This one's for Cyn, who asked for another after I wrote the last...
I consider it a PATHWAYS addendum, with a nod of thanks to Jeri Taylor. No copyright infringement intended WHAT SO EVER...and btw, the first line in this is the last line in the book, it belongs to her, not me.
That said and done...
"Destinations"
Presently, he began to speak.
He told her of the camp, the horrors that happened in everyday life. The fights between prisoners, and those that had been broken up by the guards simply arriving and incenerating all present or even watching. The actions and reactions taken to relieve the monotony of everyday hopelessness. The bartering that was possible and somewhat necessary between the prisoners, to ensure survival. The way the teams had gathered necessary supplies. He told her about the mock insurrection that they had staged, just enough of a diversion to be able to move closer to an easier location for escape, and made sure she knew of Neelix’s treasure hunting with the R’ai work detail, the way the Talaxian had found pieces of machinery to put together a somewhat jury-rigged, if suitable, transporter device.
Lastly, he spoke of Coris the Saccul, the waif with the glittering orange disks, from the start who had tried to steal Harry’s boots, and the way the young girl had sacrificed herself to buy the Voyager crew just a few more minutes of time, when they had finally been discovered in their escape attempts.
“Did she live?” Kathryn asked, somewhat bleakly.
Chakotay shook his head. “I don’t know. The last thing I saw was her with the guards…” he swallowed again at the sight of the girl held in the merciless grip of the tentacles.
“It was a noble thing, what she did…” her voice trailed off. Chakotay looked down, at their hands that were still clasped, over each other’s wrists.
“Yes. It was. I wonder what her story would have been…”
“Pardon?” Kathryn’s eyebrows lifted.
“It was the way we passed the time at night,” he explained, his eyes taking a far-off, distant look. “We told the stories of our lives, our experiences. The pathways that had led us together, I suppose, you could call it…”
“Did you tell yours?”
“Of course,” Chakotay took a last sip of his wine, put the glass down on the table.
“Who else?”
“Harry, B’Elanna…Tuvok told his for Vorik mainly, when we were back together, after our groups had the fortune to be in one spot.” They were silent for a moment. “I asked about Harry, but…how are the others?” Chakotay continued, mainly for a change of subject.
Kathryn looked thoughtful. “B’Elanna and Tom headed for the holodeck for some well-needed rest and relaxation. I spoke to them earlier. Tuvok is meditating, finishing up some of the tactical reports he didn’t get to before your…shore leave. Vorik is fine, presumably meditating or sleeping as well. Neelix headed straight for his galley. Seven…well…I’ve never seen a Borg kiss their alcove before. She’ll need several days regenerating, the time away was hard on her residual implants. Everyone’s fine,” she tried to smile, tried to put a light note on the situation that they had all been through, tried to disguise the relief in her voice at having them all back.
And she tried to squash her immense fear that she would never see any of them alive again.
She had seen the camp through her own eyes, seen the atrocities and sqallid way of living that had taken place in the area aptly dubbed ‘Hellhole’ in every report she had read. In some way it made it worse, having to read all the reports after seeing it firsthand. Her relief had been short-lived at seeing all those who were capturd physically in one piece, the fist that had squeezed her heart nearly bloodless during their time away had only relaxed a fraction.
She had tried to get past it by putting every effort into an escape plan, but it had virtually been out of her hands from the moment she backhanded Chakotay in that awful stockade, implanting the Borg signals.
“Kathryn?” she looked up immediately, caught Chakotay staring at her, the concern evident in his eyes. He patted her hand. “It’s all right, Kathryn. We’re all back now. You got us back. It’s all right.”
She bit her lip. The tears welled up, tears that she had not allowed herself before, knowing that the team would not want her to cry, they would want her to be strong for them, to help them find a way home.
He rose from his seat at the same time she did, their hands still attached, and used that motion to pull her into his arms, gracefully sidestepping the table. His strong arms enveloped her, his shoulder under her cheek, and he rested his head in the soft auburn strands, holding her close, offering the reassurance that he could now that everyone and everything was truly as it should be.
Oddly enough she felt selfish, it should have been she who comforted him, she who told him that it was over and relief was now at hand, but still could not stop the wetness from flowing down her cheeks.
“Kathryn,” Chakotay smoothed her wet cheek with his thumb, brushing away the tears, his voice a soothing caress. He said it again, just to be able to say it. “Kathryn.”
“Chakotay…” she whispered, hugging him close, letting the tears run their course and stop, which they did after a short time, how long she couldn’t exactly say. They were both too afraid to break the spell by looking at a chronometer.
Finally she pulled back. “You must be tired,” she was trying to be diplomatic, give him an easy way to leave if he wanted to take it.
He regarded her curiously. “Not so much as you might think. If you want me to leave, though, I will.”
Damn. He’d always known her too well. It gave her some measure of comfort to think that if their positions had been reversed, and it had been her in that camp, Chakotay probably wouldn’t have used anything as sensible or undercover as a backhand to implant a homing signal. He would have just brought Voyager down and phasered the camp.
She shook her head. “I don’t want you to go.”
Kathryn was so soft that he leaned closer to hear her, and in the process simply tilted her chin up and kissed her. Soft, sweet urgency, the lust and heat searing them both and amplifying the effects of the wine. Their lips mingled and parted, their tongues touched each others, and they found themselves a place of bliss that only the most passionate and connected of lovers know.
