Disclaimer – I don’t own them; Paramount does. If I owned them, I think they’d have been much, much happier.

Comments and feedback to Ralkana47@yahoo.com would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Author’s note – Maquis Leader and I have collaborated to inflict upon you… uh, I mean, present you with sappy baby fic, and since there’s two of us, you get twice as much! I’ve written Kathryn’s POV, and she’s done Chakotay’s POV. You’ve been warned; those who complain about sappy fic and/or baby fic will be summarily subjected to drunken Talaxian love songs.

Author’s note II – No compression phaser rifles were fired during the writing of these stories. Both authors are still alive and writing. Much to our surprise.

This one’s rated R or maybe even light NC-17 for sexual situations. Yes, sexual situations in baby fic. They made the baby somehow, didn’t they?

=/\= =/\= =/\=

Kathryn hurried up the drive toward her home, glancing up at the ominous gray sky and trying to keep hold of the brimming diaper bag and the containers of dinner, not to mention an armful of wiggling, giggling, chocolate and ice cream covered ten-month-old. She looked down into the baby’s dark eyes, laughing and shaking her head as he gave her a chocolatey smile.

“Rhien, honey, you’re a mess. If Lt. Jameson ever gives you an ice cream sandwich again, he’ll be saluting to cadets in the corridor. Let’s get you cleaned up before Daddy gets home. God only knows what the people at the take-out place thought of us.”

She glanced at the entry keypad by the front door and then stared, frustrated, at her full hands. For one desperate moment, she wished that she were back on Voyager, where she could simply order a voice override. She carefully leaned forward and tapped in her code with a knuckle trembling from the weight of everything she was carrying, and she prayed that the precarious load in the diaper bag wouldn’t choose that second to shift.

The door slid open, and her sigh of relief became a groan of dismay when she caught sight of the blanket spread on the carpet, covered in the toys she hadn’t had time to pick up earlier before rushing to Headquarters. In fact, it was quite obvious from the condition of the living room that a ten-month-old tornado was in residence.

Kathryn stifled a curse—for the baby’s sake, he was picking up words now, and that was really all she needed, and headed for the stairs before remembering the dinner she held. Gratefully dropping the diaper bag on the floor by the stairs, she changed course for the kitchen. The baby squealed with delight as something large and furry wound itself between her legs, barking joyfully and nearly sending her headlong.

“Dam—Kona! You’re going to make me fall and break my neck one of these days! Outside!” she ordered, pointing with a now free hand. The dog stared at her mournfully for a moment and then shot through the forcefield-protected opening in the back kitchen wall.

Plunking the containers of food down, Kathryn grabbed a cloth from the counter and attempted to at least clean up Rhien’s face. The baby squirmed and babbled, and the chocolate had hardened into a thick layer on his bronze skin. She sighed and tossed the cloth away.

“Well, that’s not gonna work. Guess it’s bath time for you, my little king.”

She moved toward the stairs, growling when she tripped on the diaper bag. She picked it up, intending to drop it on the bedroom floor, but her shoulder groaned with the weight halfway up, and she abandoned it on the landing. As she continued marching up the stairs, she noticed how quiet it was. She looked down to see her son staring at her with troubled eyes as he raised a sticky hand to her cheek. Like his father, he was often very in tune with her moods, and she smiled and ruffled his thick ebony hair.

“Sorry, little man. Mama’s not mad, just frustrated. My one afternoon off to spend just with you, and Hayes needs that report ‘immediately, as soon as possible, Captain.’” She snorted, kissing his forehead, seemingly the only part of his face not covered in congealed sugar. “As if the maintenance logs of Voyager’s replicator systems are a matter of Federation security. Huh. Mean old stuffy Hayes,” she grumbled, scrunching her nose as she chucked him under the chin, smiling when she got a dose of chocolate-covered dimples.

Carrying him into the bathroom, she turned on the taps in the tub before detouring into the bedroom to get him out of his disaster of an outfit. Glancing down at herself as she tossed it into the ‘fresher, she laughed, tickling his belly.

“How’d you manage to get Mama covered in chocolate too? You could have at least shared the goodies.”

She stripped off her uniform jacket, and then, after a moment’s pause, her turtleneck, and dumped them in the refresher too.

“Don’t think it’s very likely I’ll be anything less than soaked after you’re done,” she told him as she picked him up again. She winced but laughed delightedly when he shouted “Mama!” into her ear.

