Title: Simple Liberties – Caretaker
Author: Ky (venom69)
Fandom: Star Trek: Voyager
Rating: Teens & Up
Summary: What if Chakotay had said no?
Character/Pairing: Janeway/Chakotay
Spoilers: None… the show’s ended!
Warnings: None, really.
Prompt Number for fic101: 56 - Meet
Author’s Notes: Song belongs to Elton John. Part 1 of the Simple Liberties series, though could stand alone.
Disclaimer: Usual guff. Not mine, promise to put them back where I found them.
Date: 21/01/07

***

There's a rhyme and reason
To the wild outdoors
When the heart of this star-crossed voyager
Beats in time with yours

***

Kathryn sat behind her desk, staring out the window and into the emptiness of space.

The Caretaker's array had been there just a few hours before, supplying the Ocampa with energy from afar and pulling Ships across the Galaxies in search of a suitable mate.

Now, all that remained was floating debris.

I did that.

Stuck seventy thousand light years from home, no less than forty dead - her first officer, chief helmsman and entire medical staff included - and thirty Maquis that were sitting in Cargo Bay two, waiting for her to do something.

As far as first days on the job went, this one kinda sucked.

***

The chime of her door wasn't unexpected, but Kathryn jumped in surprise anyway.

She knew that, if they were ever going to get home, Voyager needed more than the 80 surviving crew they currently had.

Not to mention the fact that she couldn't keep the thirty odd Maquis confined to the cargo bay.

It seemed, to her, that the only logical course of action was to approach Captain Chakotay and strike a deal.

Tuvok had agreed that having the Maquis Leader as First Officer of Voyager was the best way to merge the two crews into some kind of cohesive unit that would be able to get them home.

She needed crewmen, he needed a ship.

The solution was simple to see.

Convincing Chakotay of that, however, wasn't likely to be so simple.

The first step is always the hardest.

Taking a deep breath, Kathryn straightened herself in the chair and forced her fluttering stomach to calm. "Come."

Crossing the threshold, Captain Chakotay stood before her desk for a moment before he sat, perched on the edge of the chair. The doors slid closed and silence reigned.

Kathryn studied the man before her. He was exactly as she had imagined he would be when she'd read over his intelligence file before they left Deep Space 9.

Statistical facts about him - birth date, age, home world - flashed before her eyes as she watched him and various meetings from the previous months floated through her memory.

The words 'ruthless' and 'dangerous' had been tossed around by Starfleet Admirals but, so far in their dealings together, Kathryn hadn't seen either of those qualities.

He was direct, certainly and she had felt the element of danger lurking beneath the surface, but while his attention had been focused on the recovery of B'Elanna Torres, she'd seen nothing but an honorable man willing to do anything for his crew.

Let's hope I'm right about that.

"We need to make a decision," She said finally. "About what to do next."

"We?" He repeated, eyebrow raised.

"Your crew are dependant on Voyager now, too." Kathryn shrugged a little. He had blown up his Ship to save hers, he knew that as well as she did.

"So you want to know how to keep them in line?"

"No." Kathryn shook her head. "I want to know what you expect for them."

"The Maquis aren't quite as fussy as you 'Fleeters. We're happy to survive each day."

She could understand that, but it wasn't the point of this meeting and Kathryn could feel the tendrils of a headache beginning to wrap around her brain. "We need to come to a solution soon. The Kazon aren't going to sit around while we battle out the politics of our journey home."

"What makes you think we want to get back to Earth?" Chakotay raised his eyebrow. "You were sent to apprehend us so that we could serve jail time, correct?"

There was no point in lying. "Yes."

"Why would we work to get back to a prison cell?"

"Is there a better alternative?"

He shrugged. "The Maquis could settle down some where. Ocampa, maybe. Or some other world."

"Our current estimation is that the journey back to Earth will be at least seventy years. We will, of course, be looking for shortcuts and ways to shave time off that estimation. But, realistically, we could be facing the rest of our lives out here. The politics of the Alpha Quadrant could change long before we reach home."

"Could." He repeated.

"I can't predict what will happen, you know that."

"Exactly why we should settle down."

Kathryn shook her head. "I'm not willing to accept that. My crew wouldn't be willing to accept that."

"What would your crew accept?"

"They would accept that we are actively working towards home. Most, if not all, of my crew have families. They want to see them again." She didn't add that she wanted to see her own family - and Mark - again, but Kathryn got the feeling that it was implied.

