They both bathed and dressed a little less than casual before hitting the mess hall.  Nikki had a rolled up piece of paper "Okay kiddo lets get you some fuel and we'll go to the hangar dec.  I'm gonna let you help me paint my aircraft" she smiled as they entered.  A few crew members looked over and 3 of them called out 'Haley' with big smiles.  She enthusiastically waved at them with a smile. "You are such a flirt...you know that?" she gave a laugh pulling a couple of trays for them

They both bathed and dressed a little less than casual before hitting the mess hall.  Nikki had a rolled up piece of paper "Okay kiddo lets get you some fuel and we'll go to the hangar dec.  I'm gonna let you help me paint my aircraft" she smiled as they entered.  A few crew members looked over and 3 of them called out 'Haley' with big smiles.  She enthusiastically waved at them with a smile. "You are such a flirt...you know that?" she gave a laugh pulling a couple of trays for them.  Oatmeal with banana, eggs sausage and toast, plus milk and juice for Haley.  Nikki had almost the same but opted for bacon no sausage, and iced tea instead of the milk.  They found a table near her 'boyfriends', which she gave each a high 5.  Overhearing the scuttlebutt, apparently Shadow and a few others had an interesting fight last night, against a visiting General using stun blades.  A few were even in the med ward still.
Smiling Haley began eating.  nearly dancing in her chair, her light brown hair bouncing freely.  Nikki smiled.  "Remember that award they gave me and called me an 'Ace'?  Well with that I get to put a picture on my aircraft."
"Cool!  Gonna be a 'Rainbow Queen Ace'?"
"No.  Thought about it...But I know you want to be the Rainbow Warrior Princess.  Might cause some confusion." she smiled, her and rainbows "I need something kinda personal to me and I wanted something the Enemy when they see it would get scared.  So Remember those old Halloween stories about the old screaming woman?  Went that way with 'Banshee'"  she tapped the rolled up paper "Found and made a picture I like and you....you lucky girl get to help me paint it.  and you get to see the Hangar Dec a bit better." They ate.
"I get to come with you?  Cool.  I like painting."
They ate a bit more then cleaning up Nikki made sure she had Haleys hand in one side and her picture in the other.  "We do have to pick up some paints first"

====> QM

For the first time in what felt like forever Izzy was actually woken up by her alarm rather than watching count down until she was allowed to get out of bed. After a leisurely shower she would take the time to do her hair and makeup with her opting to go for a traditional style bun held in place with a pair of black chopsticks, before changing into the Khaki coloured tunic and skirt that comprised of her duty uniform.

It was as she was eating a breakfast that consisted of a simple fruit salad, served with a Greek style yoghurt and a cup of ridiculously black coffee that Izzy would excitedly message her friend Sam, eager to share the events of the previous night with someone.

Comms message to Sam: "Morning Sam (or afternoon? not sure of the time difference) I hope things are working out well in your new post. Things are proving decidedly tricky for me here as no one seems to either trust or like me, and I'm starting to seriously dislike Shadow. But that's not important, what is important is that my date with Lizzy was amazing (despite a few hiccups) and she's asked me out again! I'm so glad you talked me into seeing her, the drinks are definitely on me next time we meet! All the best Izzy

She wasn't sure when or even if Sam would reply to her, but it felt good just to tell somebody about what was going on in her life, a role usually reserved for her mother though in this instance she would probably keep certain aspects of her day deliberately vague.

Having missed her chance to report on the previous days events, Izzy decided that she would be best served by continuing her piece on the fighter wing until the next combat jump arrived, and so with that thought in mind would head for the Hangar Dec figuring that she had a better than average chance of finding somebody there that would be willing to talk to her, failing that she could always try the rec dec.

---> Hangar Dec

Harry would smile as Will gently kissed her forehead even if she was a little concerned by the pained expression on his face as he'd leaned in to do so "well...so long as you're ok, I take it you're on light duties today?" she asked as she used her fork to carefully remove a piece of eggshell from her breakfast "I only wanted to give it a few more seconds so it was a little crispy, the next thing I know the damn thing was about to catch fire!...I suppose it's just as well it's not my skills as a cook that you're attracted to" she said just a little deflated that what supposed to be a thoughtful gesture had gone so horribly wrong.

