Kathryn Janeway was in her quarters looking at the stars through the wide curved viewport and totally lost in her thoughts. The door chime rang startling her and she rubbed her face with a heavy sigh.
"Come in," she ordered and, at the same time, reached for her coffee mug.
The door hissed open to grant Chakotay entry. Janeway looked cautiously at the leather-clad Maquis leader and took in his appearance once again, now that they were alone. He was quite taller than her and his features were chiseled. Also, he had an intriguing facial tattoo on the left side of his forehead.
"Probably, it has something to do with his heritage," she thought briefly.
Chakotay stood hesitantly in the doorway looking quite dignified with his hands behind his back. He looked at her imperiously.
"Did you ask to see me, Captain?" he asked, a bit sarcastically.
Janeway chose to ignore his sarcasm for now and instead just smiled and nodded at him.
"Yes, Mr. Chakotay. Would you like some coffee?"
Chakotay unclasped his hands and his shoulders relaxed a bit as he approached her.
"Actually, I'd prefer some tea. Thank you."
"Oh, tea?!" she exclaimed in surprise, "Don't tell me you don't like coffee!"
He gave her a light smile showing her a hint of his dimples. Janeway couldn't help but notice that he was a handsome man and swallowed hard trying to focus again on the conversation they were going to have.
"Coffee is fine but I think it's a bit late."
Janeway lowered her head and when she looked up again, she was giving him a lopsided smile.
"It's never too late for coffee. Remember that," she told him.
Chakotay raised his eyebrows and barely nodded.
"Spirits, she's beautiful," he thought as her smile made his knees weak. He wanted to see that smile again. He thought she looked quite like a cat with her auburn hair, her shining eyes, and that smile.
Her husky voice returned him to reality.
"What about Earl Grey?" she asked him as she went to the replicator.
"Yes, I like it," he called.
"Tea, Earl Grey, hot," she ordered and after a few seconds returned and handed him a steaming cup.
"Thank you," he said.
"Picard loves Earl Grey tea. Is it really that good?" she asked incredulously and raised an eyebrow.
He chuckled and Janeway sighed internally – oh, those dimples again.
"I like it," he shrugged, "You should try it sometime."
"I'll keep that in mind. Well… let's get back to business. Please, have a seat," she said in a silvery voice.
Chakotay looked around anxiously.
"Where?" he asked unsurely.
Janeway smiled gently. This man didn't seem to be as angry and frightening as she thought in the beginning. Actually, he was kind of cute.
"What about the couch?" she asked, amused and took a seat.
He just nodded and followed her. He sat down beside her maintaining a safe distance.
"Well, we have a situation here."
"Agreed," he replied.
"However, I think the solution is quite simple. You lost your ship and I lost my first officer – and I'm not that silly. I know that I don't have enough crewmembers to begin our journey back to the Alpha Quadrant."
He blinked a few times nervously.
"So, you don't think to settle on a planet here," he realized.
Janeway shook her head.
"No, I have to get my crew home," she replied dryly.
"So, do you mean…" Then, he stopped and looked at her levelly - captain to captain- as the realization hit him.
"We have to team up and work together. I need your crew and I need you as my first officer."
He looked at her incredulously.
"Janeway, you're a Starfleet. They sent you in order to capture me – won't you throw me in the brig?"
She shrugged.
"It wouldn't be very practical. We have 75 long years ahead of us. Mr. Chakotay, I am really not interested to face you as a criminal. We're stranded in the Delta Quadrant and the things are quite different here. We need each other and you're quite clever to know it. And you're also a Captain, so you can understand. We have to do the best for our crews."
Chakotay seemed to consider her proposal for a few minutes. Janeway was watching him intently sipping her coffee when he looked at her again.
"I accept. But… what are the conditions?"
"I think you already know. Voyager is a Starfleet vessel and we are a Starfleet crew…"
"So… we have to follow the Starfleet regulations and protocols," he said, sarcastically.
Janeway nodded.
"You will be a Starfleet crew, you'll wear Starfleet uniforms, you'll follow the regulations and I'll be your Captain."