"Most, if not all, of my crew were fighting because their families were murdered." He returned sharply.

Sitting back in the chair, Kathryn sighed. Time to get direct, Kathy. "I want your crew to join mine."

"And?"

Laying all of her card on the table wasn't exactly what Kathryn wanted to do, but she knew - as well as he did - that the Kazon were probably preparing to attack them and Voyager had suffered enough damages as it was.

They needed to repair the Ship - she needed to sort out how they were going to run the Ship if he said no - they needed to get moving and she needed to help her shell-shocked crew adjust to the possibility of dying before they saw their families again or being too old to appreciate the time with them even if they did make it home.

"And we will work together with the ship pointed towards the Alpha Quadrant. We will uphold the principles of Starfleet and the Prime Directive. We will try to make ally's where we can and we will look for shortcuts home."

"As a Starfleet crew, I assume?"

"Yes." Time to reveal her Ace. "I want you to be my First Officer."

Chakotay didn't look as surprised at the offer as she had expected. "My crew aren't interested in the rank or the uniform. Nor am I."

"They come with being on a Starfleet Vessel. You know that."

"Then my answer," He shrugged casually. "Is no."

***

Kathryn had sent him back to the Cargo Bay after that.

She hadn't really expected him to reject the offer - she had thought, personally, that he would be foolish to let his pride stand in the way of getting home - but he had and she'd been left with a bad taste in her mouth and yet another decision to be made.

Calling Tuvok to the Ready Room after Chakotay left, Kathryn was once again struck by how grateful she was to have his council on offer.

"Have a seat." She tried to smile - not that he cared about that - but the earlier tendrils of a potential headache had turned into long arms with claws attached that were currently shaking her brain around. Shooting pain was being fired at her eyes and all she wanted to do was curl up in the dark and sleep away the pain.

I need coffee.

"Can I get you something to drink?"

"I am fine, Thank you."

Ordering herself a coffee, Kathryn moved back to sit behind her desk once more, facing the questioning, but patient, eyes of her friend. "He said no."

"That is unexpected."

"Somewhat," She admitted. "But we can't dwell on that. We need a solution on how to proceed and we need one now."

"Indeed. The Kazon appear to be repairing their Ship efficiently. An attack within the day is imminent."

I'll add that to the list of things to worry about. "The Maquis don't want our ranks, uniforms or regulations. Basically, they're not interested in Starfleet. Suggestions?"

"Logic would dictate that we offer them an alternative."

"A non-Starfleet crew." She summarized.

"Precisely."

"This is a Starfleet Ship, Tuvok. I am a Starfleet Captain and I have a Starfleet Crew." She didn't mention the Starfleet logo's on the toilet seats, but he knew that they were there too.

"I am aware of all of those facts. However, we have lost forty-three crewmembers in the previous day. Voyager requires a minimum of one hundred to run the ship. We currently have Seventy-seven." Tuvok cocked his head to the side. "Would it not be logical that the Liberty crew fill that void?"

"Logical, yes. I agree with you. But if they're not interested, we can't force them to work with us." She paused for a moment, sipping from her cup as she thought. "We could offer them civilian positions on the Ship."

"I do not believe that the Maquis would appreciate that."

"You were with them for months, Tuvok, you know them better than I do. What do you suggest? What do you think that they want?"

Kathryn didn't like what his raised eyebrow might mean.

***

As much as she hated the fact that she and her crew needed Chakotay and the Maquis, Kathryn hated the fact that he knew it more.

Voyager was a big ship and even if they did some heavy duty jury-rigging - though without a Chief Engineer, that probably wasn't safe right now - they still wouldn't be able to man it comfortably.

More than a third of her crew were on their first assignments and they didn't have the experience to work two, or three, different jobs at once.

She could certainly hold her own for science and engineering, but the facts still remained that there was absolutely no way for them to make it home - or even to the next sector, realistically - without at least twenty other crewmembers.

There was thirty six very talented Maquis members in the Cargo Bay and she needed to convince their leader that the best solution for everyone involved was for his crew to put aside their distaste for Starfleet and join her.

If only she knew where to start...

He wasn't smug as he sat across from her for the second time that day, but he clearly knew who held the better hand in this situation.

The Kazon had been making serious progress on repairs - she had teams working on Voyager, but they wouldn't be ready in time - and they needed this sorted now, before the Kazon attacked and how they would get home became a moot point because they were all dead.

