Sam Troy gets up early, woken by Tully as they have arranged on the previous day. When the commando Sergeant gazes through the tent, he briefly scowls at the higher than usual headcount, before remembering the extension of their unit. Hitch is missing, as he has apparently stayed with his girlfriend, no fiancé now, overnight. Silberblatt clutches the remainders of his patched-up pillow as if willing to defend them with his life, while the children sleep quietly, but similarly curled up. The Maori soldier and younger Australian sleep rather quietly, similar to Gottschlich and Moffit. However, Daniel O'Donnell is indeed snoring a bit louder than Fritz at Dietrich's feet unlike the German Captain who is quiet as usual and looks younger with his features relaxed in sleep. The kitten curled up at his shoulder wakes from Troy's noise, pricking her ears, as she starts to look around curiously. When Bastet sees the big human sneaking out of the tent, her cat's instincts demand of her to follow him in order to sate her curiosity. However, the bed is still scarily high for the baby cat and Bastet shies back with a desperate whine.

Instead she turns to the human she trusts to help her reliably. "Meow", she tells Dietrich of her troubles, but the Captain merely shifts his head slightly. "Meow", Bastet insists a bit more loudly and rubs her head against his cheek. The German wakes with a start at the touch, on instinct moving his arm to protect his head. "Meow", Bastet purrs, as she gently touches his jaw with her front paw, unperturbed by his movement. "Bastet, du wirst langsam mein Wecker", Hans jokes dryly that she is turning into his alarm clock. Without understanding him, the little cat purrs some more and rubs her head against the side of his head again, before she stalks to the edge of the field bed and meows, desperately pleading for help. "Du willst runter, Bastet?", Hans questions her intent to get down. "Stell bloß nichts Dummes an", he admonishes her to not do anything stupid to which Bastet replies with purring. "Warum solltest du anders sein als der Rest von dieser Rasselbande?", the German Captain mutters with quiet amusement why she should be different from the rest of the unruly gang of Rats. When the German Captain picks her up gently, Bastet starts to move in the air, trying to wriggle out of his grasp, until he safely puts her down on the ground. "Du kannst jetzt laufen, Bastet!", he mutters quietly that she can run from here, but gets up instead of lying down again, when he sees a dark figure moving in the tent entrance.

Tully Pettigrew stands guard and nods to him, when he recognizes the young officer approaching. As Dietrich's eyes quickly wander over the beds, he immediately notices three empty ones and that it is rather quiet, as Troy is neither snoring nor trying to tear his cot apart with bare fingers and Pettigrew, the second loudest snorer, is up as well as their nightwatchman. Daniel O'Donnell truly cannot compete against the American Sergeant, neither can Fritz. "Where are Troy and Hitchcock?", Hans mutters quietly to Pettigrew who merely shrugs. "You've mastered the art of being wonderfully non-informative, Pettigrew", Dietrich sneers dryly. "That's very efficient in interrogations through your enemy, but not when dealing with your commanding officer", he reminds him silkily. "Hitch's been gone all night. Lisa", Tully reports in his monosyllabic way. "Sarge just went out. To scrub some muck I guess." "Thank you, Private Pettigrew. That's how I expect reports to be like, concise and efficient", Hans replies with dry irony. Tully merely nods and continues chewing on his matchstick.

Moments later, just as Bastet tries to sneak past them, shouts of alarm resound through the whole camp. The young kitten jumps in the air, startled and then flees to Dietrich's bare foot, pressing against his shin and meowing desperately. With a sigh the lean Captain picks the scared little animal up on instinct and starts moving quickly towards the source of the disturbance, ordering: "Stay here, Pettigrew! Tell Moffit and Silberblatt to comfort and watch the children! The rest wait till further orders, but prepare for a fight!" "Sure, Cap", Tully confirms and withdraws to the tent with his gun raised, while bearing an attentive and alarmed expression.

Seeing the German Captain approaching with only his uniform shirt and trousers, barefooted and with the kitten in his arm, makes several of the alarmed soldiers stare at him in surprise. But he is the first reasonable officer responding to the alarm, as Atkins merely shouts about assassins, infiltrators and murderers from his tent. "We heard a noise and found one of the tent poles of the General's tent loose, Captain", Private Higgins reports to the young German with relief and trust that he will handle the situation adequately audible in his voice. "Private Kennel and Higgins, inform the guards of the prison and the field hospital that an attempt against the General happened and they should check, if all POWs are accounted for! Private Umbridge, you come with me and watch my back, while I investigate the tent! The rest of you remain here as guards in case another attempt is made during the current chaos. Stay vigilant!" All soldiers salute properly and Dietrich quietly stalks to the site where a tent pole has been forcefully removed.

As he crouches next to the gap with a shivering Bastet in his arm which he tries to calm through gently speaking with the kitten, Private Umbridge inquires curiously: "Have you found something, Captain Dietrich?" The skinny German raises his eyebrows slightly, when the American almost savours mispronouncing his name. Damn Silberblatt, Atkins and the whole band of gossipy nurses for this insane Marlene Dietrich scheme! "The pole has been removed from the outside with force", Hans assesses sternly, furrowing his brows. "Unfortunately, too many soldiers have already trampled around here in panic after the alarm to tell the exact number of perpetrators." The young American Private watches him with adoration, as if this would have been an intellectual feat. The insanity of this war brings naive young men like him to the front where they suffer through traumata beyond their imagination. Dietrich shakes his head. He has chosen this path, knowing about the horrors of the last great war from his father and uncles and still has paid dearly for his own naivety of underestimating the Nazis' fanaticism. "I need to speak to General Atkins now", the German Captain states curtly and rises to his feet.

The American General whirls around, when the tall officer enters his tent, stands at attention and salutes sharply. Although holding the kitten in his left arm and being unable to click his heels with bare feet, Dietrich leaves the impression of the diligent and proper German officer with the General who nods, as the ghost of a smile passes over his face. "Captain Dietrich, I am truly relieved to see you." "I've already sent men to inform the prison and hospital to check on the POWs to account for any escapes. Then I investigated the scene of the crime, Sir", the lean Captain reports. "Excellent. I have really learned to appreciate your famous German diligence in these past few weeks", Atkins commends him. "Meow", Bastet comments, having calmed, now that she feels safer in the quiet tent curled up on Dietrich's arm. "We will see, if you can turn her into as good an officer as Lieutenant Minki was", the General declares almost gently, as he steps closer and pets the curiously looking kitten over the head. Bastet purrs contently, trying to catch his hand with her paw playfully. Atkins briefly smiles earnestly, before his expression turns grim again. "Keep me informed on any news! I entrust this investigation to you, Captain Dietrich." The young European salutes sharply, when Atkins turns away, before adding like an afterthought: "And get dressed properly, although I appreciate your fast response time." Blushing slightly, Hans adds a curt "Yes, Sir", before turning on his bare heels.

"Gentlemen, prepare to search the camp for whoever tried to break into General Atkins' tent!", Dietrich orders sternly, as he enters their tent. "Jakob, you watch Bastet and the children!", Hans adds, handing the kitten to the baffled Jewish Lieutenant. "Don't you dare come near my pillow! Or will have to avenge my beloved", Silberblatt scolds the cat that eyes his bed and pillow with undisguised curiosity. "Meow", Bastet pleads innocence and blinks at him with big blue eyes that finally melt his heart again. "You're too cute to be angry with", Jakob finally concedes and gently pets her over the head which makes Bastet purr loudly. "My kitten", Kiri expresses her desire clearly, while Ari watches his lean brother with sad eyes, as the German puts on socks and his boots, before shrugging into his jacket with a wince. "Will Hans come back and not be hurt?", the Jewish orphan asks his second brother quietly. "I hope so. They should only remain in camp", Jakob Silberblatt assures the boy as best he can. "I pray for him. It worked yesterday. He didn't get hurt and we had a lot of fun together", Ari declares his strategy proudly. "Praying cannot hurt", Jakob tells the worried boy gently. His parents will definitely love the faithful young orphan.

The Rats spread out under Dietrich's directions, when Troy comes running back towards their tent. "What's wrong? What are you doing?", the American Sergeant wants to know. "Someone tried to break into General Atkins' tent. The whole camp is alarmed and we search for the perpetrator", Dietrich explains sternly to which Troy grimaces and swallows. "So what do you do now?" "I'm in command of the investigation, Sergeant", the German Captain informs him with a strict expression. "We still try to find out whether some of the prisoners are responsible, infiltrators like de Laney still remain or somebody external sneaked into our camp. Moffit, you check with Lieutenant Carlos on the prisoners! Speak with Hauptmann Stadler and Langreiter. Both have an interest in being cooperative. Make sure that Zornbrecht is still under lock and key." Jack Moffit nods and salutes. "I'll take care of it immediately." Dietrich nods in response, before turning to the next of his men. "Hitchcock, you can return to the field hospital and assure that everything is safe there. Pettigrew, Gottschlich, Anaru, O'Donnell, both of you, you will all check the surroundings of the camp and try to find tracks of someone sneaking in or out!" All Privates and the Corporal confirm their orders, before preparing to leave their tent, as the German Captain's gaze falls on his last man remaining. "Troy, get ready and come with me!", Hans orders sternly. "Good, I need to talk to you in private anyway, Captain", Sam replies, bearing a slightly guilty expression. Dietrich sends the others off with a curt nod and salute, before turning back to Troy. "I think I gotta tell you something", the American Sergeant mutters with an unusually meek tone. Sighing wearily, the German Captain raises his eyebrows in a questioning manner. "Let's say I tried to get back at Turner, seeing that today is my last chance. But it went wrong a bit", Sam mutters slightly sheepishly, before telling his part of the story.

"I don't want to believe that you would actually stoop so low to cause an alarm in the whole camp for a whole hour over a simple prank, Sergeant Troy, especially after all that has happened yesterday", Dietrich states with an accusatory tone, closing his eyes and pinching his nose. "I wouldn't have thought they'd raise an alarm in the whole camp, just accuse the cat of bringing a scorpion or so", Sam tries to argue. "If you want to blame Lieutenant Minki, you have to raise the dead. Bastet is too young and unskilled in hunting to serve as a scapegoat. And obviously you are not agile enough to slip in and out of the General's tent without loosening a whole tent pole, Troy!", Hans snaps unnerved. "That was bad luck. Atkins would have forgiven the baby cat and I thought the tent was Turner's after I saw him walk in yesterday evening", the American Sergeant grumbles. "That was utterly idiotic and thoughtless, even for your standards, Troy!", the German Captain snarls with his nerves worn to a frazzle. "I will call off this farce. Then we can have breakfast. You owe me a proper coffee after this drama, not this water infused insult to the noble beverage that you Yankees consider coffee", Hans groans. "You can have whatever you like. You're a good friend, Dietrich", Sam declares with a smile. "Don't say that! I will tell Atkins the truth and then we'll see how many years you'll spend cleaning latrines, Troy", Dietrich replies with dry sarcasm. "You backstabbing Jerry...", Sam grumbles, when they get interrupted by Lieutenant Williams, followed by Hitch.

The American officer wears a bandage around his head and looks slightly worn, while Mark Hitchcock looks torn between worry and excitement. "Captain Dietrich, your Private here told me to report to you, 'cause you're leading the investigation. I just got treated in the field hospital after someone knocked me over the head and left me unconscious, likely to use the radio", Williams reports diligently. As Dietrich glances at Troy, the American Sergeant looks just as baffled as he is and shakes his head, meeting the German's gaze. "Did you notice anybody? Did they leave the weapon they knocked you out with?", Dietrich inquires with serious concern. "No, Captain", Williams replies, looking chagrined. "I didn't expect anybody to attack me during radio duty and I have to admit that I was already quite tired after a whole night shift at the radio", the American officer admits. "It's not your fault, Lieutenant", Dietrich reassures him in a friendly tone. "I try to find any hint to who might be behind this, since we already checked the German prisoners." "I really cannot tell you. Do you think that any infiltrators are still left in camp and have contacted the German HQ?", Williams asks with a worried expression. "I honestly don't know, but cannot dismiss the notion after what happened yesterday", Hans replies earnestly. "I won't leave your side, Captain", Troy vows with true conviction. The German officer briefly narrows his eyes, knowing that part of their alarm is to blame on him and his idiocy, but discards any doubts about Troy's honesty immediately. "Neither will I, Cap", Hitch vows, as usual eager to imitate his idol Troy.

"Fine, Sergeant Troy. You stay with me to watch my back. Hitchcock, you will inform Captain Boggs and Brown immediately about this turn of events, as well as Lieutenant Carlos and Sergeant Moffit." Hitch nods diligently, while the German Captain turns to the American officer. "Lieutenant Williams. Please accompany me to the radio tent and show me the scene of the attack. Maybe you can remember better what happened when you're there", Dietrich addresses him smoothly. "Of course, Captain", the American officer confirms and leads their way after giving Troy the time to grab his hat and rifle from the tent, while Hitch takes off to find Boggs. "I brought yours as well, seeing that this might take longer", Sam declares, as he hands the German Captain his Australian leather hat. Fritz comes trotting after him with a hanging tongue, hoping to be able to beg for a good breakfast soon, since Troy is a reliable source of food. With a brief expression of gratitude, Hans puts on the hat, given that his cap has been turned into a cat basket for the time being.

In the radio tent, Williams repeats his report and shows Dietrich where he has sat with his back to the entrance and been struck down. "What happened with your gun, Lieutenant?", Hans asks and Williams reaches for his holster, only to notice for the first time that it is gone. "I don't know. It should be here, Captain", Williams stammers in confusion. "Your attackers took it?", the German Captain inquires sternly. "I think so, Sir", Williams admits meekly. "Either they wanted to arm themselves because they had no weapon, like a prisoner would, or they intended to disarm you to keep you from attacking them, when you regained consciousness. But in this case they should have bound and gagged you as well", the younger officer argues, while he thinks out loudly. "That need not be", Troy contradicts him. "When time is essential, just taking the weapon is much faster, when you want to flee already. We've done this often enough, also with you." "I remember", Dietrich replies with an icy tone. "But operating the radio has taken some time as well, so that time could have been used to bind him." "Only if they're more than one. If you have to do it one action after the other, your risk of someone running into you by chance only increases. You wanna go in and out as quickly as possible", Troy counters. The young Captain nods thoughtfully, as he considers the argument of the experienced commando soldier, since hardly anybody has more expertise and experience than Sam Troy in this regard. Scanning the room with his eyes, the lean officer tries to find some indication whether the attacker has been alone or part of a group to verify the theory.

As the German Captain still investigates the interior and potential tracks which have been mostly destroyed by Williams' helpers, Private Higgins enters the tent and salutes. "Captain Dietrich. Doctor Andrews sends me to report that the Frenchman is missing." "Das darf doch alles nicht wahr sein", Hans mutters to himself in disbelief that this is actually true. "When did he disappear, Higgins?" "They don't know, Sir. They checked the Jerries first, I mean the Germans. Sorry, Sir", Higgins stammers at Dietrich's narrowed eyes. "Do they have anything belonging to Christian Moulin?", Hans asks sternly, ignoring his awkward reaction. "I don't know, Sir", Higgins replies meekly. "I will check in the sickbay then. You make sure that nothing is moved here and no more people enter to destroy tracks and evidence!", the German Captain decides sternly, as he swiftly stands up and stalks out of the radio tent with a thunderous expression. This is almost like one of his usual mornings until a few weeks ago have been, waking up only to learn how the Rats have wreaked havoc in his camp, only that this time not the Rats are responsible or at least not only the Rats. "Fritz, komm. Hier, bei Fuß!", he calls the dog to come along, as an idea occurs to him. Not only the dog but also Sergeant Troy follows him closely, but Hans is too caught up in his thoughts to talk with him about what he intends to do.

"Doctor Andrews", Dietrich calls the medic, as he enters the field hospital. "Do you have anything belonging to the disappeared Frenchman Christian Moulin? A bandage, a blanket, a piece of clothing?" The American medic looks briefly baffled. "We still have this sweaty bloody fabric from where he lay on the bed", the American Doctor provides, sounding a bit unsure what the young officer wants. "Excellent", the German Captain replies, before calling: "Fritz, komm her!" The little dog immediately runs to him from where he has tried to befuddle one of the nurses with his puppy eyes gaze and jumps up to place his paws on his master's thigh. "Hier, Fritz. Riech!", Hans tells him to sniff the cloth he holds out to him. Fritz wags his tail and sniffs intently at the cloth. "Gut, Fritz. Such jetzt! Bring!", Dietrich orders him to search and fetch, pretending to throw the cloth, deftly hiding it behind his back. As Fritz loves fetching things, he starts running immediately and turns around a bit astonished, when nothing hits the ground. "Such, Fritz!", the German Captain orders the dog again to search for the scent and indeed Fritz starts sniffing the ground and fawning.

