A/N See chapter 1

Charles and T'Pol are on a mission to contact T'Pol's mother in order to get Trip and Ko-Kai T'Pol (RU T'Pol) home.

Many thanks to Cap'n Frances and Dinah.

To my reviewers: thank you so much.

Music: Whispers in the dark by Skillet

T'Pol stared at the communication device. With a crack and surrounded by the sounds of static, her mother's voice returned.

"Kya kro'el," (This is the way) she said.

"Ras eshikh salan lau salur

(Heavy desert winds may blow)

salan t'pollu lamok

(In the middle, the desert rose stands)

eh svai-tu-ashya"

(and she blossoms)

The words took her away to her childhood, sitting next to her father on the veranda of their home, watching the stars above their heads. It was the poem of H'nas that her father used to sing to her.

"Do you understand?," her mother asked in Vulcan. "End of transmission."

Her mother seemed to have known why she had called. But what did her message mean? Later, when she had the time, she would analyze it.

She quickly erased any trace of the transmission. "Did you get what we wanted?" Charles asked.

"I received a message from my mother." She pointed at Talan, lying on the floor. "Arrest me."

Charles's tense shoulders relaxed visibly and he grinned. "With pleasure. Sit down on that chair." He searched the room and grabbed a piece of rope. "Arms behind your back," he commanded her and tied her hands together with the rope.

He pulled Talan off the floor and shoved him onto the chair behind the desk. He slapped Talan's face, then pointed his phaser at T'Pol.

"Wake up!" he shouted.

Talan's eyes flew open. "I put a phaser to the Vulcan's head," Charles said, "And tied her up. She can't do anything."

Talan touched his face and neck. "She hit me," he hissed.

"I will report her to the Terran authorities and have her arrested," Charles responded. "The deal is still on. We need that dilithium."

"First, we're going to find a nice place for the Vulcan," Talan said. He grabbed T'Pol by the arm and shoved her out the door into a nearby hall. They stopped in front of an iron-looking closed door. Talan opened it and pushed her in. "Nice and cozy in there, Vulcan." He closed and locked the door.

The room was small, with all four walls made of the same metal as the door. Material was stored at the sides, indicating it was a storage room. It was also freezing cold. Her hat was still in the presentation room, so she pulled her jacket up to cover her head. Her body became stiff and cold. She started to walk up and down the room to keep herself from freezing. She tried to do exercises, but despite her efforts, her body became colder and colder.

She thought about her mother's message. Did her mother's location have something to do with H'nas?

H'nas had lived and died ages ago on the Vulcan home planet before it was destroyed, and the Vulcan people were scattered around the galaxy. Even the desert storms and pollu bushes had ceased to exist.

She remembered Vallar, a friend of her father's, a professor of Vulcan literature, and a great admirer of H'nas, had tried to grow pollu bushes again, with no success.

The climate on his new planet, Ceturnia, was a harsh one, with volcanic eruptions, hurricanes, heavy storms, and a climate even hotter than Vulcans' home planet. Despite all that, Vallar had built a home there. No Terran liked to visit Ceturnia. The nearest Terran outpost was five light-years away. It was an excellent hiding place for Vulcans—a perfect place for her mother and Korek.

Breathing was difficult, and her legs and arms were getting more and more numb. The urge she felt to just close her eyes and fall asleep was almost overwhelming—she resisted with all her might.

She felt Charles' presence in the back of her mind – how she didn't understand – and suddenly she was so sure that he was nearby.

The door flew open. Charles entered, together with Talan. "Are you sure you want the Vulcan to return to your ship?'' Talan said. "She is a nice popsicle now."

"I want her to face Terran justice," Charles said. He brought some warmth to the room by his presence. "And remember our deal, two bars of gold-pressed latinum if you don't report this incident. For your sake and mine."

Charles pushed her out of the cooler and into the presentation room. He placed her cap on her head.

"For an extra fee, I can make sure to deliver the goods to your shuttle within two hours," Talan said.

Charles nodded and gave him three bars of latinum. "For all your trouble. Just keep the incident with the Vulcan between us."

"Nice doing business with you," Talan said with a smile.

Charles took her by the arm, and together they walked out the door. Outside, the cold wind had intensified, and heavy snowflakes were coming down. Once they were out of sight of the dilithium company, Charles stopped quickly to release the restraints on her hands and gave her a pair of gloves. Her hands were almost ice by now, and she had a hard time putting them on. He helped her with the gloves, and they continued walking.

