Disclaimer: *Clears throat in an official manner* the characters and stuff belong to Paramount and everyone else that played a part in making Star Trek Voyager happen. *Sob* Now the only have to correct what they did wrong, but trust me I'm over C/7. I'm over it, I tell you, "screams' over it!!!!!! Author's Note: Hey you guys, thanks for all the good reviews. I know it's been a while. sorry, I'll try to pick up the pace.

"Hi Seven, Hello Naomi," grinned Shannon as she walked into astrometrics.
"Crewman Janeway," said seven by way of greeting.
"Hi Shannon," Naomi gave Shannon a small smile.
Shannon smiled back, truth be told, she didn't like Naomi. Everyone expected her to be an older sister to the young half-Ktarian, to watch out for her and teach her right from wrong. Though a genius, Shannon hardly knew right from wrong herself. Still, she tried, because she knew how much everyone loved Naomi. No one seemed to understand what she was feeling; they were blinded by love for Naomi. Even her mother had told her to look out for Naomi this morning.
"Shannon," stated Seven. Shannon noted the way she always stated things instead of saying them as an ordinary person would. "Naomi is having some problems with her homework. It would be helpful to me if you could," she paused as if searching for the right expression, "Give her a hand with it. I have," she paused again, "My hands tied down with this."
Shannon laughed, "Is the doctor trying to broaden your vocabulary?"
"Affirmative," she stated again, "He says it will help ease the crew when they are around me. I find that it is not working."
"Don't worry Seven, I'm sure the Doctor knows what he's talking about."
"Shannon," said Naomi, tugging at Shannon's sleeve.
"Don't do that," snapped Shannon, startling Naomi, who had never been snapped at by anyone unless they were inhabited by an alien or something.
"I'm sorry," said Naomi, "But I need help with this work."
Shannon glanced at Seven who was giving her a fierce look, "I'm sorry," she apologized as well, "I don't like people doing that to me."
Naomi nodded as Shannon led her back to the quarters she shared with her mother.
"Wow, the Captain's quarters," said Naomi in awe.
"OH come on, it's just like yours, except it's slightly bigger," said Shannon dragging Naomi to her room, but Naomi insisted on stopping to look at every picture and detail in the living room.
"She's an ordinary human being you know," Shannon said, but didn't drag Naomi to her room anymore.
Kathryn had brought up Shannon by teacher her to respect people older than she was and with a higher rank. Shannon figured Naomi had as well.
At last, Naomi decided she wasted to see what Shannon's room looked like and they managed to get the work done.
"Aren't you going to go to school?" asked Naomi when they were done.
Shannon shrugged, "I really don't know what I'm going to do," she answered honestly. Suddenly thinking about how she was going to pass her time away on this ship. She made a mental note to talk to Chakotay about it later.
Over the past week, they had played Hoverball at least once a day together and Shannon had really grown to like him. She had never had a father figure before and was beginning to regard him as one.
She was also beginning to suspect something else about him. Tonight's plan would help her see if it were true or false. She had been suspecting it for a long time. Ever since her mother refused to talk to her and Chakotay had never left her side.
"Shannon, Shannon," she heard Naomi call her.
"I'm sorry, I was just thinking," she quickly apologized, "Um, I have to go now; I'm due for a game of hoverball with the Commander."
"Yeah, I promised Neelix I'd help him in the kitchen."
"Good, you can make sure he doesn't use Leola Root again today, ugh, I've only been here three weeks and I've had about enough about it," Shannon made a disgusted face which made Naomi laugh.
Once the little girl was gone, Shannon quickly changed and headed to the Holodeck. So far, she had managed to beat Chakotay at almost every match, but he had been practising, she's walked past his office yesterday, to see him whacking the hoverball to the wall and bouncing it back again. She had to admit, he was getting better at it.
"Good evening Commander. And before we start, I should say, don't worry, I'm sure you'll win next time," she teased.
