Janeway hated days like this. What started out to be an otherwise pleasant day quickly turned into the morning from hell in a matter of minutes.
She started the day with an enjoyable encounter with Seven. Over the years they averaged at least one meal together a day; a dinner here or lunch there, but most of the time it was breakfast. Somehow the day seemed better when she saw the young woman first thing in the morning before ship’s business took over her demands. They talked about the upcoming region of space and the latest data stream from Starfleet before moving onto more personal matters. Seven mentioned The Doctor suggested she begin sleeping since her human physiology was asserting itself more, so Janeway offered to set her up with some quarters. That was usually the First Officer’s job, to assign crew quarters, but she sensed Seven would feel more comfortable knowing her best interests were in mind when choosing the quarters rather than Chakotay’s usual random selection of unoccupied rooms. She didn’t think his “eenie, meenie, minie, moe” method would work too well this time. Besides, Seven should be close to Cargo Bay 2 since her alcove still needed to be operational.
When she got to the bridge after breakfast things were still looking up. There were no major problems as systems were running within normal parameters for the moment, and space ahead was clear for at least a few days. The Doctor’s program was still going offline sporadically and no one could pinpoint the problem, but B’Elanna assured her that she would figure it out before it got to be a serious problem. It was then that Janeway decided to head to her ready room for a quick cup of coffee. That was her first mistake of the day.
No sooner had she stepped through the door that she froze in her steps when saw the enormous stack of reports she promised herself last night she would take care of first thing today. I really shouldn’t put off doing them but they take up so much time when I could be doing other things, important things, like captaining the ship. Captains should delegate, she decided. What’s a First Officer for if he can’t handle the tiny details like this?
After having her first cup of coffee she decided it was going to take at least one more before she could even start the damn things and probably another cup before she got serious about them. Within an hour she was three cups down and only a handful of reports left to tackle, though they were the ones that were sure to take the longest, probably the rest of the day. Whoever said coffee was bad obviously didn’t have reports up to his eyeballs to complete.
When she picked up Tuvok’s security report she scanned the list he submitted for proposed methods of security improvement. He wanted to rotate security teams and interchange responsibilities so that every member worked all shifts over a short period of time and had security command experience on each team. “A command breakdown without junior officer command experience would pose a danger to the ship’s security and possibly bring chaos during a crisis,” he wrote. Approved. Next report.
She was buzzing right along when the door chimed and interrupted my concentration. “Come.”
It was Chakotay. She could smell his cologne before even lifting her head to greet him. “Good morning, Commander.”
He strode through the door, barely able to conceal his smile, and walked right up to her desk. The last several weeks his attitude had lightened considerably, not that he was ever uptight before, but he was much more mellow now. He also walked around smiling all the time. The rumor on the bridge was he had a new holodeck program that left him to captain the ship home. What else would bring him to the holodecks for hours every day either before or after his shift? For the most part, the holodecks were harmless, so Janeway let him have his fantasy, no one teased him about it, and he went on smiling like the cat that ate the canary.
“I see you’ve got yourself into another mess, Captain.”
Smiling, she responded jokingly, “You know me. I hate these things.” She put down the padd she was working on and gave him her full attention. “What brings you in here so early? I wasn’t expecting to be rescued until at least 1300 hours.”
“Things are slow right now, so I thought I’d take advantage and make a personal request.”
With pursed lips, she tried to figure out what it was he was about to ask before the words spilled out, but as usual, his hard to read expression left her with more questions than answers. “Ask away,” she said. This was her second mistake of the day.
“I’ve asked Seven to marry me. We’d like you to perform the ceremony.” Brief and to the point. Janeway usually liked that. But not today.
Without warning and in as little time as it took to ask the question, her life felt changed, almost as if a shuttlecraft blindsided her. This was the last thing she expected to hear, and if she ever needed a reality check it was right now. She sat motionless in her chair trying desperately to keep her expression from betraying her. Seven’s getting married? To him? His words stung her heart, and she had to hide it, but she was shocked at his news and her flustering showed as much. “What?...How?...Of course. Congratulations. When did all this come about? I didn’t even know you were dating.”
Oblivious to her pain, he pulled up a chair and began recounting their short-lived history. “It began about a month ago. I joined her for a few rounds of Velocity one evening after you cancelled on her. Since then we’ve been spending a lot of time together, getting to know each other, and it all just sort of…fell into place. In a way, I guess we owe this all to you.”
Right after I cancelled on her...She remembered it well. It was the day they received the latest transmission from Starfleet. She received a letter from her mother relaying some news about her sister, Phoebe. Phoebe was getting married to a wonderful man, a fellow artist she had met at an art show in New York. Although she was very happy to hear the news, she was also saddened that her little sister was getting married first. It doesn’t seem fair, she thought. Eventually, after hours of sulking, she decided a good night’s rest would make her feel better, so she cancelled the game with Seven, wallowed in self pity a short while longer and went to bed. When she woke up the next morning, her head was clear again, she felt nothing but happiness for Phoebe, and the only regret she had was the fact that she was going to miss the wedding.
She hadn’t felt distant lately though, especially towards Seven, and she certainly had no idea this was going on right under her nose. She wasn’t even sure when Seven had time to date Chakotay, or anyone for that matter, at least not as much as he claimed. They still met once a week for Velocity and every morning for breakfast with an occasional dinner together thrown in. In all that time, she never mentioned she was dating Chakotay? Janeway couldn’t believe it. Seven’s duty shifts always mirrored hers and Chakotay occasionally worked an opposite schedule so how could they have gotten to know each other so well unless they were...No. That’s ridiculous. They’re not sleeping together.
She quickly scanned her memory as Chakotay continued rattling on in the background about Seven. Seven was always in the cargo bay happily regenerating every time she stopped by during the night. She was always at her post during the day too. And in the early evenings they occasionally passed in the halls as Janeway made surprise inspections on the lower decks. It’s impossible. There’s not enough time. She sensed something was wrong but continued listening as he finished his story and pretended to hear every word.
“…so we thought we would get married. It would be a great honor if you would do it. If you don’t feel up to it we can ask Neelix. He was the captain of his ship and I’m sure he’d be thrilled to perform the ceremony.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. Of course I’ll do it. What are you thinking?” As she sat there with the weight of all this crushing her heart right now, she kept up her smile for appearances. “How does Seven feel about this?”
“She’s ecstatic.”
Ecstatic? Janeway never knew Seven to be ecstatic about anything, and even if she was it would take a small miracle for her to express joy the way he described. “I can’t wait to talk to her.”
