Author: Willow
Summary: An undisclosed threat gives everyone chance to talk.
Spoilers/Episode: Set in an a/u that leaves the show's timeline at the end of season 5. This chapter takes place immediately after chapter 5.
Characters: Ensemble
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: I'm just borrowing them for a while, they belong to Aaron Sorkin, Thomas Schlamme, John Wells, NBC......
PART III
White House
By 10pm they'd eaten, watched the news, tried to watch a comedy, a film and a quiz show, but none of the them could concentrate. They - Josh, CJ, Toby, Donna, Charlie, Carol, Debbie, Ed, Larry and Margaret - were sat around the communications bullpen in small groups. Josh, CJ, Toby and Donna were in Toby's office with the TV on low.
"Are you scared?" Josh suddenly asked the room in general.
"Yeah," CJ replied. "You?"
"Terrified," Josh admitted.
"You should have gone with Leo and the president," Toby told him.
"Probably. I'm pretty sure they'll both have something to say about that when this is over."
"So why didn't you go?" Toby asked.
"Couldn't bear to leave you all," Josh smiled, but Donna wasn't fooled by his bravado. She squeezed his hand and he smiled at her. "It'll all be okay," he told her.
"Yeah, it'll come to nothing," CJ agreed.
"So why have they locked down the city and evacuated the president?" Toby asked.
"We don't comment on Secret Service procedure," CJ told him. "What did they want with you before?" she asked Josh.
"Just to make sure we all knew not to wander off anywhere. I don't think they're too happy that we stayed, they'd have preferred us all to have gone home."
"We still could," Donna offered.
"No, now we're here, we have to stay until it's over."
"Whatever it is," CJ commented.
"Yeah," Josh agreed.
........................................................................
Secure Location
"Have you talked to Leo yet?" Abbey asked Jed.
"What about?"
"Jed, you know very well. If this isn't the perfect opportunity then I don't know what is. And don't you dare tell me that you're fine."
"Have you considered the possibility that he might not want to talk to me?"
"Yes," Abbey said. "He's even more stubborn than you are. However, we're trapped in this mountainside for the foreseeable future, so I suggest you talk to your best friend."
"What makes you think it's that easy?" Jed asked as Leo entered the room.
"Abbey said you wanted me, Sir."
Jed glared at his wife. "Really?"
Abbey returned the glare. "If I have to bang your heads together, make no mistake, I will."
Leo watched Abbey leave the room and close the door behind her. "What's going on?" he asked Jed.
"Abbey thinks that, seeing as we're stuck in the middle of nowhere, we should probably use the opportunity to talk." Jed looked questioningly at Leo. "Well?"
"If you want."
"Sit down then," Jed instructed. "You want a drink?"
'If only,' Leo thought. "I'm fine." He sat down and waited for Jed to start. When Jed continued to just sit and watch him, Leo sighed. "Is there any point to this?"
"Probably not without some ground rules."
"Such as?"
"If we're really going to do this, we need to be honest and that means that we need to be Jed and Leo, not president and chief of staff."
"If you're sure about that."
"Secret Service are just outside the door," Jed replied with a small smile. "I asked Josh how you and him sorted things out last year," he said.
"What did he say?"
"It sorted itself. What really happened?"
"He came to see me the Sunday after the shutdown. We talked," Leo replied.
"Shouted?" Jed guessed.
"Yeah. We said some things that, well if we hadn't known each other so well it may have made it difficult to work together. It cleared the air though."
"He's very loyal."
"Has he said something?" Leo asked suspiciously
"No. You don't have to reprimand him, he hasn't said or done anything. He's just very loyal." Jed hesitated. "It was never my intention to shut you out." When Leo didn't respond, Jed continued. "I knew what I wanted to do but I also knew that most of the staff wouldn't agree with me, least of all you. I didn't want talking out of it, you're very good at talking me into and out of things." Jed smiled because he hadn't meant that as a criticism. "I did think I may have a chance of getting Josh on my side, until I heard he wanted to kill people."
"He was scared for Donna," Leo said. "When Josh is scared it can manifest itself as anger."
