The BLTS Archive - Breakfast by Rob Vrablik (rvrablik@ma.ultranet.com) --- 28 October 2000 Archive: RIF, ASC, others by request (I'll probably say yes) Disclaimers: Paramount owns it, I'm just borrowing a couple of characters. I don't think they'd object. I claim copyright on anything they don't want. Author's notes: Decided I needed to write a small two page piece where nothing happens, where the whole thing is contemplation. It worked well enough to become the glue for a bunch of stuff that had been kicking around without a home for a while. Hope you like it. Thanks: to Lesa my Beta reader. --- "Computer, I'd like some breakfast." "Please specify the nature of the food to be replicated." Harry contemplated his choice. Not sure of what he really wanted, he went back to getting ready for duty. He hadn't had pancakes in a while, but he didn't really feel like them. Basic cereal was also out, he'd had it for the past three days. He had enough rations at the moment for anything he wanted, so that wasn't an issue. He could just have some toast, but that was too much like the small finger food he'd had last night with Seven while they were on their date. Their date. He'd actually gotten Seven out on a date. It had gone pretty well. Well, as far as he could tell, it had gone well. Harry smiled to himself. Before last night he'd thought that the criteria for a date 'going well' with Seven would be significantly different that with anyone else he had ever dated. For example, a date with, say, Megan Delaney would have gone well if: a) She smiled a lot b) She seemed interested in what he was saying (or at least pretended to) c) She said as much as he did in their discussions d) She seemed to enjoy the activity the date revolved around e) He at least got a good night kiss at the end of the evening f) He got some sign from his date that she wanted to see him again. On the other hand, a date with Seven would have gone well if: a) It lasted as long as planned b) No one ended up in sickbay c) Seven's eyebrows hinted at some sort of facial expression other than contempt d) He was not told that the topic of discussion was irrelevant more than five times e) Seven didn't finish by telling him that the evening had been a completely irrelevant exercise in human mating practices and an inefficient use of her time. Well, she wasn't really that bad anymore. But, based on those criteria, things had gone quite well. He'd even met some of the criteria on the first list. She had resorted to calling the whole process irrelevant a few times, but he'd turned it around. She had responded to some of his humor, and he'd gotten that eyebrow of hers moving quite a number of times, even a smile or two. She had even seemed to appreciate his attempt to minimize the "Date" aspect of their date. And, most surprising of all, as opposed to ending early, they had actually talked longer than he had planned. He considered that the greatest compliment of all. Then again, every once in a while, he wondered why he put himself though all this in the first place. Trying to date Seven was like... well... he couldn't think what it was like. It was a category all unto itself. He smiled to himself as he thought, the rules were simple. You always knew where you stood with Seven. If she didn't like something you were doing, she'd tell you. She'd also tell you what would be a better course of action, the efficiencies gained by her approach, and how much less time you would spend with her approach. And you had to remember that Seven was in a category all unto herself. You had to remember what she was into. It had worked like a charm last night. As he stepped out of the shower, he once again revisited that point he kept coming back to: What was he doing to himself? He arrived at the only analogy he could think of that applied: Moth to a flame. Sure it hurt, but oh, how much he wanted to get to know that flame. Though, after all this time, he still couldn't quite get a handle on why. The obvious answer wasn't it. It didn't hurt that she was as attractive as she was, but there was more to it than that. There was something about Seven that kept drawing him in, regardless of how much he tried to move on. And oh, how he had tried to move on. A couple of years of trying to distract himself, shut it down, find someone else to fill the void. It was awfully hard to keep going with an interest when that interest wasn't returned. But no matter where he turned, what he tried, and who he ended up with (human or otherwise) he kept coming back to Seven. He'd gotten good at dealing with it, and only got distracted for more than a moment occasionally. But the problem was, he still got distracted. And that had been the problem. It's really hard to move on from someone who still grabs your attention like that. So he'd eaten it, sucked it up, and a few other platitudes. Basically, he'd dealt with it as well as he could. It hadn't been much fun. And then yesterday the opportunity had come up. It was a typical Seven-ism, where she'd taken a thought, come to a conclusion, and taken it too far. He'd suddenly found himself boosted from non-entity on the personal interaction front to marital material. That had been a mess to straighten out, though