Author's note: Missing scene from "Resolutions." First line provided by Rocky.
****
The sky was dull and overcast, but except for an occasional drizzle, the rain had held off. Still, it was perfect weather for manual labor and I was grateful for the breeze --punctuated with the occasional strong gusts -- for easing some of the humidity. I chopped rhythmically, until a pile of hewn logs lay at my feet. I wiped my brow, took a long gulp of water and tipped my head back, letting the wind cool me off. A few meters away, I heard footsteps and turned to see Kathryn, her hair loose around her shoulders, walking towards me.
"What is it going to be?" she asked, gesturing towards the pile of lumber.
"You'll see," I said. I stuck the axe in the crook of a tree. "I promise, you'll like it."
Kathryn arched an eyebrow. "Oh? You want to give your captain a hint?" Her tone was light, playful, but I wasn't falling for it.
"We're not on Voyager anymore, Kathryn," I said. "You can't order me to do anything." I felt a sense of satisfaction as I said the words; finally, we were on equal footing.
Her eyes sparkled with mischief. "You've always been lousy with secrets, Chakotay."
"Sorry," I said. "You'll just have to wait and see." The truth was, I had never really attempted a project of this scale before, and I wasn't much of a plumber either. Whether I'd be able to pull off a bathtub or not was a matter of conjecture and I certainly didn't want to disappoint Kathryn if it didn't succeed. "It'll be worth the wait."
Kathryn shrugged, took another long look at the log pile, and then back at me. "I had no idea you were so good with your hands," she said in a tone of admiration. "That you had some interest in constructing--" she paused in confusion "--well, in whatever all of this--" she pointed at the lumber "-- is going to turn out to be." She wagged a finger in my direction. "But if you insist I'm going to like the end result…"
I offered her a smile. "Trust me."
Kathryn's mouth curved up at the corner, genuine and radiant. "Always," she said very softly. She laid her hand gently on my forearm. "You know, Chakotay, of all the people I could have been stranded on a planet with--"
"You ended up with me," I said. Even to my ears, my voice sounded scratchy.
"Yeah," she said, tipping her head to the side. Her expression was contemplative, her eyes softening at the corners. "But I think it's going to work out." With that, she turned and headed back towards the shelter, which I had already started to think of as our home. As I resumed chopping, I saw the skies above had started to clear somewhat, that the faintest patches of blue sky were now visible.
~ the end
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