Chapter Text
It had been a month. A long month of interrogations and debriefings, of spending everyday waiting to hear Starfleet’s ruling on the status of former Marquis members. The days had seemed to drag forever, and then one night the alert finally arrived: the commander was to meet with the highest in command at 1300 hours tomorrow. Chakotay felt his heart drop. In some ways he was glad to finally know what the Federation had planned for him and his former crew, but at the same time he still feared the worst. At least when their ruling was unknown he could pretend that everything was going to work out for the best.
Sitting back at his Starfleet standard desk, Chakotay wished there was someone he could talk to. While comms between the crew were not outright banned, they were being discretely monitored and he had no desire to have his conversations spied on. What Starfleet thought they could glean from their private communications he didn’t know; but, he didn’t want to give them the opportunity to use his private conversations against him. Maybe he could walk to the central commons area and run into someone he could talk to. It was rather late for anyone to be out, but anything would be better than sitting couped up in the gray standard issue quarters the crew had been assigned for the debriefings.
He set out into the cool San Francisco night air. Chakotay had never been overly fond of big cities as an adult, especially not Starfleet headquarters. He may have been Starfleet while stranded in the Delta Quadrant, but he didn’t feel it now. Eventually he made his way to the cantina of the commons. While Starflett had equipped all quarters with fully functioning replicators, they also had a cafeteria set up for those residents who wanted it. He pushed the door open and was surprised to find the slight frame of his captain intently studying a PADD. Normally Captain Kathryn Janeway would be just the person he would want to go to for matters concerning Starfleet; however, over the last several months things had become more and more strained between them. He supposed her finding out about his new relationship with her young protegee Seven of Nine through the whispers around the ship hadn’t helped things. Chakotay had hoped to speak with her in private since arriving on Earth; but, he had never managed to find her alone. Until now. Ordering a herbal tea from the replicator he quietly walked over and sat across from her at the long table.
“You’re up late Commander,” she said, keeping her eyes intently trained on the PADD in her hand.
He laughed, “I could say the same for you.”
She sighed and set down the PADD she had been studying, “That’s true. I was up much later most nights on Voyager though. Besides, between the meetings I have to attend, the debriefings I have to give, and the reports they want me to fill out, it’s a wonder I find time to sleep at all.”
Seeing Chakotay’s face cloud with concern, she continued. “Not to worry Commander, I’m taking care of myself. Starfleet can’t afford their ‘returning hero’ to look too worn down when they finally let us out of here.”
Chakotay sincerely doubted that this was the case, but decided to let it slide. He had been required to attend the debriefings of most of the former Marquis members and Starfleet crewmen under him and he was certain she had been given the same requirements.
Silence had never been a burden in his past conversations with Kathryn. While on Voyager, she always tried to maintain an air of total control of the situation, a product of a lifetime of Starfleet training. Their dinners had always been filled with lively debates over their most recent alien encounters or gossiping about the latest antics of their motley crew. Tonight, however, the silence seemed suffocating. Their typical safe topic gone, it seemed as though the entirety of the Delta Quadrant could fit in the rift between them.
Finally, Kathryn spoke, “How is the crew? I haven’t seen much of them since our return, outside of debriefings that is. Have B’elanna and Tom settled in with little Miral? What about Harry? I’ve heard rumors that they’re planning on promoting him. Has Seven settled into having her own quarters? I had arranged that they set up her regenerator in her quarters. I hoped it might make transition to life outside of Starfleet easier for her.”
Chakotay smiled, Kathryn was, at her core, always a concerned captain. “Tom and B’elanna are doing well. Miral has her mother’s temper, that’s for sure. I’ve never seen such a fiesty infant. Harry has surprised me. I thought for sure he would want to stay planet side for a time after we returned; but, he’s already petitioning Starfleet for a new assignment. Apparently, there’s a research vessel recently commissioned to study interspatial anomalies and he’s determined to be their operations officer. As for Seven… she’s fine.” He paused for a moment, thinking. “I believe she’s having some difficulty spending so much time on one planet. We never considered that she’s never lived on a planet before. She’s mentioned wanting to formally join Starfleet after Icheb is accepted and settled.”
Kathryn’s face clouded, “I’m afraid that may not be possible. Starfleet has given Icheb permission to enroll as a cadet in the fall, but they have serious reservations about giving Seven a permanent placement in space. That’s the report I’m looking over right now. Apparently, the recent modifications to her cortical node now make her a ‘safety risk’. I’m trying to appeal their decision, but given that I was not even made aware that the surgery had taken place, I don’t have much say in the matter.” She paused a moment, trying to regain control of her rapidly rising temper. “Why, Chakotay? Why did no one consult me? Did you not think this could have catastrophic repercussions? I was- I am your captain. What was your plan if something went wrong, if she had been reactivated or unable to control her emotions? Did you even have one?”
“Kathryn!” Chakotay interrupted. “I wasn’t involved in that decision. I didn’t even know it was happening. I’m sorry you feel undermined, but it is Seven’s life. She wants to be more human and there was no way that could happen with her cortical node still fully activated. You were the first person to encourage her to seek out her humanity. Can’t you see that’s what she was trying to do?”
“I’ve seen quite a lot since we’ve returned, Commander. Far more than I wished to see. I spent days talking the admiralty out of sanctioning Seven for improper holo-tech usage. Now if you’ll excuse me I’m going to try and get her out of this fiasco too.” and with that Kathryn collected her PADDs and left.
“What does she mean by improper holo usage?”, Chakotay wondered. He glanced at the clock, almost 0200 hours. He would have go check on Seven tomorrow and prepare her for her potential rejection.