The plan went like clockwork. Almost before they knew it, they were standing in Kathryn's quarters - looking at the uniforms carefully laid out on her bed - positioned as if each of them was laying in it. Definitely the work of Tom Paris, Chakotay thought.

Chakotay couldn't help it. The suggestive positioning of their uniforms brought on a vision of the two of them together on her bed… his and Kathryn's bodies wrapped around each other… the look of rapture on her face as he entered her. His breath caught, trying to hold off the moan wanting to escape from his lips.

Damn Tom! Kathryn was busy mentally cursing out the impetuous young man. The suggestion of what they might have been doing during their absence was crude and insulting. At the sound of Chakotay's stifled gasp, Kathryn glanced at him from under her lashes - the heated look on his face causing her entire body to flush and a sudden gush of moisture between her legs.

"Urm… How about you go first… I need a cup of coffee." Escaping her bedroom, she headed for her replicator, calling back over her shoulder. "I suspect you know where everything is."

He did know where everything would be. They had shared a shelter for almost two months - one that only had one bathroom.

He knew that her shampoo would be sitting upright on the shelf with the conditioner turned upside down behind it. ('The consistency is too thick. It takes too long to come down to the mouth of the bottle.) He knew her soap would be in a dish on her sink, instead of remaining in the shower. (It gets soggy if you leave it there.). And he knew that he would find her toothbrush at the edge of her sink - perfectly positioned with the brush end hanging over the edge of the bowl. (If I stand it up in a cup, the water drips down the handle.) If they had shared that space previously, then why did he feel so uncomfortable?

'It's my personal bathroom - that must be the difference.' she thought as she downed the first cup of coffee and went for a second. The hot, bitter brew slid down her throat, cauterizing the last of her exposed nerves and strengthening her for whatever else Tom had cooked up.

Chakotay appeared from her bedroom looking fresh and clean-shaven rather quickly - she remembered, then, that it never took him long to get ready. He was a man with simple needs. She hadn't realized until they were sharing that shelter just how simply he could live. After a certain period of time, the lifestyle had become appealing to her. "Your turn," he said with a grin. "I left some hot water for you."

She laughed - the discomfort dissipated with his joking manner. "I'll try to be quick. I know how you hate to wait. Besides, I'm dying to know what Acting Captain Paris has up his sleeve."

Twenty minutes later, they both stood in front of her communications console waiting for Tom to appear. "Good afternoon, Captain… Commander. Nice to see you're ready to get back to business." His trademark teasing grin spread across his face.

Kathryn's hands went to her hips while she leveled one of her death-glares at the young man. "I'd like a status report, Lieutenant."

Chakotay stifled his own grin as any trace of one dropped from Tom's face. There were only a few things in the universe that could put Tom in his place. A punch in the arm from B'Elanna would do it, but that always came with a response before the grin went away (Hey! I was only joking!). One look from the Captain, though, brought him back in line without question or objection.

"Er… Yes, Ma'am." Chakotay stifled another grin - only Tom was allowed to consistently call her Ma'am. Tom's shoulders straightened as he began his report. "The crew - all of them - are at their stations, awaiting your orders, Captain."

Captain and Commander each looked at each other quizzically. Kathryn's arms moved from her hips to cross themselves across her chest. "Explain."

"Um… well… as I said - we're all at our stations…"

Chakotay groaned. "Tom, please tell me you haven't staged a coup!"

The Lieutenant had the decency to look a little abashed. "Well… not exactly."

"So what exactly have you done?" Came Kathryn's stern response.

"We… ah… staged a sit-in?" He responded uncomfortably.

"What the hell is a sit-in?"

"It's a form of non-violent protest developed in the 1960's."

Kathryn groaned out loud. "I should have known you would come up with something from the 20th century. Tell me what non-violent actions have you taken that have not resulted in incarceration."

