That night, T'Pol awoke and her skin singed in ways that reminded her of Pon Farr. She considered alerting Dr. Harev, the physician they saw just yesterday, but the chronometer indicated it was late. Soon, she found that she was walking down the hall, donning a robe, to let herself into Jonathan's room. It didn't surprise her that he was already awake. Nor did it shock her that he knew what she needed.

Letting her slip under the covers with him, they kissed and touched. His eyes were open as he kissed her; her eyes were open, too. T'Pol knew exactly what he liked, so she took control. Their liaison was passionate, their hands meeting as they reached satisfaction. Afterward, she was assuredly satisfied.

The need extinguished, they held hands and talked as they had almost every other time. During the times they spent in bed together, he'd told her about several things. What T'Pol learned about the man she considered a friend surprised her. Although he'd previously divulged information about him, what he'd shared recently seemed much more personal.

Jonathan had told her about Margaret Mullins and how he'd proposed to her, but she declined. He'd talked about his mother, Sally Archer, an English professor. She'd perished from a heart attack in her garden two years before his promotion to captain. It had been a painful memory, as he'd told her that made him an orphan - a feeling she understood.

He'd discussed summers in upstate New York when he visited his grandparents. During those vacations, he was especially fond of outdoor theater and watching fireflies dance from dusk into darkness. And he had visited various beaches along the coast with his family, even in lower New York. One of his favorites had been Jones Beach out along Long Island. She'd learned a small scar along his shoulder was from falling off a horse at his grandparents' farm; he'd hit a barbed wire fence and needed to be rushed to the hospital to get stitches.

Over the past week, he'd told her about remembering his first swimming lesson and how he'd nearly drowned. He'd mentioned an old water polo injury that almost kept him out of the state finals. He'd even described his first kiss - a girl in middle school who wore braids. Jonathan had remembered liking her because she wore strawberry lip gloss.

In return, she had described how her father died when she was younger. Like his summers in New York, she had recounted hikes to Mt. Selaya with her mother, preparing her for the Vulcan rite of passage. She had also given more information about her sehlat - it was an older animal without fangs. Her mother had asked her not to bring it into the house, but she did sneak him in occasionally. She'd also given scraps from the table, which she wasn't supposed to do either.

Unlike Jonathan, her fore-parents on her mother's side lived near the city. They'd taken her to various museums for educational experiences. She'd recalled her first trip to a science museum had captivated her. She'd been allowed to talk with an astronomist, a famous Vulcan one, that intrigued her. He had been among the first to visit Earth. It was then, she'd decided, she'd wanted to travel the stars, visiting Earth herself. She'd talked about it so much, even at school, that a teacher had complained to her mother.

Jonathan had teased about imagining a young T'Pol bugging her mother about space; his laugh purred in the base of his throat. So, she chided "Admiral Jonny Archer" shouldn't cast aspersions, recalling the science book with his name scrawled in it.

Occasionally, they'd discussed Enterprise, the crew, a mission, or an incident that had happened. But T'Pol had noticed those discussions were fleeting.

When T'Pol awoke in his room, she realized sharing information was much more intimate than the coupling they'd been doing for more than a week.

She watched as he slept and traced his face with her eyes. As she thought about stroking his hair, noticing gray just beginning to form at his temples, his eyes flashed open, and a smile spread across his lips. His eyes were green - warm, like Earth's forest - with glints of amber specks. T'Pol had never seen a being with such green eyes.

"Hey," he told her. "I wasn't snoring, was I?"

He had been, but that didn't wake her, she told him. Rolling onto his side, he cupped her cheek.

"We should get ready," he told her.

Morning sunlight was just beginning to shine in the room, and T'Pol knew soon Telana would be awake herself soon. Before she left his bed, they discussed that T'Pol would need to review the scans made by Dr. Harev and Dr. Phlox, comparing them. Jonathan would talk with Telana and determine if there was any way to salvage the mission. They also discussed scanning more of the area - the gardens, the food, the house, the air, etc. He kissed her once more, this time on the tip of her nose, before T'Pol headed back to her room.

After preparing for the day, T'Pol reviewed her and Jonathan's bio-scans both doctors provided. Viewing the images, she saw that neither she nor her captain showed any abnormalities back on Enterprise. However, here on the planet, T'Pol noticed active areas of the brain especially in the parahippocampal gyrus, even in the captain.

Vulcans knew that part of the brain well - it was where telepathic ability originated.

She also noted the scans from Dr. Harev had elevated heart rate, blood pressure, and hormone levels for both she and the captain.

Definitely a response to something, T'Pol reasoned.

T'Pol set out to take scans of the air, food, and water from the planet. Her evaluations revealed none of those elements had caused the strange readings. Considering that perhaps it was the flora or fauna, she began to scan the garden outside. Nothing came of that either.

