Work Text:
Ice could be described as upset.
He was the Commander of the Pacific Fleet and he couldn’t solve this one problem. If it were possible, the carpet would currently be on fire from how hard he was glaring at it. So he did what any other person would do. He told his friends and kids (adopted) about the problem and they were pissed off on his behalf.
“How could he do this? I didn’t think he was capable of this, but what the hell?!” Wolf paced around the room, in disbelief.
Ice sighed and looked at everyone. Slider almost looked like he was contemplating murder. Hollywood was trying to comfort Wolf with the help of Bobby. Merlin and Chipper stared down at the picture in the middle of the table; Maverick was in a dance studio and he was smiling while looking at the woman, whose back was facing the camera. The two looked at each other with raised eyebrows, then towards their friends. Rooster, Hangman, and Phoenix were huddled together in a little pile. Fanboy looked like he was going to cry and Payback was trying to comfort his WSO. Coyote was sitting at Hangman’s feet, his head on his best friend’s knee. Yale, Fritz, Halo, Harvard, and Omaha were sitting in a little pile by Sundown’s feet and they had been crying, their eyes red and puffy. Ice, himself, probably wasn’t looking any better.
Wolf stopped pacing and looked at the room. “I mean...there has to be some simple explanation right?”
The room could only look at the second youngest of the Flyboys, but they had nothing to say. The evidence was undisputable.
Maverick was “cheating” on his husband.
///
However...
Maverick sighed as he sat on the floor of the empty practice room. Something was going on with his family and he didn’t know what it was. The Flyboys were in town and he tried talking to them, but they were all acting weird. Slider, especially, was as frosty as the first day of Top Gun. The kids tried acting casually, but he could tell that they were forcing themselves to do it. He’d frowned sadly and had almost looked like a kicked puppy.
When he’d gone to Cyclone and Warlock about the Flyboys and Daggers, they were surprised. They couldn’t tell that anything was wrong, but they’d observed everything that had been going on the past couple of days and they seemed shocked at their behavior. When Maverick had gone to his sister, Izzy, she was just as confused. She did see what her brother was talking about though. The Daggers and Flyboys had almost seemed to be avoiding Maverick and Ice was nearly just as frosty as the beginning of Top Gun. She’d nearly gone to give everyone a piece of her mind, but Maverick had pleaded with her that he was going to take care of it when the talent competition was done. Izzy sighed, she had a bad feeling about this.
“Well, let’s just practice. The competition is tomorrow.”
///
The Daggers had left the Flyboys in the house and were now sitting outside in a circle. The silence was heavy between them. Rooster looked like the ground was going to swallow him whole and he didn’t like that. It was like his entire world was falling apart and he didn’t know how to stop it.
“I think that we should follow Mavdad.”
Everyone turned to look at Fritz. The pilot was staring into the fire and the rest of the Daggers couldn’t tell what he was thinking about, but they agreed. They should be able to see what was going on for themselves.
///
...is much easier said than done.
Ice had told them that Maverick was going to be gone for the entirety of the day and that he was going to be home later that night. He would be there for the Talent Competition, but that he wouldn’t be sitting with the Flyboys and Daggers. Slider had puffed in anger and the rest of the Flyboys and Daggers had only deflated in defeat.
(The Daggers were silently cursing themselves for not being up early enough to follow him. Jake had whined about how Maverick was the freaking stealth pilot instead of Bobby. The spectacled WSO had only grinned; everyone else felt a shiver go down their spines.)
They could only wait to see what would happen tonight.
///
It was now time for the Talent Competition and the Flyboys and Daggers were sitting in the row being the judges. There was a noticeable seat with a missing person and as the time kept ticking by everyone was steadily getting depressed with the missing pilot. The lights started dimming and they could only sigh in sadness. An unknown person, a lieutenant, walked onto the stage, her excitement was infectious; causing the crowd to begin cheering loudly.
