Disclaimer: I own nothing recognizable. Star Trek: Voyager and its characters are not mine; I just take them out to play with the promise to return them much happier than they were for seven years.
Author's Note: This is a gift to Malezita, who fiddled me an amazing picture that had a pairing she doesn't ship. I promised her a ficlet and this is it! This is unbeta'd, so all mistakes are mine.
The reunion is in full swing, Voyager's former crew partying as only they know how. Megan Delaney has Harry Kim on the dance floor and is trying to show him how to jitterbug, much to the amusement of all in visual range; Harry seems to have two left feet when it comes to the long-forgotten style of dance, though he's putting forth a fair effort. Tom and B'Elanna are dancing with Miral sandwiched between them, the two year-old giggling maniacally at the dipping and weaving that her parents are doing. The Doctor has Seven off to the side, his hands gesturing wildly as he points out the finer aspects of dancing.
Kathryn stands in the corner, watching her crew - her family - enjoy themselves because they've earned the chance to relax and have fun. It's been a hard two years of adjusting to life in the Alpha Quadrant; spending seven years together in a tight-knit community on Voyager made it hard to go separate ways once they were back in the arms of family. Kathryn accepted a promotion to the admiralty, more than willing to stay on Earth after the constant stress of captaining a lost starship. She found herself visiting with her former crew on a regular basis, though, as they struggled to find a place to fit in on Earth. The one thing that came up in every conversation, she realized, was how much life on Voyager was missed.
Last year, after taking time to get her life in order again, Kathryn contacted her former crew and made an offer; she'd used her backpay from her time on Voyager and bought land outside of Bloomington, Indiana. She'd posted on the Voyager message board that any crew member who wanted to build on the land would be welcomed, but she hadn't really expected many to take her up on the offer. She'd been pleasantly surprised to find that the day after her offer there were forty-seven messages queued up, all accepting. More trickled in and eight months after the first house was raised, nearly every former crew member was living on her property. Tom Paris, ever a smartass, had designated the area Voyager Village.
"There you are. Why aren't you mingling?"
The soft voice in her ear pulls Kathryn back to the present just as strong arms wrap around her waist. A solid chest presses against her back and she smiles, looking back over her shoulder at her husband.
"I was thinking about how proud I am of our crew," she replies, stretching up to kiss him lightly. "It's been a hard homecoming and for a while I wasn't sure we'd ever settle, but the worst of it seems to be over."
Chakotay laughs, resting his cheek against her hair as they turn and look out over their people celebrating together.
"It's been an interesting ride, hasn't it?" he asks and she nods, linking her fingers with his and pulling their hands down to cover the growing swell of her stomach.
"It certainly has, though I'm certain the best is yet to come."
