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The Ice
Queen
A J/7 Advent
Calendar Story 2008 by Gun Brooke
Disclaimer
2
“I can’t
believe you’ve only been with us two months already, Annika.
You’re a hard worker and you blend in well with both staff
and guests. I know you said you’re just passing through, but
I have a suggestion for you.”
Seven of
Nine, born under the name Annika Hansen before being taken
by the Borg Collective, looked down at the man standing at
the bottom of the ladder she’d just climbed. Lars Johansson
was a bear of a man, his beard as blond as his hair.
“Proceed,”
Seven said, her hidden universal translator easily
translating her English into Swedish and vice versa.
“You told
me you have no family waiting for you, and that got me
thinking. Why don’t you stay over the holidays at least? You
wouldn’t have to celebrate Christmas alone at some inferior
hotel, and the Ice Hotel would benefit from having you to
help with the technical stuff.” Lars scratched the back of
his head. “Honestly, I never thought I would see the day
when our electrical bill would be reduced during a
winter month.”
“You were
not utilizing your equipment at peak efficiency—until now.”
Lars
laughed. “Trust you to pick up on it, fix it, and be less
than humble about it. You’re an amazing woman, Annika. My
wife likes you a lot.”
“I have
Tilde in high regard also.” Seven was in fact quite
concerned regarding Lars’ very pregnant young wife who
seemed to work twice as hard as everybody else at the Ice
Hotel in Jukkasjärvi, including herself. The first two weeks
while working as the janitor, Seven had thought Tilde was
one of a set of twins.
“So, how
about it? Spend the holidays here with us?”
Seven
didn’t want to show how relieved she was that he asked. She
had fully expected to be long gone by now, but her own
repairs to the Delta Flyer, which was her only means to get
back to her own time in the Delta Quadrant, was so far
unsuccessful. She knew Voyager and its captain must think
she was dead, which pained her more than anything.
“You are
very kind,” Seven murmured. Her heart felt as cold as the
surrounding walls of ice, despite her reluctant affection
for the Swedish man. “Yes. I will stay.”
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