Body Title: Falling (Part I): Up in the Air
Author: Ellie
Website: http://wing_nuts.tripod.com
Notes: A story, in three parts, about the fateful events on the eve of President Bartlet's second term.

White House Deputy Chief of Staff Joshua Lyman looked at his watch and winced. He was cutting it close. There was the ceremony on the Hill and then that other thing to take care of before he could even think about his evening plans. It was an odd concept, having plans for the evening. He shook his head as he made his way through the nearly empty halls of the West Wing. He was enjoying the relative quiet of the late morning. However, his pleasure was short lived as he rounded the corner and approached his bullpen.

"It would be like a day without orange juice, wouldn't it, Josh?" CJ Cregg snarled as she appeared in his doorway. "You couldn't let it slide, not even once. The man is an influential US Senator!"

"I am an influential person, too," he retorted.

"You're an infantile person," she snapped with her wide eyes wild and quivering in their sockets. "This is a man whose support we need, if I'm hearing Leo and Toby correctly. I realize that you were baited into making a comment..."

"I was," he agreed.

"I also realize that the fact that certain people breathe the same air as you is considered baiting in your book," CJ continued.

Josh brushed off the lecture with a wave of his hand. He had endured similar ones from both Leo and Toby for half an hour that morning. Sam Seaborn agreed that Josh had perhaps gone a bit far in admonishing the senator the previous afternoon on the capitol steps. Only Sam didn't quite say so. It was the look on his face that told the story.

"You're going to fix this, right?" CJ asked as she followed him into his office.

"Don't I always?"

"Always?" she said. "Good word. It connotes the perpetuity of your stupidity! Josh, couldn't you have waited 24 hours? One day. That's all I ask. I mean, the President has even been sworn in again and already you're picking fights!"

"First, it wasn't a fight," he assured her. "It was a verbal disagreement held in civilized tones that no camera or microphone caught. Next, and more important to me, I'd like to point out that no one has yet to say I was wrong."

"Well, of course you weren't," CJ said. "But that's really beside the point. Fix this!"

"I'm on it," he said grabbing his jacket. "Calm down, CJ. Senator Hannah and I have an understanding. We're both intelligent men, though you gotta agree that, in a basic battle of wits, the man is not in my league."

"Humility, Josh," she said. "Learn that word before you get to Virginia!"

"It's under control," he said easily.

She sighed and turned deftly on her heel. Josh looked briefly out his window. The cloud ceiling was falling steadily but though the skies were gray there was no rain or snow yet. The temperature was edging toward the low 40s. Fair inaugural weather, he though.

"Donna!" he yelled as he peered into the gray flannel above. "Donna!"

"Stop shouting," she said calmly in his doorway. "You really need to work on that."

"On what?"

"Your yelling," she said. "It's distracting to people who are working."

"Okay, maybe but there's two things wrong with that statement," he said. "First, no one is working right now and second, I'm your boss. I'm allowed to be distracting."

She looked at him unmoved. He stared back at her expectantly and made an emphatic gesture with his hands.

"Well?" he said.

"What?"

"Are we going?" he asked. "I have precisely one hour to watch this thing before I have to hop a plane to Virginia. You arranged it all, right?"

"Yes, but I need to know one thing," she said.

"What?"

"Why are you flying?" she asked. "It's like a one hour drive."

"I'm flying there because it's like a three hour drive," he said. "I don't want to spend the entire evening on the road."

Donna walked to the outer office to grab her coat. Josh stood in his doorway, making no move to help. She cast him a brief perturbed glance and shook her head.

"It would serve you right if you had to drive all night," Donna said. "It's your fault you have to go to Virginia at all."

"Thanks for the support, Donna," he said.

"I do support you," she said. "In fact, I do it so well so often, I've begun to wonder if I'm enabling your behavior. We really should work on your impulse control."

"Yeah, let's do that," he said.

"Really?"

"No," he said shaking his head.

"I still think you shouldn't get off this easy, if not for this, then for what you did to me," she said. "You sabotaged my date for the inaugural ball."

"We are not back to that again," he protested. "Donna, sabotage is an ugly word that implies premeditation."

"Josh..."

"Donna, you should thank me," he said. "I did you a favor. You stood him up once, and he cast you aside like a leper. I mean, it couldn't be clearer. The guy obviously has issues. Do you need someone with issues in your life?"

"Afraid of the competition?"

