Chapter Text
“You requested my presence, Captain.”
“Yes.” Comfortable on her couch, Kathryn set her coffee on the table in front of her “Please sit.”
“I would pref—“
“I know, I know.” She waved her hand and peered up at the blonde who waited emotionlessly. She hadn’t really expected to call Seven to her quarters, but after reading yet another report from her, she realized what sort of conversation was required.
“Seven, I just finished your report about the gel packs. It was… thorough. I didn’t realize you had such fondness for them.”
“Fondness?”
“Why else would you have compiled three PADD’s worth of data on them?” She gestured to the PADDs splayed on the tabletop.
“To increase efficiency. If we make the proposed changes to the respective systems, we will increase their efficiency by 3.7 percent.”
“3.7…” Kathryn said to herself. She took hold of her metal coffee mug and sipped the cooled liquid. “Seven, I—I’m a little concerned.”
The blonde tilted her head with a furrowed brow. “Explain.”
A raspy, subdued chuckle escaped the Captain’s lips as she leaned back against the couch and held her cup against her leg. “I think it would be best if you found some other outlets.”
Seven eyed the ground to try to understand, but raised her chin again as Kathryn continued.
“The work you do is—flawless—“
“Flawless?”
“—And I’m not saying we won’t implement these changes, but I think you need to explore some… hobbies. Work isn’t everything.”
“Captain, you contradict yourself. You are constantly working.”
She gave a half grin, “That’s different. I’m the Captain. This is part of my job—“
“So is what I do—“
“—But even though I am working most of the time, that doesn’t mean I don’t have hobbies. I think about and spend what little free time I may have on other things of personal interest.”
“An example?”
Kathryn shook her head, “It doesn’t matter. What matters is that you find one for yourself. Something that excites you, brings out your passion, relaxes you.” She held her hands up with an arched eyebrow, “does that make sense?”
Seven pursed her lips and bobbed her head lightly back and forth once, “I understand the concept. However, I do not feel the need to involve myself in activities other than improving the ship. You have said on many occasions that our purpose is to work toward returning to Earth. ‘Hobbies’ are not how we accomplish that goal.”
Kathryn gave her a warm smile, happy that a crew member took her words so to heart, but knowing she should’ve noticed it earlier. Seven was mimicking her own behaviors, and being a workaholic wasn’t the human trait she wanted Seven to adopt. She rose from the couch and threw back the last sip of cold coffee. Licking her lips to absorb every drop, she then brushed past Seven and placed the empty mug in the receptacle.
“Captain?” Seven turned around, still perfectly erect with her hands behind her back, but now facing Kathryn on the other side of the living area. Kathryn made her way back to her and stood before her, obviously deep in thought. “Captain?”
“I would like you to do this, Seven. I think it would be good for you. I don’t want you to…” she shook her head, shook away the thoughts. “I would like you to do this.”
The blonde wanted to make a comment about the Captain repeating herself, but bit it back. Not the time . “Is that an order?” It came out like a whisper, and she could feel her heart pounding against her chest.
“No. It’s a request.”
Seven dipped her head and then held it high again. “I will comply.”
“Great!”
“Under one condition.”
Kathryn met her eyes, slate gray with speckles of blue and gold. As she fell into her Captain’s eyes, Seven felt her body tense and relax at the same time. An odd sensation she only seemed to experience when she was close to the Captain like this.
Seven swallowed, then continued, “You will assist me in finding an acceptable hobby.”
“I don’t know that I have all that much time, Seven—“
“I am in no rush.”
“I don’t know if th-that would work.” Why was she so flustered all of a sudden?
“Then I will continue to improve the ship.”
Kathryn scoffed, damn the sneaky ex-Borg . “Fine,” she acquiesced.
Seven nodded once with a nearly undetectable smirk, obviously proud that her little play worked. “Shall we begin now?”
Kathryn laughed in a short burst again, “No. It’s late and I think it would be best if you regenerated.”
“I do not need to regenerate.”
She wasn’t buying it and Seven knew it right away.
“Will you regenerate as well?”
Kathryn nodded, her eyes already much heavier than only a few minutes before. “Soundly.”
Seven bowed her head a final time before she turned to leave the Captain’s quarters.
“Tomorrow,” Kathryn called as she gathered up the PADDs on the table, “After my shift.”
Seven remained in the doorway, watching the Captain for a few moments too long. The minor lift of Kathryn’s eyebrows and the tiredness in her eyes made Seven’s heart fill and thump in her chest. “Tomorrow, Captain.”