Title: Hopes and Dreams
Author: Stefan C.
Authors e-mail: cilia@mmedia.is
Codes: K/7
Rating: PG.
Special thanks to my beta readers Chris, Blank, Einar and my dad,
A very special thanks to Janet (Auntie Jam) for making this a better story.
Legal stuff: Paramount and VIACOM own Star Trek: Voyager, the characters
Seven of Nine, Ensign Harry Kim and the rest of the gang. I'm just borrowing
them for a short while.
                           HOPES AND
                             DREAMS
Seven and Harry crawled through Jeffries tube 39. There was something wrong
with the power flow to the Astrometrics lab and they had traced the
problem here. They worked well together. They both considered each other a
friend, but Harry's feelings ran much deeper then that.
"I believe I found the problem Seven." Harry said pointing his tri-corder to the
conduit above him.
"According to my readings..." Seven said, then her eyes opened wide. She
screamed.
"HARRY, GET....." She never got any further. There was an explosion and a
brilliant flash of light silenced her.
The first thing Seven thought about, after the flash died, was to get to Harry. She
crawled to him and looked down into his 
eyes.
Harry thought he was going to die. He lay on his back looking up. Then he saw a
face of what he first thought was an angel, then he recognized it as Seven.
Thinking he was about to die he made a confession right there. "Seven, I love
you." Then his eyes closed. The last he heard was Seven calling for an
emergency transport.
Later in sickbay Seven of Nine lay on a bio-bed looking over at Harry who lay
on the bed next to her. Her injuries had been minor because she had been a good
distance from the blast. Harry had been seriously injured. The Doctor had fixed
his injuries but kept him sleeping to give his body a chance to rest. 
Seven had a lot on her mind. She had heard what Harry had said just before
passing out. She didn't think much about it when she heard it because getting
him to sick-bay was more important at that moment in time. But now lying here
in sickbay with nothing but her own thoughts, she couldn't get that one sentence
out of her head. "Seven, I love you." It rang over and over again in her head. She
considered him a friend, her only true friend, not a mentor like Tuvok, or a
mother figure like Captain Janeway, but a true friend, who cared for her, even if
she treated him badly. //It's true,// she thought. //I've treated him badly.// But did
she love him? She did not know. She decided to try and sleep, something she had
not done often.
The Doctor appeared as she was about to close her eyes.
"Ah, Seven you are awake, good." he said, as he ran a quick medical scan. 
//God, that hologram could be irritating,// she thought.
"I think it's safe for you to return to your alcove to regenerate. I recommend you
use a site to site transport. You should not be walking around much; you are still
pretty shaken up."
"Understood." Seven said. Then she added. "Computer deactivate EMH."
"Wait just a minute…" 
The Doctor vanished. Seven couldn't help but to smile. She then walked over to
the sleeping form of Harry, bent down, placed a gentle kiss on his forehead, and
said: "Sleep well my friend."
The Doctor reappeared. "What was that all about?" he asked.
"Nothing special." Seven answered.
The Doctor sighed and said "Computer, medical transport to cargo-bay 2,
engage." Seven disappeared in a shimmer of blue light. The Doctor went into his
office to look at the sickbay security camera records.
  Seven found herself standing at a crossroads of two paths. One path was
straight and wide, but dark. On both sides stood Borg-drones, and the path led
into total darkness. The other path was winding and narrow, but bright. Along it
stood people and children. She saw Captain Janeway and Commander Chakotay,
Lt. Paris and Lt. Torres, Commander Tuvok and his wife T'Pel, her parents --
and along the path she saw herself and Harry holding a baby girl with raven
black hair. Further down the road she saw herself looking out over a lake with
two children, twins. She looked older, and next to her sat a young woman, with
the same raven black hair as Harry, wearing a Starfleet uniform. She saw a little
of Harry in her but her face was almost like hers. //My daughter,// she thought.
Then she woke up.
Seven stepped out of her alcove, the dream was burned into her memory. The
first thing she did was to call sickbay.
"Seven of Nine to EMH."
"Morning Seven," the Doctor's voice came over the COM. "What can I do for
you?"
"When will you wake Har.. Ensign Kim." //That's strange,// she thought,
//why did I almost call him Harry?// The Doctor could have sworn that he heard
concern in her voice.
"In two days most likely, maybe tomorrow. Seven, are you sure you are all right?
You sound troubled."
"I'm quite all right Doctor. Will you call me before you wake him, I would like
to be present."
"Sure thing Seven, EMH out."
//Two days// Seven thought. She hit her commbadge again.
"Seven of Nine to commander Tuvok."
