A Chequer-board of Nights and Days
By Ralkana

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

Chakotay stared around the bustling spaceport in awe. Just in the area surrounding him, he could count members of at least twenty species, and those were only the ones he recognized. He made an effort to close his mouth, realizing he was gaping like an idiot.

After all, he told himself, it’s not like you haven’t seen a spaceport before. He’d recently spent a lot of time clandestinely hanging around the spaceport on his home planet, enviously eyeing the travelers and the Starfleet officers that came and went with regularity.

But that was different. The little port that served his home planet was nothing like this massive hub here on Earth. He looked out the viewport and saw that the small transport that had brought them here from Trebus was quickly being engulfed by the traffic flow of the bigger ships around it.

He glanced at his father, relieved to see that the negotiations Kolopak was involved in seemed to be taking a while. It gave him more of a chance to observe, since he knew that as soon as his father was done securing them a guide, they’d be leaving this place without a backward glance. For the jungle. He sighed.

He rocked on his feet, briefly thrown off balance as someone brushed by him. He looked up to see a woman smiling at him in apology. He smiled hesitantly back and looked away, but the woman and her family didn’t move on. Apparently they were waiting for the transport that was leaving next from this gate. Chakotay glanced at the destination board: New Berlin, Luna. His natural curiosity about people kicked in, and he tried to take a good look at them without seeming too obvious about it.

The woman was holding a little girl by the hand, and the child looked unhappy. They stood next to a man who was scanning the crowd, obviously the woman’s husband. He was turned away from Chakotay, but the boy could see that he was wearing a Starfleet uniform, and that caught his attention immediately, as anything Starfleet always did. He noticed that all the other officers in sight were nodding politely at the man, and he came to the conclusion that the man was someone important.

In between the two adults stood a girl, probably a couple of years younger than Chakotay. She was dressed plainly, in contrast to her sister who was clothed in bright, pastel hues, and her auburn hair was pulled severely back from her face. She stood ramrod straight, and she was carrying a duffel bag with the Starfleet symbol on it. She must have felt his scrutiny because she glanced up, catching him watching her. He smiled nervously, embarrassed at being caught, and she grinned back briefly before turning away.

The younger girl tugged on her mother’s hand. "I don’t wanna go to Grandma’s, Mommy! Why do I have to? Why can’t I go with Daddy and Kay?"

The woman sighed. "I told you, honey. Your Grandma’s not feeling very well, and she wants me to go stay with her. Your father has an important meeting in a couple of weeks, and it’s better if you’re with me."

"Why does Kay get to go with him? I wanna go too!"

A brief look of annoyance crossed the older girl’s face, but it was banished quickly. Before she could say anything, the man spoke without turning around.

"Your sister is going because it’s important for her to start getting used to space travel and interacting with other cultures and species if she’s going to go into Starfleet. You’re a little young for that yet. Besides, she can use the time to brush up on her studies before her summer classes begin. Home is not exactly the quietest place for her to study with you running and screaming all over the place."

Chakotay stared at the girl with renewed respect. She was younger than he was and she was already preparing herself for Starfleet. He felt a brief twinge of fear that he would be completely unprepared and too far behind all the other cadets if he went to the Academy. He remembered the surprise on Captain Sulu’s face when Chakotay had jumped at his joking offer of Academy sponsorship. The surprise had faded as the captain had continued to question the boy, and after some time, he’d made the offer again, in earnest. Chakotay had jumped at it no less eagerly a second time.

The older girl spoke. "Yeah, brat, you make too much noise."

Her mother sighed, and said, "Edward…"

"What have I told you about calling your sister a brat?"

The girl blushed and looked at her feet. Then she stood straighter and stared her father in the eye. "Sorry, sir."

She already acts like an officer, Chakotay thought. I’ll never fit in. I should just stay home. At least there I know how to act. The little stab of fear returned as he lost himself in a brief daydream of turning up at the Academy so far behind everyone else that all of the instructors laughed at him and told him to go home.

