WiP Amnesty: Uncaged Series Snippet by Sapphire, ST VOY
Uncaged Series Snippet
by Sapphire
Pairing: Chakotay/Paris
Rating: NC-17 for sexual content
WiP began in: 1999
Author’s Notes: A scene from the Uncaged series that never took flight. Alas, there is only the original Uncaged, rather than a whole voyage of them. And, you know, I never say never. Some day my interest in Voyager might be reinvigorated and I might decide to pick this series up and do what I originally planned, which was rewrite the eps from a fannish view in this universe where Janeway and Torres are dead and Chakotay is running the ship and Tom is his first officer.
Writing Note: I tend to cringe at my writing style from back then. On the other hand, the fact that I'm cringing lets me know I've learned a few things since then, so that's a good thing. Just know that this is not reflective of my current writing style or abilities. I have shown some growth, thank goodness. :)
God, what a long day! was Tom's first thought as soon as he made it to the haven of the turbolift after his relief had shown up for the next shift of helm duty. Paris had spent the day doing helm diagnostics. Never one of his favorite tasks, this one had been particularly stressful as one thing after another had seemed to crop up that required looking into and correcting.
Waiting for the lift to reach his deck, he stretched his neck first one way and then the other trying to work the kinks out. His muscles were bunched up tighter than the warp coils in Engineering. He winced when a particular muscle objected to his movements. What had ever possessed him to talk Chakotay into allowing him to still put in shifts at the helm despite holding down the full-time task of being Voyager's first officer? Maybe it was time to rethink that particular compromise.
Stepping off the lift, he headed for Chakotay's quarters. He spent more time in the captain's quarters than his own these days. A slight smirk lifted one corner of his mouth as he recalled just exactly why that was. He was still amazed, even months later, that he and Chakotay, of all people, were lovers. And it further amazed Tom how right it felt. It had never felt this right with anyone else, except--
His smile faltered. B'Elanna's death still haunted him at unexpected moments. He still missed her terribly and sometimes wondered what would have become of him following her death if not for Chakotay's presence in his life. Chakotay and B'Elanna. Such two different people, yet both fit him as if they were interwoven with his very soul. That strong connection, particularly with Chakotay, had caught Tom by surprise. He hadn't been used to someone putting him first, rather than themselves. Yet, both B'Elanna and Chakotay had done that with him as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
Keying in Chakotay's door code, he slipped inside the quarters, disappointment flowing through him when he saw the quarters were bathed in half light. That meant Chakotay wasn't home yet. Shoulders slumping, his hands moved to the front closure of the top of his uniform as he headed for the bathroom. A pair of strong hands reaching around his waist to pull him back caused him to miss a breath. The hands replaced his own to undo his uniform. Tom sighed and leaned back against the warmth of the familiar body.
"Rough day?" asked Chakotay as he pulled Tom's uniform top off, quickly followed by the T-shirt underneath.
Tom shrugged, wincing as his shoulders protested the movement. "Helm diagnostics. You know how much I hate diagnostics, especially when they don't go smoothly."
For a moment Captain Chakotay crept out. "Serious problems?"
"No. Just time consuming."
Strong fingers kneading his shoulders signaled the return of Chakotay his lover. "Tired?" Lips grazed the back of his neck. Tom's head fell forward, losing himself in Chakotay's touch.
"Ummm," was Tom's noncommittal reply.
Chakotay moved him forward and before Tom comprehended where they were headed, he was laying face down on the floor with Chakotay straddling his butt. The hands continued their firm massage of his tense back muscles. Sighing in contentment, Tom rested his head on his crossed arms and let Chakotay have his way with him.
Chakotay's hands moved up and down his back, working firmly but gently at the tense muscles until they loosened under his touch. Every so often he would lean down to plant a trail of kisses across the back of Tom's neck and down his back.
When Chakotay began rubbing his groin against Tom's rear end, Tom squirmed, his hips lifting to meet the touch. Chakotay stilled him with a touch, his hands continuing to move sensuously over his back, then carding through his hair. A finger traced over Tom' lips, and he opened his mouth, sucking the finger in. He felt more than heard Chakotay groan against him. When Chakotay, still fully clothed, began humping in earnest against Tom's still clothed bottom, Tom had vague thoughts of turning over and taking a more active role, but he was feeling incredibly lethargic and lay in a boneless heap beneath Chakotay, content to let the other man work out his own sexual tensions. There hadn't been much time for the two of them together lately.