once he'd figured out it she's been doing it for the sake of the kids, it had been easier to address. B'Elanna and Tom hadn't helped much, but once he'd talked Seven back from the edge, he'd seized the opportunity. He'd asked her out. A year ago, he would have just passed her behavior off to a misunderstanding, and left it at that. But this time, he'd decided, finally, that it wasn't his place to make sure that Seven was protected, that he didn't take advantage. Frankly, he finally decided if she was going to ask other people out on a date, then she was capable enough of handling his asking her out. So he'd asked her out. She'd been hesitant, but since she'd just been asking him to marry her a moment before, a date probably had not seemed like such a big thing anymore. She'd said yes. He'd enjoyed the date, especially how it ended. He was fairly sure Seven had enjoyed it as well, but he was worried that if he left it alone, Seven would just let things go. He wanted to keep this going, and figured a little prod in the right direction was in order. But what? As he pulled his shirt on, he noted the time, and decided he had better get moving, or he'd be late for his shift on the bridge. Heck, if he waited a bit longer, Seven would be showing up for her breakfast duty in the Mess Hall. It came to him in a moment. One of those inspirations that don't seem to come from anywhere, they're just suddenly there. He thought about it for a moment, but it felt right from the start. He did a quick calculation, realized he had just enough rations to do it, if he had one of the rolls Neelix left on the Mess Hall counter instead. He could also grab one of the pads from the pile of spares kept there as well. And he could still probably get this all done and still make it to his shift in time. It had been an interesting 24 hours. Finished getting ready, Harry turned and made his replicator request. --- The previous morning, Neelix had watched as a crewman approached the counter for breakfast. Seven looked up from her serving position, and asked what he 'will be consuming' for breakfast. She wasn't exactly friendly, but she wasn't too bad either. When the crewman made his request, Seven started to recommend how a different mix of choices would be more nutritionally beneficial to his health. As the crewman hesitated at her unexpected suggestion, Seven went ahead and served up her recommendation. She dismissed the crewman, who wandered off with their new breakfast selections wondering what had just happened. Now Neelix understood. He'd noticed over the last week that the amount of food being consumed was down, and replicator rations were being spent more as an alternative. While he was used to some meals being more popular than others, the trend for breakfast over the week since Seven had begun her rotation in mess hall duty had been steadily down, regardless of what was being served. Now he thought he knew why. "Seven, can I talk to you for a minute?" Seven turned and approached" "Yes?" "Seven, the point of serving food is to help people figure out what they want. You really shouldn't be telling them what they should be eating instead." Seven took a 'Seven knows best' stance, and responded. "Crewman Thomas's requested meal was insufficient in specific nutritional areas. I was simply attempting to correct that error. Is helping the crew to meet their daily nutritional requirements not my duty?" Neelix sighed. Seven's view of her current duties seemed to be getting interpreted quite literally. "Seven, you are supposed to help people get what they want, not what you think they need." "But they should be consuming what best fills their nutritional needs." "Seven, if that were the case, we'd all be eating just nutritional supplements. People need to enjoy their meals, not just fill requirements. Eating something you enjoy is pleasurable. Food needs to be stimulating. How we start the day sets the tone for the rest of the day, so if the crew has something that wakes them up, that they enjoy, they'll do better at their jobs during the day." The mess hall door opened, and like a lamb to slaughter, Ensign Brooks walked in for breakfast. Neelix looked up. "Here, let me show you. What will it be this morning, Ensign?" Ensign Brooks yawned, and smiled. "Good morning, Neelix, Seven. I was thinking of some of that hot cereal to help wake me up." Neelix picked up a plate, but instead of serving up the requested fare, started spooning another dish. "Here, let me give you some of this. That cereal was tasteless, so I've been experimenting with the spicing, and I think you'll find this will help get you going. I call it 'ben-aree'." Brooks looked startled as she found herself confronted with a problem instead of breakfast. She opened her mouth to respond, but did not get the chance, as Seven intervened. "Ensign Brooks is not seeking to stimulate her palate. From my observations of her nutritional intake, she is consuming sufficient nutrients. However, it has also been my observation that she monitors her caloric intake in order to maintain a figure that is considered attractive by a number of the male crew." Seven easily removed the plate from the Talaxian's hands, removed the added fare, and