A/N: How fitting that I post another chapter of this story tonight! Honestly when I started writing this i didn't realize I'd only have til tonight to finish it! I really wanted to finish it by tonight, but life majorly got in the way last week! Probably only 1 more chapter and an Epilouge for this one. Hope you enjoy! I so *loved* tonight's episode! So glad the best show on TV is back on.
Please, please let me know if you like this chapter - I know i've taken forever to update, so thank you for your patience! Also, I wrote this obviously before the episode aired and my knowledge of political things is literally based on what I see on TV, so please excuse anything incorrect about proceedings :)
2 weeks later…..
It was still dark outside. Elizabeth could hear the late fall drizzle outside gently tapping on the windows as she rolled over, snuggling against her husband in their bed. With fully healed ribs, she was finally able to move around without pain.
Henry shifted immediately, sensing movement from his wife and pulled her close. "Go back to sleep. We've still got a few hours." he grumbled, his voice heavy with sleep as he brushed his lips across her forehead.
She sighed into his embrace and closed her eyes, but doubted more sleep would come. It was a big day. Her inauguration day. She wasn't nervous necessarily. Her staff had done an excellent job organizing it. She was comfortable with her speech. But it was a change. This was the last morning they would spend together in their little townhouse, which she'd come to adore, for at least 2 years.
Henry sensed it, her inability to sleep. He bent his head and caressed her lips with his, calming her instantly. He would never tire of the feeling of her warm body in his arms, of her lips against his. Their kisses always felt like magic, even after nearly 26 years of marriage. It was like he fell in love with her all over again every time they kissed.
Breaking the kiss, her found himself staring into the depths of her crystal blue eyes, shimmering in the dim light.
"I'm not nervous." she insisted quietly under his intense gaze.
"I know you're ready. I'm ready too." he smiled, never doubting her.
"I just want to savor these last few hours in our bed, in our room, truly alone." she admitted.
"Savor away baby." he whispered huskily, giving her another kiss. "But mornings like this are never going away."
"Promise?"
"I promise. As of today, we both have new jobs and a new address. That's all that's changing."
She smiled at him. He always managed to calm her racing mind with the right words, always knowing what she needed to hear. Even though her new job could be taxing, she had faith in her husband; in their love and in their marriage. She was quite sure Henry would find a way to make sure they had mornings like this always, despite the marine guards outside their windows. It was one thing that would never change, and it was why she was so confident diving head first into the Presidency of the United States. With her husband, the first gentleman, the most fitting title for him - he was after all the kindest hearted man she knew - by her side, she could conquer the world. They could conquer it together.
He bent to kiss her again. He felt her melt into his arms, all her worries fading away as his tongue gently danced with hers. "Henry," his name fell from her lips. He'd never tire of the way she said his name and he deepened the kiss in response.
They kissed for a long while, before he finally pulled away, gently tugging her swollen lips between his teeth. "Sleep, my love." he whispered and she closed her eyes, his kiss having lulled her back into a calm.
With fingers still intertwined, they awoke only as the early morning sun filtered through their window, rising after the rain had ended. Henry awoke first, reveling in his wife's beauty as the sunlight danced across her features. He stroked her cheek gently and felt her inhale deeply, a contented sigh escaping as her eyes fluttered open, landing on his and she smiled.
"Morning, my love." he grinned
"Morning." she replied leaning up for a kiss.
They fully intended on using the last few minutes before their alarm officially went off relishing in each other, but there was a knock at the door.
"Mom? Dad?" came their eldest's voice.
They frowned at the interruption and Henry called, "Come in."
"Are you guys up? It's a mad house downstairs!" she exclaimed and left the room in a tizzy.
"I guess it's time to get up." Henry said with an eyebrow raise.
"So much for a quiet morning." she muttered, as she rose and went to the shower. "I thought Nadine said we could sleep in today. The thing doesn't even start until noon."
Henry let out a laugh as he watched her go, realizing she didn't notice it was nearly 8am.
While Elizabeth dried her hair and dressed in her freshly pressed black pencil skirt, blazer and white blouse with her mother's pearls, he showered. Henry also had a freshly pressed suit from the cleaners hanging on the door. She tied his tie for him, telling him he looked handsome and they made their way down the stairs, being greeted by a houseful of people, some of whom they did not know.
"Good morning...everyone." they said as they descended the stairs, amazed by the number of people in their home.
"Morning Mom!" her children said happily as they filled their plates with various goodies from the elaborate breakfast spread that took over the entire kitchen table. Jason was, for one, enjoying the attention and commotion.
