A/N: See Chapter 1 for Disclaimer.
Chapter 2: Pink Light
Much to Dr. Luke's chagrin, Captain Janeway stayed on the surface of Tersa with her away team well into the wee hours of the next morning before finally returning to Voyager for about three hours of sleep. Then, Kathryn and Luke said a long and emotional goodbye to their children before leaving them in the care of their long-time colleagues and friends, Tom and B'Elanna, and afterwards, they said their goodbyes to the rest of the Voyager crew. And then, the Tersans fired up their device and generated a temporary wormhole that led to within one year's distance of the Alpha Quadrant, and Voyager passed through it safely while Captain Janeway, Dr. Luke, and Baby Deborah remained behind in the Delta Flyer. The Tersans permitted them to land the Delta Flyer on their planet's surface, so Dr. Luke flew the vessel down to Tersa while Captain Janeway laid down and slept for several hours in the biobed of the Flyer's aft section. She woke up at four o'clock that afternoon, and when she did, her husband already had a plate of some of her favorite dishes ready and waiting for her.
"You didn't need to go to all this trouble. I could've done this myself," Kathryn told Luke as she sat up on the side of the biobed in front of the nearby overbed table that had her meal and beverage sitting on it.
"I wanted to do it. I'm worried about you. You didn't get a chance to eat this morning, and after Voyager left, you were too tired to eat. I really want to get some food into you now. With the baby being this close, you're going to need all the strength you can get for labor," said Luke, who was now wearing a black blazer, a blue shirt, and matching black pants.
"I know, darling. I know. But you don't have to fuss over me like an anxious mother hen, love. I'll take good care of Deborah and me. We'll be just fine. Don't worry so much," Kathryn assured him, and then she took a bite of food. She was wearing a white silk maternity gown, and even though she'd just awakened from sleep and was nine months pregnant, to her husband, she was still the picture of beauty.
"Worrying is par for the course when you're a husband and a father and the love of your life is nine months pregnant. I learned that years ago when you were pregnant with Lewis and Selik."
"Didn't you replicate some supper for yourself?"
"Well, it's only sixteen-hundred hours. I'm not really hungry just yet. I'll get something to eat a little later on," Luke told Kathryn, and she nodded and continued to eat.
"So what else did we used to do when we were dating?" Kathryn asked Luke just over an hour later, both of them now sitting on the side of the biobed together. Kathryn had long since finished her meal.
Luke chuckled then and replied, "You and I were absolutely terrible. We used to drive poor Mr. Paris right up the wall!"
"What did we do?" Kathryn asked with keen interest.
"Do you remember his Grease Monkey simulation on the Holodeck?"
"Yes, I remember it."
"Well one day, maybe just a day or two after we'd officially acknowledged our relationship to the rest of the crew, Mr. Paris got nosey and did a little digging, and he discovered our program of Ireland that we often liked to run. We used to run that program for when we'd eat breakfast or lunch together or have a picnic, things like that."
"Right."
"And our dear helmsman decided to mess with our program of the Emerald Isle in order to prank us."
"Uh oh. What did Tom Paris do?" Kathryn asked with a chuckle.
"When we ran the program of Ireland one day for a picnic we were going to have, just as we were spreading out the blanket and getting ready to take all the food out of our picnic basket, all of the sudden, the program changed from the Ireland simulation into the simulation of Chez Sandrine's. And then, this insane gigolo came up to you, asking you to tell him your favorite song so that he could dance with you before taking you to his private felucca on the wharf and make passionate love to you."
"I remember that!" said Kathryn as she laughed out loud. "I remember that crazy gigolo from Tom Paris's Chez Sandrine's simulation! Oh, my goodness! Did he really do that?"
"He most certainly did."
"Oh, no," Kathryn chuckled.
"Not to worry, though. We got our revenge."
"What did we do?"
"You recall how passionate Mr. Paris has always been about restoring classic cars in his Grease Monkey simulation?"
"Certainly."
"Well one thing he's also passionate about is making sure nobody but himself or B'Elanna ever touches his precious, darling classic cars. So we looked up a simulation of some driving lessons in the Starfleet database, and you and I both learned how to drive a car. And after Mr. Paris pulled that stunt with the Chez Sandrine's simulation, you and I loaded up Mr. Paris's Grease Monkey simulation and took a few of his classic cars out for a joy ride." As soon as Luke told Kathryn that, she had a big belly laugh. "And when he loaded up his Grease Monkey simulation the next time, none of his cars were where they were supposed to be! It drove him mad!"
