Okay guys this is just the beginning... I promise. I have this whole story planed out. So please please please R&R if I get just one review I'll right the next part. Oh and by the way I don't own Voyager or any of the characters... those belong to Paramount. Enjoy!

The Long Way Home

Chakotay sat at the front of the empty church, his head in his hands. His mind numb from the events of the past few days. He couldn't think straight, he couldn't think at all really. His world was gone. When her life ended so did his. Now he was just a shell of the man he was. Nothing could lift him up anymore. His spirit was dead.

"Captain Chakotay..." Said a firm female voice behind him.

He turned around and there stood Seven. A woman he had hurt deeply in the past. A woman who hadn't talked to in five years. He wondered what she wanted. "Seven, I... I didn't expect you to be here."

She paused in one of her usual ways before she answered. "Admiral Janeway, she was a good woman, who helped me regain my humanity. I felt it was the right thing to do. To be here for her, for the rest of the Voyager family... even you. I know you loved her. I know you never meant to hurt me, we never would have worked out, because you did love her. I know you made her happy in last five years of her life."

Her words touched him. "Thank you Seven, I needed to hear that."

"Please, don't call me Seven anymore, I go by Annika now."

He looked at her surprised

"A lot has happened in the five years, I haven't seen you."

He nodded his head and in a hollow voice said, "We should get together for a cup of..." His voice faltered before he could finish. It was just one of those things you say to people, get together for coffee, it was something he and Kathryn always joked about. His mind wandered back to time the joke started.



Chakotay was away on his first mission as a captain of a Star Ship. He missed his wife with a passion. Starfleet had barely let them have their honeymoon when they called the both of them away, again. They knew their lives together would be full of this, long periods away from each other, but they loved each other so much that they knew they could stand it.

Chakotay was in bed, he restless and not able to sleep without his wife next to him. Even though he loved being an officer in Starfleet he cursed it for taking him away from his Kathryn. He just stared at the ceiling and wondered if Kathryn was having just as much trouble sleeping as he was.

Just then the his commbadge beeped. "Commander Kim to Captain Chakotay."

"I'm here Harry, what's wrong." Chakotay said to his First Officer.

"Nothing wrong Chakotay, subspace message from a certain Admiral insisting she talk to you."

Chakotay smiled. "Put her through Harry."

Chakotay stood up quickly and walked to his consul, to be greeted by his beautiful redheaded wife. "Hello Admiral, shouldn't you be in bed."

She gave him one of her dazzling smiles, "I couldn't sleep, from what I see my husband isn't either. I was half hoping you wouldn't be asleep so I wouldn't wake you."

He too smiled, "Looks like you got your wish. I couldn't sleep without you by my side. I can't wait until the end of this mission, so I can see you again Kathryn."

Her small mouth formed a frown. "That's what I needed to talk to you about Chakotay. Starfleet has decided to send me away with Enterprise for an extended trip to Bajor. New negotiations with the Bajorans and apparently they asked for me personally."

"What? They're going to take my Kathryn away from me again... for how long?"

"Indefinitely. I leave two days from now, I most likely won't be here when you get back. I'm sorry."

He smiled a little to reassure her. "So is this how it's going to be like for the rest of our lives?"

She joked with him slightly. "When I get back we should get together and have a cup of coffee just like old friends."

"You know I can't stand the bitter taste of coffee and besides I would hope I would get more than some sort of beverage, after all we're more than just old friends." Chakotay teased.

Kathryn smiled, "You got it love." Then she frowned again. "I miss you so much Chakotay. I just wish I could be there with you now. After come back from Bajor I'm going to put in to a transfer to the Academy, I can stay home then and play the good wife, while you go galavanting around the galaxy."

He had been giving this much thought as well, he hated being away from her for so long a time. He too had thought about giving up his commission in favor of teaching at the Academy. "How about I join you at the Academy? I hear they need a new anthropology teacher. That's right up my ally."

She looked up at him, the surprise evident in her eyes. "But I thought you wanted to do a little more exploring of the Alpha quadrant and playing police man."

"I did, and now that I have I realized that it just isn't the same without you by my side."

"Starfleet might get kind of upset, after all you fought to get a deep space commission."

"Oh I don't think they'll mind. After all my wonderful, beautiful, gorgeous, stunning, wife the admiral will be happy to have me more to herself."

Smiling Kathryn said, "Why do I get the feeling you want something from me Chakotay?"

"Because I do. I think Harry is ready to be promoted, and maybe even Captain this vessel himself. I was wondering if you could maybe pull a few strings and... you know..."

"Hey if it means I'd get to spend more time with you then I'd do anything." She gets a hint of a motherly look in her eyes. "So you finally think Harry is ready to captain. I always knew he'd make it this far somehow. I can still remember when I first met him, he was standing so stiffly at attention I thought he was going to sprain something."

"He has grown up a lot Kathryn. You have to give him that."

"Oh yes, 7 years in the Delta Quadrant, plus him serving under you as a first officer will do that to a wide eyed youth."

"You know it's been a long time since he's been a wide eyed youth."

Laughing a little, "Oh don't remind me, I already feel old."

"You're not old Kathryn, far from it. And even if you were you'd be the most beautiful old person in the quadrant." Again joking with him, "Oh only in the Quadrant Chakotay. I see how it is."

He smiled a little. "You know what I mean." Then he yawned slightly, but he raised his hand to his mouth to try and hide it.

However Kathryn noticed. "You're tired Chakotay, you should try to get some rest. I'll talk to you soon I promise. And hopefully soon we'll be together again."

He nodded and smiled at her again. "I love you."

"I love you too." And with that she leaned over and ended the communication.



"Chakotay," B'Elanna Torres was trying to shake him away from his day dream. Annika was standing next to her, a worried look on her face. "Chakotay."

He blinked his eyes and came back to the present. Ending the memory that happened not so many years ago. "B'Elanna, hello, thank you for coming." He looked over her shoulder and saw Tom holding their daughter in his arms. "Thank you both for being here... Kath... she would be happy to see the two of you here and looking so happy." He closed his eyes again for fear that the tears that he had been holding back would come.

"How are you doing Chakotay?" Asked B'Elanna.

"I... I'm as well as can be expected."

"Is there anything we can do?" This was Tom.

Chakotay smiled a ghost of his former beautiful smile. "No, I don't think so, but thank you... thank you for asking. You're all..." He looked at the there of them and then stopped on Annika. "All, of you are great friends."