Rhien giggled and slapped at the water as she settled him in the tub. Blinking to get the water out of her eyes, Kathryn tried to scrub away the chocolate that coated his face and hands and had even stiffened in his hair. It was stubborn, and she shrugged.

“Guess we play for a while until that loosens some. Good thing you got Mama’s love of baths,” she said, handing him a brightly colored plastic starship. He crowed with joy as he raced it through the bubbles, throwing soapy water everywhere.

“Mama’s little pilot. Uncle Tom would be so proud,” she chuckled, dodging as he slapped the water again, sending a wave of bubbles her way.

“Hey, my boy! That’s not very nice!” She pushed a small wave back at him, and he laughed. The chocolate was coming off now, and she busied herself for a few moments getting the majority of the sticky mess off of him, but he was more interested in playing. He squirmed and wriggled, and she laughed as she sought to hold onto his slippery form.

“Dadadadada.”

“No, Mama. You said it right earlier. Mama.”

“Dada.”

“I’m Mama, sweetheart.”

He flung an arm out toward the bathroom door, completely drenching her in the process. “Dada!”

She half turned and jumped when she saw Chakotay leaning on the doorjamb. His arms were folded across his chest and he was watching them with a tiny half-smile, his dark eyes a mixture of affection and desire. Strangely, he looked just as soaked as she was.

“Well, hello. How long have you been standing there?”

Chakotay regarded her seriously. “Have you ever heard the saying 'living in a moment you would die for'?” She nodded, realizing he was in an introspective mood, and he smiled wistfully. “I've been here long enough to realize this is that moment.”

Her heart constricted in her chest, and she wondered for the millionth time how in God’s name she had managed to push him away for so long without losing him completely. “Oh, Chakotay,” she murmured, stretching up as he bent down to give her a kiss. Rhien suddenly screeched and splashed them to let them know they weren’t alone, and she returned her focus to him as Chakotay retreated from the splash zone and sat down, grabbing a towel off the rack as he stripped off his sodden uniform jacket and turtleneck.

Kathryn watched him from the corner of her eye as she scrubbed chocolate off of Rhien’s hands. The baby was giggling and babbling happily to his father, and Chakotay was smiling back as he leisurely toweled off his broad chest and taut stomach, rubbing the towel in smooth, slow passes over the golden skin. She felt the slow coil of arousal begin deep in her belly, but before she could act on it, Rhien gurgled and splashed her again. She leaned over and kissed the top of his head, whispering to him.

“Your father is a beautiful man. What did I do to deserve such handsome men in my life?”

Chakotay was vigorously toweling his hair dry, oblivious to her admiration. She finally got the last of the mess off of their son, carefully shielding his little face with her hand as she rinsed him with the sprayer. He whimpered briefly, trying harder to squirm away from her; it was the only part of the bath he didn’t like. She pulled him out of the water, holding him against her and soothing him before he could begin fully crying. She kissed his head and whispered softly to him, eventually looking up to find Chakotay watching them again. She smiled crookedly at him and he grinned back, holding out his arms.

“Here. I’ll take him now that he’s clean and happy.”

“Typical!” Kathryn laughed, rolling her eyes and passing him Rhien as they made their way back into the bedroom. She grabbed two more towels, tossing one to him as he moved toward the changing table. She had kicked off her boots and socks and stepped out of her pants and was about to lift her waterlogged tank over her head when she heard Chakotay tell Rhien in a grave tone of voice that he’d have to get used to the water. Of course, the solemnity of the warning was ruined when he tickled the baby’s waving foot, causing Rhien to wiggle and gurgle, but she frowned anyway. He’s so little…

“Chakotay, he’s only a baby.”

"He'll be watching while everyone else swims,” he retorted as he lifted Rhien up, kissing and blowing on the baby’s belly, making him squeal and giggle. "Want to kiss the naked baby before I dress him?”

Kathryn chuckled and moved closer. Nothing like a naked baby, she thought as she kissed his tummy, ran a hand over his back, and rubbed his soft bottom. Kissing Chakotay on the cheek, she returned to the closet to find a comfortable dress, laying it on the bed before she finished undressing.

She heard Chakotay murmuring to the baby as he dressed him, and Rhien’s deep, husky laughter echoed through the room. Kathryn closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and thanked the Fates once again that Voyager had gotten home before she’d lost the precious opportunity for a family. This family.

