Disclaimer: Star Trek
Voyager and all of its characters are the property of Paramount. No
copyright infringement is intended.
Author's Note: Just a fluffy bunny
that's been begging for attention for quite some time now. I tried
ignoring it, but it just wouldn't go away.
Many thanks to Seema for her
assistance.
Trading
Spaces
By Rocky
"Chakotay," Janeway said to the man kissing the back of her neck. "We
need to talk."
"Mmm hmm?" His lips brushed tantalizingly against her collarbone as his
arm tightened around her waist. His other hand cupped her breast
through the tissue-thin silk of her low-cut dress.
Janeway wasn't sure he was really listening, but plunged ahead anyway.
"I'm not who you think I am."
"Hmm?"
"Well, I am Kathryn Janeway.
Just not your Kathryn," she
said in a rush, trying to ignore his fingers trailing down her body, or
the way he was pressed up against her back. "I think there's been some
kind of mix-up in the space-time continuum--a transverse energy flow of
some type, probably quantum in nature-- that would effect a transfer
across parallel universes. One minute I was in my office at Starfleet
Command, the next I found myself here with you."
Chakotay froze, then carefully turned her around and looked at her for
a moment. "A transfer across parallel universes?"
Janeway nodded encouragingly, glad to see Chakotay was finally paying
attention. "In which I exchanged places with my doppelganger, the other
Kathryn Janeway who belongs in your reality." She frowned. "That's
assuming there's only a limited resonance field, or otherwise there
could be any number of universes involved--"
"Again?" Chakotay shook his head in exasperation, and then reached for
her once more. "Is this really so important we have to talk about it now?"
She pulled away. "Chakotay, I don't think you understand. I'm--"
"From a different quantum reality," he said with more than a hint of
impatience. "I got that."
She looked at him, baffled. "You're acting like this isn't a big deal."
Suddenly, the full import of his casual acceptance hit her. "You said
'again.' You mean this has happened before?"
Chakotay nodded.
"How many times?" Janeway's voice rose uncontrollably. "Once? Twice? Three times?"
"At least half a dozen, maybe more. I tend to lose track," Chakotay
said with a grin that managed to be simultaneously apologetic and
lustful.
She retreated several steps, keeping a safe distance between them. "How
can you take this so calmly? Do you realize--"
"There's nothing to get so worked up about," he said soothingly.
"Don't you get it? I don't belong here!" Janeway took a deep breath.
"And if we don't figure out what happened and how to reverse it, I
could be stuck in this universe forever!"
"You're not stuck here permanently," Chakotay said with a sigh. "The
quantum transfer has never lasted more than 12 hours. Sometimes it was
as little as two or three."
"And then what? Everything just spontaneously snaps back into place?"
"Exactly," Chakotay said. "My
Kathryn likened the effect to a rubber band which stretches to a
certain point, and then suddenly relaxes, causing everything to revert
back to the way it was, or rather where
it was before."
Janeway nodded slowly. "Yes, I can see how that might occur..." She
tried to tug the hem of her skirt a little lower and was dismayed to
find it went no further. She attempted to cover her confusion. "What
causes these 'transfers' to happen in the first place? Is it a
naturally-occurring phenomenon or could it be due to—"
"You'd have to ask her that," Chakotay cut in shortly. "Sorry, but I
don't even pretend to understand the science behind it. It's nothing to
worry about, that's all I know."
"I don't have time for this! I have important work I have to--"
"Everything will be just fine," Chakotay said, giving her shoulder a
comforting squeeze that turned into a lingering caress. "You'll see."
"I hope you're right," she muttered, then gave him a pointed look.
Chakotay hastily removed his hand from her breast. "So, when did you
find yourself here?" he asked, in an obvious effort to change the
subject.
"During the dinner party. The main course, to be exact."
"I thought you had a strange expression on your face!" Chakotay
exclaimed. "I was afraid there was something wrong with the curry."
"No, the curry was fine," she said hurriedly.
"That's good, considering you, uh, that is, Kathryn, made it. But why
didn't you say anything earlier?"
"In the middle of a party?" Janeway said incredulously. "You must have
had close to twenty people--"
"Thirty."
"--in this apartment. What did you expect me to do, get up and make a
public announcement? 'Hi, I'm from a parallel universe'?" She rolled
her eyes. "No, I waited till we were alone. Little did I expect that
you'd immediately try to--" She paused to collect her thoughts. "So
you're saying there's nothing to do but just wait until the effect
reverses itself?"
"Yes." Chakotay moved closer. "And so while we're waiting, why don't
we--"
Janeway hastily darted behind the dining table, which still bore the
leftovers of their dinner party. "Are you out of your mind? I just told
you I'm not your girlfriend--" she glanced down and saw the broad gold
band on her left ring finger "--uh, wife."
"So?"
"So? Chakotay, this isn't right!"
"We're not exactly strangers, you know," he said, taking another step
toward her.
"I may look like her, sound like her, but I'm not her!" Janeway
retreated until she backed into the wall. "We're talking about a
different reality!"
"Kathryn," Chakotay said patiently. "I'm aware of that."
