C4 FS: Chocolate Distracts

After Picard made arrangements for the Horta, he had a meeting in the observation lounge with all of the usual officers. He fully divulged to the group what was going on with the Horta and the Crystalline Entity. There were lots of questions, and he did his best to answer them. He also took a few minutes to explain that Leila had spoke as if she was from the future. Picard conveyed to them not to try and pump her for information, as it could be dangerous to the timeline. In two hours, Clem was delivered to the Star Base.

The dinner was held on schedule this time. Leila shared their jokes and opened up to them. She spoke amongst them as if she had been a member of the crew for years. She was glad that it was more informal then the first arrangements had been. The appearance was obviously more pleasing as comments were made concerning the flower arrangements in the room. Leila explained the flowers were replicas of the ones on Kapellia.

"Leila, I heard you made a hologram program about an Earth garden." Geordi beamed with joy over having been placed on her left side for the dinner.

"Yes, it was a charming program." Leila raised an eyebrow at Picard that did not go unnoticed by the others at the table.

Riker seen the glance and started to wonder at what she meant by that. "It would be interesting if you could make one of your world."

"I have. It is already running. I asked the captain if after the dinner you could all join me to view it. He said it was ok. What do you think?" Leila seamed to flush with delight while hoping they would go with her.

It was only fifteen minutes until Deanna, Geordi, Riker, Worf, Data, Picard and Beverly were following Leila. They stopped at the entrance door as Guinan walked out. "Leila, all the fruit is in place. I put the outfits in the changing rooms as well." Guinan smiled at everyone and bowed slightly at the door as it opened, "Enjoy."

The group of officers walked into the hologram program and found doors. Leila pointed to the left, "Ok, all the women go into that room where your outfits await you. And all the men go to the right for your outfits." They looked at her for a moment then went into the rooms.

Inside the ladies changing room, Beverly and Deanna found the outfits they were suppose to wear and changed. They walked into the next room that had walls of mirrors and they critiqued how they appeared in the silky white material.

Leila came in around the corner and was pleased with the smiles on the ladies faces. "So are those smiles happiness at the outfits?"

Deanna did a twirl in front of the mirror. "I love the soft material. It feels as light as wind dancing on my skin. This halter top attaches just below my hips where the belt is. I like where the top comes down and widens to cover the sides of my abdomen, but I can't get the belt to attach, can you help?"

"Sure, the belt that starts on the sides of your hips is made to help hold the front in place a little better." She showed both ladies how to fix the almost imperceptible belts.

With her hands on her hips, Beverly turned once in the large wall mirror. "I like the fact the back is completely open all the way down to where the belt starts. At first I have to admit, I was worried the front would not cover enough and the back was going to be low enough to show my bottom. And now, the sections below the belt are overlapped making it feel like the folds of a flower all the way down to my ankles. I feel truly beautiful."

"And you look beautiful. Now ladies, let me clip the sides of your hair up, and we will be ready to pick a fragrance then join the men." Leila had just put her own dress on and joined the other two women looking at themselves.

There was a woman in the next room to help them select a fragrance by the mood they were feeling. Deanna picked Realms of the Wind, Beverly picked Beauteous Flower, and finally Leila picked Seducing Situations. The woman there to assist them rubbed the scented oil into their skin. Once the women were ready, they ventured out the exit in the back of the last room to find the men.

Oh, and what a site it was for them to behold as they entered the night. As they exited, they saw the men in their group. Each man had on what looked like black pants of the same material as their dresses that hung low on their hips. Like the ladies, they to had picked from the fragrances, but theirs were obviously masculine.

"The program I have made here is identical to a Gathering I attended a little while back. You have to be considered adults to attend, and I still have a half a cycle. A friend of mine got us codes that told we were a cycle older to get us in. I have different parts of the program running independently of each other to make it seem more real. Like the flowers I had brought to dinner, the flowers here have the same non-inhibiting effects, so you can be yourself. The point of the Gathering is to relax. Lets go relax and have fun." Leila turned toward where music could be heard and started trotting off.

The rest of the Enterprise group started after her noticing that the gravity was not as strong as in the rest of the ship. "Its kind of bouncy." Beverly commented.

Deanna glided along and found the plants that lined the path to be among the prettiest she had ever saw. The plants were about six inches tall and appeared to be some kind of fern. In the night's darkness, these plants that were bluish and glowing were the only lighting. There was another source of light that Deanna noticed first. It was little glowing orbs that seemed to float around the plants and trees.

From another prospective, the item so far that Geordi enjoyed the most was the soft moss that covered the ground like grass did on Earth. He had to fight the urge to role around on it. Picard and Worf in contrast kept looking off into the jungle of various trees and large shrubs. The low hanging mist in the forest made peering into its depths complicated. Picard finally kept his eyes on the path, but Worf could not be swayed from the hidden areas of the forest that seemed to be calling to him.

