2369

"So, do I get my own quarters?"

Will Riker chuckled at the question. "Nope," he answered. "You will be staying in mine."

"Right," said Delaney, all smiles, "because you will be moving in with Deanna."

"Delaney," he began in a more serious tone, "we've talked about this before. Deanna and I are just friends now. Please don't say inappropriate things like that."

"Darn," she said in a sarcastic voice, "I was looking forward to having my own quarters so that the ensigns wouldn't feel uncomfortable visiting me."

Will looked at his teenage daughter through the small computer screen and could not believe she was thinking about boys. He was still having a hard time believing she was 15 and not 7 anymore.

"Then where am I going to sleep?" she asked after all she got from her father was his warning look.

"On my bed," he answered.

"Where are you going to sleep?"

"On the sofa, so that I can make sure you don't sneak in any ensigns."

Delaney laughed at her father's small joke. She was very excited about finally getting to go live with him on the ship he had called home for the last 6 years.

"You are going to make it in time for the graduation, right?"

"Of course. I don't care if I'm in a coma; I have given standing orders that they are to wheel me in on a gurney if they have to."

"Oh, please don't be the center of attention!" she said with worry in her voice.

"And embarrass you? Never," he reassured her with a smile.

"Thank you. I need to go now; I want to do some last minute studying before my exam tomorrow."

"Alright. Make sure you don't stay up too late, ok? I'll talk to you next week."

"Ok. Love you, daddy."

"I love you, Laney," he said, using the pet name only he was allowed to call her, before they exchanged their final smiles, they never said good bye, and Delaney's face was replaced by the familiar insignia.

Riker sat back on his chair and smiled. In three weeks he would be attending his daughter's graduation and she would be coming on board with him. He had already done all the paperwork and everything was ready. Since he was the one in charge of dealing with all the paper work regarding civilians coming to live on board the ship, he had it all done quickly. Sitting there he decided he should go tell the captain that his daughter was coming in three weeks. Though he gave the final approval on all new civilians, he had mentioned on more than one occasion that he trusted Riker's decisions and usually approved his decisions without looking too much into the civilian reports. He had probably approved it and didn't notice Riker's name on there.

Will sat up and picked up one of the PADDs on his desk, and smiled. It was the digital copies of the all the paperwork he had received when he adopted Delaney. As he scrolled through them, he saw the note in her birth certificate stating that it reflected changes due to an adoption. He realized he had never bothered to look at the original and looked it up so that he could see what the changes were. The first change he saw was one he expected, but one that made his heart stop beating momentarily. He knew her last name had been changed to Riker, and when he met her she had mentioned her last name. But after the adoption he never thought about her name again and had forgotten it. Now seeing it he was stunned. Could it just be a coincidence? He got up and went to his bedroom to get the latest picture he had of her, it was taken only a few months before. He sat back on his desk and looked at it closely, trying to see if there was something that could give a hint to his suspicion. He did see something but it could have just been him wanting to see something. He activated his computer once more and began to look through the Federation database to find all people with that last name. As he had suspected, it was a very rare name, and there were only a handful of people associated with that last name alive at the time Delaney would have been born. And from those five people, only one could have been the parent, the one person he knew.

"Commander Riker to Counsellor Troi," he called as he tapped his com badge.

"Troi here," came her voice.

"Deanna, do you have a moment?"

"Sure, what's going on?"

"Can you come to my quarters?"

"I'll be right there."

Only a few minutes passed before his door chime sounded since her quarters were only down the hall, but those few minutes had seemed eternal as he continued his research.

"Come in," he called. The door swished open and Deanna walked in with a smile and headed straight for him at his desk.

"Deanna," he began in an urgent voice, taking her off guard with his "straight to the point" attitude which was unusual for their friendship. "Do you remember Delaney's last name, the one on her original birth certificate?"

Deanna gave him a questioning look as she tried to recall the name. "No, Will. Why?"

He handed her the PADD he had been reading, displaying the original birth certificate. Her expression turned from confused as she took the PADD to surprise as she read it, "Delaney Yvette Howard. It could just be a coincidence."

