Disclaimer: Some characters belong to Annie Proulx, some to Gene Roddenberry. I make no profit off of this. This is a fun crossover, keep that in mind!

Chapter 1: Ten Forward

Jack took another sip of the synthehol. It tasted good, right, but it didn't burn his stomach, it lacked. Wasn't quite real enough. Like another drug he wished he had possession of.

Ennis del Mar was sitting on the other side of Ten Forward, the way he always did. This was some bullshit ritual. It'd started as weekly thing, but it had quickly grown to daily. Jack went to Ten Forward after his shift in the Astrophysics Lab. Ennis, whenever Security let him out (they kept less regular schedules than the Astrophysics Lab staff-- alright, that wasn't true-- Astrophysics kept plenty irregular schedules, but always in favor of fewer hours, not more, like damned Security), would saunter into Ten Forward as well, sit on the other side of the room drinking his own synthehol, and saunter back out again. Jack always followed a couple minutes later like a little puppy, followed Ennis straight to his small quarters, and usually spent the night there. Not just fucking, either. They ate dinner, played games, talked. What was ridiculous was how long they'd kept that up. That'd been the regular routine for the nearly three years Ennis had served on the Enterprise. Jack took another sip, faster, harder.

"You look like you could use this." A tender voice at his elbow awoke Jack from his anger-stare across Ten Forward.

He smiled up at Guinan. She was holding a bottle of genuine alcohol. Whiskey. From Earth. "Yes, ma'am, do believe I could."

"Well that's too bad, because this one was heading for Ennis del Mar's table." Belaying her words, she sat down across from Jack, still with the bottle-- and two tumblers-- on her tray. "Did you know I heard a rumor that he's gay?"

"That so?" He narrowed his eyes at her, wondering where Guinan was heading.

"Yup. But I have bigger news."

"What's that?" Jack stared lazily out of the large picture-windows opening onto the stars.

"He and his boyfriend are getting married."

Jack's eyes flew back to hers, wide.

"Oh, not yet. But they will. You watch and see." She was using that smile that made you feel like you were being looked right through. "Anyway," she added, "this whiskey was supposed to be for the two of them, but I see he's always sitting alone. If you want some you better speak up."

Jack held her eyes for a moment, knowing he wore his heart in those blue eyes and wondering what Guinan saw there. He stood, reached towards her tray to snatch the whiskey by the neck, holding the tumblers between his fingers of his other hand, and walked across Ten Forward. He could feel Guinan's smile even on his back. He plunked the glass and tumblers in front of his man, saying only, "Guinan won't let us have it 'less we drink it together."

Ennis seemed flustered, annoyed, confused, and most of all thirsty for some real whiskey. "'Right then." He set about pouring.

Yoshimoto Ayame was the first to pounce. The young Japanese astrophysicist worked with Jack, almost his direct supervisor, though she tended to need more supervision than she gave. She and Jack had grown close. He'd always been drawn to her bubbly enthusiasm, and she'd drawn him out as well.

Before they'd even finished their first tumblers full of whiskey, Guinan'd gone to where Ayame and her husband Heriberto Hernandez were sharing drinks. Whatever Guinan'd said to Ayame had its effect, because in a second she was dragging her dark-skinned soft-spoken Guatemalan husband (whose dark eyes and bulky shoulders Jack had long admired) across Ten Forward towards Jack and Ennis.

Without hesitation she pulled up a chair, Eddie following suit after a hesitant pause. Ayame was already off. "Jack! Oh my God! Married? Why didn't you tell me! You should have told me! Ennis! I am sooo glad to meet you! I've heard sooo much about you! Oh my God! This is sooo exciting. Sooo exciting. We need champagne!" And she was up again and moving towards the bar. She'd spoken loud enough for half of Ten Forward to hear her.

Jack peered across the table at Ennis. He seemed frozen in some sort of horror and pain, like he was thinking that maybe if he sat still long enough no one would know he was there.

"Jack," Eddie offered his hand. "Congratulations. Ennis, it's nice to meet you." Ennis didn't so much as lift his eyes from his whiskey glass towards the man.

"Thanks," Jack said, "but I think ya'll been misinform—"

"Jack! Here, some champagne." Ayame was back. "So when is the date? Oh, you probably haven't set it yet. Are you thinking of a more traditional Earth wedding, or…? I hear on Risa when members of the same sex get married they—"

"Hello, I hear congratulations are in order." The sweet voice of Counselor Troi joined the cacophony, Jack all smiles but trying to hide it in the flurry of misinformed excitement. Goddamn he had to admit he liked him and Ennis being fawned over like this, almost as much as he liked fawning over Ennis himself. Ennis was still frozen in stone staring into the whiskey glass. Ayame, unphased, was whispering about Risan wedding ceremonies to the sternly quiet Ennis. Eddie, bored and finding his champagne interesting, turned towards Troi, his superior officer.