He was rudely shaken out of his reverie as his cousin Dyami poked him in the shoulder.

"Come on, Tay. Your father’s waiting for you."

Chakotay scowled at his cousin’s retreating back. His cousins and uncle were going to a conference on desert cultivation techniques, and as boring as that sounded, he would much rather be doing that than going on this stupid trip with his father. He stared at Dyami, who was only a couple of years older than he was but was already married with a child on the way. Dyami was content to farm the small plot of land given into his care, and Chakotay’s stomach roiled at the thought of doing nothing but that for the rest of his life. He glanced back at the family waiting for the transport, and his eye fell on the girl standing proudly by her father’s side.

If she can do it, I can too, he thought, and he resolved to tell his father sometime during this stupid hike that he was going to the Academy in the fall.

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

Chakotay stormed out of his family’s cabin, stalking down the corridor. He growled, angrily thumping the bulkhead with his fist and stifling a curse when pain exploded through his hand. He fervently wished for it to be the next day. He hadn’t thought he would ever be happy to see Trebus, but now, when he couldn’t get away from the accusing looks of his father, his uncle, and his cousins, he longed for his homeworld with all of his heart. One more day, he repeated to himself like a mantra. Tomorrow we’ll be home. At least on Trebus, he could retreat into the hills for some solitude.

This transport was bigger than the one that had taken them to Earth, as it had several more stops on its route. It even had a small mess hall, and he headed there, hoping that something to eat would calm his nerves and soothe his temper.

He heard his mother’s quiet laughter in his head. Eating will not solve your problems, my son. It will only make you too fat to run away from them, she would say when, angry and in a foul mood, he’d march into the kitchen and ask her what there was to eat. He smiled wistfully. He’d missed her calming presence terribly over the last six weeks, and he couldn’t wait to see her again. He felt like such a child for missing her so much, but he couldn’t help it. He wondered what she would say when she heard his news, and his face clouded as his troubled thoughts came rushing back.

Chakotay longed for someone, anyone, to talk to about his decision, anyone who wouldn’t stare and shake their head, call him a contrary, foolish child. He was already unsure enough about his decision, and his family’s condemnation of him was not helping at all. He needed someone to tell him he was making the right choice, and there was no one around who would do so. He’d already decided not to go several times, but he was a contrary, and each time his determination faltered, it returned stronger than ever. He would go, if only to show them all that he could do it.

He entered the mess hall and stopped short. It was empty, except for one person. She was there again, the girl from the spaceport, with her padds spread all over a table, working intently. It seemed like she was always there. He’d been shocked to see her and her father board the transport on Earth but had assumed they were heading for one of the ship’s earlier stops. When the ship had pulled away from its last scheduled stop before Trebus with them still on board, he’d been bewildered, wondering what an important Starfleet man like her father could possibly have to do on Trebus. Patrol ships were one thing, but as far as he could tell, the girl’s father was an admiral. He wondered briefly why they weren’t on a Starfleet ship, but his musing ended as a little voice in him suddenly woke up.

You could talk to her! it said. She’ll talk to you about Starfleet! He had already dismissed the idea, heading for the replicator, when he stopped. Why not? It couldn’t hurt. All she can say is no, and in any case, after tomorrow, you’ll never see her again. He pivoted sharply on his heel and went over to her table.

"Hello," he said hesitantly.

The girl slowly looked up from her padd, frowning. "Yes?"

Chakotay felt like an idiot. "I’m sorry," he said, mortified to hear himself stammer. "I… you’re busy. I shouldn’t have disturbed you. Excuse me," he finished, abruptly turning away.

"Wait!" she exclaimed, and her hand shot out to grab his wrist. Surprised at the contact, he turned back, and she let go of him, suddenly flustered. He noted with a relieved glance that she had flushed; at least he wasn’t the only one embarrassed.

"That was rude of me," she said with a crooked smile. "Please, sit down. I could use a break."

