A/n: I know I've got multi-chapter fics to update, but this idea for 'Revulsion' has been floating around in my head for a while.

Chakotay rubbed one hand tiredly over his gritty eyes as the lights in his tiny First Officer's office, a more cramped, less grandiose version of the Captain's Ready Room. He generally spent as little time as possible here, he hated feeling shackled to a desk when what most of the crew needed from their First Officer was a little personal contact, but it was as good a place as any to do the mountain of paperwork that his post demanded. It was ludicrously early to tackle the many-headed monster of Starfleet bureaucracy, but with all the drama with the Doctor and his marooned fellow hologram the day before, he was lagging behind.

"Ceylon tea." He ordered at the replicator behind and to the left of his desk, taking a long sip of the zesty, sweet, and above all caffeinated, drink as he sat down and picked up the nearest PADD; Neelix's morale report. He'd just swung his feet up to rest on the desk, hoping to stretch out his stiff back, when the doorbell gave a single, strident ring.

"Come in." He called civilly as he hurriedly put down his cup and repositioned into a more professional stance behind the desk, instantly alert. Who would need to see him so badly as to drag themselves here at, he glanced at the clock on the replicator, precisely 0600 hours?

He got the answer he was looking for as soon as the doors opened and Seven of Nine marched inside, her clear but impenetrable gaze only focusing on him as she drew to a measured halt, exactly halfway between his desk and the door. It was almost as if she'd calculated which distance would be most efficient for conducting her business then swiftly departing. Seven being Seven, although he'd known the girl for only three weeks, he wouldn't put doing just that past her. "Commander." She addressed him, more a wary statement than an implicit greeting, "You requested that I present you with a report on the progress of the Astrometrics Lab's construction this morning."

"Yes…Yes I did." Chakotay confirmed, feeling a wry smile pull at his lips. "You're very prompt." At least she'd waited until 0600 hours, if she'd been any more literal she could've roused him at the stroke of midnight.

Seven gave a perfunctory nod in reply, she'd learned that humans expected signs of acknowledgement even to the most obvious and irrelevant statements. "Yes." She agreed, studying him intently as she gripped the PADD in her hand. Something about Voyager's second-in-command unsettled her though she couldn't quantify why, which was confusing enough. Many people, including, she suspected, Captain Janeway, thought it was because Commander Chakotay had failed in his attempt to deactivate her by an exceptionally narrow margin, but those people were wrong. He'd gained her respect then, if that was the appropriate word, since only he seemed to grasp the true nature of the Borg. Her true nature. Perhaps what she respected also threatened her, as the memory of his voice mercilessly pulling her from the Collective occasionally haunted her. It should be irrelevant, Commander Chakotay was one of the more efficient officers Voyager possessed, and he had…assisted her by allocating her some duties, but still the mixture of unease and awe he inspired could not be eradicated, only ignored. "Shall I proceed?"

"Go ahead." Chakotay replied, leaning forward over the desk to take the PADD she held out for him. A quick skim read told him that its content and style was what he'd come to expect from Seven of Nine. Of course, the technological detail that she'd so scrupulously, perhaps compulsively, included went over his head for the most part, but there was clarity to her writing that he appreciated, the record was very cut and dry. Effusiveness was the anathema of Seven's nature, making her the opposite of many of the crewmembers he dealt with daily. The section she'd highlighted for his attention catalogued the growing abilities of the new lab, which duties could now be run from there and most importantly which systems were compromised by the construction and how the crew could work around that. It seemed she'd been able to guess what would be most 'relevant' to her commanding officer. "It seems as if yourself and Ensign Kim have been making excellent progress thus far." He informed her, deciding that he should inject some warmth into his tone; it was a compliment after all."

"That is a reasonable assessment." Seven agreed, before conceding, "This assignment is progressing more effectively than I anticipated."

Chakotay gave a small smile at her concession, lowering the PADD to meet her eyes. "And working with Harry? How has that worked out for you?" He again remembered the last time she'd been assigned to work with the Ops officer, after which Harry had woken up concussed in Sickbay, and wondering if it would be wiser to ask to ask Harry the question first.

Promisingly, Seven answered without hesitation. "As you can see from our work, the partnership has proven relatively effective, he does not lack efficiency." A relieved smile began to curve Chakotay's lips, he knew that this rather bald, technocrat statement was as close an idea to a compliment that the woman could yet grasp. Harry must've gotten over his nerves. However, the way Seven's face tightened in hesitant contemplation prompted him to guess that he'd made his judgement too soon. "I am confused however by many of my…complex social interactions with Ensign Kim."

"Oh?" Chakotay muttered weakly, intrigued by and dreading what he was in for at the same time as he couldn't stop himself from asking, "Would you mind elaborating?"