   Will chuckled  softly,well, alot of things  i have learned here.... is you can't  try to   do what everyone else does, you have to   do as close to it as you can, while making it , your  own?

 ..you know , that mead  Tech said  if i had been  3 feet further awat  from that Pusle rifle.. it   woudl have blown a hole the  size of a  cup saucer  through me... I was close  enough  the  power  didn't  get to condense and burn through

"At this point in time I'd settle for edible" Harry replied eyeing the charred morsel on the end of her fork as she tried to discern whether there was actually any bacon beneath the charcoal before deciding that it wasn't worth it and putting it back down.

On his description as to how he'd come close to gaining a crockery size hole in his chest Harry would go just a little pale at the thought before hurriedly sipping her tea to try and hide the fact "well... can you try not to repeat that particular miracle, as I'm rather fond of you in the shape you are in" she said with a rather weak smile on her face "Truth be told at times I feel like your the only thing keeping me altogether, so don't go getting yourself shot just yet, ok?" she said with grin that didn't quite hide the fact that she was trying hard not to think about the state she'd be in without him or the one she would be in should she lose him.

 Will  smiled... he looked at the   food and thought for a Moment and  held out a hand  as he stood up,you know what i wanted  to tey...The rec Dec baker guy has learned how to make Lemon Merigue pie?.. I bet that would go good with  Hot  Coffee  or tea..why don't we  try  a treat for breakfast.. we  can ..um..always  eat this later?

"Lemon meringue...for breakfast?" Harry asked in a dubious voice, idly wondering if this was one of those "American things" or simply an excuse to eat food prepared by a professional. Either way it beat the hell out of eating...whatever the hell this was "Sure I'm game" she said with a smile before giving a single derisive snort at his suggestion that they could finish what they were currently eating later "not bloody likely" she said as she got up from the table and took his hand, fully intending to chuck the offending meal down the disposal and forget it had ever happened as soon as possible. It had been a nice idea but she knew when to admit defeat and move on.

---> Rec Dec

------------------->>>>>>>>>>>From Hanger Dec

 Lizzy walked onto the Officer's Quarters she smiled at the guards and said," Thank you." She then headed for her Quarters. She was getting into her Envirosuit when she got the next Comm from Shadow, " What the fuck LC I was just there, damn will have to go back wont I." Lizzy said out load to her comms. Lizzy made sure she was ready, with her boot knife, sidearm and envirosuit. She hasnt warn armor yet so why would she start now.

 Lizzy then left her Quarters and headed back for the Hanger Dec, she had a feeling there was going to be flight time after this she just had a feeling. Lizzy walked by the guards again and said," I do want to say seriously thank you guys I sleep better knowing you guys are out here, I hope you guys sleep better knowing a crazy woman like me is flying a Mantis Fighter out there." She smiles and heads into the lift.

---------------->>>>>>>> To Hanger Dec

<=== Hangar Dec

She changed into the flight gear and such she'd need for the run.  Also had Haley change into something nicer so she didn't look like a slob in her art clothes.  Haley had a few crayons and one of her coloring books, this one with Earth farm animals in it with things like a fence, tractor, barn and hayfield stacks.  Once ready they headed to the tunnel.

===> tunnel

----->>>> from Rec Dec

 Lizzy walked onto the Officers Quarters carrying her Thompson and helmet. She smiles at the guards and says, Good afternoon,  hey if anything goes down while I am here with this just give out a shout. Lizzy then enters her quarters very happy and smiling.

 Once inside her quarters, she puts all her gear down, gets undressed and gets a quick shower. She then puts on her oldest most beat up duty uniform. She checks all her messages and then gets her side arm and boot knife in their place and heads back towards the hanger deck. She grabs her helmet and Thompson, plus any painting supplies she left on her quarters and heads for the hanger deck.

