The door chimed and Will and Deanna exchanged glances.
"Just promise me you will remember that this was all your doing when it inevitably blows up in our faces." He grumbled.
"Will." She titled her head at him, moving Luc to the other shoulder.
"Come in." He sighed, the door swished open revealing Tom and Ro Lauren, looking equally skeptical. It made Will smile. Ro moved left, appropriately squeaking at the baby's adorableness. Will shared a mirrored expression of angst with his double.
"Only for Deanna right?" Tom muttered, handing him a bottle of Andorian cider.
"Only for Deanna." He agreed. "Come in."
"Thomas." Deanna smiled, moving the baby so he could get a better look.
"Well now." He smiled softly. "What have we got here?" He looked at her, raising his eyebrows slightly before she nodded, offering Luc up to him.
Will's mouth twitched up at the look of glee in his son's eyes. "You are clearly a son of the fifth house."
Riker snorted, his head bobbing down and shaking slowly back and forth.
"I say the same thing." His bemused voice was low. "Every time I look at him I think that."
At the sound of his father's voice Luc turned towards it, his little face relaxing into a smile.
"I'll have you both know there are worse things." Deanna protested. The Riker boys looked at each other again before Tom snorted, bringing Luc's attention back to him. He grinned equally at his uncle. "Well Luc doesn't seem to think that their being two of you is a problem."
"He's the only one." Will snorted as Tom dangled his son towards him. Luc chattered back wiggling into his father's shoulder happily.
"Not the only one." Ro repeated flatly, lifting her eyebrow drily. Deanna's gaze fell slowly onto her before offering her drink just as Lizzie Riker barreled through the door with Jack Picard on her heels.
"Mom? Can Jack and I go to the holodeck?" She asked, whipping back a long tendril of hair.
"Elizabeth say hello to our guests." Her mother scolded. Will watched his daughter turn towards the two people in the room.
"Hi Uncle Tom." She smiled. "Hi Lady I don't know."
"Elizabeth Kestra." Deanna moaned.
"I'm Ro Lauren." The woman smirked, clearly bemused by the Riker child.
"I'm Lizzie Riker." She turned towards her companion. "This is Jack Picard."
"Picard." Ro's eyes lifted in surprise.
"Yes Ma'am." Jack murmured still staring at Tom.
"As in Jean-Luc Pi-?"
"Yes Ma'am." Jack cut her off, the way he always did when he had to answer that question. "My father, Ma'am."
"You're starring, Admiral." Will snickered.
"Sorry." He winced at Tom Riker. "I've never seen a-."
"Well, until they meet me know one has." Tom told the boy with a grin. Jack backed up a few feet until he was next to Will. Riker put a comforting hand on Jack's shoulder.
"Are you Uncle Tom's girlfriend?"
"Wife." Ro said bluntly.
"Wife?" Will and Deanna exclaimed together.
"So... you're my aunt?"
"I guess." She looked towards Tom but he was looking at Deanna. Deanna's wide eyes were on her and Will's were toggling between the two.
"Did I forget to mention that?" Tom's voice squeaked at the end of the query.
"Possibly." Deanna's voice mirrored his pitch before she swung her gaze to Will. Her husband put his hands up defensively. "When?"
"A few months ago." Thomas winced.
"Aunt Ro Lauren? Do you want to see my room?" Lizzie chirped.
"Um.. we should go." Jack muttered, his eyes scanning the adults in the room before grasping Lizzie's forearm. "We'll go talk to my mom about the holodeck."
"Great idea." Will said quickly, patting Jack on the shoulder.
"Wait.." Tom said softly. "Lizzie come here for just a second."
The little girl stood before her Uncle, her arm still clenched in Jack's protective grasp.
Tom put his hands on each of her shoulders and appraised her, nodding as if he liked what he saw.
"You are very pretty." He said softly. "I think your Grandmother Elizabeth would have approved."
"That's what Daddy says." She told him. "And that Grandpa Kyle would have called me Stardust."
Tom's smile turned softer for a second, remembering his father's long forgotten nickname for his mother.
"Your Daddy is probably right." Tom pushed the words from his tight throat.
"Mommy says he usually is." Lizzie reported allowing herself to be pulled away by Jack. "Bye Luckie Kookie." She called, slipping her fingers over Luc's chubby leg on the way out the door. The baby squealed back at her.
The room lapsed into silence in her wake.
The right side of Tom's mouth frozen in a sad smile.
"She's fantastic." He said a few minutes later.
"You got married." Deanna said softly, her eye's on the other Riker.
"We did." Will could feel Tom's remorse, his ache. He felt the flutter of abandonment in Deanna's heart and quickly moved in to sooth it.
I'm still here Imzadi. He pushed his love towards her and she came towards it. Always here. He watched the soft look of serenity come to her features.
She looked towards Ro again.
"Congratulations." Will added jovially, without a touch of awkwardness. "We should celebrate."
He strode to over and ordered up some champagne, handing each glass out while balancing his son in the crook of his arm.
