Author's Note: Okay, I'm sorry for taking so long to update... this chapter is really long, and it took me a while to work through my writer's block. That stuff sucks. Anyway, here's Chapter 2: The Party! It should be more consistent with the original timeline since I have now seen all of the first six seasons, and I've seen several from Season 7. Still, if you see something wrong, please let me know- I haven't had time to go over and really correct this chapter yet.
Chapter 2: The Party
"Lieutenant Torres, anything to report from Engineering?" Captain Janeway inquired later that week during the next briefing session. All senior officers were present as usual.
"No, Captain, everything's working at peak efficiency. The warp coils are in perfect condition, the magnetic constrictors are aligned to the letter…" B'Elanna replied.
"How are things in Security, Mr. Tuvok?" the captain asked, directing her question at the Vulcan sitting near her.
"Everything is in optimal condition," he responded calmly.
"Commander Chakotay, has there been any serious disciplinary action taken that we should know about?" Kathryn inquired, almost hoping to find that something had gone wrong. Things were starting to get a little boring aboard Voyager.
"Not at all. On the contrary, everyone has been working together exceptionally well. There hasn't been so much as an unkind word heard on the ship all week," he admitted.
"Well then, it would seem this briefing is over, unless anyone has anything they would like to add."
"Captain, if I may?"
"Go right ahead, Neelix," she eagerly invited him.
"Well, Captain, I've noticed that lately the crew's morale has been dropping slightly. Tensions are rising among crew members and it's taking them all they've got to work things through with crew members they have problems with. As the morale officer, I propose a preventative measure to ensure that the crew morale returns to normal." He paused. "I think we should have a party."
"A party? What would we be celebrating?" Tom asked.
"I don't know, uh… wait a minute, isn't Ensign Wildman's birthday coming up?" he suggested in a sudden inspiration.
"Oh, yes! Samantha's birthday is a week from today. She'll be twenty-seven," Kathryn agreed. "I think a party is a splendid idea, Neelix, but don't let her know. Tell her closest friends, but let's make it a surprise party!" All the members in attendance nodded in agreement. "Well then, Neelix, a party it is. I think this will lift everyone's spirits! You go ahead and make the arrangements. You are all dismissed." Everyone except Chakotay stood and left.
"Captain, may I see you in your ready room?" he inquired. Kathryn's face took on a look of concern.
"Absolutely, Commander," she replied, motioning for him to follow her. They left the briefing room and crossed the bridge to her ready room. She sat in the seat behind her desk. "Now, what is the problem?"
"Captain, I'm concerned about Tom and B'Elanna," he said bluntly. They seem to be arguing a lot more than usual lately and I feel that it's beginning to affect their performances as officers, as well as those who are working closely with them. Even Harry's been a little testy with me lately."
Janeway gave him a half-smile. "Chakotay, you know perfectly well that couples have their disagreements from time to time, and sometimes they have a harder time working through some problems than others. Besides, there isn't much I can do about it besides relieve them of duty and confine them until they can work things out between themselves, and I'm not prepared to do that yet. We're not out of Hirogen space yet, and I need the Chief Engineer in case anything goes wrong and my best pilot at the helm in case of an emergency. I'll think of something, Chakotay. Don't worry about it." She smiled at him. "Dismissed!" Then she paused. "Unless, of course, you'd fancy a cup of coffee first!"
The party was held the next week. It was a huge success, and Ensign Wildman was extremely pleased at the thoughtful gesture. All of the senior officers came, as well as all of her other friends. Some of them brought gifts for Naomi as well as for her, and that helped with making the experience pleasant for Naomi, too.
She was conversing happily with Kathryn as they watched the other crew members interacting peacefully with each other. Neelix had been right- a party had been exactly what they needed. Kathryn was sharing her memories of her twenty-seventh birthday, which they had celebrated only two weeks before she was called to serve on Voyager, and Samantha was chipping in whenever she felt she had something to contribute, when all of a sudden, Kathryn stopped talking and stumbled as though she had lost her balance.
