Love's Labors Found 1/2
Disclaimer: JAG is not mine, but baby Morgan is. Even though she has already been "created" on the show, I named her and gave her a personality. J
Authors Note: Okay guys. Here's my second fic. Hope you all like it. It's a long 2 parter. I guess I'm just a bit wordy. Hmm… oh well. Anyway, this takes place in the near future. Harriet has had her baby and it's a girl. Her name is Morgan. Umm.. I'll try to have the next part out by tomorrow. It's long so it takes me a long, long, LONG time to type it. So anyway, hope you all like it. Feedback is muy bien. Mucho gusto.
Love's Labors Found 1/2
As Harm rushed up the steps to Bud and Harriet's front porch, he pulled down his umbrella and shook all the clinging raindrops off to the side. What a night, he thought. After three hours of downpour the streets and lawns were finally starting to flood. Ringing the doorbell to their home, Harm waited outside for someone to let him in. He had decided to drop in and pick Bud's brain about a certain case he was working on. Bud had offered his help earlier in the week, but Harm had declined, assuring Bud that he would be able to manage it by himself. Now, stuck with no leads or comprehensible evidence, he decided it was about time to throw pride to the wind and shift this thing into gear.
Inside, he could ear a muffled " I'll get it," and the pitter-patter of little feet running down the stairs. Harm grinned to himself. Harriet had told him that ever since they had started letting AJ answer the door, there was absolutely no way to reach it before him. He heard the lock jiggle a bit as the little boy behind it fought with the doorbolt and then finally the doorknob started to turn hesitantly, as if apprehensive to let him in. Finally, the door swung open with a swoosh and a little boy in race car pajama bottoms and an Indian headdress popped out from behind.
"Hey buddy," Harm said as AJ instantly recognized his face.
"Uncle Harm," AJ said as he flung himself into his Uncle's arms. Harm picked him up and held him before him.
" What's with the outfit kiddo?" he asked as he threw him over his shoulder, carrying him upside down like a potato sack into the den. AJ giggled.
" We was playing Cowboys and Indians, Uncle Harm," he said into Harm's back.
"Oh you were, huh?" He felt a slight nod and heard a muffled 'yep'. " Well, I see the Indian but where's the Cowboy?" Harm asked as he lowered AJ onto the couch.
"Right here, partner," he heard a woman's voice answer behind him. He turned around to find Mac holding a cooing baby Morgan, who was just about as dressed as AJ was.
"Mac," he laughed. " What are you doing here?"
" I could ask you the same thing. Unless, you had a sudden lapse of memory and got a little confused as to where home was," she teased, shifting Morgan to her other hip, while walking towards an AJ, who had not so inconspicuously just hidden himself underneath the couch pillows. He tried not to laugh when he looked over and saw three red feathers and a foot poking out from beneath.
" So, what are you doing here, Harm?" she asked again, handing Morgan to him as she snuck up on little Sitting Bull. He cradled the baby on her stomach and started to lean, side to side.
" Actually, I was coming by to pick Bud's brain for the Collin's court martial. I need some help with some major brainstorming. But, you know, I don't think I noticed your car on the way in," he inquired.
"Actually, my car's getting new tires. Harriet just gave me a ride," she said as she crept towards the couch. She put a finger to her lips as she indicated that she was about to make her move. She slowly reached out for the tiny feet poking out from beneath the pillow and seized it with her fingers. The pillows immediately flew from the couch and the den erupted into uncontrollable giggles as Mac tickled AJ's feet. " Not so tough anymore are ya little guy." Mac laughed as she grabbed AJ round the waist and swung him in front of her, holding him so his head was just barely touching the floor.
" No fair," AJ giggled. " You're bigger than me Aunt Mac." She gently lowered him onto his back and bent over him.
" Then I guess you better hurry and go get finished getting ready for bed, or else I'll stick Uncle Harm on you next time," she said as she straightened up and looked over at Harm.
" Yikes!" AJ exclaimed as he sprung up from the floor and ran up the stairs.
" He being a troublemaker?" Harm grinned as he hoisted a tired Morgan, who was starting to fuss, up over his shoulder. He started to pat her back gently, hoping to help quiet her.
