A/N: Sorry for the delay. I had trouble writing the chapter, until I found its pulse. Hopefully it works.

Oh, and by the way, lordpercydarling, I haven't forgotten about the Andy thing. There's a reason we don't know, k? Trust me.

The next chapters won't take as long.

Time Enough
Chapter 8: Promise

Seven felt awkward as she led the trio through the dismal Mencari Jeffries tubes. Though the Mencari were quite large, the chutes were large enough for adult Terrans to stand in, bent over at the waist. As a result, their progress was slow. Their pace was also encumbered by a weary seven-year-old and a starship Captain who was weak but refused to acknowledge it.

Seven was pleased to see that the Captain had allowed her the opportunity to lead, though it was only efficient that she do. Seven held the entire Mencari ship blueprints in her photographic memory, along with the other data she collected merely three hours prior about positions and blockades.

Meanwhile, Dani had surprised both mothers with minimal complaints, until about thirty minutes ago. Since then, she had complained long and loud about being hungry and tired.

They had just turned a corner when Dani stopped, crossed her legs and looked helplessly at her mothers. "I have to go pee," she whispered. Both women fell to their knees and returned the vulnerable expression, with Kathryn squeezing the girl's shoulder and rubbing her arm in sympathy.

"Being on an away mission is tough," the Captain said soothingly.

Seven took the girl's hand around the corner. "I will show you where you may eliminate your bodily excretions."

The girl resisted, tugging back on the hand that Seven held. "I need piracy."

Seven exchanged an amused look with Captain Janeway. "Then you shall have privacy, after I show you the proper location."

Satisfied, Dani walked back around the corner with her mother, while Janeway slid down to rest against the side grating. She massaged her lower back with a hand. I'm too old to crawl around a lizard's lair, she thought.

Meanwhile, Seven led Dani to a spot close enough for safety but far enough for seclusion. She turned, gestured to the ground and began to make her way back.

Dani's voice was alarmed and her large blue eyes were baseballs. "But...?"

Seven stopped, pivoting back with a questioning look in her eye. "Yes?"

"I can't just do it here."

Seven looked around, assessing the grated chute. "It is not optimal, but it will suffice."

"Not for me." The girl crossed her arms and tightened her mouth.

Seven sighed, recognizing a similar stubbornness she had seen often in the Captain. Perhaps that particular trait was on the Irish genome, she thought as the woman returned to the girl.

"You will comply, Eridani."

The girl threw her arms to her side, looked down at the black grate. "I want a toilet seat."

Seven tipped her head. "Toilets do not exist aboard the Eesh'tob, Eridani. The Mencari utilize a sanitary grate for their bodily functions. Their physiology makes the concept of a seated facility quite—."

"I know that!" The girl's eyes shifted away nervously at Seven's surprised expression. "I mean...they're lizards."

"Eridani," Seven said quietly. "What else do you know?"

"That I'm about to wet in my pants." She re-crossed her legs for emphasis.

Seven tipped her head the other way, and added a flick of the eyebrow. Though the Doctor had not confirmed, it was apparent that Dani was a genius. She understood more than she shared, disturbing Seven with the implications. Yet, she was also a seven-year-old who wanted what she wanted. And she wanted it yesterday, Seven sighed. "You must make due."

Dani glared at her mother, a growl in her stomach added to the child's ferocity. Despite the defiance, Seven's eyes softened. "Advise me if you require assistance."

Without any more argument, Seven left the child, realizing fully that biological urges could not be circumvented, regardless of IQ.

When she turned the corner, Seven paused. The Captain was sitting on the grate floor, her eyes closed, her head back and her wrist rested on a bent knee, allowing her hand to dangle. Her lips were slightly parted. Seven felt her respiration increase as she crouched to approach the woman on her hands and knees.

The Captain could feel the small vibrations of someone drawing near. Kathryn could smell a light scent of strawberries, one that Seven had begun wearing only recently. Then she felt nothing, but the faint breeze of proximity. Then the Captain heard the tricorder's faint hum and she frowned. "I hate that thing," she muttered, her eyes still shut. "I really do."

