Among the Stars

1

A/N: I'm back! And yes, this is another trip into the unknown for me! Enjoy, my Friends!


"Happy New Year!"

Beca smiled as she crossed the open space of her local gym. It was early and apparently only one other person, a woman with a slender, muscular body and flame-colored hair, had managed to crawl out of bed and make it to their spin class.

Beca recognized the woman from previous classes but today, her blue eyes were a little red-rimmed, an indication of maybe some overindulgence in alcohol and only a few hours of sleep the night before. New Year's Eve party? But the things that struck Beca most about the woman were the confidence in her sinuous movements, despite her smaller stature, and the intelligence behind those baby blues. She was very attractive.

"Happy New Year," the redhead replied with a quick grin "Looks like we're the only ones who made it."

Beca chuckled as she hiked herself up onto the bike next to the woman's. She wasn't usually all that social but today was a new year, right? Maybe she could make an exception. "But did we really?" she teased. "Are we actually awake and sober? Is this maybe an alcohol-induced dream? Ugh. I sound insane."

The woman grinned again and held out her hand. "You're cute... Beca, right? I've seen you kicking ass on some of the steeper hills in this program."

"Yeah," the brunette nodded. "And you're…" She wracked her brain for a moment. Unfairly stunning. "Zoe?"

"Chloe," the woman corrected with a wider smile as Beca shook her hand. "But close."

They each started their warmup and cycled in a companionable rhythm as they chatted amiably, until Beca finally sighed. "Did we miss the memo about there being no class today? I mean, the instructor isn't even here yet and it's…" She looked at her wristband. "Shit. It's fifteen past eight."

"Huh," Chloe mused. She'd been too busy admiring the gorgeous brunette to even notice. She touched the screen of her own wristband and her holographic mail list appeared above it. She flicked her fingers in the air to scroll through and then sighed again as she pointed to open one and then scanned through it. "Yup. Guess we did. The new schedule doesn't have today on it."

The brunette grumbled. "Fuck. I knew I should've just stayed in bed."

"Great start to twenty-sixty-five. Should have stayed in bed indeed," the redhead replied with a flirty wink. She hopped off her bike and picked up her bag and towel. "Well, I guess I'll be seeing you," she said with a smile but, as she turned to walk away, she paused and looked back, lips upturning in a half-grin as she realized Beca had been staring at her ass. "Hey, Beca?"

"Yeah?" Dark eyebrows lifted.

"Want to get coffee…" Chloe's lips pursed as her eyes raked, none too subtly, down the brunette's body. "Or something?"

Beca took a moment to let her eyes slowly roam too. They were very obviously attracted to each other, and a distraction was just what she was looking for. A smirk lifted her lips. "Or something," she agreed.

Xx

"Oh my… fuuuuckkkkk…" Chloe groaned loudly as her back arched off the mattress, hand clamped on Beca's between her thighs as she came around her fingers for the fourth time. Then she laughed softly and squeezed the brunette's hand gently as her fingers didn't stop "Wait... please. I can't…"

Beca chuckled and eased back, wrapping her arms around the giggling redhead, and kissing her gently. "You ok?"

Chloe nodded tiredly. "Epic."

"Glad you got out of bed now?" the brunette asked, trailing delicate, teasing kisses down the redhead's breast and over her nipple.

"Gladder you encouraged me back into it." Chloe was about to return the kisses in kind when her wristband chimed softly and she glanced at it, then looked again. "Shit." She sighed heavily. "I'm so sorry. I have to take this call. It's work."

"Sure," Beca replied, smiling as she watched the naked goddess roll out of the bed and sashay into the bathroom. After a few moments, Chloe reappeared in a light, silk robe, a sheepish expression on her face. The brunette shook her head. "Let me guess, something came up."

"Beca, I'm so sorry. I was called in," the redhead replied. "But… I'd really like to see you again."

The brunette got out of bed and pulled her shorts and t-shirt on with a little smirk. "This was fun times... I'll see you at spin class, I guess."

A flash of disappointment crossed Chloe's face, but she accepted the sting of being somewhat blown off and just nodded. "Yeah, ok, I'll see you there." She even accepted the cheek kiss and little wink Beca left with her as she exited the redhead's apartment.

Xx

"You're late!"

