Wrapping it up shortly. Thanks for your patience and reviews as I barf out my thoughts.

Reparata

Taken - Chapter 16

"Lost it on a trading run. Ran into – ran into a creature that looked like a griffon, an angry griffon. Hurt like the blazes but my friends saved me. Lost time recovering or I might have been back sooner and – "

"Shh, Sheldon. We have all the time in the world to talk about your adventures once we're back in our own quarters and I've had my fill of you. Shhh. Sleep now." He blushed at her comment but did as she said and was asleep again within a few seconds. His last conscious thought was that his wife always dealt best with subtleties of subtext. Meanings within meanings within…

Sheldon was eventually released to 'quarters and bed rest' and Seven spent the entire day before his return cleaning and rearranging things so that he would be as comfortable as possible.

She had a surprise for him as soon as he was able to handle walking unsupported. She had written a special holodeck program for the two of them.

He didn't talk much and Seven was concerned enough to ask Leonard about it but he dismissed her concerns by simply saying, "He was alone with no one to talk with for a long time, Seven. He just lost the need to hear his own voice. Talk with him. Ask him about his adventures. I think recording them would be a good thing to do. The Captain and the command group can use all the data they can get on the space ahead of us."

Sheldon insisted on walking to their quarters. His left arm was nearly whole again but he had limited use of his hand and very little control over his fingers. The nerves were still regenerating and he told Seven 'it's like having a lead glove on. It's heavy and I can't feel a damned thing with it.'

He ran out of 'steam' after walking just a few yards down the corridor to the turbolift. Seven returned with a wheelchair and they were soon in quarters. Sheldon felt like a total cripple and hated that he couldn't even stand long without help.

"Sheldon Lee Cooper, you were near death and now you're back home and recovering. These things take time but I will be here with you and you'll be fully recovered shortly. Be patient with yourself, Sheldon."

He was too weak and tired too easily to do much other than hold Seven in his arms and talk quietly in short spurts of sentences. He hated being weak and he hated feeling so helpless but she just told him to be patient and the snuggled up against him and told him how happy she was.

Tom and B'elanna became frequent visitors and Neelix often brought J.R. to see Seven and to bring Sheldon small meals to sample. He'd added quite a bit to his menu and he wanted Sheldon's opinions.

He and the Tallaxian also talked about the places he'd been to and Seven recorded these sessions and sent copies to Captain Janeway.

"So, Sheldon, tell me your impressions of Demos IV. I found the people there to be most hospitable once they overcame their caution towards new visitors."

"I stopped there for provisions and to trade some of the junk I'd stripped from the shuttlecraft as nonessential. Nothing that would violate the rules, I assure you. They have a tuber there that tastes like a potato and I cooked it in many ways and the recycler seemed to be able to handle it's complex proteins. Some things the recycler would reject. That was frustrating."

He seemed to zone out for a few seconds but then said, almost as an after-thought, "That's where I lost my arm."

Neelix looked to Seven for guidance and she subtly shook her head. She didn't think Sheldon was ready to discuss that particular adventure.

They talked about systems to avoid and Sheldon mentioned that there were Kirgon pirates in areas that Neelix had said were safe and calm. He'd had run-ins with them and they seemed to hound him for the last months of his journey.

Sheldon slept a lot and sometimes he'd dream and wake up sweaty and crying and Seven would help him into the sonic shower and then wash his face with a cool cloth. He either couldn't or wouldn't tell her about his dreams but she never pressed him.

In the weeks that followed, Sheldon and Seven both returned to their duties. Captain Janeway had decided that Tom Paris and Sheldon Cooper would form her 'scouts' and the Delta Flyer went out on both short and the occasional 10-day mission, scouting ahead of Voyager's flight path.

Seven hated those missions even though the majority of them were only 2-3 days long. She hated being alone and sometimes, in the quiet of their bed, she talked with him about her desire to have his child.

"Sheldon, I want us to be a real family. Perhaps we could consider adding a child to our collective?" She'd almost blushed when she spoke.

"A little Seven for me to spoil and teach advanced math and physics? I would love another version of you to love and cherish but only if it poses no threat to your health."

They then proceeded to attempt to make his 'little Seven' but she wanted a little 'Sheldon'. Neither got their wish despite trying enthusiastically every time the opportunity presented itself.

Sheldon had just finished his final follow-up exam with Leonard and they were talking about some medical issues when Sheldon blushed and asked Leonard a question that the EMH hadn't anticipated.

"Leonard, if I'm healthy enough to have children, um, well, can Seven, I mean, is she able…"

"Yes, you're healthy enough but there are issues with Seven's fertility. Her Borg implants, the ones that can't be removed, make carrying a fetus to term doubtful, Sheldon. Perhaps when I've had more time to study the issue I'll be able to give you a more positive response."

"Leonard, does she know?" They both wanted a child and had been 'copulating' enthusiastically on almost any reasonably flat surface in their quarters.

"Yes, Sheldon. While you and Tom were out last week she came in for an exam and asked the same basic questions and I answered her truthfully just as I did you."

"That would explain a great deal regarding her most recent behavior. Thank you, Leonard. You've been most kind and patient."

Quarters

She'd been quiet, more quiet than usual. Her answers to his inquiries were always honest except when he broached the subject of her mood and then she'd adroitly change the subject.

