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Subject: NEW VOY "Wrong Impressions" 2/2 (C/7, J, AU, satire) [NC-17]
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Title: "Wrong Impressions" (July 2004) 
Author: Layla V 
Email: v_layla@hotmail.com 
Website: http://www.geocities.com/laylatrek 
Pairing: Chakotay/Seven, Janeway 
Rating: NC-17 for sexual situations
Codes: AU, Post-Endgame satire 
Part: 2 of 2

Summary: After returning to Earth, Seven meets Kathryn for 
Disclaimer: All characters created by me, are owned by 
Paramount. I am merely playing. No copyright infringement is 
intended. 

Notes: My first purely-het intimate scene. Yet another story 
which has been inspired by my interaction with certain fan 
factions on the net. ;-) Written for the Die J/C Die contest
2004: http://www.geocities.com/thespiritwalk/jc.html
------------------------------------------------------------
 
 
 
She heard the main door open and the sounds of movement as 
Chakotay came inside. She heard him call out for an increase 
in the ambient temperature and thought his voice sounded a 
bit puzzled. Undoubtedly, he was wondering why the lights 
were on in his apartment. 

She heard his familiar footsteps come closer as he walked to 
the replicator and ordered tea and recognized the blend as 
something she'd programmed for him two weeks ago-another 
result of her continuing research into romantic 
affiliations. And then with the mug in his hand, he walked 
into the living room and stopped in his tracks as his eyes 
fell on Seven; sitting on his living room carpet, her legs 
folded neatly beneath her, her back against the sofa. 

"Seven!" His overnight bag was slung over his shoulder, 
which he slowly lowered to the floor, clearly surprised. "I 
didn't know you were here." 

"You gave me your access codes three weeks ago." She watched 
him as he walked over to her, trying to assess his mood. 
Sometimes she still had trouble reading his emotions. He was 
a complex individual. "I hope I did not intrude," she added 
warily. 

"Of course not." Chakotay set the mug on the coffee table 
and then lowered himself to the floor, settling down on his 
haunches to face her. "I gave you the codes because you're 
welcome here anytime. You don't need my permission to come 
in." A smile appeared first in his eyes and then broke on 
his face--the same blend of warmth and mischief she'd come to 
recognize as wholly his own. He reached out and took her 
right hand in his as he leaned forward to whisper. "I am 
glad you're here." 

With that his lips met hers in a soft kiss and she felt the 
same shiver run down her spine that warmed her insides every 
time he touched her. Despite the confusing thoughts running 
through her mind, she took comfort in the kiss, parting her 
lips to return it with eagerness, reveling in his 
tenderness. When it ended and they moved away she watched 
the subtle play of expressions on his face--softness, 
affection and delight--and once again felt awed at the 
diversity of non-verbal communication human beings had at 
their disposal. 

For one fleeting moment she wondered what it was that had 
changed his opinion about her on Voyager, making him 
approach her for that first date in the first place. 

"Why so quiet?" Chakotay's dark eyes held hers 
questioningly, as he reached up with his free hand and ran 
the fingers through her hair. "Is everything all right?" His 
eyes searched hers curiously. Apparently she had aroused his 
concern by her continued silence. 

"I am fine." She tried to smile. 

"What's that?" He'd noticed the data chip in her left palm 
and instinctively her hand clenched around the object as if 
she wanted to hide it from him. She breathed deeply, forcing 
her hands to relax, to open to his scrutiny. She showed him 
the chip. 

"A recording I made for you earlier." 

"A recording?" Chakotay looked at the data chip and then 
into her eyes, looking somewhat unsure. "It's not a Dear 
John letter, is it?" He gave her a hesitant smile. 

"A Dear John letter." She looked at him in puzzlement. 

The smile on Chakotay's face turned sheepish. "In Earth 
canon, a Dear John letter signifies a message left behind by 
someone to announce the end of a relationship to his or her 
lover." 

She stared at him, her heartbeat suddenly loud in her ears. 
"That is not what this recording contains." 

"I didn't think so." He smiled. "Since you're still here." 

Yet again, the same questions assailed her. What exactly was 
it that he saw in her? He'd spend years on Voyager barely 
tolerating her presence. In the earlier months, he'd been 
almost adamant that she wouldn't survive on Voyager, that 
she'd go back to the Collective the first chance she got. 
The captain was right: their affiliation was short, formed 
recently, fragile. Could it survive? Had he chosen her on 
Voyager because he had run out of choice? 