Taking a deep breath, Kathryn met his gaze. "What do you want?"

Chakotay sat comfortably in the chair, eyeing the woman in front of him. "What are you offering?"

Kathryn wondered if he even knew what he and his crew wanted or if he was just being difficult. "I offered you a position on this ship as my First Officer. Your crew would be aligned with mine."

"I rejected that offer."

I know. Damn you. "This is a Starfleet Vessel. I am a Starfleet Captain and I command a Starfleet crew." She had said the same to Tuvok not an hour before and the response was the same.

"I'm aware of that."

"You and your crew don't want anything to do with Starfleet." He nodded, even though it hadn't been a question. "Perhaps a compromise is in order."

Chakotay raised an eyebrow, clearly intrigued. "What are you suggesting?"

"I'm suggesting that you take me up on my offer - minus the Starfleet ranks and uniforms."

"But we'd still be bound by the rules and regulations. We'd still be calling you Captain, right?"

"Correct."

"Pass."

Kathryn blinked. That was quick. "Would you like a moment to think about it?"

"No." Chakotay folded his arms across his chest. "My crew aren't interested in calling you Captain."

"Earlier today, on the Bridge, you told B'Elanna Torres that it was my place to be making the decision to destroy the Caretaker because I'm the Captain." She had been touched to hear him say it, but hadn't had a chance to appreciate the sentiment at the time.

Now, she was going to use it in her favor if she could.

"I did, yes. But, at that time, you didn't need the Maquis." He smirked. "You do now."

"What makes you so sure of that?" Pride made her answer before logic could take over.

He was right, she knew damn well that he was right - and he knew that she knew that he was right - but every part of her screamed at her that she couldn't let him get the upper hand.

Regardless of the fact that he already had it.

"My numbers might be a little off, but I figure that you've lost a few dozen people."

She nodded.

No point denying it, their loss was evident.

"And while I lost a few people too, I have enough crew to make up for the gap in yours."

"We could make do." She lied. "It would be easier if you agreed, but we could get home without you."

"I don't think you could."

While Kathryn was well aware that she had somehow ended up in some sort of pissing contest with this man, she wasn't prepared to loose. "It looks as though I may get the chance to prove you wrong then, doesn't it?"

She was digging herself into a hole and she knew it. If he called her bluff, Voyager was screwed.

For God's sake woman, shut up! She mentally strangled herself.

"Not necessarily." Chakotay leant forward in the chair, keeping eye contact with her. "There is one avenue that you haven't considered."

"And that is?" She was willing to take anything at this point.

"I want your captaincy."

Well. Didn't see that one coming.

Kathryn didn't respond.

"A lot of your crew is young," He continued evenly. "I don't imagine that it would take too much for the Maquis to gain control of the Ship and, to be perfectly honest, I think that's what my crew will do if I hand their fate's over to you."

"So you'll command the Ship in order to protect us?" She wanted to snort in amusement but managed to hold it in.

"I wouldn't have put it quite like that but, yes, it fits. Think about it."

She didn't need to think about it, she needed to start this week over. "What exactly are you offering?"

"I'll take control of Voyager. The crew, both crews, will answer to me. I wont run a 'Fleet ship, this will work much like the Liberty did."

Kathryn knew how the Liberty had worked.

Uniform was usually leather and whatever was clean - though sometimes even that seemed to be a stretch - and everyone answered to their first name.

Protocol was just a word and the Prime Directive was just something that Starfleet preached about.

She knew that the Maquis were all, mostly, good people, but they weren't disciplined like a Starfleet crew was and she could only imagine what sort of problems could arise.

"Don't get me wrong," He continued, "We wont be lounging around sipping antarian cider. The Maquis are all hard workers, more so than your Starfleet crew in a lot of ways. The 'Fleeters are working because of a job they chose. The Maquis are fighting for something much greater than that," He grinned. "Liberty."

Kathryn's stomach was sitting somewhere in the vicinity of her throat and she blinked as he spoke, the words no longer registering.

Give up Voyager?

It wasn't so much that she was attached to being Captain - though she was - she just didn't like that he could throw her off balance like that.

She hadn't even considered that as an option and, he was potentially right about it being the only one available to them.

Her crew were more likely to accept a change in leadership.

They were trained to follow orders and accept the challenges that life as a Starfleet officer threw at them; the Maquis weren't.