As he picks up the scent, the brown dog wags his tail intensely and barks enthusiastically, starting to run after his plaything or so he hopes. "Excellent. Fritz picked up the scent", Dietrich explains with relief and starts jogging after the dog, followed closely by Troy. "I still like dogs more than cats. Fritz has deserved to become a Private First Class, if he finds something", Sam argues. "Boggs will tear what little hair remains to him out, if I suggest that", Hans argues dryly. "Then he deserves Baldy as a nickname", Sam replies, as both hasten to follow Fritz. Thomas Anaru is the first of their men to become aware of Fritz, Dietrich and Troy walking swiftly through the camp. "Inform the others that we look for the Frenchman Christian Moulin, Private Anaru! Fritz has picked up his scent. At least I hope he has and we don't run to his next stash of food", the German Captain informs him dryly, continuing to swiftly follow the dog and watch their surroundings.

The brown dog leads them around the camp into several dead ends, before they land at the radio tent again. Dietrich repeats his process to make Fritz continue his search after petting and praising him several times. Fawning enthusiastically, encouraged by praise and cuddles, the little dog continues his search through the camp, leading them further into the direction of the storages and armory, but without getting too close, before he sprints toward the edge of the camp. Now that they leave the camp where countless tracks cover the ground, Hans can make out the trail made by a single pair of feet in the Saharan sand. "I think we're following the right track, Troy", the German Captain shouts to his Sergeant, a few steps behind him. "Fritz follows this single person that has left the camp straight in this direction. None of our soldiers should act like that, as it is immensely dangerous to just run out into the desert at night." "Told you the dog's a hero", Troy replies with a grin. "Gut, Fritz!", he shouts to the excited animal as encouragement. "You're improving your German, Troy. When you can finally pronounce my name properly, I'll be actually proud of you", Dietrich comments dryly. "You're a Jerry smartass, Dietrich", Sam grumbles. "And you still have a long way to go, before you should use my name", Hans counters with sarcasm, but a mischievous smile. "Such, Fritz! Guter Hund", he then calls to the dog that has stopped in his tracks to sniff at a dead, dried out cadaver of a jerboa.

With renewed enthusiasm, Fritz starts running along the track in the sand, yelping and barking, whenever he picks up the scent. When they walk over a dune, Hans and Sam recognize a rock formation with several caves. "That could be his hideout", Troy grumbles. "Exactly my thoughts, Sergeant", Dietrich replies sternly, drawing his Colt from his holster. The American Sergeant already has his automatic gun in hand, but holds it now in a manner ready to shoot. "Fritz, hier!", the German Captain calls back the dog who returns to him, panting and eyeing him curiously. "Gut gemacht, Fritz!", the young officer commends him and pats him over the head, as Fritz jumps up at him enthusiastically. "Bei Fuß", Hans finally orders him to follow at his left heel and not run ahead, worried that the dog without any fighting ambitions might get injured otherwise. Fritz obediently trots at his left side, while Troy stays ready for an attack at Dietrich's right. "I don't like that", the American Sergeant growls suspiciously. "Neither do I. My guess is that he contacted his comrades from the French resistance and wanted to hide and wait here until they would pick him up. Only your stunt with the General's tent caused an alarm quickly enough to sabotage his mission", Hans replies matter-of-factually. "See, my prank turned out to be useful", Sam argues and earns an angry glare from the German officer who growls with annoyance: "Don't overstep the bounds of my patience, Troy!"

A sharp whistle behind them makes both whirl around. On top of the previous dune stand Tully, Hitch, Moffit and Anaru. Dietrich waves them over and retreats with Troy behind the tip of their dune from the caves' perspective. "Those were all I could find so quickly, Captain", Thomas Anaru reports, while Hitch pets Fritz over the head, as the dog greets him enthusiastically by jumping up on his leg. "Well done, Private Anaru", Dietrich praises him. "Our backup arrived just in time. We assume that Christian Moulin is hiding in one of those caves down there." The German Captain points at the rock formation and all his men nod grimly. "He is likely armed with Lieutenant Williams' handgun and we think that he waits for his fellow resistance fighters to pick him up. As we have seen no sign of a vehicle, he is supposedly still alone. But keep in mind that they could arrive at any time. Hitchcock, I want you to stay up here on a watch post, as you could not help us in a fight with your broken arm!" "Okay, Cap", Hitch replies a bit despondently. "And keep Fritz with you, so he doesn't get hurt", the young Captain adds at which the dog yelps and fawns, when hearing his name, but joins Hitchcock, when the Private calls him. "Anaru, I want you to stay outside of the caves to guard the entrances and see if anyone arrives or leaves and to hear Hitchcock's warning call!", Hans then orders and the young Maori soldier salutes. "Sure, Captain." "Moffit, Pettigrew, you will check one of the cave entrances together, Troy and I another one! With the rocky surface it's likely hard to find good tracks conclusively showing us which cave he has taken. We'll try to narrow it down to the most plausible ones", the young officer finally orders. "Aye, Captain", Jack confirms with a grim expression. "Try to speak with him, Moffit, before you start firing, Pettigrew", Dietrich adds, looking at Tully sternly who chews on his matchstick and nods. "We will try to respect your diplomatic ways, Captain", Jack responds diligently. "Thank you, gentlemen", Hans replies dryly. "Let's shake it!", Troy adds grimly, as the German turns in the direction of the caves.

Cautiously they move down the dunes, shambling sideways to keep their balance, while holding their weapons ready. Dietrich commands them only through hand signs from now on, directing Anaru to the position where he should keep watch and showing Moffit and Pettigrew the cave they should check. As the last part before the caves is stony and not covered in sand, tracking the Frenchman to his hideout is impossible, just as Dietrich has expected, even though Pettigrew, Anaru and their commanding officer try to spot something. The German Captain and the British Sergeant each take an electric torch from their belt pouch to light the way into their caves for themselves and their respective comrade. Troy bears his teeth in a snarl, as he follows behind Dietrich who cautiously walks ahead with the gun in his left and the torch in his right hand. Both listen intently, while trying to move as soundlessly as possible. A scurrying noise ahead of them makes Hans stop in his tracks and move his left arm to order Troy to his side, indicating that someone is ahead of them. Troy steps next to him now and glares into the darkness in front of them. Cautiously, they continue on their way, each covering the other's flank.

Suddenly a shade to his right dashes out of a dark alcove and slams right into the American Sergeant, pushing him into the German officer who bites his lip to suppress a groan at the impact with his right shoulder. "Arrête!", Hans bellows his order to stop after the fleeing Frenchman, before firing a warning shot after him, intended to hit the ceiling and not the man. Moulin whirls around however and fires in their direction which is both Dietrich's and Troy's signal to return fire. "Ouch", the American Sergeant grunts, when a bullet grazes his left arm. His German commanding officer has dropped to his right knee to gain a more stable position and get out of the range of bullets aimed for his head. With a cry of pain, the Frenchman collapses to the ground, breathing heavily.

Dietrichis the faster one to move forward and check on the fallen resistance fighter, kicking his handgun out of reach, before kneeling at the dying man's side. Moulin barely clings to the last threads of life, as blood seeps from several bullet wounds in his upper body as well as his mouth. "Tu es un imbécile, meurs pour rien", Hans scolds the Frenchman bitterly that he is a fool, dying for nothing. "S'il vous plaît", Christian Moulin pleads desperately, as he gurgles, drowning in his own blood. "Qu'aviez-vous l'intention de faire ici? Attendre vos camarades? Nous vous aurions laissé retourner", the German starts an inquiry about what he has intended to do out here, whether he has called his comrades, before adding bitterly that they would have let him go. "S'il vous plaît", Christian Moulin repeats more weakly without providing an answer, digging his hands into the sand, as his face becomes more contorted with pain and desperation. "Shoot him through the head, Troy!", the German Captain orders with a grim tone, intending to end the young man's suffering, as he quickly draws back to not get splattered with blood. A single shot resounds in the dreary dark tunnel of the cavern, as Sam Troy follows the order, understanding Dietrich's intent within seconds.

"That idiot", the American Sergeant growls angrily. "He paid the highest price for his stupidity, Troy. Leave it at that. Relieving him of his suffering was the best we could do for him. We should bury him though", Hans mutters with quiet introspection, as he steps forward and makes the sign of a cross, before putting his weapon back into the holster and picking up Williams' handgun from where he has kicked it to the side. "You're right", Troy grumbles. "I'll call Tully and Moffit." Shouts from outside interrupt their discussion which cause both of them to run as quickly as possible, the long-legged, agile German beating the bulkier, shorter American. "Two vehicles are coming!", Anaru shouts and retreats into the entrance of the cave to get cover, while Hitch runs down the dune with Fritz in his arms. Moffit and Pettigrew join them only half a minute later, shortly after Dietrich and Troy.

"We just shot Moulin. These must be his fellow resistance fighters whom he contacted", Hans growls between gritted teeth. "We try to negotiate, but you'd better prepare yourselves for a fight gentlemen! I doubt they will be delighted to learn that their friend is dead. And they're not an official military, having no formal structure or punishment for disobedience of relevant rules", he reminds them. "I'll stay at your side, Captain", Troy declares decisively. "You should get your arm checked, Sergeant", Dietrich admonishes sternly. "It's just a graze. It can wait until after this fight", Sam argues grimly. "Compared to you, I'm still barely affected by any injuries." The German Captain glares at him, but then focuses on organising the defence, placing Tully as a sniper hidden in a higher up cave to cover him, should he get the chance to negotiate. "Why didn't you do that before?", Troy asks. "You rarely announced your arrival in advance, Sergeant, or I would have prepared accordingly", Dietrich sneers sarcastically, before adding in a more sober tone: "I also learned from my mistakes." "You're my best student ever. It's good you switched sides or you might have caught or shot us sooner or later", Troy tells him a bit more jovially than the German Captain and the British Sergeant consider appropriate for the topic.

When the rebuilt Citroen car and the truck halt in front of the caves, the Rats can make out five armed fighters on the truck and two more in the car in addition to the drivers. "That's a large delegation for simply picking up an injured comrade in arms. Don't you think so, Sergeant?", Dietrich remarks dryly with furrowed brows. Both Troy and Moffit nod in agreement, unsure who of the two the German Captain is talking to. "What do they want?", Troy growls silently. "Ambushing our camp with such a small force would be madness", Hans mutters quietly and Moffit nods in agreement, as he suggests: "Maybe he counted on being followed." "What use would that be?", Sam grumbles and both the Europeans shrug in unison.

"Christian!", one of the men calls his comrade's name. "Il est mort", Hans shouts back, trying to stay covered in the cave entrance. All Frenchmen turn in his direction immediately and several rifles are aimed at different cave entrances. "Qui es tu?", their spokesman shouts. "Capitaine Jean Thierry de l'armée américaine", Dietrich shouts back the French version of his name and rank. "C'est il officier allemand", someone calls, apparently recognizing him from a description, as he identifies him specifically as the German officer. "Pourquoi as-tu tué Christian?", their spokesman bellows angrily why he has killed Christian. "Parce qu'il a tiré sur nous et nous nous sommes simplement défendus", the German Captain replies that they merely have defended themselves after he has shot at them.

The French fighters briefly talk among themselves quietly enough to not be understood, until their spokesman addresses them again that they want to negotiate with the Captain: "Voulons négocier avec vous, Capitaine Thierry." "Nous négocions déjà. Que voulez-vous de moi?", Hans points out dryly that they are already negotiating and demands to know what they want from him. "Vous êtes un officier allemand. Vous pouvez nous dire où se trouvent les bases et comment les attaquer au mieux", the Frenchman calls back that he is a German officer and thus can tell them where the German bases are and how to best attack them. "Plusieurs bases sont déjà libérées ou aux mains des Américains", the young Captain replies that several bases have already been liberated or are in American hands now. "Je ne peux pas vous aider avec ce que vous voulez", Dietrich adds that he cannot help them with what they want. "Nous sommes prêts à vous emmener de force si vous ne vous conformez pas, Capitaine Thierry", the Frenchman shouts angrily that they are willing to take the Captain by force, if he does not comply. His resistance fighters all raise their guns now and the one in the car with their spokesman fires a shot which ricochets off the wall of Dietrich's cave entrance dangerously close to his head. Moffit meanwhile has translated the essential parts for the rest of the group, as the German Captain frantically considers how to resolve this situation without unnecessary bloodshed, when a single bullet hits the French gunman in the head killing him instantly.

Immediately all hell breaks loose, as the French fighters concentrate their fire at their cave entrance from which Troy emerges half-covered, followed by Dietrich, Moffit and Anaru to return fire, while Tully picks them off one at a time, killing their spokesman, before anyone even realizes that there must be another sniper. In the hail of bullets from Troy's, Moffit's and Anaru's automatic guns, the gasoline tank of the truck gets hit which results in an explosion with the amount of bullets ricocheting off the metal frame throwing sparks each time. The shockwave of the explosion also throws the attacking Rats backwards, slamming Moffit into Dietrich who gets smashed into the cave wall behind them and thrusting Troy onto Anaru, landing both of them on the ground, groaning. Jack catches the younger officer who has cushioned his fall excellently at the cost of his health, when the German Captain collapses against his shoulder unconscious.

Keeping the tall and skinny man upright by holding him in a tight embrace around the chest and back, the British Sergeant notes with some relief that the other is stirring slightly again after mere seconds. However, Jack has quite clearly in mind that the young Captain has struggled intensely against potential attackers, whenever coming too like many battle ready soldiers Moffit has known. "Ruhig, Hans. Du bist in Sicherheit", he therefore repeats several times to keep the German officer calm by assuring him that he is safe. Dietrich moans with pain, when he actually regains awareness and immediately clutches his right side, before reaching for the back of his head. Only after a few seconds can he summon the strength to lift his head from where it has rested on Moffit's shoulder and focus his slightly blurred gaze on the British Sergeant's face. "Moffit", Hans drawls with a slight slur. "Wir sind weder per du noch agieren auf Vornamenbasis im Dienst." The longer he speaks, the less slurred and more ironic his tone becomes. Jack smiles wryly at the younger German's reaction to admonish him about not interacting in a casual manner applying first names while on duty. Keeping his humor even in dire situations and the face of pain and injury is one of Dietrich's feats.

"How badly are you injured, Captain?", Jack asks the younger officer now, when the Brit notices the German Captain pressing his hand on his right flank again with his teeth gritted in pain. "I might have torn some sutures and hit my head rather hard against the wall", Hans groans, trying unsuccessfully to hide the pain from his tone. "You're bleeding slightly at the side and blacked out briefly from hitting your head", the British Sergeant replies with concern laced into his tone, as he sees some red staining showing on the younger man's shirt. "Stay where you are. We'll take care of you!" "I'm not that gravely injured that I cannot continue my mission", the proud officer contradicts him, trying to stand on his own although his knees buckle precariously. "We need to secure the Frenchmen immediately." A shot ringing out proves his assessment only too right, when a man collapses from another of Tully's bullets whose covered position higher up has protected him from the worst impact of the explosion, getting him back to his guard position the most quickly.

Troy has meanwhile helped Thomas Anaru back to his feet and both have their weapons ready to storm out again, when Moffit joins them with the slightly staggering Dietrich who needs to support himself against the wall after the first step, when his vision starts spinning. "Concussion", the German Captain mutters quietly, as he squeezes his eyes shut. "You stay here, Captain, while we secure the Frenchmen! Anaru, stay with him!", Moffit orders and Hans sees the reasonability in this, as he replies: "Troy, Moffit, check for survivors and try to take them alive!" Both Sergeants nod and confirm the order in unison, before leaving their CO with the young Maori Private who has stepped next to the German Captain and desperately wonders what he should do with him. Finally he settles for placing his hand on the taller man's shoulder who winces at the touch and opens his eyes again briefly until he recognizes the young soldier. Hitch now emerges from the cave with a whimpering dog in his arms. "Fritz got a little scared... oh, what happened with Cap?" "Explosion", Hans groans unnerved. "Do you want to sit down, Captain?", Thomas asks with concern. Dietrich starts to shake his head, but thinks better about it immediately, when pain explodes at the movement. "No. I won't be able to get up again", he grits out between clenched jaws, once the worst of the pain in his neck and head has subsided. "Help me outside, once they have secured the area!"