He sat, and they stared wordlessly at each other for a few moments.

"Would you like something to drink?" he finally asked, desperate for something to say.

"A glass of water would be nice, thank you," she said, just as relieved. He hastily stood and went toward the replicator, and she watched him as he went. She wondered briefly why he was interested in talking to her. She idly took note of how handsome he was, and she thought of how the softness of his voice had surprised her. She would have expected it to be rougher for some reason. She frowned at herself. She really should be doing her work, but she’d been telling him the truth. She needed a break.

He came back with a glass of water for her, and what looked like tea for himself.

"So," he said, having used the few moments by himself to regroup. "What are you studying?"

She grimaced. "The history of Vulcan epidemiology. It’s for my summer xenobiology class…"

She continued speaking, and Chakotay nodded, hoping like hell that he looked interested. Inwardly he was panicking. If this is what she’s studying now, what will she be studying in four or five years when she’s ready to apply to the Academy?!

The girl prattled on for a while before noticing the slightly glazed look in his eyes. She laughed and stopped.

"I’m sorry. It doesn’t even interest me. I don’t know why it would interest you."

He grinned, and she noticed his dimples. He looked a lot different when he smiled. She’d noticed him around the transport, but he’d always looked sullen and angry.

"Science isn’t really my best subject," he said. "Sorry. I’m Tay," he said, and then frowned briefly, wondering why he’d given her his childhood name.

She laughed and then noticing his frown deepen, stopped. "Oh!" she said. "I’m not laughing at your name… it’s just… I’m Kay," she said, and this time he laughed.

"Your father’s in Starfleet, isn’t he?" he asked nonchalantly after a moment. She looked surprised, and then a little wary.

"Yes… how did you know?"

"I’ve seen him around the transport. I recognize the uniform."

She drew herself up proudly. "He’s an admiral."

"Why aren’t you traveling on a Starfleet ship?"

Kay scowled. "There weren’t any traveling in the right direction at the time, and besides… no children allowed. One day I’ll be on a Starfleet ship," she said wistfully, and then she snapped back to herself, realizing how childish that sounded. "Sorry."

He grinned. "No need to be sorry. I’m joining Starfleet. Going to the Academy," he said, hoping he sounded proud and not scared. "In the fall."

Her look of co-conspiracy faded into laughter. "But you’re not old enough!" she said and immediately realized when his face darkened that it was the wrong thing to say.

"My sponsor thinks I am," he said, and the friendliness had left his voice. Now it was hard and cold. A little bit of the teasing light left her eyes, replaced by what looked like envy.

"You’ve got a sponsor already?" she asked. He was serious about joining Starfleet if he had a sponsor.

"I’ve got more than that. I’ve got an acceptance letter."

Now she really was stunned. "You’ve been accepted? Wow," she remarked, and the envy was now completely out in the open. "Congratulations. That’s impressive. Your parents must be very proud," she said, thinking of what her father would say if she managed to get accepted at the Academy in a couple of years. It was still the wrong thing to say; the smile that had been forming disappeared. He stared down into his mug, and the silence grew uncomfortable.

"I’m going to apply to the Academy too," she said, "But not for a few years yet. I don’t think I’m nearly ready enough. You must be really smart."

He smiled, but she thought she saw something like fear flash in his dark eyes. "I don’t know about that," he said, "But thanks."

"What track are you going to pick?"

Chakotay frowned. "Track?"

She let out a surprised little laugh. "What are you going to specialize in? I’m going to do science, probably astrophysics."

He thought quickly about his own interests. "Probably anthropology."

"But that’s on the science track… you said you don’t like science."

His frown deepened. "Tactics, then. I don’t know," he said angrily, rubbing his forehead with one hand. "Excuse me," he said, abruptly standing and going over to the viewport, where he stood stiffly with his arms crossed, staring out at the stars.

Kay watched him for a moment, surprised, and then followed him. She tentatively placed a hand on his shoulder, and he sighed.

