Alison stepped back to admire Flint's craftsmanship and smiled. The crib was officially assembled. Due to Flint's stubbornness, it had taken a little longer than it should have. Alison had suggested a couple of times for him to call either Stalker or Beachhead to lend a hand, especially since he kept refusing her help. But he had been determined to build it himself. So she had left him alone, and had hoped for the best. Once the litany of curses had died down, she had felt it was probably safe to enter the nursery. "I have to admit, I was a little skeptical earlier today that this was going to happen, but as always I should never underestimate your skills."

Flint grinned at her, but he didn't jump to the bait of the flirtatious remark. "I too doubted it for a while. But I figured that since I have a lifetime ahead of me of building toys for our baby girl, that I probably need the practice."

While Flint cleaned up his tools, Alison went into the kitchen to figure out dinner. She quickly dismissed the idea of a home cooked meal, and instead opened one of the drawers to grab a couple of takeout menus. She walked back into the nursery, "I promise that I had every intention of cooking dinner tonight, but I'm craving a pizza. There are a few," she trailed off as she noticed that Flint was staring intently at the crib. "Dash, are you okay?"

"I'm fine. I was just thinking about the fact that our little girl is going to be sleeping in here in a couple of months."

Alison smiled and walked towards him. She rubbed his back as she leaned into him. "Yes, she is," her voice caught as she was suddenly choked up by emotion.

They stayed lost in their thoughts for a few moments until Alison's phone rang. She pulled the phone out of her pocket, and mouthing the name 'Stalker' to Flint, she answered it.

"Hey, Alison, do you and Flint have plans for this evening?"

"We were just discussing that, so no, not really, what's up?"

"I was thinking about putting together an impromptu poker game, are you two in?"

Alison covered the phone, and held it away from her as she told Flint Stalker's offer. He told her he was game if she was. "We're in," Alison answered. What do you need us to bring?

An hour later they showed up at Stalker and Lydia's home with a six pack and a couple of bags of chips. Flint opened two beers for him and Stalker, while Alison joined Lydia in the kitchen. "What can I do?" she asked.

"Please, sit down. I've got a few things in the oven that I can handle taking out on my own. So, how are you feeling?"

"Good," Alison replied automatically.

Lydia gave her a hard stare. "I know we weren't close in Arizona, but since we're both going to be stationed here for the immediate future, how about we come to an understanding? You can save the bullshit for your husband, but you can use me to tell the truth. So, as a mother of three kids myself, who is well aware how difficult pregnancy can be, let me ask you again. How are you feeling?"

Alison couldn't help but grin. She relaxed considerably. "My back aches, my ankles are swollen, and I can't believe how often I have to pee."

Lydia patted her hand. "Get used to the peeing frequency, because that stays with you. I could echo what I'm sure your doctor has told you about staying off your feet as much as possible to help with the other two ailments, but if you are anything like I was you're stubborn and are insisting on doing everything on your own."

Alison's grin grew larger. "Guilty as charged."

The oven timer beeped, and Lydia rose to pull out the two trays. Once she was done she asked, "How has Flint been?"

"He's been," Alison started but then stopped. She was going to use the word 'attentive' but she decided to heed Lydia's earlier advice. "A pain in the ass," she answered.

Lydia laughed. "Lonzo was gone for most of our firstborn's pregnancy. Of course, at the time, I held that against him and blamed him for every little thing that went wrong. But now, in retrospect, I think it was better that way."

The doorbell rang, interrupting their conversation. Alison followed Lydia into the living room, and as she watched Stalker open the door, she had to keep herself from openly gasping. Because standing in the doorway was Beachhead with an attractive woman. "Thank you both for the invitation tonight. I hope you don't mind that I brought a friend. This is Joanna."

"No man, the more the merrier," Stalker replied with a smile. "Come in, and make yourself at home."

Alison caught Flint's eye, and she noticed he was doing a poor job of hiding his surprise. She walked over to him, and as he wrapped his arm around her waist, he whispered into her ear. "Ten bucks says she's an escort."

