Planet k9432x was a paradise; lieutenant Paris had compared it to ‘Risa’ without the annoying tourists. K9432x was also currently uninhabited, except of course for the 143 members of Voyager’s crew, who had borrowed it for 2 weeks.
On Captain Janeway's orders they had rested, made repairs and restocked the larders. All that was left now was the obligatory last look around before they departed. But lift off wasn’t for another 24 hours and Kathryn Janeway wanted to feel some sand between her toes and swim in a clear blue ocean before she trod voyager’s metal decks once more.
With this in mind she tucked her combadge into a bag and beamed down to a quiet stretch of the planets coastline. It was late afternoon and the sun glinted off the gentle swell of the water. Mesmerised by the view Janeway didn’t see the beach’s other occupant until she had cleared the sand dunes and turned towards the peninsula.
Tilting her sunglass’s down for a better look she eyed the sleeping form about 200 yards up the beach from her. It was a man lying on his stomach, wearing only navy blue swim trunks. His sandy head was turned away but Janeway recognised him anyway. She’d seen the back of that head so many times she could probably recognise it in the dark.
Janeway would have turned and walked the other way but a spark of curiosity moved her feet in the sleeper’s direction. His body was tanned golden brown all over and the muscles across his back flexed in rhythm with his soft breathing. One foot, his left, trailed close to the waters edge and as Janeway watched a large wave splashed up to his foot, almost touched it, then receded.
A plan formulated in her mind and she drew closer. It took only a few moments to scoop away the sand from around the foot and create a channel leading out to sea. Then Janeway sat back and waited for the next large wave that would wash seawater down the channel and into the crater beneath the foot.
She didn’t have to wait long and as the cool water pooled around her victims toes they began to wriggle. Suddenly the bronzed body leaped up and turned over, bemused he looked at his foot and the hole then at his practical joker.
“Captain!?”
“Mr Paris, good afternoon,” Janeway replied with a big grin on her face.
Paris glanced at the late afternoon sun hanging over the ocean. “So it is,” he said dusting the sand off his hands and dragging his feet from the incoming tide.
“Have you been here all day?” Janeway asked, admiring the colour of Paris well proportioned torso.
“Yep.” Paris answered. “And I’m not leaving until take-off tomorrow.”
“Mind if I join you?” Janeway asked, pulling the sunglasses down her nose so he could see the ‘please’ in her eyes.
Paris took in Janeway's appearance, her hair, recently cut short, was growing back and hung loose across her bare shoulders. Bare because all she was wearing was a red bikini and gold sarong, that made her ample but firm tanned skin glow. All in all she near took his breath away and he was conscious of a slight rise in his trunks as his eyes came together at the curve of her breasts.
“Mr Paris?” Janeway coaxed.
Alarm bells sounded in Paris head but he took no head of them when he replied, “sure why not.”
“Good, I’m going for a swim, coming?”
Janeway sprang to her feet and not waiting for Paris answer dropped the sarong from around her waist and skipped down to the waters edge.
Paris watched her as she dripped her toes in the cool water then pulled back as a wave splashed over them. She reminded him of a child who had just encountered the sea for the first time and was unsure off it.
“Come on Tom.” Janeway called, using his first name.
Paris rose to his feet and met his Captain as she waded deeper, once they had both reached waist height they threw themselves into the rolling waves. Somewhere a mile out from the shore captain and Lieutenant dissolved into Kathryn and Tom, two friends having fun and enjoying each other’s company. Months of empty space, confined aboard Voyager and their arduous task of getting home, were forgotten just for a time as they laughed, teased, played and conversed on things of no importance. And there they stayed until the sun dipped its sizzling edge into the ocean. Exhausted Kathryn dropped to her knees on the sand, beside her Tom dripping with water collapsed on his back gasping out loud for lungs full of air.
“You win.” He declared.
“I told you I was a strong swimmer.” Chided Kathryn.
“I’m hungry.” Tom announced changing the subject.
“I didn’t bring any food as such, I’d planned to go back to Voyager.”
“No problem,” said Tom getting to his feet and retrieving his beach towel. “Follow me.”
Kathryn who had been towelling her hair dry looked puzzled but grabbed her things, rose to her feet and tagged along after him.
The coastline was divided by a finger of land that jutted out into the sea, effectively cutting one beach off from the other, unless you were prepared to scramble around it on fallen boulders. At low tide this would be no problem but when the tide came in the waves crashed against the rocks threatening anyone who would dare attempt it. Paris it seemed to Janeway was going to.
“Where are you going?” Kathryn called, watching him climb onto the rocks and head out to sea.
“You’ll see.” Tom called, indicating for his captain to catch up.
Curiosity again won and Kathryn making sure her bag and her footing were secure followed. She didn’t see it until the last moment and even then she gasped, “A cave!” and looked towards Tom for confirmation.
The cave had a fair size entrance but was hidden by an overhang and rocks on all sides. Even from seawards it would have been difficult to find it.
