First of all, thanks for everybody that is still interested in reading this. All of your reviews in the past and the recent favs just push me to keep writing. This story has been weighing in my mind and this chapter in particular as it is the climax of the story and what will bring all of the situations together. I have been battling with this chapter for over a year now and it is finally time to let it go. The sense of relief that I get from being so close to the finish line with this story was so great that I posted this without having my beta read it. (Sorry D! I know you told me I could count on you at any time but I couldn't wait!) So any mistakes that you see here are mine and any that you find you can point them out to me. Hopefully it will all make sense. Here's to hoping that on the 10 year anniversary of this story, I can finally finish this!
I still have a lot of ideas about my other story "Battle for Earth" but I need to organize them better. I am also working on the new chapter for that one too. Aside from that, I have started laying out the outline for a new story that I am really excited about! I will not put it forth though until I finish this one, I am not that cruel! Again, thanks to all that have written reviews and have read my story.
Rick finished arranging his clothes as he made his way to the control panel. Thankfully his staff was highly efficient and had everything ready for his arrival. After a quick check that all communications were established and all pilots had been scrambled by the First Officer, he turned to look at his wife at her station. The "bridge" had been set up a few feet away and at a higher level. Catching his wife's eyes he saw hot anger still shining in them before her gaze broke away from his.
Rick winced again. He should not have let that discussion get so carried away. As soon as it started, he should have intervened between his younger self and his wife. But Rick's words had dug deep into his own feelings as an old pilot and his resolution had flagged. Unfortunately it had only taken those seconds for his wife to catch up with his mood. The ride to the base had been strained. It had been filled with a silence that spoke volumes. It was apparent that she still felt the same way.
Shaking himself, Rick decided to put his feelings aside for now since the situation at hand needed his immediate attention. He would prove to his wife that he enjoyed his position by doing his best job and being at his most professional. All of the sudden a commotion in the bridge caught everybody's attention. The First officer exclaimed, "Oh my...! Is that Skull one?"
Everybody looked to the monitors to see the last plane that had joined the formation. Rick watched in absolute shock as he recognized his plane. All pairs of eyes turned their attention to him.
"Sir?" - the first officer, Lieutenant Carlyle said. "The pilot is not registered nor has he provided proper identification." She said worry etched in her face.
Rick and Lisa looked at each other, both knowing full well who was piloting that plane. Recovering swiftly from his shock and averting his gaze from her accusing one, Rick said "He is Ensign… Baker." He told Carlyle, surprising himself with the name. "I allowed him to fly based on Colonel Fokker's recommendation. I gave him my plane since he has not been assigned one yet." The explanation sounded lame to his ears but if anybody else thought it odd they did not dare question him.
"Patch me with Colonel Fokker." He ordered his aide. In a few seconds Roy's smiling face came thru the Comm tack.
"Colonel Fokker here, waiting for orders Admiral."
"Colonel, Skull one has joined your group as per my command." He said, and Roy's eyes grew big but before he could ask, Rick continued. "Ensign Baker is piloting it as per your recommendation." Roy's eyes almost bugged out at that comment. "He will be in communication with you directly as per the nature of his assignment. Please ensure that he follows all orders from the bridge." He ordered in a steady voice, even though inside he was freaking out and he prayed that Roy would not question his orders in front of everybody.
But Roy knew his little Brother very well. He knew when something was fishy and he could tell there was something very wrong. The Admiral's posture was stiff as the day he had given his first speech in public and his desperate eyes pleaded with him for his compliance. He answered. "Very well Admiral. I'll make sure Ensign Baker will follow proper instructions. Roger out." He said signing off, not without a silent promise that he would grill his little brother as soon as they were alone.
Rick sighed with relief. He owed his big brother BIG TIME. As he relaxed his posture, he looked around. All curious faces avoided his and turned to the task at hand. The only gaze he did not want to meet but he could feel burning on his back was his wife's.
The whole crew was smart enough to question their superior officers but as they secretly watched, they could feel the tension between them. That only served to reinforce the rumor that the Admirals were having problems.
"I can't believe he did that! What kind of idiotic stunt was he trying to pull?" said an irate Lisa as she followed her husband into his office.
"I guess he was doing what he thought was right." Rick said wearily, it had been a long night and day. They both had pulled a 16 hour shift and were not done with half of the reports. On top of everything, they now had to deal with the relocation and reconstruction of the areas that had been affected by the attack.
"Oh, so you are condoning his actions?" she said challenging, watching as he threw himself down on a chair. She knew he was tired, that it wasn't the best time to confront him about this… but she just could not stop her words from escaping, like pus escaping a festering wound.
"I am just telling you the facts."
"I can believe you still think like that. Does he understand that he could have cost you your job?" Rick sighed but did not answer. "What are you doing about the pilot you used as a cover?"
"After the first attack wave was completed, I snuck out to see Baker. Thankfully some pilots had taken him out drinking the night before and he was still nursing a hangover. I just had a serious talk with him. Dude was so scared I doubt he will ever talk. I did promise though I would personally oversee his training from now on."
Lisa snorted. "How did you come up with his name on the first place?"
"Roy and Max were joking around some time ago, saying that he reminded them of me in my younger days. His flying style and his attitude."
"Oh, great just what we need, another undisciplined pilot!" - she said sarcastically.
Rick's eyes turned into ice as he regarded his wife. "I resent that." He said and left before she could see how much the comment had hurt.