"That's what I thought," he said, swivelling the computer towards her. "But I did some digging. There were only five people alive with connections to the name at the time she was born. Beverly's grandmother and her grandmother's sister were too old to have conceived a child. The sister did have a daughter but she was pregnant at the time Delaney was born, her child was born three months later. That leaves Beverly and Wesley, and he was only five."

Deanna studied the screen for anything that Will might have overlooked, but there was nothing.

"What do I do, Deanna? Delaney will be here in three weeks."

She picked up the picture Will had brought out from his bedroom, studying it.

"Even though she has the same bright blue eyes and red hair, there really isn't much of a resemblance. You can probably get away without saying anything about it. But Beverly is the CMO, and as your daughter, she will be Delaney's primary physician. You can ask for another one of the doctors, but that will look suspicious since we are all friends. She knows where she dropped off her baby and the name she put on the birth certificate, so she will know as soon as she finds out we are picking up your daughter and what her name is. It would make things easier for everyone, including Delaney, if you give Beverly a heads up."

"What do I tell her? How do I tell her?" he asked as he got up from his seat and headed towards the couch with Deanna following. They both sat down before Deanna began again.

"How do you feel about finding out that your daughter's mother is a friend of yours?"

"I am upset. She rejected her as a baby and I don't want Delaney to feel rejected from anyone, especially someone I consider a friend."

"What else do you feel?" she asked, sensing that there were more feelings there. He knew he wasn't going to be able to hide his feelings from her, but his human side always hoped.

"I'm afraid."

"Of what?"

"That she will realize what a great kid she is and want her back. That Delaney will find out as easily as I did and want to be with her. And of how Delaney will feel if she does find out and is rejected by her."

"This is what I suggest. Go and tell her that you adopted Delaney and she will be coming on board. Tell her that you'd like to clear things up before she does and that you will give her some time to think about it. Then tell her to come see me, she'll know that that means if she doesn't come I will go to her. Leave it at that for now. Once I talk to her then I can help you both figure out how to handle it."

Will took a deep, cleansing breath. He gave Deanna hug and held her tight for several moments. She was always there for him when he needed her most. "Thank you," he finally said in her ear as he pulled away from her. He looked at her, even more beautiful than when he had first met her despite being older than she was then. He ran his hands through her hair, remembering everything that had occurred between them during those three weeks. He smiled at the memories, the experiences, the feelings and sensations.

"I too, remember," she told him with a smile, having sensed all those familiar feelings. He leaned in and gave her a soft, sweet kiss on the lips.

"I need to go speak to the captain. I will head to sickbay after that. That way I can have some time to think about how I'm going to tell her."

"Ok," she said with a smile as she stood up. He kissed her like that on occasion, just a quick, tender kiss, as if to remind her or simply let her know that he still loved her despite their mutual agreement to just be friends. Her acceptance of the kiss was her way of letting him know that she understood, and that she too still loved him. After all, Imzadi is forever. They both headed towards the door and left, each in their own direction.

Will headed straight for the turbolift and to the bridge; the captain was still in his ready room. He pressed the button to let him know someone was at the door and waited to hear him call before going inside. Inside he found the captain behind his desk doing something on his computer.

"Will, what can I do for you?" He knew Commander Riker was off duty and was most likely not there for anything official so he had decided to address him in a more informal fashion. After six years of serving with him, he had grown comfortable enough to be able to address him in such a manner naturally and with ease.

"Captain," he began, searching for the words he had sort of put together during his trip on the turbolift. "You are aware that I have a daughter…" he said, wondering if he remembered.

Picard stopped what he was doing on the computer and looked sideways momentarily as he remembered reading it on his personnel file. "Yes," he said as he looked up to meet Riker's eyes, "I'd almost forgotten since you've never talked about her. Is there a problem?"

"No, sir. I just wanted to let know that on the last civilian report I requested to bring her on board. You approved it but I was not sure if you had noticed."

"Will, take a seat," he told him, noticing he was still standing. He sat at a chair in front of the desk and the captain continued. "You are correct, I did not notice since I fully trust your decision on these matters and I was busy with other work. When will she be coming on board?"

"In three weeks. That is why I requested a week's leave in two weeks. I am still working on the transport arrangements so that I can go pick her up."

