"Interesting choice." Will Riker jumped at the sound of his own voice before slowly exhaling. His arms that had immediately gone into a defensive posture slowly sunk back to his side.
"Thought I locked that." He huffed, his breath still ragged as Tom's eyes roamed across the Alaskan skyline before he settled on a rock adjacent from Will's.
"You did." His 'brother' smirked proudly. "Good thing for you your wife can tell us apart better than the computer." Will snorted at him, but he couldn't help but grin back. "Shouldn't you be with Deanna?"
"Probably." Will sighed, in admission. "I'm hiding from my mother in law." Thomas looked suddenly pale at the mere mention of the elder Troi. "She understands."
"Yeah I think I got the better end of that stick. She gave me a little snort at the reception and that was about it. You're forever bonded." Thomas looked vaguely nauseous.
"You think her voice is loud you should hear her thoughts." His counterpart murmured, resting his chin against the arm he had propped up on his knee.
"You can hear her thoughts?" Thomas choked out. Will nodded back before rubbing his face.
"Deanna can help with some of it." He blew air out of his lips. "She's on guard right now because of-. Well because of what I'm guessing you're here to talk about."
"It's not Regalian Masthalia-." Thomas rushed the words out of his mouth.
"No." Will interrupted, cringing at the sound of the disease that had killed their mother.
"I mean because I know they said there was a very minute chance-." He continued.
"It's not." Will repeated firmly. "I-. I did it for Deanna." He shook his head, wiping at his mouth with his thumb.
"I don't-" Thomas shook his head in confusion.
"The illness… that caused.. Lizzie's.." Will swallowed hard taking slow breaths like Deanna had coached, trying to still the pounding behind his eyes. "Differences."
Thomas nodded at him, understanding his double's struggle for the right words to describe his niece.
"I.." He inhaled quickly and looked up. "I used morphodexiren for Deanna's pain. We used telepathic anesthesia. I developed an addiction."
Will braced himself for the look of pleasure that he figured would come to Thomas' features; or disgust, or both. The other man blinked for a second before nodding.
"I almost killed myself with an overdose." He confessed, eyeing Tom's expression. "Then I couldn't deal with the withdrawal so I started using again." Will paused, waiting for the judgment. "On the job." He eyed him suspiciously. "On my own. Until Deanna found me curled in a ball on the floor of the observation lounge during a crisis." Rushed the words out quickly. "For God Sakes say something!"
"You okay now?" Thomas asked evenly. Will opened his mouth in surprise before rubbing at the corners of his lips with his thumb and forefinger.
"Mostly." He finally conceded.
"I drank a lot.. After Nervala IV." Thomas told him. "And after The Marquis.. And after Lazon II." He nodded as if in remembrance. "Like, Dad on a bender levels of a lot." Will watched him shrug. "It's genetic." Will snorted. "Figures Mr. Perfect would turn it into a fatal flaw."
"Mr. Perfect." Will yelped.
"I had no choice but to become the evil twin." Thomas shook his head.
"No choice." Will rolled his eyes.
"It was my Destiny." He sighed dramatically, slapping his leg as he stood.
"Oh yeah." Will rose with him, smirking. "Then what was mine?"
Thomas paused, his eyes growing serious.
"Deanna." He told him. "Deanna was your destiny. So how about you stop licking your wounds and go help her get through today." Will pressed his lips together and held Tom's eyes for a second. He could feel it, at the back of his head, a soft humming pulse. "Lizzie's going to be fine." He nodded at him. "Everything's going to be fine."
"You coming?" He whispered after a few minutes.
"Nah. I haven't been here in decades, and you've almost got it perfect." He looked around the holodeck again. "And unlike you I get to steer clear of Lwaxana."
"It is perfect." Will muttered. "Don't.. Change anything."
"No promises!" The other man called as he wandered down a path. "I'll see you later."
…
Deanna looked up when the doors swished open and her husband strode in.
"Daddy!" Lizzie squealed, springing up from her chair and into her father's arms. He hugged her tight to his chest. "Jack brought me a puzzle. A really hard one." He put her back on the ground, pressing a kiss to the top of her head as he did.
