Shake Your Body

Compassionate or Foolish

Your lights are on, but you're not home

Your will is not your own
You're heart sweats and teeth grind
Another kiss and you'll be mine

– Robert Palmer (Addicted to Love)

=/\=

"What's the plan?" HD asked Sheilagh. They were on Cape Canaveral on January twenty-seventh of 1986 – the day before the Challenger disaster.

"Well, we know that the launch just plain didn't happen in the altered reality," she said, "plus we know it happened because of a computer lockout."

"Yeah, NASA couldn't launch the Challenger as planned," HD confirmed by surreptitiously checking a PADD. "The delay gave them the idea to check the shuttle one last time, and the inspection crew found a cracked O-ring. They aborted that particular mission, and then they checked the entire fleet."

"Right. They congratulated themselves on having dodged a bullet and then they were flying again once everything was fixed. They got back to flying considerably faster than in the original history – they even fixed the foam issue that did in the Columbia a few years later. So they were all set when the Trill came knocking, as it were, less than six months later."

"First Contact went off without a hitch, except that Earth became a subordinate power, struggling to keep up. There's no World War III, surprise, surprise!" HD smiled, "This was definitely a mixed bag – a Federation was still founded. Er, it looks like they called it the Congress of Planets. Earth wasn't a founding member. It was Tandar Prime, Andoria, Betazed and Ferenginar."

"I can imagine how it turned out," Sheilagh said, "So let's talk strategy. We need to get in, and I need to lift the computer lockout. This is before Wi-Fi so I need to, physically, be inside the complex. Fortunately, this is pre-9/11, so security is a lot looser. Anyway, I think that's about it."

"Sounds easy enough," HD said.

"I even made us ID badges."

"Badges! Badges! We don't need no –" HD looked sheepishly at a confused Sheilagh, "uh, sorry, I forget not everyone likes old movies."

"Why don't we watch it together when we're done?" she asked. "But first, let's focus."

"Right," he said. Inwardly, he was ecstatic. They were still on.

=/\=

In 1957, there was a shot. Polly barely had a moment to duck. Cramer crumpled in front of her. Dan ran out to see, as did the bar hostess. Polly cradled Cramer's head in her hands. "Can you do anything?" asked the bar hostess, a little panicky.

Polly just shook her head. There were more shots, whistling around then. The bar hostess ran back into the building. Cramer looked up at Polly. "Don't worry," she said, "I know it doesn't look good. It isn't good, except you should know, Hank, that with your death, you help to save the future."

"Future?" he asked weakly.

"Yes," Polly said, "you're helping to make it work out right again."

"Good," he said, "at least there's a meaning. Thank you for," he gasped, "for telling me." His head lolled to the side and he was gone.

Polly and Dan did not stand up, as bullets were still flying. He engaged his implanted Communicator and voice commanded the Audrey II to beam them both up.

Once they had materialized on board the ship, he said, "I guess we should confirm this, right?"

"Right," she said absently. She flew them to May of 1975 and they checked broadcasts. Sure enough, there were numerous broadcasts and commentaries about the fall of Saigon, "Looks like we're good to go," she said, "Could you start the flight? I, uh," she gestured at her nurse's uniform, which had Cramer's blood on it, "I need to change."