Seven nodded obligingly, utterly nonchalant as she began the requested explanation. "It would appear that I misinterpreted the motive for his social interactions with me as a basic request to engage in copulation."

Chakotay's pupils dilated perceptively as realisation slowly dawned on him after remembering a passage in a biology school textbook. Seven was relieved to see other signs in his face that this could be attributed to surprise rather than any other ulterior emotion. "Wait, Seven…are you telling me that you came on to Harry Kim?"

"Came on to?" Seven echoed blankly, her brows furrowing, "If you mean to say that I made certain sexual advances then you are correct."

Chakotay stared at her, dumbfounded and struggling to think. "Seven…" He began eventually, his voice hoarse with embarrassment, "…what exactly made you think that Kim was requesting…uh…copulation?"

"There were obvious physical symptoms I recognised from my research into the human species." Seven replied, "His pupils dilate whenever he looks at my body, and his speech patterns deteriorate noticeably in my presence, particularly when we are alone."

Chakotay stood up from his desk, running a hand through his hair as if grasping for something to pull him out of this situation, rarely had he felt more over his head, and he'd fought Cardassian warships at a ratio of 5:1. "But Seven…" He searched for a way to put this delicately, "…haven't you also noticed other…" He cleared this throat, "…male crewmembers displaying the same 'symptoms' around you?" He regarded her carefully as he slowly approached her with equal caution.

"I suppose…" Seven conceded in a thoughtful tone that indicated she hadn't given it much consideration before, "Yes, you are correct, it is an almost uniform reaction. Even the Doctor is susceptible, but that is undoubtedly a flaw in his programming…"

Chakotay had to bow his head over hers in order to suppress the laugh that this final, innocent conclusion brought on unbidden. His chest was still quivering as he struggled to answer, almost snorting as he finally spoke, "I…I think the Doctor would rather keep that flaw in his programming Seven." He told her first of all, before real concern overtook the surreal nature of this conversation. "But you haven't…approached any of those other men have you?" he asked urgently.

Seven shook her head firmly. "No Commander. The carnal needs of others do not interest me, despite the Captain's advice that I should embrace my humanity to the fullest extent possible." She sighed to herself, and Chakotay suddenly suspected that if she'd known the meaning of the expression Seven would've rolled her eyes as she explained, "I merely thought it would be prudent to indulge Ensign Kim since his more…overt attraction was distracting him and affecting our joint efficiency."

Chakotay couldn't stop his massive exhalation of relief, he'd had distressing, graphic visions of Seven having been passed around like some automated sex toy by some less chivalrous members of the crew for a few seconds there. Her ignorance frightened him, though it was beginning to dawn on him that they'd been wrong to expect her to be otherwise. After all, for over eighteen years she'd been part of the Collective where sex was merely discounted as humanoids' less efficient equivalent of assimilation. To make matters worse, she hadn't learned a sense of it at puberty, her humanity had been frozen in a six year old child's form before they'd thawed her out as a twenty four year old woman. Suddenly, with a heat that surprised him as he looked at her perfectly sculpted frame, he felt a surge of rage at his Captain for being so unthinking as to allow Seven to walk around in that mercilessly form fitting biosuit, and especially at the Doctor for designing it. What had they been thinking, leaving her so exposed and vulnerable? She was a gorgeous woman despite the scars the Borg had left her with, there was no denying that, and he knew that every heterosexual man on the ship had glanced at her with attraction as well as fear more than once, himself guiltily included. No wonder she was confused. Still her description of Harry intrigued him somewhat, "Why was Harry's attraction different from the others?"

"He went beyond physical assessment of me." Seven clarified, "He sought time with me outside of our assignment, meals in the Mess Hall, an evening in the holodeck, even dimming the light in Astrometrics in an apparent attempt to enhance his attractiveness…" She stopped as she saw that Chakotay was fighting a smirk of amusement and said more seriously, "He also showed an unnecessary concern for my physical well-being, refusing to allow me to use my left hand in temperatures the Borg exoskeleton would've easily protected me from and accompanying me to Sickbay when I suffered an injury."

Chakotay's smirk at Harry's expense softened into a smile when he recognised his kindness in the tale also. "I don't know about the other things he was doing, but keeping you safe and helping you weren't necessarily because of attraction, I'd like to think that any member of this crew would show the same concern for you, for any of us. The Borg may not value the sanctity of the individual, but this crew does."

"Yes…" Seven acquiesced faintly, "When I injured my hand…" She unconsciously opened and closed her right hand, palm up, in a lingering nervous reflex that Chakotay noted, "I was stunned…frightened. As part of the Collective, such damage would be healed within seconds." She glanced up at him, expecting his scepticism, but to her surprise he nodded firmly.