Why was a mystery.

She was rerunning scans over the garden when Jonathan came to join her. As he approached, she decided to run scans of him - his body temperature and even the part of his brain where latent telepathic ability originated. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary at the moment. Jonathan confirmed his scans didn't indicate anything out of the ordinary either.

T'Pol mentioned that what was interesting activity in a region of the brain - for her and him - related to telepathy.

"Telepathy?" Jonathan asked. "Humans aren't telepathic."

"You often say you have intuition. Perhaps it's related," T'Pol said.

"Maybe," he said. But T'Pol could tell by the furrow of his brow he didn't believe so.

For the past day, they'd brainstormed, to use Jonathan's words, about what the issue could be trying to eliminate the cause. Among their theories included even items that they considered crazy, including leftover memories from Surak - which T'Pol questioned. They also had to come to terms with perhaps, though neither believed it, their mating frenzy was due to their mutual attraction for each other.

As they walked up to the house together, he leaned over to her quietly.

"You're still feeling okay now, aren't you?" he asked.

"So far."

In the distance, they saw the pudgy diplomat from the previous day - Oron. He was looking around almost suspiciously with Telana nowhere in sight. When Oron spied them, he waved and joined them in the garden.

Jonathan's face reddened as he approached. "Oron, I'm sorry about what happened yesterday. We-"

"Keep walking," he instructed them, leading her and Jonathan further away from the house. Finally, when they reached the bench, Oron turned to them. "I came at great risk."

Jonathan said, "My first officer and I-"

"Why are you staying here?" Oron asked, interrupting.

Archer said, "It's my understanding Telana's been an ambassador assigned to Earth - the people I represent."

Oron told him, "You shouldn't be staying with her. Not now. Not at her house."

Alarmed, T'Pol asked, "Why?"

"We understood Earthers weren't telepathic," Oron said. "And we had no idea a Vulcan would come."

"Humans aren't telepathic," Jonathan answered. "And as for Vulcans, it seems they have a good relationship with the Betazoids. We didn't see that as a problem. T'Pol is my science officer."

"And then you brought her with you!" Oron said.

The captain bristled at that comment, his tone less apologetic. "She's my first officer. Why wouldn't I?"

Oron shook his head and mumbled that this was a terrible set of circumstances. T'Pol seemed to understand - yesterday, Oron wasn't angry with her or the captain. He was upset with Telana.

T'Pol said, "You didn't want to see Telana yesterday."

"I had no idea of her condition," Oron said.

"What condition?" Jonathan asked, confused.

Oron seemed equally perplexed, looking between her and her captain. As he gauged their reaction, awareness settled over the Betazoid diplomat.

"You don't know?" Oron asked. When Jonathan shook his head, Oron let out a heavy sigh. "The timing of everything is unfortunate."

"Why shouldn't the humans stay with Telana? Why is it an issue for me to stay with her?" T'Pol asked.

Oron said, "You're a Vulcan. I thought you would know."

"Know what?" Jonathan asked.

Oron said, "About us. The Vulcans and Betazoid have been friends for many years. Your issues resemble our own."

Jonathan asked, "What issues?"

"Issues," Oron said as if trying to be delicate. "Vulcan's mating cycle."

T'Pol took a step back, embarrassed by the revelation, but unwilling to admit it was true.

Jonathan asked Oron, "You have a mating cycle?"

Oron answered, "Not quite. But Telana is middle-aged." When recognition didn't light on T'Pol's face, he told her. "The Phase."

"The Phase?" T'Pol asked.

"What's that?" Jonathan answered.

T'Pol explained, as best she could, that Betazoid women of a certain age went through what humans might call menopause. For Betazoid women, though, their libido increased. The process took months to abate, which meant she'd need help for a considerable amount of time. Oron agreed, saying women in the Phase were sequestered. He then provided a few examples of when they weren't - one had caused a global war that lasted several years.

"Wait. So … we're feeling Telana's emotions?" Jonathan asked, his face flushing.

"It would appear so," T'Pol said. "But Betazoid do not project through their telepathy."

"It's true. I believe she's having problems with telepathic control," Oron said.

T'Pol provided some ideas about the loss of telepathic control - perhaps a virus or a genetic issue. Oron couldn't provide more information. Still, both hypothesized that that loss of telepathic control had nearly been the undoing at everyone in the capitol building yesterday … not just her and the captain. Apparently, everyone needed to be sent home as the acts she and Jonathan performed were happening all over the building. Without going into detail, T'Pol gathered several people in the building were in more compromising positions.

"It's why I ended negotiations early." Oron swallowed deeply, adding, "Telana is a powerful telepath."