What did he see when he looked at her now? Did he see a 
woman with a human heart beating in her chest? Or did he see 
her as she really was? Only *part* human. 

"Seven!" Chakotay's voice rose in volume. "That was a joke," 
he said, his voice urgent. She saw the lines between his 
brows deepening and felt a lump form in her throat that she 
tried to swallow but found it hard to do so. For some reason 
she felt her breath stuck in her throat. "Seven, look at 
me..." His warm fingers were touching her jaw now, gently 
tilting her chin up so that he could see right into her 
eyes. 

Despite her conflicted emotions, she found herself marveling 
at the beauty of his facial structure--the intense brown eyes 
that seemed to look right into her soul, the aquiline nose 
that gave that unique character to his profile, the 
intricately carved mouth that seemed so easily willing to 
break into a smile. A beautiful face--which was now lined 
with concern at her undoubtedly mystifying behavior. 

She wet her dry lips and somehow managed: "I met... Captain 
Janeway today." 

There was surprise in his eyes. "You did?" 

She forced herself to maintain the eye contact. "She invited 
me for drinks at a restaurant in the Marina." 

He looked at her quietly, waiting for her to continue. When 
she didn't, he asked. "How did it go?" 

There was a bitter twist to her mouth. "The meeting ended 
prematurely." 

The pressure of his hand on hers tightened. "What happened?" 

"I do not wish to talk about it." She finally dropped her 
gaze. "The recording I've made gives the detailed account of 
my conversation with Captain Janeway, which you can watch 
after you've freshened up." 

"Why did you make a recording of that?" He seemed perplexed. 
"You could tell me directly." 

"I do not wish to discuss it directly." She again found her 
hand clenching around the data chip. "I had to... get it off 
my chest." 

Which was an understatement. She had returned from her 
thwarted meeting with Janeway extremely upset. She had felt 
baffled at the captain's behavior, distressed at her 
attitude about Chakotay, depressed about everything she had 
said about herself. After pacing her two-room lodgings for 
an hour, she had come to Chakotay's apartment, hoping to 
find a sense of familiarity, of belonging, in the place that 
he called his own. That was when she'd noticed the computer 
terminal and she had sank to her knees right there, her hand 
reaching out to punch the console open and start the 
message--all her confusion and anger pouring out in that 
awkward, halting monologue. 

"Seven?" Chakotay's voice was laced with concern and 
suddenly she couldn't take it anymore. She had to get 
through with it. She had to know what he thought. But she 
also had to let him come to his conclusions on his own. 

"You must be hungry." She carefully extricated her hand from 
his as she placed the data chip on the glass top. "I'll 
replicate dinner for you while you freshen up." 

"I don't need to freshen up right now. And I am not hungry" 
He tried to catch her eyes. "I want to watch this. With 
you." 

"Please." She looked into his troubled eyes. "I would prefer 
it if you watched it by yourself and then told me your 
thoughts." 

She thought she saw a trace of hurt in his eyes and ignored 
it for the moment. He'd understand when he'd seen the 
recording. Without further ado, she left him with the data 
chip and walked out through the open patio door and into the 
balcony. 

The winter night was even cooler than the day but the view 
from his terrace was beautiful. She heard him quietly moving 
around his apartment, shifting things, walking from one room 
to the next, and tried to put her attention to the stellar 
phenomena. Chakotay had told her that the view of the 
starlit sky had been one of the reasons why he'd chosen this 
location to rent. However, her thoughts were chaotic, her 
mind too conflicted to focus on the stars, and she again 
found herself attuned to the sounds of his movement behind 
her. It unnerved her, this anticipation, this wait for him 
to begin, for the events of her day to become known to him, 
for him to come to his conclusions. 

The same lingering doubts rose once more. What was the 
chance that his commitment to her would prevail in the 
presence of so many other options on Earth? He was back 
where he belonged, back amongst his own kind. And she was 
one, alone, different from anyone he'd ever been involved 
with. A Borg drone. Did he care for her enough to want to 
stay with her in the long term? 