A look of triumph came over the pilot's face. "Each of the Voyagers locked out their stations with Borg encryptions and refused to unlock them until all crew were placed back on duty - and their captain returned to command."

"And this worked?" Chakotay asked, amazed.

"To the extent that the situation had to be reported to Fleet Admiral Nechayev."

"And just how did that change the situation?" Came Kathryn's confused response.

"Well, Zach found out that the other Admirals hadn't known that Admiral Kawaoki was acting on his own - without reporting details to Nechayev."

Kathryn snorted "I wouldn't trust too much of what comes out of Zach's mouth. He's Admiral Kawaoki's Primary Aide."

"So that's who it is! I could never figure that part out."

She gave Chakotay an incredulous look, "You knew? And trusted him?

"I may have worked as your Starfleet officer for the past seven years, but I'm still Maquis - especially when I'm treated like one. Zach was always around, but never worked at a station, and there was no mention of what department he belonged to. The only thing we knew about him was that he had supposedly been at the Academy with you - something we couldn't verify until you saw him. He always knew what was going on - like it was coming from the inside. So, we tested him, Maquis-style. We fed him information, then waited to see what happened. The least important things we gave him were the only things that ever came back out from Starfleet. So, yes, I trust him."

"He tried to promise me that he never spied on us." She spoke in a quiet voice. "That he had never lied about his feelings about how we were being treated… that he'd actually tried to get Kawaoki to change his mind. I refused to accept it."

"Just one too many broken..." Chakotay said under his breath. She simply nodded in response, then looked back at the screen where Tom sat quietly - a puzzled look on his face.

"I'm still not sure what is going on - the Fleet Admiral had no idea what Admiral Kawaoki was doing? And the others had no idea that the situation was not being reported to her? How did everything come out in the open, then?"

"Did Chakotay tell you about the panic that ensued when we couldn't find you?" Kathryn nodded. "Well it wasn't just on the Voyager side. Although there were no point-blank accusations, each side believed that the other one had you in hiding. Finally Zach came in and warned us that Kawaoki was starting to whisper the idea that you had… ahhh… taken a spacewalk… without an environmental suit."

Her jaw dropped. "I would NEVER have done something like that!"

"We know that… and Zach knows it, too. He started quietly talking to the other aides - something he'd been afraid to try because he wasn't sure who he could trust. That's when he found out that the other Admirals had been cut out of the line of communication with Nechayev, so they had no real clue what the her actual orders had been to Admiral Kawaoki."

"And they were…"

"To hold Voyager where it was until arrangements could be made on Earth for their return. To bypass any changes to her propulsion systems for fear that they might prove detrimental to the Alpha Quadrant area of space. That was it. The rest of it came from Admiral Kawaoki, himself."

Tom leaned in as if sharing a secret, "It seems he's lost a few important people in his life - one at Wolf 369, and one in the war. He's blaming it all on Seven, Icheb and the Maquis. He decided to cut them out, and took the rest of the non-Starfleet crew with them."

"Damn." Chakotay was shaking his head in disbelief. "That's some serious bigotry."

"Yep - and Admiral Nechayev is viewing it as insubordination. He's been relieved of Command, pending a decision on Court Martial." The mischievous grin was back in full force.

Kathryn's jaw dropped, Chakotay was speechless, and Tom decided to push on. "So, at the moment everything postion-wise has been put back where it belongs. The engines, unfortunately, stay the way the Starfleet crew made them. There are still several in Starfleet Command that are… not fond of us… or our actions, but we are now under orders to continue on to Earth under your crew - and your command, Captain. So, can I tell them that you're coming up to the bridge?" His grin was now ear-to-ear and his eyes shone with excitement.

Kathryn looked over to Chakotay, tears in her eyes. She needed a laugh, so he looked back at her. "I don't know, Kathryn." The mischief in his voice matched the twinkle in his eyes. "Perhaps we should just go back to your little hiding place and let Acting Captain Paris here run things."

