Disclaimer: Shondaland/ABC owns these characters. But I've taken the Gladiator oath as a writer: #OLITZ4LIFE #JAMMMMmmmm

No Mellie or Joke: Public Service Announcement for any accidental non-Olitz readers

"...What she did is the trending topic this morning after Ms Olivia Pope, the President's Fiancee shut down the Fort Dupont Ice Arena in Washington DC yesterday for herself and the President's children. Eyewitnesses say the President's two oldest children Fitzgerald IV and Karen Grant were still in their school uniforms. Did they ditch school to go ice-skating with their soon-to-be Step Mom? The school and White House won't comment. But here's a picture of Ms Pope looking very chic in a grey wool cashmere cape coat, grey elbow length gloves, black designer pants and black dress shoes. Lovely, faultless attire for crisis management, but hardly suitable for an afternoon ice-skating..."

"...She closed the rink for two hours. Yes, that's right, Two whole hours, and those poor kiddies missed hockey practice because of it. I mean really, the whole rink?! The rental rules say groups of less than 15 people don't need private ice times and should use the public skating sessions. Maybe my eyes need testing – I don't see 15 people. I see three. Let me count that again – 1, 2, 3. Yep, I still got three. So two hours private time for three people. Well, it's one rule for them, and another for us, folks. That's all I can say..."

"...So now the issue is Ms Pope vs an ice rink. She rented the ice rink for herself and the President's kids for a couple of hours and that's caused a public meltdown. Hello, we're talking the President's kids. Those kids can't take a stroll in the park without Secret Service agents checking every jogger and dog walker as a possible threat. Now, I don't know about you but I'd rather they had the rink to themselves. I for one don't want my every clumsy move watched by a dozen Secret Service Agents with the right to shoot me if I trip and crash dive anywhere near those kids..."

Olivia switched off the TV, and leaned over to press a light kiss on his rough cheek, trying not to disturb Fitz, but he stirred, cracking an eye open as her weight shifted off the bed.

"Why are you dressed?" he rasped, his sleepy gaze wondering over her chunky sweater, all the way down her jeans, to her suede boots.

"I'm taking the kids to school. And you need to sleep in. Cyrus said your daily briefing has been pushed back an hour."

"Don't need sleep, need you," Fitz groaned, holding out his hand to her.

Grinning she returned to the bed, shifting to lie over him on the covers, as his arms gathered her close.

She combed gentle fingers through his hair. "You need to go back to sleep you worked late last night, and you, um... celebrated...until the early hours of the morning."

"Come back to bed. I'm still in the mood to celebrate." His lips locked with hers, softly, gently, sweetly.

"Can't...kids...school."

He smiled against her lips. "Stubborn..."

"Mm…" she drew back, warmth curling in her belly as he brushed back a stray curl that had escaped her pony tail..

"So you're serious about not going to work today?"

"Yep."

"And you're spending more time with me and the kids?"

"The kids, mostly. You've got your blow-up doll."

She gasped a laugh then shrieked a protest as he tickled her. "Fitz, don't! No!" She nearly fell off the bed in her rush to get away. Then straightening her sweater, she said pertly, "The kids will be late. I have to go."

"Give me a kiss."

"No, you lost your kissing privileges with that tickle attack."

Then she shrieked a laugh when he threw back the covers and chased after her as she ran across the room.

"Fitz!" She held him back, laughing, as he crowded her against the door; then said with mock sternness, "You're the leader of the free world."

He kissed her.

"... You can't run around naked."

He kissed her again, pressing into her.

She moaned softly, standing on tip-toe to accommodate him. "We can't do this now..." she whispered, stroking his face.

"I know..." He rested his forehead against hers. "The kids are waiting."

"Yes..." she kissed his chin. "Maybe... after..."

Then she shrieked again when he lifted her off her feet and hugged her.

"Mom, what are you going to do today, if you're not going to work?" Karen asked, her hand tucked firmly in Olivia's, as they travelled with the Secret Service to school.

"Dad's got plans for her," Jerry said with a smirk, then blushed when Olivia turned to him in shock.

"You were listening?"

"You guys weren't exactly quiet. I could hear you down the hall," Jerry muttered, shifting his gaze away.

"Except he was standing outside your door," Karen whispered loudly.

"Hey! I just wanted to make sure Mom remembered that she was taking us to school," Jerry insisted, looking at Karen.