They toasted, Tom and Deanna both still awkwardly swallowing.
"Marriage will be good for you Tom." Riker sighed. "And Ro can clearly handle you." Ro looked at Riker, her eyes mischevious. He might of found it amusing if not for the tension rising off his wife and double. He sat down on the couch, surprised when Deanna slid under his arm. He turned his cheek into her soft curls and she took a second to kiss the baby's foot.
"You'd know Captain." The Bajoran smirked. Tom grunted and Deanna stiffened, will felt her sparks of anger. He gently nudged the link towards the other woman's insecure jealousy. His wife sighed as the anger lessoned and she pressed deeper into his side.
"I can't say I do." He told her honestly. "That was a long time ago."
"It must be strange though, seeing what could have been." She raised a prefect eyebrow.
"Lauren." Tom hissed softly. Will could feel his embarrassment, his guilt.
"No Tom, Deanna and I are a real disadvantage here. We don't know each other in the same way that the rest of us do." Will would have been amused if not for his wife's discomfort. "Honestly. We've both slept with them both of you but she and I have only had the most formal of relationships."
That did it. Will thought as he felt the tingle of indignity bolt up his wife's spine with all the power of the fifth house.
"I remember our relationship being more catty and sometimes insubordinate myself." She said calmly, despite the fact that Will could feel her seethe. He felt Ro's disappointment at her inability to rattle Deanna. He also felt how rattled Deanna was. The mixture made him feel slightly sick. Ro Lauren was speechless and pouty.
Some things never change. Deanna sent, Will stroked his hand down her curls. He felt Tom's spike of concern at the soothing action. His twin wracked his brain for something helpful to say.
Will took a deep breath.
"I agree that this whole situation is, as usual as it gets." He chuckled. "But we are very happy that the two of you have found happiness."
Will could feel the pulse of pride that kicked through her, momentarily overwhelming the jealousy.
"What Will said." Deanna whispered, meeting Tom's eyes.
"The children are beautiful." Ro said after a few minutes. "Truly."
"Thank you." Deanna smiled. "Any hope for cousins?"
Will knew the answer before they shot through Tom Riker's head. He knew, Tom, like Will couldn't picture children without dark eyes and black curls.
Ro's head dropped slightly.
"No." She smirked. "We're not really kid people."
Will felt the ache again in his double, it hurt. He felt Deanna's hand on his knee and he took it. The way Tom beamed at Lizzie, the way he'd appraised Luc, there was no doubt he was 'kid people'.
Speaking of Lizzie.. Deanna tighted her grip.
Deanna..
Will.
I don't think it's necessary.
Will, we've talked about this.
He sighed in defeat.
"Tom." Deanna began. "There was something we wanted to talk to you about."
He leaned forward, his head tilting to the left.
"Lizzie is having surgery tomorrow." Will felt the emotions start to churn in his wife.
"Surgery?" Tom's anxiety crept over Deanna's and she braced herself against it. Will used his faith in Beverly to brush it away from her.
"Lungs." Will whispered. "Beverly has found a way to give her lungs."
"I thought-?" Will waved his question away.
"It's complicated."
"What do you need from me?"
"Blood." Deanna said calmly. "Elizabeth can't have any synthetics."
Tom nodded.
"Why can't the Captain-?" Ro began. looking at Will skeptically.
"Will has had some health issues lately." Deanna continued, Tom's head bobbed up and looked at his twin. "I'd feel more comfortable if he didn't donate."
"Anything I should know about?" Will felt his concern, not just for himself and any possible genetic problems, but for Will. He felt the sudden rush of protectiveness in his double. He crept towards it, despite Deanna's cautioning reminder of what had happened last time, Will once again studied his duplicated mind.
"No." Will said taking in Thomas' fear, and his almost overwhelming need for Will and Deanna to be happy. For one of them to live out their destiny. Riker's shoulders sank as he saw Thomas' broken child minded memories of their mother. Will winced at them wanting desperately to reassure his brother that it was nothing like that. "I'll be fine. Deanna's just being cautious."
Thomas looked between Will and Deanna. Riker winced at the stab of remorse, the need to be a part of the family before him. He felt Deanna's sympathy, and by the look Tom gave her, he did as well. Tom looked back at his wife before taking a slow deep breath.
She doesn't have to know. It can be between us. He focused his attention on Will, but Riker felt Deanna gasp slightly beside him. He looked into his own eyes, he felt his own sincerity.
Later. When we're alone. Will promised with a nod. Deanna's grip tightened on his hand. Thomas nodded as well.
"You know I'd do anything for Lizzie." He said out loud. "Just tell me where and when."
"Tomorrow morning. Beverly can contact you and give you all the specifics. " Deanna answered.
"Thank you." Will told him. His voice low and sincere. He took a deep breath, his hands clapped against his thighs as he stood.
"Who's hungry?"
"Did you cook?" Tom asked.
"Did I cook." Will snorted, making his way to the small kitchen. "You think I was going to let you needle me all night for replicating?"