It was enough to make her laugh. "I'm not really sure Starfleet Command would put up with him much longer." She tilted her head to one side, as if considering something, "But maybe we should surprise them and just show up unannounced."

Tom looked crestfallen - he'd been looking forward to seeing the bridge crew's (and his father's) faces when he told them that Captain Janeway was on her way. Chakotay decided it was the perfect way to pay back the young man for the way he'd been throwing his weight around with the crew - and for the way he'd laid out their uniforms on her bed.

"I think that's a wonderful idea! Tom, you are not to say a word until after we arrive on the bridge." Then he turned to Kathryn and - to keep Tom guessing on the actual timing of their arrival - asked her, "Captain, do you think we should stop for a bite to eat, first?"

Kathryn cut the communication with a laugh. "I like the way you think, Commander!"

Despite his teasing words to Tom, Chakotay expected Kathryn to make a beeline for her bridge. She surprised him, though, and actually did eat a bowl of her oatmeal/peanut butter concoction before heading out. Suspecting she might get emotional stepping back into her command, he kept her laughing during the short turbolift ride up to the bridge.

It was Harry who caught sight of them first. His proximity to the turbolift meant he could hear the soft swish of the doors as they opened. "Captain on the bridge!" He announced excitedly.

Chakotay looked around as each person on the bridge, including - to his surprise - Tom's father Admiral Paris, turned and faced their Captain at full attention. Kathryn hesitated a moment, slightly overwhelmed as Chakotay had expected. He placed a hand at the small of her back and urged her forward.

She moved slowly onto the bridge, stopping at Harry's station to pat him gently on the shoulder, then moving down to Tom, where she repeated the gesture. Chakotay followed, acknowledging each of them with a nod, until they both stood on the Command Level facing Admiral Paris.

"Good evening Captain… Commander." He greeted them formally. "I'm glad to see that the reports of your… demise… have been greatly exaggerated." A twinkle nearly identical to Tom's shone in his eyes.

Kathryn gave him the same sarcastic smile she reserved for Tom when his impishness was within appropriate boundaries. Chakotay briefly wondered if her relationship with Tom's father was what made her able to deal with Tom's approach to the world.

"It would seem so, wouldn't it?" She turned to look at her chair, then back at Paris with a matching twinkle in her eye. "Been keeping my spot warm for me?"

Admiral Paris grinned. "Something like that." He leaned in toward her as if to share a secret. "It doesn't fit me, though. Someone else has spent the last seven years molding it to their rear end."

Kathryn's laughter rang out through the bridge. "Something like that!' Then she leaned in as if to share her own secret. "Although I sometimes wished that it was designed with seatbelts."

Is was the Admiral's turn to laugh out loud. "That's not a bad idea, Katie. Perhaps you should mention it to Admiral Ja'Nekkae when you see him."

"Neek is still around?" Kathryn said incredulously, unconsciously using the nickname she and her sister had used as children. Ja'Nekkae had been a brash young Ensign working under her father when she was just a young girl.

The elder Paris nodded. "Yes… and just as much trouble as he's always been. He heads up the interior ship design department, and is always looking for new ways to annoy people." They shared another laugh.

Kathryn was relishing the opportunity to share a joke with someone who knew her background, and the stories and personalities that went with it. She had shared a few funny stories with Chakotay over the years, but had always had to explain the entire background to the situation before he would understand the joke.

Tom may have known a few of the people, but he was a generation younger than she was - and his relationship with his father had been different. She didn't think he would have understood her stories without just as much explanation. A quick glance in his direction verified her suspicion - he was wearing the same confused expression as the rest of the bridge.

"Ahem." Admiral Paris cleared his throat. "Back to business, Captain. I will relinquish command back to you, as it seems that you are the only one who can keep these delinquents in hand."

"Thank you, sir. They are quite a… strong-minded… bunch. That temperament has saved us several times, so I felt it best to allow it to continue… as long as it was directed appropriately." She smiled and gave him a meaningful look,0. "It seems it has saved us, once again."