“Hello and Welcome everyone! We would like to welcome you to the first competition in the Navy. My name is Lieutenant Rodney Cortez, callsign Diglett. Before you ask, yes, exactly like the Pokemon. Throughout this competition we would be seeing all sorts of talents from various members of the branch for all ranks. There is a consolation prize. An all-expenses paid, two week trip for 20 people to the winner's destination of choice. As the competitors come up on stage we will be introducing them and their ranks along with their talent.”
The entire auditorium was screaming and cheering. Everyone was also shocked at the prize for the competition. They didn’t think that the Navy would give something so generous.
Oh well...
They hoped that they could see some good talents tonight.
(little did they know...)
///
Maverick looked like he was going to be sick. He and Izzy were next and they were doing an interpretation dance to You Are The Reason by Callum Scott. Maverick was hopping from one foot to the other in nervousness. He was also going to dance like he was going to convey a message, especially after what Merls and Chip told them the day before. That hurt a fucking lot, but he guesses that he could’ve told them. Izzy looked over to her brother and she could only sigh. She was pissed to hell and back at what the former RIOs told her, but it couldn’t be helped (she was going to make them grovel though, especially Ice). She peeked out from the crack in the curtain. Ice and the others were sitting in the row behind the judges and she could only side eye her brother. She hoped that he wouldn’t choke on stage, he hated being in front of a crowd, after all.
It was a good thing that she picked their outfits, otherwise everyone would be able to tell that her brother was sweating in nervousness.
Maverick had dressed in a pair of short shorts (they could be sinfully short shorts, but Maverick needed to be able to walk on the vacation) and he had stolen a white dress shirt and a jacket from his husband. He looked comically hilarious if it wasn’t for the fact that he was trying to get laid. His husband had been really weird and he was on the severe end of affection deprivation (Izzy had to follow Maverick around base and made sure the idiot DIDN’T get into his jet and make it everyone’s problem). The shorts were barely visible under the shirt and jacket and it covered his ass, but when he bent a certain way, you’d see it. Izzy herself was wearing a form fitting dress with a high side slit that went to her mid thigh. She had her hair down and curled at the bottom and her hair gathered in the middle tied by a baby blue ribbon given to her by Ice for a birthday present. They were going to be doing the interpretation barefoot and they hoped that they wouldn’t slip on stage.
Izzy turned to look at the crowd as they began cheering. She looked at her brother nervously and nodded.
This was it.
(Although, she was a little pissed off that they went last. It would’ve been better if they went first or in the middle.)
///
“Wow. All of these performances have been amazing so far. What do you all think? I think that they have been amazing. Now, let me introduce you to the last performance. Admirals Simpson and Bates agreed that they would be going last because they were the highest ranking officials in the Competition, believe it or not. The next duo coming out are very well known in the Navy. They have a reputation for being a little reckless and a lot of daring. They pull stunts that possibly no one else could ever think of and they’re actually a pair of siblings!!! Twins actually, they’d like it emphasized that the sister is the older twin. Which actually makes sense if you think about it and look at them. They will be performing an interpretation dance to the song, You Are The Reason by Callum Scott. Without further ado, let us give a big round of applause for the siblings!!! Captain Pete Mitchell callsign Maverick and his sister, The Commander of the Atlantic Fleet, Admiral Isabelle Mitchell callsign Sailor!!”
Everyone started screaming loudly, the cheers deafening around the auditorium. The guys, on the other hand, had paled a little and they turned towards the stage as the lights darkened. Bradley blinked and then everyone could hear the whispered ‘oh shit’ coming from the moustached Lieutenant. The lights came on again and the Captain and Commander were kneeling on the stage, one leg bent and the other on the ground, one hand bent at the elbow and holding onto the other person. Maverick had his head turned to the right and looking down, Izzy mirrored him. Both were breathing and waiting for the music to start.
(A/N: I swear I'll try to draw out the positions as stick figures and post them on my tumblr, but it might take a hot while. So bear with me and my terrible descriptions.)
(The Daggers were trying to cover each other’s eyes. Rooster and Hangman were trying to sink down into their seats, their cheeks flushed. Yale, Omaha, Halo, and Fritz looked like they were a second from combusting.The Flyboys were gagging as they looked at Ice who looked like he was about to rip off Maverick’s clothes.
