The passenger cabin aboard the shuttle Yosemite was alive with chatter as it approached the Lafayette. Commander Dumouchel had dispensed with the formalities early on in an effort to get to know her crew mates, and all but one had been eager to join into the conversation. 

“Ah, yes, Aigues-Mortes was a lovely place to grow up. I always loved looking up at the stone walls and towers and imagining all of the adventures and bravery that inhabited them long ago,” She said to Mack, who was eating up all of her stories of growing up in France, and absolutely hanging off of every word spoken in her rich French accent. 

Mack laughed, “Oh, man, that sounds so different from Texas. The only thing we've got with walls in Texas is the Alamo, and it's not that big,” She joked. 

“Ah, oui, but you have barbecue brisket, and I believe that more than makes up for some old stone walls,” Dumouchel teased back. 

Mack gasped, “You know about Brisket? I pegged you for a escargot and croissant girl,” She replied in her honey thick Texas accent. 

Dumouchel shuddered and laughed, “Ugh! Escargot? Non! Not at all! The texture is so…” She shuddered again and made a disapproving noise. “Now if you had said croissant and crepes, you'd have been better off,” She said with a laugh. “Can't beat French Bakeries, non?”   

Mack laughed happily at that, “No ma'am, you cannot!” She agreed. 

“And what about you, mon ami?” The XO asked the young man across from her. “DeMont is a good French last name. Are you of French descent?” She asked, happily. 

“Oh, yes ma'am," Nick replied in his Nashville drawl, “My family was able to trace our ancestors back to Versailles."

“Oo, so I am among royalty, non?” Dumouchel cooed, teasingly. 

Nick laughed at that, “No, ma'am. My family was the servants and workers for the royalty.” 

“Eh, that is close enough for me,” She replied with a laugh, waving him off. “Have you ever been to Versailles? It is very beautiful.” 

“Oh yes, ma'am!” Nick replied, happily. “We used to go once a year. My mom loved it out there. We'd spend a week every summer exploring every inch of the place. It's definitely nothing like Tennessee,” He said. 

“Ah, I've never been to Tennessee,” Dumouchel replied. “But from all of the pictures I've seen, it has a stunning beauty all of it's own,” She smiled happily at the young man across from, then turned to the man sitting in the corner, studying his hands. 

Jason Rawles was the odd man out in this cabin. He'd barely spoken, not uttered a laugh. He looked a little red in the face and was slowly working his hands together as he stared at the deck plating. Even when they'd all arrived, he'd barely uttered a greeting, just given everyone a small smile and a wave.

“What about you, eh? Lieutenant Commander?” Dumouchel prodded. 

Jason looked up at her, surprised, and then realized all eyes were on him, “Oh… sorry. What?” 

“Not a worry. We were all discussing where we're from,” The XO explained. “Where are you from?” She asked. 

“Oh. Boston, Ma'am.” He replied, simply, with another slight smile, before going back to looking at his hands. 

“Ah! I was there last year!” Dumouchel replied, brightly, thinking she'd finally found an in with this quiet, distant man. “I have been many times, it is a beautiful city. So full of history.” 

Jason smiled weakly and nodded, reluctantly giving his attention back to them, “Yeah. Yeah, there's a lot of Ancient American history there. I think they uh… I think they still have the freedom trail marked in the city, so you can walk the path that Paul Revere road during the American Revolutionary war,” He offered, half-heartedly. “It's pretty neat." He gave everyone a cursory smile and went back to studying his hands. 

“Awe, that sounds neat,” Mack chimed in. “I never have seen much of the North East. I always wanted to, though. New York, Philadelphia, Boston, all of it. There's just something about it up there that's just cool,” She said, smiling. 

Jason looked up and gave her a kind smile and a nod, but didn't say anything else, just went back to his solitude. 

There was an awkward beat in the shuttle as all three of the other folks tried to figure out what to do with Jason's reserved demeanor. Luckily, the pilot chimed in, “Commander Dumouchel, we're about to dock with the Lafayette.”

“Ah, oui, good! Thank you, Lieutenant,” She called up to the officer in the cockpit. “Almost home, my lovelies,” She said brightly to everyone in the cabin. 

Mack wasn't sure if it was allowed to be absolutely this much in love with your XO, but she didn't really care either. This woman was sunshine made flesh, and some of the incredible sarcasm and wit that had come out of her in the course of their conversation had Mack fighting to remember that Dumouchel was her superior officer, not her bestie. Could you be besties with your XO? Mack didn't know, but she was going to find out. 

The last few minutes of flying was a bit quieter, but still dotted with bits and pieces of conversation as they made their final approach and landed on the Lafayette. 

“Is it true the CO on this ship is a Commodore?” Nick asked as the shuttle settled into the landing bay on the Sovereign-class ship, sounding a little awestruck at the prospect. 