"You sound awfully confidant," said a voice.
"Mum?" she asked, astonished to see her mother there.
"I heard that you were playing with Chakotay everyday and I'm here to give support to you."
"Whose side are you on?" Shannon asked, shooting Chakotay a smug look. She noticed he wasn't looking at her, but was staring at her mother instead. He seemed to be watched her every move. Her mother on the other hand seemed completely oblivious to it. She hadn't even put her plan into action and already Chakotay was confirming what she thought.
"The winning team."
"Oh you mean mine," said Shannon, finally getting Chakotay's attention.
"I've been practising," smiled Chakotay, showing off his great dimples.
Shannon groaned, she had noticed her mother couldn't resist those dimples; she was beginning to see why.
True to his word, he had been practising. He actually managed to win two games out of five instead of his usual one.
"You forget Commander, I have the whole day to myself, nothing to do, no one to see," Shannon reminded him.
"Ah yes, I've been meaning to talk to you about that," said Kathryn joining Chakotay and her daughter on the Holodeck floor where they were drinking greedily out of their water bottles.
"You're giving me a post?" Shannon asked eagerly.
Kathryn smiled, "Not unless it involves cleaning the transporter padd."
Shannon groaned, "What else should I do?" she asked.
"Something every other thirteen year old does.. Study."
"But mum."
"No buts, you already know most things about running a star ship, art, literature, science, but you know what the book tells you. Every day, you will sit with Tuvok and he'll teach you all the tactical stuff they don't tell you in books, B'Elanna will do the same with Engineering, Tom with Piloting, Chakotay will teach you how to track in the jungle like and Indian should and about his culture, I will teach you about command, when I'm free."
"Command?"
"Yes, I believe you always told me you wanted to be a Captain, just like your Mama."
"I didn't think you remembered," beamed Shannon.
"Oh, you left out Maestro, Kathryn," said Chakotay.
"Maestro?" Shannon asked, "Who's that?"
"I'll show you," said Kathryn, starting up another holoprogramme.
"Leonardo Da Vinci," Shannon gaped as the man walked up to her.
"Katrina," said the old man, giving his ex-student a big hug. He turned to Chakotay, "The Big Indian," he said shaking his hand. Chakotay smiled.
"The Little Katrina, I've heard about you, little one," said Leonardo, giving Shannon a hug as well.
"You told him about me," Shannon asked.
"I had to tell someone," Kathryn smiled putting her arm around her daughter, "Maestro, meet Shannon."
"Shannonita," beamed Maestro, "My new student?"
"Yes."
"Ah, come, come, let me show you around, you as well Big Indian Man, I only met you once on that planet, where me and the Katrina flew in the flying machine."
Chakotay followed Leonardo and Shannon around his studio as Kathryn checked on some of her old projects.
Finally Maestro said that it was time to go, he had important work to do. Shannon huffed about how rude he was and for a moment they stood there bantering until Kathryn insisted they go.
At the Janeway's (as it was now called) Door, Chakotay stood for a moment, saying his goodbyes, until Shannon invited him in for dinner, "As far as I know, and I know because I've checked the logs you guys used to have dinner all the time, I don't want to get in the way," Shannon said, stepping back to allow room for him to walk in.
"I don't know," said Chakotay, all the same he took a step in.
Shannon joined them for dinner, making a point to keep out of the way and watch her mother and her father figure interact. Her hypothesis had been proved, now she just had to find away to prove it to them... already a plan was forming in her genius mind. Of course she'd need help from the pro. She made a mental note to check in with Tom in the morning.
After dinner, she excused herself, saying that there was a novel she's been dying to read. From her bedroom, she watched them interact. She knew her mother loved Chakotay. She could see it in her eyes. She could also see that her mother was afraid, extremely afraid of what might happen to Chakotay. She had lost Justin in the accident and Mark to the Delta Quadrant, but Shannon knew she had never really loved Mark, so that didn't count. All the same, she had lost him. Shannon knew that Kathryn was afraid of having to send Chakotay away and didn't want to cry over him if he didn't come back.
