Henry Blake sat in the Officer's Club at Army headquarters in Tokyo sipping on his Brandy in complete shock. He had just came from a meeting with Generals Hammond, Barker, Clayton, and Mitchell and the news they gave him floored him! They told him they weer trying to get him sent home back to the states soon. At first he was upset. Had he done something wrong? Did Burns and Houlihan put something in one of the hundreds of reports they are always writing about the 4077th that looked bad on him? The generals assured him that everything was fine and that Henry was pretty close on points to be able to go home and that was the reason. The quartet of commanders congratulated him and told him that this would not happen right away, but sometime in the near future he should expect to be home sooner than later. Henry was in shock! He had been in Kprea for so long he was afraid he would never get to go home!

"Boy oh boy will Mildred be happy!"

"Mildred?"

A gray-haired older man walked into the bar and overheard the jubilant Lt. Colonel.

"Oh that's my wife's name. Actually, it's her middle name. Her first name is Loraine. I only call her Mildred when she gets overexcited."

The man replied with a chuckle.

"Oh okay, I apologize for asking but Mildred is my wife's first name."

"Well what a coincidence! Please sit down. I'm Lt. Colonel Henry Blake."

"Nice to meet you, Blake. I'm Colonel Sherman potter!"

Colonel Potter took a seat at the bar beside Henry.

"Pleasure to meet you, Colonel. What are you having?"

"I wouldn't turn down a Scotch!"

"Right-o! Bartender! A scotch for the Colonel and another Brandy for me!"

"Right away sir!"

The bartender went to work making the drinks. Henry continued the conversation with Colonel Potter.

"What brings you to Tokyo Colone?" I work in administration for the Army."

Potter answered slightly annoyed.

"I work in administration right now."

"that sounds interesting."

Potter sharply retorted.

"Buffalo dumplings!"

The bartender brought back the drinks and both he and Henry looked at the older colonel surprised at his outburst. He clarified.

"I'm sorry. I get a little annoyed sometimes. You see this is my third war. I was in the Calvary in the big one, World War I, was a doctor on the front lines in WWII. I got hurt a couple of weeks before V.E. Day, recovered, but when I signed up for this little spat, they put me behind a desk with a new mountain of paperwork to fool with every day!" I've still got some good use left in these hands, these feet, and this brain, but I guess that doesn't matter to the Army. They put you wherever they want you! What's your story Blake?"

"I run a M#A#S#H outfit a few miles from the front in Uijeongbu in the south."

"The 4077th?"

"Yes sir!"

"I've heard a lot about you people! You all do amazing work!"

"We have a ninety-seven percent survival rate of incoming casualties."

"That's damn impressive Colonel!"

"Thanks. I couldn't do it without my staff!"

"You got a good bunch?"

"The best! I've got two, no three of the best surgeons over here, a great nursing staff, lead my a strict but compassionate head nurse, a company clerk who knows what I want before I even ask for it, and a great bunch of non-coms working under them!"

"That's good! I had a good bunch of people working for me in France before things went south for me in '45. When you got a good group under your command. It just makes things easier doesn't it?"

"Amen! I'll drink to that!"

The two men toasted their glasses and drank from them. Potter continued.

"So what brought you to Tokyo?"

"I had a meeting with my commanding officers. They said that they were working on getting me transferred home as a gift, but I don't know. I'm worried."

"About?"

"Well like I said. I've got a good groupl under me, but I'm afraid of what will happen there after I'm gone. Two of my doctors are probably the best cutters over here, but they're draftees. Outside of the OR, they're undisciplined as all Hell! One time they came up here, thought they saw McArthur at a bar in town and sent a box of pipe cleaners to his table!"

Potter busted out laughing as Henry continued.

"It wasn't him, but boy oh boy do they keep me on my toes. They don't get along to well with my two majors, another doctor and the head nurse I was telling you about. One time they put him in a crate while he was asleep! Another time they bobbytrapped her tent!"

Potter was horse laughing at this point and Blake couldn't stop himself from joining him.

"And when those two, the majors aren't complaining to the generals about them and me, they are out pulling crazy stunts like trying to order barbecue from the states! But I don't know what I'd do without them!"

"I understand. I'm as regular army as the day is long, but you can't expect a bunch of draftees to fall in formation like a real soldier anyways. What's the rest of your crew like?"

"Well my company clerk is just a kid. Barely nineteen. He came over here a baby practically a baby. He was a farm boy who didn't know his head from a hole in the ground, but I worked with him and now he practically runs the camp for me! He's a damn good little feller though! Innocent as the day is long and never met an animal he didn't like like it was family. He keeps half of the animals from the forest out behind the camp like pets in cages! Last month a Greek unit brought as a lamb to eat for Easter and he was so upset over it that he fenagled paperwork and sent it home to his parents back in Iowa so no one would eat it! If Pierce and McIntyre hadn't have made one out of SPAM I would have been in it deep that day!"

"A SPAM lamb?!"

"Oh it was ok. Everyone was too drunk to notice it! So what about you colonel? I take it from your tone you aren't hqppy over here. Not that any of us really are,"

"Well I hate being stuck behind that desk! Hell's bells, I'm ex calvary! I'd loke to see just a little more action! I'm not saying give me a rifle and put me on the front lines with a rifle, but I wish I was somewhere I could make a difference!"

"I understand colonel."

The two colonels spent the better part of the next hour talking about their families and things back home Henry regaled Potter of more tales from the 4077th . He even told him about all the times klinger tried to escape the camp. The two colonels soon said goodbye and went their separate ways, Potter back to his base and Henry back to the 4077th.

A short time later, Henry got the news he was going home. He recalled that evening he met Colonel Potter. He thought the regular army cavalier turned doctor turned administration clerk would make a great replacement for him and would keep the circus at the 4077th running after his departure and would certainly be able to do the job better than Frank Burns! He had Radar place a call to General Hammond.

"General Hammond, can I ask you a favor?"