Note

An extra chapter this week, as I may not get a chance to post over the weekend, but I will try. We had a bereavement in the family recently and it's the funeral early next week.

Are Data and Geordi about to meet their Waterloo?

Chapter 7

Barnard stood up from the Command Chair as Geoffrey entered and took his seat. "Report?" he said as he loosened his tie and removed his collar stud.

"They're in range but they haven't fired yet sir. We have targets locked." Barnard said as he stepped behind tactical.

"Fire phasers at will." Geoff ordered. "Why haven't they attacked?"

"I'm seeing some kind of chronoton reading from their ship but… I don't know what it is?" David advised.

"Direct hit, enemy shields at 90%" Barnard reported.

Geoff stood behind his cousin. "It's a new one on me." he shook his head. "Send the data to Taryn, see what she thinks. Bridge to Ashby and Barclay, please return to your stations."

"Aye sir." David acknowledged.

"Another direct hit, their shields are now at 82%" Mike intoned.

"Why aren't they fighting back?" Geoff asked.

"Geoff, that reading is like nothing I've ever seen." Taryn replied over the com. "I'm on my way. I'd like to try something."

Reg and Dan entered the bridge and sat at the engineering and science stations respectively. "Any ideas gentlemen?" Geoff asked. "Bastion? Anyone?"

"Enemy shields are now at 75%" Mike reported from tactical.

"I don't believe they're just sitting there while we dismantle their shields with our phasers." Geoff stated. "What do they know that we don't? Cadfael?" The curly haired officer shook his head.

"It's emanating from the area of their torpedo bay." Reg reported as Taryn floated onto the bridge in her chair and headed for an empty station and raised herself to be the right height. "I can't get a clear scan through their hull, it's… non-standard for the Jem'Hadar."

"Bastion, give me another ops panel please. No offence Davey-cakes." Taryn told her cousin.

"None taken." he replied and stood at her side as her fingers danced over the controls.

"Obviously they've been getting advice on upgrades from the mysterious Humanoid." Geoff muttered under his breath.

"They've reinforced their hull with some kind of liquid alloy. It's masking their readings and defying analysis." Taryn reported. "But the build-up of chronometric energy in their bay is so strong it's creating a window. They have a full bank of torps by the look of it. Maybe they're too busy trying to handle an overload to…TAKE EVASIVE ACTION NOW!" she bellowed as she looked at her readings.

"Mr Nog!" Geoff confirmed as the Ferengi manoeuvred the scout ship rapidly. It rocked violently with an impact. "Damage report."

"My hull is breached on deck two. My starboard impulse engine has received damage along with the plasma vents. Emergency force fields are in place and holding. My defensive shields are intact."

"How is that possible? Geoff asked. "Do they have our shield frequency?"

"No, they phased their entire torpedo stock. They just vanished from the bay." Taryn advised him.

"The torpedo rephased inside our shields, from the damage pattern it was a glancing blow." Reg advised Geoff.

"So how do we defend against that?" Geoff asked.

Taryn and Reg exchanged glances and both looked at Geoff. "We can't." they told him in unison as the ship rocked again.

"Those things could rephase inside our hull and literally blow us apart." David warned.

"I don't like that answer Barclays. Give me another." Geoff stated.

"Damage Report, Deck 2, internal holographic systems are offline, Sickbay subsystems are offline, structural integrity at 82%" Bastion reported.

"Mr Nog, get us the hell out of here. Try and out run them." Geoff ordered.

"Wait, I know where we can hide." Dan stated. "Bastion, can you still use your external holographic generator?"

"Yes Dan."

"We can hide on the moon under a holographic blind." Dan suggested.

"Yes, but how do we get there?" Mike asked.

"If we time it right we can fake a core breach and jump to warp momentarily." Reg suggested. "We blow up a shuttle in our place. By the time they work out the trick we'll be out of here."

"Do it, I don't have any better ideas Reg." Geoff stated.

"Bastion?" Reg asked.

"I am already preparing a shuttle for the purpose. May I suggest I take the helm to time our departure and arrival in lunar orbit?"

"No argument here." Nog muttered.

"Good idea Bastion." Geoff smiled.

…

"It's not what you expected is it?" Taryn said to Jake as she worked on the impulse engine lying on her stomach, leaning over the edge of the gantry.

"Not really. I've got some great copy though. Hiding out on the dark side of the moon from the ominous Jem'Hadar and their doomsday torpedoes." He handed her a gravitic calliper with a smile. "You aren't what I expected either."