What Shannon had figured out was that no matter what her mother was going to cry over him anyway, so it was obviously better to cry with no regrets than to cry with them.

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"Hey, B'Elanna, Tom," over here, Shannon signalled them to a corner of the mess hall.
"Hey Lil' Captain," said Tom sliding into the seat opposite Shannon's.
"'Morning Shannon," murmured the Klingon, "You'd think six years of having to wake up in the middle of a crisis would make me a morning person, but noooooooo," she said, as she swirled her cereal in her bowl.
"Thank goodness Neelix is on an away mission," said Tom, "I haven't had cereal in a long time."
"Why don't you use the replicator?" Shannon asked.
"If I was going to use the replicator, I'd get something worth using the replicator for, like bacon and eggs, or something like that."
"Hey Shannon," said Naomi, sitting at the table, "Sorry I'm late, Mum yelled at me because my room was in a mess."
"We all get that, even from busy Starfleet Captains," smiled Shannon.
"Oh come on," shrugged Tom, "She probably misses being a mother, besides; she hasn't been all that busy. We've been sailing smoothly these last couple of days."
"I thought you didn't like her," B'Elanna whispered to Shannon, while Tom was joking with Naomi.
"I need her help, I need your help," Shannon whispered back.
"Uhum," she cleared her throat addressing the whole table, "Psst, look over there," she motioned to Chakotay and Kathryn who had just walked in.
"What?" asked Tom.
"Don't you guys realise they love each other?"
"Of course we do, but she won't tell him."
"Don't ever tell anyone else this," she said nodding to B'Elanna, as if to say that 'if Tom ever tells anyone, show no mercy'.
When B'Elanna nodded back, Shannon explained why her mother wouldn't tell Chakotay she loved him back.
"That doesn't make sense," said Naomi, "If she loves him, she'll miss him all the same."
"Exactly," Shannon pointed out. "So we're going to get them together."
"Don't you think we've never tried?" asked Tom. "Stuck in the turbo lift, under the mistletoe, stranded on a planet together, though that wasn't intentional."
"Yeah, but you've never had an insider's help before, or mine."
"She has a point," said B'Elanna, as they leaned in closer, making plans.
"Good morning," said Kathryn, watching the crew she was closest to huddling over their food.
"Mum," said Shannon, sitting up straight. "Da. I mean, Chakotay, good morning. Me and the gang we just trying to get Neelix and Tuvok stuck in the turbo lift when they get back so we can see who rips who apart first."
"Very funny, young lady," said Kathryn, sitting at the table, "They've overcome their differences now."
"That's what they'd like you to think," said Tom, recovering next. He glanced at Shannon giving her an appraising look, 'even better than the master' he thought.
The table was rather tense for a while, until Chakotay and Kathryn got up to leave, "I'll go with you," said Shannon, winking at the gang and murmuring hurried 'I'll see you tomorrows'
"Time for your lesson with me," said Chakotay leading Shannon to his office.
"Bye honey, be good for Chakotay," said Kathryn, pulling Shannon into a darkened corridor so no one would see her kiss her daughter while on duty.
"Bye mum, see you for dinner."
"Sooner than you think," smiled Kathryn, waving a kiss before heading to the bridge.
"So, Uncle Chak, can I call you that?"
"Alright," said Chakotay, but I prefer Dad, he thought. He had grown to like Shannon. She had spunk and she was funny in a ha ha ha way and in a sarcastic way as well.
All through the day Shannon hardly focused on her work. Instead she was thinking of the surprises tomorrow would hold. If only Tom, B'Elanna and Naomi, remembered to play their parts.
She giggled thinking of her parent's, no, she corrected herself, Mum and Chakotay's reactions when they realised what she had done. Hopefully they would be too happy with each other to take it out on her.