Disclaimer: I own the following characters: Kathy Robley, Jeff Robley, Isabelle and Amelia Chegwidden, Abigail Rabb, and Ellie Roberts. The rest belong to CBS/Viacom.

Acknowledgements:

Sonnet 18, Hamlet,by William Shakespeare The Cat who... Series by Lillian Jackson Braun To The Virgins, To Make Much of Time by Robert Herrick Chorale by Margaret Blackburn for the women of Sigma Alpha Iota Rhapsody in Blue, George Gershwin

1700 Romeo January 25 The Shakespeare Club

Harriet placed the last arrangement of ivy and pink roses on the table. All 25 tables had matching arrangements, except for the buffet table which had a garland of ivy around the edge. 'This looks more like a wedding reception than a memorial dinner,' Harriet thought to herself. 'But every last detail is the way she wanted it.'

Bud was pacing the floor practicing the monologue from Hamlet that Meredith had requested he read that evening. He had helped her with her Shakespeare summer camp the previous summer, as he had only been on limited duty half- days and the Admiral was trying to keep himself sane – so he send Bud to Meredith so she'd quit calling him every half-hour asking him a question about the University's new computer system. 'to die, to sleep, to sleep, perchance to dream...ay, there's the rub; For in that sleep of death what dreams may come...' He was interrupted by the arrival of the Brumby clan. Becky and Zach came in first, with Mic following behind supporting their VERY pregnant mother.

Harm followed them carrying his guitar case and a diaper bag belonging to the Chegwidden twins. He still couldn't really grasp the fact that tomorrow morning he would be bringing home a baby of his own. Nurse Robley had volunteered to give him baby lessons in addition to the new dad course he had signed up for at the hospital. Harriet had signed Bud and little AJ up for the Father/Son bonding class, and Mac had signed up AJ. He wasn't technically a first time dad, but it had been 26 years since Francesca had been born. Plus that way the women would have one night a week kid free. They had designated that as a girls' night.

The Admiral called out from behind Harm, "Commander, can you open this door? I can't juggle the front pack, Ellie's diaper bag, hold AJ's hand and open the door, too." Harm complied, and AJ pushed the stroller into a quiet corner out of the way. The stroller was the latest in stroller technology, one of those where the pumpkin seat snapped into the frame till they were big enough to sit in the seat. This one was a double seater to accommodate the twins, who were at the moment napping.

An hour later all of the JAG clan was assembled, and the hall was full of Meredith's friends, colleagues and former college friends. Mac was womanning the guestbook, and everyone else was in their assigned place inside the hall. AJ opened with a toast. "To the light of my life, and a dear friend to all- I here give thanks for the life of Meredith Jane Cavanaugh Chegwidden." They all raised their glasses in salute, and then the floor was opened to toasts.

Professor Selvaggio, her colleague from the University of Bologna, opened the floor toasts, followed by the SecNav, Harm, Mic, Bud, her college roommate , her fraternity guiding star, and finally Mac: "Two years ago next month, I stood by Meredith's side as she married my CO. Since that time, she has become a dear friend, and more of a sister to me than I ever thought possible." She then drained her glass and turned it upside down, ending the toasts.

Bud rose and read the monologue from Hamlet, and then while Harm got his guitar out and tuned it, AJ read a poem by Robert Herrick. She had adopted it as her "birthday poem" after reading a mystery novel by L.J. Braun, in which the main characters all had birthday poems.

GATHER ye rosebuds while ye may,

Old Time is still a-flying:

And this same flower that smiles to-day

To-morrow will be dying. The glorious lamp of heaven, the sun,

The higher he's a-getting,

The sooner will his race be run,

And nearer he's to setting. That age is best which is the first,

When youth and blood are warmer;

But being spent, the worse, and worst

Times still succeed the former. Then be not coy, but use your time,

And while ye may, go marry:

For having lost but once your prime,

You may for ever tarry. Harm played his guitar, playing and singing Meredith favorite sonnet set to music:

Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate:

Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,

And summer's lease hath all too short a date: Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,

And often is his gold complexion dimmed,

And every fair from fair sometime declines,

By chance, or nature's changing course untrimmed:

But thy eternal summer shall not fade,

Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow'st, Nor shall death brag thou wander'st in his shade,

When in eternal lines to time thou grow'st,

So long as men can breathe, or eyes can see,

So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.

Meredith's fraternity sisters stood, moving towards the table at the front of the room. In the midst of the flowers was a pillow on which reposed Meredith's fraternity pin. One of the sisters removed it from the table and handed it to little AJ to hold. They circled around it holding hands and began to sing:

Daughters of a great and singing nation,

Let your voices rise in dedication,

Music tells unspoken noble creeds;

Music beautifies the simplest deeds;

Sing we now to Sigma Alpha Iota.

Sing the greatness of the soul and spirit,

Sing the joy of peace and friendship's merit,

Music is a kind and truthful speech;

In a language out of mere word's reach,

Sing we now to Sigma Alpha Iota.

The sisters took the pin from the pillow and replaced it with a red rose. There were many performances of Shakespeare, Meredith's favorite music and more throughout the evening. Finally, one of the sisters sat down and played Meredith's favorite piano piece, Rhapsody in Blue. Little AJ was mesmerized by how fast her fingers flew across the keys.

The rest of the evening was unstructured, and while some drifted away, other people sat around and told Meredith stories until the early hours of the morning. AJ finally moved to the front of the room and paraphrased Shakespeare:

"Goodnight, my love, may flights of Angels sing the to thy rest."