=/\=
Austin's family had invited them to "c'mon down to Texas" for Christmas, as Verit and Farys were doing. Seven and Icheb had to politely decline. They'd already promised to spend the holiday with Aunt Irene in Malmö. This time, however, the only traditional holiday event they would miss was Saint Lucia's Day. Aunt Irene was not deterred. On the morning after they arrived, the traditional cakes were delivered to Seven and Icheb, courtesy of Karl Magnus' daughter Anna-Lise, who wore a crown of lit candles on her head as she brought their breakfast. "The feast day is on December 13th, but since you couldn't be here, we decided to recreate it for you on the 23rd," Aunt Irene explained.
After the Saint Lucia's Day make-up breakfast, the family got together and wrote up a schedule of which family's home they were going to visit over the Christmas holidays, and when. They didn't plan to do much in the way of sightseeing this trip. During their first stay, all of the family gatherings took place at Aunt Irene's. This visit, the family members opened their homes to their newfound relatives to let them view decorations and enjoy a special dinner with each family. At the halfway point of their stay, on an evening which had been designated as "free, at home," Icheb commented, when they were alone, "The Hansen family appears to be very disciplined."
"Efficient may be a better term," Seven responded, smiling wryly.
"So maybe some of your love of efficiency was inherited from your family?"
"Or I may have learned it as a young child, while I was raised by my parents."
Icheb noticed that while Seven often seemed to be stifling anger when she spoke about her parents Magnus and Erin, on this occasion she seemed less so. Her mood was more pensive and a little melancholy. To raise her spirits a little, he countered, "So you aren't totally 'Borg,' Seven. Perhaps that's why the Borg placed you in the position they did. They noticed your natural traits and assigned you tasks that suited your innate personality."
"Your hypothesis has merit," Seven agreed with a smile, and her mood became much brighter.
Afterwards, Icheb wondered what sort of position he might have had if he had become fully Borg. Since they didn't do experiments or invent anything, but rather assimilated technologies and people they coveted, Icheb decided his own talents would have been wasted as a drone. He hoped he would never have an opportunity to find out otherwise.
=/\=
On the day after New Year's, while they were packing to visit the McGinty relatives in Brooklyn before heading back to San Francisco, Aunt Irene bustled up to them and said, "I wish you could have stayed longer! Next time, you must visit us at solstice so you can enjoy our long, long days! It never really gets dark in midsummer."
Seven replied, "We may do that. Icheb is scheduled for a training cruise this summer, but I'll try to come, whether he's able to or not."
Aunt Irene nodded and said she hoped Icheb could come, too. Then she sat down and said, hesitantly, "You haven't mentioned your friend Chakotay at all this trip. Has something happened to him?"
"No, Aunt Irene. He's fine. We're just not together anymore."
"I'm so sorry, Dear."
"It's for the best. If we had remained in the Delta Quadrant longer, I believe we would have become permanently attached. Our abrupt return changed everything for us. For everyone, really. But if we didn't come back as soon as we did, Icheb and I might never have met you."
A teary-eyed Aunt Irene hugged both of them in turn. "I'm so glad I was able to meet you again, too. Our family was broken for such a long time. I'm so glad to have you back."
=/\=
As planned, Seven's visit with the McGinty side of her family lasted only two days before she moved on to San Francisco. Icheb stayed for the full week. While he did go into "the city" with his family three times for theatre-going and the sampling of many different Earth cuisines, as he wanted ("Just as many as in San Francisco," he whispered to his cousin Jamie at one point), he spent the rest of his time the same way he did during the recent visit to Scandinavia. As his great-grandfather had told him, he had a lot of aunts, uncles, and cousins in this area, and everyone wanted to meet the new relative from the other side of the galaxy.
Erin had been the middle child of five born to James and his late wife Mary. Her siblings all had at least four children each, some of whom were already producing another generation of McGintys. Icheb finally sat down one night and asked Seven's grandfather to help him make a genealogical chart so he could keep everyone straight. Since several of the cousins were close to Icheb in age, he had the chance to experience a different kind of family life from the one he knew on Voyager, or even in Sweden, where the families were smaller in size. He remembered how sad he'd felt when Q left Voyager, when they were still in the Delta Quadrant, and the only friend close to his age was Naomi. The large and friendly McGinty family gave him a taste of what growing up on Earth with a large and sometimes rambunctious family must be like.
When Icheb arrived at Seven's house after his return from Brooklyn, he said he had to agree with Aunt Irene. Summer, when the weather would allow for a greater range of activities, would be a better season for visits to Sweden or Brooklyn. "And Grandfather McGinty suggested spring would be even better in New York. And you can try some genuine New York style cheesecake!"
"I'll think about it," she replied to his tease. "I'm glad you're home, Icheb. I missed you."
"You haven't seen me for much longer when I've been on campus," he said.
"True, but I knew where you were most of the time. You were easier to reach. We hardly had a chance to communicate with each other while you were staying in Brooklyn."
"We did travel around a lot from house to house," he admitted. "Did you go to New Orleans for dinner the other night? Harry was able to get reservations at Sisko's, wasn't he?"
