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“Will you be glad to see your family again, Sir?” Commander Troi asked as they stood on the transporter pad that would take them across to the Enterprise. A slow smile spread across Admiral Picard’s face. “Indeed. I will be glad when I can designate the Enterprise as my personal ship.”
“Or perhaps, ask Beverly to transfer to Starfleet Medical?” Jean-Luc shook his head. “I couldn’t ask her to do that. She loves her career. Plus I can’t uproot the children and take them away from their friends and school.”
“But, children need their father.” Jean-Luc levelled his eyes at his aide and old friend. “Commander, I would advise you not to say that to Beverly. After all, she raised Wesley on her own after Jack passed away.”
“Sorry, Sir. I wasn’t thinking.”
“Indeed.” Jean-Luc glanced at the Lieutenant waiting by the controls. “Energize.”
The first thing that happened was a small six-year-old with flaming crimson pigtails launched herself at the transporter pad. “Daddy! I missed you!” Jean-Luc scooped up the little girl and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “I’ve missed you too, Lisa. But why aren’t you in school?”
Felisa Picard looked at the floor and Deanna tried to hide her smile. “I snuck out!” Jean-Luc tried to look stern as he reprimanded her.
“Felisa Marie!”
“Mommy said you were arriving today and I had to be here!” Jean-Luc had trouble concealing his grin.
“I see. Don’t you think your teacher might be looking for you soon?”
“Noooo....I told her I had to go to the bathroom.” Jean-Luc turned to Deanna so Felisa wouldn’t see him roll his eyes. Deanna suppressed her laughter.
“Lisa, how about I walk you back to your class? Your father has an important meeting with Captain Riker, but I bet he’ll be home by the time you’re out of school for the day.”
“Awww, ok.” Felisa slid down her father’s uniform to land on the floor and reached her hand out to hold Deanna’s. “Bye, Daddy.”
“I’ll see you tonight, sweetheart.”
###
Beverly fell into step next to her husband as he was walking down the hall and he paused to give her a quick kiss. “Did you know Lisa snuck out of class to meet me in the transporter room?” Beverly snorted.
“No, but I’m not surprised. She’s been counting down until your visit.” They paused in the corridor and Jean-Luc tucked a strand of Beverly’s hair behind her ear. “And, her mother?”
“Can’t wait to get you alone in our bedroom tonight.” She gave him a deep kiss before breaking it off and continuing down the corridor. “I need to get back to sickbay and you have a meeting with Captain Riker. I’ll see you after?” Jean-Luc nodded.
Beverly smiled on her way to Sickbay. It was good to have her husband home, even if it was only for a few days. She wondered not for the first time if she should take up the offer of head of Starfleet Medical and move to Earth so they could be a family, but Jack was doing so well as a Junior Cadet and of course, Lisa would miss her friends. It wasn’t as if twelve-year-old Jack couldn’t join a new Junor Cadet program or that Lisa couldn’t make new friends, so perhaps Beverly was just reticent to leave her position on the Enterprise. She had been Chief Medical Officer of the flagship for over two decades and that was hard to give up. Then again, Jean-Luc had made the long and hard decision to finally accept the promotion to Admiral just the year before, a position they had been dangling in front of him since before their marriage and birth of their son.
Beverly and Jean-Luc had a long relationship spanning over four decades, despite just fifteen years of marriage. Jean-Luc and Beverly had met when they were both at the Academy and had become fast friends, but Beverly had dated Ensign Jack Crusher, the man she married after medical school and had her first child with.
Jack had passed away on an away mission shortly after Jean-Luc had been promoted to Captain when Wesley was barely one year old, and the guilt the man had felt over his friend’s death tempered with the deep love he felt for Beverly and the jealousy he had over Wesley not being his child caused the two to not speak for ten years until Beverly decided she wanted to put her name in for the position of Chief Medical Officer on the Enterprise. She had wanted Wesley to be around Jean-Luc, thinking it would be good for him to get to know his father’s best friend, and more importantly, she had wanted to be around Captain Jean-Luc Picard. She knew she had feelings for her friend, and she was fairly certain he felt the same way about her.
They had danced around their relationship that first year. Beverly had become so fed up with him that she had accepted a temporary position at Starfleet Medical for one year, sure that in her absence they might be able to work out their relationship. They hadn’t, and even after she returned to the ship they still spent many years dancing around each other having a half relationship with eah other until Jean-Luc had been sent to a future where he and Beverly had been married and divorced. He had returned and told her about this future, and vowed to never divorce her. Beverly had laughed and told him they needed to be married before he could promise not to divorce her, and so, with only a few weeks of ‘dating’, the two became engaged and married.
Beverly was forty-six, which wasn’t old, but was considered on the risk spectrum for having a child. Nevertheless, she and Jean-Luc had decided to try for a child and after a little bit of medical intervention, she became pregnant with their son, whom they named Jack Howard Picard. Five years later when they were into their fifties, it had taken them entirely by surprise when she had discovered she was pregnant once more, and the result was Felisa Marie, who Jean-Luc simply doted over.