"Thank you, counselor, but I think that might be a bit premature." Jack had been seeing Counselor Troi for two years now, to bitch about Ennis, mostly. She wanted them to come for couples counseling, but the odds of getting Ennis near a counselor at all was a million to one. Make her empathic, and Ennis would rather kill himself, Jack laughed to himself.

Troi's face was smiling, but her eyes were serious. "Well, I'm sure whatever you two work out, you'll be happy together. Ennis?" She stared at him until he looked up at her. Even he was conscious of the pips on her collar, Jack knew. "I'm glad you've finally found this courage. Ensign Yoshimoto. Lieutenant Hernandez. What do you say we leave these two lovebirds alone for a little bit?"

Even Ayame nodded silently at that one. Before she walked away, though, she threw her toothpick arms around Jack for her signature squeeze-and-squeal. She stomped her foot with excitement and said, "This is so awesome. Oh my God! See you tomorrow!"

Alone again in utter silence, Jack stared across the table at Ennis. Ennis didn't sit there long, though. He downed the rest of his whiskey in one gulp, and stormed out of Ten Forward. Jack got the feeling he'd be sleeping in his own quarters tonight.

Jack stayed put, drank his whiskey, no sign of Guinan. Seemed even Ayame and Eddie had left Ten Forward. Worry filled every one of Jack's pores for that secretive man. It was the twenty fourth century, and there was no need to be secretive. Jack was already openly gay on board the ship, and had been a participant in the Alliance Club's weekly activities for four years. But Ennis was different. His father hated gays. Jack knew what that was like, his own father being not much better. Things in rural Wyoming hadn't changed much, even in hundreds of years. They'd changed some, sure. No one was killed over being gay, and many folks were openly homosexual, but that didn't mean a daddy was any too happy to find out his son was one of the crowd. Jack's daddy'd spit on him the day he came out, and they'd begun years of a silent war, the dining room table a replication of the Romulan Neutral Zone.

Ennis's father'd been worse, though. Ennis had told Jack about a time at a bar when his father'd beat the crap out of a gay man. The fact that his father had no problems laying hands on his own son had convinced Ennis early that being gay to his father would have resulted in death. Ennis never did shake the feeling that his father was following him around everywhere, even though the man'd died nearly five years ago. Ennis couldn't seem to accept that life in Starfleet was hundred percent different than in rural Wyoming. Basic hadn't helped none either. That was where he and Ennis met—they did Basic and survival training together for Starfleet enlisted, found they hailed from the same state, found they had halves of the same soul. Still, Jack was picked on plenty in Basic for being gay. Ennis escaped the ridicule, unsuspected. Lots of people knew one way or another at Basic that Jack had a secret lover somewhere on base. When Jack snuck out at night, it was what they assumed. When Ennis snuck out at night, they assumed he had to call a girlfriend back home. That was just the persona his Ennis exuded.

But they weren't in Basic. Life on a Starship was different, surrounded by highly educated officers, all of whom had spent their share of years in San Francisco. And the Enterprise was different a step beyond that. The best and the brightest. Jack had pulled every string he'd known to get Ennis reassigned here, and it'd worked, thanks to Ennis's tireless work ethic and strong back. Both their evals kept coming out shining, and as long as they could keep that up, they'd both be stationed here, on this flagship of the fleet. If Ennis couldn't come out of the closet here, he didn't stand a chance anywhere.

Jack kept knocking back the whiskey, trying to understand Ennis for the millionth time in the six years they'd known each other, trying to understand Guinan with the foreknowledge that even Ennis was simpler than that woman.

They'd keep serving here as long as their evals were good. They were practically living together, but all it would take was one up-and-coming enlisted star to send one of them spiraling to some other starship… alone.

But not if they were married. Then they'd always have to go together. Jack had never thought he'd be aiming for a real-life, official marriage with Ennis, but now that the topic had been brought up, he couldn't see himself wanting anything else. Swallowing the rest of his whiskey, he headed back to his quarters for the night. On the way out he noticed that Guinan was still smiling.

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"Johnson, del Mar, Perez. When the Orion ambassador comes on board, you three will be his security detail. Meet him in Transporter Room Three and take him to his quarters before bringing him to see the Captain."

"Yes, sir" "Yessir," "Sir," the men responded.