"I didn't forget," Olivia murmured, her cheeks still hot.

"I know."

There was an uncomfortable silence, then Olivia cleared her throat and said, "I'm going to meet James today, check on his plans for the wedding."

"Mom, I wanted to be there for that too," Karen pouted.

"I'll tell you all about it tonight, Baby K, and you can help me decide what to wear."

"Can I invite my friends?" Jerry asked, still a bit red around the ears.

"Peter is invited."

"He means can he bring his girlfriend."

"I do not have a girlfriend," Jerry glared at Karen. "She's just a friend."

"A special friend."

"Baby K, have you got any special friends you'd like to invite?"

Karen shook her head.

"Yeah, you do. There's that kid you keep trying to avoid at recess," Jerry grinned.

"He is not my friend. He's annoying. He pulls my hair in class, and he keeps giving me yukky chewing gum that's stuck together."

"Do you take it?"

"Yes, I don't want to hurt his feelings. But he's annoying, so maybe I should."

"Tell him you don't like chewing gum, the next he offers."

"Okay."

"So chewing gum boy doesn't need an invite," Olivia confirmed as Karen shook her head vehemently.

"Nor does anyone I know," Jerry muttered.

"Right, then it will just be us; my guys at work plus Cyrus and his family, since James is organising the wedding, and Tom."

Jerry looked surprised. "That's it? Mom, don't you want more people? Alice Roosevelt, President Theodore Roosevelt's oldest daughter, had one thousand guests."

"I think the Secret Service would like us to have much less than that."

"In light of the fact that North Korea has just threatened all out war against the United States, it is imperative that we do not show fear," Sally said stridently, sitting on the couch across from Fitz in the Oval office.

"Conciliation is not showing fear, Sally. It is avoiding a greater disaster. Fortunately, the Chinese government agrees with me. It is in all our best interests to avoid an escalation that will lead to a nuclear Armageddon."

"That heathen is not open to reason. He behaves like a child, throwing tantrums from his seat of power. There is a need for us to show him the might of our convictions, as we did with Iraq."

"Sally, in the 10 years since we invaded Iraq with battle cries of stability and democracy, we have lost nearly 4500 US military lives. US taxpayers have spent over $800 billion fighting a war that has displaced 1.24 million Iraqis within the country, and created an additional 1.6 million refugees. And let's not mention the fact that we don't even know the exact figure of civilian deaths which range between 112,00 to over 120,000. We don't need history to repeat itself."

"If that man shoots a nuclear warhead at us imagine the catastrophe it will cause our nation. We have 315 million people living in the United States, that's nearly 10 times the 33 million people living in Iraq. That means it will be 10 times worse if we sit back and wait for that man to carry out his threats."

"If we retaliate, imagine the devastation it will cause the 4.3 billion people living on the world's most populous continent. And not just for Asia but for us here in the Unites States. A nuclear war in the South East Asian region would release carbon aerosol particles that would cut our Soybean and Corn production by 10 per cent over a decade. The report I read was projecting the outcomes from an imaginary war between India and Pakistan, but it doesn't make it any less applicable in current circumstances, especially when it anticipates that China's wheat crop will halve in the first year after a nuclear war."

"Fitzgerald, you cannot govern this nation based on reports from armchair experts who have not stepped out of their elitist ivory towers in at least two decades."

"This report is by the International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War and Physicians for Social Responsibility, people who try mend those we break. I do think they are worth listening to."

"So we are back to sitting and waiting for the Chinese government do the Lord's work with that demon child?"

"Yes."

"In time we will see how this regrettable course of action will pan out."

"Yes." Fitz sat forward, preparing to stand, but paused when Sally said brightly, "And how are the wedding plans coming along."

"Very well."

"Have you decided on the officiant for your wedding ceremony. I only ask as I may be able to assist, if you are having difficulty choosing a suitable minister because you and Olivia are of different denominations, are you not?"

"Olivia and I have decided on a civil ceremony."

Sally's eyes widened in shock. "A civil ceremony? Here in the White House? At the wedding of a Republican President?"

"I don't see a problem."

"I know you do not, and that is your problem Fitzgerald. You miss the nuances that have the potential to start as ripples and end as a Tsunami. A civil ceremony is opening the door to a pandemic legalising same-sex marriage in every state across this country."

