PIERCE HOME, CRABAPPLE COVE, MAINE: JULY 18, 1954.
Margaret, very pregnant and due any day, was lying on the couch watching Hawkeye try and assemble the nursery set they got as a gift from Peg and BJ.
"Damn thing!" Hawk grunted at the instruction sheet, written in 10 languages except English (A/N: as from personal experience).
Hawkeye had nearly finished and was getting frustrated, which made Margaret get upset, which compounded the entire situation
"Ben, please try and calm down" asked Margaret, who was trying to rest.
"Sorry" he said "It's just the we'll be parents any day and I want to get this finished"
Margaret adjusted her pillow and tried to read the paper.
"Ben, come here" she asked, Hawkeye put down his screwdriver and went over to see what his wife wanted.
"Feel this" Margaret said, putting her hand on her belly.
"Wow!" exclaimed Hawkeye, "the baby is kicking, hey that's really neat!"
Margaret smiled. She felt wonderful (inside that is) she had a great husband, was expecting a baby and lived in the most picture perfect town in America. It was good to be out of the cold, hard and although she like it, being a civilian was not too bad.
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CHEZ KLINGER, TOLEDO, OHIO: JULY 19, 1954.
Klinger stood at the door to his restaurant, as per usual; there was a long line of people waiting to get in.
Business had really picked up in the last few months so he and Soon-Lee decided to have kids.
Max had also hired Igor as a second chef and "Ramone" a very large African-American ex Marine as his bouncer. He seemed to do a very good job; the cops hadn't turned up in six months.
It was six o'clock and everyone was busy. A large town car pulled up, Charles and Edna got out. They were at a medical conference in Detroit and had decided to stop by,
"Name?" asked Ramone, wearing a suit and black sunglasses.
Charles looked at him "The name is Charles Emmerson Winchester the Third" he said.
Ramone quickly scanned the guest list 'I'm sorry sir but you're not on the list".
Edna looked at Charles who spoke up "I have private arrangements with the owner, so why don't you just crawl back to wherever you came out of and let us in".
Klinger could see that Charles' ego and his perception of those around him was at best, limited. He knew something was about to transpire.
"Ramone, its OK" he said "he's with me".
Ramone stared at him and unhooked the rope across the door, Charles started in.
"Hey" said Ramone "I don't care where you from white boy, but one of these days, we gonna' get folk just like you, just you watch"
Charles rolled his eyes and entered.
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BOSTON GENERALHOSPITAL, BOSTON, MASS: JULY 20, 1954.
Two orderlies pushed Margaret's gurney into to the elevator, Hawkeye ran along side. Trapper strode behind it, ensuring everything went to plan.
A young intern was about to stick a wheelchair into the elevator, "HEY YOU" bellowed Trap "Get out of there or I'll bust your ass so far back into your surgical internship you'll have to be born again!"
He turned round and pushed the wheelchair out the elevator "Dr. McIntyre, of course sir!" he said, scared shitless.
Trapper entered and smiled at Hawk "God it's good to be Chief of Surgery" he snapped at someone "Maternity suite, now!"
Margaret looked at Hawkeye, "Hey, its ok" he said, "we've got Trapper here, and last time I checked I was a doctor, so everything's gon' be fine, I guarantee it!"
Hawk smiled and held her hand, she gave a little smile. Oh boy, oh boy, a baby thought Hawkeye, someone to play catch and football with, someone to look after him in his old age and see grow up to become a productive member of society.
"You coming?" asked Trapper, who was standing on the maternity floor, waiting for Hawkeye.
"Oh, yeah!" Hawk said and sprinted after Margaret's gurney yelling "Its OK, Its OK"
"Its OK" said the nurse who was between Margaret's legs, "just one more big push!"
She looked at Hawkeye, covered in sweat and in pain, "Rip it out of me! I can't push no more!"
Hawkeye leaned over and wiped her forehead "Come on Margaret, just one more push, ready? ...........1, 2, 3"
They both strained and grunted together, "Margaret" said Hawkeye.
"Yeah?" she asked, panting heavily, drenched in sweat and thoroughly deadened.
"It's over" he said.
The nurse smiled 'it sure is!"
Margaret had given birth to a healthy, six pound eight ounce baby boy.
Hawkeye stepped outside into the waiting room, where Daniel, the Houlihan's and Charles had gathered.
Charles was down the road at Café Delmar during his lunch break so he figured he could come along.
