Disclaimer: Paramount owns all things Trek, I'll be sure to return Kathryn, Chakotay and any other characters I borrow back to the right shelf with no prior memory of this incident, so they can continue their loveless, luckless lives. Thank you.

A/N: And here I thought I was a Trekkie – well, at least I can tell my Mum I don't know Star Trek as well as my history text book the next time she finds fault with me. I'm sorry I didn't realise about the whole death penalty thing and I'll rewrite the previous chapter as soon as I have time – don't worry it won't change much, just the death-penalty bit won't exist. Thanks for the info Quadrantie!

A/N: It was tough deciding how this would go, while trying to keep everyone in character, and I decided this is the best way to go. Any comments on any part of the story would be greatly appreciated. It's brilliant to know that there are people out there actually reading this – thanks.

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Chapter Five – Ties that Bind

Once upon a time, it would have been Kathryn Janeway running after her hysterical chief engineer, assuring her that everything would be okay; but unlike Kathryn, B'Elanna wasn't sure what she could say – if anything, to make her former Captain feel better. As she raced to the nursery, she ran through their previous heart to hearts in her mind. After B'Elanna's reencounter with Dreadnought, when she had been terrified at her own ability to create something so horrific, the Captain had said that what was important was that in the end we realised our mistakes and we worked on how to fix them, what was important was that she tried desperately hard to be the best person she could be.

When Chakotay had told Kathryn about B'Elanna's attempts to hurt herself after receiving news of the Maquis deaths, B'Elanna felt that she had been betrayed by Voyager's first officer, but of course Kathryn's presence in her quarters that night, soothingly asking B'Elanna to talk to her had been a comforting one. They hadn't spoken much, B'Elanna had gone though all that with Chakotay – but she remembered desperately clinging to the Captain and crying her eyes out, something the Klingon part of her would never have let her reveal in front of Chakotay. But there was something assuring in the Captain's presence, that made B'Elanna feel that she was never going to be judged or misunderstood. Like a mother, B'Elanna had thought after her experience on the Barge of the Dead. Sure, she wasn't her real mother, but she felt that those few years with Captain Janeway compensated for the years she had spent alone with her timid father. And it was the words they had shared then, which came back to guide her now,

"I don't know if what I'm going to tell you is right or wrong, 'Lanna, but I can tell you that I am speaking from my heart – I can tell you the truth and I can tell you what I believe, I know it's not much, but somehow it will make all the difference."

She was right. Kathryn was always right. Those words had made B'Elanna feel so much better than what anyone could have told her would be best for her to do. B'Elanna remembered nodding tearfully as the Captain pulled her close later that day in sickbay, drawing strength from the woman before her, "I believe you Captain," she had whispered into the Captain's shoulder, unaware if her mentor had heard her, until she sighed, "Kathryn, B'Elanna. My name is Kathryn." And from that day onwards, the working relationship between Captain and Chief Engineer had never been more productive and the bond between Kathryn and B'Elanna never stronger.

The silence that followed as B'Elanna stood panting in the nursery's doorway, assured her that Kathryn was there. Only Kathryn could comfort Taya when the child was extremely upset and that only happened when Kathryn was extremely upset as well. B'Elanna was only slightly jealous that she and Miral didn't have that same bond. However, the sight that greeted her in the nursery was not one that she expected. A three-year-old Miral Paris had crawled out of bed and stood patting baby Taya through the gaps in the crib's bars. B'Elanna didn't have time to take in the adorable scene, though later she would recreate it for Kathryn, Chakotay and Tom; she rushed through the house, but Kathryn wasn't in the guest room, neither was she in its adjoining bathroom or in the master bedroom, though B'Elanna doubted she would be there in the first place.

Only as she passed the giant glass window on her way down the staircase, did she see a lone figure, in jeans and a beige sweatshirt lingering in the garden. The fiery red hair was unmistakable. Kathryn hadn't come upstairs to her daughter Taya, she had returned to the memory of Chakotay. Sure enough, B'Elanna watched as Kathryn paused in front of a great oak tree and ran her hand down its bark. B'Elanna blushed and remembered all too well what had happened at that Voyager reunion.

"I see you've stolen my goddaughter away from the party and to the recluse of this great big tree," Kathryn graced B'Elanna with a lopsided grin as she snaked her arm around Chakotay's waist. Chakotay kissed her forehead as her hand moved from where it lay protectively over her belly to stroke Miral's face. "Oh, she's beautiful," Kathryn sighed as Chakotay passed the child over to Kathryn's waist, careful to support Miral as Kathryn held her, aware that in her condition, his wife shouldn't be carrying too much weight.

"I hope I'm not interrupting," Kathryn checked with B'Elanna who shook her head. Kathryn smiled at her again, except this time instead of her famous teasing grin; it was a full-fledged warm smile. "I've missed you 'Lanna, are you alright?"

Chakotay realised there was more to the question than met the eye. Although B'Elanna and Tom had been away on a 6 week mission the previous month and before that Kathryn had been called away to Trebus, the two always managed to keep in touch via sub-space. Each time, when Kathryn ended the communication, she seemed troubled, but he hadn't asked what the problem was. He had realised there were troubles B'Elanna reserved for him and others she reserved for Kathryn. There was a time when he would have found B'Elanna's lack of trust insulting, but these two women (and the one on the way) were his only family and those problems they trusted to each other, were the ties that bound.

