Clarion, PA

The snowbank was cold but at least provided a soft landing, Bogg thought. And right now we deserve a soft landing. It was night and the dark clouds drifting across the full moon left almost no light. Phineas shifted the omni from hand to hand, changing its angle in an attempt to read the dial.

"January, 8," he read, squinting at the device. "That's all I can make out. I think we're in Clarion."

"Are you sure?" Jeffrey asked. He sounded subdued and a little depressed.

Bogg resisted the urge to snap back. "No," he said, keeping his voice as calm as possible. He knew Jeff was still very upset and didn't want to set him off again. The teen had decisions to make, and Phineas wanted him to have a clear head while he was considering his options. "Once some of those clouds move, we'll have more luck," he said in the same calm manner. He could feel rather than see Jeff's nod of agreement.

Finally the clouds thinned enough so the ground below them became visible and they could move. Phineas checked the omni again. "Still too dark" he muttered, frustrated at the lack of information.

They walked along in what he felt was an uncomfortable silence until Jeff reached out and grabbed his arm. "Bogg, do you see something?" Without waiting for an answer, Jeff continued. "I think the trees are thinning out." He gestured off to the right. "Let's go this way," he said, his voice sounding more alert than before.

After a few more minutes, Jeff stopped again. "Bogg, look. A house." A short distance away, Phineas could make out the outline of a cabin with two pinpricks of light at the front. "Sabbath candles in the window," Jeff said, sounding more excited. "We're here!" He started running.

"Jeff!" Bogg shouted. "Hold up! We need to be sure!" As he held up the omni again, the moon finally broke through the clouds. "Jeffrey, wait!" But he knew the boy wouldn't stop. Quickly, he scanned the dial's face. "Clarion, Pennsylvania. Friday, January 8... 1841." Phineas could feel the blood drain from his face. The blocked dates. Bat's breath! It didn't block a few weeks. It blocked four years. Bogg started running. "Jeffrey! No!"

It was too late. Jeff had reached the cabin's door and was pounding on it, joyously shouting Rebecca's name. Just as Phineas came up behind him, the door opened, and Jeffrey's shout died on his lips. Rebecca stood in the doorway.

Bogg could see her over Jeff's shoulder. She was wearing a pale blue dress with a shawl. A long plait of hair hung down her left shoulder. As a smile lit up her expression, he could see that the planes of her face were sharper. She was an inch or so taller than before and could now just about look Jeffrey right in the eyes. A thin gold band on the first finger of her right hand glinted in the moonlight, and her left rested on her stomach just above her waist. With a start, Phineas realized she was pregnant. The slump of Jeffrey's shoulders told him more clearly than words that Jeff had seen the same changes.

"No." Jeff took a shocked step backwards. "I failed. I promised to come back, and I failed." The smile faded from Rebecca's face. Jeff's shoulders started to shake, and he brought his hands up to his face. "You were sick, and I left. I didn't leave you any way out. This is all my fault." He voice broke on the last word.

Phineas started towards Jeffrey, but Rebecca got there first. She tried to put her arms around him, but he pulled away.

"Jeffrey, no. Don't say that." She pulled Jeff's hands down and held them in her own, but he still wouldn't look at her. "You didn't fail. I chose this." She twisted her body slightly so she could see his face. "When you and Phineas appeared in my apartment, I could have called the police. I chose to take care of you instead, and when I recovered Josef offered to take me to Cleveland to find you. I knew you wouldn't be there," Jeff raised his head at this. "I could have gone anyway and started a new life." Jeffrey tried to speak, but Rebecca gently placed the fingertips of her right hand over his mouth. "You need to listen," she said. He simply looked at her.

"When Josef asked me to marry him, I could have told him 'no.' I didn't want to do that." Bogg could see a faint blush cover Rebecca's cheeks. "I chose to become his wife knowing exactly what it would mean." She moved her hand from Jeffrey's lips to his his cheek. "Jeff, I would have died in that fire." Bogg could see Jeffrey flinch at her words. "You and Phineas saved my life. Because you brought me here I had choices. You gave me that. You gave me... everything." Rebecca's eyes were shining. "I'm just glad you're here now. I never got to say thank you."

Jeffrey stifled a sob. He nodded once and grabbed Rebecca in a fierce hug. Phineas felt an enormous weight lift from his shoulders. "Do you love him?" he heard Jeffrey whisper. Rebecca nodded into his shoulder then broke the hug, a small smile on her lips. "Thanks so much for assuming I married for convenience," she said swatting his shoulder lightly, but Bogg could see tear tracks on her face.

As she walked by them to shut the door, Jeff flashed a look at Bogg. "I had to ask," he said with a wry smile. Bogg smiled back, noting with relief that Jeff looked more relaxed, more like himself, than he had for a while.

They sat at the table, and Rebecca dished them up some stew. Phineas took the bowl gratefully, ate a few mouthfuls, then asked, "How did you know you wouldn't find us in Cleveland?"

"Because it was 1836," she answered. "I heard you say that in the woods, and it stuck." She sat down on the bench next to Jeffrey. "You should eat that. I didn't make it so it's good." At his questioning look, she shrugged her shoulders. "I still can't cook well over a fire. Josef says after the baby comes, he'll get a cookstove. They're getting more common now."

Phineas cleared his throat. "Rebecca. Cleveland?"

