Cold Feet:

The next morning Judy awoke with a start. The vividness of the dream was overpowering and she would have cried out had she not found herself still cradled in Don's arms. For a few minutes, she allowed herself to take in his peaceful expression. I can't let him be killed on my account, she thought. Ever so gently she extracted herself from his embrace and rose from the bed. She could hear sounds from the galley and she knew that her mother was probably up.

Throwing on her robe, she picked up the printout that they had recovered from the data banks and she quietly opened the door. Don was still sound asleep she noticed, as she slipped out of his room. To her surprise, both of her parents were sitting at the galley table. She was sure that they had seen her come out of Don's cabin and she steeled herself for a reprimand.

"Good morning, Mother, Dad," she said, slightly embarrassed.

"Good morning, dear," her mother answered.

She turned to her father, "Dad, I need to talk to Mom for a few minutes. Do you mind?"

"Of course not, sweetheart. I'll be up on the flight deck. Call me when breakfast is ready," he said as he stood to leave.

While her father strode to the elevator, she noticed Will, still sound asleep in front of the lower viewport. Judy sat across from her mother and unfolded the printout.

"I expected Dad to read me out," she began.

"Your father and I discussed this the other day, Judy. You and Don are adults, and we would rather have you safely within the confines of the ship than trying to find privacy somewhere outside. In another week, it won't matter…"

"That's what I want to talk to you about, Mom. I'm thinking about calling off the wedding," she stated.

Maureen looked shocked and Judy could no longer hold back the tears.

"Judy…why? Did you and Don have a fight?"

Judy slid the paper across the table as she began to shake, trying in vain to choke back the sobs. Maureen looked down to read the printout and her eyes went wide as she took in the information.

"The two of you found this last night, I take it," said Maureen. "Judy, does he know that you want to cancel the wedding?"

Judy shook her head, still unable to speak. Maureen stood and came around to sit next to her daughter, and pulled her close, intent on letting her cry for as long as she needed. Between sobs, she managed to say, "If I tell him, I don't love him anymore, he won't try to come back. He'll marry someone back on Earth and his children won't have to die…"

Judy started crying again, in earnest this time. As she continued to weep, the cabin door opened and Don came running across the deck.

"Judy? What's wrong?" he asked, as he reached the table.

Maureen stood, allowing Don to comfort his fiancée.

Judy lifted her head to gaze up at him, determined to convince him that she no longer cared, but as she looked into his hazel eyes, she could see his unconditional love. She couldn't bring herself to follow through. Instead, she pulled him down next to her, wrapped her arms around him, and held on for dear life.

"I can't do it," she said to him.

While Judy cried in his arms, Maureen reached for the microphone.

"John?"

"Yes, darling?"

"I think you had better come back down here."

"I'll be right there."

"Can't do what," Don asked his fiancée, gently.

Judy managed to compose herself and she looked straight at Don. By now, John had joined them at the table.

"I was going to call of the wedding…"

"What?" interjected Don. "Why?"

"If we didn't get married, you wouldn't have a reason to come back to this planet, and you wouldn't have died on that ship…"

She buried her face into his shoulder and he held her tightly. As Don comforted his future wife, Maureen showed her husband the printout from the Jupiter 6 records.

"Judy?" her father spoke. "Do you believe that this future is set in stone?"

She simply nodded, still clinging tightly to Don.

"I don't believe that it is," said the Professor. "Think of this as only one possible future. Having this ship come back in time changes everything. There is a very good chance that we can find out what happened, and prevent it."

Judy pulled away from Don and turned to her father.

"Do you think so?" she asked.

"Life never gives us any guarantees, sweetheart. We go through it and make the best decisions we possibly can, at the time, and we live with the results. If we try to second guess about what might happen, we would drive ourselves crazy. Judy, darling, there are some things that are simply beyond our control. But I'm a firm believer in the concept that our future is never set in stone."

"Your father is right, dear," Maureen interjected. "The other day, he asked me if I had any regrets, and I told him, no. But today, I can think of one thing we should have done different."

"What's that, Mother?" asked Judy.

"We should have welcomed Don to the family, before we left Earth."

"I agree," said the Professor. "Don, I hope that you have forgiven us for the way we treated you, back then."

"There was never anything to forgive, John," he replied. "I never took it personally. I knew that you and Maureen loved Judy, very much, and you would do anything to protect her. I respected you for that, and I knew that I was going to have to win your trust the old fashioned way."

"Well you certainly have done that," said Maureen.

"So, Judy," her father began, lightly. "Are you still going to call things off and break this poor man's heart?"

"No, Daddy, of course not," she said, in better spirits. She leaned into her fiancé as he held one arm around her.

...

While Maureen and Judy set out the place setting for breakfast, Jarrock, Teral, and T'lan rode up to the camp. As they dismounted from their horses, Penny ran up to meet T'lan.

"I have a gift for your mother, Penny," said T'lan, as he pulled two sacks off of the animal. "Fresh eggs, meat, and vegetables."

"Oh, Mom will be so excited," she said.

Professor Robinson shook hands with his new friend, "We appreciate the provisions, Jarrock, but that really wasn't necessary. I don't want to take food out of the mouths of your people."

"Our bounty has been exceedingly plentiful this cycle, John. We have more than enough to spare. Set your mind at ease on this."

"Well, we do appreciate it, Jarrock," Maureen said. "Don't we, John?"

"Of course," said the Professor.

"Penny, would you take the food down to the galley and put the meat and eggs in to cold storage?"

"Sure, Mom," she answered. "Come on, T'lan, you can help me."

As the young couple strode up the ramp into the ship, Jarrock turned to address the Professor and his wife.

"T'lan has informed me that he wishes to speak to you, about the calling of her heart. I will, of course, intervene if you object to this."