They undressed each other, no words spoken, no thoughts or philosophies contemplated. Chakotay removed Kathryn’s jacket, slid his hands up the back of her turtleneck undoing the fasteners, and peeling rather than jerking it from her sleeves. When it was done he reached behind again and unclipped her bra, revealing her small, pert, white breasts with elegantly pink nipples already erect. He couldn’t resist running his thumbs over them, gently, a caress never to be forgotten.
She arched her back and moaned, her part in the events soon to come momentarily forgotten. She’d already had him stripped to the waist, he looped his muscled arms around her slim form and held her as her neck arched back, nuzzling and trailing open-mouth kisses to the hollow of her throat. She shuddered and came to him willingly, rubbing her hands on his neck, kissing him in the same manner, clasping the hairs at the back of his head, locking into place.
They could not get enough of each other, both of them knowing the urgency that lay buried under layers of denial, years spent apart, through near-misses and hopes and dreams that were htought to have been tossed into the back of the brain’s closet.
Now, they would come together to heal. To reassure each other that all was truly as it should be again.
And there would be no going back to the former.
Kathryn slid down Chakotay’s chest, feeling his hairless smooth skin under her cheek, casting her eyes upward to see him staring at her with a mixture of hope and passion. His eyes were nearly black, dilated fully in the dim light. She unfastened his pants, lowered them together with his briefs carefully over his already hard and aching member, and bore the gentle pain of his weight upon her shoulders as he kicked everything off, out of the way.
He was embedded in her mouth before he could stop her, the salty wetness in the back of her palate oddly erotic, as she’d never before done this with someone as in need as he was at that very moment. She took care to be gentle, laving and rubbing her tongue along his contours, feeling his hands pull through the locks of her hair, and allowed him to thrust liberatingly inside her mouth at his whim. She kept her suction constant, one hand gingerly brushing his sacs, cupping his smooth buttocks and running the length of his inner thighs with her nails, a slight scraping motion.
Chakotay pulled her from him after only a few strokes, he knew that he could not last long in that manner and he didn’t want the evening to be over so soon, although he knew as well as she did, from the desire in her eyes, that it would never be over again after this. Instead he dropped to his own knees, level with her face, and cupping it fastened his mouth over hers, learning and exploring her in the same manner.
His hand carefully slid between their bodies, his fingers strumming her nipple and drawing moans that grew in intensity when his hand travled downward, seeking and finding her pleasure center that he gladly manipulated until it was swollen, her juices dripping as she arched toward him, allowing him to place his other hand on the small of her back, keeping her in that position while nibbling on her neck and earlobe.
He divested her of her pants as much as he was able with her in that position, wiggling them down enough to be able to slip his hand inside more comfortably, brushing curls and down. She shuddered and almost jerked away from him. Her climax came swiftly but joyously, not unexpected to either of them, and was followed quickly by another. He wrapped his arms around her after the flood had stopped, the carpet now wet between them, and brushed the sweat from her forehead, keeping the sweaty hair from falling over her face again.
She still knelt on the floor, her arms around his neck, and it was an easy matter to lift her. Kathryn had never weighed very much, and had lost still more during their time apart. He held her up just enough that her legs unfolded from beneath her, and guiding her back to the floor, eased himself on top of her, bringing her pants down and tossing them aside with one hand.
She sobbed as he entered, her breath coming in short gasps, his length stretching her dormant muscles. He pulled back slightly after each entreaty to her depths, allowing the natural lubrication to pave the way. His lips softly pressed against her forehead, her cheeks, her neck, and nibbled along her jawline, keeping time with her small gasps and moans that were wonderfully erotic to him.
Finally, embedded entirely, he had to ask. “Does it hurt?”
His tender whisper was punctuated by his tongue rimming her ear, gently licking at the spot just behind it.
“No…” her own husky response ended in another moan, her hands grasping his shoulders to draw him even closer to her.
Chakotay kissed her again, and moved with definate sureness in and out, rocking gently, setting a natural pace that came easily to both of them, Kathryn meeting his thrusts with assurance. She felt the tremors begin again almost immediately, and Chakotay nipped at her shoulder carefully while they rolled over and through her, grasping his cock of their own accord.
It was healing, the way they were together, the way they gave all of themselves to each other and for each other, gentle thrusts matched with soft kisses of body parts and tender hugs, caresses over smooth skin and murmured whispers of endearment. At the end Chakotay gripped Kathryn close to his chest, much as he had when she had died in his arms on the planet once, wanting to give his life’s blood and energy to her. She responded by kissing the valleys and places on his own, her throaty moans escalating once more as Chakotay stilled, then losing control pushed himself inside her so deeply she felt a delicious sensation in the pit of her belly that propelled her over the top when he seed spurted inside her.
Both were seeing stars, sparkles behind their eyes, explosions that shattered their spirits and sent the pieces falling back to reality in a pile that showed their true acceptance of ecah other. No longer him and her, but one, together. They lay holding and kissing each other with ragged breathing, Chakotay finally slipping from Kathryn not of his own free will but because his member simply had decided to do so. She kissed every part of him that she could reach, he watched her with love in his eyes as she did so, and rolled them both so that she rested on his chest, keeping as much of her skin in contact with his as possible.
His last thought before slumber claimed him was that his pathway was ended – he had found his destination, and had no wish to leave for the rest of his life.