began to add a nutritional supplement. "In keeping with these goals, half a portion of the cereal she requested, combined with a ration cube, should be sufficient to meet her culinary goals." Neelix argued back as best he could, "But look at her, she's half asleep! She needs something to wake herself up!" Brooks just stared. Seven countered just as adamantly, "You yourself just informed me we were to be issuing the crew the food they desired." Indicating the filled plate, she continued, "According to my observations, THIS is what she desires." Neelix responded "No it isn't," turning to an astounded Brooks, Neelix continued, "is it, Ensign?" Seven also turned to address Brooks, "So, Ensign Brooks, which will it be, the ben-aree, or the cereal with supplements?" Brooks, realizing that being caught between two opposing forces was a sure road to annihilation, and facing two different forms of culinary oblivion, decided that retreat was in order. "I, uh, think I'm not as hungry as I thought." Glancing around, her eyes landed on an escape. "Maybe I'll just have a roll." She grabbed one, and moved as quickly as she could toward the exit. Watching Brooks leave, Seven was still sure that it would be better if the crew followed her guidance regarding their diet, but decided that attempting to debate the issue with the Talaxian was making the situation worse instead of better. Instead, with a sigh, she resigned herself to two more days of this. "I will comply." Taking this small victory in stride, Neelix decided to work for another. "And Seven, you also need to lighten up." Seven cringed. "What do you mean, 'Lighten Up'?" "Lighten Up? Cheer up!" He put his arm on her shoulder and gestured out at nothing in particular "Smile! Breath! Greet the morning with anticipation!" Seven removed Neelix's hand with two fingers as one would a foreign object, and replied "I do not exactly 'anticipate' serving breakfast. My time is wasted here. My abilities would be much more efficiently utilized in Astrometrics." "Everyone is rotating through these duties. It wouldn't be fair if we skipped you. And I bet it would go a lot faster if you tried to be more cheerful." Seven, realizing that continuing to argue would accomplish nothing, again gave up. Her face like she was being sent to her death, she looked at Neelix, and asked "Cheerful?" Neelix was a little more forceful. "Cheerful." Seven, turned, composed herself, and threw herself into the breach. "Good Morning. What will you be having for breakfast?" Neelix smiled. It wasn't exactly cheerful, but for Seven, the lack of a scowl was a step in the right direction. She was almost being considerate. Maybe with another day of work, he could actually get a smile out of her. Neelix turned with a snort, and muttered to himself "When ke'taks fly..." --- No longer calculating nutritional factors of crew menus, Seven found that serving breakfast to the crew no longer consumed her attention. Instead, she passed the time considering another problem. The children. Loosening up their schedules as suggested by Chakotay had significantly eased the discipline problem. He had understood immediately what the problem was. She had not. There had been other instances where she had tried to shape their behavior, and been unsuccessful, only to have a member of the crew point out what to them was obvious. She was at times failing them, and it pained her. She had asked the captain to relieve her of their care, truly believing that it would be better for them, but had been denied. True, she knew what it was to be pulled from the collective, and could help them adjust to life as an individual, but she had little experience with that life. In many ways, she found them already surpassing her abilities. Mezoti had become fast friends with Naomi. When they were together, Seven understood little of what they did or said, or why. It was as if they were foreign creatures. This lack of understanding bothered her, more than she cared to admit. Others would occasionally reassure her, tell her she was doing fine, but often she could not tell. There were entire aspects of their lives that she did not understand, and as time went on, those parts grew larger, encompassed more. She was afraid that eventually, she would have no connection left to them, be unable to help them. She had done research into child rearing, concentrating on human children, and had discovered much data on methods of teaching, stages of intellectual growth, and age appropriate behaviors. This had helped. She had also found much information on emotional growth, and the importance of a nurturing environment. That had not helped. It merely pointed out her shortcomings. She knew she did not have the instincts to understand what was required in nurturing a child. She had been raised a Borg. She had not experienced a nurturing environment. She needed the help of someone who had. She had considered this for a few days, and had come to the conclusion that there was only one primary candidate that met the requirements. In her research, human relations often described certain roles for the primary caregivers for children. She needed to fill one of those roles. She decided to resolve the issue after her mid day