" Nah, just a typical four-year old. You just gotta show 'em who's boss is all," Mac teased as she started putting all the pillows back in their familiar spots.
"Oh yeah? Didn't look to me like 'the boss' had everything under control when I got here."
Mac turned around, putting her hands on her hips and stuck her tongue out at him in play. He laughed at her ridiculous third grade imitation. She walked towards him and reached her arms out for Morgan. He removed her from his shoulder and handed her over. Harm watched her tenderness and natural ease with the baby. He watched as Mac lifted her above her head and blew a raspberry on her little tummy, eliciting giggles from both of the girls. As she brought her back down, she placed a quick kiss on her forehead. He watched as she made silly faces at Morgan, who looked on with wide eyes full of amused delight. He loved how Morgan's smile turned into a huge, toothless void whenever she laughed. And you know, the truth of it was, now that he knew Bud was not around, he could just go home and enjoy a relaxing evening on the couch with the new John Grisham her bought yesterday. But as he watched Mac and Morgan together and when he remembered how she had interacted with AJ earlier, he was filled with a feeling that he could not describe. One that came very close to a sense of devotion. Devotion to the idea of spending time with Mac and their godchildren. A devotion to one day having a family of his own so he could experience this everyday. And simply, a devotion to the incredible woman who was standing right in front of him. It was hook, line and sinker. He was being reeled in but he didn't care. " You know, Mac. If you want me to, I can stay here and help you put them to bed. And then I could give you a ride home so Harriet wouldn't have to get out in this monsoon," he offered, hoping she would accept.
Mac quit playing with Morgan and put her on her hip. The baby gurgled in disappointment. She looked at Harm with an expression of mainly gratitude and some relief. And you know, there was something else there… what was it again? Oh yeah. Total happiness. She gave him a wide smile. " You know Harm. I would really, really appreciate that. And maybe you'll actually be able to get AJ to bed."
He grinned at that. AJ was always the difficult one when it came time to saying goodnight. " I'll do my best."
Suddenly, there was a loud crash upstairs followed by some little AJ giggling. Harm's smile immediately fell in dread. They looked at each other in exasperation. But then Mac's frown turned into a sly grin as she passed by Harm, carrying Morgan up to bed. " I think that would be your cue, Harm," she said going up the stairs.
" You know, Mac if you want-,"
" Oh no. He's all yours!" she tossed over her shoulder, leaving Harm at the bottom of the stairs with a lopsided grin creeping across his face.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AJ had already gone through two glasses of water, one ' I seriously have to go to, Uncle Harm' trip to the bathroom and Dr. Seuss's Green Eggs and Ham ritual bedtime story before Harm was finally able to get him in the bed and under the covers. He was beginning to wonder what Mac had fed the kid when AJ's voice popped his thought bubble.
" Uncle Harm?"
" Yeah, kiddo," Harm said, kneeling down next to AJ's twin bed. He gave AJ's hair a ruffle and propped his head up on his elbow. AJ giggled.
" Are you and Aunt Mac married?" he asked totally innocently.. Harm just about croaked, his eyes widening in astonishment, wondering where in God's green earth this had come from. He'd rather explain the birds and the bees.
" What? AJ what--why… why would you ask that?"
"Because mommy and daddy told me that when two people are in love with each other, they get married." Harm looked at AJ's face. Good God, the kid was totally serious. " What makes you think that Aunt Mac and I are in love with each other?" Oh Lord, why couldn't it have been the birds and the bees?
AJ propped himself up on his elbow, imitating Harm's previous position. He looked him straight in the face. Harm had to bite down on the urge to laugh at the totally bizarre situation. With his eyebrows squished together in total seriousness and his mouth pursed, AJ looked like he was getting ready to analyze Harm's mind. And though he would never admit it, Harm was getting nervous. Well, maybe not nervous… a little anxious perhaps. But the worst part was that this preschooler turned shrink was four and a half-years old. In the position that he was in at the moment, Harm could almost imagine that the next words out of his mouth would be something like, 'Well, the way I see it…' or, ' According to my calculations…" So, he was not expecting the words that AJ did say.