"You're terrible," she said to him as she wished she had made the bet first. Alison hoped that Lydia would call her and Joanna into the kitchen for another girls' chat, but instead she set the food on the dining room table, and all three couples sat around making small talk until Stalker produced the deck of cards.

If Joanna had been a date for hire, she had done her homework. She seemed to know quite a bit about Beachhead, and held up her end of the various conversations. Alison started to regret instantly jumping to conclusions about his date, but then she reminded herself that she was talking about a man with an extremely gruff personality and questionable hygiene habits.

Beachhead won the hand, and he leaned over and said something to Joanna that made her laugh out loud. Alison once again caught Flint's eye. With a smile, he shrugged. They decided to take a break before the next hand. Alison rose from her chair and stretched. Flint started to walk towards the kitchen but Alison stopped him.

She quietly said to him, "I don't get it. What does she see in him that we don't?"

"I'm telling you, Al, she's being paid for her performance tonight."

Alison didn't believe it. She then thought back to the few instances in their recent past where Beachhead began to show more of his softer side to her. She wondered if the tough as nails drill instructor was just the persona he used with the Joe team, and that deep down there was a different Wayne Sneeden that he only shared with someone he cared about. As she looked towards Flint, she knew Beachhead wouldn't be the first Joe guilty of that.

The next hour passed quickly, and when another round ended Alison stood to stretch her back. "Sorry guys, can we take a break? I need a bathroom visit."

"That's fine," Stalker said as he too stood up. "I need a refill."

"Me too," Flint said. He rubbed her back. "Can I get you something?"

"No, I'm good." She took care of her needs and as she walked back into the living room she felt a sharp jab to her lower abdomen. She rubbed at the area and felt another kick. "What's the matter? Mommy up too late?"

Flint reentered the room, so she called him over. "She's kicking," Alison explained as she put his hand on her stomach. Finally, after all the past failed attempts of trying to get him to feel a kick, they were rewarded. Flint's face lit up in a grin. She wove her fingers between his and pressed into her stomach. "Do you feel that hard lump? I think that's her foot."

"That's amazing. Does it hurt?"

"These kicks don't but sometimes she'll hit something more internal that does. But it's not too bad."

The kicking stopped but was then replaced with another baby movement that had become commonplace the last couple of weeks.

Flint pulled his hand away with a frown. "What's going on?" he asked with concern.

"She has the hiccups." Alison replied with a smile.

Flint and Alison drove to the Pentagon together Monday morning. Once they arrived, they went their separate ways. Alison to her desk, and Flint to the section of the C Ring that housed the Jugglers offices. He found two of the generals chatting with Colonel Sharpe in one of them, so he knocked on the doorway and entered.

Colonel Sharpe smiled at him. "Welcome back, Flint, how was your trip?"

"It was fine. Although I admit I was a bit blindsided by the true nature of my visit."

General Ryan, who had been the most vocal naysayer against the Joe team during their last DC visit waved him off. "Save your breath. We have a meeting scheduled for 0900 to fully discuss your findings and recommendations."

"Thank you sir, but if you have a few minutes I do want to go over some of my concerns first."

Flint was once again dismissed. "I'm sorry, we really don't. Yours isn't the only issue we're dealing with this morning. There is a reason why we're called the Jugglers." General Ryan said with a sneer.

Flint looked from Colonel Sharpe to the second general in the room who was doing his best to ignore the conversation by pretending to be engrossed in the paperwork in his hand. Flint knew he was beaten. "I will see you at 0900 sharp." He saluted and then left the room.

Flint decided to use the time wisely, so he went to Hawk's office to ask the general to go over his report before the meeting. However, Hawk too was in the midst of what was probably the typical early Monday morning chaos. At a loss at what to do, he hovered around Alison's desk. He could see that she too was busy, so he stayed off to the side to watch the room in action.

Hawk appeared to be in a lull so Flint approached him again. "Sir, do you have a minute?"

Hawk sighed. "If you're lucky I have half that. What do you need?"

"I was wondering if you could take a look at the report I'm going to present."

"I'll make you a deal," Hawk said with a smile. "I'll read through it if you'll answer any phone calls I get while doing so."