"Everyone tells me that." she replied with a knowing smile.

"I've never heard of a ship with external holo-emitters?" Jake asked.

"It's tech they were working on at the Daystrom Annex. Bastion is able to take on the appearance of other ships within a certain size range and imitate their power signature or in this case show the ground below us on the surface of the ship and mask our signature altogether. It's not the most robust system, it's only a prototype."

"It's a neat trick though. I'm surprised it's allowed under the Treaty of Algeron."

"It's within the letter of the law but not exactly its spirit." Taryn smiled. "We found far worse violations when we cleared out the Annex believe me."

"Is your husband alright outside? I mean, I heard he can get…nervous."

"He'll be fine. For some weird reason he likes working in Zero G and it's not every day he gets the chance to stick it to Neil Armstrong."

"Who?" Jake asked.

"The first Human on the moon," she smirked, "second now. Well, that's not the most elegant repair I've ever done Bastion, but it should hold up."

"Thank you Mother."

"Thanks for helping me Jake." she told him.

"I wasn't much use really." he said apologetically as he helped her put her tools back in the kit.

"You saved me getting up and down countless times. That was a great help and you were good company."

"Did you ask him to call you mother?" Jake asked as he helped her to her feet. "Bastion, I mean."

"No, I was worried he'd imprint on me so I didn't encourage it. But he adopted Data as a father and started calling us that. I suppose he wanted parents. A feeling of belonging maybe but he's quite private about it." she said as they walked slowly down the steps to her chair. "Feel free to ask him anything though. He'll tell you if it's something he doesn't want to share."

"So he can keep secrets?" Jake asked with surprise.

"He's as entitled to a private life as any of us, but he knows where to draw the line between the professional and the personal if that's what you mean." She began to gasp as she sat down and grabbed her breathing mask.

"Are you okay?" Jake asked, looking worried. She gave him a thumbs up and moved off along the corridor in her chair. "I'll go see if there's anyone else who needs a hand then."

"Did you take one small step?" Taryn said as Reg stepped out of the airlock with his helmet in his hand. "A giant leap?"

"Indeed I did and we also have a patched up hull." he leant over to kiss her, his hair damp with sweat under her hand. "It's not pretty but it should keep us going for a while."

"I managed to botch the impulse drive back together too." she told him.

"You shouldn't have to do that. Where's the engineering team?"

"Trying to get the internal holo-emitters and half of Sickbay online and your posse have been busy on the replicator as per your orders." she explained.

"Good. Let's grab a drink. I'm thirsty." he said as he stripped off the environmental suit and stowed it in a locker. "Come up with any ideas yet?"

"No but I'm still thinking about it." she said as she moved off with him along the corridor. "You?"

"No." he replied. "If we knew the phase variance, maybe we could reconfigure the shields but…" he shook his head. "We don't know they're there till they rephase and blow us to bits and by then it's too late to take a reading even if we could get close enough." They entered the mess room and he ordered two glasses of water and handed one to Taryn. "Why is your hand shaking?" he asked with concern.

"It must be cramp, I've been working at an odd angle." she replied and added her other hand to steady it. The glass fell through and into her lap. "Reg?" she said looking up at him with fear in her eyes.

"It's okay, it's just water." He grabbed a towel and crouched to dry her legs. She reached to pick up the glass from her knees but she was unable to grasp it and it tumbled to the floor, her hands moving spasmodically. "Oh God no." he whispered and hit his communicator. "Barclay to The Doctor. Taryn just lost the motor control in her hands."

"Get her here now Reg." The Doctor ordered.

…

"I thought you said stasis was always an option?" Reg shouted.

"That was before the stasis generators got fried in the attack." The Doctor explained. "We're going to use neural callipers to slow the breakdown of her neurons, currently the damage isn't beyond repair." he assured him.

"Can't you adapt the hormone treatment?"

"Her immune system is attacking the artificial hormones, it's seeing them as alien. She's also showing signs of rejecting her artificial heart."

"We have the replicator working. Let's use it." Reg insisted.

"She doesn't have enough time for us to replicate two organs and she needs them both to stay alive. I'm sorry Reg, we'll try but I don't think she can win this fight."

Reg froze as he considered The Doctor's words. "No," The Doctor grabbed Reg's arm but he pulled it away. "No, I'm not losing her…"

"If you have anything to say to her you'd best say it now, before we apply the neural callipers." The Doctor told him.