“Mama!”

Rhien’s voice pulled her out of her musing, and she looked up to see Chakotay trying to convince him to say Dada again. She waved to the baby behind his father’s back, smiling to him and encouraging him. When Chakotay finally caught on and turned around, she laughed, but it faded as his dark eyes raked her up and down, and she realized she was standing before him in nothing but a towel.

“Haven’t we been here before?” he asked wryly, and she felt herself flush as she remembered a warm moonlit night on a planet half a galaxy away. Chakotay chuckled and the baby giggled, and she tossed the towel at them, laughing as Rhien shrieked with joy. Chakotay pulled off the towel and sat with his son on the bed, his gaze never leaving Kathryn.

“This is Daddy’s second favorite pastime,” he told his son. “Watching Mommy dress.”

“And the first would be?” she asked with a laugh.

“Watching Mommy undress.”

Kathryn laughed, rolling her eyes as she pulled her dress over her head, passing her hands down her body to smooth out the wrinkles in the fabric.

“So, why was our little man taking a bath so early? Kona been dragging him through the mud again?”

Kathryn snorted again. “I wish. No, Hayes hailed me just as I was putting Rhien down for his nap. He demanded yet another useless report so I had to pack everything up and hightail it to Headquarters. While we were there, Jameson asked if he could give Rhien a treat. I was expecting a piece of candy. I was not expecting an ice cream sandwich bigger than my son.”

Chakotay laughed. “So, is Jameson still breathing, or do you need a new aide?”

She grinned evilly, remembering the horrified look on the young man’s face as her son enjoyed the treat. “I think he truly was in fear for his life when he saw the mess it was making. Not to worry, though. I just made sure Rhien ate it on his desk. Let him scrub the chocolate fingerprints off of Nechayev’s status reports.” She sat down on the bed next to him, sighing. “My one day off, Chakotay.”

Sliding an arm around her shoulder, he hugged her close. “I know, beloved.” The baby stretched his arms out toward her, and she took him, cuddling him as Chakotay stood up. She looked on as he located clean clothes and tossed them on the bed, shucking off and stepping out of his uniform trousers in one graceful movement. He shifted position slightly, and she smiled as she caught sight of the evidence of his arousal. Apparently watching Mommy dress *is* one of his favorite things to do. He bent to pick up his clothes and walked across the room to toss them in the refresher, and Kathryn watched hungrily as the powerful muscles in his legs and ass rippled and flexed. She shivered.

“His butt’s not as soft as yours is, but it sure is just as cute,” she whispered to Rhien and he laughed. Chakotay paused and looked up after pulling his pants on, a grin tugging at his face when he saw them.

“What are you telling him?”

“Nothing,” she said innocently, but she knew her face said otherwise judging by the look on his.

“Your Daddy’s right,” she said loudly as he slipped a shirt over his head and raked his fingers through his hair. “Watching the clothes come off is much more fun.” Chakotay laughed and she added, “So how did you get soaked anyway?”

His laughter faded and he stiffened. “You don’t really want to know.”

Her heart ached for him. “Bad day at the office?” she asked softly. Chakotay loved teaching, and he loved his students. He just hated dealing with the supervisors who wanted to tell him how to run his classes without having ever experienced anything like what Chakotay had been through in his life. And she knew he was tired of trying to remind them that he’d been a respected instructor for quite a long time before resigning to join the Maquis.

“Another bad day at the office.” He sighed. “Another lecture from Siegel.” He sat next to her, and she leaned her head on his shoulder. He tickled his son under his chin and shook his head.

“He doesn't seem to understand that I can't teach these kids to stick to the book at all costs. I don't want their deaths on my head. He's never even served a single tour on a starship, much less went nose to nose with someone who wants to kill you.”

Kathryn smiled wryly, a wealth of memories flitting through her head. “Or someone who regards you as prey.”

"I'm not sure I can handle another lecture on Starfleet protocol," he said quietly, and she closed her eyes as the pain washed over her. She knew he probably hadn’t meant for it to do so, but the comment cut her deeply. So much time wasted… She opened her eyes to see him staring at her, the same sorrow reflected in his dark eyes.

"The problem with desk jockeys,” he said, a little too quickly but with a frustrated tone in his voice, “Is that they don't understand the danger of going by the book—”

She smiled and laid a hand on his cheek, having heard this countless times before.“Is that everybody reads the same damn book.”

