Title: Overstepping Boundaries
Rating: R
Pairing: Janeway/Paris, Janeway/Chakotay
Warnings: Adult Language, Sexual Situations, Mild Violence, Disturbing Medical Stuff
Season/Episode: 2, Resolutions and Basics 1&2. Some Mosaic canon is used.
Disclaimer: Star Trek Voyager is the property of Paramount Pictures and other large companies. I am in no way connected to these companies. In other words, I Do Not Own.
A/N: I know the episode Resolutions is scared to Janeway/Chakotay shippers. I am a huge shipper of them also. However, I am also a Janeway/Paris shipper, and wanted to try writing my first fanfic of that pairing. So, I wondered what it would have been like if someone with Paris's personality was stranded with Janeway.
A/N 2: This was originally posted on my AO3 account in October 2014.
Kathryn Janeway came from a long, long line of distinguished Starfleet officers. It is because of this that she grew up learning the regulations, guidelines, and ideals of the institution. It was a great head start to the Academy learning. When she actually got to be in charge, she learned that sometimes she had to be flexible. This was especially true since Voyager became stranded in the Delta Quadrant.
One of the guidelines that she did not mind making flexible was the one about Commanding Officers and away missions. Starfleet felt that COs were safer and had better things to do than go on a routine away mission. For the most part, she felt that this was true. There was no shortage of things that needed her attention on the ship.
But she was going stir crazy! She needed a few hours on a planet.
This was why she was currently assisting Neelix's team gather foodstuffs on an uninhabited planet.
It was a beautiful planet. Undisturbed by habitation, there were lush green forests and valleys. The water was incredibly blue. If she had allowed the emotion in, it would have made her homesick.
"Beautiful, isn't it?" Lieutenant Tom Paris's voice cut through her thoughts. He was partnered with her to search the nearby forest for food.
"Indeed it is. Well, shall we?" She asked, walking down a small hill to the forest.
"Not really. Do you know what we are after?" He asked her.
"Some kind of plant." She had listened to that part of Neelix's instructions.
"It's a moss. A 'lovely green moss that really spices up stews and soups'."
Janeway suppressed a shudder. While Neelix was a definite asset to their crew, some of his ideas of what was edible greatly differed from the rest of the crew.
"How would he know if he's never been here?"
"Word of mouth."
"Well, let's not put it down before we try it." She said, trying to give him the benefit of the doubt. Tom's look showed that he did not believe her.
The trees were not dense, so the light was only a little dimmed. Thorny vines hung from some of the branches, and she saw some insects land and drink sap from them. She motioned for Tom to avoid the vines and they carefully walked into the forest.
"The moss grows on a certain type of tree…" Tom started. He pointed to a lovely tree with deep green needles. Sure enough there was moss growing on the trunk. It was several feet in, and some vines were close enough to make her a little nervous.
She took the sample container from Tom, and carefully stepped through the ground cover to the tree. She scraped some of the moss into the container and sealed the lid. Turning, her foot got caught in a small shrub, and she fell right into some of the vines. Their sharp thorns pierced right through her uniform into her skin, and she screamed. The pain was unbelievable, and she thrashed around, trying to free herself, and escape the pain. It backfired, the vines tightened, and she not only had punctures, but long slashes in her skin.
"Captain. Captain! Stop moving!" Tom ordered, trying to help her. She held as still as possible, and he cut through the vines, freeing her. She stood silently shaking and he put an arm around her, helping her to walk out of the forest. She sat down on the grass and tried to pull herself together. It definitely wasn't the worst pain she had felt, but it was bad.
"Some of these look pretty deep." Tom told her, examining her wounds.
"I'm ok." She claimed, her voice shaking and betraying her.
"Captain—" He was interrupted by Ensigns Ayala and Hogan running down the hill, phasers drawn.
"We heard screaming." Ayala said.
"Relax. The only enemy is vicious vines in that forest." Tom said.
"Sentient vines?"
"No, just thorny." Tom explained, not mentioning her tripping. She was thankful.
"Captain, are you alright?" Hogan asked carefully. He was looking at her lacerations with concern.
She glanced down at her arm and was surprised by what she saw. The laceration was not just a deep puncture or scratch. It was inflamed, and she saw the signs of infection forming deep inside. Looking up, she locked eyes with Tom, who also looked worried. He had several scratches on his arms and chest.
She activated her combadge. "Janeway to Voyager."
"Voyager here." Ensign Harry Kim's voice answered.
"Can you beam Lieutenant Paris and me to Sickbay?"
"Right away, Captain."
The white transporter beam enveloped her, and she then found herself in Sickbay.
"Please state the nat—Oh my." The Doctor hurried up to her and Tom, while Kes led them over to bio beds. "This is why Captains do not go on away missions."
"Enough, Doctor." She ordered, tiredly. All of her energy seemed to be draining away. Kes was helping her out of her jacket and turtleneck. The material stuck to her skin because of the blood, and she hissed as it was pulled away.
"What were you attacked by?" The Doctor asked.
"Vines with thorns." Tom replied from the next bio bed, his back turned to give her some sense of privacy.
