As the old song goes, the waiting is the hardest part. As we sat in Vestal's office, waiting for her to get back, it was growing harder and harder not to worry about what would happen next. Both of us hoped it would be good news, as that would not only be short, sweet, and to the point, but it would allow us to immediately go about the rest of the day without having the added stress of dealing with the inevitable separation.

Suffice it to say, as much as I didn't care for the idea of us being separated a week ago, I felt exponentially stronger about it now. She had very quickly become an indispensable part of my life, and I loved every moment with her. The thought of having to leave her behind for months was almost more than I could bear. While we hadn't spoken much about it, judging by how tightly Intrepid held onto my hand, I think it was safe to say she felt the same way.

Our nerves were so taut that by the time Vestal got back, we both jumped when she opened the door and strode in. "Good morning, you two," she greeted us with a bright smile as she took a seat behind her desk. "I take it you're both eager to get the damage assessment reports."

Before I could say anything, Intrepid uncharacteristically cut in and curtly stated, "Don't dance around it, Vestal, just give it to me straight. How long?"

We both glanced at her in surprise, but needless to say, we understood her emotions at the time. Vestal self-consciously cleared her throat, looked down at her file again, and answered. "One week."

It felt like a crushing weight had been lifted from my chest and I let out a huge sigh of relief as Intrepid punched the air and let out a whoop. Vestal looked at our two very different reactions with a mixture of confusion and concern before she calmly asked, "May I continue?"

Intrepid and I shared a sheepish grin as our hands found each other once more. "We're sorry," I apologized, "Yes, please, go on."

She fixed us with another curious look for a few seconds more before she glanced back at her file. "As I said, it'll take another week to get everything repaired, but once the flight deck's completed, she'll be ready for full duty pending recertification. Do either of you have any questions?"

I glanced over at my silver-haired counterpart, who shook her head, and I looked back at Vestal. "Looks like we're good," I smiled. "Just send over the full report to my office so we can get it filed with Naval HQ."

"Well then," she said with a practiced smile, "We're all good here. I'll be in touch once the repairs are fully completed. Until then, stay safe."

"We will," Intrepid beamed as she stood up, practically dragging me along with her. "Have a good one!"

I barely managed to wave goodbye before we hurried out of Vestal's office, keeping up a rapid pace until we burst out of the hospital doors into the morning sunlight. As soon as we were outside, Intrepid cheered again, hopping up and down eagerly before wrapping her arms around me. "One week!" she exclaimed as she held me tight. "One week and I've got this!"

"Damn right you do," I smiled as I embraced her in return. "Nothing's going to stop you now." I let out another big sigh of relief. "So glad she had good news for us, I really didn't know what we were going to do if you had to stay behind."

She nodded as she finally let me go and gave me a quick peck on the cheek. "Me, too. I'm sure we would've come up with something, but I'm glad we didn't have to." As she looked into my eyes, I saw a flicker of worry and her smile faltered.

"What is it?" I asked, suddenly worried I'd overlooked something.

"Are you going to want me as your flagship?" There was something in her tone, an undercurrent of worry in it that made me think she didn't want to be.

I decided to play it safe and gently probe the issue. "Do you want to be the flagship?"

She shook her head and gave me a sympathetic smile. "I love you, and I love spending time with you, but…being a flagship means I'm going to miss out on a lot of combat, and I think I can do more good on the front lines than by your side."

In all honesty, this was a decision I'd gone back and forth on for a while now. I'd kept putting it off by telling myself that I was being premature, but it seems that was no longer an option. "I think," I sighed, "I think that you're right. As much as I want you by my side, that's not you. You aren't one to send people out, you're the one raring to prove yourself. To show the world what I know in my heart, that the Fighting I is the best damn ship in the fleet."

Her cheeks flushed red and she glanced away, her smile now an embarrassed one. "Thanks, John," she whispered. "You know…maybe we could strike a compromise?"

My eyebrow shot up as my interest was piqued. "Oh? What'd you have in mind?"

"Well, getting the fleet there is going to be a bit of a trip, and more than likely a pretty boring one. Maybe I could be your flagship on the way there, and once we're ready to start this big operation of yours, you can transfer your flag to someone else?"

"Nice little mini-vacation as we sail out there, huh?" I grinned, wrapping my arms around her waist. "I like the sound of that…"

"Mmm…I was thinking more 'the calm before the storm'," she hummed thoughtfully as she pulled me close. "But I like the way you put it better…" We shared a brief, but no less passionate kiss before Intrepid said, "Before that, though, we've got mountains of paperwork waiting for us…"

And so, over the next week, we got to work on the tsunami of reports, logs, and requisitions that needed to be filed. Fortunately, Bremerton, Essex, and a few others were more than willing to pitch in and lend a hand and we managed to get things done in an almost timely fashion. The week sped by and before we knew it, the day of Intrepid's qualification was upon us.

"Nervous?" I asked her as we made our way to the training grounds.

She gave me an unsteady smile and nodded slightly. "Little bit. I've done this enough times, I could probably do it in my sleep, but now that I've got so much riding on this…"

"...you really feel the pressure." I finished as I reassuringly squeezed her hand. "Just remember, you've got this, and that we all believe in you. Now get out there and kick some ass."

