Juliette failed further unravel the tangle of sensation from her inadvertent contact on the Uwdan planet, despite her best efforts at meditation and downing half a pot of her favorite tea. Whenever she attempted to descend deeper into her memories, the cold sensation of the governor's touch on her arm or the sudden, perverse closeness of the Sklan would jolt her back to consciousness. After several attempts that ended with her huddled in her robes, shuddering in revulsion, the sound of the room chime came as a relief, despite the fact she felt no presence behind the door.

"Enter."

Bridgeway swaggered in after the door slid open. His red-brown pompadour was barely regulation and he had a lopsided smile that gave him the air of a mischievous boy, rather than the chief engineer of the Oppenheimer. He was clearly excited as he plopped down cross-legged in front of her, casually mocking her form and leaning in conspiratorially. "I heard the captain talking to Commander Syvok. Starfleet Command approved his request for further study of these 'Sklan' of yours."

"They're not my Sklan, they're our Sklan," Juliette corrected though obviously pleased. She set out a second teacup and poured out of habit. Out of habit, he took the cup in his hand. "Thank you for supporting the idea."

"It was a good idea, Lieutenant Commander. I'm requesting permission to be on the away team."

Her smile fell away. "Absolutely-"

He hopped to his feet and stepped back dramatically. "Behold!" His form melted and reformed as his skin darkened. His clothing twisted into a tantrum of color. When the transformation was complete, he put his hands on his hips, an Uwdan colossus astride the world. "We'd make a pretty good pair. What do you think?"

She rose and circled him contemplatively before she settled back into her meditative position, her robe billowing slightly. "Passable, but your ears," she laughed, "– are a bit outrageous." He laugh melted into a sigh. "But Lieutenant-"

"Think about it, they can't cloud my mind, because I'm not organic."

"James, you know full well, that as a photonic lifeform, you are a technology well beyond anything the Uwda-"

He reassumed his place across from her, his swagger absent, his face grave. "Jul, please. Don't say no. It would be great to be somewhere that I'm not just some light show."

Juliette stopped in mid-pour. "Light show?!" She set the pot down with a loud clack. "That's hardly a professional way to address a photonic-"

He held up his hands. "Hold on, everyone's professional. Perfectly nice and professional - but the way they look at me sometimes – they know when the emitters go off, I disappear," Bridgeway said morosely, sipping at the cup. "I'm not a person, I'm a light show."

"James, stop," she soothed. "Do you know how valuable to the captain are - how valuable to all of us?"

"Valuable enough for Captain Tilmana to order you to build me?"

"It's unprecedented. You are a photonic lifeform based on a living person-"

"I'm an extra hand because Oppenheimer's senior staff is overworked. This ship has more hats than heads to wear them. I don't need to be a Betazoid to see how exhausted everyone is." He rubbed his eyes and laughed ruefully. "The only reason I get tired is because I'm programmed to."

Juliette put her gloved hand on James'. "Have you talked to Ship's Counselor about how you feel?"

Bridgeway looked at her incredulously. "Dr. Fenna?"

Juliette maintained her solemn expression for several heartbeats before they both burst out laughing. "No, James, I'm serious." She attempted to look serious.

Bridgeway shook his head. "I can hear her now. 'You just gotta suck it up, buttercup!'"

Juliette laughed again despite herself. "Now, now, stop. She is my peer officer and a competent doctor."

"But the worst counselor in seven systems. Why aren't you ship's counselor?"

"I'm already chief science officer and head of operations. Do you want me to get any sleep?"

"Jul, I'm serious as the phage here."

"Why should I be the counselor, because I'm Betazoid?" She shook her head ruefully and muttered, "A pox on the fifth house for pigeonholing us."

"No, no, you should be the counselor because while people fear Dr. Fenna, people respect you. I respect you."

Juliette smirked and murmured, "Never heard a Terran try that line."

"Now who's pigeonholing? Besides, it's ex-Terran, thank you. "

"For all practical purposes, you are—"

"Don't change the subject."

"James," she said sadly. "I won't do it. I can't do it."

"Why not?"

She wriggled her gloved fingers at him and said, "Because to be an effective counselor you have to be able to connect with people."

"You connect with people all the time."

"On my terms. But to be a good counselor, it's not always on your terms, sometimes it's on someone else's. And you can't stop because of headaches, or nosebleeds or seizures from an overload of emotional stimuli." She sighed. "The emotions of those around nearby almost killed me. I nearly killed people because I couldn't control myself. I spent years on Vulcan learning manage to my condition."