"I do not have issues," he said. "I'm complex. Didn't you read the cover story in Time last week? The word they used was 'complex.' "

"Complex is a word used by someone who is sucking up to a man with issues," Donna replied tossing her head. "And I'd like to point out that your ego has yet again turned my dilemma into a discussion about you."

"Sounds like you're the one with the issues," he offered with the hint of a smile. "Look, I'm sorry your date fell through."

"Are you really?"

"No, not really, but it seemed like the polite thing to say," he replied. "Look, I told you I would make it up to you. You can take a day off."

"When?"

"Some time," he said. "When I don't need you here."

"But I still have to go the inaugural ball alone," she said. "I'm one of the most eligible women in Washington, Josh."

"Right."

"I am an erudite conversationalist," she continued unhindered. "I am well-read, considered quite attractive and fashionable. But do I have a date to the social event of the year?"

"No, and do you know how I know this?"

"Because I keep telling you," she replied.

"Yes, hourly," he remarked. "I think you're taking a very narrow view of the facts if you thinks it's my fault you missed your date."

"You insisted that I stay here until 3 a.m. to help you research the historical and constitutional trends of immigration restrictions on contiguous territory," she informed him.

"Which I thanked you for," he said hesitantly, then paused as she glared at him. "Didn't I?"

"No."

"Well, I'm sure I meant to," he said. "I'll make it up to you."

"A day off at some unspecified point is not good enough, Josh," she said. "It doesn't solve the problem of me going alone tonight."

"Donna, are you that insecure?"

"I am not insecure," she said confidently.

"Then is it really that much of a problem?"

"Yes," she said. "It doesn't look good."

"You shouldn't put so much stock in appearances," he told her.

"Is that the new motto of your fan club?" she asked. "This is a special event, Josh. The inaugural ball is a place to be seen. Look, you graduated from Harvard and Yale and have all the connections in the world to set yourself up after the president finishes his last term. I do not. I need to market myself. I'm out of a job in four years."

"Or maybe sooner."

She ignored his comment as she donned her coat.

"Besides, walking in alone is... well, it's depressing," she said. "Everyone who is anyone wants to be at this event, but I managed to not find a date."

"Fine, I'll take you," he said. "You won't have to walk in alone. Satisfied?"

"Let's go!" CJ shouted. "If we're not out there by the time the President arrives, I'll never hear the end of it, and therefore neither will you. And Josh, you're already never going to hear the end of your latest fiasco. But I've got to thank you. It gave me a great gift idea for your next birthday."

"Really," he said anxiously. "What?"

"Lobotomy," CJ said.

Josh let the comment slide as he and Donna followed the raging press secretary. They exited the building with Josh and CJ squabbling over how he should approach his meeting in Virginia. They ceased their wrangling only when they took their places on the Capital Hill dais. The rest of the staff was already gathered in the stands. They did not wait long for the arrival of the commander-in-chief. The president's motorcade was pulling up as they took their seats. Then the formalities began.

President Josiah "Jed" Bartlet took the oath and launched into his speech. Beside Josh, Sam could be heard quietly repeating the words in synchronization, words he had begun writing a year earlier when the campaign began in earnest.

"You're flying?" Toby whispered into Josh's ear.

"Yeah," Josh said without turning. "I'll be back early this evening."

"You'll be back when you've fixed this mess," Toby replied.

"I'll be back with a better deal than we would have gotten had I not opened my mouth," Josh said. "And I will do it with ample time to make it to the party tonight. Sen. Samuel Hannah and I are intelligent men. We will reach an understanding."

"I don't care what you reach so long as it includes an acceptable apology from you that keeps him in the box for a week until we can launch our education plan," Toby said and leaned back.

The President's speech concluded half an hour later and the staff piled into the motorcade. It took them back to 1600 Pennsylvanian Avenue where they would watch the parade.

Inside the west wing, Josh grabbed several files then prepared to leave.

"No," Donna said as he passed her desk.

"No what?" he asked stopping in mid-stride.

"No, I'm not satisfied with your offer," she said and looked at his bewildered expression. "See, you've forgotten already. You'll do the same thing this evening; not that you'll be back in time anyway. You're a very inconsiderate man, Josh."

"I keep telling you," he said in earnest tones. "It feels better when you say things like that at the top of your lungs. You should try it. Shouting is a good release. Imagine what a stress ball I would be if I kept quiet all the time."

"Imagine our shock if you did," she said. "And let me point out that (again) we weren't talking about you. But if we were, I'd have to say that you are conceited and do not deserve the likes of me as an escort."

"I'll be there," he said.

"No, you won't," she said.

