I lean by back against the same cool console, waiting for his response. I see the wheels of thought turning in his head. "It's," he looks away from me over my shoulder towards the big screen. He stays locked in a trance for a moment before continuing, "it's a long shot, Captain. I would hasten to say that this is as big of a long shot as that spatial sling shot that we encountered a few years ago." He looks over at Seven, whose still diligently working and seeming to ignore us. "I keep thinking that maybe this is some grand delusion. I mean," he joins me, leaning his own body against the console before surreptitiously taking my hand, "I keep thinking that maybe this is some great alien trap…"

I smile, "Wouldn't be the first time!"

He nods his head and chuckles, "We have to try. We can't just go this far and not try. I just wish that we had a little more assurance..."

I take my free hand and rest it on the small of my waist before disengaging my other hand from his warm grasp as I start to pace, "Reg and the rest of the scientists at Starfleet wouldn't have laid this out for us if they didn't think that it was feasible."

Suddenly, Seven turns to us, "Yes, Captain, however," she gracefully walks the few paces to stand beside me, "I agree with Commander Chakotay. If you recall, this plan sounds, to borrow the human colloquialism, to good to be true much like Arturis' plan was not just one year ago."

I let out a sigh, remembering with heartbreak what happened to that man. The tension in my temples again reasserts itself, "you're right. But, how can we decipher whether or not this is just another hostile alien attempt to leave us vulnerable, or if it's really possible that this wormhole could lead us to the Alpha or Beta Quadrants?"

"We have no way to know that for sure, Captain," Seven responds nonchalantly. She continues, "If we wait until the next data stream, which is in another month, we will miss the opening of the wormhole which, Mr. Barclay stipulated, might be the last of its kind for another century."

I'm silent, letting this realization sink in. "Alright," I look up at Chakotay and for a moment I allow myself to admire deep mahogany irises before I give my orders. "Chakotay, go ask B'Elanna if there is any way that she could ferret away a small modicum of deuterium, however little, on the contingency that this plan essentially blows up in our faces. We're going to need some way of powering our engines if this whole plan falls flat." I turn to Seven: "Seven, check on sensors if there are any planets within a light year of our current position that might be potential sources of deuterium. If there are, lay in a course to the closest one and send the coordinates to Mr. Paris."

"Aye, Captain," they jointly intone. And with that, work resumes its normal pace. Seven turns her back to us and I once again greedily lean into his large form before he leaves. "I know that," he begins to whisper. "We're all busy, but come home for dinner tonight." I look up, penitent. He smiles in return, gives me a small wink, and retreats.

/

The small tawny infant writhes in my arms, "now," I look down into her beautiful brown eyes, "why can't you be more like your sister, hmm?" I point across the table to Renee's tiny pink form now nestled quietly against her father's chest. Vivianna's mere squirms and occasional grunts of malcontent in a moment turn into a wail, "Oh no," I reposition her. "None of that. We don't want Ren-"

I catch the smile of my husband as another cry joins the chorus of unhappiness. "Too late," he shakes his head, similarly taking the little girl and propping her against his shoulder as he moves to rub her back in small, gentle circles. I should be annoyed that they're crying, but right now I find it humorous. "What did Tal say? Are they like this all day?"

"No," he shrugs his shoulders. "When I picked them up tonight, Tal and Naomi said that Renee and Anna are model babies." He turns and looks into the red face of the crying baby, "aren't you?"

"Oh," I nod my head in amusement, "so it's only the parents who bear the brunt of the bad behavior."

Soon enough the crying dies down, for which both of our ears are eternally grateful. "I think these two cranky girls are just tired, what do you say, Dad?"

He answers to the affirmative, kissing a fatigued pink brow, "I think these two need to hit the sac. What do you say, munchkin?" Another kiss to her sparsely haired blonde head is laid before we move away from the dining room table towards the nursery. By the time we reach their cribs and lay them down, they're practically asleep.

I let my fingers gently linger on Renee's warm, soft head as I feel her fine baby hair. We have to get home. We just have to. You'll be happy no matter where we are; your dad and I will make sure of it. But, there are so many opportunities that I want for you and your sister. There are so many things I want to show you! I want you to wake up in a house nestled on an Indiana plain. I want trips to Grandma's where I show you how to milk a cow, or ride a horse. I want to see the look on your face when we get our first dog. I want midsummer barbeques. I want family camping trips where your father teaches you how to fish and hike. God, I want it all and if we don't get home, you'll never experience any of it.

"Kathryn?"

Initially I don't hear his summon, but then a warm hand on my shoulder and a wet kiss on my neck rouses me and makes me laugh. "Chakotay," I chasten. Turning to him, "do you know what the purpose of night time is?"

He regards me with a crooked smile, "What?"

"The purpose of nighttime is to sleep!" I can't help but laugh softly when his mouth breaks into a full smile and he starts to chuckle.

"Oh really?" He takes my hand and leads me away from the nursery. "I thought that the purpose of nighttime was to make love."

I shake my head, "No, Chakotay. You think the purpose of the nighttime and the day time is to make love."

He pulls me flush against his tall form, "With you, Kathryn, every moment of every day or every night when I'm not making love to you is a wasted moment."

I playfully swat his chest, "Why do you do that? Now you're making it impossible for me to resist you!"

I lean into him, absorbing the warmth coming off his body. Suggestively I run my hands over his growing arousal, eliciting a moan before his lips hungrily claim my own.

"Tuvok to Janeway" I break the kiss with a chuckle. "Typical." I sigh.

"Janeway here, go ahead Tuvok."