duties were complete. --- Later that day, Harry, Tom, and B'Elanna were sitting in the mess hall having lunch when Seven entered, and looked around. Seeing the three of them at the table, she approached. "Lieutenant Torres, Ensign Kim, Ensign Paris." They greeted her in return, and Tom asked if she was there for breakfast. Seven responded that she was not, that she was seeking Ensign Kim. Harry looked up, "What is it, Seven?" Seven paused, shifted slightly, then addressed Harry directly, "Ensign Kim, I need to make a request of you. . . " Harry waited, "Yes?" From the way she was hesitating, he knew it was something personal. Anything else and she would have simply asked. She looked uncomfortable, and then, either gathering her resolve, or overcoming her distaste (he was never quite sure which it was when she was dealing with personal or emotional issues), she made her request: "Harry Kim, I would like you to be the father of my children." Tom Paris choked on his meal. B'Elanna, surprisingly, didn't say anything, but only because Harry held his hand up to stop her. Those around them fell into silence and turned to listen. Harry took a moment to gather himself. Being a little more experienced with Seven's little pronouncements, he realized she probably didn't mean what she was implying. Well, at least, he hoped she didn't. "Uh, Seven, what do you mean?" Tom looked on with an eager, quizzical look. He obviously wasn't going to miss this for the world. "The captain has made the children's welfare my responsibility. Having been Borg, I have the experience to help them adapt to life on Voyager. However, I have come to realize that they have other requirements that I am not as qualified to provide." She hesitated, and then proceeded. "My childhood was lived as a Borg. I did not experience life as a normal child, and therefore do not have the first hand knowledge which would enable me to deal with many of their more... personal issues. The children have emotional needs I have found I do not fully understand. You have demonstrated a clear understanding of these emotional needs, as well as an interest in their welfare. I am therefore requesting you take on the role of a parent to complement my own parenting abilities. Tom, the silent witness until now, couldn't help but ask, "Seven, are you asking Harry to marry you?" "I am aware of the human custom of pairing, or marriage, to raise offspring. This was not the intent of my offer, but, if it is required, and is a benefit to the children, it would be acceptable to me." Looking at Harry as one might judge a potential purchase, she continued. "I believe Ensign Kim would make an acceptable mate. If there are no objections, of course" Tom smiled and said to no one in particular "I don't have any?" Harry, successfully maintaining his cool until now, started to feel things slip out of control. "Hey, uh, don't I get a say in this?" Seven turned to Harry. "I am sorry, Ensign Kim. You are correct. Such a proposal should obviously be addressed to you. Ensign Kim, will you be my mate?" Harry didn't know what to say. B'Elanna's patience with Seven, always thin, for once slipped into disbelief instead of anger. She did, however, first spare Tom a look of distaste for encouraging this. "Seven, do you have *any* idea of what you are asking here? You don't just suddenly go get a husband simply because you need a baby-sitter for your little Borg collective. What do you think the requirements are for a mate, anyway? It takes more than just parenting skills to make a relationship work." Tom started to make suggestions with "Patience...", but B'Elanna's stare dropped him dead in his tracks. Seven responded. "I am well aware of the requirements for a mate. Aside from parenting skills, there are the interpersonal requirements that support the bond between the mates, therefore strengthening the parental relationship. Personality traits, self esteem, emotional relations, sexual relations, the Doctor covered many of these in his lessons on human mating habits. B'Elanna was dumbfounded by the range of the response. "He did?" It was more of a statement than a question. "Yes. There are a variety of traits that enter in the calculation. On the negative side, Ensign Kim, has demonstrated a lack of initiative when it comes to interpersonal relationships, and though he has always performed exceptionally under pressure on duty, has demonstrated a surprising inability to handle stress when dealing with these same interpersonal relations." B'Elanna looked over at Harry and suppressed a grin. He seemed to be demonstrating 'Harry not performing well under stress'. Crumbling might be a better word. Seven, finding comfort in analysis, barreled on. "However, not all requirements can be expected to be fully met, and must be balanced by other considerations. As stated, Ensign Kim has performed exceptionally on duty. On interactive scores, he shows significant consideration and has demonstrated empathy for those around him, and makes a significant effort to please others. These traits would strongly support emotional bonding in a relationship." Seven sized up Harry as she continued, " His physical demeanor is attractive, and is considered by some of the female crew