It didn't take long for Chakotay to come. His body pressed Tom's into the floor and with a sharp inhalation, release came to Chakotay. He collapsed over Tom's back. Tom, half asleep, turned his head just enough to find Chakotay's lips seeking his. A shared kiss and then Chakotay was climbing off him to collapse on his back into a tired heap himself. He lay perpendicular to Tom, his legs resting atop the back of Tom's.
They lay like that for several minutes until Tom mustered the energy to move. Getting to all fours, he crawled over to Chakotay and climbed atop him. Still on all fours, he stared down at his lover.
Chakotay's face was flushed but contented. Tom leaned down to kiss him before pulling back to stare at the other man again. "You're off-duty for the rest of the night, right?"
The answer was too long in coming. Chakotay's hesitation gave him his answer.
"Dammit, Chakotay!" Tom's frustration blew out of him in a fervent whisper. "We've talked about this. You can't be on-duty around the clock. You need to escape from the tension of command once in a while, and you need me to help you with that. Agreed?"
Chakotay cracked one eye open to look up at the flashing blue eyes. "I'm not the only one who needs to relax," was his only comment. His hand reached down to rub at Tom's groin and the hardness there. Tom slapped his hand away.
"Stop it. You're just trying to distract me."
"Is it working?" Chakotay asked, a smile spreading over his face, only to be wiped away in the next moment by Tom's words.
Tom was off him and on his feet all in one smooth movement. "Stop it, Chakotay." Tom's voice was low, tight with suppressed anger. "We've been over this before. You promised you'd let Tuvok and I take some of the load of command off you when possible. That you'd make time for a personal life. A personal life that I thought included me. I'm tired of going round in circles about this with you."
"Tom, I need to meet with Harry about some Engineering concerns. I was supposed to meet with him earlier today but had to postpone it."
"Fine."
Climbing to his feet, Chakotay went to the closet, pulling out a clean pair of underwear and uniform pants. Quickly pulling his boots off, he replaced the soiled pants and underwear with the fresh ones.
At the door he paused. "You'll be here when I get back?"
"I don't know." Tom's back remained turned to him, stiff with anger.
Frowning, Chakotay exited his quarters, a part of him telling himself that this would all blow over but another part arguing that this time Tom wasn't going to cave in. Chakotay left, unsure that Tom would be there when he returned and not liking that feeling at all. Couldn't Tom understand that the ship and her crew had to come first?
* * *
Inside Chakotay's quarters, Tom's shoulders slumped once more when he heard the door close. This was an old argument between the two of them. Chakotay was taking too much onto his own shoulders. Even Tuvok had commented on it. Tom truly wasn't trying to test Chakotay to see if their relationship or the ship was more important. He knew when it came to survival that Chakotay had to place the ship first. But hell, they weren't in a crisis mode at the moment. They were serenely sailing through space making general maintenance checks on the ship's systems. Checks that didn't require the captain to personally attend to them. Yet, Chakotay still insisted on personally handling everything, except his relationship with his first officer it seemed, thought Tom grimly. He was starting to feel like a convenient fuck for Chakotay.
No, that wasn't right. Chakotay had never treated him like that. Not once. Tom tiredly ran a hand over his face. He'd go take a shower and then go back to his quarters for the night. He needed some distance. And right now he was too tired to think straight.
* * *
Ten minutes later Chakotay found himself back at the door to his quarters with a bemused expression on his face. Tuvok had shown up to meet with Harry about the Engineering matters. And the Vulcan tactical officer showed that he had learned a few new tactics when it came to dealing with Humans. A wry smile lifted Chakotay's mouth. If the truth were known, Tuvok had probably learned his strategy from Tom. Tuvok had informed his captain in no uncertain terms that the Engineering matters were in hand and that the captain's off-duty presence was required elsewhere this evening. Harry had backed up Tuvok's summation. Knowing when he was outgunned, Chakotay headed back to his quarters and Tom and was surprised at how relieved he was to have the chains of command lifted from his shoulders for an evening. A frown overtook his face once again when he remembered how angry Tom had been earlier though. Tom didn't often get angry. And usually when he did he had good reason.
Chakotay sighed. He was in deep and it was his own damn fault for being such a blind fool. Now he would have to see if he could dig himself out and convince Tom that he was important to him.
Stepping inside his quarters, he was relieved to hear the shower running. It meant that Tom was still here. Stripping as he headed for the bathroom, he was nude by the time he reached the shower. He stepped inside and took the bath sponge from Tom's surprised hand. Not saying a word, he ran the soapy sponge over Tom's back. Tension hung between them like a tightly strung wire.
