"Captain Saru to Doctor Culber. Do you have a moment to talk?"
"Yes, Captain, I've got time. What is it?"
"Engineering has submitted their report on the transporter accident. Unfortunately, there isn't a great deal to go on. They found traces of tachyon particles, but were unable to determine the source. From Ensign Piper's report, I understand you might have additional information. How is our guest?"
"She's asleep right now. I'm concerned about her mental state, Captain. She's not from this time period, nor ours. She told me the year was 2021. The situation she's found herself in is extremely distressing; her entire worldview has been upended…. Captain, I promised we'd do everything we could to send her home."
"Doctor, I am afraid that may not be possible. Since our time, there have been… changes in policy... regarding temporal travel. To return our guest to her own time, now that she has acquired knowledge of the future, would be very dangerous indeed- as well as a violation of Starfleet's Prime Directive. I am sorry, but I believe she must remain here."
"...I understand Captain. But if I may make a recommendation, it would be best to let her adjust before we break the news. I don't want to overwhelm her any more than we have to."
"Of course, Doctor. Saru out."
When she wakes up the next morning, Caitlyn has a few moments of peace in which she has completely forgotten where (and when) she is. Then she realizes that she's on an unfamiliar couch in an unfamiliar room, and there's some distinctly strange background noise she attributes to the starship ( starship! ). And she's alone. "Hugh?" She calls out tentatively.
The older man appears from the other room, now dressed in sweatpants and a simple long-sleeved t-shirt instead of the silver and white uniform from yesterday. "Good morning, kiddo. You're in my quarters; I didn't want to leave you by yourself yet. How're you doing?"
"In all honesty, pretty bad."
He winces, and lays a comforting hand on her shoulder. "I know the timing isn't great, but would you like to meet my husband? This is Paul, he's Discovery's chief engineer."
A tall, blond man waves awkwardly from the doorway, clearly trying to give her some space. "Hey, Caitlyn. Do you want some breakfast?"
In the mess hall, Hugh and Paul introduce Caitlyn to Adira, who gives them a weird look and says "Did you just adopt another kid and not tell me?" Both adults burst out laughing at that, though Caitlyn isn't sure why. "It was sort of on short notice," Paul replies. "This is Caitlyn, she's even farther out of time than we are."
"Wait, you're from another time too? When?"
"Uh, 2021. The year from Hell, part two." Only Adira laughs.
"Jovar was a historian," they say by way of explanation. Seeing Caitlyn's confused look, they add, completely deadpan, "I'm in a symbiotic relationship with a five-hundred-year-old alien lifeform; I have the memories of all the previous hosts."
Caitlyn stares, eyes bugging out of her head. She's not sure if she's allowed to laugh at the sheer absurdity of that sentence. This deliberation is interrupted when Paul asks, "What did you mean about a 'Year from Hell?'"
"Oh, there was a global pandemic in 2020. We haven't gotten rid of it yet, because human stupidity knows no bounds."
Paul gives her a strange look which she suspects means she's being called out for hiding her trauma behind humor. "Are you okay?"
In the same flippant tone as before, she replies, "Honestly? No. None of us have been okay in a looong time."
"If it's any consolation," Adira says, "Most of Discovery's crew aren't okay either. They were born over 900 years ago and flew through a wormhole to get here. A few months ago, they were nearly as lost as you are."
"Okay, okay, let's not share all our traumas at the breakfast table," Paul chastises. "The two of you are gonna get along like a house on fire."