Even Through Duty, Life Goes On.

Posted on Sun Feb 2nd, 2025 @ 9:13pm by Captain Wolfe Sean & Penelope Haskell

2,062 words; about a 10 minute read

Mission: Let That Be Your Last
Location: Quarters

Penelope gauged everything with a keen eye to detail as she spotted her target on the couch they typically shared, looking at a PADD that she didn't recognize. The loose t-shirt and shorts were embossed with his Marine Corps insignia as she quietly moved up and slid onto the couch before letting gravity take her so she ended up with her head on his lap, looking up at him from her pool of dark brown hair, "Whatcha reading, honey-bunny?"

Wolfe was reading some after action reports following the conclusion of the ground action especially those from his team leads and others. It was a messy battle that turned to chaos one battle was met. He still had a few minor aches from a few trenches dives he had to do while under fire. Then came Penelope, somehow regardless of what the galaxy had to throw around, always seemed to bring a measure of peace. Looking down under the report at her he smiled. "You know, if you wanted to wear green, you could enlist." Wolfe joked. Though he did try to picture what she'd look like in marine garb, all kitted out, weapon, hair tied back. "Hmmmm." He grinned.

"After action reports really." He concluded.

"I like your stuff well enough, it's nice and comfy for me." She batted her eyelashes, "I think if I enlisted... No, I like what I'm doing better. Besides, I don't think your new Colonel likes me that much in any case. And if I had to leave you due to orders, I'd just get in trouble for telling them to put it where the monkey put the peanut!"

Wolfe had read up about the Colonel, any wise marine would when getting a new assignment to get some kind of vibe of what the new CO was like. "Colonel Frost doesn't strike me as someone that likes interference much, even if none is intended. He's a career marine with a General as a Father, word has it he's declined a star on two occasions already which in most cases is a career staller. If he didn't like you, he'd have had you removed from the field that instant. I heard he didn't." Wolfe answered putting the report down on the arm of the couch.

"The Colonel from everything I have read is a fair but firm leader, he cares for those under his command and apparently not afraid to go butt heads with brass. So your first encounter wasn't grand, how many of your first encounters started the same and turned fruitful?"

"There is that... And I remember when Major Barnaby tried to get me kicked off the station when I put out that article about his midnight rendezvous' with that one shopkeeper." Penelope made a bit of a face, "It's not my fault that he didn't know that she was passing on information to that pirate band. I mean, I found out about it the day before, but still."

"Well, he gave you a chance, so I guess it's up to you what you do with it." Not like he could interfere regardless of the relationship or want to. "So what do you have for him that you can show you mean well?" He hoped that with this chance afforded by the Colonel it could be her opening to doing more with the department.

"That's the thing, I handed over all of the footage that I shot to his team. You know, the standard sort of thing." Penny waved it away, then reached up to cup Wolfe's cheek, "I'll have my report on the whole ground campaign put together in a day or two, then I'll run it by him and see if he's willing to do an interview for it. I'll ask softball questions and all that. But I told him about the precautions I take whenever I'm out there as a combat correspondent. Think that's enough?"

"Precautions are going to have to meet his standards, after all, you need him more than he needs you." A hard truth but an unfortunate one. "I think as long as he sees you playing by his rules then things will get better for you." He could only hope that the Colonel would give her enough of a chance to make a stand before she had to prove she meant what ever she said to the man.

"I do, you're right." Penelope leaned up and planted a kiss on his cheek before moving her mouth to give him a solid kiss on the lips before extricating herself to a more sitting position where she was leaning up against him, an arm on his leg rubbing just above the knee, "But what can we say about these quarters? Finally something worthy of being a Captain of Marines, don'tcha think?"

Wolfe smiled at the affectionate kiss, two of them, then the lean against him. "Well, if they are too spacious, I'm sure I can talk to the Quartermaster about something smaller if you like?" He mused considering it wasn't the first time the two of them had to kip in a very small set of quarters during his time of service.

She giggled and grabbed his arm to hug it to herself, “Not on your life! I got a look at that closet and between your ready uniforms and the handful of dresses I have, I can at least double my wardrobe! That means when you’re out in public on the ship, all dapper in your uniform, I can show the rest of the girls that would be fawning all over you that you’re taken already.” Okay, maybe Penny was a little possessive, “Not to mention a more varied look when I do make my reports to H-Q.”

"Fawning over me?" Wolfe smirked. "I'm just a lowly Captain, besides, I'm pretty sure the men will be fawning over you in some of your dresses." Some of Penny's dresses were exceedingly beautiful but equally as showing when it came to appearance, which Wolfe accepted it came with the profession and needing to keep peoples attention focused on her and what she had to say.

