Disclaimer: JAG is the property of Donald P. Bellisario, Paramount Pictures, CBS Television and Belisarius Productions. I hope I spelled all of that stuff right.

Author's Note:  Thanks for the reviews!  :)  Special thanks to jagchick105 for your input and beta work!

"Unfinished Business"

by e-dog

Chapter Five: Jeepers Creepers

Manderlee

October 22, 2014

Lieutenant Jason Tiner had fallen asleep at his desk on top of case files and other things. It suddenly occurred to him (in his subconscious mind) that he could be drooling on some very important documents for his upcoming case. His eyes fluttered open and he lifted his groggy head up off the desk. He glanced at the clock on his computer and it told him it was 3 in the morning. He stretched, then jumped when he heard a loud noise hit the house.

"Whoa!" he gasped. His heart was in his throat, but when he looked across the office, he saw it was just the window shutter. It was loose on the outside and had started to bang in the wind. He groaned thinking of how he was going to have to fix that. Or at least wait until Jenn went to work and hire someone to fix that.

He had to admit. Ever since the car incident, every noise in the house caused him to jump in fear. If something moved on it's own, or he thought it moved on it's own, he leapt up and ended up looking like a fool in front of his wife. He even had a hard time sleeping in his own bedroom because he kept feeling eyes on them. It was part of the reason he fell asleep at the desk half the time. He ran a hand through his hair and jumped when the shutter banged again. Forget hiring someone, he was going to fix it now with some duct tape. He went searching for the tape and found it. He also retrieved a step ladder and went outside to fix the window so he could go back to sleep.

He found a lantern in the shed, struck a match and lit it. He carried that, his ladder and the duct tape to the broken shutter. He set himself up and climbed up high enough to tape it against the house. Before he got started, he felt a cold wind rush past him. He paused and timidly looked around. He shrugged it off, knowing it was only the breeze.

"Darn thing," he muttered as he started ripping duct tape and applying it. Once he thought it wouldn't bang anymore, he began to climb down. He didn't touch the ground, however. He paused after he felt the strangest chill rush past him. He stopped and gripped the ladder and looked around. He mumbled to himself, "Now that was definitely not the wind..."

He turned and gasped, "Oh God..."

A shovel flew at him and knocked him off the ladder. He yelped in pain and hit the ground hard; his body sprawled out and his face in the dirt. He lifted his head up, his shoulder ringing in pain and he spit the dirt out of his mouth. He looked over his good shoulder and saw the shovel hanging in the air, the moonlight glistening off the top.

He then thought back to the CIA reports Jenn and Mattie were finally able to obtain on the death of their friends. Former MI-6 agent Simon Tanveer had attempted to bury Harm and Mac using a shovel similar to the one he was seeing hovering in the air right now. He completely turned over, now on his back and began to inch away, keeping a wary eye on the shovel.

Harm floated into the office to check on Jason but found he wasn't there. He had only left for a moment. Did Jason already go upstairs? He made a complete circle looking for the younger man, then called out, "Mac? You here?"

"Yeah, what's up?" she asked as she came out of the closet.

He looked at her amused and asked, "Why are you in the closet?"

"I just came through there, you got a problem?" she asked, smirking a bit.

"No," he shook his head and tried not to laugh. "You have to admit, it looks pretty funny that you are coming out of the closet."

"It's a short cut from Mattie's room, okay? Happy?" Mac pushed him playfully. "So what's wrong?"

"I can't find Tiner, that's all," Harm shrugged and then looked out the window. He saw the shovel and he also saw Simon holding it. Without saying anything, he immediately flew outside and tackled Tanveer before he could do anymore damage. Mac rushed to the window and watched them tussle and she spotted a frozen Jason Tiner on the ground.

Jason watched the shovel swing back and forth on it's own. He wanted to move, but he was just too frightened at what he was seeing! Mac cursed under her breath, when she realized Tiner wasn't going anywhere. She needed to get help. Up through the ceiling she went and back into Mattie's room. She saw the computer was still on, so she turned up the volume and flipped on the music. Mattie nearly jumped out of her skin when she heard the loud noise and then saw the word processing program open up. She muttered, "There are other ways to wake people up, guys..."

She stumbled out of bed, cut off the music and read what was on the screen.