“Uh, that’s another thing I was going to bring up.” Chakotay lowered his voice and looked down, embarrassed about what he was about to ask next. “You’ve been a great inspiration to her, Captain. I wonder if you could do us one small favor?”
“Of course.” She began sensing her third mistake coming right at her.
“She won’t…I mean we haven’t…Can you…explain…the concept of sex? I don’t think she fully understands…intimacy.”
Janeway was floored again. Did he even know how hurtful his words were? Not only was he asking her to perform their ceremony, one that she would undoubtedly struggle through, but if she understood him correctly, he wanted her to teach Seven how to please him.
“I’m not sure I’m the person to…”
“I know I’ve put you in a difficult position, but you’re a woman, and she trusts you. I thought you could use that and help her to...you know...”
Oh God. What have I gotten myself into? “You want me to teach her how to...make love?”
“Yes. If it’s not too much trouble.”
Janeway became angrier every time he opened his mouth. How can anyone be so insensitive? “Chakotay, she’s not a drone anymore. You can’t just program information into her.” She paused to gather her thoughts and calm down. She was furious that he was even asking this in the first place, but how could anyone who claimed to know Seven enough to marry her not know how to discuss something as delicate as this? Do they even know each other well enough to get married? she wondered. “Don’t you think this is something you two should work out yourselves?”
“Captain, we’re tried. She just doesn’t…get it.”
“You’ve put me in a difficult position, Chakotay.” She paused and let that sink in, hoping he would get the hint and rescind his request, but he didn’t. “Fine,” she added in frustration. How the hell was she going to talk to Seven about this? It’s not as if she’s a neutral third party. She was in love with Seven but too afraid to show it. Seven respects me and looks to me for guidance. How would it look if I told her how I feel? She might feel obligated to reciprocate. Seven put Janeway on a pedestal and mimicked her behavior, so she was forced to continuously bury those feelings. And because she buried them she may have lost her to someone who wasn’t afraid to express an interest. “I’ll speak to Seven tonight.”
“Thank you, Captain.” Chakotay stood from his chair and walked toward the door, pausing before it opened. “Would you like to have dinner with me tonight? I’m in the mood for some barbecue.”
I thought he was a vegetarian. “I have other plans, but thank you anyway, Commander.” It was a lie, but the thought of food right now made her nauseas, and there wasn’t a chance she could possibly handle a conversation or face anyone after having this bomb dropped in her lap.
“Of course.” He nodded and left her in the solitude of the ready room with nothing to occupy her time but those damn reports and her thoughts of how she screwed up the best thing to happen to her.
After a few minutes of letting this all sink in, Janeway eventually stood and waited for him to burst in through the door and tell her it was all a joke, but he never came back. An overwhelming feeling of disbelief of what just happened made her dizzy so she braced herself against the desk for support. What have I gotten myself into? Slowly walking over to the replicator, she requested the only thing that was going to help her through this mess: a full pot of coffee- black.
The rest of the afternoon seemed to drag along for Janeway. Rather than busy herself with work, she stood looking out the window and stared blankly while replaying Chakotay’s news in her head. She’s getting married. All she could think about was losing Seven, and the longer she thought about it the angrier she became with her first officer, her trusted friend. He knew how I felt and took her away. She realized a long time ago through a series of meditations with him that she was falling in love with the young woman but made the decision right then and there not to pursue it. She was Seven’s captain, and anything more than that would be a breach of protocol. Or so she thought.
Janeway glanced at the timepiece on the wall. Time to go. Before slipping into her current state of mind, she cancelled her lunch with Seven but managed to reserve holodeck time for a few rounds of Velocity in Holodeck 2. Now, she quickly composed herself, even though it was a front, and walked out onto the bridge.
When the ready room door opened, an onslaught of laughter died down and she saw Tom quickly turn back around to face the conn as if he was operating it the entire time.
“Good to see you again, Captain,” Chakotay said, still smiling.
“Yeah, we didn’t think you were ever coming out of there,” Tom added.
“Well, Mr. Paris, unlike some officers, when I report for duty I actually work,” Janeway snapped as she entered the turbolift, leaving him speechless for once. Smartass. She was never so enraged in all her life as she was at her first officer right now and she was taking it out on anyone who crossed her path. If there was one good thing about Velocity it was that it gave her ample time to talk with Seven about their personal lives, and tonight they had plenty to discuss.
The short walk to the holodeck seemed unusually long today. She had no idea how she was going to be able to face Seven, much less approach her about Chakotay’s request. She’s a grown woman. Surely she can figure this out herself. She knew Seven researched dating and sexuality years ago when Tom and B’Elanna began dating, and she even went so far as to stalk them and record their every move. B’Elanna confronted her of course, and confiscated the data padds, but by then Seven had already committed the details to memory. She has to know about sex. She considered asking The Doctor for his advice but realized it to be a major violation not only of Chakotay’s privacy but Seven’s as well.
“Captain, you are late this evening,” Seven stated as Janeway entered the simulated playing court. “I usually find you ‘warming up’ when I arrive.”
Seven voice broke Janeway from the trance she was in. “I’ve had a lot on my mind today, Seven.” She took a momentary look at Seven’s form, admiring her lean yet firm body, and decided it best not to admire too long today. “I’m going to change. Be right back.” Janeway disappeared into the outer room quickly, stuffing the amorous feelings trying to surface so badly, and tried to think of things that would help get her through this evening without becoming a blubbering idiot in front of Seven.
Meanwhile, Seven allowed Janeway to leave without asking what was obviously bothering her. She was able to read into the captain’s behavior and knew immediately something was bothering her. She also knew through past experience that Janeway had a habit of making small talk during the game, so she decided to wait until the captain made the first move and question her then.
She instructed the computer to discharge the disk and began practicing while Janeway changed. Her shots were quick and precise today, never missing the disk once. She felt confident about the game today, but that same confidence she possessed before every game against Janeway always ended with the captain defeating her.
Janeway stepped onto the court as Seven reprogrammed her phaser for game play. Only a certain number of shots were allowed per player in each round and Seven was down to her final three shots before she reloaded. Both women stood in silence, contemplating the game that was about to start, and Seven’s nod told Janeway she was ready.
“Computer, begin round one,” Janeway ordered as they took their stances, but she wasn’t sure she was ready, given that her mind was still on Seven and Chakotay’s relationship. She tried to divert her attention during play by thinking about ship matters. But when she thought of the upcoming region of space, her mind concentrated on Astrometric scans, she thought of Seven, and was hit on her hip by the disk.
