A/N: On to chapter 2! Things are about to get a whole lot more interesting, please read and review! Again, caution: any errors I have made are completely mine. Hope you enjoy it!
Chapter 2: Day One
The large expanse of buildings that made up Fort Belvoir were still dark when Donna pulled up to the watchmen's gate at 4:30 in the morning. The drive from this guy Josh's apartment had only taken 10 minutes, but on account of her nerves, it felt like much longer. She was still in her sweats from the previous night, and her hair was pulled into a loose ponytail that she had done hurriedly in the car-not exactly the best first impression she could make going onto post for her first day. She pulled her 1983 Pontiac 6000 up to the gate and rolled down her window.
"Second Lieutenant Donnatella Moss, reporting for duty." She said as officially as she could. She hoped that by acting professional, maybe no one would notice right away that she didn't exactly look professional at the moment.
The older female Army official looked unamused. "ID."
Donna handed over her newly-issued military ID. "I was processed yesterday."
The woman nodded once, before handing back the ID. Donna caught a glimpse of the woman's ID: Captain Margaret Hooper, US Army.
"Go around the back, take a right, park over there, and you'll find the barracks pretty quick."
"Thank you, ma'am." Donna replied.
"And one thing more." Donna nodded. "There's latrines in front of the barracks, in case you want to duck in and change before inspection." Captain Hooper gave her a pointed look.
"Yes, ma'am. Thank you, ma'am." Donna said gratefully. She stepped on the gas and pulled off toward the barracks as soon as the arm was lifted.
As soon as she got in, per Captain Hooper's suggestion, she ducked into the bathroom and changed hurriedly into her daily service uniform. She placed her civilian clothes in her green Army bag with much of her belongings, then stopped at the front desk. The sergeant in charge directed her to the fourth floor, room 420.
Donna took the stairs (she considered the elevator, but figured she better get used to lots of physical activity) then pulled open the door to room 420. She was pleasantly surprised to see Carol already unpacking.
"No way, we're rooming together?" Donna asked.
Carol nodded, grinning. "Stroke of luck, I guess. Girls on this side, guys on the other side."
Donna nodded and smiled back. "You pick a bunk yet?"
"Top. You get bottom." Carol grinned a sly grin, a look that Donna recognized. "So...tell me about this guy last night."
Donna groaned slightly. "I barely remember last night."
"Come on, Moss. You have to give me something. You slept with someone the night before we started our first Army post! Do you at least know his name?"
She hesitated. "Josh. His name is Josh."
"Cute. Did you talk to him before you left?"
"Yes, he saw I was in the Army, and I told him it was likely we would never see each other again."
But before Carol could say anything else, a loud voice reverberated down the hall. "OFFICER ON DECK! FALL IN AND REPORT FOR INSPECTION! ATTEN-HUT!"
Donna and Carol both ran out of their room and got into formation with the rest of the floor. Donna looked slightly to the left and saw a middle-aged woman (not that much older than Elizabeth Bartlet, she noted) in full service uniform, standing at the other end of the hallway.
"That's our CO?" Carol murmured to Donna.
"What were you expecting, a man?"
"Kinda."
"Listen up!" the woman yelled, shutting both young officers up right away. "My name is Major Cregg, I'm your CO. Do not do anything to make me your enemy, nothing good will come of it. I assume most of you on this floor are officers, several from West Point, so I'm not going to repeat basics. When I come to you, you will step forward and give your name and rank, and remain forward for inspection. Do I make myself clear?"
"MA'AM, YES, MA'AM!" everyone chorused.
Major Cregg started at the end of the row, and worked her way down. Donna frantically made sure her hair was in place. She knew there wasn't much that could be done now about the wrinkles in her uniform, but she hoped she would pass anyway.
Then Donna heard, "Second Lieutenant Carol Fitzpatrick, ma'am."
Staring at her for a long moment, Major Cregg said, "Alright, you pass. Step back."
Then, it was Donna's turn.
"Second Lieutenant Donnatella Moss, ma'am." she stated loudly and clearly.
"Donnatella. Interesting name. Your mother came up with it?" Major Cregg asked, though Donna could tell it was not a question of casual interest.
"Yes, ma'am, as a matter of fact."
Major Cregg looked her over. "Your hat's crooked. And your uniform's a mess. What did you do, sleep in it?"
Donna said nothing. "You wanna answer me there, Moss?" Major Cregg said as severely as possible.
"Yes, ma'am! No, ma'am, I didn't sleep in my uniform."
"Was it or was it not made clear to you the standards of ironing and laundering your uniform?"
"Yes, ma'am, it was."
Major Cregg was silent. Then she spoke up again. "See that's it in proper standards before breakfast, understood?"
Donna nodded.
"I said, DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?"
"YES, MA'AM!"
"STEP BACK!" Donna immediately did so.
"All right, listen up! On my order, you will march downstairs and outside for calisthenics. LEFT FACE!"
The two rows turned.
"FORWARD MARCH!"