“Aye, indeed it is,” Dumouchel replied. “Cromwell, I believe. From everything I've heard he is a sweetheart, though,” She reassured him.

“Do… This might be a stupid question, but do we still call him Captain or do we call him Commodore?” The young officer couldn't hide the embarrassment from his voice at even having to ask that question. 

“Ah, non, mom ami, that is a good question,” She replied. “But that is up to him to answer. Technically, Captain is correct as he is the Captain of the ship, but he may prefer Commodore since it's the higher rank,” She explained. 

“I'll ask for ya if you want, Nick,” Mack offered, kindly. 

Nick blushed a little but grinned and nodded, “Thanks, Mack.”

Dumouchel clicked her tongue, “Ah, look at my lovely little crew, already looking out for each other,” She teased. 

“Don't you let that get around, now,” Mack replied with a grin. “I gotta make sure my reputation as a horse-breaking, no nonsense CMO remains untarnished,” She teased. 

“Ah, your secret is safe with me,” Dumouchel said with a wink as the egress hatch on the shuttle opened. 

“Ah… does a Commodore usually greet arriving crew in the shuttle bay?” Nick asked, nodding toward the man standing a dozen feet away from shuttle.

“Not usually, no. This should be interesting,” Dumouchel replied as she hefted her duffel over her shoulder. She patted the young man on the shoulder as she walked past him down the gang plank and directly over to the Commodore. 

“Commander Amie Dumouchel, reporting for duty, Commodore. Also, may I present Lieutenant Commanders Mackenzie Reynolds and Jason Rawles, and Lieutenant Nicholas DeMont,” She waved a hand at the group of people standing behind her. 

“You can call me Mack, sir,” Mack replied with a grin and a sharp salute. 

Cromwell smiled at Mack and nodded, “Nice to meet all of you. Welcome to the Lafayette,” He said. “I wish I could say I was here to meet all of you, but I actually just wanted to get a head start with my XO,” He explained. “Feel free to settle in, unpack, and go about whatever you need to to get ready for duty. We're heading out as quickly as possible,” He explained. 

Dumouchel turned to her companions and smiled, “Thank you for the wonderful journey and stories, mon amis. I am looking forward to working with all of you. Dismissed,” She said, giving them all a salute before turning away and talking with the Commodore in hushed tones as they left the hangar. 

Mack watched them go for a moment, intrigued by the immediate matched gait they fell into and the impressive vibe of familiarity between the two, as though they'd known each other forever. She didn't know if it was the Commodore's years of experience, Dumouchel's easy going nature, or a combination of both, but something told her they were going to be a hell of a command crew.

She turned back around to find Jason and Nick already almost out of the hangar and started to chase after Nick, but changed her mind and veered after Rawles instead. 

“Hey! Hey, wait up!” She called to the older man. 

Jason finally seemed to realize that she was talking to him and turned back around, “Me?” 

“No the other dude walking down the hallway,” Mack quipped as she caught up to him. 

Jason turned back around to look for someone before he realized she was being sarcastic, and let out a wry chuckle, “Right.”

“I know who you are,” She said. “I make a point to go over the medical files of everyone on any ships I join,” She explained. “You were having some respiratory distress on the shuttle, I saw it. Is your implant okay?” 

Jason sighed and his expression changed to annoyed, “Yes. I'm fine. I always have a little trouble on the smaller craft, but I'm fine on the big ones. Don't worry about me,” He replied, flatly. 

“It's literally my job to worry about your health, Rawles," She responded back quickly. “I just want to make sure you're alright." 

“Yeah, I'm fine.” 

“Are you? With all of this? Because a six year leave of absence is no small thing." 

“I'm sorry, are you a counselor or a medical doctor?” Jason's tone was turning sharper. 

“I'm a medical doctor, but I'm also an empathetic human being, so there's that,” Mack replied, unflustered by his grumpiness. 

“Well actual counselors have cleared me for duty, and my lung implant is back to normal functionality now that I'm one the larger ship, so if you don't have anything else, I'd like to rest for a while." 

“No sir, nothing else.” 

Jason turned away without another word and walked down the hallway. 

“Hey!” Mack called. 

Jason sighed heavily and turned back, “What?” 

“I'm a damn good doctor, but I'm an even better friend, if you need one, and I think you probably do," She said. 

“Great, thanks. I'll keep that in mind,” He quipped, then disappeared around the corner. 

Mack's former CO had always teased her about her pet projects on the ships she served on. Certain people who needed a little more than a hypospray of meds. She'd definitely just found her new project on this boat. That man was hurting, and not just physically. She was going to find a way to get through to him if it killed her. 

She nodded to herself and turned the other way. In the mean time, Nick seemed like he'd be more fun.