I watched JAG when it aired, but only recently got a chance to re-watch the series. I watched Silent Service a few days ago and loved it just as much as I did the first time, and this plot bunny, inspired by the quote at the end of the episode, just would not go away. And when I get persistent plot bunnies, I write them. :D So here is my first JAG fanfic, set just before the final scene. I own nothing.

She heard the footsteps approaching before the person spoke. "Hey."

The raspy voice probably wouldn't be recognizable if it hadn't belonged to the man she'd spent the last three years working so closely with. Mac tilted her head toward it. "Hey."

"Still can't see?"

She cracked her eyes open. "It's just a little blurry. And it stings." She squeezed her eyes shut for a moment before opening them again, letting out a sigh. "How's your throat."

"It's gonna bruise pretty bad," Harm said, stepping closer to the bed that the major was resting on and sitting on a metal chest that had been set down near it. "But at least I can talk now. How is yours?"

"Hurts," Mac admitted. She squinted slightly; it helped her see Harm better.

He fondly put his hand over her eyes. "Don't strain."

"I might give you the same advice, Sailor," Mac said. "Your voice won't get better if you keep using it."

Harm grinned. "You always were looking for a way to get me to shut up, weren't you?"

Mac smiled back. "I always knew it just was a matter of time." She sighed. "But wow. Today." She looked away, and then back at Harm. "I never realized how terrifying it is to lose one of your senses."

She felt Harm take one of her hands before he spoke. "But it all worked out, right?"

She turned her head to him. "I could have died. We both could have." She didn't know why she felt the need to state the obvious; Harm had given her mouth to mouth to save her life, of course he knew that she could have died. "That Hodge…he's a brilliantly evil man. He had this all planned out, even a plan B if one of us figured him out."

"But his plan wasn't without its flaws. You know what his critical error was?" Harm asked her.

"Not keeping an eye on where you were while he choked the life out of me?" She pulled herself into a sitting position and touched the now empty space beside her. "Sit."

"Assuming that our inability to get along was going to hinder us working together." Harm eased down onto the bed and gave her a smile. "Especially when it really counted."

Mac closed her eyes to lessen the sting. Of course she and Harm had hit "more than just a bump in the road" in their working relationship. Of course they'd been at each other's throats for the past week. But these were temporary conflicts, minor compared to everything else they'd been through, and temporary, minor, and the past week were nothing compared to always, and always was the word, the time frame, to describe when they'd protect each other. They may have been at each other's throats the past few days, but it was infinite, the number of days that they had each other's backs. "Well, we know now the solution. You know, whenever we have a lot disagreements."

"We can't expect to be put in a life or death situation every time we have problems," Harm said.

"Still," Mac said, smiling and tilting her head so she could see him better – like that really helped. "You being the eyes, and I the voice? It worked out pretty well."

He grinned again. "Yeah. Hey," he added. "Come here."

Mac smiled and scooted the few inches closer to him and put her head on his shoulder, feeling his arm go around her, and she took his free hand with both of her own. "Thanks for saving my life," she whispered.

"Ah," Harm said, trying to shrug it off, "you know I just did it because I hate breaking in new partners. Besides, you'd do the same for me."

"Don't try to make it less than it is," Mac said teasingly. "You know it's because you can't live without me."

"Maybe that's what you wish was…"

"Hey!" She raised her head and put a finger to his lips. "Don't talk. Your voice will stay hoarse."

"You can't order me around," he said. "I outrank you."

She smiled. "Are you really pulling the rank card right now?" She put her head back on his shoulder. "You know I'm saying this as a concerned friend." She knew that he knew that, but for some reason - maybe because they really could have both died today - she needed him to know that she did care about him, and beyond, far beyond the bond that could be assumed that partners in this line of work had. They'd been to Hell and back together today, and it wasn't the first time. As she'd told people before, he was the best partner she'd ever had and could ever hope to have. And even in the moments of greatest frustration with the commander, she never stopped caring. She couldn't - not after all they'd been through, and certainly not after all he'd done for her. She had heard that living through a near - death experience could make people closer to one another, and not only did she feel closer to Harm now, she had had the opportunity to be reminded of how wonderful they were together, in the present and the past. And she was grateful - so many never had that sort of a chance.

Harm squeezed her hands. "Mac?"

She blinked, coming out of her thoughts. "Sorry. I'm just a little dizzy."

"Do you want me to get the doctor?"

"No," Mac said. "It passed. What were you saying?"

"They expect us to meet with the captain in an hour. Want me to stay here until then?"

Mac nodded, closing her eyes again. "We've spent too much time wanting to be apart recently. It'd be stupid to continue that now, don't you think?"

"I have to say that for the first time in nearly a week, I agree wholeheartedly."

Mac smiled, returning the hand squeeze. "Good. I'm glad."

"A healthy dose of self-criticism is always useful, but we should never underestimate our support." – Silent Service

Thanks to anyone who read! I know I'm not a regular here. :)