After a few moments, she heard him settle down and held her 
breath as he switched on the computer terminal and the sound 
of her recording came on. Unconsciously, Seven's arms went 
around her body, as she hugged herself in the cool night. To 
her surprise, her anxiety strangely receded as the moments 
turned into minutes and the drone of the recording 
continued. It was as if now that her secret was no longer 
confined to her, it was no longer a burden. Chakotay knew 
what she'd been through, what Kathryn Janeway had said to 
her. She didn't have to feel humiliated about the captain's 
insulting remarks, about her presumptions about Seven's 
future plans, because now Chakotay knew. 

She was no longer alone with her thoughts. 

After a few minutes, the recording ended and all was quiet. 
Seven strained her ears for any movement behind her but all 
she could tell was that Chakotay was sitting very, very 
quietly. She rubbed the goose bumps forming on her arms as 
she stared at the shadows of buildings around Chakotay's 
apartment block. And then she heard movement behind her as 
he stepped into the terrace. She felt herself shiver as 
strong warm arms slipped around her waist and allowed him to 
pull her back against his chest. 

"I am sorry you had to go through with that," he murmured 
against her cheek. 

Seven sighed as she slid a hand up his arm but said nothing. 
He tightened his arms around her. "And thank you... for 
defending me. You didn't have to." 

She squeezed his forearm. "Her points were illogical, her 
whole conclusion erroneous." 

"Well, that is certainly true." He kissed her temple. 

"But..." She frowned. "I have a question." 

"What?" 

It had been bothering her from the moment the words had come 
out of the captain's mouth and she had to know what Chakotay 
thought of it. 

She tilted her neck and looked up at him, her heart beating 
loudly in her chest. "Do you think... I am... androgynous?" 

"Gods, no!" Chakotay cried and then he gently gripped her 
arms and turned her around. "Seven... look at me." Dark eyes 
stared into hers. "You are absolutely gorgeous. Haven't I 
ever told you that?" 

"You have." She bit her lower lip. "But my dual nature and 
the Borg implants only leave a part of the woman behind, do 
they not? The captain had a point. No one could ever 
question your humanity, your... masculinity. You're whole in 
all respects. A complete human male. But I am not fully 
human, and from what the captain says, I am not even a 
complete woman..." 

"That's bullshit." Chakotay said firmly. "Your implants are 
a part of you, but they don't detract from your femininity. 
And the Borg may have assimilated you but they couldn't 
stamp out the human within you." He leaned in and dropped a 
kiss on her down-turned mouth. "Seven, you're the most 
beautiful woman I've ever met. And you're more human, and 
more *humane* than most people I've known." He kissed her again 
before she could refute his statement, his mouth insistent, 
sweet. 

For a moment she closed her eyes, relishing his taste and 
then she opened them again. "You don't say that just to make 
me feel better." 

"I do say it to make you feel better." Chakotay's long 
fingers framed her face, his thumbs slowly running along her 
cheekbones. "But I also say it because I mean it." He kissed 
her again, harder this time, and she felt the same tingle 
begin at the base of her spine, that slow shiver that 
traveled up her length in that familiar time-honored 
languorous pace. She tightened her arms around his shoulders 
and felt her body cling to his strong frame. 

"And if you don't believe me," he mumbled against her mouth 
between the kisses. "I'll just have to prove it to you the 
proper way, won't I?" 

She reluctantly pulled back to look into his eyes. "Prove it 
how?" 

"I'll show you." The dimples appeared on his face but then 
the look turned serious. "But first you have to promise me 
one thing." 

"What?" She looked into beautiful dark eyes. 

"That from this point on," he said, "For the rest of the 
night, you will not think of anything Kathryn said to you." 
She opened her mouth to protest but Chakotay put a 
forefinger against her lips. "No. Let me finish. I have no 
intentions of not telling you my thoughts on your... 
recording... but we'll do that in the morning. Tonight, you 
give me the chance to show you how beautiful, how absolutely 
stunning and feminine and lovely I find you." Another kiss. 
"Promise me." 

The look on his face was one of hope and dread and barely 
contained expectation and she couldn't help but concede with 
a soft smile. "I promise." She kissed him this time, tasting 
his lips thoroughly, feeling her body thrum in anticipation. 
They held each other close for a few moments, feeling the 
chilled air surround them in the cool night. And then he 
pulled back, and with her hand gripped in his, she was led 
inside the apartment, and into his bedroom. 