“Point, Seven of Nine,” the computer announced.
“I guess I got distracted,” Janeway admitted. Again, she took aim and waited for the disk to be released. This time she tried to divert her attention by thinking about what she wanted for dinner. By the time they would be finished the game, Neelix would have cleaned up from the dinner rush, but she was sure he would have something saved for her since she always stopped by after Velocity...with Seven.
“Point, Seven of Nine,” the computer announced again as the disk bounced off her foot.
“Captain, are you ill? It is not like you to play so weakly.”
“I guess I’m not on my game tonight.”
“Do you want to continue another time?”
Janeway caught a hint of concern in Seven’s expression. It’s true, she always played much better than this, so it’s no wonder giving up two easy points confused Seven. “No, I’m fine. Computer, begin.” She lowered her self into attack formation, poised and ready to fire at the disk no matter what color it turned.
A combination of quick shots, instinct, and pure luck acquired her three quick points and put her ahead of Seven again, making her look like she was back to her old self again.
“So tell me, Seven, what’s been happening in your life lately?” Janeway asked as she darted the disk that swiftly bounced off the wall, onto the floor, and back off the wall before she fired and gained another point. She was curious if Seven would be more forthcoming if persuaded to discuss her relationship. The last time Seven took an interest in personal relationships- Tom and B’Elanna’s- Janeway had to lecture her on etiquette and privacy.
“I have increased Astrometric sensors by .04% and successfully charted a system we will be entering in approximately four days.”
“No, I mean in your personal life. Anything interesting going on?”
Seven stood silent for a minute, thinking. The captain knew everything there was to know about her personal life. They spent hours together each night when they didn’t see each other during their shifts, and their off time usually overlapped. What else was there to tell? “I have agreed to help Naomi with a project Commander Chakotay assigned her.”
Ah. Here we go. She mentioned his name. “That sounds like fun. I’m sure Naomi will love spending time with you. She idolizes you, you know.” She paused a minute before bringing up the relationship issue. “Chakotay’s a good man. Have you ever spent personal time with him?” She wasn’t sure she wanted an answer to that question but she had to hear for herself, in Seven’s own words, how they felt about getting married.
“I have spent personal time with the Commander several times.”
I’m sure you have. “He’s a good man, isn’t he?”
Seven nodded. “He has many admirable qualities.” She wasn’t sure what Janeway was leading up to but was intrigued where this conversation was going.
“You ready for another round?” Janeway asked, taking a moment from the conversation to regather her thoughts.
“I am.”
Janeway ordered the computer to begin and again she took her position waiting for the disk. She dodged and shot a few times, missing on all accounts, but luckily for her so had Seven. Many admirable qualities, huh? Without realizing what she was doing, she took aim at Seven and fired the phaser at her behind when the disk passed by. Under normal circumstances she wouldn’t have attempted the shot for fear of missing and losing a point, but something inside her was angry with Seven.
“Illegal contact, Janeway. Point, Seven of Nine.”
Seven smirked but didn’t say anything as the next round began and the disk was fired again. Though, she wondered if Janeway had truly missed the disk or if she intentionally zapped her behind as her instinct told her.
“Seven,” Janeway called through panting breaths, “are you in love?”
Seven was so stunned at the question that she stopped in her tracks and immediately gave up a point to Janeway. “Explain.”
Here it was. Time for Janeway to lay it all out on the table. Time to hear in Seven’s own voice how she felt. She wasn’t ready for it, but she couldn’t put it off any longer. “I mean, have you ever been so pained when you’re not with another person that your heart hurts? Do you have trouble concentrating on normal activities? Do you find yourself constantly thinking about that person when you’re not together? When you are together, do you just want to throw your arms around that person and never let go?” Brace yourself, Kathryn.
For Seven, the answer was clear. There was no doubt about it. “Yes, Captain. I have experienced those feelings for quite some time. I believe I am in love.”
She’s in love with him. There was nothing else left. She lost Seven. He swept right in under my nose and took her away. A flood of emotions filled Kathryn. Anger. Sadness. Fear. She felt more alone now than she ever had before in her entire life. Just being with Seven now was too painful to bear. “I think I am feeling a little off my game. Do you mind if we continue this another night?”
“I will accompany you to sickbay,” Seven offered.
“No,” Janeway quickly shot back. “I think I’ll just lay down in my quarters. I’ll be fine.”
Janeway turned and left, not bothering to say goodbye or even change her clothes. She just walked out and didn’t look back. She couldn’t. She felt the tears building up in her eyes but fought hard to suppress them. You’re a Starfleet Captain. Captains don’t cry. “But this one might,” she mumbled as she stepped up her pace, almost running to get in the safety of her quarters, alone where no one would see her pain. Once inside, she dropped her phaser on the floor and let the floodgates open. God, how did I let this happen? Why did I let myself fall in love with her?
The evening passed by slow, almost as if the hours passing were days instead. Janeway stood in her dark quarters looking out the window, still unable to deal with the situation at hand. She would have sworn this was some sort of practical joke if Seven hadn’t admitted to being in love. “It doesn’t make sense,” she mumbled. The only proof she had that something had been happening for weeks without her knowing about it was Chakotay’s weird behavior, spending all his time in the holodeck, and Seven’s admittance tonight of being in love. Why would he lie about something like this? It had to be the truth. And why would Seven not tell me? The pain was slowly killing her. Why did you let this happen, Kathryn? You know better than to develop feelings for people under your command.
She was about to call it a night and head to bed when the door chimed. “Come,” she barely managed to speak without turning from the window.
“Captain?”
Janeway froze when she heard Seven’s voice, but why her late night visitor surprised her remained a mystery since Seven stopped by her quarters this late so many times in the past. “Seven, what brings you by so late?”
Seven stood in the dark watching the captain’s silhouette against the star filled window. She always appreciated Janeway’s body, so much passion and beauty wrapped up in a compact form, but seeing the darkened frame against the bright window this evening only accentuated her admiration. There was something wrong though. Something was missing from the feisty captain. Janeway’s voice sounded sad, almost defeated, and she was still wearing her Velocity outfit hours after she left the holodeck. “I have come to check on you. How do you feel?”
“Oh, I’ve been better, Seven.”
Janeway still hadn’t turned from the window and Seven decided to walk over and confront the woman. When she neared, she saw Janeway’s eyes were puffy and red. “You have been crying.”
“I’m fine. It’s just been a rough day.”
