Chakotay enters the Brig. Chakotay enters the Brig. (pop-up window)

Chakotay demands of Curneth in the holding cell: "Can the effects of the neurolytic emitter be reversed?" Curneth: "Reversed? I have no idea. As far as I know, no one's ever tried." Chakotay: "Then I'll be the first. Tell me how the emitter works, how it affects the memory centres." Curneth: "You sound desperate, Commander. Does Kellin mean that much to you?" Chakotay: "What you're doing is wrong! She wants to stay here." Curneth: "This is futile. Even if I knew how the emitter works, I wouldn't tell you." Chakotay turns off the forcefield and enters the holding cell. Angrily he seizes Curneth. With difficulty, Chakotay manages to prevent himself from doing worse. Chakotay: "You have no right to do this!" Curneth: "I have every right. The laws on our world are very specific about that. No one may leave. No one may reveal anything about us to the outside world. Kellin has violated both of those edicts. Returning her will serve as a deterrent to others who might think of leaving." Chakotay: "Did it ever occur to you that the fact that so many people want to leave might mean there's something wrong with your society?" Curneth: "We have a strong and cohesive society, because of our efforts to keep it that way. A few runaways among millions hardly indicates a problem." Chakotay: "If there are so few, why not let them go?" Curneth: "That would suggest that we don't care about them - what a terrible message." Chakotay: "You may have wiped her memory, but Kellin's not going back." Curneth: "Maybe we should wait, and see if that's what happens." Chakotay: "She made it clear to me that she wants to stay here. So maybe you should start practising what you're going to tell your superiors." He leaves the cell.

USS Voyager in flight.

Chakotay arrives at Kellin's quarters. He presses the door signal. door signal

Kellin calls: "Yes?" He enters. standard doors

Chakotay: "The Doctor told me he'd released you. How are you feeling?" Kellin: "I'm fine. Do I know you?" The lack of recognition hurts, but Chakotay manages to conceal it. He answers: "Yes. At least you did." Kellin: "You'll have to forgive me but I don't remember how I got here or anything else that's happened in at least the past few weeks." Chakotay: "I know." Kellin refers to the broken vase. "I hope I wasn't throwing things in a fit of rage." Chakotay: "No."

Kellin: "I assume a tracer is here to take me back." Chakotay: "That's right, but..." He hesitates. "What I'm going to say will sound strange, but it's what you asked me to do before you lost your memories. You came here about a month ago, looking for a runaway. After you left with him you decided to come back." Kellin: "But if I finished my assignment, why would I come back here?" Chakotay: "Because you'd fallen in love with me." Kellin: "Forgive me. You're certainly attractive but what you're telling me seems very unlikely." Chakotay: "But it's what happened. We started to work together and I began to realise how unique you are. Before long I couldn't get you out of my mind."

Kellin: "Are you saying that you fell in love with me as well?" Chakotay: "Yes. And then we realised that the tracer was on board. After he used the emitter on you, you made me promise to tell you all this so that you would know what happened between us." Kellin: "This is er...a little unsettling. What is it that you want from me?"

Chakotay: "Kellin, don't go back with the tracer. Stay here for a while, at least for a few days. We can get to know each other again." Kellin: "I honestly can't imagine what could be served by that. I have to go home." Chakotay: "If you stayed, you might change your mind." Kellin: "Then that's all the more reason that I should leave now. I've violated one of our most important edicts, and I wouldn't want to make that mistake again." Chakotay's heart sinks, hearing the finality in that.

Kellin says: "I wish," and he turns in the doorway, "I wish we had met under different circumstances." Chakotay, his heart breaking, can only leave.

USS Voyager and Curneth's Ramuran ship.

In the transporter room, Curneth and Kellin are preparing to beam aboard Curneth's ship. Chakotay enters, carrying Curneth's neurolytic emitter.

Chakotay tells Kellin: "Your ship's ready." Curneth to Chakotay: "I've implanted a computer virus to eliminate any reference to our being here. By tomorrow afternoon you'll have forgotten everything. It'll be as though we never existed. It's better that way." Kellin to Chakotay: "You're such a kind person. I won't forget that."

Chakotay returns the emitter to Curneth.

Curneth goes up onto the transporter pad. Kellin take her place on the transporter pad.

For a moment Chakotay looks intently at Kellin, trying to fix her in his memory forever.

Kellin looks back, but to her Chakotay is a stranger.

Then Chakotay gives the order: "Energise." The transporter officer beams them out.

Kellin is gone. Chakotay is left only with his memories.....memories he knows will not last.

Chakotay: "First Officer's personal log, stardate 51813.4. Maybe it would be best, as the tracer said, to forget about Kellin and the time she spent here. But I don't want to do that. I want to remember her."

It is late and in the Messhall Chakotay is writing a record by hand.

Neelix: "More coffee, Commander?" Chakotay: "No thanks. I'm almost done." Neelix: "Strange to see you using those ancient writing implements." Chakotay: "Ah. It's the only way I could get a permanent record of what's happened in the last few days. I want to get it down before I forget it all." Neelix: "I'm sorry things didn't work out for you." Chakotay: "I've been trying to make sense of it. I fell in love with her twice. I thought she could do the same. We're the same two people on the same ship. Why didn't it happen again? I keep going over and over our last conversation, trying to think if there was something I could've said, could've done, but nothing comes to mind." Neelix: "Commander, I don't think you can analyse love. It's the greatest mystery of all. No one knows why it happens or doesn't. It's a chance combination of elements. Any one thing might be enough to keep it from igniting: a mood, a glance, a remark. And if we could define love, predict it, it would probably lose its power. I'll let you finish." Chakotay: "Good night."

Neelix leaves Chakotay alone in the Messhall, with his writing and the last of his memories.