Captain's personal log Stardate 51428.4. The messages were received today, messages from home. Some got good news from the Alpha Quadrant. Others, like myself got news they'd just as soon not received.

It was over. There was nothing left for her in the Alpha Quadrant, but here, on this ship, her ship, there was so much. She had friendships she would not have had, had she remained in the Alpha Quadrant. She had Voyager, the ship of her dreams, and she had love.

Looking back upon her years with Mark, her former fiancé, the man she had wanted to walk down the aisle with, she had not truly loved him, not the way she now loved Chakotay. *Where did that come from?* She had known for a long time she was in love with Chakotay, but had let her fear and her protocols obscure these feelings. This would no longer be the case; it couldn't be if she wished to live her life the way she wanted to.

She would need time though, give it a day or two to get over the initial shock of giving up on her Alpha Quadrant love and adapting to the Delta Quadrant one. She needed this though, and she knew, if she was to function properly as a Captain she would need to have this part of her life completed as well as the command. A good Captain had to be a whole person, and right now she was but a shell of the person she had been.

Somewhere along the line Kathryn had been lost in all the Starfleet protocols and ideals. Her ambitions had taken over. Today though, she needed to find that woman again: The woman who had in many ways been denied a life because of the Captain's dreams. She would once again come to the forefront, and Captain Kathryn Janeway would once again be a whole person.

Kathryn went to take a nap. These past couple of days had taken their toll on everyone, her included. During her slumber she dreamt the most wonderful dreams she had ever had.

When she awoke she headed for the bridge. She headed for her ready room. This room was her safe haven. *Well it was the Captain's safe haven anyway.*

She sat down at her console and started making note of all that had happened to her ship over the past couple of days. She heard a chime and granted Chakotay entrance to her ready room. He began a thorough report of the damage that had been inflicted upon Voyager.

"Repair teams have inspected the ship from stem to stern. Except for some maintenance that's needed on the warp coils, everything seems to fine."

"I suppose so. Want some coffee?"

"Thanks"

"Cream and sugar huh?"

"Two sugars"

"Oh, two sugars."

"You know, you drink too much of that stuff."

"Really?"

"If I'm not mistaken, that's your third cup this morning."

"Fourth, and on a day like today it won't be my last. Coffee. The finest organic suspension ever devised. It's gotten me through the worst of the past three years. I beat the Borg with it."

Kathryn took a long deep breath. She wasn't sure what she or he was getting at, but she was glad to finally have the friendship back she had almost lost over the Borg incident and species 8472. She continued with her chatter.

"Oh I'm sure Voyager will be fine, but I'm worried that the crew might be a different story. I think they were hoping mail call would become a regular part of their day."

"Neelix is putting together an impromptu party. He thought it might cheer them up."

"Good idea. When will it be?"

"As soon as he can get people together."

"Leave it to Neelix to come up with the right idea at the right time." *And a chance for us to talk, and finally make some progress...maybe.*

"How are you doing?"

Kathryn stared into his eyes and saw the love. She saw all the pent up emotions of the past 3 years. She saw the hurt and betrayal. She realized he was probably seeing the same thing in her eyes. It seemed with both of them that their eyes were windows to their souls.

"Me? I'm fine."

"You'd say that if you'd just had your legs torn off by a Traichan beast. Look what you've been through in last few days. We finally make a connection with home and then it's ripped away from us. We manage to make another enemy who's going to try to hunt us down and destroy us...and on top of all that..."

"It's alright, you can say it. On top of all that, I got a 'Dear John' letter. I guess it wasn't really a surprise. I guess I didn't really expect him to wait for me. But it made me realize I was using him as a safety net, as a way to avoid becoming involved with someone else."

"You don't have that safety net anymore."

"That's right. Then again, my life is far from uneventful here in the Delta Quadrant. It's not like I would have had time to pursue a relationship even if I had realized I was alone."

She looked at him and she saw something there. Was it longing, was it wistfulness. *Stop it Kathryn, you know full well what it is.* Yes, she knew. Her first officer was in love with her... and she with him.

"You're hardly alone, and to my way of thinking, there's still plenty of time."
"Plenty of time..."

They were interrupted, and the moment was gone. For now.

"Neelix to ready room. The party's about to begin and there are only two people missing.

"We're on our way." The exited arm in arm, it was the beginning of their life.

***

The party had gone well. Kathryn and Chakotay had both tried to forget the horrors of the Alpha Quadrant. Kathryn had, in reality known it had been over with Mark for quite some time now. She just hadn't wanted to admit it to herself or to anyone. It was like her last real connection with home had been severed. "Well Kathryn, I guess it's time to go. It seems everyone else has already made their exit."

Everyone else had left and Chakotay felt as if a fairy tale, his fairy tale was coming to its conclusion right before his eyes.

"Chakotay, wait. Before we leave I have to share something with you. Last night I had a dream."

Chakotay had no idea where this was going. Was she troubled by the dreams? Were the dreams a good thing? Why did she feel the need to share it with him?
"I had a dream about us."

Chakotay was getting very intrigued. Over the last couple of days she had finally seemed to be opening up to him, responding to his friendship.

"I dreamt we were in love. That we spent every waking moment together. I dreamt we had a child, and that we lived in complete joy and bliss. I dreamt that nothing could separate us, nothing in this universe."

Chakotay couldn't believe his ears. Were all his hopes and dreams finally becoming a reality?

"One phrase through all this kept popping up in my mind Chakotay. I don't know where it came from, and until today I didn't really know what it meant. All I knew was that it felt like the most important thing I had ever heard."

Chakotay was almost afraid to ask, but needed to know. "What was this phrase Kathryn?"

"I was told, that a dream was an answer to a question I hadn't learned how to ask."

Chakotay's heart skipped a beat. "What are you saying Kathryn?"

"I suppose, I'm asking you to make my dreams a reality."

That night their souls were joined, and not for the last time. They enjoyed every waking moment together, and Kathryn was the happiest woman in the universe. The happiest she had ever been.

One day, three months later, something interesting came up in Kathryn's yearly medical exam, and she finally knew her dreams had come true.

That night, after supper Kathryn went to get dessert. It was Chakotay's birthday and so she had replicated his favorite dessert.

As Kathryn presented him his dessert, she approached him. She was so happy she could hardly contain herself. "Chakotay, I have a present for you."
Kathryn planted a kiss on his cheek, and said three words, which completed his world and the dream. "Happy birthday daddy."

The gods watched on, sure they had made the right decision. *All is as it should be. The outcome has been reached and remains the same, but the method has changed. Our goal has been accomplished.*

Life on Voyager had finally come full circle. Their goals had changed, but life was good. As long as happiness reigned they would never go back to the way they had been. They would only go forward to a future which had long been denied, but which would now be realized.

THE END