Title: Welcomes (6/6)
Couples: C/P/7, T/K
Rating: R (for language)
Disclaimer: I don't own the characters... Paramount does. I can't even
get a micron of Voyager's dust for myself. I made no money off the use
of their characters, and I promise to return everyone when I'm done,
happier and more sexually satisfied!Warning! This story contains spoilers for the sixth season episodes
"One Small Step" and "Equinox, Part II". Also, I'm ignoring some the
events of the fifth season... especially a *few* of those portrayed in
"Course: Oblivion".Summary: The madcap hilarity of birthing occurs in this plot... I think.
This story is dedicated to four very entusiastic ladies: Shamenka, for
getting me hooked on C/P slash in the first place. Leone, my twin and
the person who encouraged me to post this story. Stephanie, for being
one of the best Beta-readers I've ever had. Finally for Bella Morte, my
fellow co-host in the Monday night chat for our graphics group, I'd go
crazy in there without her.
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Setal chuckles at the newest threat to Harry. S/he is learning all sorts of new ways to threaten one's loved ones... as s/he always did when attending a birth. Closing hish eyes, the Syreen uses the teachings of hish people to ascertain how B'Elanna is doing. A small smile twitches the corners of hish mouth.
Harry looks down at his wife, and despite what she might claim were she able to see herself in a mirror, he thinks she looks absolutely beautiful. Harry leans down and kisses her nose, then says, "I will take that into account, B'Ela. Just be expecting a kiss when we welcome this little bump into the world," he says as he rubs his wife's stomach.
"Fine. Just don't be expecting anything else!" B'Elanna then settles back onto the biobed, anxiously awaiting her next contraction and the pain accompanying it. She looks up when she sees movement out of the corner of her eye. She raises a speculative eyebrow at the ship's doctor. "Yes, Doctor?"
Brandishing his tricorder like a shield, the EMH stands at the foot of her biobed, right next to the Syreen. "I came over here to check on you, Lieutenant Torres, as Seven and Naomi are asleep on the neighboring biobed."
Harry smiles when he looks over and sees the two females lying there, Naomi curled up to Seven's side. B'Elanna merely glares at the EMH. Then she looks at the Syreen near her raised feet. "Setal?"
Setal raises an eyebrow at the woman lying on the biobed before hir. "Yes, B'Elanna?"
"Should we let the Doctor check me out?"
"I don't see why not, it *is* his Sickbay after all," Setal says, sounding very put upon.
B'Elanna and Harry both snicker at the Syreen's joke. The Doc just huffs and checks out B'Elanna, using the already set up monitors and the tricorder in his hands. Before he is done with his inspection, B'Elanna has another contraction. Finishing his scans, he snaps the tricorder closed and smiles at B'Elanna. "Well Lieutenant, it looks like you'll probably be able to start to push soon. I'll go into my office now and finish up some paperwork. Scream if you need anything." Chuckling at his own humor, the Doctor heads into his office, where Janeway is still sitting.
Setal shakes hish head at the parting comment of Voyager's CMO. Mumbling under hish breath, "Why is it that doctors always have the dumbest senses of humor?"
B'Elanna growls out her answer, "Because otherwise they wouldn't be doctors. Although in *his* case, it's worse than most. He has the experiences of forty-seven different doctors stored in those memory banks."
"Mmph." Setal makes a non-committal sound. Checking B'Elanna again, s/he smiles at the Half Klingon engineer. "You're now dilated enough to push B'Elanna, so on your next contraction, pant like you've just finished running 20K with a weighted pack on your back. Also, push when your contraction begins."
"Right. Pant and push. I can do that." B'Elanna feels her next contraction hit, and she begins to pant, while pushing with her muscles.
Setal, seeing her efforts, looks at Harry. "Climb onto the biobed behind your wife and help support her. She needs to push downwards for this to work." Setal closes hish eyes, hits a series of button on the biobed panel, and it lowers the bed from B'Elanna's hip area by 45 degrees. Then part of the bed separates, to give Setal a chance to "catch the baby."
Harry climbs onto the biobed behind his wife, and keeps his right hand in hers, while supporting her back with his entire body. B'Elanna starts panting again, and grunts with her efforts to push. Setal merely stands with hish eyes closed, murmuring encouragements to B'Elanna.
When the child's head has begun to crown, Setal moves closer, with hish eyes open. "That's it B'Elanna, just a few more minutes now. Harry, try not to pass out, even from the pain."
B'Elanna chuckles, but the chuckles melt into a pant as she pushes with her next contraction. Setal smiles encouragingly, and Harry squeezes his hand. Harry remains quiet because the experiences of the Lamaze class taught him that speaking to his wife now might lead to a broken nose.
"That's it, B'Elanna. Your child's head has appeared, and what lovely forehead ridges s/he has. Now push again, and we'll get that neck of hish born." Setal supports the slightly hair covered head of the Torres-Kim child, and prepares to support more as the child is born.