Charles plunged through the snow, head slightly bowed to withstand the strong wind. He held her arm as she stumbled along. Snowflakes flew in her face, and the wind pierced through her clothes. Her arms were stiff, and her legs were numb. Keeping up with Charles was impossible. She fell down into the snow.

Charles stopped and offered his hand to get her up. He dusted the snow off her jacket and quickly rubbed his hands over her arms. "We keep moving—that will get you warm."

It would normally by a short walk back to the shuttle, but the weather had become worse. Without the protection of the buildings, the roaring, icy wind reigned free. More snow was falling out of the sky. The leafless trees on the side of the narrow road they trod moaned and bowed in the wind. The fierce wind slowed their pace dramatically, and Charles put his arm around her to support her as they walked against the stormy wind. They hardly made any progress.

Charles pointed to an abandoned shack at the brim of the road. It was made of wooden boards with a door and a small window. The wall near the door showed a lot of cracks, but the roof seemed solid. The shack would provide shelter to allow them to wait for the storm to die down.

As they entered, the small building cracked and shook under the force of the wind. It had only one room and some old, broken furniture. On a small table, she saw several candles and a lighter amidst the rubble. She lit the candles. Charles tinkered with an old and rusty heater in the corner of the room. After several minutes, the heater emitted a bit of warmth.

Charles walked to the window. He stood upright, his broad shoulders straight, deep in thought as he stared outside. The soft light of the candle and the faltering glow of the heater brought some light in the room, highlighting his blond hair. Suddenly a feeling welled up in her, a sense of tenderness seeing him like this. She felt the urge to run her fingers through his hair, to feel its softness again beneath her fingertips.

She rebuked herself for her sentimentality and pushed it into the deep corners of her mind.

Charles turned to her. He broke the silence. "If something happens to Trip and Ko-Kai T'Pol, because of you, I will find you, T'Pol." He spoke softly but with an unmistakable determination in his voice.

"Have you forgotten that I just risked my life to contact my mother to help Trip and Ko-Kai T'Pol?" she said, trying hard to suppress her annoyance. "I would not do anything to hurt them."

He shrugged, his face closed. "As long as you stick to the plan. Trip and Ko-Kai T'Pol are in danger. I am planning their escape for tomorrow. We can't wait another day."

"What kind of danger," she asked, as her mind ran through multiple scenarios.

"The Council wants to transfer Trip tomorrow to the Academy on Earth to mold him into a Terran soldier. His training at Enterprise is just a last test before the transfer."

"They want to separate Trip and Ko-Kai T'Pol. What will become of her?" It suddenly dawned on her. "They want to dispose of her."

"Exactly," Charles said, with the same grim look as this morning. "I am not going to let that happen. Trip and Ko-Kai T'Pol lost their daughter just before they were brought into this universe. Now they want to kill Ko-Kai T'Pol? It's not going to happen."

"I didn't know about their daughter." T'Pol marveled about the strength of Trip and Ko-Kai T'Pol going through such a difficult and painful time and still being so strong. "Grieving for a child is hard."

"I saw a picture of their daughter in the Defiant files," Charles said. "She was adorable." She never had heard such a soft tone in Charles his voice. She thought about her own disability to have children and felt a double pain— for Trip and Ko-Kai T'Pol and herself.

She looked up at him, but he avoided her eyes. "Tomorrow I am going to create a diversion," Charles continued in a neutral, controlled voice. "Meanwhile you, Trip and Ko-Kai T'Pol escape by shuttle. You can travel to that destination your mother told you about. If that doesn't work, I have thought of a plan B. You will have to travel back to the interphase and use the transporter to transfer Trip and Ko-Kai T'Pol back into their own world."

"I thought the inter-universe transporter was part of the Defiant?"

"You're taking the transporter with you," Charles said. "Sato ordered me to dismantle the transporter and bring it to Enterprise."

"The parts of the dismantled transporter are going to be placed into our escape shuttle."

"Yes, all the information about the transporter will be downloaded into the shuttle logs. Trip can rebuild the transporter, and you can help them during the transport. You may even want to go with them."

"This is my universe," she stated. "I am staying here."

Charles circled back to his earlier place near the window. The wind outside was howling, the shack was cracking and shaking under the mighty wind. But it was still standing.