Sam Troy and Jack Moffit have finished this gruesome task within the next few minutes once they have verified the deaths of all nine men, most struck down by Tully's bullets to their heads. "It's safe. All dead!", Troy shouts and waves Tully, Anaru, Dietrich and Hitch down to them. The Maori soldier needs to support his skinny German commander by now, as his dizziness and pain have increased, once the first wave of adrenaline has subsided. Hitchcock follows behind them with Fritz held in his arms, bearing a concerned expression as he looks from the dog to the Captain. Sam approaches them, as soon as he spots them and quickly helps Anaru with keeping the staggering young officer on his feet. Even if the German is gravely underweight, he is still tall and has a non-negligible amount of wiry muscles of his frame. Dietrich starts slightly, when somebody else touches his other arm and injured shoulder, but relaxes immediately, when Troy confirms: "It's just me, Captain. All Frenchmen are dead. We'd better get you back to camp." "Don't leave their bodies here! Not only is it a decent act toward fellow fighters to bury them, but also important at such close distance to the oasis to not have several rotting corpses spreading disease and attracting predators", the German Captain argues between clenched teeth. "I'll take care of this task with Tully and Thomas. Troy will bring you back to camp with Hitch and the mutt. I have to admit that I can still learn a lot from you about circumspect behavior and responsibility beyond my comrades only, before I can consider a promotion to the officer's rank it would appear, old chap", Moffit assures Dietrich in his usual dry humorous tone, gently patting the younger man on the shoulder. "Thank you, Moffit", the German Captain mutters his reply.

"Well, let's shake it, Captain Fox Kit!", Sam declares with determination. "Come along, Hitch! What's wrong with Fritz?", the American Sergeant asks, noticing the whimpering dog lying in the Private's arms for the first time. "We got knocked off our feet back in the cave. But he must have got scared by the explosion", Mark replies with actual concern. "Dogs have sensitive ears. The loud sound of the explosion could have hurt him slightly. It happens to humans often enough. Then he will be dizzy and have problems hearing", Hans adds to the argument with some concern edged into his tone, as he briefly opens his eyes to look at the dog, before squeezing them shut again, when the light causes his headache to increase. "Yeah, we'd better get both of you back to camp quickly. You're causing me headaches with all your injuries, Captain", Troy grumbles. "I almost feel sorry for you, Sergeant", the German officer counters dryly. "Jerry smartass. When you're up to your jibes and jokes it can't be so bad", Sam declares with more relief than annoyance, as he leads the young Captain along with his hand on his good shoulder, guiding him.

The O'Donnell brothers who still follow their orders to check the vicinity of the camp are the first to spot them. "My God, what happened to him?", Daniel asks with concern. "Is that blood on the neck?", Kevin points out, where a drop of blood has left a thin line in its wake, when running down the German Captain's neck from the back of his head. Dietrich instinctively presses his right hand against his flank more intensely, feeling his shirt and fingers becoming wet and sticky. "Torn sutures", he mutters, when Troy adds: "We got into an explosion. It got him pretty badly." "We need to get both of them to sickbay", Hitch reminds them and Daniel notices the blood on Troy's sleeve as well, where the bullet has grazed him, while his brother has turned to Mark and Fritz, eyeing the whimpering dog with sympathy. "What's wrong with him?" "His ears got hurt in the explosion. Poor little Fritz!", Hitch whines and pets his favourite mascot, while they continue toward the field hospital. Fritz whines dramatically to confirm what a poor suffering creature he actually is. "Privates, follow our tracks and help Moffit and the others with burying the bodies! Take Gottschlich along, if he is closeby!", Dietrich orders without even opening his eyes, as he recognizes the voices. "Yes, Captain", Daniel confirms. "Get better soon, Captain!", Kevin adds and pats the German officer on the shoulder gently. "And you too, Fritz!", he tells the dog, as he pets him over the head. "Who worries about me?", Troy grumbles, slightly offended. "You'll receive treatment soon enough, Troy. As long as you can still blow things up, I'm not that worried about you", Hans mutters dryly. "Jerry smartass", Sam counters, eyeing the young Captain with some concern nonetheless, as his speech has become slightly slurred again and his German accent becomes audible.

Captain Boggs intercepts the group on their way to the field hospital after a lookout has provided him with a report of Dietrich's return to camp. "What happened?", the American officer inquires with uncharacteristic worry and concern, when he finds his younger colleague leaning heavily on Sergeant Troy's shoulder for support. Dietrich squints at him and growls: "The French resistance attacked us." Boggs looks confused. "Why? They're enemies of the Axis as well." "The enemy of your enemy is not always your friend", the German Captain counters sarcastically, hissing with pain, as he remembers to press against his bleeding side. "Where are they now?" "Have you forgotten how efficient the Rats are at demolishing their enemies?", Hans asks with irony. "I tried to negotiate, but when they shot at us, we returned fire, resulting in all our enemies' deaths. I learned what they wanted though: me." Boggs gapes at him. "You?", he asks incredulously. "Apparently, General Atkins isn't the only one, appreciating my knowledge about German bases and defences", Hans mutters sarcastically. "They wanted intel from me and would likely have turned to more drastic measures without my cooperation." "I will inform General Atkins about this immediately, while you get treated in the field hospital, Dietrich. He will likely want a report from you later", Boggs tells him. "I will provide that as soon as I'm able to", comes the younger German Captain's reply.

"Um Gottes Willen, Hans. Was ist geschehen?", Ludwig Sommer repeats the same question as everyone else, as soon as he spots the injured German Captain. "Explosion", Dietrich mutters his quiet reply. The German medic glares at Troy with an accusatory expression, as if blaming him personally for the young officer's state which technically speaking is not too far from the truth. "And how did this explosion happen?", he asks the American Sergeant, while directing Hans Dietrich gently to the officer's ward. "It's not my fault that these gas tanks blow up so easily", Sam Troy growls defensively. "It's only your fault to shoot at them in the first place", the German Doctor who has treated countless of his victims snaps in annoyance. "Stop this!", the lean Captain intercedes. "My head is already hurting enough without you quarreling worse than a band of kids."

"What's wrong with him?", David Troy asks with honest concern, when he sees Sam drag the younger Captain into the ward. "Concussion", Dietrich himself answers before anybody else. "Sammy. You're supposed to take care of him", the younger Troy brother remarks with an almost accusatory tone. "Why are you all accusing me?", Sam growls defensively. "It's not like I'm not feeling guilty already." "It's not your fault, Troy", Hans reassures him patiently. "Get your own injury checked now. I'm responsible for you after all, not the other way around." "So not true. I'm responsible for watching your back. Hey, Sommer. You take good care of him!", Sam tells the German medic with a tone that is more hopeful than demanding. "I will, Sergeant Troy", Ludwig Sommer replies with a weary sigh, only too used to treating his former Hauptmann after explosions or other attacks which have had the American Sergeant as its origin often enough.

"Kommen Sie, Hauptmann Dietrich! Setzen Sie sich bitte gerade hin", the Doctor directs the skinny officer to sit down and lean back to keep his back straight. Then, he takes out a pen light to check the young Captain's pupil response. When Sommer asks him to open his eyes though, Hans struggles to comply and flinches back from the light shining directly in, although his former staff medic supports him. "Lichtempfindlich?", Ludwig Sommer inquires about his light sensitivity with a worried tone, while checking his patient's pupil response to the light. Dietrich tries to nod, but stops immediately and replies curtly with a "Ja". "Und Schmerzen im Genick oder im Kopf?", Sommer inquires about the pain being located in the head or the neck. "Beides", Hans answers him honestly that both hurt. "Übelkeit, Schwindel?", the German medic inquires. "Hauptsächlich zu Beginn", the young officer replies that he has suffered from both nausea and dizziness mainly right after the explosion. "Mit der Gehirnerschütterung haben Sie recht als Diagnose, wenn die zum Glück auch nur leicht ist", Sommer confirms a light concussion as the correct diagnosis. "Sie sollten keinesfalls mehr heute im Dienst sein, Herr Hauptmann", the German staff medic points out that the Captain should not return to his duty for the rest of the day. Looking rather unhappy, Dietrich replies that he will inform Atkins and Boggs: "Ich werde das an den General und Captain Boggs weiterleiten." "Ich glaube nicht, dass einer von ihnen Interesse hat, Sie in diesen Zustand im Dienst zu behalten", Sommer growls with annoyance over his former Hauptmann's overly eager personality that he doubts that any of the two intends to keep him on duty in such a state. Hans is assured that he is right in this regard.

"Ziehen Sie das Hemd aus, Hans! Sie bluten und ich muss die genähte Schusswunde kontrollieren", Sommer orders the German Captain to take off his shirt, as he needs to check on his bleeding wound and the sutures. "Lieutenant O'Donnell", Sommer meanwhile calls the nurse, leaving the proud young officer the chance to take off his shirt himself. Deirdre reacts quickly and gasps with shock, when she sees the thin Captain sitting on the cot with blood drenching the bandage wrapped around his right flank. "O my god. What happened to you, Captain?", she inquires anxiously. "Explosion", Dietrich repeats for the umpteenth time, consciously reigning in his temper to not sound too unnerved. "Sergeant Moffit was slammed into me."

"I already checked him for his concussion. Now we need to take care of the bleeding injuries at his side and the back of his head", Ludwig Sommer adds helpfully. "Of course, Doctor", the American nurse replies immediately, putting her hand on Dietrich's good shoulder in a manner she considers reassuring. "We will patch you up right away. Don't worry, Captain!" "Thank you, Lieutenant O'Donnell", Hans mutters quietly, feeling a bit uncomfortable in her close proximity after David Troy's comment about her only having eyes for the German. "I'll check his side, while you cut his hair short, so we can check for the injury", Sommer orders and Dietrich tenses visibly now. "I already looked like a shorn sheep the last time", he protests. "Then you should have learned your lesson, Hans", Ludwig counters relentlessly. "I will be gentle and try to make it look better, Captain", Deirdre promises him. "Thank you, Lieutenant", Hans mutters quietly in response. "I still can't believe that Kevin and Danny joined your unit now. This is so exciting. I will hear everything about you I don't already know from Lisa", Deirdre chatters enthusiastically, while cutting his hair short to reveal the head wound where he has hit the tunnel wall. Hans sighs wearily, starting to doubt the decision he has made.

Ludwig Sommer meanwhile checks the lean Captain's ribs and abdomen for any signs of broken ribs or internal bleeding, before taking out and reapplying the sutures of the gunshot wound. "Your job is more dangerous than I would ever have wanted it, Herr Hauptmann", the German medic jokes dryly. "I need to reapply fresh sutures. Then you're as good as new with the exception of your bruises, wounds and your underfed stature", Sommer accuses him. "I'm not underfed!", Hans protests proudly. "You are. No army would keep you on duty in such a state, unless they are really desperate", Ludwig counters, as he disinfects and cleans the wound area. Dietrich abandons a caustic reply, as he draws in his breath between clenched teeth and tries to suppress a groan of pain. "I understand that this is immensely painful", Sommer tells his former commanding officer with sympathy.

Deirdre O'Donnell stops cutting Hans' hair, when she notices his movement, as the German medic disinfects his injury. Instead she checks on his head wound by moving her fingers through his brown hair and traces the outline of a forming lump at the back of his head which has only been scratched slightly and bleeds a bit on top of the last injury. "You hit your head hard", she assesses. "Hard enough to black out for a few seconds", the German Captain replies with a clipped voice. "I don't think we need to stitch it up, but you'll feel this for quite a while, when lying down. It's almost as big as a goose egg", Deirdre assesses with honest sympathy. "Well, I could use a good neighbor and conversation partner", David Troy comments jovially. "I like your kids, but it's not the same as chatting with an intelligent adult." "I still need to provide a report to the General and would rather spend my time recovering anywhere but in a field hospital. I've already spent too much time within those. We could send you Marcello, if you're looking for adult entertainment", Dietrich offers dryly. "Who's he?", David asks curiously. "Tenente Marcello is our local resident Italian Opera singer. He could effortlessly entertain this whole camp for days, if given the chance", Hans provides his explanation. "He's very friendly", Sommer adds, after finishing the last of his former Hauptmann's stitches. "Sounds good. Can you send him over?", the pilot asks cheerfully.

"Be careful what you wish for, Captain Troy! The last Allied field hospital that has taken us in and allowed him to sing and chatter freely regretted it thoroughly and felt quite liberated, when we managed to escape after a few days. And I can tell you from personal experience that after some hours you will feel like strangling the man, because he simply doesn't shut up", Hans replies sarcastically. "That guy sounds great", David comments with a grin. "I feared that you would say that. Since the Lieutenant is the senior Italian POW officer, we cannot release him from imprisonment though. But you can visit him, when we reach Tobruk and they all finally get processed in proper POW camps", Dietrich explains dryly, trying hard to ignore Sommer checking his head wound, since he has finished bandaging his other injury. "I consider that", the younger Troy brother remarks. "And you should consider my offer of joining me here, Dietrich. You look worse than I do, skinny, bruised and bleeding." "You're surpassing your brother in costing me nerves, Troy", the German Captain growls back unnerved.

Said brother is waiting for his own treatment at the hand of the other camp nurse. "Poor Fritz", Hitch laments his favourite dog mascot's misfortune. Lisa pets the little dog gently over the head, while checking his ears. "And who worries about me?", Sam Troy grumbles with annoyance. "But Sarge. You're big and tough, but poor Fritz is just a little dog and he doesn't understand why he got hurt", Hitch argues stubbornly. "Ungrateful whelp", the American Sergeant growls with annoyance. "Dietrich at least showed some sympathy, although he's still a cynical Jerry smartass." "But Cap always cares 'bout everyone", Mark argues. "Unlike you, Hitch", Sam accuses him. "Stop quarreling! You're scaring my patient", Lisa Hartigan scolds them resolutely. "Sorry, Lisa", Hitch immediately tries to appease his moody fiancé, while Troy merely grumbles some curses under his breath.

Dietrich finally witnesses his dog's and Sergeant's ordeal, when he passes by on his way out of the field hospital. "Armer Fritz", the German Captain pats his loyal dog mascot over the head, scratching him behind the ears. "Woof!", Fritz agrees with the assessment that he is poor, suffering and deserving of cuddles. "Who cares about me?", Troy grumbles his protest again. "Poor Troy", the young officer repeats in a similar tone and ruffles through the American Sergeant's hair who for a moment is too baffled to protest. Hitch topples over with laughter at Sam Troy's dumbstruck expression, while Lisa Hartigan chuckles behind her hand, as Dietrich asks with irony: "Do you want to be scratched behind the ears as well or is this enough to quench your self-pity, Sergeant?" "What does he do?", David Troy calls from the officer's ward, discontent about being unable to see anything. "Private Hitchcock will provide you with a report once he has finished laughing, Captain Troy", Hans replies with dry sarcasm, raising his eyebrows at Sam with a mischievous expression that turns serious rather quickly. "I report to the General now to get this behind me. I doubt I will remain on duty after that, Sergeant. Neither should any of you after the fight. Hitchcock and Anaru have hardly been fit for duty in the first place." "I'll pick you up at the General's tent to receive my penal duty", Sam Troy growls. "We'll see about that", Hans replies cryptically. The American Sergeant eyes him curiously, but the German Captain's expression is inescrutable. "You're a good guy, Dietrich", Troy grumbles with a smile. "Don't bet on it, Sergeant!", the lean young officer replies with an unnerved tone, as he stands up.

"He's a good guy. I'll bet on it any day", Hitch comments jovially, when the lean young officer has left the field hospital. "And it's not your fault that he got injured." "Dietrich knows what this is about", Troy mutters. "And you're right. He's a good guy who wouldn't rat us out." Hitch grins from ear to ear, when he adds: "Even though he's turning into a real Rat now." Troy barks a laugh. "O yes, he is." "Hey, Hitchcock. Where's my report?", David Troy calls over. "I'd like to laugh as well." "Cap deserves the December prank award after this", Hitch assesses, as he stands up to join the pilot and share the laughter.