He huffed a small laugh. "So it seems, Katie. So it seems." With that, he stepped aside and, with a flourish, waved her to her chair. "Captain, I stand relieved." He said formally. Then, with a wink to her and an "I'll expect to see my granddaughter shortly." to his son, he called for a transport to his ship and disappeared in a blue haze.

Kathryn turned to look at her bridge crew, all still standing at attention. "At ease. Harry, open a ship-wide channel."

"Channel open, Captain." He responded with no small amount of joy.

"Voyagers, this is your Captain speaking.. Thank you all… for all you have done. Now, it's time to get underway, so everyone log into your stations.'

Once again, Harry reversed the comm so that the cheers from the crew filled the bridge. The Captain turned to look at Chakotay - a beaming smile on her face - then headed to her chair. "Mr. Paris, set a course… for home."

"Yes, Ma'am!" The same amount of joy reflected in the pilot's voice as Harry's had held.

The following week was among the happiest Kathryn had known on Voyager. They were back in the Alpha Quadrant. Here, there was no unending search for supplies, no constant yellow alert watching for the next hostile alien, and no desperate repairs being done on the fly with parts cobbled together with whatever they had on hand.

With these situations well in hand, Kathryn's daily reports were often a formal way of saying a simple 'Everything is great down here.' The need for 18-hour shifts was gone - for once, Kathryn could leave her shift at the official end time, with no leftover work she had to face the next morning.

She still received near-constant communications from Starfleet Command, but the tone was much more respectful - it seemed every Admiral at Headquarters wanted to be on a first-name basis with her before they arrived on Earth. Kathryn even received a few from Fleet Admiral Nechayev, herself.

Although the other woman never came right out and said it, her words had 'apology' written all over them. Kathryn stored Nechayev's words in the Starfleet portion of her heart, which was still wounded by what Admiral Kawaoki had done - hoping that they would at least suture the wound closed until it had time to heal.

There might have been a time when she would have found the extra time off the bridge intensely dull. Instead, all the new friendships she had formed while she was 'off duty' stood her in good stead. She took daily lunch breaks in the mess hall, joking around with whatever members of crew were there. Dinners she spent in her quarters with Chakotay, where they spent their time rebuilding and reinforcing the friendship they had nearly lost.

Chakotay told her about the arrangement he had made with Mortimer Herron to keep an eye on her hiding spot without intruding on her privacy. She decided that there was no way she would truly believe that Harren had done something so… selfless… much less offered to do it. She was also pretty sure that Tom Paris hadn't believed Chakotay's cover story one bit, but grateful that he had kept his thoughts to himself and never gossiped about it.

She shared some of what her older self had told her about the future that no longer existed. She tried to be as careful as she could about the relationship between Seven and Chakotay, but knew that he was able to read between the lines. Sometimes the expression on his face nearly broke her heart.

Finally, they came within a day's travel of Earth. The excitement on the ship was palpable, wide grins on everyone's faces. Kathryn accepted a formal comm call from Command in her ready room. There was great anticipation, mingled with a little fear - no one had ever mentioned if there would be repercussions from their little protest. Finally, Chakotay was called to her ready room.

She was on the upper level, staring out her viewport as usual. "Have a seat, Commander… tea?"

"Yes, please… the usual."

She flashed a grin back at him as she brought their cups over to the sofa and sat down next to him. Picking up her cup, she leaned back and sighed. "Well, it's done."

Inside, Chakotay panicked - what's 'done'? The trip? Her career? Their freedom because of what they had pulled? "Oh?" He tried to sound calm.

She rolled her head toward him and grinned. "Relax, Chakotay… the trip is done, the decisions made… the families contacted. All we have to do is land on the Presidio, and walk into the arms of our loved-ones." The grin on her face was wide and her eyes were dancing. Her promise to her crew was about to be fulfilled, her wish granted.