He half-smiled, and then frowned again. “And then, I check my lesson plan for the rest of the month and find half of it’s missing! The Academy computer system was compromised and one minute I had my lesson plan and the next a blue screen!”

She knew he was upset, but she couldn’t help laughing. “Is Tom taking any classes?”

He glared at her, and then laughed. “No, but I think Tuvok must be in charge of security!” She growled and took a playful swing at him, and he ducked, laughing. “Why don’t we run away and join the circus?”

She just shook her head, smiling, and reached up for a kiss. His lips teased hers until she opened for him, and his tongue slid in to sweetly tangle with hers. She moaned and lost herself in the sensations he was creating, but she was abruptly brought back to the present by a muffled giggle. Chakotay gave her one last kiss, nipping gently at her lower lip.

“Better watch it, we'll squish him and have to make a new one.”

She laughed, but her heart skipped at his words. She wondered if he would be as thrilled as she would be if she got pregnant again. They had never talked about it, thinking of even Rhien as an unexpected blessing. It had taken nearly a year before she’d gotten pregnant with him, and she was becoming increasingly sure he would be an only child.

“Come on, enough feeling sorry for ourselves,” he said, breaking into her thoughts. He stood and pulled her up. “We've got a mess to pick up downstairs.”

She groaned and followed him down the stairs, gently bouncing Rhien. Chakotay picked up the diaper bag at the bottom, grimacing slightly at how much it weighed.

“Spirits, what’s in here? Rocks? I almost broke my neck on this thing.”

Kathryn frowned. Not only was it at the bottom of the stairs, some of the contents had fallen out and were scattered across the carpet.

“Did you kick it down the stairs on purpose?” she asked, trying and failing to keep the accusatory tone out of her voice. Chakotay stared at her.

“Kathryn! You left it lying on the landing in a dark house! If it hadn’t been for the banister, I’d be the one lying at the bottom of the stairs!”

She froze, the growl in his voice telling her with certainty that he wasn’t exaggerating. Her anger dissipated immediately as the frightening picture flashed into her mind. She clutched at his arm and the anger faded from his eyes as he pulled her close to comfort her.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered, trying to shake the image. Will there ever be a damn day that goes by that I don’t have to worry about losing him somehow?

“It’s all right,” he murmured, rubbing her back.

Before she could say anything more, Rhien laughed and grabbed a fistful of his father’s dark hair. “Dada!”

“Rhien!” She laughed at the slightly pained look on Chakotay’s face. “Daddy just started letting it grow out! You’ll make him change his mind!” She carefully unwound the hair from his tiny fist, dropping a kiss on his fingers before handing him to his father. “What if you start in here while I get dinner organized?”

Chakotay rolled his eyes and laughed. “Sure, stick me with the hazardous duty.” He lifted Rhien high so that his head was out of reach of the baby’s grasping hands. “Think I’m safe at this distance?”

She chuckled and kissed his cheek as she headed for the kitchen. She heard him talking to Rhien and half-turned just in time to hear him make fun of her cooking yet again.

“I heard that!” she called indignantly. He just laughed and she shook her head and continued on into the kitchen. Two steps in, she stopped. Her dinner—the dinner she’d waited in a long, slow-moving line to get, juggling a massive diaper bag and a wiggling, disastrously messy baby—was strewn all over the counter and the floor. And her dog—her damned dog, as Chakotay was so fond of reminding her—was crouching in the middle of the mess, with a floret of broccoli in her mouth and what looked like sweet and sour sauce on her nose. Before she could think about it, Kathryn threw her head back and screamed in frustration.

The dog cringed backward as she flung a shaking hand toward the dog door. “Kona! Bad! Dog! Out!” The dog fled for her life, and Kathryn watched, frozen with rage and so upset that she almost didn’t hear the pounding footsteps behind her.

“Oops,” she heard Chakotay tell Rhien. “Forgot to tell Mommy the doggie ate our dinner.”

Seeing red, she whirled around, barely registering that he was backing away.

“Bad doggie!” her son yelled gleefully, and her stunned but ecstatic surprise was shattered by his next words. “Damn doggie!” She glared at Chakotay who backed up a step farther and stared at her wordlessly, shock and a healthy tinge of fear in his face.

I don’t believe it! My son puts two words together, and the words he chooses are… Okay then. Have it your way, Chakotay. My damn dog, is it?