He simply answered, " Because you just are."
The nervous smile that was on Harm's lips disappeared quickly with that one, straightforward statement. So simple, yet so profound. So… un-complicated. There were no formulas or calculations that he needed to work out in his head. There were no measurements AJ took to reach his conclusion. A four-year old was able to see what he had been trying to decipher for… forever. And then he realized. It wasn't complicated. It wasn't mind-boggling. He wouldn't need to quit JAG to become a Rocket Scientist. He was in love with Mac just because he was. And the amazing little boy in front of him was the result of that same kind of love. Bud and Harriet had loved each other from the moment they had met. They weren't scared of rejection. They were never in denial. They weren't happy because they had to be. They just were. And as he turned his head to look out AJ's open door to see Mac cradling Morgan, humming a tune he couldn't recognize and gently rocking her in the rocker, across the hall, he came to a conclusion: he didn't want to hold back any longer. He wanted to be with Mac whenever he wanted. He wanted to hold her and laugh with her whenever he wanted. He wanted to touch her, and kiss her and make love to her whenever he wanted. He needed to because he truly, for the first time, realized that he could love her without any inhibitions.
He turned back to AJ with a new expression on his face. One of ultimate release and happiness reached. He leaned forward and kissed AJ on the head gently, thanking him for his guidance that he was oblivious to. " You know what AJ?" He said pulling back. The little boy smiled. " You are absolutely right. You are so smart." He tapped his finger to AJ's forehead.
" Do you think I'm the smartest kid in the world?" he asked, his eyes excited, waiting for his Uncle Harm's approval. Harm laughed and pinched his nose with his index finger and thumb.
" No, I think you are the smartest kid in the universe." AJ's mouth opened into a silent 'WOW' and his widened in astonishment. " G'night buddy," Harm said, tucking AJ into his 'snug as a bug in a rug' preference. He stood up and turned off the bedside light, leaving AJ's nightlight to subtly light the room. He gently closed the door behind him as he took a deep breath and turned around. It was about time to get on with his future.
End Part 1/2
Disclaimer: JAG is not mine, but baby Morgan is. Even though she has already been "created" on the show, I named her and gave her a personality. J
Authors Note: Okay guys. Here's my second fic. Hope you all like it. It's a long 2 parter. I guess I'm just a bit wordy. Hmm… oh well. Anyway, this takes place in the near future. Harriet has had her baby and it's a girl. Her name is Morgan. Umm.. I'll try to have the next part out by tomorrow. It's long so it takes me a long, long, LONG time to type it. So anyway, hope you all like it. Feedback is muy bien. Mucho gusto.
Love's Labors Found 1/2
As Harm rushed up the steps to Bud and Harriet's front porch, he pulled down his umbrella and shook all the clinging raindrops off to the side. What a night, he thought. After three hours of downpour the streets and lawns were finally starting to flood. Ringing the doorbell to their home, Harm waited outside for someone to let him in. He had decided to drop in and pick Bud's brain about a certain case he was working on. Bud had offered his help earlier in the week, but Harm had declined, assuring Bud that he would be able to manage it by himself. Now, stuck with no leads or comprehensible evidence, he decided it was about time to throw pride to the wind and shift this thing into gear.
Inside, he could ear a muffled " I'll get it," and the pitter-patter of little feet running down the stairs. Harm grinned to himself. Harriet had told him that ever since they had started letting AJ answer the door, there was absolutely no way to reach it before him. He heard the lock jiggle a bit as the little boy behind it fought with the doorbolt and then finally the doorknob started to turn hesitantly, as if apprehensive to let him in. Finally, the door swung open with a swoosh and a little boy in race car pajama bottoms and an Indian headdress popped out from behind.
"Hey buddy," Harm said as AJ instantly recognized his face.
"Uncle Harm," AJ said as he flung himself into his Uncle's arms. Harm picked him up and held him before him.
" What's with the outfit kiddo?" he asked as he threw him over his shoulder, carrying him upside down like a potato sack into the den. AJ giggled.
" We was playing Cowboys and Indians, Uncle Harm," he said into Harm's back.
