When the simulated sun rose again in the morning, it found Kana sleeping in the beach bungalow alone but dreaming of the kiss with Will Riker. She knew better than to think it meant anything more than a casual attraction between them. Had she not been so raw from her recent experiences things might have gone further between them. But last night had still been wonderful. There seemed to be nothing much to say after the kiss so they had lain there on the beach in companionable silence. Neither one of them seemed willing to let the moment go. There was a sense of this place being separate from time and consequence. But reality was like the tide, you can ignore it for a while but you cant stop it. Eventually Will had to go and Kana had gone for one last swim before crashing in the bungalow.
Kana left the holo deck she went to her quarters. She flopped down on her bed. What a night! Her body was still on fire and she felt loose and supple, aware of how every muscle moved. She wanted to lounge around all day and eat chocolate. She decided that a visit to Ten Forward to eat a Sunday and see more of the crew was in order. Kana changed into a tight fitted jump suit similar to the ones worn by Counselor Troi. It was green and had a low cut v shaped neckline. It brought out the exoticness of her tattoos. She had actually fashioned it based on the Counselor's uniform since she did not like the way the normal fleet uniforms felt around the neck, it made her feel like she was suffocating. Since she was not an official part of the crew she was not held to any specific dress code but she like to blend in as much as possible.
Kana was on her way to Ten Forward when Counselor Deanna Troi caught up with her. Deanna immediately noticed the difference in the way that Kana was moving today. Kana's whole body seems to sway and flow with every step, entirely different from the stiff way Kana had walked yesterday. If Deanna did not know any better she would have suspected that Kana had been with a man last night. Then Deanna remembered the way she had sensed Will had felt last night. It could not have been Kana who he was with, could it? Surely Will would not get involved with the girl while she was in such a fragile state of mind. But looking at Kana now, Deanna was not so sure that Kana was in such a fragile state anymore. Kana was harder to read than most humans and took more effort, but Deanna could sense the increase in strength, mentally and physically. So maybe Kana was much further along the adjusting process than Deanna had thought.
"So how was your night?" Deanna asked with only the barest hint of amusement in her voice.
Kana glanced at the Counselor. "It was very nice" she responded cautiously. She had not missed the glances between Will and the councilor.
"What no details?" Deanna teased.
"I laid out on the beach, drank some coconut rum, went for a swim. How many more details do you need?" Kana said with studied nonchalance.
"Oh just one more…..who were you with that put such a smile on your face?" Deanna's grin was wicked.
Kana jerked to a stop. "What do you mean?"
"Oh I think you know what I mean." Deanna drawled out, putting one hand on a hip.
Kana blustered for a minute before falling silent. The two of them walked for a moment in silence before Kana said finally "Last night I was with someone…..unusual. But it will not happen again so I would prefer it if we could avoid talking about it."
Deanna nodded. So it was Will. William T Riker was a ladies man, there was no doubt about that. But while he might inspire dreams of a long lasting commitment, he did not inspire much confidence in those dreams. To date, there had only been one exception and that was Deanna herself but even that one was layered in complications and ambiguities. Deanna and Will shared a special bond and both would die for the other without hesitation. There was also a strong sexual current flowing between them that was as undeniable as it was impossible to act on. So if it was Will that Kana had been with last night, Deanna knew how uncertain Kana must feel and understood her belief that it would not happen again. But then Deanna remembered just how strongly Will had felt last night. It had been enough to wake her up from a deep sleep. So clearly there was more going on than either would admit. But for now Deanna decided to leave it alone.
When they got to Ten Forward they selected a table and ordered two chocolate Sundays. Both of them had a strong addiction to chocolate and neither could turn down an excuse to eat some. Kana also ordered some warm milk while Deanna drank some hot chocolate. They chatted about nothing in particular, just a lot of small talk. Deanna tactfully tried to get Kana to talk about what had happened the night before but Kana managed to avoid giving out any new information. After a half hour of dancing around the subject Deanna gave up and settled for chit chat.
It was an hour later when they decided to call it quits and got up to leave. Deanna and Kana had just walked out of the entrance to Ten Forward when Kana suddenly stiffened then bent over and cried out. Deanna immediately reacted and caught her and called in a medical emergency. Deanna reached out with her senses to try to figure out what was going on and was shocked when she felt Kana's mind react back. It was almost like she was touching a Betazoid mind. Deanna instinctively pulled back to protect herself. There was such confusion and terror in Kana's mind. Deanna guessed immediately what must be going on. She has been afraid something like this was going to happen. Kana's mind had finally developed enough to access her Betazoid abilities. She was being overwhelmed by other people's emotions and since she was unprepared for the intrusion she had none of the barriers and skills that helped Deanna keep a grip on herself. Deanna knew she had to act fast. She took a deep breath, reached back out with her mind and went to work.