Part Three – Yippee Ki Yay

A couple of weeks had gone by after I had signed off on the list that Enterprise had given me. She had even admitted that she forgot about Georgia being a battleship and that was due to how fast and agile she is. That had turned to me teasing that she's not a battleship and it was something Georgia has been good about it and even leaning into it, calling herself the world's biggest battlecruiser. I would've figured she would've volunteered to be housed with Seattle and Reno in a shared apartment, yet she ended up in the apartment with Hornet and Enterprise. I guess Enterprise was trying to make up for her error in forgetting about her. But right now, that was neither here nor there. As a knock came to my office door, I called out, "Enter."

I save the document that is on my computer and check the time; I'm surprised that it's already seventeen hundred. The door opens I see Hornet standing there in her usual black bikini top and cut off shorts and a huge grin plastered on her face as she says, "Alright Commander, that's quitting time!"

I tilt my head at her as I ask, "And?"

Her grin gets bigger as she says, "The fair has been set up! We're going to go and check it out tonight."

I blink a couple of times as I ask, "Why tonight?"

She sighs and sits across from me, knees together, and folds her arms under her bust as she says, "Because you made me move."

I raise an eyebrow as I sit back and smirk and I ask, "Not going well in the new accommodations?"

She sighs and pouts a little before saying, "I love my sister, but sometimes she can be a little much. Georgia on the other hand is super easy going, so I'm good there."

I nod and just start to say something when she leans forward, putting both hands on my desk as she grins again and says, "But, right now, I don't have to think about that! Right now, you and I are going to the fair."

"But, I just want to head home." I start to protest.

She gets up from the chair completely and grabs my hands as she says more strongly, "We're going."

"But-" I start to say.

And again and she shakes her head before saying, "But nothin'! We are going."

I go to protest again, and she just smiles at me and I can't help thinking about what James had warned me about with Hornet, once she gets an idea in her head, she's going to go at it hard. I hang my head as I sigh out, "Fine, but I need to get home at a decent time tonight."

"We'll see about that." She almost sings out.

XXXX

Somewhere between the third beer and the fourth corndog, Hornet had dragged me to a mechanical bull that had been set up and I got an idea of just how much of a cowgirl she really was. I had to admit watching the way she rolled her hips and her body with the motions of the machine sent my mind right into the gutter. I mean it didn't help that I'd more than one good dream that involved Hornet since that one, a couple of weeks ago now. She looked at me and winked as she took her hands off of it, and just rode it with her thighs only. At the forty-second mark the mechanical bull settled down and she waved me over as she said, "Come on Commander! Get on here with me!"

As I started to protest, she got off and took my hands to pull me over to it as she said, "Come on, it'll be fine! All you'll need to do is hold on to me."

I sigh as she climbs back on and scoots forward a little to have enough room behind her for me to get on. Once I get up there she looks over her shoulder at me and says, "Get your hands on my hips, as I move them, you move yours in the same way."

I was going to say something and she just grinned at me, that grin is infectious. I swear it makes you more open to doing something you know you shouldn't. I put my hands on her hips and I see her shudder a little as she says, "Your hands are a little cold."

"Sorry." I mumble as she slides back a little to press her stern against me before she gives a wave with a finger indicating we're ready to go.

As the bull starts to lean forward, Hornet leans back, pressing her back into me, so I mimic the motion. As it rises upwards, she leans forward, so I copy that. As it starts to lean, she leads us through leaning in the other direction. After a few moments, she waves again and we start moving faster, and I know I'm in trouble as she starts rubbing against me in a way that isn't going to end well. Unfortunately for me, I lost my concentration as the bull went up and to the right, I leaned forward and to the right. What happened next would be one for the records books, as I lost my ability to ride it, and Hornet let out a squeak of surprise as I pulled her off along with me.

As we landed on the mats around it with a massive thump on the ground, my hands let go of her hips and moved to something else, something soft. From on top of me, I heard her say, "Um, Commander, even I can get embarrassed."

I looked over her shoulder to see that I was cupping her bust with my hands, I felt my cheeks get hot as I let go and said to her, "Sorry about that, Hornet."

She laughed as she sat up and said, "Well, at least your hands warmed up."

I sigh and ask, "Do you think anyone saw?"

She looked around for a moment and adjusted her hips against me as she said, "Nope, we landed on the other side of the bull. But do you think you could take whatever is in your pocket out? Whatever it is, it's poking me."

As if I wasn't embarrassed enough.

I take a moment to clear my throat before I say to her, "I can't do that."

"Why not?" she said before it sank in and she said while getting off of me, "Oh!"

From my position, laying on the ground I saw her looking up and off to the side, clearly trying not to smile as she tapped her chin with a finger. I rub my face with both hands and sit up and I say to her, "I just need a minute."

I watch as she shifts a little and tugs on her cape before asking, "Does it always do that?"

"Does what, do what?" I ask as I try to follow her train of thought before it clicks and I sigh before saying, "Yes, but usually when I want it too, or something is being rubbed against it."

Her head tilted to the side before she went bright red and asked, "When we were riding the bull, did I rub against it?"