"Oh, sorry," she said. "Well, once I felt better and became aware of my surroundings, I realized nothing was familiar." A sad smile crossed her face. "Mother and Josef thought my memory had been damaged by my illness. I didn't know how to do anything useful – cooking, cleaning, sewing – and had no idea exactly where I was. It also took me a while to realize that they meant the two of you when they were talking about my uncle and cousin." She sighed. "It's actually been a blessing. I can tell them certain things about my past, and they assume those are the only things I remember. I don't have to lie to them." She got up, poured a mug of water from a pitcher, and took a drink. "Anyway, I did some deductive reasoning and came up with two options. Either I was crazy, or you were time travelers."

"Voyagers." Bogg and Jeff corrected her at the same time.

"Right," she said, putting the mug down on the table and sitting down again. "Time travel was the more attractive option." She raised one eyebrow at Jeff. "It also explained how you got in my locked apartment since we never got around to having that conversation."

Jeff looked down into his bowl of stew. "Well, it's not the kind of thing we can go around shouting. People try to burn you at the stake."

Rebecca looked startled. "Really? Has that happened to you?"

"Once. Almost," Jeff said. "And just Bogg."

Phineas cleared his throat. "Rebecca, where are Frau Heller and Josef?" he asked, trying to get their attention back. "If they come home now and see us..."

Rebecca shook her head. "I'm not expecting them back until tomorrow after sunset when Shabbat is over. The area is getting more populated, and one of the neighbors a few miles out is having a baby. Josef drove Mother to their cabin to help with the delivery." She took another drink of water. "I can't go out too much in the cold. The Spanish Flu did a number on my lungs." Bogg tilted his head at her phrasing. "Gran survived the pandemic," she said, answering his look. "I sort of knew what you had when I was nursing you, but my mind didn't want to accept it. Not until I had it myself. And before you ask, Mother and Josef didn't get sick, Baruch Ha-Shem." She yawned and stretched. "As happy as I am to see you, the baby and I need some sleep. Will you stay until tomorrow so we can talk?"

Phineas turned to Jeff to gauge his reaction to the request and saw Jeff looking back with pleading eyes. "We can stay until then," he said.

They made beds at the hearth and crept between the blankets. "Jeff, are you all right?" Bogg asked.

Jeff was staring into the fire. "I think so," he replied. "I feel really confused, and I don't know what to do. I'm glad she's okay and happy, but I still feel like I messed up, that there was something I could have done."

"You don't have to make any decisions right now, kid," Bogg said. "Let's get some sleep."

o-o-o-o-o

The morning dawned cold and clear. Phineas woke early, got the fire going, then sat to think. He wouldn't try to influence Jeff's decision in any way but hoped his partner – his kid – wouldn't choose to stop being a Voyager. I could handle it if he decided to take a break, he thought, but I don't know what I'll do if he chooses to leave. He couldn't even begin to imagine Jeffrey not being in his life. Just like when he was sick.

His thoughts broke off when the bedroom door opened. Rebecca came out dressed in the same blue dress but with a quilt around her shoulders in place of the shawl. "It's cold in there," she said. "Is Jeff up yet?" Bogg smiled, remembering the last time she had asked that question, and shook his head. "Phineas, is he okay?" she whispered to him. "He seems quieter than I remember."

"I'm not sure," Bogg answered, also keeping his voice down. "This Voyage has been... hard on him. It really broke him up having to leave you here." He rubbed his chin. "I think seeing you has helped."

"Bogg?" Jeff's sleepy voice came from one of blanket piles. "Is it breakfast yet?"

"Just about, sleepyhead," Rebecca answered, smiling. "Get up, and I'll feed you. Again."

After breakfast, Bogg stood and cleared his throat. "Kid, it's time. We have to get going." He watched how reluctantly Jeff got up from the table, and grew concerned. To cover his feelings, he turned to Rebecca and gave her a gentle hug. "Thank you for everything. It was nice to have an evening to rest." He paused for a moment. "Are you going to tell Josef we were here?"

"I was planning on it," she responded. "He was always concerned that you two never came back. It would make them both feel better to know nothing bad happened to you." She pulled away from Bogg's arms and turned to Jeff. "I also have a favor to ask."

"What is it?" Jeff asked without much interest.

"I'd like to be able to tell them I had your blessing."

Jeff's head snapped up. "Our what?"

"Your blessing," she repeated. "On my marriage. It would mean a lot to me. You two are my only family," she said. "I want Josef to know you approved of my choice."

Phineas nodded and put his hand on her shoulder. "Of course," he said. "I hope you have a long and happy marriage and healthy children."

Rebecca's face turned back toward Jeffrey. "Jeff?"

Jeffrey spent a long minute looking at her, then, just as he had done the night before, nodded once and pulled her towards him for a hug. A look of surprise flashed across his face. "The baby kicked me!"

Rebecca smiled, pleased relief showing plainly on her face "I should have warned you. He doesn't seem to be fond of close quarters. Josef says his stomach is turning black and blue." She placed both hands on her stomach. "Or she. We'll find out some time in May."

Bogg held out one arm, and Jeff walked over to him. "Are you ready, kid?" With no hesitation this time, Jeffrey nodded. "Then let's show the lady how it's done." Bogg took out the omni and activated it. They blinked out of the cabin and into the cosmos.