“Do you remember how I told you about that Ensign with Post-partum depression?” Luna asked Elias, making up something in the voice that somehow seemed to be her ‘character’ in this unlikely prisoner-tailing situation, the one that sounded like Luna but rather more excitable.

“I did, indeed,” he replied, looking at her like nothing else on the station mattered. In the corner of his eye, he saw T77E’s shoulders relax slightly as he carried on his way. Elias’s anxiety reduced a notch. The more distance he could put between them and the escapee, the less chance the counselor would be hurt if this all fell apart. “She had an appointment with you today, I believe?”

“Yes,” Luna replied, giving Elias an incredibly fake smile for effect. “I can’t go into the particulars obviously, but she’s really improved, isn’t that wonderful?” Her eyes darted between him and T77E. She concentrated on not walking into the Petty Officer or kicking him as she trailed him at a very close distance.

“That is wonderful, and nothing less than I’d expect from the best counsellor on the station,” he smiled and pulled her closer against him. Even though he wanted to keep her safe, they did look a trifle odd the way they were walking. Like he was marching off ahead. He slid her an apologetic little glance. She probably hadn’t expected anything like this when she’d set out this evening. His tension ratcheted up a notch. Where the hell were security?

“Aww  that’s sweet…” Discomfort rose in the Counselor. Initially numb shock and a sense of duty had kept her timidity at bay but the longer she and Elias held hands the more and more awkward she felt. Not helped by attempting to walk at a brisk pace while being pulled behind Elias presumably to keep her shielded, she tried to let go but couldn’t, his arm tense and his grip tightened by adrenaline. Luna looked down to her hand with mounting anxiety but it was to her cost. Her foot hit Elias’ and she tripped, staggering and sending the flowers flying a few feet in front of them. Her knee hit the ground hard with a thud, the sudden weight tugging her hand free of Elias’ hold. Luna put both hands out on the coarse, hard-wearing carpet to catch herself. In a panic, pain jarring from.her knee up through her leg she looked up to T77E. The prisoner had heard her go down and looked back at the pair of them in alarm, his eyes locking with Luna’s.

They’d been made.

In a flash the prisoner’s hand went for the weapon and a panicked beam of orange phaser-energy arced towards the Counselor, gashing the wall to her left with burning and sparks. Luna squeaked in surprise and fright and scrambled to get against the wall, for all the minimal cover it provided.

It all went to hell quicker than Elias could blink. One moment he had hold of the counsellor and then next she was on the floor, T77E shooting at them. Time slowed, a thousand seconds crammed between each heartbeat as he turned like the air was treacle. Elias didn’t blink, didn’t think. His mind locked out and he reacted, crossing the distance between him and T77E in a blink of an eye that somehow took years.

T77E’s lips pulled back from yellowed teeth in a snarl, but Elias didn’t care. Not when he was pointing that pistol at him and not the counsellor. The muzzle came level with his eyes… headshot… moved down to center mass.

Elias slammed his hand up, catching the underside of the pistol as he surged forward. A twist of his wrist and a turn later, he had the pistol jammed up under T77E’s jaw. Hard.

“Move and I’ll pull the trigger,” he warned in a low growl.

A few metres away Luna rested against the wall, petrified and unmoving her eyes glued to the Prisoner and to Elias, seemongly holding him subdued. She entertained the idea of trying to help but thought better of it. She’d nearly got them killed with her clumsiness. She’d probably screw up again and seal the deal. Instead she pressed her badge as she had been trained to do. She thought the Station would have sensors that detected phaser fire but she couldn’t remember for certain and didn’t want to leave anything to chance. In her best unstuttered speech, she said “Black to Security… shots fired… my location.” Praying for a fast response she kept her watch over Elias, ready to move if she needed to, not for his sake but for her own. Luna wasn’t selfish but neither was she used to combat and danger. This was the first time she had ever been fired upon for real.

Elias didn’t move, all his attention on T77E. If the guy moved so much as a muscle…

The doors behind the counsellor opened and the corridor swarmed with security personnel. “Freeze! Stay right where you are!” the front one ordered and Elias nodded.

The security team swept past the counsellor, surrounding him and the prisoner in a tight group, phasers trained on T77E.

“Okay chief, release the prisoner and step back please,” the lieutenant in charge ordered. “We’ll take it from here.”

Elias eased up his grip and slid his finger back onto the trigger guard as he let go and stepped back. Immediately the security team surged in and within seconds, T77E was secured and in custody.

The danger was passed, but Luna couldn’t move yet… she sat where she was, her chest rising and falling quickly, her mind awash with different thoughts. How stupid she had been to charge on in, how stupid she had been to fall, how she’d put Barrington in danger and how he’d had to risk his own life to keep her safe because of her mistake. Part of her tried to reason that following prisoners wasn’t in her wheelhouse and that she didn’t know he was armed. Still, typically for Luna that reasoning got drowned out by her self-derision.

Relieved of his appropriated pistol by one of the security team, Elias pushed past them to get to the counsellor. His chest tightened at the sight of her still on the floor, gaze blank as she looked at the floor.

He crouched in front of her, pitching his voice softly as he checked for any visible injuries. He didn’t think she’d been hit in the incident, but he hadn’t been able to watch her as he’d disarmed T77E.

“Counsellor, are you okay? Were you hurt in the scuffle?”

Luna looked stunned, after a moment she was able to focus on Elias.

“B.. B… B…” She was trying to say ‘Barrington’ but was too upset in the moment to conquer number two on her list of difficult consonants.

“Elias,” she managed, “I’m s… so sorry, I c.. could have gotten you killed!”

He tried for a reassuring smile, but now they were out of it, all the ways the situation could have gone wrong, what he could have done differently, played through his mind.

“No, I’m the one who should be apologising. I shouldn’t have dragged you into this.” He should have just let her walk by. She could have been done and gone, and he could have continued following T77E alone. He should have done that.

Holding out his hand, he dug down for a better smile. “If you’re up to it, Security want us to make a statement.”

Luna wasn’t up to it, but she was a Starfleet Officer, so she was up to it, whether she felt up to it or not. Elias outstretched hand was a puzzle for her neurosis to unpack. Of the two options, not-taking it would be more embarrassing as it would be rude. Luna turned the anxiety she felt about taking it and the comparison with the apparent lack of anxiety she had had taking it earlier on for their reuse into another nugget of self-hate that she could add to the pile later and took Elias’ hand finally, being pulled on to her feet.

“B… you um, what if he’d um, he could have…” Luna looked up and down the corridor replaying things in her mind, her expressions still exhibiting plenty of bewilderment.

“Best not to think about it,” he advised in a low voice as they began to follow the security team. “Believe me, as someone who has spent years analyzing just such a situation, don’t think about the what-ifs or maybe’s. He didn’t do anything. We’re all perfectly fine.” He smiled down at her. “Just put one foot in front of the other and let’s finish this, okay?”

Luna looked sideways toward Elias as they walked. He’s done this before, Luna thought to herself. It was the kind of advice she’d have given.

Th… th…

Turning away she took a couple of deep breaths.

“Th… thank you B… Barrington.”

He inclined his head. “You are very welcome, ma’am.”