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It was a toss up really, as to who was more surprised - Admiral Janeway, who exited her office only to run bodily into her former astrometrics officer, or Seven, who raised her hand to request admittance into Janeway's office only to end up with an armful of the woman herself.
It was Seven who recovered faster, regardless, and managed to place one enhanced hand around her commanding officer (not any more, but the distinction was irrelevant) and keep her from bouncing off her solid frame and into an undignified heap on her backside.
"Captain," she queried, with deceptively little emotion. Even after all this time, and it had been quite a while since they had last spoken outside of brief and polite (and above all else to Janeway, appropriate) message exchanges, Janeway could pick out all of the little nuances that almost everyone else would miss. There was surprise, which wasn't shocking, and fondness, which Janeway immediately dismissed, and also a hint of amusement. The last made Janeway warm slightly, recognizing it as something Seven had once denied herself. Something Janeway has helped her reclaim.
"Seven," Janeway breathed out in a rush, looking up from the general area of Seven's clavicle. She heard none of the usual command in her voice, so she closed her eyes and pushed back from the solid presence she was pressed up against and stepped away from the warmth she knew from experience she would miss immediately.
Opening her eyes, she tried again. "What on Earth are you doing here?"
Relieved of her burden, Seven placed her duffel down next to her and regarded her Captain with full focus. She was capable of the most impressive feats of multitasking, but she never did so with the Captain.
"I am here to accompany you on your away mission. If we do not leave soon, you will be late."
Janeway blinked at her, not expecting anything remotely along those lines. For one, Seven was not in Starfleet. The likelihood of her accompanying Janeway on an away mission ever again was certainly negligible. And how would she know about the away mission anyway, for that matter? And why would she even want to?
Janeway had no answers, and a shuttle to catch that she was already late for, and zero time for pleasantries. "Explain," she demanded, then sighed at the crossness of her voice.
Janeway pinched the bridge of her nose against the tension headache that came out of nowhere. "Please," she added, softer. Almost gently. Seeing Seven could never make her cross, and she desperately needed Seven to know that, but she was befuddled, and that did make her cross.
"You are about to embark on an away mission with inadequate security. The last away mission they sent you on resulted in numerous injuries to yourself and your security detail. They were ill-equipped in training, constitution, and personal dedication to protect you. By all counts, it was you who prevented worse casualties, not them. Your current detail is in no way better suited to ensuring your safety. I will replace them."
"You want to join my security detail." Janeway stated, deadpan.
"No Captain, they are of no value. As I clearly indicated, I am to replace them."
"You can't be serious." Again, it was not a question.
Seven didn't respond and Janeway didn't need her to. She could see quite clearly that Seven was serious.
Janeway tapped the wall unit next to her shoulder. "Merriman, delay transport 30 minutes and express my apologies."
The yes ma'ma was immediate and Seven cocked her eyebrow. "Does anybody ever question you?" The query was not wholly impolite. But only because Janeway was certain the young woman was genuinely interested in the answer.
Janeway sensed a trap, but answered anyway. "Generally they do not."
"Then installing me as your security detail should be no problem. The delay is unnecessary."
Janeway stared at Seven meaningfully. "Seven, everybody does exactly what I tell them to do, and then they await the consequences, for which I am wholly responsible."
"Captain, have you even reviewed your security detail?"
At Janeway's pause, Seven carried on, as vaguely triumphant and she would ever allow herself to be. "You have. I can tell by your facial expression that you have seen what I have seen. They are inadequate."
Janeway couldn't argue the point. They were barely out of training, all of them. But Janeway had also seen the rosters in their entirety and that is what was available. But, instead of arguing that particular point with Seven, there was something much more relevant.
"And how exactly did you see my mission's duty roster?"
If Janeway had expected Seven to hedge, she would have been disappointed. Seven's answer was immediate. "I asked Tuvok to provide the necessary information."
"And he agreed?" The pitch of her voice bordered on strangled, so complete was her surprise. "On what possible grounds could he have justified that?"
"He has noticed that, as one of the most battle hardened Admirals in Starfleet, you are routinely assigned the missions with the greatest degree of risk. While he does not think that Starfleet is deliberately assigning you inadequate protection, he does not believe they are capable of providing what you need. Logically, he looked outside of Starfleet."
Janeway scoffed and turned to begin pacing the room, needing an outlet for her agitation that wasn't the blonde in front of her. "You know," she tossed over her shoulder, "Just throwing the word 'Logically' in front of a thought pattern does no make it so. Starfleet Captains do not go around assigning - " Janeway paused her rant and looked to Seven, clearly grasping for the word she needed.
"Mercenaries, " She decided upon, and threw her hands skyward as she exclaimed it. " - to the security details of Admirals of the fleet!"