“That’s YOUR clothes he’s wearing, idiot.” Slider groaned, so done with his pilot.
“I don’t give a shit.” Ice said, rolling his eyes. Maverick looked really good in his clothes. He all of a sudden wished that they were at home (where he could apologize for his behavior and ravish his beautiful husband until he was in tears and couldn’t form a single word or thought except for his name).
Chip and Wolf were wondering if he had anything under there, earning glares from their respective husbands. Merlin was whistling and nodding, like the little shit that knew what was going on. Chip also knew what was going on, but he too, also said nothing and just watched the shit show from the side. The two were just waiting for everyone else to realize it too.)
The music started. The soft, gentle rhythm of the keys of the piano rings in the auditorium. The melody rang out throughout the auditorium, resonating through the audience. On the stage, the lights disappeared into a single spotlight, the siblings illuminated; called to attention. Their arms moved up until they strengthened, coming down again until they were halfway back to their previous position. Maverick spun on his knees to face the front, kneeling back and sitting on his heels, hands in his lap. Izzy stood up, getting behind him and covering his eyes with her hands, Maverick’s reached up to rest his hands on hers. Raising both hands in the air, tilting their head up to look at the ceiling.
(If Ice didn’t look like he wanted to ravish his husband before, he sure as fuck did now. Maverick looked ethereal in his dress shirt and jacket. It also looked adorable because the younger man was so small. But, he also looked like a whole ass sex symbol and...he also felt anger because all of these people were looking at his husband. He should be the only one that saw his Husband like that (he was totally going to make the smaller pilot wear those clothes to bed tonight). His Sister-in-law looked beautiful as well, as expected of the Mitchell twins. Wolf, Slider, Sundown, Hollywood and the Daggers’ jaws dropped in awe as they watched the Captain and his sister on the stage.
(A/N: Am I making this man too horny??)
“Shiiiit...the woman in the picture is his sister, isn’t it?”
“Uh huh.” Merlin and Chipper said at the same time, staring in awe at the siblings.
The Flyboys and Daggers whipped their heads to look at the two former RIOs, their jaws dropped in shock and anxiety.
“DID YOU TELL THEM?!?!”
The two nodded. “And let me tell you, Izzy is rightfully pissed to hell and back. We’re supposed to be the ones besides her that know Maverick the best. He is so depressed and so touch starved that he’s cried to her and slept in her office because of the treatment. From EVERYONE. If anything, you ALL owe Maverick a sincere apology for the misunderstanding. Especially you, Ice. You’re the one amongst us all, besides Bradley, that’s supposed to know everything about Mav. He’s heartbroken.”
Ice looked down, clenching his hands. Merlin was right. He was married to Maverick for over thirty years (unofficially 30 years, officially over a decade), he should’ve known that Maverick would never cheat on him. It wasn’t in his nature to do anything like that, it also wasn’t in his nature to doubt him like that. Maverick would, instead, raise his blood pressure and anxiety when he did things that he wasn’t supposed to; ie, buzzing the fucking towers and pissing off Admirals. And even if Maverick did piss him off, he’d make it up with some mind blowing sex that left the pilot in bed for days from not being able to move his legs.
He had a lot of apologizing to do. They all did. He just hoped that the woman would LET them apologize.)
There goes my hands shaking
And you are the reason
My heart keeps bleeding
I need you now
And if I could turn back the clock
I’d make sure the light defeated the dark
I’d spend every hour, of every day
Keeping you safe
The two spun around to the right side of the stage (Izzy on her feet and Maverick on his knees using the momentum to stand) with Maverick on the further side of his sister, both of their right arms out. Their left legs stuck out behind them. The left arm at their sides, clutching tightly into a fist. They stood straighter, raising their arms above their heads and spinning towards the middle of the stage in a pirouette. Stopping and turning to face each other, one arm stretched between the two, a look of sadness on their faces; almost as if a force was keeping them apart from each other. Coming back together, their hands touching and walking in circles around each other. Izzy moved closer, hand on her brother’s lower back and the male lowered himself, both hands above his head, left knee bent with his right leg in the air, resting on her right arm. Izzy brought him back up, separating from Maverick moving to the back and facing the curtains, kneeling down. The Admiral moved up again, throwing her head back, right arm in the air. She spun in a pirouette a couple of times, stopping into a pointe. At which she reached for the light and knelt down in a crouch, clutching at her chest. By that point, both siblings were mouthing along to the words of the song.
