Earth was so unfamiliar, so unrecognizable to her. The trees were greener than she remembered the sky bluer. She was in awe at the beauty of the sun, the way it seemed to penetrate her very soul. Mark had come to see her the day before, and she could barely recall what had happened. All she knew was that she began to tell him about her journey and had reached the final adventure when she broke down into pitiful sobs. She was supposed to be an Admiral, tough, independent. She was not supposed to be so attached to a man like she was to Chakotay. When they had said goodbye, she felt like her heart was torn from her body and all life was drawn from her. As she strolled down the street, side by side with Mark, another man caught her eye. He was tall, stately, with black hair and tanned skin… and above his eye there was…
Nothing. She bit her lip to stop the tears from flowing, but a lone tear escaped, glistening in the sunlight.
Chakotay watched as Seven looked in the window of the store. She was so free, so childlike, so unburdened by life's troubles. As he walked toward the railing, the wind gently bending the trees, he saw a figure that caught his eye. Her red hair glistened in the sunlight as she brushed her cheeks and moved her hair from her face. And though the sun slightly obscured his vision, he knew her, all to well. He had spent seven years memorizing the way her hair fell when she laughed, the way her eyes sparkled at dinner and how her eyebrows furrowed when she was angry. He'd spent seven years loving her, and he knew it was Kathryn. He walked toward her throwing a glance over his shoulder to see if Seven was still busy. Indeed she was… He walked up behind her and placed his hand on her arm, and in a barley audible whisper he spoke her name.
Mark could see the man approach her and he could tell instantly that was him. The man she was in love with; there was no doubt in his mind. He could see the way she breathed in quickly when he touched her, the way her eyes widened at the sound of his voice. It was obvious… and he was more than a little jealous. He had always loved Kathryn, but since the day he came to see her, he'd known that her heart lay with another, he knew the moment she mentioned his name. Her heart and mind was and always would be his… Chakotay's… No matter how much he whished she would come back to him.
Who is the third who walks always beside you?
When I count, there are only you and I together
But when I look ahead up the white road
There is always another one walking beside you