"Yes." She nodded emphatically, but she didn't say anything more until he encouraged her to "spill" what had happened. It was quite a tale.
As Seven had half-expected, Chakotay decided not to go after telling Harry he would. That left Seven to travel by herself to the restaurant and explain to their friends why he wasn't there. "Libby was simply . . . insufferable. The woman deliberately mistook every word I said. I think that's a big reason Tom and B'Elanna left even before our dinners were served. They took their meals home in carry-out containers."
"They left you alone with Harry and Libby?"
"They had a valid excuse. Miral had been crying much of the day. Her back teeth were breaking through her gums, and she was in pain. Mrs. Paris' birthday celebration was scheduled for the next day. Tom didn't want his mother dealing with a fussy Miral when there were things Mrs. Paris might wish to do to prepare for her party. I couldn't really blame them. The last thing they needed that night was to put up with someone acting more childishly than their baby - and for far less cause. After they left, Libby picked a fight with me over some sort of trifle. I can't even recall what started it now. She made a complete fool of herself, accusing me of having designs on her fiancé's body, of all things. If I'd wanted Harry's body, I could have had it years ago. At any rate, she stood up and said, 'Let's go, Harry,' expecting him to take her home.
"Harry refused to cave in to her demands. He said it wouldn't be right to do that to the restaurant staff, since our dinners had already been ordered. She flounced out by herself. If she really was worried about me wanting to begin a relationship with Harry, she shouldn't have gone and left him there alone with me."
"I'm sorry you had such a terrible time, Seven."
"Actually, we had a good time once Libby made her exit. Harry was being . . . Harry. He tried to make excuses for her, but then he admitted he shouldn't bother. I had to agree. She isn't worthy of him. We stayed and had a very nice dinner. We took the opportunity to talk over many of our experiences on Voyager. I must admit I often wasn't nice to him. Harry was always trying to help me fit in, or as he put it, to make me 'part of the team,' and I was rude to him. I also told him truths he hadn't been ready to hear, but he never held that against me. He's a true officer and a gentleman, Icheb. While I may not have always been fair to him, he always was to me."
"I'm still sorry it happened. The next time we get together, I'll bet Libby will be even more insulting than she has been in the past."
"I don't know how much we'll see of her in the future. I went to Mrs. Paris' birthday party. Harry showed up briefly and told us what happened when he arrived at the apartment he was sharing with Libby. She made no effort to apologize for her behavior. They had a nasty fight, and Harry's moved back into his parents' home. His father never really liked Libby. He's happy they've broken their engagement. His mother is devastated. She wants grandchildren very badly. Harry told us, 'It's over.' He's had enough."
"Do you think he means it?"
"I do. Over dinner, we were honest with each other about the likelihood that neither of our relationships seemed destined to last. As you pointed out to me, when I was facing its end, my romance with Chakotay was influenced by a lack of other suitable mates on Voyager. Libby turned to Harry when he came back into her life so unexpectedly, when she was still mourning the loss of her husband Daniel Byrd. They were 'engaged' to be married, but they never made any plans for a wedding. Harry admitted to me that something always held him back from asking her to commit to a date. Perhaps he sensed their relationship wasn't based on true affection."
"So, now the field is clear! You can date Harry!"
She laughed lightly. "I don't know about that, but it will be very nice to be friends and coworkers again, without worrying about her jealousy. Harry and I work well together. We always have."
"What do Tom and B'Elanna think?"
"Tom told Harry, 'It's about time!' And B'Elanna never liked Libby, which isn't surprising. Libby is the antithesis of B'Elanna in every possible way. None of us will miss the Widow Byrd. You're not too disappointed, are you, Icheb?"
"Not going to miss her at all!" Icheb replied, responding to Seven's teasing.
Later, when he was lying in bed, Icheb's thoughts turned to Seven and Harry. Was it possible they'd become a couple? Seven didn't think so, and Icheb didn't think it was too likely, either. Even though Icheb thought Harry would have been a much better match for Seven than Chakotay, she could have become involved with him years ago if she'd desired him. At least they could explore the possibility now, if they wished. If so, they'd better get started soon. Seven confirmed the Delta Flyer Project was finally finished. She would be leaving for Utopia Planitia very soon. Tom, B'Elanna and Miral were going there, too. Tom was assigned as chief test pilot for the new prototype. Harry would be up there for a while, too, but after final approval for building them came, he'd return to Earth to initiate the production of the Flyer series. Once that was running smoothly, if Voyager still wasn't flying again, Harry would request a transfer. With his new rank of lieutenant commander, Harry's next post would likely be on a much bigger starship than Voyager.
And after that - well, who knew? The Voyager team was breaking up. Icheb would miss them, but then, he was moving on, too. Professor Reagan had informed Icheb he'd been tabbed to head an Astrometrics field unit on his training cruise, which was scheduled to take place this summer. Icheb was lucky he'd had so many friends close by to him for this long. That was life in Starfleet, the career path he'd chosen to follow. He had to become accustomed to saying "good-bye" to his friends, even though he would be saying "hello" to new ones whenever he moved on himself.
=/\=