A/N: I can't believe the response I've already gotten! Thank you all for the sweet reviews! I didn't know this fandom was still alive outside of vamb. Great to see it still going strong so many years later.

My greatest challenge for this story is how early it is set. I don't think I've ever done something pre-Resolutions. I'm trying to be really careful with the rapport between Janeway and Chakotay and not assume too much, but it's definately a challenge! The Doctor is also tricky. I hope I do them all justice.

That Child of Yours

Chapter 1

But she had no time to press the plunger, because the sound of weapons fire erupted on the other side of the bulkhead, from the room where Chakotay was being held. Abandoning her mission, for now, she tucked the hypospray safely away in her vest. It wouldn't do to leave it lying around and have some dim-witted Kazon accidentally stumble upon it and mistake it for a normal hypospray. Reaching for her phaser, she rushed to the door on the other side of the room. By using the room furthest from the interrogation room, she hoped that whoever had come to Chakotay's aid was too far away to hear the hiss of the sickbay door as it opened. As silently as a shadow, she crept down the hallway, pausing just before she reached the corner. Phaser at the ready, she carefully glanced around it. Ensigns Lang and Murphy were on guard, both carrying phasers. But Seska's reactions were faster. Before he could cry out or shoot, she shot Ensign Murphy in the chest. In the same breath, she hit Lang, who was facing the other way. Both dropped to the floor. The noise of their fall ruined any chance of a stealth approach, so Seska dropped every care for sound in lieu of speed and stormed through the open doors. Inside, Janeway herself was untying the bonds around Chakotay's feet as Tuvok stood guard behind them. She aimed her phaser at Tuvok, but he shot it out of her hand before she could fire. It clattered uselessly to the floor. Without a moment of hesitation, she took the only weapon she had left, the hypospray with Chakotay's DNA, and held it to Janeway's throat. With the threat of the hypospray, she forced Janeway to stand in front of her as a living shield.

'Drop it, or I inject her!' She shouted to Tuvok and Chakotay. Janeway had managed to undo the restraints around Chakotay's feet and he slowly rose from the chair to which he had been bound.

'Seska,' he said in a calm, reassuring voice designed to defuse the situation, holding up his hands in supplication. But she never knew what ploy he would have used to charm her, because at that moment Janeway shouted 'Now, Lieutenant!' into the open comm. link. The three Voyagers faded away in a haze of blue as the transport beam took them. But in the split second before they vanished completely, Seska's hand contracted around the hypospray and she accidentally carried out her threat, depressing the plunger against Janeway's throat. The last thing she saw was the horror on Chakotay's face as he saw what she was doing, and she knew he was imagining all kinds of poison. The thought gave her a small hint of satisfaction, even though with one instinctual move she'd just destroyed her own plan. Instead of impregnating herself, she'd impregnated Janeway. But, she tried to cheer herself, a tight-laced Starfleet officer like Janeway probably wouldn't allow herself to be captain and pregnant at the same time. Certainly not by one of her own subordinates and a former Maquis at that! If they ever made it back to the Alpha Quadrant, that would destroy her carrier. She'd probably terminate the pregnancy the moment she learned of it and that wouldn't win her any points with Chakotay. With luck, he'd never forgive her and the bitterness between the command team would destroy Voyager. Not quite what she'd originally planned, and she admitted to herself that it was a long shot, but if it worked she wasn't one to complain. And at least the thought distracted her from her failure.

Looking around the damaged room, Seska decided it was time to inform Cullah that his prisoner had escaped. Before he heard it from someone else and decided to blame her. Best keep her little mishap to herself though, until she knew how it unfolded.

***JC***

All five members of the away team materialized on the bridge, along with the phaser Seska had taken off Chakotay. The weapon appeared soundlessly on the deck behind Tom.

'Computer, transport Ensigns Lang and Murphy to sickbay, along with the Captain.' Chakotay ordered as soon as they were back, as he walked to his command chair.

'Belay that order!' The Captain immediately countered. 'Only transport Ensigns Murphy and Lang.' Chakotay started to protest, but she cut him off with a sharp look and called out 'Report!' as she sank into her chair.

'All personnel and equipment safely back aboard,' Harry reported from Ops. 'We are moving away from the Kazon ships at maximum warp.'

'Chakotay's shuttle?'

'In shuttlebay two.' So all the Federation equipment the Kazon had managed to get their hands on had been returned.

'Anyone in pursuit?'

'No, Captain.'

'Good.' Kathryn allowed herself to relax slightly into her chair for a second before she got up. Now that she was convinced all was well for the moment and they could do without her attention, she was willing to follow Chakotay directive and look after her health. 'Commander Tuvok, you have the bridge. Commander Chakotay, you're with me. We'll be in sickbay.'

A chorus of 'aye's and 'yes, captain' followed them into the turbolift.

***JC***

The doors opened to a rather sedate sickbay. Ensigns Lang and Murphy were both sitting on a biobed, looking slightly bewildered but no worse for wear. The captain immediately strode over to Murphy, who was closest to the doors, to grace him with a smile, a kind word and a pat on the back. Chakotay made his way over to the Doctor, who was running a last scan over Ensign Lang. When he saw the state of Chakotay's face, the Doctor huffed.

'Commander, why didn't you report to sickbay immediately! That cut requires medical attention.'

Chakotay waved the Doctor's scanner away. 'You should check on the Captain first, Seska injected her with an unknown substance.' The Doctor tutted disapprovingly, but obediently changed course to head for the Captain, muttering somewhat perfunctory about stubborn patients.

The Captain turned around at their approach. 'Doctor, are Ensigns Murphy and Lang all right?'

'They're fine,' the Doctor answered, looking at the screen of the medical tricorder as he ran the scanner over her upper body. 'Luckily they were merely stunned and suffered no injuries from the fall. I see no reason why they should not go back to their duties.' The two Ensigns took the hint and vacated the beds. With a respectful nod to their command team and the Doctor they left sickbay. 'Well,' the Doctor said in a decisive tone as he snapped the medical tricorder closed, 'you don't seem to be injected with any known poison or illness. I'll run some further tests to make sure, but it was probably nothing.'

Chakotay frowned at this easy dismissal. 'It's unlike Seska to use an empty threat. There must be more to it than that.'

The Doctor hummed disapprovingly at his dissent. 'I'm sure your extensive knowledge of Ensign Seska makes you a better qualified in this situation than a professional doctor with the medical knowledge of over a hundred cultures,' he replied haughtily. 'For now, though, in my professional opinion, Captain, you are cleared for duty. Now, if you wouldn't mind, Commander, please sit down so I can treat your wounds.'

Captain Janeway shot Chakotay a slightly mocking look as he did as he was told with some chagrin. Then she quickly got out of sickbay before the Doctor changed his mind.

TBC