AN: Here's another chapter to this one.
I hope you enjoy! If you do, please do let me know!
111
"It seems entirely unjust to subject Evie to Lwaxana Troi at her age," Jean-Luc mused.
Evie stared at him from the crook of his arm, and she gave him a long, slow blink that Beverly interpreted as a sign that she would sleep very soon. Jean-Luc beamed at it. The blink, alone, was enough to thrill him—along with the fact that Evie wasn't fussing while he held her.
"See?" He asked. "She agrees with me."
"If we're going to begin to interpret Evie's every gesture and sound as we wish," Beverly teased, "we may be wading into dangerous waters."
Jean-Luc laughed quietly.
"What do you think she means, then?" He asked.
"I think she means that she's quite enamored with her papa," Beverly said. "And—she's feeling particularly relaxed after that wonderful sponge bath he gave her. And she's proud of how well he managed her diaper and pajamas."
"I had no idea my daughter was so complimentary," Jean-Luc said with a laugh.
"Only with her papa," Beverly offered.
She couldn't help but notice the way that Jean-Luc was looking at her—the way he was smiling at her. It warmed her, even though she knew she couldn't—and really wouldn't want to— fulfill any of the thoughts that might be flitting through his mind. She also knew that he knew that, and that he couldn't help his feelings, even if he would never ask her to do anything that might make her even uncomfortable.
Still, when his gaze went from holding her eyes to looking at her lips, she knew she could indulge him in some ways, at least—and they would both enjoy some tender affection.
Beverly closed her eyes and leaned toward him. She tasted his lips and returned the kiss with all the feeling that coursed through her. Their bodies touched as they sat side-by-side, and she relished the warmth of him. She savored his kiss.
"I love you," she breathed out, when the kiss broke.
"And I, you…eternally," he offered, his voice a bit throatier than it had been before. He cleared his throat and looked away from her, clearly considering something.
Beverly imagined that he might be having a bit of a talk with himself. She allowed him that. She refused to scold Jean-Luc for simply having feelings. When he looked back at her, his expression had changed. The look in his eyes had changed. She might have sworn they actually twinkled, and he smiled at her sincerely.
"Evie is quite complimentary of her mama, too, you know," Jean-Luc said.
"Is she?" Beverly asked, trying to swallow back her amusement, and mostly failing at it. Jean-Luc was gazing into her eyes, again, and this time it made her pulse flutter slightly. She felt blessed, truly, to be married to man that could still make her pulse flutter.
"Indeed," Jean-Luc said. "She tells me that—well—that her mama is the best mama there is. That she provides her with everything she needs. That she makes her feel safe and comforted, at all times."
"Well—it would seem that she tells you a great deal," Beverly said.
"She does," Jean-Luc said. "Something about…father-daughter bonding and the like."
Beverly laughed quietly.
"I'm glad that you're starting that so young," she said. "Perhaps…you would like to be the one to tell her that it's almost time to start her bedtime routine?"
"Of course," Jean-Luc said. "But—first…you must know that she has a very important message for you."
"Is it that she would like more milk?" Beverly asked. "She is beginning to show a few of her signs…"
"That, and…that she has no desire to meet Lwaxana Troi," Jean-Luc offered.
Beverly laughed.
"Lwaxana is a very strong telepath," Beverly said. "She'll know about Evie, whether we hide her or not."
Jean-Luc let out playful groan. None of his protests, after all, had truly been in earnest, and Beverly knew that.
"Fine," he said. "I only hope that Evie's ready for it."
"I dare to say, Jean-Luc, that Evie will fare quite well with Lwaxana," Beverly said, reaching for their daughter so that she could start the last feed before they tried to put her down for a while. "It's Deanna that needs to be worried."
Jean-Luc laughed quietly. With Evie settled in Beverly's arms, Jean-Luc leaned and put his arm around her so that he could move as close to her as possible and cuddle with her while their daughter fed.
"Deanna," he agreed. "And…more than that, I dare say…Will."
111
"Ambassador Troi," Jean-Luc said, trying to sound as enthusiastic as he could. "Welcome aboard the Enterprise."
Beverly stifled a laugh and swallowed back her amusement. His voice was a bit too loud, and his positivity was a bit too dramatic, for too many people to believe that he actually felt so absolutely thrilled to meet Lwaxana Troi in his dress uniform and welcome her onto the ship for a rather extended stay—all things considered.