"I don't think that will be necessary," said John. "Maureen and I would be happy to sit with him and discuss the matter. As I understand the custom, they aren't going to be doing much more than they are already."

"It's the joining that has us concerned," said Maureen. "Penny has been brought up with the notion that the age of sixteen is much too young to be committed in marriage. By her own admission, she isn't ready right now, she may not be ready a year from now. And to be perfectly honest, John and I wouldn't be comfortable with her joining at sixteen."

"I understand, Maureen," answered Jarrock. "I have spoken, at length, with T'lan. He understands that your customs are different than ours, and he has pledged to abide by the limits that you set forth."

"I have to admit," Maureen added, "I find that I trust him to respect her and watch over her. I know when she is with him, she is safe, and I don't worry about them being together."

"Family honor is something my people take very seriously," said Jarrock.

"It's a value we share," said John. "Maureen and I will speak with T'lan, before we leave."

...

Doctor Smith was about to open his cabin door when he heard Penny and her new friend speaking in the galley. He cracked the door just enough to listen in.

"You can set the food out on the table, T'lan. I just need to get the meat and eggs into the refrigerator so they don't spoil."

While Penny vacuum sealed the slices of meat for freezing, T'lan had set out all the vegetables.

"Penny?" he began. "I need to speak to your mother and father."

"About what?"

"Our tradition requires that I ask your father's permission before I call on your heart," he said.

"Oh, that," she answered. "Some cultures on Earth are restrictive in that manner, but who I date is my business, not my father's. Besides, Mom really likes you. I know she'll say yes."

"My father told me that I should ask to speak to both of them. Our traditions are very important to me. I have no wish to dishonor our families."

"Well you had better talk to them now. Dad plans on leaving soon after breakfast."

"I will," he said. He kissed her briefly and turned to climb the ladder.

As T'lan ascended to the upper deck, Smith opened his door and strode into the galley.

"Ah Penny, dear, what do we have here?" he asked.

"T'lan's family sent us some supplies," she said. "There is enough food here to last a week."

"I see, carrots, peas, potatoes, corn, green beans…"

"There is some fresh meat and eggs as well," she added, as she strolled over to the elevator. Before she stepped onto the platform, she looked back at Smith.

"Doctor Smith, can I ask you something?"

"Of course, my dear Penny, anything at all," he said.

"Will told me that you think our new friends are a bunch of savages, is that true?"

Smith felt himself flush. While he had no reservations about arguing with Major West about the cultural attributes of the Lamotia Clan, he had no desire to hurt either Penny or Will. He found himself ashamed of his actions after Will had stormed out of the spaceship the night the Robinsons went to the village.

"In all honesty, my dear, I might have been somewhat harsh in my initial assessment of our friends. Your new friend, T'lan, Is that his name?"

Penny nodded, and Smith continued.

"Ah, yes. Perhaps I was wrong about them. You and Will seem to be happier than I can ever remember. If they have brought such joy into your lives, than they can't be what I originally thought, now can they?"

"I knew you'd come around, Doctor Smith. Are you coming up for breakfast?"

"Yes of course, and Penny dear?"

"Yes, Doctor Smith?"

"Please don't tell Major West what I just told you. He'll never let me live it down."

"I won't," she said as she pushed the button to close the elevator guard.

...

As they ate breakfast, John went over the assignments for the day.

"Doctor Smith, I could use your help at the crash site today," said the Professor. "That is, unless you have something more important to do."

"I am at your disposal, Professor, although I did promise Mrs. Robinson that I would help her with the soil analysis."

"Professor Robinson, I could accompany you," said T'lan. "That is, if Penny doesn't mind."

"I don't mind if you go with them," she said. "I'm behind on my chores anyway."

"All right, it's settled. Maureen, I'm going to leave the Robot with you as well."

"Will you be gone long, John?"

"Don and I want to salvage some more equipment from the wrecked ship. We'll probably be gone the better part of the day. I want to bring back the chariot and the force field generator, as well as the lasers."

"I guess that means we'll be a two car family again," she added lightly.

"I suppose your right…"

"Attention, Attention," called out the Robot. "Humanoid life form, approaching from the north."

"Someone you know, Jarrock?" asked the Professor.

"Not from that direction, John. The nearest clan is well to the south."

"Don, let's go with Jarrock and find out who it is. The rest of you, stay here."

The three men rounded the spaceship and spotted a silver clad figure approaching the camp, on foot. The man seemed to be carrying a backpack.

"Don, that looks like…"

"Yeah, a Jupiter spacesuit," interjected the Major. "We just might have found our missing crew member."

The unidentified man stopped a few yards from the three friends. He was indeed dressed in the typical silver space suit with red trim that was a staple of the Jupiter missions

"Hello there," he said. "Professor Robinson, I presume."

"That's right," answered John. "And you are?"

"Oh, forgive me, Lt. Colonel Richard Tyler, United States Space Corps. I'm the pilot of, well, I was the pilot of the Jupiter 6."

Tyler stepped forward and extended his hand which Robinson accepted.

"Forgive me for saying so, Professor, but you look well for someone in his mid fifties…" he stopped when he spotted Don. "Colonel West?"

"No, well, not yet, anyway. It's Major West," said Don.

"I don't know how to tell you this, Colonel, but you have come back in time by almost ten years," said John.

"The ATD field?" asked Tyler.

"Yes, it was damaged. We found your ship. Why don't you join us? I have some questions which I'd like some answers to."

"Yes, of course, Professor," said Tyler. He seemed to be in shock with the news that he was ten years in his own past.

John gauged Tyler's reaction about his predicament, to his own reaction about seeing Earth, ten years before he was born. In all, he seemed to take the information as well as could be expected. At this moment in time, Lt. Colonel Tyler existed as two people. This will drive the causality students insane, John thought.