"And then they'll be out of luck." Penelope said seriously and with a hint of humour, "Because I'm with you and I'm not going to let that change anything. Besides, Captains become Majors and Majors become Colonels, and a Colonel definitely needs a girl who looks nice and is respectable. What's more respectable than a reporter?" She asked rhetorically, not really looking for an answer, "Besides, by then you may have made an honest woman out of me! Stranger things have happened, right?"

"Honest woman, you were honest before we met, I however got so many threats when other marines realized we were dating because you were 'too good' for me." Wolfe played, some were less verbal about it than others. "Besides, I've seen you at the company Christmas Ball, you turned several heads that night." Including his own more than once.

"That's because I just wanted to look good for you." Penny didn't whine, but didn't preen about it, "And you didn't complain, either then or after the Ball. Nor, if I remember right, even when you introduced me to the Major that night."

Penny did have a point there, he couldn't deny that. "Yeah, yeah true." That smirkiest grin on his face as he spoke. Wolfe knew Penny was attractive, she didn't hide it, couldn't for her job but at the end of the day, she was his. "How is your story coming along from the colony?" While Wolfe didn't like to get involved that didn't negate his interest in what she did.

"I did get some really good footage and recorded my voiceover for that, complete with a play by play for the assault on the right flank." She'd become rather well versed in military terminology, "It got a bit scary there for a bit when I wasn't filming and just watching, especially when we got cut off for a while. Captain Venable had a couple troops keeping an eye on me, so I wasn't in any real danger, but that's not something I can mention in the story."

"Just remember to run it by the Colonel." Last thing Wolfe wanted was for Penny to get into trouble. Wolfe relaxed a little knowing that Penny was safe, even if her stint on the lines wasn't as hostile free. Still, all things aside, even with the state the ship was in, all that mattered was that Penny was safe.

"It's already in his hands, sweetheart." She snuggled into him even more, "But enough about work for now... What did you want to do tonight? Or, are you on watch?"

"No I'm off watch following the ground action, pretty much everyone else at the moment." Wolfe replied. There was a time he feared when Penny would go to a hot zone where her safety was at risk, this latest ordeal was no different. She had a job to do he knew, it would at times require her to go to unsavory places, the same could be said for himself he knew but he tried really hard not to get involved. There were times he recalled when Penny would be sent off to some luxury location like Risa to do a feature or record something, which made Wolfe envious. "Did you want to order in or anything?"

What Penny didn't know, was that Wolfe had saved every single featurette, new episode or report Penny had made since they started dating. Her work was important to her, so it was important to him and in a way served as a historic reminder to how things came to be now.

"I think so, though we're going to have to go to some of these places in person as well. I just don't want to get dressed up and go anywhere tonight." With a twist of her lithe body, she turned onto her back to look up at him again, "Anything you feel like? Definitely not a salad night, that's for sure."

Looking down at her he smiled. "What about some wings, or a steak or a pizza." Wolfe smiled. "I mean, I don't want my door being bashed down because I put so much as a millimeter on that exquisite frame of yours." Letting Penny have the choice. As a marine it was far to easy to go with what ever because the life style would demand the input only to burn it off later through training and duties.

"Ha, let them try to fat-shame me!" Penny's eyes were bright, "I say let's go pizza, sausage, olive and pepperoni work for you?" She was a big fan of garlic as well, but she didn't want to impose that onto him, "Besides, Jackie back on Earth thinks I could actually afford to gain about five pounds. I think I'm good and you haven't complained about my looks yet, either."

"You can ignore Jackie." There was nothing wrong with Penny as she was weight or physically. It did slightly irritate him that someone had the gall to even suggest it. "Sure, pizza works for me." The replicator could whip up some warm plates for them if they didn't want to eat at the table and instead feast on the sofa.

"But if I'm the one picking dinner, you get to pick the movie, buster!" Her eyes glittered up at him, "Not that it should be much of a problem!" It was literally true, she wasn't one who was picky about what they watched, equally happy with dramas, romantic comedies, horror or action movies or really anything of the like.

Wolfe had just the thing. 'The Count of Monte Cristo' an age old classic and a good one too. It was handy that the computer had an entire library of these kinds of things to pick from and across many cultures and races too. Tonight though, something relaxing, enjoyable and fun.

She recognized the look in his eyes that he'd already had something in mind, them smiled broadly before rolling off the couch to land on her hands and knees on the floor. Popping to her feet, she winked at him, "Get it queued up on the screen, I'll have the pizza ordered and be back in two minutes, tops!"

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