Paramount owns it. They really mucked it up though, so here's my shot at setting some of it right. Thank God they're not responsible for running our imaginations.
A/N: So, you may have noticed this isn't exactly synchronous with the actual plotline in Nemesis. Let's ride the magical trolley to the land of make believe and pretend that in Nemesis, Shinzon doesn't send the knife over for the blood test, but in fact beams over to the 1701-E and meets Bev. The rest here are just extra scenes. Thanks for riding along.
Possession
One
"Can you honestly tell me captain, that you have no regrets?"
"Once a choice is made, it is made. There is little point in dwelling on the past." Picard paused reflectively, dramatically. "I was once given an opportunity to change actions I took in my youth. The outcome was not desirable."
"And yet it is only human to wonder about the road not taken. And all the more difficult to forget when we are reminded by her presence every day." Shinzon stood as Picard's head jerked toward him sharply. He continued before Picard had a chance to respond. "You're a brave man captain. You live your life with confidence and courage. You're an explorer. It has never intimidated you to voyage blindly into the unknown. And yet you cower in fear before the very greatest adventure in life: love."
Regaining his composure Picard spoke. "I'm not entirely sure why you've invited me here Shinzon, nor what you're insinuating. But if it is simply to insult me then our time has reached its conclusion."
Across the shadows the two men locked gazes, both level and filled with veiled challenge.
"Don't play stupid Picard. It doesn't become you." Robe flowing and subsequently piling on the floor, Shinzon returned to the table and sat again. "DNA is a compelling force. It drives us to eat, sleep, fight, run. Its power is undeniable. For all our differences Jean-Luc, you and I are still unnervingly similar."
"This is a tired conversation between us Shinzon." The older man shook his head in resigned frustration and continued, as though unruffled by the prodding of the young aggressor. "You cannot convince me that we are not empowered to make our own choices in life." Picard raised a brow pointedly. "To blame circumstance for our actions is cowardly."
"And what of our inaction Jean-Luc? Who can we blame for that?" Shinzon stood again to punctuate his next volley. "Would you blame Beverly for your desperately lonely life?" Shinzon's own brow raised in mockery as Picard's eyes fired with anger, finally understanding the direction of the attack.
Jean-Luc's tone betrayed his unaffected façade, lowering in pitch and rising in intensity. "Beverly Crusher is not something I will discuss with you, Shinzon."
The young man recognized the success of his tactic and pressed the advantage. In all that he had learned of the great captain, Shinzon could not have helped but to run across Doctor Beverly Crusher. She had been a part of the man's life for the past three decades. He had been intrigued to learn what had become of Jack Crusher, and the subsequent ambiguous dance between the widow and the man responsible for taking her husband from her. There was of course nothing conclusive about their relationship in any available records – simply years of shared duty, shared vacations, and of course the boy Wesley - to whom it appeared Picard had become a surrogate father.
"Was it guilt, Captain, or fear that kept you from indulging in that last taboo with the wife of your best friend? You raised his son, became a companion to his widow. You did all that – but what was it that kept you from taking that final step?" A mocking anger rose in Shinzon's voice. He knew he had now gone too far, but it was rewarding to see the pain and rage in Picard's face. The arrogant old man held the power of life and death over him – and he had so much that Shinzon did not, may not ever, have.
"We are finished here." Picard stood abruptly and favored Shinzon with a contemptuous look. He tapped his comm. badge. "One to beam back, Enterprise." Picard swirled away in blue as Shinzon smiled meanly in triumph.
Though he had seen many her many times on viewscreens, Shinzon had not at all been prepared for the powerful and visceral effect Beverly Crusher had on him when they had finally met face to face. As did the captain, she had an aura of authority and confidence that was undeniable. Shinzon found himself drawn to her just as a young Picard was decades ago. She was self-assured yet unassuming – kind, but Shinzon sensed also capable of incredible feats of power and strength. She was, in a word, breathtaking. It was yet another opportunity handed to Jean-Luc Picard that had he had simply ignored, and for that Shinzon begrudged him all the more. Beverly Crusher had quickly become as much an object of Shinzon's obsession as the captain himself.
The two massive ships remained suspended in the cold darkness of space. They faced each other in a silent standoff, their captains both entranced by the specter of the other and lost in shadowy worlds of introspection.
"There's a howlin' at my window, I hear him closin' in. That green eyed jackal has got the scent, knows I'll let him in. He slinks in by me at the fire, more bitter than the cold. And it's a rage as old as Hades, that'll sputter on these coals."
Bonnie Raitt – Spit of Love – Fundamental Things –
