Author's note: The missions and training that I'm going to talk about in this story aren't going to be historical ones though, just to give everyone a heads' up! I don't know enough about WWII history to make it a convincing story if I base it on actual historic missions, and I'm going to take a lot of time to research if I try to do it that way. So, it'll just be plain old me making up stuff as I go along, do bear with me!

Chapter 5

Within a month of coming back to New York, she'd met up with Danny and found a way to get back into the cockpit. Her boredom for the past year seemed like such a joke now, and Gabby almost wondered why she hadn't come back earlier. The only problem with rejoining the army though, was she had no idea whether she would be around the next time Danny got back. Whether she liked it or not, she couldn't be posted to the same missions as Danny, and that meant their schedules could clash. Alright, make that "would". Their schedules would clash. She'd been through the army, she knew how it worked.

These two weeks she had left with Danny could be their only chance to be together for a long time to come.

That didn't stop her from being surprised when she woke up to the sound of someone knocking on the door, and opened it to see Danny grinning up at her with a fully packed bag slung over his shoulder. He looked as if he had packed all his stuff and was ready to move in with her…

Suddenly, Gabby was wide awake.

Glancing warily at him, she asked cautiously. "What are you doing, Danny?"

"I just did all your shopping for you, the least you could do is let me in." Danny gave her an accusing look, then pushed past her nonchalantly as he let himself into the small apartment.

Gabby gaped at him for a second, speechless as she watched Danny leave the bag on the floor and plant himself on the sofa with a happy sigh, acting perfectly at home. He had the nerve to tilt his head at her when he saw her still standing by the open door. "Aren't you going to close that door?"

"You can't just…this is Evelyn's apartment, not mine!" Gabby hissed, but Danny only shrugged.

"Evelyn's not in, I know. She told me last night that she was working the morning shift today." He winked at her. "Even if she was here, I''m sure she would be more than happy to let me in."

Gabby had no choice but to acknowledge that. Rolling her eyes, she closed the door, then turned to face him with a long-suffering expression on her face. "Its 9am, Danny, what's all this about?"

"Like I said, I just went and did all your shopping for you." Danny stated in a matter-of-fact tone. As if to prove his point, he unzipped the bag and started emptying its contents.

This time, Gabby gaped in earnest as she saw what was coming out of the bag. How on earth did he fit all those in there? Shirts, shorts, pants, socks, toothpaste, toothbrushes, toiletries…there was even a comb and a small portable mirror. That was when she realised what Danny did. He'd gone and bought all the things she planned on getting to prepare for her imminent re-enlistment. She'd only just written up a list last night, but it seemed she didn't need to. He already had everything ready.

Her heart warmed all over. "You didn't have to."

Danny grinned, then patted the space on the sofa beside him enthusiastically. Gabby couldn't help smiling at the obvious invitation, and obligingly went over to sit beside him. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her in for a snuggle.

"You thought I had something else on my mind, didn't you? When you saw me standing there with the bag." He remarked casually, but the amusement in his voice was impossible to miss.

"I did not." Gabby lied smoothly, a tinge of guilt colouring her cheeks as she remembered her first thought when she saw him at the door.

Danny chuckled, running a hand dotingly through her hair. "Is that so? You had such a scandalous look on your face that I could have sworn you were thinking that perhaps, I had decided overnight that I was going to move here so we can spend all our time together and…"

"Do you want something to drink? I'll get you something to drink." Gabby shot up from the sofa and fled into the kitchen.

Danny burst out laughing, and called after her. "That would be nice. Thank you!"

How he always seemed to read her mind she would never know, but Gabby couldn't stop smiling as she set the kettle on a boil and got the tea and sugar out of the cupboard. He was always looking out for her, showing his love through these small little acts that easily made her day each time.

Still, Gabby wasn't sure Danny would be quite so enthusiastic if he knew she might be flying through combat zones…

He didn't need to know, Gabby decided. He had always been a worrier and it could end up distracting him on his missions, and that was the last thing she wanted to happen.

Making up her mind, Gabby picked up the two steaming mugs of tea and made her way towards the living room.

She could take care of herself.

Finally, the day came when she had to send Danny off again. They hadn't been doing much over the past two weeks, in fact, most of the time they had just stayed at home. Evelyn's home, to be exact, but for these two weeks, it became more like her home with Danny. When Evelyn wasn't working, she and Rafe would be outside getting things ready for their wedding. Although Rafe had no idea when he would be back, he was determined to become a married man by the end of this upcoming mission, and that meant their wedding could be anything between four months to a year from now. Having such a broad timeframe wasn't exactly helpful in getting things like invitation cards and venue reservations ready, but that didn't stop them from looking up wedding dresses and checking out restaurants in the area.

That left Evelyn's apartment empty and available for Gabby and Danny to hang out together. They didn't do anything in particular either, just normal everyday activities like watching television, doing the laundry, falling asleep on the sofa…once, Gabby spent an entire afternoon stealing glances at Danny over the top of her newspapers as he sat by the window, engrossed in a novel he picked off Evelyn's bookshelf.

