"If you hadn't brought us here in the first place, we wouldn't be in this predicament!" She was raising her voice, loosing her temper. Well fine, loose it then. He threw more kindling on the fire, in more ways than one.
"If you weren't so damned over-worked and learned to look after yourself I wouldn't have HAD to bring you here!" Uh-oh his face is red. Did he just curse at me? He hardly ever curses at me. This needs to stop-
"I think I know perfectly well how to take care of my self, Commander!" Eek, where is this coming from! "If you hadn't brought the doctor into this-"
"You'd never have released all the tension you are now."
"And you-!" She stopped. Ah, that had done the trick. The sudden calmness of his voice and the logic it held had brought her argument to a stand still. She looked confused, at a loss for words.
"Kathryn Janeway? At a loss for words?" He echoed his thoughts in his spoken words. She tried to cling to her anger, but it subsided against her will. She slumped against the cave wall and threw the floor an indignant look. He had won, and they both knew it. But her stubborn pride wouldn't allow her to admit it.
She crossed her arms and looked out into the rain-consumed forest beyond the mouth of the cave, wishing she were back on Voyager, actually getting some work done. Glancing back at him she saw him wave his tricoder towards the sky.
"Is it planning on stopping anytime soon?" She unconsciously rubbed her chilling arms, "It's getting chilly in here…"
"It wouldn't appear so… I'd say we still have another hour in here, give or take. You want my jacket?" He started to shed the top half of his uniform and her heart jumped to her throat.
"NO-I mean no ... That's alright, I'm just a bit chilled. Maybe we can heat up some of these stones…" She picked up a few and piled them into a pyramid shape, firing a phaser on them until they glowed a burnt orange color. She knelt next to her creation and warmed her hands. Before her mind could wonder too far she felt Chakotay's strong, warm hands press his jacket around her shoulders.
"But won't you be-"
"I'll be fine," He stretched out on the cave floor next to her makeshift fire, "keep it." She pulled the jacket futher over her shoulders and found that in her knealing position it nearly covered her completely. It was warm… and it smelled of the forest and him. She inhaled that sweet scent as she allowed herself to admire his chest under the tight turtle neck. He seemed to have found something very interesting in the ceiling. He shifted his eyes onto her and she tried to look away like she usually did only to find that she couldn't. Her eyes seemed to have a mind of their own. By the time they got the message and shot towards the glowing stones it was too late.
"Penny for your thoughts?" He turned to his side, propped up by his elbow.
"I was about to ask you the same thing.." She picked at the gravelly floor.
"Well, I don't mind sharing. I was thinking about you." She shot him a look but didn't hinder his explanation. "About how you bury yourself in work so deep that it takes something like this to make you human again. About all the times I've tried to get you out and socialize. About how many times I've tried to show you that you are not alone. And about how many times I've told you I love you without words."
Silence drew like a curtain around them, a strained silence that neither wanted nor knew how to break. A clash of thunder that seemed to hit right over their heads startled them both. Kathryn somehow managed to pick her jaw off the floor and Chakotay woke from his dreamy, romantic state.
"Chakotay, I-"
"Kathryn, I didn't-"
They both paused, glanced at each other then looked away.
"I'm gonna go find somemore stones for this…" He pointed at the pile of stones that were quickly growing cold and grey again.
"Chakotay, wait… We haven't had much time together lately, but I have had time to think." He settled back down, but said nothing. If she was going to do this, she would have to do it all on her own.
"The more I thought about the reasons for us staying a part, the more I found that they no longer apply. Mark… He's moved on. Protical… You were right, it isn't the same out here. And I can't go on living alone. Sitting alone in my quarters each night…" She sighed, "I want something to come home to instead of an empty room and a cold bed."
When she looked over at the spot where he had been sitting moments ago, he wasn't there.
"We can make this work Kathryn, I promise you…" He whispered into her ear as his arms circled her and pulled her back into his lap.
"If you weren't so damned over-worked and learned to look after yourself I wouldn't have HAD to bring you here!" Uh-oh his face is red. Did he just curse at me? He hardly ever curses at me. This needs to stop-
"I think I know perfectly well how to take care of my self, Commander!" Eek, where is this coming from! "If you hadn't brought the doctor into this-"
"You'd never have released all the tension you are now."
"And you-!" She stopped. Ah, that had done the trick. The sudden calmness of his voice and the logic it held had brought her argument to a stand still. She looked confused, at a loss for words.
"Kathryn Janeway? At a loss for words?" He echoed his thoughts in his spoken words. She tried to cling to her anger, but it subsided against her will. She slumped against the cave wall and threw the floor an indignant look. He had won, and they both knew it. But her stubborn pride wouldn't allow her to admit it.
She crossed her arms and looked out into the rain-consumed forest beyond the mouth of the cave, wishing she were back on Voyager, actually getting some work done. Glancing back at him she saw him wave his tricoder towards the sky.
"Is it planning on stopping anytime soon?" She unconsciously rubbed her chilling arms, "It's getting chilly in here…"
"It wouldn't appear so… I'd say we still have another hour in here, give or take. You want my jacket?" He started to shed the top half of his uniform and her heart jumped to her throat.
"NO-I mean no ... That's alright, I'm just a bit chilled. Maybe we can heat up some of these stones…" She picked up a few and piled them into a pyramid shape, firing a phaser on them until they glowed a burnt orange color. She knelt next to her creation and warmed her hands. Before her mind could wonder too far she felt Chakotay's strong, warm hands press his jacket around her shoulders.
"But won't you be-"
"I'll be fine," He stretched out on the cave floor next to her makeshift fire, "keep it." She pulled the jacket futher over her shoulders and found that in her knealing position it nearly covered her completely. It was warm… and it smelled of the forest and him. She inhaled that sweet scent as she allowed herself to admire his chest under the tight turtle neck. He seemed to have found something very interesting in the ceiling. He shifted his eyes onto her and she tried to look away like she usually did only to find that she couldn't. Her eyes seemed to have a mind of their own. By the time they got the message and shot towards the glowing stones it was too late.
"Penny for your thoughts?" He turned to his side, propped up by his elbow.
"I was about to ask you the same thing.." She picked at the gravelly floor.
"Well, I don't mind sharing. I was thinking about you." She shot him a look but didn't hinder his explanation. "About how you bury yourself in work so deep that it takes something like this to make you human again. About all the times I've tried to get you out and socialize. About how many times I've tried to show you that you are not alone. And about how many times I've told you I love you without words."
Silence drew like a curtain around them, a strained silence that neither wanted nor knew how to break. A clash of thunder that seemed to hit right over their heads startled them both. Kathryn somehow managed to pick her jaw off the floor and Chakotay woke from his dreamy, romantic state.
"Chakotay, I-"
"Kathryn, I didn't-"
They both paused, glanced at each other then looked away.
"I'm gonna go find somemore stones for this…" He pointed at the pile of stones that were quickly growing cold and grey again.
"Chakotay, wait… We haven't had much time together lately, but I have had time to think." He settled back down, but said nothing. If she was going to do this, she would have to do it all on her own.
"The more I thought about the reasons for us staying a part, the more I found that they no longer apply. Mark… He's moved on. Protical… You were right, it isn't the same out here. And I can't go on living alone. Sitting alone in my quarters each night…" She sighed, "I want something to come home to instead of an empty room and a cold bed."
When she looked over at the spot where he had been sitting moments ago, he wasn't there.
"We can make this work Kathryn, I promise you…" He whispered into her ear as his arms circled her and pulled her back into his lap.