She stormed into the living room, passing Chakotay and the baby without a word as she headed for the bookshelf. Locating the book she wanted, she yanked it off the shelf and opened it to the proper page, pulling the pen out of its holder.

“Kathryn? What are you doing?”

“He put two words together,” she bit out, trying to keep herself from pressing down with the pen hard enough to rip the paper.

His jaw dropped. “You’re not putting that in his baby book, are you?”

Her eyes narrowed even further. “Yes. I am,” she said, turning her gaze on him again. A tiny part of her was satisfied when she saw him flinch slightly at the ice in her voice. “Along with who taught it to him!”

He whispered something to the baby, but she was too busy writing to listen. Rhien started to whimper and then began to cry, and at the heart-wrenching sound she sighed and tossed down the pen. Chakotay was trying to soothe the baby, bouncing him and rubbing his back, but Rhien was upset by the tension in the room, and he clutched at his father and wailed. She closed the book and set it down, standing and walking calmly over to them. She chuckled and shook her head.

“You know, B'Elanna warned us this would happen,” Kathryn said, rubbing her son’s little back as it shuddered with his sobs. “We thought it was so funny when Miral called Owen a P’tahk,” she added, wiping at Rhien’s tearstained cheeks as his crying quieted. The uneven hitching of his breath slowed and then stopped as he stared at his parents.

“I’ll bet she didn’t write it in the baby book,” Chakotay said, laughing, and though she glared at him, she knew her lips were twitching. She couldn’t stay mad at him, and it was funny.

Rhien looked between them, his dark eyes registering confusion at the rapid change in moods. Before long, the confusion faded and he laughed and reached for Kathryn. “Mama!”

Chakotay chuckled. “How ‘bout you take Laughing Boy here, and I’ll go make dinner,” he offered, handing the baby to her. “What do you want, more Chinese?”

She glared briefly in the direction of the dog door, thinking murderous thoughts. "How about filet of Irish Setter?”

“Bad doggie!”

Chakotay laughed and shook his head, kissing his son’s cheek and then his wife’s. “Yes, Rhien. Bad doggie. How ‘bout I make dinner while you clean up? Deal?”

She looked at the mess. “Deal,” she said with a sigh.

=/\= =/\= =/\=

Kathryn looked up from her padd and frowned at the muttered curse. It hadn't been in Standard, but it was definitely invective. She glanced at Rhien, who was industriously chewing on a toy as he sat on a blanket in the middle of the floor. Wonderful. He's going to teach our son to curse multilingually.

Chakotay grinned winningly at her, and she couldn’t help but grin back. She tried to return to her work, but she found herself watching Chakotay with a half-smile on her face. He was switching focus between three or four padds, frowning in concentration as he tried to reconstruct his lesson plan from his widely scattered notes. She looked down at her own padd, trying to return to organizing the lists and tables and specifications it held.

Coordinating the effort to retrieve as much data from Voyager as possible about their mission before organizing the ship's renovation as a museum was an exacting task, but it usually left her plenty of time to spend with the family she'd waited so long for. Recently though, her supervisors had been demanding more and more of her time for unnecessary busywork and duties better left to others on the project, leaving her scrambling to find enough time for both Starfleet and her family.

Chakotay growled in frustration, tossing all his padds on the sofa. She watched him as he watched their son play, an unconscious smile on his face. With a matching expression, she tried to focus on warp plasma distribution curves.

"Fyer."

Kathryn grinned as she worked. Much to Tom's delight and Chakotay's dismay, that had been Rhien's third word, after Dada and Mama. The miniature Delta Flyer--a naming gift from Tom, his godfather--was Rhien's prized possession. No matter how many toys he had—and he was acquiring a lot, thanks to all of his benefactors on Voyager’s former crew—he always returned to his Flyer before too long.

"Fyer?"

Chakotay offered him a stuffed cat instead, and she smiled as her son adamantly demanded his starship. Chakotay grumbled and stood up, and she looked up from her report to see him staring around the room with a puzzled expression, his hands on his hips. She glanced at the blanket, which now held messy but clearly delineated piles of toys. The Flyer wasn’t in sight.

"It was right there on the blanket when we left," Kathryn told him, remembering the Flyer’s adventures in the hands of its young pilot earlier in the day. She frowned. “Oh, don’t tell me I left it at Headquarters. It’s probably in his playpen in my office,” she said with a sigh. Chakotay glanced at her and then quickly looked away.

