DISCLAIMER: You all know the drill - Paramount is God. All hail Paramount. They own everything in the Star Trek Universe - I'm just
using my overactive imagination to take their characters where they refuse to go. All in the name of fun, not profit (I wish).
RATING: PG-13 Nothing my momma couldn't read.
A smile slowly pulled at Kathryn Janeway's lips as she felt the sun come out from under a cloud to caress her face. It was warm for May in New York, and the sun felt good on the exposed skin of her arms and face. She was wearing a pale blue sleeveless dress, and it fluttered around her outstretched legs as the breeze washed over her. An empty bottle of champagne rested at her feet beside the basket that had held their lunch. She slowly reached her arm over the side of the small sailboat and let her fingers trail in the water of Lake George as the gentle spring breeze propelled them slowly forward. She shifted her weight slightly and sighed with another smile as she moved her head to Chakotay's other shoulder. He was reclined beneath her, and she could tell by the slow rising and falling of his chest next to her back that the warm breeze, the mid-afternoon sun, the rhythmic rocking of the boat and a little too much champagne had lulled him to sleep. She pulled her hand out of the water, and after drying it off on her dress she reached behind her and rested her hand on the side of his face. She closed her eyes again, ready to join him in taking a nap, but a sound off in the distance caught her attention and she cracked one eye open.
It sounded like a dog barking.
She sat up and looked towards her family's cabin near the waterfront, but the sun was in her eyes and she had difficulty making anything out other than the indistinct outline of the house. Using her hand to shield her eyes from the sun, she thought she could see two or three figures standing on the dock. One of them appeared to be waving, and she could definitely hear barking. And it sounded like somebody was yelling at them.
She cupped her hands around her mouth. "Hello?" she shouted loudly.
Unfortunately, the loud cry without warning startled Chakotay awake, and he bolted upright in the small boat. The rapid shift in weight threw the boat off kilter, and it tipped over sharply, throwing both of its passengers overboard.
Kathryn shrieked as she hit the water. The weather may have been warm for spring, but the water was most definitely not warm enough for swimming. She tread water, coughing to get the water out of her lungs. She reached up, her hand dripping water, and swept her soaking wet hair out of her face. She could see Chakotay treading water beside her, shaking his head to get the water out his face.
"What was that?" he asked.
She glared at him. "You tipped the boat."
He rolled his eyes. "Obviously. I meant, what was that God awful loud noise."
She could tell by the way his eyes were dancing that he was joking, so she splashed him and swam over to the boat, which thankfully had not overturned. She pulled herself back into the boat and reached for a towel, drying her hair. She shivered, her dress clinging tightly to her skin. When she moved the towel out of her face, she saw Chakotay trying to pull himself over the side of the boat. She moved over and offered him a hand to get in. He took it, but with a demonic grin used his superior strength and advantageous position to pull her over his head into the water with a resounding splash before he climbed back into the boat.
She sputtered as she resurfaced, her hair falling in her eyes. "Is that any way to treat a superior officer?" she demanded, throwing her now wet towel at him.
He laughed and lowered himself to the floor of the boat, extending a hand towards her. Deciding that they were both wet enough for one day, she took his hand and allowed him to pull her towards the boat. When he had her beside the boat, he leaned down and kissed her. Her lips parted with a moan of pleasure, and she rose out of the water and rested her arms on the edge of the boat. He could feel her laughing under his lips, and she put her hand around his head and ran her fingers through his hair.
When he pulled away, she was gasping for breath and her face was flushed. He grinned. "How's that for treating a superior officer?"
She assumed an imperial attitude. "Much better," she pronounced, offering him her hands. He pulled her up into the boat and passed her another towel before turning the sail and steering them back to the dock.
After Kathryn had dried her hair, she looked again at the dock, squinting to get a better view against the sun. "Looks like we've got company," she said.
He looked as well. "I can't tell who it is."
She shook her head. "Me neither." Her jaw set as another sound reached their ears from the dock. "But I would recognize that laugh anywhere."
Chakotay listened, then sighed with a shake of his head. "Tom Paris."
They were close enough to the dock now to see Tom and B'Elanna, who were leaning on the dock posts, incapacitated with laughter. Miral was sitting on the dock between them, gaily swinging her feet over the edge, and their two-month old son Owen was in a carrier nearby.
"Oh, that was good," said Tom, laughing so hard he had to gasp for breath.
"You should have seen it," roared B'Elanna. "We could hear you shriek all the way over here!"
"And then he pulled you back into the water," crowed Tom, "That has to be the funniest thing..." He broke down laughing, supporting himself on the post.
"Kersplash!" said Miral for emphasis, throwing her hands up in the air.
At that, her parents broke into new fits of laughter.
"You should see you two," laughed Tom, wiping tears of merriment from his eyes. "You're absolutely soaked."
As they pulled the boat up beside the dock, he reached over to offer Kathryn a hand out of the boat. "Don't push your luck, Tom," she muttered in good humor, "Or I'll see that you find out how cold the water really is."
He laughed at that and helped Chakotay tie up the boat.
"We really are sorry we startled you," said B'Elanna.