"How old is she?"

"She is 15, sir."

"The same age Wesley was when he came on board." Hearing this made Riker remember his impending conversation with Dr. Crusher. He had not drawn the connection that Wesley was Delaney's brother.

"Yes, but you don't need to worry about her wanting to be on the bridge. She is not interested in any of the things Wesley was."

"Good, I would not want another 15 year old taking over my ship again," he said light-heartedly as he remembered the Tsiolkovsky incident. "Where is she now?"

"She is at Clairmont Academy."

"Clairmont Academy, that's not far from Betazed."

"No sir, sixteen hours at warp eight."

"Yes. Is there a specific reason why she is coming on board now?"

"Yes, sir, I promised her that I would bring her on board when she graduated."

"She's graduating? At 15?" he asked in disbelief.

"Yes, sir."

"She won't be taking over the bridge, but she will be taking over some other part of my ship, won't she?" he asked in a joking manner.

"No sir, her interests are in the arts and literature and she will be keeping busy. She will be taking classes remotely from The University for Advanced Studies at Clairmont Academy."

"That's good to hear. Thank you for letting me know. I would have been utterly confused when you showed up from your week's leave with a teenager. I assume she is coming here to live and not just a visit?"

"Yes, sir."

"I look forward to meeting her since she will be joining our family."

"Thank you sir, that means a lot to me."

"Yes, well, I am also looking forward to seeing your parent side. I've seen you face down Romulans, the Borg, Q, but I have yet to see you face down a teenager."

They both chuckled at the joke. Will was glad the captain didn't seem bothered by Delaney's impending arrival. While his discomfort around children had not disappeared, he had become more tolerable of them over the past couple of years.

Will stood up to leave. "I do hope, for my sake, that I never have to. I'll leave you to your work," he said as he headed for the door.

"Thank you for stopping by," the captain told him before he left. Will was glad that his conversation with the captain had gone very well. It did help relax him as he made his way to sickbay, still not sure of the words he would use once he was there.

He walked into sickbay with no more idea of how he was going to tell her than when he left his quarters. His heart was in knots and he was afraid, the same question still nagging at him. What if she wanted her back? What if she took his little girl, his Laney? He knew she couldn't do it legally, he had full custody and parental rights recognized by every government that was a part of the Federation. But Delaney could choose to go with her mother and he could never hold her back from such a thing. Her happiness was the most important thing. There weren't any patients in sickbay, but several medical personnel going about their daily duties. He didn't see Dr. Crusher and proceeded to her office, where he found her standing right outside of it talking to a nurse.

"Commander Riker," she said as she spotted him, "what brings you in today."

"Doctor," he began as calmly as he could, "do you have a moment?"

"Sure," she said as the nurse knowingly walked away and she went inside her office followed by Will. She took a seat behind her desk and said, "What can I do for you?"

Will stood in front of the desk, still not sure of how to say it. His uneasiness was coming across quite obviously and Dr. Crusher gave him a concerned look.

"I know we're friends," he began, deciding he was just going to do it however it came out. "I need to tell you something and it's not easy for me to say this, but it's very important."

She stood up from her desk and walked around to where he was standing. She could see his stress and concern and wanted to comfort him. He was obviously here for something personal and she was wanted to treat him as a friend and not a patient. Seeing her right in front of him, her eyes the same as his Laney's, brought up all his fears. He reacted the only way he knew how: by putting on a brave face and taking charge.

"Do you know anything about a Delaney Yvette Howard?" he said in his commanding voice. Her face went to immediate shock, questions running through her head as she took a defensive step away from him. How did he find out? Why did he care? "I thought so. Look, I don't care what happened or why you left her. Whatever skeletons you have in your closet are yours to keep and I have no intention in bringing them out in the open. But eight years ago I adopted Delaney and she is my daughter. It had not occurred to me to look at her original birth certificate until today so I didn't know until only an hour ago. Delaney is coming to live with me, here on the Enterprise, in three weeks and I didn't want you greeting her with that shocked look on your face. She never has to know since that is what you obviously want. But I don't want you making her feel any less welcomed than if you had never given birth to her." He felt he had nothing else to say and headed to the door. On his way out he remembered something and turning around he added, "Deanna said to go see her."

