"The two outlets in question have two hot wires, two neutral, and a ground."

That sounds like the abovementioned "two different circuits". If the two hot wires are not supplied via the same breaker, that is the case.

Bridging two circuits is bad news. In a single phase system, it interferes with the functionality of the breakers - in a way that can allow a plugged in device to get away with drawing severe overcurrent, or create a false sense of safety when only one breaker is switched off but the user assumes that is sufficient to make the circuit safe to work on. In a two or three phase system, if both circuits are supplied from different phases, you create a capital short circuit.

"The two outlets in question have two hot wires, two neutral, and a ground."

That could be the abovementioned "two different circuits". If the two hot wires are not supplied via the same breaker, and if they both supply power (as opposed to powering something else downstream) that is the case.

Bridging two circuits is bad news. In a single phase system, it interferes with the functionality of the breakers - in a way that can allow a plugged in device to get away with drawing severe overcurrent, or create a false sense of safety when only one breaker is switched off but the user assumes that is sufficient to make the circuit safe to work on. In a two or three phase system, if both circuits are supplied from different phases, you create a capital short circuit.