Seven’s expression softened, almost as if she was hurting too. “Captain, you are not alone. Please tell me what’s bothering you this much.”
You are not alone. Seven was using Chakotay’s own words when they confronted the Borg a few years back. It was the very incident that brought Seven to Voyager. No doubt all their time spent together was helping to meld them. “I just been forced to confront feelings and emotions I wasn’t aware I had, and they’ve just hit me with a vengeance. It’s nothing I can’t handle though.”
“If you could handle these feelings, Captain, you would not be this upset. Tell me how I can help.”
Devoid of emotion, Janeway continued looking out the window with her arms crossed, almost in a self-protecting manner. Seven waited for a response but one never came. Finally, she grabbed Janeway’s shoulders and forced the captain to look at her. “Kathryn, I don’t know what’s happening, but I want to help. Please tell me what is bothering you.”
Seven had never used her first name before. In fact, Chakotay was the only other person on the ship who had ever called her Kathryn. There was something different in the way Seven said it though. When Chakotay used it, she felt like a civilian rather than a Starfleet Captain, but when Seven said it she felt like a woman.
Seven’s arms on her shoulders felt good too. She felt Seven’s warm hands through the thin material of her outfit and on her bare arms, and although the touch was innocent, it felt...erotic. She felt her heartbeat increasing rapidly and her breathing was becoming more difficult. You’re losing it, Kathryn, she thought as butterflies formed in her stomach with Seven’s gesture.
“Seven, I was just upset that you didn’t tell me. I thought we were friends.”
Seven released her grip. “I am not sure what you are referring to.”
“About being in love. I wish you had told me.”
“Would it have made a difference if I did?”
Janeway thought about it. If Seven had come up to her weeks ago and told her she was in love with Chakotay, would that have made a difference in how she felt now? She probably would have felt like she lost something wonderful, and she most likely would have been mad at herself for developing these unrequited feelings, but at least she would have heard the news from Seven first. Being told by a third party always hurt, no matter what the news.
“I was unaware you would take the news this badly. I am sorry, Captain. I can see you are disturbed. I think it is best that we do not see each other outside of our duty shifts.” Seven released Janeway and stepped back when Janeway spoke up again.
“That’ll be a little hard since I’m performing your ceremony.”
Baffled, Seven cocked a brow. “My ceremony?”
“Your wedding.”
There was a long pause between them. No doubt Janeway assumed the worst. She assumed Seven’s silence was a stall for trying to come up with a way to ease her hurt, but Seven was merely trying to understand what was happening.
“Captain, I am not sure what the recent strand of gossip on the ship is, but I assure you I am not getting married.” Seven swore she caught a flash of relief intermingled with confusion cross Janeway’s face.
“Aren’t you getting married to Chakotay?”
“Chakotay? I do not believe I will ever marry the Commander. Why would you think that?”
“But he...you said you were in love.”
Seven paused for a minute as she pieced together what the captain was thinking all this time. It was no wonder Janeway was behaving strangely all day, first canceling their lunch without reason and then her unusual behavior on the holodeck. It was all making sense now. She was taking a huge risk telling Janeway her feelings. The Doctor told her that part of living a good life involved taking risks, and that’s exactly what she was doing. She suspected for a while now that Janeway felt attracted to her but was letting her position stand between them. Now was the time to discover if they shared yet one more thing in common.
“I am in love. But not with Chakotay.” She watched quietly as Janeway processed this newest information. Watching her expression change as she contemplated the situation pleased Seven immensely. Janeway’s expression was so soft, so vulnerable, and far different than the command face devoid of emotion she normally wore.
Not with Chakotay? Who then? Janeway’s mind raced as she tried to think of people Seven associated with that would be able to capture her hear. It would have to be someone intelligent enough to challenge her thinking, kind enough to guide her when she did something not up to protocol, and gentle enough to explain delicate matters at off hours without dismissing her beliefs. Lt. Chapman? They did have that one date but that didn’t work out...She spends time with Tuvok, he is intelligent and they do have quite a bit in common, but he’s married...Harry did have a crush on her but they worked that out years ago...She continued running down a list of people, furrowing her brow occasionally and giving Seven quite a show. The Doctor? ...No, that’s absurd. They’re just friends…The only other person she spends time with is...It hit her like a tidal wave. The idea that Seven could possibly be talking about her excited the hell out of her but she didn’t want to get her hope up only to be dashed all over again. “Seven?”
Seven suspected Janeway knew what she was talking about now, and when the captain blushed, she made her feelings known, ridding the air of any further confusion. “Kathryn, it is you I am in love with.”
“You’re in love with me?”
“Yes,” Seven quickly replied. There was no pause, no hesitation.
Janeway shook her head. “Seven, how could you? You don’t even know me that well.”
“I know you well enough.”
“No, you only see what I let you see.”
Seven let her thoughts carry her for a minute, and when she spoke again, she had confessed in not so many words just how long she had been attracted to Captain Kathryn Janeway as well as Kathryn Janeway the woman.
“Captain, I see more than you know. I see what you wish I didn’t see, what you don’t know I see, and what you could never imagine I see. You pretend not to be bothered by your loneliness when all you want is to be a part of the family that this crew is turning into. There isn’t one day that passes that you don’t feel remorse about your decision that stranded this crew here, yet you never let people know you think about that every day of your life. You’ve lost people under your command along the way back to Earth, but you’ve gained so much in return. You think you ruined the lives of everyone on this ship when in reality they’re better people because of you. I’ve watched you isolate yourself, berate yourself, and blame yourself for every little thing that goes wrong, but not once have I seen you give yourself credit.”
Seven watched as Janeway thought about her words. It was true. She had given so much and asked so little in return. She made sacrifices and took chances no captain in Starfleet ever would. It was part of who she was, part of her personal mission.
“You’ve taken me from the Borg and given me my life again. You’ve shown me what it is to be human, how to share, learn, and grow, and how it feels to fall in love. I know you share that feeling, Kathryn. I’m aware every time you watch me regenerate. I sense your body’s reaction when you look at me. And I know you are as much in love with me as I am with you, but you’ll never admit it. Why can’t you just once allow yourself to live for you? To do what you want to do? To feel?”
Janeway was blown away by Seven’s insight into her life. She had sacrificed herself for this crew. She put her life on hold as everyone else around her was growing closer and pairing off. Tom and B’Elanna had been the third couple to get married since their journey began, two other couples were engaged, and countless others were involved in relationships. And what’s more, Seven knew she was in love with her before Janeway realized it herself. Everything Seven disclosed about her hidden feelings, the way she felt about her command, the people around her, her actions, and most of all, Seven herself, brought her to the realization that there was no use denying Seven…denying herself of this wonderful relationship they could build together if they could just be honest with each other.
