"…Deanna? Deanna!"
Troi was jolted away from her wandering thoughts and back to her table at Ten Forward. Her eyes met the cool blue gaze of Beverly Crusher, who was waving her hand in front of Deanna's face teasingly.
"Anyone home? I was asking if you wanted to take our drinks to my quarters. Now that Wesley's away at Academy, I find I'm getting more and more bored during off hours. We should take advantage of the lack of teenage boys and have a girls' night in!"
Deanna blinked and smiled sheepishly. "I'd love to, Bev, but there's a holonovel that I absolutely need to finish. It's been driving me crazy all day not knowing how it ends. Maybe next weekend?"
Beverly's bright smile waned slightly, and Deanna suppressed a pang of guilt. "Oh, that's fine. Next weekend, then." Beverly fixed Troi with a curious expression. "Though, you really have been spending a lot of time in the holodeck lately. Is this holonovel really that good?"
Troi nearly choked on her hot chocolate. "Ah, yes. Yes. Jane Eyre is…very thrilling. And mysterious. And romantic. It truly is everything one would want in a holonovel…" She trailed off, avoiding her friend's look of confusion. Her rambling was clearly making Beverly more suspicious, so she gulped the last of her chocolate and excused herself as cheerily as she could.
Beverly was right to be concerned, of course, Troi admitted to herself as she made her way toward the nearest turbolift. Ever since the first incident with the holographic Will, she had spent increasingly more time in the holodeck. She justified it to herself as fascination over the anomalous nature of the program. Somehow, rather than following predetermined actions and phrases, the hologram often deviated wildly from what she had initially designed.
For one thing, his "personality" didn't resemble Will's one bit. Whereas Will was affable and good-natured, his double was sly, with a dark sense of humor that bordered on cruel at times. Though they shared the same voice, the hologram's was sharper, harsher, and had a sarcastic lilt that made everything he said seem as if it might be a joke.
Or a lie.
Deanna could not detect emotions from the hologram, obviously. And this intrinsic difference between the two was the crux of the program's appeal.
His mind was impenetrable. Or more accurately, his mind was a series of algorithms with no emotional context for her to decipher. It gave her a sense of helplessness in a way, like he had an edge on her that no human ever had before. And she liked that feeling. She liked that he was a mystery. She liked that he could say one thing then do another. She liked that he felt dangerous.
Of course, Deanna never felt truly threatened by him. She was in total control of the program, and could halt it just like she did the first time.
The hologram seemed to be aware of this, somehow, and hadn't tried quite such a forceful advance on her since then. But Deanna always had the sense that he was steadily pushing boundaries to see how far he could go.
How close could he stand to her before she stepped to maintain a distance.
How filthy and harsh could his speech become before she nervously redirected the conversation.
How much could he touch—hands, cheek, side of her neck, small of her back—before she drew away.
How tightly could he hold her to him before she began to squirm in discomfort.
He had never pressed for sex, though he mocked her prudishness whenever she rebuffed his more amorous advances. As much as he was snide and cruel, he could also be very seductive. Deanna felt as if her defenses were being gently and deftly pried from her as she fell deeper under his influence.
Yes, she was fascinated by this miraculous fluke of engineering. So fascinated, in fact, that her counselling sessions were beginning to suffer for it. With the thought of the program waiting for her, it was difficult to focus on the seemingly petty anxieties of some of the crewmembers who came to her. And in contrast to the blissful stillness of the holodeck, the riotous emotions of those around her became increasingly unpleasant. Rather than civic duty, sometimes her job felt more like a chore.
It's not a crime to be distracted from work once in a while, Deanna kept insisting to herself. All the while a small part of her wondered whether she was being altered for the worse with each self-indulgent visit.
Deep in this train of thought as she reached the turbolift, she almost let out a yelp of surprise when the doors slid open to reveal Will and Shisoru. Shisoru's large grey eyes widened at Troi's shocked expression, but Will beamed at her and beckoned her into the lift.
"Going our way, Deanna?"
Troi mumbled an affirmative.
"You have to hear this—Captain Shisoru was just telling me how her ship briefly made contact with the Rju-uln a few months back. Can you believe that? I thought they never revealed themselves to people outside their race if they could help it."
"They were interested in a foreign organism that was following our warp trail. I suppose they couldn't pass up the opportunity to study it. A very science-oriented people, it seems." Shisoru smiled up at Will. "As for myself, I'm afraid I could never be bothered with science. My grades during Academy can attest to that." The couple shared a laugh, and Troi suppressed the desire to vomit. Their infatuation with each other pulsated nauseatingly in her brain.