Chloe tried very hard not to bristle as she kept pace with her commanding officer. "I got the call an hour ago, Ma'am. It's supposed to be my day off so technically I'm not…"

"I'm sorry, Colonel Beale," General Posen interrupted sarcastically as she stopped dead, once hand perched on her right hip. "Should I have let you sleep in, instead of calling you in to take command of an emergency operation?"

"Sleep in?" Chloe grinned, remembering exactly what she'd been doing only an hour earlier. Then she blinked and sobered. "Uh… no, Ma'am. Destination?"

Posen smirked and started walking again. "Mars."

"Mars, Ma'am?" The colonel was deeply surprised.

"Yes, Mars, Chloe," the general chuckled. "You know… the rocky red one with the new colony?"

Chloe resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "Yes, I know where Mars is, Aubrey. I've been there many times. Why do you need me for a mission like that?"

"Well," Posen replied, face sobering. "We've lost contact with Barden Colony Ops, so we're sending your team out to make sure it's just a comms glitch and not something worse."

"What if it's NOT a comms glitch?" Chloe asked. "What if it IS something worse?"

The general held her eyes. "I'm confident your team can manage the situation, Colonel… or at least manage until backup arrives. I don't have to tell you how important this is. The families..." Posen trailed off, her meaning more than clear to her best friend.

Colonel Beale just nodded and kept following the general until they reached a small conference room, which held a table for six. She took a chair and settled in, nodding to the other officers already seated. "Morning. Please stay seated."

"Morning, Ma'ams," they each replied, then focused their attention on the general.

Posen began without preamble. "This mission is confidential as always. We've lost contact with our new colony on Mars, and you're taking a quick trip out there to check on them." She took a seat at the table and indicated each person in turn. "Colonel Beale will command the mission, Senior Specialists Conrad and Swanson will perform standard tech duties and…" She paused. "Unfortunately, Doctor Monroe came down with the measles so we're waiting for another medical officer to be assigned." She looked at her wristband, tapping it to allow the holographic display to activate. It projected a slowly rotating picture of a young brunette woman into the air above Posen's wrist. "And we have a new specialist, Emily Junk, just freshly graduated, joining us to do…" She sniffed a little. "Everything else."

"Parameters please, General," Colonel Beale said succinctly.

"None," Posen replied, surprising Chloe again. "Just a straight shot out, check on the colonists and straight shot back. Standard tactical mission."

Swanson lifted an eyebrow. "Ma'am, any idea why we lost contact?"

"Again, none. The comms link cut out mid-sentence, when ops was conducting the daily check in, and they've been unable to reconnect in the last forty-eight hours. A simple comms glitch would have been fixed in that timeframe so we're assuming the colonist need assistance."

"Departure time?" Conrad asked, looking down at her wristband.

"TBD," the general replied with a frown. "We have no ETA on the doctor yet, and Junk is on her way from Dallas, so most likely tomorrow morning. The Dauntless is being prepped as we speak so stay on base tonight and I suggest you get a good night's sleep. Colonel Beale will provide any further information in real time." Posen stood up and the officers did too. "And getting some sleep applies to you too, Beale. Dismissed!"

They all stood at attention until she left the room, then Chloe relaxed. "Well shit," she mused, taking her seat again. "Newbies? On a mission like this?"

Stacie shrugged. "Everyone gets trained the same way. It'll be fine." She got up then. "I have a date tonight, but I'll see you at chow before I go."

Just then Chloe's wristband chimed, and she nodded as she read the message scrolling on it. "New doctor's on the way. Posen wants me to get them settled in when they arrive." She got up too. "In the meantime, I'm going to get some coffee and try to take a nap."

"Those two things are counterproductive. You drink too much coffee," Swanson chuckled. "It's WHY you can't sleep."

Chloe just flipped him off fondly and headed for her on-base quarters, but Jesse was right. She couldn't get to sleep.

It was a couple of hours later when the new medical officer arrived. Colonel Beale was waiting at intake, dressed in blue fatigues when the doctor sped through the entrance gate on a quiet electric motorcycle. There was a duffel strapped to the bike's seat, which the doctor loosened and picked up after they'd parked.

Chloe strolled toward the vehicle and the doctor, realizing she was there, unceremoniously dropped their bag and stood at attention, executing a crisp salute, which the redhead returned. "Good afternoon, Ma'am!" The voice was decidedly female.

