"Was that Andy?" Jessie craned her neck back, watching the Sheriff's car continue down the dusty lane.

"Sure looked like it," replied Bo from the driver's seat as she maneuvered the car back to the center of the road that led to the ranch.

"What d'ya suppose he was doin' here?"

Bo shrugged, "I don't know, we'll just have to ask Woody when we get home. When do I get to hear the news from Buzz?" She nodded her head to the letter Jessie held in her lap.

"When I've read it first," she laughed. "B'sides… might be your ears are too delicate for what he wrote," she added with a wicked grin.

Bo let out a hearty laugh of her own, "Might be." She brought the car to a stop around the back of the old farm house. "Do we need help with the groceries?"

"Nah," Jessie called as she pulled herself out of the front seat. "By the time your husband gets out to the car, we'll already have them in the house," she grinned across the backseat at her sister-in-law.

"Hello!" Bo called as they brought their haul into the kitchen.

"Hey," Woody hurried in to the room. He relieved his wife of the grocery bags with a kiss on the lips. "How was work?"

"Pretty good," she nodded. She pulled the milk and eggs out to get them into the refrigerator.

"What was Andy doin' here?" Jessie asked, her hand resting on her hip.

"We passed him on the way up the lane," Bo explained. Her blue eyes clouded with concern, "Everything okay?" The last time the Sheriff has visited Round-Up Ranch was a little over a year before. A man by the name of Irwin Lotso was doing everything he could to wrest the land from the Pride siblings, even if it meant killing them. Andy arrived in time, killing Lotso before he could shoot Woody or Jessie. Bo remembered the fear she felt when Woody had come running in to the police station, not knowing she was already there to report an odd car at the ranch.

Woody smiled gently and laid a reassuring hand on her forearm, "Everything's fine, Bo. Jessie," he looked to his sister, "Would you mind giving my wife and me a moment? There's something we need to talk about," he looked back at Bo.

Jessie nodded, "Sure. I got a letter from Buzz; I'll just be outside readin' it." She grabbed an apple from a bowl on the table and headed out into the summer afternoon, wondering what they were going to be talking about. She pulled herself up into the crook of an old tree, swinging her leg over the wide branch where she loved to sit. She pulled Buzz's letter from her pocket and smiled. He was away for a three month-long mission with Star Command, helping set up the Gamma quadrant's segment of the Galactic Alliance. He had told her that, someday, they would have a device that would allow them to talk face-to-face via a screen; for now, though, that was not high on the priority list and hand-written letters were the most reliable form of communication. She unfolded the paper and leaned back.

He wrote of the progress they were making on the station, of his new duties as a Captain. It sounds impressive, Jess, but I don't see it that way. I'm still doing what I've always done, and that's fine with me. You know how much I love having to deal with the bureaucratic side of things. Jessie giggled at the sarcastic tone and then smiled as he went on about the team he now found himself leading. There's a woman named Mira Nova; you'd like her a lot. She's a member of the Tangean royal family (Tangea is a world, I forget where); her father forbid her to join Star Command, but she did it anyway. She doesn't seem to be quite comfortable yet as a Space Ranger (did I tell you that's what we're called?), but I think she'll grow into it. Then there is X-R… he's a robotic creature who works on my nerves, to be honest. He just always has an answer for everything. Don't get me wrong, he's not a bad person, but you know the type. He's also proving to be quite the Don Juan, at least in his mind. There is supposed to be another cadet joining soon, but all I know is his name is Booster. I guess he's been serving with Star Command for a while, but in what capacity, I'm not sure. Our Commander's last name is Nebula; go figure, huh? With a name like that, how could he be with anyone but Star Command? Although I guess the same could be said for me. You sure you want to take my last name? It might come with expectations. Jessie laughed and absently twisted the ring she wore on her left hand.

Buzz's letter continued on to a more personal level, some of which brought color to Jessie's cheeks. Bo is definitely not hearing this part, she thought. Tell Woody and Bo that I said hello and that I hope everything is well with them. I miss you and think about you all the time. I wish I could bring you out here so you could see what the skies really look like; you would be amazed. The Commander seems very pleased with our progress and said we're ahead of schedule. If things continue that way, we might be relieved early. I'll keep you updated. All my love, Buzz.

Jessie folded up the letter with a wistful sigh. Between her job with Slink at the veterinarian's office in town and all of the work on the ranch, she was rarely still. It was at night she felt Buzz's absence keenly; his usual seat at the dinner table was empty, and she missed his laughter as the trio shared various stories from their days. She let out another sigh, this one of a more optimistic nature, knowing that she would have the time the following day to drive over to the sunflower field Buzz owned. He had shown it to her last year, after she returned home from veterinary school. Much as he had used it as a refuge, she now used it to write her letters to him, feeling closer to him there and away from any prying eyes or interruptions.