Still, Beverly had to appreciate his dedication to duty—and part of his duty was making the Ambassador to Betazed feel welcomed, especially when she was also doing some undercover work for the Federation.
"Oh—why bother with all the formalities, Jean-Luc?" Lwaxana said, matching voice in volume and enthusiasm. "Lwaxana, please…we're practically family."
Jean-Luc cleared his throat, adjusted his uniform, and shifted his feet slightly—all signs that he'd been thrown off-guard a little by Lwaxana's declaration that they were very nearly family.
"Well…we are…rather well-acquainted," Jean-Luc said, getting his tells under control as quickly as possible and renewing his smile.
"Of course, we are!" Lwaxana said, stepping down off the transporter. "And you do remember Mr. Homn…"
"Yes, of course," Jean-Luc said. "Mr. Homn, so good to see you again."
The giant of a man simply nodded at Jean-Luc in one slow sort of bowing nod.
"Mr. Homn will take my things to my quarters," Lwaxana said. "I assume I'll be staying where I normally do when I'm aboard?"
"The quarters have already been arranged," Jean-Luc said.
Lwaxana looked over her shoulder and smiled at the giant who was always at her beck and call.
"Do you mind, Mr. Homn?" She asked.
Beverly saw the slightest hint of a smile on the giant's lips—the most they often saw from him. He nodded at Lwaxana in a much less formal way than he had with Jean-Luc, gathered up her over-sized collection of items, and left the transporter room, alone, to go to the quarters where she'd stayed previously.
"Please send someone to help Mr. Homn get things settled," Jean-Luc said, giving an order that was quickly obeyed by one of the lieutenants who had come to be part of the small welcoming committee—something that was always necessary, when welcoming someone important aboard, so that nobody ever had the chance to feel slighted by the lack of fanfare.
Lwaxana was already eyeing Beverly and, more than that, she was eyeing Evie. Beverly thought she could practically feel waves of affection and comfort coming from the woman. She knew that Lwaxana was able to project her emotions, as a mature Betazoid—for better or for worse—in ways that Deanna, for instance, simply wasn't able to do.
Of course, Lwaxana was a particularly strong telepath and empath, even among her own people.
"I thought you might—want to get settled in your quarters," Jean-Luc said. "You must be tired from your trip. I do know that shuttles can be rather cramped, and long shuttle trips can be tiring."
Beverly fought her amusement.
"Are you trying to put me away, Jean-Luc?" Lwaxana asked, cocking an eyebrow at him. She didn't look offended. She was, clearly, more amused than anything.
"Not at all," Jean-Luc said, "I only wanted what was best for your comfort."
"You know, they told me you got married," Lwaxana said. "To this beautiful…"
Rather than continue with that train of thought, Lwaxana simply stopped speaking for a moment. She put on a broad smile and, holding her hands out, walked toward Beverly. Beverly couldn't help but smile in return. Lwaxana's smile—and the genuine happiness behind it—felt contagious.
"Oh—is it still Dr. Crusher?" Lwaxana asked, reaching Beverly. Beverly hugged her, noting that Lwaxana was very careful not to annoy Evie in any way.
"Beverly, please…but it's Doctor Picard, officially," Beverly said. "I took Jean-Luc's name." Beverly smiled at Lwaxana's expression. "You don't approve?"
"Well, dear—it isn't for me to approve or disapprove," Lwaxana said. "That's a human tradition, isn't it?"
"What do Betazoids do?" Beverly asked, finding that she was genuinely curious, but also wondering why it had never occurred to her to have that conversation before.
"Well—the Betazoid society is a matriarchal society," Lwaxana said. "It's traditional for the man to take the name of his wife—especially if she's from a prominent family."
"What if the man's family is more prominent?" Jean-Luc asked, approaching them.
Now that Beverly and Lwaxana were talking comfortably, and even Beverly could sense that Lwaxana had relaxed considerably and wasn't really attempting to put on anything of a show, Jean-Luc seemed to have relaxed dramatically. Perhaps, Beverly thought, he was even being at least a little affected by the happy and peaceful feelings that seemed to be practically radiating out from Lwaxana.
"All things are negotiable, of course," Lwaxana said. "But—really, it's mostly a case of the man taking the woman's name, and not the other way around. Even my Ian took my name, eschewing those human customs in favor of the Betazoid tradition."
Beverly smiled.
"I'm sure he had some convincing," Beverly said, "from a party that he had no interest in refusing."
