AN: Just a quicknote to thank all those who've submitted a review. I continue to be delighted by your kind words of appreciation!

OOOO

Part 3

In the office the next day, Harriet noted the dark circles below Mac's eyes, not for the first time in the last couple of weeks. As Mac stifled a huge yawn, Harriet commented,

"I hope that means that you've had a busy couple of nights. So spill, did you get lucky?"

"I wish!" Mac exclaimed, "My insomnia's back and it's worse than ever."

"Oh, that's awful," Harriet exclaimed, "Do you know what's brought it on?"

"I'm not sure," Mac told her, "but it all seems to have started around the time that the Admiral first announced the Independence Day celebration."

At Harriet's confused look, Mac told her, "I know, it doesn't make sense at all."

Harriet spoke up, "You should ask the Commander to go with you. You two have become so much closer, lately."

Mac answered her, "Yeah, Harm's my best friend, but I think he'll be bringing someone else along."

As Harriet went to protest, Mac interrupted her, "Sorry Harriet, but I think I'd better get moving, Bud and I have to be in court soon."

With that, Mac made her escape, leaving an exasperated Harriet.

OOOO

Later that day, Harriet decided to tackle Harm. He was in his office, when Harriet knocked on his door.

"Come in," Harm responded. When he saw who it was, he smiled.

"Oh, hello Harriet! Come on in and sit down."

Sitting down, Harriet proceeded, "Hi Sir…sorry, I mean Harm. I was just wondering, who you are going to the Independence Day celebration with, only…"

"Well, I was planning on going by myself, but if you and your husband aren't going together, I wouldn't mind taking you. I'm sure we could make Bud really jealous!"

"Oh, no!" Harriet exclaimed, laughing, "I wasn't talking about me! I just wondered. I'm sure you've got your pick of pretty ladies who you could take…"

"No," Harm interrupted her, "I'm not even looking to see anyone right now. You know what I'm like with women."

"Sir," Harriet proposed, "I'm sure that the Colonel would be happy to go with you."

"No," Harm told her, "Mac doesn't want to go to a party with her best friend. She wants to be free to keep an eye out for eligible bachelors, play the field. There are going to be a lot of the Admiral's friends and business acquaintances there, a lot of his friend from his SEAL days."

With this, Harm changed the subject and Harriet conceded defeat.

OOOO

That night, as Cathy turned off the TV, she heard Mac's sobs as they came from her bedroom.

"Oh no!" Cathy thought to herself, "Here we go again. We've really got to do something about this, it's getting worse."

In the hallway, Cathy could make out the loud sobbing then, as she opened the door, heard Mac call out for Harm in her sleep. Cathy tried to negotiate her way through the dark room, without walking into anything. Again, when she was just a few feet from the bed she heard Mac cry out, again, "Harm, please!"

She gently sat on the side of the bed and stroked Mac's cheek gently.

"Mac, Hon? It's alright, I'm right here."

As Mac woke, Cathy told her, "It's only a dream. Everything is okay."

"No, it's not!" Mac continued to sob, "Everything's not going to be okay!"

"Mac," Cathy told her, "you really need to speak to Harm about this."

"I can't! He doesn't want me," Mac continued to cry as Cathy hugged her, near to tears herself.

OOOO

The next day, as Harm was going to be in court with Bud, Cathy walked around the congressional building as she waited for their session to end. Finally, the doors opened and the people began to flow out. Cathy finally spotted Harm and Bud, then made her way through the crowd to them.

"Hi Bud, Harm," she greeted them.

They looked surprised to see her.

"I didn't realize you were in the building, today," Harm told her.

"Yeah, I had a UN delegates meeting," she told them.

"You're really moving up in the world," Bud commented.

"Yeah, well I still find the paperwork really boring, no matter what language it's in! Bud, do you mind if I have a quick word with Harm?"

"Yeah, sure. I've got to go find our ride back to headquarters. I'll just be outside. Do you need a lift?"

"No thanks," Cathy told him, "I'm going to be here for the rest of the day."

She and Harm walked away from the rest of the crowd, to find somewhere more private to talk. Catriona managed to find an empty conference room, which she pulled Harm into, and then firmly closed the door.

"What's wrong?" Harm asked her.

"Harm," Cathy questioned him, "what's going on with you and Mac?"

"Is this about the Independence Day celebration? Harriet has already tried to persuade me to ask Mac to go with me, but I'm sure she won't want to. We're just friends."

"Is that all you two were in La Jolla?"

"What? Mac and I agreed that we would just try out being friends again, before we moved onto something more."

"Harm, that was months ago, I think that Mac might be ready for a little something more than that."

