Title: Separation and Hope
Author: rooster dawn
Pairing: Harm & Sarah
Disclaimer: JAG is property of Belisarius productions, no copyright infringement intended.
Summary: When Harm leaves Jag to fly, Sarah decides to move on when she doesn't hear from him.
Good feedback is good for the soul and my happiness.
Author's note: Alternative universe where Harm and Sarah said goodbye one last time before he leaves to fly. Takes place after the end of season four.
Author's note: Patience is a Virtue, everything will be revealed in due course.
part eleven
Author's note: your patience is about to be rewarded.
22 Dec 2004
Burnett's residence
La Jolla, California
A few days later Harm made his way to the front door. He sighed as he realized it was good to be home. As he got ready to ring the door bell the door open. It was his mother with a very large smile on her face.
"Harm! You're here! I've missed you so much." greeted Trish as she threw her arms around his neck.
"I've miss you too Mom." replied Harm as he returned the hug.
"Come in and sit down Harm. Let me get you something to drink." offered Trish. Harm smiled as he followed her inside.
Harm and his mother talked for awhile catching up with what was going on in their lives. That is everything except that Sarah and Veronica were living with her and Frank in the house. That he had a four year old daughter named Veronica, soon to be five in another month.
Sarah had Harm's old room overlooking the beach. She loved the room. It gave her a sense of closeness to Harm. Veronica was in the room across the hall from hers. Trish had Harm's bags taken upstairs to the guestroom.
After a little while Harm noticed a small dark haired girl walked into the room. She moved a little shyly when she saw Harm sitting in the chair. 'He was talking to her grandmother. Who was he?' she thought to herself.
She walked over to Trish and climbed up into her lap. He looked familiar to her, but she wasn't sure who he was. They whispered back and forth for a few minutes, pausing every now and then to look over in his direction.
Harm watched with interest the small girl with his mother, she could have been his if only he had only told Sarah how much he loved her. The little girl and his mother seem to be having a good time. He sighed in resignation.
He began to think back about Sarah. He hadn't thought about her in a long time. How he had blown any chances they could have had to be together. He shouldn't have gone back to flying.
It had been a very bad mistake. Even though he loved flying and was still one of the best, it had cost him too much, his marine.
Before he knew what was happening a fifty pound little girl had quickly moved across the room and landed in his lap knees first. If it hadn't been for his quick reflexes his family jewels would have been screaming bloody murder.
(Fifty pounds you say, quite heavy for a five year, not really when her father is six feet four inches and her mother is five feet nine inches tall)
"Who are you little lady?" asked Harm with a smile.
"My name is Veronica. I'm almost five years old. Are you my Daddy?" replied Veronica. Harm sat there stunned for a few moments.
"What?" asked Harm. He was stunned.
"Are you my Daddy? You look like the man in the picture with my Mommy." replied Veronica.
Harm didn't know what to say. He certainly didn't expect her to ask him that question. Harm sat there looking stunned for a few moments.
He looked at her a little more closely. It couldn't be. She did bear a resemblance to Sarah, but it couldn't be. They had only spent one night together. He had used protection or so he thought.
He looked over to his mother with a perplexed look.
"Ronnie, why don't you go upstairs to your room and get the picture on your night stand and show it to Harm." smiled Trish.
"Okay!" chirped Veronica as she got up out of his lap and ran up stairs.
Harm groaned as Veronica had stood up in his lap and jumped off. That hurt a little thought Harm. Did all little kids get on and off adult laps like that. He moaned at the thought. Once again she came close to inflicting harm to his little soldier.
Once again he looked over to her.
"Mom?" asked Harm.
"Have a little patience Harm. It will all come clear to you in a few moments. She has been waiting for you all her life." replied Trish.
"Mom!" pleaded Harm.
"Harm!" laughed Trish in return.
Harm sat there shaking his head. His mother could be difficult at times, usually whenever he needed answers. Who was this little girl? Who was her mother? Why was she here?
A few minutes later Veronica came racing into the room jumping into his lap with a thud. Harm groaned. He wasn't use to this, though he did like the idea of have a child who needed him.
Veronica squirmed around in his lap trying to get comfortable before she showed him the picture. He moaned again. It was a picture of him and Sarah in their gypsy costume when they were in Russia. Where in the world did she get this picture from he wondered?