In perfect formation, the commissioned officers marched outside, where for the next two hours they were put through intense physical training. Donna had assumed that after West Point, she would be commanding her own unit, but she wasn't about to ask.
"Up! Down! Up! Down! Keep those backs straight!" Major Cregg yelled. "Don't even think about slacking off!"
After push-ups, an obstacle course, and a two-mile run, the officers were more than ready to eat. But first, Donna had to fix her uniform. She went back to her room and ironed it until it was crisp. Then, she returned to the Mess Hall and ate, where she learned her first lesson as a soldier: you ate what was in front in you and you didn't complain, even when the food in front of you was barely identifiable.
After breakfast, they had a half an hour to take care of any personal needs. Once they were finished with that, there was a room inspection, where Major Cregg was joined by an unfamiliar middle-aged Latino officer in dress uniform.
"Lieutenant Moss, Lieutenant Fitzpatrick, this is Colonel Santos, the director of this garrison. You won't be seeing him much, but he wanted to make sure he introduced himself to all the new officers." Major Cregg announced.
"Lieutenants." Colonel Santos greeted politely. Donna and Carol fell into formation quickly. "Welcome to the 29th."
"Thank you, sir." they responded in unison.
"Carry on." Colonel Santos told them as he headed back to his office.
After the room inspection, they began what they assumed would be a part of their daily routines: shooting drills and maintenance, among other related tasks. By lunch, they had worked harder than they had in a while, even in officers' training. Most of it, however, was training for what came after lunch: taking command of their own units.
"All right." Donna stood in front of her own small platoon, which consisted of about ten enlisted soldiers. "We're going to be working on weapon maintenance and on operating your ammunition equipment. This should all be review, so let's get to work."
For the next three hours, Donna put her platoon through several different drills and weapons placements. She also instructed them on how to assemble and disassemble more complicated weapons in the fields.
At 4:30, she called out, "FALL IN!"
The platoon immediately got into formation, and Donna was pleased to see them all fall in quickly.
"I'd like to thank you all for making my job easy on me. Tomorrow, we do more drills. You!" She indicated the soldier on the far left. "What's your name?"
"Corporal Cliff Calley, ma'am." the soldier stated.
"Corporal Calley, will you lead the men to the barracks, and then you all are dismissed for the day."
Calley nodded, and in quick succession, led the soldiers out of the area. After ensuring all of her equipment was properly stowed away, she headed back to her own room to get ready for dinner.
Carol was already getting ready when Donna walked in. "How was your afternoon?"
"Good, thanks. I really think my new platoon's going to work out nicely. How about yours?"
"A couple of them are rough and need work, but I think I can whip them into shape. I'm just not used to leading."
"We were at West Point for four years! How can you not be used to leading?"
"Easy. You were proactive, knew what you wanted when you wanted it. You were a natural leader. Bartlet could see that, that's why he put you in charge of the debate team."
"But you were on the team. You led us in drills all the time!"
"Yeah, but I never would've had that same leadership experience if Bartlet hadn't pushed me into it."
"You know, I'm very glad to hear you say that," a voice boomed from the doorway. "I happen to think you were two of the finest debate team members I ever had." They turned to find Officer Bartlet in the doorway.
"Officer Bartlet, sir." Donna exclaimed in disbelief, as she and Carol snapped to attention. "What a pleasant surprise!"
"You look wonderful, both of you." he said, stepping further into the room. "Then I take it officers' training did not completely destroy you."
"No, sir, it didn't." Donna said, still amazed by the fact that their old West Point professor was standing in their barracks room.
"And how has your first day been?"
"Difficult, but quite successful, sir." Carol responded.
"And do you agree with Lieutenant Fitzpatrick's assessment, Lieutenant Moss?"
Donna nodded. "Yes, sir."
"Good. Oh, and look who I found wandering around the barracks?" Officer Bartlet moved to reveal Charlie Young.
"Charlie!" Donna said delightedly. "It's so good to see you!" She enveloped the young lieutenant in a hug.
"You, too, Donna." Charlie smiled.
Just then, Officer Bartlet interrupted the mini-reunion. "Now, would it be all right if I escorted the three of you to the Mess Hall? There's a former student of mine I would like to introduce you to."
"Of course, sir." Donna replied for the three of them.
As they began to walk down the hall to the Mess, Donna asked, "How's Ellie doing in Afghanistan? Have you heard from her?" The middle Bartlet daughter had not been far from Donna's thoughts since Ellie had told her she was deploying shortly after graduation.
Officer Bartlet replied, "Oh, she writes a lot, we write back just as often. She calls sometimes, too, as she did last week. Abbey nearly cried, it was such a relief to hear her voice. Oh, and the latest in technology, I almost forgot!"
"Sir?"
"They have a computer over there with a webcam. It's all very Stone Age, but if we set up a time to talk that coincides with when she's available, we can set up the same webcam link on our computer at home and talk to her."
"Wait, so you can see each other on the computer screen and everything?" This was news to Donna.
