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

Just in case you don’t know (it took me a while to figure it out), a drabble is a story of exactly 100 words, not counting the title. They’re fun, but they can be challenging!

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

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Commotion (12/11/01)

Chakotay stood so quickly that his chair fell over with a crash. Sandrine’s grew quiet as everyone turned to see the source of the commotion. He was oblivious, his dark gaze fixed on Kathryn’s smiling eyes.

"Could you please repeat that, Kathryn?" he asked softly. "I don’t think I heard you correctly the first time."

Kathryn glanced at the apprehensive faces around her. She wasn’t sure she wanted to make this public so soon.

Of course you do! Why else would you have told him here?!

Laughing, she stood and grabbed his hands.

"You’re going to have a son, Chakotay!"

Who? (12/11/01)

"Commander, may I see you in my ready room?"

Those words hold such mystery.

Who will she be when I enter her sanctuary?

Will she be Kathryn? Warm and playful, beautiful and carefree. A woman, a friend, an equal. Almost a lover once… my spirit cries out for that time.

Or will she be The Captain? Harsh and demanding, cold and impersonal. Barely a person… nothing feminine or likable, hardly even recognizably human. I have seen too much of her lately. She is stealing my Kathryn’s spirit day by day.

Who will she be?

Time to find out.

"Aye, Captain."

A Little Skirmish (12/12/01)

In the mess hall, Kathryn mercilessly teased Chakotay, sliding the spoonful of ice cream slowly across her lips. She ran the tip of her tongue over the cold metal, closing her eyes. Chakotay was very still, his hands clasped on the tabletop. He leaned forward and placed his lips by her ear, murmuring softly, with barely a hint of a smile. Nobody else could hear his words, but they enjoyed the effect. Kathryn grew very red as she fought for breath. She jumped up, dragging Chakotay out of the room as the crew laughed. They knew who’d won that round.

Those Eyes (12/12/01)

He’s watching me with those eyes again.

Damn. How am I supposed to concentrate with him staring into my soul like that? I wonder if he knows how much those eyes affect me. I’ve certainly seen how much I affect him, when we had to hurriedly leave the ready room during a red alert. It was… educational.

Those eyes… How can he say so much without any words? They undress me, caress me, love me, and revere me.

They distract me.

"Commander, you have the bridge."

"Aye, Captain."

I can feel those eyes on me even in my ready room.

Domestic Disturbance (12/12/01)

They’re at it again.

From the helm, I can feel the charged silence behind me spread across the bridge like ripples in a pond. Soon it’ll spread through the entire ship.

We all hate it when they fight. That sounds stupid, like we’re kids and they’re our parents, but that’s exactly how it is. Nobody can stand to be around anyone else when they’re arguing.

At least parents get to have wild make-up sex afterwards. With them, things just limp on and on until another DQ crisis forces them to work together again.

I find myself praying for a crisis.

Chakotay groaned, head pounding, and hugged his pillow closer. It sighed, and snuggled into him.

He and Kathryn jumped up in unison, both staring in horror.

She watched as emotions warred over his expressive features.

Finally he said softly, "Kathryn, I’m afraid I don’t remember what we did last night."

A hurt expression crossed her features, but it was quickly followed by a snort of laughter. "I don’t either," she said wryly. Then she extended her hand. "But I’m sure we can refresh our memories…"

The last thing she remembered was his wolfish grin as he leapt across the bed.

I wanted to say no.

I wanted to tell her she had waited too long, kept me dangling forever, hurt me beyond belief. I wanted to lash out, hurt her, wound her as she had wounded me.

Want became word and word became action. I paced, ranting, spitting out years of frustration and anger.

She sat, silently, absorbing everything. And there, there was that single damned tear, sliding down her cheek. Same as last time.

Then, she was in my arms, and I was rocking, soothing, comforting her.

I hated her for it, even as my spirit sang with joy.

"Commander…"

"Captain?"

"Kindly remove your hand."

"Of course, Captain."

"That is not an acceptable resting place, either."

"Sorry, Captain. Better?"

"Chakotay."

"Yes, love?"

"We’re on duty."

"Not yet."

"What?"

"Shift doesn’t start for another three minutes."

