Beverly Crusher stood in the captain's ready room, completing her report on the events that had transpired during her command of the Enterprise while the rest of the senior staff was away rescuing Commander Data from the clutches of his 'brother' Lore.

The captain followed her words attentively as she struggled through her tiredness to string a final few coherent sentences together. She'd been on duty now for 18 hours straight, and while it wasn't unusual for her to pull such long shifts in sickbay, today she'd been responsible for the welfare of the entire ship and its thousand-strong crew and it had been touch and go there for a while whether she would be able to bring them through.

It was at times like these she was reminded that such a stressful responsibility – which came complete with its very own brand of exhaustion – was an immensely heavy burden. One that Jean-Luc shouldered every day of his life.

Not for the first time, she wondered how he did it.

At the moment he looked as tired as she felt. But his back was still ramrod straight as he stood behind his desk. He glanced around the room and back to her as she finished her account. "Thank you, Doctor," he said, his voice formal but warm. "I appreciate you returning my ship in the condition in which you found it."

Beverly stared at him, her mouth dropping open in shock. She'd managed to save the Enterprise from annihilation and destroy an entire Borg ship while he was gone and that was all the thanks she got? Why, you ungrateful

Then she caught sight of the glint in his hazel eyes and the penny dropped. Jean-Luc Picard was teasing her? As far as she was concerned that went against the natural order of the universe. Still, she couldn't help the beginnings of a smile tugging at the corners of her lips. "It was the least I could do, Captain," she replied casually, playing along.

He dropped the pose, his expression taking on his usual more serious mien. "It was truly exemplary work, Commander," he said, emphasizing her command rank. "I'm placing my recommendation for a commendation in your file."

For a moment the fog of fatigue lifted and was replaced by a deep sense of pride. A field commendation in her official record would be of great value if she ever decided to pursue her own command. But far more meaningful than that was the gratification she took from the knowledge that she'd repaid Jean-Luc's faith in her leadership abilities.

"That's all, Doctor, you're dismissed," he said next, to her relief. "I would order you to your quarters to get some rest, but I imagine you'll want to check in with sickbay before you go off duty."

She nodded. "Yes, thank you, sir." How well he knows me, she reflected. As tired as she was, she couldn't rest until she heard the reports from her own staff and was reassured that all was well. She started for the door. "Will I see you for breakfast in the morning?" she asked hopefully over her shoulder. "0700 hours?"

He smiled. "Make it 0630 and you have a deal."

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