"I know, that same ability saved my life once." He told her quietly.

Seven's eyebrows arched upwards slightly, "That was when you were implanted with the neuro-transmitter?" Chakotay half-expected her to add, 'the one you inflicted on me' or ask about his time with the Cooperative, but after his slow nod of confirmation she dropped the topic entirely. "I was…vulnerable." She admitted in a whisper, "Ensign Kim's consideration alleviated that feeling."

Chakotay could tell from her downcast gaze at that moment that that sentiment honestly ended with 'temporarily' but this was as open as she'd ever been with him and he knew to take it as she presented it for him. "I'm glad of that Seven, but unfortunately being vulnerable is part of being human, we all feel like you did sometimes." He sighed as he felt her eyes on him before she acknowledged the statement with a tiny nod. As he, in return, studied her face, he wondered, not for the first time, how much the implants hurt, if she were in a constant state of pain. He knew the neuro-transmitter she'd alluded to was the main root of the pain that stiffened his back and sent periodic burning shoots down his nerves, though he supposed it was worth it as it had saved his life, and hers. He could only imagine what having almost twenty percent of your body riddled with implants must feel like. The silver biosuit made it seem like she was one big implant, blending in with the notches of visible silver on her face and hand to give the impression that her pale skin was the false part of her, that her vivid blue eyes were the foreign intruders. All that silver made the gold crown of her hair luminously eerie. He wondered if it would be wise, given the naivety of appearance she'd revealed to him, to advise her to tone it down by exchanging the biosuit more modest attire, a pair of slacks and a long sleeved blouse maybe, surely a little discomfort for her skin was worth it for the avoidance of roving eyes?

Before he could think of a way to broach it, Seven went back to Harry Kim. "Ensign Kim attempted to explain his actions as paltry, that at most he wanted a 'date' but I do not see the point of such irrelevant mating rituals. It only delays the process of genetic continuation via procreation."

Chakotay tried not to shake his head, imagining how Harry would take this rather blunt dissection of his crush on Seven. Despite her ignorance, she'd seen through his 'moves' with an ease any woman would be proud of. Honestly though, had the man really tried 'mood lighting' on Seven of Nine, Tertiary Adjunct of Zero One? He couldn't help but chuckle, even as he regarded her seriously, "You're right Seven, that the most basic instinct is to have children, but you're missing the point of dating entirely. Most humanoids then have to raise those children as the couple's sole responsibility, most people wouldn't want to do that with someone they don't love, or even know. Dating is the process by how you get to know someone on that intimate level." He sighed to himself, aware that he sounded rather wistful, "Even if you don't want children, for individuals a romantic relationship is as close to another person as you're ever going to get." Seven's gaze was thoughtful but unfocused, staring at some distant point over his shoulder, and he considered a way to put his point in a way that she'd unequivocally understand. "A family, a partner, is a human's Collective Seven."

Seven felt an odd constricting feeling in her chest as her eyes flicked to Chakotay's, and she found herself dipping her gaze to focus on his chiselled jaw line rather than his disconcerting dark eyes. "So, when a person, an individual dates, they are seeking out a perfect individual with whom they can form a Collective?" she asked softly.

Chakotay smiled wryly at her unique interpretation of the 'true love' ideal. "No one's perfect Seven, but most people do believe that there's someone out there who'll be perfect enough in their eyes."

"Perfect enough…" Seven mused doubtfully, stepping back from him towards the door as she met his gaze again, with certainty this time. "I do not believe I have developed my humanity sufficiently to be able to judge such perfection." She was surprised by the palpable regret she could hear in her tone.

"No." Chakotay admitted, not wanting to mislead her or sent her on a wild goose chase. "But I think that time will come for you."

"Not quickly enough to satisfy Ensign Kim." Seven replied, stating a fact and not in the least concerned for herself.

"No, probably not." Chakotay conceded politely, although unable to hide another amused smile.

Seven's shoulders straightened, the weight of her lingering confusion lifted by the Commander's explanation, much fuller and more satisfying than Ensign Kim had been able to provide in his flustered state. "I will present you with another progress report tomorrow Commander."

"I'll be expecting it." Chakotay responded honestly, not in the least surprised when Seven left as suddenly as she'd come.

A/n: PLEASE REVIEW! :D Also, there are new C/7 stories for you all to read and review, both by cojack. 'Beginnings' which sheds more light on their post-Endgame relationship as Icheb also navigates romance, and 'Healing Wounds'. This is a sequel to 'Alternatives' and is so interesting and original, what would it have been like if it was Chakotay who'd wanted to rehabilitate Seven instead of Janeway? Read and find out!