It was like a preview of their life in the future, when the war was over and they could finally be together forever.

A most beautiful future.

The train gave off a sharp piecing whistle, jerking Gabby from her thoughts. Shooting a withering glare at the train, she sighed in resignation as she readjusted Danny's cap and straightened his badge for the tenth time. Danny smiled and pulled her in for a quick kiss, then leaned his forehead against hers. "Be careful, alright?"

"I will." Gabby promised. "Be careful yourself."

"Let me know when you get settled down."

"I will." Although it wasn't the first time she was sending him off, she could still feel the slight sting of tears in her eyes as she blinked them away furiously. It definitely wasn't going to be the last time she sent him off. She couldn't end up crying every time, could she?

"…bye." He planted one last kiss on her forehead, then pulled away reluctantly. Picking up his bags, he waved and made his way towards the train.

Beside them, Rafe and Evelyn had finished saying their goodbyes as well, and Rafe gave Gabby a quick wave of goodbye before hurrying after Danny, who had already disappeared into the train carriage.

Evelyn came to stand beside Gabby, and they watched in silence as the train slowly pulled out of the station.

Gabby got onto the next train and settled herself in for the two hour ride, entertaining herself with a book and thoughts of Danny's expression when he discovers her little surprise. How she wished she could see it for herself…sighing in resignation, Gabby turned back to her book. She'd only just said goodbye to him, and she was missing him already. Tracing her finger lightly across the small silver wings she wore around her neck, Gabby smiled wistfully as she remembered how Danny had given them to her after the Doolittle Raid. They had been his wings, and now, they were hers. It was almost like he was here with her. Almost, but it would have to do.

Gabby felt the old sense of excitement bubbling up again as her station neared. Closing her eyes briefly, she allowed herself to imagine what it would be like to be able to rejoin the army as herself, not masquerading as a guy called Gabriel Connor, and she grinned in satisfaction. It was going to be so much fun.

Soon, she was at the gates of the base where the female pilot squadron was based, and by now she could barely contain herself. Walking briskly through the small base, she took in the familiar surroundings, the crisp and simple layout which was so typical of military buildings, the small runway and five hangars housing ten planes. Her eyes fell on the canteen not far off, and she cringed slightly at the thought of army camp food. It was a small inconvenience she was going to have to put up with, but she was willing to do that to get her wings back.

Her brown eyes shone as she looked hungrily at the planes in the hangars. The sight of those sleek, beautiful machines sent her blood singing, and she could hardly wait to get into one of them and go up flying. At the moment, a few engineers were working on some planes in the hangar closest to her, and a few planes flew by overhead in a routine training exercise. Gabby's spirits fell slightly when she saw those planes take turns making simple turns and twists in the air.

Right, she almost forgot, she was going to have to start from scratch and pretend it was her first time handling military aircraft. That meant it could take up to two months before she could go on her first flight, and even then, it might just be simply taking off and landing.

Gabby shuddered, then squared her shoulders as she made her way towards the small office behind the hangars where she had been told to report. Maybe she could tell her instructor that she had some experience with flying farm aircraft…after all, she did spend a year flying Rafe's old crop-duster in Tennessee. Perhaps that could help waive those boring introductory lessons…

The commanding officer who greeted her was a grey-haired captain with deep blue eyes by the name of Captain Barnes. The corners of his eyes crinkled in a friendly smile as he shook her hand warmly. "Welcome onboard."

"I'm very happy to be here, sir." Gabby said as she shook his hand earnestly.

"Well then, let's get you started, shall we?"

Captain Barnes was indeed the efficient man he seemed to be when she spoke to him over the phone a few days ago to inform him of her intention to enlist. Within an hour, she was given a quick tour of the base, a timetable for her training and sent off to her room to unpack. It was a room she was going to be sharing with three other new recruits, two of whom were arriving tomorrow and one another week later.

Like Doolittle said, it was indeed a small squadron. Gabby couldn't remember all the names of her new squad mates whom she met along the way, but she only counted ten so far. Add those who were in flight training, and there would only be fifteen female pilots including herself. Captain Barnes had said there were a couple more of such training squadrons across the country, but he didn't mention any specific numbers.

Well, it did make sense to keep the training squadrons small, so that the instructors could keep a closer eye on all of them. Once they "graduate", so to speak, they would get to join larger missions and meet more of their fellow lady pilots.

Being the first one to settle down in her room, Gabby took the liberty of choosing the bed by the window, where she got a good view of the runway and the sparkling sea beyond. In a way, it was quite similar to the view she had when she was in Pearl Harbor…back then, Danny had been her roommate.

Ah, the good old times.

Gabby sat herself down on her new bed and started unpacking her bag. She couldn't help smiling as she took out her belongings, which Danny had thoughtfully sorted into neat bundles. It didn't take too long, and pretty soon, Gabby found herself with nothing to do. Her first lesson wasn't until the next morning, and she didn't feel particularly keen about going down to the canteen for dinner.

Checking her watch, Gabby slipped on a simple jacket and left the base.