Fortunately, the general's phone remained quiet, so he had a chance to read the whole report. Once he was done, he put it down and looked at Flint for a few moments before he spoke. "I can understand your concerns. But I have a piece of advice when dealing with the Jugglers. You need to pick your battles."

That was not the response Flint was expecting. "Sir, you don't think this is worth fighting for? We're just going to turn over all of our international dealings to Action Force?"

"It's not that bad. You're just going to let them handle the Western European skirmishes. Look at the positive. It will free up some of your time to focus on the rest of the world."

Flint wasn't going to be easily placated. "Hawk, we're not exactly pressed for free time at the moment."

Hawk's phone rang. Hawk sighed and looked from it to Flint. "Flint, I know you well enough to know that I am not going to talk you out of this. But, I still recommend you concede this issue."

Alison came over and rested her hand on his shoulder. "I'm going to go for a walk before the meeting starts. Do you want to come?"

Flint eagerly agreed and followed her out of the office. "I try to walk a lap around this ring at least every other hour," Alison explained. "It helps with some of the aches and the pains."

Flint just nodded. He remained silent as he became lost in his thoughts. He respected Hawk's opinion, so he had to give him consideration even though it went against his own. Since he had made a point during their weekend together to not discuss business, he asked Alison for her opinion.

She hesitated before she answered. "Dash, I know you don't want to hear this, but Hawk is right. One thing I've learned the last few weeks is how large and complex the international stage is. G.I. Joe is only one part of the big picture. Having Action Force as an ally can be a help."

Flint sighed. "If I thought that the Jugglers had no ulterior motives, then I would believe that. But I don't."

Her phone rang. "It's Hawk," she said before she answered it. She listened for a few moments, and then she nodded. "Not a problem, sir. I'll get my notes and then meet up with you after the briefing."

Once she hung up she stared at her phone before she continued the conversation. "I don't think I'm betraying Hawk's confidence by saying this, as I don't think it's a big secret. Since Hawk too doesn't trust the Jugglers, part of his reason for bringing Stalker, Beachhead and I here is to make sure that the Joe team still has representation in DC. He especially wants to use my work to feed any intel to the Joes that may have been funneled elsewhere by the Jugglers. So you should know that even though the Jugglers are working against you, Hawk does still have your back."

"That's good to know. But what are you saying? That I shouldn't push back against them?"

"No, I think you should go down on record as being against this move. But don't say anything that might infuriate them." Alison put a hand on his shoulder. "Also, don't give them the satisfaction of seeing how much this angers you. They love making people miserable."

Flint nodded. It was all good advice. "Okay. Thanks for this little chat."

"My pleasure," Alison said with a smile. "I have to head back to the office before the briefing, so I'll meet you in there."

Flint gave her a quick kiss before she left. He still had a few minutes, so he continued the walk. He made it to the center of the Pentagon, where there was an outdoor greenery area. Since it was mid-morning, the place was deserted. He went to go outside, but the cold temperature that hit him when he opened the door made him reconsider.

He figured that the area was a nice place to unwind during the warmer months. He envisioned a time in the future, if he too was transferred to the Pentagon, when he could have lunch with Alison in the garden. They could even bring the baby along if they utilized the on-site daycare. It seemed like an idyllic image.

He turned away to make the walk to the conference room. He wondered if he could actually enjoy working at the Pentagon. After years of fighting on the front lines with the Joes, he knew he would have a hard time adjusting to life behind a desk. He wondered how Stalker and Beachhead were handling it. They both seemed fine during their get-together on Saturday night. But based on some of the stories Alison told him, he knew they were having some issues adjusting to the drastic change of pace.

Although for Flint, the main benefit would be getting a chance to be with his family full-time. And that would probably outweigh any other negatives. With a sigh, he shook his head. Having those kind of thoughts were futile. Anvil had made it quite clear that he wasn't leaving the Joe team anytime soon. And if he did, thanks to the black marks on his record due to his affair with Alison, getting a high command position at the Pentagon was probably a pipe dream.

And that was the main source of his frustration with the Jugglers. Flint had accepted his fate, and he wanted to give his all to the Joes. So the fact that the Jugglers were trying to slowly destroy the team was unacceptable. He wasn't going to spend the next few months separated from his wife wasting his time as a spectator to the Juggler's handiwork.

