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Planet of Silence
Chapter Nineteen and Twenty
Chapter Nineteen
Two years later:
Chief Medical Officer's log:
There has been some improvements made in the implants for the deaf. Somewhat of a success, one may think, for those with more profound losses like the patients who contracted the Syrina illness. Those patients have had the most profound losses in most recent history. Of those who have decided to try the implant, seventy-five percent report hearing something by way of sound, but nothing clearly understandable. Another twenty percent reported being able to understand enough sound that they know who is talking or where sound is coming from, but no clear words. The last four percent report hearing enough sound that they could understand some words being said at certain decibles. Only one percent have had no success with the improvements made in the implants.
While the implants have produced something by way of sound for these patients, the use of interpreters and sign language is still necessary. It does not cure their deafness. It only gives them the ability to differenciate sounds. Therefore, providing a measure of safety in difficult situations, nothing more.
Still, there are a few, who have had the Syrina Illness, that are reluctant to get an implant. Most of them are the ten original away team members on that mission. They, of course, had the most profound loss of any of the patients. I would like to convence them to try the implant, but to do that, I must convence Mriana Troi first. She seems to have a strong influence over a lot of those who lost their hearing at Syrina. Especially, the original away team.
If I succeed with this new project of getting all of those who suffered from the Syrina Illness to try the implant, then all of them will have some form of hearing, even if it is very minute hearing.
The trick is Mriana Troi.
There is one other thing I wanted to make note of and that is the Syrina Illness seems to have affected more than just the person's hearing. It seems to lie dorminant in the female. Thus, her off-spring are born deaf. We have not seen any cases where the father had the illness and the children are deaf. Only with the mothers. This places an unusual perspective on the illness.
End Chief Medical Officer's Log.
Mriana was also in her office updating her files on her computer.
Counselor Mriana Troi's Log:
Sara and her family have come a long ways in the last two years. Sara is now eighteen, has learned sign, and is now taking the entrance exams for Starfleet Academy. She will be one year behind her classmates, but she does not seem to be phased by this fact. If she passes the exams, it will be another six months before she will leave for the Academy. She will be nineteen then.
She continued typing her log entry. She had finally gotten use to the old form of storing information into the computer. Everyday she typed her log entries and was glad to have the old form of communication available still.
She was sorry that five of the deaf crew members left Starfleet within six months of the illness. She hoped they had learned to deal with the loss by now. However, she never heard from them again.
An ensign who was with her on that assignment two years ago, finally made lieutenant junior grade. She was very happy for him. He too had come a long ways in the last two years and had learned to overcome some of the difficulties of being deaf.
As she was continuing her log, the lights signalling a comm message for her flashed. The screen showed the message on half the screen, leaving the other half her log entry. "Mriana Troi here." She typed and the computer replied for her.
*Would you and Ms. Sohn please join me in my office?* Beverly requested as the computer printed out her message. *I'd like to discuss some things with you.*
"Certainly, Beverly. I'll be there as soon as I can."
The comm became quiet and her screen returned to just her log entry again.
In two years Beverly had not learned enough sign to explain medical issues to her patients. Therefore, she could not become certified to explain medical details to her patients. She regretted that fact, but she was getting use to the computer's voice speaking for the deaf.
"If only I had the time to learn more sign language." She thought to herself.
Mriana and Paula Sohn met on the turbolift. "Sickbay." Mriana requested aloud.
As they rode on the lift they had a silent conversation. They discussed the rest of the days agenda and general conversation. They continued this conversation until they arrived in Sickbay. Then they proceeded with silent hands.
Beverly was going over her last examination she had given Mriana. She looked up as she noticed the two of them enter her office.
"Sit down, please." She gestured. She continued once they were seated. "I wanted Ms. Sohn here, because as you know my signing is not that good, especially for what I'm about to say."
Mriana thought Beverly was a little better than what she gave herself credit for, but never the less she allowed Beverly to continue without saying a word.
"I've gone over the results of the implants I've placed in others."
"Beverly, we've discussed this before." Mriana said aloud with a frown.
"Let me finish." Beverly replied. "I've found that most all have had some form of sound after recovering from surgery. It's not a great improvement, but they do hear some things, especially sounds at high decibles."
