Another Favor

Star Trek: The Next Generation, all characters and ideas there associated are the sole ownership of someone that's not me.
All original ideas and characters contained in the following story are the sole property of J.L. Scott.

"These implants are....remarkable!" Wyatt breathed, studying one of the files Crusher had brought with her.
"Remarkable" she repeated, "And damn hard to remove" Wyatt looked up.
"Oh, yes" he said, feeling somewhat embarrassed. He had to remember that this woman had had to deal with these so much more than he and that they had most likely left their scar. If not physically then emotionally.
"Don't mind Wyatt" Beverly said, patting his arm, "he gets excited about plagues" Wyatt gave her a bashful smile. He couldn't help it if he found even the deadliest of innovations fascinating. He was, after all, a research doctor. Crusher let the corners of her lips turn up.
"Here are the eye attachments" she said, handing a pad to Beverly. The Doctor took a second to study it.
"Do they remove the eye?" she asked.
"No" Crusher replied, "They put the wires right through"
"Doesn't that destroy the cornea?" Wyatt asked.
"Only minimally" Crusher told him and they all bent over the computer screen while she explained.
Both Beverly and Crusher were surprised at how easy it was to work together. They completely forgot that they were the same person. (Albeit from different realities) It felt more like working with a sister or best friend, who was not only talented, but also attuned to each other's thoughts. Indeed, instead of being uncomfortable, it was actually quite enjoyable.
Wyatt too was surprised. In fact, if his own Doctor hadn't had longer hair, he feared he never would have been able to tell them apart.
"So...Wesley dropped out of the Academy, did he?" Crusher asked calmly, looking as if it were merely the weather she had been asking about.
"That's right" Beverly replied, "About four years ago. He studies with the Traveler now"
"That's interesting" Crusher said, "Lately my Wesley has been sounding...dissatisfied"
"Getting into trouble, letting his grades slip, not talking to his friends?" Beverly asked.
"Yes!" Crusher replied in an exasperated tone. Beverly nodded.
"Wesley did the same thing. I just couldn't figure out what was wrong. And then...." And the two women were off, chattering on and on about their sons, intermittently with questions and answers about the Borg implants. By the time they decided to take a break, they were talking like they had been life long friends.

"All right, people, let's get moving. Barclay, you and Varnos get on those Tucker relays. Mesnil and Korsovich, I want you to coordinate the repair crews. I don't want anyone wasting time. Bulkheads first" Geordi doled out orders quickly, but with an air of trust that made everyone calm a bit and feel a surge of confidence.
"Wes" Geordi lowered his voice a bit. Wesley was standing right next to him, "I want you to work on the hyperdrive. Do...what you do" Wesley grinned.
"You bet, Commander"
"Okay, people, let's go to work!" He clapped his hands and everyone broke off into little groups to carry out their orders. LaForge watched Barclay walk away.
"Is he as bad here as he is on my ship?" he asked in a whisper. Wesley grinned again.
"Worse" he replied and took himself off to work on the hyperdrive.
"What do you want me to do?" LaForge asked, turning to his counterpart. He knew what he would do next, but this wasn't his engine room. He knew how he'd feel if he started trying to do things his way.
"I want to get to that deflector weapon you were talking about" Geordi replied, "And I need to go over that information about the Borg cubes with you. But first, Data wants power for the weapons manifold, the Doctors want the replicators and the shield harmonics have been fluctuating"
"Sounds like we could use a couple more Wesley's" LaForge said, glancing over at the young man. He was still surprised by how much older he looked. Their timelines were definitely not in conjunction.
"I wish!" Geordi exclaimed and then he stopped. LaForge recognized that look.
"What?"
"Maybe we can get a few more" he said and tapped his badge" Geordi to Captain Riker"
"Go ahead" Will's voice came back.
"Will, I was wondering if I could borrow Morgan and Mary for a while"

