=/\=
Classes were suspended during the traditional holiday of Thanksgiving, held at the end of November in this part of the North American continent. Seven and Icheb received several invitations to spend the long weekend with various friends and acquaintances. Captain Janeway's mother Gretchen extended an offer to enjoy the day with the Janeway family in Indiana. Seven was reluctant to accept. She was certain Chakotay would be there. While their parting might have been "amicable," the wound left by the failure of their relationship was still raw. Since she'd already committed to accompanying him to the dinner commemorating Voyager's return to the Alpha Quadrant, she didn't want to see him again so soon.
Admiral and Mrs. Paris also extended an invitation to dinner. Their home was already going to be a quite literal "full house," however. Tom's sisters' families were coming, as was Reg Barclay, along with several more of Admiral Paris' colleagues from Project Pathfinder. The Rikaar family would arrive from Bajor the day before the holiday.
Harry Kim's parents invite Icheb and Seven to their home, too. Once Icheb learned Libby would be there, he was very relieved when Seven thanked Mr. and Mrs. Kim for thinking of them, but they "already had plans."
Fortunately, this didn't turn out to be a falsehood. Austin invited Icheb "and your beautiful mom" to Texas for his family's traditional Thanksgiving celebration. Icheb thought Seven might turn that one down, too; but when she learned Verit and Farys, who were both far away from their families, would also be there, she explained, "You have nothing but good things to say about your suitemates, Icheb. I've spent little time with them thus far. This will be an opportunity for me to get to know them."
Austin was delighted and promised to take his guests on a tour of the Texas Hill Country. "We'll be too full after dinner on Thanksgiving Day, but on Friday and Saturday, be ready to travel!"
=/\=
When Seven and Icheb arrived at Austin's home, they were a little overwhelmed with the number of people celebrating the holiday with the Sanchez family. Austin's three aunts, four uncles, ten cousins, along with his older brother's wife and children, created quite a crowd. "We get rowdy sometimes, but we all love each other. You'll see. We'll have lots of fun."
Icheb was confused when Austin's Uncle Jack called someone Jethro, and Austin answered. Farys began to giggle, and Verit's eyebrow arched high, as it always did when she found something amusing. "What? Is your uncle calling you Jethro?"
Austin sighed melodramatically and said, "I confess. That's me. Jethro is an old family name, and I'm the one in this generation unlucky enough to get stuck with it."
"So you're not really 'Austin from Austin' after all?" Icheb asked, unable to hold in his smile.
"Oh, he's not from Austin really. We're miles from there," Austin's nephew Jimmy explained.
"But Austin is my middle name," Icheb's suitemate replied.
"But the name came from the city," Icheb remarked.
"Not exactly. Momma's name before she married Pa was Dorothea Austin. My name comes from her old surname. So, now you know. I'm amazed Farys or Verit didn't tell you before. They were here for the holidays last year. They already knew about it."
"Your preferred designation is Austin. That's all true friends should consider," Seven proclaimed, in her best Borg-influenced manner. "I understand perfectly. After we returned to Earth, I asked to be called by my human name, Annika Hansen. Almost all of my acquaintances still call me Seven. At least Lieutenant Kim complies with my request and calls me Annika. It's very annoying. I've made my choice of designation perfectly clear. Why can't everyone use it?"
Icheb smiled quizzically. "Does that mean you want me to call you Annika - or Mom?"
"That's precisely the reason I become so annoyed. Seven is your name for me. It isn't one for anyone else to use."
"That's a relief - Seven," Icheb said, prompting a smile from his mother and a general ripple of "Miz Hansens" from all around the room. That's when Icheb noticed that everyone at the Sanchez home already called his adoptive mother Miz Hansen, and they were considerate enough to continue to do so throughout the weekend.
When they sat down to dinner, the long farmhouse table was loaded with food, much of it grown on the homestead. Their home was a well-preserved farmhouse built in the mid twenty-first century, but in a farmhouse style more commonly built over 150 years earlier. With almost fifty acres of land, the family continued to raise chickens for eggs, kept a couple of milk cows, and coddled a pair of longhorn cattle who were "Momma's pets," according to Austin. Much of the land was farmed. Many of the vegetables for the meal came from the huge kitchen garden Austin's parents tended religiously. Thanksgiving dinner was cooked in the kitchen in the old-fashioned way, inside an oven and on top of the stove.
When Verit learned the centerpiece of the meal, the roasted turkey, had been gobbling on the grounds until a short time ago and hadn't been produced out of a replicator, she passed on the meat and gravy. From the previous year's visit, however, Mrs. Sanchez knew Verit was a vegetarian who ate some dairy. She'd prepared several special dishes without ingredients which might offend Vulcan sensibilities. In addition to the green bean casserole, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, sweet potatoes with marshmallow topping (although Verit discreetly left most of the topping to the side as "too sweet"), and hot rolls with butter enjoyed by everyone, there was one dish which was very much a surprise. Verit later mentioned to Icheb how pleased she was to see it when the tureen was placed in front of her. "Plomeek Soup? Mrs. Sanchez! How . . . ?"
"You Academy types aren't the only ones who can research things, Darlin'. I wanted something special for you that you might have if you were home on Vulcan for a special day like Thanksgiving. Farys, I looked for a good Bajoran recipe, but the only thing I found for the home cook was Jumja tea! So, that's all I can offer you."
"I love Jumja tea! Thank you so much! Mrs. Sanchez, don't apologize. When I was a very young child, right after the Occupation ended, I remember many times when there wasn't much of anything for my family to eat. After I learned of this holiday, I thought it was a perfect way to show gratitude. I'm happy to eat whatever you wish to share with me. Food in abundance is a gift from the Prophets. I'll ask them to bless your family for your kindness to all of us."