"All of the families were contacted? Even…" he couldn't finish the sentence - was almost afraid of the answer.

Kathryn grabbed his hand and nodded, "Yes. All of the families. They've spent the last week contacting everyone, arranging transportation for those who needed it." When his law dropped, she smirked. "Oh, don't deceive yourself. It's self-serving on their part. They want the adoring crowd as big as possible. They want to look like the benevolent rulers - willing to make bygones be bygones so that nobody asks how we were treated… and nobody offers up anything either."

Chakotay caught the bitter tone in her voice. It must be doubly difficult for someone like her, who had put their trust in Starfleet from an early age - held it through seven difficult years when she could have made whatever decision she chose - only to have the organization treat them with so little respect… until it realized that those disrespected people had a voice, and would use it. "Kathryn…"

She cut him off. "I wasn't able to get the decisions changed, though. I was able to get a few more concessions for Icheb, Seven, and the Doctor - Icheb's application for the Academy will be considered as any other member of the Federation, Seven will be allowed to make her own life decisions, and the Doctor's program will be his own. They will all be required to 'check in' regularly, though, to keep them under some kind of control." She sighed. "It's not perfect, but it's better than what Admiral Asshole wanted to do."

Chakotay laughed out loud, "Admiral Asshole? Kathryn Janeway, you should be ashamed of yourself. That's no way to treat a member of the Admiralty!"

She gave him the look she reserved for the likes of the Borg Queen. "A member who is currently being investigated for Court Martial. You'd better believe I'll give testimony - and be in the front row when he's convicted."

Her expression morphed into a sly smile. "Even if he's acquitted, he's embarrassed the Fleet Admiral, and pissed off a whole lot of the more… respectable… Admirals. He'll be better off cutting his losses and retiring. Maybe he'll be forced into resigning his commission and slinking off quietly into the sunset!"

They sat quietly for a moment, enjoying the idea of 'Admiral Asshole' getting a taste of what he tried to dish out to them. A thought occurred to Chakotay. "Kathryn, you've told me the fates of everyone on board, and you've given a general idea to the rest of the crew… but will there be an official announcement made?"

Surprise, followed by dismay, washed over her face. "You weren't told? I thought that everyone knew by now!" Her head dropped into her hands "Crickets, Chakotay! I feel just awful." She sat up again. "Do you think the whole crew would fit into someplace on the ship?"

"Maybe cargo bay one. It was emptied of everything when they were… cleaning house."

"Perfect." She slapped her hands on her legs and stood up. "Order an all-stop - I don't want any non-Voyager flying my ship. I'm going to get Admiral Paris to send over a skeleton crew to keep an eye on things while the entire crew can meet at once. You tell the crew - all of them, including Miral and Naomi Wildman - to assemble in cargo bay one at…" she checked the time, "say… 1500?"

He nodded, "Sounds good to me."

"Let's do it."

At 1500, the entire crew of Voyager was assembled in cargo bay one. Chakotay had sent out the message with some reassuring words. When he'd ordered Tom to an all-stop and told the bridge crew about the meeting, there had been worry and fear in their faces. He didn't want anyone else panicking - especially when their stations were taken over, once again, with crew from the other ships.

At 1501, Captain Janeway strode into the cargo bay… and was met with thundering applause from her crew. She stood with her arms crossed in front of her and allowed it to go on for a moment, then held up her hands to get everyone to settle down. "Voyagers - we did it. At the moment, we are only a day away from Earth, and should arrive at about this time tomorrow."

A cheer went up, which she quieted as soon as she could. "I want to thank all of you for your service and dedication over the last seven years… and also for your successful coup." She kept the comment vague - it wouldn't be a good idea for anyone to hear her openly support their actions.

