Seven awoke with a start as a crashing sound hit her ears, instantly alert and scanning her hospital room for dangers, breathing a sigh of relief as she realised it was only some damaged tiles sliding off the hospital's roof and shattering on the ground. Trying to calm her irrationally racing heart she sank back in the pillows and took some deep breaths, it's over, we're safe. A soft whimper nearby quickly pushed these fretful thoughts aside to make room for more immediate concerns as she leaned over her bedside and lifted her unsettled two day old daughter from her bassinet. "I know, I know baby." She cooed soothingly into baby Taya's delicate ear as the newborn whined against her shoulder, "That noise gave me a fright too, shh…" She expertly moved the baby from her shoulder to a cradling position in her arms, ignoring the pain that shot up the implants in her left arm, the Doctor had warned her that her cybernetic systems would be weakened and dysfunctional for at least a few more days, the life endangering labour had taken its toll. Despite that, she smiled lovingly down at her daughter as she snuggled into her top's soft fabric, she'd rather suffer any level of pain than have her children feel it, and thankfully Taya's early and traumatic arrival hadn't done her any harm. Seven gulped hard as she remembered the agony of having the twins in intensive care for weeks, even more than three years later, the memories of their struggles and the separation still hit a raw emotional nerve with her, she suspected it always would.

Stroking the new baby's velvety cheek to soothe herself, she twisted around to look again out of the room's window. The sky that hung over San Francisco was a leaden grey, an ordinary enough scene for early February, what wasn't so usual was the wafts of smoke which still drifted upwards from ruined buildings all around, some areas were completely decimated and she realised with a shock that the Golden Gate Bridge was missing a whole mid section, the girders bent and smouldering. Once again she felt grateful that her older children had been safe in the hospital with her during that disastrous night, and were now tucked away in Tom and B'Elanna's untouched suburb outside of the city, what if…

A rhythmic snore from the corner of the room thankfully stopped her train of thought and instead brought an unexpected laugh to her lips. Glancing over at Chakotay, asleep in a nearby chair, then back at Taya, she whispered over the baby's head, "Maybe you're not the one who's going to be keeping me awake." Taya sucked nonchalantly on her tiny fist in response and Seven once again studied her husband. She realised with a twinge of worry that he looked as grey and drawn with exhaustion as the damaged city did outside. He'd been working far too hard, hopefully now that the Notsinians had been beaten off, for now, her naturally pessimistic Borg side cautioned, their lives would settle down again…

As if he could sense her gaze on him, Chakotay's eyes snapped open, a smile immediately curving his lips at the sight of his wife and daughter. "Hey…" He began drowsily before rubbing his bleary eyes and asking, "What time is it?"

"0926 hours." Seven replied briskly.

Chakotay stared at her in disbelief, then ran a hand through his hair. "Really? Why didn't you wake me? I should be on baby duty."

Seven smiled at him affectionately, "You looked in need of the additional sleep."

He snorted softly, "You're the one who just gave birth the night before last honey."

Taya began to cry as if on cue and Seven laughed, "It would be hard to forget!"

Chakotay nodded in agreement and reached over to take the baby to the changing table, "I think that night's going to be permanently engraved on my memory for lots of reasons, this little one for one." He admitted as he tickled his youngest child.

"How many people were killed Chakotay?" Seven asked abruptly.

Caught off guard, Chakotay remained silent for several seconds, he hadn't wanted to upset her while her health was so fragile, but he knew she wouldn't let it go. "1308 and still counting." He told her quietly, "Two wings of Starfleet Academy are going to have to be rebuilt, not to mention the town hall and all the houses…"

Seven replied without looking at him, her gaze again on the view outside the window, "The Golden Gate Bridge is gone too. That was the first Earth monument I ever saw, remember?"

"As I recall, you were somewhat underwhelmed with it." Chakotay reminded her, thinking back to their first few days in the city, when Starfleet had been so suspicious of them both and their relationship.

Seven smiled at the memory, "Yes, but still, it's sad that it's been ruined, and all those lives lost."

Chakotay nodded solemnly as he gave Taya back to her and shut the window blinds so they no longer had to look out on the sight of devastation. "We'll rebuild, we always have. At least the Notsinians seem to have come off worse, they're gone."

Doubts sprang to Seven's lips but she was stopped from uttering them by a knock at the door, B'Elanna poking her head in, "Can you have visitors?"

Both Seven and Chakotay's faces were transformed by wide smiles, "Of course!" Chakotay told her before she hurried in.

"Let's see her then." B'Elanna said as she eagerly approached Seven's bed. Seven handed Taya to her and a warm smile immediately lit her face, "Oh she's so sweet! She really reminds me of Aylen, except for the eyes of course, don't you think?"

Chakotay and Seven exchanged smiles, "We think so."

B'Elanna sat down on the edge of the bed, carefully cradling the baby. "So Seven, what did he have to do to get you to give him a namesake?" she asked Seven, shooting Chakotay a teasing look as she did so.

"It was entirely my choice, Chakotay didn't even suggest it. It just seemed to suit her, it was such a relief to have them both safe that night, and she has his eyes." Seven answered as she carefully tucked a loose corner of Taya's blanket back around her. "My Aunt Irene was happy with the middle name too." She smiled as she remembered her aunt's touching response to the news of her new great-niece, tears had filled the blue eyes which were so like her own. Chakotay, who had heard this explanation before, leaned over and gave his wife a gentle, loving kiss.

"February 9th was definitely a memorable night." B'Elanna agreed, looking sad for a second before smiling down at the gurgling baby.

"Are the children behaving well for you? Thank you so much for having them…" Seven began to tell her, but B'Elanna waved her thanks away.

"Don't be silly, they're angels compared to Miral and anyway…" B'Elanna blushed slightly, "Tom and I are going to have to get used to more kids in the house…"

Seven, true to form, cottoned on straight away, "Really B'Elanna? That's wonderful! Are you…"

"Yes, we're sure. Fourteen weeks yesterday." B'Elanna answered with joy in her eyes.

A/n: A bit of a rubbish chapter, but I'm tired and it's too hot outside. I hope the ending made up for everything though! PLEASE REVIEW! :D