"The Perfect Conversation"
by Andra Marie Mueller
AUTHOR'S NOTE: This was written as a response to the challenge from the 1001 folks to write a J/C finale (at Brannon Braga's request) that would please fans and still pass muster with TPTB. I doubt it meets the first part of the criteria, but hopefully – and more importantly – it should meet the second. It takes place prior to the 7th season episode "Drive".
Disclaimer: Paramount is the legal owner of the characters of 'Star Trek: Voyager'. I just borrow them for my own nefarious purposes and to give them real lives
**********************************
Emotions were mixed aboard Voyager, residual elation over their homecoming a week earlier overshadowed by the results of the ensuing trial for the former Maquis. In light of their service aboard Voyager, and with the need for competent officers so great after the war with the Dominion, the majority of the Maquis had been granted full pardons by the Federation Council and been officially commissioned under their field ranks. Yet there were a few who felt that an example should be made, and that the Maquis should in some way be made to pay for what they had done. So Chakotay had been made their target of choice, and in lieu of imprisonment was permanently banished from service. Not even the public outrage or numerous attempts by sympathetic ranking officers to pull strings was able to alter the Council's decision, and Chakotay's second tenure as a Starfleet officer was no more.
The Dorvanian had accepted the verdict with his usual selfless grace, torn between relief at his freedom and anxiety over facing an uncertain future alone. He was now sequestered in the mess hall, attempting to make himself invisible as he stirred his long-cold bowl of mushroom soup.
Who am I kidding? he wondered. Seven years and seventy thousand light years are far from enough to expect Starfleet to forgive and forget.
"Mind if we join you?"
Chakotay glanced up at the familiar voice to see B'Elanna and Tom standing beside his table, and gestured at the empty chairs across from him. "Make yourselves comfortable."
The couple settled themselves on the opposite side of the table as Tom cast a dubious look at Chakotay's meal. "That looks...interesting," he remarked. "Indulging in one last episode of Neelix's culinary adventures?"
"No, it's mushroom soup. Cold mushroom soup, to be specific."
"Ah."
"I'm surprised to see you here," B'Elanna said.
"Where else would I be?" Chakotay asked.
"Preferably planetside convincing President Flores and the Council what a mistake they're making by forcing you out of Starfleet," Tom replied.
"The powers that be want a sacrificial lamb, Lieutenant, and apparently I'm to be it. Wasting time and energy trying to change that won't accomplish anything except causing trouble for Kathryn."
"You do know that she presented Admiral Ross with a petition requesting that the Council reconsider their decision," B'Elanna said.
"I know."
It was clear from his tone that Chakotay did not wish to pursue the subject further, and B'Elanna and Tom exchanged a resigned look before changing topics.
"As long as you're here, I have a favor to ask of you," B'Elanna began.
"Which is?"
"I'd like you to give me away at my wedding."
It took close to thirty seconds for the import of B'Elanna's request to sink in, and when it did Chakotay's dark eyes widened in surprised delight. "You two are getting married?"
"Yep," Tom confirmed. "Once I knew I wasn't going to spend the rest of my life in prison, I knew that I wanted to spend it with B'Elanna."
B'Elanna rolled her eyes. "That sounded real romantic," she muttered.
"What?"
Chakotay permitted himself a small smile. "I'm very happy for both of you. Congratulations."
"Thank you."
"So when's the big day?"
"We haven't set a date yet," Tom told him. "B'Elanna wanted to check with you before making any formal plans."
"Will you stay for the wedding?" B'Elanna asked.
"I'll walk you down the aisle whenever and wherever you want me to, B'Elanna, but I won't hang around like yesterday's news in the meantime," came Chakotay's reply. "I don't belong on Voyager anymore."
"I think Captain Janeway would disagree."
"Unfortunately, Captain Janeway has no say in the matter."
Tom chuckled at that. "I have a feeling that she's trying to convince the Council otherwise."
UNITED FEDERATION OF PLANETS—OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT
"You realize, of course, that she's never going to let this go."
"She's a Starfleet officer;" President Flores replied. "She'll follow orders."
Ross snorted. "Right," the admiral said dryly. "That's why Chakotay spent seven years on her bridge instead of in her brig."
"Extenuating circumstances," Flores demurred. "Criminals or not, the Maquis were not going to get a free ride. Voyager was not a passenger ship on a pleasure cruise, and given the situation Janeway made the only choice available to her."