She jumped down from the branch, Wonder if Woody's spoken his piece? She opted to give her brother some more time and headed to the new barn. It was no longer quite new, being about nine months old, but Jessie could not help but think of it that way. The one her grandfather had built was burnt to the ground, set ablaze by Lotso in an effort to intimidate her and Woody. She shuddered as she usually did when the memory of that day surfaced; she would have died in the fire had Buzz not found her and pulled her out. Shaking her head against the past, she slid open the door and was greeted by the smell of fresh hay. As she looked around at the stalls, she smiled as a fond memory replaced the bad one.

The barn had been finished in the fall and it was christened with Woody's and Bo's wedding. The pair had tried convincing Buzz and Jessie that it should be a double wedding, but they had turned down the offer. Buzz was busy with the Star Command station and he and Jessie both agreed that it would be best to let that get settled before setting a date for their own wedding. Jessie also protested that the day should belong to Woody and Bo alone, but not without gratitude for the suggestion. The day of the wedding was everything it should have been and was made all the more joyous because Woody's and Jessie's parents were able to make the trip from the East coast to be a part of it.

Jessie emerged from her reverie and walked to Bullseye's stall. "Howdy, critter," she greeted him affectionately, holding out the uneaten apple half to him. She chuckled as the horse's lips tickled her palm as he consumed the fruit. Rubbing his nose in farewell, she took a quick turn through the barn to make sure the other horses were fine. When Woody and Jessie designed the new barn, they included more stalls for horses. As co-owners, the siblings were in constant discussion over the workings of the ranch and Jessie had expressed an interest in investing in horses. Woody was in agreement, and they were slowly making the transition away from cattle. The move was proving to be fortuitous, as the area of Oklahoma where they lived had cattle to spare, but horses were often imported from other states.

Deciding that she had given Woody an ample amount of time, Jessie headed back to the farmhouse the trio shared. She found Woody and Bo sitting on the side porch, their arms around each other. "Uh-oh," she teased, "am I interrupting something?"

Woody laughed sardonically, "Ha-ha, very funny. How're things with Buzz?"

She settled against the porch railing, "He's fine; got promoted to Captain and now will have his own team. He said to say hello and he hopes to actually be home earlier than scheduled. Gonna tell me about Andy's visit now?"

"Guess you won that bet," he looked at Bo, amusement flooding his voice.

"What bet?" Jessie looked between the two.

He grinned, "Bo bet that you wouldn't let too much time pass before you asked about Andy. I said that Buzz's letter would have made you forget."

Jessie laughed, "Serves you right; it's like you don't know me at all. Now spill it, cowboy."

Woody sobered up slightly, "Okay, here's the thing. Andy actually approached me a few weeks back because they're expanding the force, adding in a Deputy Sheriff position. He asked me to think about applying."

"You?!"

"Yeah," he nodded, "He said that I wouldn't need the same level of training as, say, a state trooper, but there would be some that I could get from him and also the police academy about twenty miles down the road. I asked if I wasn't a little past my prime, but he just laughed; I guess being twenty-five isn't all that old to join the force. But I guess, whatever I did last year with all that went on, impressed him enough to think I have the makings of a sheriff."

Jessie inclined her head, "What did you tell him?"

Woody rubbed his hand along the back of his neck, "I told him that I would think about it, but that I needed to discuss it with you and Bo before I made any decisions. He stopped by to see if I had made up my mind yet." His brown eyes were frank as he looked at his sister, "It would mean that I would turn the ranch over to you. I'd help out where and when I could, but I wouldn't be able to run it with you."

"That's all right; there's plenty of ranch hands lookin' for work, an' Buzz always helps when he's home. I kind of wondered when this would happen," her mouth pulled into a grin.

"What do you mean?"

"You followin' in Dad's footsteps. You've always itched to, and don't deny it. I know you took on the ranch from Grandpa because you felt it was your duty. And you've done so well with it, I know he'd be proud. But for as good as you are here, Andy's right; you have the makings of a great sheriff."

Woody stared at Jessie for a moment before his features softened into a smile. It was true, he realized; their father had left the ranching life to pursue a career in law enforcement. Woody and Jessie had gone to live with their grandparents in their teenage years as it was a more stable life than the constant-on-the-go nature of their parent's. Woody loved the land, but he had often found himself thinking of the life his father led.

Bo nudged her husband, "See? I won that bet, too. I told him you'd agree with Andy, and so do I."

"It'll mean some big changes," Woody cautioned.

"So who's to say that's such a bad thing?" Jessie countered with an approving nod from Bo. "Tell Andy you're in; we'll work out the ranch details in the mean time. Boy, just wait'll I write Buzz about this! He'll be floored," she grinned. "I can tell him, can't I?"

"You will whether I tell you that you can or not," Woody laughed. "It's so strange; I never would have thought life would have changed so much in a year. So many things coming to an end that I thought would go on forever."

Jessie nudged her brother's foot with her boot, "I wouldn't say that things are ending…let's think of it as just a bunch of new beginnings." She grinned as she was overcome with excitement for whatever the future had in store.