Getting line at the mess hall, Audrey didn't pay too much attention to what she got for lunch. By the time she got to the end of the line, she found she had a pastrami and swiss on rye sandwich, a big kosher dill, French fries, and two Cokes. She looked up and saw Juggs sitting at small table near the back wall. Setting her tray down, she saw that all Juggs having for lunch, was a salad, lemon wedges and a glass of water. Juggs weighed almost as much Audrey did, despite being more than 6 inches shorter, and was in a nearly constant battle to keep her weight down to an acceptable level.

Juggs noticed Audrey, and she looked up at her, the rueful expression she had looking at her lunch, changing to a tentative smile. "Yo Boings!" she said. "Howgozit? Judging from the fact that you're here for lunch, instead of at the O club, drinking yourself sloppy, I'll take that as a good thing! So, what happened?"

Audrey sat down, picked up her sandwich, took a big bite out of it, and another one out of the pickle and started chewing. Juggs was her best friend. Would she understand the choices that Audrey was contemplating? Audrey decided she's tell it straight to Juggs, rather than hedge or shade the facts.

She swallowed and said in a somber voice, "It was pretty rough. Doc Chandler went over all the results from my flight physical, and baldly said that I was a casualty waiting to happen, if I was kept on combat status. Said my shields aren't what they used to be and that they'd never get any better. Said that I could be critically wounded or killed, if my shields fail at a critical moment."

Audrey's face settled into a grim, angry look, her eyes flashing. She continued in an angry growl. "Then Doc Chandler recommended that I be barred from any role where I might possibly see combat. Then she recommended that I be permanently grounded. Finally, she recommended that I be immediately processed for discharge."

Audrey's face twisted into a sour, bitter expression, her eyes still flashing angrily. "Then she had the nerve to tell me to 'settle down, get married and start a family'. I haven't heard a planeload of dogshit like that in quite a while! Who does she think she is, telling me what to do with the rest of my life? Leaving out the fact that I don't even have a boyfriend, the thought of kids right now just makes my skin crawl and turn my stomach! I remember my mother telling me, when I was being 'difficult', that one day, I'd have kids just like me! She called it the 'mother's curse', and she's almost never been wrong on such things!" she hissed angrily.

Juggs looked up from her salad, chewing thoughtfully. She smiled and started chuckling. Audrey was outraged. "This isn't funny!" Audrey almost shouted at Juggs.

Juggs smiled her teasing, mischievous smile and said in a chuckling tone, "Doc Chandler was wrong! There IS something wrong with you! I figured you'd punch her out 0.025 seconds after those words came out of her mouth! The fact that she's still walking around without a mark on her, tells me there is something SERIOUSLY wrong with your reflexes!"

Audrey covered her mouth with both hands to keep from bursting out in giggles. Dammit, Juggs had done it to her again! Whenever Audrey had been down, frustrated, angry or just feeling like the world was ganging up on her, Juggs would say something ridiculous that would get her to smile or giggle, even while they were on missions. It was one of the things that she loved most about her and made her such a valuable friend.

Juggs threw her head back and laughed out, drawing looks from the other diners, not that she cared. In her characteristic cheery voice, she laughingly said, "Gods, Boings! I thought you'd bust a gasket talking about what Doc Chandler recommended. And when she recommended you find a guy and have kids, I thought you'd rather get bounced by a bunch of Neuroi heavies! But, seriously," and Juggs stopped laughing, leaning towards Audrey and started speaking seriously, with no trace of humor. "Is there anything wrong with settling down with a guy, getting married and having kids? You're not one of….?" And she left the sentence dangling incomplete.

Audrey took another bite of her sandwich and pickle, and chewed thoughtfully. She swallowed and took another bite of the sandwich and pickle and slowly chewed even more thoughtfully. She and Juggs knew Witches who preferred being with other Witches, sometimes forming strong emotional, even physical bonds with each other. Part of it seemed to be the fact that the Striker squadrons were almost all female, and most Witches had only limited contact with men who weren't part of the chain of command or family. Despite the Liberion government's ban on same-sex relationships in the military, they seemed to be more common among the Witches. Like many other things, the armed forces looked the other way concerning such things about Witches, provided the participants were discreet.