"How interesting," was all she could manage as the lift reached her deck. She kicked herself for being so unfriendly, but she wanted to extract herself from this conversation and leave.
Picking up on Troi's discomfort, Shisoru added "It seems that you are in a hurry, Counselor. Perhaps we will see you later."
"Hurry? What could you be doing? You're off duty tonight." Riker pressed.
"Holonovel." Troi said too quickly, unable to look him in the eye. She nodded politely at Shisoru and awkwardly excused herself for the second time that night.
"Well, we'll be in the botanical garden in case you want to join us." Will offered amiably as the doors of the turbolift closed.
"I'd rather bathe in a tub of Ferengi tube grubs." Troi muttered to herself, trudging toward Holodeck 7.
ooOoo
"Computer, play program 'Troi-014.'"
Ten Forward glimmered into focus all around Deanna, and if transported directly from the turbolift, Will's handsome figure materialized into his usual position, leaning against the usual table.
"I knew you'd be back," the hologram smirked, his eyes hooded. "Just can't resist me, huh?"
Will's eyes—but not.
Her gaze flicked away from his and settled on his lips. "Don't flatter yourself. I thought you'd be desperate for company tonight and decided to take pity on you."
The hologram laughed softly at that, his lips twisting into a lopsided smile—another odd deviation from the original Will that Deanna found unexpectedly alluring. He seemed to perceive her staring and his smile widened.
"Boy, do you look tightly wound. Rough night?" He began stalking closer to her.
"That's not very complimentary, Will." She turned and walked a little ways to a nearby table, knowing he was tailing her. He caught her arm and gently spun her to face him.
"I can think of a few ways to help you relax, Deanna."
She had no doubts about his meaning. Most visits, Deanna would scoff and change the subject. It was a game of push and pull they played, building tension until they reached the knife's edge of seduction, and she would abruptly end the program. Deanna had been adamant to herself about not having real sexual intimacy with a hologram. It seemed too much like an admission of defeat. She was content to have her little imaginary flirtations and then take care of herself in the privacy of her own quarters.
But in this moment, Deanna realized that she was past the point of caring, too exhausted to feel shame.
Instead, she pressed her body against his, laced her fingers behind his neck and pulled him down to kiss her. His lips slanted against hers, and when she left his tongue brush against hers, she moaned into his mouth.
The hologram broke the kiss, licking his lips and peering down at her haughtily.
"Not such a priss tonight, are you? Why the change of heart?"
"It's this ship." she paused, "The air is so thin in these Federation ships. I can't breathe."
The holographic Will didn't seem to be listening. He pressed a kiss against her throat and nipped at it. She flinched against him, but his grip was unyielding. Inhuman.
"I think," he breathed against her ear, "we should make up for lost time. How quickly do you think I can get your cunt dripping wet?"
Deanna sucked in a breath.
For a moment, she gazed wildly into his eyes, searching for some point of similarity to Will. Searching for his humor, his tenderness, his gentleness. She found none, and her relief confused her.
Her mind couldn't linger on that thought, however, because she was being pulled to the ground.
"Computer, create a bed, 76 by 80 inches in measurement," Deanna commanded. She wouldn't suffer the humiliation of being taken on the hard floor of holo-Ten Forward.
"That's more like it." The hologram growled, pushing her against the sheets and climbing on top of her.
As he began peeling off her uniform, Deanna wondered briefly if Federation holograms were equipped for sex acts, as were the ones made for holosuites. This one certainly acted like it. His voice returned her attention to him.
"Now Deanna, Imzadi, I want you to watch what I'm doing to you, because I'm going to absolutely ruin you for any other man."
His mouth was hovering just above her cunt, still covered by her panties. She felt his breath fan over her, and she couldn't help but buck upward toward his lips. He seemed to like that quite a bit. Deanna caught the smugly triumphant glint in his eye as he lowered his mouth to press lightly against her mons. She bucked again, but his hands pushed her thighs down in place. He continued to kiss against her panties at a maddeningly leisurely pace, enough to drive her crazy but too gentle to give relief.
Deanna was at the point of cursing at him when she felt the tip of his tongue slick over her clit, and instead she let out a moan. She could feel him laughing at her.
"Do it more—not through panties." She hissed, not sure if she was speaking coherently or not.
"Manners, Imzadi."
"Please," Deanna bit out, not caring about pride.
She heard a rip, and saw the tatters that were her panties tossed to the ground unceremoniously. Meanwhile, the hologram was now buried between her legs, lapping hungrily at her quim.