"Beverly, if you're going to try to convence me to get the implants, let me remind you, we've been through this before. The implants won't work for me or at least won't provide what I call sound. Last you told me, at best I'll hear voices like buzzing bees, if I'm lucky." Mriana signed.
"It's improved since we last talked."
"I work with these people on a daily bases, Beverly and yes, I do admit there is some improvement and some satifaction. However, like me, they want to hear a real conversation again. Children's laughter and birds chirping. They don't want to just feel music, they want to hear all the music, not just simulated sound."
"Mriana, humour me here. If you won't agree to let me try to restore something by way of sound, at least listen to what I have to say."
"Alright." Mriana said aloud with a frustrated sigh. She sensed Beverly was determined to get her message across.
"Now, some of the people I gave implants to had some working auditory nerves left. Still there was a lot of damage done to the cochlea."
"That's because you found an innoculant in time for them to have something left. The away team and a few others suffered longer than some others and had experienced the full raveging effects of the Syrina Illness. Tell me something I don't know."
Now Beverly was getting frustrated with Mriana. "What you don't know is I could stimulate the nerves undamaged and by pass the rest with outer implants."
"Some of us have nothing left to hear with." Mriana retorted.
Beverly sighed. "Why do I get the feeling you are angry about all of this?"
"Because every year since the illness you call me in here to tell me all the improvements that have been made. You tell me how it works everytime and how it stimulates a rebuilt cochlea and artifical nerves. Thus sending sound to the brain. I know how it works, now tell me what I don't know that is so great about these new improvements and do keep in mind some of us suffered some brain damage in the hearing section of our brains."
"Mriana, please calm down." Beverly ordered. "Why are you so angry with me? It's not my fault you can't hear anymore."
"Because, it's the same thing everytime. You want to see how the improvements work for the more severe cases. What are we? Some guinea pigs for a little experiment of yours?" Mriana was now shouting at her. "Well, we're not guinea pigs!"
Beverly stood and leaned forward on her desk. "That is not why I'm wanting all of you to try this! I just want to help you! That's all! And the sooner you start opening your mind and using that damn empathic sense of yours, you'd know!"
Beverly pushed herself back up, turned her back towards Mriana and looked out the portal. "Mriana, if I could convence you this might help you, then the others would follow your lead. You have more influence on other deaf people than you know, especially those who lost their hearing at Syrina. Tell me why you refuse to try this. Tell me why you psychologist are the worst patients next to doctors." She turned back around. "Tell me, for a change, how you feel."
"Alright." Mriana said. "If you must know, I'm scared. Scared to death that it will all be in vain. That it will not work at all with all the damage that's been done."
Beverly studied Mriana when she became silent. She appeared very vulnerable to Beverly now. Then Mriana continued in sign.
"For two years now, I've relied mainly on my empathic sense. It's gotten even stronger and I have aquired some telepathic abilities. Not a lot, but enough to read some strong thoughts of my closest friends. I've become accustomed to using these abilities in my daily life and I don't want to loose them, especially if the implant fails."
"Who says you will loose your telepathy? I have never promised all your hearing. Just enough to survive in an emergency, if need be, and even that is not enough to really have safety."
Mriana looked forlorned. "As for why psychologist are the worst patients next to doctors, I don't know. Except maybe we know just enough, medically, that it frightens us."
"What about those who follow your lead? The others who's loss is as bad as yours? Don't you know you're the only one who can convence them to try this? They won't listen to me anymore than you do."
"I know." Mriana signed. "They know how bad their loss is and they don't want to be disappointed anymore than I do. They feel there is no hope of them hearing anything again."
Beverly leans over her desk again. She was very frustrated and upset. "Then give them that hope! Take that one step they will notice and listen to! They will follow your lead, if I have any success with this surgery on you."
"It's the word "if" that bothers me." Mriana stated.
"Will you let me try?" Beverly pleaded.
"OK, how do the improvements work?"
"Do you have an idea how Geordi's visor works?"
"Sort of."
"In a way, the improvements help you hear about like Geordi sees, if you're lucky."
"Go on."
"You'll have a place right about here." Beverly touches a place behind her ears. "Which will have a stran of wire. It will connect to a microphone like device. The microphone will pick up sounds, send them to the wire, which will change them into electrical waves at a frequency best suited to you. It won't be true sound, but you will hopefully hear something. Not everything you hear will make sense, but the objective is to have it make enough sense to you that you know where it's coming from."
