“What can I say that will change your mind, Leo?”  Captain Helena Dread sat at her desk in the ready room, and her executive officer, Captain Leopold Halsey, was across from her.  He had just handed her a letter of transfer.

“Nothing, Helena.  I’ve had time to think about my time as interim captain; my time in the chair reminded me of why I didn’t want to get back into the thing in the first place.  In addition to the transfer request, I’ve put in for a sabbatical for a few weeks.  It’s been granted – conditional on your signature.”

She tossed the PADD back to the desk, “I could just deny it. Make the case that you’re still needed here.”

Halsey scoffed, “You could try.”  He chuckled at her eyebrows raising, “I’m not some new commander you can kick around to get your way, Helena.  I’m old enough to know better when it’s time to find something else – Starfleet or otherwise.”  He stared at the unsigned PADD, “We both know you’ll find someone to step into the role.  In my final report, I’ve recommended Lieutenant Commander Ford as my replacement.”

Dread picked up the PADD, annoyed.  “You think you can tell me who to pick as your replacement?”

“I think you’re letting your anger get in the way of being open to my suggestion.”

“I’m not angry.”  He stared at her, letting the silence reply for him.  She let out a long sigh, “I’m upset.”  She held the PADD in her hand, “You’re running away, Leo.”

He felt his face grow warm at the accusation.  “You can call it what you want, captain.  I know what I’m good at.  Practicing medicine was my first love before I got caught up in the command track.”

She signed the PADD and returned it to him, “I’m still upset.  You’re a damned good officer.  I still have half a mind to keep you just to spite you.”  She smiled at the anxiety flash across his eyes, “I’m mostly kidding, Leo.  I’ll never stand in the way of someone who needs something else.  You’ll be missed.”

He stood at attention, “Thank you, Captain Dread.  It’s been an honor.  I will miss it as well.”  He walked out, leaving Helena to contemplate what to do next.  She tapped her communications badge.

“You wanted to see me, captain?”  Ensign Alanna Barker stood outside Captain Helena Dread’s quarters in uniform as the door slid open, revealing the CO in an apron.

“I did.  Come on in,  Yeoman.”  She led her to the kitchen, where several pots and pans were in progress, “I always do my best thinking in the kitchen or the dining room. Seemed like the right place for it.  Drink?”  She gestured to the bar stool, and Barker slid on it, accepting an iced tea.

“Why am I here, captain?”  Dread was more of a morning meal person.

“You might have heard Halsey transferred.”  She indicated she had.  “You’re here to help me find his replacement.  He’s recommended Ford to replace him, but I’ve asked Ford, and he said, in several ways – all of them explicit – that he is uninterested.”

Barker felt a frown tug at her eyebrows, “We don’t have anyone above a lieutenant rank in the senior staff left.  Nobody with command experience or the desire.”  She groaned, “We’re going to have to do a command officer search, aren’t we?”

Dread worked at the stove, “Look, I know they’re not a favorite of what we have to do, but we just have to find a positive way to look at it, ensign.”

She replied, “I’m positive this is not going to be a fun or favorite thing to do.”

“That’s the spirit.”  She poured the spaghetti into the strainer and directed Barker to pull the sauce, meatballs, and cheese over to the bar, where two plates were quickly filled with a steaming meal.  “I’ve requested a list of all the available candidates from Starfleet who meet the minimum requirements for the position.”  She sent the report to Barkers PADD as they sat down to eat and work.

The Yeoman shouted, “200?  How is there that many?”

Swallowing a bundle of noodles and sauce, Dread admitted, “I lowered some of the general standards.  I need a large sample group to evaluate everyone against.  Our next executive officer is in that mess of good, bad, and ugly.”

“Can I at least eat first?”

“Eat and work, ensign.  We’ve got to find our XO before someone else gets to them.”

Barker sighed, mostly for effect, and got to work with her captain.