A/n: I've been blown away by the positive feedback I've had for this fic so far, thanks so much everyone! I am indebted to Morrigan Wildwood for giving me the idea for this and she added another two great chapters to "Intro: Meant to Be", please update soon! :D
As Chakotay walked into the Mess Hall he fought not to take an involuntary step backwards as an almost overwhelming wall of sound crashed into him, making his ears ring uncomfortably as his eyes impatiently scanned the room, crowded with both people and whatever bulky equipment they'd dragged along with them for this hastily arranged rehearsal, for the Captain. Finally he spotted her, helpfully tuning an old-fashioned amplifier for Lieutenant Drummond, and quickly strode over. "I didn't know you were into rock music Captain." He commented as she irritably pulled at a wire, grinning when the machine's distinctively ear splitting crackling easily and giving it a grateful pat as she got back up from her knees to answer her First Officer.
"I'll have you know Commander that I was quite the rock chick in my day." She corrected him with joking sternness. "If I hadn't joined Starfleet my other career path would've been as a roadie."
"My band would've gladly taken you along with us Captain." Drummond told her earnestly as he plugged his guitar into the now prepped amp and began to strum a rift Chakotay dimly recognised as part of a 20th Century tune, "Smoke on the Water".
"It's good to know you've got a job lined up when we get home Captain." Chakotay remarked teasingly as he handed Janeway a PADD. "It's shift rota for tomorrow night. I tried my best to arrange it so that everyone could see at least part of the show."
"Good." The Captain replied warmly as she skim read the schedule, "It'll be well worth it, Neelix is already calling the "greatest show the Delta Quadrant has ever seen", he's even made posters saying just that!" She frowned at him as he chuckled, "You'd better have written in some time for you to come, the crew would appreciate it."
Chakotay nodded quickly in reassurance, "It's great to see everyone getting into the sprit of this, I'll be there."
"Although I presume that you're still refusing to take part directly?" The Captain queried archly.
Chakotay smiled sheepishly, "Much as I agree it's good for morale, this isn't really my type of thing…" He trailed off as he heard someone approach them from behind, fighting a nervous jerk as he realised it was Seven.
She acknowledged him with a brief nod before addressing the Captain in her usual professional tone, "I have the Astrometrics status report you requested Captain."
Janeway quickly handed Chakotay back his rota and took the PADD Seven offered instead. "Everything seems to be going as normal." She concluded after a quick glance, one of the techniques a Starfleet Captain had to completely master was the one which allowed for the fast uptake of information, and then gave the PADD back to Seven with an encouraging smile, "I think you've earned some time off Seven, have you entered a talent for the show tomorrow? A break would give you time to practise…"
Seven brusquely cut her off, "I do not possess any talents suitable for this event Captain."
Chakotay felt his face fall and his heart tightened at the certainty in her statement and only the Captain's immediate reply stopped him from making an embarrassingly passionate retort, "Don't be ridiculous Seven!" Janeway exclaimed with a snort, "You have plenty of talents, I'm sure the Doctor would love to do a singing duet with you if you're nervous…"
Seven shot the Captain a pained, long-suffering look. Beginning to feel cornered she turned her gaze towards where the Doctor was belting out "Nessum Dorma" while occasionally pausing to grumble about bad acoustics, "I doubt our voices are compatible at the moment and I do not wish to diminish his performance."
Chakotay and Janeway's incredulous frowns showed that they believed the last thing Seven's singing voice would do was "diminish" the Doctor's performance, and Janeway was about to say just that when Chakotay, noticing the genuine reluctance in the former drone's piercing eyes, said softly, "Well, he does need to go down a key or two before he's perfect."
"Three keys." Seven clarified with a sigh, making Chakotay laugh since he knew she had no ill will towards the Doctor and was just stating a fact.
The Captain looked at them both exasperatedly, "You two are just the same!" This exclamation made Seven glance at Chakotay curiously, feeling a sneaky blush tint her cheeks as he caught her eye, "Why don't you just admit that you both have talents, let people in a little more? I've learned so much about different crewmembers by talking to them about their acts…"
Seven lowered her gaze uneasily, "We can talk about our respective talents whenever you wish Captain, but I do not believe the crew have any desire to see an exhibition of mine." She murmured softly before her voice became dismissive, her eyes hard and unreadable, "Excuse me."
The Captain sighed, obviously not willing to fight another battle with her protégé's complex esteem issues, and turned away but Chakotay, whose heart had been filled with dismay by her words, reached out to her, grabbing her arm. "Seven…" He began.