"Good morning Madam Secretary." the kitchen occupants paused, greeting her. "Dr. McCord."
"Nadine, what happened to my quiet morning?" she asked her chief of staff in a hushed tone, who stood with a padded document holder, directing duties to the many people who roamed her home.
"It's almost 9:30am M'am. We need to be ready to leave by 11."
"Did we oversleep?" she asked rhetorically, as Henry kindly handed her a mug of coffee.
"Thank you." she said to her husband, grateful for the caffeine. "And who are all these people?"
"Come sit down, we'll run down the schedule while Roxanne does your makeup." Nadine re-directed, motioning her to the couch.
Jay & Russell were in the living room going over the preparations for the ceremony, parade and ball. "Good morning M'am. Dr. McCord."
"Morning." they said, taking a seat and Blake immediately rushed in with a plate of breakfast from the spread.
"Breakfast?" Blake asked, setting down a plate containing two muffins and fresh fruit for them to share.
"Thank you, Blake." Elizabeth said, picking up a strawberry. "Did the kids…?" she glanced around.
"They're fine. They're showered, dressed and the girls already had Roxanne do their hair and makeup. I'm just trying to keep them from spilling anything on their clothes."
"Blake, they're not five."
"You'd be surprised on days like these M'am, what can happen to a clean outfit." he said, reaching to tuck a napkin into her shirt collar, much to her dismay.
She eyed Blake as he walked away, lint roller in hand, ready to roll away any of Gordon's fur that may have made it's way onto any of the first family's clothing.
"M'am...we really need to begin."
"Yes, go ahead."
"Alright. The motorcade will arrive here precisely at 11am. You and the family will be in the first car, and us in the second. You will be dropped off at the Capitol by 11:30. The children will be escorted to their seats. Russell and I will wait with you in the back until the ceremony begins" Nadine began, expertly as ever, pointing to a chart.
"Once the Marine band begins to play, you will walk in together and shake hands with President Harris and be seated. Chief Justice Frawley will say a few words, and ask you to come to podium. You will stand, put your right hand on the bible and repeat the oath, while Dr. McCord- you and the children will stand behind."
"Did you already take the kids…." she asked, eyeing the chart with one eye as Roxanne applied mascara.
"They've been through it twice, and done a practice." Jay interjected.
"You'll shake hands with Justice Frawley, smile for the photo op, and give your remarks and you will then be escorted out as the Marine band plays "Hail to the Chief."" Nadine continued.
Elizabeth sighed. "We couldn't skip that part? I hate that song?"
"We tried m'am. But it's protocol."
Henry stifled a laugh as he bit into his muffin, thoroughly amused by the pomp and circumstance needed for a five minute task. But he was admittingly enjoying watching his wife squirm just slightly, at the song and by her makeup application. She hated to be fussed over, but Roxanne had a way of amplifying her beauty in his opinion and he knew she would look nothing short of perfect by the time she stood on the capitol steps.
"You and the family will wave at the crowd, then be escorted out the back and onto Pennsylvania Avenue for the parade. You'll walk down the street, waving, smiling." Nadine mocked a fake smile and dainty wave and even Elizabeth had to chuckle at this.
"Let's practice, shall we? Oh, and Daisy said to make sure you hold hands, she wants a image of a happy first couple." Nadine said, not wanting to repeat the part Daisy requested.
""Uh oh, Henry - we have to hold hands." Elizabeth joked as Roxanne finished spraying her perfectly set curls in place.
"Darn." he joked back with a wink. " But are we seriously practicing waving?" Henry raised his eyebrows.
"Yes, we need to her wave, it has to be strong, yet feminine. I've already showed the girls how to wave."
Elizabeth took one more bite of her muffin rising, clearly a bit irritated by this "Fine."
The pair rose and their hands gravitated toward one another, holding on gently and they waved. Elizabeth pulled out her best queen's wave she'd learned as a little girl when taking victory laps around the horse stable, her hand perfectly cupped. "Oh hello my fair Americans." she maintained a straight face as they made a circle around the living room, waving and blowing kisses.
Russell's eyebrows raised. He was taking this seriously, he'd been through this once before afterall. Granted, Conrad and Lydia were much less personable and photogenic than Henry and Elizabeth. They had needed rehearsals and always took them seriously. Then he saw Nadine trying to conceal a smirk, and he knew the joke was on him.
When Russell shook his head, letting out a small laugh, as he realized they were joking. Nadine let her giggle out too. Nadine had come to grow fond of Elizabeth's antics during practices, and expected them. At first Nadine had Russell's reaction, but as time went on, and she saw how flawless she was when the camera was on, she let the antics go.