Through the haze of her arousal, Deanna noted that perhaps Federation holograms really weren't programmed for this kind of thing. The hologram didn't lack skill by any means, but as he pleasured her with increasing intensity, his image seemed to be fraying at the edges—though he didn't seem to notice, so intent on his work. Deanna thought to herself rather selfishly that she hoped he could bring her to orgasm before completely shorting out. She was so far gone, she could barely think. When the hologram sucked on her clit, she threw her head back and squeezed her eyes shut.
"Look at me when I'm fucking you, Troi."
Deanna's eyes flew wide open in an instant—the sharp, sardonic voice she just heard did not belong to Will. She jerked her head up to see Data laving his tongue against her cunt, and for a brief moment wondered if she had gone insane.
Data had begun sucking on her clit again, and it took all her strength to focus on the program malfunction and not its mouth.
"Computer…" she began, then broke off when the realization hit her.
Not Data. Lore.
ooOoo
Deanna gaped at the android—hologram?—who was still eating her out, apparently unaware of this new development. By this point the shock of his appearance had superseded the strength of her arousal, and her first instinct was to try to scramble away. His iron grip held her in place, tightening in response to her sudden noncompliance.
"Lore!" Deanna half-yelled, half-moaned.
Lore's head jerked up, lips parted in confusion and glistening with her wetness. She saw his eyes shift from her face down to his pale, synthetic hand, still clutching her thigh. It slackened for one moment, and Deanna took this chance to kick at his head. The blow barely registered, and Lore didn't budge an inch from his position between her legs. It seemed as if he was rapidly calculating a plan of action, trying to size up the situation. Within a split second he had made a decision, and fixed his expression into one of smug satisfaction.
"Don't act so upset, Troi—you were moaning my name just moments ago." Lore sneered, licking her juices from his lips with exaggerated relish. He released her legs in one smooth motion and she crawled backwards away from him as far as the bed allowed.
"What the hell are you doing here? How are you here—as a hologram?"
"I think a more interesting question is why you've been using the image of a Starfleet officer for your personal fantasies. I can't imagine that's very much in line with Federation ethics. Tsk, Tsk, what would 'Will' have to say?"
"You'd better quit cracking jokes and tell me what the hell is happening or I'll start experimenting with your program."
The corner of Lore's mouth twitched. She had the upper hand, and he clearly resented her awareness of that fact. In the same second, his expression had smoothed once more into an arrogant smirk.
"I'll spare you the boredom of recounting the entire doomed adventure. In short, a small miscalculation in an otherwise brilliant plan to hack your ship's computer rendered my neural network linked to this holodeck. My body was in effect reconstituted as part of the holomatter within the system, though my own biological makeup is as incompatible with the process as yours would be. If I don't actively maintain another image, the matter regresses back to my own physical appearance."
He paused, grinning. "I suppose I was too…distracted by you to maintain Riker's appearance. You'll have to forgive me."
"So you're trapped here."
"Let's not say 'trapped'. How about 'gathering intel on the dirty fantasies of a wanton Federation counselor'?"
"Computer, dele—"
"Hold it."
Deanna huffed, finally overcoming her shock and feeling irritation in its place. Not just irritation at Lore, but at herself for debasing herself in front of him. Irritation in the realization that the attraction she had for the rakish holo-Will was quite plainly an attraction for Lore's own twisted personality, which he had been freely displaying during all those visits to the holodeck. Deanna eyes unthinkingly flicked to Lore's lips: inhumanly pale, and less full than Will's. She thought of the feel of his lips against her, and her cunt throbbed in remembrance of unfulfilled arousal.
She caught his questioning gaze, and in that moment made an uncharacteristically impulsive decision.
"Computer, save program."
Lore cocked his head in a manner reminiscent of his brother. "Wait—you're not reporting this to your captain? What kind of Starfleet officer are you?"
"If I reported this, they'd surely investigate the program as a potential threat. Can't have Will and the entire crew knowing about my—how did you put it—'dirty fantasies'. Besides, you make a fun diversion. I think I'll keep you around."
She smirked at his stunned expression.
"Computer, end program."
It absolutely killed me to keep writing sexy scenes with Riker's image, but it's what worked for the story. He's handsome and a total sweetheart, but I've never been very attracted to him. Feel free to swap his image for Lore's in your head while you read this chapter—that's what I was doing the whole time writing haha
I'm sorry if anyone's been waiting on this, I've just been unsatisfied for months with every approach to continuing this story, and this is the only result that seemed passable. Thank you to the people who left reviews-they kept me coming back to this fic to continue writing (when I probably should have given up haha)