Summary: Trek story I promised to share with a friend. Here you are,
darling, I even made some changes/improvements. Bear in mind,
this is from the early 90's, that's when it was written. Rated: Teen.

Disclaimer: The original Star Trek: TNG characters belong to
Paramount and the Roddenberries, I think. Also, UPN? I have in no
way harmed them during this writing.

Everyone Has A Bad Day -- Or Two

By: Lynda Mayfield

Riker felt like shit. When he sat up, he felt even worse. "Damn."

But today, he HAD to go to work. Betazed was on the way to their
next mission. That meant stopping to have a visit with Lwaxana
Troi. Sometimes, Counselor Troi's mother hounded Captain Picard too
much. The captain's well being was top priority, so staying in bed
or Sickbay was not an option.

The Enterprise could certainly pass Betazed by, and go straight on
to their mission. Except that Mrs. Troi might take offense. The
next time they saw her, she would be an even worse pain in the ass.
It was better to take this rotten medicine as it came, instead of
all at once. At least Starfleet always gave them a week's vacation
between missions. Furthermore, Deanna generally kept her mother
under control.

Will kicked off his blanket, the cool, comfortable air of his cabin
enveloping him. He was groggy and nauseous. He turned on the jets
of the sonic shower, hoping to feel reinvigorated.

After dressing, he left his quarters and went to the bridge. He
didn't think he could stomach anything for breakfast, so he skipped
it. Already on the bridge were Captain Picard, Lt. Commander Data,
and Lieutenant Worf. Will nodded to the security chief while
marching down the ramp and to his chair in the command center.

"You're just in time, Number One," Captain Picard said, "Mrs. Troi
is about to beam aboard."

Riker could not decide whether the captain was relieved at his
commander's presence or just being informative.

"Aye, sir," was all he said in safe reply. The Transporter Chief
contacted the bridge, informing all within hearing distance that
their gust was ready to beam. "I'll greet her," Riker offered.

"Thank you, Number One." Picard's appreciation was obvious by his
tone.

Riker departed the bridge and headed for Transporter Room One,
designated for Ambassadors and Officials, only. Chief O'Brien was
there, patiently awaiting orders.

"Energize," Riker commanded.

"Energize who?"" O'Brien asked innocently.

"Mrs. Troi. I'm here to meet her."

"Oh. She just beamed to the bridge, sir."

"With whose permission?"

"She said the captain wanted her beamed directly to the bridge."

With a quick ninety-degree turn of his heels, Will left the
transporter room, a second, "Damn," rolling off his tongue. As he
made his way to the bridge, the communicator on his chest beeped.
Riker tapped it and waited.

"Number One, please report to the bridge, right away. We have a
small dilemma."

"I know, sir, I'm already on my way," Will responded as amiably as
possible.

The turbolift seemed to take forever in reaching the bridge. Once
Will finally got there, he descended the ramp with long strides.
Picard was already in a calm debate with Mrs. Troi about abusing and
manipulating his officers.

"It's just that I hate all of that preamble I get from--ah, just the
man I wanted to see. Hello, Will."

Will already had his guard up, shielding his emotions as well as
possible while putting on his best fake smile. This was a trick he
had learned from dating the ship's part-Betazoid counselor.

"Lwaxana." Inclining his head in greeting, he saw that Deanna was on
the bridge.

"How have you been, my dear boy?"

"Very well, thank you." He felt another round of nausea coming
on, "And yourself?"

"I haven't been well at all. Why don't you show me to my quarters?"

"A pleasure." Riker assured her. If he could get her off the
bridge, the captain would surely be satisfied. He offered their
guest his arm, she accepted, and they went into the turbolift
together. Just before the doors closed, Riker heard Deanna
scream, "Mother!"

He grinned widely at the counselor as the doors hissed shut and the
turbolift whisked them off to the guest quarters. As they
descended, Riker let his mind wonder exactly what Mrs. Troi had in
mind for him. He let his mind barriers down at the same time. So,
Lwaxana read his mind as easily as a book.

Once they reached her quarters, she said, "Commander, you have some
very interesting thoughts. Care to come in and explore a few of
them?"

