June 1977

"I told you that you guys would like it." Johnny all but crowed as the crew got changed in the locker room. "Didn't I tell them, Roy?"

Roy sighed. "Yep, you sure did."

"Gotta admit, that was pretty good." Marco agreed. "I didn't know what I expected."

"Yeah, that big spaceship…what was it called again?" Chet's brows knitted in thought.

"The Millennium Falcon." Mike piped up.

"That's the one." Chet nodded. "Han Solo and that furball that was with him. They were the best part."

"Chewbacca." Johnny told him. "You should remember. You look just like him."

"Very funny, Gage." Chet replied scornfully as the rest of the crew snickered.

The crew filed into the day room for roll call, and Cap gave Henry a quick scratch behind his ears before addressing his crew. "I know it's awfully early to think about, but the Ladies' Auxiliary is planning the annual kids' Halloween party. Since we won't be on shift that night, we've been asked to participate."

Johnny immediately spoke up. "In costume?"

"Yes, in costume." Cap replied.

"So…we could do a costume…as a group." The wheels were already turning in Johnny's head.

"No, Johnny." Roy told him firmly.

"But I haven't even suggested anything." Johnny protested.

Roy gave Johnny a sideways look. "Let's keep it that way."

The tones went off before Johnny could respond, and they were off on their first call of the day. They were soon so busy that Johnny didn't have time to think about his idea until they finally caught a break sometime that afternoon.

"You don't think it's a good idea?" Johnny challenged Roy as Roy backed the squad into the bay. "The kids would get a real kick out of it."

"Johnny, between you and the kids all I've heard about is Star Wars." Roy told him. "Chris and Jenny have been playing with those light sabers non-stop. Thanks for buying those, by the way."

"Oh, yeah, sure." Johnny replied cheerfully, ignoring Roy's obvious sarcastic tone. Truthfully, he'd had a blast doing battle with the kids in the backyard the day he bought the toys. "Anyway, I guess we've got some time to figure it out. Who knows, maybe Star Wars won't even be popular by Halloween."

"Exactly." Roy agreed. "We've got plenty of time to think of something."

# # #

Johnny woke up later that night and rolled out of his bunk, stepping into his turnout pants and hiking the suspenders over his shoulders before slowly making his way to the day room. As he found a glass and started to fill it from the sink, he thought he heard something out in the bay.

"These are not the droids you are looking for." A voice whispered.

Johnny put down the glass and quietly made his way out to the bay. "Cap?!"

Cap, with a broom in his hands that he was wielding like a light saber, froze when he spotted Johnny. "If you tell anyone about this—"

Johnny barely managed to suppress a laugh. "Well, uh, you'll have to use one of those Jedi mind trick things to keep me from telling."

"Gage." Cap's voice had that warning tone to it, and Johnny realized that maybe he shouldn't be talking to his captain that way.

The two men stared each other down for a long moment before Johnny suddenly snatched the broom from Cap and backed up, crouching down. "Death to the Empire!"

Johnny swung the broom as Cap ducked, and the broom handle hit the engine with a loud thunk.

Both men froze, staring at each other in horror. If there was so much as a scratch on that engine, Mike would have both of their heads.

"I sense a disturbance in the Force." Mike's voice was suddenly behind them.

"He started it." Cap and Johnny spoke in unison.

"But Johnny hit the engine." Cap told Mike.

"Mike's gonna disturb your Force if you hurt that engine, Gage." Chet commented with a yawn.

"I didn't." Johnny answered defensively. "See? Not a scratch on her."

Mike made his way to the engine and inspected it, running his hand along the door before apparently finding the engine in satisfactory condition, nodding firmly. "Looks good. I'm going back to bed."

"Me too." Chet chimed in with a yawn.

"As are we." Cap gave Johnny a meaningful look.

"Right, yeah." Johnny propped the broom up against the wall and followed the others into the dorm.

As he settled back down into his bunk, he was still considering the idea of having the crew dress up as Star Wars characters for the Halloween party. He had plenty of time to talk the rest of the guys into it. Surely, he'd be able to wear them down.

# # #

October 1977

"Okay, we're about three weeks out from the Ladies' Auxiliary Halloween party." Cap told the crew in their briefing. "We need costume ideas."

"Still thinking Star Wars." Johnny commented to a round of groans.

"You're always thinking Star Wars." Chet told him. "You've been obsessed for months."

"Him and the kids." Roy chimed in. "Chris is going to be Han Solo and Jenny's going to be Princess Leia."

"I don't hear any ideas from the rest of you." Johnny shot back. "I mean, think about it. Cap would obviously be Obi-Wan Kenobi. Mike would be Han Solo. The engine is kinda like the Millennium Falcon, right?"

Mike seemed to consider this before nodding. "You might have a point there, Johnny."

"See?" Johnny gestured toward him. "Mike's on board."

Roy gave him a sideways look. "Great. The two of you can dress up together. You'd make a great Chewbacca."

"You know what, Roy?" Johnny huffed irritably. "You're no fun."