"Relax," the colonel smiled. The doctor nodded and then slid her helmet off, revealing a sheepishly smiling face. Then Chloe blinked. "Oh... um... Wow... Hi?"

"Yeah," Beca sighed. "This is not awkward at all. Captain Doctor Beca Mitchell reporting for duty, Colonel."

Chloe slowly crossed her arms and regarded the petite woman in front of her. "You're a doctor," she murmured. "Unexpected."

Beca smirked, though she kept her tone respectful. "I'm not sure why. You know I know my way around the human body."

Chloe rocked on her heels a little, skin feeling hot as she remembered EXACTLY how well Beca had learned her way around HER body. She cleared her throat. "Yes, well..." She swallowed and clasped her hands behind her back. "Let me show you my quart... uh... YOUR... quarters for the night. We'll be most likely leaving in the morning first thing."

There was that damned smirk again, but Beca just nodded. "Yes, Ma'am." She picked up her duffel and slung it over her shoulder lifting an eyebrow as she waited for her commanding officer to lead the way.

Chloe could feel Beca's eyes on her as they entered the building and walked along a hallway, then climbed two sets of stairs and walked along another hallway until they reached a sedate grey door marked with an eleven. "This is your room."

Beca swiped her wristband over the small lit pad, and the door slid open to permit her entry. She stepped inside and looked around, nodding in satisfaction. "Thank you, Ma'am."

Chloe just nodded in return. "I'll leave you to settle in and come back in an hour to take you to the cafeteria for some chow."

"Yes, Ma'am," the brunette said again as she sat on the bed and bounced a little to test it. Then she let her eyes lift to meet Chloe's blue, biting on her bottom lip awkwardly. "Listen, Chloe, about this morning..." She sighed. "If I'd known..."

But the colonel just lifted her hand. "It was just a bit of fun, right?" She turned then on her heel and walked away, so the door slid shut and the lock engaged with a sedate snick. Beca suddenly felt very alone and kind of like crap.

Xx

Colonel Beale was pacing back and forth slowly in front of the holographic monitor in General Posen's office. They were looking at the route Chloe planned to take to avoid a travelling asteroid field, but the redhead was so distracted that she completely missed a question from her best friend.

"Chlo," Aubrey said gently as she got up and rounded her desk. "What's wrong? You don't seem like yourself today."

Chloe pinched the bridge of her nose and shook her head as she stuck her free hand in her pocket. "I fucked up, Aubrey."

The general frowned. "Fucked up... how?"

The colonel shook her head again. "The new doctor... Mitchell... I know her."

Posen's frown deepened. "What do you..."

"Intimately," Chloe interrupted. "I was with her when you called this morning. We met in spin class. Totally randomly. Neither of us knew the other is in the service."

"I see," Aubrey nodded as she crossed her arms over her chest. "And is that... going to be a problem? Chloe, I don't have time to request a different medical officer."

"Yeah, no, I know." The colonel gave the question honest thought. "I said I'd like to see her again but she kinda blew me off afterwards and I'd be lying if I said it didn't..." She searched for the right word. "Sting." She cleared her throat then. "But no, it won't be a problem for me. Although I'm not sure about Mitchell. I..." Chloe looked down, cheeks coloring. "I think I fucked up because... I kinda blew her off just now when she tried to talk about it. I was petty and... she'd have every right to be mad."

Posen pursed her lips and moved closer to her friend to gently squeeze her shoulder. "Lines get blurred, Chlo," she said. "We're human, but maybe... apologize?"

The colonel nodded as she squeezed her friend in return. "Yeah. Yes, Ma'am. I will."

Xx

Beca was almost surprised when Chloe actually came back, even though she'd said she would. She opened the door and lifted an eyebrow as she took in the redhead's outfit. The colonel had changed into jeans and a tank top, and her hair was loose, just brushing her shoulders. She looked kind of beautiful.

"Before you say anything, Beca," the colonel said, sticking her hands in her back pockets. "I owe you an apology for being childish earlier."

The doctor's eyebrow lifted even higher at the full-on display of defined biceps and tanned shoulders the colonel was giving her, and she smirked as she shifted her weight to her other foot. Chloe suddenly hated that stupid sexy smirk and wanted to wipe it off the brunette's face. Preferably with her lips.