Their commanding officer meanwhile approaches General Atkins' tent where his guard, Private Umbridge, greets the young Captain enthusiastically. "Captain Dietrich, I'm so glad to see you. Have you caught the intruder? Are you fine?", the young American Private asks enthusiastically. "Let the man enter, Private!", Atkins orders sharply from inside. Umbridge immediately opens the tent flap for the lean young officer, before returning to his position. "Captain Dietrich", the American General mutters, while twirling his moustache, as he puts the tall German under scrutiny who diligently clicks his heels, salutes and stands at attention, summoning all his willpower and concentration to keep from swaying slightly. "You have been injured during your mission? Have you been successful at least?", Atkins states and Major Turner as well as Lieutenant Colonel Bennett eye him with curiosity. Dietrich decides to stay at his best behavior, as an attempt on his own tent might trigger the General's paranoid and vengeful side again. "Yes, Sir. We managed to eliminate any threats against this camp and its inhabitants." Atkins nods, but furrows his brows, when the skinny German Captain provides his description of events and the necessity to shoot the Frenchmen. Major Turner and Lieutenant Colonel Bennett listen in closely, observing the tall young officer with some concern upon noticing the bloodstains on his shirt.

"Now that I have become aware of your history and personal differences with the French resistance, I want to make sure that killing them all was strictly necessary", Atkins remarks sternly. Hans tenses visibly at these words and his face briefly looks thunderous, as he glares at the American General, before schooling his features into a more neutral expression. "I did my utmost to negotiate with them. In any case we only returned fire and I did not order to shoot or kill, unless in self-defence", he growls through clenched teeth, almost shaking with anger and not fully able to keep his wounded pride out of his tone. "You can ask any of my men to confirm this statement." Atkins studies his face intently, while Major Turner nods. "I don't doubt your report, Captain Dietrich", Lieutenant Colonel Bennett comments before the American officers however. Twirling his moustache, the General finally adds: "Neither do I. How many men have you been confronted with?" "At first, we followed only Christian Moulin. Sergeant Troy shot him, when he fired at me. However, nine further men arrived, outnumbering us almost two to one, since Private Hitchcock is unable to hold a weapon with his broken arm and both Private Anaru and I are not fully fit and healthy. I positioned Private Pettigrew as a sniper to cover me during negotiations. When one of the French fighters fired in my direction, he killed the man with a well-aimed shot which initiated the fire fight, ending in an explosion, when one of the bullets struck the gasoline tank of their truck."

The American General twirls his moustache, while listening to the German Captain, until he finally nods. "Well done. Your Rats live up to their reputation." A pained grimace passes over the young Captain's face, as he mutters: "Indeed." "You know these men best", Major Turner remarks, while Charles Bennett inquires: "Have you learned anything about their motives? Captain Boggs mentioned that they wanted you." "They wanted me to accompany them to share my information about German bases and defences", Hans replies earnestly, keeping his outward calm demeanour unlike the General who growls: "They did what? Why?" "The French resistance fighters declared rather directly that they were willing to take me by force and interrogate me, should I not help them willingly which Sergeant Moffit who speaks French fluently can confirm", Dietrich reports. Atkins twirls his moustache, as he exchanges grim gazes with the other two officers.

Finally the American General snarls with open animosity: "Attacking or threatening to abduct and torture my officers is not a behaviour I approve of." Dietrich nods quietly, not intending to offend the senior officer in such a volatile state. "It's good you dealt with this vermin who tried to break into my tent with such determination", Atkins commends him with a dark expression. "I assure you that the Rat that sneaked around your tent will not do so anymore in the future", Hans replies silkily, enjoying his personal joke on the General's behalf and sparing himself to report Troy. "Excellent, Captain", Atkins nods approvingly. "We'll leave here after breakfast, once Boggs has regained order and only postpone our leave by these few hours. Major Turner will remain here to establish an outpost in this oasis. Until further backup and fresh troops can arrive from Egypt, Lieutenant Colonel Bennett will remain here with the Maori battalion to assist him." "My men need the rest as well", the young commander of the 28th battalion comments. "I truly appreciate your efforts and sparing us an unnecessary fight, Captain Dietrich", he addresses the younger officer with a smile, stepping forward to shake his hand. "I wish you all the best in your endeavours for our side. And take good care of Private Anaru!" Hans accepts the handshake and nods. "Of course I will. Thank you, Sir, for your wishes and entrusting him to me."

"Never stop a man from doing what he wants. Kia kaha. Stay strong, Captain!", the Maori commander states with due stateliness. "Kia ora", the German replies to all their surprise. "Thank you. That much I've learned from your men by now." Charles Bennett beams at him in earnest, as he remarks: "I wish I could keep you as one of my officers." "We take preference", General Atkins declares sternly, twirling his moustache, as he smirks. "But I understand why you like him." Major Turner also turns toward the German Captain now and shakes his hand as well. "Good luck, Captain Dietrich. I'm honestly grateful for your and Sergeant Moffit's advice for my new post. Continue being such an exceptional officer for our side! Eric cannot stop telling how much you have impressed him. I seriously hope to meet you again at some point." With a smirk he adds: "And keep the shirt! You'll need it." The young European looks rather awkward, as he reaches for his flank where the largest blood stains show, muttering: "I apologize for my inappropriate appearance."

"Nonsense", Atkins waves him off. "Returning directly from the field hospital to provide a report is not inappropriate. You and your unit members injured in the events are off duty for the rest of the day. The others shall help guard the convoy. This is also the medical advice as well, isn't it?", Atkins orders sternly. "Yes, Sir. Doktor Sommer advised this", Dietrich replies with a neutral tone. "Good. I'll send Captain Brown to investigate where these men came from and eliminate any further potential threats. I cannot tolerate partisan fighters going after my officers, intending to abduct and potentially torture them", Atkins growls angrily. "Farewell, Captain Dietrich", Turner adds and the young German salutes diligently, clicking his heels as he has been trained in the German Wehrmacht. "Kia ora", Lieutenant Colonel Bennett adds his greeting, saluting back. "I hope that you can help free your homeland of those Nazis and return to your iwi and yourwhānau, your land and your family, as a free man one day. Kia Kaha!" Dietrich bows deeply at the honest words. "Kia ora, Lieutenant Colonel Bennett. I hope to meet you again under better circumstances. Farewell, Major, Lieutenant Colonel. Thank you for your support", Hans replies earnestly. "You're dismissed, Captain. Report with Captain Boggs when we leave. And get another medical checkup when you need it!", the American General orders grimly. The German officer turns on his heels with a sharp salute and stalks off proudly.

Troy awaits the tall European outside and falls into step next to him, when Hans marches off quietly with a stern expression. "Any news?", Sam asks in a neutral tone. "We're all off duty for today, if injured in the events. The others will help guard the convoy", Dietrich replies silkily. "And about the latrines?", Troy inquires. "You can clean them as much as you want, if you like this activity so much", the German officer replies dryly. "No penal duty?", the American Sergeant grumbles his question. "I assured the General that the Rat that has attempted to enter his tent will not do so again. Make sure that this stays true and you won't have any problems with him or me in this regard!", Hans mutters sarcastically. "You're a good friend", Troy mutters, squeezing the German Captain's thin shoulder gently who merely sighs without commenting. "Let's get breakfast!", Sam declares, slightly cheered up by the idea of food in addition to knowing that no further latrine duty will follow, while Dietrich grimaces, feeling slight nausea.

"Hans!", Ari shouts, as his brother approaches the table and gently nudges against the German officer's left side, enjoying his proximity that provides him with a feeling of protection and safety. Bastet meows, as soon as she sees the young Captain sitting down on their tables and wiggles out of Silberblatt's grasp to jump on the table and stalk over to him. The kitten does not bother with asking for allowance, but simply drops on the lean officer's lap and curls up there, purring loudly. Several times she looks up at him and rubs her head against the tall German's hand, continuing to purr loudly, as if sensing that he is not well. "Bastet, schon gut", Hans mutters quietly and scratches the young cat behind the ears gently.

When he receives his breakfast, Bastet's hunger awakens and she jumps onto the table again to sniff at the food. "Nein, Bastet!", Dietrich admonishes her sternly and the kitten briefly stares at him with big blue eyes, before prancing over to Silberblatt's plate. "Don't feed her! She must learn proper behavior or the story with your pillow will repeat itself at every meal", the German Captain orders sternly. "My poor darling", Jakob laments at the mentioning of his pillow. "Jakob, please don't be ridiculous!", Hans groans and grabs the kitten to put her back on his lap. "Meow", Bastet protests, but gets pressed down to keep sitting, while Hans offers her a piece of egg with the fingers of his other hand. "Hier, Bastet. Nicht auf den Tisch springen", he orders her to not jump on the table, while offering the food. The kitten eats hungrily and licks his fingers, before eyeing him with a pleading look. "Schmeckt dir das? Willst du mehr?", the German Captain asks her gently, whether she likes it and wants more. Although she does not understand the question, the kitten touches his fingers with her paw gently and gives another pleading meow. More than half of the plate's content later Bastet is finally content and curls up in her caregiver's lap, purring loudly, before falling asleep.

"You're not supposed to feed more to the kitten than you eat yourself", Sam scolds the skinny German. "Troy, I cannot eat this at all", Hans mutters quietly. "I'm still nauseous from the concussion." The American Sergeant's expression turns worried. "I definitely can't eat the eggs, maybe some pita bread", the young officer murmurs. "Ari, bring some bread for Hans!", Silberblatt instructs the Jewish orphan who eyes his beloved brother with concern and hurries off immediately. "You shouldn't be on duty, Hans!", Jakob admonishes. "I'm not. Atkins ordered me off duty along with everyone else who has been injured during our morning mission which leaves only the O'Donnell brothers, Gottschlich, Moffit and Pettigrew on duty to escort the convoy", Dietrich explains. "It's good that he finally sees reason", Silberblatt sighs with relief. Ari returns with his brother's bread, offering it immediately. "Pita bread. It's fresh and good." The boy smiles at his beloved caregiver with bright eyes, shining with hope that he will enjoy it. "Thank you, Ari", Hans replies with a gentle smile and starts nibbling on the first piece of bread.

Moffit appears with a jug of milk during the time when Dietrich is eating his third piece. "Bastet's breakfast", the British Sergeant offers graciously, as he puts the jug on the table. The kitten raises her head and stares at him curiously. "Pour her a bit into a bowl and me in a cup!", Hans mutters. Bastet jumps onto the table and sniffs at the bowl curiously, before drinking her milk portion greedily. "Are you suffering from a serious concussion?", Moffit asks with worry, as he eyes the drawn looking young officer. "No, only a light one, but I'm still nauseous", Dietrich replies quietly. "Are you well, Hans?", Ari asks with worry, as he looks at the young man's pale and haggard face. "I'll get better soon, Ari. You don't have to worry", his caregiver gently reassures him. "Him losing any more weight is a reason to worry", Troy mutters to Moffit with a concerned expression. "He'll recover quickly and eat more than this again", Moffit tries to calm his friend. "Yeah. But he really can't afford skipping any meals", Sam grumbles, as he observes the skinny German Captain nibbling at a piece of bread and taking a sip of the milk. "He's making an effort, Troy. Don't annoy him unnecessarily! This isn't his fault", Jack points out.

James Boggs approaches the young German Captain with a serious expression. "Dietrich, I need to speak with you", the older American officer declares sternly and his younger colleague stands up quickly, squeezing the boy's shoulder gently, as he whispers something reassuring to him. Boggs looks the thin officer up and down, assessing his state as not fit for duty. "Since your men are partially off duty and you should not accompany them on the Jeeps in your state, I can offer you to ride with me, unless you want to enjoy David Troy's company." Both share a suffering look at the mentioning of David Troy. "I gladly take your offer", Dietrich replies quickly. "But you know that this will include one of my men as a bodyguard, since they won't let me out of their sight." Boggs sighs wearily. "I can understand this attitude perfectly since yesterday." The young European smiles wryly. "Would you prefer Moffit or Troy? Moffit is less annoying, Troy is more entertaining." "Please take Moffit! I cannot imagine spending a whole day with any of the Troys without wishing to turn to murder myself", James Boggs replies with a groan. "You didn't strike me as the violent type, Boggs", Dietrich counters dryly. "You have hardly any reasons to resent the Sergeant compared to me." "Have they ever told you about the havoc they have wreaked in this camp?", Boggs asks with a tormented expression. "No, but I'm willing to be enlightened. I suppose you have received enough reports about the havoc they have wreaked in my camps that this would only be fair", Hans replies silkily with irony laced into his tone, as he smirks at the American Captain mischievously. "I will inform them of our arrangements and then join you at the staff car."

After Boggs and Dietrich have saluted to each other and the American Captain turns away, his German colleague turns back to his men and the children. "You will stay on the transport with David Troy who will tell you stories and Sam will be with you as well. Mark Hitchcock should also spend the day on the transport with you, maybe even Fritz, if he is better by now", Hans informs Ari and Kiri who smile and nod. "I want to hear a story about flying over the desert today", Kiri declares and the German Captain smiles wryly. "I'm sure David knows stories about flying over the desert, Kiri", he assures her. "Troy, you can spend the day on the medical transport, annoying your brother as well, since you wanted to receive recognition of your injury", Dietrich informs the American Sergeant with dry irony, while Sam scowls grimly, as he inquires: "And who will watch your back?" "Sergeant Moffit will have the honor for today who, unlike you, still remains on duty", the German Captain replies silkily, enjoying to rub in the matter after Troy's exaggerated show of self-pity earlier.

"Fine. Jack will watch you well. But why Davey?", Sam grumbles. "Because you deserve the punishment, as you well know, Sergeant", the German Captain declares sarcastically with a mischievous twinkle in his eyes. "Or would you rather wish for General Atkins to decide your punishment?" "That's blackmail!", Sam protests. "Tsk, tsk, Sergeant Troy. I would never stoop so low as to commit such a serious crime", Hans counters with dry irony. "I merely apply the right leverage against a deserving person at the appropriate time." His expression turns serious, as he continues: "You asked me to help you and your brother, which I have done to the best of my abilities. Now, you avoid him like the plague which is a sentiment I can share and understand, but not approve of, considering how much you worried about him, when you thought he'd died. Come to terms with your brother or at least spend some time with him, entertaining the children! You like Kiri after all", Hans admonishes. "I like Ari as well", Sam declares and smiles at both of them. "He really is your boy, circumspect, smart, good with languages and empathetic. But the girl is really tough and curious, more like my type. Helen would take her in, if you find nowhere else to go for her. Ma and she would love the little wildcat", he mutters to the younger officer in a more quiet tone to not offend him or intimidate any of the two after the many scoldings he has received for scaring the children.

The German Captain's smile is warm and honest, as he replies: "Thank you for the offer. I truly appreciate it, but would never impose upon your family without even asking them in the first place. Lisa Hartigan and Kiri like each other and they're kindred spirits." "She's a wildcat for sure", Sam grumbles, but winks. "But also a woman who can provide a strong and loving example to the girl", Dietrich points out. "You're right and the far more circumspect caregiver than I would be, Captain", Troy agrees. "Well, Jack. Do a good job looking after our friend here!", he tells the Brit, before addressing the children: "Let's shake it, kids!" Ari and Kiri cheer and come along with him, repeating their favourite phrase. "Troy", the German officer calls after the American, as he walks off. "Try not to scare the children or harm your brother!" Sam gives a sloppy salute as a response without turning around.

"Gentlemen!", Dietrich then addresses the rest of their unit. "Pettigrew, Gottschlich, you will man one Jeep, Kevin, Daniel O'Donnell, you will take the other one and provide additional protection to the convoy!" The four soldiers salute. "Jakob, we need you to take over the radio duty from Lieutenant Williams who has also been injured. With Brown and his Aussies on the move to catch the Frenchmen, we need someone to constantly man the radio." "Of course, Hans", the Jewish Lieutenant replies and gathers his belongings. "Private Anaru, I recommend that you also ride on the truck with the injured and join the Troys, the children and Hitchcock", Hans continues his orders and the young Maori soldier nods and asks with empathy: "Don't you come with us as well? You have been injured rather badly." "Captain Boggs asked me to ride in the staff car with him and Sergeant Moffit will assure my protection there", the German Captain replies calmly, as he picks up the cap with the now sleeping Bastet and takes it in his arm. "I will see you later, gentlemen!" With a salute the young officer turns around and stalks out of the mess, closely followed by the British Sergeant.