"Actually, Henry should be Chewbacca." Marco suggested.

"Yeah, we could put some extra fur on him…wait, what am I saying?" Chet shook his head. "No way am I getting roped into one of your crazy ideas, Johnny."

"You're already there, Chet." Johnny told him. "So, Henry's Chewbacca. How about you and Marco be the droids?"

Chet and Marco looked at each other with a shrug. "You want to play rock, paper, scissors to decide who's who?" Marco asked Chet.

"Chet, you're a natural R2-D2." Johnny told him. "On account of you being the runt of the crew."

"Oh, you're funny." Chet shot back as the rest of the crew snickered.

"So, that just leaves Luke and Leia, right?" Cap threw out casually. "Suppose you two will have to fight over that."

Johnny looked over at Roy. Roy merely shook his head. "Don't look at me. This was all your idea."

"Johnny, you're a natural Leia." Chet told him in a mocking tone.

"Oh, no." Johnny shook his head. "No way am I dressing up like a girl."

"But Johnny, you're the pretty one." Chet continued needling him. "Besides, Leia has brown hair, and Luke has blond hair. It's only logical."

Roy chuckled softly. "He kind of has you there, Johnny."

"Yeah, stick a couple of cinnamon buns on either side of your head and you'll look just like her." Chet told him to a round of laughter.

"Why I oughta…" Johnny rolled up a nearby newspaper and moved to smack Chet over the head.

"Okay, okay, that's enough." Cap scolded them. "So, once you and Roy get your parts figured out, we'll be all set."

"I'll swing by the toy store tomorrow and get some more light sabers." Johnny told them. "Can't have you swinging a broom around those kids, Cap."

"That's good thinking, Johnny." Cap nodded, a hint of a smile on his face.

"Suppose Joanne can whip up a dress for you." Roy suggested. "Can't be much different that what she put together for Jenny."

Johnny turned to see that vaguely amused expression on Roy's face. His partner was having too much fun with this idea. "I'm not wearing a dress, Roy."

"We'll see about that."

# # #

"Uncle Johnny, we look just alike!" Jenny told him excitedly once they were all in costume.

Johnny adjusted the headgear so that it fit a little better. "Suppose we do. Ready?"

Jenny swung the light saber she was carrying. "Ready."

"Careful with that thing." Roy caught her mid-swing, gently guiding the light saber downward before getting a good look at Johnny. "Amazing. You two really do look just alike."

Johnny merely huffed in response. He had lost this argument a long time ago and had resigned himself to his fate. At least Jenny wasn't laughing at him. He wasn't so sure about everyone else.

"You all look wonderful." Joanne told them. "You'll be the hit of the party."

"This is all your work, Jo." Roy replied, wrapping an arm around her and kissing her cheek.

Joanne beamed, placing a hand on Roy's chest. "Most handsome man in the galaxy."

"Can we get this over with, please?" Johnny asked, his discomfort growing.

Soon they were on their way to the auxiliary hall and meeting up with the rest of the crew. Chet burst out laughing, and even the rest of the crew let out a few barely suppressed snickers.

"Well, hey, Gage." Chet finally got himself under control. "Who knew you were so pretty?"

"Aren't you only supposed to talk in beeps?" Johnny shot back.

"Ah, lighten up, Johnny." Cap told him. "This is supposed to be fun, remember?"

"Yeah, and it was your idea." Marco reminded him.

Johnny regretted ever suggesting this but decided to make the best of it. He whipped out the light saber and swung it over his head, crouching as he did back in the bay with Cap.

Cap almost immediately swung into action, and the battle began in earnest. A small crowd started to gather, and soon the air was filled with the sounds of plastic clacking together as the battle became a full-on melee.

Johnny found himself face to face with a Darth Vader that barely came up to his waist. The kid was giving as good as they got, and Johnny was slightly surprised at the kid's ferocity. He backed up until he ran into a table, wincing ever so slightly. "Help me, Obi-Wan!" Johnny yelled. "You're my only hope!"

Cap immediately jumped in while Johnny took a breather, rubbing his back where he'd run into the table. Roy crossed over to him with a slight smile on his face. "You okay there?"

"Can't believe I got whooped by an eight-year-old." Johnny muttered, taking a moment to catch his breath.

"They're pretty vicious." Roy commented with a nod.

Johnny looked up to see a much larger Darth Vader crossing the room, and he tapped Roy on the shoulder. "Who's that?"

"Got me." Roy replied.

Darth Vader took out a light saber and started toward Cap, using it to tap him on the shoulder. Cap turned around and suddenly they were engaged in a fierce duel.

The crowd grew larger as the battle waged on. Cap was holding his own, but Darth Vader was starting to gain the upper hand.

"Think I should jump in there?" Johnny asked.

"I think he's okay." Roy answered. "Besides, it's just pretend, right?"

"Right, yeah." Johnny responded.

Finally, Johnny couldn't stand it anymore. He moved toward Darth Vader, his light saber at the ready. Once he got close enough, he took a good swing at him.