"My father thinks I’m a fool," he said, and there was pain and anger in his voice. "He thinks I’m betraying the ways of my people by joining Starfleet. My whole family thinks I’m making a mistake, and I’m sure the rest of my village will too. Maybe they’re right. I don’t know nearly enough to be in Starfleet. You know more than I do, and you’re not applying for several years. It was stupid of me to think I could do this."

She said nothing, and he was suddenly extremely embarrassed to be pouring all this out to her.

"I’m sorry. I don’t know why I’m telling you all this," he said.

"You have a sponsor," she replied steadily. "He thinks you’re good enough for Starfleet. Starfleet thinks you’re ready, or they wouldn’t have accepted you. Not everyone who applies to the Academy gets in. If they’ve accepted you, especially at your age, then you must be good. Don’t let anyone tell you different."

He turned to her, dark eyes wide and bright. "Thank you," he said sincerely. "I really needed someone to tell me that." He smiled at her, dimples flashing.

Wow, he really is cute, she thought, suddenly nervous about being so close to him. She gestured toward the table with a question in her eyes, and he nodded. They returned and sat down again.

"Your father’s an admiral," he said suddenly. "You must know a lot about Starfleet. Tell me about it, please," he asked, and there was an enthusiasm bordering on desperation in his voice.

"What do you want to know?"

"Everything," he said, and she chuckled.

"Okay… I’ll tell you what my dad’s told me about life at the Academy. You’re going to need to know it all soon."

She began to speak, and he sat, chin in hand, drinking in every word, gazing at her with those dark, piercing eyes. She wasn’t sure how long she spoke, but he went to the replicator several times to fetch them more to drink. Kay stopped suddenly, aware of a new presence.

There was an older man standing at Tay’s shoulder; he had silver hair and intriguing blue lines upon his brow. He was wearing homespun clothes like Tay’s, woven fabrics in earth tones that accentuated their golden skin. He glanced at Kay and then turned to the boy and engaged him in conversation. Kay watched the exchange with curiosity, idly wondering if she could manage to surreptitiously extract her universal translator from the bottom of her bag. Then she chided herself for being nosy; it was none of her business what they were saying to each other.

It took a moment for Chakotay to realize Kay had stopped speaking. He shook himself out of the incredible world her words had been building around him and noticed his father standing there.

"Chakotay, the girl obviously has work to do. You should not be bothering her."

Chakotay felt a flash of irritation. You’re the one bothering us. "We were talking, Father. If she wanted me to leave her alone, she would have said so."

"Your cousins were wondering where you had gone."

"They can talk about farming methods without me. I’m busy."

Kolopak frowned. "You should not be so dismissive of their interests."

"Why not? They’re dismissive of mine!" He bit his lip before he could say anything more. He had been brought up to respect his elders, and he tried to maintain that respect, though his father sometimes angered him past his point of tolerance.

"You should return to the cabin. It’s almost time for the evening meal."

"I’m in the middle of a conversation, Father. I’ll be there in a little while."

Kolopak stared at him for a second longer and then turned and left the mess hall. Chakotay turned back to Kay.

"Sorry."

"Was that your father?"

"Yes."

"Was that your native language?"

"Yes."

"It’s very beautiful."

"Thanks."

She tried again. "Your Standard is very good."

"Thanks."

"That’s an interesting tattoo your father has."

"No it’s not! It’s stupid. Just another damn tradition to follow. He can’t get enough of the old ones, so he has to create new ones. Well I’ll never take it—" he said angrily, stopping when he saw the surprise in her wide blue eyes. He took a deep breath, letting it out slowly and letting his anger out with it.

"I’m sorry. He just makes me so angry sometimes."

"It’s okay," she said with a smile, though she was taken aback by the quiet intensity of his anger.

"You were saying?"

She thought for a moment about what she had been saying before they had been interrupted and then continued her narrative. She smiled a little bit when she saw how quickly Tay got lost in her words. He was a very good listener.

