there looking into ice blue eyes, which were framed, in moon highlighted blonde locks, she took a shuddering breath.
Softly, as she took Seven's hands into her own, Kathryn spoke. "Annika, I've been thinking about a lot of things lately, and I've had some things put into place for me thanks to resent events." Kathryn paused a moment, gathering her nerve and trying in vain to calm her racing heart. "Annika..."
The doors to the veranda opened and the mood and Kathryn's words were cut short by a loud voice. "There you two are!" The Doctor bellowed. "The Chancellor is ready to make a toast and he'd like you to make one as well, Captain."
All the wind went out of Kathryn's sails and she actually allowed her head to fall. She knew the moment she'd done it that the Doctor was taken aback, so she held out her hand to stop him from asking what was wrong. She didn't say anything right away, she was to busy roping in her disappointment and anger. Finally she replied to him. "We'll be right in, Doctor."
"Of course, Captain." The bald hologram replied.
When the Doctor was gone, Seven turned Kathryn's face towards her. She could see the emotion in her lover's eyes. Leaning in she kissed Kathryn softly on the lips and then waited for her to lead them back into the room.
A moment later Captain Janeway did just that. For the rest of the night Kathryn was Captain Janeway. Only when they were back in their hotel room after picking up Gretchen did she allow her command mask to slip away. As she waited for Seven to finish in the bathroom and come to bed, Kathryn sighed. So her plans hadn't worked out this time. There was always tomorrow, right?