"Mac isn't interested in me that way. I've already put my feelings on display, told her how I feel. She isn't interested."

"Have you seen the state she's in right now?"

"She's been a little tired at work, had a bit of insomnia she said, but she insisted that it's nothing."

"Harm, Mac's having a really hard time dealing with this."

"Dealing with what? Mac knows, I've always told her that she can talk to me about anything. If she had a problem that she couldn't deal with, she would come to me with it."

"You're not the one who gets her back to sleep every night, when she wakes up crying."

Harm was quiet for a moment, as he tried to comprehend what Cathy was trying to tell him.

"Mac wakes up crying in the night?"

"Uh-huh," Cathy told him, "she cries in her sleep too. And she cries out, she cries out for you."

"Me? Why does she call out for me?"

"Why do you think, you big dumb-ass! Mac thinks that you don't want her!"

"That's not true! It never has been. I spend every minute of every day thinking about her."

"Then what are you afraid of?"

As Harm searched for the right words to use, Cathy continued, "In La Jolla, everything seemed to be going right. You did everything together…you went swimming together and in the water, when Mac lost her strength, you were the one supporting her, holding her up. Well, now she flagging, Harm. She's floundering, she's going under and who's going to save her from drowning? What are you going to do Harm?"

With her point made, Cathy gave Harm a searching look, then left him to think about what she had told him.

Cathy walked out of the building, to go and get some lunch from the deli around the corner. Mikey was also out front, waiting for Harm and Bud, who had asked him to pick them up, since Harriet had the family car and Harm's was in for servicing. Mikey noticed Cathy walking down the front of the court steps and went to approach her, when she suddenly stopped in her tracks. Mikey followed her line of sight to a little boy, only about 18 months old or so, playing on the bottom step in front of the building. Mikey saw Cathy smiling as the little boy stared open-mouthed in fascination, then clambered, trying to reach a pigeon that had perched on the banister. However, Cathy's smile faded when she saw the boy starting to jump up and down on the step, getting closer and closer to backing off it with each jump. She quickly rushed down the steps towards him, but not fast enough, as the little boy's foot slipped down the step and he went down, landing on the stone step and ground below. Cathy was quick to crouch down and scoop the boy into her arms, as he let out a piercing wail. The little boy didn't seem to be too injured, just a little bit shocked and bruised. Cathy rubbed the sore bump on his head and murmured to him comfortingly, when the boy's mother rushed over. Cathy handed the boy over, telling the mother what had happened. The woman quickly thanked her then carried her sobbing child away. Mikey stood in amazed silence. This was one special woman, he thought to himself. She had swept in and done just the right thing, without even having to think about it. Mikey was still standing, open-mouthed, when Bud approached him, a few seconds later.

"Sorry I've been so long, but I was stopped by Congressman Richards. Harm's just inside, talking to someone. He said that he'd be out in a minute. Do you want me to bring the car around?"

"Okay," Mikey agreed and with that, Bud asked him to keep an eye out for Harm, then set off to get Mikey's car. However, by the time Mikey had turned back around, the pretty young woman he had run into in JAG headquarters had disappeared.

OOO

The whole of the staff were there the next week, when the Admiral opened the suggestion box and read the suggested themes. After conferring with Catriona, who was there to tutor AJ, as she did every week, he read out the three best themes.

"The first suggestion is, Winter Wonderland."

Several hands shot up, including Harriet's, who had probably submitted the suggestion.

Next came 'Grease,' to which Singer's hand shot up and everyone either groaned or sniggered in amusement.

"Finally, we have 'Masquerade.'"

All of the remaining hands, the majority of hands, were quickly raised and Harriet whined plaintively to Bud, "Oooo! I want to change my vote!"

Catriona giggled quietly as she saw what a success her suggested theme had been.

When Harriet saw Mac in the coffee room, later that day, she asked Mac about Cathy's plans for that coming Friday.

OOOO

"Mac, do you think Cathy might be able to baby-sit for me on Friday night?"

"I'm sorry Harriet," Mac apologized, "but Cathy was planning on going up to Arlington on Friday night, so that she could spend some time with her family. It's going to be pretty busy come Sunday and we'll have the Independence Day celebration on the Saturday night…"

As Mac spoke, the wheels started to turn in Harriet's head. She'd been toying about with an idea for a few days now and she saw the perfect chance to put it into operation.

"Is Mikey not able to watch little AJ for you?" Mac continued.

"No, he was saying about going out with some friends of his who are in town."

"Well, I'm sure that if you really need her, Cathy will cut her plans short…"

"Oh, no! It's all right, Mac. I'll have a talk with Mikey and see if we can sort something out."

With that, Harriet retreated, to put some final touches to her plan.

OOOO