Paula Sohn continues to interpret for Mriana as Beverly continues. "The wire leads to a rebuilt cochlea. This artifical cochlea has very fine hair-like wires that are suppose to work like the nerves found in a real cochlea. Next you'll have an artifical stape, hammer, tympanic membrane, ecetera. In other words, your whole hearing system will be artifical. The sound will hopefully go from there to the hearing parts of your brain. However, there's no repairing the damage there. You won't ever hear actual words being spoken to you. You will hear just sound. What kind and how your brain interprets it, I don't know. It just depends on a number of things and how extensive the damage is to the hearing parts of the brain."
"Basically, you are sending electrical impulses to my brain." Mriana signed.
Beverly nodded. "But you know most of what happens in the brain stem from electrical impulses within the body."
"Has there been any mortality rate with this procedure?"
"Not yet." Beverly replied. "I don't go into the brain any further than connecting the fine hair like wires that lead from the artifical organs in your ear."
"Um, can I think about this?"
"Sure, but I hope you give me your answer soon."
"I will. After I get back from Betazed and Risa."
"That's right. The trade conference and then you and Geordi are going on a vacation." Beverly replied excitedly.
"Yes." Mriana smiled.
"I'm so glad to see you two are together and serious again." Beverly stated. "Well, I'll be anxious to hear your answer when you get back."
"You will." Mriana replied as she left Sickbay.
The captain was talking to Riker and Deanna Troi on the Bridge. They were in their usual seats. Will Riker on the right of the captain and Deanna on the left as they conversed back and forth.
"We'll be arriving at Betazed tomorrow for the Trade Conference being held on Betazed. Will you two be requesting shoreleave?" Asked Picard.
"I'd love to. It's been a long time since I've seen my mother and the art museum there on Betazed."
"Unbelievable! The woman hasn't been here for two years now!" Will exclaimed jokingly.
"Commander Riker!" Deanna scolded playfully.
"I assume you'll both be going?" Picard asked.
Will smiled. "Yes. We had planned on it, Sir."
"You know." Picard began. Counselor Mriana Troi and Mr. LaForge have also requested shoreleave." He paused. "Together."
"Oh, it would be nice if they could go together." Deanna stated.
"Question is, how well are they getting along?"
"From what I've seen." Will began. "Very well."
"I agree, Captain. You are going to grant them shoreleave at the same time, aren't you?" Deanna asked.
"Actually." Picard began. "That is the start of the vacation they are taking together. After they leave Betazed, they will be going to Risa."
"That's wonderful, Captain." Deanna said with a smile. "It will do them good to take a vacation. Neither of them have had one in quite sometime."
"And I believe Geordi will enjoy the company on his vacation." Will grinned.
"I'm sure she will appreciate it, too." Deanna returned.
"Sir." Worf barked. "Sensors show a Ferengi vessel approaching."
"On screen." Ordered Picard.
"I wonder what they are up to?" Will asked with suspecion.
"Probably they want to go to the Trade Conference, again." Picard replied.
"Great!" Will stated sarcastically as he rolled his eyes.
"So, far they have made no attempts to communicate." Stated Worf. "However, their course is to Betazed."
"Well, let's just keep our eyes on them for now." Picard commanded.
The Ferengi flew past them and continued their course to Betazed. "Hopefully, they won't be a problem like they usually are, but some how I doubt that." Will stated.
Chapter Twenty
The next day the Enterprise arrived at Betazed. The Trade Conference was being held there once again and several of the crew requested shoreleave. Many had already beamed down and the conference was so far going smoothly.
Mriana and Geordi, along with Lwaxana, were one of the last to beam down.
"I do wish you would decide to stay on Betazed and so would your mother." Lwaxana sent to Mriana before beaming down. "Or at least visit with her before you leave again."
"I will, Aunt Lwaxana. Don't worry."
"I'll expect to see you again, Dear." Those were the last words Lwaxana sent to her niece before beaming down for the conference.
It was not long after that, that Mriana and Geordi were walking along a peaceful area. It was uncrowded of visitors and natives. They were basically alone, except for a few other couples who were looking for a respite from the crowds.