"Captain?" Samantha asked worriedly. "Are you all right?" A moment later, Chakotay was there. He, too, had noticed.
"Captain, what's wrong?" he inquired gently, grabbing each of her arms with one of his to steady her.
"Nothing's wrong, Chakotay. I just got a little dizzy all of a sudden, that's all."
Chakotay's brows furrowed. "Dizzy? That can't be good. Let me get the doctor."
"No! I'm fine, Chakotay, I sw-"
Her reply was cut off when she stumbled again, her eyes rolling back in her head as she pitched forward and collapsed in a dead faint. An outcry arose from the crew around them as they stepped back and saw their Captain had collapsed.
"Stupid, stubborn woman," Chakotay muttered under his breath. "All right, everybody, back up!" As the crew cleared a path from him to the door, he scooped the Captain up into his arms and ran out the door after asking Samantha to call the Doctor on her combadge and let him know to expect a patient.
Half an hour later, Kathryn awoke on one of the biobeds in Sickbay to see Chakotay smiling down at her. "Why, hello there, Captain Stubborn." The snort of amusement that came from the Doctor made her frown as she sat up.
"What happened? What am I doing here?" she inquired, rubbing the back of her head.
"You passed out during Samantha's party," he explained, chuckling a little. "You gave us all quite a scare, Captain. I must confess that you scared the heck out of me- to the point where I committed insubordination. I muttered something to the effect of you being a 'stupid, stubborn woman'." She couldn't help but chuckle at this.
"Well, normally, I would have to throw you in the brig for that, but considering the fact that you were right, I guess I'll have to let it slide." She grinned as she saw him present her with his trademark grin.
"I guess I'm lucky to be on such good terms with the Captain, then, huh?"
The two laughed as the Doctor moved over to them to scan Kathryn again. "Well, Captain, I can't seem to find anything physically wrong with you except for a slight case of space sickness," the Doctor informed her. "I'm surprised you haven't had it yet, but it has been known to happen, especially when a person has been in space as long as we have." He gave her a stern warning against overexertion before pressing a hypospray to her neck. "This will help with your space sickness as well as preventing lightheadedness. You may return to your duties."
"Thank you, Doctor," she said before swinging her legs off the bed. Chakotay moved to help her down, but she just glared at him. "Chakotay, I'm not an invalid. I can get down by myself."
"I'm just making sure. Last time you told me you were fine, you ended up passing out before you'd even finished your sentence," he replied, showing a bit of annoyance about the situation for the first time. A concerned look appeared on her face and she nodded, allowing him to help her down and escort her out of Sickbay. When they were out, he grabbed her arm roughly and pulled her down the hall, leading her all the way to her quarters. He pulled her inside before grabbing her with both hands and sitting her roughly down on her couch.
"What in the name of all that is holy were you thinking, Kathryn?! How could you do something like that to me and the crew? That was irresponsible and arrogant of you to feign that you were all right when you knew perfectly well that it wasn't true!" he shouted at a cringing Kathryn. "Do you have any idea how much it worries us when you put yourself in danger like that, or when you try to pretend that everything's all right when we know it's not? I was afraid you were dying, Kathryn! Do you have any idea what that thought does to me? You have been this ship's Captain for the last five years, and it was you that kept us all together! I could never be half the Captain you are, and when I think that I might have to take over for you someday, it pains me, both my heart, because I would be losing a dear friend whom I have come to count on, and my mind, because, like I said, I am not ready to captain this ship! When you passed out, it scared the crap out of me!" He grabbed her shoulders and shook her once or twice. "Don't you ever scare me like that again, Kathryn!"