"Then how can you possibly suggest--"
"'A difference which is no difference doesn't really make a
difference', right?" He paused, looking at her expectantly.
It was on the tip of her tongue to retort, "So any Kathryn would do?" Instead, she
said, "You mean no discernible
difference. But Chakotay, there's a very clear difference between our
two realities."
"There have to be enough similarities or the resonance doesn't work,"
Chakotay pointed out. "I'm sure if we compared notes--length of time
we've back from the Delta Quadrant, your promotion to Admiral and
assignment at HQ, my teaching archaeology at the Academy, the Doctor at
Starfleet Medical, Tom as a--"
"I understand what you're trying to say," she said, but he wasn't
finished.
"This reality, another one--it doesn't really matter. We're all a part
of the multiverse. You are my
Kathryn, and she is you. As
for worrying about any cross-reality infidelity--what do you think the
'other Kathryn', as you call her, is doing right now, hmm?" He leered
at her suggestively.
"Working late at the office. Alone." Janeway decided the time had come
to be blunt. "Chakotay, you and I are not involved in my universe."
He looked at her in astonishment. "But that's impossible! In every
single reality we've encountered so far, we've--"
"Not in mine," Janeway said, and was surprised to feel a faint stab of
regret. Resolutely she pushed the feeling away. "Never happened, and
never will."
"Maybe it just hasn't happened yet,"
he said. "There were some universes where it just took us a little bit
longer. But we always end up together in the end. It's our cosmic fate."
"Believe me, no amount of time is going to change this status quo."
Janeway hesitated, wondering how much to reveal. Warnings about
interfering with the Temporal Prime Directive went through her mind;
she was sure there were probably regulations about dealing with
different realities as well. "Chakotay, you see, we can't, because
you're with--someone else."
Chakotay sighed. "Let me guess, one of those blondes, right?" He
grimaced. "You'd think my other quantum selves could buy a clue,
wouldn't you? But anyway--" he waved his hand dismissively "--they
never last. I always come to my senses sooner or later. You can forget
about my fling with what's-her-name. In fact, I'm sure I, or rather,
the 'other' Chakotay, already has."
"Oh, this one's got staying power," Janeway said grimly. "Trust me."
He smiled, clearly unconvinced. "If you say so. But that doesn't mean we can't--"
"I think we should get this place cleaned up," Janeway
interrupted. "I know the last thing I'd like to come home to is the
aftermath of a party, particularly one I didn't get to enjoy. Your
Kathryn undoubtedly would feel the same way."
Janeway started stacking plates and collecting silverware. Chakotay
made a face but followed suit.
They worked together in silence until the dining area and kitchen were
restored to some semblance of order. "Here's the last of the glasses
from the living room," Chakotay said, sticking them into the refresher
and setting the controls.
Janeway nodded, and held out a small bowl. "Do you want to save the
rest of this dip?"
"Nah, put it in the recycler," Chakotay said, stifling a yawn.
"Good, because I don't think there's any more room in the stasis unit,"
Janeway said, straightening up. She wiped her hands on a tea towel,
fighting back her own wave of tiredness.
An awkward silence fell between them. "I suppose we should go to bed,"
Janeway said and then immediately regretted her words.
Chakotay grinned. "I thought you'd never ask."
"Oh, please." Janeway pushed past him into the living room. "You know
what I mean. Just give me some sheets and I'll make up a place to sleep
on the…" Her voice trailed away as she surveyed the room. "Chakotay,
where's the couch?"
"At the reupholsters'," he said, coming to stand next to her. "Along
with the love seat and the matching armchairs. And the oriental rugs
are at the cleaners. That's why Kathryn suggested having a party in the
first place, we have all this extra room with the furniture gone."
Janeway considered and immediately rejected the idea of trying to sleep
on a folding chair. "I'll sleep on the floor, then."
"That's not necessary," Chakotay began. "You take our--my--bed. I can--"
"No, no, it's your apartment." Janeway laid stress on the 'your.'
"But--"
"I'll be fine."
Chakotay sighed. "At least come in to the other room, there's a carpet
there."
Janeway hesitated and then glanced down at the stylish Italian marble
tiles underfoot. "All right," she said grudgingly. "I suppose it would
be better to have something softer to sleep on."
"Right this way," Chakotay said.
Janeway followed him down the hall, and was surprised when he bypassed
a closed door which she'd assumed was the guestroom. She peered inside
and saw several stacks of boxes filling nearly the entire space.
"We've been using that room for storage," Chakotay said apologetically.
"The idea is to eventually set it up as a home office. But we just
haven't had the chance to get things very organized yet…"
Janeway swallowed her disappointment.
In the master bedroom, Chakotay bustled about, collecting bedding from
a wardrobe in the corner. He nodded toward the bureau. "If you want to
change into something more comfortable, her stuff is on the right hand
side."
"Thank you," Janeway said. She opened the top drawer, feeling vaguely
guilty about rifling through the other Kathryn's possessions. That
feeling was soon dispelled by the discovery that all of the sleepwear consisted of
scanty, lace-trimmed lingerie.