Mriana saw the musical flower, a favourite of hers among many flowers on Betazed. She leaned down to smell it and was a bit mournful. She knew when she touched it, it released a ringing sound. A sound she knew she would never hear again.
Even though she had been through this once before, it still hurt. The one sound she missed dearly. Tears ran down her eyes and as Geordi started to approach her, she suddenly ran back to the city.
Deanna and Will happened to be near by and were about to say hi when they noticed Mriana's unusual behaviour. Deanna sensed her feelings as Will turned and looked at her questionally.
"Did they just have words?"
"No." Deanna said as she shook her head. "It was something else that upset her."
Geordi just stood there watching her go, but did not know what to say or do for her. He had heard the sound that the Muktuk made and realized that was what had upset Mriana.
Once Deanna and Will were within ear shot of Geordi, Deanna began to explain. "She had again realized one of the things she is missing since she lost her hearing. She has denied that she misses any sounds for so long, that when she came in contact with the muktuk it hit her again. Her denial of what she has been missing was a clue to me that she had not really accepted her loss. So, now the feelings she had buried so deeply have resurfaced and she is upset about her loss again."
"Maybe I should go after her and talk to her." Geordi replied.
"We'll all go." Will stated.
The three of them headed in the direction she had ran, but before they caught up to her, Mriana came face to face with two Ferengi. She had no idea what he was saying to her and could not sense anything from him due to the third lobe Ferengi have. She felt lost and very alone.
"Oh, what beautiful women they have here on Betazed." Stated one of them as he circled her like he were inspecting a horse he was about to buy.
"Yes, quite beautiful." Said the other.
The one admiring her suddenly grabbed her arm and said, "Such beauty to lay eyes on, don't you think?"
"Get your hands off of me, you little toad face troll!"
"Oh, but I'd love to have you. We could make such beautiful babies together and just think Tof, what she would look like dressed like women should be dressed."
"Yes, she would look even better." Tof stated as he droolled at the thought of Mriana with no clothes on her.
"Go away and leave me along!" She screamed as she tried to break free of the lustful Ferengi. She could see their lust in their eyes and it frightened her. "And keep your hands off of me! You dreadful creatures! All you do is hop around and snatch up women like property. Well, I'm not property!"
From the looks on their faces there was no denying what they were up to and she knew Ferengi well enough to know what their looks meant.
"Really. Insults aren't called for and they aren't very becoming of you."
Geordi, Will, and Deanna saw Mriana and the Ferengi and instantly knew she was in trouble. Geordi was the first to reach her.
"What's wrong?" He signed the one sign gesture as he spoke. It was another simple sign. Just the thumb and pinky were raised and the chin was resting between the two digits. "Are these guys bothering you?"
"For some reason." The other Ferengi leaned over to the one who grabbed Mriana. "She reminds me of Lwaxana Troi, Tog. I wonder if there's any relationship."
"This is Betazed, Brother. Who knows, everyone maybe related."
Deanna was nervous as she began to whisper to Will. "She can't read the Ferengi's minds."
Mriana picked up on Deanna's nervous thoughts. "Maybe not, but their actions speak louder than words." She sent to her cousin.
"Why do you make those gestures to her while you talk?" Tof asked Geordi.
"She's deaf."
Tof gasped. "I had no idea she could not hear! Brother, you really do not want her. She is damaged goods!"
"I really didn't mean her any harm. I was just admiring her beauty. I'm sure we can make some sort of deal and forget this incident ever happened." Tog stated nervously.
"I think you two should just go on about your business and stay away from her." Will said.
"You really should not let your women run around free, however, I can understand how you would be so careless with one who is not so perfect." Tog replied.
"Daimon Tog!" Will threatened.
"However, I really must have her, even with her imperfections."
"He say what?" Mriana signed to Geordi.
"You don't want to know." He signed back.
"She's so beautiful. How much for her? I'm sure a discount is in order with the lack of hearing." Tog continued.
"She's not for sale!" Geordi defended angrily.
"Daimon Tog, you know better than that." Will began. "And besides, she's not part of the Trade conference. So I suggest you be on your way and stop harassing her before harassment charges are filed on you."
"Brother, really you don't want her."