(“Holy fuck, the song is sad as shit, but they’re doing really good!” Chipper exclaimed in excitement, bouncing in his seat and wiping the tears from his eyes.
The siblings managed to capture the audience and made them feel like they were a part of the dance itself. Everyone was captivated and on the edge of their seats, like how a true performance should be. Some of the audience were singing along to the song which made it all the better. The others could only agree with Chipper. They just couldn’t look away from the performance and...
Shit...
They could feel the pain, the anger, the hurt, and self blame (but they could also feel the hope, love, the sincerity, and the underlying feeling of protection) all in the performance. They were only doing the second half of the song, but that much felt so powerful. The two of them probably put a lot of time into practicing and they were over there accusing Maverick. It fucking sucked and when everything was over, they were going to do everything in their power to make it up to the smaller pilot.)
There goes my hands shaking
And you are the reason
My heart keeps bleeding
I need you now
I don’t wanna fight no more
I don’t wanna hide no more
I don’t wanna cry no more
Come back I need you to hold me (you are the reason)
Be a little closer now
Just a little closer now
Come a little closer now
I need you to hold me tonight.
Maverick’s solo had everyone on the edge of their seats. He spun on the ground until he reached the center of the stage and looked up into the audience. Mouthing along to the lyrics, the younger male had a couple of stray tears streaming down his face as he was kneeling on the stage, one arm clutched to his chest as the other one was reaching towards the audience; hoping and imagining that it was his husband. He brought his hands up almost as if he was praying. He got up onto his feet and also spun in a pirouette. He reached out towards Izzy who had a hand stretched towards him. He came closer and swung a leg over her shoulder as the other came above their arms and the Admiral began to spin them as Maverick’s left arm stretched out above his head and he leaned back his face towards the audience as they spun; a melancholic look on his face. They came to a pause when the Admiral lifted the Captain above her into a pose. Maverick was back on the ground and the twins came together in a waltz, spinning each other around and mouthing the lyrics, tears in their eyes and falling down their cheeks.
(In the audience, Ice had tears in his eyes at Maverick’s part of the dance and the lyrics. The Flyboys and Daggers watched in awe (and maybe a lot of anxiety) as the two spun on stage.
“Holy shit, Mavdad is flexible AF!!!” Fanboy shouted in excitement as he was bouncing in his seat.
Ice went to open his mouth, but Hollywood quickly covered the Admiral’s mouth while Slider was glaring at him.
“Don’t you even fucking dare, Kazansky!!”
Fanboy blinked at Slider’s words and everyone could see the moment when it clicked in his mind and his eyes widened. Payback patted his boyfriend on the back, trying to cheer him up.
“Eww, that’s disgusting, Pops.”
Ice couldn’t say anything since his mouth was covered, but the others could tell that he was smirking under there.)
I’d climb every mountain
And swim every ocean
Just to be with you
And fix what I’ve broken
‘Cause I need you to see
That you are the reason
As the song came to a close, Izzy held her left arm out, her stance wide. Maverick spun around until he came closer to his sister. Izzy had kneeled a bit while Maverick had jumped up, being lifted above Izzy’s head; both spinning in a circle. When they came to a stop, Izzy had Maverick above her head, left hand flat as her brother’s hand was in hers. Her left leg was bent a little at the knee with her right leg and arm sticking out behind her; her back arched a little. Maverick, above her, had his left hand in hers with the right one sticking out behind him. His left leg was straight while the right was bent at the knee. He was looking down into his sister’s forest green eyes in awe. The shirt and jacket that he was wearing had fallen down and you could see the shorts that he was wearing. Maverick landed in his sister’s arms and they had returned to their starting positions. Both of the siblings, huffing and puffing in exhaustion; but with a look of pure satisfaction lit up their faces.
“Holy shit...”
