Chapter XI: Every Time I Eat Vegetables It Makes Me Think Of You
Chapter Genre: Romance, Humour
Chapter Character(s): Twenty-seven year old John MacTavish, his wife (Madeline MacTavish) / Ghost, Roach
Chapter Summary: With John being deployed more and more often, the two take their mediocre and mundane moments and switch it to high gear.

X

"My heart [...] belongs to you. And if you wanted it, I'd wish for nothing in exchange - no gifts. No goods. No demonstrations of devotion. Nothing but knowing you loved me too. Just your heart, in exchange for mine."
– Yvaine, Stardust

"Do you have anymore memories to share?" Roach asked.

MacTavish stayed silently for a while, continuously driving in the highway. "Actually, in the oh-nine year, a lot of things were beginning to change."

Ghost eyed his captain carefully while watching the young sergeant in his peripheral. MacTavish's ring was clearly visible as he gripped the steering well, his eyes concentrated on the road ahead of them. He obviously listened to the music playing. His response was less lively. Ghost began to guess that MacTavish was getting nervous. Did his captain honestly distrust them that much to be nervous allowing the two to meet?

"What changed?" Ghost asked.

MacTavish flashed a smile and said, "Everything, mate."

2009.

June

A familiar screamed ran through the halls of the flat. Hastily, Madeline bolted out of the bathroom and into the living room with a terrified look etched upon her face. She sulked, which resulted in John quizzically raising an eyebrow at her. Her eyes stared back at the bathroom as she hid behind the couch.

"John, are you braver than me?"

His confused expression changed into a face of disbelief. "No," he replied sarcastically. She pushed his shoulder.

"Can you get rid of a spider?" She paused. "Don't kill it, though!"

Rolling his eyes in good humour, he stood up without any fear and trudged into bathroom. Moments of silence were noticed by Madeline until it erupted with John shouting and cussing, mentioning the unbelievable size of the spider in the shower. Crashes were her as he escaped the bathroom, his face mangled with terror.

"How the hell do spiders that big get in here?" he questioned as he pressed his back against the wall. "That is not natural, Maddi. We might have to nuke the room." John attempted to smile but found himself still disturbed by the creature. His wife leaned against the couch with her arms crossed.

The Scot and the Canadian resorted to waiting out in front of the bathroom door with weapons in hand (which consisted of a broom, a frying pan, a Nerf gun, and a plastic bowl). The two watched, waiting for the eight-legged freak to crawl out of the small room.

"I feel like a prisoner," John sighed. "How long is it going to stay in there? I say we run in there, turn the tap and drain it." He turned his head to stare at her.

"Can't we just set it free?"

His gaze turned back to the bathroom door, which remained ajar. "It looks like we're going to be here for awhile."

July

Getting off of his phone, he casually watched his wife re-read the novels he had given to her on her twenty-third birthday. Despite the fact that she was one of those carefree hippies, he knew her to be one of the most dependable people in his life. How else could she do her job?

After congratulating his brother and sister-in-law with their newborn child, John began to unintentionally allow his imagination of conjure up whatever ideas it contained. At the moment, he began to wonder how his older brother – who was once a rebellious musician – could handle one of the biggest changes in a person's life. He attempted to empathize. Would he, John MacTavish, be able to act as a father?

He couldn't see any ordeal with Madeline. She already spent her professional life with kids, therefore making her a natural to relate. She was childish, but he had seen her take on responsibility and leadership roles as he did in his occupation. She just chose, for the times that she could, to live life in ways others could not see. He admired her for that. Ultimately, he could see her as a good mother. All he wondered was if he could take on the challenge.

"Maddi," he suddenly said out loud. Her eyes shot up to stare at him. Without paying attention, he asked, "Would I make a good father?"

Her eyes became confused. "Do you know something I don't?"

August

"You got here pretty fast. You didn't speed, did you?"

John closed the door after Madeline entered the house, seeing Joshua and his wife with their kid. She shook her head, kicked off her cowboy boots and went straight for the unopened boxes the two had just retrieved. With knew pieces of furniture, the two knew that the boxes held something more than the appliances: bubble wrap.

The two acted quickly as they ripped open the boxes, laying the bubble wrap on the floor. Madeline assisted the baby as they both started stomping on the bubble wrap, popping it with each amount of pressure. Out of no where, her hand grabbed John's as the two began to enjoy their small joy.