Janeway wasn't surprised when she didn't hear a response. But she was surprised by the petal soft lips on her own and a hot tongue darting in her mouth. Her eyes snapped open. "Seven!"

Janeway glanced back to where Dani had gone and then found the Borg composed and intent on her tricorder readings. "What do you think you're doing?"

Seven looked up casually. "I am attempting to calibrate the tricorder."

"No, I mean before that."

Seven looked back toward the T intersection from where she'd returned. "Eridani was discuss emphatically her need to urinate and the inadequate facilities of the Mencari vessel for such."

Janeway's face softened suddenly, and a small crooked smile faintly touched her lips. "You're toying with me, Seven."

Seven's face became lithe innocence. "How so?"

"You kissed me, Seven." Janeway touched her lips with the pads of her fingers. "Again."

Seven raised an eyebrow, returning her attention to the tricorder. "You are incorrect, Captain Janeway. As I stated, I was calibrating the tricorder."

"You were what?"

Seven allowed her metallic-laced hand holding the tricorder to drop to her lap and she studied Janeway's face. Janeway's look of disbelief was both reprimanding and offended. Seven was reminded of her first assessment of humans as individuals. They were conflicted, she had said about the Borg's new allies as they both prepared to engage Species 8472.

The same was true in this case. Captain Janeway was struggling against her obvious feelings. She had been known for the same steely fortitude to cast those aside, like yesterday's coffee mug. Her fiancé Mark Johnson had left her, believing Kathryn to be lost in the Delta Quadrant. She had seemed grieved and relieved, though still she remained intensely private.

Kashyk and Jaffen. Two other men with whom, it was widely believed on board, that she'd carried on affairs. But none of the men ever had the luxury to remain in front of her, continuing to offer her the love they felt. This was Seven's greatest advantage and, as a Borg, she would take any she could to win the woman she loved. Even if she had to spend the rest of time trying.

"The tricorder said you're body temperature was thirty-six point five degrees. In fact, your body temperature is thirty-six point nine." Once again, Seven resumed her work, but she was distinctly aware of icy gray eyes on her. To Janeway's unspoken query, Seven answered with the truth. "It is vital that I continue to monitor your vital signs, Kathryn. You have been subjected to an ordeal of which I am fairly certain was traumatic...."

But the unspoken truth cost Seven more than she could pay. Her voice quavered. It was subtle, but Janeway heard a small crack in the Borg's armor. "...judging by the syringe protruding from your neck."

A hooked finger brought Seven's chin up where Janeway could see the red rimming her eyes and the shine of unshed tears. Kathryn pursed her mouth and offered the woman a reassuring look, while she stroked her cheek with a thumb. "Oh, Seven," she whispered. "I'm fine. We'll be back where we belong. And you'll be arguing with me in staff meetings like old times."

Seven glared at Janeway. "Do not attempt levity, Captain." She looked back at the corridor where Dani was, wiping a tear as she did. When she turned back to Kathryn, her face was composed and devoid of expression.

Janeway's voice softened. "What would you rather I attem—"

Without warning, Seven rose to her knees, put her palm behind Kathryn's neck and pressed their mouths together. It was a soft touch of lips, dry and unbound by mere passion. It was breathy, meant as life-giving sustenance and not as momentary animalistic urge.

When she finally pulled away, Seven leaned her forehead against Kathryn's, but kept their lips a whisper away. "I was afraid." It was Seven's usual monotone, but the very honesty of it was so vulnerable that Kathryn's heart squeezed tightly with emotion.

Just as the Captain tried to pull herself up to her knees, Seven tore herself away. She was weary of any more of Kathryn's excuses, especially since they each knew that one mistake here aboard the Eesh'tob would mean certain death for the three.

Without turning, Seven announced that she would check on their daughter. In truth she required time to prepare herself for Janeway's unfailing logic for denying herself Seven's embrace. Conflicted, indeed, Seven thought, as she crawled a few feet around the corner.

She stopped abruptly, not expecting to see the child sprawled on the floor. A thumb was in Dani's mouth and her head lay on her arm. She was fast asleep, yielding to the demands her body imposed. To reassure herself, Seven approached quietly with tricorder in hand. She touched the girl's forehead, brushing back thick skeins of red blonde locks. The girl mumbled that she was tired, receiving only a small, reassuring shush from her mother.