Riker's pale face flushed red in a matter of 2 seconds. With his
right hand, he pulled at the side of his beard and gently
declined. "I have to return to the bridge," he excused himself.

Will smiled at Deanna upon his return to the bridge. He received a
steely glare from her; the reaction he was hoping for. Will was in
a foul mood because he was sick. Nausea was not enough to keep him
off the bridge unless he actually vomited then and there. How
embarrassing that would be! Will knew it, so he kept his mind off
the idea. Feeling so ill, he found no harm in playfully fooling his
fellow comrades. Anyone would do--except the Captain.

"Data, we'll remain in orbit here for two days so that Counselor
Troi may visit with her mother. Also, extend shore leave to all
those who want it." Captain Picard ordered.

"Aye, sir." The android officer automatically responded.

Hearing that, all of the bridge officers except Data, Worf, Will,
and Deanna departed. Riker knew that he was no longer needed on the
bridge; Data could handle that. Suddenly ashamed of his behavior
toward Troi, he rose to apologize.

"Deanna, " he said, breaking her train of thought, "Why don't we
beam down to Betazed for a while?"

"I don't think so, Will. It's about time I went to see my mother."

"Dinner this evening, maybe?"

"Impossible. My mother would get the wrong idea."

"Let her. Or better yet, bring her along."

"Forget it, Will."

Will was frustrated that none of his tactics were working. Usually,
by now, she would be eating out of his hands. Miss Prim and
Proper. Maybe this was her way of getting back at him. Although
they were friends, they would occasionally stay angry at each other
for weeks. Riker did not want that and he could tell she was not
watching his emotions-a polite gesture on her part. And now his
turn for polite gestures.

I'm really sorry for what I did earlier." he admitted. Then his
face broke out into a grin, "Besides, you KNOW that I wouldn't do
anything with your mother. She's not my type.

"She's not?" Troi asked in feigned disbelief.

"Nope. Too domineering and-" Riker cut off before he could offend
the counselor again.

"And?" Troi's curiosity got the best of her.

"And she's not half as beautiful as you are, only, don't tell her
that."

"Is eight okay?" Troi asked him.

"Eight's fine." Riker said, relieved that his flattery had pulled
him through.

"WithOUT my mother," Troi added.

"Perfect."

Riker stayed on the bridge until the night watch began at six. Then
he went to his quarters and took another shower. He chose to wear a
loose, red sweater and a pair of grey trousers. Feeling more
comfortable, he gave his beard a trim and cut his mustache so that
he would not have hair falling into his mouth.

For dinner, Will ordered two succulent T-bone steaks and a bottle of
wine. Although Deanna did not drink, it was a special touch,
besides, Riker DID drink----even if it was synthahol. He pulled out
from a safe place a couple of wine glasses a friend of his had given
him.

A few minutes later, while he sat reading, his door chimed. He
fully expected Deanna to be standing there when he said, "Come."

His door opened, revealing Lwaxana Troi;not his date.

"Can I help you?" he asked.

"Yes. Can you tell me where I can find Jean-Luc?"

"The computer can help you find Captain Picard." Riker responded,
gruffly.

"I asked your computer. It said he was not aboard." Mrs. Troi
sulked.

"Then that's where he is. He's certainly not here. He might be on
Betazed or out in a shuttlecraft." Riker offered.

"Are you sure you don't know where he is?" Lwaxana wanted to know.

That was all Will could handle, "I'm not the captain's keeper! Go
look for him elsewhere. Use your damned Betazoid powers or
something. In short, go away, Lwaxana!!"

"Well, if you feel that way," Mrs. Troi gave him a pout.

Nonplussed, Will yelled at the top of his lungs, "GO!" His patience
had run out. Lwaxana turned tail as fast as was aristocratically
possible and left Riker's view.

Moments later, Riker was sitting, almost calmly, on his couch. His
doorbell called once more.

"Come." Riker said, still a bit troubled.

Deanna entered this time, knowing pity on her face, "You're upset."
she stated.

"I had a visit from your mother." Riker said.

"I know."