Beverly happily hummed to herself as she finished up the report she owed Captain Riker before turning off her console and heading for the Captain’s quarters that were now occupied by her family. When Jean-Luc had accepted the role of Admiral last year causing Will Riker to be promoted, Beverly had naturally offered to move herself and the children into her old CMO quarters, but Will had insisted she stay where she was since the Captain’s quarters were more spacious and more importantly, the bedrooms had doors. With Jack on the cusp of being a teenager, Beverly knew he would value his privacy.
###
Jean-Luc grinned when he entered his former quarters that evening and saw Jack sitting on the sofa in his Junior Cadets uniform with Felisa trying to get him to play with her dolls she had scattered on the coffee table . Jack reluctantly held a doll dangling off his hand and was pretending to walk her across the table top, while Felisa had her mouth pursed exactly like Beverly did when she was perturbed. Jean-Luc got down on his knees next to his daughter and kissed the top of her head.
“What are we playing?” Felisa held out one of the dolls to her father. It was a blue-skinned Andorian complete with antennas and white hair. “This is Sharn,” she said shaking her doll. “Sharn wants to be a Captain, but Admiral Barn says no.”
“I see. And Admiral Barn is?” Felisa pointed to the doll Jack was holding. “Jack’s supposed to be playing her.” Jean-Luc could only grin at his son, who groaned and rolled his eyes.
“Dad, do I hafeto?” Jean-Luc held out his hand.
“Give me Admiral Barn. I’ll play with Lisa until your mother gets home. But I’d like to spend some time with you, too. Maybe we can go to the holodeck tomorrow and play Paresis Squares. I think your old man still remembers how to play.” Jack grinned. “Sounds great, but you know I’ll beat you. Dad, can I go to Ten Forward?”
“But Jaaaack, Daddy is home!” Jack rolled his eyes at his sister.
“Yeah, I know. But the other Junior Cadets are meeting in Ten Forward...” he trailed off and looked down. “Sorry, Dad. I’ll stay home.”
“Nonsense. As long as you’re back by dinner, you may go with your friends.” Jack grinned. “Thanks Dad!” He ruffled Felisa’s hair before walking towards the door. “See ya, squirt!”
“I’m not a squirt!” Felisa shouted as the door slid shut. Jean-Luc pulled Felisa onto his lap.
“Well, you are quite small.” He tickled her and she giggled. “Daaaaaaddy. Stoooop.”
“Sorry.”
“’sok.” Felisa thrust Sharn into her father’s hand. “You can play Sharn. I’ll be the Admiral.”
###
Jean-Luc had revelled in putting Felisa to bed that evening. He kissed her goodnight and turned on her nightlight before shutting her door. “I’ve missed doing that.” He accepted the mug of tea from his wife and settled onto the sofa with her curled next to him. Jean-Luc placed a kiss against Beverly’s temple. From his chair opposite his parents, Jack made a face while reading his PADD.
“Ew. You guys are gross.”
“I haven’t seen your mother in three months. I’ve missed her just as much as I’ve missed you and Lisa.”
“Yeah, but it’s still gross. Can I go to my room?” Beverly rolled her eyes. “If you’d rather not spend time with your father. Fine. But lights out at 2100, mister.” Jack rose. “Dad said we’d do stuff tomorrow. Night Mom, night Dad.”
“Night, Son.”
Beverly shifted until she was sitting in Jean-Luc’s lap. “Ah, alone earlier than we planned. Whatever will we do with our evening?” Jean-Luc slid his hands around her waist and kissed her. “I can think of a few things.”
“So can I, but maybe we should talk first.”
“About?”
“Our living situation.” Jean-Luc nodded. “What about it?”
“I think we should live together again. It will be hard, pulling the children away from the ship, but I think they’ll be alright. Besides, we have that huge house at the vineyard since Marie said she didn’t want to stay in it. We might as well live in it.”
“Er...” Beverly hardly noticed her husband’s interruption and continued to speak. “With your office in Paris, I’m sure I could convince them to base me there, too. The children could attend school in Paris and commute with us in the morning, or attend the local village school....I suppose Jack could even go away to boarding school if he’d rather. Lisa will miss her friends, but she would make new ones in no time. Jack never has an issue making friends....” Beverly trailed off and saw the smile playing on Jean-Luc’s lips. “What?”
He pecked her lips gently. “You are delightful and this is only one of the reasons why I love you. I was planning on designating the Enterprise as my personal ship. It’s why I was here to talk to Will about it before I make the official request. I would be able to live on the ship with you and conduct my work in a separate office....and we’d get our quarters expanded slightly due to my rank.”
“Naturally, you’d bring your aide back on board too?” Jean-Luc nodded. “Naturally.” Beverly grinned.
“And I’m sure Will Riker has already agreed since it would mean Deanna would be back on board.” Jean-Luc nodded. “Indeed. But if you really want to become the head of Starfleet Medical....” Beverly shook her head.
“Not really. But I was going to make that sacrifice for our family. You know how much I love my job here.” She kissed him again. “But will it be hard on you being on board the Enterprise and not being her Captain?” Jean-Luc shrugged.
“Time will tell, but I already promised Will I wouldn’t interfere unless absolutely necessary. It’s not as if the ship wasn’t used for diplomatic purposes in between exploration missions before.” Beverly nodded and shifted to bring her hands to the zip on the front of his jacket, dragging it down.
“So, now that that’s settled....what do you say to taking this into the bedroom?”
“I say absolutely.”