"What for?" Will asked. Geordi gave his counterpart a look.
"I could use their help down here?" he answered, "I'm spread pretty thin"
"You know they're not allowed near the computers" Will told him. LaForge was trying to figure out who Morgan and Mary were. He thought he remembered Picard saying something about them, but he didn't say anything about guests or prisoners. Who else wouldn't be allowed near computers?
"I'll keep an eye on them" Geordi assured his Captain. LaForge was contemplating the circumstances. In many ways, Geordi was the same person he looked at everyday in the mirror. But there were so many minute differences! He had to wonder, would he implore the Captain for help from someone restricted from computer use? Would he push, the way his counterpart was? Certainly not with Captain Picard. But Will? Would he take advantage of their friendship that way? Was it really taking advantage?
"All right" Will finally answered, "But I don't want their heads blowing up"
"I'll see what I can do, Captain" Geordi replied with a triumphant grimace.
"Good. Now I've got time for you to show me how you used the deflector dish to fight the Borg" Geordi smiled in enthusiastic anticipation.
"Lead the way" LaForge said and Geordi led him to his favorite work station. LaForge was just bringing up the first diagram when his counterpart suddenly looked up.
"Aquiel!" he said, standing. LaForge turned around. A young woman, about 8 months pregnant, was standing in the doorway. LaForge breathed deeply, realizing this was his wife. Or rather, his counterpart's wife. She was beautiful, and he could tell she smiled a lot. Her uniform was blue, meaning she was either a scientist or a doctor.
"What are you doing down here?" her husband demanded.
"I'm helping" Aquiel replied, putting a hand over her enlarged abdomen.
"You shouldn't be down here" Geordi told her. She brushed his concern away with the flip of her hand.
"I need help realigning one of the transporter relays" she said. LaForge got up.
"I'll go" he said. He didn't want to stick around and see anymore of this. Aquiel could be his future, but if she never was, he didn't want to have to relive this scene over and over in his head. He brushed past her, his arm tingling where they'd actually touched. He found his way easily to where she'd been working and quickly finished the realignment. He peeked around the wall and saw Aquiel leaving. Geordi must have convinced her that pregnant women weren't really safest in Engineering. He was just about to return to his counterpart when the sound of someone emerging from the Jeffery's tubes behind him made him turn.
Two small figures dropped to the floor. They were little girls, both dark haired and obviously twins by their matching outfits. LaForge suddenly remembered where he'd heard the names Morgan and Mary.
"Oh no" he said aloud.
"What do you mean, oh no?" one of the girls asked.
"Dad said you wanted us" the other one added.
"You're seven years old!" LaForge reminded them, as if it had been their idea.
"Seven and a half" they corrected simultaneously.
"What's going on over here?" his own voice asked, "Oh, it's you two" Geordi said as soon as he laid eyes on them, "Crawling through the Jeffery's tubes again?"
"The turbo lifts were crowded" the first girl (who happened to be Morgan) said.
"It doesn't matter right now. Come on, I want your help with some stuff" Geordi replied and headed toward a couple of empty work stations.
"Wait a second, are you crazy!?" LaForge cried, "They're kids!"
"Look, I know they're young, but Data and I have been training them ourselves. They can handle it" his counterpart said. LaForge was not convinced. Geordi sighed. He didn't really have time for this, and technically he was in charge and didn't have to explain anything. But this was him he was talking to and he knew how stubborn he could be.
"Look, you were the one that said we could use a couple more Wesley's"
"Wesley isn't seven years old" LaForge pointed out.
"Seven and a half!" the girls chorused behind him.
"Right now, we can use all the help we can get. If the Borg show up anytime in the next few days, we're goners" Geordi replied. LaForge had to admit this was true. He was again confronted with the question of what he would do. He didn't like having the answer right in front of his face. This whole alternate reality thing was more trouble than it was worth.
"All right" he agreed, "It's your reality"
"Good" Geordi turned to the girls, "Mary, I want you to work on the shield harmonics. Morgan, see if you can find a way to get the replicators back online without diverting power from anywhere else. And neither one of you is to actually do anything without asking me first, got it?"
"Yes, Uncle Geordi" both girls responded and humbly sat down to their tasks.
"Now, about that deflector dish..."
"Right" LaForge and Geordi returned to their favorite work space, "The Borg shields work...."