Her mind was processing what she just had heard. She stepped towards him and placed her hand on his arm. A strange wave of sadness and determination washed over her. "You're not going with us," she said.

"We need someone to stay behind on the Defiant. For the diversion. Also, to protect my family."

"You mean your sister," she remarked, remembering the picture of a young, blond woman in his quarters.

He nodded. He had turned toward her, and his face was close to hers. She saw the lines around his eyes, signs of stress and lack of sleep, his mouth grim, even some gray hairs in the blond. And she picked up his smell, intoxicating as always.

She placed her rising fear under rigid control. "There is a 79 percent chance Sato will find out and kill you," she said, keeping her voice composed.

Charles snorted. "Guess I am going with the other 21 percent. Besides, I am only one person who is helping three."

The need of the many outweigh the need of the few, she thought. It was surprising to see that Charles lived by this Vulcan principle.

"You want to save the lives of others, but not your own," she said. "Like that time you risked your life to save the crew."

In her mind, she relived the scene, how Hess had managed to open the sealed-off part of engineering, as she, dressed in protective gear, had stepped in the pit of fire and smoke. She couldn't see him, but she heard his screams and the fear for his life had pushed her forward to him.

Charles pointed to his damaged eye. "The accident. You pulled me out of the flames." His face darkened. "Must have been a terrible sight, judging from the glimpse of horror on your face. You saved a monster."

"Your scars never mattered to me. They stand for you saving every one of the crew, including my friends. However, I do find the memory of that event disturbing." His screams had haunted her for days.

If her analysis of their situation was correct, after tomorrow, she would never see Charles again. She wanted to tell him the truth.

"You're nothing like a monster, Charles. I've met monsters in my life. I fear them. A monster with a handsome face once preyed upon me. He forced himself into my mind, tearing me from the inside, destroying my katra. I will never be that helpless again."

"Tolaris," he said, with hardly contained anger and disgust.

She tightened her grip on his arm. "I know you don't trust me, Charles, and you have every reason not to."

"You used me, violated my brain, when I was in your arms."

She thought of her nightmare, seeing Charles laying in her arms, turning away from her in anger and disgust. She let go of his arm. "I can only conclude I am also a monster with a pretty face."

In the silence that fell, she noticed that stormy wind had started to die down. She looked through the window. The wind was still blowing, but not as strong as before. It was quiet now - only a few snowflakes whirled down.

"We should go," Charles remarked. "The weather has cleared up." He turned the heater off and blew the candles out. It was dark.

He took her hand. "You're no monster, T'Pol," he whispered in the dark.

"Don't die," she thought.

Together they walked back to the shuttle. Ensign Gustav Hess opened the door, chatting about the heavy snowstorm and the better weather now.

She took her seat in the shuttle. Charles gave her a thermal blanket to warm herself. He used the small replicator in the shuttle. He poured himself coffee, his favorite drink, she had noticed, and also gave young Hess a cup, which he gladly accepted. He then made her tea.

She placed her hands around the mug, breathing in the warm air coming out of the cup. The last bit of numbness in her body dissipated. Ensign Hess walked toward her. "Still wearing your cap?" he said.

In the corner of her eye, she saw Charles walking toward the console in front of the shuttle. It looked like he was installing something. She started a conversation with Ensign Hess about his piloting skills, and the young man was more than happy to talk to her. Charles was able to finish his work without Hess noticing what he was doing.

The workers from the dilithium company came, bringing the goods. She moved to the back of the shuttle, not wanting to be seen by them. The workers rolled in the containers filled with a large quantity of dilithium. Charles checked them and divided them into two groups, one large and one small. She was sure he would store part of the dilithium in the shuttle they were going to use tomorrow.

It was a dangerous plan, full of uncertainties. But she trusted Charles to make it work. The only thing that nagged at her, was the fact that Charles intended to put himself at great risk. He was sacrificing his own life; one life for the good of three.

There was a deep urge in her to keep Charles safe. His life meant more than hers.

S'Vai would have disagreed with that last part. "How does someone measure his self-worth?" she had asked T'Pol in one of their philosophical discussion. "Surak says all lives are sacred. We all have worth."

She glanced at Charles. He wore that frown again, that expression of his whenever he had to figure out an important engineering problem. He was probably thinking about tomorrow.

She had to develop a plan to save Charles and also save Trip and Ko-Kai T'Pol.

It was only logical.