"Now it's time we heeded your advice." She saw a mischievous 
smile in his eyes. 

"My advice?" 

"You asked me to freshen up earlier, didn't you?" He was 
grinning. "Well, I refuse to do it alone. We do it 
together." 

She stared at him incredulously. "We are to take a shower 
together." The thought of undressing with him held a 
thrilling appeal, however. 

"Mmm Hmm." He smiled, and she felt his hands tug at her hair 
clip as he gently loosened her tied locks. Her hair opened 
and she felt his fingers delve into them, saw his eyes 
twinkle in the lowered lights of his room, and sighed at his 
touch. She stilled her restless arms and enjoyed the moment, 
his strong fingers against the back of her neck, gently 
rubbing, and then she looked up at him. 

"Just a shower?" She raised a brow, a smile playing on the 
corners of her mouth. 

He grinned widely. "Well, it depends on... how appealing you 
find me." 

She smiled fully. "You doubt my attraction to you." 

"Gee, who knows," He shrugged dramatically. "Maybe you're 
tiring of me after all these weeks." He looked into her eyes 
and she knew he was joking without him having to say it. He 
leaned in to kiss her once, and then pulled back to stare at 
her again, his gaze intense. "I could see myself getting 
very, very hurt if you decide not to take advantage of me." 

This was it. The moment she had anticipated. And now that it 
was here, Seven realized she wanted it more than anything 
else. She wanted Chakotay's touch, wanted his kisses to 
continue. She wanted to forget about her horrible day. Most 
of all, she wanted to touch him back, to explore him, 
without any inhibitions. 

She rested her hands on his shoulders. "In that case..." She 
looked straight into his dark eyes. "Let me reassure you." 

Her hands slipped to the front of his neckline and with 
excruciating preciseness, her breath bated, she unfastened 
his shirt, one after the other slipping the buttons off 
until the line of his bare flesh peeked out from between the 
opened lapels. Seven's hands hovered over the parting and 
she looked up into Chakotay's eyes, suddenly unsure, and 
found his face flushed, his eyes burning. For a moment, it 
was as if she couldn't breathe, couldn't move, so intense 
was the expression on his face. And then he encased her 
hands in his, brought them to his mouth and reverently 
kissed them one by one. 

He held her eyes for a moment, and then guided her hands to 
his waist. "Please," he said. 

Swallowing hard, she pulled his shirttails out and slowly 
slipped the garment off his wide shoulders, finally baring 
his torso to her eyes. The shirt dropped to the floor. She 
found his finger trailing her jaw line and couldn't help the 
tremor that ran down her length at the exquisite touch. Her 
heart beating wildly in her chest, she allowed her hands to 
touch his chest, reveling in the smoothness of his skin, her 
palms tentatively rubbing against his nipples, eliciting a 
soft moan from his throat. 

"Seven," he whispered as his arms went around her for a 
moment, and he held her close, letting her feel his heart 
beat just as erratically against her chest. And then he 
looked into her eyes, his palm cupping the side of her face, 
his gaze beautifully tender. "May I?" he asked. 

She nodded. 

Gently, he unzipped her blouse and helped raise her arms as 
he slowly pulled it up and off her body. It joined his shirt 
on the floor. He tilted her chin up with one finger, staring 
deeply into her eyes, and kissed her once more, firmly, as 
if stamping his mark on her lips. He then dropped his gaze 
to her body and she saw his eyes darken with arousal as his 
hands slipped to her back and unclasped her bra, finally 
freeing her breasts from their clasp. 

His lips were on the side of Seven's neck, nuzzling softly, 
as she felt the heat in his body rising to match the sizzle 
in her veins, and they rocked together for a moment, holding 
each other close. And then he was slipping out of his 
trousers and briefs and, with her eyes on his hardening 
length, she let him help her out of hers. Arms around each 
other's waists, they walked into the bathroom and the sudden 
spray of the warm shower seemed to lift her out of her daze. 

"I think a shower was in the plans." Chakotay grinned, his 
voice husky, and she couldn't help but smile back. 

"Indeed," she replied, enjoying the game and the sight of 
him soaking under the steaming mist, relishing the 
sensations he aroused in her. 