"Ah… I might have thrown it."

She raised an eyebrow, amused and exasperated at the same time. "You might have thrown it?"

"I stepped on the dam—darn thing!" he amended quickly, and she struggled not to laugh. His brow furrowed as he tugged at his ear. "Do you think he'd believe there was a spatial anomaly?" he deadpanned, and only the twinkle in his dark eyes gave him away. She laughed.

"He's ten months, Chakotay!"

He shrugged, flashing his dimples in a dazzling grin. "But he's a very bright ten months!"

“Fyer!”

Rhien had apparently waited as long as his short supply of patience would allow. He was reaching up toward his father, hands open and grasping.

“Dada! Fyer!”

Chakotay sighed. “She’s the captain, you’re the king, what am I?” he muttered, and she smiled. My angry warrior, of course. He dropped to all fours to look under the couch, and as he shifted positions to look further back, his trousers pulled flush against his body, giving her a perfect view of the outline of his ass. She grinned and leaned back to enjoy the sight, all work forgotten.

There was an indistinct sound of victory, and Chakotay moved to lie flat on his stomach, reaching as far under the sofa as he could. Kathryn smiled as Rhien noticed his father’s indefensible position and flung aside his stuffed elephant. He crawled towards his father with lightning speed, giggling as he clambered up onto Chakotay’s back, and Kathryn could no longer contain her laughter when she saw Chakotay jump in surprise. The baby was crawling all over him, and Chakotay couldn’t change position without spilling Rhien off.

“Stop laughing and help me!” came his muffled words, but she could tell he was laughing too.

Kathryn set down her padd and knelt on the floor, plucking Rhien off Chakotay’s back and leaning over to set him back on the blanket in the midst of his toys. The Flyer came whizzing by her head, and when she looked back at Chakotay it was to find him staring down her dress. She grinned and rolled her eyes at the unconcealed lust on his face. She rapped him on the head, and he looked up, raising an eyebrow at her.

“What? You expect me to believe you weren’t looking at my as—butt a minute ago?”

She grinned at him as she stood up. “Oh, that wasn’t for looking down my dress. It was for throwing his toy earlier.” She struck him gently one more time, chuckling. “And that was for throwing it again just now.”

“Sorry, beloved,” Chakotay answered with an abashed grin. “It got away from me. You know my luck with shuttles.”

Kathryn laughed and shook her head. Returning to her chair, she curled her feet under her as she retrieved her padd. The room was quiet for a while, save for the sounds of Rhien playing quietly by himself, and then the peace was shattered by baby giggles once again. She looked up to see Chakotay sprawled easily on the floor with his son, both of them laughing as they played. B'Elanna certainly picked an appropriate name for him, she thought.

She remembered the look of shock on the younger woman’s face when Chakotay had informed her that one of her duties as aunt and godmother was to name the child. She had stared at him for a moment and then nodded her head, and they had all recognized the look that had come into her eyes. It was the look she gave the particularly stubborn pieces of equipment under her care, and it had the force to melt tritanium. She’d observed the newborn baby for a few days, trying to get hints of his personality, and then she had disappeared, poring over database after database of names and roots and meanings.

Eventually, just as their families—not to mention the press—had begun to convince themselves that the child’s name was permanently to be Baby Boy Janeway, she’d come to see the new family, eyes sparkling with excitement and triumph.

“I’ve got it!” she’d said, and before they could ask, she’d said, “Rhien.”

Kathryn had liked the sound of it at once, and had liked it even more when B'Elanna had said, “It means ‘laughing’ in Latin. He may not be laughing yet, but he’s the calmest baby I’ve ever seen. Certainly less fussy than Miral,” she’d said with a smile that then turned sly. “It also means ‘little king’ in Celtic. And judging by the way everyone already treats him, I’d say it definitely fits.”

They’d gone through the traditional naming ceremonies of Chakotay’s people, as Kathryn had been more than amenable to following his traditions. As their son had grown, it had become apparent that B'Elanna had picked wisely. Rhien was a happy child, surrounded by more adoring aunts and uncles than any child had a right to have, and he was never in a room for long before his laughter filled it.

“His name fits him so well,” she said, bringing her musing out into the open to share it with Chakotay.

