Begging the Question
A "Shattered" Episode Addition
Kathryn asks too many questions. What should have happened at the end of "Shattered." J/C
AN: Not sure if Antarian cider is normally alcoholic, but for all intents and purposes, it's got alcoholic properties in this story!
Disclaimer: Characters aren't mine, unfortunately. The story, however, is mine. Be jealous, Paramount – I can write better than you!
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Kathryn Janeway stared contemplatively at the now-empty glass she held in her hand. She was lost in thought, trying to think of ways to make Chakotay divulge what he had experienced with the temporal anomaly. She jumped, startled, when her doorchime sounded.
"Come in!" she called, shifting her position on the couch. Chakotay strode through the doors and took a seat in the chair by the sofa which he had been previously occupying.
"Sorry that took longer than expected," Chakotay said, popping the cork off the second bottle of Antarian cider. "I completely forgot that I told Icheb to move the cider to the Borg parts container and it took me a while to find it." He poured some cider into Kathryn's glass and she raised her eyebrow.
"Borg parts container? Well now I know exactly where you keep it," she chuckled, taking a sip of the amber liquid.
Chakotay opened his mouth to speak, but it was too late to catch his error. He smiled and poured some cider into his own glass. "So if I find the other bottles missing, I'll know not to blame Neelix."
Kathryn laughed and swirled the cider in her glass. "This stuff is strong. I don't think I'd be able to drink your entire stockpile in one sitting. You might find me stumbling around deck three, or completely incapacitated in a turbolift."
"That might be amusing," he replied.
"Not for you. I can write you up for illegally stowing alcoholic beverages on board and intoxicating your captain with them!" she cheekily retorted.
Chakotay chuckled. "It was your idea to get the second bottle."
"Captain's prerogative!" she countered, shoving the heel of her boot into his upper leg. Her eyes twinkled with mischief and he smiled warmly at her, taking another drink of his cider and thanking the spirits that he had been able to restore the timeline.
"Speaking of Captain's prerogative…" she continued, but Chakotay quickly cut her off.
"I'm not telling you what happened," he said, grabbing the front part of her boot and propping her foot back on the coffee table. "I know this is all part of your evil little plan."
Kathryn looked at him innocently. "Evil little plan? What ever do you mean?"
He leaned in towards her. "It's the other way around, Kathryn. You're trying to intoxicate me so that I tell you what happened to me during the temporal anomaly. You're too curious for your own good—and not just in this timeline, either." He pointed his glass towards her mockingly.
"Hmph!" she snorted. She leaned back into the couch and pouted for a few moments, until realizing the extent of his words. "What's that supposed to mean—not just in this timeline?"
He nearly choked on his cider. Had he actually said that? Maybe the cider really was getting to him. He put his glass down on the coffee table. "Nothing. You just… ask a lot of questions, that's all."
"Questions that I shouldn't ask…" she repeated his earlier words. "So you saw me in another timeline then. What did I ask?"
He faltered and quickly tried to recover from his slip-up. "You're assuming things," he answered as calmly as possible. "And I'm not telling you anyhow."
Kathryn placed her glass on the table next to Chakotay's and crossed her arms. "What if I give up coffee for an entire week?" she asked in a rather persuasive tone.
"Kathryn!" Chakotay exclaimed. "Now you're trying to finagle me into telling you with bribes! That's not fair, you know. Besides," he said, putting his hand on her knee, "I know for a fact you can't live without coffee for a week."
She stared at him for a few moments, half agitated and half enamored, and then in a split decision, covered his hand with hers. "Please?"
How could he resist her plea? This woman really knew how to work him. One innocent look and an almost sultry-like "Please?" and he was ready to spill his deepest, darkest secrets!
Chakotay sighed and reluctantly gave in to her request. "All right. I met your past self, before we got thrown into the Delta Quadrant."
Kathryn sat up straight and looked at him expectantly. "And?"
"And she was dumbfounded when I told her you loaned me your copy of Dante's Inferno."
Kathryn shook her head in confusion. "What does that have to do with anything?"
"I had to prove that I knew you… uh, her. Anyway, she said that Mark had given the book to her and she never loaned it to anyone. So… I guess she started to wonder about… about us."
Chakotay got up from the chair and, sliding his hand out from under hers to hold it instead, sat down next to her on the couch. He gazed at their intertwined hands for a moment, then looked her right in the eyes. "She asked me how close we actually get."
Kathryn's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "Oh," she said softly, averting her eyes to her lap. "And what did you tell her?"
He took a deep breath. "I told her that there are some barriers we never cross."
She remained silent but could feel the tears begin to sting her eyes, which were still concentrated on her lap. She wasn't sure whether she should be angry, upset, neither, or both. Should Chakotay have told the other Kathryn the truth? Had he said nothing at all, or perhaps told her something different, her timeline may have been changed for the better. That Kathryn could have had the life that she herself could not.
Chakotay continued to study her face. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, he spoke. "You asked me about predictions for the future."
Kathryn gradually raised her eyes to meet his own. "I did. Another question I shouldn't ask, I suppose," she replied, trying to create some humor.
"Well," he began, squeezing her small hand and leaning in close to her face, "I predict that, after what he experienced, the Chakotay in this timeline will decide to hell with parameters and protocol because there's a part of his life—someone in his life—that he wants to know something more about."
Kathryn held her breath as Chakotay cupped her face in his hands. "It killed me to have to say that to her," he whispered huskily, "and if I ever run into a Kathryn Janeway from the past again, I'm going to make sure I don't have to say it a second time."
With that, Chakotay slowly brought her lips to his and they met for the first time in a light, almost feathery kiss which quickly turned into an electrifying fervor. Kathryn wrapped her arms around Chakotay's neck and his hands moved from her face to her hips. Time stopped for them as they explored each others' bodies with their hands and mouths, seven years of curiosity, lust, and love pouring out of them.
When Chakotay finally pulled back, both their faces were flushed and their limbs entangled on the couch. He once again cupped her face in his strong hands.
"I love you," he said. "The temporal prime directive prohibits me from changing other timelines, but I'll be damned if I can't change this one. I love you, Kathryn Janeway, even if you do ask too many questions you shouldn't ask."
She laughed through her tears. "I love you too, Chakotay," she sniffled. "But you know, by my calculations, if my past self hadn't asked you about us, we would have never had this conversation. So, by all means, you should be happy that I ask too many questions that I shouldn't ask."
Chakotay flashed her the dimpled smile that she loved so much. "I think I've had enough with the temporal prime directive for one day," he said, pulling her closer. "How about we focus on the immediate future?"
"Hm, what did you have in mind?" she asked as she trailed her finger along his jawline.
"Well, for starters, how does a nice hot bath sound?" he asked. Standing up, he took Kathryn's hands and pulled her from the sofa. "I had an exhausting day, and I need some relaxing before we have an exhausting night." He winked at her as he guided her towards the bathroom.
"Talk about making assumptions!" Kathryn huffed. She stopped in her tracks and forcefully pulled him towards her until their bodies crashed into each other. Standing on her tiptoes, she draped her arms around his neck and, smiling wickedly, whispered into his ear. "But that sounds like a barrier I wouldn't mind crossing."
Chakotay smiled back down at her and silently thanked the gods for temporal anomalies and Antarian cider…and too many questions.