"Yes. We can't do it often, because of how much time and effort it takes to set up, but when we do, it's so wonderful to see her."
"I'd never heard of that before." Donna said thoughtfully. Technology sure had improved since she was little, when it was considered a novelty just to have more than one TV in the house.
They had reached the Mess Hall, and before they had gotten very far, they were stopped by a younger woman in uniform who saluted Officer Bartlet. Officer Bartlet saluted back, then took the woman's hand.
"Mallory, it's wonderful to see you again."
"You as well, sir." the woman said.
"How's your father? I was sorry to hear about your parents."
"Thank you, sir. My dad's working as hard as ever, trying to forget the fact that my mom couldn't take it anymore."
The three new lieutenants watched the scene in front of them with interest.
"Oh, my apologies. Lieutenants Moss, Fitzpatrick, and Young, this is Corporal Mallory O'Brien. She and I go way back. Corporal, these are three of my former students at West Point, top of their class last year."
"It's a pleasure to meet you all."
"How do you know her, sir?" Carol wanted to know.
"Her father and I have been friends for years. She and Elizabeth are about the same age. Her father's also very high up in the military. Perhaps you've heard of, oh, say, Leo McGarry?" Officer Bartlet grinned, waiting for their reaction.
Donna and Carol's mouths dropped open.
"You're Leo McGarry's daughter?" Donna asked.
"Hence why I'm in the military. It's kind of a family thing." Mallory laughed. "I should get back to my table, but it was wonderful to see you again, Officer Bartlet." She nodded to the three of them, then headed out of their sightline.
"Mallory's a delightful girl, always has been." Officer Bartlet commented. "Now, where was I? Oh, yes!" He led them over to a table further down the room where, to Donna's astonishment, she found Major Cregg sitting with an older soldier, and three younger soldiers. All five stood and saluted when they noticed that they were not alone.
"At ease." Officer Bartlet announced. They relaxed, but remained standing. "I just wanted to introduce a few of my former students that I want you to keep an eye out for, top of their class at West Point last spring. Lieutenant Donna Moss, Lieutenant Carol Fitzpatrick, and Lieutenant Charlie Young, I would like to introduce you to Major C.J. Cregg."
"Oh, we've met." Major Cregg responded. "Two of them are under my command."
"Major Cregg." Carol and Donna both immediately acknowledged.
"Well, then it should be very easy for you to take them under your wing, then." Officer Bartlet replied. "This is Colonel Toby Ziegler." he continued, indicating the older man with salt and pepper hair.
"Get used to the Army life very quickly." Colonel Ziegler said dryly.
"Major Cregg was one of my finest students back in the late 1980s. She'll take fine care of you. Now," Officer Bartlet continued on to the rest of the table. "I am entrusting these lieutenants to you. Be. Nice."
"Yes, sir, Officer." all five chorused.
"Why don't you take a seat, Lieutenants." Major Cregg invited, indicating the three seats across from her and Colonel Ziegler. They all sat down mutely as Officer Bartlet twinkled an eye at them and walked away, leaving his former students to their own devices.
"Yeah, Cregg, be nice to the newbies." said a taunting voice from the end of the table.
"Oh, don't mind Lyman." Major Cregg said with a dismissive wave of her hand. "He's just ticked that all of a sudden there are people here fifteen years younger than him, ranking higher and making more money."
"We should probably introduce ourselves." said a bespectacled younger man, not the one who had just spoken a minute earlier. "I'm Sergeant Will Bailey. The guy next to me is Sergeant Sam Seaborn."
A brunette wearing his Army hat waved. "Welcome aboard." he called. Donna could tell she was going to like him.
"And this is Staff Sergeant Josh Lyman." Sergeant Bailey continued, indicating a man with short, yet curly brown hair who waved half-heartedly.
"You wanna make eye contact there, Lyman?" Major Cregg asked sharply.
Staff Sergeant Lyman looked up from his so-called dinner (if one called soda pop and a bag of chips dinner) and made eye contact with the officers. "Nice to meet you."
He looked familiar, Donna noted curiously, that was strange.
Suddenly, she gasped. Luckily, it was quietly enough that no one else noticed except for Major Cregg. "Moss, you all right?"
"Yes, yes, ma'am." Donna recovered quickly. "I was thinking of something else, I apologize."
Major Cregg looked at her for a moment, then went back to her sandwich.
But inside, Donna's head was spinning. She was sure-no, she was almost positive-that Staff Sergeant Lyman was the same Josh she had met at the bar the previous evening. The same guy whose apartment she had snuck out of at 4 AM. But it couldn't be him. Could it?
A/N: And, to be continued! I hope you've enjoyed this chapter and all the characters I dropped into it. I intended on almost all of the main characters to be introduced in this chapter, but the recurring characters such as Margaret and Cliff, I had not intended on having in the story at all. I was trying to think of characters I could include as minor characters in this story when all of a sudden, I just saw them in my head. Please feel free to leave a review, let me know what you thought!