Mikasa ushered me into the museum's back room, the shelves lined with boxes of model kits and various paints of nearly every color. "This way, Commander," she said as she led me to a small, well-lit table covered in various tools, paintbrushes, and bottles, along with a single large box. "Here we are. One model of...myself, ready to get started."

'Outstanding," I smiled as I delicately lifted the top off of the box, admiring the art for a moment. "Although...how is this going to work with the two of us working on one model?"

"For the assembly, we can split up the filing and sanding while you glue the pieces together, and once we're ready, we can go over the painting."

"Sounds like a plan. Let's get to work."

We grabbed a couple of chairs, a pair of files and clippers, and got to work. The early work of removing the model pieces from their sprues and filing them down was relatively repetitive and didn't require much concentration. As such, I wasn't surprised when Mikasa decided to pick up the conversation again.

"So, Commander," she began, "How've things been going in your personal life? Still keeping in touch with your parents, relatives, significant other?"

"Dad's been doing well, keeping busy gardening." A wistful smile came to my face as I chuckled softly. "Never thought a guy like him would be doing gardening, but he's really taken to it. Brother's pretty good, about to go on a cross-country trip with his wife."

She waited for me to answer, and when I pointedly kept my eyes focused on the half of the hull I was cleaning up, she spoke the unspoken question. "...and significant other?"

"No." I surprised even myself with just how curt that answer was, and I took a deep breath and shook my head, adding, "Not seeing anyone right now."

Mikasa hesitated, but to her credit, asked, "Any particular reason?" When I hesitated, she added, "You know, it's been over twenty-four hours and we have yet to have a personal tragedy..."

"I stubbed my toe on the coffee table this morning, thought it was the worst," I joked, attempting to deflect the question.

"If you don't trust me…"

"No," I quickly interrupted as my head snapped up to look her in the eye. "It's not that at all. I trust you more than anyone else on the base. It's just…" I sighed and looked away. "It brings up a lot of painful memories, old baggage, that sort of thing."

"I understand what you mean, and I don't mean to dredge up anything painful for you. But I can see it's still weighing on you pretty heavily, and my offer still stands: if you ever want to talk about it, get it off your chest, I'm here for you."

Part of me wanted to tell her, to tell anybody what I was feeling, what had been on my heart for years now. I knew I needed to get it out, that it had long become toxic, poisoning any potential romance, but...as much as I hated it, I was afraid to let go of it. It had become as much of a shield as a poison, protecting me from being hurt again. If I moved on, I risked being heartbroken once more.

In the end, I just wasn't ready right then to unburden myself, as it were. "I appreciate the offer again, and one day, when I'm ready, I'll tell you the long, sad, story."

"But not today."

"But not today," I sadly nodded. "I'm sorry, but I'm just...I'm not ready yet."

"And that's okay," Mikasa added with a reassuring smile. "You take your time, and when you are ready, I'll be there for you."

"Thank you, Mikasa."

"Anytime, Commander."

"Actually, when we're off duty, you don't have to call me 'Commander', you can call me John."

"John?" she repeated.

"That's the one," I smirked teasingly at her. "My first name."

"O-oh," she stammered, seeming flustered again. "Well, alright...John."

We lapsed into silence as we returned to our work. That is, until Mikasa playfully added, "So does that mean you want me to stop trying to pair you up with Taihou?"

I'm sure I woke up half the base with my laughter.

The next couple of days passed without incident. Mikasa managed to finish removing the destroyed shelves and display cabinets with the help of myself and a few others, along with bringing in the replacements. With everything set and ready to go, it was time for Mikasa to replace Soryu as my secretary. I'd never worked with her in any real capacity, so I was excited to see what the Grand Veteran would be like in a more formal setting.

As I approached my office, I heard someone moving around in there, and I felt a surge of alarm run through me. Did Taihou make another key? Did I forget to lock it?

Before I could swing the door open and find out, it opened for me to reveal Mikasa standing there before me. "Good morning, Commander! Aren't you going to come inside so we can get started on the day?"

For a second, I stood there, my hand still extended as if to grab the doorknob, as I tried to work out how she managed to get inside. "...how…?"

