Disclaimer: See Chapter 1. Thank you so much to Scarlettbrandi and vulcangiggles for reviewing!

Ammie and Faith clung to each other, each holding their breath as they saw their end written on the face hovering above them. "This is going to hurt," Ammie whimpered, and Faith pulled her in tighter in a protective grip.

They closed their eyes and heard the zap of phasers going off. They both flinched, but in the next breath they realized they felt no pain. They both opened their eyes just in time to see the creep fall backward, and two hands reach down into the box toward them. They released each other and blindly grabbed the masculine lifelines.

Faith wrapped her arms around the man who pulled her out, pressing her lips against him with both gratitude and passion. Ammie mirrored her friend, and rubbed at the cheeks of her savior. Both men gratefully returned the affection...for a moment, before they realized Strom had Faith, and Ammie was kissing Solok.

Both girls pulled away and muttered embarrassed apologies. Ammie looked at Faith with wide eyes. "Sorry..."

Faith shrugged and moved toward her husband. "It was dark..." She shrugged and embraced him.

Strom grimaced and pulled Ammie to his body. "My apologies, Solok. Your wife is right, and it seems my vision is not what it used to be."

Ammie wasn't sure why, but she felt the urge to laugh, and laugh she did. Faith joined in, giggling like little schoolgirls who had just gotten their first kiss.

"I'm sorry about that, Solok," she said apologetically, wrapping her arms around her husband. "How did you find us?"

"Through a logical process of elimination," Strom said, as if it were obvious, and Ammie rolled her eyes.

"Obviously," she muttered with a grin. "But how?"

"We realized he was most likely hiding the drugs in these woods, camping near them so he could protect them, and he had a very narrow window of transaction. He would have to hide them nearby so he could make his deals almost directly after his shift ended. As for this..." Strom trailed off for a second and muttered a Vulcan curse word under his breath. "He has long been suspected of drug trafficking. Vulcan and Earth authorities have been searching for him for a long time."

Ammie nuzzled Strom's neck. "I'm just glad you made it here before he could get his hands on us."

Strom stroked her hair and kissed her temple. "It has ended well, ashaya." He pulled her closer, feeling her body shake as the adrenaline wore from her system, He lifted her chin and looked deep into her eyes. "No other ending would suffice, my wife."

The pads of his fingers traced over her cheekbone, pushing back a stray lock of her dark hair so he could caress the roundness of her ear. He caught the bottom of her lip with the thumb of his other hand, caressing it gently. There was a moment of silence, and then he bent to kiss her.

Solok grabbed Faith by the waist, turning her into a dip, and he kissed her hard. He was so swift in his movement that Faith lost balance falling backward, so Solok picked her up, wrapping her legs around him. He pulled back, as if to say, "now, that is me."

"We will have to leave tonight, Faith. We must beam up to the ship with him, and take it back to Vulcan so justice may be served. We will be gone some time."

Faith was still panting slightly from the wanton kiss, but she nodded. "Ok...but...you'll be back, right?"

"We will be gone a week at most," Strom assured her, then stroked Ammie's hair again. "It will not be long."

"I'll miss you," she whispered, kissing him again, and he cupped her face in his hands.

"You of all people should know that I am always with you," he replied gently, tilting his head. "Parted and never parting, remember?"

"Strom is right," Solok said. "We are always together."

Ammie nodded and slowly backed away, giving them room to beam up. "Be safe, ok? We'll see you in a week's time."

"Any later and you'll get it," Faith growled, then grinned at her husband. Solok smirked.

"I will bear that in mind, wife."

Ammie and Faith put their arms over each other's shoulders, and the woods filled with the sparkling light of the transporter beams taking their husbands and the creep away. A few seconds later, Faith sighed. "It's bloody dark out here. We should have asked them for a flashlight or something."

Ammie turned to respond but they heard the muffled cries of the kids in the other boxes. "Oh shoot, Faith, we gotta get these kids out and home!"

Solok took the controls as Strom checked the makeshift holding cells. "It is definitely a Romulan designed ship," Solok said, "and the Earth Standard is poorly translated in the controls." He blinked and pointed at the console. "Can you see this? The Standard is terrible."

Strom nodded. "No doubt it was a rushed job. Everyone is secure, and I advise that we maintain the cloak on the way back to Vulcan. I would not wish to run into Federation ships in this second rate Romulan ship."

Solok frowned. "It will drain our power reserves, making it a full two days longer before we arrive."

