All Coming Back to Me Now

By Kris

Disclaimer: I do not own G.I. Joe. I do own the character of Diva and wouldn't mind sharing her with permission. I hope you like the story as much as I am enjoying writing it!

Chapter 1:

She entered General Hawk's office with a sense of trepidation. He had sounded a little odd on the phone when he asked her to report on the double. She shrugged off the feeling. After all, she was now second in command and the general had called her into his office at moments notice on hundreds, if not thousands of occasions since the chain of command had changed. Hawk stood up, recognizing her presence in the room.

"Sir," she greeted her commanding officer with a regulatory salute.

"Sergeant, have a seat." Hawk indicated with a hand. She sat down and crossed one leg over another.

"Is there something going on?" Scarlett asked wondering about the point of this meeting.

"Yes, there is some news I need to share with you." Hawk nodded and took a good look at the solider sitting before him. Her red hair, tied in her signature pony tail, was lying on her shoulder. Her blue eyes were staring back with a hint of a sparkle in them. He had only seen her lose the sparkle in her eyes once before, but it had been a dark time in her life and it made him almost want to change the news he was about to deliver. "I'm retiring, Scarlett."

"General…" Scarlett trailed off not sure what else to say. This was definitely surprising news. It was a bittersweet moment.

"I know it is sudden decision, but I feel the time is right. I've gotten word of a really great candidate to take over my position." Hawk continued.

"This person must be incredible for you to be so at ease about retiring." Scarlett chuckled.

"It's Duke." Hawk stated and waited for Scarlett's reaction. He had just dropped a verbal atomic bomb into the air.

"Oh…" Scarlett trailed off taking in the news.

"He made lieutenant and is ready to take on more responsibility." Hawk replied trying to ease the situation.

"And you think this time he will make a commitment…..to the team?" Scarlett questioned.

"I think that he would be an asset to the team. We've worked great without him, but you know deep down we worked even greater with him." Hawk responded. He could see the emotions raging inside his second in command.

"I can't say I'm thrilled about your choice." Scarlett shook her head. Hawk got up from behind his desk and sat in the chair next to Scarlett's.

"I know you both hurt each other and things got messy, but from a professional standpoint…together you two were unstoppable." Hawk sensitively addressed the issue.

"I just don't know if I can do it…it took me so long to get over him…it's probably the hardest thing I've ever done." Scarlett swallowed deep to stop the emotional pain from rising from her heart.

"He's already been offered the job and he accepted." Hawk added, "I completely feel confident leaving the team in both of your hands."

"When is he arriving?" Scarlett asked with a sense of dread.

"He'll be here in about a month. I'm going to make an informal announcement to the team later today." Hawk answered.

"Is that all, sir?" Scarlett asked hoping to be dismissed.

"Scarlett, this is a good thing. You and Duke will have to put your personal feelings aside and think of the team." Hawk advised while indicating the meeting was closing.

"Duke can't put anything or anyone in front of himself." Scarlett bitterly snapped automatically. She quickly realized what she had commented and felt her cheeks burn a little, "Sorry, sir."

"Shana, please try. I want to make this announcement knowing things will be fine." General Hawk asked as a friend. Scarlett stood up and they both headed towards the door.

"Clayton, I'll try…but I can't make a false promise that everything will be fine." Scarlett answered truthfully.

"Maybe I'm making a mistake and I should rescind the offer." Hawk ran his hands through his hair as he turned back towards his desk. Scarlett turned back to face the general. She knew retirement meant he could spend time with his wife and son. He wanted so desperately to make up for the time he had been unable to spend with them in the past.

"No, please. You've wanted to do this so you could spend time with your family. I'm sorry I made you feel uneasy about your decision. We'll make it work. I'll make it work." Scarlett pleaded, feeling guilty about her actions.

"I know I am putting you in a difficult position. For as much as I tried to turn a blind eye to everything….somehow it always got back to me. I just didn't realize how bad things had gotten between you two until it was too late." Hawk sympathized.

"I don't think anyone knew how bad it was until he was already out the door. I'd, uh, rather not think about it." Scarlett shook herself from the painful memory.

"Understandable, again, I'm glad you're willing to work on this for me. It means a lot to me to be able to retire without worry." Hawk nodded. Scarlett nodded in return and left his office.