The men turned to leave the bridge, where they'd been summoned by Worf, the Chief of Security. Just as they were reaching the turbolift, Worf spoke again, his jaw working with discomfort, as it always did when he stepped outside of his personal box.

"Mr. del Mar. Congratulations on your… upcoming engagement."

With no idea what to say to that and no desire to contradict a superior office, Ennis nodded before burying him behind the guys in the turbolift. The doors closed none too soon for him.

"Ennis?" Hugo Johnson spun around to face Ennis. "You're getting married? When did this happen?" Hugo was a social fellow. Not like Jack, but talkative enough.

Joe Perez was looking at Ennis funny, too.

Hugo continued, "Who's the lucky girl?"

Joe chuckled a little at the question.

"What?" Hugo asked.

"Silly," Joe shook his head, "Ennis is gay. He's been seeing Jack Twist for years."

"What?" Hugo's eyes flew open. "Jack Twist… sounds familiar, but I don't know him."

Ennis was doing his don't-move-and-no-one-will-notice-you signature move.

"But Ennis dated Carol Simons a couple years back." Hugo's eyebrows were furrowed.

"Yup," Joe nodded, "right before he broke up with her to take up with Jack."

"Oh. Wow. You guys have been together a long time. About time, then. Congrats, Ennis."

Joe and Hugo were still smiling a little as the turbolift doors opened and they went toward the transporter room. Ennis felt like he had everyone's eyes on him. Whatever crap had gone down in Ten Forward last night, seems like it hadn't stayed there, and it made him madder than hell to think on. He wanted to punch Joe and Hugo just for knowing what they knew, just for knowing the truth. He wanted to punch Guinan for the whiskey, and punch that silly friend of Jack's for being all loud, and punch Troi for hearing (and just for being an empath 'cause it wasn't right for someone to know another person's feelings, wasn't right at all… unless it was right, like with him n' Jack), and punch Troi too for the fact that she must have told Worf, and that brought it around to Joe and Hugo.

But Joe had known before—might have always known. And Hugo didn't seem to care, except that he was still smiling at Ennis's fortune—which wasn't really Ennis's fortune because he had no intentions of marrying Jack Twist in any ceremony, public or private. Even Worf had seemed a little less stern for a moment there, and Ennis respected Worf. He didn't go sharing his business, just like a man shouldn't.

But maybe no one cared if a man did. Hugo and Joe weren't looking at him; they were looking at Chief O'Brien, and then the Orion ambassador, and then the halls around them. And they knew about him, and about Jack. Joe had known for a while. Who else knew? Ennis felt his cheeks grow warm.

The ambassador asked for a moment alone in his room to change before seeing the captain and the three of them were standing in the hallway outside the lavish quarters when Hugo turned back towards Ennis, still smiling. "So, Ennis, when do we get to meet this guy? Come on, tell us about him."

Ennis kept his head down to the floor, trying to imagine Hugo wasn't here, wasn't asking him.

"Come on." Hugo gave him a playful punch on his shoulder. "What's he do?"

Ennis suppressed the urge to give the man a real punch back. One thing he'd learned in Starfleet was to control his violent urges, channel them until the appropriate time. He'd learned that the hard way, beating the crap out of a man in Basic. He'd been threatened with a discharge for that, but the last thing Ennis had wanted was to be sent back to his father—and away from Jack. It was in his record, though, and a second strike was all it would take to get him transferred to another ship. He knew that all too well.

"He's in astrometrics, I think," Joe answered in the space made by Ennis's silence.

Ennis found himself mumbling under his own breath, surprising even himself to hear the words leave his mouth.

"What was that? Did you say something, Ennis?"

Ennis looked up sidelong to meet Hugo's eyes, and then looked back down to his boots, shuffling his feet nervously. "Uh, said," Ennis cleared his throat, "uh, astrophysics, not astrometrics? He's an astrophysics assistant."

"Oh, a smarty then?" Hugo beamed. "I know something about that. T'Pari and I will have to have the two of you over for dinner. My wife? She's an astrochemist. They can probably talk shop. We can be the scientific widowers."

Ennis shook his head. "Nope, Jack hates ta talk shop." His voice was quiet and aimed towards his boots still.

Hugo didn't get a chance to respond as the Orion ambassador opened the door and requested to be taken to the captain. Ennis was supposed to stay behind and sweep the suite for bugs.

Alone in the quarters, Ennis pulled out his tricorder and began his sweep. He felt good to be alone and breathing easy again. But part of him was disappointed to, the part of him that had felt a soaring high to be talking about Jack aloud in the hallway like they were a real, honest-to-God couple.