“I hid some supplies here earlier.” Tom said by way explanation. He now had to shout to be heard over the waves breaking against the rocks.
“How far does it go back?”
“About fifty meters, but with the overhang there’s hardly any light away from the mouth and the only way in is along this ledge.”
Tom pointed to their feet and Kathryn saw a rough four-foot wide stone ledge that lead into the cave along one side. He was right this far from shore the sea lapped constantly into the mouth of the cave and the sandy floor seemed to slope down where as the rock ledge inclined up.
Two metres inside the light diminished enough to make finding your footing impossible and Kathryn was about to ask about a torch when Tom stopped reached up above him and produced a wrist torch from a hole in the wall.
“Good thinking lieutenant.” Kathryn commented from behind him. Tom said nothing but she could tell he was smiling proudly.
Several minuets of careful walking brought them within torchlight of the caves end and as Tom played the beam across, Kathryn caught site of his ‘supplies’, a bedroll, survival bag, space heater and lamp, could be made out clearly.
“You seem to have thought of everything, but I don’t see any food.”
“Come this way.” Tom lead Kathryn to a small alcove set off to one side, then turning the brightness of the torch down shone it on to the floor.
By their feet was a pool of water that was obviously deeper than it looked for, swimming around in it were four plate-sized fish.
“Red snappers!” Kathryn exclaimed.
“The very same kind that took ensign Johnson’s little toe off, there kind of a cross between a Piranha and a carp.” Tom laughed at the memory of Johnson’s fuss over his missing toe. “But they’re completely edible and taste delicious.”
“Nelix’s fish pie two nights ago?” Kathryn confirmed.
“Correct…” Tom glanced back over Kathryn’s shoulder and motioned for her to be silent. “I heard something.”
“Helloooooo?”
The call bounced off the cave walls and then back out to sea. Kathryn didn’t recognise the distorted voice but she wasn’t exactly in the mood to greet anyone or indeed presentable. Fortunately the look she gave Paris in the dim light must have conveyed her feelings because in one swift movement he flicked off the wrist torch and pulled her into the alcove with him and against the wall. As her eyes dilated to accept the darkness her ears picked up the strains of voices.
“I saw someone, I know I did.”
“There’s no one here.”
“Perhaps they went further in.”
“In where its pitch black in there.”
“Hello!”
Kathryn couldn’t help but giggle at the absurdity of the situation, she hadn’t played hide and seek since she was. ……Since she was 12.
Tom heard her giggle however so did the intruders.
“Hey did you here that?”
“What? No I didn’t, how can you hear anything over these splashing waves?”
“Crashing waves! Waves crash not splash.”
Kathryn couldn’t help it she giggled again, this time though before the giggle could fully escape, Tom moved closer to her and placed 2 fingers against her lips. Though it wasn’t so much the fingers that made her stop as the presence of his body. The way his bare leg slipped between hers, the way his hot breath caressed her neck, the way his bicep brushed her cheek as he raised his arm to place a hand on the wall beside her head. Then there was her hand, she’d unconsciously raised it in front of her and it now rested against Tom’s pectoral, rising and falling with the fluidity of his breathing.
It had been a long time since Kathryn had last touched a man so intimately and that had been Mark. Consequently she now found herself openly comparing the two, Marks chest was thick with curly hair and had a broad span, Toms although no less manly was smooth and her hand nestled neatly over the width of his breast. Kathryn shivered and the hard peek of his nipple rasped against her soft palm. Tom felt the shiver and instinctively moved closer to Kathryn but when his cold hand touched the bare flesh at her waist she gasped loudly. The noise echoed around the cave threatening to give their position away. Neither of them could let that happen, not now it would look too suspicious, people would talk; Kathryn’s authority would be compromised.
“You heard that I know you did?”
“Maybe, but even if I did we can’t go any further without a torch.”
“I can still see. Who’s there show yourself?”
Tom could feel goose bumps rising on his skin and tried to move even closer to Kathryn for warmth, while preying the usurpers would leave; yet every time he touched her she shivered more. It wasn’t until he repositioned his knee between her legs and felt the heat building there, that he realised it wasn’t just the cold that was making her tremble. Surprised at the response he was eliciting from his Captain Tom turned his head sharply but in doing so he inadvertently banged heads with her.
Kathryn dazed by the sudden blow was about to cry out when she felt Toms mouth create a seal over hers effectively blocking any sound she had intended to make.
A neat equally swift positioning of a hand behind her head made sure their lips stayed together until all cries of pain from either of them had been extinguished.
Kathryn at first had been taken aback by Tom’s manoeuvre but after realising what he was doing she relaxed, perhaps a little too much though, because it allowed certain feelings to surface and things beyond her control to happen. Things like responding when Paris tongue slid along hers, things like slipping her arm around his neck and squirming against the knee between her thighs.
“Look if there is someone here they obviously don’t want us around so lets go.”
“Why you don’t think there……you know….?”