“Yes, it does.” Rhien corroborated his father’s agreement as he giggled again.“B'Elanna did a good job. Didn’t she, Rhien?”

“Anbe’!” Rhien exclaimed, waving the black cat in the air.

“Yes, that’s from Aunt B'Elanna.” Both parents watched as Rhien pounced on his blue block with the Delta Flyer and the black cat. Chakotay looked up at her and grinned. “There’s a strategy we didn’t try.”

“You’re the tactician, why didn’t you recommend it? Although, now that I think about it, I don’t remember seeing any black cats out there to help us,” Kathryn said with a laugh, shaking her head. “Not that I’d have turned down their help.”

Rhien, having spectacularly defeated the Borg and saved the universe from ultimate destruction yet again, crawled up onto Chakotay’s chest, giggling. He yawned, interrupting his own laughter, and Kathryn had to chuckle at the expression of puzzled wonder on his little face. It was as if the yawn had come from absolutely nowhere to attack him.

“Think it’s time somebody went to bed,” she said softly, and Chakotay nodded in agreement.

“I’ll take him up,” he said, giving Rhien a kiss. He winked at Kathryn. “He’s had a tough day. Took on a Borg cube with only the Flyer and the kitty,” he said, waving the stuffed animal in question. He dropped the toy on one of the piles on the blanket and stood, bringing their son over to her for a kiss goodnight. “You coming to bed?”

She smiled as Rhien gazed sleepily at her through heavy-lidded eyes. Now that the first yawn had escaped, he was fading fast. “Go ahead and take him up; I’ve got to finish this report,” she said. She glanced around the confusion of the living room. “I’ll clean up his majesty’s toys. Good night, my tired little boy,” she murmured, kissing him as she ran her fingers through his tumultuous mop of hair.

Chakotay cuddled the baby to him and leaned down toward her. “Don’t stay up too late,” he reprimanded her, but his face softened as he moved in to kiss her gently, a soft touch of his lips on hers. “I get lonely without you.”

Kathryn shook her head and squeezed his hand. She looked on as he headed up the stairs, rocking the baby, who was dozing off in his arms. With a sigh, she eyed the mess. She bent and started tossing every toy within reach onto the blanket as quickly as she could. She wanted to finish this so she could complete her report and go upstairs to curl up in her husband’s strong arms.

When she had relocated every toy she could find onto the play blanket, she folded it up into a makeshift carrying case and hefted it into the playpen. That would do for now. No more mysterious ‘spatial anomalies’ would occur to swallow up Rhien’s toys if there were none around for Chakotay to step on.

She tidied Chakotay’s jumble of padds into a neat pile and placed them next to his bag, knowing he would probably be in a hurry in the morning. As she did so, a glint of metal caught her eye from the back corner of the couch and she grinned, pulling the padd from its hiding spot. A quick glance at it told her it was more of his notes… probably the ones he’d been looking for earlier. She deactivated it and left it on the top of the pile as a surprise for him to find in the morning. Imagining his delighted face, she glanced ruefully at her own stack of padds and notes and reports, sighing as she thought of the work ahead of her.

With a start, Kathryn remembered something; it was something she’d realized before, but every time it struck her, it felt new. She had to remind herself of it often. This isn’t Voyager. Her continued existence and that of 150 other people was not dependent on whether or not she finished this report tonight. What was she doing wasting her time poring over data for Hayes and his unappreciative colleagues, and on her day off, no less?

Shoulders back and chin set in renewed determination, she hurried up the stairs. She stepped into Rhien’s bedroom just in time to see Chakotay pull a t-shirt out of the baby’s dresser. He half-turned as she entered.

“Done already?” he asked her, surprised.

She smiled as she came forward and placed a hand on his shoulder, gently kneading the solid muscle.

“I realized I had much more important things to do.”

Kathryn smiled as her son yawned and rubbed his eyes with his fists.

“He’s ready for bed; he’s half asleep already,” Chakotay murmured as he undressed the tired child. He chuckled. “Piloting the Flyer wore him out.”

She laughed as she flipped on the room’s intercom system, running her fingers through the baby’s hair once again. Such soft, thick hair, and black as a raven’s wing… Rhien had hair just like his father’s, although his father’s was once again shot through with the threads of silver she’d fallen in love with. She ran her fingers through her husband’s hair once for good measure, and he smiled as he pulled Rhien’s outfit off. She took the little blue jumper Chakotay handed her over to the refresher, turning when she heard Chakotay gasp.