And it seemed Beca had the same idea because she reached out, hooked her fingers into the colonel's belt loops and pulled her into the room flush against her own body. The door slid shut and Chloe's back was suddenly against it, dark blue eyes boring into her as her hands somehow found the smaller woman's hips. "We were both assholes," the doctor said huskily. "How about we fix that?"

The redhead swallowed as she tipped her head back and closed her eyes, letting her hands fall back to her own thighs. "Beca... I can't..." she said calmly. "We both know that."

For a long, heart-pounding moment, Beca didn't move (and Chloe certainly didn't want her to), but then she pulled back and blew out a calming breath. "Yes, Ma'am." She smiled then. "We're good."

Returning the smile, Chloe straightened and cleared her throat softly. "So... hungry?"

Beca just shook her head and chuckled. "Ravenous."

The redhead ignored the innuendo behind the doctor's words. "Good. I can introduce you to the team while we eat."

At chow, Chloe led Beca to a table where her teammates were seated together, trays of neatly portioned dishes in front of them. The doctor flipped a chair around and straddled it, resting her arms on its back with a mild expression on her face and setting her own tray down as Chloe made the introductions.

"Captain Doctor Beca Mitchell, these are Senior Specialists Stacie Conrad and Jesse Swanson and you..." She smiled at the youngest woman at the table. "Must be Specialist Emily Junk. Congratulations on your graduation from the academy and assignment to this mission."

Junk pushed to her feet at attention. "Ma'am, thank you, Colonel."

Beale chuckled and shook her head, tapping lightly on the tabletop with her fingertips. "Sit down, Junk, before you sprain something."

Junk efficiently met the seat with her butt. "Yes, Ma'am."

Beca sniggered and Chloe shot her an amused look as she went on. "So, I received some more information just before coming in here. To make sure everyone is on the same page, we've lost contact with Barden Colony so we're taking a nice trip out to check on them, departing at oh-six-thirty from here. Lift off is at seven. Flight time will be one week. We don't know why we haven't been able to re-establish comms at this point, so we're going in kinda blind. Full tactical precautions will be in effect once we arrive, so I want everyone armed. Got it?"

"Yes, Ma'am," Stacie replied as she examined a lump of something in her stew.

"Got it, Boss," Swanson added, flicking a half-forkful of rice at Beca who scowled playfully at him and then brushed an errant grain off Chloe's bare shoulder.

"Good," the colonel nodded as she absently scratched at the spot where the doctor had touched her. It was tingling distractingly. "As General Posen told us, it's a straight shot out and back, except for a slight detour around..." She paused and Stacie looked at her.

"BTAF."

Chloe sighed. "Right."

Beca frowned and looked at the others. "BTAF?"

Jesse nodded. "Yes, Ma'am. Beale's Travelling Asteroid Field."

Dark eyebrows shot up as the doctor looked at Chloe, who was looking anywhere else. "You have an asteroid field named after you, Colonel?"

"Informally. It's a long story," the redhead muttered.

"She discovered it," Swanson said, trying to keep a straight face. "With the hull of her fighter when she was busy with... OTHER... activities."

Chloe just groaned and shook her head. "You can't just let it go, can you, Jesse?"

Swanson laughed. "No! Because you're so damn perfect all the time, I have to have SOMETHING to tease you about."

"Can someone tell me this story?" Beca asked.

"Don't," Chloe stated, lifting a finger and pointing it at her old friend.

"Do," Beca added solemnly grabbing her finger and lowering it playfully, not noticing how Swanson and Conrad shared a surprised look.

"Weeeeellll," Jesse said then, rubbing his hands together in delight. "Former Lieutenant Beale decided to... borrow... her fighter to take a... friend... on a ride but got a little... distracted... and forgot to engage autopilot. Her ship entered the field and a couple of direct hits disabled the engines and comms. They were floating around inside the area for two days until their beacon was picked up."

Beca looked at Chloe who was sheepishly biting on her bottom lip. "That was a lot of implied air quotes. He's saying you stole your fighter to impress some guy and then embarrassed yourself by crashing it... in space?"

"Girl," Chloe corrected. "But pretty much, yeah."

The doctor couldn't help but laugh. "Wow. That's... wow."

"And on my permanent record so let that be a lesson to you, Junk." She pointed her fork at the young specialist and waggled it. "Don't steal fighters to impress your dates."

