What happened to Deanna and Will on the Bak'u planet,
right after Worf told Will his words of wisdom, Geordi
and Worf walked away and Riker went to greet Troi.

HEM AND HAW

p_co07@yahoo.com
Rated: R (for language and content)
Setting: During Insurrection.
Disclaimer: Paramount owns them all,
everything...nothing belongs to me.

Hem and Haw

“Will, look over there.” Deanna Troi said with a nod
of her head, motioning towards the reunion of mother
and estranged son, one living on the Ba’ku home world
and the other Son’a. “Isn’t that beautiful?”

Riker didn’t answer he simply smiled.

“Do you think they’ll make it?”

“I’m not sure.” He answered in a quiet voice. “But,
it’s a beginning.”

“That’s true. I suppose everything has to have a
beginning.” Deanna agreed, as she sat down on the
field stone-erected fence, she inhaled, allowing the
crisp, sweet air of the Ba’ku planet to fill her
lungs.

Riker concentrated on picking up a rock and took aim
at a rabbit.

He missed.

“You missed.” She said. “I think I would have been
very upset if you had hit that poor creature.”

“I used to go rabbit hunting as a boy.” He answered.
“I guess this planet really does have an effect on
me.” He smiled with a wide boyish grin.

“You went hunting armed only with stones?”

“No,” he laughed. “I had a weapon, it was a B-26
phaser, a present on my tenth birthday.” He recalled.
“If I had had my faithful childhood weapon, I wouldn’t
have missed. I can bet you that.”

“Liar.”

“Yeah. I’m a liar.” He admitted with a smile, a smile
that made her heart melt. “I never could shoot
anything with that damn gun.”

They both laughed, and when the laughter died down
Riker sat down beside her, reaching for her hand, he
held it and squeezed it gently. “Deanna,” he suddenly
found himself fumbling for words, “You don’t
think----“

Deanna snuggled against the bicep of his arm enjoying
his closeness.

“You wouldn’t want to---to….” He struggled for the
words. “To stay with me, would you?”

“Will, I’m not going anywhere.”

“Yeah, I know that. That isn’t exactly what I
meant….” He stated, frustrated that he couldn’t form
the right words. “I’m talking about moving in
together. I know I don’t have much room---but,” he
continued taking in a nervous breath. “I was thinking,
maybe we could sign up for bigger quarters---one with
room for a family, that is after we get mar . . .” He
suddenly stopped; embarrassed as if he had just asked
her something that was absurd and wrong.

Deanna looked up at him for a moment dumbfounded and
wide eyed. For a little while no one spoke, then
Deanna groped for the words as she focused down on
their entwined hands, she began slowly,
“Will---I---I--- can’t….”

“I know, hey, just forget it.” He interrupted quickly
cutting her off as he snatched his hand back and
awkwardly tried to put them in pockets of a jacket
that didn’t exist. He noticed his mistake and let his
hands hang loosely on his lap. Hell, he didn’t know
what else to do with them. He let out a nervous
laugh, the kind of laugh that she discerned
immediately; it was one to cover his own awkward
embarrassment. “"I know that we’ve only been together
for less than a week, but while I was up there
battling the Son’a I couldn’t stop thinking about
you--- about us--- wondering if we’d ever see each
other again, I know this sounds weird, but I felt as
if I was twenty-eight years old again, and I still had
a lot more to accomplish in this life before I was
ready to throw in the towel, I was determined to
survive . . . because of me, because of you, but . . .
mostly because of us.” His voice suddenly trailed
off, and he gave her a blank stare and then a grin
that didn’t quite meet his eyes. “I’m rambling. ”

“No, no your not . . . well yes you are, but . . . ”
Deanna smiled slightly, and then added, “What I was
going to say is that I can’t…”

“You can’t.” he abruptly cut her off again, this time
with an edge to his voice. “I heard it the first
time, Deanna.” He looked up towards the clouds and
then back down at her. He grabbed a small stone and
threw it to the side in frustration. "We need to get
back to the rest of the crew...we’ll be beaming back
aboard the ship soon." Riker said wanting desperately
to change the subject.

He then noticed that the mother and son had exited
from their sight and walked with their arms wrapped
around one another through the threshold of their
dwelling. “Maybe it’s just the effects of this planet
that’s making me talk and think this way.”

“Do you think once the effects of this met-aphasic
radiation wears off we’ll go back to the way we were
before?” She asked innocently.

“I asked Worf that same question.”

“Worf? What did he say?”

“He said, and I quote. ‘Your feelings about her
haven’t changed since the day I met you, Commander.
This place just let them out for a little fresh air.”

“You’re human, Will Riker.” She sat up straightening
her posture.

“Is the little Betazoid clairvoyant now?”

Ignoring the gibe Deanna continued. “There’s no
possible way you could have grasped what he was trying
to express to you, Worf can be very insightful at
times.”

“What?” He sounded shocked. “I understood Worf just
fine, Deanna. Worf does not hem and haw.”

“Hem and what?” she asked.

“Hem and Haw.”

“And what, pray tell, is a hem and a haw?”

“It means to beat around the bush.”

“Is this secret language of yours supposed to have
some profound relevance?”

Riker shifted his weight, and then with a look of
aspiration, “Oh for goodness sake, Deanna, haven’t you
ever heard of the term hem and haw?”

“No, I haven’t, but I’ve heard of the term pity pony,
and it appears to me that you’re riding one.”

“Pity pony?” He questioned, jumping off of the fence.
“I’ll dismount my--- pity pony--- if you step off that
Troi Trolley you seem to be riding, Princess.”

“I like my trolley just fine.” Their eyes met and
held. “And you haven’t referred to me as Princess in
years.” The smoke from the burning campfire drifted
towards her, and she fanned her face with her hand.
“Did the direction of the wind change?”