Reg shambled over to her bedside, tears in his eyes as he stroked her hair.

"Not good news eh?" she asked him in a whisper.

"No." he replied with a sniff.

"You need to hold it together. You're the First Officer Mr Barclay. This crew needs you to get them home. You need to get home before our kids drive our parents loopy." she told him with a half-hearted smile. "I love you."

"I love you too." he stated and kissed her softly. "You'd better watch out for me in whatever weird Orion afterlife you end up in because I'm going to come looking for you when my time comes." he forced a smile.

"I won't go, the Thousand God's can go fuck themselves, I'm not going to the Dark Place without you. I'm sure the Mother Goddess will let me wait." she whispered. "We could try multiphasic resonance between the hull and the shields. It won't stop the torpedoes permeating the shield but it should detonate them before they reach the hull. It might limit the damage." she suggested.

"I knew I loved you for a reason." he kissed her again. "The Doctor is going to knock you out to try and buy you some time. We won't give up on you, we'll keep trying."

"Okay." she whispered. "Tell the kids I love them?"

"I will. But they already know." he kissed her forehead and looked up, then nodded to The Doctor who placed the callipers on her forehead.

…

"Why are we returning to London?" Bill Matthews asked as they sat on a train with his wife opposite.

"We are taking you to the Langham Hotel, it is the muster point for our ground forces and is both heavily guarded and monitored." Data explained. The train stopped as they reached Waterloo Station and they stood to disembark. Haydn and Emlyn and a security officer Geordi recognised were waiting on the platform.

"Can you see them?" Emlyn's words flooded Geordi's mind and their two wards looked alarmed. They had never experienced telepathy before.

Geordi grabbed Data's sleeve. "Wait!" he told him. "Something's wrong."

"They're all around us but I can't see them." Emlyn thought. "Six, maybe more."

"What is happening?" Data asked and looked across the platform from the train window with Geordi.

"It's an ambush." Geordi swore on seeing the shrouded Jem'Hadar. "We'll go to the next station."

"This train terminates here." Data stated and the conductor entered the carriage asking everyone to disembark. "Stay between us. They will not attack in daylight." Data assured them and stepped off the train.

They immediately unshrouded on the crowded platform, eight of them. The security guard drew his phaser but was shot in the chest before he could fire it. Two Jem'Hadar froze momentarily, drew their daggers and cut their own throats as Emlyn stared at them, his hand reaching out. Haydn drew a phaser and stunned another while Data shot two more with his pistol, Geordi pushed Lizzie behind him and grabbed Bill by the sleeve. A report sounded, the sound of a rifle some distance away and Bill fell to the platform, blood spreading in a pool under his head.

Lizzie screamed before she was also hit, along with Geordi who was wounded in the thigh. The Prior brothers ran for cover behind a trolley of cases as Data returned fire with bullets hitting him.

Andrews appeared between Data and Geordi and pressed a button on the device on his wrist. They were stood on the Bridge of the Enterprise and everything was frozen.

"What the…." Geordi stated. "You told us we had till nightfall." he shouted at Andrews. "Why the hell did they suddenly unshroud in daylight?" he looked at his leg and was surprised to find it uninjured.

"Well, there's no point crying over spilt milk. We're on damage limitation now. I pulled you two out in hopes of salvaging some of this situation. We may be able to save the Federation from here." Andrews stated. "This is the day the Hyper-subspace test was supposed to happen in 2381 in the future spawned from those events."

"Spilt milk?" Geordi repeated incredulously. "People are dead."

"Yes, several people, all across London died nearly five hundred years ago. Forgive me if I don't need to wring out my hanky La Forge. A lot of other damage was done that day because Geoff Prior armed his men with phasers. The clean-up operation was a nightmare."

"I take it you are Mr Andrews." Data stated.

"Yes, and here's what you need to do. You need to get Barclay posted to Earth so he can teach there. It may be enough to stop the fall of the Federation…"

"Surely it would be wiser to return to the 19th century and prevent what happened?" Data suggested.

"That's not an option. You're already there and the Agency won't permit a return visit."

"Well screw the Agency." Geordi stated. "Did Haydn and Emlyn get out of there alive? What happened to everyone else? What happened to Bastion and the people on board?"

"That's classified." Andrews said coldly. "You both need to focus on the matter in hand. Back there is over, it's done. You blew it. Move on. You need to get Barclay to request a transfer to Earth. Don't let him get distracted. Make sure he does it."

