Commander William T. Riker found himself behind the wheel of a twentieth-century automobile that was parked in front of a large, white two-story house. He didn't remember how he'd gotten there. All her remembered was programming the holodeck for an 'earth, twentieth century' program. He had no idea where he was or what he was doing there.
Curious, he got out of the car, walked to the front door, and rang the doorbell. The door swung open almost immediately, and before him stood a slender young woman with shoulder-length, mousy auburn hair and friendly hazel eyes.
"Ashley! You've come back for me!" she exclaimed happily.
Will frowned. Ashley? He decided that it would probably be best to simply play along, at least for now. "Of course I did," he said, wondering how he'd learn the young woman's identity. He didn't have to wonder for very long.
"Erin! Who is it?" called a feminine voice from inside the house.
"It's Ashley Longworth Jr., Mom! He's come back!" Erin replied. A moment later, a tired-looking, middle-aged woman with limp dark blonde hair appeared. She smiled at Will.
"Welcome back to Walton's Mountain," she said.
"Thanks, ma'am." He gave her his typical charming smile. "It's good to be back."
"Won't you come in?" asked the woman. "We were just about to have supper. There's plenty enough for an extra person."
Will had the distinctly uneasy feeling that his companions were acting unusually realistic for holodeck characters. He shrugged, imagining that it must be an uncharacteristically good program.
Putting his misgivings aside for the time being, he followed the two women to the table, where he saw a burly middle-aged man with dark hair and bright blue eyes, several younger men, all with red hair, and a teenage girl with long red hair.
"Look who's back, everybody!" the middle-aged woman announced.
"Ashley!" The older man's well-worn face creased into a friendly smile. "Welcome back!"
"Thank you, sir." Will took his place at the table with them and waited to be served.
Deanna Troi knew that the man standing before her was not her Imzadi, William T. Riker. Although he looked identical to Will, the Imzadi connection wasn't there at all. His mind was a total blank to her.
"Who are you?" she asked.
"My name is Ashley Longworth, Jr." Puzzled, Ashley looked around. "What is this place?"
"You're aboard the star ship the U.S.S. Enterprise," Deanna told him.
"Star ship?" Ashley sounded amazed. "Who are you?" he asked suspiciously.
"Counselor Deanna Troi," Deanna told him. "How did you get here?"
"I have no idea," Ashley replied. "One minute I was on my way to visit Erin Walton, and the next thing I knew, I was here."
Deanna remembered that Will had told her that he was going to play on the holodeck. She wondered whether that had anything to do with Ashley's sudden appearance aboard the Enterprise. She could sense the young man's strong apprehension and longed to ease his mind.
"Please don't despair," she told him. "I'm sure we'll be able to get you back to where you belong soon."