Despite the sick feeling in her stomach, she knew that he was right. The only way that the two crews were going to get anywhere was without boundaries between them.

They were clearly against working with her crew as is. She wasn't sure if that was because they didn't trust her to lead them - which she would understand - or if it was the idea of becoming pseudo-Starfleet officers that gnawed at them.

Having a Starfleet/Maquis crew would work for a while, but eventually the uniform and the leathers would be just another difference and she'd probably be facing something much worse than mutiny when all of the tension bubbled to the surface.

She needed them and, as he had clearly stated, the Maquis would probably all be content to simply settle down somewhere and start fresh, free from the battles and daily struggles that most of them had been enduring for years.

Her crew wouldn't be prepared to do that - she wasn't prepared to do that - and they needed the Maquis, despite her pride's determined voice whispering that they would survive on their own without a bunch of renegades.

At the end of the day though, she knew exactly what would happen next.

"Voyager is a good name for a Ship." She told him quietly, pulling the pips off her collar one by one.

Chakotay nodded his acknowledgement when she placed the pips on the desk in front of him. "I hadn't thought of changing it."

***

"Come in."

Paris entered, his body relaxed. "You asked to see me, Captain."

"Mr. Paris, you have a problem. Chakotay and the other Maquis will be part of this crew, soon." She wasn't prepared for Paris to be the first to hear of her deal.

"Will you provide a body guard for me?"

"It seems you already have one."

"I do?"

"Mr. Chakotay said something about his life belonging to you? He'll be taking responsibility for your safety."

Paris grinned slyly. "I think I'm going to enjoy this."

I can imagine. "Don't be so sure. Everyone aboard this ship will report to him, including the lieutenant assigned to conn."

He blinked, surprised. "Me?"

Kathryn nodded. "I've entered into the ship's log on this date that I'm granting a field commission of lieutenant to Thomas Eugene Paris. Congratulations."

She thought it fitting that her last act as Captain would be giving this young man another chance at life. He deserved it.

"Er, for the first time in my life I don't know what to say."

Kathryn wondered if he'd know what to say when he discovered that his field commission meant nothing with the new changes.

"You've earned this, Tom. I'm only sorry your father won't know." She patted his arm sadly as turned to leave the Ready Room.

She'd come back later to clear her things out, after she'd handed the Ship over.

"Oh, he'll know. When we get back."

He sounded so confident that it almost made her want to cry.

Before she could reply though, Neelix and Kes were standing at the entrance, blocking their path.

"Ah, Captain! We were just coming to see you."

She didn't have the authority to make a decision on whatever it was they wanted to ask, so Kathryn smiled diplomatically and tried to keep her voice steady. "I'm sorry, I just have to run down to the Cargo Bay. Can we talk in a few moments?"

Neelix looked startled but nodded. "Of course!"

***

Walking into the cargo bay and feeling the eyes of thirty six Maquis crewmembers on her was officially one of the strangest things Kathryn had done all week.

And that was saying something.

"I'm sure Chakotay has already spoken to you all, but I wanted to welcome you aboard before I handed the Ship to its new Captain." Bile rose in her throat at the words, but she knew that this step would go a long way towards securing their loyalty to Voyager.

"We all appreciate the gesture."

Chakotay spoke but she figured since no one shot at her, it was an echoed sentiment.

Now that was over with... Kathryn figured that it was best to do the hand over in front of the Maquis, since they would be the most reluctant to believe her.

"Computer, as of this date, please recognize Chakotay as the Captain of Voyager. Authorization Janeway Iota Pie Four."

The voice of the computer sealed her fate. "Acknowledged. Current Captain of Voyager is Chakotay. Command Cods have been transferred."

She'd already given him all of the codes but he would, no doubt, change them to his own.

What now?

"Computer. Please enter Kathryn Janeway as First Office of Voyager. Authorization Chakotay Alpha Twelve."

Kathryn blinked, surprised.

In the time that they had spent discussing what would happen to the crews, she hadn't considered to ask about what she would do.

Her initial assumption had been something in science, but certainly not First Officer.

They still had a lot of details to discuss - he had already told her that he wanted her input on a lot of crew assignments, which was only smart considering her knowledge of the original Voyager crew - and she had just figured that her own assignment would be discussed then.

Chakotay held out his hand to her and she shook it numbly.

"We'll make a good team, Kathryn."

Ranks weren't party of the Maquis way of doing things, but she couldn't help it. "I hope so, Captain."