"She knows?" was all the stunned Dr. Crusher could mutter as she tried to digest all the information that she had just received.

"She introduced me to her," he said before heading out and leaving Crusher alone in her office.

She couldn't believe what had just happened. All these years she had thought she would never see her daughter again and now she was going to meet her. She didn't know whether to feel excited or scared. She still hadn't told her father and he was going to need to know. She was suddenly confused with a broad mixture of emotions. Her first reaction would have been to run to Jean-Luc, but there was a whole list of reasons why she couldn't. She had to go to someone, she didn't know how to deal with this situation. Will was obviously on the defensive and was reacting like a mother lion, showing all his teeth and aggression in order to protect his daughter. She wanted to talk to him but he wasn't making that easy. She decided that she should go to Deanna, she would be expecting her and already knew of the situation.

Dr. Crusher walked out of her office and headed for the door, letting one of the other doctors know that she needed to take care of something and that he was in charge. A few minutes later she was standing outside Counsellor Troi's quarters, waiting for the door to open. It did and she walked in, seeing Deanna at her desk. Deanna looked up to see her and smiled as she got up and walked towards her.

Deanna could sense her friend's uneasiness and she gestured towards the couch so that they could talk. Beverly joined her at the couch, still not sure how to begin, hoping Deanna would be the first to speak.

"Will went to speak with you?" Deanna asked once they were both sitting.

"Yeah," she answered quietly.

"What did he say?"

"You don't know?"

"I know what I suggested that he say. I don't know what he actually said."

Beverly paused for a moment, trying to collect her thoughts and what Will had said. It still seemed a little surreal. "He said he adopted Delaney and that she would be coming here in three weeks. He said he doesn't care about what happened and that he doesn't want me making her feel unwelcome. And that she doesn't need to find out."

Deanna sighed, "That's not exactly what I suggested…"

"He was very defensive," added Beverly, "I thought he was going to get angry and start yelling."

"He loves her very much," began Deanna, trying to figure out how much she should really say. "He has many concerns and wants to do what is best for his daughter. I know he didn't say it, but he does want to talk about the situation and try to come up with an agreement as to what, if anything, Delaney should be told and any arrangements resulting from that."

"He didn't seem to want her to know anything," Beverly said, dropping her eyes to her lap. In the short while she had known she had hoped, maybe…

"What would you like her to know?" she asked, sensing the defeating feelings from Beverly.

"I didn't mean to leave her there, not after Jack died," began Beverly, tears quickly swelling in her eyes and her breathing becoming staggered. "At first I was grieving Jack's dead. Then when I got passed that I needed to tell her father and it took me a long time to get the courage to do so. Too long," and tears began to fall. "When I finally got the courage I looked her up so that I could show him but she had already been adopted. I didn't look further into it since I figured she had a new set of parents and that I would never see her again. I couldn't just go up to some strangers and tell them I wanted my baby back." Her tears were now flowing freely down her face and Deanna got up to get a box of tissue for her.

"So you'd like to be her mother," Deanna said in a soft voice, hoping to help calm her. Beverly shook her head as she wiped away her tears.

"Will doesn't want that. He didn't say it but he made it clear that he doesn't want me getting too close to her. I think that's just the way we'll do it. I'll be just another person on board and I won't get too close to her, not any more than a physician needs to. What good would it do for her to know? She will start asking questions that I don't want to answer, that will lead to just more trouble. I'm sure she is happy with just Will and doesn't need me."

"Yes, she is very happy with Will," Deanna said, putting her hand over her friend's trembling hands in reassurance, "but there are things that Will can't provide, no matter how hard he tries. She doesn't have a female role model in her life. Will hoped that you and I could fulfill that role for her. That's one of the reasons he wanted to bring her on board. She is at an age where she has a lot of questions, questions she doesn't feel comfortable asking Will and Will doesn't feel comfortable dealing with them. I have sort of tried to be there for her but we've never had the opportunity to really get into those issues. I have limited experience dealing with those sorts of things since parents will usually go to their physicians for help and if they come to me I refer them to you." Beverly simply nodded, acknowledging that she understood. "We can start by simply being her friend. Over time, after you have gotten to know her and she's gotten to know you, and Will is more comfortable with the situation, we can approach Will again, see if he'd allow her to know."

