Meanwhile, Naseema had made herself more presentable, and headed to Ten Forward for a morning chat with Guinan. She knew her friend would have questions, and she was hoping to beat Jagger there.
She knew the chief engineer was by now aware of what had transpired only hours earlier, but she was not concerned about Geordi.
She was still mulling over in her brain how she was going to deal with Jagger. He was certainly going to find out about her encounter with the Enterprise's second officer at some point, and she was already well aware of how abysmal his reaction would no doubt be. Her mission here would not be to diffuse the bomb, but merely to contain the inevitable explosion.
She walked into the ship's tavern where she found Guinan leaning on the bar, enjoying her own morning coffee. The placid expression on the Listener's face lifted as she saw Naseema coming towards her.
"So," Guinan began, grinning, "how was the rest of your night?" The loaded nature of the question was not lost on the Feeonix, and she smiled shyly as her face flushed. The reaction was enough response for Guinan, and the wise bartender's grin grew wider, "That good huh?" she asked, although her question was more of a statement.
Naseema nodded. "He was more than anything my imagination could have conjured," she replied, sitting down by her friend. "Innocent and willing. He was perfection."
Guinan leaned in closer, appearing to examine her.
"He is incredibly sensual," she added, her grin widening, "and I do not think I can describe how fantastic he looks...without his clothes on."
"Yeah, that's enough detail, thanks. You're certainly starry-eyed this morning. Did you keep your voice down or does everybody on deck nine know already?" she joked.
Naseema laughed softly. "I hope not, but we were caught by security, making out in the turbo-lift, so I have no doubt that some word has gotten around. Mr. LaForge also paid me an unexpected visit this morning, and judging by his reaction, he most certainly knows as well."
Guinan smiled. "I wouldn't worry about it if I were you, and hopefully now Commander Riker will stop coming in here to tell me about every time he catches Data making googly eyes at you on the bridge," she teased.
Naseema made a face at her. "Well, then I am certainly glad the airing of my personal business will make your life easier," she replied, a hint of sarcasm in her voice.
Guinan laughed, and brought her friend a steaming mug of coffee.
"Has Jagger been in yet?" Naseema asked.
Guinan shook her head. "No. Have you thought about how you're going to deal with him because you certainly won't be able to hide this from him," she said.
Naseema nodded in acknowledgment. "I know. I have been thinking about what to say to him for over an hour, but I do not believe anything I have come up with so far will soften the blow. He is going to make a scene, and I do not think I can prevent that."
She sounded a little distraught and Guinan became concerned. She lowered her voice and spoke seriously, "Do you know what your plans for Data are? Are you going to continue seeing each other romantically?" Guinan already knew what the answer to her question was but she was trying to encourage Naseema to affirm herself before being confronted with her jealous former companion. One worked up Feeonix would be bad enough, she didn't need two of them on her hands. "Jagger may not be as upset as you anticipate, especially if he believes it was a one time thing, and you've gotten it out of your system," she suggested, but Naseema quickly shook her head in denial.
"Last night was most certainly not a one time thing. He gave me his body, but more importantly, his trust as well, and I will not betray that. Besides, I do not believe I will be able to convince Jagger that a one time thing is the case, and I suspect that to do so will only anger him further." She took a quick glance around her to make sure no one would hear what she was about to say. "Guinan, I am not totally sure of what transpired between myself and the commander last evening but if my intuition is correct, I believe that some form of bonding occurred," she confessed, her voice steady and serious.
Guinan's eyes widened. "Really?!" she replied.
The two aliens were now hunched right over the bar, speaking in hushed voices, and it would have been obvious to any outsider that their conversation had taken a sudden and serious turn.
"Yes," Naseema answered. "I felt a very powerful connection form. He made my heart glow, and he was profoundly affected as well."
"Hmm," Guinan pressed her lips together. "I didn't think that was possible outside your species," she said.
"I do not know for sure that is what happened. As greatly as it pains me, Jagger may be the only one that can explain it, and if I did indeed bond to Data, I am also unsure of how that will be received by the elders, should Jagger decide to bring it to their attention. You know how my kind are regarding artificial life," Naseema said.
"Yes. I do," Guinan nodded. She knew well that the Feeonix maintained a strict code of moral conduct that prohibited the Feeonix youngsters from mating with humanoids, and they looked upon artificial life as beneath them. The way the master of the estate would view the dogs at his feet. Her friend had good reason to be concerned. "I think you're getting ahead of yourself though," she reassured. "You don't know for sure that Jagger is going to react that badly."
Naseema arched an eyebrow and pursed her lips.
Guinan retracted part of her previous statement, "Alright, I suppose it's better to be prepared for the worst." As much as she tried to resist it, she had to agree with the Feeonix that Ambassador Jagger was not famous for his emotional control. "I think the best you can do is roll with the punches, so to speak."
"There could certainly be a number of those," Naseema lamented with a sigh. At that moment, they were interrupted by the sound of a pleasant male tenor.
"And what punches are we rolling with this morning, ladies?" asked Commander Riker as he approached them, and sidled up to the bar, next to Naseema, a characteristically rakish grin plastered across his face.
Both women smiled back at him in greeting, and Guinan asked him if he'd like a coffee.
He nodded, resting his face against his hand as he leaned across the bar. "Please, Guinan, that would be wonderful." Then he turned to Naseema and looked her up and down. "I must say, ladies, I had a very enjoyable evening yesterday," he said with a twinkle in his eye, and with that, all three knew that Naseema and Data were not the only ones who engaged in conduct unbecoming an officer the previous evening.