"Ah!" He exclaimed. "I guess you're right."
They turned and went back towards the main area of the city where the conference was being held. It was near the museum and all the other Betazoid attractions.
"Mriana, I'm sorry." Geordi signed and his face showed his regret. "I should have kept up with you. I shouldn't have left you alone for any length of time."
"I'm NOT an invalid!" Mriana screeched. "I can take care of myself!"
She started to turn away when Deanna sent to her, "He's just trying to help, Mriana. He cares so much about you, that he just wants to keep you safe. Don't turn your back on him."
Mriana faced Deanna long enough to send back to her. "Some help!" Then she angrily walked off towards the Troi mansion.
"What did I say?" Geordi asked with confusion.
"It's not you, Geordi." Deanna consoled. "She has a lot on her mind and the Ferengi and the gardens did not help. The two incidents just upset her even more and brought out what she had been surpressing for so long. Just as I said before."
"I just wish I could help."
"You can. By being patient with her and when she decides to talk, just listen. Sometimes listening is the best way to help."
Geordi stood quietly as he looked down at the ground. He had a sad look on his face. "I really thought she had come to accept it."
There was a brief pause in the conversation. Will finally cleared his throat and broke the silence. "Well, we'll be on our way, unless you want some company?"
"No. However, you could point me towards the museum. I forgot which building it is."
Deanna smiled. "It's the third building on the left. Just as you pass the conference building."
"Thanks." Geordi replied and began to walk in that direction.
"Don't you think he should go after her?" Will asked.
"No." Deanna replied. "She needs some time alone, so she can think about things."
Mriana rang the doorbell to her aunt's house. After a moment, Mr. Homs answered. He bowed and moved aside for her to enter.
She stepped into the house and Mr. Homs gestured for her to follow him to Lwaxana's sitting room. He did not say much more to her as they walked down the hall of the Troi mansion.
She found her mother visiting with her aunt once she entered the sitting room. As she walked in, she sent to them telepathically.
"I thought you two would be at the conference."
"Oh, my dear!" Breanna rose from her seat and went to hug her daughter. "Do tell me it wasn't true."
"What isn't true?" She asked in confusion.
"We heard the Ferengi were pawing you with those things they call hands!" Lwaxana exclaimed.
Mriana sighed. "You heard right, but Will, Deanna, and Geordi got rid of them for me."
"Are you alright, Darling?" Her mother asked.
"I'm fine. I assure you, Mother."
"Oh, to think those nasty frogs were manhandling my baby!"
"Mother, you are over exaggerating. They didn't harm me. I'm fine. Really."
"And to think your so called Imzadi left you alone instead of looking after you!"
"Mother!" Mriana sent excitedly. "I can handle myself! He did not leave me alone. I chose to walk off from where we were and it had nothing to do with him."
"Still, it shouldn't have happened! You need someone with you at all times when you are out. Especially with Ferengi hopping about."
"Oh, yes, Mriana. Your mother is right." Lwaxana supported her mother. "Even I have Mr. Homs to look out after me when I go out."
Mriana rolled her eyes.
"Don't you roll your eyes at us!" Her mother scolded. "We're serious dear! You don't know what dangers you can't hear and we all know that no Betazoid can sense what is on those frogs' minds. Those disgusting creatures!"
"Yes, your mother is right. We all know how difficult it is to know what is on their minds."
"Most Betazoids don't have the same problem you have. However, not only can you not sense them, you also can't." Breanna stopped. She could not bring herself to say the words.
"Mother, you can say it. I'm deaf. Not saying it is not going to change that fact."
"Mriana, darling."
"Mother! Please stop calling me darling! I'm not your little girl anymore! You and Aunt Lwaxana have the same problem. Neither one of you can face the fact Deanna and I are grown women."
"You and Deanna will always be our babies." Lwaxana interjected.
"Mriana." Breanna begun to change the subject. "When are you going to get an implant? I've read they have made great strides in it since you have lossed your hearing. Surely."
"Actually, Mother." Mriana interrupted. "Doctor Crusher was telling me all about the improvements and I'm still thinking about it. I'm up next, if I want it. It won't completely restore my hearing though."
"But it will be something, Dear. Won't it?" Breanna sent pleadingly. "You are going to get it this time aren't you?"