Audrey had seen the consequences of a lack of discretion. When she was stationed at Myrtle Beach AFB, between her first and second Nam tours, Audrey met Lieutenants Margaret (Maggie) Parker and Shelly (Whirlwind) Storm. Both just graduated from Advanced Flight Training and were on their first permanent assignment. Apparently both Maggie and Whirlwind were intensely attracted to each other. Their relationship progressed to the point where neither of them could keep their hands off the other.

Finally, the hugging, kissing and other things got out of hand, with a most flagrant display of public affection that bordered on pornographic. The Squadron Commander was forced to step in. He laid it all out to them. It was apparent that they couldn't be discreet about their relationship, so there were only two choices. Either be stripped of their commissions and discharged from the Air Force for "conduct unbecoming of an officer' or accept a Permanent Change of Station of no less than 3 years away from each other. Both Maggie and Whirlwind accepted the Permanent Change of Station. Maggie would be sent to Kimpo AFB in Kita. Whirlwind would be going to RAF Alconbury in Brittania. They were given less than two weeks to get packed, move and report in.

The more Audrey thought about it, while she and Juggs had been close friends for over half her life, that's all they were. Moreover, Juggs never indicated that she wanted anything more than that. Audrey also never felt any kind of attraction to other Witches beyond friendship.

Audrey smiled and replied to Juggs. "No, I'm not" she said cheerily. "I just haven't found the right guy to settle down with. I'm still young, so there's still time.

Juggs smiled, heaving a sigh of relief. "Okay! So, what did General Cassidy say, once Doc Chandler laid her recommendations on him? Was he ready to blow a gasket too?" she asked eagerly.

Audrey laughed, shaking her head. "No, nothing like that. He kept his Stone-Face expression the whole time Doc Chandler was talking. He just thanked her for her recommendations and dismissed her." She went on. "The General talked about my experience, and how the Air Force needs me to teach the new Witches coming in all that I learned. He reminded me of our first mission with the 166th. Remember that?" She nodded at Juggs' shudder and smiled somberly. Fortunately, it was long enough ago that she was able to smile about it now.

Audrey continued in a somber voice. "Remember what a jugscrew it was? We lost Helen, Grace and Kelley trying to take down those walkers. Remember how we managed to lay down all of our napalm on them? He asked me if Beverly Maxwell could do the same on her first CAS mission. I told him she'd probably fly as fast as she could to Da Nang, catch the first flight home to Iowa, crying and screaming that she didn't sign up for this shit." Both Audrey and Juggs got a good laugh out of it all.

Audrey sobered and continued quietly. "He said that I needed to make sure that doesn't happen. That it would be up to me to teach the newly graduated Witches what to do and how to do it when everything goes all to hell. Said I could stay in the Air Force, if I could accept that I wasn't going to be the one to 'squeeze the pickle' and that I would be teaching those who would. "

Audrey looked at her chronometer. Speaking briskly and in a businesslike fashion, she said, "We gotta get going, Juggs. We've both got thing to do. I've got to report what the General and I talked about to the CO. You've got to get back to the contractors. Tell you what, let's meet for dinner at the O club. My treat. I do owe you for last night."

At Juggs' skeptical look, Audrey declared, "Look, having toast for breakfast and salads for lunch isn't going to do you any good, if you don't get enough protein and carbs to keep you going during the day, At least, that's what Doc Chandler keeps telling me. We'll meet at the O club about 1730."

During the conversation, Juggs finished her salad, and Audrey finished her sandwich, pickle and fries, much to Juggs' disgust and envy. Both picked up their trays and turned them in. Putting on their baseball caps, they headed back to the squadron area, the summer Arizona sun beating down on them relentlessly. After a few minutes, Juggs' face was already red and sweating, and Audrey could feel her legs and the back of her neck already starting to burn. Gods, it must be over 110 already. Screw this 'dry heat' business, it's freakn' HOT! And I just HAD to forget my sunscreen this morning, on top of everything else! She thought sourly.

