Disclaimer: same as in Ch 1

22nd January 2039

1700 EST

Rabb Residence

McLean, VA

"Mom! Dad! We're here." Jessica Rabb Webb shouted as she entered the house.

Her husband, Jeremy, trailed behind her with the twins, Nicholas and Stella. Her shout echoed in the silence of the house, although she could hear that a television was on in the family room. She grabbed Nick and headed toward the noise. "Mom? Dad?"

"Hi, Aunt Jessie."

Instead of finding her parents, she found little Harm in front of the TV set. "Hi, Harm. Where are Grams and Grandpa?"

"Grandpa is upstairs with Andrew and Eliza. Grandma is in the kitchen with Mommy. Hi, Uncle Jeremy!" He called, seeing Jeremy walk in.

"Hi, Little Harm." Jeremy grinned at him as he set the baby down. "Say, how about we watch Pokemon together?" He was confident that the boy wouldn't refuse such an offer.

"No, it's okay. I want to watch this."

Looking at the TV for the first time since they'd entered the room, the adults were surprised at what he was watching. It appeared to be a history show with footage from the American wars of the last century. They looked at each other, and then shrugged.

Jessica smiled at the boy, and then turned to her husband. "I'm gonna go find Mom and Elaine."

"Ok. I'll stay here with the kids." Jeremy took Nick back from her and turned to the TV.

Kitchen

Mac was making dinner, but she kept having trouble concentrating. The events of that morning kept playing through her head. After they'd comforted each other, they had decided that they needed to spend the day with their family. Both of them really wanted the support of being surrounded by their loving children.

Harm had called around, and, tonight, the entire non-MIA families--including in-laws--were coming for dinner. Well, Bud and Harriet were still in Italy, but everyone except for them was coming here. She kept fretting over what would happen the next day. Would her sons make it out alive? They had to.

She didn't seem to hear Elaine calling her. "Mom? Mom. Mom!"

"Oh! Elaine, what is it?"

"Are you ok, Mom? I called you three times, and you only just heard me."

"I'm fine, sweetheart. I just zoned out."

"Mom..." Elaine looked a little disbelieving.

"I'm really ok. Honest."

Elaine still looked suspicious, but Jessica entered before she could continue questioning her. "Mom! Elaine! It's great to see you both." Jessica hugged at the two women, grinning.

"Hello, sweetheart".

"What's for dinner? Need any help?"

"Vegetable lasagna, meatloaf, and mashed potatoes. And thanks for the offer, but we've finished here."

Jessica narrowed her eyes. "Please tell me it's not Daddy's meatless meatloaf."

"No, it's not. It's the real meatloaf!" Mac grinned. Jessica might have her daddy's looks, but she definitely Mac's daughter--quite the meat lover.

"Good! We need real food and Daddy's 'menu'...let's just say that none of it is in the real food category."

The other two women giggled at that, not noticing that Harm had entered the kitchen. "Exactly what is wrong with my meatloaf, young lady?"

"Aw, Daddy, you have to admit that your meatloaf is just...well, let me put it this way: It's not meant for people who really like good food."

"Ouch! That hurt! Sarah, I think I may have to disown your daughter!" He pretended to be wounded by her words, and everyone began to laugh at his antics.

"Grandpa, Grandpa!" Andrew burst into the kitchen and grabbed Harm's leg.

"Whoa! Slow down there, buddy. What's the matter?"

"Play awrplane with me. Hawm won't let me watch cartoon!" The little boy wailed.

Harm looked surprised, glancing at Elaine. His expression seemed to ask her what her son would watch that wasn't cartoons. Elaine just sighed in defeat. Her son had lost his innocence the day that she received the yellow envelope.

"Grandpa!"

"Ok! Up you go!" Harm swung the boy up and 'flew' him around like an 'awrplane,' complete with sounds effects.

"Sometimes I wonder: who enjoys the game more, Dad or Andrew?"

Mac smiled. "Just don't forget this, Elaine: Once a flyboy, always a flyboy...even if they're as old as my flyboy there."

Before long, the house was full of Rabbs', Roberts', Webbs' and Turners'. Dinner, however, passed smoothly and quietly. Sturgis was amazed by that. After all, all the children had been put at one table. Certainly, they were technically adults, but most of them were worse than four year-olds when they were together.