Her captain mused aloud, "This Phase … it's why Telana retired?"

Oron agreed. He explained that Betazoid women at this age retired for precisely that reason, joining service again after the Phase ended. The problem, Oron explained, was worse because Telana had lost her imzadi. Typically, the man indicated, an imzadi would be able to assist during this time.

Jonathan asked, delicately, "Can't a friend help her?"

"If she asks," Oron said. "She's a stubborn woman. Undoubtedly, she's afraid she'll hurt someone. Physically and emotionally. Women are quite voracious at this time, Captain. Men have perished helping women at this time."

T'Pol noted Jonathan blushed more, but asked, "What happens if she never asks for help?"

Oron frowned, saying, "She may die."

The irony wasn't lost on T'Pol. Just days ago, she faced her mating cycle, attempting to meditate it away. She was determined not to go to Trip, afraid to hurt him. Nor was she willing to endanger her closest friends - her captain or doctor. When Jonathan appeared, offering himself to her, she found she couldn't refuse.

She and the captain watched each other for a moment. Jonathan wiped a hand over his face as if he too understood the irony.

Though T'Pol didn't want to discuss her mating cycle with off-worlders, she felt perhaps there was information that could help. It was important to reveal as Oron already knew she and her captain were intimate.

She said, "The captain and I aren't bonded. We're friends. I was determined to die, but he was insistent on helping me. He saved my life."

Oron replied, "If Telana ever comes back to diplomatic service, I'll report to her. I doubt she would want my help for fear of impropriety."

The captain cleared his throat and responded. "T'Pol reports to me. I … considered that issue but felt saving her life was more important than whatever awkwardness there'd be afterward."

Oron seemed to consider the information. He then noted an additional problem, one that made even him blush. "Captain, this issue is more difficult - I'm attracted to Telana. If I do this, we may not be able to work together successfully. At least we may not be able to work together successfully after."

"I understand. Believe me," Jonathan said. "But maybe it's worth attempting to help her. You can decide how you want to proceed later."

It made sense, especially since T'Pol believed Telana was attracted to the stocky man. He seemed to weigh the issues as well as their discussion. Swayed by their influence, he thanked them and then stalked off to talk with Telana. Soon, the two were on the porch as T'Pol and Jonathan watched on. Even from where T'Pol was, she could feel the confusion and desire; it made even the Vulcan huff. The Betazoids spoke for a few moments and then immediately began to kiss. This time, she heard her captain groan a little.

"We shouldn't stand here and gawk," Jonathan said. As they walked away, back up the path toward the garden, she heard him muse aloud. "I never thought as a starship captain, I'd need to play matchmaker or have conversations about sex."

T'Pol agreed and wondered what safe distance they could be without sensing Telana's emotions. Even from this distance, she felt desire and walked further away with Jonathan. Eventually, he spoke.

"The similarities in our situations are uncanny," he said sheepishly.

"Indeed," she agreed. "What do you think they'll decide about their working relationship after she's completed the Phase?"

"Don't know. I'm sure it will be difficult to work together." He looked at her. "I think they'll be able to manage it, though."

"I agree," T'Pol said. "Perhaps it may even lead to a more permanent relationship."

They gazed at each other for nearly a minute without comment. Finally, she said, "We're still speaking of Telana and Oron?"

She heard the familiar purring laugh as he raised his eyebrows at her. "Are we?"

Licking her lips, she wondered exactly how far away they'd need to be to prevent from feeling Telana's desire. He turned to her, and she pondered the idea he burned as well. She took his hand, forming two fingers there and met them with her own. It didn't surprise her that he held them there. They stayed that way for what felt like a minute.

"Surak's memories …." He produced a small smile. "This is a Vulcan embrace."

"It is."

"Maybe we should take the shuttle and contact them later to determine when we finish negotiations," he told her.

"That may be wise. Although our clothing is still in the house," she told him.

"We can get that later," he told her. "I'm not sure I'd want to be in there now."

He blushed again, and she touched his cheek. Taking her palm, he kissed it and gave her a wink. Then, he opened his communicator to tell Enterprise they were on their way. He indicated negotiations were back on, but they'd need to take a short hiatus. Captain Archer then gave Trip the request to start shore leave, but suggested they give Telana's abode a wide berth. When Trip asked why, the captain paused.

"Quarantine," he said.

"Phlox said you've been having one hell of a time there, but didn't say what the issue was," Trip responded.

"It's been a hell of a time, that's for sure," Jonathan said. "See you soon, Commander."

He closed the communicator, and the two headed for the shuttle with T'Pol following along. Jonathan climbed into the pilot's seat. The rest of the trip was relatively quiet. Neither mentioned their last foray or their Vulcan embrace. But it was definitely on T'Pol's mind.