TITLE: Cold
AUTHOR: Vid Z.
PAIRING: Harm/Singer established
TIMELINE: AU season 7
DISCLAIMER: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc of the TV show JAG are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author of this fic. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
AUTHOR'S NOTES: my muse's been dead in the water for over a month and I'm trying to kick-start it with this one. Hope it works. Just a silly little fic.
SUMMARY: just a silly little humor fic.
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"Harm's been complaining quite often lately over freezing at night." said Loren as she and Harriet navigated through the bullpen.
"Freezing, ma'am?" asked Harriet puzzled.
"Yeah."
"Huh."
Another table dodged, but this time a few documents fell prey to Loren's reduced agility, causing a Petty Officer to pick them up.
"Apparently he always wakes up without his part of the blanket, freezing."
"How is that possible?" wondered Harriet aloud.
"Probably because you take up all of it, LT Rabb." answered Bud absent-mindedly from where he stood near them, perusing a file.
The two women stopped talking and walking, and a deadly silence fell onto the bullpen.
Everyone had heard Bud's reply and froze in shock. And fear. Harm and Cheggwidden commenced a tactical retreat to Cheggwidden's office, not wanting to stick around for the fallout.
Bud suddenly figured out what he'd said. And to whom. He froze. "Uh oh." He turned around only to see Loren glaring at him with blazing icy-blue eyes.
She drew up to her full height, which just made her heavily pregnant belly even more pronounced.
"Are you saying that I'm FAT, Lieutenant!?"
'Oh shit.' he thought just as Harriet moved forward.
"Ouch."
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"You know, CDR, your wife can be pretty terrifying if she wants to." said Chegwidden to Harm solemnly, as they were waiting out the aftermath of Bud's slip-up.
"Yes, sir." answered Harm and peered out of Tiner's office towards where Bud was wiltering under Loren's glare. From the corner of his eyes he caught Chegwidden send a sympathetic look at the new victim.
"The LT looks like he's about to have a heart attack." commented the older man mildly.
"Well, sir." answered Harm. "Pregnant women are dangerous enough as it is, with the mood swings and all." Chegwidden absent-mindedly rubbed at the scar on his head as an automatic response to Harm's words. The scar which had been left behind after Marcella had thrown a house implement at his head. He could definitely testify as to the truth of Harm's words.
"Now imagine the level of danger a pregnant woman presents and add in Loren's ability to inspire fear even when she's not pregnant." continued Harm and Chegwidden winced as the seriousness of the situation became clear to him.
"I love Loren and would do everything to make her happy and not to hurt her. But I'm also not a doormat and do not let her push me around. She's a strong woman and, I'm not boasting, she would've eaten for breakfast a lesser man long ago. We are true equal partners in this marriage. It's the only way a marriage should be. But now that Loren's pregnant, instead of my 110, I give 120 not to upset, anger, much less hurt her."
Chegwidden nodded approvingly. "That's because you love, respect and cherish her, son."
"Aye, sir." agreed Harm. "And because she knows where I keep my service weapon."
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As she walked alongside Loren across the bullpen Harriet thought about how much things had changed since Harm and Loren had gotten involved those 3 years ago.
It was one of Harriet's skills to be thinking about something while fully participating in a conversation, know what the other person was talking about and be able to answer any questions, which is why her musings went on uninterrupted and unnoticed by the older woman.
'Life is so strange.' she thought. 'A couple of years ago I didn't even like the woman and now, not only is she married to one of the best men I know, but she's also my best female friend. Life is definitely weird.'
Out of the corner of her eye she saw CDR Rabb and the Admiral talking near Harm's office. Had Harm really glanced in their direction, more specifically, directly at Loren, the second they opened the double doors of the JAG bullpen?
Yep, she was right. While he was talking to his CO Harm kept an eye on his wife, the sight of his beloved wife obviously soothing and calming to his eyes. Though she hadn't been looking at her, Harriet knew that Loren had immediately sought her husband out with her gaze also. It was so lovely seeing such devoted love and deep bond going strong in a military institution. Soumates was the term that immediately popped into Harriet's head and the way they communicated without words and sensed each other was just the proof for this.
'Where was I? Oh, yes, the weirdness of life.'
Even before Mac had left Harriet had found herself becoming friends with Loren.
Anyone would think it was logical to become friends when you're trying to find some common ground and play nice with someone, who you had before disliked.
But it was not so.
Harriet had only tried to make nice and made an effort to get to know Loren, the woman and not the officer, for the sake of her friendship with Harm, who's significant other was Loren.
Much to her surprise, once Loren had dropped the wall and the Ice Queen act, she'd discovered a pleasant and interesting person underneath the titanium shell.
Then, after Mac had left, Harriet had turned all of herself into her friendship with Loren, now the only other female officer at HQ.
When Harm and Loren got married not long after, Harriet was one of the few select people having been invited to the small, intimate wedding and was even Loren's Maid of Honor, in the limited capacity in which it was possible due to the small size of the wedding party and guests.
