Almost as soon as we had finished our toast, Cleveland and Hornet reappeared, each with a bowl in their hands. Hornet set hers down in front of Yorktown, and Cleveland placed mine before me.

"For our first course, a scallop risotto," Cleveland stated, still trying to keep the formal atmosphere. "Enjoy." I raised an eyebrow at the choice of the first course. I hadn't given them any recommendations for it, and yet, they somehow picked my favorite. Before I could say anything, the pair retreated again to one of the buildings to give us privacy. I watched them go for a moment, then returned my attention to Yorktown, who had a rather peculiar smile on her face.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Is this your favorite dish?"

I nodded.

"Did you ask to put this on the menu?"

I shook my head. "No, just dinner, well, the main course now, I guess, and dessert. Why do you ask?"

"I think I may have had an inadvertent part in this..." she confessed with a sheepish smile.

That piqued my interest. "Oh?" I said, eyebrow raised. "Do tell."

"The other day, Hornet and I were chatting and the subject of food came up and she asked what sort of food you liked. I didn't think much of it at the time, she's been asking about you throughout the week, you know, being the good sister and checking up on the guy her big sister's dating."

I grinned and nodded. "Ah, clever girl. To be fair, she probably was checking up on me and figured she could get two birds with one stone. Although I'm glad we had that chat now, before that I think the last time we discussed food was when I said I was partial to cookies and we could have gotten a very different appetizer."

Yorktown giggled and nodded, "Indeed. Although, I have to ask, why this dish?"

"I grew up in the midwest, so we didn't have access to seafood all that often. And never anything that was fresh. One year, when I was a teenager, we took a vacation to Virginia Beach and hey, you're by the ocean, why not try actual seafood. And I'd never had risotto before, so…"

"Two birds, one stone?" Yorktown interjected.

"Exactly," I chuckled. "Turns out, I loved it. And as I got older, joined the Navy, it became a lot easier to find scallops, but risotto's still pretty rare outside of fancy restaurants well outside my paygrade. So thank you for remembering that."

She smiled and blushed, glancing down at the table. "You're welcome. I'm glad I could help in my own way. But we should probably take a bite before this gets cold."

"Good point," I agreed and lifted a forkful of scallop and risotto to my mouth. When a scallop is cooked right, the sear traps the flavorful juices of the mollusk inside, just waiting to burst with that first bite. And this one had been cooked perfectly. As soon as I bit down, I felt the juices from the scallop coat my tongue with that delicate, buttery, yet slightly sweet taste. And then the creaminess of the risotto hit, mixing in a delightful combination of flavors that was simply delectable. It had been years since I had something so delicious, and it was clear that my patience had been rewarded.

"Will you two need a moment?" A soft voice called out to me, and I snapped back to reality. Yorktown was looking at me with a bemused expression, an eyebrow raised. I felt the blush hit my cheeks and coughed self-consciously.

"Didn't realize I was getting quite so lost in the food," I apologized.

Yorktown shook her head. "It's okay. You looked pretty cute with how much you were enjoying it."

My cheeks got hotter and I couldn't stop the sheepish smile from crossing my face. "Th-thanks."

She giggled and we both returned to our dishes, content to enjoy the food in silence. As soon as we finished, our attentive hosts quickly swooped in to collect the bowls and refill our drinks before vanishing again, presumably for the main course.

"So, any last hints as to what this mystery main course is?" Yorktown asked playfully.

I shook my head and gave her a coy smile. "Just that I'm sure you'll love it."

Right on cue, Hornet and Cleveland arrived, plates in hand. I watched Yorktown's face light up as she recognized the dish.

"Beef wellington!" She exclaimed happily. "It's been years since I've had this! Not since…" her voice trailed off.

"Those old Atlantic runs right before the war," I finished. "Your face lit up every time you mentioned the dish and how long it's been since you've had it."

Yorktown blushed and looked away for a moment, although the smile never left her face. "I didn't realize I had gone on about it so much."

"You only mentioned it once or twice," I reassured her. "But when you did, I could see how much you loved it and I remembered it in case it'd ever come in handy."

"I think it's definitely come in handy," she beamed. "Thank you!" Without further preamble, she happily tucked into the meal, her expression now mirroring mine from earlier as she shut her eyes and savored the first bite.