His lips met hers under the spray as his soapy hands ran 
down her back and then up again, making her moan as 
something uncoiled at her core. She clutched at his 
shoulders, his mouth leaving a burning trail from her chin 
to the hollow of her throat, as his hands held her hips 
against his. She traced the length of his spine with her 
inquiring fingers, kissing the side of his neck and heard 
him growl in approval. 

She then held back, gripped his hands tightly and then 
smiled. "I believe sharing shower is an equal opportunity 
sport." 

Squeezing the all-purpose gel onto her palm, she met his 
smiling eyes and then sank her fingers into his hair. "I've 
always wanted to do this." She smiled as she massaged his 
scalp, watching his dark locks lather up with the soap, 
watched his eyes close for a second in enjoyment. 

"You did?" He murmured, a smile hovering on his lips. "Hmm, 
that feels good." Opening his eyes, he grinned as he poured 
the gel on his own fingers and reciprocated her actions, 
lathering up her hair, gently massaging, rubbing. 

Soon, however, Chakotay's fingers had slipped out of her 
hair and were back on her body where they ran slick trails 
up and down her sides, his grin mischievous, as she shivered 
under his hands. When his hands reached her breasts, she 
couldn't help but groan as he gently pressed a finger each 
at her nipples, watching them grow taut as he flicked the 
points playfully. Her body thrumming, she pushed him under 
the spray once more, watching the water beat down his skin, 
making trails between his well-defined pectoral muscles. 

Chakotay pulled Seven to him, letting the water wash the 
soap away as once more his mouth found hers, and he kissed 
her hard, his mouth almost frantic against hers. She felt 
his hot tongue stab into her mouth, felt his heavy erection 
pulsing against her thigh and gripped him tighter, returning 
his kiss, feeling her body undulate against him. 

The spray of the shower ended as abruptly as it had started 
and Seven found herself wrapped in a large towel and gently 
rubbed dry. She watched his eyes sparkle as he concentrated 
on his task, watched his rapid breathing and knew she wasn't 
the only one affected. She snagged a second towel off the 
stand and wrapped it around his shoulders, carefully soaking 
up the excess moisture from his broad frame. His eyes met 
hers and she was in his arms again, her hands hot on his 
skin, his palms caressing the curve of her hips. 

Her hands sank into his damp hair as she kissed Chakotay 
with an urgency she didn't know she possessed, hearing her 
heart thundering in her ears. Her arms wrapped around his 
body, she felt his heat singing her nerves as her kiss was 
returned ravenously, and hung on, his growing musk filling 
her breaths. It was in this state that they stumbled back 
into the bedroom, their arms tight around each other, as if 
they couldn't bear to part, their tongues tangling together, 
and before Seven knew it, she was on her back pressed 
between his hard body and the bed. His skin was like hot 
silk, his touch pure fire, as he lingered above her--his 
mouth on her throat, on her collarbone, on her breasts. 

"Chakotay," she moaned, feeling his tongue encircle one 
nipple, and thrust back at him and then jerked in his arms 
as he gently tugged at the sensitive areola with strong 
teeth. "Please!" His mouth moved and bestowed the same 
ministrations to her other nipple and she felt his touch 
burning her, engulfing her in his flame--his body smooth and 
firm against her, his rock-hard maleness slick and hot 
against her lower belly. 

Seven's hands clutched at his arms, feeling the solid 
strength that he so carefully kept in check, and as he 
shifted up to kiss her again, she bit the strong column of 
his throat, hearing him growl in response. He stared down at 
her a second, his eyes scorching her skin, and then bent 
down to claim her mouth once more, welcoming her tongue into 
his mouth as she sought out to explore the sweet hot depths. 
Their tongues fenced together, each swallowing the other's 
moans, as her hands slid up his ribs, tracing the lines of 
his muscles, feeling him shiver in response. 

"Seven," he moaned as he lifted his hard sweet mouth from 
hers and looked into her eyes, and he was more beautiful 
than she had ever imagined him to be, and no amount of 
research could have ever prepared her for the arousal she 
felt for him now. 

"Please, I need you," she groaned and for a moment, couldn't 
recognize her own voice--so ragged it was with need. 