When she saw the fear evident in his eyes, she began to cry. She didn't understand why she was suddenly crying. She couldn't immediately recall another occasion when she had cried in front of another crew member like this. But it clearly had an effect. His face immediately softened, and he looked down as he turned and sat down next to her, sighing. "I'm sorry, Kathryn. I didn't mean to upset you like this. It's just that…" his voice trailed off and he turned to look at her and had to put his arm around her to comfort her. "You just really scared me, you know? I was so worried about you, and so was the rest of the crew. We care deeply for you, and we can't lose you. You haven't been taking very good care of yourself lately, and it looks like it's starting to have an effect." He gently reached out and lifted her chin with his finger, so that he could see her face. "We just don't want anything bad to happen to you! Promise me you'll take better care of yourself." Kathryn looked down and nodded.
"I promise, Chakotay," she whispered, deeply moved by his words. She hadn't realized that the crew cared that deeply for her. But why should they? After all, it was her decision that got them all stuck out there, lost in that uncharted, dangerous region filled with daily perils. Two children had been born since their arrival in the Delta Quadrant, and a tactical vessel alone wasn't a good place for a child to grow up, much less the Delta Quadrant.
"Good Lord, there I go again. All I can think about is my desire for children when there's so much more at stake," she thought to herself. She was roused from her musings by Chakotay's voice.
"Good. And I intend to hold you to that. I want you to go get yourself cleaned up while I replicate a nutritious, coffee-free meal for you. You drink far too much of that stuff," he reprimanded her sternly upon seeing the incredulous, warning look on her face.
"Funny," she remarked with a hint of laughter in her voice, her spirits much roused as she slipped into her private bathroom, "I don't recall you asking permission to speak freely." She didn't need to see his face to know that a look of mock shame drenched in amusement was on his face- she had already seen it on his face many times over the last five years.
A few days later, Chakotay invited Kathryn to the holodeck to play a few rounds of Velocity. They had a lot of fun, and each of them won a couple of times.
"I think you're losing your touch, Captain," he chuckled as they left several hours later. She laughed in reply, giving him a mock glare as she mopped the back of her neck with the towel she had brought with her.
"Now, now, now, what do you mean by that, Commander?" she inquired, grinning.
"Nothing really. It's just that if I'd asked you to play a couple of weeks ago, you would have won every round," he replied, the grin on his face matching the one on hers. Somehow, looking at her standing there, all sweaty, with her hair going every which way and her breathing coming in short, panting gasps, she still seemed to him to be the most beautiful woman in the universe.
"Well," she remarked, drawing him from his thoughts as she gave him what would have been a disapproving glance if not for the smile on her face, "that doesn't necessarily mean that I'm losing my touch. Perhaps you're getting better!"
"No, Chakotay, bad idea," he silently scolded himself. "This woman is your commanding officer! Your relationship is purely professional and can never be anything else!" Out loud, he said, "Or perhaps you've just been working too hard to come and practice!"
She sent another fake glare in his direction which was interrupted by her laughs. "Touché. So what was that all about?" she inquired.
"I just figured you hadn't been able to get in any quality exercise with how quiet things have been lately," he simply stated.
She laughed again as she looked at him. "You weren't kidding about holding me to my promise, were you?"
He grinned back at her. "No, ma'am!" They laughed together once more before heading their separate ways to their quarters.
Two more weeks passed. Chakotay seemed to be succeeding in getting Kathryn to lead a healthier lifestyle. She was eating better and exercising more, and she even seemed to be drinking a little less coffee, to the surprise of the entire crew. Neelix was more surprised than anyone when she came in one afternoon and requested a Vulcan spice tea instead of her usual black coffee.
The other senior officers were awakened two hours before their shift was to start by Harry Kim, who was serving as Bridge Captain in yet another night shift. When they arrived on the bridge, replacing the junior officers on duty, Harry explained that they had detected a Class M planet with enough deuterium to keep them stocked for a year at maximum warp. The planet was inhabited by a pre-warp civilization that owned the mining rights for all the minerals, and he felt that Kathryn, as the Captain, should lead the negotiations
"Thank you, Harry. You did the right thing, but surely you know I'd trust you with the negotiations," she teased him, patting him on the back. She sat in her chair and turned to Chakotay. "So how do you recommend we proceed?"