"It has come to my attention that certain information has not been relayed to you… which I will share in just a moment. But first, I want to point out that without each one of you, the others around you would not be here, now. Together, we formed a family out of groups of people who thought they had nothing in common. Somewhere along the way, we stopped seeing ourselves as anything other than Voyager's crew. That's something I'm very proud of - I hope you are, too. I also want you to be aware that everyone's families have been contacted, and transportation has been provided so they are on-hand to meet us when we arrive tomorrow. Seven - that includes your aunt. Former Maquis - that also includes anyone Starfleet could locate."

"Unfortunately, Starfleet still sees us as different groups - a situation made all too clear to us a few weeks ago. While the news I'm going to share with you is all good - it is not equal. In the interest of getting all the information out completely, I will ask you all to hold off on your reactions until I have finished. So, without further ado…"

Kathryn went through the list, starting with the Starfleet Crew, moving down to Seven, Icheb, and the Doctor. When she was finished, she took a deep breath. "That's about it. Feel free to respond as you see fit."

There was a moment of silence, then You mean, we're free? I'm not going to be decompiled? I wonder if they found my cousin? Sihu - we can be together - neither one of us is going to jail! I don't have to tell my family what I did with Ransom?

Kathryn had not expected such positive reactions. She'd expected a small amount of relief, of course - no one was going to prison, the Equinox crew were not being disgraced, and everyone would be able to make their own decisions about their futures. The inequities had gone unnoticed - she now wondered if the topic would ever come up.

A smiling Chakotay appeared next to her. "I told you it would be alright. Over the past seven years, they have all learned to keep focus on the good things. When - if - the topic comes up, they will support each other." He cocked his head to one side, "You never said if your situation has changed.'

She sighed, "I'm still on administrative leave, pending further review. The attitude is much more positive, but I still have to give a lot of answers to a lot of questions."

He took both of her hands in his. "You know we'll all be here for you. Voyagers don't leave anyone behind - that's what their captain taught us."

She smiled and touched his face. "I'm counting on it."

Almost exactly 24 hours later, at 1430 hours, Voyager landed on the Presidio in front of Starfleet Headquarters. Their pilot, unable to resist the temptation, had first made a low-orbit pass around the entire planet, announcing their arrival to everyone on Earth with his typical flair. Even he was silent after the landing sequence was finished and B'Elanna - on the bridge with Miral tucked safely in a sling hung around her shoulders - shut down the engines.

No one moved, staring out the viewscreen at the long-awaited sight before them. Finally, Chakotay heard the quiet words of the Captain. "Promise… kept." Then she locked eyes with Chakotay as she ordered Harry to open another ship-wide channel. "Voyagers, welcome home." It was all she said. As before, Harry reversed the comm so she could hear the cheers of her crew.

"Ahem, Commander," came the voice of Tom Paris, "These are for you." He held out two bottles of Irish Whiskey. At Chakotay's puzzled look, he went on. "I figured you might actually want to toast the moment… and after guarding that bottle for so many years, Harren earned his own."

Kathryn laughed out loud - she'd known that Tom was entirely too intuitive to accept Chakotay's cover story at face value. She was about to say something to that respect when Chakotay spoke up. "Thank you, Tom, but I have a better idea how to celebrate."

Kathryn felt herself being swept up in Chakotay's arms. Before she could react, his lips were on hers.

Chakotay had taken a gamble - a big one - that they had been able to rebuild their relationship enough that she would accept what he was offering. After a tense moment, she relaxed and accepted the kiss, deepening it until it became passionate. Finally, they were forced to come up for air. Before they had completely separated, he whispered against her lips. "Promise… kept." When he pulled back to see her face, she was beaming, tears running down her face. He looked into her eyes "Marry me."

She nodded. "Yes."

A whoop came up from Tom Paris - still standing close enough to hear them speak. But the couple didn't notice, too wrapped up in each other, they forgot there were others around them.

Kathryn pulled Chakotay back in for another searing kiss. Again, as they separated to come up for air, he whispered against her lips. "Promise… kept."