"Have you finished the communicae to Geordie's family?" Deanna slipped into the seat next to Riker. 10Forward was slow right now. Most of the people aboard were asleep or on duty. Circadian rhythms[1] were different, though, so here and there were scattered a random assortment of people—aliens mostly.

"Yeah. They want the body left in stasis until we can send it back to them."

Deanna whistled softly. Stasis was not cheap. Most grieving families elected to have their loved ones frozen. It was an efficient means of storage for a people who lived among the stars.

"And you, Imzadi[2]?" Riker took her hand in his, "Have you told the Rozhenkos[3]?"

Imzadi. She hadn't heard that word in a long time. "I called them this morning with the news. They would like to visit the Enterprise with your permission, Will."

"Permission granted. How are you holding up?"

"I miss him terribly." For a moment, grief washed over her. Knowing about the grieving process didn't seem to make it any easier to get through. She cast about for something else to talk about. "Where is Jean Luc?"

"Captain, ...I mean Mr. Picard is resting in the guest quarters on deck 5. We're going to have to come to a decision about him."

"What does he want to do?"

"He wants to get back to his dig." Riker raised his hand to forestall the objection he saw on Deanna's face. "No, he doesn't think he has a dig in this universe. He's as up in the air as I am."

"You?" For the first time since they sat down, Deanna opened her mind to Riker's emotions. She was surprised at what she felt. Riker was having serious problems with having Picard aboard.

"His archeology degree never happened here. He hasn't got a dig to go back to. He's aboard his old command. We both know what this is going to do to the crew."

"What do you think it will do to the crew?"

"When Captain Picard died, I stepped into his shoes. A lot of people are going to still think of me as the substitute Captain. Even Jean Luc will wonder why I didn't rescue his double."

The underlying emotion was one of guilt and sorrow. Troi suspected that Will was reevaluating his decisions. "You're wrong, Captain. The crew belongs to you. Those that knew Captain Picard will realize that this is not he, just as I recognized that Thomas Riker[4] was not you."

"I respect your opinion, Councilor, but Picard is at a decision point in his life. If he decided to set his cap for the Enterprise again, would I be able to stop him? Would I really want to? I'm just not sure of the answer right now."

"This is a topic you need to discuss with Mr. Picard, Captain."

"I will. I just need to think about it a little more."

Deanna knew Will. It would be impossible to get him to talk to Jean Luc before he had made a stand on this issue. She sighed and turned the conversation to other things.

Later, she visited Picard on her own. As Ship's Counselor, she would want to make sure he was not too damaged by his walk in a different reality. She needn't have worried.

"Counselor! Do come in. I've been meaning to talk to you." Picard, dressed in jodhpurs and gray blouse, looked comfortable and relaxed.

"I see you've gotten settled." Deanna was having trouble figuring out what to call him. "Captain" was no longer appropriate; "Mr. Picard" was much too formal; but "Jean Luc" seemed too intimate, somehow, for this occasion. "Is there anything I can get you?"

"Thank you, Counselor, I believe I'm quite well taken care of. Please, sit down." He motioned her to a seat, and then took one himself. "I had hoped you would stop by. My performance in the ready room must have seemed rather callous to you. I assure you I intended no such thing."

"No..." again the difficulty with what to call him, "No, you were unaware of the situation. I should not have reacted that way. …I'm sorry. Um…"

Picard just looked at her for a moment and she could sense that he was finding something humorous. "When I became a professor of archeology at the Federation Historical Institute on Andor III, I'd thought to keep in close contact with the Enterprise. In some ways she was still my ship. I didn't realize how out of touch I'd become."

"It helps to have changed universes, Professor." Troi said with a wry grin.

Picard laughed, "I suppose so."

"If I may say so, Professor, you seem in an uncommonly good mood."

"Indeed I am. This universe has several changes I've found to my liking."

"Such as?"

"Such as Will Riker got command of the Enterprise."

"Surely Will must have made Captain some time after you left Star Fleet?"

"Will made Captain when I left the Enterprise. That was no surprise, but he took a desk job on Earth. He said he didn't want to try to fill my shoes on the flag ship of the fleet; the competition was too high.

"I called him last month and convinced him he needed a vacation. The Enterprise was going to be our rendezvous point. From there we planned on visiting Utopia Planetia. Will said he 'knew a few welders who would like to show us their etchings.' That's a direct quote."

They both laughed.

The door chime sounded just then, and with an apologetic nod Picard rose to get it. The door slid back to show Data, package in hand. Deanna got up and headed for the door. "I have some things to attend to. Perhaps I will see you this evening in 10Forward? Data's classical trio[5] has challenged the Captain's jazz quartet[6] to a contest."

"Thank you, Deanna, I wouldn't miss it."

"One more thing, Professor," Troi slid past Data, then turned, "I really think you should speak to Will about your aspirations. This has been quite a shock to him."

Understanding lit up Picard's eyes. "I will do that, Counselor."

As the door slid closed on Troi, Data asked, "Did I come at an inopportune time?"

"No Data, that's quite all right. The counselor and I were just getting used to one another again."

Together and in silence they went to the living area and sat. "I do not know the protocol for visiting someone who has returned from another universe." Data said, "Does it include the offering of a gift?" He held out the package.

Picard laughed. "Thank you, Data, you have just established a new protocol." He opened the package and pulled out the contents. It was a golden replica of the Enterprise in battle with a Ferengi starship. They whirled around each other silently while red and yellow flashes of light showed hits to the ships. "It's quite compelling." Picard said after a moment or two of watching the scene. "But I don't recognize the second ship. Who are we fighting?"

"That is a Ferengi D'Kora[7] class marauder."

"I shall put it in a place of honor."

[1] Circadian rhythms are physical, mental and behavioral changes that follow a roughly 24-hour cycle. from: National Institute of General Medical Sciences

[2] Imzadi - although no accurate translation can be made, it has been loosely compared to "first love" or "cherished friend"

[3] Warf's foster parents.

[4] Thomas Riker was a virtual duplicate of William T. Riker created by a transporter accident on Nervala IV.. Seen in the episode: The Royale

[5] The classical group played for Ambassador Sarek during his time on the enterprise. STTNG: Sarek

[6] Riker's jazz quartet has played several times onboard the Enterprise, most notably on the holodeck.

[7] TNG: "The Last Outpost", "The Price"