The two women continued growing closer, a process that even accelerated when Loren got pregnant with her and Harm's first child. The bond of both being mothers (or expectant mothers in Loren's case) made them even better friends and they spent many an off-duty hour discussing babies, baby clothes and everything other connected to babies and pregnancy.
Harriet had to admit that she was somewhat envy of Loren.
Loren's pregnancy was without any problems and, the little something that Harriet envied, Loren had not lost her graceful movements and agility, no matter how large her belly had grown.
That was also another reason for envy: Loren was keeping a strict exercise regiment and careful diet throughout her pregnancy and the new weight had gone only into her breasts, improving something already perfect, and belly. Loren was determined that she wouldn't let herself, her figure, go like some women did during the pregnancy and worked hard to keep her figure.
The pregnancy also gave her the glow that people like to talk about, but few women really give it off and, judging by the relaxed manner and unconscious grinning, Harm regularly proved that she he loved her and that she was still the hottest woman on the planet to him.
So deep was Harriet in her thoughts that she nearly missed her husband's slip-up.
Nearly.
Inwardly she groaned at her beloved spouse, who had not changed at all and had not yet managed to curb his bumbling side, not even with marriage and fatherhood having matured him. She loved him to death, but sometimes she could just hit him.
Loren's indignant exclamation had been expected and Harriet once again wondered how come the other woman didn't see herself as others did. She was most definitely not fat. But Harriet could very well understand that any pregnant woman, especially one who had always kept in shape and had been proud of her not-pregnant figure, would feel self-conscious and believe she was fat because of the baby growing inside her, extending her belly.
Harriet was also fully aware of how the hormones can mess with a pregnant woman and, to prevent either her husband being murdered or to stop Loren from bursting into tears, she moved forward with intent in her eyes.
"Ouch."
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Petty Officer Grimes shook his head wonderingly as LT Rabb and LTJG Sims passed him by, still not being able to believe just how much had changed in the past 3 years.
When Harm and Loren got involved all that time ago, after having had to spend 5 days together in solitude after a snow storm had caught them on the road and they were forced to take shelter in an abandoned cabin, when returning from a case, no-one had given them a snowball's chance in hell of succeeding.
It was about 9 months after former LCDR Brumby had come to DC to "be with the woman he loved", as he claimed, but many people, except Mac, had seen through the lie to the controlling man underneath; and 6 months after Harm and Renee had broken up.
Harm and Loren had sure delivered a bomb when the staff found out why Harm and Loren wouldn't be partners on cases any longer.
No-one had even noticed that they were missing as they were both to start their downtime after the case and they had reported to the Admiral that the case was closed and no charges would be brought up against the suspects.
Thus they had spent 5 days alone, with no-one but each other to rely on for survival and company.
No-one knew what exactly had happened during those 5 days in that little cabin, but they were both, not only changed after their experience, but also closer. Many were shocked at their new unconditional trust, companionship and reliance upon the other.
Neither Harm nor Loren had shared what they'd gone through, but the biggest gossipers talked about having to share body heat and other ways of producing heat that the sharing had led to.
Those who'd been shocked by this new pairing and didn't believe in the success of the relationship, were shocked even more when Harm and Loren, not only grew even closer, if that had been possible, but had clearly fallen in love and had definitely not broken up. Those few stubborn souls, believing that it was just a matter of time before the unlikely couple fell apart, were then stunned into submission when one day, a year after the start of their relationship, Harm and Loren walked into the office wearing matching gold bands and matching huge-ass grins.
Apparently, except for a few close friends, like LT's Roberts, CDR Turner, RADM Chegwidden; and their families, no-one else had been invited to the small, intimate wedding. The former LtCol Sarah MacKenzie, Marine officer and lawyer; now Mrs Sarah Brumby, housewife of an Aussie officer, had married Brumby and moved to Oz 9 months before that and had never been heard from again, which is why she had not been among the invited ones.
Both Rabbs remained at HQ, but different departments. Admiral Morris had requested LT Rabb as his aide, as a preparation for her to later become a judge herself.
This arrangement had many good sides and none of the bad ones: her career did not suffer, it even received a small boost, she still had a chance at the position of JAG, she stayed married to Harm and she got to see him all day, every day, as before during the breaks, as her office was just on the same floor as Harm's. They saw more of each other each day than 90 percent of married couples in the US.
Now, 2 years later, CDR and LT Rabb were expecting their first child.
Even at 8 months pregnant LT Loren Rabb was still drop dead gorgeous, pregnancy definitely agreed with her, and Alex couldn't help but envy her husband.
A great, promising and prospering career, a drop dead gorgeous, intelligent, successful wife, who definitely had to be not boring, and a kid on the way. The man had it all and it was clear that he would not do anything to screw it up.
'And, maybe', decided Alex as he caught a beautiful female PO from the Records Department eye him appreciatively 'Maybe I can have it as well. Not a paradise on Earth, only soulmates like CDR and LT Rabb can have that, but something damn close.'
And he went off to insure he'd have just that.
PO Liz Granger was most agreeable with that plan.
THE END