I sigh and flop back down as I say, "Yes."

She shifts back and forth a little and whispers out a question, "Does it hurt?"

I give a sad laugh before I say, "No, usually when it gets like that, it means something that feels really good is about to happen."

It takes her a moment before she nods and makes a sound like she understands before asking, "So, like when Captain Stennis and Yorktown had sex?"

I sigh and nod as I say, "Yeah, it's kind of part of having that, at least for a guy."

"Huh." She said as she came over and extended a hand and asked, "Should we go and do something else right now?"

As I get to my feet I smile at her as I say, "Between the beer, corn dogs, and copping a feel of you, I think it might be better if I turn in for the night."

To my surprise, she looks down and nods before saying, "Alright, but I had fun tonight, did you?"

"Yeah, yeah I did, not a bad way to kill a Friday night." I say to her.

She looks back up, grinning before she links arms with me, and starts to walk towards my quarters with me.

XXXX

We were about halfway to my place when she asked, "So, are you going to tell me now?"

I blink a couple of times and ask, "Tell you what?"

"Who you want to be set up with." She says so calmly it honestly took me by surprise.

After I recover from the initial shock, I trip over my tongue as I ask, "What are you talking about?"

She pulls my arm close against her bust as she says, "In your office a couple of weeks back, I asked you if there was anyone you wanted to be set up with, remember? You avoided answering me then, but it's just you and me right now. So come on and tell Hornet so that I can be the best wing woman ever."

I sigh and hang my head a little as I say to her, "Honestly, I've had other things on my mind."

She bumped her hip against me and said, "No deflecting this time, tell me the truth."

Damn, she's good at reading me.

With another sigh, I tell her, "So, I got a non-order-order from fleet command, they noticed improved metrics with Yorktown after she and James got close with one another. And well, they want to see if that can be replicated." I pause to look at her as she gives me a sideways glance and I continue, "So they have encouraged me to see about forming a relationship with a kansen, even gave me a waver against an article 134 charge so long as it meets the stipulation of a relationship with a kansen."

Hornet was quiet for a moment before she asked, "So, who's the lucky girl going to be? I mean let's be honest, you're going to have your pick, I mean at least half the kansen will be interested."

I sigh and hang my head as I admit, "I have no idea, based on some questions that Enterprise was asking me, I-"

"Hold on! Enty was asking you questions? What kind of questions?" Hornet interrupted me to ask as we turned down a side street towards my quarters.

I shrug as I say to her, "She wanted to know if I liked women and what my type is."

In a split second, I knew as soon as those words my lips and I saw the look on her face that I was in trouble. She took on this mischievous look as she asked, "Yeah? What's your type then?"

"Why do you want to know?" I counter her question.

She grins at me and says, "If my sister of all people was asking, I got to know what the answers were."

I give her a sideways glance as I say, "She said that North Carolina was getting her to ask."

Hornet started to laugh as she said, "That doesn't sound like North Carolina; she's not the type to get others to ask questions she wants answers to." after a moment her eyes went wide and she asked, "How did Enty act when she got those answers?"

I knit my brow together as I try to recall the event from a couple of weeks ago before I shrug and say, "At first she seemed nervous, then more relaxed as she got information before blushing brightly at one of the answers."

It was subtle, but I managed to catch it before it was covered up, Hornet was irritated by this news. After a second she spoke, "Interesting. I wonder if she's curious about what Yorktown has."

I was surprised that the rest of the walk back to my quarters passed without another word being said, but I could tell something was off about Hornet the entire time. As we stood at the base of the stairs that lead up to my porch, her voice let me know that something was off as it seemed to be devoid of her usual enthusiasm when she said, "Good night, Sir."

As she turned to walk away, I grabbed hold of her right wrist as I asked, "Hornet, are you okay?"

She turned quickly and smiled at me, but it seemed empty of the usual warmth I'd find in it as she said, "I'm fine, I'll see ya on Monday."

I let go of her wrist and let it stand, if she didn't want to talk, I couldn't make her talk. But I couldn't help the sinking feeling I had in the pit of my belly.

XXXX

XXXX

I was awoken by the sound of rain the next morning, followed quickly by the sound of someone banging on my door. I got myself out of bed in a hurry, tossing on some lounge pants and taking the stairs two by two to get to the front door.

When I opened it, I was surprised to see Hornet standing there. She looked soaked to the bone, her shoulders trembling and she asked in a very quiet voice, "Can I stay here for a few days?"

In my coffee deprived state I stepped to the side to offer her entrance to my quarters. Once she came in, she took off her cape and hat, hanging them on the rack by the door. That was when I noticed that she had a kit bag with her and I asked, "What's wrong?"

She didn't answer right away; rather she went to my living room and laid herself down on her side on my couch, clutching her pack close to her chest as she said, "I had a fight with Enty."

I watch as she curled herself into a fetal position, after a moment I ask her, "I'm going to get a coffee, do you want one?"

Again she didn't speak but nodded. I could tell she was hurting about whatever that fight had been about. When I returned to the living room with two cups of coffee, I set one down on the coffee table by the couch while I sat in a chair and I asked, "What could the two of you have fought about that was so bad you came out here in this weather?"