Several people around the table murmured their thanks and blessings, as well. Icheb glanced at Seven, who was sitting next to him, and brushed her hand. She squeezed back - very gently, since it was her left, Borg-enhanced limb he'd touched. He was grateful for this chance to spend an extended amount of time with his adoptive mother. It was the first opportunity they'd had in some time, and he wanted her to know how special it was for him, too.
Austin's Aunt Maria had prepared a special treat to supplement the pumpkin, apple, and pecan pies Austin's mother had baked. When Seven saw it was New York-style cheesecake, she said she'd like to try pecan pie. Icheb suppressed his smile. When Verit asked him about it later, when they were walking around the garden and Seven was inside speaking with Austin's mother, Icheb told Verit about the time the Doctor hid inside Seven's neural network. "He ate a whole New York cheesecake. It was his first opportunity to explore human sensations like taste, so I do understand. For weeks after they returned to Voyager, Seven went to Sickbay when she ate her dinners to describe the flavors to him. I don't think it was totally altruistic of her, though. I think she was getting back at him. Her clothing was much too tight for several days because of his overindulgence. Seven had to go on a 'diet.' And she wasn't happy about it."
On Friday and Saturday, Austin brought Seven and his suitemates around the Texas Hill Country and shared several sites of historical interest with them. As Icheb noted to Seven when they were flying over a very dry part of the countryside, "It's not much like Sweden."
Seven agreed. "No, it isn't; but I do like it here. The people are very friendly. I believe hospitable is the correct term. I like all your suitemates." She paused before adding, at a whisper, "Especially Verit."
"That's not a surprise, is it? Vulcans and Borg tend to look at things the same way."
"Yes, they do."
"Are you glad you agreed to come here for the holiday instead of going to Mrs. Janeway's or Admiral Paris's?"
"Yes, I am. I've enjoyed meeting people who follow a different way of living than Starfleet's. It's as if we're exploring a new world. It's . . . refreshing."
"In a way, it is a different world," Icheb agreed. "We spend so much of our time in cities. Here in the country, it's a little like we've traveled back in time to visit earlier days on this planet. Sort of like a trip to Tom's Fair Haven - except here, everything's real."
=/\=
On Sunday, a little before they were to share their final meal with their hosts, Seven pulled on the high-heeled western boots she'd borrowed from Austin's Aunt Maria and walked with Icheb around the perimeter of the property. A chilly wind was blowing out of the north, forcing them to sustain a brisk pace, but their cheeks were ruddy from the wind by the time their steps brought them back to the farm buildings. Before going on up to the house, Seven stepped through the barn doors. Icheb followed her inside. Although the cows and other livestock were still out in the fields, it was much warmer inside the barn and out of the wind. The smell of hay, mingled with a slight whiff of "barnyard," as Austin put it, made for a peaceful atmosphere.
Seven surprised Icheb by putting her arms around his shoulders and giving him a gentle squeeze. It wasn't something she did very often.
"Icheb, I'm glad I came with you to spend this holiday with your friends and Austin's family. We celebrated Thanksgiving on Voyager, of course, but many of Neelix's little 'traditional touches' to it remained, even after he left the ship. Now I can see how many of the 'traditions' had more to do with Talax than they did with Thanksgiving on Earth."
"True, but then, he wanted to include everyone, not just the humans. Making Plomeek Soup and getting Jumja tea for Farys was very nice of Mrs. Sanchez, though."
"It was," Seven agreed.
"That's one thing Neelix always got right. He knew this holiday is all about giving thanks for your family and friends."
"That's very true. That's why I've been trying to find a way to say this to you. I'm glad I've found a good time for it. Icheb, when you asked me to adopt you, I thought it only right. You'd suffered pain . . . no, don't interrupt me. Let me finish. You offered me a part of your own self so that I could live. You were right about not actually needing your cortical node to survive; but if you did, you would have died. So, I thought of myself taking on the role of an older sister to you. Adoption would provide you with stability in your life that had been taken away from you by almost everyone you'd met up until then. I was pleased to be of service to you in this way."
Icheb felt the skin of his face becoming warm. He doubted it had anything at all to do with the aftereffects of the chilly Texas wind. "I'm glad I could be of service to you, too. We've been over this, I think? I still feel the same way towards you, Seven. I will always be grateful because you saved my life, too . . ."
"Icheb," she said softly, "I thought of myself as an older sister, but now I believe I understand what B'Elanna must feel for Miral, and Lieutenant Wildman feels about Naomi. I am so thankful to have you. You have cared for me, put up with me when I was unjust to you . . . and yes, I know there have been times I have been unjust . . . and, especially, although you realized my romance with Chakotay was fated to end poorly, you never said anything about it to me. You let me find out for myself; and when I was ready to talk about it, you listened. We have become a family far beyond my expectations. Perhaps I can say this now because the word has been said many times this weekend. I'm blessed to have you in my life. I could not have a better son."
Just as they had when the Doctor told Seven he would survive after the cortical node surgery transferring the essential Borg part from Icheb to Seven, several tears rolled out of Seven's eyes. Icheb found his own vision was blurred, and he was sure it was from the same bodily function. "Thank you, Seven. Or do you want me to call you 'Mom' or 'Annika' after all?" He smiled at that, because he was certain he knew the answer.
Of course, he did know what she would reply, but not the reason. "Seven is still the name you should use. But Icheb, you must understand, whenever you call me 'Seven,' what I hear you say is 'Mommy.'"
=/\=