Mriana stared at her mother. There was no mistaking the two women before her were the matriarchs of their families. Breanna was six years younger than Lwaxana. Her father, Joshua Troi was with her mother for three years after she was born, then he left. He had decided he could not handle the Betazoid ways. He found it even harder to deal with than the telepathy Betazoids had. He was never seen again since. It was assumed that he went back to Earth or to his nomadic lifestyle. No one really knew.
Lwaxana and Mriana's grandmother warned Breanna not to get involved with a nomad from Earth. Lwaxana and Breanna even argued and almost lost each other's friendship over it all. Lwaxana insisted Joshua's nomadic blood was what made Mriana join Starfleet in the first place.
Breanna had come back with four words. "What's Deanna's excuse then?"
Lwaxana never gave a reply, but their fued soon ended after that.
Mriana finally responded to her mother's question. "It's hard to explain."
"I do wish you'd come back to Betazed, especially if you don't get the implant. It's just too dangerous out there for a girl who can't hear. You could continue your training you started before you left. You and Deanna both need to do that."
Lwaxana nodded at Breanna's last statement.
"Besides, if you were on Betazed fulfilling your duties as a daughter of the Sixth House, you would be so much safer. Especially without your hearing. Other Betazoids could warn you of impending dangers."
Mriana crossed her arms in anger. "Oh, just like they did today, Mother?"
"Today was a rare occurance. A strange quirk."
"Well, don't let Quack on DS9 hear you say that. He's a strange quirk himself and no one warns me of him."
Breanna looked confused. "Quack?"
"She means Quark, but she prefers to call him Quack. Especially, after that incident where someone let a duck loose in his bar. The Enterprise was visiting at the time when it happened. He chased that thing all over his bar. The place was a mess afterwards, but he finally caught it. It was some kind of joke on Quark. Ever since, she's called him Quack. By the way, did they ever find out who let the duck loose in his bar?"
Mriana just smiled as she laughed inwardly.
"You didn't!" Lwaxana exclaimed. "You did!"
"I'm not saying a word. There was just a quack at Quark's that day and it took more than one person to do it. None of them were caught, but Kira and I laughed our butts off!"
"Mriana!" Breanna scolded. "Watch your language! A daughter of the Sixth House does not talk like that, much less play cruel jokes. The poor duck must have been scared to death!"
"Oh, the duck was fine, Mother. It was Quack who was not. He exclaimed about how his bar got destroyed and he wanted retrobution from the parties who let the duck loose. He never got it, because the culprets were never caught." Mriana laughed evilly.
"Really, Mriana." Breanna continued. "That is so unbecoming of a daughter of any house on Betazed."
Breanna was just as arrogant as Lwaxana, if not more so. She often wondered were she went wrong in her training with her daughter. She just did not act like a daughter of any house of Betazed should.
Mriana decided to change the subject. "Deanna requested shoreleave also."
"Oh, how wonderful! Maybe she'll come by and see me too." Lwaxana said hopefully.
"I'm sure she will." Mriana sent back to her aunt.
Mriana spent another hour with her mother and aunt. She could not bear listening to them any longer, so she finally decided to depart.
"I really must be going." She announced. "It's getting late and I promised I would meet everyone at the museum."
"No you didn't." Lwaxana replied. "You're just getting tired of us old women and our conversation. If you're tired of us say so. You and Deanna really have hung around these humans too much. You can't even say what's on your minds, even when others know what's on your mind."
"I really need to go."
"Well, do think about staying here on Betazed, where you'll be safer, Darling."
Mriana was heading towards the door when her mother sent the last to her. Without turning around she rolled her eyes and continued towards the door. "I will, Mother."
Tog and Tof were at the museum. They had been there for a couple of hours now, looking at the various forms of art.
A friend of theirs had joined them. "You know, Zark." Tog began. "We could make a fortune off this art. How much do you think we could get for even one piece of art?"
"I wouldn't know, but I do know it would be a mint. However, the Betazoids won't part with their art. Not even for a grand in gold press latinum."
"We could steal some, then."
"Tog, the Federation is here!" Tof said. "We'd never get away with it."
"We'll see." Tog replied.
Mriana walked into the museum and sat down in front of a painting. She just sat quietly and studied it. As she studied it, she was trying to find her inner peace and answers to what she wanted.