Breathe. Janeway stuffed down the urge to burst into tears. She had never felt so happy, yet so helpless at the same time before. This isn’t how it’s supposed to be. She inhaled, taking in a sharp breath, the first breath of a sob, and forced it down by closing her eyes and holding her breath. Being completely still, she could feel Seven watching her, could hear Seven’s own breathing over her own, and she felt Seven slowly moving closer to her.
Silence filled the room as neither woman spoke, but they knew each other so well they could tell what the other was feeling. Everything in the room seemed to fade away as they focused only on each other. Acting on pure instinct, Janeway reached out for Seven’s hand and raised it to her face, holding it tenderly against her cheek. She wasn’t sure how, but she knew she would be safe with Seven and she began to let herself feel again.
Seven watched as Janeway let go of all her doubts. She knew that just being here was comforting to the captain and that Janeway trusted no one else with her heart. As the captain took her hand, she wanted to offer more but respected that Janeway needed a little more time to process all this…until now. She felt a tiny tear splash on her hand, then another, and when she realized Janeway was freely crying, she moved closer and embraced the tiny woman in the most protective manner she knew how, silently conveying that nothing would hurt her now.
For a minute they just stood, holding on to each other, basking in the feeling of holding each other, and when Seven sensed that Janeway had stopped crying, she pulled her head back and looked into Kathryn’s eyes. So blue they were, so inviting. Impulsively, she cupped Janeway’s chin and in one bold move leaned forward and covered the captain’s lips with her own.
The kiss began tender and unrushed. Lips brushed over lips as Seven traced the curves of Kathryn’s body with her hand, slowly moving down and settling on the small of Janeway’s back before pulling their bodies ever closer. She heard Kathryn make a soft gurgle from deep within her throat and smiled before parting their lips and tasting Kathryn’s whole mouth. Salty lips from tears and sweat from their game counteracted the general sweetness Kathryn had. Tongues danced and swirled, fervently fighting for dominance and heating up the moment.
Seven broke away and began giving little pecks along Janeway’s jaw, stopping only to nuzzle her earlobe before moving back down her jaw and kissing her neck, sucking and savoring her flesh. Little murmurs echoed in her ear told her Kathryn was indeed enjoying this so she continued, purposely escalating the sensations Kathryn felt with stronger, more intense nuzzling.
Kathryn couldn’t hold back any more. She grabbed Seven’s face and passionately kissed her, seizing the moment. She was losing control but she didn’t care, and Seven’s lack of resistance led her believe that they both wanted this, and more. Before long, she realized her arousal was increasing at exponential levels; her breathing was already rapid and her mind was about to explode. Oh God I want her so bad...She reached around Seven’s head, intertwining her fingers in the blonde locks, began walking backward while never losing contact, and silently encouraged Seven to follow her. No words could better express how she felt for Seven than the way she kissed her. ...must get to the bedroom...How does this come off? A combination of fiddling for the biosuit’s fastening device and the overall heat of the moment distracted her and she forgot about the tiny table beside the window. In one swift motion she tripped and fell backward, sending the table and its contents crashing to the floor and managed to inadvertently pull Seven on top of her in the process. How fortunate. Seven’s bodyweight pressed to hers only excited her further and she wanted to make love to the woman right there on the floor in the midst of all the debris if not for the incessant tingling in her arm.
“Kathryn, you are injured,” Seven said with panted breaths.
A glass vase Kathryn kept on the table had managed to shatter, leaving small shards spread on the floor and one very large portion stained with blood lying beside her body.
Damn! “I better get to sickbay,” Janeway added, still feeling winded from the breathless kiss she wouldn’t soon forget. As Seven helped her to her feet, she ignored the blood trickling down her arm and the stinging pain the cut generated. In the few short minutes it took for everything to transpire, she looked at Seven with new eyes. She’s in love with me. Not him. Me. Suddenly, a wide smile crossed her face and, without asking if Seven would accompany her, they left her quarters together in the tranquil quiet of their newfound feelings.
“Doctor, report,” Seven demanded as she and Janeway entered sickbay when the man failed to greet them.
Silence.
“Computer, activate the EMH,” Janeway said as she hopped onto the nearest biobed.
“The EMH is offline.”
Strange. Before she even asked Seven to get him back online, the young woman was already working on doing just that. Since The Doctor’s program had begun sporadically going offline in the last few weeks, Janeway knew getting him back would take at least an hour. She decided calling Tom down to cover sickbay in case anyone else came in with medical problems might be a wise idea and began treating herself with a dermal regenerator while she waited for him to show up.
“Captain, I believe I can get The Doctor’s program operation in a few minutes, but the holo emitters in this room are non operational,” Seven informed her as she continued working.
“Are they burnt out?”
“No. I believe they have been intentionally shut off.”
“We’ll have to download his program into the mobile emitter until we get them back online.” Janeway continued attending to her arm and glanced across the room at the table the mobile emitter was kept on but the case was empty. She sighed loudly just as Tom came strolling through the door.
“Please state the nature of the medical emergency,” he joked.
“Have you seen The Doctor’s mobile emitter?” Janeway barked in frustration.
“Uh...no...sorry. What’s going on?”
“The holo emitters are burnt out and the mobile emitter is gone. Seven, use the internal scanner and see if you can locate it,” she called over her shoulder.
Seven nodded in reply and Tom took over repairing her injured arm.
“That looks bad.” He took the dermal regenerator from her and set it to a lower setting for slower but safer healing. “Late night on the holodeck?”
Janeway glanced at him confused and didn’t really put the pieces together until she realized she was still wearing her Velocity outfit. “Oh yeah. Rough night. You know how it is once you get started.”
She wasn’t paying too much attention to him at the moment. Rather, she found herself looking over at Seven and began feeling amorous all over again as she still felt lingering traces of Seven’s touch. She couldn’t believe how her world had undergone a complete turnaround in so little time. An hour ago she was angry with herself and upset because she was in love with Seven and now she was elated for the very same reason. Seven had that effect on people. You either loved her or hated her. There was no happy medium.
Tom smirked. “Yeah. I know how it is. You want me to fix your neck too?”
“Hmm?”
“Your neck.” He pointed to a small reddened area by her collarbone. “I had a bruise like that recently. B’Elanna gave it to me on our wedding night.” He couldn’t help but smirk, knowing exactly what it was but safely hinting it was something else.
