Standard fanfic disclaimer that wouldn't last ten seconds in a court of law: these aren't my characters. I'm just borrowing them for, um, typing practice. Yeah, that's it, typing practice. No profit has been made, nor will be made, on this ficlet. Based on characters and situations created by Rockne S. O'Bannon and Amblin Entertainment.

Sharpe at Sea

a seaQuest story by Susan M. M.

"Attention, crew," Lieutenant Ben Krieg's voice came over the boat's PA system. "This is your Supply and Morale Officer speaking. We picked up several new books for the library at Nahonu. Please return them in a timely manner after checking them out. Everybody else has read all the old ones, too. We also picked up some new vids, both for personal use and for movie nights."

seaQuest DSV 4600, the pride of the UEO's submarine fleet, had just spent a week at Nahonu Underwater Colony. Captain Bridger, Dr. Westphalen, and several of the scientific staff had attended a four day conference on marine biology. The rest of the crew had enjoyed the opportunity for "shore leave," even though they were far from any shore. Krieg had taken the opportunity to obtain fresh supplies from the colony's hydroponic gardens, as well as fresh entertainment.

"I am officially declaring March to be Richard Sharpe Month. We will be having a marathon of all twenty-one Sharpe movies, one a night for the rest of the month. They'll be in the crew lounge, at 1900 hours, every night. Krieg out."

Krieg went to the maglev and rode down to Medbay. Before the sub disembarked from Nahonu, he wanted to confirm that Dr. Westphalen had gotten all the medical supplies he'd ordered from the colony's pharmacy. He got out of the magnetic levitation tram - necessary to get from one part of the boat to another, given seaQuest's size - and started walking down the corridor.

"Ben."

He heard a woman's voice call his name, and turned around. His ex-wife and superior officer, Lt. Cmdr. Katie Hitchcock, stood there. She was still Katie in social settings, but Commander or sir (despite her gender) in military situations. Not quite sure which one this was, he waited for her to speak.

"Did I hear you correctly? All twenty-one Sharpe movies?"

"In order," he confirmed.

She smiled. Her pale blue eyes lit up. "I thought I was the only Sharpe fan on board. Did someone else request them, or were they on sale, or what?"

They hadn't been on sale. In fact, he'd paid for them out of his own pocket, and paid dearly, although he had no intention of telling her that. "Statistically, you can't be the only one. With two hundred and twelve in the crew, someone else must have had a schoolgirl crush on Sean Bean." Before she could protest about him teasing her over her long ago infatuation on an actor who was now graying, he continued. "Lots of excitement, adventure, some good male bonding buddy stuff with Sharpe and Harper - I'm sure the rest of the crew will like them, too. Besides, it's your birthday next week, and I didn't know what else to get you."

"My birthday?" the brunette repeated.

Krieg glanced left and right, saw no one else, and dared to kiss her cheek. "Happy Birthday, Katie." He walked off, before she could scold him for unprofessional behavior.

Hitchcock watched him walk down the corridor toward Medbay and wondered, not for the first time, whether they'd made a mistake in divorcing so quickly.