The mess hall slowly began to fill around them, but neither noticed. Her voice grew raspy and he brought her some tea, sweet and cold, but the dark eyes pleaded with her not to stop talking. She spoke until she once again noticed his father standing there.

"Chakotay, it’s time to eat. Return with me to our cabin."

"I’ll eat here, Father."

His father’s eyes grew hard. "You will do no such thing. You will come with me and eat with your family, where you belong."

"But—"

"I won’t tell you again. Say goodbye to the girl."

Chakotay stood angrily, but before he could argue, there was another presence and another voice.

"Katie, it’s time for dinner."

"Oh!" Kay stood up. "Yes, sir," she said, shoving padds into her bag. She looked at Tay. "I’m sorry," she said. "I have to go. But it was very nice talking to you. Good luck. And remember what I said." She purposely dropped a padd on the floor and bent down as he did to pick it up. "You’re good enough," she murmured, and he smiled gratefully.

"Thanks," he whispered.

She waved at him and turned to follow her father out of the room. Chakotay smiled and waved back, but his smile vanished as his father spoke.

"You could learn something from her, son. She shows proper respect toward her elders."

Kay turned back one last time to smile at him, but it faded when she saw his clenched fists and the anger blazing in his eyes. "Good luck, Tay," she whispered to herself.

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

Captain Janeway paced before her ready room viewport, wishing desperately for a cup of coffee and knowing that she couldn’t spare the replicator energy. What have I done?! was the main thought screaming through her brain.

Her door chimed, and she took a deep breath, moving to stand before her desk. She wasn’t at all sure how this meeting was going to go. She turned toward the door, banishing her trepidation behind her captain’s mask.

"Come in."

Tuvok stepped in first, followed closely by the Maquis leader, who was glaring at the back of the Vulcan’s head.

"Thank you, Tuvok. That will be all."

The Vulcan paused and raised an eyebrow, but she stared him down. After a moment, he nodded and left. Janeway turned to her adversary turned temporary ally. Though they weren’t standing as close as they had been when he’d first beamed to Voyager, the tension was nearly a tangible entity in the air.

Janeway eyed him for a moment, assessing him. Her eye fell once again on the dark, elegant lines arching over his brow, and she felt a wealth of sorrow for the past, recalling what the presence of those lines represented. He steadily returned her gaze, his black eyes boring straight through her.

"Commander," she began, and he stiffened.

"I would prefer it if you didn’t call me that, Captain. I’m no longer a commander in your Starfleet. My crew calls me Captain."

She paused for a moment, regrouping. "Very well, Captain. First of all, I wanted to thank you for supporting my decision to destroy the array," she said, hoping he couldn’t hear the tremor in her voice. "It defused a potentially volatile situation."

He nodded once, though his face remained impassive. "I would not have stood by and allowed the Ocampa to lose their home and their lives to the oppression and tyranny of the Kazon."

He made the last word sound like a particularly virulent disease, and the corner of her mouth quirked up in a tiny grin. "No, I don’t suppose you would have, all things considered. I have a proposal for you, Captain Chakotay."

He said nothing, simply watching with those dark eyes while she paced. He’s a good listener, she thought. I remember that much.

"We have two captains, two crews, and one ship. We are a very, very long way from home. If we are going to survive and find a way home, we’re going to have to put aside our differences and unify our crews. It won’t be easy, but it’s necessary."

"‘Put aside our differences,’" he repeated quietly, with a mocking edge to his voice. "You make it sound as if we’ve disagreed on the outcome of a velocity match."

She sighed. "Captain, I realize that it’s much more serious than that. Ostensibly, we are on opposite sides of the current conflict in the Alpha Quadrant, but we are not in the Alpha Quadrant—"

"Ostensibly?"

"My feelings about affairs at home are not as cut and dry as yours apparently are—"

"What would you know of my feelings, Captain? What would you know of my life? You know nothing of the Cardassians, what they did to my family, my home!"