"But what about Taryn, their kids?" Geordi asked.

Andrews sighed. "We have to make some concessions when things go this badly awry. It's unavoidable. But Reginald Barclay will meet Taryn Prior, that's also unavoidable."

"They are a Universal Constant?" Data asked

"Yes, but that doesn't mean they automatically get a happily ever after." Andrews stated. "He's the one you need to get to Earth, he needs to teach. Above all, don't tell anyone you're from another timeline."

"Are there any other rules we need to know about?" Geordi asked sarcastically.

"Don't waste your time working out where the timeline went wrong. Don't go through the history books lamenting what might have been. It's pointless. Live in the here and now. This is what we have to work with." Andrews shimmered out of sight and activity on the Bridge resumed as though he'd never been there.

"Mr Data, may I have a moment?" Picard asked as he stood and walked to the Ready Room. "I need to speak to you after Mr La Forge if you wouldn't mind waiting?" he added as he reached the door. They both nodded and Data followed him into the room. "Please take a seat Data." he said sullenly

"With Commander Shelby leaving the ship it leaves a vacancy. A vacancy that by a rights should go to you. However, Starfleet have ruled that as you are their property you cannot exceed your current rank and position. I have challenged this decision, but my pleas have fallen on deaf ears. I can only apologize."

Data blinked. He was the property of Starfleet? "Thank you for your efforts on my behalf sir." Data stated, not knowing what else to say.

"I wish I could do more Data. I wish I could have done more but when Maddox won that hearing it was all I could do to get you back from him so Dr Crusher and Geordi could put you back together. You were lucky to survive let alone keep your rank and the position of Second Officer. I'm going to offer the job to Geordi. I know you're friends. I hope it won't cause any animosity between you?"

"It will not sir." Data assured him. "Not on my part. Commander La Forge will make an admirable First Officer and will have my full support."

"Thank you Data. I'm sorry this is so unfair to you. You're a remarkable officer and a loyal friend. I wish Command could see you the way I do."

"If wishes were horses sir, beggars would ride." Data stated.

…

"Dr Crusher, how is our newest recruit settling in?" Picard asked.

"Shhh, she's taking the Barclay test now." the auburn haired medic said as she watched with her arms folded.

"I see." he smirked and arched a brow, mimicking her pose.

"She's doing well so far sir." Nurse Ogawa whispered. "He hasn't sobbed or rended his clothing once yet."

"And you're sure of that?" Barclay asked the pretty doctor.

"Have you heard of Occam's Razor Commander?" she asked politely. Her green features even and her jet coloured hair in a jaw length bob that was held back from her face by her pointed ears.

"Of course I have. The simplest explanation is probably the right one…" he explained.

"Exactly, there's an old saying in medicine, if you hear hoof-beats think horses not zebras and the simplest explanation is you have a low grade fever and painful urination due to a urinary tract infection. Not Penile Cellular Disintegration Syndrome or Aldebaran Prostate Leprosy."

"It's Archosaurian gonorrhoea isn't it?" he asked dejectedly.

"Archosaurian gonorrhoea?" she paused. "It could be that." she conceded.

"Well… H…have we caught it early enough for treatment?" he asked desperately.

"That depends," she replied earnestly. "How long ago did you have anal sex with a male Gorn?"

"A…anal s…sex with a…G..g…g" he repeated nervously.

"Obviously you'd have to be the postman rather than the letterbox, so to speak…" she commented. "The other way around causes a different set of problems and despite what you may have heard you can't catch it from a toilet seat."

"I..I…haven't I…I haven't even done that with a g…girl…I mean a Human…Humanoid girls. I like girls. Obviously I've been with girls, real girls." he smiled.

"Good for you Mr Barclay." she winked as she made some notes on a padd. "I'm going to give you an antibiotic and because you're concerned I'd like you to come back with a sample. But I assure you it's a water infection and nothing to worry about. Make sure you take plenty of fluids and in a couple of days you'll be right as rain."

"I can go and pee now…" he suggested as she pressed a hypospray to his neck and he whimpered.

"That's not the type of sample we need to rule out the condition's you mentioned." she stated and got out a container from a drawer. "Take this to your quarters, think of Human…Humanoid girls, girls, real girls and do your stuff!" she said enthusiastically.

"Do…my stuff?" he asked with a sneer, taking the cup from her.

"Spank the monkey, choke the chicken, beat the meat Mr Barclay, knock one out. Lie back and think of the Enterprise if you have to." she told him.