Geordi saw her, walked up behind her and thought to himself, "She seemed to have accepted her loss, until she came back here. Maybe it was a bad idea for us to take shoreleave."
"You know, I can sense your presence as well as the fact you are thinking about me." She said without turning around. "So, please don't stand there and contemplate me."
He was shocked that she had caught what he was thinking. It had happened many times before, but it stilled shocked him. He finally sat down beside her.
"I sorry." He signed.
"It's OK." She replied.
"How long have you been here?"
"Not long and you?"
"A couple of hours, maybe." He signed. "Long enough to admire the art work and the beautiful music. It's so peaceful here."
He stopped signing suddenly when he noticed a single tear trickle down her face.
"Hey, it's alright." He signed and then pulled her close to him.
She appreciated his caring hug. "I remember it." She sobbed into his shoulder. "It was peaceful and enchanting. It helped give you that inner peace. I miss it so much."
"I know you do." He thought at her as he continued to hold her. "I know you do."
Will and Deanna walked up behind them. "You know." Will began. "If we keep meeting this way we'll start to think we're not on shoreleave, but on the ship still. This could be a holodeck program."
Geordi interpreted, but he and Mriana did not laugh.
"Tough room." Will said.
Deanna shrugged. "It could have lost something in the translation." Then sent to him, "In case you didn't notice, Mriana is still upset."
Mriana looked past Will. "Look." She said aloud and pointed as she wiped the tears off her face.
The other three turned and looked in the direction she was pointing.
"How much you wanna bet they are up to something?" Geordi asked, forgetting to sign.
"I don't have to bet. It's a sure thing." Will stated and then he walked over to the Ferengi. "Daimon Tog, we meet again."
"Commander Riker is it?"
"Yes, you keep good records, for I don't remember telling you my name the first time."
Tog grinned. "It's a Ferengi acquisition. Know who you are dealing with."
"I don't know all the acquisitions, but it seems like that would be a good idea for doing good business transactions."
"Yes. One can't make profit if he doesn't know his customer or who he is buying from."
"I suspect not." Riker said suspeciously. "Now, what are you up to?"
"Nothing." He smiled. "Just looking at fine art and wondering if any of these pieces of fine art would be up for trade at the conference."
"They're not for sale either, Tog." Will said firmly as he crossed his arms in front of himself.
"Not even for a large sum?"
"Tog, I don't think you know Betazoids very well. They value their art works so highly that there's no amount of money that can buy any of them."
"Oh, really?" Tog replied. "We shall see."
"Don't bet on it, Tog." Then Will walked back to his group of friends. "They're definitely up to something. They want the art work."
"You told them they can't buy them anymore than they can buy Betazoid women?" Mriana asked.
"Yes, but we may have a problem." Then he pulled Deanna aside and asked how Mriana was holding up to the Ferengi.
"She's not wanting to deal with them again, if that's what you mean."
"She may not have a choice. We may all have to deal with them again."
Then they walked back to Geordi and Mriana. Deanna knew Mriana knew they had been talking about her, but she seemed not to have let it upset her anymore than she was.
"Will." Mriana signed. "If you're worried about me, don't be. I'll be alright."
"I should have known better than to think I could get away with talking to Deanna away from her and Geordi." He thought.
"Yes, you should have." Mriana sent as she smiled at him playfully. Then she signed, "If I must deal with them, I will. I don't want to, but I am a Starfleet officer."
"I'm sorry, Mriana. You are right and you do your job well." Will apologized. "Let's head over to the Trade Center and give them warning of these three clowns."
The other three nodded and they all headed out of the museum.
"I still want her." Tog stated.
"Forget it." Zark replied.
"He hasn't told you, has he?" Tof asked.
"Tell me what?" Zark asked.
"He wants a beautiful deaf woman."
"She's deaf?" Zark asked in surprised. "Oh, Tog. You have to forget about her. She worthless property."
"I don't care if she is deaf. I want her."
Zark shook his head. "You're asking for more trouble than you had with Lwaxana Troi, here."
"Even so, this woman is the better prize."
"You have gone insane, Tog."
Tog looked around. The museum was empty where they were standing. "I will be if we don't get a move on and grab some of this artwork."