"I am now, Kathryn."

Kathryn nodded. As much as she loved Owen Paris, his reluctance to admit to renegade Maquis B'Elanna into his family had been terribly insulting – not only to B'Elanna who felt left out and unappreciated, after all she had played a big part in turning Tom Paris (who Owen openly praised) around and in producing the granddaughter Owen terribly loved, but Kathryn took it the wrong way as well. After her first briefing with Admiral Paris, she remembered saying, "You'll be glad to have B'Elanna in your family Owen. Trust me, she's a wonderful woman and a brilliant engineer," knowing that skill won favor in Admiral Paris' book. That he didn't accept B'Elanna was a terrible blow to her, because it meant that he did not trust her judgment, something she had earned and worked hard to gain. A couple of words she'd had with Owen Paris later that day, proved beneficial for B'Elanna.

"What's going on here, a little mini party – and I wasn't invited?" Tom Paris shook his hair out of his face as his head popped out behind the tree. "Champagne, my love?" He asked holding out a tray to B'Elanna. She smiled as Chakotay reached for the other flute. "And apple juice for the lady with a very precious burden," he noticed Miral, "Make that, two very precious burdens."

Kathryn smiled as she accepted the glass. "Thank you Tom."

"No, thank you, Captain."

"Flattery will get you nowhere, Mr. Paris." Kathryn reminded. She turned to look back to the happy celebrations. "Too family and contentment," she raised her glass, "I don't know when I've been happier since."

"Family and contentment," They echoed.

"I think we should commemorate this day."

"Hmm?" B'Elanna asked, ever wary of Tom's ideas and suggestions.

"It's an old fashioned tradition. You yourself said Captain, you've never been happier than at this moment, I vote we carve our names on this tree, that way no matter what happened, we'll always have some way to cling on to this memory. Because, I mean," he grinned sheepishly, "There will be tough roads ahead, but if we can remember these happy moments and remind ourselves that there will be more of these to come, than that very idea will help us through our time of darkness."

"Philosophical words for a cheeky lieutenant," Chakotay remarked, amused at how much Tom had changed. "But he's right."

Kathryn nodded, "I like it."

B'Elanna still wary of Tom, but convinced nothing could go wrong this time, nodded in agreement.

"I'll be right back," said Tom, returning moment later with an old-fashioned pen-knife. "Got it off Ayala – he always keeps it with him, for emergencies – have a go, old man, you're the expert." He handed it to Chakotay, who skillfully carved two hearts entwined into the old oak. One bore the initials K.J. and C. and the other B.T. and T.P.

"You left out the date, old man," said Tom reaching forward to add his mark to the tree. "Ouch!"

B'Elanna groaned as she saw the red vicious liquid ooze out from his finger. "You never just can keep out of trouble, can you?" She asked, ushering him into the house. "I'll take her Kathryn, she needs a change anyway."

And as she took a break from nagging Tom and turned back to look at the tree, she saw Kathryn gazing up into Chakotay's eyes, before taking a deep breath, as though inhaling his scent and tilting her head back as their lips met in a loving kiss. She blushed as she turned back to her accident-prone Tom, feeling uncomfortable that she had spied on such a tender moment. Still, it only convinced her, though she didn't need convincing that Kathryn and Chakotay were meant to be together, for mirrored in Chakotay's eyes was the look that Tom gave her when she kissed his finger after running the dermal regenerator over it.

Kathryn leaned against the oak tree as she finished reliving the events of her wedding night to a shocked B'Elanna.

"Why that little Bor-"

"Calm down, B'Elanna – we don't want to go ruining her name with the rest of the crew."

"But her name deserves to be ruined."

"Can we really blame her, 'Lanna? She's only just coming to terms with her humanity."

"But still, even she should know that what she's doing is wrong? I mean are we really going to believe that Chakotay – I mean, Chakotay, is going to cheat on the woman of his dreams?"

Kathryn half smiled at her words, but continued starring across the garden into the house. "She feels betrayed. You felt betrayed when Chakotay told me about how you were dealing with the Maquis, didn't you?"

"But I would never have hurt you – or him… well, maybe physically, but never like that."

"Chakotay was the first man she had ever loved – as a human; to discover that he never loved her back was shocking. She trusted him, 'Lanna – with what? We'll never know, but when he dropped her at the first sign of interest from me – that there was hope for us – she not only felt insulted and upset, but angry and betrayed – and a combination of all those feelings, felt so strongly, with someone who was so inexperienced with them, led her to what she did."

"But she and Chakotay were over, even before you…"

"Yes, I know. But it made her realise that his relationship with her was never meant to be serious. It was just to while away his time until he could get me back."

B'Elanna never considered the implication of Kathryn's last words, or it would have led to startling revelations on what happened on Voyager, but she did ask the question she had never heard Kathryn fail to answer.

"What are you going to do?"

Kathryn paused for a moment, never realizing, until now how useful Tom's discovery earlier today could be. And in that moment, she realised, she had an answer.

"Get the doctor," She told B'Elanna after she relayed her plans.

"Captain, are you sure."

"No – but Kathryn is."

Tbc…