Dietrich then joins Boggs who organises the convoy's marching order with the other officers. Bastet has woken up, when he has put down her improvised kitten basket and clambers out of Hans' cap to start her exploration trip of the backseats of Boggs' staff car. When she almost tumbles down from the seat, the German officer catches her and holds her in his arm, scolding: "Nein, Bastet!" The kitten stares at him with wide blue eyes and responds with a sheepish "Meow". "Good that you're here. You're the expert for herding cats, given how well you're getting along with Troy and the Rats", James Boggs comments with a sigh. "Do you need me for anything other than taming cats and Rats?", the young officer inquires dryly. "You're officially off duty and should relax, Dietrich. You still look pale and haggard. Did you even shave?" The skinny German blushes slightly and mutters with a guilty tone: "No. I didn't have the time before going after the Frenchman. And I couldn't trust the steadiness of my hand enough after the concussion." "That's forgivable", Boggs quickly concedes and lets the younger officer get into the car before him, where Hans puts Bastet back into the cap. Contently, she curls up again and quickly falls asleep, while the two Captains take their seats.

Jack Moffit takes the front seat next to Boggs' driver and keeps his automatic gun ready to grab. As they start moving, their staff car takes a position close to the front and they can observe Tully and Kevin driving their Jeeps to take protective positions two vehicles behind them. When Jack Moffit turns toward the two officers on the back seat, he bears a serious, slightly guilty expression. "I didn't get the chance yet to tell you so, but I'm honestly sorry, Captain, to have injured you so badly", the British Sergeant addresses his younger German commanding officer. "Moffit. Being thrown by the explosion is nothing any of us had under control. I don't hold you responsible for aggravating my existing injuries", Hans replies earnestly and meets the other's eyes with a serious and honest expression. "Still I was truly worried, when you collapsed unconscious into my arms", the former Cambridge scholar declares and the young Captain blushes slightly. "Forgive me my weakness!" "You're in a state where I can only admire your resilience and toughness to still remain on duty, Captain", Moffit counters vehemently and Boggs agrees. "Indeed, Dietrich. And this will end, as soon as we reach Tobruk. You're in a state where I would never send a man back into the field, if there was another option." "I'm not an invalid", the proud young officer protests vehemently. "You're a responsible and diligent officer. You would never let any of your man continue to be on duty in a state like that and you owe it to your men to be fit enough for service, when they trust you with their lives", Boggs declares sternly and Dietrich averts his gaze guiltily, as he nods with a tormented expression.

"Has your nausea at least improved, Captain?", Jack asks with concern, trying to fill the awkward silence that has followed the last statement. "We're not moving that quickly yet", Dietrich replies with a wry smile. "But eating no more than a few bites of pita bread should help as well." Boggs eyes the German Captain with honest concern now. "You can barely afford to skip meals, but I understand that you cannot eat when nausea from your head wound and concussion plagues you." "We will hopefully be able to organise something for lunch for you", Moffit mutters quietly. "I appreciate your efforts", the German Captain replies calmly. "They really are necessary. Currently, even Bastet eats more than you do", Jack admonishes and smiles at the kitten, curled up in Dietrich's cap where she sleeps peacefully. For the first time it occurs to Boggs that the British Sergeant, known to him for his cool and aloof demeanour, actually likes the German Captain and cares about him on a personal level, as does Sergeant Troy. This comes a bit as a shock, since the American officer has until now mainly considered Troy as the sentimental one who has forced the notion of friendship on the proud, stubborn and wary officer, but Moffit as the one driven by cool logic, respecting his young commander, but not aiming for friendship like his American colleague. Hitchcock of course adores his idol Troy and has started to view the German with true admiration and sympathy also originating from the German supporting him in an unflinching manner during their captivity through Arab slavers. But Moffit and Pettigrew are the Rats Boggs has considered driven by respect and logic, rather than emotions until now.

While the American Captain shouts some instructions, as the convoy moves more quickly, Dietrich reclines in the seat and closes his eyes to stifle his building headache. Bastet wakes up, when the car starts moving faster and climbs out of the cap and onto the German Captain's thigh. To keep her from falling and hurting herself in the moving car, Hans cradles her in his arm and gently holds her against his chest, petting the kitten behind the ears, as he mutters quiet reassurances. Bastet quickly feels well enough in this position and starts purring loudly, as she moves to lean against his abdomen. "My grandmother used to say that cats try to heal us with loud purring, when they sense an injury or sickness", the American Captain tells his younger colleague after a few minutes of driving and observing the strange pair. "I thought you're not so fond of animals", Hans mutters and cracks open an eye to squint at the older Captain. "I'm not very fond of them. My grandmother's cats used to terrorise all of us, when we came visiting. But I realise the boost to your men's morale and appreciate the actual deeds your dog Fritz and Lieutenant Minki have committed for us", James Boggs replies with honesty. "And this little one is mainly cute, but half the camp is enamoured with her", he adds and scratches Bastet behind the ears who closes her eyes with enjoyment, purring even more loudly.

"Didn't you offer to enlighten me about some of my unit's deeds in your camps?", Dietrich asks slyly. Boggs grimaces, but nods. "Indeed. Troy, Hitchcock and Pettigrew have been quarreling with First Lieutenant Winters since the first time they have met each other. Truth be told, the Lieutenant could exaggerate his drills and training methods. But Pettigrew in particular has offended him by stealing his best whiskey. Even if Winters has never managed to produce conclusive evidence, he has accused and punished Pettigrew multiple times." "I'm aware of that", Hans mutters dryly. "Are you also aware that Sergeant Troy retaliated to his Privates digging latrines by hiding a grenade filled with some cigarettes and whatever else, before igniting them in the latrine just prior to the Lieutenant going there? When Winters came running out of the officer's latrine with nothing more than his pants on, he was the laughing stock of the camp and of course never forgave the Rats." "They didn't even tell me about this", Moffit comments with a smile. "I must thank you for inviting me. This is indeed an enlightening trip." "And here I had thought I had seen the worst of your pack of Rats", Hans mutters with a wry smile and heaves a sleeping Bastet back into his cap. "Tully is still a bit sad that we didn't get any formula or instructions for the pink explosive balls", Moffit replies with dry humor. "Thank God for small mercies", Dietrich groans unnerved. "That substance from hell was really the last thing I would have liked to see in his hands, even when we're on the same side."

"I have an honest question for you and swear to you that I won't harm you or any of your men, independent of the answer", Boggs addresses Dietrich ho raises his eyebrows in a questioning manner. "What made you become so close that Sergeant Troy has treated you like a unit member and friend, trusting you on a professional basis more than most American officers even, although you were an enemy officer? I'm well aware that he has held this sentiment already before your defection." Hans has tensed visibly and narrowed his eyes to squint at the American Captain warily. "Why do you want to know this?", the German officer asks with a carefully controlled tone. "On the one hand to sate my own curiosity", James Boggs replies honestly. "On the other hand to better understand you and Troy." Dietrich sighs warily, before asking with a very serious expression: "You will not accuse the Sergeant of treason, independent of what I tell you?" "I swear this to you. You're one of our officers nowadays after all", James Boggs promise with an earnest expression.

The younger officer takes a deep breath and winces, pressing against his injured side, before he replies: "It's not such a top secret affair, but from the wrong perspective could have led to serious troubles for Sergeant Troy which I don't want him to find himself in because of me." "It's not like Troy doesn't have enough talent for getting into troubles without your help, Captain", Jack comments dryly. "That's only too true", Boggs and Dietrich groan simultaneously, glancing at each other with surprise, before sharing a tormented smile. Hans finnaly continues his explanation: "I cannot put my finger on how we came to this point of view as a single event, but there have been a few ... remarkable episodes that have changed our viewpoint on our respective enemy." Moffit eyes him curiously now. "I think that the first truly changing event for me has been, as slavers have taken both the Sergeant and me prisoners, when I would finally have arrested him after blowing up my staff car", the German Captain mutters thoughtfully with creased brows. "Chained together we had either to collaborate or face a far worse fate." His eyes appear slightly glazed, as his memories wander back to the event several months in the past.

"He's never spoken much of what happened during your joint captivity", Jack comments, trying to call the young officer back from his trip down memory lane. "I've never been informed about anything", Boggs complains, sounding truly discontent. "I'm not particularly fond of the memories", Hans declares with a dark scowl. "But Troy saved my life and finally I repaid him for this, after trying to kill him when I had the chance, more out of desperation than clear thinking." Self-loathing and disgust are audible in his tone. "We never really could return to cold-blooded enmity after this I suppose, at least not when looking the other in the face." "You're a lot more open to share this than Troy", Moffit declares with surprise. "I gave my word to be honest and open with my men", Hans replies automatically. "This normally wouldn't include me, but I'm more than grateful for your honesty and trust, Dietrich", Boggs adds earnestly. "I appreciate your support and honesty as my commanding officer which you keep up in spite of my background and merely try to repay you likewise", the younger Captain argues.

"You're a wily fox, as the Italians call you for a good reason, intelligent, smart, but still earnest and reliable enough to not only instill morale in your men, but also successfully negotiate with your enemies, inducing trust in your word and honorability", Boggs tells him. "If only that would be true", the younger Captain mutters with a grim expression. "Then I wouldn't have been arrested and convicted by my own side or attacked and almost been murdered by my new allies." "You walk a very fine line between not backstabbing your old side and not betraying or letting down your new one and I can only admire you for this", Boggs tells him honestly. "You have opened my eyes to seeing my enemies in a different light, more differentiated with more shades of grey than black and white only." Dietrich looks truly baffled by the statement. "I have met enemy officers, either when my commando units abducted them for tactical reasons or they defected and asked for a quiet, protected life for themselves and their families. But interactions like the ones with your staff medic, your Lieutenant or Captain Stadler have shown me a different perspective, even without counting you yourself among the enemy officers as you still were when you first entered my camp." "I can only agree with the Captain, even though I have grown up in Germany", Moffit adds.

The German officer looks at a loss of words, considering what he could possibly reply, as he mutters: "I didn't do anything but my job." "You did a lot more than that", James Boggs insists."You're the bravest and most honorable man I have ever met, Dietrich, to take this hard path, simply because it is the morally right one without betraying your principles. You're courageous, but not reckless as many of my other officers and enlisted men", Boggs argues. "Or insane like Troy", the German mutters dryly, trying to deflect the awkward argument through irony. "That's quite accurate. He's not afraid, because the possibility that his sometimes implausible and hairbrained schemes could fail would never occur to him", Jack Moffit adds. "That's what makes him so successful." "That's not the way how a responsible officer in charge of dozens or hundreds of lives can act", Hans counters. "That's why he could beat you with luck on his side, but it's better that Troy refused his field promotion", Boggs mutters, pinching his nose. "Griffiths, Winters and Baker have already cost me enough nerves." "I wouldn't compare Troy to any of them but Griffiths. Those two are quite alike", Dietrich argues with a wry smile.

"What the ...?", Boggs exclaims and stares down at his boots where Bastet has sunken her claws and teeth into his bootlaces and tries to kill her prey which proves to be difficult, as the boot alone without the American Captain wearing it weighs more than she does. But Minki has instructed her on how to hunt properly and she is intent to practice this even without the adult cat and thus has sneakily made her way down from the seat to explore the floor of the staff car. "Bastet, nein!", Hans admonishes her sternly after recovering from his first bout of laughter at the hilarious sight of the kitten hanging from Boggs' boot. "Meow!", Bastet protests indignantly, when he picks her up and tries to wiggle out of his grasp which she finally manages against the injured officer. Before he can pick her up again, the German Captain looks over the rim of the car and stops midmovement, staring at something outside with a shocked expression. Suddenly, Dietrich stands up in the car, while a more than baffled Captain Boggs gapes at him incredulously. "Moffit, Boggs, can you make out that dark wall on the horizon?", the German officer asks with a truly worried tone, as he points toward the South. "What's that?", James Boggs asks with worry, as he squints, trying to discern the shape. "Sand storm", Moffit and Dietrich reply in unison. "You can see this with bare eyes at such a distance?", Boggs asks incredulously, as he starts to rummage through a box, searching for his binoculars. "He's handicapped by his concussion", Moffit replies dryly. "Otherwise he'd be standing all the time and have checked anything from vultures to desert tracks." "Moffit, don't be as annoying as Troy!", the German Captain growls defensively. "No wonder you've counted as the most dangerous man for the LRDP", Boggs mutters with a new understanding and hands the tall young officer the binoculars to verify the sighting. "Definitely a sand storm", Dietrich mutters with clear worry, as he scans the horizon with the optical device.

"Normally. I'd simply order to move our small camp to some shelter, but how do we find shelter against the storm for so many vehicles out here?", Boggs asks with concern. "The convoy is too large to hide or take shelter. So searching for a small cave or ruins won't help us, unlike a few single Jeeps or your usual small camp. With this size of the convoy we need to provide our own shelter", Hans continues with a stern, matter-of-factual tone that communicates clearly that he knows exactly what he is talking about. "Have the smallest vehicles parking in the centre of a ring formed by the trucks! Park the tanks on the weather side in front of them to provide protection against sand and the storm! And then put the tarpaulins over them to keep them from being filled with sand." "You've done this before, I suppose?", the American Captain inquires. "I've been responsible for convoys moving through this desert for almost two years. And I assure you that your Rats weren't the only one of my problems", the young Captain replies dryly. "I will speak with Marcello, Stadler and Langreiter, so that they keep the POWs under control." "Thank you, Dietrich. Why do we even bother to take you off duty, when we need you anyways?", Boggs asks with some irony. "German HQ has never bothered with taking me off duty in the past two years, only Doktor Sommer by keeping me in the sickbay attached to some morphine IV", Hans replies dryly with a wry smile playing around his lips.

Bastet meows desperately, when Boggs accidentally steps on her paw, as the car grinds to a halt. Scared by the sudden commotion, she presses against Dietrich's shin and asks for being picked up again which the German Captain does with a swift motion, returning her to the cap which he takes in his left arm. "I'll help Lieutenant Carlos with the POWs", he declares sternly and stalks off, followed by Moffit. Keeping up his proud stance, while his vision blurs and he sways slightly, is harder however and Moffit grabs the lean officer at the left shoulder, when he starts to stumble. "Easy, Captain. You're still off duty for a good reason", Jack advises gently. Growling lowly with annoyance over his own weakness, Hans consents. "You're right, Moffit. Let's take this more slowly!" "I'll take Bastet", Jack offers and accepts the improvised kitten basket. The little cat has curled up anyways and looks rather scared, as she glances over the rim of the cap.

Lieutenant Carlos looks honestly relieved to see Dietrich approaching. "What's wrong, Captain?" "A sand storm is coming. We need to move the vehicles to form a protective ring with the trucks and tanks. I'll speak with the senior POW officers to keep their men calm", the German officer replies. "Thank you", the Hispanic Lieutenant sighs with relief. "Hauptmann Stadler, Tenente Marcello", Hans calls the two POW officers, responsible for the German and Italian troops. "Kruzifix nochamoi. Was ist los, Dietrich?", Stadler asks what is going on. "Sandsturm", Dietrich replies sternly, before explaining their strategy with the trucks and tanks. "Wir müssen die LKW und Panzer repositionieren, um die anderen Wagen und die Männer zu schützen." "Himmelherrschaftszeiten", the Bavarian starts cursing. "Kann man ned amoi an Tag sei Ruah haben?" The younger Captain shrugs and winces slightly. "Leider nein." "Was brauchen Sie von mir, Dietrich?", Stadler wants to know what Dietrich needs from him. "Ich bitte Sie, die Männer zu koordinieren und ruhig zu halten. Wir haben die Lage unter Kontrolle, aber einen Gefangenenaufstand kann ich nicht brauchen. Das würde alle Männer nur unnötig gefährden", the younger officer explains that they have the situation under control and a prisoner uprising would serve nobody, only risk the men's lives unnecessarily. "Des mach ma schon", Stadler assures him and pats the lean Captain on the left shoulder.