Seven's countenance did not change, and yet Janeway felt a shift. Gone was the exasperation that had been present from the start. In it's place was a gentle understanding that stopped Janeway short. Her pacing concluded right where she had started.
"Tuvok's actions were as your closest friend, Captain, not as a Starfleet officer."
"Seven - " Janeway attempted to interrupt, her voice low, but made no headway.
"To allow the Captain to be brought down in an ill considered political mission after successfully navigating Voyager and her crew through seven long years of near death disasters of every imaginable manifestation serves no logical purpose."
Janeway's throat tightened, and she had to swallow thickly before she could reply.
"I don't suppose you're paraphrasing?" she joked shakily, affected more than she would have expected by her old friend's concern.
"I am not," Seven replied dutifully.
Janeway looked at her appraisingly, perhaps for the first time in the entire conversation. "I assume the after action reports came from Tuvok as well then," she mused mostly to herself.
"But, how did you even know to ask for them?" That question was posed directly to Seven, who, finally, hesitated.
It only took one look however, and Seven capitulated. "Your family is worried about you," she answered vaguely.
It took a second for the words to sink in but as they did, Janeway felt herself go cold all over and a gentle buzzing take up residence in her ear. When she felt Seven's hand on her forearm, it almost burned with its warmth, but served to clear some of the fog enveloping her brain.
"I'm -" It came out strangled and Janeway cleared her throat painfully to try again. "I'm fine."
"You are not 'fine', Your breathing is shallow, your pulse is thready and ineffective, and your core body temperature has dropped .5 degrees in 15 seconds." Seven's grip tightened on her forearm. "You are in danger of going into shock. You must regulate your breathing."
Janeway did, sort of, until Seven placed a warm cup in her hands. She took a deep breath unconsciously, knowing it was coffee, and finally her world started to settled back into place, although still slightly tilted off its axis by Seven's revelation.
"Captain!" Seven was calling her former title loudly, and with a degree of agitation quite foreign to her. It startled Janeway back to the present, wondering how long she'd been out of touch.
"Yes Seven, yes. I can hear you. I'm fine. I'm sor- I'm fine."
"You were unnerved by the thought that your family is worried about you. I do not understand." Seven had not released her supporting grasp of Janeway's forearm, but she seemed content enough to continue their conversation.
Goodie, Janeway thought.
"I know that my family worries about me. It is a burden I carry with me always, but have come to terms with."
"Cap-" Seven again tried to interrupt, and failed.
"What I did not expect to hear was that you have been in touch with them. I need you to tell me about that."
Seven appraised her, no doubt checking her vitals, then nodded imperceptibly.
"I read about one of your early missions in an infuriatingly incomplete article in the San Francisco Post. They indicated that you were badly injured but that you would recover, and offered no details to support such a claim. There were no follow up articles, and you ceased appearing in public."
"I was concerned to the point of distraction, so I contacted your family. I expected to have to explain a great deal about my query, perhaps even to lie, but that never transpired. They spoke to me openly, as if they trusted me. They were as kind to me as you have always been. They knew me."
Seven paused, and uncharacteristically pulled in a deep breath.
"They told me to keep in touch and... I did. We spoke of many things, though we always returned to you. After your last mission they were distraught. They were frightened by your extensive injuries and didn't understand why you weren't afforded the safety of Admiralship that everyone else was. I did not know the answer so I contacted the one person cared for you as we did, and had the access required to answer the question."
Seven straightened, if that were possible, and grasped her hands behind her back, signalling the end of her story.
"Do they you're here? Do they know why you're here?"
"They do."
"And that... does it give them comfort?"
"I believe so Captain."
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Everyone in the hangar straightened automatically as Janeway entered and moments latter, a gentle hum rose up as they all took notice of the non Startfleet officer who was visibly armed to the teeth and clearly accompanying the Admiral who, it was already widely known had gone off book, again, and dismissed her security detail.
"Ensign, dismiss the pilot as well," Janeway commanded authoritatively. "This transport is just for two now."
"Admiral?" It was clear that the Ensign had no idea which was more terrifying, to send out the fleet's most beloved Admiral with only a former Borg drone, or to risk the wrath of the the fleet's most beloved Admiral by denying her.
"Do it, Ensign," was her only reply and the required yes ma'ma followed immediately and Janeway could feel the satisfaction rolling off her former officer.
When the transport was empty Janeway took a deep breath then looked over her shoulder at the former Borg drone who was once her astrometrics officer, was suddenly her security detail, and had been her friend almost from the beginning. "Ok Seven, it's just you and me. Are you ready for this?"
Seven just smiled slightly, something she did on occasion now, when she felt so inclined. "I am. Lead the way Captain."
"Hey, check the pips, " the Ensign at the near by command terminal murmured not unkindly and for her ears only. "She's an Admiral, not a Captain."
"She is your Admiral," Seven replied full voice, but also not unkindly. "But she is my Captain."