Rating: PG-13, I guess. I can never decide.
Note: I just got the Season 3 DVD set and after watching "Who Watches the Watchers?", I came up with this. It's kind of a "missing scenes" story. It's short, but I hope you enjoy!

A Mintakan Moment
by Skeeter2219@aol.com

"You look *so* funny."

"And you don't?"

"How did I get suckered into this mission again?" Deanna Troi asked, adjusting her Mintakan clothing.

"You owe me. I beat you at that last hand of poker."

"That's the last time I ever play with you." He grinned appreciatively at her double entendre.

"You can't resist me."

"Care to make a wager?"

"Ah, the magic words. I can't say no."

"Do you ever?"

"Not when you're asking."

"We'll see if I ask anytime in the immediate future." He feigned a wounded expression.

"Will, I have *ridges* on my forehead and pointy ears. How many women have willingly disfigured themselves for you?" He seemed to seriously consider the question for a moment. Deanna hit him on the arm.

"Ow!"

"Please. You're such a baby." Will eyed her breasts suggestively. She rolled her eyes and continued down the path toward the assembly room where everyone was gathering.

**

"That went well," Will growled sarcastically, as he stepped into the hut the Mintakans had assigned them for the evening. Deanna set down her bedding and rolled it onto the floor. The room was sparse - nothing but the clay dirt of the floor and a wooden bucket of clean river water in one corner. 

"I need to come up with a way to free Palmer," Will mumbled to himself. Troi rolled out his bedding next to her own. He paced the length of the room over and over, mentally forming several different approaches before throwing them out and starting again. Deanna removed her clothes and washed with the water in the bucket. When she was done, she turned and saw that her lover was beginning to wear a path into the soft ground of their hut. She sighed softly - poor Will. Walking behind him, she grabbed his shoulders and stood on her tiptoes, pressing soft kisses along the back of his neck. He turned and took her in his arms, burying his face in her neck.

"Don't think about Palmer anymore. We'll work something out -- together," she whispered into his ear. He squeezed her tightly before lowering her onto their makeshift bed.

"What did I ever do without you in my life?" She grazed his ear with her teeth in response. Bringing her hands up in a light caress over his back, she slowly began to unzip his uniform.

"Deanna, I don't think we should do this here." She continued her descent, his zipper firmly between her fingers.

"I like it…very rustic." Never one to turn down a willing woman, Riker quickly helped her help him out of his clothes. As he nuzzled her neck, a thought occurred to him.

"You know, I've never made love to a Mintakan before." She looked incredulous.

"Well that's a surpri….oomph," she finished, as his lips roughly captured hers. There was no more conversation after that. 

The End