More often than not, he found her in the 'day care' room that had once been cargo bay #2, playing with one of the five younger children or just holding one of the three infants when off-duty. She had a far-away look on her face whenever he watched her, unobserved. It seemed to match her current mood in their private lives.

They ate together with friends, frequented Sandrine's, snarked at each other unmercifully at pool ('your ocular gives you and unfair advantage, One' to which she'd reply 'Resistance if futile') but he almost always lost to her at poker.

They were the model couple until they returned to quarters and then she became Seven of Nine. If he had been dealing with Penny the solution would have been inconvenient but expeditious. He would simply ask her to accompany him on a trip to the mall to 'window shop' and he'd steer her to her favorite shoe outlet and surprise her with a pair and then ask her to tell him what was wrong. Problem solved.

But with Seven, there were no malls and she certainly wasn't swayed at all by clothing or footwear, deeming such things as irrelevant. No, solving the 'Seven Problem' would require a great deal more study, observation and testing.

He returned from a 4-day scouting mission accompanied by crewman Celeste Barnes, a member of the security unit who was cross-training for away missions. She had an intense desire to know about everything and he found in her an apt and willing pupil.

He'd begun teaching her basic physical science and physics and she'd soaked it up like a sponge. There had been little to do between waypoints except sleep, eat and be bored but not with Crewman Barnes. She was from one of the colony worlds and her education had been geared towards the needs of the colony and not Starfleet.

Seven was on duty in Astrometrics when the shuttlecraft returned and so Sheldon and Barnes turned in their reports and settled into the mess hall for food that wasn't recycled. He continued his lessons to fill the time until Seven could join him and soon the table was full of pads with formulae and drawings.

Barnes had a huge crush on Sheldon and it was apparent to everyone but Sheldon. It was very apparent to Seven when she entered the mess hall and found him in deep conversation with her.

She had no idea what emotions she was feeling except that she felt her bond with Sheldon slipping away for some time and now - this. She was jealous but didn't recognize the emotion. She felt threatened when Sheldon complimented Barnes on grasping some new theories.

She misinterpreted his actions. She felt that someone who was not damaged was replacing her in his affections - someone who could give him a child.

When Sheldon saw her in the mess hall he gathered up his things and went to her, ignoring Barnes.

"Hello, One. I've missed you." He leaned in to kiss her but she turned her head and offered him her unadorned cheek.

"It is good to see you also." She walked away.

Sheldon was perplexed by her behavior but still felt that the reason behind it had to do with her inability to bear a child. He regretted every entertaining the subject with her. She was Borg and she was stubborn and unyielding once her mind was made up.

Instead of talking about it she let it fester just beneath the surface and withdrew further into her shell, spending less time in quarters and more time in Astrometrics and Sandrines.

Sheldon's observations of her behavior led him nowhere. He consulted Leonard but he didn't have a clue either. He talked with Tom and B'elanna and B'elanna summed up her behavior in one sentence.

"Sheldon, she's jealous. You spent days with Crewman Barnes on an away mission. Barnes has an obvious crush on you and Seven can tell that and she's reacting badly. Talk to her, Sheldon."

"I've tried but she spends less and less time accessible to conversation of this personal a nature and she requires sleep since she no longer regenerates as often."

"Buddy, you have to talk to her. Explain things. Apologize."

"But I've done nothing wrong, Tom!"

"No, you haven't but you're dealing with a woman. Right or wrong, Sheldon, it's your fault." Tom looked at the glare he was receiving from his wife and shrugged. "It's the truth."

"I need time to think about this. Tom, you're scheduled for a 3-day mission. Let me have it. I'll take…Neelix or someone else who won't make her angrier."

"Talk to Chakotay. I'm all for spending more time on board with B'elanna now that she's pregnant."

Bridge

Chakotay listened to his explanation for wanting to 'get out for a while' and approved the crew change. Barnes was scheduled to go out with Tom but Sheldon insisted on another crewman or going 'solo'.

"It's a short hop. I'll authorize you to pilot and you can go solo."

Sheldon left the next morning. He'd spent the night on the settee in the living area of his quarters since Seven had come in late from Sandrine's and required more REM cycles than he. He would sleep on the shuttle.

Seven of Nine ordered her soup and cornbread and took her usual place in the mess hall. Harry Kim asked to sit with her and they had a pleasant time eating without talking.

She couldn't help but overhear the conversation at the table behind her. Crewman Barnes and her friends were discussing the away mission and Barnes was angry that Sheldon had scrubbed her from the mission.

"I like him. He's a good teacher and I have a lot of catching up to do and he knows a lot about everything. And he's cute but so unapproachable. All he talks about is that Borg wife of his and how happy he is. Honestly, it's all he talks about."

Seven looked down at her bowl of soup and sighed. She'd been wrong and made things worse by not discussing it with Sheldon. She identified the emotion she'd been feeling as jealousy after discussing it with Leonard. She hadn't been at Sandrine's. She'd been talking with the EMH.

"Excuse me, Harry, but I need to see Sheldon before he departs. It was good seeing you again."

"Might as well sit down and finish your breakfast, Seven. His departure time was 16 minutes ago and you know how punctual he is."