"Well?" asked Daniel excitedly.
"Yeah!" grunted Colonel Howitzer Al "When do I get to see my grandson!"
Hawkeye led them down the hall and into Margaret's room. She lay in bed with the baby next to her, she was exhausted.
"Daddy!" said Margaret "its nice of you to come!"
"Are you kidding!" he said "I wouldn't have missed this for the world"
"Well…….." said Margaret 'say hello the Benjamin Franklin Pierce Jr.
"You know" said Hawkeye "it's been exactly four years since we went to Korea, and now we have a beautiful child, and on the same day – that's so, profound"
Everyone agreed.
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O'REILLY FARM, OTTUMWA, IOWA: JULY 27, 1954.
It was late in the first day of the first annual reunion of the 4077th, on the day that the armistice was signed, everyone gathered at the O'Reilly farm.
In the last 12 months, there had been three marriages, two births and both Soon-Lee Patti was expecting a child. Klinger had become a successful entrepreneur and Trapper had done a 180° had become a family man without any womanizing ways.
Everyone danced, ate or talked.
"You know" said Trapper as he and Hawkeye sat on the porch "I remember the first time I set eyes on the camp. I was outside the Swamp when I saw this blonde siren walking across the compound. You said something to her and she bit you. I asked you who she was, you replied 'some regular army clown'"
Hawkeye smiled.
Peg and Louise played with Ben in the den as Margaret and rest of the 4077th enjoying themselves.
Everyone agreed that life was changing for the better and that is was better than anything to be home.
A white van came along the road, kicking up a pile of dirt behind it. It slowed and pulled into the driveway.
Once again, half a dozen burly goons in white scrub suits jumped out and went to the back of the van. They wheeled Frank out on a hand trolley secured in three straightjackets.
"Hey" said BJ "It's ol' ferret face, it must be time for the weekly trip from the nut house"
The goons wheeled Frank up to the house and stood by as everyone said hi then went back to whatever they were doing before.
Sherman looked at him "do you think we could just sneak off and leave Frank here?"
Margaret laughed "No, he always leaves a trail of breadcrumbs"
After a few minutes the goons packed up shop and wheeled Frank back to the van "he's allowed out for certain special occasions, the next will be in twenty or thirty years given his latest ramblings" one of the guys explained.
As the van drove off, everyone laughed and wondered what was next.
Hawkeye looked at the setting sun, he then looked at Margaret, her golden hair set just right against the sun.
"Hey you, it's getting late, shall we get some dinner and retire, for uh….er…..um" he began to drift off.
Margaret giggled and kissed him "yes, let's go errrr…..uh……um" she smiled "but not a second before we eat"
After a delicious dinner, everyone retired to the many large bedrooms and awaited the rising of the sun, they planned to leave early in the morning to return home, wherever that may be.
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VETERANS AFFAIRS HOSPITAL, PORTLAND, MAINE: APRIL 11, 1955.
Hawkeye swung his dad's wheels round to the emergency entrance, nearly taking out an ambulance as he pulled up underneath a sign marking the entrance for use of "AMBULANCES ONLY", not which made much diff to Hawkeye.
A gurney and three doctors in scrub suits stood at the ready, Daniel Pierce jumped out and opened the back door.
"Litter!" someone yelled, the gurney team raced over to the car, "You doctor Pierce?" one of the doctor asked.
"Yeah, and this is lovely lady is Margaret, the reason why I'm here" he said, helping lift her onto the gurney.
As they pushed their way thorough the emergency room someone yelled "HEY YOU – get out of that elevator!" to Hawkeye it seemed a parody to the birth of their first child, all they were missing was Trapper.
To take his place, BJ, who would later explain that he was in town for a medical conference, double timed it past the gurney to hold the elevator for the medical team.
"Why Beej, what a nice surprise" said Hawk "excellent timing I might add"
Up in maternity, Margaret gave birth to a eight pound four ounce baby girl later named Jane Elizabeth Pierce, after both Hawkeye and Margaret's mothers.
Yep, concluded Hawk, his life was perfect. He now had two great kids, a wonderful wife and a thriving practice, nothing could go wrong.
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MCINTYRE HOME, BOSTON, MASS: NOVEMBER 10, 1960
Trapper and Louise were watching the final 'Kennedy v. Nixon' debates on TV. Becky and Kathy were getting bored with their parents endlessly following the Presidential elections, they really didn't care.