"Looks like we got him back pretty good," Kathryn said with a giggle.
"Oh, yes. We certainly did," Luke agreed.
"I really hate it that I can't remember that," Kathryn said sadly.
"Try not to lose hope, honey. The human brain and the human mind can be very unpredictable. Your memories just might resurface one day. You never know."
Kathryn smiled and shook her head and told her husband, "No, I haven't lost hope, love. I'm not giving up that easily."
She then began to kiss him, but right as their lips met, Kathryn's water suddenly broke.
"Uh oh," she said as Luke got up and reached for the nearest tricorder.
"Have you felt any contractions?" he asked while holding it close to her very round abdomen.
"I was getting some light twinges shortly after we said goodbye to Voyager, but they weren't all that severe," Kathryn replied as she stood up.
"Oh, yes, they were. They were the start of your contractions. You're five centimeters dilated now, Katie."
"Looks like we'll be burning the midnight oil for the second night in a row, huh?"
"Maybe so."
"I'm going to go shower and change," she told him.
"I'll help you," said Luke, and then he went with his wife to the Delta Flyer's bathroom.
Around three hours later, Kathryn, now in a silver silk nightgown, was sitting side by side with Luke in a couple of extra chairs he'd brought into the main section of the Delta Flyer, quietly, holding her hand and stroking her fingers with his thumb while she had her eyes closed, calmly breathing her way through another contraction.
"That's right, Katie," he whispered. "That's right. Breathe, sweetheart. Just breathe and relax now. You're doing so well."
"I think I'm getting close, Luke," she told him quietly as the contraction continued.
"You are, sweetheart," he whispered. "You're very close. You're dilated nine centimeters now."
When the contraction ended, Kathryn let go of her husband's hand and opened her eyes and told him, "I know you've heard of pre-wedding jitters."
"Of course."
"As for me, I'm pretty sure I'm getting a case of pre-birth jitters. I mean, yes, I know that I've been through birth before, with Lewis and Selik and Spock, but I don't remember it, so for me, it's like the first time having a baby all over again."
"There's nothing to be afraid of, Katie. I'll be right here with you the entire time."
"I'm not afraid. I'm just…nervous. I mean, a woman doesn't give birth every day of her life. It's a pretty huge and life-changing event."
"I understand. But there's nothing to be nervous about. I gave you a hypospray for the pain a little while ago, and if you feel you need another one, all you have to do is say the word. I assure you, you won't hurt."
"I'm not afraid of feeling pain. I think what's really got my nerves so uptight right now is the fact that this is an infant. Ever since you woke me from that coma, I've lost all memories of being a mother, but even so, it didn't take me long to get to know Lewis and Spock and Peter and Priscilla, and it didn't take me long to fall in love with them and form a bond with them, and they with me. But I have no previous experience I can draw on in taking care of an infant. A helpless baby who can't talk and can't clearly communicate with me when there's a problem. I keep worrying and I keep asking myself, 'What if something goes wrong, what if she needs me for something, and I can't figure out what it is and I'm not able to help her?' It's deeply unsettling to think about."
"We'll figure it out together, Katie. Step by step, day by day, just as we always have all along," Luke reassured her, and then he brought her hands up to his lips to kiss them. "I know you don't remember, but I happen to know from previous experience that you are naturally and instinctually a wonderful mother," he added. "You've always had great instincts when it comes to our children, and I have no reason to believe that it's going to be any different with this one."
"Thanks for the vote of confidence."
"Anytime."
"Scan me again with your tricorder, will you?" Kathryn asked him.
"Sure," Luke replied, and then he immediately grabbed his medical tricorder nearby and held it near Kathryn's abdomen. He then said, "You're getting the urge to push, aren't you?"
"Can I start?"
"Yes. You're fully dilated now. Do you want me to help you back to the biobed first?" asked Luke.
Kathryn shook her head and replied, "I just want to push her out into your arms right here. Can we do that?"
"Of course," Luke told her, and then he took her hands when she reached out, and they each pulled in opposite directions while she pushed, and when the contraction ended about a minute later, she let go. "Good job, Kate. Good job. I'm just going to go get some blankets and towels from downstairs. I'll be right back," he informed her then, and Kathryn nodded.
Luke returned less than a minute later with his medical kit, a stack of pink towels, and a silver blanket, and after setting the Starfleet medical kit and the pink towels down in a seat nearby, he covered Kathryn's knees and legs with the silver blanket so she wouldn't get cold. Afterwards, he pulled his chair up as close to Kathryn's as he could and sat down in front of her and began excitedly watching for their baby.