"Do you expect me to…f…fill this?" he asked incredulously.

"That would be a tall order for the best of men Commander. I only need a little squirt to run the tests. Just do your best." she advised him. "Any time today will be fine but bring it back as soon as you've done it. Your boys have a limited lifespan once they're out in the open."

"Oh…okay," he smiled shyly. "Thank you Doctor um…"

"Prior, as in please come here prior to trying to diagnose yourself?" she suggested with a smile. He nodded awkwardly and left sickbay.

"You handled that very well." Dr Crusher said as she approached her. "He's not the easiest of patients."

"He thought his dick was about to fall off, bless him. I think he was hoping I'd be male. I agreed to analyse his semen to put his mind at rest but it's a bacterial UTI." She passed the CMO his results.

"He should certainly be more relaxed for a while and it's a reasonable precaution in a man his age. Good work." she said.

"Does he always get himself all stirred up and then come in panicking?" Taryn asked as they walked through Sickbay.

"Usually. He's a sweet man and a brilliant engineer, he just got promoted to Chief Engineer in fact, but he's a world class hypochondriac." She looked at her junior doctor askance. "A little bird tells me you have quite the singing voice."

"Only when I'm drunk or in the shower usually, why?" Taryn asked.

"What range?"

"Contralto, tenor at a pinch. Again why?"

"My theatre workshop is putting on a production of Mamma Mia. I was wondering if you'd like to audition? It would be a great way to make new friends…"

"I'll think about it." Taryn smirked.

…

"Is Dr Prior here?" Reg asked as he looked around Dr Crusher's office door.

"She just went off duty, can I help you Reg?" she smiled looking up from her terminal.

"She asked me to…" he held up a cup.

"Oh good, I'll put it in stasis." she told him and took his sample, "She'll check it tomorrow."

"She seems very young." he commented as he followed her to the lab.

"She's very capable." Dr Crusher replied. "We were lucky to get her."

"Oh I didn't mean to imply she wasn't qualified…I just wondered how old she is? It's not always easy to tell with humanoids."

"She's twenty-nine." she replied.

"She looks younger." he remarked sadly.

"Your point Reg?" she asked as she placed the sample in the stasis unit.

"I just wondered." he looked at his hands. "I heard she's an Admiral's daughter or something?"

"Not just an Admiral, he's the Judge Advocate General." she replied.

"I thought he was Human." he frowned.

"He is."

"But she's…"

"A hybrid. Look, perhaps you should talk to her yourself? She's very friendly and open about her biological heritage." the Doctor suggested.

"I…I couldn't." he smiled and fidgeted with his hands. "So she'll call? About the tests I mean."

"It's just a precaution Reg." Beverly warned.

"I know, but she'll call right?" he asked earnestly.

"Yes, she'll call after the tests are complete." she assured him. He smiled and turned to walk away, almost colliding with a cabinet then side stepped it nervously and left the room. "And I thought he was tense when he hadn't just whacked off."

…

"You wanted to see me?" Reg asked nervously.

"Yes Commander." Dr Prior said with a smile. "Let's step into the office for a moment."

"Is there a problem?" he asked, looking alarmed as she closed the door behind him.

"No, not really." she assured him as she indicated he should sit and perched on Dr Crusher's desk. "All the tests were clear across the board. No sign of any unusual infections or disorders. Your sample size was within normal range, your sperm count is above average and your prostate health is good. The only issue…"

"Oh boy…" he started to hyperventilate.

"It's nothing to worry about." she crouched beside him and grasped his arm. "I just spotted something unusual about your genetic chemistry. It won't affect your health at all. All it means is you may have unpredictable reactions to genetic and immunological treatments and we have to consider the wider ramifications should you need them in future."

"So I'm okay?" he asked plaintively, "and I can have children?"

"You may pass it on to them, but now we're aware of it it shouldn't be a problem." she smiled as she squeezed his wrist and stood up. "If we hadn't spotted this my guess would be you'd end up with something morphogenic, something really exotic and unusual." He laughed nervously at the thought. "So, are you feeling any better?"

"It's still really painful to go." he told her. "And sometimes I can't go."

"Not just a burning sensation?" she asked.

He shook his head. "It hurts here too," he rubbed his lower abdomen. "and I've passed some blood." he admitted reluctantly.

"Okay, come through and I'll take a look." she told him and led him to sickbay. She grabbed a tricorder and scanned him as he perched uncomfortably on a stool "Well, Mr Barclay. You have cystoliths." she advised him.