Oh geez. Do I have a ...oh hell. She soon realized he must have been talking about Seven’s glorious attention paid to her neck earlier. “You can wipe that smirk off your face and fix it. I already told you it’s been a rough night.”
“Captain,” Seven called from the workstation, interrupting Tom from removing Janeway’s ‘love bite.’ “The Doctor is back online. I have put him in Holodeck 2.”
Janeway nodded and tapped her badge. “Janeway to Doctor.”
“Yes, Captain,” he answered.
“Doctor, your mobile emitter is missing so we activated you in the holodeck. Can you tell me what you were doing right before your program went offline?”
A flood of noise filled the background and he had to speak up to be heard. “Yes, Captain. I was cataloging spores we brought aboard from the away mission yesterday. Commander Chakotay came in and said there was a problem with my matrix and I would have to be offline while Lt. Torres fixed it.”
Janeway looked at Seven and Tom suspiciously. “Thank you, Doctor. Janeway out.” What the hell is going on here? “Tom, do you know anything about this?”
He shook his head in response. “I don’t know what he’s talking about. B’Elanna got off duty when I did then we spent the entire evening in our quarters.”
“Janeway to Chakotay.”
“Commander Chakotay’s comm. badge is on privacy setting. Emergency override only,” the computer announced.
Janeway pursed her lips together fiercely as she tried to make sense of the situation. The Commander had been behaving normally so there was really no reason to suspect anything suspicious was going on, but in light of recent events- his fictitious relationship with Seven and now The Doctor’s program going offline- she was beginning to doubt her initial feelings. There was only one course of action left for her to take. Confront the source. “Seven, you’re with me. Tom, you’re on sickbay duty until we get this resolved. See if you can get the holo emitters back online,” she ordered as she stormed out with Seven in tow.
“Yes, ma’am.”
The journey to Chakotay’s quarters more than made up for their lack of workout earlier as Janeway walked so fast one might actually classify it as a jog, and Seven was grateful for her long legs, otherwise she might have had a difficult time keeping up with the older, furious woman. When they reached the Commander’s door, Janeway rang the bell and waited nearly a minute before pounding on it when no one answered. That got someone’s attention because she heard movement inside and within a few seconds the door slowly opened and they were greeted by none other than Seven of Nine.
Oh my God...Janeway turned to look at Seven standing beside her and was relieved that she was equally as shocked, dismissing her fears that she was losing it. The woman in Chakotay’s quarters was no doubt a hologram, but where the mobile emitter was concealed remained a mystery since her dress barely covered her body. She was nearly identical to the real Seven of Nine except for the fact that she was wearing a slinky red dress, something Seven would never do, and her ocular implant was removed. She’s beautiful...
“We’ve come to see Chakotay,” Janeway said, still stunned.
“He’s taking a shower. Would you like to come in and wait?” She moved aside and ushered them in, motioning for them to have a seat while she went in to tell him he had visitors.
The resemblance to the real Seven was almost frightening and Janeway had to keep her anger in check. “Well at least now I have a good idea what happened to the emitter,” she whispered in a furious tone through clinched teeth.
“Indeed.” Seven added, equally enraged.
While Chakotay and the holographic Seven were still in the bathroom, Janeway took the opportunity to call for a security backup since the situation seemed more dire than first anticipated. There was no telling how he was going to react upon being caught red handed in a deception that was sure to be the talk of the ship for weeks to come once the incident leaked out.
A few minutes later Chakotay came out dressed for duty and smiling, but when he saw Seven standing in front of him after just leaving her in the other room he became confused. “Captain...Seven...What’s going on?”
“I was just about to ask you the same thing,” Janeway said. She stood up, still incensed, and Seven reached for her arm to hold her back. She was livid with Chakotay’s calm manner and oblivion to any wrongdoing.
“I’m not sure what to say...”
“Well you better come up with something because you have a lot of explaining to do.” Before she got any answers out of him, a security team showed up with phasers charged and ready for action, entering the room and only stopping at her raised hand.
“Kathryn, is this necessary?” he asked, chuckling with nervous laughter.
She wanted to ask about his fictitious relationship with Seven first but decided to wait until they were alone and proceeded to the other obvious important event of the evening. “Do you mind explaining why you took The Doctor’s program offline?”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Then perhaps you can explain why you took his mobile emitter.”
A wave of confusion washed over his face, something she saw a hundred times before if she saw it once, and she began to suspect he was acting under the influence of some outside agent. Not only had he purposely taken The Doctor offline, something he denied doing and caused hours of wasted manpower to fix, but he also created a holographic version of Seven and constructed an illusory relationship. “I think you better come with us, Commander. You better let The Doctor check you out.”
“I’m fine!” he shouted. In one swift move, perhaps caused by paranoia, he pushed Janeway into the security team and ran out into the corridor, narrowly avoiding being captured by Seven as she reached out for his arm after softening Janeway’s fall. Chaos erupted as they scrambled to get to their feet and chase him, but by the time he heard the door to his quarters open again he had already rounded the corner and was on his way to the most obvious hideout, the shuttle bay.
The minutes passed by quickly and a gamma shift engineer routinely inspecting systems on Deck 6 found his discarded comm. badge on the floor and reported it immediately to the captain once the red lights flashed and klaxons sounded. Meanwhile, Janeway and Seven had armed themselves with phasers and joined the security team in the hunt, taking opposite routes to the shuttle bays.
Positioning outside Shuttle Bay 2 and hoping this was the one he would choose, being farther from his quarters than Shuttle Bay 1 and possibly throwing them off his trail, they waited. The silence was making Janeway edgy and she shifted from one foot to the other and back again in anticipation.
“Patience, Captain,” Seven whispered. “He will be apprehended.”
“I know, it just really makes me mad that he’s been doing this right under my nose. What kind of captain does that make me look like? I can’t even...”
A Jeffries Tube opening around the bend hissed and both women froze, readying themselves. Janeway and Seven both peered around the corner to see who was coming but the corridor was empty.
“Security to Janeway,” Tuvok called, joining the security team late in the chase.
“Go ahead, Tuvok.”
“Captain, we have detained Commander Chakotay outside Shuttle Bay 1. What would you like us to do with him?”
It must have been gremlins, she thought, referring to the noise in the corridor and shaking it off. “Put him in the brig until The Doctor can look at him. Janeway out.” She looked at Seven with relief. The last thing she wanted right now was another confrontation with her first officer. The whole situation was awkward enough, but she could tell Seven was furious with him too, and it usually took a lot to rile Seven up.