"I'm sorry."
"For what?" Tom's voice was unforgiving but he allowed Chakotay's touch, which told Chakotay that all was not lost. Yet.
"For ignoring you. For ignoring us."
Tom shrugged. "I'm used to it."
"Not from me you aren't!" Angry, more at himself than Tom, Chakotay pulled the other man around until they were face to face. "Never from me. You deserve better than that. And I was properly put in my place for it by Tuvok and Harry tonight."
Chakotay's eyes narrowed when Tom's mouth gave a small twitch at that piece of information. Chakotay stared at the Tom. Tall. Blond. Fair. Aggravating. Amazingly vulnerable and tough all at once. And he grounded Chakotay like nobody else had ever been able to. He couldn't imagine his life without Tom and he was just realizing that in all the time they had been together he had not once told Tom that. No wonder the other man was so frustrated with him.
Moving forward, he backed Tom against the shower wall. Water continued to pour over both of them but they ignored it, each caught up in the other's expression.
Finally, Chakotay found his voice again. "I love you. Don't leave me."
The tension melted out of Tom's body. He stared at Chakotay, his eyes bright with unspoken emotions. And Chakotay now knew him well enough to read those emotions. They moved together into a kiss. It was a slow, tentative kiss, as if they were just discovering each other. Tom's arms came around him to pull Chakotay close. "I love you too," he whispered.
Gentle hands caressed the other's body, the touch as tentative as first-time lovers. They had fallen together so quickly initially that there had really been no courting, no initial get-to-know-you phase. Exiting the shower, they dried each other off and then tumbled into bed, into each other's arms.
That night. something wondrous blossomed between them. For the first time both openly shared heir love for each other. It made Tom want to cry and laugh at the same time--cry because it caused a pain in his heart where B'Elanna still resided and it confused him that this love with Chakotay was as deep and abiding as his love with B'Elanna had been. But laughter overshadowed the sadness. Chakotay brought him joy. And he brought Chakotay joy. It was as simple as that.
A smile of contentment shone from both men's faces as they rested in deep slumber that night. Neither could know that their newfound commitment to one another was about to be tested to its limits. They would come out of the fire either completely shattered or with a deeply forged love--the strength of their love their only anchor.
*****
by Sapphire
Pairing: Chakotay/Paris
Rating: NC-17 for sexual content
WiP began in: 1999
Author’s Notes: A scene from the Uncaged series that never took flight. Alas, there is only the original Uncaged, rather than a whole voyage of them. And, you know, I never say never. Some day my interest in Voyager might be reinvigorated and I might decide to pick this series up and do what I originally planned, which was rewrite the eps from a fannish view in this universe where Janeway and Torres are dead and Chakotay is running the ship and Tom is his first officer.
Writing Note: I tend to cringe at my writing style from back then. On the other hand, the fact that I'm cringing lets me know I've learned a few things since then, so that's a good thing. Just know that this is not reflective of my current writing style or abilities. I have shown some growth, thank goodness. :)
God, what a long day! was Tom's first thought as soon as he made it to the haven of the turbolift after his relief had shown up for the next shift of helm duty. Paris had spent the day doing helm diagnostics. Never one of his favorite tasks, this one had been particularly stressful as one thing after another had seemed to crop up that required looking into and correcting.
Waiting for the lift to reach his deck, he stretched his neck first one way and then the other trying to work the kinks out. His muscles were bunched up tighter than the warp coils in Engineering. He winced when a particular muscle objected to his movements. What had ever possessed him to talk Chakotay into allowing him to still put in shifts at the helm despite holding down the full-time task of being Voyager's first officer? Maybe it was time to rethink that particular compromise.
Stepping off the lift, he headed for Chakotay's quarters. He spent more time in the captain's quarters than his own these days. A slight smirk lifted one corner of his mouth as he recalled just exactly why that was. He was still amazed, even months later, that he and Chakotay, of all people, were lovers. And it further amazed Tom how right it felt. It had never felt this right with anyone else, except--
His smile faltered. B'Elanna's death still haunted him at unexpected moments. He still missed her terribly and sometimes wondered what would have become of him following her death if not for Chakotay's presence in his life. Chakotay and B'Elanna. Such two different people, yet both fit him as if they were interwoven with his very soul. That strong connection, particularly with Chakotay, had caught Tom by surprise. He hadn't been used to someone putting him first, rather than themselves. Yet, both B'Elanna and Chakotay had done that with him as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
Keying in Chakotay's door code, he slipped inside the quarters, disappointment flowing through him when he saw the quarters were bathed in half light. That meant Chakotay wasn't home yet. Shoulders slumping, his hands moved to the front closure of the top of his uniform as he headed for the bathroom. A pair of strong hands reaching around his waist to pull him back caused him to miss a breath. The hands replaced his own to undo his uniform. Tom sighed and leaned back against the warmth of the familiar body.