"A fine challenge Admiral." Will tipped his head to Jack who nodded back.
"I believe she's up to it Number one." Jack answered dutifully. Will turned back to his wife.
"You beamed down without me." He whispered gliding his hands over her shoulders. She unknoted her crossed arms and let her fingers slip down his chest.
"It seemed like you needed a minute." She whispered, he winced, pulling her to his chest. She rested the side of her face against him, letting her eyes shut softly.
I'm sorry.
You have nothing to be sorry for. It was her official voice, her daughter of the fifth house voice, even in his mind.
I can feel you wrestling with this. He coaxed her softly, pushing steadily at the thin wall she'd hidden herself behind today. More to keep herself in then him out he discovered as she let it melt away. You needed me here.
You're here now. Will felt her hand grip at the fabric of his uniform. Giving her something to ground herself, as it had so many times before. Will..
Tell me.
What if we're making a mistake?
Do you think we're making a mistake? He pressed a kiss to the top of her head, rocking her gently.
She's happy. Deanna looked over his bicep at Jack and Elizabeth. And healthy, in her own way.
You know that's not true. We both know what the future could hold for her. The Medical professionals had been quite clear about the little girls prognosis.
"Mommy look at how many pieces we've found."
The doctor's have been wrong about her before, Will.
Deanna widened her eyes in approval at her daughter's pile of pieces.
They have, but Beverly would never put Lizzie's life at risk if she didn't think it was for the best.
He felt a sudden calm slip over his wife as she rubbed her cheek against his shoulder. Despite everything that had taken place in the last year, her trust in Beverly's medical ethics had not diminished. She nodded against him before the both turned to watch Dr. Picard walk into the room.
"It's time." She said calmly, a wispy smile fading on and off of her face. Will watched Lizzie's hand jet out and grasp onto Jack's forearm. "Your mother is making herself comfortable."
"You said he could come back with me." She rushed out. "Right Auntie?"
"Of course he can. He can stay until you're sleeping." She said softly.
Lizzie and Jack exchanged long glances, he smiled and tangled his hand around hers.
"Will you tell me the story, the one about the Little Prince?" She begged. Will watched Jack calmly run his thumb across the blue fabric of her glove with a nod. He gulped heavily before pushing Deanna gently towards the two of them.
It will be alright Little One. Will tried not to wince at his mother inlaws words, Deanna was too busy trying to remain cheerful for Lizzie to notice. Will pressed his lips into the top of his daughter's head before she and Jack followed Beverly back into the operating room.
Riker was still stroking Deanna's hair when Jack Picard wandered back into the room. He lifted his eyes to Will, his mature demeanor cracking until he was a tearful twelve year old. The Captain of the Enterprise reached out and pulled him into a hug.
"Mom's going to do this. She's going to do this." The boy whispered silently like it was a prayer. Will joined him.
…..
Elizabeth Kestra Riker had never once in her life taken a breath.
Beverly Picard held her own as she wrapped her hand around the port that had connected the girl to her external circulatory system since she had created it. She looked at Seven of Nine's curt nod before looking at Alyssa. The nurse bit her lip before also nodding. Picard pulled the connector away and watched beneath the force field as the lungs did what they were intended to do.
She gasped as the sound of air pushed through Lizzie's lips with a humm, the first actual sound she'd ever made on her own. The artificial external voice box modulator that had been programed to speak for the little girl was now in a bag on the exam table.
"Vital signs stable doctor." The excitement was evident in Alyssa's voice. She grinned at Seven. "It worked."
"As expected." The former Borg quipped.
Beverly looked at Lwaxanna Troi on the next bed, the woman slid her eyes lazily towards her from her pile of pillows.
"Can you wake her?" The doctor whispered. "She'll still need pain management."
"Of course." The telepath closed her eyes again and pushed gently at her granddaughter's mind until Beverly could see her face twitch.
"Lizzie?"
"Auntie Beverly?" The noise scratched out of the child's dry throat and crossed through her lips like it had always done so. Her newly discovered voice was hoarse and quiet. "Can Jack finish the story now?"
….