to have a 'cute but'." Harry's eyes started to go wide, but not nearly as wide as they soon became. "In addition, combining his desire to please with his attention to detail and physical attractiveness, it increases the probability of his being a pleasing sexual partner. For these reasons, I would consider him an adequate mate since his shortcomings are more than sufficiently compensated for." Harry had started to object to his shortcomings, but had once again been reduced to speechlessness at the statements regarding his probable 'compensations'. He sat, frozen in caricature for a moment, then snapped his mouth shut. B'Elanna on the other hand had needed to stifle a grin at the mention of Harry's 'shortcomings', well aware of Harry's frequent inability to pull the trigger in pursuit of the opposite sex. B'Elanna gave Harry a quizzical look, giving him a chance to reply. "A lack of initiative in personal relations, Hmm Harry?" Harry's look of astonished horror said it all. At this point she wasn't sure he could even get his mouth working. She had to smile. Seven may be inexperienced in 'personal relations', and not very good at interacting with people, but she was a good enough observer to have Harry pegged. Well, if he was just going to sit there, she might as well prod things along. From experience, she knew one thing would usually get Harry functioning again. Looking back at Seven, she continued. "I see what you mean. Any other traits significant in your analysis?" she prompted. Harry quickly snapped out of his funk. 'No!" B'Elanna smiled again. With Harry, panic worked every time. . . Harry, speaking again, continued the attempt to save himself, "Seven, you know I'm happy to help out with the children. I don't need to marry you for that." Seven was all business when it came to her cares. "I am aware. However, my research does clearly show that the best development environment for children is in the care of permanent parents. Ensign Paris's suggestion of marriage does have the highest probability for success." "Seven, you can't just decide to marry me suddenly. That's not the way it works. People have to become friends first. They have to date. They have to develop a relationship first." Seven looked at him questioningly. "Do you not consider us friends?" Harry desperately tried to hang on to control of the conversation. "Of course we're friends, Seven. I enjoy what time we spend together. But that isn't enough." Seven looked a little nervous at the next obvious step. Considering her history, she had reason. 'So you are saying we must date?" Harry stopped for just a moment and thought about what Seven had just said. Any other time, and he might have let the opportunity go, assuming she hadn't really meant it, considering the conversation so far. But with everything he had been through over time, especially considering what she had just said about his shortcomings, Harry wasn't about to let the opportunity pass this time. "Yes. We should date. Seven of Nine, will you go on a date with me?" Now it was Tom and B'Elanna's turn to listen in quiet shock. This was no longer going where they had expected. Seven looked uncomfortable. "I am unsure that I should accept. My last date was not exactly a success. I would not like causing you damage." Harry kept going. "Seven, give it a chance. I understand you're hesitant. I know your first date was .. uh, .. short. And I promise you, I won't end up in sickbay." Well, at least, he hoped he wouldn't, but telling her that probably wouldn't help matters. He smiled with encouragement. "Follow the first rule of dating: Don't miss an opportunity." Everyone fell silent, anticipating Seven's answer almost as much as Harry. Seven came to a decision. "Very well, I will follow this 'first rule' of dating. I accept. When?" Harry thought quickly. Seven was nervous enough without giving her time to dwell on it. He'd better do it sooner instead of later. "No time like the present. How about tonight? I can pick you up in cargo bay two before hand." Seven felt like she was agreeing to a week of the Doctor's social lessons all at one time, but continued, "That will be... acceptable. If you will excuse me, I need to attend to my duties." When Seven had gone, Tom spoke up. "The 'First rule of dating'? What are you now, a Ferengi?" Harry waved him off. "Let it go Tom. It worked, didn't it? She said yes." He sounded a little surprised himself. "Yeah, but she looked like she was agreeing to her own execution. It wasn't exactly the most encouraging acceptance I've ever seen." Tom's eyes lit up. "But you could have taken her up on her other offer..." Harry decided the best defense was a good offense. "Sure. Just as soon as you make that offer to B'Elanna." He looked meaningfully at both of them. Both Tom and she looked slightly uncomfortable, and backed down. Harry continued. "Anyway, I've got to come up with something for tomorrow night. You're right, though, she didn't look happy about the concept of a date. That date with Chapman really has her spooked." B'Elanna shook her head. "Well, whatever you come up with Harry, it better be good. It'll have to be something really special if you want her to relax. Chapman took her to Sandrine's, pulled