"Nevertheless, we are in the turbolift, and I really don’t want to arrive on the bridge with your hand on my – "

…

"Chakotay, turbolift make-out sessions are for ensigns, not command teams."

"I’m sorry, Captain. You’re beautiful and sexy as hell; I couldn’t help it. I promise I won’t do it again until tonight."

"Commander."

"Yes, Captain?"

"Ready room, fifteen minutes."

"Aye, Captain."

"Set a course," she ordered, "For home."

Chakotay turned to her and said, "Kathryn."

"I beg your pardon, Commander?"

"Kathryn," he repeated.

"I would appreciate it if you would address me as ‘Captain’ on my bridge, Mister!"

He reached out to shake her shoulder, saying, "Kathryn!"

She came awake with a start, disoriented at first, but gradually snuggling back into the strong arms that lovingly held her. "What happened?" she asked fuzzily.

"You were on Voyager again," he said with a dimpled grin. "Gods, you haven’t called me ‘Commander’ in years," he mused.

"Sorry, Chakotay," she murmured, already asleep again.

"Tom…"

"So, Har, how was gam – "

"Tom!"

"What, B’E? I was talking... oh my. Don’t look, Harry; you’re too young to see that!"

"What? I can’t see! Oh my god! She’s eating him alive!"

"That’s one way of putting it. Kahless! Guess she got sick of Seven making moves on her man."

"Seven wouldn’t do that!"

"Please, Harry. Hey, Neelix, d’you spike her coffee?"

"Not today, Tom. That’s all her. This will do wonders for morale, though!"

"It’s sure doing wonders for Chakotay’s... ow, B’E! Hi, Captain, Commander."

"Mr. Paris… don’t mind Commander Chakotay; he’s still catching his breath."

A Perfect Day (5/3/02)
I had a good day and thought
Kathryn deserved one too.

It's just been one of those rare days when everything's gone smoothly, Kathryn thought as she finally drifted off. There were no shortages, no malfunctions, no hostile enemies. There was lighthearted banter on the bridge, and Neelix had forgotten to add leola root to his latest concoction. But the best part had been the smile. Her best friend and confidante – oh, and first officer – had once again shown her his love. No roses, candles, or heartfelt declarations. Just warm, dark eyes and a wide, dimpled grin when she’d said good night. Yes, she thought, that smile made the day perfect.

Miracle Worker (6/20/02)
Written for Daffnie's Daughter of
the Empire Drabble Contest

B’Elanna stormed out of her office, muttering under her breath.

"Three hours... she wants it done in three hours. Impossible... What does she think I am, a damn miracle worker?! Nobody could do it that fast!"

Suddenly, she caught sight of one of the flickering displays. Doing a quick calculation in her head, she whirled around and yelled, "Carey! Modulate the intake through relays 22 and 25 and shut down the internal bypasses!"

She watched the display, smiling in grim satisfaction as it began to change. Three hours... with any luck, she’d have it done in two and a half.

Keeping up Appearances (08/02/02)
Written for the Unimatrix Zero contest
at Love Through The Years

They all watched him carefully as he led the staff meeting, calm and composed as always. Only his dark eyes betrayed the pain he was in, the fear that threatened to overwhelm him.

He dismissed the senior staff – those still present on the ship – but turned back to them before they could leave. Something like a smile flirted over his drawn face, but it was gone before it could even fully take hold.

"Harry," he said, and his voice was soft and far away. "Talk to maintenance. See that the carpets are cleaned. Especially the one in the ready room."

Healing (09/05/02)
For JoJo. Hope you feel better soon!

“Kathryn, please.”

“I’m fine, Chakotay.” She turned, not wanting to see the plea in his eyes.

“Please go see the Doctor. You’re not feeling well.”

“I hate Sickbay.”

He laughed. “I know. But as much as you hate it, you always feel better afterwards, don’t you?”

“The Doctor’s so… smug.”

He kissed her cheek. “You know I’d kiss it better if I could.”

She leaned into him. “Mmm. Your kisses heal me more than you know.”

“If you go to Sickbay, I’ll kiss everything better when you get back.”

She glared at him. “Blackmailer,” she muttered, heading for the door.