 As she passes the guards she smiles and says,Maybe next time thank you again.

 ------>>>> to Hanger Dec

Both ladies cleaned up they began to head out to the civvie section.  Mission: Buy things to make cookies with.
In the lift headed for the level they ran into Morticia.  After a bit of talking there was a slight change of plans.  She was going to see if Joseph would allow her to use his kitchen at his shop, but instead it was decided to go to Morticia and Rolls residence in the civvie section, after shopping.

===> civvie section

------------------------>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> From QM Lockers

 Lizzy walks onto the Officers deck, she smiles at the guards, and heads for quarters. She gets into her quarters and takes off her paint covered old duty uniform. She then heads for the shower and cleans up from painting. Once her shower is done she gets dressed in her red see through lingerie set, then puts on a pair of tight jeans, and then finds a nice t-shirt that also shows a decent amount of cleavage, but not too much. This was actually very subdued for Lizzy.

 Then she heads over to her dresser and opens the jewelry box that was her mothers. She had worn the ruby necklace and earrings at the Burian ball, but she didn't wear the ruby ring. Lizzy wasn't big on wearing rings, and she knew it wouldn't fit her finger or Haley's. Lizzy went through her jewelry which having a Captain for a Father she did have some nice jewelry.

 Lizzy found a nice gold necklace that wouldn't be too long for Haley but not too short when she got older, that's if she liked it. She went through her stuff and got a small jewelry box, she put the ring on the gold necklace and placed it in the box and then placed the box on her desk so she would take it to Haley.

 Lizzy will then sit down and actually relax for a bit, she will sit at her computer check her messages and set an alarm for 5. She would head to get her light boarding armor, and the go see Haley and Nikki, then she would go to Izzy's. She was so excited about tonight, and who knows it might be her last night to be with Izzy. Lizzy knew a big battle was coming and there was always a chance she might not come back.

 Lizzy sat there just browsing the net and she couldn't help to think about her Mom, and all the time they didn't have together. Lizzy thought that after this battle she was going to find Captain Si, get a bottle of wine and talk with her about her Mom, Lizzy wanted to know everything she could about her Mother, she wanted to know her Mother as best as she could.

 Lizzy for a minute felt very alone, as she kept serfing the net just puttering around, then she realized she wasn't alone. She had a family here on the Hermes, a very close friend Harry, good friends Melia, Nikki, Zob and Karl, authority figures of Captain Si and Admiral Hack, and the crazy damn good older brother Shadow. This was her new home and she loved it here and the one person who was very special to her was Izzy, she really liked her and she wanted to know her a lot more she didn't want to push her or scare her off, so for the first time in her life she would go slow, Lizzy never went slow in relationships, in space or in her life, she figured it was time that she slowed down and smelled the roses.

 Lizzy will just relax and check out the net for interesting things until her alarm went off to go get her armor and the rest of her night.

---> Rec Dec

With a small bag of groceries that she'd picked up from a store she'd found in the civie section Izzy would all but blank the pair of troopers on duty as she made her way to her quarters, no longer caring what they thought of her, after all if no one else wanted anything to do with her then why should they?

Upon entering her quarters she'd set some music playing before sending Tali to bed, with the tiny drone obediently landing in it's docking station as she went into the bedroom to change into something a little more pleasing to the eye and more suited to dancing in. And so after much deliberation and more than a few wardrobe changes that Isobel would opt for a black red plaid dress that would go nicely with her new Burian ankle boots and a stylish brown leather jacket her father had given her for her eighteenth birthday. She hated to think how much overtime he must have worked in order to buy her such a gift and needless to say she cherished the jacket, which for a very long time had been the nicest thing she'd owned, dearly.

With the sound of Jpop playing in the background she would do her best to pretend that the rest of the ship and all of the people beyond her door didn't exist. Being repeatedly told that nobody liked her and that several of the crew were almost looking for an excuse to make her life even more miserable was starting to get her down to the point where she was starting to doubt her own abilities and wasn't sure whether to even bother finishing the piece she was currently working on.