Kathryn then reached out for her husband's hands and pushed a second time, and once the contraction was over, she told him, "She really came down a lot just now."
Luke scanned her with his tricorder once again. "You're right. You both made great progress with that last contraction."
"Oh Luke, this is it! She's going to come out at any second now! I can tell."
"It's alright, darling. It's alright. Don't be nervous," Luke said softly, putting his hand on top of hers and looking straight into her eyes. "I know you don't remember giving birth before, and I know you've got a case of the pre-birth jitters, but don't worry. I know what I'm doing, and so do you. Both of you are going to be just fine."
"I know that," Kathryn admitted. "But thanks for reminding me."
"Anytime."
The baby's head started crowning then, and Kathryn gave several light pushes, making sure the head came slowly.
"You're doing wonderfully, Katie," Luke reassured her as his own face lit up like a Christmas tree. "Oh Kate, her little head is so beautiful," he told her as tears of joy came to his eyes. "Especially her hair. Her hair is so very beautiful. Thankfully, she's not bald like her old man."
Kathryn laughed, but then she told her husband, "Doesn't matter. She'd be just as beautiful to me if she did end up bald like her old man. You're beautiful, too."
Luke leaned in and gave Kathryn a quick kiss, and then he informed her, "When you get the urge to push again, I think it'll be the last one. I think we'll have her out and in your arms at any moment now."
"Can't wait," Kathryn whispered.
"Neither can I," Luke agreed.
And then, another contraction started and Kathryn felt the need to push, and she said, "Oh, yeah. This is it. Here we go."
"It's alright, Katie. It's alright," Luke reassured her, and then Kathryn pushed their baby girl out into her father's arms, and the sounds of the newborn's cries caused both of her parents to cry tears of joy with her.
Luke then wrapped up Baby Deborah in a couple of pink towels, took the necessary tools out of his medical kit to clamp off and cut the umbilical cord, and quickly placed her in her mother's waiting arms.
"You did it, Katie. You did it," Luke gasped in utter admiration of his wife as she held their newborn daughter close to her chest. "You were amazing. So amazing," he whispered as he and Kathryn lovingly stared down into Deborah's face together. She had reddish-brown hair that was much darker than Spock's, and she had her mother's blue eyes, and both of her parents instantly fell in love with her.
Kathryn looked up at Luke in that moment and told him, "You weren't so bad yourself, Dad."
Luke shook his head and said, "You two did all the hard work." And then he bent down and gave his wife a very long, hard, passionate kiss. When the kiss ended, he gazed into her eyes and whispered, "I could never live without you, Katie."
"Believe me, the feelings are mutual," said Kathryn.
Deborah Phoebe Janeway had been born at ten minutes till eight that evening, and in those moments, the Tersan sun began to set, and the most brilliant pink light filled the sky outside, and it also poured into the Delta Flyer. And it was right then and there that an important realization began to hit Kathryn.
"It was just like this on the morning Lewis and Selik were born, wasn't it? Voyager was down on a planet's surface as the sun was rising, filling our quarters with light. Only, it wasn't pink light like now; it was blue light."
"Yes, Katie, that's right," Luke said excitedly. "You remember now, don't you?"
As even more tears of pure joy filled her eyes, Kathryn nodded. "Yes," she told Luke. "I remember now. I'm starting to remember it all. I'm starting to remember everything. Our first date. Our first kiss. Our wedding. Our babies. It's all coming back now."
Luke then gave Kathryn an even more passionate kiss than the one he'd given her a couple of moments ago. And in the next few minutes, after taking Baby Deborah down to the medical bassinet he had set up by the biobed, he took Kathryn into his arms and carried her down to the biobed and laid down her down in it. A few moments later, Kathryn reached over and took Baby Deborah out of the bassinet and laid her close to her chest again, and Luke successfully managed to crawl into the biobed with the two of them, even though it was a rather tight squeeze. And he just held his wife and laid with her and their newborn daughter for a couple of minutes as they both cried joyful tears together over the birth of their last child and the return of her memories. Afterwards, Luke got up and gave Baby Deborah her first bath, put her in her first pair of baby pajamas, fed her, and laid her back down in the bassinet to sleep. And after insisting on making Kathryn a snack, along with a cup of chamomile tea to help her sleep, she ate and drank, and then Luke climbed into the biobed with her, and they soon fell asleep along with their baby. And it was the sweetest sleep imaginable.