"Rough day?" asked Chakotay as he pulled Tom's uniform top off, quickly followed by the T-shirt underneath.
Tom shrugged, wincing as his shoulders protested the movement. "Helm diagnostics. You know how much I hate diagnostics, especially when they don't go smoothly."
For a moment Captain Chakotay crept out. "Serious problems?"
"No. Just time consuming."
Strong fingers kneading his shoulders signaled the return of Chakotay his lover. "Tired?" Lips grazed the back of his neck. Tom's head fell forward, losing himself in Chakotay's touch.
"Ummm," was Tom's noncommittal reply.
Chakotay moved him forward and before Tom comprehended where they were headed, he was laying face down on the floor with Chakotay straddling his butt. The hands continued their firm massage of his tense back muscles. Sighing in contentment, Tom rested his head on his crossed arms and let Chakotay have his way with him.
Chakotay's hands moved up and down his back, working firmly but gently at the tense muscles until they loosened under his touch. Every so often he would lean down to plant a trail of kisses across the back of Tom's neck and down his back.
When Chakotay began rubbing his groin against Tom's rear end, Tom squirmed, his hips lifting to meet the touch. Chakotay stilled him with a touch, his hands continuing to move sensuously over his back, then carding through his hair. A finger traced over Tom' lips, and he opened his mouth, sucking the finger in. He felt more than heard Chakotay groan against him. When Chakotay, still fully clothed, began humping in earnest against Tom's still clothed bottom, Tom had vague thoughts of turning over and taking a more active role, but he was feeling incredibly lethargic and lay in a boneless heap beneath Chakotay, content to let the other man work out his own sexual tensions. There hadn't been much time for the two of them together lately.
It didn't take long for Chakotay to come. His body pressed Tom's into the floor and with a sharp inhalation, release came to Chakotay. He collapsed over Tom's back. Tom, half asleep, turned his head just enough to find Chakotay's lips seeking his. A shared kiss and then Chakotay was climbing off him to collapse on his back into a tired heap himself. He lay perpendicular to Tom, his legs resting atop the back of Tom's.
They lay like that for several minutes until Tom mustered the energy to move. Getting to all fours, he crawled over to Chakotay and climbed atop him. Still on all fours, he stared down at his lover.
Chakotay's face was flushed but contented. Tom leaned down to kiss him before pulling back to stare at the other man again. "You're off-duty for the rest of the night, right?"
The answer was too long in coming. Chakotay's hesitation gave him his answer.
"Dammit, Chakotay!" Tom's frustration blew out of him in a fervent whisper. "We've talked about this. You can't be on-duty around the clock. You need to escape from the tension of command once in a while, and you need me to help you with that. Agreed?"
Chakotay cracked one eye open to look up at the flashing blue eyes. "I'm not the only one who needs to relax," was his only comment. His hand reached down to rub at Tom's groin and the hardness there. Tom slapped his hand away.
"Stop it. You're just trying to distract me."
"Is it working?" Chakotay asked, a smile spreading over his face, only to be wiped away in the next moment by Tom's words.
Tom was off him and on his feet all in one smooth movement. "Stop it, Chakotay." Tom's voice was low, tight with suppressed anger. "We've been over this before. You promised you'd let Tuvok and I take some of the load of command off you when possible. That you'd make time for a personal life. A personal life that I thought included me. I'm tired of going round in circles about this with you."
"Tom, I need to meet with Harry about some Engineering concerns. I was supposed to meet with him earlier today but had to postpone it."
"Fine."
Climbing to his feet, Chakotay went to the closet, pulling out a clean pair of underwear and uniform pants. Quickly pulling his boots off, he replaced the soiled pants and underwear with the fresh ones.
At the door he paused. "You'll be here when I get back?"
"I don't know." Tom's back remained turned to him, stiff with anger.
Frowning, Chakotay exited his quarters, a part of him telling himself that this would all blow over but another part arguing that this time Tom wasn't going to cave in. Chakotay left, unsure that Tom would be there when he returned and not liking that feeling at all. Couldn't Tom understand that the ship and her crew had to come first?
