The scream wrenches Will awake.

The last few remnants of his mother's picnic fall away from Will's bleary mind as someone – a child – screams again. His senses snap together quickly, everything becoming sharp and crystal clear. Jean-Luc! He yanks his sheets off him, glad he decided to sleep clothed.

"Riker to Security!"

"Denford here."

"Security team to my quarters! Intruder alert!"

He races towards Jean-Luc's room. Who could be attacking the boy? And at this time of night! How did they get in?

"Computer, lights forty percent!" He stumbles into the suddenly bright room.

To find no one there.

"NOO!" Jean-Luc screeches. "Get away! Stop!... please… stop… I don't… pleeeeease!"

Is the intruder invisible to the naked eye?

"Will, please! Deanna!" Jean-Luc flails his arms. The rest of his body, for some reason, remains stiff as a board. "Help me! Please, anyone!"

"Jean-Luc?!" Will rushes forward. He swings his arm above the sweaty boy, but doesn't connect with anything. Great, the intruder wasn't tangible. He grabs hold of Jean-Luc, intent on dragging the boy away.

"No! Get away from meee!" Jean-Luc bucks and smacks Will in the face. Will winces at the sting. Jean-Luc goes limp, and whimpers. "Don't… please, don't… I… I don't want to… I don't want to be a Borg. Please… stop…"

Oh.

Ohhh.

Will sits down on the bed, still holding Jean-Luc's sagging body. "Riker to Security. Cancel alert. Everything's fine."

"Are you sure, sir?"

"Yes." He takes a breath. "Code 56 Alpha 2498."

"Right, sir."

There's nothing Security can do to help with this situation. Better to keep them away. It'd only embarrass Jean-Luc if more people saw him like this.

"Jean-Luc," Will says firmly, shaking the small body in his arms. "It's just a dream. Wake up." That's when he notices... not all the liquid coating Jean-Luc... is sweat.

Jean-Luc continues to shiver, sob... and scream. "5! There are 5 lights!!! Please just stop!!!"

Will tries to think of anything to break through to the dreaming boy. This wasn't covered in his command classes. For anything resulting in PTSD, or mental trauma, they were advised to send their crew member to a counselor.

Maybe he can call Deanna! He's sure she won't mind. Will's about to lay Jean-Luc down, and call her, when Jean-Luc suddenly starts awake. Instinctively clutching Will, and babbling incoherent.

Will thinks he makes out something about Cardassians... so his Nightmare hadn't just been about the Borg... he was remembering getting tortured, as well.

Jean-Luc continues to cry, for a good 10 minutes. Once he calms down. It takes another minute before he stiffens, and tries to pull away. But Riker refuses to let him, prepared for the reaction.

"It's okay Jean-Luc," Will promises. "You have nothing to be ashamed about." he can practically feel the boy's eyes wander to his pants. "I'm fully aware you're wet." The boy stiffens again. "Like I said, nothing to be ashamed of." Will promises.

Jean-Luc stays quite, but doesn't try to pull away again. After a long few minutes. Jean-Luc hesitantly ask, "Are... are you going to spa- discipline me?"

Now Riker stiffen... then, he does something he immediately regrets. He kisses the top of Jean-Luc's head. Pretending, THAT, didn't just happen. Riker distracts, "Of course not, you've done nothing wrong. You just had an accident. I'll never spank you over an accident."

"Not a child," Jean-Luc mutters, half heartedly.

Riker chuckles, "You're currently covered in your own pis-, errr pee. While worrying if you're going to get a spanking, for doing something normal and natural, and most importantly, completely accidental. You. Are. DEFINITELY. a child... and that's okay. Don't worry so much about being mature. It's okay to be a kid. This is all normal for children. No one will bat an eye, or think any less of you.

"Besides, if I was going to spank you, for wetting the bed. I would have done it 3 weeks ago, when it started. And been on your butt every night that followed. Except last Thursday, when you were particularly happy, about having a dry night."

Jean-Luc stares in stunned silence. Then whispers. "You knew?"

"Not about the nightmares. I thought it was regular 'drinking too much before bed'. Now that I know, I'm going to be checking on you more often, and arranging daily talks with Deanna."

"WILL!!!!" The boy exclaims.

Will did it again, he kissed the boys head, and starts rocking him. "You're a child now, Jean-Luc. You'll be legally a child for the next 4 years. We can't ignore your needs. Or pretend they'll resolve themselves. You'll be talking with Deanna... and wearing special underpants to bed.

"If you ever go to bed, without the pants, THEN, you'll receive a Spanking. But for disobedience, not any accident you may or may not have. Understood?"

Jean-Luc was obviously blushing, but he actually hugs will tighter.

"You must be getting tired of cleaning your sheets, near every night. And taking two showers a day. This will help with that. You'll still be in charge of cleanup. But you'll have less to clean. Think you can live with that, My Littlest Captain?"

Jean-Luc isn't saying anything. But will notices he's fighting back tears. So Will bribes him... not good parenting, he knows.

"If you do this," Will offers something he'd do regardless. "I'll reinstate you on the crew roster."

Jean-Luc immediately snaps out of his tears. "REALLY!?"

"You'll be assigned to a new position. Lower in rank then the Enlisted. With Tasks similar to a Yeoman. But fewer hours. School comes first."

Jean-Luc frowns. "So I'll mostly be fetching and carrying... occasionally delivering reports and packages..." He didn't like the thought of that. But at least he'd be serving his ship.

"You'll also be given a station on the Bridge. AND, be allowed to sit on, MOST, Senior Staff meetings. Even add your 2 cents. So long as you treat it like advice, and not orders."

Jean-Luc beams, nightmare completely forgotten, and no trace of tears. He hugs Will tighter.

"ThankyouNumberOne!" he says in one breath.

"Ah Ah Ah," Riker reminds. "Remember, you have to agree to wear the special underwears, without complaint. And if you agree, and you decide not to wear them even one night, you'll get a spanking... but I'll still keep you on the crew roster... Deal?"

Jean-Luc fidgets, "What about da others?" he slurs a bit. Falling asleep.

Riker smiles. Jean-Luc is always thinking of others. "They can be your assistants."

"Junior Assistant Officers, to Chief Assistant Officer." Damn, even half awake, Picard comes up with more dignified titles then Will.

Will is about to promise to use those, when he realized Jean-Luc is sleeping.

He thinks about waking him. but then decides to clean everything, including the boy, himself. Doubt he could even wake up the child. Given he slept through everything... including Riker pulling on a pullup.