Seven lingered over the girl, surprised at the overwhelming urge to protect and nurture her. When she was satisfied that no Mencari or Ket'zali lifesigns for close, Seven stepped the few paces back to the Captain.

Janeway grew alert as Seven approached. "Is she all right?" Janeway asked.

"She is asleep. The device in her brain...," Seven said, finding a place to sit next to Kathryn.

"Do you know what it does?"

"As we suspected, the device produces the biogenic field we detected. The device cloaks her from the Ket'zali."

"Cloaking?" Janeway said in awe. "The Klingons used massive amounts of energy to cloak their ships. But no one has been able to replicate that technology to a personal level. Amazing technology."

"The energy demands it places on her are very high." Seven was methodically rummaging through her backpack, taking inventory.

"Which is why she is asleep."

"And continuously requesting for nutritional biomatter." Seven rose to her knees. "It would be wise to move—"

"Closer to her. Yes, good thinking."

They gathered their few supplies and crawled closer to maintain a watch over the child, until she could re-gather her strength for the continued journey. They sat, leaning against opposite grates, watching the child and each other.

Janeway blinked hard to focus the reclining girl. The throbbing in her temples felt like someone was using an ice pick on her. She knew that the meds were wearing off, but the Captain would keep that information to herself.

Janeway let her eyes meander over her daughter's features that were so familiar and yet so unique. She was a puzzle and the mystery only deepened with every clue. "Do you think she knows anything?"

Janeway's question was stunning on many levels. It showed that the Captain was aware of many nuances, including Seven's strong emotional connection with their daughter and Dani's marked intelligence. After considering the tacit acceptance of the underlying theories, Seven contemplated the girl. She was certain Dani was withholding something, though she had no basis in fact for that hypothesis.

"I have not ascertained the extent of her understanding," Seven replied evenly.

Kathryn turned to watch Seven's hands, unable to meet the blue eyes. The blonde felt herself feeling surprising sympathy for the Captain. Kathryn Janeway stood at a crossroads of everything she knew. She believed a ship could love her in return. But a human being, ah, the risk involved was enormous for someone dedicated to her job as Captain Janeway was. It was easier to avoid personal entanglements.

But Seven had no intention of making it easier for the woman.

Janeway let her eyes slide over Seven's blue singlesuit with the gray sleeves. It was her favorite one. They made the woman's eyes look like two pools of cool, refreshing water where she longed to dip.

Seven noted the longing, along with the arms across Janeway's chest and the shifting eyes. "You are a paradox, Kathryn."

Janeway's eyes met Seven's, giving the woman a mischievous glint. "That I am, Seven." She lifted her chin, a corner of her mouth slightly curled. "I'm a living Kobayashi Maru."

"The no-win scenario?"

Janeway nodded. "That's me. Just ask—"

"Mark Johnson?"

Kathryn was astonished as she could never remember discussing him with her or anyone on Voyager.

"Or Kashyk of Devore."

Gray eyes grew wider.

"Or Jaffen of Quarra."

Janeway's lips parted and her eyebrows shot up. "How did you—?"

Seven of Nine merely raised her Borg implant over her left eye. Since Dani came into their lives and shown Seven the possibilities, she had been determined to find out as much about Kathryn as she could. She was a private woman in a very public position. Everyone knew of her love interests, but no one, until now knew the terrible price she paid. The sympathy Janeway found in Seven's eyes nearly overpowered her.

"I suppose you're going to tell me it's irrelevant how you found out about my personal business."

Seven inclined her head, letting her lashes fall on her cheeks. It was such a graceful move, Janeway was several seconds recovering what she wanted to say. Beholding the face of perfection kept her thoughts jumbled. Instead she reached down and brushed some strands from Dani's freckled face. "She's going to hate me for these, you know," she said, trying to lighten the mood and distract all at once. Lightly, Kathryn let a fingertip touch a few of the strawberry marks that sprinkled her nose and cheeks.