"Oh you were, huh?" He felt a slight nod and heard a muffled 'yep'. " Well, I see the Indian but where's the Cowboy?" Harm asked as he lowered AJ onto the couch.
"Right here, partner," he heard a woman's voice answer behind him. He turned around to find Mac holding a cooing baby Morgan, who was just about as dressed as AJ was.
"Mac," he laughed. " What are you doing here?"
" I could ask you the same thing. Unless, you had a sudden lapse of memory and got a little confused as to where home was," she teased, shifting Morgan to her other hip, while walking towards an AJ, who had not so inconspicuously just hidden himself underneath the couch pillows. He tried not to laugh when he looked over and saw three red feathers and a foot poking out from beneath.
" So, what are you doing here, Harm?" she asked again, handing Morgan to him as she snuck up on little Sitting Bull. He cradled the baby on her stomach and started to lean, side to side.
" Actually, I was coming by to pick Bud's brain for the Collin's court martial. I need some help with some major brainstorming. But, you know, I don't think I noticed your car on the way in," he inquired.
"Actually, my car's getting new tires. Harriet just gave me a ride," she said as she crept towards the couch. She put a finger to her lips as she indicated that she was about to make her move. She slowly reached out for the tiny feet poking out from beneath the pillow and seized it with her fingers. The pillows immediately flew from the couch and the den erupted into uncontrollable giggles as Mac tickled AJ's feet. " Not so tough anymore are ya little guy." Mac laughed as she grabbed AJ round the waist and swung him in front of her, holding him so his head was just barely touching the floor.
" No fair," AJ giggled. " You're bigger than me Aunt Mac." She gently lowered him onto his back and bent over him.
" Then I guess you better hurry and go get finished getting ready for bed, or else I'll stick Uncle Harm on you next time," she said as she straightened up and looked over at Harm.
" Yikes!" AJ exclaimed as he sprung up from the floor and ran up the stairs.
" He being a troublemaker?" Harm grinned as he hoisted a tired Morgan, who was starting to fuss, up over his shoulder. He started to pat her back gently, hoping to help quiet her.
" Nah, just a typical four-year old. You just gotta show 'em who's boss is all," Mac teased as she started putting all the pillows back in their familiar spots.
"Oh yeah? Didn't look to me like 'the boss' had everything under control when I got here."
Mac turned around, putting her hands on her hips and stuck her tongue out at him in play. He laughed at her ridiculous third grade imitation. She walked towards him and reached her arms out for Morgan. He removed her from his shoulder and handed her over. Harm watched her tenderness and natural ease with the baby. He watched as Mac lifted her above her head and blew a raspberry on her little tummy, eliciting giggles from both of the girls. As she brought her back down, she placed a quick kiss on her forehead. He watched as she made silly faces at Morgan, who looked on with wide eyes full of amused delight. He loved how Morgan's smile turned into a huge, toothless void whenever she laughed. And you know, the truth of it was, now that he knew Bud was not around, he could just go home and enjoy a relaxing evening on the couch with the new John Grisham her bought yesterday. But as he watched Mac and Morgan together and when he remembered how she had interacted with AJ earlier, he was filled with a feeling that he could not describe. One that came very close to a sense of devotion. Devotion to the idea of spending time with Mac and their godchildren. A devotion to one day having a family of his own so he could experience this everyday. And simply, a devotion to the incredible woman who was standing right in front of him. It was hook, line and sinker. He was being reeled in but he didn't care. " You know, Mac. If you want me to, I can stay here and help you put them to bed. And then I could give you a ride home so Harriet wouldn't have to get out in this monsoon," he offered, hoping she would accept.
Mac quit playing with Morgan and put her on her hip. The baby gurgled in disappointment. She looked at Harm with an expression of mainly gratitude and some relief. And you know, there was something else there… what was it again? Oh yeah. Total happiness. She gave him a wide smile. " You know Harm. I would really, really appreciate that. And maybe you'll actually be able to get AJ to bed."
He grinned at that. AJ was always the difficult one when it came time to saying goodnight. " I'll do my best."