As soon as Rick left, Lisa relaxed her defense pose, defeated. She had reverted to her old role automatically. She had found herself doing that more and more during this past month. She felt horrible for belittling her husband but in the heat of the fight, she had not measured her words. Only her husband could make her lose her temper like that! That was why their fights were legendary. The more she cared to hold on to him, the more she turned into her commander mode as Rick used to call her. In order to not get hurt, she lashed out, attacking first.
For a split second, she debated between going after him or going over the reports that were waiting for her attention. Again, she decided to revert to her old persona and bury herself in work. She did not want to deal with the scary thought that maybe her husband was getting tired of her.
"I thought I would find you here." Said a quiet, weary voice.
Rick turned around, startled. He could see the tall figure of the Admiral silhouetted by the hangar's doorway. Rick had been sitting for a while, illuminated by the rays of the dying sun that filtered in through the skylight.
"Why are you still here? The battle was over hours ago." The Admiral asked as he approached. He had waited until it was prudent to leave and after a quick stop for more disturbing news from Minerva, Dr. Lang's assistant, he had finally been able to track down his errant doppelganger.
"I guess I am ashamed." Rick had to confess. It wasn't so hard to admit it; after all, he was talking to himself. It had been cool to help out and he always felt good when he could save lives… It was fine when he was in his own lifetime, but here…. Here it was another matter. Here he was a different person; he could have actually gotten other people in trouble.
"Are you having regrets? Remember what I told you about them." Hunter reminded him of the conversation they had had almost a month past.
"How can you be so calm? I could have screwed you completely! I heard your conversation with Roy. If he would not have played along you could have been court-martialed."
"It was a risk I had to take. Either way it could have been trouble for both of us." The Admiral answered.
Rick looked at the Admiral, he looked weary, even more weary than whenever he had finished any of his dogfights. In fact, he looked like Lisa after she was done with one of her shifts. He guessed that was the price to pay when you had thousand of lives to look after everyday. The thought of the two brave women prompted him to ask, "How did Lisa take it?"
"Ha!" exclaimed the Admiral, no mirth in his voice. "She was not happy about it." He said, his eyes darkening with pain when he remembered their last discussion. "Is that why you are hiding here? Don't worry, even if she is mad as all hell she will still let you in the house. Anyway I think she is more upset at me for siding with you for what you did."
Rick looked at the Admiral and said "I know Lisa will welcome me still. How many times have I done hurt her and I guess you hurt her and she still accepts us." Rick said and the Admiral winced. "That is the reason why I am ashamed. I hate hurting her and seeing the sadness in her eyes even as she welcomes me with open arms."
Something in Rick's voice registered on Hunter's head. He knew guilt well. "You are not talking about my wife now. Aren't you?"
"No, I'm not." Rick said in a quiet voice. And he proceeded to tell the Admiral about the words that haunted him. The words that he kept replaying in his head as he remembered Lisa's stricken face.
"How could you!" the Admiral lashed out in anger. Rick just watched him startled. "How could you be so goddamned stupid? I don't know how Lisa could have fallen in love with me."
"Are you talking about me now?" Rick said a wry expression on his face.
"Partly." Hunter sighed, his uncharacteristic burst of anger deflated.
"What are you going to do about it?" Rick said, asking about his situation.
"I don't know Rick. I really don't know."
"Lisa, I have been trying to track down your husband. Where the hell did he disappear to?" Roy asked angrily as he approached the Admiral. He was in a rare mood. He had to admit he had not been this upset at Rick since his days as a flyboy. How dare him pull a stunt like that and then disappear! On top of everything he had not been able to determine who the mysterious pilot was as he had turned off his vid com and used a scrambler. That did not seem the work of an amateur but someone with years of experience. If it had not been Rick asking him to go along with it, he would have grounded the plane in a heartbeat. As it was, his little brother had a lot of explaining to do.
Lisa looked up from the report she was reading. She was back at the bridge and had been bombarded with aides waiting for her attention. The aide who was waiting on the Admiral's approval shrank down as she saw the tall lanky man approach.
"I have no idea where he went but I imagine he had a few things to take care of. Have you tried his cell?"
"Of course! I also called his office and your house. There is no response anywhere. I need to ask him a couple of questions."
"I imagine what they are about. I would recommend though that you use a little bit of discretion about the whole situation." She said motioning with her eyes their surroundings.
Roy apparently remembered where he was and said. "I guess I'll talk to the Admiral as soon as I see him." Saluting, he left.
Lisa watched Roy leave with a frown. Rick was not prone to leave without completing all his duties nor telling somebody where he had gone. She was also concerned that Rick had decided not to answer Roy's call. He should already be home. Even if he was looking for the younger Rick, he should have come home already.
With a murmured excuse, Lisa decided to call home to see if there were any news. She decided to call from her office for more privacy. The phone rang a few times before the machine picked up.
"Lisa, it's me, Hayes. Pick up the phone." She told the machine. She waited a couple of seconds and was about to hang up when a distraught Lisa picked up the phone.
"I am here. Lisa, you don't know what happened, I am so worried!"
"I know, Rick left the house almost a day ago." - Lisa answered, her voice betraying her weariness.
"How did… have you found him?"
"In a way. I was hoping he would be home by now. I take it my husband is not there either?"
"No…. what do you mean you found him?"
Lisa recounted the events of the last attack. Young Lisa was shocked. After all, Rick was a little bit impulsive and he didn't follow orders most of the time… but to do something like this!