"Well, we could start by offering them a tour of our ship, and then going from there," he suggested.
"Sounds good," she agreed, sitting back in her chair and crossing her legs. "Mr. Kim, send a standard greeting and explain that we'd like to negotiate for some deuterium and that we have no hostile intentions. Mr. Paris, take us into orbit."
"Yes, ma'am," they chorused in unison. Several minutes later, they were hailed from the planet's surface.
"I am Hashi Metsak, ruler of Knollsh," said the dark-skinned creature on the viewscreen.
"And I am Captain Janeway of the Federation starship Voyager. I assume, then, that you have received our message," she greeted him.
"Absolutely! We are honored that you wish to open a trade agreement with our people!" Hashi replied boisterously. "When may we begin negotiations?"
Kathryn grinned at Chakotay. "Whenever you are ready," she responded, holding her arms out in a welcoming gesture.
"Excellent, Captain Janeway," he agreed excitedly. "In that case, I am ready to begin now!"
"Good! We can arrange transport for you to our vessel. You may bring anyone you wish with you."
"All right, I will contact you when my advisors and I are ready." The transmission ended.
Half an hour later, Hashi and his three advisors were beamed to the ship. They all admired Voyager to no end, and requested a tour before beginning negotiations. This, of course, was a request happily granted by Kathryn, and she and Chakotay led their visitors on a guided tour.
An hour later, the tour was completed and their guests were led to the briefing room. They spent five additional hours discussing terms and making compromises. Several times the Knollshi asked for items in return that were totally unacceptable, and they felt at times that Voyager was making unfair requests. Finally they reached an agreement that suited both sides: the Knollshi would grant them the amount of deuterium they required in return for two replicators, the schematics for the anti-matter waste purifying system, and copies of data gathered from Astrometrics on two nebulas and six planets in their vicinity. Hashi warned them that it would take several hours to finish mining the requested amount of deuterium, and Kathryn offered to send some of her crew to help. The help was graciously accepted, and an hour later, Hashi, his advisors, and six of Voyager's crew beamed back to the planet's surface. Kathryn returned to the bridge along with Chakotay, and they monitored the progress from there.
Even with some of Voyager's crew helping, the work was slow and time-consuming, and they had to work well into the night, which didn't make a difference in the mines. At 2340 hours, Chakotay and Kathryn still sat on the bridge, over 18 hours after they had been awakened by Harry. Both had decided to remain on the bridge to monitor the progress personally, especially since Harry had been part of the away team. Chakotay had just finished reviewing a crew report, and he turned to speak to Kathryn about it. She didn't respond. He leaned a little closer to her.
"Kathryn?" he inquired gently. There was still no response. He reached out and touched her shoulder, and she started awake.
"What? Oh, sorry, Chakotay," she apologized.
"No apology necessary. Why don't you go to your quarters and get some rest? I've got things covered up here for now, and I'll call you when they're finished," he gently offered.
"All right, Chakotay. Thanks," she agreed, standing and stretching as she yawned before leaving the bridge.
Chakotay had to admit, this worried him. Kathryn had never fallen asleep while on duty before, at least not in the time he had known her. And even worse was the fact that she had willingly agreed to leaving the bridge.
He shook the thought away. He could worry about Kathryn later. Right now, the away team needed him to be alert so he could help them if needed.
Okay guys, the next chapter is finished, and Chapter 4 is maybe halfway done. They just need to be typed. I'll need 8 reviews before the next chapter. And if you want to guess what's going on, PM me, don't review with it, and you have to provide not only what's going on, but an explanation for how and why you think it happened. See you for the next chapter, Diagnosis: Isolation!