AN: Here's another chapter.
As always, all events/characters/dialogue/plot taken from the show don't belong to me. I own nothing from Star Trek Voyager and I'm only writing this for my entertainment value and hopefully for the entertainment of a few readers.
I hope you enjoy! Let me know what you think!
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Kathryn was gone a little longer than Chakotay had expected her to be, but when she came strolling back with the determination that she wore when she walked almost anywhere, Chakotay could see that she was unscathed. So far, their planet was proving to be entirely peaceful and, except for the bite of the insect that gave them the virus, entirely safe.
Chakotay sometimes forgot that he was supposed to be upset with the insect that had given them the virus that kept them grounded there. It was difficult to be upset about having been handed a practical paradise and having Kathryn as a mate with which to share it.
"Did you get all the traps hung?" Chakotay asked.
"They're all placed," Kathryn confirmed. "I kept most of them in their old locations, but I made a few changes. There's a really beautiful field beyond the clearing and there are some flowering trees that are growing there. I thought it might be a good place to put a few traps. Now there's nothing to do but wait until tomorrow to see if the insects took the bait."
"Well if you don't have anything to do," Chakotay offered, "I have a few projects that you could help with."
Kathryn put her hand on her hip and regarded him. Until now, most of their projects since they'd built the shelter had been separate. Hers had involved studying the environment to determine how to leave the planet while his had involved studying the planet to determine the best ways to live there comfortably. He hadn't crossed over into her tasks, and she hadn't crossed over into his.
"What did you have in mind?" Kathryn asked.
Chakotay gestured from where he was sitting on the ground working to the case that he'd dragged out of the corner of their shelter that they used for storage.
"When Neelix packed the food for us, he was thoughtful enough to include that case full of prepared seeds from the hydroponics bay," Chakotay explained. "Once I'm making some progress determining the toxicity of the plants around us, I can start to gather seeds and control their growth to ensure their abundance. Judging from the state of the plants around us, however, the planet looks to be fertile. It appears to be a good period for growth here. It would be a good idea to plant the seeds that Neelix sent while we have a growing season on our side. We can establish some new species of plants that way and ensure a harvest."
"We don't know about the virus," Kathryn said quickly. "Chakotay, I could be hours away from finding the insects. I could be days away from developing a cure that will let us leave the planet and set a course for Earth. It's a bit premature to lay claim to the area so entirely as to introduce new plants and to start worrying about a harvest."
Chakotay could see the potential for conflict looming ahead just as surely as if it were marked with the lights of a Red Alert. He carefully considered what he wanted to say to avoid as much of that conflict as possible.
"Nature has growing seasons," Chakotay said. "The new growth happens when nature is ready for it to happen, not when we're ready. It's the perfect time for Her, so it doesn't really matter whether or not it's the ideal time for us. The seasons here are still unpredictable for us. We have no way of knowing the next time there might be a growing season. Whether or not we're successful or whether or not we're here to see it come to fruition, we've got to take the opportunity to plant now if we think we might want a harvest in the future. If we're not here, we leave it for the other animals to eat, or it rots and goes back to fertilize the ground again. At any rate, we need to get prepared and start getting those seeds in the ground as soon as possible. I could use your help. We need to clear a plot. We need to turn the soil and prepare it for planting."
"I'm not ready to give up on the chance that we might go home," Kathryn said.
Chakotay sucked in a breath and held it while he considered all the possible ways that he could respond.
"I'm not asking you to give up, Kathryn," Chakotay assured her. "I don't want you to ever give up on anything. I'm just asking you to help me break up the dirt and pull a few weeds."
"It just feels like..." Kathryn started, but she broke off.
"It feels like what?" Chakotay asked.
"It feels like you've given up," Kathryn said. "On me. On my research."
Chakotay put down the spear that he was working on sharpening and pushed himself up so that he could stand facing Kathryn. He caught her by the arms and kneaded her muscles in his hands as he held her in front of him.
"I would never give up on you, Kathryn," Chakotay promised her. "I couldn't. I won't give up on you for as long as there's breath in both of our bodies."
Kathryn stared at him and swallowed.
"You built a bathtub for me," Kathryn said. "I could have done without it. You've built us a bed. You're working tirelessly to make the shelter a more comfortable house. Now you're exploring our food options on this planet. You're preparing to hunt and fish. You're talking about planting a garden and growing food. Chakotay—it feels like you're more focused on making a home than finding a cure and leaving for Earth."
"I am focused on building a home, Kathryn," Chakotay said. "For the both of us. I'm focused on making it the most comfortable home that I can possibly make it. Whether we're here for a day or for the rest of our lives, that's what I'm going to do. It's what I'm wired to do, Kathryn. You're focused on finding the cure. That's what you're wired to do. You're wired to research and think about science and test boundaries—it's part of who you are and that's what you're doing. But I can't ignore the fact that right now we're here. Right now, this is our home. This is our life. This is what we have. If we stay, we'll need things to continue living. We need things now to be more comfortable. I can't sacrifice the present for a future that may never come."
Kathryn dropped her eyes from him and nodded her head. She turned around and he let her go. She walked to the case that held the seeds and stood over it, looking down at it for a moment.
"Maybe, one day, I'll accept that there's no cure," Kathryn said. "But—I don't believe it will be today. I'm not ready to let go yet."
"You don't have to," Chakotay responded. "I'll never ask you to."
"Have you picked out a spot, Chakotay? For the garden?"
Chakotay smiled to himself.
"I'll show you," he said. "It's got enough shade for the plants that are going to require that and more than enough sun for the ones who prefer that."