"Tuvok here." The Vulcan's stoic voice came over the COM. "What can I do for
you Seven?"
"I need to discuss something with you, concerning my emotions and feelings.
Can we meet?"
"I will assist you any way I can Seven. Come to my quarters at 1500 hours
and we will discuss it. Tuvok out."
Seven was alone again. She took out a few PADDS the Doctor had given her on
human behavior and busied herself in reading them, but her thoughts always
drifted towards Harry who lay sleeping in sickbay. At 1500 hours she stood
outside Tuvok's quarters and she rang the door.
"Enter," came from within the quarters. Seven entered and found Tuvok sitting
in front of his meditation lamp. "Seven, welcome. Please sit down." He
motioned her to sit in front of him. "What is troubling you Seven?" Tuvok asked
in his stoic Vulcan voice.
"I'm sure you know about the explosion yesterday?" Seven asked looking
nervously around the room. //Why am I feeling this way?// she thought.
"Yes. You and Ensign Kim **were in a Jeffries tube when a conduit exploded.
Has this visit anything to do with that explosion?"
"No." She said simply. "It has to do with what happened immediately after the
explosion."
"What did happen after the explosion Seven?" Tuvok asked.
"I crawled over to Harry, I mean Ensign Kim," //That's strange,// she thought,
calling him Harry. She went on, "to see how badly he was injured, and when he
saw me he said he loved me." Seven's voice was as stoic as the Vulcan's, but her
eyes spoke volumes.
"Fascinating." Tuvok said and raised an eyebrow. "I do believe Lt. Paris is
several rations richer, although I'm not engaged in the betting pools, I thought
Ensign Kim would tell you much later." If Tuvok had been a human he would
have smiled.
"This is common knowledge?" Seven asked.
"Yes. The crew has had several bets going on you and Ensign Kim for some time
now."
"WHAT!" Seven shouted. She wasn't sure why she felt so angry.
Tuvok chose to ignore Seven's outburst. "So am I to believe you have come to
me because you are unsure how you feel towards Ensign Kim. Am I correct?"
"You are correct." Seven said, fleeing back into Borg-mode. "I consider
Harry...Ensign Kim.." // I did it again! Why?// Seven thought -- "my
friend, but I'm not sure I feel for him as deeply as he seems to feel for me,"
Seven finished.
"Seven, it is all right for you to call Ensign Kim, Harry. Now tell me how do you
feel for Ensign Kim and what do you think of him?" Tuvok asked in his
unchangeable stoic voice.
"I feel good around him, when he walks into the room I feel joy and relief. If the
texts are correct he is to be considered very handsome. I must say that I agree
with the texts. He is of high intellect, predictable and recently he has been
coming to me in my dreams."
"Tell me about these dreams Seven."
"There is one where I'm looking down a winding path. I see us standing together
holding a baby girl with black hair. We look happy. Then there is another one
where we are kissing in a Jeffries tube and then we…" Seven stopped. She
knew from the Doctor's texts that some things were better left unsaid. Her face
had taken on a far away look; it looked like her mind was somewhere else.
"Seven," Tuvok began, "I can only tell that I think that you have feelings for
Ensign Kim that go deeper than friendship, but I can't tell you if it is love or not.
Only you can answer that question." Tuvok placed his hand on Seven shoulder.
"Seven, look into yourself. There you will find the truth. You must find out for
yourself how you feel for Ensign Kim. I can not help you."
Seven looked at the man she considered her mentor. "You have already helped
me with so many things. The rest I must discover myself. Thank you,
Commander." And with that she was gone and Tuvok was left alone with his
thoughts. He hoped that she would follow her heart.  After all, it was only logical.
Seven steeped into sickbay. She had wandered around the ship for an hour trying
to get her thoughts organized.
"Ah, Seven. What can I do for you?" the Doctor said when he saw her come in.
"I've come to see how Harry -- I mean Ensign Kim -- is doing?"
"He's doing just the same as when you called me this morning, he's sleeping," the
Doctor said, wondering about this sudden concern Seven had for Harry. "Seven
are you sure you are alright?"
"I'm undamaged Doctor." Seven suddenly dropped out of Borg-mode. "Would it
be alright if I sat with Ensign Kim for awhile?"
"Sure thing Seven, let me get you a chair." The Doctor vanished into his
office to get a chair. Seven walked over to where Harry lay and looked down at
him. She had never thought about how truly beautiful he was. An image of a
baby girl with raven black hair flashed before her eyes. She could see by the
movement of his eyelids that he was dreaming. //About me, perhaps,// she
thought, //where did that come from?// The Doctor came back with a chair.