"Ciao, Capitano Volpacchiotto", Alessandro Marcello exclaims, when Carlos leads him over to where Dietrich speaks with Stadler. Before anyone truly realizes his intention, he has pulled the tall German Captain into a hug, kissing him on both cheeks as he greets his friend enthusiastically. "Come stai, mi amico?" "Va bene", Hans grumbles, trying to wiggle out of his grasp and deflect his enthusiasm. "Dobbiamo affrontare una tempesta di sabbia e ti chiedo di mantenere calmi i tuoi soldati", the German Captain explains the sand storm and asks him to keep his men calm. "Puoisempre contare su di me", Marcello assures him that Dietrich can always count on him. "Grazie mille, Tenente", Hans thanks him earnestly. Marcello might be a bit of an opera diva, but he is a reliable and loyal man. Stadler observes the conversation, looking a bit aghast. "Ein Sprachtalent", he mutters appreciatively, calling Dietrich a language talent. "Ich war 1940 als Kommunikationsoffizier mit Generalfeldmarschall Rommel in Italien vor Start der Nordafrikakampagne", Hans explains his background as a communication officer in Italy before the start of the North Africa campaign. "Die saublöden Sauhunde von der SS gehören geschlagen mit dem nassen Fetzen, dass sie uns einen Offizier wie Sie gekostet haben!", Stadler curses the SS for their idiocy to have cost them such an officer which Hans decides to leave uncommented. "Ich wünsche Ihnen viel Erfolg, meine auguro molto successo, signori", Dietrich wishes them success, salutes and leaves, followed by Moffit.

"We still need to talk to Hauptmann Langreiter", the German Captain explains, as he walks to the other POW truck and his British Sergeant nods in agreement. "Dietrich, was geschieht hier?", the older Hauptmann wants to know what is happening. "Ein Sandsturm bedroht uns und wir sichern den Konvoi. Bitte halten Sie Ihre Männer ruhig, Hauptmann Langreiter", Hans repeats his explanation and asks for the other's cooperation. The German officer nods warily. "Ich werde mein Möglichstes tun, Dietrich." "Danke, Langreiter. Ich will nicht, dass irgendjemand unnötig zu Schaden kommt", Dietrich thanks him, assuring his former colleague that he wants nobody to come to harm unnecessarily. "Sie sind ein guter, anständiger und kluger Junge, Hans", Langreiter calls him a good, decent and clever boy at which the younger Captain grimaces. But Langreiter has indeed known him as a boy, making this slightly awkward. With a sharp salute the lean young officer takes his goodbye and leaves quickly, as the older one turns to giving orders to his men.

"Well done, Captain", Jack tells his younger commanding officer who looks haggard and drawn. "You deserve your rest now though, old chap." "There will be no rest for the wicked", the German Captain replies with a wry smile. "Before all Jeeps, trucks and tanks are in position, secured with tarpaulins and everybody is safely inside. We need to retrieve the bandanas from our luggage, Doctor! And we need to improvise something for Ari and Kiri." As he speaks the wind picks up and both share a worried glance. "At least Bastet is well-behaved now", Jack comments dryly, looking at the kitten that curiously glances over the rim of the cap. "Brav, Bastet", Dietrich mutters gently, petting the little cat over the head. "Meow", Bastet comments curiously and starts purring, when she gets scratched behind the ears. "I would have loved to see you do that with Troy. Hitch said you offered it to him", Jack adds with dry humor, as he smirks at the lean young officer. "To quench his self-pity", Hans counters dryly. "His purring is more like a lion's roar though." "Hitch adores you by now", the British Sergeant comments with a wry smile. "And he has motivated your new Irish crew members to do the same with stories about your pranks." The German Captain groans at the word 'prank'. "Thank you for reminding me to discourage idiotic pranks with the potential of harming the whole camp." "What happened?", Jack inquires, noticing that something is peeving Dietrich more than his normal German diligence. "Ask Troy! He can count himself lucky that I had no intention to throw oil on an already burning fire", Hans replies silkily.

"Now I'm curious", Moffit mutters with twinkling eyes. "Curiosity killed the cat", Dietrich replies dryly. "Rat poison killed Lieutenant Minki", the British Sergeant counters. "And luckily neither Boggs nor me", the skinny German adds with a thoughtful expression. "Our dear old Captain Boggs really has started to like you by now which is reasonable considering how often you have saved his life directly or indirectly", Jack comments. "We're both professional officers. And you also didn't like me, independent of how often I had saved your life, Sergeant", the young officer argues. "Only as long as you were my enemy and I didn't get to know you and your character from the perspective of an ally and friend", Moffit counters. "Boggs has only briefly known you as an enemy and mainly experienced how you acting as his ally and reliable officer. Compared to most others you're hardly troublesome, loyal and diplomatic. You're a very likeable fellow compared to Baker, Winters or Griffith." The young European considers this argument with a thoughtful expression, as they continue.

Tully Pettigrew and the rest of their men still on duty approach the German Captain, as soon they spot him. "All Jeeps secured, Cap. What about our equipment?", the Kentucky driver asks. "Only take your personal belongings with you. Secure everything else with extra ropes and the tarpaulins, unless you enjoy shoveling sand out of your vehicles!", Dietrich orders calmly. "Aye, Captain", Kevin O'Donnell confirms. "Where should we go then?" "Meet us in the truck for the wounded where the Troys and the children are. I intend to look after them", Hans replies calmly, while Moffit retrieves bandanas and some pieces of cloth to protect their mouth and nose, after commenting dryly: "Troys definitely need looking after." Smirking at the joke, Gottschlich, Pettigrew and the O'Donnell brothers work on securing their equipment, before Moffit accompanies Dietrich to their intended destination. By now the wind has started howling, as it whips the countless grains of sand around their faces.

"Finally, you're here! I was close to send a search party out to look for you", Sam Troy greets the lean Captain indignantly. "Troy, please don't be ridiculous in your motherly manners!", Hans counters, slightly unnerved, as he holds out a bandana to the Sergeant. "Are the children fine?" "Davey's been entertaining your kids pretty well. They didn't even notice that something is wrong", Sam replies, as he takes the offered piece of cloth and binds it around his face, as Dietrich nods contently at the answer. "Very well. Then we will spend our time here during the sand storm. Pettigrew should bring your personal belongings along." "How do you intend to distract them during the sand storm?", Troy asks, as he arranges the piece of cloth to protect his mouth and nose. "I'll think of something", the young Captain replies sternly. "Meow", Bastet calls for attention. "Not a dog, but still cute", Sam grumbles and pets her over the head. When the kitten tries catching his fingers with her paw, he leaves her in Dietrich's care though.

"Hans", Ari exclaims enthusiastically and runs over to hug his brother around the midsection. When his caregiver flinches and hisses with pain, the Jewish orphan stares at him with worry written on his face, as the boy asks: "Are you hurt?" "Just a little. Please don't squeeze me tightly at the moment!", Hans replies gently. "Okay", Ari agrees immediately and lets go of him. "Ari, Kiri, I need you to put this cloth around your faces to cover your mouth and nose, just like Troy, Moffit and I have it", Dietrich instructs with a serious expression, as he hands the cloth to the children. "Bastet!", Kiri exclaims enthusiastically and tries to grab the kitten that quickly dodges back into the cap. "Don't scare her, Kiri!", Hans scolds the Bedouin girl gently. "You have to be a bit more patient. Let her get used to you, sniff your finger, before you pet her over the head." Showing her the best behavior which the girl repeats with a worried expression, Bastet dares to come out again and let herself be petted. Ari joins them as well and gets entrusted with the cap and the kitten, being the more circumspect and patient of the two.

"Have you come to take up my offer after all?", David calls, when he spots Dietrich. His expression is impossible to read hidden behind the cloth Jack Moffit has given to him for protection against any sand grains that might still find their way inside. "I thought I'd provide you with some friendly company after sending your brother to torment you", Hans drawls dryly. "Jerry smartass", Sam grumbles, patting the younger man on the shoulder. The wind starts howling more loudly now and Dietrich turns back to the children to advice them to sit down and adjusts the pieces of cloth over their mouth and nose to protect them properly, before he checks his own bandana's fit. Yelping and barking makes him turn around to find Fritz lying in Hitchcock's arm, as the blond Private joins them as well, followed by Thomas Anaru. "Finally, the family is back together", Jack mutters sarcastically and Dietrich grimaces, but nods. Gently petting Fritz over the head, he tells Hitch to set the dog down to put on his own bandana.

As the wind turns into a storm, the children and the animals get more scared and huddle against the German Captain who turns to calming and reassuring them, as he makes Ari and Kiri sit down to take his own seat in the floor between them, resting his back against the truck's side wall. Bastet has fled out of the cap and curled up on the young officer's lap, hiding her nose under her tail, while Fritz puts his snout on Dietrich's knee and whines desperately. After speaking calmly to the scared animals and providing some reassuring cuddles and physical contact, Hans focuses his attention back on the two children. "Ari, Kiri, you don't have to be afraid. We have everything under control. It's just a sandstorm and we all know how to handle sandstorms. After all we have the vehicles to protect us." Ari has buried his face in his caregiver's left flank and listens to his heartbeat to calm himself, trusting him blindly to get him out of any danger, while Kiri looks a bit skeptical, but turns to huddling against the tall young man as well. In previous sandstorms she has had her mother to hold her in her arms and pray with her, but Ioannes is the person she trusts the most to protect her from anything and his cool demeanour is calming.

After another ten minutes the storm has reached its peak and then remains constantly loud, as the wind tears on the cloth parts of their vehicles and sand starts to get pressed inside through the smallest of openings which Troy and Moffit quickly cover at Dietrich's sharp order. Looking at the downcast boy and girl, Dietrich thinks about ways to cheer them up or distract them. Following up on an idea, he suggests: "Let's play a game now!" Ari and Kiri look at him curiously, since playing games is not something he usually offers or has time for and they both are eager. "What game?", the girl asks enthusiastically. "It's called 'Ich seh, ich seh, was du nicht siehst'. This mean 'I see something that you don't see'. You can practice English vocabulary and German, if you want to learn it", Hans explains gently, trying to calm and motivate the scared looking children. "I want to learn it", Hitch declares enthusiastically. "Can we play as well?", Kevin O'Donnell asks with a pleading look. "You're almost like children sometimes", the German Captain groans, refraining to sink so low as to roll his eyes.

"Ich seh, ich seh, was du nicht siehst, und das ist rosa", Dietrich starts out. "Rosa means pink. So now you can suggest anything pink you see and I tell you, if you're correct. Whoever guesses correctly wins and makes the next suggestion." "Kiri's lips", Ari proposes. "Ari's lips", the girl counters immediately. Hans says no to both suggestions. "You cannot see them behind the bandanas. It's not about knowing something is there, but actually seeing it. So observe your environment closely", he explains and they continue for quite a while with suggestions the German officer refutes. "Bastet's nose", Ari finally suggests. "Well done", Hans tells him with a gentle smile, petting the boy over the head. "It's your turn to observe something and make a suggestion, Ari." Kiri pouts, disappointed that she didn't win, but enthusiastically starts to guess brown things which are next. Fifteen minutes later, she is quite frustrated, when Troy finally suggests: "What about your brother's hair?" The American points at the slightly baffled, skinny German and Ari nods fervently and nudges against his beloved caregiver's side, as he exclaims: "Yes." "That's a bit unfair. I cannot see my own hair", the young officer protests with a smile. "Troy, you're doing this in German to learn and practice vocabulary!" The American Sergeant scowls, but nods. "Okay. So what this verse again?" "Ich seh, ich seh, was du nicht siehst, und das ist...", Dietrich tells him patiently. "Then you insert the colour." "Okay. What's 'red'?" "Rot", Hans translates and adds: "'Rotes Kreuz' means 'Red Cross'."

"Maybe we should start out with a colour lecture", Moffit suggests, eager to turn toproper grammar and vocabulary lessons. Especially the children nod with much more eagerness than the Rats and pay close attention to Jack's instructions. Kiri asks several times for diversification of colours, pointing out that one tone of brown is not like another. "Ioannes is a different brown than Fritz", she argues and Ari agrees immediately, while their caregiver is baffled to have his hair colour compared with the dog's, as Hitch, Kevin and Troy laugh loudly. Dietrich patiently provides them with instructions for basic vocabulary of equipment and body parts which they need to play the game and adds an explanation or association to every asked question about something. "'Kastanienbraun' which means the reddish brown of a chestnut is quite different from the light brown colours, 'ockerbraun' or 'beigebraun' of our uniforms", Dietrich points out, showing his uniform's cloth as an example for the last type of colour.

"What's a chestnut?", Ari asks, while Kiri wants to know about more different tones of brown, a colour she is quite familiar with in its many nuances from her lifetime spent in the Libyan desert. Jack Moffit explains the chestnut tree, as Dietrich provides more words for different types of brown he can think of. Thomas Anaru listens to the German words with interest and Dietrich notices quickly that he is far better with the pronunciation than the Americans and Australians, as he repeats the words, since none of the Rats is eager to listen to Moffit's lectures. "Have you learned German before, Private Anaru?", Hans asks curiously, as he notices the difference, but the young Maori soldier shakes his head. "No. Captain. But speaking German is more similar to my native language than English which is why you're a lot better at pronouncing our words than most of the Brits", he replies with a smile. "Kia ora. Danke", Hans thanks him earnestly. "You're a fast learner", Thomas replies with a grin. "He's always been my best student", Troy agrees with a wink, squeezing the lean young man's shoulder.

"Wow. I really feel like I learned more than in several years of school", David Troy announces after two hours of explanations and game play. "Yeah, our young fox is great, isn't he?", Sam agrees with a smile, patting the lean officer on the shoulder. "Next time, I spend my ride with Captain Boggs instead of you, if you can't address me properly", Dietrich complains. "Don't be so tetchy, Captain!", Sam counters. "That was real fun and it didn't even feel like school, unlike Doc Know-it-all's lectures." "My dear Captain, I suggest that we both continue our journey with Captain Boggs in the future", Moffit tells Dietrich with dry British humour. "Indeed, Doctor. This has been a far more relaxing experience", Hans agrees with a wink and amused twinkle of his eyes. "Pah, what could Captain Baldy offer you when it comes to entertainment?", Sam Troy asks grumpily. "We had a wonderful time with Captain Boggs, sharing stories, didn't we, Moffit?", the German Captain asks sarcastically and Jack nods with a wry smile. "We heard some interesting stories about your most infamous pranks in camp. I finally understand why Winters hated you more than I ever have. Placing smoke bombs in officer's latrines, Troy, truly is below the belt", Hans tells the Sergeant with a roguish smirk. "That one was hilarious", Hitch comments, laughing already, as Tully smiles in reminiscence and Troy grins like the Cheshire Cat.

"What happened? We wanna laugh as well", Kevin asks with a pout like a petulant child. "I took a empty grenade case and filled it with anything combustible I had", Sam explains. "Cigarette butts, paper, matchsticks. Then, I waited till Tully showed me green light for Winters approaching the toilet and I put a burning matchstick in and hid it under the lid." "And then", Lisa Hartigan tells them with a roguish grin absolutely inappropriate for the situation, "the Volcano jumped up like he'd really sat on a bomb, tried running with his trousers 'round his ankles which didn't work well and fell ... right on his big nose and", her grin turns even wider and an evil twinkle is visible in her eyes, "his best parts, in his eyes at least. The Volcano sure wasn't amused, when I almost fell over laughing, as he showed us his 'injury'." Sam Troy cannot stop laughing, while Hans Dietrich draws his hand over his haggard face and shakes his head in disbelief. "Latrine duty's sure teaching some humility, just not to me or Tully", the American Sergeant comments between bouts of laughter. "What am I going to do with you, Sergeant?", the German Captain asks with some desperation audible in his tone. "Maybe you can come up with even better ideas, given that you're our new super prankster, since joining us", Troy replies unperturbed. "I'll think of something", the young officer mutters quietly, glaring at the American Sergeant who causes him constant trouble. "And then I will consider whether to tell you or the General and Captain Boggs about this brilliant idea."

Kevin grins widely behind his bandana and elbows his brother Daniel. "Maybe we should tell you how we ended up in the LRDP then, Captain", he adds with a twinkle in his eyes that promises sleepless nights to his young commander. "When we came here fresh from Sydney, we landed in one of those large infantry units with a Captain who looked like he constantly was chewing on a lemon, even more sour than our old school teacher. We called him Captain Sherbet." Seeing Dietrich's confused expression, he explains: "Like the sherbet lemons. Have you ever heard of the sweets?" The skinny German shakes his head, wincing slightly and putting his hand on his forehead. "You okay, Captain?", Troy asks with worry and Ari huddles against his side, muttering "Hans". "I'm fine, as long as I don't move my head too much", the young officer replies. "How does your story continue, Private O'Donnell?"