"Please tell my husband when he comes in that I will be here for a couple of hours." Lisa told her younger counterpart. She would probably be there as long as her body held out. She was not looking forward to the confrontation between her husband and her. A wave of sadness overcame her and she cradled the little bump that was a product of their love.
Both Hunter men arrived to a darkened house. It was 11pm, almost a full day had passed since the attack had been announced. They found Lisa curled in the sofa, asleep. She had apparently fallen asleep waiting for them.
Hunter went to check on his son as Rick approached Lisa. She looked so vulnerable in her sleep. He caressed the sweet curve of her check, wondering how soft and warm it was. She stirred a little but did not wake up. That brought a bittersweet smile to his lips. He wondered how she could stir his blood so much. It didn't matter if it was for passion or in an argument, she made him feel alive, grounded. He could finally understand the allure that Lisa Hayes-Hunter was to his older counterpart.
"Lisa, sweetheart, we are here." He said, gently waking her up.
Lisa awoke with a start. Huge green eyes looking at him disoriented. But as the green orbs focused on him, they lit up. With a little exclamation she threw her arms around him and hugged him.
"Rick! You are alright."
Rick just knelt there, surprised by her reaction. He couldn't believe she was so accepting, after all he had said. She then let him go and her face took a stern look.
"Well it's about time, you had me worried out of my mind. I already heard what you did…" she started her tirade and Rick gently placed a finger on her lips. With eyes dancing with mirth, he said. "I was wondering how long it would take you for the lecture. You can reprimand me tomorrow commander and I promise I will be VERY contrite about it. Right now you need some rest. In fact, we all do." He said, looking toward the Admiral who had just come back.
"Your wife called, wondering where you were."
"I called the base as we were getting here but she apparently left already."
"You should go to bed, you look exhausted. There is some food in the oven if you like." Hunter just shook his head and headed to bed.
Lisa kept looking at his retreating back, a worried look on her face. Rick called back her attention when he squeezed her hands. "Thank you." He said.
"For what?" she asked confused.
"For being concerned about me, even when I don't deserve it." Lisa lowered her gaze as she remembered the episode last night. "Not only don't I deserve it, I don't deserve you." Lisa looked at him, her eyes wide. "How can you still be so forgiving?"
'Because I love you...' Lisa thought. His eyes seemed so earnest and open, she thought he was ready to hear her confession. "Because I..."
But before she finished her thought, the front door creaked open, making them both jump. Lisa Hayes-Hunter walked in and looked at the both of them in silence. With just a nod of acknowledgement, she walked to her room, too exhausted to even talk to any of them.
Rick and Lisa looked at each other. The magic of the moment was broken and Lisa was scared of how close she came to baring her soul. With a whispered good night, she rapidly scurried to Roy's room. Rick cursed the bad timing of it all and vowed to take on the conversation once again. But he had to admit that deep down he was a bit glad of the interruption because he knew the answer would have made him reevaluate too many things about his life and his feelings and he didn't know how ready he was for that just yet.
It actually was easier said than done for Rick. After coming so close to such a soul baring conversation, Lisa seemed to have spooked and was now avoiding him. Ok, so avoiding him might be too strong of a word but she was making sure than an opportunity to be together alone did not present itself. Granted, with all the confusion of the attacks and all the work that needed to be done to fix things, the Hunters were barely there to look after Roy and so it fell on Lisa the task of babysitting him. He knew though that he was not doing a lot to push the conversation because his mind and emotions were still at such a turmoil... He knew that it was not up to Lisa at this point. He was pretty sure by now that she did love him. Maybe not at the level of the older Lisa, since that was a love that had deepened over time, but there was no denying that she did.
That meant that he needed to figure out how HE felt about her. He knew that he cared about her enough not to hurt her anymore. This was not a one time fling. This was something that he knew, he could see, that it would last but he needed to be ready for it. He wanted to make sure that he was committed 100% to the relationship as committed as Lisa deserved him to be. If he had not changed with time, he knew that Admiral Hunter must have found that commitment in him or else he would not have married Lisa. If there was one thing that Hunter men had is that they were 100% loyal and committed to their relationship. Their words were their vow. When he finally was with Lisa it would be for real this time, no more indecision, no more half relationship. He would be full in or nothing but he had to be sure for this to happen. For that reason, he decided to give himself, and her, some time to cool without involving intimacy.
Lisa was hurt about Rick's distance but she could feel that this distance was not definite and she actually felt strangely calm about it. She could see that there was something in his eyes, a longing, every time when he looked at her. Something made her think that he wanted to be with her and missed the closeness that they had found together but at the same time he was tempering his desire in the light of all the situations that had happened recently. And she was glad for it because she had come too close to giving herself completely to him and the thought scared her. She knew that when the time came, she would give her heart and soul to him but not if he could not offer the same to her. For that reason she was glad that he was taking his time to make sure that he wanted her as much as she wanted him. So they kept up their song and dance, longing glances during the day and sleepless nights that full of memories and loneliness.
A couple of days later, the door was opened with so much force, it almost seems to explode in. Rick, Lisa and little Roy give a start when they heard the noise. They turned around, startled, to see Lisa Hayes-Hunter walk in as if she was being followed by a Zentraedi battalion. Before they could ask what was wrong, Rick stormed in right behind her.
"I can't believe you are seriously considering that." He said angrily.
The younger Rick and Lisa rapidly usher little Roy outside. They can feel that there was a discussion brewing and they did not want the little one to witness it.