The two ate, speaking between bites.

"She can be a real trouble-maker sometimes." Riker stated.

"You upset her, you know."

"No, I didn't know that. I'll go apologize to her. Later."

"Are you feeling okay?"

"Yeah."

"Will . . ."

"I haven't been feeling too well since I got up, but I feel
better now. I think I'll be okay."

Dinner was finished, so Deanna bid Riker a good night and returned
to her quarters. It was already ten in the evening, and tomorrow
Will had to hunt down Mrs. Troi. He had a long day ahead of him, so
he just pulled off his clothes and fell asleep. The day had ended
as well as it had started.

At 0600 hours, the alarm in Riker's quarters came on even though he
was not scheduled for a duty shift. He had forgotten to shut it off
the evening before. Groaning, he rolled out of bed and quieted the
noise. Since he was already awake, he decided to go ahead and get
dressed. Where was that grey sweater he was so fond of? Ah-over in
the corner. On it and a pair of navy trousers went. Relaxing, he
had a cup of coffee. As he still felt sick, the commander decided
to see Dr. Crusher to get rid of his illness. He slipped into his
boots and headed for Sickbay.

Doctor Crusher was in her office when Will arrived. She wore her
standard light blue jacket over the dark blue Starfleet uniform.
She greeted him, then took his vitals with a tricorder. Before his
arrival she was bent over her monitor, busily working on a report
for a colleague on the planet below. Looking up, she saw the
Commander's blue-grey eyes returning her gaze.

"What are your symptoms like, Will?"

"I've got this cold I can't shake." He sat on the nearby pallet.

A look of confidence took over her features. "Come here. I've
got just the thing for that." Sickbay was empty, Riker noticed, as
he followed her to a counter where she reached for a hypo containing
a yellow-green liquid. She pressed it into the side of his arm and
it slowly emptied. "It should start working in about five minutes.
If it doesn't, I'd better re-examine you."

Riker waited the five minutes in Sickbay and was relieved when the
doctor's cure began working. He thanked her and left to find
Lwaxana Troi. It was eight o'clock, and with any luck she would be
in her quarters, awake. He asked the computer for her location, and
it obediently obliged him. She was right where the commander
expected her to be.

With haste, he went to the guest quarters of the Enterprise. Most
of the halls he walked through were empty. The lights slowly
brightened for the day watch. A few feet from Mrs. Troi's quarters,
Riker put up his emotional guard and pushed her doorbell. He hated
apologies.

"Come in, Will." Lwaxana commanded from within.

And he hated her free use of her empathic powers. As he stepped
forward, the doors opened, and he walked in.

Lwaxana sat upright on a couch that faced her doors. She wore a
strapless dress that had a myriad of colors on it. Her hair was put
up in its usual style. She looked at Will sincerely, listening for
what he had to say.

"I want to apologize for my behavior last night. I had no right to
be so . . . impatient with you."

"Actually, I'M the one who should apologize. It was quite obvious
that you were going to have a dinner companion." Lwaxana repented.

"Still, you could not have known beforehand." Riker said.

"It's okay, Will."

"Well, if there's anything I can do for you, " Will backed toward
the door of her quarters slowly, wondering where Deanna's real
mother was.

"You'll be the first to know." Mrs. Troi guaranteed him.

Riker left, that weight off his chest. The corridors were beginning
to fill as the ship awakened from its eight hour slumber.
Youngsters were leaving their quarters to play and go to classes.
Personnel were beaming to and from the ship. Riker visited
engineering, the thrum of the engines suddenly appealing and
somewhat comforting to him.

To his surprise, Geordi was there. Like a scientist who cannot stay
away from his laboratory, Geordi was always carefully watching and
maintaining HIS warp engines.

"Geordi." Riker said, getting the Lieutenant Commander's attention.

"Hi," the engineer responded.

"You aren't going to take advantage of shore leave?"

"I am, Commander. Since we're not in warp, I've had the opportunity
to experiment on a few things."

That was just like Geordi. Always finding a reason to remain
shipbound. Riker sighed and suddenly remembered a project he had
agreed to help a boy named Alex with.

