Jeffrey came back to awareness slowly. His last memories were a jumble of heat and cold, of the motion of movement over the snow that was not of his own doing, of pain and confusion. As his thoughts slowly cleared, he thought he heard a man talking, a man that sounded like Bogg. "And then Jeff jumped right in the fire and cut my ropes loose, and we both got away! You should have seen him, Owen. He was fearless!"

Jeffrey tried to open his heavy eyelids and finally succeeded. The man was sitting next to him and it was Bogg! Was he really awake or was this a dream? "Bogg?" he said in a shaky, rasping whisper.

"Jeff!" Bogg exclaimed, turning his head quickly to look at the boy. He ran a hand through Jeffrey's hair and said, "I'm here, and I'm so sorry, Jeff. I never meant to leave you all that time."

Jeffrey reached up his arms and Bogg pulled him into a tight hug. "Don't ever leave me again, Bogg," he whispered and then began to cough. Bogg sat him back anxiously as Blanche swiftly drew near. "Some water, Owen," she said, and Owen passed her a cup of water which she held to Jeffrey's lips as the coughing fit left him gasping.

"Is he okay?" Bogg said, looking helpless.

"I'm okay," Jeffrey said. "Now that you're here."

vVvVv

With prompting from Jeffrey, Bogg spun a tale of a last dangerous task he had had to fulfill for his dead master, one so dangerous that it had been impossible to take Jeffrey with him. He filled it with enough evil knights and harrowing escapes to enthrall even Owen, who slowly warmed to him after seeing the love between him and Jeffrey.

When Bogg had Jeffrey alone, he told him the real story of his disappearance. "I couldn't remember anything," he told Jeffrey. "Not my name, not you, nothing about my past. I spent hours staring at the Omni, wondering what it was and what those lights meant. I dreamed about you, but I just heard a voice and I didn't know who you were. But all it took was one look at that angel statue with the curls and the sword, and everything just rushed into my head."

"And you saved Novodevichy!" Jeffrey said. "History says Sister Sarah stopped the explosion."

"And she did!" Bogg said with a grin. "Just with a little help."

Owen had already told Bogg some of what Jeffrey had been through, but Bogg encouraged Jeffrey to tell him the whole story. When Jeffrey related how he had been hungry and cold and then felt himself getting sick, Bogg's face reflected guilt and dismay. Finally Jeffrey stopped and just hugged him. "Bogg, it wasn't your fault," he said. "You couldn't help it that you lost your memory. And you came back the minute you remembered!"

With a green light on the Omni, Bogg and Jeffrey stayed until Jeffrey grew strong again. Bogg helped Blanche with repairs and food to repay her for what she had done for Jeffrey, while Jeffrey spent time with Owen and his brothers, resting and recovering.

The day came when Bogg said, "I think it's time to go, Jeff. What do you think?" and Jeffrey agreed.

Bogg found a collection of gold and silver coins in his pocket and gave them to Blanche. "I think you can probably have those melted down and the metals will be worth quite a bit," he told her as she gazed in amazement at the wealth in her hand.

Jeffrey hugged Blanche and she hugged him back. She had become very fond of Jeffrey and had secretly hoped he might stay, but she saw the bond between him and Bogg and she correctly read Bogg as a man who couldn't stay. Jeffrey ruffled the hair on Gareth's and Percy's heads, and kissed the baby, then turned to Owen.

"Owen, what can I say to you?" he said. "You are the best friend I've ever had. If it hadn't been for you, I'd be dead right now. I can't believe you dragged me all the way here."

"Well, not all the way," Owen said, grinning. "Someone was stubborn enough to think he could walk when he was so sick he could barely stand up, and he actually made it to the top of the pass!"

Jeffrey grinned back. "I wish I had something I could give you," he said.

Bogg reached into his pocket and handed a bag to Jeffrey. "Hey, how about this?" he said. "Kids like to play with these, right?"

Jeffrey opened the bag and poured clay marbles into his hand. "Bogg, this is perfect!" he exclaimed in delight. "Look, Owen, this is what you play the acorn game with!"

Bending down, he gave Owen a quick lesson in shooting marbles, while Gareth and Percy watched in interest. Then, after a last goodbye to Owen and a handshake that turned into a hug, he walked back over to Bogg and said, "Okay, I'm ready."

Calling out goodbyes and waving, the two Voyagers walked away from the hut. When they were out of sight, Bogg opened the Omni. "Ready to see where we end up next?" he asked Jeffrey.

Jeffrey moved to stand beside him and took his arm. "Just as long as we go together," he said.

Bogg pushed the button on the Omni and they disappeared into the timestream.