Kevin's concerned expression turns into a grin again. "We'll share our sherbet lemons, when we get hold of some", Danny promises, before his brother continues with his recount: "Well, Danny, Mickey and I sneaked into the officers' bathroom and replaced our officers' standard-issue soap with bars carved from potato. It took us three hours in the kitchen to make the perfect copies, but that was worth it." Hitch and Tully bear expressions communicating clearly how much they regret to not have come up with an idea like this themselves. Kevin winks at them and continues: "As the officers returned from their day's evening drill, tired and covered in the desert's grime, they started scrubbing themselves pretty vigorously but 't was to no avail. They had this sticky mess of starch and the faint smell of raw potato all over them and didn't even have proper soap to wash it off, cause we took it, all of it." The Rats are laughing loudly with only Corporal Gottschlich looking rather shocked and horrified by the very idea of playing such pranks and Dietrich pinching his nose, although an amused smile plays around his lips, well hidden underneath the bandana. He might have enjoyed watching that happen to some of his more arrogant fellow officers in the German Wehrmacht, Major von Stolberg being the first to come to his mind. The cowardly, sadistic man with the bathing obsession in the middle of the desert would have been a deserving target. But the stories of pranks remind him of another side to this mischief which is far from harmless and has already caused serious troubles on this very day.

Drawing himself up into a straight position while sitting, he lowers his hand and looks at all of the men of his unit with a steely gaze, bearing a strict expression that clearly speaks of how seriously he takes the matter. "Gentlemen, you will all swear to me that you will refrain from pranking your officers and fellow soldiers neither regularly nor exceptionally, especially without informing me in advance!", the German Captain demands sternly, glaring at Troy, Pettigrew and Hitchcock, before his gaze shifts to the O'Donnell brothers. "And in particular you will not choose pranks that harm and endanger others or raise alarm in the whole camp!" "You can choose the Captain and me as good examples for well-thought-through, harmless pranks", Moffit offers, while Dietrich growls with dry sarcasm: "Thank you for your kind support, Doctor!" "We'll be good, Captain Sherlock", Kevin O'Donnell promises with a grin. "I hope so, since I know now that you two brothers of madness have as much potential for mischief as Hitchcock and Pettigrew", Hans replies dryly and wearily. Danny grins widely, as he counters: "Our Dad used to say that we're like Leprechauns - the Irish fairy goblins pulling pranks on humans." Dietrich briefly buries his face in his palms, questioning his own sanity for requesting these two sources of infinite trouble. Troy pats him on the shoulder and comments jovially: "Look at the bright side, Captain. You'll never suffer from boredom with us." "You have no idea how attractive boredom sounds after all that has happened today, Troy", Dietrich groans. "You don't really mean that. You're a wily fox and you'd surely miss the challenge and entertainment", Sam argues, grinning widely behind his bandana.

Thomas Anaru intercedes now, as he asks: "Is it just me or is the wind getting less intense?" All of them fall quiet and listen intently. "It's getting less windy. Maybe another hour or two, before we can start digging out the vehicles", Dietrich assesses. "Just enough time for cold lunch", comes Troy's response. The German Captain does not protest, but blushes slightly, as his stomach starts rumbling. "Looks like you're getting better", Sam comments with a grin. "I will bring you whatever you like, Hans", Ari offers with big worried eyes, as he gently holds onto his brother. "Thank you, Ari. I can probably eat anything that's not too fat or greasy by now", Hans mutters. "We'll find something among our iron rations", Tully confirms. "Just don't give me the grenades, Pettigrew", Dietrich replies dryly, raising his eyebrows in an amused expression, as the Private from Kentucky snorts his laughter. "Sure will do, Cap." "What's that inside joke between you two?", Troy asks. "We somehow ended up with the realisation that Pettigrew keeps a grenade with him as iron ration and used this to blow up the British cultist who had taken you hostage, Troy", the German Captain explains. "I hate British cultists!", Troy snarls angrily.

"We can share the sentiment", Daniel O'Donnell tells him, patting his shoulder. "Our Pa and our uncles were exiled, cause they wanted to see Ireland free of the shackles of British kings and queens. Pa went to Australia, cause we had family there who'd left during the Great Famine. Uncle Paddy, Deirdre's father, went to the U.S. and settled there. I think in New York and then he moved on to Chicago, but maybe they came back or so." Dietrich looks a bit bemused. "What's the Great Famine. I've never heard this term?" "That's because it's specifically related to Irish and British history", Moffit intercedes. "In the 1840s and beginning 1850s Ireland, Britain's corn chamber, suffered from massive crop failure." "Our Grandpa and folks from his parents' generation used to tell stories how the praties rotted in the ground", Daniel adds. "The what?", the German asks and several men around look relieved that he dares to ask, although they are unfamiliar with the term as well. "Potatoes", Danny translates with a grin. "Pa used to call themprátaí, just to annoy the English stemming farmers." Moffit sighs wearily, seeing hard times to come for him with the two Irish stemming fellows. Dietrich looks curious in spite of himself. "So it's Celtic?" "Gaelic. Pa wanted us to learn the tongue of our native land,Éire, the Emerald Isle", Kevin explains. "I've never bothered with British anthropology, but now you got me curious", Moffit comments. "No problem, Doc. We're willing to teach you some proper language instead of this fancy English", Kevin O'Donnell promises with a grin that is clear in spite of his bandana.

"Hey, Cap", Tully addresses the German Captain and holds a metallic bowl out to him. "I found you some lunch." "Woof", Fritz immediately announces his interest at the term 'lunch' and the smell of meat. "No, Fritz", Hitch intervenes. "Cap needs his lunch or he'll starve like in a great famine." "Hitchcock", Hans growls, before Bastet interrupts him by trying to climb up on his arm to get a look into the bowl. "Bastet, nein!", the German officer scolds her and wrestles his arm out of her grasp. Taking down the bandana that is not strictly necessary anymore, he smells at the bowl, recognizing corned beef. The most greasy part he takes with his fingers and holds out first for Bastet to try and then out to Fritz who greedily licks every last bit off his fingers, before fawning gratefully. The kitten looks less content, slightly overwhelmed by the intense taste of salt that at least serves to discourage her from trying to get her head into Dietrich's lunch again, staying with the milk bowl. Ari and Kiri happily eat their own portions, while Fritz tries his luck with the O'Donnell brothers after having successfully received bits and pieces from Dietrich, Troy and Hitch already. Moffit's annoyed glare has discouraged the mutt immediately and Tully has perfected ignoring anything that does not concern him. Riku Gottschlich tries to hide behind the British Sergeant who never attracts the overly excited little dog that still makes him constantly worry about contracting rabies. Ever since the incident with the British archaeologists this is a frequently recurring nightmare for the young Corporal.

Thomas Anaru meanwhile is confronted with being stuck between Lisa Hartigan and David Troy who has dropped all shyness over requiring the nurse's aid to feed him, while chatting jovially with the young Maori Private. "Do you think a tattoo would be a good idea for covering the scars, when I finally get out of here?" "Scar tissue is far too sensitive for tattooing, David", Lisa scolds him sternly. "But I'd really like to look as badass as him", David argues, pouting like a petulant child. "The Jerries already looked scared just by the sight of him." "That's because the reputation of the Maori warriors, their fierce and unrelenting attitude in battle precedes them by now", Dietrich calls over. "You and your brother will still need a little more effort to build such a reputation", he adds sarcastically. "The terrifying Troys", David muses and smirks. "I like that. Sounds more fear instilling than Rat Patrol", Sam agrees with a grin. "Gentlemen, you don't have to work on becoming more fear instilling, but acquiring circumspection and subtlety", Hans reminds them silkily. "This will prove to be the far greater challenge I fear", Jack Moffit adds dryly. "We were really successful till now and we actually got better since we got our own desert fox here", Sam Troy argues.

Dietrich sighs wearily, exchanging an annoyed glance with Moffit, before he replies: "General Atkins is right that the kind of war we have led here in North Africa is obsolete, sooner rather than later. The Afrikakorps has lacked ressources and supplies from the very beginning. Berlin's decision to invest more into the Eastern Front than North Africa doesn't improve the situation for Rommel's troops." All the Allied soldiers have fallen silent to listen to the German Captain who has never before explained his officer's perspective from Axis and Allied side so clearly. Hans closes his eyes and sighs wearily, putting his arm around Ari's shoulder, when the boy nudges against him, even though he does not understand what the whole pallaver is about. "You've seen a lot, Captain", Thomas Anaru mutters who has spent the least time in North Africa apart from Riku Gottschlich. "Yes, Private. I've fought on most fronts here in North Africa for the past two years and seen the effect of constantly losing ground more often than I care to count. Now that the U.S. army has finally decided to intervene here and not only concentrate on Japan and the Pacific battle field this will tip the scales which have been in a precarious balance before, gentlemen. This is also a reason why I am relieved to know that my former unit will find itself in American captivity, rather than die needlessly for Berlin's absurd order to never surrender or be innocently persecuted by the SS." His gaze moves to where he knows the POW trucks and the truck with his former staff medic and the wounded soldiers to be located. "Sommer, your Sergeant, Lieutenant and the kid Wolf are good guys", Troy agrees. "And I doubt even our brass have as much understanding of what you just told us."

Hans winces, when Bastet lets herself drop against his stomach and flank, before she starts to purr loudly. "That's part of the value I have for the Allied HQ as a defected Axis officer and mostly the reason why I'm still alive. Or they would never have ordered you to retrieve me", the lean young officer argues with disillusionment. "You have a lot more qualities to value than just that information", Troy protests immediately. "In your eyes for sure, Troy, but not in the eyes of the Allied HQ when they ordered my retrieval. If Jakob Silberblatt would not have persuaded Atkins, the SS would have executed me weeks ago", Dietrich counters bitterly. "We still like you for who you are", Hitch states resolutely and his girlfriend jumps to his support. "Yes, Captain, all of us who got to know you like you for the kind of man you are." "Yes, we do", Thomas Anaru and Kevin O'Donnell state almost simultaneously, while Moffit, Tully and Gottschlich nod quietly. Ari doesn't fully understand what this is about, but mutters: "I love you, Hans." "I love you, Ioannes", Kiri repeats his words, startling the German Captain slightly, as he wonders how to place the children with other caregivers given their attitude. Curse his soft heart for this idiocy of getting them to like him as their caregiver! "You're too good with winning people, Dietrich", David comments from the bed. "I absolutely like you too. Do you think you can teach me your trick?" "I doubt that you'll ever learn a polite and circumspect behavior, Troy", Hans replies dryly. "But be my guest to try acting more like I do." "Good thing we have you, Captain Fox Kit. The brass can go fishing for all I care", Sam adds patting the young officer on the shoulder.

"We need to dig out the vehicles", Boggs declares sternly, as he enters their refuge, wondering at the strange atmosphere at exchange. Handing his empty plate to Tully, as he stands up, Dietrich nods and agrees: "Of course. That was to be expected. That's why we kept the tanks outside of the protective ring." "This will take hours", the American Captain argues desperately. "Not if we get the German POWs to help. They have a lot more experience with this work than your men who can focus on guarding them", the German officer counters, baffling his older colleague. "They don't call you young desert fox for nothing. You're sly and wily", Boggs assesses to which Dietrich shrugs. "This does not violate the Geneva Convention. And I'll ask for volunteers first. If it is fine with you, I'll offer them an extra ration as reward, once we reach our destination. That should suffice to motivate enough of them." "I entrust this to you entirely. I'll send you and Carlos whoever you need as guards", James Boggs promises, patting his younger colleague on the upper arm. "Ari, Kiri, you stay here with the Troys, Hitchcock and Anaru! Take care of Fritz and Bastet!" With these words, Hans hands the cap with the contently sleeping kitten to Ari who smiles at the little cat and pets her gently. "Moffit, you come with me. Gottschlich, Pettigrew, O'Donnells, you help with digging out our Jeeps, unless Captain Boggs assigns you as prison guards!", Hans orders and turns to leave.

Lieutenant Carlos comes toward them, as soon as he sees the young Captain approaching. "Thank you for helping me out Captain Dietrich", the Hispanic Lieutenant emphasises, smiling at the lean European who nods in acceptance, before turning toward the prisoners who have been sent outside the truck by Carlos' men already. "Männer. Aufstellung und still gestanden!", Dietrich bellows the commands for a roll call of the German prisoners who obey immediately, being well drilled. "Um die Weiterfahrt nicht unnötig zu verzögern, brauchen wir Männer, die helfen, die Wagen auszugraben. Wer sich freiwillig meldet, erhält eine Extraration, wenn wir in den kommenden Tagen das Kriegsgefangenenlager erreichen. Hauptmann Langreiters Soldaten, die an der Amöbenruhr leiden, können eine schnelle Weiterfahrt ebenso brauchen wie Ihre verwundeten Kameraden", Hans promises an extra ration for anyone volunteering to help dig out the convoy, arguing with the benefit for their wounded comrades and Langreiter's sick men.

Without hesitation a dozen of Dietrich's former men take a step forward which motivates further soldiers to follow their example. That Hauptmann Stadler also volunteers serves to make almost his whole unit follow suit. Once Hans has provided an Italian version of the speech as well, Marcello and the majority of his men follow along. "Well done. I'm impressed", Moffit mutters to the younger officer who raises his eyebrows in a sarcastic expression. "Did you doubt German diligence, Sergeant Moffit?" "I shouldn't have doubted your persuasiveness for a moment, Captain" Jack replies with a wry smile. "I need to direct the men, Moffit. I trust you to watch my back", Hans replies earnestly and the British Sergeant immediately readies his gun. "I've seen you injured badly enough for a single day", Moffit comments with actual concern. "Don't start behaving like Troy, Doctor! One mother hen per unit is more than enough for wearing my nerves to a frazzle", Dietrich groans unnerved and Jack grins at the comment.

For the next half hour the German Captain is very busy giving orders and directions in three languages, English, German and Italian, while trying to keep an overview of the work done. Once all ends of the convoy are well covered, he can finally relax a bit, but still keeps his upright posture with his arms crossed behind his back and stalks along the work columns. "Herr Hauptmann", a young German soldier from Dietrich's unit addresses the young officer, as he slowly passes by. Moffit eyes him suspiciously, but the German Captain replies with a calm tone: "Was kann ich für Sie tun, Gefreiter Faulmann?" "Darf ich Sie etwas fragen, Herr Hauptmann?", the man asks a bit sheepishly whether he may ask a question, as he continues digging sand. "Das tun Sie doch bereits", Hans replies dryly that he already does this, but smiles and nods in an encouraging way. "Stimmt es, dass die Ratten jetzt unter Ihrem Kommando stehen?", the man asks whether it is true that Dietrich is the Rats' commander now. Moffit and his commanding officer exchange glances, before Dietrich confirms: "Wie Sie sehen, ist das korrekt."

"Haben Sie uns für die Ratten verraten, Herr Hauptmann?", the German soldier asks with a sad expression whether his former Hauptmann has betrayed them for the Rats. Dietrich shakes his head vehemently. "Ich habe Sie nie verraten wollen und mein Möglichstes getan zu meinen Männern zu stehen, Faulmann." The British Sergeant intercedes: "Das kann ich nur bestätigen. Ihr Hauptmann war mehr tot als lebendig als wir ihn befreit haben. Dennoch hat er nicht um sein Leben gebeten sondern im Gegenteil sich selbst verkauft, um uns das Versprechen abzunehmen, ihm zu helfen, Sie alle zu retten." The German soldier looks baffled, when the British Rat Patrol Sergeant confirms that their commanding officer has sold himself to get their promise to save his men, rather than betraying them as he has accused him. "Die SS hat mich unschuldig zum Tod wegen Hochverrats verurteilt, den ich nicht begangen habe. Die Ratten hingegen haben trotz langer Feindschaft mein Leben gerettet und sind treu zu mir gestanden, als ich von meinem Vaterland verstoßen und meiner Armee zu Unrecht verurteilt wurde", Hans Dietrich explains that when he has been cast out by his fatherland, innocently condemned to death by his army and the SS, the Rats have nor only saved him, but loyally stood by his side in spite of their previous enmity.