Lisa's older counterpart had noticed all the shuffling the younger ones were doing so she had refrained from answering, prompting Rick to pause too. As soon as the coast was clear, Lisa turned to her husband and answered as calmly as she could.
"Rick I am the Admiral and I am in charge of the construction, I have to go and determine the damage done by the attack." She appealed to her husband.
Rick, who had calmed down a bit, just answered, "Send an aide."
"It's not the same to see a report than to see the damage first hand."
"Have them do a video chat." Rick deadpanned.
Lisa just threw up her hands and growled. She just could not deal with the conversation and decided that she would walk away before it disintegrated into a discussion.
"Wait, where are you going?" Rick asked surprised. Lisa had never walked out of a conversation.
"To our room, this conversation is going nowhere and I am tired."
But Rick would not let her escape this confrontation. He rapidly clamped his hands on her shoulders in a gentle but firm clasp. He was not about to let go at any point but he would not harm her. Lisa stopped struggling after testing his strength and just looked at him resigned.
"What is it with you? You are acting so weird lately…" Rick said, his voice trailing off as a suspicion started to form. He was still not good about reading people, much less females but if there was one female he had become adept at interpreting, it was his wife. He looked at Lisa who was looking everywhere but at him.
"Sweetheart, are you pregnant?" He asked gently.
Lisa's expression would have been comical in any other situation. Her eyes flew to his face and widened while her mouth dropped open in surprise. She couldn't believe he could have guessed.
Now that the suspicion was planted firmly in his head, supported by her silence, Rick asked again, "Well?"
Lisa softly replied 'yes', making Rick now be the one so surprised that his hold on her slackened enough for her to wriggle out from. She was seriously considering trying to escape the confrontation again until his pained whisper reached her.
"Why didn't you tell me?" Rick's face showed all the confusion and hurt that his voice had conveyed. He remembered the time with little Roy and how excited she had been. She had been bursting at the seams and could barely hold the grin when she had finally told him. The difference between then and now could not have been more extreme.
Lisa looked at him again and she could not bear the pain in his face. God only knew what kind of conclusion her husband might come up with if he did not know. In fact, his face was already starting to go from hurt and confused to suspicious.
"I did not tell you because I am not sure of it myself!" She cried when he seemed about to collapse into himself. "I had been so busy with work that I ignored all the signs. It wasn't until the other day when I was throwing up that the truth hit me. Claudia somewhat confirmed my suspicions but it is not concrete yet! I have not gone to a doctor…"
"But you are pretty sure." He finished her unspoken statement.
"Yes, it feels like when I was pregnant with Roy."
"And having this suspicion you still think that it is a good idea to go? Are you insane?! A semi destroyed town is no place for a woman, much less a pregnant woman." As soon as those words were out of his mouth he regretted them and he clenched his teeth to clamp down any other comment that might sound just as offensive.
"I am not merely a woman, I am also an Admiral…"
"You are right honey." Rick said his posture weary and his eyes apologetic. "I'm sorry I said it that way, I just wanted to say that it will be dangerous for anybody and I am scared for you."
Lisa sighed, the wind taken out of her sails, and pushed her bangs, which were getting way too long from neglect, out of her eyes. "I know Rick, I know. Just think about it." She said but they both knew her mind was made up.
"Do you think they are ok?" Rick asked Lisa worriedly as they surreptitiously peaked inside. They were still playing ball with little Roy and Rick took advantage that they boy was chasing after the ball to ask her.
Lisa was surprised to see Rick so worried about the older couple. Up until now he had wavered between hostile to indifferent about them. Maybe, just maybe that meant that he was starting to worry about a future together.
"I hope so." She said, her face showing her uncertainty.
Rick wanted to touch her, to hold her close and lose himself on her embrace. Rick was the first to look away, knowing that if he did not, he would give in. Looking back inside they saw Rick gently squeeze Lisa's shoulder. The steely Admiral leaned her cheek on the back of his hand. They stayed like that for a few seconds until Rick let go of her. Finally Lisa wearily made her way to her room. Rick looked after his wife for a couple of minutes until he finally followed her, his gait slow and his face drained.
The younger couple looked at each other, their faces mirroring the same concern. Had the Hunters reached their level of tolerance or would they persevere?
With all the craziness of the aftermath from the attacks, Roy had not had an opportunity to talk to his little brother. All of the friends had remarked on the strange attitude from the famous couple and they were all worried about the state of their relationship. Roy had been volunteered by his friends, not that he needed a lot of prodding, to get some intel from Rick.
"Aha! I finally get to talk to the elusive Rick Hunter." Roy said as soon as he stepped into the office of the Vice Admiral.
"I'm not in the mood Roy." RIck said, not even raising his eyes from the mountain of paperwork he had in front of him.
"Well I'm not amused by your actions from the other day either."
Rick knew this day would come. He combed his fingers through his hair in frustration. He had avoided his friends as much as he had been able by working from home or being involved in meetings or closing himself off in his office but he could not do it anymore. He had always confided on his big brother and not being able to do it at this point was killing him. Add to that the rift that this situation was creating on all his relationships, his marriage, his friends, his brother's in all but blood… It was becoming way too much for him to handle. The final stress had come today after reading the report from Minerva, the longer their young doppelgangers stayed here, the more chance that the rift in time would happen and they would not be able to merge back to their original timeline. The repercussions could be catastrophic for their lives.