"Here you go Seven. If you need me I'll be in my office." With that he left.
Seven just sat holding Harry's hand, watching him sleeping, wondering what he
was dreaming about. Harry stood on a green field surrounded by hills under an
unnatural azure blue sky. //This has to be a dream,// he thought. Wind blew
through his raven black hair as he looked around. Then he saw a beautiful blond
woman standing in the field. She had long flowing blond hair, which blew freely
in the wind, and she was wearing a white dress. Then he saw her face. It was
Seven. //This has to be a dream,// he thought again. Harry just stood and
watched; it was like watching a holomovie. He saw two figures coming from the
hills which surrounded the field. He watched as one of the figures ran into
Seven's arms. It was a young girl with black hair like his own. The girl cried out.
"Mommy." Then they both turned and looked at the other figure coming from
the horizon and the girl called out, "Hurry up, Daddy."
Harry tried to make out who it was. Then he saw who it was. It was himself,
wearing a red Starfleet uniform with the insignia of a commander, carrying a
picnic basket. Harry watched 'himself' walk towards Seven and give her a light
kiss.
"You are late, Ensign," Seven said with a smile.
"Seven how many times to I have to tell you it's commander now and call me
Harry. After all, we are married." Harry's eyes went wide as he watched 'himself'
kiss Seven again.
In sickbay the Doctor found Seven sleeping with her head on Harry's bio-bed.He
nudged her shoulder and spoke her name to wake her. "Seven, time to wake up."
Seven opened her eyes and said sleepily, "Harry?"
"No, I'm afraid it's just me." The Doctor said with a grin.
Seven now was fully awake. "Sorry, Doctor, I was dreaming."
"About Ensign Kim, I take it."
"That is none of your business," Seven replied quickly. It was true, though. She
had been dreaming about Harry. "How long have I been sleeping?" Seven asked.
"About three hours now. You fell asleep after an hour and a half."
Seven looked at Harry and got ready to leave.
The Doctor stopped her with a question. "Seven why are you doing this?"
"Doing what?" Seven answered, her mind was somewhere else.
"This sitting with Harry for 5 hours, asking me constantly how he is doing,
kissing him 'goodnight'. You have never shown the kind of behavior towards
him, or anybody, for that matter, before. So I ask again, why are you doing this?"
The Doctor finished.
"I'm not sure." That was the only answer he got because as soon as Seven
stepped out of the chair she collapsed. The Doctor hit his commbadge, "EMH to
captain Janeway. Report at once to sickbay. There seems to be something wrong
with Seven."
Moment's later Captain Kathryn Janeway burst into the sickbay. "Doctor,
report."
"Seven's body went into shock after she woke up from a three hour nap." The
Doctor replied.
"Waking up." Janeway said in amazement. "Seven doesn't sleep."
"She doesn't need sleep, but that doesn't mean she is incapable of sleeping."
"What was she doing here?"
"She came to sit with Ensign Kim for awhile and fell asleep after a while."
"She came to sit over Harry! Is she awake? Can I see her?"
"Sure. Maybe you'll be able get some answers out of her. She is on bio-bed two."
The Doctor pointed her to where Seven lay and then stepped into his office.
Janeway walked over to where Seven lay and looked down at her.
"How are you feeling Seven?" Janeway asked, concern very clear in her voice.
"I'm undamaged." Seven stated, going into Borg-mode like she often did when
the captain was around, but her voice failed her.
"Tell me the truth, Seven." Janeway said, trying to keep from sounding
commanding.
"Physically I'm fine, " Seven began "but mentally…" Seven's voice trailed
off.
"This has something to do with Harry, doesn't it?"
"You are correct, Captain. Yesterday after the explosion Har… Ensign Kim
confessed something to me." Seven stopped, fear and confusion shone from her
eyes.
"What did he say, Seven?" Janeway asked, trying not to sound curious.
"He told me that he loved me." Seven said. Something about knowing that made
her shiver with fear.
"And that frightens you?" Janeway asked. She understood why Seven would fear
this. No one had shown her as much friendship and care as Harry, but now she
knew that he loved her and that was bound to frighten her.
"Yes..." Seven replied with tears in her eyes, "I know I should be happy,
but..." Completely gone was the Borg. All that Janeway saw was a
frightened and confused young woman. 
"There is more isn't there?" Janeway asked. She knew she had to be careful, but
she had to know what was causing this fear in Seven. Again the only reply was a
frightened, "Yes."
"Tell me," Janeway said, squeezing Seven's hand.
"There are..." Seven began and then stopped and took a deep breath.