out all the stops, and look how it turned out. How are you going to top that?" Harry looked around him, and had an idea. "By not trying. I think I've got an idea, but I think I need some help with it." Tom sat up, "Well, it's a good thing you asked. I have some things you can do that will really knock her off her feet." Harry was starting to stand up, "I don't think knocking her off her feet is the right approach. Look where it got Chapman. And thanks Tom, but I was actually thinking I needed to go see to someone else." Tom, a little surprised, sat back, "OK. I won't take it personally. This is your date. I have to admit, though, I'm curious: who -is- this dating expert you're going to go consult?" Harry answered to an even more surprised Tom Paris as he walked away, "Naomi Wildman." --- Harry picked up Seven at Cargo bay 2. Knowing Seven as well as he did, he made it a point to be on time. Seven was dressed in normal attire. Slightly nervous, and unsure of their destination, she asked if her clothing would be appropriate. "The Doctor has instructed me that it is important to 'dress for success'." Harry smiled, and did his best to reassure her. "Let's just say that the Doctor isn't always right. It's important to impress your date, but in this case, I'm already impressed. Sometimes it's just more important to be comfortable than to wear some knock 'em dead attire. Rule of dating number 4: Be physically comfortable. Consider this a 'come as you are' date." "'Knock 'em dead'?" "Never mind. Besides, I'm sure 'your date' will appreciate you regardless of what you are wearing." Seven's look ended up somewhere between tolerance and skepticism. Harry smiled, and took that as encouragement. He indicated the door. "Shall we go?" Seven gave a small nod of acknowledgement, and they started for the door. Harry headed them toward the nearest turbo lift. As they walked, Harry noticed that Seven was still a little stiff. He assumed she was nervous about the date. Hopefully he would alleviate her concerns soon. As they entered the turbo lift, Seven asked where they were going. "Mess hall." Seven looked slightly curious, and after a moment asked, "Is that a normal venue for a first date?" The turbo shaft arrived at their destination, so they exited and headed toward the Mess hall. "I figured you were nervous about this, so we'd start off with something slow: An evening together in the mess hall. Nothing built up, over done. I don't need to try to impress you, I just want to spend an enjoyable evening together. So, it's just you, me, some water, and a Kadis-kot board. Maybe even some snacks." He looked forward, and continued, a small grin on his face, "And, unless something really unexpected happens, I don't think I'll end up in sickbay..." The corner of Seven's mouth quirked. Harry smiled. For Seven, that was practically laughter. They entered, found a table, and sat. Harry got the game board, and then went to get some water. Seven peered down at the game board. The realization that this really was their date came to her. No confusing rules, unfamiliar customs, impenetrable behaviors. Just the two of them, here in familiar surroundings, playing Kadis-kot. She looked around her at the mess hall, and some of the tension drained out of her. The proceedings might even turn out to be 'pleasing'. She looked at Harry as he returned. "This is acceptable." Harry had suspected how much she had dreaded this, and was glad. "Dating rule number four, make your date as relaxed as possible." Seven looked oddly at Harry for a moment, and then asked, "It was my understanding that dating rule number four was 'Be physically comfortable'?" Harry stopped, realizing that the literal Seven had not only been remembering exactly what he had been saying, but had also been cataloging the numbers he was pulling out of the air. "Uh, yeah. We'll just give this one another number. Say, number eight." Seven's curiosity grew, "It is my experience that with established rule bases, organizing schemes do not function well when numbers are 'just given', or change dynamically. Have you been in error about the rule numbers?" Harry realized that Seven didn't get it. "Seven, I'm just making these up as I go. For fun. There isn't really a set of rules for dating. Well, not one that I know of. These are just things that occur to me as I find myself in a situation with you, and I figured it would be sort of a fun thing to do." "So these rules are not real." "True, but in some senses, they are. The ideas they convey are true, at least I think so. I also figured it might take some of the tension out of dating for you." Seven considered, "Through the insertion of humor, you encouraged me to continue with the interaction." She looked at him, "Would that fall under rule number eight, 'make your date as relaxed as possible'?" Harry grinned openly, "I don't see why not." Harry indicated the board, inviting Seven to move first. Seven looked at the board in front of her, and took a deep breath, some of the tension returning, and made her move. "I assume we are now supposed to engage in the discussion of trivialities." Harry was pretty sure he knew what she was getting at, had anticipated this might come up, but decided to play