His existence slowed to a crawl. For a brief moment, the world was silent and he was swallowed by her presence. His vision narrowed to encompass only her eyes. In his scrutiny, she was utterly still. She blinked... And he was throw into normality. The fine remnants of earth settled down on them in a shower. The dust tickled his nose. He coughed and drew in a ragged breath, heavy with sediment.

B'Elanna planted her hands in the dirt on either side of him and lifted her weight. "You all right?"

Chakotay swallowed hard and shifted. As a muscle in his back protested, he flinched. "I think so. You?"

"Fine. You can break my fall anytime, Chakotay," she teased.

The comment was rewarded with a dimpled smile. B'Elanna's attention was instantly drawn to the blood and dirt on his face. She instinctively reached down to wipe it away.

Her nearness stirred emotional memories. He reached up to intercept the touch but the capture of her wrist came too late. He broke the contact gently, her hand now covered in a fine mixture of red and brown. Their eyes met.

"Please don't," he said, frowning.

B'Elanna pulled out of his grasp and struggled to her feet. "Excuse me for caring." She turned and walked a short distance away.

Chakotay winced, guilt the source of his pain. He rose carefully.

"I don't know what's with you lately, Chakotay. But whatever it is, it's time to get over it. We can't work like this. Hell, we can't LIVE like this!"

He unconsciously moved to scratch an ear. "I know."

She approached him. "You've been like this ever since the Botha. What did they do to you? What did you SEE that's made you so skittish?"

Chakotay squared his shoulders. "I think we should concentrate our enery on finding a way out of here, don't you, Lt.?" His gaze shifted to the hole through which they had fallen.

"Oooooh, no," she growled. "You are NOT pulling rank. We're going to have this conversation and we're going to have it NOW." She crossed her arms tightly and leaned characteristically on one hip. Until she was willing to lend her help, they were stuck.

Chakotay sighed. He turned his eyes toward her once again. He saw in a flash the woman who had seduced him...

*************

"I'm the B'Elanna you've always wanted," she purred. Her voice was the embodiment of sex. Her movements exuded raw power as she advanced on him like a predator.

He drew in a hasty breath as her body made contact with his. Her charged electricity gave way to...

*************

Her angry face.

"You see what I mean? This is exactly what I'm talking about. You were lost in your own little world." She shifted her weight onto the other hip. "Who was she, Chakotay?"

He looked up sharply. "What?"

"Who...was...she?"

He hesitated. An escape. He needed an escape. He looked around the cavity that contained them and found only rock. B'Elanna waited impatiently. Cornered, Chakotay perched himself on a slab of granite.

"The woman that I love," he admitted, straight-faced.

"Finally! You're talking to me." She found a place to sit opposite him, her anger deflated. "Keep going. Get it out," she ordered.

"I was seduced. In my visions. The images that the Botha created," he explained.

B'Elanna smiled inspite of herself. "Okay, but why is that a bad thing? It's created a dark cloud over you for the past WEEK!"

"It's not that simple, B'Elanna." He shook his head in dismay.

"Why not? The last time I checked being seduced by someone you love is a GOOD thing."

"Not when that love isn't reciprocated."

B'Elanna's face immediately fell. "I'm sorry," she said honestly.

Chakotay couldn't help but smile at the irony. "So am I. She's a beautiful woman. Strong. Intelligent. Everything that I could ever want in a life mate."

"I didn't mean to pry."

His eyes softened. "You're my friend."

She chuckled, amazed at how one sentence could set things right. "Can I ask you one other thing?"

"Anything."

B'Elanna paused, wondering just how far she should push.

"Her name?"

To be continued....