"There are these dreams. In them I'm looking down a winding path and along
that path I see myself with Harry." // That's strange,// Janeway thought //She
called him Harry.// Seven went on. "In the dream we appear to be very happy,
I'm holding an infant girl with black hair. I think it is our daughter. You are
there, Captain -- you and Commander Chakotay. You also look happy. My
parents are there, too. Then further down the path I see myself older. I'm sitting
with two children, twins, and beside me sits a young woman, with Harry's black
hair. Other then that she looks like me, but Harry isn't there in the dream. Then
usually the dream ends." Seven finished exhaling.
"So you are unsure how you fell for Harry and then you are having these dreams.
I would say that your subconscious is trying to tell you something," Janeway
said, smiling. She knew immediately that she had made a mistake.
"Tell me what?" Seven said, raising her voice a bit over her normal speech level.
"That I LOVE Harry, that I want to spent the rest of my life with him, bear his
children..." Her voice trailed of. She had lost all control of her emotions,
and the Captain, The Doctor and Tom Paris, who stood in the door all stared at
her, surprised by this sudden outburst from the ex-Borg.
Tom was the first to speak. "I just came to check on Harry...I'd better just
leave and come back later." 
With that he was gone. He couldn't wait to tell B'Elanna, who waited in the mess
hall, what he had just heard. He had a few more rations to collect.
Meanwhile Seven was regaining her calm. She knew that the news of this would
be flying around the ship in less than five minutes -- or as long it would take Lt.
Paris to get to the mess hall.
Both Janeway and the Doctor stood silent while Seven was calming down, then
they both spoke.
"Seven..."
"You first, Doctor." Janeway said.
"Well, before Seven's emotional outburst, which I find perfectly healthy, I was
about to say it is safe for her to return to her quarters," the Doctor finished, a
grin on his face.
Neither spoke until they reached cargo bay 2.
  "Come on, Seven." Janeway said. "I'll walk you to your quarters."
On the way to cargo-bay 2 Seven caught a few looks from passing
crewmembers. The news was spreading fast.
Neither spoke until they reached cargo-bay 2. Then Janeway broke the silence.
"You love him don't you?" She asked in a calm and soothing voice.
"Yes. No. I don't know. I think I know, but I'm not sure." Seven answered.
Janeway knew that Seven needed time to think.
"Think about it. The Doctor will wake Harry up tomorrow. You should be there
when he wakes up. I think you and Harry need to have a long talk."
Then Seven did something that Janeway had never expected from the ex-Borg,
Seven took Janeway into a fierce hug. Janeway was taken by surprise but
quickly responded. //How much this woman has changed since I first met her she
thought.//
After a while Seven let go.
"Good night Captain, and thank you."
"Thanks for what?" Janeway asked.
"Everything." Seven said as she disappeared into the cargo-bay. //Harry is in for
a surprise tomorrow,// Janeway thought. Then she made a decision. She hit her
commbadge. "Janeway to Chakotay."
  Seven found herself standing in a strange place. Everything was white. She
heard soft music, clarinet she thought. There was a huge window looking into
space. She stood still and waited, then she saw Harry walking towards her
wearing a white robe. As he came closer she noticed two Borg-implants on his
face, one above his left eye and the other one next to his ear, just like hers. He
walked up to her. "Hi Seven."
"Harry..." she began. "Your face." She touched the implants gently. "What
happened?"
"Nothing happened," Harry said. "This is a dream, a product of your
subconscious. You are seeing me as deep inside you wish me to be,
more..." 
He was stopped by Seven as she ended his sentence. "More like me."
"Yes, more like you, or like you also want it to be." Harry snapped his fingers
and in a flash of light he changed again into a normal Harry. Seven opened her
eyes, slowly blinded by the light for a brief moment. She looked down at her
hands. The Borg enchantment on her arm was gone. She brought a hand to her
face and touched where the implants had been; she traced what was now a
normal eyebrow; then she touched where the other implant had been, nothing
but silk-smooth skin. Then she felt something: uncontrollable emotions, love ,
desire, a turmoil of feelings with no Borg-logic to control them. She began to
cry. 
"Harry..." She flung herself at him wrapping her arms around him kissing
him fiercely.
"I'm here, Seven," he said. "I'll always be here with you." Then he began to fade
away "I love you and I'll always be there…"
Seven woke up. "Harry" echoed around the cargo-bay. There was something
wrong with Harry -- she just knew it.
Seven ran to sickbay. When she entered, her worst fear was confirmed. The
Doctor, Tom, Chakotay and the Captain all stood at Harry's bio-bed. Seven
rushed over to them. "What is wrong?" She asked. No one spoke. She asked
again "What is wrong with Harry?" She was feeling fear and despair.