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Kathryn normally went out to check her traps the moment that she'd eaten something for breakfast. This morning, though, she'd gone directly to the plot of land they would be using to plant their seeds and she'd worked at tearing up the grass and weeds and turning over the soil where she'd left off the night before. She worked tirelessly, alone, for a few hours. Chakotay was off doing something. Kathryn hadn't kept track of his whereabouts, but she knew two things: he'd be back and whatever he was doing was going to be good for the both of them.
Kathryn had fought against the idea of planting seeds for most of the day before, but she had to admit that starting to prepare the ground felt somewhat exciting to her. Once her hands were in the dirt, she'd almost hated to leave the plot that they'd chosen. There was something exciting about knowing that they were preparing the ground for new life. At the moment, tearing up the grass that already grew there and tossing it to the side, Kathryn was destroying life. But in a few days, prepared for planting, they would put the seeds into the ground and they would tend to them while they waited for them to take root and grow.
Out of the destruction came life.
When Kathryn was finally done with her work at their garden plot, she stood up and dusted her hands off on her dress. The smell of the fresh dirt was almost intoxicating. She made her way back to the shelter and found Chakotay there, hard at work at something.
"What are you doing now?" Kathryn asked, smiling to herself.
"Snares," Chakotay said. "For birds. There are a lot of them not far from here. I've been seeing them all over. They appear to be some kind of hen, but I want to capture a few of them to study before I commit to killing them or raiding their nests for eggs."
He smiled at her over his shoulder and abandoned his work with the string. He walked over to her and Kathryn closed her eyes to the welcomed feeling of his hand trailing over her cheek.
"You've been playing in the dirt," Chakotay said.
Kathryn didn't try to hide her smile.
"I finished the plot," she said. "When do we plant?"
"Some of the seeds are still soaking," Chakotay said. "Two days? Admit it, you like the idea more than you thought you would."
"I don't mind the idea of growing things," Kathryn said. "It's a science in its own right."
"That's the best I'm going to get, isn't it?" Chakotay asked. He laughed to himself when Kathryn didn't respond to him. "How did your blood sacrifice work? How many insects did you bring in this time?"
Kathryn felt her chest tighten. She jumped with a start.
"I forgot to check the traps! I wanted to finish up the plot and I haven't been out to check them yet!" Kathryn responded. Her stomach twisted at the thought that she had forgotten something she'd declared to be the most important task she had on this planet. She wasn't ready, yet, to explore what that might mean.
"You better go," Chakotay said. "You don't want to put it off too late. I'm going to see if I can catch a hen or two. If they look OK, we might have one for dinner tonight. You can tell me about the bugs you caught while I clean it."
"I'm not getting anywhere near you while you clean it," Kathryn said. She leaned up on her toes and offered Chakotay a kiss which he accepted and returned. "But I will go and check the traps. If I wait any longer, I won't have time to bait them again and get them hung out before dark."
Chakotay caught her hand, forcing it up for her to look at it.
"No more blood sacrifices," Chakotay said, holding her wrist. "You promised."
Kathryn smiled at him.
"I promised I wouldn't use any more of my blood," she said. She winked at him when he let go of her hand, shaking his head and laughing to himself. Kathryn didn't waste any time, though, before she headed back to the shelter to retrieve her case for collecting specimens.
She covered ground quickly when most of the traps were empty. It didn't take her long to peer inside them, see that her bait had done nothing to draw the insects she was after, and move on to another trap. She was almost to the final trap that she'd set out—the furthest from their shelter—when she saw a sight that made her heart speed up in her chest.
Inside the trap she was currently holding in her hand, there was one of the insects that she was looking for. He'd taken the bait. Finally he'd come to her and she had him.
Kathryn recognized that it was probably unusual for someone to feel so incredibly happy over a bug, but she was thrilled. She quickly gathered the insect and closed him into the specimen cup that she secured in her case. While she was closing the trap, she heard a sound that drew her attention.
Her primate friend had come to see her.
"Hello," Kathryn crooned at the primate. She held her hand out in his direction. "You certainly cover a lot of ground. In the woods with Chakotay and now here with me. Are there more of you? Are you the only one of your species or do you have a mate? I'm sorry we're invading your territory, but I've just found an insect that might be our ticket off of your planet."
Kathryn only stopped talking to the primate because he suddenly looked agitated and started shrieking loudly and harshly at her. She almost wanted to cover her ears against the sound. She asked the primate what was wrong, sure that she'd get no more response than she'd gotten for anything else she'd said, but she quickly started to see the answer for herself.
The sky was growing dark at an alarming speed. Kathryn watched the change, speaking out loud to herself and the primate that wouldn't respond to her as she marveled at the sky. Black clouds seemed to appear from nowhere. They covered over the sky and the wind picked up. Suddenly, there were bolts of lightning that seemed to strike the ground with enough force that the whole planet shook.
Not knowing what was happening but sure that it was dangerous, Kathryn grabbed her case and started to run as fast as she could for the shelter that she shared with Chakotay.
As she ran, she wished she hadn't chosen that hour to be out collecting specimens. Instead, she wished she was back at the shelter and near Chakotay. The lightning strikes threatened her. The rain stung her skin and the wind whipped her in one direction and another as the ground vibrated under her feet. She was finding it impossible to keep her balance and she was making very little forward progress because she was being thrown to her hands and knees almost constantly.
She cried out, a few times, for Chakotay, but she doubted he could hear her. He'd probably taken shelter. He was probably waiting for her. He would have to be crazy to be out in the storm any longer than he had to be, especially since it seemed to be gathering power from somewhere.
She was starting to fear that she wasn't going to make it back to the shelter. But, then, she heard him. Despite the fear of the storm that was causing her heart to seize up, she couldn't help but feel a warm rush of relief as he wrapped his strong hands around her arms. She was safe. He would see to that.
"Kathryn! Kathryn! Are you alright? Are you hurt?"