Beverly met Deanna's eyes, a bit of confusion in them at what Deanna had just said. Deanna was quick to figure out what she was confused about. "This is a very unique situation. The only thing all Federation governments can enforce is the actual adoption. Other than that, each government has their own laws and can choose whether or not to enforce any of the details of an adoption that takes place in another government. Starfleet, however, has taken the position that whatever laws regarding adoption are put in place by the government in which the adoption was issued are what they will uphold and enforce for each individual situation. On Clairmont, orphans are very rare and they took the position which was most familiar to them, a variant from the traditional closed adoption. While they do not withhold all information regarding the biological parents, a certain amount is. They had none for Delaney, so that was never a problem. However, their laws also state that the biological parent cannot contact the child or let them know they are the biological parents once they have been adopted unless they seek explicit permission from the adoptive parents. Not until the child is 21. And since this is a Starfleet vessel…"

"Yes, I remember being told that, now," she said in resignation.

"We'll take it one day at a time and I'll be here to help you in any way I can." Deanna contemplated asking who the father was but decided against it. It wouldn't make a difference anyway and she didn't want to push Beverly any further. Beverly would tell her when she was ready to talk about it.

"That sounds good," she replied as she wiped away more tears. There was silence for a short while as she got the courage to ask some questions. "How did you meet her?"

"I did an internship at Clairmont Academy eight years ago; she was one of my patients."

"What was wrong with her?"

"The usual seven year old stuff. Mostly, she needed someone to talk to and the head of the department thought it would be good practice for me since I had trouble with young children. There wasn't anything actually wrong with her, psychologically speaking."

"How did Will fit into the picture?"

Deanna sat back and smiled as she recalled. "After I had been at Clairmont Academy for six months, they went on holiday and I went back to Betazed to do some classes. That's when I met Will. He was set to leave three weeks after I was leaving to go back to Clairmont Academy so he arranged it so that he would follow me there for his last three weeks. She came to greet me within minutes of our arrival. I was staying on the main campus and Will was staying in a nearby town. Delaney offered to help him find his way to the town and to his hotel while I went to settle into my room."

"He adopted her after knowing her for only three weeks?" she asked, a bit of shock in her voice.

"No. He adopted her after knowing her for a week and a half. See, the first week we were there I was very busy and they took to each other very quickly so they ended up spending time together every day that first week. At the end of the week I finally had a bit of free time and Delaney was going camping, I think. For four days we didn't see her, and while we had an amazing time together he missed her dearly. He adopted her the day after she got back, after a very emotional plea for ice cream."

"He adopted her because she wanted ice cream?" asked Beverly, feeling very confused by that.

"No, it wasn't the actual ice cream. Delaney craved attention and getting ice cream was a lengthy process which meant she got lots of attention doing so. She didn't kick and scream and throw a tantrum. She gave him that look that only an emotionless person can turn their head on. She had him tightly wrapped around her little finger, though I doubt she knew it, and he wanted to give her the universe."

"I never thought of Will as a father, I just don't picture him as you describe him."

Deanna sighed with a smile. "It is a very different side of Will that I am glad I have gotten to see. It is a much gentler side, but a very firm one at the same time. She's his little girl and she plays the part very well."

"What does she look like?"

Deanna got up and went to a drawer at her desk. She pulled out a photo album and quickly turned through the pages, stopping at one and taking out a picture.

"This was seven months ago, I think," she said as she walked back to the couch and handed Beverly the picture. She immediately smiled as she looked at it.

"She's got my hair."

"And your eyes."

"Will got her interested her in music?" she asked, referring to the flute Delaney was holding in the picture.

"Yes and no," said Deanna. "At Clairmont music is part of the core curriculum, as important as reading, writing, and arithmetic. They start music very young. Delaney had taken up the piano and stuck with it because she felt that she wasn't good at music. After Will played for her a couple of times, showing her that it was more about the fun than actual skill, she began to get interested in other instruments. I know she played the saxophone for a while as well as the trumpet. The flute is just her latest instrument. At this point I think she's learned how to play enough instruments to make a one man band. She just needed some encouragement and to see beyond the piano. Will much prefers her singing, though."