"The key, remember?" she answered. "You let me keep the copy of the office key Taihou made?"

It all came back to me in a rush and I nodded emphatically. "Right!" I said as I finally made my way inside, hanging up my cap on the hat rack. "Right, I remember now. Sorry, don't know how that managed to slip my mind. How long have you been here? Find everything alright?"

"Just a few minutes," Mikasa nodded. "Soryu showed me everything yesterday, so it's been pretty easy getting into the swing of things. I've already got the morning commission reports prepared, and there's a fresh cup of coffee already waiting for you on your desk. Just the way you like it, two sugars, one cream."

I smiled, and then I realized I'd always gotten my own cup of coffee in the morning. "Wait...how did you know? Did Soryu tell you?"

She grinned proudly and shook her head. "No, I got it from Mainz. Apparently, there was a...mild disagreement over how you took your coffee when she was your secretary."

"That's putting it mildly," I said drily. "Thought she was going to bludgeon me with the coffee maker over that argument. She said it was 'blasphemy' I would 'taint the purity' of coffee."

"She still feels that way," Mikasa giggled. "But she at least was kind enough to tell me...after a fashion."

Interesting choice of words. "After a fashion?"I asked, eyebrow raised. "I take it she was unwilling to part with that information?"

Mikasa shrugged nonchalantly. "At first, but I have my ways. Now go and take a sip before it gets cold!"

"Alright, alright," I laughed as I walked over to my desk and grabbed the cup. I took a sip of the hot coffee and was instantly impressed. "Oh, this is good. This is damn good."

"Thank you, Commander!" Mikasa beamed with pride. "I wanted to make sure we got our first day together started off on the right foot."

I took another sip and nodded again. "This is good enough to start off the entire week on the right foot. So what's up first?"

"Well, I've compiled the reports from yesterday's patrols, along with commission and expenditure reports. Once that's done, I thought we could go over that fleetwide exercise, start picking out group leaders, that sort of thing."

"Sounds like a plan. Let's get started."

The reports and patrol logs were handled easily enough, allowing us to quickly move on to the fleet exercise. Both Mikasa and I decided to shake things up by pairing off the factions with their(until recently) primary rival. So the Iron Blood and the Royal Navy would face off against the Sakura Empire and Eagle Union.

As we were going through the rosters, Mikasa spoke up. "If I may make a bit of a request…"

I glanced up from the list of potential fleet commanders, curious as to what her favor might be. "Go ahead."

"I would like Shokaku to take the lead for the fleet."

"Shokaku?" I repeated, eyebrow raised. "Not Akagi or Zuikaku or Nagato?"

Mikasa nodded and began to explain her choice. "Akagi and Nagato are both used to leadership roles, so they would gain nothing from this exercise. And while Zuikaku isn't quite there yet, she's well on her way, she just needs to realize the only thing holding her back is herself. But Shokaku...she can be just as strong, just as powerful as her sister, perhaps even more. She just needs a bit of a push forward."

"And making her fleet commander will be that push out the door that she needs?"

"I believe so."

I leaned back in my chair and mulled it over. I was originally planning on picking Enterprise as the Sakura/Eagle commander, but Mikasa's words had wisdom to them. While Zuikaku, the eager firebrand that she was, was clearly on a path to leadership and glory, there was something to be said for her much quieter, yet equally competent sister. Shokaku's name came up in commendation reports just as often as Zuikaku, but...something seemed to be holding the white-haired crane back. Perhaps this is what she needed to truly "take flight".

"Alright," I nodded slowly. "Shokaku will be commander for the Sakura and Eagle Union combined fleets. Any other inspired leaders for the Royal Navy and Iron Blood fleet?"

"None," she shook her head. "But I'm sure you'll come up with someone equally interesting."

"No pressure," I smirked as I returned to the roster.

In the end, I selected Hood to lead the Royal Navy/Iron Blood forces. Well-respected by both Iron Blood and Royal Navy alike, with a keen tactical mind and a passionate drive that was hidden by her elegant demeanor. She should pose an excellent opponent for Shokaku for good or for ill. With the roster now completed, all that was left was to make the announcement official, which would go out tomorrow morning.