He bent down to drop a kiss each on her eyelids, on her 
nose, on her lips, as his fingers intertwined with hers, and 
then he was showing her how to do it, gently parting her 
legs, caressing the insides of her thighs, helping her wrap 
them around his body, as he carefully, exquisitely breached 
her core. 

There was a slight sting of discomfort, which she had 
expected, but the feel of his silken hardness entering her 
body was erotic beyond belief, diminishing the pain to a 
dull throb, heightening her pleasure as Chakotay bent down 
to press his lips to hers, lovingly filling her inch by 
inch. She wrapped her arms around his body, felt her breasts 
pressed against his hard chest, felt his body hum as his 
teeth tugged at the skin of her neck. Her hands slid down to 
his lower back, gripping hard, and felt his muscles bunching 
as he slid to a stop inside her. 

"Please..." she sighed, as she felt his hardness stretching 
her, filling her, felt her juices sizzling. 

"Gods..." He gripped her hands, bent to kiss her arms, and 
she felt first his tongue running along their length, then 
his teeth. "You're beautiful, so beautiful..." he sighed, 
his lips dropping wet kisses along her shoulder, first left, 
then right, caressing the softness, as if to take away the 
sting. 

"Please," she moaned, arching into him. Her eyes held 
captive by his, she felt him sliding out of her, just as 
slowly and excruciatingly as he'd slid in, and then just 
before he would've abandoned her completely, he thrust back 
in, harder this time, filling her once more. She pulled one 
leg back, gripped his backside for purchase as she felt him 
sliding out once more and then when he pushed back she was 
ready, slamming back against him, making him groan, feeling 
him complete her again. 

The sense of urgency grew as the speed of his thrusts 
increased with the power behind them, and she felt her 
pleasure intensify. Chakotay was touching a part of her no 
one else had ever touched, and it was a blending unlike any 
she'd experience in any Collective. It was as if with each 
thrust, each kiss, each plunge into her body, he was leaving 
his essence, imprinting his mark onto her soul. 

His breath hitched, his face beautifully flushed, he bent 
down to meet her lips again as their moans mingled together 
and their tongues wrapped around each other. Seven ran her 
hands up his back, feeling his strength thrumming against 
hers, his body coming down to claim hers again and again. 
The first wave hit unexpectedly, as he slammed into her one 
more time, and her inner muscles suddenly clenched around 
him and she gripped his backside and held on tight as a 
strangled cry escaped her throat. 

Her vision clouding, her heart thudding wildly, she felt him 
slide out and thrust back in again, and again, and again, as 
she screamed and thrashed in his arms, her orgasm slamming 
into her with a force she could never have expected. On some 
corporeal level, she was aware of his plunges growing wilder 
before he too came with a hoarse cry, and she felt his hot 
burning seed filling her, but she herself was in a haze, her 
body thrumming, trembling, feeling his weight cover her with 
tender burning sweetness. 

As the warm duvets were pulled up around them and Chakotay's 
arms closed around her body, Seven had just one thought 
running through her mind: that Captain Janeway had been 
wrong, so very wrong, because no woman could ever pleasure 
her and fulfill her needs the way Chakotay did. 

With that thought filling her every fiber, she wrapped her 
arms around her lover, his soft voice murmuring reassuringly 
in her ears, and slipped into sweet contented oblivion. 

# 
# 




"I don't think I'll ever go to Thailand now." 

She felt Chakotay stir as his left arm tightened around her 
waist. "We won't go anywhere you don't want to go." He 
picked up a slice of peach from the platter in front of them 
and brought it to Seven's lips, and watched as she accepted 
it, taking it into her mouth, before adding, "However, I 
hear it's a *beautiful* place." 

They were lounging on Chakotay's sitting room sofa, a 
position Seven would've clearly found ineffective in normal 
circumstances, but which in the afterglow of last night's 
activities and this morning's quick cleanup duties in the 
bathroom--which incidentally were achieved with the minimum 
of fuss--seemed quite adequate. The warm circle of his arms 
around her felt an appropriate accompaniment to the 
scenario. 

"And I hate Asian food." Seven chewed the fruit slowly, 
rubbing his arm through the gown, decided she liked the 
taste and eagerly swallowed. "I think we must cancel our 
reservation to Ozumo." 