The thunderous applause from the audience erupted in the next second after that statement and Maverick had dropped down from the hold. He looked at his sister as she grabbed onto his hand and the both of them bowed to the audience, standing straight and beaming at the audience. They started clapping as the rest of the performers came up on stage, as well. The other performers were standing around and talking to the senior ranking members. Maverick was waving his hands around and trying to placate the young and impressionable ranking members. Izzy could be seen stepping in and stopping the others; but other than that she let Maverick do all of the talking.
(The Captain looked a little weird as he was gesturing wildly and the Admiral looked as if she was trying to hold back her laughter.)
“Alright everyone!!! I think that we are ready to announce the results.”
The audience was on the edge of their seats. There was no way that the Admiral and Captain wouldn’t win, but they still needed to pray and hope. In the background, Izzy had turned around when she felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned to see her assistant, Warrant Officer Dalton ‘Stitch’ Halstead holding a paper out to her, looking like the energizer bunny on crack. She raised an eyebrow at him and took the paper.
“We’ve had a lot of great performances today. Sadly, only one of them will be crowned the winner and win the grand prize. The second and third place winners will curry one favor, within reason, from Admiral Mitchell. The other participants may curry one favor, again within reason, from their CO.”
The audience yelled and clapped loudly. Even if the others lost, there was still a small consolation prize (it wasn’t small, it was a big deal). Maverick turned towards his Sister as she was reading the paper in her hands. Both Mitchell’s lost interest in the results and were now focused on the paper (well, one was focused on the paper; the other was looking at their sibling). Izzy’s eyes widened and she broke out into a huge grin. She turned her smile towards her brother. Maverick, confused as ever, leaned towards the Admiral and started reading the paper.
“In third place, we have Killik, who did a perfect rendition of Moonlight Sonata, but with a modern twist. It displayed talents in classical music training with an added personal modern style mixed in. Well done.”
The young Lieutenant Commander stepped forward, waving at the crowd and bowing in thanks. He also looked towards the judges and nodded his thanks.
Maverick was still reading the paper and as he got closer to the one part, Izzy was vibrating next to him. Everyone was oblivious to the siblings at this point, except for two. Bob and Yale looked at each other in question as they were observing the pair. The two decided that they would keep it to themselves for now.
“In second place, we have the comedic style of BonBon and her backseater, Housier.”
The two dramatically stepped forward and took a bow before Housier took out a spray bottle, aimed it at her pilot and sprayed her. BonBon gasped dramatically and the audience cracked a laugh at the joke. It was at this time that the Flyboys and Daggers were getting worried. If Moonlight Sonata and comedy could win second and third, what were the chances of the Mitchells winning? They started praying hard that they would win.
The emcee stood for a moment and looked at the audience before raising the microphone.
“I think that we have our first place winners, don’t you think?”
The audience started standing up, clapping and yelling in excitement.
“The winners are CAPTAIN AND ADMIRAL MITCHELL!!!”
At that moment, Maverick looked up from the paper and looked towards his sister, happy tears rolling down his face. He jumped into her arms as she spun him around. They stopped when the cheering from the audience got louder, looking at each other in confusion. The Lieutenant stepped closer to the two, lowering the mic.
“The two of you won.”
“OH HOLY SHIT!”
The two exclaimed in shock, looking at each other. The Lieutenant shoved them towards the front of the stage and the two could only shyly wave at the audience and smile. A giant trophy covered in ribbons was shoved into their hands. Shocked at the weight, they placed the trophy down on the ground. Izzy looked towards her brother smirking, Maverick’s eyes widened in fright and tried backing up from the smirking Admiral.
“NOOOooo.”
The cackling Admiral picked her brother up into a bridal carry and started spinning him around. The Captain started cackling as well, wrapping his arms around his sister’s neck, burying his face into her shoulder. They eventually calmed down and bowed towards the audience and their fellow competitors. The two picked up the trophy and made their way towards the backstage (they honestly needed to sit and fucking decompress for a hot second).
Now, it was time to set the guys straight.
