Jon and Trip took a side trip to a planet called Keto Enol on one of the shuttles. Both Malcolm and Buffy had tried to get them to take a security person but Jon said it was 'just a trading planet' and Trip said he could handle anything that came up.
After a few days the Enterprise moved toward the rendezvous point but found the shuttle unresponsive, flipping end over end in space. Hoshi tried over and over to raise the Captain and Trip, but nothing was heard. T'pol turned to Malcolm who looked grave, "No life signs." T'pol nodded and turned to Travis, "Get the grappler and take it into launch bay 2."
"Buffy." Came Hoshi's voice of the com system as she was dressing. Buffy looked at Porthos and sighed, "I have a bad feeling about this." She went over to the com and pressed, "Go ahead."
"We're grappling the shuttle but there's no answers to our hails. Buffy, there's no life signs." Hoshi's voice was sad.
Buffy shook her head, "They're not there Hoshi. I'll meet Malcolm in the launch bay."
Buffy met Malcolm, Dr. Phlox and T'pol at the door of launch bay 2. Buffy smiled wryly at Malcolm, "Did I not tell them?"
He looked back at her, "Buffy, there are no life signs." His blue eyes held sorrow.
She shook her head, "They're not in there Mal. Trust me, I'd know if Jon were dead." This was stated so matter of factly that Malcolm's face cleared, 'If she believed then so did he.' They opened the shuttle to see a mess and blood spray in various places. No bodies. Buffy shot Malcolm a 'told you so' look and went to download the logs for Hoshi.
They listened carefully to the logs but there was nothing to indicate what happened to the two men after Keto Enol. After the log entry regarding the water polo like sport he wanted to see, Buffy snorted, "I can't wait to say 'I told you so'."
T'pol sent her a reproving look, "Ensign Mayweather, we are going to Keto Enol."
Jon and Trip were both a little battered and bruised from their arrest. Their protestations of innocence fell on deaf ears and now both were locked up on a prison transport ship headed to the penal colony on Canamar.
Their shock restraints were extremely painful, as Jon found out when he attempted to talk to one of the Enolian guards. Trip was beside himself with worry, and hoping that they could get home after this. The little talkative alien beside him didn't inspire hope, that's for darn sure. No one believed that they were innocent of the smuggling charges.
Trip and Jon were about to be released when an Enolian and a Nausican prisoner broke out and took over the prison ship. With Enterprise and two Enolian ships in hot pursuit Jon decided to assume the persona of a smuggler and volunteer his piloting services and Trip's engineering skills. This proved to be a good thing for Jon to get closer with the fugitive Enolian. Unfortunately the fugitive had his own plans for the ship full of prisoners.
The next few hours were tense. The pictures of Trip and Jon with bloody bruises on their faces made Buffy want to twist the Enolian official into knots. T'pol kept throwing her glances, but Buffy kept her face calm and her eyes flat.
Jon managed to get a signal through to the Enterprise, and tried to find out the fugitive's plans. He was finally told that they would rendezvous with another smuggler at a small planet, but that they would leave the prisoners to die in the atmosphere of that planet. He tried frantically to convince the man otherwise, but in the end had to rely on the Enterprise to rescue them.
The Enterprise commandeered the smuggler's ship that was to rendezvous with the stolen Enolian ship in order to disguise themselves. Buffy, Malcolm, T'pol and Travis stormed the Enolian ship to rescue their crewmembers, fighting hot and heavy with the fugitive and his Nausican pal. It was dicey as the ships descended into the atmosphere but they managed to save almost everyone. Travis, using his superior piloting skills, pulled them out in the nick of time leaving the other ship to be destroyed, along with the escaped Enolian fugitive.
Through the crowd of injured aliens, Jon saw Buffy and strode through, cupping her face to give her a deep kiss before checking on the prisoners that had been caught in the crossfire. She watched him speak to the others as she bandaged one of the Enolian guards.
Trip walked by and touched her shoulder, "Hey Blondie."
She snorted softly, "So you can take care of yourself, can you?" she teased as she finished the Enolian and moved on to the next injured man.
"Hey, how was I supposed to know that they were gonna think we were smugglers?" he protested.
Buffy rolled her eyes, "A couple of scruffy guys like you?" She heard Jon laugh at this. Turning, her eyes met his. She stood and walked over to him, her eyes on his banged up but handsome face. "You want me to check that?"