"I'd noticed," Jed agreed. "I know you think there's more to it than the summit, but there really isn't."
"If you say so, Sir."
"Jed," Jed amended.
Leo studied Jed. "I've had plenty time to think, over the last few weeks. It goes back far beyond Gaza."
"It really doesn't."
"For God sake, Jed," Leo sighed. "I thought you wanted honesty. You've been less inclined to listen to me since last year, July in fact."
"This has nothing to do with Zoey."
"Really? You really believe that? Abbey knew that taking out Shareef was down to me, that I persuaded you, that was why she blamed me for Zoey's kidnap. At least she had the guts to tell me to my face."
"I don't blame you," Jed still insisted, although there was less conviction in his voice now. "I blame me. I made the decision, I gave the order."
"Because you listened to me."
"Yes," Jed agreed.
"So you started to trust me less."
"No," Jed said. "I think you started to trust yourself less."
"What?"
"That was what happened last August. At the time I wasn't in the game, I know that. But I could still see what you were doing. You needed to lash out at someone, I was a little surprised you chose Josh. I know the leadership were angry and I know you had to take legislative affairs away from him for a while, but there was no need to be so hard on him, to not support him in private, there was no need to shut him out. I couldn't understand why you did that."
"I didn't consciously choose Josh," Leo said, though Jed noticed he didn't disagree with Jed's ideas.
"You knew what Carrick would do if he was pushed, you couldn't have been surprised."
"No," Leo agreed. "But I was angry."
"With Josh?"
"Not entirely. Abbey was right," Leo suddenly said.
"No she wasn't, she was wrong and so were you. You think if she'd meant what she said to you, she'd have spent the last few weeks championing you," Jed smiled slightly. "She was angry. She'd spent days lashing out at me then she moved onto you. If she hadn't gone to Manchester, she'd probably have worked her way through the senior staff and the joint chiefs." He studied Leo. "You were right, you and Fitz, Shareef had to dealt with. I admit I wasn't comfortable with it, but you were right. If it seems I've been less inclined to take your advice it has nothing to do with Shareef."
"And everything to do with Josh?" Leo asked, slightly puzzled.
"Indirectly, I guess," Jed agreed. "You knew that the budget negotiations were being handled badly, you knew what Josh was telling you was right, yet you ignored him. You would never have done that before, not to any of the staff."
"Josh and I are fine now."
"Leo, this has nothing to do with Josh himself. Frankly I don't care what you have the staff doing as long as it doesn't affect the governance of the country, and it did."
"So we're back to where we started," Leo said. "You stopped trusting me."
"No," Jed sighed. "You have the best political brain I've ever known, you're an outstanding politician. The only person who comes close is Josh. You think I don't know that when Josh has advised me to take certain routes over the last few weeks, he's channeling you. Of course I trust you. None of us would be here if it wasn't for you. You stopped trusting yourself for a while back there."
Leo couldn't argue with that, he knew it was true. He knew he was partly, in fact largely, to blame for the shutdown. He should have listened to Josh, but at the time he was angry with everyone and Josh made himself an easy target for that anger. He did still believe that Jed had been less inclined to listen to his advice for over a year now, but maybe that was the natural progression of their relationship. Jed had been president for almost six years and he'd certainly grown into the job. Perhaps he didn't need so much guidance and steering as he had in the early years. However, that still didn't explain Jed's decision to host peace talks without discussing it with any of his advisors.
"And the summit?" Leo asked.
"I don't know how many other ways I can say this," Jed said. "I didn't tell you about the summit because you would have talked me out of it."
"I would have," Leo agreed. "But that doesn't explain the last few weeks."
"Of course it does," Jed sighed. "Leo, you're pissed at me. You're angry that I didn't involve you."
"I'd have liked to not find out about it from CJ," Leo agreed angrily. "Who found out from the TV news," he added.
"I was going to tell you after the game, but they went on TV and it all got messy."
"That's one word for it."
"Yeah," Jed sighed and decided that they were precisely nowhere.
Part 4...............