///
...was what Izzy was thinking, but as soon as the two of them sat down on a chair, they let out a loud groan and sank into the cushions. Everyone looked over at them, a slight concern in their faces (but there were some who took on a darker look, the sound almost like a siren’s call). Earlier in the week, Maverick and Sailor were needed to fly a one day reconnaissance mission. Where they were promptly in the worst dogfight in the history of the Navy. The two of them were more bruise than people by that point.
(A/N: I FUCKING KNOW!!!! That an Admiral wouldn’t fly a mission, but this is fanfiction and I can do what I want, plus...plot.)
The others tried getting cleaned and dressed more quietly as they heard the soft snores from the Captain and Admiral. Dalton looked at the Admiral and nodded, standing at attention and making sure that no one would bother the siblings as they slumbered on. The Flyboys and Daggers finally made their way backstage and saw the siblings snoozing away without a care in the world. They saw the bruises poking out from beneath the clothes and they were pretty sure that they were the only ones that caught it during the performance. They looked over at the Assistant to the Commander of the Atlantic Fleet, feeling his gaze on their forms. He raised an eyebrow at them in question. Hollywood attempted to get him to calm down by flapping a hand at him, but it only served to irritate the assistant.
“Forgive me, Admiral Neven-Wolfe, but too many people have tried to get me to relax to only take advantage of the Commander and the Vice, way too often for my liking.”
Hollywood winced and nodded his head. “Yep, understandable. Wait...what’d you?”
Dalton narrowed his eyes at the older Admiral and turned to address the group as a whole, raising an eyebrow at them.
“I assume that you’re here to apologize to Vice Admiral Kazansky-Mitchell?”
The group blinked in confusion, but they all nodded. Merlin, ever the one holding the singular brain cell of the group, stepped forward.
“Dalton, what do you mean by Vice Admiral? Maverick wouldn’t...”
The Assistant nodded.
“It took a hot minute and a needed recommendation from higher up, but Captain Kazansky-Mitchell has hereby been promoted to the three star Vice Admiral position. With that he will also become the new leader of the Shadow Dagger Squadron operating out of North Island alongside Admiral Kazansky. The President just approved it this morning and we got the confirmation during the awards.”
The Daggers jaw dropped and some of them started jumping in place and jumping on their friends. They stopped and collectively deflated, looking at their Captain Dad.
“Dalton...”
The Assistant scoffed.
“No, cause now we’re going to get into it.”
They all winced as they looked at the young male in front of him. He’s been the assistant to the Commander of the Atlantic Fleet for almost twenty years. He’s seen almost everything. He’s the one that she goes to for almost anything. He’s more like a confident and another little brother.
(Dalton nearly had a heart attack when he heard Maverick mumbling about the twins adopting him as a brother. It was not a joke.)
“First of all, you all act sketchy to Maverick knowing what he gets like when he senses the littlest bit of hostility from people who are supposed to be family. He shuts down and it’s a battle to get him better and back to his happy go lucky self. To see and hear that his husband, children, and brothers did all that crap? That about sent him over the edge. I bet none of you know that the Mitchell’s flew a reconnaissance mission earlier this week, right?”
Dalton stopped as he took in their pale faces. Some of them looked like they were going to be sick. He didn’t care. The Atlantic Fleet cares about both Mitchells, if it came down to it; they’d all quit at the same time or would throw hands with their Pacific counterparts if it came down to it.
“It was so bad. We nearly had to pull them from the mission, because they ended up in the worst dogfight ever. We thought that they were going to die. Somehow, through some Mitchell luck, they managed to win that fight and come back to us. They’re currently more bruise than human, but they still managed to come home to us. And you guys were still stubborn as hell. You left Pete sad and depressed. Pretty sure he had a couple of panic attacks, but Izzy wouldn’t have let me know about it.”
Dalton looked at the faces of the Admirals and Lieutenant Commanders and saw the shame on their downtrodden faces.
“Right now, you guys need to think about what the Mitchell’s really mean to you guys. Especially Maverick. You guys are the only people besides Izzy that are supposed to know him better than anyone else. And you guys thought that he was cheating? When he’d rather kill himself than let anything happen to either of you?! You disgust me and after Maverick begged Sailor to help win the grand prize so that you guys could take a trip and relax after the taxing year.”