along. He countered as he considered his move, "What do you mean?" "The engagement in small talk. Though the doctor spent many of my social lessons concentrating on it, I was never able to grasp the purpose. It seemed irrelevant." Harry smiled. He reached out, and moved a piece, trying to lead her to make a particular move in response. "I don't know that small talk is irrelevant, Seven. I can see where it might be difficult to grasp. Not having grown up doing it, it probably seems intricate." Seven reached out and made the move Harry had hoped. "There is no difficulty involved. I am Borg. It is simply an inability to understand the Human fascination with such unproductive activities. Harry smiled. He was going to enjoy this. --- Fourteen Kadis-kot games and two hours later, they were still at it, discussing back and forth on the logic, benefits, gains, losses, and efficiencies of human relationships and dating. Things had continued along the original vein. Seven would move quickly in response to Harry's moves, and he would sit and contemplate what to do next. All the while they had continued the debate. Move, counter move. What crew had been there when they had arrived had long since left, and Neelix had bid them goodnight an hour earlier. It was Harry's move. He talked while he decided what to do. "The point of small talk is not small talk itself. Good small talk is something that people do because they enjoy it. It is mental exercise, pleasurable. They do it not because it is a requirement, but because it is enjoyable." Seven reverted back to her standard disagreement, "But it is irrelevant. It accomplishes nothing, changes nothing." "But it can, sometimes." "But due to it's very nature, because of the constraints of courtesy, you yourself have stated that it is usually non-confrontational. With Humans, often opinions do not change in a non-work related setting without some form of confrontation. Therefore, how could it change opinions?" Seven moved a piece on the Kadis-kot board, another step in her relentless reduction of his possibilities, heading toward another win. Harry was sure he was about to loose another game to her, but was fairly sure he was at the same time going at least win a point in the larger competition. Harry had begun leading the conversation back toward this main point a few minutes before, when he had realized that their date had gone later than Seven had planned. "But it still, on the rare occasion, can." Harry moved a piece. Seven reached out and moved one of her pieces that Harry had not considered. The moment he saw her reach for it, he realized he really had lost another game. Seven concluded her thoughts as she finished off Harry, "But performing what amounts to random tasks in hopes of a positive outcome is highly inefficient. It would be much more profitable, if the goal were to change the opinions of others to hold more frequent staff meetings, for example." She looked up at Harry, a hint of a smile present, "Kadis-kot. I believe I win again. That's eleven games to four." Harry continued, looking at the board, "All right, even assuming that there is no significant changing of opinions, the real point is to pass the time pleasurably. Discussion of something both parties can enjoy. Being human, we all seek out and enjoy companionship at some level or other." He looked up at Seven, a smile on his face, and closed in for the kill, "For example, tonight. I have enjoyed our evening's discussion on the irrelevance of human dating rituals. I assume that it has not been displeasurable for you?" Seven began to realize that the conversation had not only distracted her from what she had expected to be a painful evening, but had been stimulating. She also realized that not only had the time allotted for the date been used up, but had already passed some time before. The irrelevant had somehow become, well, relevant. Not having a valid counter, she answered honestly, "No." Harry smiled as he watched the consternation flit across Seven's features as she found herself having spent two hours arguing against the relevancy of something she had just enjoyed doing. She looked like she had swallowed something that did not agree with her. Or perhaps, something that was not supposed to agree with her, but did. Looking back down at the Kadis-Kot board, Harry replied, "Yes, I believe you have won again, Seven." He smiled as he stood up, pleased at having made his point so successfully. "Well, I have enjoyed myself this evening, but I have an early shift in the morning. May I walk you to your quarters?" Seven, still mentally off balance, hesitated a moment as she gathered her thoughts, then also stood up. She answered, "Thank you, but that will not be necessary." Harry briefly thought about a goodnight kiss, and decided not to push it. One victory at a time. He smiled, and headed for the door, "Very well, good night then." As he approached the door, Seven spoke up from behind, "Ensign Kim." Harry stopped and turned, "Yes, Seven?" Her features were a little more composed, less conflicted than they had been a few moments before, and possibly a touch surprised as she uttered "Thank you. Contrary to my expectations, I... enjoyed... this evening." There