"What was that bull that you tried to feed all of us? Cause I hope you do not expect Max and I to have believed that for a minute. There's no way those moves were done by a mere beginner, Jack Baker or not! Also I trained Baker personally and his moves did not feel like that, they were more like…" He suddenly trailed off, looking into the distance and Rick hoped against hope he would not say what he knew his brother was going to say. "It actually felt more like you." Roy said the last, a perplexed expression on his face.
Rick turned his head, trying to hide his expression. He knew his big brother knew him too well.
"Rick, anything that you need, you are still my little brother, rank be damned."
Rick got up from his chair and faced away from Roy. He debated about what to tell him, the weight of his job, his situation and his relationship was crushing him. He knew that he was going to get to a point when he would not be able to keep this pretense but the idea of the rift in time that had been created was too much to share at this point. So he kept up with the pretense.
"I decided to take Baker under my wing." Which was not a lie at this point anymore, he thought to himself. "I didn't think that he would pull an idiotic stunt like that, thinking that he was ready for such a big battle but he only wanted to help. That is why he has been grounded and he is only been trained by me." Rick continued, looking over his shoulder at his mentor in a manner reminiscent of Admiral Gloval.
Of course, the one difference was that Rick was not wearing the hat that made Gloval look so enigmatic. Instead his expressive eyes were bare for his brother in all but blood to see and Roy could see the weariness and deceit in them.
Rick couldn't hold Roy's gaze anymore and turned his back before he would reveal anything.
"Ok little bro. Just remember that if you need me for anything, my door is ALWAYS open." he said, stressing the word which made Rick wince. He was about to leave when his eye caught on an elegant looking card and he surreptitiously took it. He slipped it in his inner pocket, using Rick's back as a cover.
As soon as he heard the door close after Roy, Rick's defensive posture crumbled and his shoulders dropped. He couldn't feel more alone in this world.
Roy could barely wait until he stepped into the hallway to read the card. He felt guilty for being so sneaky with Rick but he defended himself thinking that Rick was being sneaky too so he just had to figure out what was the root of the problem. He didn't know what had made him take this card in the first place but when he looked at it closely he realized what had called his attention. The card read
'We need to meet, this is important.' The cryptic message was just signed with a simple 'M' that had a bit of a flourish.
The card was dated a couple of days ago, just after the attack. Was this part of the reason why Rick was so secretive and was sneaking around at odd hours? And who was M? Could it be? Had his little brother messed up that bad?
The thought was too much for Roy to form on his head. With a litany of curses falling from his lips, Roy hurried to show the card to the rest of their improvised family to see what they thought of it.
It was the weekend and for a change, both of the Admirals were in the house. At the sound of the doorbell, Rick Hunter opens the door to see all of their friends standing outside. Their faces full of forced smiles and forced cheer. Rick looked suspicious, something felt weird about this visit.
"Hello…." Rick asks suspiciously.
"We came for a visit." Roy is the first one to speak.
"All of you guys?" Rick asks.
"Well of course, we are all your friends and we have not gotten together in a long time." Claudia said with false cheer.
"Yeah since you do not invite us over anymore." Roy added.
"Rick, who is it?" Lisa asked from inside.
"It's our friends." Rick answered from the door. Lisa approached them.
"Hi." She said but she looked like she was puzzled about their visit too.
"Did you know they were coming over?"
"No." Lisa answered truthfully.
"Since when do we need an invitation?" Max asked puzzled. The old Rick would never ask something like that.
"And why are you not inviting us in?" Claudia continued.
Rick looked at Lisa who gave him a subtle nod. To everybody else, it seemed like Rick was asking for confirmation about what to do when in fact, that was not the case. Rick just wanted to know if it was safe for them to come in and if the younger couple were out of sight.
Rick reluctantly stepped aside to let them all in. It was not that he did not love his friends who were as much his family as if they were related by blood. The real reason was that he was not in the mood for a visit. There was still a lot of tension between his wife and him and a lot of things that needed to be resolved to be throwing in another layer to the whole situation. Like how were they going to keep their friends from discovering everything if they were right there with their counterparts. Aside from that he was not really in the mood to be amicable right now.
So since he was not in the mood to be friendly, he just went right to the point. "So what is this really about?" He had a pretty good suspicion that this was not a random visit, not with all the events that had transpired lately.
All but Roy and Lisa were taken aback by Rick's direct question and his abrupt manner. It was not that they had not seen him act like this before, but he usually reserved it for his subordinates. He was naturally easy going and he usually was like that with them.
They were all so surprised, they did not say anything which prompted Roy, who seemed the unspoken leader of the group, to talk. He had more experience and frankly knew him from longer so it fell to him to talk or lecture his little brother.
"Well little bro, you know you both have had us worried with your attitudes lately."
"I know, and we have talked about it, individually, a lot of times." He said dryly.
"You have to admit that there have been a lot of weird things happening." Max hedged in.
"If we are still on the Baker thing, I already explained…" Rick said, rolling his eyes.
"What about the flowers from Minmay?" Claudia asked.
"The flowers? What flow… That thing? For crying out loud! She was thanking us, both of us, by the way, about some romantic advice that we gave her. Romantic advice, as in some dude that she likes."
"What about the little notes signed by 'M'? We all have seen them in your desk and they are all pretty cryptic." Miriya said.