“Shall we?” Janeway asked, waving her hand and motioning the way. Seven cocked her brow and they walked away from the wall they were against only to be greeted by an image neither expected.
Chakotay stood with his back to them, frantically keying in a series of commands on a wall panel. He so deeply involved in his work that he didn’t even hear them step from behind the wall and begin creeping up on him.
Janeway’s brain raced for an explanation as she approached. The emitter. He must have downloaded his own image and activated it once he escaped. Unwilling to upset him more than he already was, she didn’t draw her phaser as she took slow steps toward him while Seven remained behind her, ready to fire at the first hint of danger. “Chakotay, I think you should come with us,” she said, still shaken by his deception.
Startled, Chakotay turned around and pointed his own phaser at them. Suddenly feeling like a cornered animal, he was ready to strike out at anyone who threatened him. “Don’t take another step. I’ll shoot.”
“Chakotay,” she said, stopping within arm’s reach and trying to appear non-threatening. “What’s going on?”
“You’re after me. I don’t know what’s gotten into all of you, but I’m not about to let you get away with it.”
Clearly, the man was hallucinating and she had to find a way to reassure him. “Chakotay, calm down. I don’t know what’s happening but you need to get to sickbay. Please...”
“No! I’m leaving the ship. You can’t stop me. I’ve…” He began to raise his phaser and take aim and was immediately silenced when Seven shot him before he had the chance. Everything happened so quickly and Janeway was left standing frozen, unsure of what happened.
“Seven...”
“He is fine, Captain. He is merely stunned,” she explained, though a part of her did feel good to shoot the man who hurt the woman she loved.
As Janeway checked on Chakotay, Seven scanned the console he was working at and relayed some rather disturbing news.
“Captain, I believe he was attempting to override your command codes and set the ship to self destruct.”
“What?!”
“He did not succeed and there is no need to worry.”
That’s what you think. Janeway knew she had a major problem on her hand now if her first officer was about to destroy them all for no reason. She ordered an emergency transport to sickbay and was pleased to find that Tom had gotten the holo emitters back online and The Doctor was officially back on duty.
While the others were in pursuit of Chakotay, Tom had brought him up to speed on what happened, including an interesting topic of hot gossip pertaining to one Starfleet captain and potentially one Borg drone, but he wasn’t 100% certain about Seven’s role in Janeway’s hickey. Further investigation was definitely required and he knew that if anyone could get to the bottom of the mystery it was B’Elanna.
The Doctor ran over to the biobed as their patterns emerged and began scanning immediately.
“He had to be stunned, Doctor, and he was hallucinating,” Janeway called out. She stood beside Seven, watching as he conducted his examination, and fought off the urge to hold the young woman’s hand. Rather, she hailed Tuvok and explained the situation, ordering a security detachment to stand guard in sickbay in case there was another problem. In less than a minute, two officers showed up and took guard.
“I’ll need to conduct some tests now. This could be a while so if you’d like to check back later...” The Doctor explained.
“Alright.” Janeway could take a hint as well as the next person. “Let me know when you’ve completed your tests.” She nodded at Seven and summoned her to follow. Right now she wanted to get as far away from this situation as possible.
They began slowly walking down the corridor, taking their time with a leisurely pace. The halls were nearly empty given that it was the middle of the night and the gamma shift was the least manned shift, but there was enough of a distraction with someone walking by here and there to let them know they weren’t completely alone.
“Interesting night, huh?”
“Indeed.”
“I guess we’ll have to wait until The Doctor’s done to find out what happened.”
A silence fell between them as they both felt an awkwardness make its presence.
“I’m not sure what’s going to happen tomorrow with the commander. I imagine I’ll have my hands full making sense of this and sorting things out, and I’ll probably be occupied over the breakfast hour, but I would like to see you again.” Janeway felt a flood of butterflies infiltrate her stomach as the memory of their kiss came rushing back in full force. “Would you like to have dinner in my quarters tomorrow night?”
“Acceptable.”
They reached the turbolift and paused. Janeway knew she had to change back in to her uniform and realized Seven probably needed to regenerate. Still, she didn’t want to leave Seven just yet.
“I know he violated your privacy by using your image and creating that hologram.” She reached down and took Seven’s hand, bringing it up and holding it close to her heart. “I promise I’ll make this up to you,” she whispered.
“That was not your fault. You didn’t know.”
“I know, but I’m still in charge, and whatever happens around here I am ultimately responsible for it.”
Seven nodded. Of all the things the captain could be held responsible for right now, the one that mattered most to Seven was Janeway’s success in making her fall in love. “I trust you will deal with the situation in the appropriate manner.”
Janeway expression softened as she smiled. “Well, I should go change out of this outfit.”
“I must also regenerate.”
“Tomorrow. 1800 Hours. Dinner in my quarters, ok?”
“I will be there.”
Seven returned the smile before turning to leave. As she walked down the corridor over the same path they just walked together, Janeway waited and watched as Seven left and was fascinated by her swaying hips as if she had never noticed them before. Before completely going out of sight, however, Seven looked back over her shoulder, and that caused Janeway to smile wider. She really does love me. All the years of fear and denial were tossed aside in one night. No more doubts about herself or whether Seven could or would love her back. She already did. She has for years. They probably fell in love around the same time and held off doing anything about it, she thought. Until now.
“...Therefore it is my recommendation that Commander Chakotay undergo extensive counseling to counteract any and all psychological effects brought on by this disease.”
Janeway put down The Doctor’s report on Chakotay’s condition. Since she left the man last night it was discovered that he acquired a rare and highly contagious neurological disease, probably on an away mission, and was in the beginning stages of psychosis. Luckily, the effects were reversible if caught early and no other person had shown signs of the disease.
“He really didn’t believe anything he was doing was wrong,” The Doctor told her when she questioned him about Chakotay’s condition. “He had no idea he was even sick.”
She really didn’t see much sense in punishing the man for acts he committed when he was obviously ill, and undergoing therapy would help him recover from the psychological aftermath he would be faced with. Still, he did create a hologram of Seven and conducted a romantic relationship with her, and even if it didn’t progress to a sexual relationship, he still violated her privacy. Then there was the whole matter of his taking The Doctor’s program offline, borrowing the emitter for his own personal pleasure, and then deleting The Doctor’s memory files to cover his tracks. There was no doubt people would look at him differently after hearing about this, and she knew him well enough to know he would feel very ashamed of his behavior. He suffered enough, she thought, placing the padd down and directing her attention to other matters at hand.