"Wir haben Sie immer respektiert, Hauptmann Dietrich, und tun dies mehr denn je", Moffit adds that they have always respected the German Captain and now do so more than ever. To show this clearly, he puts his hand on Dietrich's left shoulder, squeezing gently. "Sie sind ein guter Offizier, anständig, gerecht, klug und umsichtig. Und wir mögen Sie persönlich nicht weniger als Ihre ehemaligen Männer." Faulmann looks astounded by the behaviour and statement that the British Sergeant considers his former Hauptmann a good officer, decent, fair, smart and considerate, while his new men like him at least as much as his old ones. "Wir mochten Sie wirklich, Herr Hauptmann. Viele von uns mögen und respektieren Sie immer noch", the German soldier protests that they have liked him a lot and many of his men still like and respect him. Dietrich smiles, actually moved by the sentiment. "Danke, Gefreiter Faulmann. Eine höhere Ehre kann ich mir nicht vorstellen oder wünschen", he thanks him, unable to imagine or wish for a higher honor. The German soldier smiles honestly and Moffit observes several of his comrades listening in with curious, baffled or friendly expressions.

Within a mere hour the experienced German soldiers with the directions of their officers, coordinated by Hans Dietrich have freed the convoy of the sand underneath which the storm has tried to bury their vehicles. Captain Boggs is baffled to receive the report about the results so soon and thanks his younger colleague, before starting to give orders to his men to get the convoy moving again. The German officer gets back onto the staff car to continue the ride there, finally able to relax a bit and close his eyes, as the pounding ache in his head has increased during the hour of constantly stalking through the sand to coordinate the workers. James Boggs is a bit astonished to notice the proud young Captain dozing off during the first minutes of their ride. With his face relaxed in his sleep the German actually looks his true age of twenty-five years. The discolouring bruises along with his haggard features remind of the ordeals he has been through recently. "Should we let him sleep or is it a problem with his concussion?", the American Captain asks Moffit who shrugs. "I suppose it's fine to allow him some rest since he has had no visible effects of his concussion except for his nausea and recurring headaches and dizziness. I guess his body really needs the rest." "He more than deserves it", James Boggs replies earnestly, picking up the younger officer's hat to keep it from falling out of the car.

Four hours later, the American Captain turns to wake the younger officer. "Watch out, Captain Boggs! I heard that Captain Dietrich gave Troy a black eye, when he just shook him awake", Jack Moffit warns him. "Thank you for the warning, Sergeant Moffit", James Boggs replies before gently shaking his younger colleague's shoulder. Dietrich instinctively tries to struggle, but Boggs continues speaking to him sternly, catching his left arm, as he has been warned: "Captain Dietrich, you're safe. Stop attacking me! I'm Captain James Boggs." Indeed, the lean European reacts to his voice quickly, ceasing his struggle, before squinting at the older man. "I'm sorry for attacking you, Captain Boggs", the German officer mutters a bit awkwardly. "I'm aware of that", Boggs assures him. "You should go to the field hospital however and have your injuries checked, as I'm quite worried about you. You slept all afternoon and don't look fully stable." "I'll get my checkup as soon as the hospital has been built", Dietrich assures him. "I'll stay with you", Moffit promises and the lean Captain nods in reply.

General Atkins leaves the coordination of establishing the camp to the LRDP Captain as usual. Unlike usual his German colleague arranges to help out by taking over some coordination tasks. Although he sways slightly for the first few moments after standing up, Dietrich regains his stability quickly and Boggs sends him to overlook establishing the POW area and field hospital where he can be treated swiftly, should he actually collapse. Moffit follows merely a step behind his injured commanding officer. For the time being he has shouldered his gun, considering it more important to have his hands free to support the younger man should the need arise. Lieutenant Carlos is delighted to have the German Captain as a helper and coordinator, as are the POW officers who chat with him briefly to assure that they have truly left the storm's area of influence and assure him that the prisoners are motivated to continue their cooperative attitude. That Marcello provides his greetings and farewell through embracing the lean Captain astounds nobody anymore. His open attitude has motivated Stadler to also pat the younger officer on the shoulder when he would usually do this in interacting with his friends or acquaintances from the Biertisch.

Doctor Andrews and and medical personnel are equally happy to receive the German Captain as coordinator for building their tents for which the Rats still on duty join to help with the exception of Moffit. The British Sergeant remains at Dietrich's side to protect him, more from aftereffects of his injuries than actual attacks though. As soon as their first tent is standing, the American medic turns to the younger officer. "So, Captain Dietrich. Let's check your concussion and the sutures", Andrews insists sternly. "Although we all appreciate your efforts, I have to remind you that you should not be on duty anyway, since you need the time to recover." "I slept during the afternoon drive", Hans counters defensively. "Then your body needed the rest and still needs it", Andrews reminds him, as he directs the lean Captain to take a seat. Dietrich keeps his gaze stable in spite of the penlight shining directly in and does not waver. "Normal pupil dilation", Andrews assesses. "Do you still feel nauseous or a headache?" "The nausea is mostly gone and the pounding in my head feels like a slight throbbing only", the German officer replies honestly.

"Good. Get a dinner and then some sleep. I can check on you again tomorrow and assess whether to let you continue like this or return to more active duty", the American medic tells him and indicates him to take off his shirt. "But don't expect that anybody will leave you on duty once we have reached HQ and can afford taking you off duty for as long as you need to recover." Dietrich frowns, but nods, while unbuttoning the shirt, using his left hand only, although he has regained mobility with his right. "General Atkins and Captain Boggs agree with you in this regard." "And any other medical personnel there will do so as well", Andrews adds sternly. Now let me check your sutures." The Doctor cuts through the bandages to remove them and very diligently checks the fresh sutures and cracked ribs.

The German Captain winces at some of the prodding, as Andrews smiles with sympathy: "I'm sorry to hurt you, but I want to be sure that no further bleeding, external or internal, is happening. But Sommer did the sutures excellently and your ribs are cracked but not broken. So, you fortunately don't suffer from internal bleeding in spite of the countless bruises." The medic's look, when assessing the German's skinny and bruised torso is quite disapproving. "You will definitely be taken off duty, when we arrive in Tobruk, until you have regained a healthy weight. I can only hope that you make it there without further grave injuries." "Thank you for your efforts, Doctor Andrews", Hans mutters, aware that he is in a state which negatively affects his ability to perform his duties properly, although his stubborn pride would rather deny this. "Take care of yourself, not just everyone else, Captain Dietrich", Andrews replies, allowing the young man to get back into his shirt. "We care to keep you as an officer."

"Yes, we do. Not just your Rat pack, your kids and your pets, but all of us", Lisa Hartigan adds, having overheard the last part of the conversation, leading Ari and Kiri to their main caregiver. This time the girl is the first to hug him without caring that he has not even buttoned his shirt. Ari walks deliberately slowly, as he carries Dietrich's cap with Bastet inside. The kitten wakes up from the commotion and curiously stands up to meow at her favorite human. Hans takes her out and onto his arm, while the boy nestles against his left flank, muttering his name. "Hey, Fritz. Look who's here!", Hitch calls from behind them and Dietrich quickly finds the dog jumping up at his thigh added to the overwhelming welcome committee. The American Private joins them with his Maori colleague, both grinning broadly at the sight. Sam Troy leaves the side of David who is carried by the O'Donnell brothers on a stretcher. "Oi. The fox family's together again. Lovely", Kevin comments with a grin, while the older Sergeant pats the German Captain on the shoulder, smiling widely. "Good to have you back. I hope you're up to eating some proper dinner. You definitely need it", Sam grumbles, lightly stabbing the thin officer between the ribs with a finger, as he eyes his sinewy stature disapprovingly. "Refrain from stabbing me with your finger, Sergeant!", Hans growls angrily. "I fully intend to eat as proper a dinner as my stomach can manage." "Although you'd need it, don't eat anything greasy, fatty or too heavy!", Doctor Andrews adds as well and the young Captain nods in response.

When the children let go of him, Hans hands Bastet to Kiri after making her promise to be careful, patient and gentle, so that he can button his shirt again. By that time the rest of the Rats has joined them as well, including Jakob Silberblatt who has been relieved of radio duty for the night, the Privates have started chatting about their former pranks again. Once he picks up the topic of their conversation, their commanding officer glares and repeats his admonishment sternly. "And don't motivate the children for such nonsense!", Hans adds. "We like nonsense", Kiri declares. "David tells nonsense and it's fun." With a groan, Dietrich pinches his nose, as he mutters dryly: "What did I do to deserve that?" "You decided to be nice to Davey and have him serve with us", Sam reminds him, as he pats his friend's shoulder. "Are you trying to tell me that the punishment fits the crime, Troy?", Hans asks sarcastically. "You said that, Captain Sherlock!", Sam replies with a grin.

Their dinner passes quickly, as everyone chats happily. Bastet tries a new sneak attack against their plates but again gets taken from the table by the German officer who intends to teach her to neither steal nor beg for food, but accept what she receives to eat. The kitten finally curls up contently on his lap after having eaten several pieces of meat from his warmed stew. Fritz has put his head on Mark's knee and receives his own meat pieces from Hitch and Troy. "Fritz deserves a reward after his brilliant mission today", Sam adds and pets the panting dog over the head. Moffit grimaces with disapproval, groaning lightly. "Fritz does deserve a reward", Dietrich agrees. "A promotion doesn't mean anything to him, but a sausage does. You'll get something, as soon as I get the chance, Fritz." "Woof", the dog barks approvingly, fawning gratefully, as the German Captain scratches him behind the ears.

"There he is", comes a shout from the entrance of the mess tent at which Dietrich tenses instinctively, too wary after all the attacks against him. "Good evening, Captain Dietrich", a British Sergeant Hans recognizes from the tank brigade greets him along with a group of his soldiers. "Good evening, Sergeant Fletcher", the German officer returns the greeting warily. "Major Bracken and Lieutenant Johnson send their regards, Sir", the man explains after a polite salute and places a teapot on the table in front of him. "Tea", Troy growls with a tone, as if he would have tried to poison him. "And what a wonderful brew", Moffit comments approvingly, as he takes in the scent. Bastet jumps onto the table and curiously sniffs at the pot as well. "Thank you", the young Captain mutters with surprise, while Jakob Silberblatt adds: "That's just what we needed to round up the day, before going to bed."

Meanwhile the kitten eyes the teapot curiously and tests it with its paw, withdrawing as she feels the heat. Her actions however still earn her an approving smile from Jack Moffit. "You're a really gourmand, Bastet", the British Sergeant tells her gently, petting the kitten's head. "You can keep that tea loving cat with the Egyptian mumbo jumbo name", Troy complains. "Please forgive my men, Sergeant! It has been a rather long and taxing day", Dietrich tells the British tank Sergeant, glaring at his own unruly gang of Rats. "I also wanted to thank you for your protection of our lads during the storm and getting the POWs to dig out our tanks so quickly again", SergeantFletcher adds. Hans looks honestly surprised, as he argues: "I merely did my duty, Sergeant." "We heard you're off duty, because you were injured during your mission in the morning, but you still helped out", the British Sergeant counters. "So we thought it's fair to thank you. I'm sorry that I was not accepted in your unit." "This wasn't my decision, but the General's. Allied headquarters will have the final decision, so you still stand a chance", the German Captain replies, trying to hide his confusion. "So I can still hope. Have a good evening, Captain!", SergeantFletcher wishes him. "You too, Sergeant. Send my regards to your officers and your men. And thank you for the tea", Hans replies with politeness due for his rank.

"You got fans among the tea cultists", Sam Troy grumbles with a grin, as soon as the Brit has taken several steps away. Hans stifles the urge to roll his eyes, reminding himself that even among the Yankees he has not fallen so low as to forgo his good breeding altogether. Moffit however is a lot more indignant, as he snaps: "Who do you call tea cultists?" "You lot of Brits, Aussies and the rest of your band of tea lovers", the American Sergeant grunts stubbornly. "As a protector of tea's honor I cannot let such a grave abuse of this noble beverage stand unchallenged", Jack Moffit declares formally. Lisa Hartigan grins from ear to ear thoroughly amused, while Tully starts whispering with the O'Donnell brothers and Hitch, talking about rates and odds for betting on who might come out asthe winner in the fight between Moffit and Troy. "May I just pour tea to whoever likes to have some?", Jakob Silberblatt offers, trying to deescalate the situation. "You're also one of the tea gang!", Sam accuses him with a glare.

"And you're behaving impossibly like a drama queen, Troy", Dietrich intercedes, finally unnerved. "Why is he a queen? Shouldn't he be a king?", Ari asks innocently, making all of the adults burst into laughter after a moment of astonished silence. "You're absolutely right, Ari", Hans agrees, catching his breath. "Troy is the king of unnecessary drama." "Jerry smartass", the American Sergeant grumbles with a smile and a wink. "That's been one of the best laughs we've had in a while", Hitch comments with a wide grin. "Well done, Ari. If you continue like this, you'll be the next to earn the joke and prank award after your brother." The Jewish orphan grins from ear to ear, proud of the praise, as he huddles against said brother's side. "Are you proud of me, Hans?" The German Captain pats him over the head and puts his arm around his shoulder. "Very proud. You did this really well, Ari." Leaning against the tall man's chest, Ari mutters his thanks, muffled by Dietrich's shirt. Clinking their tea cups together as if they would contain some stronger spirit, Hans, Jakob, Jack, Thomas, Kevin and Daniel celebrate the spirit of tea and its boost to morale. "How did they get a majority?", Troy mutters to Hitch incredulously. "It was just Jack a few weeks ago and now it's everyone except for you and Tully... and Gotty, but he counts also among the tea cultists", the American Sergeant grumbles, aseven Riku Gottschlich joins in after a few moments of hesitation and pours himself some tea into his cup. "We're the last of the Yankees, Sarge", Hitch reminds him. "Tough luck. We gotta be twice as tough from now on", Troy argues vehemently.

After their tea round the group starts to split up. Hitch accompanies Lisa Hartigan back to her tent, intending to spend some time with his girlfriend, while the others are relieved to retreat for the night. Jakob Silberblatt helps his friend to carry the cap with the now slumbering kitten, while Troy remains at Dietrich's side to support the younger man, since he sways slightly after standing up, stabilising himself by holding onto the American Sergeant's shoulder. The rest of their men return to their joint tent where they prepare for the night, agreeing on shifts for guarding the tent. With great caution, Silberblatt immediately places the cap on his German friend's bed to protect his beloved pillow from further attacks through the sneaky assassin of innocent pieces of bed linen.

Hans Dietrich kneels at Ari's and Kiri's bed and tucks the children in, gently wishing a good night, as he draws the blanket up to their chins after the Jewish boy has hugged him one more time, huddling against his shoulder, and Kiri has kissed him on the cheek, asking him to speak a Greek prayer with her. Since the young officer does not understand the language, he calls Troy for help, although the Sergeant is almost as clueless, but at least understands some of the vocabulary and provides a rudimentary translation for his friend. Once finished, the German officer stands up to go to his own bed and sways slightly until Sam catches the younger Captain's arm to stabilize him. "Get your rest, Captain! You really need it", the American Sergeant mutters, as he helps the lean German back to his bed which Bastet is already exploring as her new territory.

"Meow", the kitten protests, when the tall European sits down in the center and takes up the space she would have liked to curl up on. Hans gets reminded of Deirdre O'Donnell's warning that he will suffer, when lying down, as the lump at the back of his head reminds him painfully of its existence. Cautiously he shifts his head until he finds a position that does not hurt too much. The kitten meanwhile has come up with a different strategy. Curiously, Bastet climbs onto Dietrich's shoulder, continuing to waddle over his chest, until she reaches his stomach. Very gently the kitten lies down and curls up, purring loudly, as she stares at his face. "Well, it looks like Captain Boggs is right with his theory that Bastet tries to heal you with her purring", Moffit comments, as Dietrich pets the kitten over the head. "Danke, Bastet", Hans mutters, scratching Bastet behind the ears to which the little cat responds with even louder purring. Troy picks up Fritz to take the dog with him and settle him at the foot and of his own cot where Fritz curls up, yelping gratefully. A little while later all of them drift off to sleep with Bastet's head resting on the slumbering German Captain's hand, while Fritz and Troy start snoring in unison. "Impossible mutt", Jack Moffit mutters to himself with annoyance as he shifts to the other side, trying to minimise his intake of the noise.