Interesting.

***

Kathryn stood in front of her crew - former crew, she reminded herself sharply - and tried to stop the shaking in her hands.

The Maquis were currently being settled into their new Quarters while the new Captain began to compile a list of their skills. He had asked her to meet him in the Ready Room so that they could discuss the merger.

While Chakotay did that, she had requested the chance to tell her former crew of the change in leadership herself.

B'Elanna Torres was currently working on the repairs necessary to Voyager and her estimation had been an hour, which was exactly how long Kathryn had to tell the Starfleet officers before her of their new commander.

After the hour was up, they would be on their way towards the Alpha Quadrant and, more importantly at this point, away from the Kazon.

They had all assembled in Cargo Bay Two and were watching her expectantly, waiting for her to speak.

"Thank you all for coming." She started. "As you all know, we suffered heavy casualties over the last twenty four hours." She paused, blinking back tears of regret. "Because of this, we need to work with the Maquis crew members in order to man Voyager and get home. And I have no doubt that we will get home."

Joe Carey spoke up. "Are they going to join us?"

Kathryn shook her head. "The Maquis declined that offer."

Joe blinked. "So we're a rag-tag crew of mismatches?"

"They declined that offer too."

"I don't understand." Jenny Delaney frowned at her and the expression was echoed on Meagan's face.

"I reached an agreement with Chakotay that would see Voyager with an appropriate crew and would give us all a much better chance of getting home."

"What does that mean, Ma'am?"

Poor Harry Kim hadn't looked quite so pale since she'd met him, Kathryn thought. Stop stalling and get on with it. "This is no longer a Starfleet Vessel."

"What?"

She couldn't be sure who asked the question since several mouths all moved at once.

"Chakotay is now the Captain of Voyager." She continued. "We will all answer to him and that includes me."

"But... Captain!"

"Kathryn." She corrected. "We're operating on a First name basis now, Harry."

He stumbled over her name for a moment before finishing the sentence. "What will you do?"

"Captain Chakotay has made me First Officer." She sighed. "I know this is a big adjustment for everyone, but we need to work together if we want to get home. We also need to put aside the initial misgivings that we all have and we need to get back to work. The Kazon are almost complete with their repairs and we need to be on our way before they come after us. If you have any questions of concerns, I'm happy to listen, but right now, our priority is getting out of Kazon space."

She waited while the crew talked amongst themselves for a few moments, exchanging their views and shock at the newest turn of events.

As if getting stuck in the Delta Quadrant wasn't enough for them.

When the room shook under the force of a blow against the Ship - Kazon! - she knew that her hour was up.

"Time to move, people!"

***

Safely on their way, she stood in front of the First Officer's chair, listening as the new Captain gave his introduction speech - for want of a better term.

The casual clothes that she wore were unfamiliar to her after so many years in uniform but, if one good thing came out of the new command structure on Voyager, then Kathryn was certain that the lapse in protocol that allowed her to take her hair out of that too-tight bun was it. The braid that she wore certainly helped with reducing the headache that she'd had for the last day.

Chakotay was speaking as he paced around the bridge. "We're alone in an uncharted part of the galaxy. We've already made some friends here and some enemies. We have no idea of the dangers we're going to face, but one thing is clear. Both crews are going to have to work together if we're to survive."

Standing by her side, he smiled at her and Kathryn returned the smile automatically, knowing that the Bridge crew - a mixture of Starfleet and Maquis - were waiting her reaction.

"This isn't a Starfleet crew," He continued. "We are a crew of One hundred and thirteen people who are just trying to get home. We will explore. We will meet with new races, some friendly, some not. But our primary goal stands. Even at maximum speeds, it would take seventy five years to reach Earth, but I'm not willing to settle for that. There's another entity like the Caretaker out there somewhere who has the ability to get us there a lot faster. We'll be looking for her, and we'll be looking for wormholes, spatial rifts, or new technologies to help us. Somewhere along this journey, we'll find a way back."

Kathryn nodded her approval.

She would have given a similar speech if she'd been in his shoes right now.

"Tom, set a course - for home."

Paris nodded. "Aye Chakotay."

Moving to take her new seat, Kathryn crossed one leg over the other and stared at the view screen.

Turning to her right, she found Voyager's new Captain watching her.

"It's going to be an interesting ride home." He said.

"Yes, it is." She agreed.

Interesting is certainly the word.

***

End