"Donna, I promise," he said.

"You promised me it wouldn't take long to research the immigration trends," she said. "Nine hours constitutes a long time, Josh."

"Fine," he relented. "I'll put it in writing. That way it's a contract, a binding agreement that I must honor."

He grabbed a pad from her desk and scribbled on it. Sam was passing by, heading for the parade stands, when Josh stopped him.

"Sam, sign this," he said handing him a pen.

"Sure," Sam said and briefly reading it. "Am I understanding this? In essence, you are promising not to forget to bring Donna to the Inaugural Ball tonight under penalty of... well, basically shouting by the aforementioned party in front of the entire staff without a single syllable of protest from you?"

"Yeah."

Sam laughed. "Oh, like that's gonna happen."

"Shut up and sign it," Josh said.

"Okay," Sam agreed while penning his name. "Donna, if you want to run through some choice adjectives later, I'm offering my time and many suggestions."

"Thank you," she said, palming her contract.

"You leaving now?" Sam asked as Josh grabbed his bag.

"Yeah, I got this thing in Virginia," he said looking at his watch. "It's 1:30 now... I'll be back by seven, eight at the outside. Donna, your place, 8:30. Don't still be playing with your hair."

"Ha! If you think I'm going to spend my entire afternoon getting ready for a date with..." she scoffed as he hurried down the hall. "Hey! Josh!"

"What do you need?" Sam asked.

"I need to work with him on his social skills," she sighed. "He didn't say good-bye."

***************************************************

"Yeah, McGarry," Leo said brusquely into his phone.

"Leo."

"Josh."

"I've been trying to call you for the last half hour," Josh said. "Margaret kept saying you were too busy. Then I called back again, and it took you six rings to answer."

"Well, I'm kinda busy here, Josh," Leo said. "I just got the president sworn in and am preparing to launch his next administration. You might not believe it, but some members of the staff make that job a little more difficult than others."

"You don't need to get hostile, Leo."

"I trust you have news," Leo said. "It's 5:30. I told you to call every hour."

"I thought you wanted to know when it was fixed?"

"I did," Leo replied. "I also wanted you to call every hour. That's why I said: Josh call me every hour and let me know when it's fixed."

"Well, I'll let you know," he said.

"It's not?"

"Almost," he said. "Fred Drummer...."

"Hannah's chief of staff?"

"Yeah, he and I are close to getting somewhere," Josh said. "Hannah's driving back to DC tonight so he can think things over; he's actually driving himself."

"Why?"

"He said he thinks better when he drives."

"Right," Leo said looking at his watch. "Did you apologize?"

"Sort of."

"By sort of you mean no?"

"Yeah," Josh said. "I told you, Leo. Trust me. We'll reach an understanding. Look, they're gonna cancel the later flights."

"Weather?" Leo asked glancing at the sky that had grown darker by the hour.

"Yeah, it's coming in quicker than they expected," Josh said. "Anyway, Fred's a pilot. He's got his own plane. He says if we leave now, we can beat it. So, I'm flying back with him. Hannah's gonna call when he gets to DC and tell me what he thinks about what I said."

"Which wasn't an apology?"

"No."

"Josh, fix this thing."

"Leo, don't worry," Josh assured him. "It's under control. I've gotta go. Fred's ready. I'll be back in an hour."

"You're sure it's okay to take off?"

"Hey, I'm just the passenger," Josh said.

"Should you wait?"

"No can do," he said. "I helped us win this thing, Leo. I'll be damned if Sam and Toby get to take my share of the credit. Besides, I got a contract to fulfill or else Sam is gonna write a speech for Donna so she can call me names."

"What?"

"Nothing. Gotta go."

Leo hung up and sighed in the exasperate way he was only able to conjure with Josh. He turned his eyes again toward the cloaked skies and shook his head then shrugged.

**************************

"CJ," Josh's voice sounded far off with the static over the line.

"Where are you?" she asked. "Did you apologize?"

"I just talked to Leo 15 minutes ago," he said. "You don't have to worry. I'm on it."

"Wonderful, Josh," she said flatly. "But I can't help but think how much better I would feel if you said 'I fixed it' or maybe if you just hadn't opened your mouth to begin with..."

"CJ..."

"Where are you?" she asked. "I can barely hear you?"

"I can't get Leo back on the phone so give him a message," he said distantly through a wall of static. "I'm meeting with Hannah before we take off so I'll be a little later than....."

"Apologize, Joshua," she said and disconnected when it appeared the connection was lost.