The Doctor spoke. "He's not waking up, and it appears that he is dying, I was
about to call you."
"Why, how, what's wrong?" Seven found herself becoming hysterical. She
gathered all her inner strength and walked the last few steps to Harry's side. She
looked down at him; he looked so peaceful.
The Doctor went on, "I can't find anything medically wrong with him, he
just..." Seven cut him off.
"He came to me in a dream. He said he loved me and that would always be with
me." No one in the room believed that they were hearing this from Seven, the
most skeptical person on the ship. She went on. "Can he hear me?" This question
was directed at the Doctor.
"Yes, I believe so," he said and then added to the rest of the group. "I think we
should leave them alone."
He motioned the others to follow him into his office. That's when Seven noticed
that Janeway and Chakotay were holding hands.
Seven sat down and touched Harry cheek and began to speak. "Harry, if you can
hear me, I just want you to know that I consider you my dearest and closest
friend and that I think I love you..." She felt tears coming to her eyes. She
didn't try to stop and went on, "Harry don't leave me, not now when I'm just
beginning **to discover how much I love you." A tear ran down her cheek.
"please don't leave, because we need you...I need you. If you go I'll be all
alone again. I don't want to be alone again, without you I don't think I can go
on." She placed a gentle kiss on his lips and whispered "Don't leave me."
Harry sat with the little girl, his parents and Seven. He never wanted to leave,
but then I heard a soft voice carried by the wind. "I need you..." then again
"Don't leave me all alone..."   Then he knew he had to go back. Seven
needed him. Harry began to stir. Slowly his eyes opened and looked at Seven.
All he said was, "Seven." His voice was soft and full of the love he bore for her.
Seven wiped away the tears and said softly, "Harry." Then she took him into her
arms never wanting to let go.
After a while Harry pushed Seven away and looked at Tom, Janeway, Chakotay
and the Doctor, who all stood watching. "Would someone please tell me what is
going on here?" Harry asked.
"What is the last thing you remember?" The Doctor asked. "A flash, then Seven's
face. I thought I was going to die, so I..." He stopped for a moment and
then went on, knowing that they probably knew already. "So I told Seven that I
loved her. After that a series of dreams and then Seven's voice asking me to
come back." He didn't want to go into the details of the dreams -- no need for the
whole ship to know that he hoped to marry Seven one day.
"I hope I didn't cause any trouble for you Seven, I know that you…" he was
cut off by a gentle kiss on his cheek.
"It's all right Harry, it made me discover something about myself and my
feelings." And then she added with a grin, "Is the offer for the Ktarian Moonrise
simulation still open?"
"It never expired," he replied, smiling from ear to ear. "Well that will have to
wait." The Doctor said. "I'm not letting Ensign Kim out **of my sight for the
next three days. Then he's all yours Seven." Then he began to shove everybody
out of sickbay. "You can come and see him tomorrow Seven."
"Good night, Seven." Harry said.
"Good night, Ensign." Seven said with a smile as she placed a kiss on his
forehead.
When everybody was gone Harry asked, "Well Doc what did I miss?"
"Well..." The Doctor began.
If someone had been passing sickbay a few minutes later he would have heard a
loud shout from within: "SHE SAID WHAT?"
  Three days later Harry stood in Holodeck 2 waiting for Seven. He didn't know
what to expect, he felt a twinge of doubt and fear. But when Seven entered the
holodeck all doubt vanished. She was wearing a simple white dress with her hair
down, just like in his dreams. Images from those dreams started to flow through
his mind. She walked up to him and placed a light kiss on his cheek.
"Hello Harry."
"Evening Seven. Computer activate Ktarian Moonrise simulation." He smiled as
a sweet love song filled the air.
"Shall we go?" he said and offered Seven his arm. She took it and they started
walking. Seven was the first to speak.
"Harry I need to best you something."
"Sure, as long it is not something like, take off your clothes -- resistance is
futile." They both smiled.
"No it is nothing like that. I know that you love me, and*…" She moved
closer so their lips were inches apart. "I want you to know that I love you,
Harry." The response she got was a deep passionate kiss. They fell onto the soft
ground.
After awhile Seven stopped. "Harry wait. Computer activate program Seven-one.
The moonrise vanished and they found themselves lying in a huge bed in a white
room with a huge window looking into space.
"What is this?" Harry asked.
"Fulfilling of hopes and dreams." Seven said as she kissed him again.
EPILOGUE
Seven and Harry lay in each others arms, not knowing that Seven's heart was
now beating for two.
THE END
(I think)
Feedback would be nice.
cilia@mmedia.is
Stefan C.