Jason is in trouble! He's outside and if he doesn't come inside, Simon will get him. I don't know how long Harm can hold him off.

"Simon?" Mattie questioned, than forgot about it. She quickly pulled on her shoes and rushed down the steps. She had to help Jason. She burst through the back door and saw him laying there in shock. She could also see the dirt being kicked up like people were fighting and a shovel laying on the ground. She rushed over to Jason and yanked on his arm, "C'mon, get up!"

"But...do you see....?" he mumbled and managed to point. "That shovel!"

"Jason, please!" Mattie pushed.

Mac also watched. She was standing next to them, urging him to get up, "C'mon, Tiner! You haven't grown a backbone yet? Get up!"

Then they all heard the sound of something being thrown into the shed and several pieces of tools and lawn furniture fell over inside. To Mattie and Jason, it was just a bunch of tools falling down, but to Mac she could see Simon had somehow thrown Harm off of him and into the shed. She immediately flew in to help Harm.

Mattie saw the shovel being picked back up and it was aimed at them. "Okay, now we really have to get inside, Jason!"

It was at this Jason finally complied and they both made a run for it. The shovel was coming at them so quickly, Mattie feared they wouldn't make it, and she was right. It stopped them just before the porch. They stood there, watching the shovel swing. They slowly backed up and Mattie mumbled, "Now would be a good time to come back, Harm!"

As if her wish was being answered, the shovel was suddenly thrown out of their way. She looked over her shoulder and couldn't believe her eyes. In the traces of moonlight, she could see them! Two misty forms wrestling in the dirt: One looking like Harm and the other she presumed to be Simon. It they weren't fighting, it would've been the most beautiful thing she had ever seen! She blinked her eyes a few times, to see if she was daydreaming, but they were still there. She dropped her jaw and whispered, "Oh wow...."

Then Harm looked at her desperately and he pleaded out loud, "Get inside! Get inside, now!"

Mattie remained frozen, shocked she could even hear him, let alone see him! The sound of his voice sent shivers down her spine and sent her back to her teenage years. The memories instantly flooded her head as she could finally make out that aqua marine color in his eyes. Then just like that, the forms disappeared, leaving her bewildered and amazed.

Jason, who had wondered why they even stopped, turned to look too but didn't get the chance as Mattie forced him inside. They shut the door and locked it and both collapsed to the ground breathless. Jenn came running down the steps and asked nervously, "What was going on outside? Jason, did you hurt yourself?"

They both looked up at her and mumbled, "Ghosts...."

She immediately rolled her eyes and said, "Please, guys, not that again..."

"Hey, you're never around when it happens!" Jason protested and stood up to face her. He waved his arms around and shouted, "I was being attacked by a shovel!!"

Jenn sighed and said as calmly as possible, "You do know how stupid that sounds, right Jason?"

"I know what happened out there, Jenn!" Jason continued to fight. "This place is haunted!"

While they argued, Mattie looked back outside, peeking through the blinds. The shovel just lay there. No more dirt was flying around and she couldn't see Harm or Simon like she could before. A nervousness built inside her as she wondered what was going on. Did she really see Harm? Before Jenn could say another word, Mattie turned around and announced, "I can prove it, Jenn. You wouldn't listen to me before, but I can prove it. This house is haunted...sorta."

Jenn looked at Mattie, then at her husband. It was now she saw they weren't playing around. They were being very sincere and she could also take note of the genuine fear in Jason's eyes. She finally sobered up and asked Mattie to prove this to her once and for all. She followed them to Mattie's room, where both she and Jason sat on the bed and waited for Mattie to set up the computer. She increased the font size so it would be easier to read. She turned to face them and cleared her throat, "I'm hoping he made it back inside for this..."

"Who?" Jason asked. He had witnessed the strange phenomenon around the house, but Mattie had never shown him whatever he was about to see.

Mattie looked around, hoping they were around and she wouldn't look like a total idiot. "Mac? Harm? You there?"

Jenn cocked an eyebrow in disgust and shook her head immediately, "You have got to be kidding, Mattie..."

"Just wait...," Mattie instructed quietly then looked around. "C'mon, guys. Tell me you're okay."

Then they all heard it. The typing on her computer had started and they could all obviously see, Mattie wasn't the one who was typing it. She had purposely stood a good foot away with her hands behind her back to show she wasn't joking. Each key was being pressed by some unknown force and Jenn dropped her jaw as she read the message.