Alex was an intelligent young man, and, being so smart, he had asked
for the Commander's help a week ago. He was in the third grade, and
his class had just begun a unit on astronomy. Alex wanted to build
a model of Earth's solar system, and since his parents were busy
during the day, the boy had boldly marched himself to the quarters
of his role model and asked for help.

Will was an hour late-a poor example to set for a follower-so he
rushed out of engineering to the boy's home. When the door chime
went off, Riker heard Alex's voice ask, "Who's there?"

"It's Commander Riker."

"Come in." The youngster sounded excited.

Riker obeyed the request, another apology on the tip of his tongue.

"You're an hour early." Alex said, pleased.

"I am." It was more a question than a statement because he couldn't
figure out where he had remembered the time wrong. Will had to
redeem himself, quickly, "Well, uh, I had a little extra time. So,
where is that model you needed help with?"

Alex showed Riker where his bedroom was. It was absolutely
spotless. Everything was in its place. The bed was made. Riker
had to give the kid credit. That place was neater than HIS
quarters. Will waited patiently while Alex took out the material he
needed.

Two and a half hours later they had finished the sun, six of its
planets, their moons, and an asteroid belt.

"You've done a good job, Alex." Will said, looking at it proudly.

"I couldn't have done it without you." The boy reminded him.

"But you did do a lot of the work."

"Yeah.".

"I really have to go now, but we can do more tomorrow." Will said, a
tad disappointed that he had to leave.

"Okay." Alex said perkily.

After helping clean up, Will left Alex and went to find some
entertainment of his own. Ensign Bradley usually found his way to
10-Forward by midday, maybe he -- no, Will decided. He was too tired
to do anything but sleep so the commander turned toward his
quarters. Once there, he immediately lay down. He did not have as
much energy as young Alex did. He rolled over once and fell asleep.

Two hours later, he was awakened by his doorbell. Riker scratched
his head and left the bed, requesting a glass of water from the
replicator. He told the visitor to enter. The door opened to
reveal Alex.

"What can I do for you?" Riker asked, willingly.

"Am I disturbing you?" Alex wondered, curiously.

"Not at all."

"I came by to tell you that I decided to finish the project by
myself after you left. Do you want to see it?"

"I sure do." Will said enthusiastically.

He followed the boy into the turbolift to the deck where he lived.
Alex must have known that Commander Riker would have said yes. When
the doors opened, Earth and its solar system were beautifully
displayed on a table in the foyer. Will was truly impressed with
the boy's work and told him so.

"Thanks for helping me." Alex said.

Riker smiled, "It was my pleasure."

The following day……

Riker always liked to be on the bridge when the Enterprise left
orbit. Once he was outfitted in his suit of red and black, he
headed for the bridge.

A blanket of quiet had covered the bridge when he arrived. Not the
slightest sound could be coming from anywhere but helm control.
Data sat in the captain's chair. Will relieved him of command. On
the viewscreen, Betazed was surrounded by the polka dot background
of space and stars. It seemed lonely from the orbital view, but
Riker knew that it was quite the contrary on the planet below.

"Commander Riker, report to my ready room immediately." Picard's
voice ordered the younger officer.

Will rose from his seat quickly and proceeded to go see Captain
Picard.

Picard had a guest with him. On his lap sat Lwaxana Troi. Will
muttered several curses under his breath. The captain seemed to
ignore him, and was more concerned with the woman in his lap. Riker
knew that he should have been keeping an eye on her. At that
moment, he felt that he had shirked his duties.

"Commander, would you please get this man-hungry woman off of me?!"

"Right away, sir." Riker gently tugged on Lwaxana's arms until she
got the idea and finally gave way. She said nothing throughout the
whole situation. Riker took her out to the bridge and had Worf
escort her back to her quarters to assist in packing the Ambassador
to leave. She obviously did not want to return to Betazed.

Riker and Picard chatted until it was time to leave the orbit of
Betazed. Will enjoyed exploring the many galaxies and serving on
Enterprise allowed him to do that. He would be the first. Ones
always seemed to be associated with his name, but even Number One
has a bad day or two.

The End