A/N: Thanks for reading. Reviews feed the muse!

Captain Armstrong outstretches his arm towards the examination table, inviting Harm to lie down. Glancing over at Mac, he states, "Ma'am, you are welcome to take the seat over there while I examine the patient."

Harm grumbles as he stretches out on the miniscule table attempting in vain to relax. "You know, Doc, these tables aren't any more suited for someone my size than a rack on a carrier. Can't I just sit?"

The doctor silently shakes his head in the negative as he moves over to where Harm's head lies, ignoring his patient's plea to remain upright. The Captain palpitates Harm's skull in various places checking for any soft spots or tenderness, "Any concerns or complaints since you were discharged?"

Harm actually relaxes under the doctor's nimble fingers. His motions feel similar to a shampoo at the barber shop; a nice scalp massage. Although, he would definitely prefer a woman's touch. Their fingers always seem to have the perfect amount of pressure in all the right places. He answers, "Nope, everything has been just fine. I had a tiny bit of discomfort in my lower back earlier in the week, but no headaches and no issues with my blood pressure."

Captain Armstrong glances over Harm's head at Mac who offers a silent nod of her head in agreement with Harm's assessment of his condition. Harm catches the motion in his peripheral vision as he chides, "Hey Mac, I'm right here. Although I may not have eyes in the back of my head, my side vision works just fine! You aren't supposed to be having silent communications with my doctor, that's our thing."

Mac gives him a mock salute as she chuckles, "Aye Aye, Commander!"

The Captain shakes his head, "Captain Livingston warned me about you two and I paid him no mind. Clearly, he was quite serious."

In unison, Harm and Mac ask, "What do you mean?"

The doctor chuckles, "That! You two must drive AJ crazy. I couldn't imagine putting up with you two on a daily basis. I'd tear my hair out. I'd accuse you two of being the cause of him not having any of it left, but I know most it was gone before you crossed his path."

Mac is the only one to say something this time, "AJ? You know Admiral Chegwidden?"

Captain Armstrong answers cryptically, "AJ and I go way back, but I haven't seen him in quite some time. I just happened to see in CDR Rabb's paperwork where I would be sending my report and recognized the name. I'll have to call my old friend up and invite him out for drinks, get the skinny on his top attorneys."

Harm clearly catches the raised brow on Mac's beautiful features, himself wondering the same thing. How exactly does his doctor know his CO?

The doctor notices the byplay between them, "And you two are doing it again!"

Harm sheepishly grins, "Guilty. It tends to happen when you are partnered with someone for a long time. You learn each other's playbook well enough to communicate without words."

The doctor laughs outright, "My wife and I have been married for twenty five years and I still don't know what she is thinking half the time! There must be more to it than that."

Harm simply shrugs his shoulders.

Satisfied with the first part of the exam, the doctor motions for Harm to turn over so that he can look at his spine. Getting back to his job, he questions, "Can you pull your shirt off for me?"

Harm obliges as Mac tries to glance anywhere but at his naked chest. She thinks to herself 'Did the room just get a little hotter in here?'

As the doctor presses in various spaces along Harm's vertebrae looking for any area that makes his patient wince or jerk he questions, "And what about the hallucinations?"

Harm mumbles, "Those have disappeared too."

Sensing Harm's reluctance, he inquires, "Did you want to talk about those in private?"

Harm hesitates for only a moment, "No, I promised I would tell her anyway. We just haven't gotten around to it yet. And since they haven't returned, I believe that the detailed notes left by Captain Livingston should be enough for now." He turns towards Mac giving her an apologetic look, "I'm sorry. I completely forgot about that."

Mac silently acknowledges him with her eyes, "I understand, we've got plenty of time for that."

The doctor wraps a blood pressure cuff around Harm's arm as he eyes him warily. Harm sighs, knowing he isn't getting out of this without further explanation. "The short version is that all of my fantasies were fulfilled, and then some. At least in my head. And although they were all very vivid, they weren't all X-rated either. However, each one of them, especially the last one, left me in a state of euphoria." By the time he is finished explaining, Harm is rather flushed.

The doctor pulls the eartips of the stethoscope from his canal, and declares, "Only slight elevation. Perfect!"

Harm exclaims, "You did that on purpose!"

Captain Armstrong and Mac are both chuckling at his expense as the doc replies, "Yes, I did. I wasn't trying to embarrass you, I just wanted to see what your physical reactions would be when you started thinking about them again."

Harm mumbles loud enough for only the doctor to hear, "I guess it is a good thing I'm laying on my side then."

Captain Livingston smiles, "You can put your shirt back on, Commander. Everything looks good from my physical exam. I'm going to send you back down for your repeat CT scan and if I don't see anything alarming, I'm pretty sure I will be releasing you back to light duty."

Harm's jovial mood instantly deflates, "Light duty?"

The doctor fully expected this type of reaction from his patient. Most Naval Officers aren't very happy to sit on the sidelines for any length of time. However, Marines are definitely far worse. He taps his pen against his clipboard, "Yes, light duty, but not for very long. Neither head injuries, back pain, or blood pressure issues are something to play around with. I want to make sure that you can get through your normal work day before you are scaling down the ladders of a carrier."

Harm grimaces, "I'm stationed at an office, Captain, not a carrier."

The Captain rolls his eyes, "I'm aware of that, Commander, but investigations are on a carrier many times. I'm not saying you have to sit behind a desk one hundred percent of the time. You can still be in the courtroom, and do local stuff. I just don't want you on a transport or a ship just yet."

Both Harm and Mac also realize what the doctor hasn't said yet. Mac decides to be the one to voice the question, "And what about the cockpit? When will he be able to fly again?"

The doctor glances up after he signs his name on the orders for the tests, "That will be up to the flight surgeon. I don't see anything prohibiting him from getting back up there, it just might take a little time. I'll go grab a nurse to take you down for your scans, Commander, and I will see you back here after that."

The moment the doctor leaves the room, Mac is immediately at Harm's side, clasping her hand in his. She notices the tension rolling off of him in waves and wraps her other arm around his neck pulling him to her. She whispers in his ear, "Everything will be fine, Sailor."

In his head, he knows her words are true, but apparently her internal clock doesn't work as an internal calendar. He might very well miss his carrier qualifications this time around.