AN: This story will have a few chapters. It was inspired by my enthusiastic friend! This is not tied to any of my already existing Triad universes.
I own nothing from any Star Trek.
I hope that you enjoy! If you do, please do let me know!
111
"A resort ship," Beverly mused.
"A retreat or a resort?" Laris asked. Beverly hummed, communicating that she wasn't entirely sure of the proper verbiage.
"It doesn't matter what you call her," Jean-Luc said. "She's always beautiful."
"We had better be careful," Laris suggested. "I'm not sure there's any woman in Jean-Luc's life that can compare with the love he feels for that lady."
Laughter echoed through the space around them. Nobody thought Laris was serious, and nobody felt threatened by Jean-Luc's love for the Enterprise-D. He did love the ship, of course, but his love for the two women who were now his wives—all of them happily joined in marriage through a Romulan trust bond—went far beyond any love he felt for anything else.
Jean-Luc might have never imagined he'd find that kind of love or, in finding it, actually have the chance to hold it close and enjoy it, but now he did have it. And though he loved each of the women in his presence differently—and though he knew that their love for each other, too, was something wholly unique to them—he loved both of them with every fiber of his being.
Theirs was a happy marriage and a happy home.
The Enterprise-D was fully restored and upgraded, though it kept all of its former "quirks" and "glory," as Jean-Luc had heard many of her characteristics described over the past few months. She was docked, and she would, for the most part, remain docked and kept up by Geordi and other members of Starfleet who dedicated themselves to the upkeep of ships for historical purposes.
The Enterprise-D would be used as something of a retreat, and people could stay there, visiting the ship in order to get in touch with history. Jean-Luc still laughed, of course, that some part of his life should be considered historical already. The ship would be taken out for special events and diplomatic missions.
This weekend, though, the only people aboard would be those that Geordi had specially invited to celebrate the fact that, though in a fashion entirely unlike any she'd enjoyed before, the Enterprise was back in commission.
"Unidentified shuttle—please identify yourselves," came a voice over communications.
Jean-Luc laughed. It was Deanna's voice, and there wasn't a single bit of sincerity in her tone. In fact, he might pick up a hint of the presence of a drink or two in her system.
"This is the Picard family," Jean-Luc teased back. "Seeking to dock in your shuttle bay."
"You can't speak to my wife like that," Will's voice teased over the open channel.
They didn't close communications, and Jean-Luc and his family laughed at the banter between Will and Deanna before she informed Jean-Luc that the shuttle bay doors were open and ready for them to dock. Another round of teasing came from Will before Jean-Luc assured them that they would see them soon, and directed the shuttle toward the waiting bay.
As they left the shuttle, Deanna and Will were the first to meet them. There were hugs and kisses exchanged all around, as though they hadn't seen each other in months and not at all like they'd just had dinner together at the Château barely more than two weeks before. They were shown to their rooms, with Will giving a teasingly ostentatious tour of the ship as they went.
"A Romulan in the Captain's quarters," he joked, "who would have thought we'd see the day?"
"One he invited here, nonetheless," Beverly teased.
"And, if I may be so bold," Deanna added, "I'm getting the feeling that he intends to sleep with her."
Everyone dissolved into laughter again, but Jean-Luc noticed the green tint on Laris's cheeks, suggesting that she was fully feeling the effects of the teasing.
"That's enough," he said with a laugh. "Get out…let us get settled. We'll all have dinner later."
"Actually," Deanna said, glancing at Beverly, "no, we won't. We'll have dinner, of course, because everyone has to eat, but we'd arranged it previously that…you and Beverly will be having a romantic, private day together…starting now."
"A trip down memory lane," Beverly offered, smiling.
Jean-Luc glanced between Beverly and Laris, but Laris was smiling, too.
"Laris? You know about this?" Jean-Luc asked.
"It's difficult to keep a secret from Laris," Beverly teased. "Not that I was trying."
"And you're OK with being left alone for the day?" Jean-Luc asked Laris, though he could tell that the women had already discussed this.
"She won't be alone," Deanna said, placing her hands on Laris's shoulders and hugging her backward into her body with a friendly familiarity that the two were only just really beginning to nurture between them. "She'll spend the day with Will and I. We'll show her the ship. Maybe play a little Manacuas to pass the time."
Beverly cocked an eyebrow at her friend and smirked.
"Isn't Manacuas one of those…Betazoid pleasure games?" She asked.
