Summary – Set post Endgame. Kathryn's adherence to protocol leaves Voyager's Commanding Officers tied up in knots…literally. Note…this story assumes an ongoing relationship between J/C. A version of this short piece was originally posted as part of the JCUK Advent Calendar, 2003.
Rating – J/C General
Ties that bind
Momac 2003
'Damn it Kathryn, would you stop
squirming around so much, you'll only tighten the knots further.'
He tactfully omitted to mention the other side-effects of such close
contact but she'd discover the truth soon enough if she kept rubbing up
against him like that.'
'Admirals...don't...squirm!'
She glared at him from behind a curtain of auburn hair; her eyes alight
with the fire of battle. He knew he was walking on thin ice given her
reaction to his now exhausted repertoire of bondage jokes but he
couldn't resist. Where she was concerned, he never could...
'They do if I do this.'
Leaning forward he buried his face in the mass of hair gathered on her
shoulders, inhaling her scent as his lips zeroed in on the sensitive
flesh just below her ear.
'Chakotay!'
What had started out as fury melted into a moan as she collapsed against
him.
'Q was right. You are angry when you're beautiful.'
'Aghhhh!'
The glare was back, boring a hole in the middle of his forehead.
'Don't mention his name. All we need now is for him to
appear and I swear my life is over.' She turned her attention back to
the knots that bound her hands together. 'Things are bad enough without
adding Q to the mix.'
'Relax Kathryn. After all, its not as if we're in any real
danger...though I admit this might put a dent in that kick-ass
reputation of yours.'
Gritting her teeth, Kathryn growled menacingly at the man trapped within
her embrace.
'Memo to me. Maim you once I've finished with that damned Vulcan.'
'Be reasonable Kathryn...' Chakotay punctuated his words with a stolen
kiss. '...Tuvok did warn us about the war games scheduled for Christmas
Eve. It was just our bad luck that the first people we bumped into in
Starfleet HQ were a bunch of heavily armed Cadets...'
She snarled at him this time.
'I don't remember you being this understanding when they grabbed us
and demanded that we reveal the location of the 'enemy' HQ, or suffer
the consequences.'
'You have to admire their nerve.'
'What about when they accused us of being imposters, sent in by Tuvok to
spread mis-information?'
'I'll admit that comment about your lack of height was pushing it. But
they handled themselves well. Let's face it, they could have tied us
up separately to the railings over there. Instead I get to hold you in
my arms.'
He kissed her again, nibbling on her lips until her felt a reluctant
smile tugging at them.
'If I remember correctly the games terminate at 0100, which means...'
Chakotay glanced over at the chronometer on the far wall, pausing for a
moment as he watched a new day being born.
'...Merry Christmas, Kathryn.'
She followed his gaze, her frown dissipating as she read the time
displayed there...0001 and 20 seconds precisely.
'Merry Christmas to you too. This wasn't quite how I'd planned to
spend Christmas Eve but then when has anything we've been involved in
gone exactly to plan.'
Chakotay's reply faded
from him mind as she leant forward to steal his breath with a kiss. It
was several minutes before he'd recovered sufficiently to utter a
coherent sentence.
'Not that I'm complaining...but what was that for?'
'For not saying "I told you so."' Kathryn paused, resting her
forehead against his. 'We wouldn't be in this mess if I hadn't
insisted on filing that damned report in person.'
'I wouldn't have dreamed of mentioning that...well, not till after you'd
vented your frustration on a certain Vulcan and his merry band of
cadets.'
His words drew her thoughts back to the bindings around her wrists.
Relaxing into his embrace she let his words flow over her, drawing
comfort from his nearness.
'Perhaps St Nicholas will stop by on his way with a sharp knife and a
compression phaser rifle.'
'A girl can never have enough weaponry, but I think we can do without
the knife.'
Kathryn grinned in triumph as she withdrew her arms from around him.
'How the hell did you do that?'
'That, my darling...is for me to know and you to find out.'
With a mysterious smile she turned her attention to his bindings, her
fingers making light work of the complex set of knots.
'Okay, Houdini. Now what?'
'Oh no…my parts done. You're the expert when it comes to guerilla warfare. Impress me!'
Laughter echoed off the
walls as he picked her up and twirled her around.
'I love you Kathryn Janeway...did I mention that lately?'
'I love you too. Now stop stalling and get us out of here.'
'Yes, ma'am.'
Epilogue
It was another hour before the door to their makeshift prison cell
opened. Three cadets stepped nervously into the room, their faces
turning a sickly shade of green as they realised the room was empty.
'It would appear that the Admiral left you a message.'
Tuvok's voice cut through their misery, directing their eyes to the
words scrawled across the far wall in what looked suspiciously like
lipstick.
MY OFFICE
0900 MONDAY
BRING A TOOTHBRUSH
K. Janeway, Admiral
'We're dead.'
It was a statement of fact rather than a question and earned the Cadet
in question what had become affectionately known throughout the Academy
as 'the eyebrow.'
'That would appear to be the logical conclusion...'
The End
