Epilogue
Lights shone a sea of rainbow colours over a dark city.
Chakotay stood at a window in his San Francisco hotel room and looked out
at them. It had been a long time since he had seen city lights. Stars against
the black vastness of space had been his only view almost every night for
the past seven years. It was so good to be home, especially as the Federation
had announced during the homecoming celebrations that no charges were going
to be brought against him and the rest of the Maquis. He was a free man.
He could now do and be anything he wanted. Admiral Paris had even told
him he was welcome to rejoin Starfleet and said he'd be given an official
post as First Officer on a new ship, but for the moment, that wasn't an
avenue he wished to pursue. Seven years in space had quite quenched any
hunger for exploration he may once have nurtured and all he wanted now
was to get close to nature and enjoy the pleasures of a simple life for
a while. During the course of the evening he had received several offers
of a professorship at various universities and the prospect appealed to
him considerably. Some of the universities were in places he had never
heard of, and probably would never visit, but he was seriously considering
taking up the offer made by the University of San Francisco.
However, as good as it was to be back, a part of him was
already missing Voyager. The ship had become a home to him, as it had to
so many others, and living somewhere else would take some getting used
too. Starfleet Command was giving them all a month to collect their belongings,
and then the ship was going to be made into a museum. It was sad to think
Voyager would never again fly to the stars and beyond them, but the ship
was a part of Federation history and needed to be preserved for future
generations. She had returned from the Delta Quadrant hardly worse for
wear and it would be devastating if she was lost or irreparably damaged
in battle. Chakotay had always loved history, but it was a strange feeling
to think he had played some small part in the making of it. The furore
surrounding them all was something none of them were expecting. They were,
to all extent and purposes, celebrities. For a quiet man who had lived
his life very much avoiding the spotlight, it was something he was going
to have to learn to get used too.
Chakotay closed the blinds and then left the window. In
the corner of the room, next to the replicator, was a small refrigerator,
and he went over to it. He opened the door and pulled out a bottle of real
champagne that he had acquired at the hotel bar. He then replicated two
glasses. Kathryn was staying in the same hotel, a floor below him, and
he wanted to have a celebratory drink with her. They had barely had the
chance to say more than five words to each other since they had returned.
Aswell as being in demand by her family, she had been in demand by the
media, and had spent at least an hour doing an interview. He had felt rather
out of place as the Voyager crew greeted their loved ones as there was
no one present to greet him. His homeworld was too far away for his sister
to have made it to Earth before Voyager did and she was the only family
he had now. His cousin had joined the Maquis not long after he had got
stranded in the Delta Quadrant and he had just recently learnt that he
had been killed along with all the other Maquis. Chakotay had, however,
spoken with his sister via communication, and was going to travel to see
her as soon as was possible.
He was not alone in having no one to meet him. Voyager's
return was unexpected and only the families of those crewmembers who lived
on Earth were able to make it to welcome them as they arrived. Some were
making their way to Earth to collect their loved ones, while others were
waiting for their loved ones to travel to them. A lot of the crew had left
already. Other had gone to stay with family or friends as they waited for
their loved ones to arrive. Starfleet had arranged for those few who had
no where to go to stay at this hotel. Most of them were former Maquis members
and Chakotay wanted to stay with them to make sure that they were alright
and to be someone they could turn to for help in making a new life for
themselves. Kathryn was staying at the hotel for the same reason. She had
been their captain for seven years and was not going to abandon them now.
He picked up the glasses and they sparkled under the lights.
The shining glass reminded him of the way the black evening dress Kathryn
had worn at the party had shimmered as she moved. He had watched her from
a distance and tried to fight the feelings the sight of her evoked in him.
He was meant to be with Seven, had made promises to Seven, but as much
as he wanted to deny it, what he felt for her was nothing compared to the
feelings Kathryn had always been able to stir in him. He had forced his
eyes away from Kathryn, and focussed them on Seven, but involuntarily they
wandered back. When he looked at Seven he felt...nothing, but when he looked
at Kathryn, a thousand butterflies danced in his stomach and he could hardly
breathe. On Voyager he had finally accepted that she would never be his
and, in his own way, he had moved on. But getting home had changed everything.
They were now free of the command structure, the insuperable barrier that
had divided them, and he couldn't help think of the new possibilities.
He had tried to fight the feelings, but it was useless. He had loved Kathryn
so much for so long and whatever had happened between him and Seven in
the Admiral's future, the truth of the matter, at that moment, was that
it was still Kathryn he really wanted.
But how he was going to end things with Seven, he didn't
know. He had come to care about her very much and didn't want to hurt her.