“You’re right,” he said in a voice filled with awe.

She frowned slightly as she stepped closer to him. He turned to look at her briefly, dark eyes wide with surprise, before staring back at their son. “Right about what?”

“Black velvet… his eyes,” Chakotay said shakily, and she smiled, remembering the first time she’d shyly told him the phrase that ran through her mind every time she lost herself in his eyes. He’d smiled, and she’d been delighted to see his face flush slightly, a hint of dark red under the gold.

“Yours too,” she answered, tracing the graceful lines above his eye. “Both my men have such beautiful black velvet eyes.”

He seized her hand as she went to move away, pressing the palm of it to his lips in a gentle kiss, and she shivered. Rhien whimpered wearily, and after one last smoldering glance at her, Chakotay returned his attention to the baby.

Kathryn smiled and slipped quietly out of the room, allowing Chakotay a moment more with his son. She moved down the hall to the bathroom, grinning wickedly as plans started to form in her mind. Once in the bathroom, she gathered all of Rhien’s tub toys in a little pail, hiding them in the cupboard, from which she removed several delicately scented candles.

She turned on the taps in the tub and tested the water temperature before opening a small elegant bottle, a gift he’d recently given her, something she’d promised to share with him. Time to make good on that, she contemplated. She waved it under her nose, breathing in the subtle aroma before tipping a portion of it into the filling tub. Fragrant bubbles began to appear, and she sighed in satisfaction as she placed the candles strategically around the room and lit them. She stood for a moment and admired the soft, cozy glow they gave off. The tub was full—as full as is a good idea for two occupants, anyway, she thought with a grin, and as she bent to halt the flow of water, she felt his eyes on her.

Without turning, Kathryn slowly raised her hands to her dress and unbuttoned it, taking her time, knowing it would drive him wild. When the last button was undone, she let the dress fall, whispering across her skin as it slid gracefully down her body to the floor. She remained still for a moment in the flickering candlelight before turning her head slightly to smile seductively at him. His breathing quickened as her hands glided down her body, the body she worked hard to maintain. And it’s not as if the exercise is all unenjoyable, especially with such a willing—not to mention gorgeous—partner, she mused, feeling her stomach tighten with anticipation at the thought.

Staring into Chakotay’s dark eyes, which were heavy-lidded with desire, she stroked one hand briefly through her soft curls, feeling the ache grow unbearably within her. She held his eyes with hers for a moment longer before turning and stepping into the tub. Closing her eyes briefly and sighing softly in delight, she relaxed back into the warmth and bubbles. Her eyes fluttered open and locked onto his again, and it was his turn to grin lazily.

One raven eyebrow rose smugly as his large, skillful hands dropped to the waistband of his trousers, and she watched eagerly, her tongue flicking out to moisten her lips, as he unbuttoned them. She narrowed her eyes, practically growling in frustration when he moved his hands back up to the collar of his shirt. Tease! she thought when she saw the self-satisfied smile on his face, but she couldn’t blame him. She’d definitely been teasing him.

Chakotay removed his shirt slowly, taking his time with the buttons as she had, and she clenched her fists along the side of the tub to keep from standing and ripping it from him. Her breathing and pulse quickened as he gradually exposed the smooth, golden expanse of his chest and taut stomach. He slid the shirt off of one broad shoulder and then the other, and she nearly moaned aloud as she had a vision of curling her hands around those shoulders and holding on tightly as he pounded into her.

Finally, after sliding his trousers down his legs agonizingly slowly, he kicked them off and stood before her, resplendent in his need. Never taking his eyes from hers, he wrapped one hand around his shaft and caressed it, cupping his balls lightly with the other hand.

Kathryn knew she was panting, her desire robbing her of breath. Chakotay ambled slowly toward the tub and she eagerly slid forward to make room for him behind her. He leaned against the back, pulling her tightly toward him, and she reveled in the feeling of his skin on hers, hot and wet and slippery in the bubbles. She gasped and arched her back as his hands slid up from her belly to cup her breasts, kneading them gently. Rolling her head back, she leaned it on his shoulder.

His head came down as he kissed the delicate spot behind her ear, and she moaned.

“You know,” he murmured into her neck, “Maybe this isn’t such a bad day after all.”

His laughter echoed hers, fading into charged silence as his lips settled lovingly on her skin once more.

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