Whistling a happy tune to herself, Gabby strolled down the street in her quest for better food. No point subjecting herself to the tortures of army food if she had the time to find something better.

Meanwhile, Danny and Rafe were walking back to their bunks after their mission briefing. None of them were talking, each engrossed in their own thoughts. It sounded like a regular mission. Load up on bombs, drop them on a few targets, and fly back. Repeat daily until told to stop. The commander had been more eloquent in his briefing, but that was essentially the crux of the mission.

It was indeed a regular mission, something which the both of them had unfortunately gotten quite used to.

The only problem was the location. They were being posted to England for the duration of this mission, which was estimated to take around eight to eighteen months, depending on the circumstances. Danny snorted as he shook his head in frustration. That meant it would take eighteen months, if not more. The lower limit of eight months was just there to make them feel slightly better about themselves.

Looking sideways at Rafe, Danny sighed and prodded his friend gently with his elbow. "How are you going to tell Evelyn about this?"

"I don't know, I'm still thinking." Rafe grumbled. The last time he went to England, he had been shot down at sea. Evelyn and Danny went through agonising months thinking he was dead.

If he told Evelyn he was posted to England again, what would she think? It wasn't as if it would bring back fond memories…she was going to worry herself sick.

To make things worse, he might not be back within the next year and a half.

Damn.

Danny had other things to worry about as well. If Gabby was still sitting around in Rafe's farmhouse, it wouldn't be as bad. He could still write to her regularly, and it wouldn't matter if he was posted to England. Having to be away for such a long time was a pain, but other than that, there wasn't much else he could complain about. The problem was, Gabby had joined the army, this time without him around to look out for her.

Danny's temples started throbbing as he remembered how Gabby used to fall out of her bed while sleeping, and how she always left her socks on the clothes lines thinking they belonged to someone else. She'd always been a little bit of a scatterbrain, and to think that he was going to be away in another country for such a long period of time while all sorts of things could be happening to her…

Sighing in resignation, Danny plonked himself on his bunk and started unpacking his stuff. There was no point thinking so much about things, was there? Gabby had made her choice, and the least he could do was respect it. If that meant letting her loose on her unfortunate teammates…well, she was going to have to manage.

His fingers came across an unfamiliar package at the bottom of his bag, and Danny frowned as he brought up an irregular bundle wrapped in brown paper. What was this? He didn't remember packing something like that…

The first layer came off, revealing another layer of brown paper. Then another, then another…

Danny's frown deepened as he continued his curious journey down layers of brown paper. Was this some kind of joke? He glanced suspiciously at Rafe, who was lying sprawled on his bed, chewing on his pen as he pondered over how to best phrase his letter to Evelyn. Danny blinked, then quickly dismissed the thought.

If Rafe pulled this prank on him, he would definitely have a larger reaction than this. Right now, his best friend wasn't even looking his way.

It wasn't Rafe's work. It could only be…Gabby.

If Gabby was the one behind this, he wouldn't be surprised if it ended up just being a bundle of brown paper and nothing else. She seemed to enjoy doing stuff like this, just because he never managed to get mad at her.

To his surprise, there was something underneath all the brown paper, though Danny could imagine how ridiculous he looked right now to anyone who came into their room at this point. He was sitting on his bed, which was a mess of blank brown paper, with a small pile of coloured letters on his lap. Curious, he picked one up. It was labelled "Frustrated." To top it off, there was an infuriating smiley face beside that word, as if she was out to make things worse for him.

Danny's grin widened as he flipped through the others. Angry, sad, rejected, nostalgic, hungry, sick, happy, crazy…he raised his eyebrows when he saw one that said "constipated".

What was going on in that mind of hers when she was writing all these? Perhaps he would never understand.

Still, it must have taken her quite some time to prepare all these. When did she do it though? Over the past two weeks, they spent all day with each other, and he'd never seen her write these…she could only have done them at night then, after he had left.

It was a considerable pile of letters covering a very comprehensive range of emotions. Danny was impressed.

He couldn't help laughing when he came across the "instructions manual".

"Danny,

I bet you're touched by my little present, aren't you? Ah, it would have been entertaining watching you unwrap my packaging, but I guess I'll just have to make do with my imagination.

You would probably have guessed by now. This is the survival pack I've prepared for you, guaranteed to last you through any number of missions in the present and future. Since we can't be together all the time, you would just have to open the letter which corresponds to how you're feeling at that point in time, and it would be like I was there to talk to you in that situation.

You can thank me later.

I'm going to miss you loads, but no matter how long you're going to have to be away, no matter where you get posted, I'll always be thinking of you.

Write back whenever you can. I'll keep you updated about my exploits too.

Love you. Stay safe,

Gabby

P.S. I bet you're going to read every single one of them right now. That would probably spoil your surprise for when you actually need it, but its up to you."

Danny's mouth twisted in a suppressed grin, his unhappiness at the length and location of his mission temporarily banished to the far corners of his mind. She was right. He was going to read every single one of them right now. He would die of curiosity otherwise.

Oh, what was he going to do without her?

Reviews? :D