Stacie snorted and shoved at Chloe's shoulder. "Or at least don't be stupid and get caught."

Emily's eyes were round as she gazed at Colonel Beale. "You're so cool," she said, awestruck, then blushed a little. "Sorry."

"No, she kinda is," Beca added with a smirk. "I'm a little impressed too."

Chloe just chuckled and went back to her meal with a shrug of one bare shoulder.

Xx

"Thanks for the tour," Beca said as she and Jesse stopped outside the door of her quarters.

"No probs," the man replied with a smile. "I enjoyed spending the time with you. We have a lot in common, it seems."

Beca looked down to hide her eyeroll. The ONLY thing they had in common was their love of music. "Yeah, maybe. Well, goodnight."

"Yeah... uh... goodnight, Doctor." The brunette breathed a sigh of relief as she swiped her wristband over the door panel. The interaction had had a slightly awkward edge to it and the last thing she wanted was... "Beca, can I take you out on a date sometime maybe?"

Shit.

The petite doctor slowly turned and offered a smile. "I'm flattered but... no thank you."

"We're not in each other's direct chain of command," the senior specialist offered.

"I'm aware of that," Beca replied. "But that's not the reason. Goodnight, Swanson. See you bright and early."

"Indeed," Jesse replied. "Sleep well, Ma'am."

Behind her closed door, Beca let out a sigh and shook her head as she ambled across the room and flopped onto her bed. Chloe had been called away before they'd been able to finish dinner and the doctor wondered if she'd been able to get something else to eat. She tapped her wristband.

"Location of Colonel Beale," she said quietly.

A chime softly echoed. "Colonel Beale is in her quarters."

"Is she sleeping?" Beca asked.

"Her bio signs indicate that she is awake," Bandy, as Beca affectionately called the AI, responded.

The doctor lay there for a moment, chewing on her nail. "Is... is she alone?"

"Yes, Colonel Beale is currently alone."

Beca debated with herself for a few moments, then tapped Bandy again. "Contact Colonel Beale, audio only."

"In progress." Then. "No response."

"Again," Beca prompted.

"In progress."

Beca heard a rustling noise. "Hey, sorry, whoever you are," Chloe answered. "You caught me with soap in my eyes. One sec."

"Sure. It's just Mitchell, Ma'am," Beca nodded amiably to herself as more rustling came down the connection.

"Phew, ok," the colonel said then. "What's up, Bec?"

The doctor grinned. "You sounded like that old, animated rabbit character... um... Bigs ...something?"

"Oh! Bugs Bunny. Yeah, I'm a fan." There was a pause and then Chloe laughed softly. "'What's up, Doc' works for you too."

Beca rolled her eyes but couldn't help but grin. "Oookaay, um... so... Swanson just asked me on out a date."

There was silence for a looooooong moment. "I see," the colonel said then. "And what... you need to borrow an outfit or something?"

The brunette sat up quickly. "Hell no, I don't date dudes. I just wanted to ask what his deal is. He met me like three hours ago AND I outrank him."

Chloe blew out a long breath. "Yeah... I... it's complicated."

"Complicated... how?" Beca asked slowly.

"Jesse was dating General Posen... a few years ago before she WAS a general. She still outranked him at the time, but they were working on different assignments, so it didn't matter. But when she was promoted and moved here..."

"It ended?" Beca finished for her.

"Right. The general chose her career." She cleared her throat. "As for his asking you out, I think that might be partially my fault. I've been encouraging him to start dating again and maybe meeting you spurred him on."

Beca hummed noncommittally. "Fair enough. I'll be gentle with him then."

"I'd appreciate that." Chloe's tone was warm and Beca suspected that she cared a lot about Swanson's feelings. "So, you heading to bed?"

"Yeah," Beca nodded to herself. "Early morning." She got up and went to the closet to find the utility and combat jumpsuits she'd been assigned.

"Got everything you need?" the colonel asked then.

"Yeah, I think so." Beca folded the combat suit and then tucked it into her duffel. "Did you manage to get something to eat?"

"Yeah," the colonel replied. The doctor could hear the smile in her voice. "I got some leftovers."

"Good, ok. Wouldn't want you keeling over or anything. See you in the morning, Colonel. Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Doctor," Chloe replied. "Sweet dreams."