Lwaxana smiled sincerely and laughed quietly.
"We were happily married," she offered without any of her usual bravado. "And I do hope you have the same happiness—just, perhaps, for much longer than we were able to enjoy together." For just a second, she was solemn. Beverly felt the emotion, herself. Then, Lwaxana sighed, and smiled, and gave Jean-Luc the kind of look that made him tense slightly. "I wasn't invited to the wedding, Jean-Luc…an accidental oversight, I'm sure."
"Of course," Jean-Luc said, giving Beverly a look that she didn't try to interpret, especially not knowing how much of their thoughts were being tapped into at the moment.
"I'm sure you'll let me make it up to you that I was absent," Lwaxana said. "A special dinner…"
"That won't be necessary," Jean-Luc said.
"Nonsense," Lwaxana said. "I insist. To refuse the offer of a wedding celebration dinner would be offensive…you certainly don't mean that, do you, Jean-Luc?"
"Well…of course not," Jean-Luc said.
Beverly swallowed and bit the inside her cheek. She was always at least a little amused at how well Lwaxana played Jean-Luc—among others.
"Now—I heard you got married, but…nobody told me about this dear…this angel!" Lwaxana said.
Beverly could hear the affection in Lwaxana's tone.
She also sensed that, though Lwaxana had been clearly aware of Evie since she'd materialized on the transporter pad, she'd chosen to temper her response to the baby girl's presence—perhaps as a way to keep Beverly comfortable. Lwaxana, Beverly was sure, would be able to sense the anxiety she felt if people were a bit too enthusiastic with her newborn.
Beverly didn't feel any anxiety at the moment. She turned Evie so that Lwaxana could see her a bit better, and she smiled at Lwaxana's approving sigh.
"This is Evie," Beverly offered. "Would you like to hold her?"
"Beverly—I'm sure Ambassador Troi…Lwaxana," Jean-Luc said, correcting himself before Lwaxana could correct him, "isn't interested in tending to infants."
"Oh—on the contrary, Jean-Luc!" Lwaxana said. Her enthusiasm bubbled up slightly, but Beverly could feel affection practically radiating off her, so she didn't feel the normal anxiety that came with handing over her baby. She nestled Evie into Lwaxana's arms, and she noticed that Lwaxana made absolutely no move to put any distance between them. "Oh—what a dear! Honestly, I'm going to have to scold Deanna for not mentioning a thing about this!"
"I'm sure she had her reasons," Jean-Luc said.
Beverly gave him a slightly disapproving look. He half-shrugged. Lwaxana was paying them very little attention, at any rate, while she fussed over Evie. Evie, for her part, seemed entirely relaxed and content in Lwaxana's arms. Beverly allowed her muscles to relax a bit more.
"I'm sure she only wanted it to be a surprised when you visited next," Beverly offered, soothing over anything that might be left in the wake of Jean-Luc's comment.
"Either way, she is perfect," Lwaxana said. "Oh—and very happy! She adores…everything. Her parents, her home…her life. She is very much at peace. I can sense these things, you know."
Lwaxana smiled at Beverly and winked. Beverly felt her whole body rush with a sort of warmth that made her feel peaceful and happy. It was nice to think that her newborn could offer some sort of explicit approval of their parenting.
"Come and see her at 0200 hours," Jean-Luc said. "She hardly seems content then." Beverly made a face at him, not entirely like the one that Lwaxana made at him, and he laughed quietly. "It was only meant for a bit of humor," he said. "I'm afraid, Lwaxana, that Counselor Troi had an appointment, and that's why she was unable to join us. However, if I'm not mistaken, that appointment should be drawing to an end…"
Lwaxana smiled at him. She gave Evie a few more affectionate touches, and then she passed the baby back to Beverly.
"This little one is feeling a bit…uncomfortable," Lwaxana said. "She may be hungry."
"It's just about time for her to eat," Beverly confirmed.
"She's just beautiful…really," Lwaxana said.
"Thank you," Beverly said. "I hope you'll spend some more time with her, while you're aboard?"
"You couldn't keep me away," Lwaxana assured her.
Beverly swallowed back her amusement at the quick look that flitted across Jean-Luc's face. He erased it as quickly as he could, especially since Lwaxana turned to him, next.
"Jean-Luc—you can escort me as far as my daughter's office. While we walk, you can tell me what you know about the mission…and I'll tell you a few insights of my own."