She grinned, gave me a kiss and a thumbs up before she headed into the kansen prep area. "Will do!"

I waved and watched her go before I headed up to the observation station where I was greeted with an unexpected surprise. As the door opened, I saw Bremerton there, waiting for me.

"Morning, Commander!" she beamed as she gestured for me to stand by her side. "Take it you weren't expecting me."

"Thought you'd be prepping for Operation Siren," I admitted as I took my place next to her and gazed out on the tranquil lagoon.

"Oh, I'm busy as a bee," she admitted, "But what kind of best friend would I be if I didn't show up for this."

"Fair," I chuckled.

"How was she?"

"Nervous," I answered honestly. "We've got one shot at this and that's definitely weighing on her."

"She's got this," Bremerton confidently declared.

I grinned over at her and nodded. "I told her as much, and that we have my utmost faith in her."

She nodded and looked out on the lagoon for a moment before she spoke up. "Y'know, I think the pressure might be good for her. She tends to fight harder when she feels like she's got something to prove."

"Isn't that all the time?" I asked half-jokingly.

"Sort of?" she shrugged. "It's true that she always feels like she's got to prove herself, but when the pressure's really on, it tends to galvanize her in..fairly spectacular fashion. Like her first round of training scores, for example."

"Well, let's hope it pays off here," I mused, falling silent as Intrepid sailed out onto the training grounds.

I glanced up at the monitors, watching across several feeds as she got ready, limbering up and shaking out any last-minute nervousness. I was just as familiar with the qualification process as any kansen by this point, and I knew all the tests Intrepid was going to have to run. First up was the standard maneuvering exercise. Once the buzzer echoed across the training grounds, Intrepid took off at flank speed, deftly skating around a preset path she could not deviate from. It changed each time so a kansen couldn't just get by on muscle memory alone, but it seemed that this didn't bother the silver-haired carrier one bit. She made it look easy at how effortlessly she took every curve and bend, breezing through the finish line with time to spare.

"First hurdle down," I announced quietly, "Aircraft launch and recovery up next." And in my opinion, this is where we found out how effective Vestal's repairs were. If there was a time and place for something to go wrong, this would be it. My eyes were fixed on the monitors as she summoned a strike package of Hellcats and Avengers before launching them in rapid succession from her deck. No sooner than they had cleared Intrepid was calling up a wave of Hellcats which quickly joined the others circling above her. Once all were in the air, she began recovering them just as fast, the planes landing and vanishing from her deck one after the other. The test complete, I let out a long breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding in just as Bremerton excitedly tapped me on the arm. When I looked over at her, she was gesturing at the readout on one of the monitors.

"Look at that!" she practically squealed. "Look at those reload times! I think she's beaten out any carrier with those times!"

I quickly glanced down at the training grounds to make sure I wasn't missing anything before comparing her scores with all the other carriers at port. "You're right," I laughed in amazement. "Fastest launch time in the history of the base! Go, Intrepid!"

The major obstacle out of the way, the only test remaining was for her to hit several targets, some moving, some stationary. Once more, her planes took to the skies and set out towards their objectives. As I expected, it had gone off flawlessly. While her hit percentages weren't as stellar as her launch times, they were more than enough to qualify her as fit for active duty. I turned my attention back to the console with her raw data feeds. "Anything out of tolerance?"

Bremerton swiped through a few screens to double-check before she shook her head. "Nope!" she cheerily confirmed. "Everything in the green, she's fit for service!"

"Out-goddamn-standing," I grinned as I happily acknowledged the report and sent it to be officially filed. With that out of the way, I activated the speakers and lifted the microphone to my lips. "Great job, Intrepid! You're both fit for service and you set the record for launch and recovery time for any carrier. I knew you could do it!"

While there were no microphones to pick up her cheers, in true Intrepid fashion, when she went to hold her hands up to cheer, she promptly smacked both of them against her flight decks…

"We all ready to go?"

I glanced over my shoulder to see Intrepid stepping out onto the bridge wing and smiled warmly at her. "All set," I confirmed as I turned back to the view of the port. "Just…taking one last look before I go."

I felt her arms wrap around my waist as she came up behind me, her chin resting on my shoulder. "Last time you left, was…what, that trip to the Northern Parliament?"

"Mhm," I nodded. "And that took months. Who knows how long this one will take?"

"At least you have some company with you this time," she giggled as she kissed my cheek.

"And I couldn't ask for better company," I whispered as I turned my head to return her kiss. "Let's cast off and get underway. Should have a beautiful view of the stars tonight."

"Aye aye, Admiral," she softly replied as she fired up Intrepid's engines. No matter what came next, I knew Intrepid would be by my side. In Mare, In Coelo, In Astra.

A/N-And so ends another story. Or does it? Yes it does. OR DOES IT? Yes. And by yes I mean maybe and by maybe I mean no. Or yes. Just to keep things clear. Speaking of clear, we've got a clear winner for the next story and it is August von Parseval! Her story, A Dance With Dragons, I mean A Song of Ice and Fire, I mean House of the Dragon, uhhhhhh…I mean title pending. Until next story, fair winds and following seas!