Disclaimer: The following is a work of fan fiction based on the television series, Emergency!. It is in no way intended to infringe on the Copyrights of MARK VII LIMITED, Universal Studio or anyone else who may have legal rights to the characters and settings. I claim no ownership nor make any profit. I am only using them for a short time and will return them in relatively the same shape as when borrowed.

Notes: This is a total fluff piece. Hopefully it brings a smile to your face. It came to me after a short story concerning the guys’ lack of middle names and family member identity was posted a while back. Fair warning, I pick on Chester B in here. Feedback is always appreciated.

What's In A Name

by krh

Sloshing the mop back into the bucket, John Gage marched across the bay to the kitchen doorway and leaned through the opening. "Are you going to help me or not?" he asked peevishly, his eyes boring into the side of his partner and friend. When his question provoked no response, John took a few more

steps farther into the room. "Roy!" he barked.

Startled, Roy DeSoto raised blank eyes towards his partner. "What?" he started to say before realization set in. "Oh, yeah," he said turning back to the book in his hand. "In a minute," he said offhandedly.

"What are you doing, anyway?" John asked, coming to stand behind Roy and peering over his shoulder.

Putting down the pen and book, Roy turned to look at Gage. "Well, you know the other day when all of us were talking," he began, his gaze following the younger man as he sat down. "About the fact that you're the only one with a middle name, and my daughter doesn't have a name, and... stuff like that?" Roy asked.

"Yeah. So?" Gage answered, confusion still on his face.

"Well, I was talking to Joanne and we decided it was time to give our daughter a name," Roy explained, picking back up the book. "I was going through this book of baby names and writing down possibilities. You know, those that sound good."

"Cool," Johnny exclaimed, scooting closer. "What have you got so far?" he asked, leaning forward eagerly to look at the paper. Seeing a blank sheet, he looked questioningly at his partner.

"That's my problem," Roy began, as the bay door began to open signaling the return of the other firefighters. "I can't decide. This is harder than I thought. I mean, depending on the name I pick, she will either thank me or hold it against me forever."

Thinking about it a few minutes, John sat back in his chair. "Yeah, I see what you mean. But, come on, it can't be that bad. I mean, you aren't gonna pick something totally outlandish are you?"

"Roy, outlandish?" Chet Kelly spouted coming into the room, shocked that Roy's name would be link with such a concept. "Come on, the most outlandish thing he's done is to put the ketchup bottle in the refrigerator upside down."

Staring blandly at Chet, Roy refused to rise to the bait. He knew Chet was only trying to rile Johnny anyway.

Glaring at the mustached man for butting in on their conversation, Johnny turned back to Roy. "Look at it this way, Roy. As long as you don't name her Chester B, she'll be fine."

"By the way, Chet, what does the B stand for again?" Johnny taunted.

Smiling at the irritation on Kelly's face, Johnny leaned back in his chair. Sitting up suddenly, he grabbed Roy's arm. "I got it," he announced slapping the table soundly. "I know what the B stands for."

"What?" Roy asked, a smile pulling on the corner of his lips as Chet tried to act like he was reading the paper and ignoring the conversation.

"Bichon."

"Bichon?" Marco queried. "What's kind of name is bichon?"

"It's a dog," Mike chimed in, coming into the kitchen and overhearing the question. "My uncle used to have one."

"Yep, it's a dog," Johnny said, grinning. "Short, curly hair, never shuts up...," he trailed off, leaving the implication hanging in the air.

"Ha, ha," Chet said dryly, snapping the paper. Curiosity, however, got the better of him. "What are you worried about names for anyway?"

"After our talk the other day, Joanne and I decided we should give our daughter a name," Roy explained.

"So, what have you called her since she was born?" Chet asked, a frown crossing his forehead.

"My daughter," Roy responded flatly.

"Real original," Chet retorted.

"I know, " Roy said. "That's why I got this book of names. I thought that if I looked through a list, something would jump out at me. Something that, you know, sounded good."

"Here, let me see," Marco said, picking up the book. "I always get to name my family members." Flipping through the pages, his face brightened. "Hey, this gives the meaning of the names, too."

"Oh, yeah," John asked, intrigued by the idea. "So what does John mean?"

Scanning the pages, Marco ran his finger down until he found it. When he did so, he couldn't help but roll his eyes. "Godly," he remarked dryly, knowing the younger paramedic's head would swell with the news.

"Godly," John repeated, a smile beaming from his face. Easing back in his chair and placing his hand on his chest he repeated the meaning again, allowing the word to roll like a fine chocolate across his tongue. "Godly."

"Don't let it go to your head, your highness," Roy drawled.

"Mike, your name means Godly too," Marco reported, flipping the pages. "Roy, yours means Peace Ruler. Cap's is Home Ruler, and Chet you're... Fortified."

Laughing, John patted Chet on the shoulder on his way to the coffee pot. "A buttress. That fits."

"Hey pal, Fortified can also mean supported or defended," Chet retorted indignantly.

"A fence," John taunted back.

"What's yours?" Roy asked, nodding to Marco while smiling at the daggers being thrown at Johnny's back by Chet's eyes.

Grinning, Lopez puffed out his chest in pride. "Warrior."

"Funny how they all fit us," Mike observed.

"Well, I don't think so," Chet snipped, still obviously irritated that Johnny was a God while he was a fort.

"Oh, come on, Chet," John said, realizing how upset the fireman was. "Roy's always stepping in and settling things down, Cap looks out for us like we were his family, and Mike and I, well," John motioned towards the engineer and himself, "it's pretty obvious. Besides, like you said, Fortified isn't such a bad thing."

"And it could be worse," Marco chimed in. "You could be named Giles."

"What does Giles mean?" Chet asked.

"Goat."

Rolling his eyes, Chet still didn't think it was fair. But, he supposed it could be worse. Hoping to divert attention from the meaning of his name, he tried to bring them back to the task at hand. "So, what are you going to name your daughter?" he asked looking at Roy.

"I don't know," Roy said, shrugging his shoulders helplessly.

Frowning, John sat back down. "Marco, why don't you start reading the names and we'll see what sounds good."

Fanning the pages of the small booklet, Marco gasped, "John, there must be hundreds of names here."

"Then get started," John commanded. Dragging the pen and paper that had been in front of Roy to him, he announced, "I'll write down any we think sound good and we'll go from there."

Eying Roy and seeing his shrug of 'what do we have to lose,' Marco hoped that today wasn't one of those days when they were never called out. "Okay," he said, doubt dripping from his voice. "Here we go. Ada Desoto. Adabel Desoto. Adah Desoto...."

The End

PS. In case you are wondering, I pulled the listing of names and meanings from the following website: www.baby-names-meanings.com. I'm sure there are other meanings and websites out there, too.