"You didn't seem all that keen on Vulcan techniques in the staff meeting."

She sipped her tea quietly and paused uncomfortably before she spoke. "Let's just say that Commander Syvok was around while I was on Vulcan. We have…history."

Bridgeway's eyes went wide and he brayed with laughter. "You black-eyed heartbreaker!"

"No! Gods, you are such a Terran." She shook her head, laughing, and then abruptly stopped. "Nothing like that. Nothing I want to talk about right now. Okay? Please?"

"Roger that. Sounds like you need to get your away team in order, though. You're sure I can't go?"

She studied him for a long moment before answering. "I'm sure."

"Permission to be on ops when your team goes down?"

"I'll put in the request to Commander Syvok," She said, smiling. "But in the meantime. I would like you to do something for me."

"Name it," he said as they both stood.

"I made a holodeck program that I only want you to see. It won't work until the away team is on-planet."

"Secret stuff huh? Personal?"

She shrugged noncommittally. "Of a fashion. You'll need the passcode." She rested her hand on his shoulder as she whispered in his ear. His shoulder was solid and warm as he leaned slightly into her touch. His reaction was so very human, and her response - to reach out telepathically - was so very Betazoid. But instead of a deeper connection, she found nothing, like an android or a hollow statue. She remembered to smile as he left.

ooOOoo

From the quiet of her room, she immersed herself among the Uwda - watched their entertainment and news videos, read and listened to their media - practiced the most common - and some of the not-so-common local customs. As the week progressed, she let messages from Betazed accumulate and focused on getting used to the face in the mirror. She kept the Uwdan alterations on the entire week despite Dr. Fenna's insistence she could re-apply them in short order. With the universal translator, Juliette only heard and spoke Uwdan, and was amused when it tripped over words like 'plasma conduit,' 'tricorder', and 'Sklan.' As the week came to a close, she felt an eagerness of discovery mixed with a desire to be home.

Captain Tilmana intercepted her on the way to the transporter room. "Lieutenant Commander Sri, a word."

She sensed his urgency and discomfort. She kept her expression passive. "Captain, if this is about my family abusing the priority one channel, I've sent them guidelines on the appropriate use-"

He shook his head and said, "Yes, yes. Very good, Lieutenant Commander. Actually, this is about the concerns you had voiced concerning the - rightness of the relationship between the Uwda and the Sklan."

Juliette both heard and felt the minefield of his suspicion, and realized she had to proceed carefully. "Captain, it seems as though the Sklan are telepathic while the Uwda are not. Just as the sighted shouldn't take advantage of the blind—"

"I do not disagree, but we also cannot interfere with natural development between species just because one is taking advantage of the other."

"You are concerned that I will break the Prime Directive."

"I am," Captain Tilmana said directly.

"Captain, your rebreather," Juliette glanced down at the device Captain Tilmana held delicately between his two fingers.

"What of it?"

"Wasn't there a time when Benzites didn't use them for recreation but needed them to survive for long periods in a standard atmosphere?"

His eyes narrowed as his facial whiskers curled warily. "It seems you're circling a point, Lieutenant Commander."

"Sir, the Federation has long held tenets against genetic enhancement. The decision that permitted Benzites to genetically modify themselves to be able to breathe standard atmosphere was contested vehemently among the Federation Council– "

"That was not an enhancement! Benzites had been genetically modified by an outside influence. That had nothing to do with the Prime Directive."

"That is true, sir. However, it took a great deal of research to determine that was the case." Juliette didn't need empathy to sense his irritation. The debate over rebreathers had nearly been enough to cause Benzar to leave the Federation, and those hard feelings lingered. "We know very little about this situation. I'm just advocating that we should keep our options open. I will not intervene on behalf of the Uwda without orders to do so."

He tapped the rebreather against his chin thoughtfully and studied her for a long moment until he said, "I agree that we need to measure before we cut. I usually do not send my number two and number three officers on the same away team-"

"—but no one knows the planet and their customs like I do. I will make sure our actions stay within the boundaries of the Prime Directive until ordered otherwise."

"I must make it clear that Commander Syvok will be in charge of the operation - I'm sure you understand."

She assumed a stony expression hardened from years on Vulcan as she replied, "Yes, sir, I completely understand."