He took her hands and kissed them, "Maybe later. Right now the adrenaline is keeping the pain away." Buffy's eyes were full of her love for him as she rubbed a hand against his face, then she nodded and went up front with Travis. Jon watched her, not knowing the love was naked on his face.
The Enolian guard had watched this with a sense of guilt. Then he spoke, "You really aren't a smuggler." Jon looked down and shrugged., "The truth didn't seem to work did it?" The guard looked down, remembering the brutality of the arrest. No, it hadn't mattered if it was truth.
The shuttle arrived back on Enterprise and Buffy had laughed quietly as Jon let the Enolian official have it with both barrels. She watched as Trip and Jon exchanged a glance and walked away.
Buffy helped Mal with replacing the weapons, stopped by sickbay to check on Dr. Phlox and made sure security was in place. The remaining prisoners were to leave in Enolian custody after they had been checked out. Hopefully their cases would be reviewed as well.
Buffy poked her head into the Captain's mess kitchen, "Hi Greg, what's on the menu for tonight?" she asked.
His head came up, "Hey Buffy. I thought Italian." He gestured at the pasta and sauces he was preparing.
"Sounds good, we're having Trip and T'pol too." She walked in and grabbed an apple, making him sigh mightily.
Her mischievous eyes met his, "Can we have apple pie too? He's had a rough couple of days."
The Chef looked at her thoughtfully, "You are very good for him Buffy."
She bit into the stolen apple, "I know!" and she left with a wave.
Buffy had changed and fed Porthos when Jon came in, weary to the bone.
"Your friends are away then?" She asked and moved over to give him a hug.
"Hello Beautiful." He said, ignoring her question and just holding her for a minute. She moved her hands underneath his jacket and rubbed his tense back and he sighed. "Yes, they're gone. I've made my log entry, I'm dirty and hungry and if I never see another prison ship it will be too soon."
Buffy pulled back, "Go take a shower. Greg has dinner almost ready." He nodded and started undressing, letting his dirty clothes fall into a heap. "What's for dinner?" he asked, voice muffled by his t-shirt.
"Italian."
"Sounds marvelous." Was his heartfelt reply.
Stripped down to his underwear he disappeared into the bathroom and Buffy put his clothing into the receptacle for the steward to take care of. She then called Trip and T'pol to invite them for dinner.
10 minutes later he came out, a towel slung low on his hips and one scrubbing his hair. Buffy looked up and their eyes met with a sizzle. He let the towel he was holding drop slightly and moved to her but was stopped when she held up her hand, "Hold that thought, Trip and T'pol are eating with us." Jon smiled; she was taking care of him again.
"Thanks Buffy, I do need to talk to them about what happened."
"I know."
Buffy listened quietly as the three talked about the Enolian penal system and what had happened in the past couple of days. T'pol sent a look to Buffy who smiled. "You would have been proud of Buffy Captain. She did not attempt to 'decapitate or otherwise harm' the Enolian official after she saw your and the Commander's pictures after your arrest." T'pol's voice conveyed her surprise.
Buffy laughed, "Hey, I can behave!"
Trip chuckled, "Put it in the log Cap'n. You might not see it again." He flinched as Buffy poked him with her fork. "Hey, do ya have to do that?"
She smiled sweetly at her former lover, "Oh, you bet."
The Steward came out with apple pie and Jon looked at Buffy, "Thank you." He said.
Buffy shrugged, "You had a rough couple of days. I wanted to spoil you." Trip smiled at the look on his friend's face.
Buffy thanked the Steward quietly and was rewarded with a smile.
The four of them talked some more then T'pol and Trip left and Buffy and Jon went to their quarters. He was in deep thought as they walked in and Buffy watched him in concern. "Are you ok?"
His eyes met hers, "You love me, right?"
"Duh!"
He watched as she sat down, and walked over to her kneel between her legs, his eyes serious on hers. "Move in here with me? All of your stuff and you." Buffy looked a little surprised, "Are you sure?"
"Buffy, I love you, I want you to be with me here, as much as possible. Me and Porthos that is."
Buffy looked at him, her mind warring with her heart. This was a big step and she knew it. She also knew that he loved her and she loved him, and she spent most of her time in his quarters anyway. "Ok, I'd love to."
"Ensign Sato to Buffy."
Buffy looked at Jon in surprise, then stood and went to the comm., "Go ahead Hoshi, what's up?"
"You have a communication from Los Angeles." Hoshi replied diplomatically. "Thanks Hoshi, Buffy out." Buffy went over to the computer and Jon sat behind her and to the side, he was curious about her past.