Flint entered the conference room first, took a seat at the empty table and mentally reviewed his objections. He was still going to follow Hawk and Alison's advice but he was also going to make sure that the Jugglers knew his feelings on the matter.

The room quickly filled up. Hawk and Alison entered together, and took seats on either side of him. Alison leaned over and asked him if he knew everyone in the room. Flint looked around. Most of the men he had met either at Joe HQ or through his previous trips to DC. However, the one general he had encountered that morning was still unknown to him. "Who is sitting to Colonel Sharpe's left?" Flint asked.

Flint didn't miss the look of disgust that briefly crossed her face. "General Cavanaugh. He's Howe's replacement."

It took Flint a moment to remember that General Howe had resigned a few weeks earlier due to a personal scandal. "They replaced him awfully fast."

"They did. It's almost like they had advanced warning of Howe's resignation."

Any further discussion was put on hold as the briefing began. Flint had time to do one last mental run-through of his list of objections before they asked him to speak. He spent five minutes giving what he felt was a thorough, unbiased, yet impassioned plea on the Joes behalf. However, once he finished, it quickly became clear that his words fell on deaf ears.

"Thank you, Flint." General Ryan said. "We will add your notes to the file. Unless there are any other comments, I will officially close this matter."

Flint startled. "Close it? I thought the point of this briefing was to have a discussion about Action Force."

General Ryan shook his head. "That's not necessary. We reached a consensus this morning about how to proceed. Right before this meeting I informed Commander Trent about our new working arrangement."

Once again Flint was taken aback. "If it was a done deal, then why even hold this meeting?"

General Dyson shrugged. "We just wanted to make sure you didn't have any information that would make us second guess our decision. Since you don't, I think we can all rest easier knowing yet again we've made the right call."

Flint looked around the room. Every single member of the Jugglers wore matching grins. It was so surreal, that he was momentarily speechless. He turned towards Hawk, who gently shook his head. It was at that moment that Flint realized he was beaten. Flint fumed through the rest of the briefing. He tried to console himself with what Alison had told him about Hawk working with the Joes. However, he wondered if it would be enough.

After the briefing ended, Flint sat with Alison and Hawk as they waited for the room to clear. Once they were alone, Hawk turned to Flint. "I'm sorry you were blindsided like that. They once again didn't feel it was necessary to inform me of their plans."

Alison squeezed his hand. "This is just a minor setback. Since they got their little victory today, maybe they'll leave the Joes alone for a while."

"Somehow I doubt it." Flint stood up. "I know you two have work to do, so I'll leave you alone."

"This shouldn't take long," Hawk said.

"Okay. I'll wait for you in your office." Flint left the room, and then considered his next move. He had originally assumed that the Action Force debate was going to go on a lot longer than it had, so he had figured that he wasn't going back to Arizona until the end of the week. Now without any reason to extend his stay, he wondered how quickly Anvil would request his return.

He entered Hawk's office and found Stalker and Beachhead making poor attempts at looking busy. "How do you guys deal with all this bullshit?" Flint asked.

Before either one could answer, General Cavanaugh walked in. He looked towards Hawk's desk. "General Abernathy is not back from the briefing?"

"No," Flint answered. "He stayed behind with Alison to review some material."

General Cavanaugh smirked. "I'm sure they're very busy. I'll come back in a little while." He turned to leave, but he hesitated in the doorway. "Since you were Alison's teammates, I got to ask. Has she made a habit of sleeping with her superiors? I know that's off the table now, but I'm just curious in case she gets back in shape once she has the baby."

Flint was so stunned by the general's remarks that at first he didn't react. Stalker, though, had quicker reflexes. He put himself between Flint and the general, "Don't do something you're going to regret."

Beachhead shot General Cavanaugh a look of disgust. "No, Stalker, I think you should let Faireborn have a chat with the general."

General Cavanaugh looked confused for a moment and then startled. "Faireborn? As in Alison Faireborn?"

"Yes. She's my wife," Flint growled. He pushed past Stalker.