"What are you doing here?" asked Kathryn.
"Uh�" B'Elanna looked at her husband.
"I know we're interrupting your honeymoon," said Tom. "But you invited us, remember? At the reunion two weeks ago?"
Kathryn looked at Chakotay. "Has it been two weeks already?"
He frowned. "It can't be�what's today?"
Tom snickered as he finished tying up the boat. "Stardate 58356. May tenth."
"Already?" repeated Kathryn in disbelief.
"I know time flies when you're having fun," said B'Elanna with a leering gaze. "But really, Chakotay � I know you put off your honeymoon until after the anniversary , but you've been married a month and you two still can't even keep track of what day it is? Now I feel really bad for interrupting you."
He rolled his eyes and picked up Miral as the group moved towards the cabin. The young girl squirmed in his arms. "You're all wet, 'Kotay," she pronounced.
He wiggled his eyebrows at her. "It's all your Aunt Kathryn's fault."
"Don't believe him, Miral," said Kathryn, falling into step beside them. "He pulled me into the water when I tried to help back into the boat."
The young girl found this extremely amusing and broke out laughing.
Kathryn rolled her eyes and moved over to walk beside B'Elanna, still drying her hair off. "And how's the newest little Paris?"
B'Elanna reached down and fondly ran her finger over little Owen's cheek as he lay sleeping in his carrier. "He's already sleeping through the night. Thank Kahless he seems to have missed inheriting most of my Klingon genes."
"I would have loved to have seen the look on Admiral Paris' face when they were introduced."
B'Elanna smiled. "Tom thought you might. He gave his sister a holo-camera, so we've got it recorded for posterity. It's priceless � I'll show it to you inside."
"Has Miral gotten over her disappointment? She was looking forward to a sister."
"She changed her mind when one of Tom's sisters referred to her as 'Daddy's little girl.' She quickly figured out that she didn't want to give up such an illustrious position, and decided she was glad for a little brother instead."
Miral jumped down from Chakotay's arms and tore past them towards the cabin. "Where'd the puppy go?" she called, tearing around the yard.
Chakotay whistled. "Neela!" A young golden retriever came tearing around the cabin.
"Neela!" repeated Miral, delighted. "Here, Neela!" The friendly canine came over to her and began licking her face, much to Miral's amusement.
"Where did she come from?" asked Tom.
"A wedding present from my sister," explained Kathryn.
"What's her name?" asked B'Elanna. "Neela?"
"It's Bajoran. My sister and her family spent almost a year on Bajor, and my oldest niece picked up a few words. She's the one who named the dog."
"It means 'companion,' I think," added Chakotay.
"Very appropriate," said B'Elanna.
Neela came over to her mistress, wagging her tail happily. Kathryn reached down with her hand, allowing the dog to lick it as she rubbed against her leg.
"Put your things in the spare bedroom," said Chakotay as he opened the front door. "We'll give you the grand tour as soon as we've dried off and changed."
Tom brought their bags into the house, and watched with amusement as his two former commanding officers made their way up the stairs, laughing and holding hands.
He glanced at his wife, and saw that she was looking at the stairs after them as well.
"Is it just me?"
She shook her head with a smile, leaning down to pick up Miral's bag. "It's not just you. I've never seen either of them this happy." She looked wistfully back at the stairs, then sighed happily. "It's about time."
* * *
"Tuvok!" said Kathryn cheerfully, moving through the crowded room to greet her old friend.
He raised a Vulcan eyebrow. "Admiral."
She smiled fondly. "How have you been? How's your family?"
"Well, thank you, Admiral. Sek and his wife have had another child, T'lara."
"That's wonderful." She appraised him affectionately. "It's been far too long, Tuvok."
He raised an eyebrow. "Just over six months. As I recall, the last time we spoke was at the reunion in April."
"So it was," she smiled.
"I take it, Admiral, that marriage agrees with you."
She laughed. "That it does." She reached over to rest her hand on his shoulder. "I don't know if I've ever told you how much your advice meant to me, Tuvok. If it weren't for you, Chakotay and I might never have found the happiness we have now."
"Your bond is unusually strong, Admiral. I have no doubt that you would have found a way to be together eventually, regardless of my advice."
"Well, Tuvok, then I guess I have you to thank for giving me a few more years of happiness."
"I am pleased that you are happy, Admiral."
She smiled from ear to ear. "So am I."
Mark's voice called from the next room. "Everyone, we'll be cutting the cake in a few minutes, if you all want to make your way in here."
"Hurry up to get cake!" called Miral, and the crowd chuckled.
"Miral is growing more like her parents every day," observed the Vulcan wryly as they started to make their way into the other room.
Kathryn chuckled. "She certainly is. In her own defense, though, she's only this demanding when there are parties involved. Even if they're not for her."
"How is your work at the Pathfinder project proceeding?"
"Very well. If you're going to be staying on Earth for a few days, you should come out to Utopia Planitia."
"Thank you, Admiral. I would be interested t see what you are working on."
"B'Elanna and her team are making fantastic progress, and Annika thinks she might be close to a breakthrough."