Harm is fine, Mattie. Don't worry. We're both here.

Mattie looked at both Jason and Jenn and wanted to laugh, despite how cruel that would've been. They had on the same expressions she had on nearly two weeks ago when Mac started typing to her. The totally amazed and freaked out expression. Her amusement was cut short however when Jenn started to look sick, then rolled off the bed and hit the floor with a thud. Jason jumped up startled, then knelt down next to her. He panicked at first, then sighed in relief. He looked up and announced, "She just fainted."

He scooped her up and placed her on Mattie's bed. Mattie heard typing on the screen again and it read,

Harm went to get ice.

"Oh, okay, thanks," Mattie said out loud.

"Thanks for what?" Jason asked confused.

"No, not you, I was talking to...uh, Mac," Mattie clarified, then almost laughed again at Jason's disturbed expression. His face became even more contorted when he saw ice wrapped up in washrag float into the room all by itself. Mattie quickly took it to try make this entire scene look less eerie and said, "Harm got it."

Jason just stared at her jaw dropped and eyes wide in disbelief. He took the washrag, finally found his voice and stuttered, "Thank you, Comdr.  Or sir...uh, thanks, Harm?"

On the computer screen it typed: Your welcome, Tiner and just call me Harm. It's obvious I'm not in the Navy anymore. Haven't been for ten years.

"Yes, of course, sir...er, Harm," Jason replied, still looking very confused and troubled. He couldn't see who he was talking to, but he knew Harm was there...somehow. He gently applied the ice to Jennifer's head who stirred a little bit but didn't fully wake up. Jason looked at Mattie again, "Uh...this is...uh..."

"Freaky?" Mattie suggested and he nodded. She sighed and looked around the room. "Yeah, they already know."

October 23, 2014

Manderlee

It was early the next morning and Jenn had finally awoken. Actually, she had come to nearly 20 minutes after fainting, but she kept her eyes closed hoping sleep would take her. Then she would wake up and find everything that happened the previous night was just a bad dream. She cautiously opened her eyes and felt the pressure of her husband lying on her arm. He had this bad habit of curling up next to her and getting too snug. "Jason...get off..."

"Hmph...?" he mumbled, then sleepily sat up and asked immediately, "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Head hurts a little," she admitted as she sat up. At some point, Jason had carried her back to their bedroom and for that she was glad. She wasn't in Mattie's room where all the weird events took place.

"Jenn, I think we should talk about last night," Jason offered, although he meant for it to sound more like a direct order. "I mean, I think we really should..."

"Uh, how about we don't," she said politely and rose from the bed. She went to leave, but Harm was one step ahead of her. He shut the bedroom door before she could leave, a sign that he wanted her to talk to Jason as well. She gulped and turned to look at Jason, "Was that...?"

"Harm or Mac?" Jason answered, with a shrug. "It could've been either one. Believe me, I'm having a hard time adjusting to this too."

She let her face become very determined not to believe it. She had tried very hard to grow up. To not take things for granted and not to believe everything she heard. It had taken her a long time to learn to keep to herself and to not meddle in other people's lives.  The idea of ghosts...living in their house.  It was just beyond anything and everything she had tried to become!  Jason stood up and gently grabbed her arm, "I'm sorry, Jenn. As much as you want to believe this isn't true, it is. Harm and Mac are in this house."

"I believe you," she finally acknowledged and leaned into her husband. "Actually, I suspected something a long time ago..."

"You did?" he asked inquisitively and gave her a small smile.

"Yeah, I didn't pay attention to it at first," she recalled and walked over to the window. "After you claimed the car started itself, the next day, I was in the kitchen. I heard the wind chimes jingle. When I stepped outside, I noticed the strangest thing."

"What's that?" he asked.

"There was no wind," she smiled. "It was early in the morning and the weather was fair. No clouds in the sky and I heard the chimes. After that, I kept noticing little things that were off, but I kept ignoring them. I didn't want to believe it."

"It is hard to believe," Jason smiled weakly in return and hugged her from behind.