"I see."

Captain Picard sat at the head of the table, his senior officers all present for their briefing.

"We have been given our next assignment," he began, looking just a little bit annoyed. "We are to pick up Ambassador Troi from Betazed and take her to a conference where she is being recognized for all her work for the Federation. Then we are to transport her back to Betazed. The Ambassador will be staying with us for three days. Commander," he said, as he turned to address Commander Riker, "I know you are scheduled to depart tomorrow morning, but we will be in the area of Clairmont Academy twice this coming week. It would be no problem to swing by."

"Thank you, Captain, but I must be at Clairmont Academy in four days. That's the day of the graduation."

"Then we can stay in the area an extra day. We don't have anything pending right after the Ambassador's departure."

"Thank you, Captain."

"Then after we drop off Ambassador Troi on Betazed," the captain said to his whole staff, "we will make our way to Clairmont Academy to pick up Commander Riker's daughter."

"You have a daughter?" asked Geordi before he captain could dismiss them.

"She is mentioned on the commander's personnel file," stated Data.

Geordi looked around the table and saw that no one else seemed surprised. "Was I the only one that didn't know?"

"I was not aware either," said Worf.

"And I just recently found out," added Beverly, deciding that this was a good time to start acting like she knew nothing about her.

"Well, now that we are all up to date," said the Captain, "dismissed."

Everyone stood up and began filing out. It had been almost two weeks since Will had confronted Beverly and they were now acting as if nothing had happened. This is what Beverly had wanted and Deanna delivered the message to Will, to which he agreed.

Inside the Enterprise's ready room, Captain Picard sat at his desk with a cup of tea. He had decided to watch the broadcast of the Clairmont Academy graduation, thinking that it would give him something to talk to Commander Riker's daughter about, especially since Riker had mentioned that his daughter was going to be one of the speakers. It would certainly give him some insight into who his daughter was.

Several decks below, Dr. Crusher sat in her office, also waiting for the broadcast of the graduation to begin. She had told her staff that she had some very important work to do and didn't want to be disturbed. At first she was not going to watch the graduation, but after she overheard Will saying that his daughter was going to be giving a speech, she just could not resist the urge to know what that little baby she had given birth to so long ago had to say.

Down on the planet Will and Deanna sat in the great performance hall that the graduation was going to be taking place in. It was crowded with excited parents, relatives, friends, and staff, all waiting for the ceremony to begin.

It began only a few minutes behind schedule and proceeded like typical high school graduations. The band played the traditional Pop and Circumstance as the students began walking down two isles of the theatre towards the stage. Once on the stage, they all went to their seats and waited for all the students to arrive and be given the signal to be seated. As expected, there were a whole series of speeches from different students, staff, and guest speakers. Delaney Riker was to be the last speaker before the director, who would be reading the names of all the graduates after her speech. Will and Deanna sat in the theatre, anxiously waiting for her turn to speak, as did Picard and Crusher on the ship. The moment finally came and Will got a rush of pride as he saw his daughter walk up to the podium.

"Being the youngest person to graduate in the Academy's history has been interesting. I certainly did not intend to break any records when I started going to school. When Ms. Lampson told me that she wanted me to give a speech, I had no idea what to say. I can't say that I've worked any harder than anyone else on this stage with me, or anyone else still trying to reach the point in which we find ourselves today. Yes, I've worked hard, but so has everyone else. It wasn't always easy, we've all had our rough spots. I also can't say that I am smarter than anyone else. I needed help with a lot of things and I had my share of tutors though the years. I did have one advantage over everyone else, and I think it is important for me to say this before there are rumours that I am some sort of genius. I never went away for the entire holiday break and started taking classes during holiday at the university when I was ten years old. If I had never taken these classes then I would not be here today. So please don't think that I am any more special than any one of my classmates.