As we were finishing up, my phone buzzed and I fished it out of my pocket to find I had received a text from, of all people, Shokaku. I smiled to myself at the timing as I read the message. She and Zuikaku had retrieved the salvageable models from Mikasa's museum, and with the help of a number of the Sakura Empire girls, were working on restoring them.

"Daydreaming, Commander?" Mikasa's stern, yet gentle voice snapped me back to reality as I guiltily put my phone back in my pocket.

"Not at all," I replied, trying my best not to act like a student being caught napping. "Just replying to a text."

"Understandable, but it's important to not lose focus. After all, the sooner we're finished, the sooner we can move on to other things."

"Of course, I'll try to keep my attention on my work."

"It's alright," she smiled. "Even the most hardworking people sometimes have lapses of judgment. It is my duty to admonish you in times like these."

"Gee, thanks."

We each returned to our paperwork, diligently, yet silently working on our tasks until Mikasa broke the silence.

"Who was the text from?" she suddenly asked, with no preamble or warning.

"Huh?"

"The text message you were reading, who was it from?"

I tried to keep my poker face on as I decided to answer...somewhat honestly. "Shokaku. She was trying to organize a cleanup for the model museum, but I just told her we managed to get it sorted out."

If she caught on to my lie, she let it pass unremarked. "That's sweet of her," she smiled. Her eyes flicked to just over my shoulder, and her smile grew even bigger. "Won't be long now…" she said softly.

I followed her gaze to the window and the view outside. "What won't be long now?"

Now it was Mikasa's turn to snap back to reality and look sheepish. "Oh, sorry. I was talking about the cherry blossoms. Won't be long before they bloom. You said you were going to take a day to view them, right, Commander?"

"I did," I nodded. "Probably whatever Sunday that falls closest to the best time to view them."

The battleship peered out of the window for a few more moments and I could see she was working out the best time. "...this Sunday, then," she finally declared.

"Do I have anything scheduled for Sunday?"

Mikasa quickly trotted back over to her desk and flipped through my appointment book. "No," she answered as she shook her head. "Nothing scheduled for that day."

"Good. Keep it that way," I said. "And if it isn't too much to ask, would you mind keeping it free for yourself as well? It's my first time doing this, and I'd appreciate it if I had someone along with me to show me the ropes."

Her amber eyes widened in surprise, and she looked away for a moment. "I...uh...I…" she said haltingly. "Are you sure there isn't anyone else you'd like to take with you? Shokaku, perhaps?"

"I don't think that's a good idea once the announcement goes out tomorrow, for starters. And more importantly, I've enjoyed spending time with you and I'd like to keep spending time with you. If you feel the same way, that is," I hastily added.

She smiled softly and nodded hesitantly. "I do. And I will. Go with you, that is." Her smile grew more confident as she spoke until the old Mikasa shone through. "After all, if this is your first time, someone should be there to make sure it's done properly!"

"I knew I could count on you, Mikasa," I grinned. "Thank you."

"Think nothing of it, Commander! Now let's get back to work."

The next morning, the announcement went out, and as expected, the entire base was humming with the news. Most seemed to be excited with the prospect of combat, even if it was simulated. Shokaku's posting as head of the Sakura Empire and Eagle Union fleet raised its fair share of eyebrows, including the elder crane herself, but if anyone had any serious objections, they had kept them to themselves. One unexpected consequence, however, was making its way to my office, one that would have far-reaching ramifications...

"So far, things seem to be going smoothly," Mikasa noted as she sorted through the new mountain of paperwork that had sprung up on her desk. "Quite a few requisitions for training areas and meeting rooms, but I think we'll be able to handle the demand. And I think morale is up across the base, too."

I glanced up from my own stack of requisition forms and nodded in agreement. "I think the biggest hurdle is going to be juggling the training areas to make sure everyone has equal time. Probably best to get a spreadsheet going on that."

No sooner were the words out of my mouth than Mikasa had produced exactly that. "Already way ahead of you, Commander. Working on getting the first groups assigned and I'll get word out to them within the hour."

Even by Mikasa's exacting standards, this was truly impressive work. "Outstanding," I said appreciatively. "What would I do without you?"

"Oh, I'm sure you'd manage," she demurred.

