Title: The First Command Couple
Rating: T
Summary: Commander Riker dies during the events of Skin of Evil. Starfleet gives the position to Commander Howard, who Picard knows nothing about. They will go through all the ups and downs of command as Starfleet's first Command Couple. Beverly/Picard pairing, but in the future.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything here, and I'm making nothing from this.
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A/N: Sorry for the massive delay. Work has been killing me.
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Chapter 4: The Package
After the whole, bug incident, Beverly found herself settling into life on the Enterprise. She had taken Riker's former office and turned it into her own. Of course that meant that everyone that had to hand their reports in knew where to find her. She was just going over Data's report when the chime to her office rang.
"Enter," she said, without looking up.
She sensed that the person walking in was much younger than she was. She looked up from the PADD to see that he had something in his hands.
"A package," she said.
"Yes, sir, from Earth," he told her and he placed it on her desk.
"Thanks," Beverly said. "And, please, don't call me sir. Call me ma'am."
"Yes, ma'am," he said and left.
Beverly saw that the package was from one of her old Professors at the Academy. A Professor Galen, who had been a dear friend of hers and had seen past her pretty face to the amazing mind that she had. She was grateful for everything and had taken up Archeology as her minor. Of course that minor had almost always caused her problems. Since she wanted to be digging around a lot more than commanding a Starship.
Her office was a shrine to that love. While most of the items in her office were of Earth origin, she had a couple pieces from Betazed as well. She went back to the report that Data had filed, but her mind wondered back to the tube. Deciding that the seventy-page report could wait for later, she decided to see what he had sent her. It turned out to be a scroll from Egypt, the one place on Earth that she just loved.
Her father laughed at all the books that she had downloaded onto her PADD as a child and her mother made it clear that she would never marry if any boyfriend heard that she loved digging in the dirt more than keeping a house. She snorted at that. What did her mother know? A handwritten note, from Galen, told her what she needed to know.
Beverly,
I heard that you are the new First Officer on the Enterprise. Let me know if you can guess which dynasty that this scroll comes from and what it is. Oh and tell Picard that I said hello.
With Love,
Professor Galen
PS! I've included some figures that you and Jean-Luc might like. He was always my best student, even if he never made a carrier out of it.
"You're on," Beverly said and she started working.
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"Computer, location of Commander Howard," Picard said to the computer.
"In her office," the computer replied.
"Maybe she's still reading your report, Data," Geordi teased.
"It was not that long," Data defended.
"Picard to Howard."
"I'm busy right now," she told him.
"Whatever it is can wait," he told her.
"Fine, I'm coming," she said and the link ended.
"It had better be good," Picard told Worf.
"She's a woman. Nothing that she's doing is that important."
"Do you have a problem with the Commander."
"Of course, he does," Tasha said. "She's a woman. There's his problem."
"I'm getting a headache from all this," Picard remarked as the door to the lift open and in walked his First Officer.
She stopped and looked at Data. "Next time, please don't give me a textbook for a report."
"It was not that long."
"It was seventy-pages," she said.
"And I was right again," Geordi said, laughing.
She sat down and Picard asked, "You are an hour late for your shift."
"Sorry, I was having too much fun," she said.
"Oh I have to hear this," Tasha taunted and Beverly turned and looked at her.
"It wasn't that kind of fun," Beverly said. "So get your mind out of the black hole. I got a package from Earth and lost track of time."
"What kind of package?"
"From Professor Galen," she said. "He was my Professor at the Academy."
"You know Professor Galen?"
'Yes, and he wants me to tell you that he says hello," Beverly stated.
"So what did you minor in?" Deanna asked.
"Archeology," Beverly answered. "Of course my mother made it clear that I'm never getting married if I care more about digging around in the dirt than having a ton of children and keeping house."
"Sounds like my mother."
"I think their part of the same circle," Beverly told her.
"Great, another insane mother," Picard said.
"My father is different," Beverly told him. "I think you would like him."
She could sense Picard mentally rolling his eyes.
"You know, the Captain loves digging around in the dirt," Deanna told her. "I think he might be interested in what Professor Galen sent you."
She smiled at Picard and Beverly felt like laughing.
"I doubt he's interested in an eleven-foot Book of the Dead," Beverly said. "But thanks for making him feel included."
"How did Galen get his hands on one?"
"And their like two peas in a pod," Beverly mentally heard Geordi remarking.
"I think that's for him to know and us to find out," Beverly said, ignoring what she mentally heard Geordi saying.
What did he know anyway?
"Oh he told me to give you one of these," Beverly said, taking one of the figures out of her pocket and handing it to him. "He said that you were his best student."
He studied the figure and said, "This has to be during the reign of Tut's father. He abolished the whole ancient religious system and made his people basically worship him."
"And it didn't last," Beverly added. "The moment that he died his son brought it all back."
"I'm confused."
"Egypt had a whole system of gods and goddess," Beverly told him. "And to get rid of it turned everything upside down."
"We killed ours," Worf told her.
"Thank god no one on Earth thought they could do that," Beverly said.
She studied her piece and then put it back in her pocket. She would have to send a thank you to her friend. Two days later she finally called Galen.
"It's an Egyptian Book of the Dead from the Amarna period," she told him. "Most likely it was done for an official in Akhenaten's court."
"Very good, Beverly," he said. "Glad to see that you haven't forgotten anything. So how's Jean-Luc? Still upset that he didn't get to choose his First Officer like before?"
"I sense that he's still a little bothered by that," Beverly said. "But I'm hoping to change his mind."
"Please do," he said. "I'm heading for a dig on Vivcan Seven. I do hope, in the future, you both will join me. It will be a grand time with my two favorite students."
Beverly smiled at him and said, "One day."
"Oh and if you ever see that mother of yours, tell her that there's always someone that will appreciate a good woman that likes to dig in the dirt."
Beverly smiled again and Galen cut the connection.
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Picard turned the piece over in his hand, thinking about everything. He had been forced to take Commander Howard as his First Officer, something that he hated with everything him. However, Howard was proving to be very interesting. A chime broke his train of thought and he turned to the door.
"Come," he said and the door opened to reveal his first officer.
And she had a scroll.
"I'm done studying it," she said. "Have fun."
She placed it on the table and left.
"Okay, maybe this wouldn't be that bad," he said to himself as he unrolled the scroll.
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A/N: Another thing they both have in-common.