"However, since I am being given the chance to say something for everyone to hear, I will acknowledge some people. All my teachers certainly deserve a mention. Thank you all for all your patience with me, I know I haven't always been the best student but you never gave up on me. Thank you, Alice, for always catching me doing the things I wasn't suppose to and for letting Daddy know. You've helped me become who I am by helping to guide me on the right path. Thank you Ms. Lampson for not letting me get away with anything. If you had I would not have made it this far. Thank you to all my counsellors and mentors who also helped guide me. I'd also like to thank my classmates for putting up with me. Being the youngest has been challenging for all of us. A special thanks to Deanna Troi who brought Daddy to my life. And of course, the biggest thanks to Daddy. He got to know me when no one else had wanted to and saw something special in me. Even when I was bad, pushed all his buttons, and did everything I knew I was not suppose to, he never gave up on me. He always told me to try to behave and that he loved me.

"Daddy adopted me when I was seven years old, so I've always known that I have biological parents somewhere out there. I do not know who they are but I have always hoped that maybe they're keeping track of me. In case they are listening today, I'd like to thank them too. I have had the privilege of seeing parents with their new babies and the unquestionable love that they have for these little squirming babies the moment they first see them. I cannot imagine what kind of extenuating circumstances led to me being brought here when I was six weeks old, but I know it could not have been an easy decision make or go through with. As grim and unpleasant as it is to think about, there are other options that would have taken care of their problem permanently. Instead, I was brought here and I thank you for that. You chose a place where I would be safe, sheltered, fed, and educated. I am not mad for the choices that you made. In the end, everything worked out great. I may not have two parents with memories of my birth, but I have one with more than enough love for me. And I still hope that one day, somewhere out there, we will meet and maybe even be friends."

There was an applause as she left the podium. Commander Riker had lost his self control and tears were silently falling down his cheeks. It was due to a mixture of pride and fear. That same fear he had tried to put aside since he found out Dr. Crusher was his daughter's mother.

In the privacy of her office, Beverly was a weeping mess. Of everything she thought Delaney would say, she never imagined that she would mention her biological parents, much less thank them. Her heart was torn once again, and she wished she could meet her as her daughter and not her friend's daughter.

Meanwhile, in the ready room, Picard took another sip of his now cold tea as he thought of what she had just said. She was obviously very mature, which pleased him. But he could not get the eerie feeling that she looked awfully familiar but he could not put his finger on it. The only person he knew with red hair and blue eyes like hers was his CMO and best friend, but Delaney didn't look like her. He had met Beverly when she was still young and had seen pictures of her as a teenager. It was not Beverly that he was being reminded of. He figured that it was probably the hair and eye colours that were leading him back to Beverly. He had met thousands of people throughout his career and she could be reminding him of one of those faces that he long put away from his mind. As the director began reading the names of the graduates and they begun accepting their diplomas, he put the thoughts out of his head and simply continued watching the ceremony.

Since the day Picard had informed his senior staff of their assignment involving Ambassador Troi the news of Commander Riker having a daughter spread quickly through the crew. Everyone had their thoughts and opinions on the matter but mostly everyone was interested in seeing the commander in this role they were not accustomed to seeing him in. And they were interested in knowing about his daughter. In the three days before the graduation Riker was approached by many crew members and civilian friends asking questions about his daughter. He had not anticipated that their interest in her would be so great.

As the post graduation festivities wound down, Will, Deanna, and Delaney made their way to the house Delaney had spent the last eight years in. All her things had already been transported to the Enterprise, but her house mates wanted to give her one last goodbye. The emotions ran high and Deanna had a hard time coping with all the emotions in the house. They finally left the house with Delaney holding on tightly to the book her father had given her before he had left the first time. She had not wanted that transported with her other things, she wanted to take it herself to ensure it arrived safely. It was still her favourite book and Will read it to her, recited it would be a better way to describe it since he had memorized it, every time they had talked and every night during their vacations together. They awaited the familiar feeling of being transported, the three of them excited, nervous, and worried, though for different reasons, at what this new chapter in their lives was going to be like.

Author's Note: There are sequels in the process, mostly in the form of drabbles. In the sequels we see what life is like on board the Enterprise as well as the development of both Riker/Troi and Picard/Crusher relationships. These will be posted in about two weeks (mid to late october) on my website, which is listed on my profile. They will then be posted on here one by one every other week.