Here is my latest story, hot out of my occasionally frightening, occasionally intelligent, occasionally confused mind. Have the first three chapters done, am working on more, will post more later this week, I promise. Please review!!!!

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"Anything come for me, Radar?" BJ Hunnicutt asked the company clerk when he came into the Swamp one hot day.

"No, sir, not this time." Radar O'Reilly handed Hawkeye Pierce a letter and a magazine sized plain brown envelope, and tossed a letter onto Major Charles Winchester's bed. Then he stood there for another moment, fanning himself with the four letters he still held.

"Again! That's the fourth mail call with nothing! Are you sure you're sorting it right?" BJ's tone made Radar unconsciously draw away from him and towards Hawkeye, who was looking at his friend with surprise. BJ rarely spoke like that, and never towards Radar.

BJ caught the look and demanded, "What? Letter form your dad not long enough?"

The expression on Radar's face now was utter shock, and the emotion was mirrored on Hawkeye's although to a lesser extent. BJ had wondered to him, worried, if something had happened back home and that's why no one was writing. Still there was no reason to attack his friends.

"What are you standing there staring at mw for? Go deliver the mail!" And he flopped down onto his cot in a huff, facing away from Hawkeye and Radar.

"He! I…!" Radar looked rapidly between the two captains, "I sort the mail just fine! I can't deliver what isn't here." Radar drew himself up to his full height and marched out, slamming the door so hard it sounded like something broke.

Hawkeye sat there for a minute staring at BJ's back, considering what had just happened. Then he swallowed and said quietly, "I'm sorry you haven't heard from home in a while."

"Yeah." BJ didn't turn around.

"Is there anything you'd like to say? You wanna talk about it?"

"What am I supposed to say? Just read your letter and leave me alone." A moment later he added, "Try not to rustle the paper too loudly."

"Okay!" Hawkeye grabbed his letter and left, shaking his head.

***

Hawkeye ended up in Radar's office. He sat on his cot and had finished reading his letter by the time Radar came in.

"Cap'n." Radar greeted him, and it wasn't as warm as it usually was.

"Radar, I'm sorry about how BJ acted. He's worried something's wrong back home. He was just letting off some steam."

"Yeah, well, I don't control what comes in."

"We know. You're great at your job."

Radar shrugged at that, he didn't like it when people called too much attention to his job performance. "He didn't have to yell at me like that, or at you either."

Now it was Hawkeye who shrugged. "I'm sorry he shouted at you, and I'm sure he will be too, when he cools down. As for yelling at me, a while back a young but very wise man showed us how important it was that we not let little things hurt our friendship. So I'm going to consider how BJ's feeling, and forget that he acted like a ninny."

Radar looked thoughtful as he considered that, but there was still some fight left in him. "I bet you think I should just forget it too, don'tcha? Well you can forget that. I want an apology."

Hawkeye nodded. He hoped for everyone's sake-not least of all his own-that this would all blow over quickly and quietly.

But he had a very bad feeling.

***

There's chapter one. The review button is right there, please use it. :-)