"Who do you think will win?" he asked Louise, busy with Time magazine, she looked at the TV.
"I'm not sure" she said, "Nixon was Vice President but Kennedy seems very liberal and promises a lot – we'll just have to wait and see".
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PIERCE HOME, CRABAPPLE COVE, MAINE: NOVEMBER 12, 1960.
"Wait and see" said Margaret, 6 year old Ben was nagging about what was for dinner.
Hawkeye was reading JAMA in the den and following the race for the White House on the TV. Janie was playing with her plastic farm set on the floor, enjoying the warmth of the fire.
"Daddy?" said Jane "look daddy, farn!"
Hawkeye smiled and put down JAMA "That's farm Janie-poo, with a 'm', do you remember Radar?"
Her face lit up "unthle Radar!!" she said.
Margaret stuck her head in from the kitchen "Dinner's just about ready!"
Hawkeye picked his daughter up and bounced her on his knee "yes, uncle Radar" he said "well……he lives on a farm too! Next time we visit you can see it and play with the animals, does that sound like fun?"
"yes" said Jane.
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HOME OF SHERMAN T. POTTER, HANNIBAL, MISSOURI: NOVEMBER 22, 1963.
"Sherman! Sherman Potter!" yelled Mildred "time to get up, you're going to be late for your appointment with the ol' fishin' hole! – you're 75, you can sleep all afternoon if you want!"
The Colonel was sleeping late she assumed, nothing serious, just taking a well earned rest.
Mildred was making breakfast and had the TV playing in the background, everything was great.
Out of the corner of her eye, she could see the President speaking at the hotel in Fort Worth.
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OFFICE OF DR. B. F. PIERCE, CRABAPPLE COVE, MAINE: NOVEMBER 22, 1963.
Margaret sat at her desk, checking the patient reports. The waiting room was semi full; the radio was softly playing in the background.
Hawkeye had just finished seeing a patient and asked for the ever lovely Mrs. Morgan, she was back again. Daniel was fiddling with records in the back, Margaret offered to help.
As Hawkeye and Mrs. Morgan entered his office, she could see that her advice had done the world of good.
"It's good to know that something I said has had such a good effect" she told Hawk, who had a picture of his family proudly displayed next to his M.D. his desk. He could hear Margaret picking up the phone in the waiting room.
After a few seconds of idle talk, Hawkeye was just about to ask what was wrong with her when Margaret, white and ashen stuck her head in the door.
"What's wrong?" Hawkeye asked, worried, was it the kids, was something wrong with them?
"That was BJ, Colonel Potter's uh………….dead, Mildred found him in his bed a few hours ago".
Hawkeye couldn't believe it, he looked at her as if to say "are you sure?"", he quickly excused himself and dashed out into the waiting room.
He strode to the phone and was in the process of dialing when he heard something on the radio.
"Do you want me to turn it down?" asked Margaret,
"UP, Up, turn the thing up!" he shouted.
It was NBC's Bob Johnson, "Something, what………..something, yes something has happened in the motorcade route, I repeat something has happened in the motorcade route……."
Hawkeye turned to face the radio, Margaret turned up the volume, and everyone looked over toward it …………what had happened?
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WINCHESTER ESTATE, BOSTON, MASS: NOVEMBER 22, 1963.
Charles sat with the TV going; he was reading the Boston Herald. The TV went blank; "Ah!" he grunted and got up to fix it.
The CBS logo suddenly flashed on the screen, Walter Cronkite came on "in Dallas, Texas, three bullets were fired at President Kennedy's motorcade in downtown Dallas, the first reports………"
Charles was interrupted by the housekeeper knocking, "Mr. Winchester? Telephone sir"
He proceeded to pick it up, eyes glued to the tube, his attention was focused on the CBS bulletin.
"Hello" he said, still watching the box,
"Pierce, what do you wa……….what!" he exclaimed, "dead? Surely you jest, maybe some country local didn't check for signs of life, what?.........what's not important right now, there's something going on in Dallas"
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MCINTYRE HOME, BOSTON, MASS: NOVEMBER 22, 1963.
Trapper sat outside watching the clouds form. He had the day off and was catching up on some R n' R.
Louise leaned out of the kitchen window and yelled at John "Get in here! I think they just shot the President"
On that day, a nation lost a President and a President—of—sorts to all those from the 4077th, it was also the day the Dallas Police lost one of thier own; the day that the music died.