"See, you look just like him." explained Veronica as she pointed to the man in the picture.
"Mommy said he is my father and that some day he would come home to me." explained Veronica. She looked up at him.
"Are you my father? Have you come home?" asked Veronica sweetly.
Harm really didn't know how to answer those questions. The picture was definitely of him and Sarah. She said he was her father.
He couldn't believe the way she looked at him with those beautiful brown eyes. She was looking at him the same way Sarah always looked at him when she wanted something. She was doing that funny little thing with her mouth too.
He shuddered for a moment with the realization he would never be able to refuse her anything. He had only known Veronica for only a few moments and he was already in love with her. She was so adorable. Then his brain began working again.
That meant ... that ... Sarah had to be her mother, but how? Then another thought came to his mind. If Sarah was Veronica's mother, ... and Veronica was here, ... then where was Sarah? He looked over to his mother who just smiled with amusement as she watched his mind work out the answers.
He looked at Veronica and asked "Where is your mother?"
"Outside on the patio." she replied. She was still waiting for an answer thought Harm.
"That does look like me in the picture, maybe I am your father." replied Harm with a small smile.
"Yippee!" shouted Veronica as she stood up in Harm's lap causing him to groan as her foot came very close to causing him intense pain. She gave him a big hug before leaping off his lap. He couldn't believe her strength.
She grabbed his hand to pull him up to follow.
"She's just like you Harm. She never sits still very long." smiled Trish.
Harm rolled his eyes at that comment. He couldn't remember ever having this much energy. Veronica ran ahead while Harm followed her out onto the porch.
"Mommy! Mommy! Daddy is here!" cried out Veronica.
Harm watched her run over to her mother. He expected her to jump into her lap, but he was surprised when she sat down very nicely on the side of the lounge chair with Sarah.
Sarah had been reading a novel so she hadn't noticed the commotion going on inside the house.
"What baby?" asked Sarah as she pulled Veronica up into her lap. She gave her a hug and kiss.
"Daddy's here! He came home! Just like you said he would!" exclaimed Veronica excitedly.
"Harm is here?" asked Sarah a bit surprise.
"Daddy!" replied Veronica as she pointed to Harm in the picture and then towards where Harm was standing.
Sarah's breath caught in her throat. It had been over five years since she had seen him last. She had always expected this day would come, but now that it had, she was completely taken by surprise. What was she going to do?
She wasn't wearing any makeup. Her hair must be a mess. She wasn't exactly dressed to see him especially after five years. She was afraid to turn around and look. She was afraid of what she might see.
Meanwhile Harm stood there admiring the view. He loved the way Sarah and Veronica were interacting. They were so great together. He always knew she would be a great mother. Sarah was special. Any child would be privilege to have her as a mother.
She still looked so beautiful. She hadn't aged a day in five years. He was afraid to say anything. He didn't know what to say. He certainly didn't want to say the wrong thing.
Harm walked over to where Sarah was sitting with Ronnie. Harm smiled at her before saying "Hello Sarah."
Sarah brushed a hand through her hair nervously before responding
"Hi Harm, what are you doing here?"
But before Harm could respond Ronnie reached up to Harm and demanded "Up!"
"She must be a marine." chuckled Harm as he picked Ronnie up and held her in his arms. "I thought it was time to come home and visit my mother. It has been five years since I last saw her.
I am surprise to see you here though. I have been looking for you since I returned from flying five years ago." sighed Harm as he sat down in the chair next to Sarah.
"What are you doing here?"
Before Sarah could answer Ronnie piped up. "We live here Daddy. Grammy was lonely and needed company." Harm looked at Sarah a little puzzled.
"I'm stationed at Miramar. Your mother asked us to stay with her and Frank. She likes spending time with Ronnie and Ronnie loves her." replied Sarah.
"I love Grammy." agreed Ronnie nodding.
"I can tell. I know she loves you. She waited twenty years for you." smiled Harm as Ronnie looked at him bug eyed.
"I've only known you for thirty minutes and I already loved you." smiled Harm as he gave her a hug.
"I love you too Daddy." replied Ronnie as she cuddled closer to Harm.
Sarah looked on with a sense of pleasure. Indeed it had only been a short time and already Harm and Ronnie were bonding like they had spent years together. A tear came to her eye. Maybe there was hope for them yet.