Lisa looked at him in puzzlement. Was there something here that she had missed? Doubt started creeping in but as soon as she looked at her husband facing this inquisition type of questioning, and the hurt look on his face, she knew she had nothing to fear. Instead she felt like protecting him. Before she could say something, Rick jumped in and said,
"Are you telling me you all have been spying on me and rummaging through my official and personal paperwork?" He said, sounding very inch of the Vice Admiral. Even Lisa was taken aback by his demeanor.
"We know the rules and no we didn't break any protocol. This was just laying there." Roy said.
"Well just so that you know, those notes are actually about a top secret mission classified as top priority and confidentiality which is why the person only signs with her initial. I also instructed to make them as vague as she could make them sound." Rick said to the whole group but he was really addressing his wife. He did not want her to have any doubt in her mind that he was cheating on her… "Are you all saying that you think I'm cheating on Lisa? Is this what this is all about?"
They all looked away from Rick's face. When they had talked about the clues it had all made so much sense but now, as they confronted the couple their case seemed to be crumbling.
"Is that it?" Lisa said quietly, her soft and stern voice just as strong as Rick's near bellow had been.
"How about the fact that you did not want to tell Rick that you were pregnant?" Claudia challenged her friend. She was sure to bring up the white elephant in the room. After all, the last time that they had talked, Lisa had not seemed that sure about her relationship with Rick herself. If Rick was really messing up this relationship and going to make Lisa's life hell, she would make sure that he would pay for it.
"Claudia!" Lisa couldn't believe that her friend would bring that matter up so callously. "For your information, Rick and I already talked about it." she said, frowning at her. "I had not told him or anybody anything because I was not sure if my symptoms were due to stress or anything else. If you think about it, some of the symptoms could have been attributed to a lot of other things."
Max nodded in agreement. The more that this went on, the sillier he felt. They all had good arguments but still there was something about his friends' actions that nagged at him.
Roy and Claudia were apparently not satisfied with those answers either since they kept on digging.
"Where is Roy?"
"In his room, playing with someone."
"Why hasn't he come out to see us?"
"He is probably spooked with by all the screaming."
Lisa just gave Rick a frown. She was not used to seeing him like this but she totally understood why he was in the defensive. Even Dolza's questioning had been gentler than this.
"Really guys, everything is alright." She said, putting herself between her husband and her friends. She knew they all feared that Rick and her were headed to splitville and that it was all Rick's fault and even if Lisa had those fears herself, she knew that it was not Rick's fault and he should not be put to blame.
"Well how do you want us to think that all is right when you yourself doubted Rick's fidelity?"
Lisa stiffened at that question and she could hear Rick's intake of breath at her back. She looked back to see a flash of hurt on his blue eyes before she turned back on her friends and addressed them like a true Hayes.
"I explained what that was about. In retrospect that must have been the hormones and I should have realized then and there that I was pregnant." Before anybody could shoot out any other question or rebuff her answer, Lisa put a stop to it. "Listen, I get it. You are our friends and you are worried about us. But what you are doing right now is more damaging to us than helpful. Just stop it!" She said sternly and they all seemed to wilt at that. But still Lisa felt that she had to add this last bit so that this would never happen again. "Coming here and spreading accusations is counterproductive. When I told you that things between Rick and I were fine I was not lying to you. I think that we deserve an apology, especially Rick, who you have been attacking all the time"
Roy, Claudia, Max and Miriya finally realized the mistake they had made. They looked ashamed of themselves.
"If that is the case then why all the secretiveness? Why are you acting so bizarre? And don't say work because this is not typical."
Rick was full of hurt and annoyance. How could his friends still doubt him so much? Yes, he could not argue with the fact that he had been blind to Lisa's love for the longest time and that in the process he had hurt her but after that he had tried to make up for it 110%. Had he not demonstrated that to all of them by now? Was he still going to be held accountable to a mistake that he did in his past?
"Do you want to know what is really happening here? I'll tell you what is happening here… Lizzie, Rick…. Come out here." Rick yelled out, his voice like steel.
"Rick, no! Are you crazy? The parallax…" She finished weakly as she saw the molten fire of anger in his eyes. SHe had never really seen her husband like that and for once she stopped herself and stayed silent.
"There is no danger of parallax for them and they need to know so we put an end to this ridiculous nonsense." Rick said, hurt and anger directed at his friends who were looking at him like he had grown another head. "Rick, Lizzie, come out now!" he almost growled in mounting anger when they were not forthcoming.
Roy was alarmed at the man he saw before him. Was he going crazy because of all the pressure? Who were the people that he had called for? Then he heard movement from little Roy's bedroom and they all turned to see little Roy coming out. They all turned to Rick to see his reaction but he was still looking towards the bedroom.
"Oh my…" "What the…" Roy heard the murmurs and the sucked in breath of surprise from his companions but he could not even speak when he saw the two people that followed the child from his bedroom.
"How did this happen?"
They told them the story up to the point.
"There, now you have it. This is why we have been so secretive lately. This is why we have been so stressed out and why I am communicating with Minerva all the time." He added before he was accused of having an affair with her too. "Now I need to take a walk and calm down or else I do not know what I will say next." Rick pushed his way out between the people he considered more than friends without saying anything more. He could hear their voices babbling but he did not care to hear anything more.
Rick stayed out for a while. He really didn't know what to do. For once, his first instinct was not to go flying but he actually wanted to punch something. He felt that much rage and helplessness. He went to the park and sat down to let out his steam until he calmed down enough. Truthfully if he did not see his friends today, it would be a good thing. He loved them and appreciated them too much but he knew that accusations that they had flung had created a rift between them.