might even have been a hint of a smile in there somewhere. Harry suddenly found himself flying by the seat of his pants. He didn't plan it, he just did it. He walked back over to Seven, and gently took her head in his hand. As he pulled her face to his, he saw a lack of understanding, but also a touch of curiosity. She allowed him to pull her to him, and he gently kissed her on the lips. He then released her, easing back. His exterior calm did not reflect the inner excitement at what he had just done as he looked her in the eye and gently replied, "I'm glad. Good night." Walking a little taller than when he came in, Harry turned and exited. --- The next morning, Seven walked into the mess hall to serve breakfast. From the kitchen area, Neelix smiled and asked how the date went. "It was acceptable." Neelix took this as high praise for Seven. "I'm glad to hear it." He gave her his standard morning pep talk "Remember to enjoy yourself this morning. You're not just here to hand out food, you're here to help wake people up. Why don't you turn on some of that Borg charm?" Seven looked at Neelix with a slightly pained, tolerating look. Neelix was getting used to the look from Seven as a response to these pep sessions of his. He smiled anyway, patted her on the shoulder, and pointed at the first crewmen stumbling in the door. "Time to go to work, your first customer is coming in now." --- Seven went to the counter and started serving. The first crewmen that came in were soon followed by a few more, and she was busy immediately. She thought about the previous evening while she worked. What she had said to Neelix had been correct. It had been acceptable. She found her memories of the evening were positive. She assumed this meant she had 'enjoyed' herself, which was better than she had anticipated. Considering her previous experience with dating, she had not looked forward to her evening with Harry. At one point she had begun to contact Harry in order to cancel, but had terminated the communication. At first she had concluded she had stopped herself because she had recognized her fear of another date. However, upon reflection, she realized she had desired to go on the date with Harry. She had been surprised to find that, though going on another date made her uncomfortable, the thought of a date with Harry was... stimulating. As the last crewman in line took their food and drifted off to a table to eat, Seven stopped serving. She looked up at the location where they had spent their evening. That same table here in the mess hall had a Kadis-Kot board laid out. She walked over to it, and noticed the pieces were in the exact configuration they had ended their last game. Beside the board was a small Rosa Rubifolia, one of the flowers she had seen Tom Paris give to B'Elanna Torres in a romantic gesture. Beside it was a PADD, and she was surprised to see it displaying her name. She picked up the flower, considered it, and sniffed at the fragrance. It had a strong, sweet smell that permeated her senses. Placing it carefully back on the table, she picked up the PADD. Activating it, the display changed to show a simple message: "Rule number 5 of dating: Afterwards, always tell to your date how much you enjoyed yourself, to encourage a second date. Harry Kim" --- Neelix put the utensils down, picked up the plate of food, and took it out to the counter. He saw another crewman come in, and looked up to see where Seven had gotten to. Seeing her, he stopped short. Seven was looking at a PADD. That in itself was far from different, not enough to make Neelix notice, much less stop him in his tracks. Seven had been smiling. That was notable. It was gone in a moment, returning to its hidden niche, but he'd seen it all the same. Mind you, it hadn't been huge by normal standards. A little smile, really. But what it lacked in size and endurance, it made up for in quality. This smile had come from inside, and had lit her face. Thinking about it, he didn't think he'd ever seen her smile in all the time she'd been on board. Neelix watched as Seven strode back to the counter and placed the PADD and rose she was carrying carefully on the counter. When she went back to serving, he was even more surprised to see that she was almost being cordial. Neelix perked up. His pep talks must be having an effect. If he could get Seven to smile, he could do anything. As he went back to cooking breakfast, he considered trying his talks on Tuvok next. If it worked with Seven. . . --- Epilogue --- Harry walked down the corridor toward his quarters after his shift. He'd been on edge all day, wondering if Seven had found what he had left. He'd been expecting to hear something, some acknowledgement, but had heard nothing. He was uneasy, wondering. In a sense, he'd asked a question, and if he didn't get an answer, that in itself would be an answer. As Harry entered his quarters, his console beeped. Checking, he found a visual message, keyed for display on the console, from Seven in Cargo bay 2. Nervous, he opened it. His grin grew as her read. "Rule of dating number 7: Punctuality is required in any situation of opportunity, or the opportunity may be lost. Tomorrow night, 1900, Holodeck 2?" --- continued in 'Dinner'