B'Elanna pants, grunts, and pushes again as her child's neck and shoulders appear. Setal smiles encouragingly at Harry. S/he winks at B'Elanna, just as the woman screeches with the pain, "*PUSH* B'Elanna! Screaming won't stop the pain," Setal commands the woman lying on the biobed.
"I *AM* pushing!" she yells at Setal. Catching the Doctor standing in the doorway to his office, she yells at him. "Areinnye'n-hnah, y'kllhe!"
He scrambles back into his office, much to the amusement of the Captain. She starts laughing, and places a hand consolingly on his shoulder. He just shakes his head, watching the drama of B'Elanna Torres' first birth from the safety of his office.
Setal just rolls hish eyes towards the ceiling and says, "Push again, Lieutenant." S/he removes the obstructions from the child's face, and waits while the rest of hir is born.
Soon, the child's shoulders appear, and the mid-wife smiles at the nearly exhausted mother. Another contraction works it's way through B'Elanna and the child is revealed to its navel. Knowing another push is all that will be required, Setal braces hirself for the full child to be born.
With a loud screech, and an epithet that would shock most people, B'Elanna Torres gives birth to her first child. She lies back into her husband's arms, completely exhausted. Setal cuts the umbilical cord, and carries the child over to the Doctor's prepared measuring area. S/he steps back as the ship's Doctor cleans and measures the baby. Once the child has been swaddled in cloth, Setal carries hir over to hish parents.
A large smile is plastered across the Syreen's face, as s/he hands B'Elanna her child. "Congratulations B'Elanna. He's gorgeous. What will you call him?"
Harry speaks up, entranced by the dark brown depths of his son's eyes. "Timothy David. His name is Timothy David."
"But Timothy David, what? Kim? Torres-Kim? Kim-Torres? Torres? The surname is *just* as important as the given name Ensign," the Doctor calls out from his inputting of the boy's attributes.
Harry looks at his wife. "B'Ela?"
She looks up from her son's face. "Kim. Timothy David Kim. And I'll be changing my name soon enough. After all *Starfleet*, you already own my heart and soul, I should at least own your name!" She looks into her husband's eyes, and smiles at the absolute love shining there for her.
"Oh B'El." He captures her lips with his. When they break apart he smiles at his wife. "I love you, you know that right?"
"Never doubted it for a second, Har." She leans her forehead against his, their child held in her arms. Without opening her eyes, or looking at him, she speaks to the Doctor. "Timothy David Kim, son of Harrison and B'Elanna Kim."
"For right now, I'll put you down as B'Elanna Torres-Kim. I always can revise it, Lieutenant, when you officially change your name to Kim. Now, if you'll excuse me, I must go and tell the Captain of our newest arrival, the first boy born on Voyager!"
The Doctor goes to his office, and speaks briefly to the Captain, remaining in his office while she obviously has another talk with the Bridge. Setal takes Timothy from his mother's arms, and puts him into a cradle near Sabine and Elizabeth. As s/he walks back to the Torres-Kim family, s/he hears the now familiar ship wide announcement tone.
"Attention all hands! It is my duty and pleasure to announce the birth of Timothy David Kim at 1355 hours today. His father still has all his extremities in working order, and B'Elanna only threatened to break his nose four times. The first boy born here on Voyager weighs in at 3 Kilos and measures fifty-two centimeters in length. Please try and give the new families some time to themselves, and not mob them as they walk about the ship. That is all, Captain out."
"Well he weighs more and is slightly bigger than the girls. I guess we'll know which one to take home in the morning." Harry teases his wife.
"I thought the forehead ridges would give him away. But if it's just his size that will help you..." B'Elanna deliberately leaves her insult open ended.
Setal shakes hish head, and checks on the state of B'Elanna's afterbirth. Seeing that it will leave her body soon, s/he looks at B'Elanna. "Ms. Torres, soon to be Mrs. Kim, you need only to 'birth' the placenta then your Doctor can repair the tears and clean you up. So when I tell you to, push with whatever strength you have left. Push, B'Elanna!"
B'Elanna pushes with everything she has. Unlike when Timothy was born, this feels wet and slightly gross. When Setal removes a bloodied package from between her legs, the Doc steps in with a dermal regenerator and a sonic cleanser. Soon the hum of these instruments is heard through the quiet Sickbay, and when they go silent, her feet are removed from the stirrups and the biobed reforms to its usual shape.
Harry climbs off the biobed, and leans down to kiss his wife on the lips. "I'll see you later, B'Ela. I think I, and my misused uniform, am going back to our quarters so I can change. I'll be back later, get some sleep." With that, Harry Kim leaves his wife's side and Sickbay.
Kathryn Janeway comes into Sickbay proper, for the first time all morning. She smiles at the picture of contentment that Seven and Naomi are portraying, asleep on the same biobed, and at the tired visage of her Chief Engineer. "Congratulations, B'Elanna. I thought for sure Harry would be in traction before your labor was finished."