As the time drew  ever closer to six Izzy would begin cooking the stir fry filling her tiny kitchen with the scent of spices as the bottle of Burian wine along with a pair of glasses sat waiting on the table. Part of her wondered whether she should warn Lizzy that the wine was supposed to be an aphrodisiac, then again considering that the other wine had so failed to put her to sleep she didn't see any reason that this particular bottle would do what it advertised either. Also considering what Lizzy had whispered to her on the Rec Dec she didn't think they would have any problem getting in the mood all by themselves.

<=== civvie section

Nikki and Haley got off the lift and headed down the corridor to their quarters.  The scent of sweet spicy , cinnamon cookies wafting through the area.  She smiled as even the guards were taking deep inhales just for the smell of something homemade.  Eventually getting to her door she carded herself and Haley in, letting it shut behind them.

 Lizzy's alarm went off, she turned it off, she secured her computer and got her boot knife and side arm and headed out the door to get her armor, she would grab the jewelry box and slip it in her pocket as she walked out of the door.

-------->>>>>>>>> to QM's Lockers.

----------------->>>>>>>>>>>>> From Hanger Dec

 Lizzy walked past the guards and said, "Good evening and thank you again I appreciate it." She nods nad heads to her quarters real quick.

 Lizzy walks into her quarters, she heads into the bedroom and hangs up her armor with her enviro suit. She then makes sure she still has Haley's gift, and her side arm and boot knife.

 Lizzy then heads out of her room and heads towards Nikki's quarters and to her the amazing Haley. Lizzy got to Nikki's quarters and rang the buzzer and said," Hey Nikki it is Lizzy, what smells so good?"

Nikki opened the door "Heya Lizzy....Come on in" she let Lizzy enter.  Haley was sitting on the lower bed working with the school vidboard doing a bit of homework.  Classic adding and subtracting.  "Toffeedoodle.....The most caramelly, sugary, diabetes inducing cookies known" she gestured to the 2 plates, one covered.  "Letting them cool just a bit, taking some up to Roll since his was hoverchaired to death.  Want to try one?" she held up the other that held a bit less than a dozen of the fluffy sand colored and dark golden flecked discs.
Haley waved a moment and then turned the tablet off "Hi Lizzy"

 Lizzy smiles and says," Oh I definitely have to try one now Nikki." Lizzy takes one and takes a bite, and wow Nikki wasn't kidding they where full of sugar and caramel. Lizzy then adds, " Wow those are really good thank you Nikki."

 Lizzy after she ate the delicious cookie waved at Haley and walked over to her and knelt down in front of her. She took out the jewelry box and opened it. She took out the gold necklace with her Mom's ruby ring on it, she held it up in front of Haley. Lizzy then said," Haley I want you to have this, the ring was my Mom's I have the necklace and the earrings. I am not a big fan of rings but you can wear it on this necklace until it can fit on your finger okay.
It has great meaning to me and because you are wonderful and a great sweet girl I want you too keep it safe for me, can you do that for me Haley? Would you like me to put it on you Haley?"

  The Guards   saluted  Lizzy, Aye, Ma'am, Just doing our job.. Sometimes its a bit nicer then others... if  ya know what i'm sayin', Ma'am..

 Stiff    reached across   and punched his arm..

Nikki put the plate down smiling someone besides kids liked her cooking.  Lizzy seemed to turn rather serious and she remembered something about a gift.  Haley watched as Lizzy opened the box.  in it was one of the most beautiful things she ever saw, a ring.  A real ring like her mamaw had, not a plastic, fakey, playing princess one.  "Whoa!" came out rather slow as her eyes got big staring at it.  Then looked at Nikki not knowing if she should or not.
Seeing it Nikki was surprised as well.  "You said it kiddo!" she then glanced to Lizzy "Are you sure?  Absolutely sure?"she asked then with the knowing of the battle coming up she had to ask knowing from a few sources what it could mean, and hoped it was not "You are not ....'cleaning house', are you?" Nikki had heard her father speak of someone thinking that their time was near making amends and sharing precious things.  Someone of ending their time on purpose or had a premonition of their own demise.  Cleaning their house and soul.

