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began to stream, Zoe's eyes widened. She quickly started typing commands into the unit and as she watched, the bed changed configuration and turned into a more comfortable unit for Maasha. "My dear, it seems you are in labour. Good thing that the baby didn't decide to show up yesterday."
    Liiro went pale under his camouflaged skin. "Now? The baby is coming now?"
    "It is. Now, do you want to be here for it or wait outside? I hear that is traditional." She was grinning as she helped Maasha ease out of her ship suit. That reminded her that they had an audience.
    "Guys, either help or get out. Maasha isn't putting on a performance here."
    As one, they turned to the sink and prepped their hands for assisting.
    She chuckled as they helped Liiro prepare for imminent fatherhood.
    Maasha looked up at her. "So, how far along am I?"
    "It seems that you have been in labour since yesterday. You are eight centimetres dilated and if you allow, the computer will break your water. It seems that your body wanted to keep the baby suspended as long as it could." She kept her tone light, but if Maasha didn't deliver soon, the baby would suffer. It was already in distress, but Zoe had kept the monitors from blaring that fact.
    Liiro opted for holding Maasha's hand while Trin grinned and said he was the medically trained member of their grouping.
    He took charge of the delivery, a slight tick near his eyes the only acknowledgement of the situation when Zoe showed him the scans. He proceeded with the same affable charm that she had used and once Maasha's water was broken, things moved along at a predictable pace.
    Zoe watched as Maasha pulled her knees up, the baby's head making its appearance.
    "Lots of dark hair." Zoe announced it and Liiro smiled then grimaced as another contraction gripped his mate.
    She was too far gone. She simply listened to the demands of her body and rocked with the impulses.
    The little girl slid into the world and right into Trin's hands.
    She didn't cry, but she breathed, blinked and looked around with wide, unfocused blue eyes.
    Maasha sat up. "What is it?"
    Liiro leaned down and smiled. "It's a girl."
    Zoe smiled and sighed in relief. Trin clamped off the umbilical and grinned as he cut the tie between mother and child. "And with this, I give you what we do not have…a belly button."
    Zoe lifted the child and handed her to her mother. Maasha was crying openly as she counted fingers and toes, admiring the pigment pattern that her child was wearing. She had the same mask as her parents.
    Liiro reached out with a shaking hand and touched the wet and bloody head of his newborn. "I think Aliisha would be a lovely name, what do you think, Maasha?"
    The woman smiled weakly. "I think it is a wonderful name. Aliisha Zoestra, in honour of the blender who let her be born free."
    Trin was working rapidly to finish the details of the birth and when Maasha was cleaned and relaxed with her daughter and spouse, Zoe shooed her men out of medical.
    "I will tell everyone to hold off on visiting."
    Liiro smiled down at his wife, holding his infant carefully with the extreme awareness of a new parent. "They can come for a visit, but one by one."
    "T'shnadar, when will Maasha be able to leave medical?"
    "Seven hours will allow her systems to recover enough to walk. I will alert you so that your set can assist the family to get settled into a larger set of quarters. I am preparing the baby's crib right now."
    Zoe fought her grin. The ship's manufacturing system was getting quite the workout.
    Maasha sat up and dropped her wrap to nurse little Aliisha. "Thank you, T'shnadar. Can you find some clothing for me and the baby?"
    "Yes, Maasha. Is there anything else you require?"
    Zoe smiled and Maasha winced as the baby latched on. "Nope. I think I am fine."
    "I will start sending in the visitors. Congratulations. She is beautiful."
    The smile was still on her face when she walked into the dining hall where Jarix and Leos were describing the birth