Never To Part
Disclaimer: Voyager and her crew belong to Paramout
what choose to do with them is my own as are the other locals and characters
use in this story. This story contains a m/m relationship and is rated R if you
can't deal with that leave now.
Note:
This Story is a sequel to my stories 'Together We stand' and 'Forever And
Always' and will probably make more sense if you read them first.
Part One
Tom rolled over sleepily in bed. And was
promptly hit in the face with a wet cloth. This was getting to be tradition
now. Automatically he grabbed the cloth and hurled it back the way it came. The
startled exclamation was what got him to open his eyes. The cloth had got
Chakotay full in the face.
"Well if nothing else my aim is getting
better." He yawned.
"That was fluke Tom, you didn't even open
your eyes." Chakotay grumbled.
"I don't have to, you always stand
there." Tom teased sitting up.
"Then why haven't you hit me
before?"
"I told you, my aim's getting
better."
"Sure it is." Chakotay teased.
"Now are you coming for a shower or not." Laughing as Tom somehow
managed to beat him in to the bathroom when he was almost at the door already.
"Maybe I should give up on the wet towels and just say something along
those lines every morning. Gets you out of bed ten times faster"
"But that's only because it means we get
to do something that's usually reserved for the bed." Tom smiled.
"Though it wouldn't be if your sense of adventure had developed
properly."
"Hey I'm getting old, I appreciate the
comfort of a bed." The Commander protested, as he started the water for
their shower.
"You just don't like rug burns."
"As I recall you were the one who whined
about those last time we ended up on the floor."
"That's because I had them from my
shoulders through to my knees. You didn't get any."
"So we'll stick to the shower and the
bed for now." Chakotay smiled, stepping in to the shower pulling his lover
with him.
"Yeah until I steal a dermal
regenerator." Tom grumbled. "Then it won't matter."
********************************************************************************
Kathryn Janeway barely suppressed a grin as
Tom and Chakotay arrived on the bridge with roughly thirty seconds to spare.
They'd been living together for five months you'd think they'd have gotten past
this. She'd checked with the computer, the alarm in their quarters was set to
wake them an hour and a half before their shift. An hour and a half seemed like
it should be plenty of time for anyone else to get up, shower, get dressed, and
get to the mess hall before duty. But somehow two out of three days those two
never did show up at breakfast. Or they did looking so utterly sated everyone
in the room knew exactly what they'd been doing before they left their quarters
that morning. And she'd actually heard complaints from one or two people like
her who had yet to, or had decided not to find someone. When the two of them
showed up for duty with that same air of lazy contentment she usually retreated
to her ready room for an hour or two, leaving the rest of the bridge crew to
suffer with it.
This morning wasn't too bad, while both her
XO and her pilot's hair was still damp from the shower, they didn't look like
they were about to jump one another and they didn't look so sated she wanted to
strangle one of them just to get a reaction.
Chakotay watched as the Captain looked both
him and Tom over, almost appraisingly. It was getting to be a daily thing, that
look. The look that decided if Kathryn would be spending the first hour or so
of the shift in her ready room. They must have passed today, he though with a
tiny smile as the Captain settled herself into her chair. Or at least he had
since she could only see the back of Tom's head. And fortunately so could he.
********************************************************************************
Chakotay was lazing on the beach in the
resort, contemplating the fact that he *was* just laying on the beach in his
swimsuit. A year ago he never would have let himself just lay back, and relax.
He wouldn't have trusted his mind to not wander back to things he didn't want
to remember. Now his mind was far more likely to wander back to what he and Tom
had been doing last night. Or in this case when he'd first sprawled on the warm
sun it had been what they'd been doing in the shower this morning. But a year
ago he hadn't been Tom Paris's lover. That made all the difference.
Turning his head he watched Tom and Naomi
Wildman, both covered in sand, trying to built a sandcastle. And failing rather
miserably, it was turning in to more of a sand pile. Noticing his lover's
regard Tom grinned and waved. Chakotay smiled, Tom could be such a child, but
when it really counted he was always there.
It was hard to believe he'd hated the man
once. He'd only seen the cocky hotshot pilot. Of course now he knew that was
exactly what Tom wanted people to see. It kept people at arm's length unless
Tom wanted then closer. It hadn't been until after Chakotay had seen the other
man's defenses that he'd started to notice his own. His serenity, discipline,
and the way his kept his life totally private. Those kept all but the bravest
souls well out of reach.
Tom's barriers had been built to withstand
everything that had happened to him. Chakotay's had been built to keep people
away so that no one would learn what had happened to him, his weakness, so that
he himself wouldn't have to face those things. But Tom had seen past his
barriers. Tom had forced him to accept what had happened to move past it. He
wasn't ready to admit it to the world but he had told Tom, it was a start.
********************************************************************************
It was the next morning that Voyager entered
a small, rather unassuming little system. Normally they would have just passed
by without a thought. But in the middle of the night they'd picked up a
transmission from the planet's inhabitants, saying that they had picked them up
on sensors and if they wanted to trade they were very welcome.
The away team, consisting of Captain Janeway,
Chakotay, Tom, and B'Elanna assembled in the transporter room. Only Janeway
wore her uniform. One of the things to be avoided at all costs on this planet
was uniformity. Chakotay was in clothes somewhat like his Maquis clothing,
B'Elanna surprised them all wearing a dress that accented her figure, and had
Tom blatantly staring until Chakotay swatted him on the ass. Tom wore white
dress shirt open at the collar and tight black pants (at Chakotay's
insistence).
When they materialized on the surface they
were met by a small delegation. After they were officially welcomed, each
member of the away team went on separate tours of the various facilities on the
planet. Everything seemed to be going very well save for Tom not reporting in
when he was supposed to. But then it was Tom and he was on a tour of a space
fighter plant, it was almost expected. So no one paid much attention until he
didn't return to the ship that night.
********************************************************************************
"Where is he?" Chakotay almost
snarled at the Ensign at Ops the next morning. He hadn't slept at all the night
before and was completely on edge.
"I don't know sir." She said.
"The sensors can't find him anywhere."
"Sit down Chakotay." Janeway said
when the Commander started for the console himself. He stopped but didn't sit
down.
"Captain, would you please relieve me of
duty." He said in a tight voice. "I'm not fit."
"Very well." Janeway agreed, she
hadn't wanted to do this, but if he was asking. "Commander as of now you
are relieved of duty."
"Thank you." He said in the barest whisper and headed for the turbo lift.