 Lizzy smiled at Haley, then Lizzy looked at Nikki and said, " Oh I am sure Nikki, Haley I really would like you to have this and keep it safe okay." Lizzy would then carefully put it around Haley's neck and clasp it on her.

 Lizzy will kiss Haley on the forehead and look at Nikki as she stood up and say," Oh no Nikki nothing like that, I never wear it and it is too pretty to keep in a box. Oh no I didn't go through what I just did to be cleaning house Nikki we will talk about some other time."

 Lizzy looked at Nikki and she smiled it was one of happiness and caring not of one who thought she was going to die, one that wanted to share her life with the living. Lizzy smiled at Haley and said," I guess you like it and you will keep it safe for me Haley?"

 Lizzy was happy it had been a rough day yesterday, she wanted to do something special for Haley, and make her feel special. Lizzy loved kids and with her attraction leaning more towards woman lately she might not have kids of her own, so doing this for Haley was the next best thing.

 Lizzy smiled again and said," I have to get to my date with Izzy, Nikki don't worry I am fine, actually I am going to be okay I have all the family I need right here on the Hermes. Now keep that safe for me okay Haley, and thank you for all your help." Haley didn't now how much spending time with her had helped Lizzy get through everything that has happened, Lizzy should be giving her much much more.

 Lizzy would make her way towards the door and wait for their responses before heading for Izzy's quarters.

"Well...then it is okay by me.  Haley?" she resigned herself that things were okay.
Haley had a big smile not understanding the grown ups, but she trusted them...They were family, Hermes family.  After handling it a moment she reached out as wide as she could and gave Liszt the biggest squeezing hug she could.  "I love it...it is beautiful like you all red and bright.  I'll take good care of it...promise" she grinned ear to ear.
Nikki looked at them "you two around...I ain't gonna be getting a porta dates.  Good thing Mitch is here." she smiled.  "Good thing we are gonna go find Roll"

 Lizzy nodded and smiled at Nikki, " I will send you a message from my Mom that will clear up a few things and then we can have a big talk before things go down okay Nikki, thank you by the way." Nikki knew Lizzy's Mom died but Lizzy hadn't told her much more than that.

 When Haley gave her a big hug, Lizzy hugged her back and said to her," I am glad you love it Haley, aww thank you yeah it is red like my hair an my Mother's hair as well Haley. I know you will Haley I wouldn't have given it to you if I didn't think you would Haley."
Lizzy released the hug and Nikki could tell she really cared about Haley that was very obvious.

 Lizzy looked at Nikki smiled and said," Sorry Nikki, yeah I haven't met him yet officially Nikki, can't wait to meet him, well great you two find Roll and Haley have fun okay." Lizzy gave Nikki and hug as well and then headed for the door, " Have fun guys I will send you that on your Comms okay Nikki." Lizzy then left and headed for Izzy's quarters she was still a tad early.

 After she left Nikki's quarters, she opened her comms, brought up the two messages Beth recovered and sent them to Nikki with the following text message," Hi Nikki when we have time we will sit down with a few drinks and discuss this fully but this will give you an idea, the first voice you will hear is my Mom's voice okay, have a great night, and Haley is so amazing, if you ever need a babysitter or anything please just ask okay."

 Lizzy then put her Comms away and headed for Izzy's quarters, she wasn't sure how to dress she hoped the jeans and sexy t-shirt was good, she could always go change real quick if she was under dressed compared to Izzy. Lizzy then took a deep breath, she could smell something real good cooking, Lizzy then hit Izzy's buzzer and waited for izzy to answer her door.

Nikki listened and after giving Lizzy a hug as she left she would for a bit wait.  Getting Haley going and grabbing the full tray of cookies they went to track down Roll.  A comm check put him still with Shadow on the hangar dec.  A few moments later she got the messages from Lizzy.  She'd open them in private incase there was anything she did not want Haley to hear.

====> Hangar dec