"So have we."
Their conversation was interrupted by the chime of the door, and at Flores's invitation to enter, Janeway walked into the room.
"Captain Janeway," Flores greeted. "Thank you for being prompt."
"With all due respect, Mister President, I'd rather skip the pleasantries and get straight to the purpose of my presence here," Janeway responded evenly.
Ross shot the Centaurian a knowing look, which he ignored as he addressed Janeway.
"Very well. Admiral Ross has presented me with the petition you drew up to officially request that the Federation Council retract their decision regarding Commander Chakotay's termination from Starfleet. I must admit I am impressed by some of the signatures you've gathered, and were the situation different, I would likely be swayed to reinstate him."
"But?" Janeway prompted.
"But," Flores echoed obediently, "I'm afraid the Council's decision stands. While we are not oblivious to the contributions Commander Chakotay made while serving as your XO, it does not negate the fact that he was an active member of the Maquis rebellion. He willingly and knowingly committed crimes of aggression against the Federation, and that is something we cannot ignore."
"I'm well aware of Commander Chakotay's history, Mister President, but the man I was sent into the Badlands to capture is not the same man who has served by my side for the better part of a decade. From the moment he set foot aboard my ship, his loyalty to Voyager and our crew has been unfaltering. Time and again he put aside his personal and political issues with what Starfleet and those who serve it represent, to ensure that everyone on board made it home safely. Had he been anyone else, I wouldn't have made him my first officer and Voyager would not have made it back to the Alpha Quadrant. And at the risk of pointing out the obvious, given the war that erupted after we were lost, it would appear that the Maquis were right about the Cardassians after all."
"You're out of line, Captain!" Ross snapped. "The Dominion War resulted in eight hundred million casualties—"
"Including over ninety percent of the Maquis," Janeway added. "That's punishment enough for their `rebellion,' wouldn't you agree?"
"That's enough, Captain!" Flores admonished. "This is not the time nor place to reopen old wounds, or revisit the debate over the failed alliance with Cardassia."
"My apologies, Mister President. I was merely trying to illustrate that painting Chakotay as the villain in all of this serves no purpose. He has more than atoned for his past with his tenure on Voyager, and by banning him from service Starfleet Command is only cutting off their nose to spite their face. As desperate as we are for competent, experienced officers, sacrificing Chakotay to satisfy a seven-year-old grudge is a casualty of a war we should no longer be fighting."
"You present an eloquent argument, Captain, but unfortunately it changes nothing. Commander Chakotay's record will reflect a commendation for his efforts in helping your crew get home, and that he was honorably discharged in lieu of a court-martial or imprisonment."
"Very well." Janeway lifted her hands to her collar and removed the rank pips from her turtleneck, then placed them on the desk in front of Flores. "My record will reflect that I resigned due in part to the Council's refusal to retract their verdict, and partly because I no longer have the heart to ask `How high?' whenever the Admiralty says `jump.'"
"Resigning is a bit selfish, don't you think, Captain?" Ross asked. "You said yourself that Starfleet can't afford to lose any more of its officers."
The captain cast him an icy glance. "Perhaps they should have thought of that when they chose to make Chakotay a scapegoat," she countered.
Without waiting for a response, she bid farewell to Flores and left the room.
Shortly thereafter, Chakotay was in his quarters, packing the last of his belongings. The crew had all taken the time to seek him out and bid him a private farewell, with one notable exception: Kathryn. She had been conspicuously absent since learning of the Council's decision, offering him only a simple "This isn't over yet" before vanishing. That had been several hours ago, and he was now in his quarters gathering his personal effects as he pondered her absence.
I just hope she didn't get herself into trouble trying to get the Council to retract their verdict, he thought idly.
A chime at the door interrupted his musings, and Chakotay bid his visitor enter. The door opened with a soft swoosh and Kathryn walked into his quarters, dressed in a navy-blue silk dress that highlighted her eyes.
"Chakotay," she greeted simply. "Am I intruding?"
"Not at all."
"I wish I came bearing glad tidings, but unfortunately my attempt to convince the Council to reconsider their decision was unsuccessful."
"I was rather certain it would be, but thank you for trying. And if it's any consolation, in an odd way they did me a favor."
"How so?"