"Don't try to dictate how we spend time with our newly acquired Romulan wife," Will teased. "Just go enjoy your day together."
He put a hand on each of their shoulders and turned them around, leaving no more room for argument or discussion as he ushered them both toward the door of their own quarters. Jean-Luc assumed they would be leaving the quarters soon, as well, but it was clear that they intended to stay inside until they were sure that Beverly and Jean-Luc were off on their adventure.
"Everyone here will be fine," Will insisted. "Enjoy your time."
Neither Jean-Luc nor Beverly had more than a moment to toss a hasty goodbye at their friends and their wife before the doors closed, sealing everyone else inside the captain's quarters.
Jean-Luc laughed and Beverly echoed it.
"Well—it would seem that…you're in control. What's first?"
Beverly threaded her arm through Jean-Luc's and hugged his arm.
"Ten Forward first," she said. "Drinks and a something to eat? Then—I've got a surprise for you."
"What is it?" Jean-Luc asked, teasing her.
"If I told you," she said predictably, "it wouldn't be much of a surprise."
111
"I arranged a little something special. Very private." Beverly smiled at Jean-Luc's expression. "And not what you're thinking," she added.
Jean-Luc laughed to himself. She would know what he was thinking, just by looking at his face. She'd always been pretty good at reading him. Admittedly, he'd always thought that she was much better at reading him than he was at reading her. He waited patiently while she activated the chosen holoprogram. He followed her into the holodeck, he was confused as he looked around at their new surroundings. He'd seen this place before, though it had been different when he'd last seen it.
"It's the Eleos," she said with a quick smile of reassurance.
"Of course," he said. "I remember…"
He drew the words out to say that, while he might have recognized the ship, he still had no idea why they were there. Of course, Beverly had only activated the background part of the program, so there was nothing much to clue him in, at the moment, to what they were doing there. Nothing was actively running except the background, and the background was really only the control room of the Eleos. It was small, sufficient for the work that was done there, but overall dark and cold when he thought about the fact that it had been "home" to Beverly and Jack for so long.
"I saved this in the medical database with the thought that I could use it for some sort of research. At least, that was the lie I told myself. I think that I always wanted you to see it. I always hoped that, somehow, you would. So, you see, Jean-Luc, it was really a big deal to me when you expressed the idea that you would like to—if such a thing existed—because, well…it does."
He looked at her, brow furrowed.
"I don't understand," he stammered.
Beverly gave the command for the computer to run the full program, and the familiar voice of the Enterprise D computer asked her a couple of quick questions about her desires for a program that had, really, a great number of possibilities. It was, as Beverly had said, set up to be a full training program, if Beverly had wanted to use it as such.
Immediately, the Eleos transformed, although only slightly, around them. Suddenly, they weren't alone. Their new companion, though, was only the holographic image of Beverly—Beverly as she'd been twenty some odd years ago. Jean-Luc's heart thundered to see her, again, in front of him as she lived in his memory.
Almost immediately, though, his heart seized in response to the realization that the simulation playing for them now was one in which Beverly was on a self-made pallet on the floor of the command room, clearly in labor, alone.
"Beverly…" Jean-Luc said, not sure what to do, but already feeling as though he wanted to crawl out of his skin, entirely, because he felt there was nothing he could do.
"It's the night Jack was born," Beverly said. "Of course—I set the speed so that it advances a little more quickly than it really did. We do have to get back before it's too late."
"I don't understand," Jean-Luc said, wincing as the holographic Beverly made a noise that ripped through him.
"You missed it all," Beverly said. "You wished you could have been there."
She gestured toward her holographic self—who was programmed to be entirely unaware of them, apparently, unless otherwise given some instruction via the computer—as if to say that he could have what he wanted now.
"I never wanted it like this," he admitted. "I feel so—helpless."
Beverly laughed nervously. He sensed a great deal of tension in her. Her demeanor changed, just being near the simulation.
"Then—you're feeling a great deal like I was," Beverly said. "It was just me. I had to keep the ship going. At that time, I was afraid to stop for even a moment. I was afraid they'd catch me…us."
"Who?" Jean-Luc asked.
Beverly shrugged.
"Whoever would be after the child of Jean-Luc Picard," Beverly said. "Everyone," she added, hugging herself. It was cold—a reminder that the Eleos simply felt colder, since it was a bit more sterile and bare bones than something like the Enterprise—but Jean-Luc knew that her coldness didn't really have anything to do with the temperature of the holodeck.