“Yep, just like the direction of this conversation.”
He turned towards her and said, “Deanna, I don’t want
to fight with you about this. Let’s just forget it
all right?”

“I can’t.”

“I’m really beginning to hate those words.” He
mumbled to himself, but she heard him. The expression
on her face had told him that she had heard him.

“I can’t--- “ Ebony eyes looked at him and pleaded for
him to understand, and then she continued, “I can’t
think of any reason… why it would be such a…. terribly
bad idea.” She stated softly, with a shrug of her
shoulders.

Her words made him look at her through squinted eyes.

“I said…” she clarified, sensing his confusion. “I
can’t think of any reason why moving in together would
be such a terribly bad idea.” She took his hand and
hopped off of the stone fence. Her eyes suddenly
filled with excitement. “Yes! Let’s do it.” She
declared, throwing her arms around his neck.

“My three favorite words.” He growled playfully,
sweeping her up into his arms and carrying her to a
bed of soft grass, and fragrant flowers, well out of
the sight of the villagers, and fellow crewmembers.

They lay entwined in each other’s arms, their bodies
naked to the sun, still moist from lovemaking. Deanna
repositioned herself propping herself up on an elbow,
and began to place butterfly kisses on his face and
neck “What are you thinking about?” she asked.

“You’re the empath.” He smiled, his eyes focused on
the cottony-whiteness of the clouds. “You tell me.”

“All right.” She said shifting her weight slightly;
“You’re wondering if your shower is big enough for the
both of us.”

Riker turned his head slowly, looked directly into her
eyes, and then let out a full-hearted laugh. “No.” he
chuckled. “Has anyone ever told you, that for an
empath, your accuracy can only be compared with my
slaying a rabbit with a rock?”

“Very funny, Commander.” She slapped his chest
playfully.

Riker flinched as if it really had hurt him, “All
right, I’ll confess my thoughts just don’t beat me
anymore.” He begged playfully, his expressed suddenly
turned serious and he swallowed the lump that had
instantly formed in his throat. “I was thinking . . .
I guess, hell does freeze over and, when it does, a
man gets lucky and he gets a second chance . . . I
thought I’d lost you . . . lost this . . .” he
indicated with a gesture of his hand to himself and
then to Deanna. “I thought I had lost us forever, and
I had convinced myself that when Hell froze over I’d
get you back.”

“I’ll always be a part of you Will, and you’ll always
be a part of me.” She reassured him. “We’re Imzadi.”

“I like it best when part of me is *in* you, instead
of *with* you---Imzadi.” He said with a raise of his
eyebrows, grabbing her by the hips and pulling her
down on top of him.

“Oh my god, your incorrigible.” She laughed, her
laughter died down and she suddenly turned serious
attempting to raise herself from him, but he held onto
her waist refusing to release her. “I think the
Captain is beckoning for us, Will, so we should assume
our command positions.”

“Didn’t we just do that?”

Deanna rolled her eyes; she was about to say something
sarcastically playful when Riker’s com-badge sounded.
<<Picard to Riker>>

Riker let out a frustrated sigh, with his left arm
reached out, and grabbed his uniform top that lay
crumpled on the grass and tapped his com-badge.
<<Riker here. >>

<<Assemble the crew together Number One; we’ll be
boarding the ship in approximately ten minutes. >>

<< Understood. Riker out. >>

He sat up and turned his head towards the Counselor,
who had already released herself from his grip, and
was beginning to dress, he looked at her and she
sensed his devilish grin, and when she looked towards
him he spoke. “You sensed that did you?” he asked,
pulling the tunic over his head, referring to her keen
empathy towards the Captain.

“Haven’t you heard?” She teased, and then added with
a playful twitch of her nose. “The little Betazoid is
clairvoyant now.” Using his earlier words to her
advantage.

“Ah yes, I forgot---if you ever need a set of crystal
balls---” He cleared his throat, and wagged his
eyebrows; deliberately zipping his pants so that she
knew what he was referring to.

“Oh, please.” She rolled her eyes and then she
commanded. “Stop!”

“What’s the matter, Princess? Are my adolescent human
ways frightening you?“

“I was certainly never afraid of you Will Riker.” She
stated clearly. “Now your human ways---
that---frightens me. There are times when I think
I’ve gotten more than what I bargained for.” She
regretted the words the minute they came out of her
mouth, but it was too late to take them back.

“You’re still going to move in with me aren’t you?” I
was a question, but to Deanna it sounded like a
desperate plea from a man who wasn’t quite sure of him
self, a man who was afraid of doing or saying the
wrong thing that would scare her off or chase her
away.

Deanna straightened her clothing, and brushed back her
hair with her hand. She walked towards Riker and
grabbed a handful of butt flesh and squeezed, he
jumped slightly, letting out a small yelp. “Of
course, how could I refuse someone with such a nice
ass?” She gave him a sinfully playful twitch of her
nose and then simply turned, and took off across the
meadow jogging towards the rest of the crew.

He stood there dumbfounded, not only by her crude
gesture, but by her words as well.

Both watched as Data emerged from the pile of straw
the golden android had been romping in with his
newfound young friend. Deanna tried to hide her
smile, but failed miserably. She gave Riker a smile
that made him want to grab her and kiss her, she had a
quality about her that drove him mad--- easygoing with
a tranquil reserve that made him want to tear her
clothes off and take her to bed, he decided against
it, and simply reached down and took her hand; it was
the first time he had openly showed his affection
towards her in the presence of their fellow comrades,
and it made her heart smile.

They stood there hand in hand; giddy, and excited
about their future together, both knowing that this
was only the beginning, and happy in the fact that
once in while maybe hell does freeze over, and only
the lucky ones get a shot at a second chance at
experiencing the perfect love.

THE END