Damn it, Maddi, John thought. Everything she did with their nephew fed into his litter wondrous fantasy of being a father. His mind was then interrupted at the feeling and sound of the bubble wrap under his feet, and his smile of content changed into a smirk of mischief.

John tackled his brother against the wrap. Their two bodies rolled around, managing to pop the bubbles as they attempted to straddle the other.

With his legs around his older brother, John pinned him down while saying, "How does an audio engineer take a soldier down? That's right – he doesn't." He grinned with victory as he came off of him.

Joshua groaned. "Ten years ago, I would have been able to take you down – easy."

Madeline raised an eyebrow. "Ten years ago," she emphasized, earning a high-five from John.

"I could still do it," John's brother insisted. "He just caught me off guard – that's all." The two brothers suddenly met eyes, heading off into round two. The two women, with the child, watched as they laughed at their chasing and grappling.

"5 quid says Joshua takes him down," John's sister-in-law shrugged. Madeline grinned and shook hands with her as the two intensely stared at the two men crashing into boxes. The two men were covered in sweat as they yelled joking threats at each other, later jumping into the air either to trap the other or escape a tackle.

Joshua tried to make a jump through the couch, but he was grabbed by John as the two landed with a hard thud. Madeline and the other woman shouted with a loud "Oooh!" The continued to roll around in the bubble wrap, popping every bit in the process.

"You want to go get some coffee?" Madeline suggested, knowing that their brawl was going to last for awhile. Joshua's wife nodded and the two walked into the open kitchen, continuously amused.

October

"I'm leaving next week, Maddi. Can't you just call a substitute for a week and stay here, maybe go travelling with me?"

"Can you just not go next week?"

"I wish I could stay, but I do have a job to do."

"I do, too."

"I save lives."

"I help people build them, and communicate."

"You also joke around and play pranks on your students, you cruel teacher."

"You think I'm cruel, eh?"

"Stay frosty, Maddi."

"I get any frostier and I'll have icicles in my nose. Now, I've got to get to work. I'll see you in the afternoon."

"But then you'll have to leave again tomorrow."

"Quit complaining, you baby. Can't you handle yourself for a few hours?"

"No."

"John MacTavish, you travel around the world shooting down Tangos and infiltrating bases, yet you can't stay alone for awhile? I'd rather stay here, but I can't lie about a substitute."

"Oh. I supposed that's final, then."

"It is."

"But I don't want to say goodbye."

"Do you act this way while on leave?"

"No."

"Oh, so your colleagues don't know that you're insane?"

"I'm not the crazy one, Kid."

"I'm also headed to work."

Madeline laughed as she placed her hand behind John's neck, bringing him closer to her as she kissed him to make up for leaving. He watched as she grabbed her keys and headed out for the door.

"Don't speed."

She winked in acknowledgement and left. Seeing her vanish, John immediately headed for the kitchen and filled a bowl with water. He hastily headed toward the window and waited for Madeline to walk into his aim. Soon enough, she stepped out onto the sidewalk, oblivious to the suspended bowl above her head. Tilting it, John allowed all of the cold water to spill on top of her, drenching her from head to toe. Her head shot up.

He merely said, "Now, you're going to catch a cold. Come up here and call in a substitute. You're taking a week's worth vacation, Maddi."

MacTavish smiled. "I learned a trick or two from her, especially when it came from getting what I wanted from those who liked to joke around. Did you know she was a magician? Well, she was good with cards. She also knew how to pick pocket. She entertained the hell out of me with that. There was this one time she picked the lock in our flat when we locked ourselves out. She took too long though, so I kicked it down."

Roach laughed. "You have a lot of memories, Captain." MacTavish nodded in agreement.

The lieutenant and sergeant continued to sway their heads in the rhythm of the music that played. MacTavish remained silent.

That concludes the 'year-montage' concept for the chapters! I decided to take really mundane moments and put them into MacTavish's life because, well, extreme events can't happen every second, even if you're the captain of the Task Force 141. Anyway, this is a friendly reminder for you to review this chapter. Constructive criticism and comments are always welcome! Flames will be used to hunt down Makarov. Hoorah!

Chapter Title: Every Time I Eat Vegetables It Makes Me Think Of You by Ramones
Chapter Question: What's a little joy in your life? (Example: popping bubble wrap, walking into a bakery, trying on clothes fresh out of the dryer and so on…) (This will be used for future writing references.)

Review for not-so-mini-MacTavish!