"I revere every one of them...."

Kathryn looked up, finding the composed Borg studying her.

"Because they originated with you, Kathryn."

The Captain's eyes softened and she looked away. This away mission has not been what she expected. It was supposed to be a diplomatic mission and now she is carrying a weapon. It was supposed to be to protect her daughter and Seven rescued her. It was supposed to be all business and now this complication. She shook her head, looking up. Her mother had told her that sometimes fate had a way of intervening at the oddest times. Captain Janeway had a knack for pushing or pulling things her way. But this seemed to be spiraling out of control.

Kathryn rubbed the back of her neck with her hand, closing her eyes.

"You do not feel well, Kathryn."

Her voice was husky, almost sexy if only they weren't hiding for their lives in a lizard ship. "I'm all right," she whispered. Kathryn noted the concern on Seven's face. She quickly responded to distract the woman. "Is it getting colder in her?"

"The ambient temperature has dropped five degrees and it continues to fall a degree every thirty minutes," Seven said.

"I thought it was just me."

They both snapped around to a loud gulp and gasping. Dani tried to scramble up, hitting her head on the ceiling grate. Her eyes were wild and her breathing labored. "Dani!" Janeway said. "You're safe, darling. You're safe." She grabbed the girl's waist and hand.

Seven's hand against the girl's cheek brought her round. "Eridani. You are with your mothers."

The girl rubbed her head, looking around and then at each of them in turn. "I thought...I dreamed the Ket'zali had me again."

"Again?" Both mothers inquired together. They looked at each other, as they tugged the girl down.

Slowly, she relaxed as they sat one on each side of her. "They had me."

Janeway's eyebrows knitted together. "But we found you with the Mencari."

Dani closed her eyes and pursed her lips, shaking her head. "Ket'zali had me first. Then Mencari." Her stomach growled. "I'm hungry."

While Seven rifled through her neoprene backpack, Kathryn adjusted herself against the side grate. Then she pulled Dani to her, laying an arm around her shoulders, pulling her tight and brushing her bangs back with her palm. The Captain tried to keep her tone light. Knowledge was power and she needed all the power she could get from her daughter. "Tell me more, Dani." But she felt the girl tense against her. "It's okay, sweetheart. I won't let them hurt you."

Seven produced three ration bars, handing one to each of them. Dani crinkled her nose and curled her lips. "Not again," she hissed. She poked Seven's thigh with the ration bar.

Seven slowly looked down at the weaponized nutritional supplement and then slowly at Dani. "As before, we are hiding in a strange ship, occupied by two warring races. A selection is not available, Eridani."

"And they may not even be herbivores, without a supply of fresh vegetables or fruits." Janeway knew the Mencari were carnivorous, given their appetite for whole slugs and blind eels. She shuddered. To distract herself, Janeway took Dani's bar and peeled back the silver paper.

Dani sighed gustily when her mother handed it back to her. Finally, she took it and stared at the Captain for several long heartbeats, as if she were considering something. "Ket'zali sometimes eat their young," the girl said, biting into the bar. Her blue eyes darting between the faces of both her mothers.

Both women wondered why she would reveal such a thing now and so casually. Janeway narrowed her eyes on the girl, letting a hand tickle Dani's knee. If she was willing to reveal that detail, then Dani Janeway could say more. "What else do you know, darling?"

Dani stared at the hand holding the bar, watching it approach her mouth and then return to rest against a knee. "Ket'zali are bad," she said in a small voice. She curled herself up, raising both knees to hug herself.

Janeway's arm around her shoulder squeezed tighter. "Do you know what they want with you?"

Dani finished her bar greedily, stuffing her mouth until they were rounded and she could barely close her mouth while she chewed. She carefully avoided Cappie's eyes until she swallowed the last of it. Then suddenly, Dani scrambled away from Janeway's grasp, scooting next to Seven. With puckered lips and a lift of the chin, she pointedly looked away from Kathryn. "I'm thirsty and I have to pee."

Janeway tried to quell the hurt that bubbled up. It was clear Dani preferred Seven, but this rejection stung nonetheless. She wondered what her counterpart in the other parallel universe had done or not done to never have earned a seven-year-old's trust. That Katie probably worked too hard and put her ship above everyone else, including her own flesh and blood, she thought sadly.