Darth Vader turned toward him, and Johnny found himself engaged in a battle that he was woefully unprepared for. Undaunted, he kept going, encouraged by the crowd that had gathered around them.

"Take him down, Johnny!" Chet hollered.

"Yeah, get him!" Cap called out.

Suddenly, Darth Vader stumbled back, and Johnny took advantage of the opportunity. He dramatically stabbed at Darth Vader, sending him tumbling to the floor.

"Death to the Empire!" Johnny shouted as he pretended to stab Darth Vader to the cheers of the gathered crowd.

Darth Vader splayed out on the floor, not moving, and for a long moment Johnny was worried that he had actually hurt whoever was in the costume. He kneeled down on the floor next to him. "Are you okay?"

"Fine, Gage." Chief McConnike's voice replied. "You and Stanley put up one hell of a fight. I'll bet the kids loved that."

A brief flash of panic was followed by relief. "Yes, sir, I believe they did."

McConnike pushed back his mask, giving Johnny a baffled look. "How'd you end up being Princess Leia?"

"Just lucky, I guess." Johnny answered.

McConnike chuckled. "Help me up, will you?"

"Yes, sir." Johnny pulled the battalion chief to his feet.

McConnike nodded firmly at the rest of the crew. "Stanley."

"Chief." Cap was clearly uncomfortable with the whole situation.

After McConnike left, Cap let out a heavy sigh of relief. "I can't believe McConnike did that to us. What if we'd hurt him? We'd never hear the end of it."

"Relax, Cap." Mike clapped him on the shoulder as he held Henry's leash with the other. "It's all in good fun. I'm sure he won't mention it again."

"Hope not." Cap muttered.

"Uncle Johnny!" Jenny raced over and threw herself around Johnny. "Did you really beat Darth Vader?"

"I did." Johnny bent down so that he was level with her.

"See?" Jenny turned to Chris. "That's why Princess Leia is better than Luke Skywalker."

Johnny looked up at Roy, who merely looked amused. "I don't know. Your dad might have something to say about that."

"Luke's a big whiner." Jenny told Johnny. "That's what Mom says."

"Is that right?" Johnny managed to hold back a laugh.

"That's right." Jenny nodded.

"Why don't we go find a game to play?" Joanne suggested, shepherding the kids off while Chris and Jenny continued arguing.

"A big whiner, huh?" Roy commented. "Maybe you should have been Luke after all."

Johnny adjusted the headgear that had slipped. "Nah. You never would have been able to pull off wearing a dress."

# # #

November 1977

"Whatcha got there, Cap?" Johnny asked as he and Roy came back in from a run.

"Pictures from the Halloween party." Cap told him.

Johnny leaned over Cap's shoulder. There were a few pictures of the crew all together and more of the epic light saber battle.

That had been a blast, even if he had taken out McConnike.

"Looks like your buns were slipping in that one, Johnny." Chet commented casually to a round of snickers from the crew.

Johnny huffed irritably. "I was a little busy battling the Empire."

"Yeah, that little Vader was nearly the death of you." Roy told him as he poured himself a cup of coffee.

"Hey, that little kid was tougher than he looked." Johnny answered defensively. "And I didn't wanna hurt him."

"Sure, you didn't." Roy responded with a short laugh.

"And anyway, I took out the big Vader." Johnny continued.

"You mean McConnike." Chet corrected him. "Boy, are you ever in trouble if he shows up here again."

Johnny scoffed at that, even as he caught Cap's alarmed expression. "It's no problem. I mean, he was going along with it, right?"

Cap didn't look so sure, but then again, he always went a little green around the gills whenever McConnike's name came up, so Johnny dismissed it.

"Gentlemen." McConnike's voice made them all snap to attention. They quickly shuffled around to stand before the battalion chief.

"Chief." Cap sounded more than a little nervous. "What brings you in here today?"

"Just wanted to commend you all on a job well done." McConnike replied. "Everyone was talking about you after that light saber battle. Especially you, Gage."

"Me?" Johnny hated the was his voice squeaked. "Why?"

"Well, people were very impressed that you were willing to be Princess Leia." McConnike told him. "Takes a very special kind of guy to pull that off."

Johnny was relieved. "Well, sir, everyone knows that Luke Skywalker is just a big whiner. So, uh, it just made sense for me to be Princess Leia."

Chet snorted quietly on one side of him, while Roy once again gave him that familiar sideways look. Johnny was sure to hear about it once McConnike left.

Even McConnike seemed a little skeptical but nodded firmly. "I'm sure you're right, Gage. Good job all around, gentlemen. The Halloween party was a rousing success. I'll let you get back to work."

With that the battalion chief was gone, and as predicted, everyone started giving Johnny grief.

"Weren't you the one whining that you didn't want to wear a dress?" Chet asked skeptically.

"I wasn't whining, Chet." Johnny shot back. "Roy?"

Roy paused, looking thoughtful. "You whined a little."

Johnny let out a huff as the rest of the crew had a good laugh. "Doesn't matter. Halloween's over. What are we doing for Thanksgiving?"