"You *love* Japanese." She felt him sigh against her temple. 
"And we are going to Ozumo next week. You're not going to 
disown everything Asian just because Kathryn Janeway came on 
to you with an invitation to the water ski resorts of 
Phuket." 

"You don't seem surprised." She looked at him, her brow 
raised in query. 

He dropped a kiss that curiously tasted of pear on her 
upturned lips and then looked at her, his eyes earnest. 
"Then I must be better at hiding my shock than I thought I 
was." 

For some reason that made Seven feel a little better. "Her 
actions have stunned you as much as they stunned me, then," 
she said. 

"I am shocked beyond belief, Seven." There was sadness in 
his eyes, as if he also couldn't find his footing, couldn't 
figure out how to analyze the bizarre situation. "I have no 
idea why Kathryn would act the way she did." 

But there were other issues at hand, questions that 
disturbed Seven. "I feel... embarrassed." She turned 
confused eyes at Chakotay. "As if I am somehow responsible 
for what she said." 

"Seven, what Kathryn says and how she thinks isn't because 
of anything you've done." Chakotay's voice was firm. 

"But she seemed so sure." Seven frowned. "It was as if she 
assumed I'd react to her overtures in nothing less than 
favorable terms." 

His sudden bark of laughter surprised her. She watched in 
puzzlement as he shook his head in what looked like 
resignation. "Now that is something that does *not* shock me." 
He looked into her eyes and then touched her cheek with his 
palm. "Kathryn always did assume things would work out just 
the way she expected them to." 

That seemed to solve part of the quandary. But there was one 
thing left. She turned her questioning eyes to him. "You 
don't think I ever gave her any wrong impressions, do you?" 

"No, Seven." Chakotay shook his head. "There are some people 
who simply make their own impressions about everyone they 
meet. They have categories for everyone they interact with. 
Worthy. Not worthy. They don't deal with people on an 
individual basis, they simply treat them as conquests, a 
sequence of challenges that they have to overcome." His eyes 
were introspective. "I think they are the loneliest people 
in the world. They have no one real in their lives because 
they can't allow anyone the freedom to be themselves. In a 
way I feel sorry for them." 

She saw the play of emotions on his face and realized he'd 
come to a level of acceptance as far as Kathryn Janeway's 
dilemma was concerned. She linked her fingers through his. 
"I am glad... you're here, Chakotay." And she was. She knew 
she would've found coping with yesterday's events much 
harder if Chakotay wasn't around. 

A smile broke on his face as he tilted her chin up with his 
finger, looking deep into her eyes, his gaze perceptive. "I 
am honored that you allow me to be here." 

She squeezed Chakotay's hand. "Thank you for taking my mind 
off my bad day." A fissure of guilt formed in her heart. "I 
was so preoccupied that I never even asked you about your 
meeting." 

He smiled softly. "No need to worry yourself over that. I 
understand completely. I was going to tell you anyways." 

She smiled at his expression, finding his happiness 
remarkably contagious. Chakotay *had* told her how well his 
meeting had gone this morning, and that Admiral Henderson 
had asked him to head the interstellar cultural research at 
the Archeology Wing. 

His eyes were tender. "I meant what I said, Seven. Don't 
ever question your worth. Your intelligence, your kindness, 
your fighting spirit, all these things make you human." For 
a second, a muted tinge of remorse appeared in the dark eyes 
and then he shook his head in wonder as his fingers once 
again insinuated themselves in Seven's hair, rubbing gently. 
"It took me a while to realize that, but you helped me break 
down the walls around my heart and see you as you really 
are." He smiled. "A strong, beautiful, compassionate woman. 
You're priceless to me." 

The words made her face turn hot, as did Chakotay's intense 
regard, but she felt a smile spread on her face nonetheless. 
"It is hard for me to find adequate terms to... precisely 
compute the importance of your significance in my life as 
well." 

This time the dimples came on full force and Seven felt her 
heart stop for a moment as she saw the twinkle come in his 
eyes again and those lush lips dipped and touched hers 
gently, once, twice. And then as Chakotay dropped all 
pretence and pushed her down to the sofa, his mouth moving 
insistently over hers, she felt her heart start its rickety 
beat once again. She opened her mouth to his questing tongue 
and realized she liked the taste of pear, and Chakotay very, 
very much. 

# 
# 
THE END

		
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