With that, Dalton walked away leaving the others behind. He hated that he was leaving the twins alone, but they really needed to think about what was best for everyone. The brunette ran a hand through his hair and sighed.
‘And right before the new squad and the promotions were going through, too. Shiiit’
He felt a hand grab his wrist and yank him into a closet. He was about to scream when he was greeted by the familiar lips of his husband. Conner ‘Dodgeball’ Halstead grinned down at his husband. His husband was the Current Assistant to the Secretary of the Navy.
“Hey, Hon.”
Dalton puffed out a breath in laughter.
“Hey, you. What’re you doing here?”
Connor grinned and leaned down to press a kiss to Dalton’s lips.
“Well, I’m here to make sure that the Pacific Fleet members atone for their misdeeds towards the Vice Admiral of the Atlantic Fleet. I’m pretty sure Boss Lady doesn’t want her wife coming home, looking upset again because the Commander of the Pacific Fleet decided to piss off his sister-in-law.”
Dalton sighed.
“I tore them a new one just now and left the twins with them. So, it’s basically what they end up doing that’ll get Pete to forgive them and shit.”
Connor hummed.
“Well, it better be a good one, cause I guarantee Admiral Mitchell will kick ass.”
Dalton stared at his husband.
“Yes, I know. Now go, you’re distracting me, Mr. Spokesperson to the SecNav.”
(A/N: I don't know if these positions exist, im just throwing shit out there, ok?)
Connor laughed and kissed Dalton on the cheek.
“And you need to go back to work, Mr. Senior Assistant to the ComAlt.”
Dalton sighed and pushed Connor away from him, listening to his husband laugh as he left. Now, he needed to make the arrangements for the promotions of like...thirteen people.
How lovely...
///
The guys were left in stunned silence as Dalton left the room. Merlin couldn’t take it and doubled over in laughter. His hand flew to his mouth and glanced over at the slumbering siblings. Izzy’s eyebrow twitched, while Maverick was still snoozing along. The former RIO sighed in relief and turned to look at everyone, who was looking at him like he lost his mind.
“Holy shit, that’s just like Dalton. He’s tough and he doesn’t give a shit for who you are. If he thinks you’re wrong, he’ll say something and not hold back. He’s been Izzy’s Assistant for nearly two decades. He has balls of steel and his husband is just as much of a badass.”
“Dalton’s married?!”
“Uh huh. As soon as DADT was repealed actually.”
The Daggers and Flyboys were still staring, slack-jawed, when a soft groan pulled their attention back toward the couch. Izzy shifted first, blinking awake with a half-formed scowl—she had felt the commotion before her eyes even opened.
Maverick stayed asleep, cheek pressed against her shoulder, utterly unaware he’d become the center of a storm.
Izzy stretched her neck and fixed the group with a stare sharp enough to cut steel.
“Well?” she whispered, venomously calm. “You’re all here. Fix it.”
Ice stepped forward first.
He looked… small. Guilt carved into every line of his face. Thirty years of love weighed on him, and for the first time in decades he looked like Pete’s Iceman again—not the Admiral, not the legend. Just the husband terrified of losing the one thing he never thought he’d doubt.
He knelt.
“Isabelle,” Ice murmured, eyes flicking to Maverick resting against her. “Wake him. I can’t— I need to fix this while he can still hear me.”
Izzy stared at him for a long moment, searching for sincerity.
Apparently satisfied, she nudged Maverick gently. “Petey. Baby brother. You’ve got incoming.”
Maverick blinked awake blearily. “Wh—? Izzy, I swear, if this is another surprise photo op—”
Then he saw Ice kneeling.
His entire body went rigid.
“Ice?”
Ice’s face crumpled.
“Oh, Mav… I’m so damn sorry.”
The words hit harder than any dogfight impact. Maverick didn’t speak—couldn’t speak. His throat tightened painfully as Ice reached up, but stopped his hand an inch from Maverick’s cheek, as if afraid he’d burn him.