"Many of my crew are not going to like it," he bellowed.
"We have to try to make it work, Mr. Chakotay. There are no many choices…"
"Do you have any respect for me, Captain or am I just a criminal to you?" Chakotay asked curiously.
Janeway stood up and went to the replicator in order to replicate another cup of coffee for herself.
"I'd ask you the same question, Captain," she pointed out.
He stood up as well.
"I've already proved it. I sacrificed my ship to save Voyager and I accepted to serve under you as your first officer only 5 minutes ago," he muttered.
Janeway sighed as she approached him again.
"You're right. I'm sorry – I'm really sorry, do you believe me? I'm a bit stubborn," she admitted and lowered her head.
Chakotay couldn't help but chuckle. A bit stubborn… it could be the understatement of the year, he thought.
"I'm still waiting for an answer," he pointed out.
"Oh yes. I do respect you Mr. Chakotay. My superiors sent me to capture you but I always had a different opinion about the Maquis. I respect your purposes."
He sighed in relief and gave her a full dimpled smile. For some reason, her opinion about him was suddenly important.
Damn, his smile again, she thought.
His smile made her knees weak and she had to take a seat again. What was wrong with her? She tried to concentrate her mind on her fiancé, Mark but with no success.
Chakotay cleared his throat. "Captain, can I make a request?"
"Go ahead."
"Could you stop calling me mister?" he asked, amused, "I never liked the title and it makes me feel old," he joked.
Janeway let out a loud husky laugh and Chakotay gazed at her admiringly. She was really something else when she was laughing and he wondered briefly if she laughed often.
"Oh, I understand. I don't like being called "sir" or "ma'am"," she confessed and made a face.
Chakotay chuckled.
"But… it's protocol, Captain."
She nodded and smiled. "I know but I still don't like it."
Then, Janeway sobered and stood up. She looked at him dead in the eye.
"I need to ask you something too," she said and bit her bottom lip nervously.
Chakotay fixed his eyes on her thin lips and swallowed hard. "Spirits," he thought, "what's wrong with me?"
He nodded.
"Do you think I was wrong to destroy the caretaker?"
"You're the captain," he said gently and stepped closer, "You had every right…"
"I know," she interrupted him curtly, "but do you think that I was wrong?" she insisted. "Do you think that I destroyed everyone's life by stranding us out here?"
He looked at her cautiously. He could see now her despair and sadness and felt an ache inside him seeing her like this. He had to assure her that she'd done the right thing.
She was his captain now, after all.
"The caretaker stranded us, not you," he corrected her. "You did the right thing, Captain. I'd do exactly the same. You saved the Ocampans and our lives are not destroyed. We have each other after all."
Janeway blinked back a few tears.
"Thank you… Commander," she said and smiled. "Lieutenant Tuvok will show you your new quarters. Talk with him about the uniforms and…stuff."
Chakotay nodded.
"I will have the first officer's quarters?" he asked in disbelief.
"Of course," Janeway assured him. "We'll be neighbors, I hope you don't mind," she joked.
"No, not at all."
Janeway extended her hand to him. He shook it willingly.
"Thank you for everything, Chakotay," she said warmly. "I'll never let you down or our crew – I promise."
"I believe you and I'll do my best. I believe in you… Kathryn," he said in a low voice and turned to leave her quarters. He had to find Tuvok.
Janeway sighed in relief as Chakotay left her quarters. Everything was going to be okay. She'd told him the truth – she'd never let him down and, if they made it back in the Alpha Quadrant, she'd protect him. He was a good man and she really respected him – and, it was odd, but he made her feel safe and… something else, something that she couldn't quite define at the moment.
Later that night, Chakotay carefully spread out his medicine bundle. He could hear soft music playing from her quarters.
Chakotay couldn't get his mind off his new Captain. He knew he should feel differently. He should feel angry and nervous or sad… but he felt calmer than he had felt in a long time.
It was strange but this woman made him feel peaceful – something he hadn't felt in years.
And her smile… Spirits, her smile was everything.
Maybe he was already home and he didn't even know it.