Arriving at the squadron area, Juggs headed to the hangers, while Audrey went to the squadron administration building. Audrey darted in the building quickly, shivering in the cooler air conditioned atmosphere. Arriving at the squadron commander's office, she turned to the sergeant that was his secretary. "Is Colonel Donovan in?" she asked. The sergeant checked her notebook, and said. "He's currently in the hanger, talking with the contractors. He should be back soon. You can have a seat and wait for him,."

Just as Audrey sat down, Colonel Donovan arrived, wiping sweat off his forehead. Charging through to his inner office, he said, "Come on in, Boings! Let me get a cold drink and we can sit and talk."

Audrey went in the inner office and took a seat. Colonel Donovan was pretty easygoing and normally didn't stand on military formalities within his squadron. But there was no doubt who was in command, and everyone knew the right times to respect the man, rank and position. Colonel Donovan swept in, set his bottle of Coke on his desk, and dropped in his chair.

Colonel Donovan started talking in his rapid-fire manner. "So what's going on, Boings? I got a call from General Cassidy before lunch, that you're going to be transferred out of the squadron. Is there something going on that I should be aware of?"

Audrey took a deep breath. This conversation was going to be more difficult than she first thought. She brought up her head and looked Colonel Donovan in the eye, and started speaking almost mechanically. "Sir, Doctor Chandler shared the results from my last flight physical with General Cassidy. While I'm in good physical shape, my magical capacity is dwindling. The doctor is of the opinion that my shields are ready to fail and get me either killed or wounded during a mission. She's recommending that I be barred from any role that might see combat, that I be permanently grounded and processed for discharge. "

Audrey looked down at her shaking hands. She started speaking quietly again. "Sir, General Cassidy accepted her recommendations. But then he said that the Air Force still needs me. That I had to share what I know and what I've learned over the years with the new Witches coming out of Advanced Flight Training. He said that I needed to teach the new Witches what to do and how to do it when everything goes to hell, especially the stuff that's not in the 'Book'. He's offered me a slot in the Wing's 'Train-the-Trainer' program, the long course. Said that I might go to Fighter Weapons as an instructor, but that's up to the Air Force. He gave me a week to think about it, and a five day pass."

Colonel Donovan gave Audrey an apologetic look. "I'm sorry, Boings. I knew something like this was coming, and I didn't do anything to help you. What can I do?" he said quietly. Continuing on in his brisk style., he said. "This brings up an immediate problem for the squadron. Who's going to be Alpha Flight leader? Any suggestions, Boings?"

Audrey replied immediately. "I think Lieutenant Williams would be an excellent replacement for me as Alpha Flight leader. She's got the experience, the leadership, the flying skills and organization to keep things going. She should also be due for promotion soon, and her magical capacity seems to be holding steady for now.. I think she would be a good flight leader, sir."

Colonel Donovan arched an eyebrow skeptically. "And how do you think she'll deal with Maxwell, when she pulls another boneheaded stunt and fails to bail herself out with magic?" he asked, in a sardonic tone.

Audrey smiled, and replied in a cheery voice, "She'd probably slap her silly, and tell her to grow up and act like a real Witch or go home. Juggs has absolutely no patience with bullshit, sir."

Colonel Donovan barked out a short laugh. "Maybe that's what she needs to kick her butt in gear, and quit acting like someone's special snowflake princess!" He quieted and continued. "Juggs is a fine damn Witch and I will take your recommendation under advisement. I think that covers it, Boings. You're dismissed."

Audrey stood up, came to attention, and saluted Colonel Donovan. He came to attention and returned the salute. Audrey did an about face and strode out of the office. Coming to the main door of the building, she put on her baseball cap and stepped out into the intense heat. By the time she got to the BOQ, she was hot, sweaty, and miserable.

Finally getting to her quarters, Audrey immediately stripped off all her clothes, took down her hair, and made a beeline for the shower. While showering, the tingling in her legs reminded her that she probably got sunburned there. Time for Bactine again, she thought. Patting herself dry, she sprayed her legs and arms with Bactine. As the stinging burn eased, she gently applied lotion to the affected areas. She fished a pair of red bikini shorts out of her wall locker, and set about drying, brushing out and securing her hair. The last thing she needed to do was to call the BOQ admin office and set a wake up call for 1700. After getting all that done, she threw herself down on her bed and was snoring within minutes.