"Will you two need a moment?" I teased, and she burst into a fit of giggles.

"Shush, you."

I grinned and turned my attention to my own plate. In addition to the pastry-wrapped filet, King George V had opted to go with grilled asparagus and grated parmesan as the side dish. Deciding to leave the side alone for now, I cut a slice off of the wellington and took my first bite. The beef was perfectly cooked, tender and juicy, its savory flavor pairing with the earthiness of the mushrooms and the buttery pastry it was wrapped in. As I enjoyed this delicious meal, I realized I owed Hornet one hell of a favor. But whatever she asked for, it would certainly be worth it.

As before, we enjoyed our meal in relative silence, punctuating the silence with some minor chit chat and mutual appreciation of KGV's excellent cooking skills. Once we had finished, only Cleveland reappeared to clear our table, giving us both a wink and a grin before heading back to the kitchen. We both watched her go, clearly puzzled by her sudden shift from formal tone to cavalier attitude.

"...do you have any idea what that was about?" Yorktown asked.

I shook my head. "No clue. But I'm definitely curious about what's going to come next."

"Nothing crazy fancy with the dessert course? No baked alaska? Handmade baklava?"

"No." I paused, then corrected myself. "What I told them was a fairly simple dish, but considering the evening so far, and the chef in charge...who knows. Guess we'll find out together."

As soon as the words had come out of my mouth, Hornet appeared with a single crystal bowl, filled with chocolate, strawberry and vanilla ice cream. Topped with chocolate syrup, whipped cream, and a classic cherry on top, it was the very picture of the ice cream sundae I'd requested. There was just one problem.

"Uh, Hornet...where's the other one?" I asked as she set the dish between us. She merely grinned at me and produced two spoons, holding one out to each of us. Yorktown and I looked at the spoons, then to each other, and then to the ice cream. I decided to make the first move, shrugging and grabbing a spoon. "Well, alright then." I scooped out a dollop of strawberry and held the spoon out for Yorktown. Both she and her sister looked surprised, and I swear that I heard Cleveland say "Oh, nice!" from wherever her nearby vantage point was. But Yorktown quickly recovered and plucked the utensil from Hornet's hand, doling out a spoonful of chocolate and holding it out for me with a grin.

And so we finished our meal that way, playfully feeding each other spoonfuls of ice cream until there was nothing left but a few melted puddles and the maraschino cherry. I idly moved it around the bowl and wondered aloud. "So, who's gonna get the cherry?"

"I think you should be the one to take it, Commander," she said, her voice soft as she moved it towards me with her spoon. Her tone and the less than subtle message it carried was perfectly clear.

"A-are you sure?" I asked, an eyebrow raised. "I mean, this is only our first date…"

"I'm sure," she reaffirmed confidently. "You're the one."

For a moment, a wave of emotions threatened to overtake me. Anxiety, joy, desire, anticipation, all crashing around in my head and stealing my voice. My jaw worked up and down for a few moments as I failed to find the words. In the end, I managed to get out, "I'm glad you've chosen me..and I'm glad you feel the same way I do."

She didn't say anything, instead, she simply continued to smile as she held out the spoon one last time, the cherry sitting on it. I gingerly picked it up by the stem and lowered it into my mouth, separating the stem from the fruit with a quick tug of my tongue. We dropped the spoons into the bowl and smiled at each other like a couple of lovestruck teenagers for a few moments.

Our mutual ogling was not to last, however, as the sounds of a soft jazz number echoed across the square, piped in from cleverly hidden speakers. Yorktown looked around, wondering what was happening as I slid out of my seat, crossing to her side of the table.

I offered her my hand and asked, "May I have this dance?" She looked up at me, still somewhat lost before she caught up. Her blue eyes glittered in the soft light as she smiled warmly and rested her hand in mine.

"Of course." Together, we strode to the middle of the plaza and took each other in our arms. One hand rested on her hip, feeling the warmth of her body beneath the soft satin of her dress, the other hand taking hers in mine, our fingers intertwining with each other as we began to dance. We slowly swayed with the music, lost in each other's eyes.

"This is a good song," she remarked, "What's it called?"

"It Had To Be You."

She chuckled. "That's a bit on the nose, isn't it?"