************************

Donna Moss sat on her couch wearing her newly-purchased, designer knockoff and tried to look passive. She held in her hands the now-damp note bearing Josh's handwriting. The words were smeared from having been held of so long. She looked at the clock. The hands were about to reach nine. She had begun composing in her head an indignant speech around 8:35. She was preparing to call a cab when the knock on her door arrived.

She jumped from her seat and hurried to the mirror in her bathroom to check that her make-up was still pristine and her dress draping appropriate. Her blond tresses were swept up in a loose and sultry fashion that accented her eyes and delicate cheekbones. The dress was worth every penny. It was slate blue silk with spaghetti straps with a plunging back. The rich fabric clung to her body as though it was made only for her. She took one last look in the mirror and practiced her aloof expression. He would be wearing his tuxedo, and she did not want to be phased by formal attire; she was mad and he would hear it. She took a single deep breath before opening the door.

Before her stood Sam Seaborn, dressed in top coat and tuxedo. What Donna noted first was that he was wearing his glasses; it was a sign she did not like. It meant he was working. She sensed something was awry but pushed aside those thoughts as she glanced down the hall in search of another face.

"I didn't want you to be waiting," Sam said.

"What's wrong?"

"Wrong?" he repeated with a stilted expression.

"Where's Josh?"

"Uh, he's not here yet," Sam said. "You should come with me for now."

Donna grabbed the sheer wrap that matched her dress and followed Sam to the waiting limo. Snow was falling as the winter storm that was not supposed to hit until the following day made its own appearance for the inaugural festivities. The revised reports indicated the storm would clear the area soon. Donna hurried to the car trying not to spatter her dress with the slush on the ground.

She sat silently the rest of the ride as Sam watched the city slide by the tainted windows and sighed occasionally. Her stomach was uneasy, but she refused to speculate. Whatever Josh had done this time, he would find a way to fix it. Probably.

They arrived at their destination and emerged in a hail of flashbulbs. They crossed the red carpet with Sam grasping her elbow. She wondered fleetingly who he was looking to support, her or himself. Together they entered the impressive ballroom that was festooned with flags and swags and a sea of gowns and tails. The music and commotion were dizzying compared to the desolate silence on the limousine.

"Leo's in the back," Sam said as he ushered her toward the back of the room.

In a small conference room guarded by Secret Service agents, President Bartlet and Leo were talking in hushed tones. Sam peeled off instantly and made a call on his cell phone. CJ and Toby were locked in conversation and refused to meet Donna's eyes.

"Donna," Leo said beckoning to her.

"You look lovely tonight, Donna," President Bartlet said.

"Thank you, Mr. President," she said. "Leo, where's Josh?"

"Sam didn't tell you?" Leo asked and shot a dagger glare at the Deputy Communications Director who caught the look and winced.

"What's happened?" she asked.

Toby approached with CJ in tow. Their faces were drawn and serious. They looked at her with pained expressions. CJ opened her mouth, but no words emerged. Toby sighed after a moment then found his voice.

"Josh changed plans a the last minute," Toby said lowly. "He decided to fly back in a private plane with Fred Drummer."

"He called me," CJ said absentmindedly. "He said they were going to be delayed so he could make a last ditch effort with Hannah. I was so mad that he hadn't apologized."

"He's still in Virginia?" Donna asked.

"According to the tower, the plane took off at 6:15--against advice from air traffic control," Toby said. "It was supposed to land a little after seven."

"Supposed to?"

"Donna," Leo said calmly. "The plane dropped off radar about half an hour into the flight."

Donna cupped her hand to her mouth to stifle a gasp. She trembled for a moment then managed to speak.

"They crashed?" Donna asked. A cold bolt of pain stabbed at her stomach. She bit her lip and held her breath.

"We don't know that," Sam interjected vehemently. "The plane is only listed as being late right now."

"It's been two hours," she said.

"Two hours is only late," Leo remarked.

"But it went down?"

"We don't know," Sam continued. "It just isn't on radar. There's bad weather all around us. I know Fred. He's a good pilot. He might have put down in a field to be safe."

"What about the radio?" Donna asked.

"Nothing," Toby said.

"Josh has his phone," she said. "Did you try it?"

Toby sighed and looked away giving her the answer she dreaded.

"We don't know anything for certain," Leo said. "There were no distress calls and so far no reports of... of..."

"Crashes?" she offered.

"Crash related activity," Leo relented. "They didn't file a flight plan so we aren't one hundred percent sure where they were specifically, but we have a general idea. The weather is breaking. When it's safe to take off, a search will be launched from the air. Ground rescue crews have already been alerted."