The general paled as he tried to stumble out an explanation, but Flint stopped him. "Save the excuses. I don't know how someone as disgusting and misogynistic as you got into a position of power. But because you did the only reason why I am restraining myself is out of respect for the stars on your shirt. I promise you, though, that if you harass or say anything derogatory against Alison again, I won't hesitate to rip them off of you before I kick your ass."

The general tried to retain as much dignity as possible as he quickly slinked out of the room. Once he was gone, Flint turned to Stalker and Beachhead. "I'm sorry you had to witness that."

"Don't apologize. I'm actually surprised you didn't sock him one," Beachhead said.

"Me too," Stalker added. "And even though I tried to stop you, if you decided to ignore me, I would have helped hold him down."

"Thanks for the support." Flint said. "But do me a favor. Don't tell Alison what happened. She gets a bit perturbed if she thinks I'm being overprotective."

Beachhead smiled. "Deal. Although. this is one of the rare times where you were actually justified in your actions. I knew she was concerned about someone, but I didn't think it was this bad. But, don't worry. Not only will I continue her training, but I'm going to make sure she is never alone with General Jackass."

Stalker promised as well, which relieved some of Flint's lingering anxiety. If he couldn't be there himself, he was glad that they had good friends to help out.

Between General Cavanaugh and the Jugglers, Flint had a lot of nervous energy to expend. He decided to take another walk to clear his head. When he returned, he was happy to see that Alison was back as well. They had just started to discuss going for an early lunch, when Flint's phone beeped. He frowned when he saw the code alert that meant an immediate return to HQ.

"Something wrong?" Alison asked.

"I'm about to find out," Flint answered as he dialed the number to the communications room. Once Breaker answered, Flint asked him what was the reason for the message.

"To be honest, I don't know. Anvil asked me to send it to you, but he didn't say why. I wasn't going to ask a lot of questions since he was in an extremely foul mood."

Flint rubbed at his temples. "Thanks. I'll see you soon." He hung up the phone and with a sharp exhale he told Alison that he needed to leave.

Alison got permission from Hawk to drive him to Andrews Air Force base, where Flint's Skystriker was still parked. Once they arrived at the base, the two climbed out of the car. Flint wrapped his arms around Alison and brought her close for a hug. "I'm sorry to run out on you."

"It's okay. Just let me know what's going on."

"I will." He leaned in for a long kiss and then reluctantly pulled away.

A few hours later Flint switched the auto-pilot off and turned his attention to the landing at HQ. Even though he had made the landing dozens, if not hundreds of times, he never took it for granted. He remembered one of his flight instructors telling his class that a distracted pilot was a dead pilot. So as he went through the procedures, he forced himself to put aside all of the thoughts he had been dwelling on the past couple of hours.

He had hoped that the ride back would soothe his anger that had been simmering since that morning. But it hadn't. As his wheels touched down on the tarmac, he realized he was even more frustrated than when he left D.C.

Instead of dwelling on General Cavanaugh and the Jugglers he tried to focus on the good parts of the visit to help calm himself down. The weekend with Alison had been wonderful. The poker game at Stalker's had been a lot of fun. He was also glad they had made significant progress on the nursery. It wasn't completely finished, but he hoped that would be accomplished on his next visit.

The fact that he didn't know when that would be added to his frustration. He climbed out of the Skystriker. He had only gotten a couple of steps away from it when Ace met him. "Anvil wants you in his office STAT."

Flint let out a grumble in reply, but he followed the order. He entered HQ and passed Snow Job in the hallway. "Good you're here. The general is looking for you."

"I heard," Flint replied. As he went to turn the corner towards the general's office, Dusty ran over to him.

"Welcome back, Flint. Anvil wants," Dusty began but Flint cut him off.

"I know. I'm going to his office right now. Geez, did he make a PA announcement about me?"

"Actually, yes he did," Dusty answered.

Flint exhaled sharply. He couldn't dwell too much on the reason behind Anvil's impatience to see him, as Dusty fell in step with him as he continued his walk.

"Did you have a nice trip?" Dusty asked.

Flint turned to him. "I'm sorry Dusty, but I'm not really in the mood for pleasantries."