"I'm sure I would, but not as easily as you've made it look."

Before the mutual appreciation could go any further, there was a sudden knock at the door. "Master," a familiar accented voice called out, "It's Belfast. I'm here on the Queen's business, may I enter?"

While I enjoyed Belfast's company from time to time, I wasn't a fan of "the Queen's business". It more often than not tended to end up giving me a headache of some description and took away valuable time from my day. Still, ignoring it would just make it worse later on down the road. Best to deal with it now.

"Enter," I called out, and Belfast entered, a polite smile on her face and an envelope in her hand.

"Good morning, Commander, Mikasa," she greeted each of us with a brief curtsey as she made her way to my desk. "I'd love to stay and chat, but I'm afraid things are a bit busy at the moment. If you'll accept delivery of this missive from Her Majesty, I shall be on my way."

Eyeing up the gilded envelope as if it were a venomous serpent, I slowly reached out and plucked it from her gloved hands and nodded to her. "Thanks, Belfast. Good luck with the exercise."

"I shall pass on your good wishes," she replied with another curtsey. "Have a pleasant day, Master."

"And you," I replied with a forced smile, one I keep on until she's left the room. As soon as the door shuts, I let out a long, loud sigh and slump back in my chair, still warily eyeing the envelope.

My clear disgust did not escape Mikasa's eye, and she peered curiously at the letter. "Is...everything alright, Commander?"

"At the moment, yes. But that's about to change once I open this letter," I dryly remarked. Queen Elizabeth made a habit of conducting all of her correspondence with me via letters, which, on the one hand, meant I didn't have to deal with her haranguing me in person. On the other hand, I did have to sit here and take time out of my day to read it.

"Well, best get it over with quickly so you can move on from it."

It wasn't a bad idea, and I nodded approvingly before tearing open the letter. Inside was a single card, similarly gilded around the edges, and affixed with the seal of the Royal Navy. In hindsight, I should have realized this was coming, but I had been so preoccupied with covering for the Sakura girls working on the museum, spending time with Mikasa, and organizing this exercise, it completely slipped my mind.

"It's an invitation to their usual pre-exercise banquet," I announced. "They have one every time there's a major operation or exercise. I show up, mingle a little bit, enjoy the food, go home." I continued to skim over the card as I continued to talk, but my voice trailed off as I got to the last line of the invitation. "Honestly, it's...not...that...oh, hell…"

Mikasa walked over to the desk to peer over my shoulder. "What? What is it?"

I held up the note for her to read, tapping on the last line. "She's insisting that I bring a dance partner to the date."

She peered at the card, then at me, then back to the card. "I don't get it. How is that a bad thing?"

"It's all about the politics. She's using it as an excuse to either leverage information from me if I bring a Royal Navy or Iron Blood kansen, or to claim I'm not being impartial if I bring an Eagle Union or Sakura girl."

Mikasa tapped the invitation against her chin as she thought it over. "Politically speaking, not a bad idea."

"Mikasa!" I exclaimed, taken aback by her sudden appreciation for Machiavellian schemes.

"It's not something I would do!" she quickly protested, "But I can see how she could spin it to her advantage." She paused, thinking for another moment. "You could always not go."

"No, no," I sighed, "she'd make a big stink about that, too. No, I have to bring someone…" My eyes drifted up to the woman by my side and suddenly, I was struck by a flash of inspiration. "How about you? You free tomorrow evening?"

For a second, she stared at me, frozen in shock until she finally composed herself. Slightly. "You'd like me to be your dance partner at the next banquet?" she sputtered. "... I-I suppose I have no choice…"

"You always have a choice," I quickly corrected her. "This is strictly casual, off-duty stuff, and I would never order someone to spend their free time with me. This is an invitation if you want to go."

Her eyes fixed on a point far in the distance as she pondered the offer. "And if I say no?"

"I'll find someone else. One of the girls who'll be on patrol and not part of the exercise or something like that. Assuming they'll have me."

"I'm sure you'd find someone, Commander," she reassured me. "But that will be a worry for another day. I will go with you."

A/N-A banquet? I'm sure nothing of note will happen there, no sir. Until next time, fair winds and following seas!