Episode 1x11 – Haven

by Eydie Munroe

Disclaimer: All things Star Trek belong to Paramount and CBS. I'm just writing the bits that TPTB seemed to have missed.

Note: These are the missing scenes at the end of Haven, after the Enterprise leaves Wyatt Miller with the Tarellians.

Will settled down in his quarters and reactivated the hologram he'd forgotten days earlier. The two beauties continued to play their harps, picking up right where they'd been shut off, smiles warm and friendly as they seemed to look directly at him. He'd bought this hologram after listening to this duo's sets at the Nicada Resort on Risa, and the memory of the night he'd spent with both of them afterward brought a smile to his face. He settled down into his chair and kicked his feet up, taking a few deep breaths, and let his eyes slide shut as he listened to their music.

Deanna's image immediately came to mind, the way she'd been dressed on the night of the engagement banquet. It wasn't a flattering outfit, just another variation of her uniform really, but it added another piece to the puzzle that had been her arranged marriage. Will dug into his memory to see if she ever had actually mentioned it, and perhaps he had been wrong. He couldn't understand why someone with her intelligence and zest for life would allow herself to fall into a trap of tradition that, by his standards, was completely outdated and impractical.

He let out an angry sigh as his eyes opened again. The ladies were still playing, but rather than relaxing him, they were irritating him. So he got up and started to pace, needing to relieve tension and hoping to do it in his quarters before he ventured out into the corridors and scared some poor ensign to death.

The harps were starting to grate on him, and he was just about to turn them off when his door chime rang. "Come in," he called automatically, taking a step toward the control, but stopping short when he saw who was in the entry.

Deanna hesitated. "May I come in?"

For a split second he hesitated, but then told her, "Of course."

She moved inside, just far enough to allow the doors to close behind her. Hearing the music, she looked for the source. "Am I interrupting?"

Seeing what had drawn her attention, he lifted the remote from where he'd dropped it on the chair. "Not really."

"We need to talk."

Will frowned, punching the button to silence the harps harder than was necessary. His face was stony when he countered with, "About what?"

She could feel anger and frustration emanating off him in waves, mixed with relief and a little sadness. "You objected to my getting married."

He wanted to deny it, but with her abilities, there was no point. "Yes."

"Why?" When he turned away from her, she asked, "Is it because you're still in love with me?"

Will looked at her reflection in the viewport. "I didn't think I was. Not until he showed up."

Deanna finally ventured a few steps into the room. "I hadn't given Wyatt Miller any thought since boarding the Enterprise." The jealousy that hit her was strong, but she was undaunted. "His parents' demand to go through with the wedding came as something of a shock."

"But you knew there was the possibility."

"There was always the possibility," she admitted, "even though his family left Betazed decades ago."

He started to slowly move along the windows, a hand running through his hair. "So you joined Starfleet specifically to avoid this arranged marriage?"

Deanna stood stock still, only her eyes following him across the room. "Absolutely not. The Enterprise was a wonderful career opportunity for me. But I would be lying if I said that I hadn't realized that the time away on this mission would run out the clock, and that Wyatt most likely would have married someone else by the time I returned."

"And what would have happened if he'd turned up while you were with me?"

Her fists curled at her sides. "I still would have married him."

He stopped suddenly, jaw hanging as he gaped at her. "You what?"

Her own anger from the last few days boiled to the surface, and made him the lucky recipient. "You have no right to feel so territorial," she charged. "You didn't think twice about leaving me for the posting on the Potemkin. And not once have you shown any sign that you wished to resume our relationship here."

"Neither have you."

"So why are you feeling so betrayed?" she asked. "Did you think that I was going to be around forever, just waiting until you were ready to make a commitment?"

"No, of course not. I…" He stopped, realizing that she was right, and that he couldn't understand why he'd felt so put out by her marriage. Instead, he opted to say nothing at all, and turned back to look at the stars.

Deanna sighed, taking a moment to regain her bearings and get control of her temper. "Bill…"

"Don't call me that."

She frowned. "What?"

"I've never liked it."

Her jaw worked as she tried to keep from snapping at him. "I called you that for more than a year. It's how you introduced yourself to me."

Deanna could sense his shift into humour before she saw the smile on his face when he turned back to her. "I didn't. I actually said Will, but you misheard."

She thought back to the massive bureaucratic event at which she'd first seen the tall young lieutenant who was representing Starfleet. In truth, he was at the bottom of the Fleet delegation, but he was the only officer who she remembered. It had been a room filled with mostly Betazoids, and even with her self-imposed barriers, some of their telepathic chatter had spilled over. And mixed with the music and verbal speech from the offworlders, she found herself having a hard time hearing him clearly. "It was a very loud place," she acquiesced, starting to grin herself. Fixing him with a look, she questioned, "Why didn't you ever correct me?"

He chuckled as he sat down on one end of the couch. "Because I was head over heels for a beautiful woman."

Even though she had an idea of what he was going to say, she still blushed a little as she sat down beside him. They stayed silent for a while, each keeping their own thoughts. "It can't be like it was," she said quietly, knitting her fingers together in her lap as she forced them back to the problem at hand.

It took him a while to answer. "Do you still love me?"

She shook her head a little. "I don't know. Certainly not like I did then."

Will nodded to himself, confirming what he'd already guessed. "Why were you were going to marry him?"

"A few different reasons." She looked over as she felt his sadness return. "Duty. Loyalty to my family and to my house. But I never wanted to. There's so much that I need to do before that can happen, and that includes having a career – despite my mother's best intentions." Deanna smiled when he laughed out loud. "But while I love my work here and being part of the Enterprise's mission, there's a certain comfort in being joined to someone."

She heard, rather than just felt his response, which was unusual. Any other time, she would have to be making an effort to actually hear his thoughts, but now, There sure is, came through clear as day.

Her expression softened, and she reached over and laid a hand on his forearm. "You need to decide what you want, Imzadi." His eyes flicked up in surprise at the use of her word. "We may be in different places now, but you still are beloved."

He couldn't say anything, but instead laid his hand on top of hers. Giving his arm a final squeeze, Deanna got up and headed for the doors. But before they could open, he managed to tell her, "I'm sorry it didn't work out."

She gave him a sad smile. "Goodnight…Will." And then she was gone.

Will stared at the closed doors for a while, replaying their conversation in his mind. Much to his own shock, he seemed to still be in love with Deanna. But she wasn't in love with him, and he wasn't used to the sort of emotional slap that knowledge gave him. Riker always thought of himself as easygoing and fun loving outside of his work, and he'd only ever connected with women who were the same way. At the time, he'd thought Deanna was no different – in fact, she'd told him as much. Now, it appeared, she'd taken up residence in his heart without him even knowing it. Their positions were reversed, and he was the one left behind while she'd moved on.

Well, now you know, he thought darkly as he pulled himself up to get ready for bed. As he started to drift off, Will told himself that since he'd only felt this way for a short period of time, it would be easy to get over her.