Naseema smirked at him, and rested her chin on her knuckles. "I am so happy that my humiliation has provided you with such glee, Commander," she said with thinly veiled contempt.
Riker laughed heartily. "Yeah, Jag was certainly acting like, what was it you called him? An asshole? Hasn't he been that way for like, eight hundred years? Shouldn't you be used to him by now?" His eyes were gleaming with delight again as they rehashed the previous evening's entertainment.
Naseema held her ground playfully. "He has been that way for sixteen hundred, and forty-eight years actually but we are not talking about Jagger right now. We are talking about you. This was clearly some sort of revenge for you. The incident involving the brig, I assume, and I will not forget that," she threatened, teasingly.
"Madam, I am sure that I have no idea what you are talking about," Riker replied with mock innocence.
"Uh huh," Guinan broke in. "Of course you don't."
Riker shot her a sideways look, and then turned his attention back to Naseema.
"So, Naseema, you and Ambassador Jagger were here pretty late last night. Did you end up back at his place or yours?" he asked. He was not expecting an answer, he was however, attempting to gain a suitable reaction from the attractive Feeonix.
She rewarded him with more of the same smirk.
"Actually," Guinan interjected, "she wasn't with Mr. Jagger." A sly smile crept across the El Aurian's face as Naseema's eyes widened.
"Oh?" Riker raised an eyebrow, his attention completely captured.
"It is none of your business who I was with, Will," Naseema quickly shot back, her face flushing a delicate pink.
Riker's own eyes widened as he realized there was a game afoot.
"I'll give you three guesses," Guinan continued as she dried a few stray glasses with a towel, looking over at Naseema with one eye. Her friend's normally bright pools, begged her to stop talking.
"Hmm," Riker stroked his beard, pretending to put real thought into his strategy. "Well, I know it wasn't me...the captain?"
Guinan snickered and shook her head while Naseema threw her hand up in the air, exasperated.
"Why are you doing this to me?" she groaned, and banged her hand back on the bar.
"Because it's fun," Riker replied before continuing to his next guess. "Geordi.?" he shook his head as soon as the name left his lips. "No, wouldn't be Geordi." He rolled his eyes up to the ceiling, pretending to think again. He paused there briefly before he brought his fist down to thump the bar top, exaggeratedly. "I've got it!" he exclaimed, and looked at Guinan before jerking his gaze back to Naseema. "It was Q!"
Guinan laughed out loud, and Naseema rolled her eyes.
"You are an idiot," she said.
Riker grinned sideways at her, and leaned in."Maybe, but I'm smart enough to know that you finally took Mr. Data by the hand, and led him to a quiet, cozy corner of your quarters where you, no doubt, showed him the time of his life. He was there all night. The computer never lies," he said in an obnoxious, and slightly condescending tone.
Guinan clapped to mark the occasion, and Naseema narrowed her eyes at him.
He relaxed his posture, and brought his hand up to rest on her shoulder. His expression was a mix of kindness and relief. "It's about time, Naseema," he smiled.
"Oh what do you know?!" Naseema muttered and jerked away from him.
He straightened up, holding his head in a regal fashion. "When it comes to matters of love, I am the chief operations officer," he said with a rakish twist of his eyebrows.
"Yeah, you're an operator all right," Guinan quipped, and Naseema burst out laughing.
"Somebody's got your number," she said with pleased satisfaction.
Riker chuckled gently. "Seriously, Naseema, I really am happy for you. It's been a long time coming."
Naseema smiled warmly at him, his fun at her expense forgiven momentarily until she pointed her finger at him playfully. "Don't think this means the end of, how did you put it? Googly eyes on the bridge?" she quickly countered.
He shot Guinan a look. "You told her about that?" he asked.
"Sorry," Guinan replied, rather insincerely.
"I'm sure," Riker responded, and as he spoke, the other Feeonix ambassador swaggered into Ten Forward, and headed straight for the trio.
"Mr. Jagger, how does this morning find you?" Riker asked. The conversation was about to become exponentially more interesting, and he settled into his seat as Jagger approached them.
"This morning finds me quite well, thank you, Commander," the Feeonix replied, running a hand through his blonde hair. He claimed a seat on Naseema's other side, and looked quizzically at her coffee cup. "Are you drinking coffee?" he asked, his tone on the smarmy side.
"Yes," Naseema replied, almost daring him to make an issue.
Jagger raised an eyebrow. "I see. How adorably human of you," he teased. "Anyhoo, we do have a meeting with Captain Picard in ten minutes. Shall we?" He motioned for her to lead the way.
She nodded, and the two Feeonix bid a good morning to Guinan and Will Riker, and left.
After watching the pair leave in relative silence, Riker turned back to Guinan.
"That was a little disappointing," he admitted. "I was really hoping for some witty banter there."
Guinan gave him a small smile. "He's saving it for the journey," she replied.
Riker nodded in acknowledgment, and then asked the wise bartender, "So, in all honesty, Guinan, how bad do you think it's going to get?"
She leaned in and looked him directly in the eye, her expression growing serious. "In all honesty?" she answered. "I'm just hoping they don't destroy the ship."
Riker's eyes widened some. He wasn't sure whether Guinan was exaggerating or not. He had to admit she knew more about the Feeonix, especially Jagger and Naseema, than the rest of them, but destroy the ship? Even that seemed a little extreme. There were only two of them.
"Huh," he shrugged, taking a sip of his coffee. "Wouldn't that be something."