Though his voice grew no louder, his ire was unmistakable. His fists clenched and had she not been just as angry, she might have discreetly retreated behind her desk. As it was, her blue eyes grew steely, and she straightened up, raising her chin as she spoke.

"You say I know nothing of your life, and yet you assume that you know mine. I understand better about the Cardassians than you might expect, Captain. I was a guest of theirs at one time."

He tamped down his anger, relaxing his stance, but tension still radiated from him. "I’m sorry," he said softly, and it was a sincere, if simple, statement.

She nodded once, accepting his apology. "I am truly sorry for the loss of your family and your home, Captain." She hesitated for a moment, unsure of her next step, but her mind was quickly made up. "Your homeworld was a beautiful planet," she said, and he stared at her, surprised.

"You’ve been to Trebus?"

Janeway watched him carefully, determined to correctly gauge his reaction.

"Yes, I was there, but only once, when I was much younger. I was traveling with my father, a Starfleet admiral. He was determined to properly prepare me for life in Starfleet. I spent most of the trip studying in the transport’s mess hall. I met an intriguing young man there, the day before we arrived at Trebus."

The color had drained from his face as she spoke, and at her last sentence, he dropped heavily into the chair before her desk, rubbing a hand over his face.

"Kay," he whispered. He looked up at her and there was astonishment in his eyes. She smiled at him, remembering clearly the boy she’d spent an afternoon talking to. He was there… he was hidden behind the rage and the grief, but he was there; she could see him in the wealth of emotions flickering in Chakotay’s eyes.

"The very same," she murmured.

"Spirits, you don’t know how often I’ve thought of her… Every time I felt like giving in, giving up, which was often, I remembered how she’d had more confidence in me after knowing me for an hour than my father ever showed me. Her few words of encouragement kept me going when I got nothing but disapproval at home."

"I probably thought of Tay just as often, wondering what had become of him. When I was given this mission and I read the background of the dangerous rebel I was supposed to apprehend, I had pretty much the same reaction you just did.

"I understand your fight, Captain," she said. "I saw your home, and it was beautiful, but more than that, I remember a young man who revered Starfleet so much that he sat for hours and listened to me say anything and everything about it. I believe that I can somewhat comprehend the betrayal you must have felt." She saw him open his mouth and raised a hand, stopping him. "I said ‘somewhat.’ I know that I cannot completely comprehend it, and you’ll forgive me if I say that I hope never to be able to.

"You did what you felt you had to do to protect your home, and as a Starfleet officer, I’ve done nothing less," she continued, "And that includes taking this mission. Believe me, Captain; had I found you in the Alpha Quadrant, I would have completed my mission, though it would have distressed me greatly to do so. We aren’t there, however. We’re here."

She moved behind her desk and sat, allowing him some time to absorb everything she’d thrown at him. After a few moments, he looked up at her, steepling his fingers in front of him. His bewilderment and anger had vanished, replaced by an outward calm she envied. As she watched him, however, she became aware that the tension was still there, carefully hidden and coiled tightly like a spring. She wondered what it would take to snap that spring and hoped she would never find out.

"What do you propose, Captain?"

Janeway took a deep breath. Here goes…

"My first officer was killed when the Caretaker brought us here. You and I need some way to unify our crews. I would like for you to be my first officer, and together, we’ll take responsibility for merging the crews and getting them all home."

Chakotay looked at her and blinked a couple of times. Evidently, she’d surprised him again.

"You’re asking a Maquis captain to be first officer on a Starfleet ship."

"Yes… if you accept my offer, I’ll reinstate your Starfleet rank as a provisional field commission—"

"What makes you think I’d want another Starfleet commission, field or otherwise?" The contempt in his voice was clearly audible, and Janeway sighed.

"I know that you are disenchanted with Starfleet," she said, ignoring his hollow laugh with difficulty as she continued, "But this is a Starfleet ship. It needs to be run in accordance with Starfleet rules and regulations, and that means all of its crew—including the first officer—must be members of Starfleet."