Harm folded his arms across his chest, as he watched them. It was a relief to say the least that Jason and Jenn knew they were here. That they still existed. Naturally, they were afraid at first, but ghosts can be hard to ignore once a shovel tries to kill you. That's when he thought of Simon. He was becoming even more impatient and even more dangerous. It angered him that he had no idea how to stop him. Last night, he was only able to fight him off long enough to protect Mattie and Jason. There was no way to get rid of Simon for one obvious reason. You can't kill something that is already dead. He left the room to let the couple be alone and to maybe talk things over with Mac. Jason, Jennifer and Mattie couldn't hide inside the house forever. Every time they stepped outside, there was a chance Simon would go after them. Something had to be done.

"Harm? Mac?" Mattie called out. She waited a minute for some signal they were there. She turned to the kitchen table when she heard a chair scrap against the tile floor. She slowly approached the table and placed down a notepad and pen. She mostly wanted him or her to handwrite his/her responses, just so she could study the handwriting. It was easier to make sure she was actually talking to Harm and not Mac or to Mac and not Harm. And hopefully, Simon would never try to impersonate either one of them.

She paused, then asked, "Which one am I talking to?"

She watched in amazement as the pen lifted up and began to write. It didn't matter how many times she talked to them. The fact that she could see things move without anyone touching them still stunned her. She knew who it was before the answer was finished. It was definitely his chicken scratch.

It's Harm.

"Uh...hey," Mattie sat down and looked around the table, forgetting which chair was pulled out.

I'm in the chair across from you.

"I knew that," Mattie lied through her embarrassed smile. She saw the notepad move next to her and then saw that chair change position as if someone was sitting down next to her. Then she read the notepad.

I'll sit next to you so this is easier to read.

"Thanks," she said, now feeling really nervous. This could quite possibly be the closest she had been to Harm in the last ten years. Well, it was the closest she had been and what made it so surreal was the fact he wasn't alive. He was a ghost. She twiddled her thumbs and tried to think about what to say or do next. It was still extremely awkward.

Mattie? Are you scared of me?

"Oh no, Harm! I could never be scared of you," she said, sounding very apologetic. "I'm sorry, it's just this is still very, very weird right now."

I understand.

"You always did...do," she corrected herself and chuckled lightly. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "I wanted to tell you something."

I'm listening.

"Last night, I could...see you," she began. When there was no response, she mentally pictured Harm having on that shocked face he always wore. She giggled a little at the thought and finished, "But it was only for a minute. I could see both you and Simon fighting outside."

Do you know how that could be possible?

"Well, I was hoping you would know," she admitted. "I've never been able to see you before, until last night." She paused for a moment and then said, "I think I also felt you...or Mac once. Like, I brushed past your arm or something."

Mattie couldn't see him, but he rose his eyebrows even more surprised. A smile slowly crossed his face as what he had been dreaming of finally seemed to be possible. Maybe he could finally hug her. Maybe she could finally see him. He tapped the pen for a moment, then wrote:

Face me and hold up your hand.

Mattie did as she was told. She turned to face the chair she assumed Harm was sitting in and held up her hand. Anticipation began to build as she knew what her former adoptive father was trying to do. He was trying to make physical contact with her. She closed her eyes waiting.

Harm slowly lifted his hand and spread his fingers wide. He slowly inched forward until his hand was mere centimeters from hers. He took a deep breath and began to concentrate as if he were trying to lift the kitchen table or something. His hand brushed hers momentarily before it lost it's "solidity" and her hand passed though his.

She gasped and opened her eyes, "I felt something!"

Harm smiled, excited and frantically wrote, So did I, Mattie! It worked but only for a moment.

For whatever reason, tears started to build in her eyes. She was either just happy to be able to talk to him again or saddened by the fact that he still wasn't....human. One tear managed to slip down her cheek and she wiped it away quickly. Harm watched and was starting to become emotional himself. He instinctively lifted his hand to cup her cheek and wipe the tears away. Just like he would have when they still lived together. To both their surprise, his hand was able to brush it away and she could feel the cold emanating from him. She jumped back at his touch, startled. She wasn't expecting him to wipe her tear away. He wasn't expecting it either and began to panic. She looked frightened.

I didn't mean to startle you. I'm sorry.

She read what he wrote, then smiled weakly, "Don't be."

They sat there for a moment. Mattie couldn't understand what was happening to her, but something definitely was changing. She continued staring where she thought Harm was sitting. He was staring back at her with all the love he had shown for her before he died.

To be continued...