Nine Weeks to Go (Part 1)

Posted on Sun Dec 29th, 2024 @ 11:28pm by Captain Maho Takahashi & Commander Keisuke Takahashi 'K.T.' & Lieutenant Commander Brennyn Scott M.D.

1,093 words; about a 5 minute read

Mission: Captains and Contraband
Location: Sickbay, Deck 5
Timeline: Before 'Rheuys Awaits!'

With the weeks to go until Maho's due date now in the single digits, Maho had been recommended for an ultrasound prior to 35 weeks to ensure her baby girl didn't have any previously unseen growth problems. So, Maho had left Commanders Misono and Anzai in charge before reporting in for her appointment, with Keisuke joining her shortly thereafter.

"You know, I'm going to miss this whole routine." Keisuke sighed as he took a seat next to his beautiful wife. "Seeing our daughter grow on each of these ultrasounds has been nothing short of magical."

"Aw, shut up, you animal." Maho quipped. "Frankly, I can't wait to regain my full range of motion. You have no idea how hard it's gotten to move in recent weeks..."

"Let's not suggest she come early, sometimes the gods have senses of humor." Victor said with a winning smile as he entered the room. "Good morning Captain. Commander. "

"Good morning, Doctor." Maho responded. "I take it Doctor Scott will be joining us later?"

"I am sure she will attend when she is available ". His smile never filtered as his eyes flickered to Maho's belly. "How is
mama hanging in there?"

"It's getting hard to move and to breathe, not gonna lie." Maho said. "I've been getting winded a lot easier than I usually do."

"That's completely normal. Your baby girl and your womb are a lot bigger now to accommodate her, but all the rest of your organs still have to share the same space, including your lungs. I imagine it feels pretty uncomfortable, especially if you exert yourself a bit too much, but as long as you are breathing, I promise all is well," Bree assured, entering the room holding up a PADD. "I just wanted to take a bit of time to review your last scan results so I could help compare the results of the scan to those," she offered by way of explanation.

Maho nodded.

"Well, shall we begin?" She asked.

Scott nodded, leading the way to the biobed, where she prepared to help ease the Captain up onto the bed. "Captain, you'll see I've placed some extra pillows here to keep you comfortable. I'll put one behind your back to keep you slightly turned on your left side so it's a bit easier for you to breathe and for the little one to stay oxygenated. We can place other pillows as you need, just let me know what you need to feel more comfortable."

Maho nodded. Deep down, she felt this was all unnecessary, as it was in her Nishizumi nature to not be fussed over. However, as her pregnancy had progressed, she had gradually overcome her hard programming for the sake of being more comfortable.

The one person who had helped her with this change was, of course, Keisuke. It had only been a month since Keisuke had first recommended she stick a pillow between her legs at night, and Maho was so impressed by the results, she was surprised that she hadn't thought to do it a lot sooner.

"Thank you, counselor:" Maho said as she accepted Bree's help onto the biobed. "But I must ask; why turn me to the left slightly?"

Bree made sure Maho was safely on the bed and then answered, "By lying on your side, you are shifting the weight of your uterus off the aorta and the inferior vena cava, major vessels that carry blood from your legs and feet back to your heart. Without the added pressure of your uterus on those vessels, blood can flow more easily to you and the baby, which means you're both getting oxygen much easier and the placenta is being nourished - that's the organ that contains the umbilical cord and decides what nutrients and other substances cross over from you to your baby girl. I'm not entirely certain as to why, but research shows lying on the left side provides more of those benefits than the right side in particular." Scott loved all things obstetrics, but she knew to give out information in small doses lest other people around her become bored. Still, she prepared herself for more questions just in case.

"Fascinating..." Maho commented as she undid her uniform to expose her now massive belly. "Please tell me you two got my memo to incubate the gel you're going to rub on me... Baby girl here has been... Sensitive to cold applications lately..."

"All of the gel is warmed. I am a cultured barbarian I shall have you know " Victor cut in smoothly his gaze warm and amused. "While we are taking some routine measurements. You can tell us about your ideas for the delivery. I know you've done some reading on the subject.

"I'm assuming a C-section is off the table, considering there hasn't been complications, so I'll likely be pushing her out my hoo-hah." Maho sighed. "Not that a vaginal delivery isn't a bad thing, since a C-section would mean I'd be off duty for longer, and this ship can't afford to have its captain out of action for too long."

"That is the safest course of action, though I wouldn't recommend jumping right back to work." Victor paused for a moment "There are significant hormonal changes with the delivery of a baby...and you should take the time needed to bond appropriately with your child."

Bree nearly snorted with laughter when she heard Maho reference pushing her daughter out her "hoo-hah." She wasn't expecting such frankness and lightheartedness from the woman she usually experienced as cooly professional.

Scott was in agreement with Victor, of course, but fearing Maho may take his comment the wrong way, she offered, "I'm sure you'll do all you need to do to bond with your daughter while juggling the responsibilities of being a commanding officer, it's just important to know you don't have to juggle all of these responsibilities alone, and no one who truly matters will think less of you for taking the time you need to recover and adjust to these new responsibilities. It may be best to keep your plans open-ended, so you can give yourself all the time you need to get the lay of the land, so to speak. In that vein, actually, while I don't wish to get too far ahead of why you're here today," Bree continued, "I'd love to arrange a time to meet to help give you both tools for the big day as well as discuss your options, assuming everyone would be amenable?"

To be continued...

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