I shrugged as best I could. "Maybe, but it's fitting. I wouldn't have wanted anyone else by my side. Not in the office, in the air, or in my life. You've helped me realize both a long dream of mine and what I've been missing from my life. I cannot tell you how grateful, or how lucky I am."

Yorktown held me close, resting her head on my shoulder, her satin dress rustling against my uniform as we continued our slow spin around the impromptu dance floor. "Nor I. I may not remember saying it, but I was right. You are the light in the darkness. My light. When I was trapped in the darkness, too scared to move out of it, you were the one who took me by the hand and led me into the light. I wouldn't be where I am right now if it wasn't for you. Thank you."

Eventually, the music faded, leaving us in silence, still holding on to one another under the twinkling lights. Neither of us wanted to let go, and it wasn't until they had turned off the lights did we release one another. "I guess that's their subtle way of telling us they're closed for the night," I quipped.

"I'd say so," Yorktown smirked. "So, what did you have planned next, Commander?"

"Just a stroll under the stars."

"Any place in mind?"

I shook my head. "Just see where our feet take us."

We made sure to bid Cleveland and Hornet good night before departing, along with our greatest compliments to the chef. Hornet made sure to remind me of the favor I now owed her, and Yorktown whispered something in her ear that made her grin like a Cheshire cat. Having said goodbye to our generous hosts, we wandered around the base a few times before we found ourselves outside of my quarters. Yorktown stopped and looked expectantly at me, placing her hands on my hips. "Aren't you going to invite a girl in, Commander?"

I raised an eyebrow but still pulled her in close. "What about your quarters?" I asked.

"Hamman has a key to my quarters, and I don't want any interruptions tonight...or tomorrow morning," she purred, her hands running up my chest before grabbing my tie. She gave it a few tugs upwards, trying to dislodge it before looking up at me with a playful expression. "Commander, an actual tie?"

"Sometimes you've got to buck tradition," I shrugged, giving her a sly grin.

She cocked an eyebrow at me, returning the grin with a wolfish one of her own. "Indeed you do. Well, this will be fun for me." She tugged at the tie. "Come on, Commander. It's dark in your quarters, and I need your light."

"Yes, ma'am." She led me inside, and this time, stopped just long enough for us to lock the door...

The SBD Dauntless rumbled down the flight deck, engine roaring as it tried to get enough lift under its wings before it reached the bow. Just as it reached the end of the flight deck, it slowly began to lift into the sky. I watched as it took to the air, gracefully executing a slow turn to port as it continued to gain altitude, waiting for the rest of its squadron to join it. As it grew smaller and smaller, I looked back to Yorktown, who was watching it go as well, a proud smile on her face. Once again, the wind over the deck was causing her hair and dress to billow out behind her, but this time, she looked more like a brave heroine than a grieving mourner.

"That's the third one today," I announced. "I think you've got the hang of this again."

She turned to me, her smile growing broader as she nodded in agreement. "I know I have. And now it's your turn, Commander. Are you ready for your final qualifications before earning your wings?"

"Ready as I'll ever be."

"Then pilot, man your plane," she ordered, and I snapped to attention.

"Yes, ma'am!" I barked, saluting smartly. Yorktown giggled and pulled me in close for a kiss.

"Good luck, and good hunting, Commander." With that, I made my way through the ship and down the ladders to the flight deck, making any last-minute checks before I hopped into the cockpit. Any worries that I would normally have before such a major event were surprisingly gone. No matter what happened, I knew that with Yorktown at my side, we could overcome anything. Together, we would soar on mended wings.

A/N-Whew! Another story done! As before, going to take a little break to rest up, keep working on that 1/350th Akagi model, and then get back to work. Next up on the docket will be a few Akagi/New Years Resolution anthology one-offs, one for Polaris and the other for her launch day coming up on April 22nd. After those are written, the next full story coming will be "Biscuits with Bismarck" featuring, you guessed it, Bismarck herself and the last planned story will be a more mature(but still postable to Fanfiction and r/Azurelane) tale featuring our favorite vampire vessel, Duke of York. I may do something with one of the Northern Parliament shipgirls but I'm not going to be RUSSIAN to get it finished. Get it? Get it? ...I'll show myself out. Again, thanks for reading and all the kind words and fair winds and following seas!