"I wasn't entirely certain I wanted to keep my uniform," Chakotay clarified. "Seven years ago, I was forced to wear it again out of necessity, and kept it on out of loyalty to you. But my issues with Starfleet remain the same as when I initially resigned, so by forcing me to accept an `honorable discharge' they gave me the excuse I needed to take it off for good."
"Of course," Kathryn allowed, then glanced at his bag. "Packing so soon?"
"It was a way to pass the time. I said my good-byes to the crew this afternoon."
"I assume you know about Tom and B'Elanna?"
"They told me about their engagement," Chakotay confirmed. "B'Elanna asked me to give her away."
"Then you'll be staying for the wedding?"
Chakotay smiled. "Well, they haven't actually set a date yet so it's more likely I'll be returning for the wedding," he replied.
"I see. Have you given any thought to what you'll do in the meantime?"
Chakotay shrugged. "I've spent the last seven years cooped up on a starship, so a bit of traveling is the first item on the agenda. After that, I'll probably look into finding a way to indulge my passion for anthropology, either through teaching or exploration. And if the Spirits are willing, I'll settle down on a quiet planet somewhere and have a family."
"It sounds like you've got it all planned out," Kathryn said.
"Nothing's set in stone," he demurred, "but those are my general plans. What about you?"
"Well, aside from a trip home to see my family and retrieve Bear, I haven't really made any plans. But with all of the free time I'm going to have on my hands, I'll have to think of something."
Assuming she was referring to the fact that the crew had been given six weeks' personal leave while Voyager underwent a major overhaul, he asked, "When will you resume command of Voyager?"
She flashed him a sad smile. "I won't. I had a tęte-á-tęte with President Flores and Admiral Ross this afternoon that ended with me giving them my resignation."
Surprise flickered across Chakotay's handsome face. "You resigned? Why?"
"Lots of reasons, not the least of which was what they did to you. But in my heart of hearts, I knew that I'd had enough. Nothing I can do from this point forward will surpass surviving the Delta Quadrant and getting us home, so I decided it was time to give myself a chance to live my life again."
"No one deserves it more."
Kathryn smiled. "How very gracious of you to say so," she said lightly, then grew serious. "So what do you intend to do with your last few hours aboard Voyager?"
"Actually, I'm transporting over to the Liberty tonight. Captain Philips is an old friend and has agreed to let me tag along when they depart for the Tylan System the day after tomorrow. There's a planet there that is rumored to be a modern day Shangri-La."
Take me with you, Kathryn pleaded silently. Aloud she said, "I'll miss you. I've gotten used to seeing you every day."
He smiled at that. "Well, now that you have so much `free time' on your hands, you can always come with me."
Kathryn arched one delicate eyebrow. "Was that an invitation, Commander?"
He turned to face her. "What if it was?"
She took a step toward him. "It might be interesting," she allowed. "We handled ourselves pretty well on New Earth."
"True, but this time there won't be any monkeys around to chaperone."
"That's fine with me." Another step, and they were less than a foot apart. "Were you really just going to disappear without saying goodbye?"
"I had no intention of saying goodbye. Goodbye usually indicates that you never expect to see that person again and in your case that's not something I'm willing to accept."
"I see. So, if not goodbye, what then? What did you intend to say to me?"
Blue met brown; curious, anxious, hopeful. Chakotay held her gaze for a long moment before responding.
"I had the perfect conversation planned in my mind," he began. "We would exchange pleasantries; wonder about where the crew would go and what they would do. Then, once the formalities were out of the way, I would tell you that I love you, and that I need you, and that I want to spend the rest of my life with you. You'd be surprised, but delighted, and of course you'd say you love me too. And we'd live happily ever after. Because the perfect conversation always ends before we say goodbye."
By the time he finished, tears were streaming down Kathryn's face and he lifted his hands to gently cup her face, wiping away her tears with his thumbs.
"Since neither of us are in Starfleet anymore, I'm technically not allowed to give you orders," Kathryn replied softly, "but I'd like to suggest that we skip the formalities and go straight to the `I love you's.'"
Chakotay flashed her a brilliant smile. "I love you, Kathryn."
"I love you, too."
********************************* In this perfect conversation here in my imagination,
Somehow I know just when to say what's right
And I know I'll never leave you.
Cause I know how much I need you
And I tell you that I love you just in time
The perfect conversation always ends
Before we say goodbye.
- "The Perfect Conversation" by Mark Wills
The End.