Fitz spared a wry smile. "Sally, same-sex marriage is not that revolutionary a concept since Massachusetts made it legal in 2004. As of this month, same sex couples can marry in 16 states in this country, with Illinois coming on board in June. It's even legal here in the District of Columbia. So I really can't see a problem."

"Sixteen, possibly, 17 states and the District of Columbia do not add up to 50 states. And if you were to marry Olivia Pope in a civil ceremony that would sent a signal to the other 33 that the Federal Government supports that abomination."

When Fitz raised a brow, Sally said in exasperated tone. "You cannot be naive enough to think otherwise. I am surprised your wedding planner has not advised you of the repercussions, if she or he has any experience in the political sphere. Who is this person, if I may ask?'

"It is no secret, Sally. James Novak has volunteered to help."

"Is he famous? Where have I heard that name?"

"James was a White House correspondent and he's married to Cyrus Beene."

"That homosexual? Oh, now it becomes clear - you mean to use your marriage to smite at the very heart of our core beliefs in the Republican party! Ignoring our duty to uphold the sanctity and values of traditional American morals! And the sanctity and tradition of marriage between a man and a woman!"

After Sally had spat the last word at him, Fitz waited a couple of minutes before saying calmly, "I, a man, am marrying Olivia, a woman, in a civil ceremony not as a political statement but as a matter of choice. This is not America's marriage, this is mine and Olivia's. But beyond that if my marriage does encourage acceptance of the greater diversity among our people, all our people, then I welcome it."

With that Fitz got to his feet. "Thank you, Sally, this has been a most constructive discussion. We must do this again sometime."

"Oh believe me, we will!"

Fitz was staring out the Oval Office windows with a grim jaw, when he heard the door open behind him, and Olivia entered with Teddy in her arms.

"Hi," she smiled closing the door.

Instantly, he was making his way across the room, reaching out to lift Teddy in his arms as he bent low to kiss her fiercely; catching her stark stare of concern as he kissed Teddy's cheek.

But she didn't say a word while he settled Teddy on the rug and she lay out the toys she'd carried in a bag with of baby supplies.

It was only after Teddy was happily distracted by his toy truck, that Olivia looked at Fitz and murmured, "Do you want to talk about it?"

Lying propped up on his elbow on the carpet, a pose mirrored by Olivia, Fitz reached across the space between them to tap her nose. "No, not right now."

She caught his hand. "Talk to me."

He rubbed his thumb over her skin, but she wouldn't be distracted. "Talk to me, Fitz."

He sighed. "Sally was not happy to hear that we're having a civil ceremony. She thinks it will open the door to a pandemic of same-sex marriage legislation across the country."

That made her smile. "Great!"

"Yeah, great," Fitz smiled wanly, "I'm just concerned about the push back from the few voters I have left on my side – after my stance on gun control."

She tightened her grip on his hand but her voice was soft as she asked, "Do you want to have a minister officiate our wedding?"

He shifted his gaze from Teddy to look up at her. "No." He moved closer, bringing her hand to his lips, then holding it against his heart. "I just... I don't know."

She looked at him, stroking gentle fingertips over his shirt which he found oddly soothing, then she said slowly, "We don't really know how people would react to the idea of our civil marriage. They probably won't react the same as Sally."

"We don't have time to conduct a poll."

"I'm not talking about a poll. I'm saying that we're going about this the wrong way. Our relationship has been in the media spotlight for months, and now we're trying to reverse the clock, and be discreet. But I think we need to start talking to people again. Get our story out there ourselves, not through the filter of Sally or the Right Wing commentators.

Fitz sat up, frowning. "You want all the crazies to come out of the woodwork?"

"It's time we faced the crazies."

A/N: So I do occasionally remember that Scandal is set during the time of a Republican President (who shouldn't be credited with all the good things achieved by the actual Democrat currently in office). So here I'm pretending that the following didn't occur: On May 9, 2012, President Obama became the first sitting president to publicly declare support for same-sex legislation; On Sep 20, 2011, President Obama repealed the 'don't ask, don't tell' policy for gays and lesbians serving in the US Military.

The other stuff contributing to Fitz and Sally's conversation were stolen from : What Australia owes Iraq 10 years after the war began - Dr Benjamin Isakhan published in Crikey on Mar 25, 2013; Iraq 10 years on: In numbers on BBC News Middle East, published Mar 20, 2013; and India-Pakistan Nuclear War Would Kill 2 Billion People, End Civilization: Report by Palash Ghosh published in International Business Times on December 10 2013.