"So you expect all of my people to… ‘provisionally’ join Starfleet."

"Yes—"

"And if they do, will they be consigned to the lower decks for however long it will take us to get home, scrubbing plasma manifolds the whole way?"

Janeway paused for a moment, unsure of what to say. She’d been focused on securing his agreement to the proposal and hadn’t stopped to consider what she would do with his crew if he could actually manage to persuade them not to try and overtake the ship. The hesitation was brief, and she was fairly sure he hadn’t noticed it.

"Of course not. Many of Voyager’s crew were killed by the displacement wave, and in order to properly crew the ship, promotions are imminent. If your people are up to the task, I will give them an equal chance at the positions that need to be filled. You have my word, Captain, that the Maquis will be treated fairly on this ship."

He watched her silently again, but she thought she could detect a flicker of uncertainty and resignation in his eyes.

"You trusted my word enough at one point, Captain, to let it carry you through some tough times. You have trusted it since we were thrown together here in the Delta Quadrant, and that allowed us to successfully work together to get our people back. I’m asking you to trust me again. I will not betray you or your people, and this is the only way we have any chance of getting home."

After a moment more of quiet reflection, he nodded, and she barely stifled her sigh of relief. He stood as she did. She offered him her hand, and he took it, his large hand completely engulfing hers as they sealed the deal.

"Thank you, Commander Chakotay," she said, and although his eyes flickered angrily at the rank, he said nothing. "I’ll update the ship’s records to reflect your new position as soon as we’re done here. I’m sure you’d like to take some time to get cleaned up, and we have many repairs to get started on, so let’s finish this as quickly as possible." She sighed, thinking of the difficult task ahead of them.

"I realize that this won’t be easy for any of our crew… after all, we are asking them to trust and work with people they think of as adversaries, and they do not have a past acquaintance—however brief—to fall back on. I’m particularly concerned, however, with the safety of two crewmembers in particular: Lieutenant Tuvok and Tom Paris."

The anger flared back into his eyes at the mention of those two names. He rolled his shoulders and one hand came up to tug at his ear as he half-turned and stared out the viewport. Eventually, he turned back to her.

"Tuvok can take care of himself," he said in a soft, dangerous voice. "As for Paris…"

If he’d made the word "Kazon" sound like a disease, he made the pilot’s name sound like a global plague.

"I’ll make sure he isn’t ‘accidentally’ injured or killed. I owe him that much."

"Thank you. I’m sure he’ll be appreciative," she said, with a hint of a grin at the exasperated resignation in his voice. "I think that’s all. Once Voyager is repaired and underway, we can begin meeting to determine the permanent placement of all our crew. For now, it might be best if you just assigned Voyager’s new crew to wherever you think they can do the most help. We can go down to the cargo bay now to inform them of the latest developments," she said, moving around the desk. He moved slightly, marginally blocking her path with his body.

"I think it might be better, Captain, if I alone tell them what’s going on."

She searched his face, ultimately nodding. "Very well. After you’re finished, return to the bridge, and I’ll put out a shipwide call to tell the rest of Voyager’s crew."

He nodded and moved around her, and on impulse, she put a hand on his arm, stopping him. He turned to look at her, surprised.

"I don’t think I’ve told you, Commander, what a pleasant afternoon I had that day so long ago. I hope, when things have calmed and Voyager is on her way home, that we have the opportunity to do it again."

He smiled slowly, and the transformation to his features was incredible. Her breath caught in her throat. Oh, the dimples… how could I have forgotten about those? She felt the corners of her lips tugging up involuntarily in response to his smile.

"Thank you, Captain. I think I’d like that. Now, if you’ll excuse me…" he trailed off, and she nodded. He headed again for the door. Just before he reached the threshold, he turned back to her. "Chakotay," he said, and she stared at him, confused. He smiled again, dimples flashing, and said, "My friends call me Chakotay."