This was her first real romantic involvement and he didn't want it to end
badly with her thinking she had failed. She was more vulnerable than she
let the world see and he didn't want to send her back into the shell she
was just beginning to shed. But then, unexpectedly, Seven had called it
off between them. She had approached him when he had a moment alone and
told him she had decided to go and stay with her aunt for a while. She
said she wanted to get to know her and to know her cousin and his young
children. Chakotay suspected the children were the draw. Seven loved being
with young ones and to know these were her blood family, her collective,
would be a pull too hard to resist. She had been distinctively uncomfortable
in his presence and he could see in her eyes that things had changed for
her too. "I do not believe it would be wise for us to continue dating,"
she had said at last. "Circumstances have changed." She was clearly relieved
when he had agreed with her and not questioned and she had returned contentedly
to her family.
Chakotay was just about to leave the room when there was a knock on the door. He put down the bottle and the glasses and went to open it. Kathryn stood in the doorway, still dressed in her evening gown, and held a bottle of champagne in her hand.
"I thought we could have a celebratory drink together."
Chakotay laughed softly. "I was just about to bring a bottle to your room."
Kathryn laughed now. "Well, they say great minds think alike."
Chakotay held open the door for her and she entered the room.
"I'm sorry we didn't get a chance to talk much at the party," she said. "I kept meaning to come over to you but someone kept stopping me before I had a chance."
"I understand," he replied, going to pick up the glasses, "the same thing happened to me."
"But I'm glad you finally got to meet my mother and sister," Kathryn continued, "if only briefly. I'm only sorry your homeworld is so far away. I would love to have met your sister."
"Well," Chakotay replied, returning to her, "why don't you come with me to see her? I know she would love to meet you. You could also see my homeworld at the same time."
Kathryn nodded with a smile. "I would love too."
She then turned her attention to the bottle of champagne and pulled out the cork. They both laughed as streams of white bubbles fell on them. Chakotay held the glasses while Kathryn poured the golden liquid into them and then they made a toast.
"To new beginnings," she said.
"To new beginnings," Chakotay smiled.
They then took a sip of the bubbly.
"And," Chakotay continued. "I believe congratulations are in order...the admiralty."
Kathryn laughed. "I think Starfleet's way of keeping me out of space. First ever command and I strand my crew 75,000 light years from home. But I'm not complaining. To tell the truth, I'll be glad of the quieter life. I think if I captained a ship again, it would always be in the back of my mind, you know, that we could get stranded again. Plus, this way, I get to pull rank more often."
"A definite bonus," Chakotay smiled.
"And what about you? What do you plan to do?"
"I was thinking, maybe," Chakotay began a little hesitantly, "of accepting a professorship I was offered this evening at the university here in San Francisco."
Kathryn's eyes shone at those words. She'd feared he would want to return to his homeworld or would rejoin Starfleet and accept a position on some ship destined for deep space.
"That sounds perfect, Chakotay."
He nodded and then smiled. "Admiral Kathryn Janeway and Professor Chakotay. It's going to take some getting used too." He paused and then looked straight into her eyes. "Very different to Captain and First Officer."
His meaning was unmistakable and tears welled in Kathryn's eyes. They'd been through so much together, had changed so much together, and for the longest time they had been the best of friends. She had never been as close to anyone as she had been to him. He was her soulmate and she loved him dearly. But she had also been aware of a growing distance between them over the past few months. They had spent less and less time together as he spent more with Seven. It had hurt her deeply, but she had always known it was only a matter of time before he found someone else. But whatever had been between him and Seven, or was going to occur, she knew belonged in the past and in a future that would no longer happen. She had talked for a long time with Seven before she had left with her aunt, and it was clear from what she said that Chakotay was not a part of her vision for the future.
Kathryn smiled softly. "Very different." She reached out and gently lay her hand on his arm. "But no First Officer could have been more loyal or devoted than you...and no friend as true. " Her voice fell to a whisper. "And I love you very much."
Tears welled in Chakotay's eyes and he lay his hand on her shoulder. "And I love you, Kathryn," he said softly. A tear ran down his cheek. "I just couldn't go on waiting, go on hoping. I loved you so much that it was destroying me. I had to let go...had to try...that's why Seven and I..."
Kathryn gently put her fingers to his lips. "I know, Chakotay. And you don't have to explain. I understand." She brushed her fingers gently against his cheek as a tear ran down her own. "All that matters is what happens now..."
She gazed deep into his eyes and then raised her lips to his and kissed him with infinite tenderness.
Their eyes locked as they drew away and Kathryn felt herself drown in the pools of love in his eyes. She put down her glass and took his from him. Then she raised her lips once more to his and kissed him again. Chakotay deepened the kiss and she slipped her arms around his neck as he gathered her close. It was a kiss so new, so unimaginable, and yet one so familiar to their dreams.
At last they drew apart and Kathryn picked up her glass. "My room is luxury ensuite," she said, eyes sparkling, "complete with Jacuzzi. How about we take our champagne, take a long hot soak, and, well, inform reception that your room is no longer required?"
Chakotay smiled, deep dimples showing, and picked up his glass and the bottle of champagne.
"Lead the way."
THE END