As they neared the Gathering, the sounds of musical instruments filled their ears. Riker had never heard such a combination of instruments and sounds. "The drums sound similar to a heart beating, but reminiscent of the music from ancient Africa. The string instruments sound like ancient Europe with an almost Celtic quality."

"I agree." Geordi grinned hearing the enchanting melody. "It sounds like there are women using their voices without words, but using their voices as instruments."

Leila stopped at a rise in a hill, "Ok, we are here. Now, remember you are here to experience a festival that is held on my planet. Don't try to understand everything or critique it. Let the atmosphere calm you or invigorate you whatever you need or feel." She stepped forward and pulled back several hanging vines that had tiny lavender and scarlet blossoms on them that seemed to be everywhere. Delicate white flower petals from the trees fell over the forest like feathers.

Riker's eyes opened wide like a child in a candy parlor. "The atmosphere hu? This kind of makes me thing about what I read in a file about ancient Earth in a place called Woodstock." He glanced at groups of Kapellians dancing around the musicians. Riker went to that group and joined in on the dancing. Before long, he was playing some of the instruments.

Beverly and Deanna went over to tables that were almost hidden. On the tables the women sampled the different dishes of fruit. Deanna was in a state of rapture once she sampled what looked similar to brownies in chocolate syrup. Her friend Beverly found herself swept away by a ruggedly attractive Kapellian that offered to show her to the swimming area in the exotically captivating forest.

Geordi and Data wandered into a group of Kapellians who were relaxing on the downy moss with pillows. The group was talking about various topics while giving out back rubs. Data seemed to talk nonstop especially interested in the minute glowing orbs he called them. A Kapellian told him that they were the keepers of the gardens, and he believed humans called them pixies. Geordi was oblivious to the conversation as he allowed a girl to rub his back while he lay partially on a massive pillow. It wasn't long before Geordi joined the girl dancing and later a long walk by a waterfall.

When Worf entered the Gathering, he was sure he would hate it and walked into some of the trees. He came across different areas of music, and groups of people holding hands. Worf stalked up to a grouping of large boulders and climbed to the top. After a few minutes of peering out into groups of people who seamed to vanish into the trees, he noticed it was starting to rain slightly. It was a soft inviting rain and from his viewpoint no one seemed to care. Worf stood to his feet and ran his hands down his chest to get some of the water that was beading up off of his skin.

"Going so soon?" An intriguing female voice floated across the gentle sensation of the rain.

He turned to see a violet Kapellian female in the same dress that the other women were wearing except hers was black like the men's pants. "No, I was simply going to venture into the forest.

"What a coincidence, that was what I was about to do." She climbed down the rock formation after Worf.

He went as far as the edge of the trees and vines then stopped. She came up behind him and scratched his shoulder with one of her talons as she walked around him. He growled a Klingon taunt at the sensation and seen the wild gleam in her eyes. She whispered for him to try and catch her then she took off. The effects of the plants must have been affecting him as he followed her into the forest forgetting he was in a hologram program. The chase was on.

About that time, Deanna had found Riker. He was tired from the dancing and allowed the effects of the music along with the plants to lull him. She seen him and tiptoed around him when she noticed his eyes were closed. Deanna dipped her finger in the chocolate syrup and dabbed it on his neck.

He opened his eyes and seen that it was his Imzadi, his beloved. "What are you up to?"

She lay across him and started licking off the chocolate. "I thought it was about time for some dessert." The light mist of the rain seamed to cover them as they rolled under some aromatic blossoms that were on the hanging vines. They were oblivious to the fact that they were not in a room all alone. All Deanna knew was the fact that her Imzadi was kissing her while at an enchanted planet.

Once Leila was sure the program had distracted the other members of the crew, she led Picard to a river's edge. "What do you think so far?"

"I think it is positively superb. I can't remember the last time I was walking around in a dream world." He traced her chin with his fingers and his other hand was on her waist. Picard gave her a gentle kiss on her pouting lips.

She sat down under a tree with her feet in the water. Picard viewed the beauty before him then joined her. Leila shifted into his lap as content as a kitten snuggling up in a windowsill to watch the birds in the trees. "I am sorry. Please don't over react."

Picard tipped her head to the side and let his eyes graze over her. The delicate white material was starting to stick to her body due to the sparse rain that was trickling down in a heavy mist under the tree. "What are you sorry for?"

Leila put one slender arm around him and held her necklace's gem with the other, "For this." She closed her eyes.

In a flash of light, they were transported back to the beach that she was at earlier. Q turned to look at his new guests, "Hello there, Mon Capitan."

Picard stood up while feeling a mixture of being tricked and aggravated. "What the He**?"

A/N: Have to admit I wrote this chapter on my b-friend's porch as it rained. Any thoughts on the program she made? After making this chapter, I had to go eat something chocolate, ha, ha. For the next chapter, I will have to see how the weather is tomorrow, maybe.