Rick came in very late. Frankly he did not want to face anybody at this point but he hated to hurt Lisa and her feelings so when he got the first text message asking about his whereabouts, he read between the lines that she was worried. He knew that she had waited until their friends left and given him as much time as she thought was prudent. That was why when he got that message he headed back home. He was not intending to punish anybody, not even his friends, he had really just needed to get away from it all because it was becoming too overwhelming for him. Realizing that he had needed that escape he understood that Lisa probably needed the same respite from it all and that was the reason why she was travelling to NeoGranite. She just needed time alone.
When he walked in the house, everybody was already asleep, or at least in bed. He tried to be as quiet as he could so he wouldn't wake anybody up. He got ready for bed and he lay down next to his wife. In the dark, he could not see her face but he knew she was still awake. He suspected that that was the case. With everything that happened, he doubted that she would have gone to bed without at least having some sort of resolution.
"Maybe you should go to NeoGranite after all." Rick whispered in the dark in lieu of an apology.
"Are you sure?" Lisa asks him softly. She understood what he was offering, a peace offering, a compromise. He didn't like it but he was going to agree because she had asked.
'No I am not sure!' Rick wanted to say but he felt that he had been too unfair to his wife by forcing his ideas. "I don't know if it is the right decision and I am even more scared of you being there but I do not want to force my opinion on you."
Lisa then whispered her thanks and squeezed his hand. He held on tight and wondered at the feeling of foreboding about this decision.
Lisa, Claudia and her aide were standing on the building looking at all the damage that had been made by the Zentraedi attack. It had taken two days for all of the damage reports to be compiled and reviewed. The state of the RDF command was deplorable here and Lisa had made a note of making some changes when she came back home. As quiet as she would have liked her visit to be, it had attracted more unwanted attention than what she had wanted.
Things were tense between her and Claudia and people could tell too. She had not yet forgiven her sister in everything but blood about the accusations she had flung at Rick. She had nowhere to turn to as things were also rough with Rick. She almost felt like she was playing hooky or doing something wrong even though they had agreed on her coming here. The only thing was that she knew that Rick was not happy with that decision and he had told her yes just to compromise with her. And while that was not unusual about them, this time it just felt wrong.
Add to the fact that she felt just plain uncomfortable. Now that she was aware of the fact that she was pregnant, all the little pains and discomforts of pregnancy were becoming rather obvious. She gingerly stepped among the rubble, knowing that a wrong step could cause her to twist her ankle. She wished she could have worn her fatigues and boots but being an Admiral, there were some facades that needed to be kept, so she was dressed to the nines and hating every minute of it. What good was it to be an Admiral if you could not get to decide what you wear? Especially a pregnant woman, regardless of rank.
That gave her pause, she was a pregnant woman. What was a woman on her condition doing in this mess? This was no place for her at this moment! If she were perfectly honest with herself there really was no need for her to be there. Rick was right, she could have sent somebody to asses the damage or even a drone if she wanted to see it first hand.
If she were to be honest with herself, it had been more of an emotional decision, more than logical. Same as Rick, she had wanted an out, a couple of days to be out of their current situation so she could think, so she could get her bearings again and she had used the excuse of work as an escape.
She should just have been honest with Rick and just told him what she needed. Now she missed him terribly and their son too and the only thing she wanted to do was to rush back to them, younger couple or not. She decided she would cut this farce short and have the reports sent to her in the comfort of her office. She had done her part and had shown face, now it was time to get back to her family.
She was so distracted with her thoughts which was why she took such a long time to react to the sirens when the attack began. All of the sudden a loud groan was heard and people started yelling around her. Somebody screamed her name, Claudia?, and she turned in time to see a huge piece of the wall next to her coming down. A body slammed against her and everything went dark.
Admiral Rick Hunter had been on edge the whole day. Lisa kept eying him surreptitiously. This morning, before he had gone to work, he had looked distracted. By the time he had come back, early by the way, he had been worse. He said he could not think straight and was driving everyone insane so they had sent him home. After that he had tried to do some work and Lisa could understand what people had meant when they said he was distracting.
He had a map strewn out in the kitchen table, a pile of papers on the living room and his tablet on the family room. He kept going between them, never setting on one for too long. Every once in a while, he would look away as if he was thinking about something. Them he would snap out of it and go back to his bizarre routine.
"Something is not right. " the younger Rick whispered to Lisa.
"You think?" she said a bit of sarcasm coloring her voice.
"No I meant it, he senses something is off. I… I was the same way the day my mom passed. She had been fine in the morning but I still was on edge the whole day."
"That might have been a coincidence…" Lisa said but a chill had started to creep up her spine.
"Maybe." Rick said, not convinced.
"Do you think he might not have heard from his wife today?"
"They spoke this morning."
"What are you guys whispering over here?" the Admiral had broken his own pattern and had caught them unawares, making them both jump.
"Well we were just worried about you. You seem distracted today."
"Not you too!" Rick racked his hand through his hair and sighed.
"Have you heard from Lisa since this morning?" Rick asked since he had been with the Admiral when he had answered the call.
"No, she's not supposed to call until 1800 hours. She was going to examine one of the damaged warehouses today so she was going to contact me when she came back to her quarters."