Suddenly, there was a loud crash upstairs followed by some little AJ giggling. Harm's smile immediately fell in dread. They looked at each other in exasperation. But then Mac's frown turned into a sly grin as she passed by Harm, carrying Morgan up to bed. " I think that would be your cue, Harm," she said going up the stairs.
" You know, Mac if you want-,"
" Oh no. He's all yours!" she tossed over her shoulder, leaving Harm at the bottom of the stairs with a lopsided grin creeping across his face.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AJ had already gone through two glasses of water, one ' I seriously have to go to, Uncle Harm' trip to the bathroom and Dr. Seuss's Green Eggs and Ham ritual bedtime story before Harm was finally able to get him in the bed and under the covers. He was beginning to wonder what Mac had fed the kid when AJ's voice popped his thought bubble.
" Uncle Harm?"
" Yeah, kiddo," Harm said, kneeling down next to AJ's twin bed. He gave AJ's hair a ruffle and propped his head up on his elbow. AJ giggled.
" Are you and Aunt Mac married?" he asked totally innocently.. Harm just about croaked, his eyes widening in astonishment, wondering where in God's green earth this had come from. He'd rather explain the birds and the bees.
" What? AJ what--why… why would you ask that?"
"Because mommy and daddy told me that when two people are in love with each other, they get married." Harm looked at AJ's face. Good God, the kid was totally serious. " What makes you think that Aunt Mac and I are in love with each other?" Oh Lord, why couldn't it have been the birds and the bees?
AJ propped himself up on his elbow, imitating Harm's previous position. He looked him straight in the face. Harm had to bite down on the urge to laugh at the totally bizarre situation. With his eyebrows squished together in total seriousness and his mouth pursed, AJ looked like he was getting ready to analyze Harm's mind. And though he would never admit it, Harm was getting nervous. Well, maybe not nervous… a little anxious perhaps. But the worst part was that this preschooler turned shrink was four and a half-years old. In the position that he was in at the moment, Harm could almost imagine that the next words out of his mouth would be something like, 'Well, the way I see it…' or, ' According to my calculations…" So, he was not expecting the words that AJ did say.
He simply answered, " Because you just are."
The nervous smile that was on Harm's lips disappeared quickly with that one, straightforward statement. So simple, yet so profound. So… un-complicated. There were no formulas or calculations that he needed to work out in his head. There were no measurements AJ took to reach his conclusion. A four-year old was able to see what he had been trying to decipher for… forever. And then he realized. It wasn't complicated. It wasn't mind-boggling. He wouldn't need to quit JAG to become a Rocket Scientist. He was in love with Mac just because he was. And the amazing little boy in front of him was the result of that same kind of love. Bud and Harriet had loved each other from the moment they had met. They weren't scared of rejection. They were never in denial. They weren't happy because they had to be. They just were. And as he turned his head to look out AJ's open door to see Mac cradling Morgan, humming a tune he couldn't recognize and gently rocking her in the rocker, across the hall, he came to a conclusion: he didn't want to hold back any longer. He wanted to be with Mac whenever he wanted. He wanted to hold her and laugh with her whenever he wanted. He wanted to touch her, and kiss her and make love to her whenever he wanted. He needed to because he truly, for the first time, realized that he could love her without any inhibitions.
He turned back to AJ with a new expression on his face. One of ultimate release and happiness reached. He leaned forward and kissed AJ on the head gently, thanking him for his guidance that he was oblivious to. " You know what AJ?" He said pulling back. The little boy smiled. " You are absolutely right. You are so smart." He tapped his finger to AJ's forehead.
" Do you think I'm the smartest kid in the world?" he asked, his eyes excited, waiting for his Uncle Harm's approval. Harm laughed and pinched his nose with his index finger and thumb.
" No, I think you are the smartest kid in the universe." AJ's mouth opened into a silent 'WOW' and his widened in astonishment. " G'night buddy," Harm said, tucking AJ into his 'snug as a bug in a rug' preference. He stood up and turned off the bedside light, leaving AJ's nightlight to subtly light the room. He gently closed the door behind him as he took a deep breath and turned around. It was about time to get on with his future.
End Part 1/2