Jean-Luc instinctively wrapped his arms around her, and he felt something of a tremor or a start when her holographic self cried out in response to what was happening to her—a cry that nobody would hear. Nobody would respond to her.
"This isn't what I wanted," Jean-Luc admitted, his mouth feeling dry. "Not to have to…to see this…to see you like this…and know there's nothing I can do."
"You said you wished you could have seen…"
"I said I wished I could have been there," Jean-Luc said, quickly, cutting her off. "And I still do. But—I wished I could have been there as Jack's father. Your husband. I wish I could have been there to hold you, Beverly. Help you, however I might. Comfort you. Not just stand by and watch you suffer as you bring our son into the world. This is, honestly, nothing short of torture."
"Computer—pause program," Beverly said.
Jean-Luc pulled her close to him and, thankfully, she sank entirely into his embrace without any hesitation. He held her tight, squeezing her gently, as though he could somehow cross the boundaries of so many years and right what had been wrong—as though the comfort he could offer now could, somehow, reach her back then and wipe away what she'd felt.
She hugged him back and pressed her face into the crook of his neck. He could feel dampness. He heard the intake of breath as she inhaled deeply, drawing in his scent for added comfort.
"I wish I could have been there for you," he lamented. "I wish you hadn't had to do it alone."
Beverly hugged him tightly again—an extra squeeze—and he followed in suit. He'd hold the embrace however long she wanted. He had so many years of embraces to make up for, that he was happy to hold her whenever she wanted him. He let her break the embrace. He let her be the one to pull away.
When she pulled away, she swiped at her eyes, and Jean-Luc wished he'd planned enough to at least have tissue.
"Computer—a handkerchief, please," he said. When the computer provided one, he offered it to Beverly and took her soft thanks and sweet smile in payment. "It's the least I can do," he said. "Truly. The very least."
"Jean-Luc," Beverly said, her voice drawing out the words so that Jean-Luc knew there was more to what she had to say.
"Yes, my love?" He asked.
"Don't—don't say no," Beverly said. "Not without…hearing me out."
Jean-Luc laughed nervously.
"I'm already quite uncomfortable with whatever is about to follow," Jean-Luc admitted.
Beverly laughed quietly, then.
"Jean-Luc—this was a training simulation," Beverly said. "It was designed for empathy training, among other things. What if—I programmed it to run the simulation on myself?"
"I don't understand…" Jean-Luc admitted.
"I could experience it again. A sort of simulation of it, at least. And, this time, you could be there."
"Absolutely not," Jean-Luc said quickly. "I wouldn't want you hurt…"
"It's not intolerable," Beverly said. "And I can control the intensity every step of the way. If I feel like it's too much, I'll tell the computer to change the labor pattern, lessen the intensity of the contractions…or whatever else I need." She caught Jean-Luc's face and then gently stroked his cheek with her fingers. "Please," she said, sincerely. "You wish you could have been there and, Jean-Luc…I wished you were there desperately. I think that was the worst part...knowing you couldn't be there. You couldn't hold me. You'd never meet Jack. You'd never know. But this is a way for us to do it over. A second chance." She smiled at him and held his eyes with her own. "Hasn't that been the theme of our marriage? Our very happy marriage?"
Jean-Luc couldn't help but smile. His throat ached. He touched her face, and she leaned into his hand, closing her eyes for a second.
"You must promise me that, if it gets to be too much, you'll stop immediately," Jean-Luc said. "I couldn't stand for anything to happen to you."
"I promise," she said, opening her eyes to him and smiling. "It's only a simulation, Jean-Luc. It's…an illusion. But it's the best that either of us can hope to have when it comes to making up for what we lost…what I cost us both."
"If you talk like that, then I'll leave immediately," Jean-Luc warned. "I won't hear it. You did what you had to do. You did what was best for you and for Jack. I will always want you to do just that."
She nodded her acceptance of his scolding, and she didn't offer another word against herself or her actions.
"What do you say?" She asked. "Will you…hold my hand, while I bring our son into this world?"
"I have hardly wanted anything more," he offered.
Beverly suddenly looked excited, despite what he might imagine was ahead for her. She kissed him, and he returned the kiss.
"Computer—change parameters of program," Beverly said, squeezing Jean-Luc's hand as she did, and smiling at him even as she spoke to give her new desires to the computer that would make them a reality of sorts.