“I doubted you,” Ice rasped. “I let one picture—one stupid moment—undo thirty years of knowing exactly who you are. And that is my failure. Not yours.”
Maverick swallowed hard.
“Ice…”
“I forgot,” Ice whispered, voice cracking, “that your loyalty is the one thing in this world I’ve never had to question.”
A tear slipped down Maverick’s cheek.
“I needed you,” he whispered. “And you weren’t there.”
Ice bowed his head, forehead pressing to Maverick’s knee.
“I know. And I’ll spend the rest of my life making sure I never let you feel alone like that again.”
For a long moment, nobody breathed.
Then Maverick leaned forward, placing a shaking hand on Ice’s cheek.
“Get up, Tom,” he said, barely above a whisper. “I forgive you. Just… don’t leave me in the dark like that again.”
Ice surged upward and pulled Maverick into a crushing embrace. The Captain let out a broken laugh-sob and buried his face in Ice’s shoulder, relief shuddering through him.
One by one, the others approached—slowly, tentatively—until Maverick was surrounded by his family.
Slider went first, eyes red. “I’m sorry, Mav. I should’ve known better.”
Wolf. Hollywood. Merlin. Chipper. Each apology layered over the last, forming something heavy and warm and raw.
Then the Daggers.
Bradley couldn’t speak at first; he just grabbed Maverick’s arm and held it like a lifeline.
“You’re my dad,” he finally choked. “I shouldn’t have believed anyone but you.”
Jake went next, jaw trembling. “I’ve been a lot of things, Mav, but I’ve never been more wrong.”
Fanboy dissolved instantly into tears the second Maverick pulled him into a hug. Payback followed, mumbling a thousand apologies into Mav’s shoulder. Even Yale sniffled like a scolded puppy.
Izzy watched it all, arms crossed, but her expression finally softened.
“Alright,” she sighed, “you degenerates. Help me get these idiots home. They’re held together with tape, prayer, and spite.”
///
Back at the Kazansky home, Maverick was tucked into bed by a fussing Ice, who decided that bruises meant he must be carried everywhere.
“Tom, for god’s sake, put me down—”
“No.”
“But—”
“No.”
Izzy’s roar of laughter echoed down the hallway, even as she groaned from the pain from her own bruises.
“Dammit. You know, I was really hoping to get your dick in me.”
Groaning was heard throughout the house.
“That’s disgusting!!!”
“Maybe later...cause we are discussing the outfit you wore.”
A loud chorus of ‘EWWW’s was heard throughout the house, while Maverick howled in laughter.
///
Maverick sat at the kitchen table, hair sticking up, sipping coffee as the entire gang stared at him. Bradley burst (possibly waking the entire neighborhood).
“VICE ADMIRAL?!?!”
Maverick choked on his coffee.
“I got the letter yesterday! I was going to tell you, but someone”. Here he looked at Ice with a pointed glare “wouldn’t speak to me long enough to hear it.”
Ice groaned. “I deserve that.”
The Daggers swarmed him instantly, cheering, shaking him, shouting questions.
Maverick, despite the chaos happening around him, finally laughed. A real laugh. The kind that reached his eyes.
His family was back.
Everything was whole again.
///
*2 Months Later*
The Pacific and Atlantic Fleets jointly attended the reactivation ceremony of the Shadow Dagger Squadron, headed by Vice Admiral Mitchell and Admiral Kazansky.
Dalton cried. Connor laughed at him for crying. Izzy gave a thirty-minute speech about “What happens when you assume things about her brother.”
And Maverick?
He stood beside Ice, fingers intertwined with his husband’s.
The vacation prize had already been used—two blissful weeks on a private island with their entire chaotic family. Bradley had sunburned himself terribly, Jake got stung by a jellyfish, and Fanboy nearly drowned in two feet of water.
(How did that happen? No one knows. Fanboy claimed that something was dragging him down.)
But Maverick had never been happier.
Ice leaned down, kissing the corner of his mouth.
“Still think I’m the only one you dance for?”
Maverick smirked. “Always.”
And surrounded by their family, healed and whole, Maverick finally, finally felt at peace.