"What?" he said with alarm.

"Vesical calculus, bladder stones. It's not an uncommon complication with a urine infection."

"Oh God." he moaned. "Do I need surgery?"

"No, I should be able to beam them out." she stated brightly. "You'll feel better right away."

"W…what do you mean beam? With a transporter?" he said with alarm.

"It's the same technology, but it's not at all on the same scale…"

"No, you're not beaming bits of me away. What if you miss? What if I end up missing a nut or something?" he screeched.

"Is there a problem?" Dr Crusher asked and Taryn handed her the tricorder.

"No." Reg said quickly. "No problem. I'll just be going. These things pass don't they? I'll just drink lots of water and let them pass on their own." he stood and headed for the door.

"Commander, get your behind back here." Taryn ordered. "You have three options. Surgery, transport or wait for them to pass. If you'd prefer someone else to treat you that's fine but the third option is extremely painful and from the size of the stones it's borderline that you'll pass them at all."

"She's right Reg, from this I'd recommend removal, one way or another."

He looked at the ceiling. "Okay, but I want Dr Crusher to do it. Not because I don't trust you or think you're a bad doctor. Because…Will you have dinner with me?" he asked Taryn earnestly.

She looked at him stunned. "Well, um…" she looked around nervously. "Okay." she replied with a smile.

"You will?" he smiled. "Wow."

"Once you're healthy." Taryn stated. "I don't want you keeling over during dessert."

He nodded and looked at Dr Crusher. "Can you do it now?"

"That depends, surgery or transport?" she replied.

"Can I check over your equipment?" he asked earnestly.

Dr Crusher rolled her eyes. "I'm sure Dr Prior can show you our micro transporter."

"It's this way Commander." Prior smiled.

"Um it's Reginald…well Reg."

"Taryn." she smiled shyly as she showed him the device. "I'm sure you've seen it all before."

"W…what?" he asked desperately.

"The transporter?" she replied with an embarrassed smile.

"I thought you meant…" he stopped mid-sentence. "Can I see the service records?"

"For me or the transporter?" she flashed him a wolfish smile then pulled up the records on the terminal.

He tutted. "I'm sure your service records are in better order…" he looked at her with alarm. "I wasn't implying you need servicing…I mean…I need to get on top of…. maintenance up here I mean. Geordi delegated it and…"

She laughed and touched his arm. "Let's assume we're being literal rather than euphemistic, at least during duty hours."

"That's probably a good idea." he smiled. "I'm sorry if I put you on the spot. If you want to back out…" he said earnestly. "You seemed a little reluctant at first."

"No, of course I don't want to back out. If I wasn't happy to have dinner with you I wouldn't have agreed. I was surprised that's all. I'm not used to patients refusing my care to ask me out." She curled her lip. "They usually refuse because I'm too young or too green. Or they skip the refusing care and asking out part and try to cop a feel."

"Does that happen a lot?" he asked with genuine concern.

"It's what got me transferred from my last post." she admitted. "Apparently I made him do it with my Green Orion wiles and the Captain sided with him."

"Did you make a complaint?" he frowned.

"No, it…it would…everyone would think my father pulled strings if it was upheld. It was easier to leave."

"I know we don't know each other very well yet. But don't let anyone drive you away from here?" he gazed into her dark green eyes and felt lost in them. Before he knew what he was doing he bumped noses with her and gasped. His lips met with hers for an instant.

"You're hot." she whispered. "You're trembling."

"You excite me." he whispered and took her in his arms.

"No, you're feverish." she objected. "We need to get you to a bed."

"Oh God yes." he sighed and kissed along her jawline.

"I mean a medical bed, you require treatment." she pulled his arms from her waist with a gentle smile.

"You do excite me though." he argued, looking deep into her eyes.

"I think you're delirious." she said as she steered him to a biobed.

"Do you like to dance? Of course you do, it's in your blood. We should go dancing." he told her enthusiastically. "I could teach you to ride a horse. You'd look great with a stallion between your legs." he said as she pushed him onto the bed.

"I know how to ride." she told him with a giggle and signalled for Dr Crusher. "Your patient is spiking a fever and a little delirious doctor." she told her senior colleague.

"I'm deliriously happy." he smiled. "I've got a date with a hot, really hot…God she's beautiful…Isn't she just lovely?" he asked Nurse Ogawa as she gave him a hypospray.