Russell would have to get used to it. That's when she and Henry lost it, falling into a bout of laughter before they took one true practice lap around the couch. Her wave was perfect, Henry's smile was contagious and Nadine flipped the page in her folder ready to discuss the next steps.
"Finally, you will arrive at the White House….and" she began just as Gordon came rushing by barking, Blake and Mike B chasing after him.
"Gordon, no!" Mike B shouted then they heard a glass shatter and a shriek from Allison. Gordon had jumped on her, knocking her juice glass out of her hand and onto the floor, her skirt soaking up much of the juice on it's way it's the floor.
Henry wrapped an arm around his wife as she shielded her ears from the shattered glass. "It's just a glass, breathe sweetheart, breathe….." he calmed her quickly as he staff looked on, concerned.
"Water, please." she managed after a few minutes of sucking in oxygen, when the commotion had died down.
Jay had quickly returned with a bottle of water and she sipped on it as Allison stomped into the living room on the verge of tears.
"Oh, Noodle!" Henry sighed, looking at her outfit. "It's alright, just go change. You've got plenty of other outfits."
"But…."
"Stevie, go help your sister." Henry instructed as Allison stomped up the stairs in tears.
Stevie rolled her eyes and followed her upstairs as Blake came into the room. "Just like I said, on days like today, you'd be surprised what can happen to an outfit."
"You had to say it?" Nadine said wryly.
Blake frowned and left to help clean up the mess in the kitchen.
"Nadine...let's continue." Elizabeth instructed after she sadly watched her daughter go upstairs.
"Okay. As I was saying, you'll then arrive at the White House. You'll walk through the residence, making sure everything is to your liking. The decorators have finished; and all the bedrooms' decor have been duplicated based on your home here in Georgetown. All of your belongings will be in place when you arrive. The movers are outside waiting, and they will pack up the house here and bring everything to the White House just after you leave for the ceremony. Finally, you'll meet us back in the oval office. We'll review the schedule for the inaugural ball, then you'll have some time to relax in the residence and change before the party this evening." Nadine finished.
"Okay great." Elizabeth said, looking at Henry, making sure he was okay with the schedule.
"I'll go find Fred, he'll take you through the security briefing next."
Stevie came back down stairs at that moment. "Mom, sorry to interrupt but Ally...she wants you."
"Alright. Excuse me." she said to her staff and scurried up the stairs.
Elizabeth gently rapped her knuckles on Allison's door before entering. "Noodle, you okay?" she asked, pulling her daughter's crying form into her arms. "What is it sweetie? It's just a little spilt juice."
"I know, but this was my inauguration outfit."
"Ally, you have plenty of other adorable skirts and dresses. Just pick out another one."
"But I took weeks to decide, Roxanne said we all have to look the part of the first family."
"You will. Besides, it's freezing out. You'll have on your coat, so no one will even see this outfit. You could wear your pajamas if it were up to me." Elizabeth said in her typical fashion with a shoulder shrug. Finally Allison laughed.
"I know. But I wanted to look perfect, like you always do. It's your big day and all, and I just…"
"Oh sweetie, you always look beautiful."
"Thanks mom." Allison said genuinely. She then reached into her closet and held up a gray sweater dress. "How about this one?"
"It's perfect." Elizabeth said and waited for Allison to change before pulling her into a hug. "You ready now?"
"Yea. Are you?"
"Almost. I just need to run and get my boots, come with me." Elizabeth said, leading her daughter into her into her bedroom. After pulling on her black leather stiletto boots, she rummaged in her jewelry box locating a strand of black tahitian pearls. Henry had purchased the necklace for her on one of their anniversary vacations, it was one of her favorites. She held it up and fastened it on her daughter.
"Mom, your black pearls?" Allison, gasped stunned that her mother would let her borrow them.
"Well, it's a big day. And they look beautiful against that pretty gray dress and your shiny dark hair."
"Thank you, Mom!" Allison exclaimed, wrapping her mother into another hug.
"Love you, Noodle."
"I love you, too."
"Now do you feel pretty enough to stand there next to me today?"
"You bet. You look great, Mom!"
The pair quickly returned downstairs and Henry smiled at his daughter, happy they were able to share a private moment in the midst of the chaos to help calm Allison. Fred and Nadine had been waiting patiently while ELizabeth had attended to her motherly duties. They both understood that President or not, her first obligation was to her family and sometimes things had to wait. Jay had been busy on the phone letting everyone know they were now 15 minutes behind.