Albert Rabb had noticed the oddity as well. Something just didn't seem right. Not only was it unusual to have dinner at the Rabbs, except for holidays, but the whole family was rarely together. To make matter more suspicious, his father and 'Uncle' Clay exchanged knowing looks, while his mother just stared thoughtfully at nothing. With a shrug, he decided to ignore it, this time.

Everybody had moved to living room. It was astonishing that the room stayed in such good order, what with five young children and three babies running loose. Harm, Mac, Sturgis, Bobbi, Clay, and Susan had gradually migrated to the porch, where they sat silently. At last, Sturgis finally decided that enough was enough. "Ok, people. Tell us what is going on!"

"What?" Harm and Clay chorused, making him look at them even more suspiciously.

"Ok...now I know that something is seriously wrong. Now tell me what it is."

"Geez, Sturgis! You're really starting to sound like AJ Chegwidden, may he rest in peace." Webb grinned, and then turned to Harm. The two held a silent conversation, and then Harm nodded.

"What?" Sturgis was really getting impatient.

"Calm down." Clay smiled slightly, amused by Sturgis, but he quickly sobered as he began to recount the tale of the POW camp.

When he had finished, there was an uneasy silence in the room. At length, Bobbi broke it. "Who else knows about this?"

"No one else knew about this, beside us and the CNO himself."

"Not even Elaine? But Clay, she's Matt's wife." Susan Webb looked surprised.

"Harm and I agreed not to tell her until Matt is standing in front of us."

"But Clay..."

"Susan, Clay is right. Elaine needs just almost anything except a false hope. We are all fully aware how easily this kind of mission could go wrong in matter of seconds. Elaine doesn't need to have her heart broken again, and I certainly don't want to see Little Harm hurt any worse. That boy has changed a lot. I certainly don't want him thinking that his father might come home, and then have his hopes dashed when his father returns in a casket. That's just too cruel." Surprisingly, it was Sturgis who defended the idea. "Harm, let me go with you and Mac. I don't know what I could do to help, but I certainly could try to keep the two of you out of trouble." He added, with a slight grin.

"Thanks, buddy, but I don't think it's necessary. I'm sure Patrick gave the Captain plenty of warning about me, Clay, and Mac. They'll watch me like a hawk."

"Don't start with me, Harm. We've been friends for what seems like forever. You and Mac need all the support you can get, and, Mac, don't start with the 'I'm a marine' speech. You are not a marine right now; you're a mother who's scared to death about her sons' fate. Let me go with you."

"Thank you, Sturgis. You're a good friend." Mac smiled, reaching to take his hand.

Soon, they fell into a comfortable silence, all of them caught up in their own thoughts. Wordlessly, they eventually rose as a group and headed back inside the house. What they saw there almost brought tears of joy to their eyes.

Elaine, Danielle, Jessica and Nicole were seated comfortable on the sofa, having a great time chatting about 'girly' stuff. The infants, Eliza, Nick and Stella, slept peacefully near their mothers, in their portable cribs. Jeremy and Mikey were entertaining John and Andrew with a train set.

Harmony sat on her Uncle Albert's lap, obviously enjoying the story that her uncle was reading to her. Little Harm was playing with his Lego blocks, with Albert, Jr., who hovered around him, occasionally 'helping' him demolish the blocks.

The elders watched over their children with great pride and happiness. All their worries seemed forgotten for those few minutes. Gradually though, their thoughts turned to tomorrow. What would happen? Would they ever see Trey and Matt here, enjoying themselves? Their reverie was shattered by Little Harm's shrieks of outrage. "Albert, Jr., you get back here now!"

"No! You won't let me play!" Albert yelled back, running away from his pursuing cousin.

"You're supposed to build the blocks not to bulldoze the blocks!"

"Stop it, both of you. You'll wake up the babies!" Nicole scolded.

As if on cue, the three babies quickly began to cry. Soon the living room had become 'war zone.' The train set and story book were long forgotten as the other three children joined their siblings in hot pursuit. Meanwhile, the men of the family raced around the room, trying to catch their errant children.

TBC….

AN: Ok…I know I'm dragging the story, but I can't resist. J I'll try to update next chapter 'The Rescue' ASAP. Stay tuned and oh…before I forgot *grin* Review, please! Thank you.