The day flew by quickly today and now it was time to head to her quarters and start preparing dinner. All day long she had to work hard to force herself into not thinking about Seven, but most of the time it was a futile effort. Her mind drifted to the young woman more times today than she remembered it doing in a month.
Seven expressed anger when she first learned of Chakotay’s deception and how it hurt not only herself but Kathryn as well, but after discovering an illness was the cause of his behavior and not some selfish desire, she moved past her anger and considered the matter dropped. Now she focused her attention on evening plans anyone would jump at the chance to have: dinner at the captain’s quarters.
She finished up her work in Astrometrics and headed back to Cargo Bay 2 to change into something a little more formal than her daily biosuits. Over the years she replicated most of the outfits The Doctor’s thought she might look nice in, but the one that chose tonight was the one she witnessed Janeway’s reaction to firsthand, even if it wasn’t really her that wore it when she saw Janeway’s eyes light up at the sight.
Janeway frantically ran around her quarters trying to prep for a successful evening. Candles were placed throughout the room, soft music played in the background, the lights were dimmed, dinner was keyed into the replicator waiting for her command, and a bottle of wine chilled in a bucket on the table. Over the years she entertained countless numbers of guests: everyone from family and friends to the top ranks of Starfleet officers. Yet none of them made her as nervous as this night. As she finished lighting the last candle, the door chimed and she jumped.
She’s here...Take deep breaths...Janeway was a nervous wreck tonight. She had eaten with Seven hundreds of times in the past but there was something different about it now. Before, they were friends. Tonight, they were on a date. And they were both in love. Relax. It’s just Seven.
She quickly calmed her nerves and walked over to greet Seven, but when she opened the door her heart nearly stopped. The red dress. Seven’s hair was down tonight, and her long blond locks were resting softly on her bare shoulders; she was wearing the red dress the hologram version of herself wore in Chakotay’s quarters, and an unfamiliar fragrance lingered in the air. “Seven...” she was speechless.
“Good evening, Kathryn.”
Janeway ushered her in and took in Seven’s full beauty as she brushed by. I love the way my name sounds when she says it. “Pardon me for staring, but you look beautiful tonight.”
“Thank you. You look beautiful as well.” Janeway was dressed in casual brown pants and khaki silk shirt with a petite gold necklace. It was nothing new but not something she wore just any old day either, and it pleased Seven to see the captain so relaxed after such a trying ordeal with the Chakotay situation.
After exchanging pleasantries and some small talk, they sat down and enjoyed a light meal. Since Seven’s alcohol tolerance was practically nonexistent, she passed on the wine, but Janeway needed several glasses to calm her nerves further. During the entire dinner she was unable to focus on anything other than Seven. It was different than their usual time together, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on exactly what it was that was different. Perhaps it was the food, maybe the ambience, or possible the alcohol. Whatever it was, it was causing her mind to spin wildly out of control.
“You seem distant, Kathryn. Is something on your mind?”
“I was just thinking about something Chakotay mentioned yesterday…before I realized he was...ill.”
Seven watched as Janeway reflected upon the memory. She doubted the captain wanted to talk about Chakotay on their date, but there was something definitely bothering her and would continue to bother her until she brought it out into the open. “Explain.”
“When he told me about marrying you, I asked him about the circumstances of your relationship. I guess there was a part of me that was suspicious from the start.” She paused to sip some wine, giving her time to gather her thoughts, or maybe gather her courage, she wasn’t sure. “He said that I was the one who brought you two together, unintentionally of course, by canceling a Velocity match. Do you remember that?”
“Indeed. It was the day we received the last data stream from Starfleet. I was leaving the holodeck and he asked to join me for a few rounds.”
“Yes. Well, I was just pondering the irony of the whole situation here. I mean, on one hand we have Chakotay who said I brought the two of you together, but in reality, it was he who brought us together.”
“Perhaps we should invite him to our wedding,” Seven mused.
That thought brought a huge grin to Janeway’s face. Marrying Seven...who wouldn’t want that? They were a long way off from that decision, if it ever reached that point, this being only their official first date, but the idea did intrigue Kathryn. “Enough talk about him. Would you like to dance?” she asked, bringing the focus of their date back to them.
Seven was a little apprehensive about dancing, being far from an expert at it and afraid she might accidentally hurt Janeway with her strength as she remembered all too well the outcome of her date with Lt. Chapman. “Kathryn, are you aware the last time I danced with someone I tore a ligament in his arm?”
“How about I lead then?” Kathryn joked. She stood up and offered her hand to Seven, not knowing whether Seven would go for dancing or not, but she wouldn’t find out unless she made the offer. Luckily, Seven accepted and they went to the center of the room and began swaying to the soft music.
Both women were reserved at first, keeping their distance out of fear, but as the music played on they relaxed and settled in each other’s arms. Eventually, their bodies molded perfectly to each other, nearly melding into one.
Letting Seven take the lead for a while, Janeway closed her eyes and rested her head on Seven’s shoulder, burying her face in Seven’s hair and taking in the fragrance that was Seven. You smell so good…Seven’s arms tightened around her waist and pulled her closer, inadvertently forcing their pelvises to rub together. It was innocent, but both women felt a flood of heat rush to their centers.
“Kathryn, I believe I would like to kiss you now.”
“I believe I would like that,” Janeway added in her sultry voice. She looked into Seven’s eyes and nearly melted in the look she got in return. In one brisk move, Seven bent over and kissed her, sending her mind swirling down the same passionate road they visited last night.
Seven focused her attention on Kathryn’s bottom lip, giving gentle pecks and lightly tugging with her teeth as she pulled away. She felt Kathryn’s fingers run through her hair and begin softly massaging her head as they kissed, and it was the second time in two days she recognized an intense sensitivity piercing her center. She sensed Kathryn’s drive increasing and they impulsively cupped each other’s faces, intensifying the kiss and becoming lost in the moment. Somewhere in the midst of Kathryn’s fingers running through her hair the music stopped and she hadn’t noticed, nor did she care.
“I think I would like to go to bed,” Kathryn whispered in her ear, very briefly pulling her lips away from Seven’s.
“Are you tired, Kathryn?”
A devilish smirk and twinkling eyes permeated across Janeway’s face as she winked and simply said, “Not in the least.”
In one swift move, Seven effortlessly scooped up the smaller woman, causing her to yelp in a pleasant surprise, and carried her into the bedroom where they spent the rest of the evening getting to know each other in a way two days ago both women only dreamed of.
The End