"I see…" The Doctor murmured and motioned to Kes. "Clean them up."
The Ocampan woman wiped away some of the blood and began to run a regenerator over the cuts.
"Some of these are really deep." Kes observed in her quiet voice.
"Really big thorns." Tom put in.
Janeway smiled in spite of the pain. "One reason why I have never liked gardening. Too many things that can hurt you."
"Yet, you wanted on the away team to the planet with the evil vines."
"Apparently you did too. You volunteered. There was no need for a pilot on the team."
"Touché, Captain." Tom admitted.
Kes finished with her arms and front, and asked her to lie down and roll over onto her stomach, so that she could repair her back and legs. She hadn't realized just how badly she was injured.
She pillowed her head on her arms and glanced over at Tom. He had removed his jacket and turtleneck, and was watching The Doctor with tired disinterest. She felt guilty for getting him injured also.
"Tom?" She called. He turned and looked at her. "Thank you."
"No problem, Captain." He replied with a smile.
Her energy was completely gone now, and she felt like falling asleep. She let her eyes drift closed while Kes worked. A slightly dull ache began to form in her chest. Apparently the adrenaline was gone, and she was feeling her battle.
"Doctor." Kes called.
"What is it?" she sensed The Doctor approach her, but she couldn't be bothered to open her eyes.
"Her temperature has steadily risen since she arrived." There was a pause. "Tom's too. Could it be an allergic reaction to the vines?"
"I don't think so." The Doctor replied. She felt a hand shake her. "Captain? Wake up!" She opened her eyes. "How do you feel?"
"Tired." She answered, her words slurring. "Hurts." She let her eyes drift closed.
"What hurts?" She was shaken again. It irritated her. Didn't they see that she wanted to be left alone?
"Chest. Arms. Legs." There. She had answered.
An alarm began to sound from the readout. Another alarm sounded nearby.
"It's not an allergic reaction at all. It's an unknown pathogen. Come, we need to get them isolated until we know if it is contagious.
She should care. It was her ship, she was the captain. But the effort to even open her eyes was too much. And she hurt. The dull ache had grown, encompassing her entire body. Sleep. She could escape there.
o.O.o
She didn't know how much time had passed, when she awoke. She was still in the Sickbay, and The Doctor was looking down at her with concern.
"Captain, I do not have a lot of time. It seems that you and Lieutenant Paris have contracted a disease while down on the planet."
A disease? The last thing she remembered was being treated for some cuts and scratches. She tried to sit up and speak, but didn't have the energy. The effort disturbed something in her chest, and she began to cough.
The Doctor handed her a cloth. "It is extremely virulent. I am unable to work on a cure quick enough. I spoke with Commander Chakotay and we have reached the decision to place the two of you in stasis while Kes and I work."
She nodded and continued to cough. Pulling the cloth away, she saw that it was stained red with blood. She started to panic, but the deep pull of sleep claimed her again.
This time when she awoke it was in the stasis unit. Instead of the darkness of Deck 14, it was bright blue skies that she saw. She unlocked the unit and sat up. Next to her, Tom was climbing out of his like it saw on fire. He stared at it with loathing, breathing hard. When he noticed her, redness colored his cheeks and he calmed down.
"Doctor to Janeway."
Janeway responded. "Janeway here."
"I have awoken you because…I regret to inform you that despite Kes's and my best efforts, I have been unable to find a cure for the disease that infects you and Lieutenant Paris. We have worked nonstop for seventeen days, but failed."
There was a long pause, and she struggled to wrap her head around this fact. She was going to die of some unknown infection. It was a risk that she took by being in Starfleet, but it still seemed…wrong.
"I see. How long do we have?"
"A lot longer than before. We discovered that something about that planet inhibits the disease's effects. I was able repair most of the damage. As long as you remain there, you will not get sicker."
Behind here she heard a clatter. She turned and saw large stacks of supplies. A cold feeling formed in her body, and a part of her mind was screaming in protest.
"Captain, I feel that the only other option is to contact the Vidiians. They are medically advanced enough that they may be able to succeed where I failed."
She terminated the comm link and climbed out of the stasis chamber. She placed her hands on her hips and stared out at the landscape. The Vidiians were much more advanced than they were. There was a good chance that they could help. But would they? Probably not. Her crew would be going to a slaughter.
"I know my opinion doesn't matter, but I don't want everyone to die because there is a slim chance I could be cured." Tom said softly from behind her. She turned to him.
"You know what that means though?"
He nodded and looked away. She steeled herself and activated the comm link again.
"Janeway to Chakotay."
"Chakotay here."
"Commander, I assume that you have been briefed?"
"Yes, Captain." He answered, his voice sounding sad.
"Tom and I have a few more things that we would like beamed down to us. After that, you are to assume command and set a course to the Alpha Quadrant. My last order as Captain is this: under no circumstances are you to contact the Vidiians about a cure."
The pause was so long that she wondered if the link had been broken. Finally, he spoke the words that she was waiting for.
"Yes, Captain. Chakotay out."
She placed her hands over her face and tried not to cry.