Captain Janeway considered issuing an order for Dani to tell her everything she knew about the two races. It was clearly more than she was willing to share voluntarily. But Janeway knew that Dani, like her Borg mother, would very well defy it. Captains Pike, Kirk and Picard never had these problems, she was sure of it. Damn that other Kathryn Janeway anyway, she thought morosely. For putting me in this goddamn situation.

"Maybe another time then, hmm?" Janeway said, tweaking the girl's toe. Dani crossed her legs, effectively hiding her feet from Kathryn's reach.

Kathryn tried to push the renewed hurt down. She's scared, Katie. And she's a child, she thought. Not an ensign, no matter how smart she is.

Seven absent-mindedly stroked Dani's back, after giving her a canteen. But her eyes were pinned on Kathryn, where she could see a corded blue vein in Kathryn's temple throbbing. Captain Janeway loved control and trying to command a seven-year-old was like trying to bottle sunlight. It was unlike Janeway to allow her emotions to control her, especially at a time like this.

"What troubles you, Kathryn?"

Kathryn opened her eyes, her fingertips that had been massaging her forehead fell to her chin. "I've been thinking about our situation."

She felt both blue gazes on her then.

"If we should encounter our own...." Janeway decided to use a Starfleet term, hoping Dani would not grasp the allusion. "...Kobayashi Maru...." The girl turned elsewhere, sipping at a canteen absent-mindedly, seemingly oblivious. "Here on this ship, then I am ordering you, Seven to take...." Kathryn bobbed a chin at the child, who was looking down the chute. "And get to the Delta Flyer."

"Without...?" Seven didn't have to say Kathryn's name or her rank. The sorrow and fear etched in her face was enough for the Captain to interpret.

"Yes." Janeway's whisper was nearly so inaudible it floated down her throat again. Its taste was bitter.

Seven's face hardened and before she could speak, Janeway squared her shoulders. "That's an order, Seven of Nine."

"Orders are irrelevant, Captain, I—"

"Please." The whisper soared high and then its tip pierced Seven's heart, as it was meant to. "Let me do this for you both, Seven."

For several long heartbeats, Seven thought of a universe without Kathryn Janeway. It would be an unacceptable turn of events. But she sensed the futility of arguing with a seasoned Captain, who had, on more than one occasion, offered her life for the crew. That's what she and Dani were to Janeway, she thought miserably. Nothing but crew. Seven nodded once, shiny eyes turning away.

Janeway visibly relaxed, as she rubbed her neck, where the syringe had pierced her. It was throbbing again. She could feel the raised skin around the injection site. It was the poison that the Ket'zali had mentioned in their cruel taunts of her. But she would laugh best if she could save her girls and sidestep their toxins coursing through her veins now.

When the other lizards had attacked and seized the ship, the Voyager delegates and those Mencari in the vicinity were some of the first to be captured. Janeway had been separated from the rest, singled out by rank for a quick, but painful interrogation. Janeway wondered how they had known she was the captain. It was another mystery added to a long list of them that didn't seem to fit any pattern. And it all began with her child.

Janeway heard Dani coughing and followed suit. The haze from the corridors was beginning to seep into the Jeffries tubes. It reeked of melting plastics and decaying lizards.

Then she realized that in their hours-long trek through the ship, not once, had they heard any lizard contingent in the adjacent corridors. It was too easy, Janeway thought with a yawn. Never a good sign, especially when all she wanted was to take this woman in her arms and somehow connect with their daughter.

Finally, Seven heaved to her feet. "It is time for us to move."

"But I have to pee," Dani said in a long, annoying whine.

Seven clenched her jaw. "Did you not urinate before your short regeneration cycle?"

Dani glanced down at the grating below her. "No. I want to sit on a potty."

"Will you urinate now?"

Dani carefully avoided her mothers' gazes. "Not without a potty."

Janeway lurched to her feet, rubbing her lumbar. She slapped Dani's butt lightly. "Then hold it. We've got to keep moving."