Just in that moment, the phone rang, making them all jump. Rick looked at the clock and noted the time as 1600 so it would not be his wife. Disappointed, he still raced to the phone as it could be an emergency. As he reached it, his heart started beating madly as if he had run a marathon and he could not understand why…
"Rick Hunter here." he said on the phone. " Yes, What?! How is she?" Rick turned as white as a sheet. "Where is she?" His lips were pale and his eyes were slightly glossy. His whole demeanor started to shrink and he, who had looked so powerful and imposing even in his distraction, now seemed to have shrunk.
"Thank you. Yes I'll be there right away."
"Rick?"
"Lisa is injured. There was a collapse on one of the warehouses Lisa was visiting."
"How is she?"
"She's unconscious. They will not say anything more. They are flying her over on airlift to Macross Central. I need to go."
"Do you want us to call anybody?"
"Claudia was there, she can call everybody else. Take care of Roy for me."
"Wait, I'll go with you. You are in no condition to be on your own." Rick told him as he hurriedly grabbed a jacket and a hat.
"No, I'm fine. I'll go by myself. The parallax…"
"Screw the parallax! Just say that I'm your cousin or something. The people that would know that it's a lie already know about us."
"Yes Rick, he's right. It might be better if you have someone with you."
"Fine then let's go. I want to be there when they bring her in."
As soon as they go to the hospital they were approached by a frantic Claudia. "I'm so sorry Rick! I wish I would have seen it before but it was so unexpected. Thankfully Lisa's aide heard the sound and acted right away, pushing her away from the worst of it. I was helpless to do anything since I was so far away from her. I could only watch as the rubble fell on both of them." Claudia broke down in tears at this point.
"It was not your fault Claudia. She was just in the wrong place at the wrong time." He said as he hugged his adoptive sister. All the animosity and the resentment from the past days melted away in their moment of solidarity. At the end of the day, they were family and they only had each other. Time was too valuable for them to waste. "I'm glad that you are ok." He said sincerely.
Claudia looked at her younger "adopted sibling". It was moments like these that she understood what Lisa had seen on him. It was also in moments like these that she understood why Rick had been given the position that he had at such a young age. She was proud of him and she was ashamed of her behavior. She was glad that Lisa had such a great man by her side.
"Thank you." she said, her voice choking with her emotions.
Rick seemed to have understood the message and he hugged her again.
"Just go and get checked out." He pointed her to the arms of her grateful husband who looked at his little brother with gratitude.
The Admiral and Rick waited in tense silence for news of Lisa. None of them would say it but both of them remembered the tense days and hours they had spend on countless hospitals from a young age. From Mom to Pops and then to all the other injured or dead pilots under their command. The hospital waiting room did not have a lot of good memories for them. Even for Admiral Hunter, the bad by far outweighed the good. And one of the only good things in his life was now lying in the hospital room, unconscious.
"Admiral Hunter?" a doctor finally came out. "My name is Dr. Roberts. I am the chief Obstetrician in attendance." He said, extending his hand to the young Admiral.
"How is she?" was the only thing that Rick could utter.
"Admiral Hayes is a strong, young woman. She will pull through and physically recover from this ordeal."
"Physically?"
"I am talking about her emotional and mental well being."
Rick's chest compressed when he heard that. The doctor seemed to be gathering himself to give some bad news. Even his younger counterpart started chanting in his head a whole litany of denials that he had to bite his lips in hopes that they would not escape.
"The baby…" Rick said, his low voice sounding hollow to everyone's ears.
"We did all we could to save the little one but no, the babe didn't make it. It was just too small. The Admiral was barely 8 weeks, a fetus that young…"
"I understand." Rick cut him off, not wanting to hear any more. He knew the dangers and the frailties of early pregnancies. He could feel his younger companion holding his arm in a sign of comfort and he was somewhat glad for his presence. "When can I see her?"
"Dr. Grant is finishing with her. She didn't want to leave the Admiral's side until the very end. She regrets not being the one to tell you but she knew you would be worrying. They will probably be wheeling her to a private room in 30-40 minutes. Someone will come and let you know when you can see her."
"Thank you Doctor." Young Rick was the one that addressed him when his older counterpart did not respond. He then guided his older self to a chair to await more news.
It was late at night at the end of her graveyard shift when Minerva walked into Admiral Hunter's office. She navigated the Admiral's office without having to turn on the lights. Familiarity with the layout was based of the frequency of her visits born on her habit of leaving a note with the progress on the Experiment before she left. It was such a shame that the timing was so wrong on this. What she knew would bring the Admirals great relief was now overshadowed by the sorrowful circumstances surrounding them now.
As it was, she left the note on his desk for him to find when he would be ready to come back. In the meantime, they would continue with the experiments until the time when they would be ready for the final stage.
The note simply read, 'We've had success' and as always, it was signed with a simple M.
Author's notes: I know that there are a lot of improvements that I could have done to this chapter and a lot of missed opportunities. I still feel that I completely blew by the reactions of the younger couple to the older friends' accusations and there could have been a scene there where I could have shown all of them talking… but I need to move on. Maybe at some point I will come back and fix this chapter so I hope you can all forgive me for that. To be honest this whole story flew away from me. It was really intended to be a lot more humorous than what it has turned out to be. It was all spawned by the scene of Rick and young Rick talking and the older Rick telling his younger counterpart "You do not know what you have been missing" in regards to Lisa, a slightly lascivious tone on his voice. Rick was supposed to have been slightly disgusted by the whole conversation and the older Rick completely amused by it. As you can see it has grown much more than that. I hope you have enjoyed the monster I have created!
Please review if you can.