Tuvok raised an eyebrow. When she noticed, it took her a few seconds to realize what had surprised him, and she laughed. "That's what you get for staying on Vulcan, Tuvok. Have you spoken to her recently? Seven, I mean."
"We spoke briefly at your wedding, and saw each other at the reunion in April."
"I still find it hard to believe how far she's come from the woman we first rescued from the Borg."
"The difference is remarkable," he agreed.
"Have you met Erin?"
"We have not been formally introduced," he said, coming as close to making a joke as a Vulcan ever would. "However, since it is her first birthday I suppose I will take a moment to become acquainted with her."
"The family's certainly growing."
* * *
Bright light intruded suddenly on the warm cocoon of Kathryn's mind as she was curled up in bed asleep. Squinting, she fumbled around with her hand and found the edge of the covers, pulling them up over her head and retreating back into her dark nest.
She felt a hand attempt to pull the covers away from her head, but that resulted in the light reaching her eyes again, so she mumbled and turned her face into the pillow in an attempt to return to her comfortable sleep.
"Kathryn?"
She mumbled something incoherent and turned her face to the other side.
His fingers gently traced a line up her spine, finally eliciting a reaction other than retreating under the covers. After an unsuccessful attempt at resistance, the corners of her mouth turned up in a smile. She poked her head out from under the blankets and cracked open her eyes.
"Good morning," said Chakotay with a grin.
She blinked a few times to clear the inexplicable fog in her brain. Laying on her stomach, she folded her arms on the pillow and laid her head on them.
"What time is it?" she croaked.
"Almost 0715."
"You're joking."
He chuckled. "No, I'm not. If you don't get up soon you're not going to make it to Utopia Planitia by 0800 hours. You said you were meeting Tuvok, right?" When she still refused to move, he offered, "I'll go start some coffee if you want."
She shook her head, closing her eyes again and massaging her temples.
He reached over and felt her forehead with the back of his hand. "Are you sure you're feeling all right?"
"I'm just tired."
"Did you have trouble sleeping last night?"
She frowned. "No, actually. I haven't slept that well in a long time�but I feel like I've only been resting for a few minutes."
"I can't remember the last time the offer of fresh coffee failed to tempt you out of bed."
She grinned and opened her eyes again, rolling onto her side with her head propped up on one arm. "Last Sunday. You made breakfast and came in to get me up. As I recall, the breakfast got cold long before either of us got out of bed."
He smiled charmingly. "Sorry, we don't have time for anything like that this morning."
She sighed and rolled over onto her back, closing her eyes again. After a minute, she opened one eye and looked at him. "Go start the coffee, and I'll work at getting up."
He leaned over to kiss her on the forehead, then got out of bed and moved off towards the kitchen as he pulled a shirt over his head.
She remained motionless on the bed until the aroma of fresh brewing coffee began to waft into the room. For once, it wasn't the smell that enticed her to get up. She knew if she stayed in bed much longer, Chakotay would really get worried, and she didn't want to tell him how exhausted she really felt. He worried enough about her as it was.
She sat up on the bed, swinging her legs over the edge, but gripped the sheets suddenly when the entire room seemed to spin around her. She gasped, bending her head down to her knees, and the feeling passed after a few seconds.
When she was sure it was gone, she stood up on shaky legs and moved over to the closet to dig out her uniform.
After two and a half years back on Earth, she still wasn't used to Starfleet's new style of uniform. The colors she had worn for seven years on Voyager would always have a place close to her heart. The new uniforms with their colored shirts and grey jackets just weren't the same somehow, and despite the fact that she had been wearing it for years now, it still seemed strange to look at herself in the mirror every morning. She tilted her head to the side with a wry smile, looking at the pair of boxed pips on either side of her collar. Her promotion after they had been back on Earth a year and a half had not been unwelcome or unexpected, but it still seemed strange to her to have people call her Admiral Janeway. Admiral Janeway was her father, not her.
That was the other thing she missed � her four pips side by side on the right side of her neck. She glanced up at a nearby shelf. Her pips were there, framed, sitting above a holo-image of her with the crew. She smiled. Those four pips represented more to her than anything else Starfleet could ever give her. They were her crew, her family. They were her relationship with her First Officer, now her husband, a person closer to her than she had ever thought possible. They were the guilt and responsibility that she had carried with her for seven years, gone but not forgotten. They were her determination, her will, her fire, that had allowed her to lead her crew over 30,000 lightyears to get them back home. They were everything that Starfleet stood for.
"We've made first contacts, made new allies, explored previously uncharted space�and you've always managed to do that while upholding Starfleet principles."
She smiled to herself. That had been one of the most deeply moving things Chakotay had ever said to her. He was her moral compass, and the fact that he stood behind her unconditionally, even when she had defied Starfleet Command, meant more to her than he could possibly imagine. She wondered if she had ever told him that.
"Maybe I should," she said quietly to herself, reaching up to run her fingers over the glass covering her pips.
"Kathryn?" he called from the other room.
"Coming." She removed her hand from the pips with a smile and headed for the kitchen.
>> ON TO PART XXVI: EXPECTATIONS
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