Epilogue


2367 Several Months After Wolf 359

"Sir, Starfleet Command has been asking me for a final crew fitness report in the aftermath of the Borg assault on Earth."

Riker slowed his pace and glanced down at Troi, with a sigh. Even Deanna, with her innate positivity, was visibly tired and emotionally worn out. "Of course they are. Well...how are we doing?" He wasn't sure he wanted an honest answer. He knew that in the wake of Wolf 359, he still wasn't quite himself, just months after Captain Picard had been rescued. Still, he knew that his own positive attitude was a permanent part of him that would eventually be ready to reappear. Captain Picard, on the other hand, was another story entirely. As Troi was fond of saying, only time would tell.

"We are doing quite well," answered Troi. "Collectively, that is. This crew is incredibly resilient."

"Then you'll give us the highest marks possible in your report then." Riker grinned briefly feeling a swell of pride. Quickly coming down again, he exhaled loudly as they stopped at a turbo lift. "We're one of just fifteen ships to have retained nearly our full crew complement, Deanna. We're lucky."

Troi glanced down the hall at a pair of officers who were walking toward them. Shrugging off a strange but subtle emotional tug, she returned her attention back to her friend. "Have you spoken with Captain Picard recently?"

He simply raised his eyebrows in a silent query.

"Not on the bridge, Will. I mean have you talked to him alone?"

Riker shrugged and stared at her will quizzical annoyance. "Of course not. You know how he's been since his-since his return."

"...and abduction," Deanna said.

"That goes without saying," said Riker uncomfortably.

"Yes, but that doesn't mean it should. The captain needs to be honest about what happened to him, and he needs all of us-especially you, Will, to support him in this."

"I'm not going to invade his privacy, Deanna. We don't have that kind of relationship."

"Avoiding the subject of his abduction only encourages him to be closed off. I am well aware of the Captain's need for distance. But privacy should not lead to isolation Will."

Riker shook his head, and glanced up, now noticing the two officers walking towards them. Momentarily he turned back to Troi, who was patiently waiting for his response. "I'm trying Deanna, but you know how he is. He could go years without telling me a damn thing."

Troi smiled slightly. Will was right. The captain's emotions had been hidden behind a virtual wall since his abduction by the Borg. When they did appear, they came in fits and starts, not nearly as disciplined as before his capture, and sometimes not unlike a frustrated child. She'd made progress, but her own frustration was now difficult to hide. She blinked, and then she had that odd feeling again as the couple she had been watching earlier was now passing by. She placed her palm on Riker's forearm. "Do you know them?" she murmured?

Riker re-focused his gaze again. "No," he said quietly. The two officers, a male and female, both wearing the gold and black uniforms of operations officers, were walking very close together. A young boy walked between them, reaching his arms up to hold each of their hands. Periodically they swung him back and forth, sending him into fits of laughter as his legs did a little dance in the air, before they lowered him back down to the deck. Then the game would begin again. The man flashed a quick smile at Riker and Troi as he passed. He was handsome with chocolate toned skin, while his companion was blond with very fair skin. She was too distracted by her son to look up, but both Riker and Troi felt it at the same time. Recognition.

"I mean...maybe," Will corrected his earlier statement, watching the three figures continue away from them down the hall. Somehow he expected the man to turn back and wave, but he didn't and the feeling gradually passed. He glanced at Deanna. "You were saying?"


"All I said was that I have been missing our breakfasts together. That's it!" Beverly Crusher paced back and forth with such vigor that he was afraid she was going to knock into the coffee table in his cramped living space.

"And I agreed with you," said Picard, keeping his voice even.

She halted and turned to point at him. "No...you made a noise. You harrumphed, or something like that," she shot back. "You weren't even listening to me, were you?"

His eyebrows knitted together. "Of course I was!" Good lord, what is she on about now?
He rubbed his eyes. "Beverly, I don't understand...honestly."

She pursed her lips and stared at him. "I miss our friendship. Do you understand me now?"

He frowned but said nothing.

She shook her head. "Jean-Luc, we've seen a lot of each other in sickbay, and in staff meetings, but I miss talking to you as a friend. The last two times I invited you to breakfast, you backed out at the last minute."

He glanced away looking mildly embarrassed. "My apologies, Beverly. It was quite rude of me."

She crossed her arms. "Apology accepted. Now can you be honest with me about why you canceled? If you don't want to have breakfast with me anymore, just say so-I won't mind," she said.

He stared at her, unsure how best to avoid the trap he suspected she had just set for him. He opened his mouth to respond, but there was suddenly a popping sound in the middle of his quarters and they both turned to look.

There in the middle of his quarters, stood the Traveler. He was dressed in an oddly colored cloak and in his arms he held a small bundle.

Picard walked forward to address the visitor, but the Traveler held up his index finger. "Please," he said quietly. "It is best if we say very little at this time. I am here to provide you both with a gift."

"What?" Beverly stepped forward, looking at the bundle held loosely in his grip.

"It is a very special gift as you will come to learn. However, I will answer no questions from you about her-"

"Her?" Picard raised a hand slowly to point at a tiny hand which had emerged from the bundle. "Is that a-"

"This is your child," said the Traveler, handing the baby to Beverly. "To be exact you are both her parents," he said. "Now, I must depart, but I will wish all three of you to be well."

Beverly stared in amazement down at the baby, who to her unexplainable delight, settled down immediately in her arms. "But," she only managed to say.

The Traveler bowed slightly. "I must go now," he said again.

"Wait!" Picard shouted. "You can't just leave like that-"

There was a popping sound again and the Traveler was gone. Picard stared in shock at the empty spot where the Traveler had stood, before he slowly turned back to look at Beverly. He reached down to pinch his own forearm. This is real...not a dream.

She looked up and pulled back the blanket to reveal a bright red shock of hair on the baby's otherwise bald head. Picard's mouth went dry, but he approached until he was standing close by. There was a glimmer in the baby's bright green eyes that was unmistakably Beverly. And of course the hair was a dead giveaway. Beverly was mumbling to herself, still clearly in shock, just as he was. He found himself looking for some glimpse of his own features, and to his relief found nothing obvious, beyond the baby's lack of hair. Then to his surprise the baby gurgled and placed both her palms over her eyes, and held very still.

Beverly fixed him with a confused half smile. "Jean-Luc, I think she's ours."


So this is the end "beautiful friend, the end...". Anyway, my hope is that you enjoyed this story. The sequel to Man Out of Time, entitled A Full Circle will be posted soon. Although I posted part of A Full Circle earlier this year (or was it late last year?), it will probably look a bit different now, assuming you read it the first time. Thanks as always for reading.

I would also like to convey a message of support and hope for peace to all the people reading this in France. May you and your family and friends, and all of the people in France be safe.