"He very nearly was at some points, Captain. But I figured then, that *I* would have to take care of little T.D. over there by myself for a few days." Both women laugh together at that. "So, how does it feel to be the proud godmother of twins, a boy, and the firstborn child of Voyager?"
Janeway feels a smile spread across her face. "Pretty good, actually. Now I just have three more reasons to get this ship home, don't I?"
Setal speaks up from hish place near the infants. "That you do, Captain. Now, if I might be so bold as to suggest it, let us get ourselves out of Sickbay. This will allow your CMO to finish his paperwork, and the new gestational parents of these lovely children to get some rest. Besides, I believe you owe me a tour of this marvelous starship of yours! I'm sure there's more to it than a Shuttlebay, a 'lift, and a medical bay."
Janeway laughs as she walks to join the Syreen visitor. "That there is, Setal. So, shall we commence with our tour? We can start on this deck, with the Mess Hall." Janeway gestures towards the doors to Sickbay.
"That would be appropriate, Captain." The two leave Sickbay, and head on a tour of the ship.
The Doctor notices that his Sickbay is too bright for sleeping, and calls for twenty-five percent illumination in the corner where the mothers of Voyager's newest family members are lying. He also calls for the removal of the sound proofing around Sickbay. When the computer acknowledges his orders, he continues with his paperwork and watches over the six occupants of his Sickbay.
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Five hours later, Sickbay is once more an active place. Seven, B'Elanna, and Naomi have woken up from their naps. But so have Sabine, Elizabeth, and Timothy. Timothy and Sabine are being feed by their mothers, while Elizabeth is being cooed at by her godmother, Megan Delaney.
The fathers still have not yet returned to Sickbay, having been stopped by members of the crew congratulating them. Gregor Ayala is busy administering the betting pool relating to the births, the person cleaning up the most being the ship's second officer, Lieutenant Commander Tuvok. Captain Janeway and Setal of Syra are touring the ship, the Syreen getting attention when it's learned s/he helped B'Elanna through her birth.
When all the senior staff (minus the ship's Morale officer who is tending the beginning of the dinner rush, and second officer who has the bridge still), once more arrives in Sickbay, they are met by the cheerful scene of nursing babies, cooing godmothers, and one stressed out EMH. Chakotay shakes his head, but takes Elizabeth from Megan's arms, despite her protests. Tom and Harry grin at each other, and know Megan will likely get even with Chakotay later.
Jenny and Naomi are sitting in the Doctor's office, busy going through his already numerous pictures of the babies. Their exclamations of "Oh that's sweet!" and "Look at that birthmark!" Can be heard throughout Sickbay. Megan joins them, as does the Captain and Setal. The pictures are rapidly reset and started from the beginning. The families involved just shake their heads, knowing that those pictures will probably end up on the ship's net before the day is out.
The Doctor is handed Sabine by her mother, and is quickly caught up in her father's grasp. Elizabeth is handed to Seven so she can be fed as well, and Chakotay sits on the biobed to talk to his wife. Tom just cuddles Sabine to him, and notices her birthmark for the first time.
He laughs when he sees it, and both his spouses turn to look at him. "Seems Sabine Jennifer here is most likely to become the pilot out of this trio of kids. She has a Delta Flyer shaped birthmark."
"Thank you, Ensign Paris! It has been troubling me all day what that birthmark reminded me of." The Doctor moves to a nearby panel, and calls up Sabine's medical record stating that the patient's father stated the aforementioned birthmark resembles the outline of the Delta Flyer, a ship's shuttle.
Chakotay shakes his head at the antics happening around him, and glances over at B'Elanna and Harry. He shares a grin with his ex-lover and his wife, as both then roll their eyes at whatever the Doctor is saying to them now. His attention is called back to his wife, as she burps the daughter in her arms. He runs a knuckle along Seven's cheek. "You weren't seriously thinking I would not show my love for you, did you?"
"Thomas spoke to you of my concerns then?"
"Yes Honey, he did. But you should have spoken to me yourself. I love you both so very much. How could you ever doubt that?"
"I didn't. I just felt you no longer found me sexually attractive, not in my pregnant state."
Chakotay's laughter startles Elizabeth Marie, and she begins to fuss in Seven's arms. As if in sympathy with her twin sister, Sabine Jennifer joins in. Then to make his presence felt, Timothy David Kim begins to cry as well. Tom, Seven, B'Elanna, and Harry stare accusatorily at Chakotay, who at least has the presence to blush.
The noise from the main part of Sickbay brings all those within out, and Setal shakes hish head. "Welcome to the wonderful world of parenthood." Laughter meets hish statement, and a picture is taken by the Doctor of the fussing children with their anxious parents, saving the incident for history.
The End
Helpful translation:
< B'Elanna Areinnye'n-hnah, y'kllhe! ([Romulan] Go to hell, you worm!)