"It is not how we would wish it, Solok, but it is the most logical action."

Solok sighed. "Agreed. Do the food replicators have an agreeable selection?"

"No. But It does have a facility where I can undo our cosmetic alterations."

"That is the most agreeable thing I have heard all week."

"More agreeable than discovering you have filled your new wife with child?" Strom asked with the tiniest of smirks.

"Then it is the second most agreeable thing I have heard all week." He turned to Strom, who was taking his place at the com. "We did not tell them..."

Strom pursed his lips. "Perhaps they will not know until we get back."

Ammie slid the ears onto her head and frowned at her reflection in the mirror. "I never thought I'd ever be a sehlat for Halloween. Everyone's going to think I'm a grizzly bear."

Faith snorted and adjusted her bright green top. "At least you could make a few modifications to a bear costume and pass as a sehlat. I don't think any Halloween store on this planet has heard of a le-matya outfit."

"You look really cute, though," Ammie said, making sure her tail was secure. "I feel...weird. I've felt weird ever since Strom left. Do you think it's the bond?"

"Maybe. Though I don't think stomachaches are a symptom of being parted from your husband. However...I've felt it too."

"Being nauseous?"

"Yeah," she sighed, fetching a bag of crackers from her bedside table. "Want one?"

"You must be reading my mind."

Faith sipped some tea and noshed on some crackers. "My ears are straight, and..." she turned and looked at her bottom, "my tail is straight...I was going to wear the fangs but I'm a little too gaggy for that."

"We probably picked up a stomach bug from the bobbing for apples event we did last week," she muttered, standing up from the make-up mirror. "Whatever it is, I hope we're better when Strom and Solok come back."

"You and me both, but that doctor husband of yours might be able to fix us up quick when they do get back. In the mean time, this is the big last night party. Let's try to have some fun, shall we?"

Strom straightened his robes and matched Solok's stride as they walked onto the grounds again, searching the crowds for their wives. Solok had been nearly unbearable without Faith, but he knew it was the "fresh-bond" jitters. He had felt them too, and had probably seemed just as intolerable to Solok as he had been to Strom.

He tried his hardest not to look scandalized at the skimpy costumes around him, but he had to admit, some were rather creative. The veritable cornicopea of color around him almost made his eyes hurt, but his inner eyelid slid into place, easing the pain of looking at the colorful costumes.

"Do you see them?" he murmured to Solok. It was strangely more exciting to hunt them down than to simply ask through the bond where they were, and they had both decided to surprise their wives instead of inform them that they had arrived.

Solok paused, his eyes locked on a target. "Ammie is over there...Faith must not be far from her."

Strom's eyes widened, "She is a...what only could be described as..."

"A sexy sehlat," Solok finished with a smirk.

Strom nodded slowly, suppressing the urge to purr. "Indeed..." He motioned to the green and yellow costume to Ammie's right. "That is, I believe, Faith."

"Poison me, little le-mayta..." he whispered and began to stride forward.

Strom caught him by the arm. "Put the hood on your robe up."

"Why?"

"Because we are going to engage in a human custom..."

"Which is?"

"We are going to hit on our wives."

Solok blinked. "We stand out in Vulcan robes, Strom. They will know it is us right away."

Strom frowned. "True."

"Though, I do have costumes in the actor's barn. If you wish to engage in some kind of disguise..."

Strom nodded, and Solok's eyes glittered with anticipation. "Then come, quickly."

Faith poured herself another glass of punch, and she frowned when she felt fingers ghost across the small of her back. It felt deliberate, and it made her shiver. She turned to confront the culprit, but she couldn't help but notice he looked very familiar somehow. He was dressed as a vampire, a little more frightening than the usual fare she saw around her, and she took a step back.

"Did you touch me?"

He raised an eyebrow. "Perhaps I did," he murmured. "Does that displease you?"

She put her hand on her hip and cocked her head sideways. "Yeah, it does, please don't do it again." She looked him over. "I'm a married woman, and touching me is reserved for my husband only. Good costume though, and Happy Halloween..."

She made to turn around but the "Dracula" grabbed her hand, pulling her into his chest. "What did I just say?" she grumbled, and made to slap his face.

He caught her hand easily and bent into her ear. "Oh, ashaya...such loyalty," he whispered. "Hush...I am here."

Faith gasped, feeling him tug at their bond, and she grinned up at him, recognizing him now as her beloved Solok.