"Is there something I can do for you Commander?" she asked, more sharply than she'd intended, swallowing as she became trapped in the light of his suddenly intense gaze.
Chakotay's spontaneous confidence evaporated as he was met with the veiled emotion in her eyes. For a millisecond he was sure it was fear but then quickly convinced himself that he'd imagined it, what possible reason would she have to fear him? Still he backtracked, "Yes actually…" He scrambled to think of a task which would give them space to talk privately, "Some crewmembers have been complaining that some of the holo-emitters in Holodeck 1 are malfunctioning. I told them I'd check it out, but I'm not much of an authority on holo technology…"
Seven nodded hurriedly, gratefully breaking eye contact with him as she answered, "Then I will assist you."
"Thanks." Chakotay replied warmly, ignoring the Captain's quizzical look as he followed Seven out of the Mess Hall.
As Seven hastily removed the small wall panel in order to access Holodeck 1's control interface, she saw what was wrong without needing the assistance of a tricorder. "One of the plasma conduits has ceased to function." She told Chakotay shortly as she felt relief flood her inexplicably. She didn't like to admit, even to herself, that being alone with Chakotay made her apprehensive, but in this instance, after a silent walk to the Holodeck when she'd sensed his desire for conversation but hadn't obliged him, she was worried about her ability to treat him with her usual professionalism. The quicker this task could be completed the better.
"Do we have a replacement conduit?" Chakotay asked, his voice causing her to jump as she was pulled away from her distracted thoughts.
"I can replicate one." She answered bluntly, not looking at him as she rose up from her knees and walked to the replicator, but feeling a guilty thrill as he followed at her back.
"Why did you say that Seven? Everyone on this ship knows you're very talented." He suddenly asked.
Although his tone was soft, the sadness in it made her flinch. Why was he so concerned? "I could say the same about you Commander." She countered as she took the new conduit out of the replicator and turned to face him. "Yet you are also not participating in the talent show." She said this as a statement rather than a question but upon seeing her questioningly raised eyebrows Chakotay took it as such.
"I've never coped well with performing." Chakotay explained with a chuckle before shrugging, "Stage fright I suppose."
Seven felt her eyebrows rise even further up her forehead in incredulity. "Stage fright? You? I find that hard to imagine, considering you are a natural leader."
Chakotay allowed himself a small but pleased smile at her compliment. "Believe it, being on the Bridge is not the same as being on a stage, at least for me." He took a deep breath as he considered how to brooch his concerns for her, finally following his first impulse and taking her hand as he looked down into her face, "But that's not the same as saying I don't have any talents that would please people, because I know that I do."
Seven tried to hold back the blood that rushed to her cheeks, cursing her ability to hear innuendo in his naturally husky voice when there was none. "I…I know I have talents but…" She swallowed hard to clear the stammer which had beset her voice under his searching gaze. "They can all be attributed to my Borg enhancements, so I don't consider them mine. I doubt the crew would either. Even my singing voice is improved by my vocal processor…"
"And Tuvok is stronger than me because he's Vulcan, genetics, enhancements, they don't matter." Chakotay pointed out firmly, "All that matters is sharing your love for something with others, making them love it through you. You can be brilliant at something, you can be terrible, but as long as you love doing it then nothing else matters." His dark eyes unconsciously became pleading and Seven shivered, pulled in by his emotion.
"You're right." She agreed softly, somehow missing his touched as he relaxed and let go of her. A lump formed in her throat as she looked up at him. "I don't think I love anything enough to take the risk of failure." She whispered shakily.
Chakotay gave her arm a final reassuring squeeze. "You will." He told her confidently. He sounded so certain Seven felt a comforting warmth rise within her, lingering even after he'd left. To distract herself from this pleasant but also disconcerting feeling, she quickly replaced the conduit and decided to test the emitters. It was time to watch her own practice critically anyway.
"Computer, replay all activity of programme Seven of Nine Beta Three on Stardate 78976.1." The holodeck obeyed her command and, with her hologram copying the moves she'd made the week before, she began to critique her own performance. Suddenly, something didn't feel right. "Computer, delete audience members and leave representations of lifesigns." She ordered, suspicious but not really expecting anything. When however, she saw through the simulation who'd been watching her intently the week before, her hand flew to her mouth, "No…"
A/n: PLEASE REVIEW! :D I'm sorry if the end is a bit rushed, my laptop is running out of power.