She clutched the bag tighter and said, "I don't wanna say."

As she squeezed the bag, I was able to see inside the top of it. Inside I saw what looked like the bee plushy I had won at one of the games and gave to her last night. I take a sip of my coffee and change the subject, "Do you want to take a warm shower to warm up and I'll make up the spare room for you?"

She nodded slowly before getting off the couch and heading upstairs. No sooner had she headed up than I got a text message from Northampton asking, 'Have you seen Hornet? She and Enterprise had a huge blow-up last night.'

Sipping my coffee, I texted back, 'Yeah, she showed up on my doorstep this morning, but she won't say what it was about. Was it really bad?'

'I only caught a slamming door and I could hear some yelling but I couldn't make out the words.' She sent back, after a moment she added, 'How does she seem?'

'Not herself. She's gone up to take a shower and I'm going to get the spare room put together for her to crash in for a couple of days.' I messaged back to her.

'Sounds good, do you mind if I drop by later to check on her?' she asked via text.

'No problem, maybe she'll talk to you.' I sent back to her before putting my phone down and went about getting the room set up for Hornet to crash in.

XXXX

I had just finished getting the room set up when I sensed someone at the door frame; I looked over my shoulder to see Hornet standing there in one of my t-shirts. When I raised an eyebrow she flushed a little and said, "I needed something dry to wear, is this alright?"

I'll admit, it looked interesting on her frame; the Eagle Union crest distorted on her chest with the black shirt going just to her mid-thighs, her long blond hair was undone and cascaded down her back. After a moment she crosses her arms across her belly and had a look on her face like she wanted to say something, but stopped herself. As I turn to leave the room, I say to her, "I'm happy to listen if you want to talk to me, but I'll understand if you want to wait for Northampton, she'll be dropping by later to check in on you."

As I move past her and out of the room, I feel like something has snagged on the back of my shirt, I turn to see that Hornet is holding the back of my shirt and she whispers out, "Don't go."

I hold my position and I ask her again, "Hornet, what's wrong?"

Her head tilts down and she says with her voice starting to crack a little, "Enty likes you." I go to ask about it and she looks up and at me, I can see her green eyes are watering as she squeaks out, "And I like you too."

We were both quiet for a moment before I asked, "Why now? You've been pretty clear, about doing things as friends."

I can tell she's biting her lower lip and her voice cracks as she says, "I thought that was what I wanted. But when I thought about what Enty asked you, I hated the idea of her doing the things that Yorktown does with Captain Stennis with you." she pauses before adding, "I've always been the kind of girl that says what they want, if I like something or," she paused again, her cheeks getting red as she added, "someone."

I felt conflicted right now; I mean if I take advantage of this situation then I could be taking advantage of Hornet. She was the first girl I met on this island, the one I knew best on the island and I don't know what to do right now. I was about to open my mouth when I heard a knock on my door, perhaps I'm saved right now. I think she picks up on the conflicted place I'm in and she says to me, "Go, answer the door, I'm not going anywhere."

Once I get back downstairs and to the door, I open it to see a woman in not much with long dark hair that had an orange bow in it, she blinked her green eyes at me as she asked, "Is she here still Commander?"

It took me a moment before I asked, "Northampton?"

She nodded at me before introducing herself, "Sorry Sir, we haven't actually met yet, I guess."

I nod before confirming to her, "Hornet's upstairs, do you need a cup of coffee? It's still hot."

"I'm good sir, I'll head on up and check on her." She says as she moves past me and up the stairs.

XXXX

I spent the rest of the day giving them space, I figured Hornet needed it right now and I needed time to let things sink in. By the time I got back to my quarters with a couple of pizzas, both deep-dish this time, I noticed that Northampton had left, but Hornet's shoes were still by the door. I crossed into the living room and saw that Hornet was curled up on the couch with a blanket tightly around her, the TV remote in one hand and she was surfing the movie options. I shrug to myself before I put a pizza down on the coffee table in front of her and I sit on the couch at the other end. As she clues in that I put a pizza in front of her, she says to me, "I noticed you didn't answer me."

I open my pizza as I say, "You're right, I didn't." after a second I remember the beer in the fridge and I add, "Beer?"

"Please, but I still want an answer." She says as she seems to find a movie to watch.

I twist the top off of a couple of bottles and sit back down, passing her one as I say, "Are you sure? I mean I told you that I've been given a non-order-order to do just that."

She nods her head as she says, "Honestly, I thought you were cute when I first saw you and something told me to spend time with you, so I did."

I sip from my bottle as the movie starts to play and get comfortable on the couch and I say to her, "That's not an answer."

I catch the briefest of a smirk on her lips as she says, "You're right, it's not an answer." She turns slightly, leans in, and kisses me. It was a fantastic kiss, easily in the top five I've had. But it was over so quick; as it broke she touched my cheek and says, "But that is."

XXXX

XXXX

A/N: Chapter three done. I can see this one going one or two more chapters; we still have to deal with the fallout between Hornet making her move and Enterprise coming to terms with it.