* * *
Inside Chakotay's quarters, Tom's shoulders slumped once more when he heard the door close. This was an old argument between the two of them. Chakotay was taking too much onto his own shoulders. Even Tuvok had commented on it. Tom truly wasn't trying to test Chakotay to see if their relationship or the ship was more important. He knew when it came to survival that Chakotay had to place the ship first. But hell, they weren't in a crisis mode at the moment. They were serenely sailing through space making general maintenance checks on the ship's systems. Checks that didn't require the captain to personally attend to them. Yet, Chakotay still insisted on personally handling everything, except his relationship with his first officer it seemed, thought Tom grimly. He was starting to feel like a convenient fuck for Chakotay.
No, that wasn't right. Chakotay had never treated him like that. Not once. Tom tiredly ran a hand over his face. He'd go take a shower and then go back to his quarters for the night. He needed some distance. And right now he was too tired to think straight.
* * *
Ten minutes later Chakotay found himself back at the door to his quarters with a bemused expression on his face. Tuvok had shown up to meet with Harry about the Engineering matters. And the Vulcan tactical officer showed that he had learned a few new tactics when it came to dealing with Humans. A wry smile lifted Chakotay's mouth. If the truth were known, Tuvok had probably learned his strategy from Tom. Tuvok had informed his captain in no uncertain terms that the Engineering matters were in hand and that the captain's off-duty presence was required elsewhere this evening. Harry had backed up Tuvok's summation. Knowing when he was outgunned, Chakotay headed back to his quarters and Tom and was surprised at how relieved he was to have the chains of command lifted from his shoulders for an evening. A frown overtook his face once again when he remembered how angry Tom had been earlier though. Tom didn't often get angry. And usually when he did he had good reason.
Chakotay sighed. He was in deep and it was his own damn fault for being such a blind fool. Now he would have to see if he could dig himself out and convince Tom that he was important to him.
Stepping inside his quarters, he was relieved to hear the shower running. It meant that Tom was still here. Stripping as he headed for the bathroom, he was nude by the time he reached the shower. He stepped inside and took the bath sponge from Tom's surprised hand. Not saying a word, he ran the soapy sponge over Tom's back. Tension hung between them like a tightly strung wire.
"I'm sorry."
"For what?" Tom's voice was unforgiving but he allowed Chakotay's touch, which told Chakotay that all was not lost. Yet.
"For ignoring you. For ignoring us."
Tom shrugged. "I'm used to it."
"Not from me you aren't!" Angry, more at himself than Tom, Chakotay pulled the other man around until they were face to face. "Never from me. You deserve better than that. And I was properly put in my place for it by Tuvok and Harry tonight."
Chakotay's eyes narrowed when Tom's mouth gave a small twitch at that piece of information. Chakotay stared at the Tom. Tall. Blond. Fair. Aggravating. Amazingly vulnerable and tough all at once. And he grounded Chakotay like nobody else had ever been able to. He couldn't imagine his life without Tom and he was just realizing that in all the time they had been together he had not once told Tom that. No wonder the other man was so frustrated with him.
Moving forward, he backed Tom against the shower wall. Water continued to pour over both of them but they ignored it, each caught up in the other's expression.
Finally, Chakotay found his voice again. "I love you. Don't leave me."
The tension melted out of Tom's body. He stared at Chakotay, his eyes bright with unspoken emotions. And Chakotay now knew him well enough to read those emotions. They moved together into a kiss. It was a slow, tentative kiss, as if they were just discovering each other. Tom's arms came around him to pull Chakotay close. "I love you too," he whispered.
Gentle hands caressed the other's body, the touch as tentative as first-time lovers. They had fallen together so quickly initially that there had really been no courting, no initial get-to-know-you phase. Exiting the shower, they dried each other off and then tumbled into bed, into each other's arms.
That night. something wondrous blossomed between them. For the first time both openly shared heir love for each other. It made Tom want to cry and laugh at the same time--cry because it caused a pain in his heart where B'Elanna still resided and it confused him that this love with Chakotay was as deep and abiding as his love with B'Elanna had been. But laughter overshadowed the sadness. Chakotay brought him joy. And he brought Chakotay joy. It was as simple as that.
A smile of contentment shone from both men's faces as they rested in deep slumber that night. Neither could know that their newfound commitment to one another was about to be tested to its limits. They would come out of the fire either completely shattered or with a deeply forged love--the strength of their love their only anchor.
*****