"Why did they take off with a storm coming?" Donna asked.

"They thought they could beat it," Leo said. "Josh was hell-bent on being here."

"It's his night as much as mine," the President said. "It belongs to all of you. This is not the way I want to start this term."

"No sir," Leo agreed. "Let me say again, we don't know anything for certain."

Donna let her eyes fall out of focus. She was aware of Leo offering her a chair. She sat for lack of anything better to do; she didn't care that it was breaking protocol with the President in the room. It hardly seemed to matter.

"He didn't say good-bye," Donna said quietly.

"He also didn't apologize to Senator Hannah or fix his mess," Leo said gruffly. "He told me he would do that. I have never known Josh to fail me. His wins aren't always pretty, but he gets it done. I don't know about the rest of you, but I don't have enough information right now to believe that has changed."

"Yet," Toby offered morosely.

"Thank you, Toby," President Bartlet said. "You're a real rock in a storm. Leo, let's go out there, and get this damn party going; I want updates every 15 minutes."

Donna stared at the scrap of paper in her hands now turning to lint. Josh's scrawl was obscured and illegible. She smoothed the fragile slip then carefully folded it into her palm again and held it tight. All around her, there were sporadic conversations on phones. Each ended with an order that sounded like a pray and a plea for information as soon as possible. Sam and CJ drifted in and out of the room periodically with grave expressions. From the noise in the adjacent room, Donna surmised the President had made his grand entrance and had his ceremonial dance with the First Lady. Leo stayed in the back with his cell phone attached to his ear. Toby made calls and signaled each back to Leo with a terse shake of his head.

A multitude of images whirling around in Donna's head making her dizzy. Watching Josh disappear at the end of the hall as he left that afternoon, the elated look on his face on election night when the pivital electoral votes swung to the President; the quizzical expression he wore the first time she laid eyes upon him in New Hampshire years earlier. The images blurred together. She forced them back and tried to not think of Josh as he was. She was afraid to do so. It seemed like an act of finality. Instead, she stared at the door, willing him to breeze in sounding his own accolades about his trip to Virginia. She was so fixated on the door that she neither saw nor heard anything else in the room for a while. She was startled by a hand placed on her knee.

She snapped her eyes downward to see Sam squatting before her with a concerned expression.

"Donna, can I get you anything?" he asked.

She wanted to say, "answers," but knew it would be inappropriate. Sam was distraught as well. She knew he was doing everything in his power to get the information she desperately wanted. She shook her head.

"Okay," he said. "How are you holding up?"

Donna shrugged. She wanted to say something chic, something to show she was strong and that she had faith this would all be resolved positively, but the words were not there. She remembered this feeling from the emergency room after shooting. The difference was at that time there was an information source. The doctors were working; the experts were trying. This time, there was just waiting.

"I'm good at forbearance," she said finally. "It's a prerequisite for working with Josh."

"You need it," Sam agreed as he offered a strained smile. "Patience is not his forte."

"He would disagree, of course," Donna said.

"Of course, because most people to fly off the handle and proclaim: 'I'm so sick of Congress I could vomit.' Very composed and very eloquent of him, no?"

"He could benefit from practicing impulse control from time to time," she agreed.

"You're very good to him, Donna," Sam said. "He's not easy to work for, but you manage. He probably never said so, but he appreciates it."

"He does," she said. "I mean, he says it, but not like you did. Josh.... He has his own, special way."

"Well, he's as sensitive as a callous some days," Sam said.

"I know," she said. "But not always. He did offer to be my escort tonight after I accused him of wrecking my date."

She paused and looked at the note she was clenching in her fist. Sam saw this and placed a comforting hand on her wrist.

"It's not your fault," Sam said. "He made a decision. Josh thinks for himself and does what he thinks is best. He wanted to be here tonight."

"Yeah," she said. "He probably would have forgotten me anyway."

"No, he wouldn't," Sam assured her. "That I know. Donna, Josh..."

Toby, standing in the corner on his phone, snapped his fingers to get Sam's attention. Sam left Donna's side and the two men spoke briefly in hushed tones.

"Are they certain?" Sam asked after a moment.

"What is it?" Donna asked.

Sam looked sick as he eyed Toby, who shook his head then sighed.

"There is a report of a probable crash site just outside Carterville, Virginia," Toby said. "It's pretty rough terrain so it's not like anyone can get to it easily. The NTSB is on route."