Ammie checked on the food table. She was hungry, but nothing sitting out looked good. The crowd was getting on her nerves, and if she had to explain that she wasn't a bear one more time she was going to throw a caramel apple at someone. Thinking of that, she saw that they needed more candy and apples out on the table. She walked around the table, heading for the house to bring more out when she felt a hand tweak her tail and make a growling sound.

She turned around, gasping in shock, and she frowned at the man standing there, who looked quite pleased with himself.

"You look lovely dressed as a sehlat," he purred, stepping closer. He was dressed as a pharaoh, and she had to admit, he looked really good, and oh so familiar...

"Have we met?" she whispered, taking a step back. The man was handsome, but he wasn't her husband.

"We have, Ms. Atwood."

"So you know my name. Not that impressive," she said, turning her back to him. She felt his hand come down on her shoulder, making her jump, and she was surprised he was that strong...

"I know your name...and your body quite well, ashaya," he whispered, leaning down to nuzzle her ear.

Ammie turned and jumped into his arms. "Strom!" she squealed, wrapping her partially furry arms around him. "I didn't even recognize you with all that make-up on." She pulled back and kissed him furiously. After several long minutes, she pulled back and saw the make-up around his mouth was gone, and now a Dracula, that must be Solok, and Faith were coming toward them.

"I am going to finish taking off the make-up, and I am sure Solok will do the same. We have several surprises for you both."

"I can't wait," she murmured into his neck, as her fingers made to find his ears.

He caught her wrist. "No, no, ashaya...you will see later."

She pouted up at him. "But I want to touch them now," she whispered, leaning into him. He caught her other wrist and smirked down at her, shaking his head.

"Later, my little minx. You'll have your time to explore my ears. However, I do believe you were going back to the house for something?"

She nodded. "Yeah, we need more candy and caramel apples. Care to help me, sweetheart?"

He swiftly kissed her neck, then let go of her wrists. "Come, little sehlat. To the house."

Faith watched them go, resting her hands on her hips. "They're so darn cute together...Solok?"

"Yes, ashaya?"

"Are stomachaches common when a bonded couple is parted?"

He raised an eyebrow, contemplating her question, then smirked. "Only when the female is pregnant."

Faith's eyes widened and she grabbed his cape. "What?"

"When bond mates are parted and the female is pregnant, she has stomachaches, until her bonded is nearby." He caressed her stomach. "Have yours subsided now?"

Faith didn't know what she wanted to do, faint or slap his hand, because apparently he knew something she did not. "Are you saying that I am pregnant?" she managed through a sudden dry throat.

"Three weeks, two days, four hours and...thirteen minutes...roughly." He gently pressed his hand just under her naval. "It seems your stomach is firming already. Fascinating."

"You knew before you left?" Faith asked, staring down at his hand, which strangely felt good pressing as it was.

"I did, it is why I had Strom scan you. I wanted to assure myself that you were properly full. You are."

Her mouth fell open. "And...Ammie?"

Solok pursed his lips and blinked a yes. A moment later, his arms were full with a fainted female le-matya.

...

Ammie frowned as Solok carried Faith in, and it seemed her friend had either fallen asleep or had passed out. Or maybe he had pinched her out.

"What, did she get a little too minxy for you?" she teased, pouring another bag of candy into a bowl.

He smirked. "I doubt such a state exists. I just told her of her pregnancy, and she fainted in my arms."

She paused, staring at him for a long minute, and she leaned back into Strom as he wrapped his arms around her. "Solok tells the truth, k'diwa," the doctor muttered in her ear. "I scanned her."

"Well, yeah, you told me at the station...never thought she'd be the one to faint over something like that."

"Do you think you would faint if I told you you are also pregnant? I want to be prepared."

She turned around in his arms. "Well, that explains the stomachaches...I've always wanted a baby." She felt tears prick her eyes, and she wrapped her arms around him, squeezing him with all her might. He breathed out sharply and nuzzled her neck with an aggressiveness that took her aback, and she pulled away, staring into his eyes.

"So when do we leave for Vulcan?"

Solok put Faith over his shoulder. "Now."

Ammie looked up at Strom, who nodded.

"Faith and I already packed."

Strom raised an eyebrow. "What of the party?"

She grinned. "Beth and the boys owe us one...they'll clean up." She jumped into his arms. "Beam us out of here. I'm ready to head home with my new family."

A/N: We hope you enjoyed this fall special, and we hope to make this Holiday Special thing an official thing. Hang around, dear reader, because Christmas is just around the corner...