" If they are its none of our business now lets go.” The female voice grew fainter as she moved away then with a crushed “Ok.” The male voice was also retreated.
“I’m sorry.” Tom whispered, breaking the kiss and hoping the intruders were out of earshot.
Kathryn took a deep breath, she was still encircled by Tom’s arms but both hands were now resting on his chest. Beneath them she could feel his heart beating out a crazy rhythm. “I’m not.” She exhaled. “I don’t think they’ll be back it’s getting too dark and the tides coming in.”
Either the double meanings of her words were lost on Paris or he was just pretending to be dense Because his reaction to her confession was cold, as cold as she now felt.
“Your cold.” Tom announced, suddenly moving away from Kathryn and flipping the torch back on. “I’ll get the heater running.”
“Tom?” Kathryn called softly after him.
Tom didn’t respond, he heard, she was sure of it, but instead of turning back he went to set up the camping equipment.
Feeling her way out of the alcove, Kathryn called again. “Tom?”
“It wont take long to warm up but you’d better put this on until it does.” Tom pulled a shirt out of his survival bag and held it out at arms length.
Kathryn took it, trying to make eye contact as she did but he turned to quickly and made to pass her.
“I’d better see about that fish.”
Now was her chance. “Tom we need to talk?”
Paris stopped along side Kathryn but didn’t turn to look at her. “You’re my Captain!”v
Kathryn’s heart flipped he had felt the same stirrings during their impromptu kiss and he had understood her words, yet for some reason he was holding back. “I don’t see any Starfleet uniform or gold pips.”
“Your rank doesn’t come off with your clothes.” Tom almost spat the words out.
“Then what am I supposed to do? Promote you?” While she spoke Kathryn slipped on the shirt he’d given her. It smelt of him his aftershave his sweat.
“I think you’ll find that’s against Starfleet policy too.” Paris started walking towards the alcove then changed his mind and came back. “As my commanding officer I admire and respect you, but I also count you as one of my friends, and I’ve got precious few of those, these days. So don’t rile me if I’m not willing to spoil that friendship.” Tom spun around again and retraced his steps to the alcove, but he didn’t get far before Janeway called after him.
“Do you have another torch?”
“No.” Tom stopped.
“Then I’ll need that one to get out of here.”
Turning around once more Tom shone the light in the direction of the cave mouth; he didn’t like what he saw. “It’s too dangerous to go now it’s dark out and the tides coming in fast.”
“In that case I’ll just call Voyager for a beam out.”
“You can’t!”
“I beg your pardon?”
Tom crossed the distance back to Kathryn. "What I mean is you can’t beam out; I tried this morning, both ways, the signal just bounced back. There must be something in the rocks.”
“Is there anything else you neglected to tell me Lieutenant?”
“No Sir!” Tom replied, anger simmering under his calm exterior.
Kathryn grabbed his arm and proceeded to remove the torch. “All I need is to get close enough to the entrance for a signal to get out.”
“Would that be before or after your swept of the rocks by a wave?”
Saying nothing in return Kathryn strapped the torch to her own wrist and headed for the walkway but somehow Tom had beaten her to it and blocked the way.
“I’m not going to let you go.”
“And just how are you going to stop me?”
Grabbing Kathryn’s upper arm firmly, Tom held her fast. “That’s the easy part.”
The fury in Kathryn’s eyes glared in the dark. “If you exert anymore pressure on my arm, when we do get back to Voyager you’ll find yourself unceremoniously thrown in the brig.”
“That’s the hard part.” Tom spoke softly and calmly matching her fiery eyes with his own pools of blue.
Kathryn’s resistance floundered; he’d called her bluff, and it was all she could do to drag her eyes away from his.
Tom released his grip and she shrugged away from him. He knew she was hurting and wanted so much to do something, say something to stop the pain, his and hers. “Kathryn you know I have feelings for you but there’s no way I can act upon them without compromising your authority on Voyager.”
She knew he was right; she’d used the same excuse herself. “I…I just get so lonely sometimes.”
Pain ripped through Tom’s heart as he watched her try to wipe away her tears. “That’s what friends are for.” He spoke gently, as gently as the arms he wrapped around his captain, before drawing her still shivering frame to his. The tears unabated splashed onto his shoulder and down his chest.
“Oh Tom, one of these days…”
Tom squeezed Kathryn closer. “One of these days we will get home and if they don’t throw my sorry butt back in jail we’ll have that little talk, I promise you.”
12 hours later…
“Mr Chakotay, all crew accounted for?”
“Aye Captain, all present and correct.”
“Belanna, Engines?”
“A1 and standing ready Captain.”
“Good power to helm control and stand by for warp.”
“Yes ma’am.”
“Mr Paris, prepare to leave orbit, then lay in a course for………”
“Home?”
“Home Tom, put the peddle to the metal and don’t spare the horses.”
“Aye, aye Captain.”
To anyone else listening Kathryn Janeway's last order made absolutely no sense but Tom Paris understood it perfectly.