She opened another drawer, hoping to find some T-shirts or a pair of
sweats. No luck. Nor in the next drawer. Or the next.
Exasperated, Janeway said, "Doesn't she have an old sweatshirt or track
suit? Workout clothes?"
"She keeps those at the gym," Chakotay said. She detected more than a
hint of amusement in his eyes.
"Fine, then I'll take one of your shirts," Janeway said abruptly.
"Would you like a T-shirt, or a button down?" He held out a couple for
her to choose from.
"This will be fine," she said, snatching the closest one--a light blue
plaid flannel--and escaped into the bathroom.
Closing the door firmly behind her, Janeway took a deep breath. The
large double Jacuzzi in the corner caught her eye, along with the
crystal bottles of bubble bath and various soaps and lotions. She
wavered for a moment, tempted to indulge, but then pushed the thought
out of her mind. She was only in this universe temporarily, and was
determined to leave as little disturbed or changed as possible. She
went through an abbreviated form of her nighttime routine and then
steeling herself, re-entered the bedroom.
To her relief, Chakotay was already in the king-sized bed, propped up
on one elbow. He smiled at her and she flushed, all too aware that the
shirt covered her only to mid-thigh. "All set?" he asked.
"Yes," Janeway said shortly, averting her eyes from his bare chest. She
settled herself into the blankets on the floor.
"Computer, lights off." The mattress creaked slightly as he lay down.
"Pleasant dreams," Chakotay said.
"Good night," she answered. She thought she heard a soft snore a few
seconds later.
Janeway lay in the darkness, resolutely watching the patch of moonlight
on the wall next to the bureau, willing herself to fall asleep, but it
was no use. Trying not to make any noise, she turned from side to side
in a fruitless attempt to get comfortable in the cramped space. She
rolled a little too far, and stifled a yelp as she banged into the foot
of the bed.
Chakotay leaned over the edge, his face clearly visible in the
moonlight. "This is ridiculous," he said. "Kathryn, you're never going
to get any sleep this way."
"I'm fine," she said, between tightly clenched teeth.
"No, you're not," he said. "Look, this bed is huge. Why don't you take one side
and I'll take the other? There's enough room for both of us."
"Oh, no, I couldn't--"
"On my honor as a gentleman, I promise not to take advantage of you."
Chakotay smiled. "I'll even put a phaser in between us, if it will make
you feel better."
Despite herself, Janeway laughed. "That won't be necessary." Resolutely
pushing away any further misgivings, she scooped up her pillow and
blankets and deposited them on the right side of the bed.
"Comfortable?" he asked from his side.
"Yes, this is much better," she admitted.
"Good." He rolled over so he was facing away from her. "'Night."
"Good night." Listening to his steady breathing, she eventually dozed
off herself.
She wasn't aware how much time had passed when she opened her eyes. It
was still dark; the moon had shifted position but had not yet set. She
snuggled deeper into the covers, glad she didn't have to get up yet. It
was so warm and soft lying here, with her head resting on---
Chakotay's chest.
Startled, Janeway realized that despite having started off on opposite
sides of the bed, in sleep, they must have drifted towards each other
with the result being they now lay entwined in each other's arms.
Chakotay was still deeply asleep. She eased herself up gently, careful
not to wake him, and watched him in the moonlight. He was utterly
relaxed, a faint smile on his face. She leaned over and gently traced
his features, from the tattoo etched on his forehead down the side of
his strong jaw, to his full lips.
A sudden wave of longing swept over her, together with envy of the
woman who belonged in this reality. Obviously the other Kathryn had
found a way to keep her Chakotay, despite the difficulties imposed by Voyager's journey. Janeway wondered
if they had managed to have a relationship on the ship itself, or had
simply found their way to each other after the return. Either way, they
had done it. She remembered what Chakotay had said to her earlier,
about their being together in every other universe, how incredulous
he'd been when she told him it wasn't the case for her.
Janeway blinked back the frustrated tears that threatened, and came to
a sudden decision. Maybe there was no hope for the two of them in her
reality, but there was no reason she couldn't take advantage of this
one. She hadn't asked to be sent here, and yet here she was. What was
it he'd said? We always end up
together in the end. It's our cosmic fate.
She kissed him, softly at first and then with increasing hunger. His
arms tightened around her as he responded with equal passion. She
moaned as he rolled them over and began to make love to her in
earnest. Yes, this was meant
to be. She arched up to meet him, scarcely feeling she could
contain the deep joyfulness inside.
All at once, the moonlight became too bright to bear, and Janeway
closed her eyes. Upon opening them, she realized she was once more
sitting behind her desk within the familiar contours of her office at
Starfleet Command.
"Two more minutes!" she said in disbelief and slammed her fist against
the chair armrest. "Just two lousy minutes, is that too much to ask?"
The young lieutenant seated across from her jumped to his feet in
alarm. "No, ma'am! That's perfectly reasonable! I'll have that report
finished for you immediately!" He started to scurry out of the room.
"Lieutenant Michaels!" Janeway called him back. "All in due time." She
closed her eyes for a moment. "Now, to continue where we left off…"
FINIS
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