Fred was sitting in the armchair as Elizabeth sat down as they went over the security briefing. "As soon as you are sworn in at President and you exit the capitol building, the Colonel will hand you a card with the nuclear launch codes. You will get a new card everyday when you enter the oval office. Keep it safe and secure. Everyday when you get the new card, you hand the Colonel the old one. Understand."
"Yes." she nodded. Holy shit. It was getting real, they were talking nuclear launch codes.
Fred went on to show here where the agents would be positioned as she spoke, how they had extra security today due to the crowd, and since they were still investigating other possible conspirators against her via Marsh, since the coup.
He then called the family in to pass out and review the panic buttons. "These are your panic buttons. You are the first family, so everyone needs to carry this button at all times. Your assigned agents will ask to see it every time you leave to go someplace. In the event you feel unsafe or something's happening you press it and we will come to you immediately. Keep it nearby, even when you're in the White House. Everyone understand?"
They all nodded.
"Then, Cardinal, here is your panic button." Fred said to Henry, also introducing them to their code names.
"Ohh, Cardinal. Where have I heard that?" Elizabeth teased, not wanting to remember that day in Bolivia.
"Why can't it be Professor?" Henry muttered.
"I call you that sometimes. It can't be any real nick name we use…." Elizabeth explained as Fred handed out the buttons to the kids.
"For you, Ginger." He said to Stephanie, her code name coming from her auburn locks. She rolled her eyes, and she hated that it reminded her of Harrison.
Fred smiled his kind smile at Allison. Her mother had whispered in his ear as they descended the stairs, her code name. They had been having difficulties choosing a name for Allison. "And Pearl."
"Ohhhh…." Allison's eyes lit up as she accepted her button and earned a wink from her mom.
"And finally, Reprobate." He laughed as Jason accepted the button with an eye roll. His parents has called him that once. But it wasn't a regular nickname. They figured it would fit, since they couldn't use "the anarchist."
"Oh wait. One more...for Lady Liberty." Fred said as Elizabeth accepted her new button and new name. As Secretary of State her code name was "Spy," in reference to her CIA days. But Fred had changed it, given her new title. He originally thought of just Liberty, but added Lady since she would be the first female president.
Everyone in the room smiled as Fred said "Lady Liberty" In the hustle and bustle of the day and the past few weeks, it finally re-dawned on them what was happening today. History. Silence fell upon the room as they all took a moment to let what was about to happen sink in. They were all about to be a part of the inauguration of the first female president in the nation's history. It was an at times scary, and rather unprecedented way that they ended up here. But they were here, all about to jump in together. It was something Elizabeth, her family, and even her staff could have never imagined they would experience in their lifetimes.
"Well then, that's it for now, M'am, we're ready when you are."
Elizabeth smiled softly. "Thank you Fred. Nadine? Anything else?"
"No M'am."
"Alright then, let's go." Elizabeth said with eyebrows wide, taking a deep breath. They family rose and put on their coats and scarves and Blake lint rolled all their shoulders, making sure they were camera ready.
Henry helped his wife into her red wool trench coat and she attached her presidential seal pin to her lapel and tied her ivory scarf tightly around her neck. "Ready?" he whispered into her ear. "Last chance to run back up and hide under the covers."
She sighed, somewhat amused, but grateful he was always looking out for her, offering her an out. "I'm good. Thank you though."
As she surveyed each of her children, dressed impeccably she asked, reverting to Mom mode once more. "Everyone go to the bathroom?"
"Yes, Mom." They all rolled their eyes at her at the same time.
"Purses, wallets...panic buttons?" She asked.
"We're good." they said.
Sensing she wanted one final minute alone in their home, Henry nodded toward the door as her staff filed out. "We'll be right out."
When they were truly alone, they formed a circle, looking at one another. "This is it guys, are you sure you're ready to jump into this with me?" Elizabeth asked.
"You bet! You'll be great." Stevie encouraged and Allison nodded with a smile.
"I told you, I go where go babe." Henry reminded.
"Jase?"
"Yea. Let's do it." he said.
Henry rolled his shoulders and placed his hand out in the center of the circle. "Okay guys. Come on. On Three."
They all reached their hands in, and he counted to three and in unison they chanted, "Go Team McCord."
The kids jumped and rushed out the door ahead of them, not looking back for one second. Henry smiled at his wife and offered his hand, which she took and they stepped out of their townhome together.
Frank guided them to the open car door, with Henry's arm wrapped around her. "Next chapter."
"Next chapter." she whispered back and slid into the car, watching fondly as their townhome and their previous life faded into the distance.