Dusty gave a sad nod. "I understand. I'm not really in the mood either."

Despite his foul mood, Flint stopped and took the time to study Dusty. He noticed that the soldier seemed tired and anxious. "Are you all right?"

Dusty again nodded with a frown. "I'm okay. I'm just worried about my mom. She's back in the hospital."

"I'm sorry to hear that."

"Thank you. I shouldn't be as nervous as I am. This is only supposed to be a routine procedure. But I'm afraid nothing is routine for her at her age and with her medical history."

Flint couldn't help but think about the last time that Dusty's mother was in poor health. It had led to a gigantic misunderstanding that nearly cost Dusty his job and freedom. Flint remembered how he had firmly believed that Dusty had sold out his country and his team to try and help his mother. Even though they had long since cleared the air, Flint couldn't help but still feel guilty for his lack of faith in the soldier. "Do you want to take some time off?"

"I do. That's why I want to meet with Anvil as well."

They reached the general's office, and Flint waved him through. "You go first. I have a feeling I might be here a while."

Flint used the time to check in with Alison. Since he didn't want to anger Anvil any further, he kept the conversation short. Once Dusty walked out, looking a little more relieved than when he went in, Flint wished his mother well and then entered the office.

"What the hell did you do?" Anvil barked at him.

Even though Flint knew the general was upset, he was still surprised by the ferocity of the question. "I'm not sure what you mean, if it's about Action Force…"

Anvil cut him off. "I don't give a shit about your thoughts about Action Force. What I want to know is why I had gotten a call from a very agitated General Cavanaugh telling me that I need to put a leash on my rabid Warrant Officer."

"He called you?" Flint asked dumbly.

"Damn right he did. He claimed he was doing me a favor by not writing you up. He flung some BS about our history together being the only reason why he didn't. Which in Jugglers speak means that I now owe him a favor I'm sure he's going to look to cash in."

"Sir, I'm sorry I put you in a bad situation, but he was harassing…"

"I don't care if he was beating up orphans and stealing little old ladies' purses. Once again your lack of discipline and control put the Joe team in a difficult situation."

Flint figured that was an exaggeration, but he wasn't going to call Anvil on it. But what he wanted to do was defend his actions. "I know you just said you don't care why, but hear me out. That son of bitch had been harassing Alison to the point that she was taking self-defense classes. Once I witnessed first-hand the way he was treating her, I was not going to let him get away with that kind of behavior. I have to believe that if it was Elaine being harassed, you too would have taken care of the situation regardless of how much the guy out ranked you."

Anvil remained quiet for a few moments and then he shook his head. "Cavanaugh has always been a prick. He was fit to be tied when the Jugglers were formed, and he wasn't asked to be a founding member. But what he doesn't understand is that he suffers from visions of grandeur and that the rest of us are not nearly as impressed with him as he is with himself."

"Something must have changed, since he's a card-carrying member now," Flint said.

"My guess? He's got dirt on somebody and he used that to get in. Which is why he's a dangerous enemy to have."

Flint had encountered his fair share of men like General Cavanaugh over the years, so he knew he could handle him. But he was still worried about Alison. "Dangerous enough that he might hurt Alison?"

"No, in that aspect he's all talk and no action."

"That's comforting, I guess." Now that the immediate crisis appeared to be over, Flint was able to focus on the fact that he was wiped out and his head was pounding. "Sir, I'm sorry, but can I be excused? It's been an extremely long day."

General Bradshaw studied him for a moment. "You do look like crap. Take the night off, and let's regroup in the morning."

Flint returned to his room. He swallowed a handful of aspirin and then called Alison. Despite his early reluctance to tell her what happened, he decided for her safety it was better she knew. Luckily, she answered the phone.

"Wow," Alison said once he told her the whole story. "I knew he was a jerk, but I didn't realize he was that big of a one. That does explain why Wayne insisted on walking me to my car this afternoon."

Flint smiled. He figured his next phone call was going to be to Beachhead. "So just be careful, okay?"

"I will. I love you, Dash."

"I love you too," Flint echoed. For the second time that day he was left wondering if he had done enough.