A/N: My muse is still recovering from the rubbish of that NCIS:LA episode, so this next chapter does not include Harm and Mac. Right now, I really would like to smack the two of them for being such idiots! I also want to ask fanfic to add a certain producer as a character in JAG, so I can attach him to a missile that Harm shoots off a plane, but…..done ranting.

Chapter 10: Best Laid Plans of Lost Boys and Elders

By the time Keeter arrives at the old farmhouse, he has been driving for several hours. He steps out of his Mustang to see Sarah Rabb, sitting on her porch swing, with her walking cast propped up next to her. He looks at her, and teases, "Young lady, what on earth did you do to yourself?"

Grandma Sarah chuckles, "I haven't been a 'young lady' since before you were in diapers, Jackson! Or maybe I should say before you were old enough to be in diapers. Knowing your flair for the dramatic, your mother probably had to fight with you to put any clothes on you. You were most likely streaking butt naked as often as you could when you were little."

Jack, whose face is now as bright as a perfectly crisp apple, cocks his head sideways and asks, "Who says that has changed?"

Her eyebrows stretch up to her hairline, in a move that reminds Jack very much of this woman's grandson. He knows darn well that she wouldn't hesitate to swat him upside his head if he was close enough, which is part of the reason he is maintaining his distance for the moment. He is hoping that her walking cast will prevent her from hopping off the swing. and reaching him in just a few steps. However, he certainly wouldn't put it past her to be able to accomplish it. Stubbornness is, after all, a family trait.

Mrs. Rabb huffs under her breath before remarking, "There are things that these little ears don't need to be subjected to Mr. Keeter! Now get over here, and give this old lady a hug, and then a little help if you don't mind."

Jack hesitates for a moment, as he leans against his car with his ankles crossed, and his arms folded over his chest. He is still a tad unsure if she will whack him when he gets close enough, before a wide grin stretches across his face. He smirks, "Somehow, I doubt that anything that comes out of my mouth isn't something you haven't heard before."

Mrs. Rabb offers a small smile, as she scolds, "That might be true, but you should still maintain your manners around your elders, Sir."

Jack replies sheepishly, "Yes, Ma'am," before walking over to her.

When he reaches her, he crouches down, and offers a hand to help her up. She places one hand in his, and the other on his shoulder to brace herself, as she slowly rises. Once she is steady on her feet, he inquires, "I won't break you, will I?"

She chuckles, "Nah, the ankle is almost healed. I should be out of this thing in another week or so. I feel pretty silly for not realizing that the floorboard was loose before I tripped and fell over it. Hazards of living in an old farmhouse, I guess. The rest of these old bones are in perfectly normal working order."

Jack wraps his arms around the older woman, squeezing lightly, "Hi, Grams, I've missed you."

Mrs. Rabb returns the warm embrace, and chuckles, "Nah, you just missed my home cooking."

Jack smiles, "That too! Shall we go inside?"

Grams hooks her arm through Jack's as they walk into the house. She tells him, "I tried calling Harm, but I couldn't get ahold of him, my calls went straight to his voicemail."

Jack replies, "Well I wouldn't think anything of it, he probably turned it off at the hospital. Wait! He can't turn it off, he's the JAG now! Hell, I doubt he even told Cresswell where he was headed, he left the festivities in such a rush. His battery is probably just dead. I highly doubt that duty is foremost in his mind at the moment."

She puts some fresh grounds into the coffee maker, and turns it on. She tells him, "Now, I know my grandson, he would have let someone know how to reach him in case duty called."

Jack snorts, "Hmmph! You didn't see the look in his eye when he saw Mac again. I don't think the world existed outside of the two of them."

She smiles, "Jack, it's called true love. Maybe one day you will understand the concept."

Jack grimaces, "Ugh! Now you sound like Harm. Why does everyone think I need to settle down?"

Grams pours him a cup of piping hot coffee, before grabbing a mug for herself. She walks over with both cups, and sits down next to him at the table, "Well, my dear boy, you can't stay single forever."

Jack gives her his customary flyboy grin, "Why not?"

She laughs, "Well at some point, you will get to be my age. You will need someone to look after you. Face it, Jack, even Peter Pan had to grow up at some point."

Jack replies, "You never remarried when you lost Harm's grandfather, and you have managed to take care of yourself, by yourself, for years."

She tells him matter of factly, "Yes, but I'm a woman."

Keeter quirks his eyebrow in question, "What does being a woman have to do with anything?"

She explains, "Women have fortitude. It's why we are the ones who give birth, and act like mothering hens all the time. Men are big babies when it comes to being sick or injured."

Jack emphatically declares, "We are not!"

Grams laughs, "Ha! You aren't even hurt or sick. Yet you requested homemade pie, and coffee be here upon your arrival. As I said, you need a woman to look after you."

Jack argues, "Maybe, but so does your grandson. I don't see you bugging him to grow up, settle down, and get married."

Grams states, "Harm grew up before he was ten years old. Losing his father that young, he felt this innate need to take care of his mother. Ever since then, he has always carried an overprotective streak when it comes to women, even those that he isn't involved with. It just gets worse when he feels something for them. And getting him to settle down will be easier than working on you I think. I'm fairly certain that somewhere along the way, a Marine Colonel learned how to get inside his walls, whether he wanted to let her in or not. You, on the other hand, I'm not quite sure what will work. Maybe I will have to ask Mac if she is friends with any female Army Rangers, Green Berets, or Navy Seals. Perhaps a GI Jane type could work wonders with you."

Jack sighs, and shakes his head, knowing that she has won this round. He opts not to mention that if she had a man around, the broken floorboard would have been fixed before she fell. That is something he will remedy before he leaves here, along with checking to see if anything else needs some fixing up. Otherwise, Harm will have his head. Switching topics slightly he asks, "Why were you trying to reach Harm? You weren't going to let him know that I talked to you, where you?"

She scoffs, "Please! Give me some credit. It wouldn't do us much good to come up with a secret plan to help him and Mac get together if I let him know that we had talked. I'm not supposed to know anything about the fact that Mac just suddenly walked back into his life, remember? I was merely calling to offer my congratulations on his promotion, and offer my apologies, again, for missing his ceremony."

Jack nods, "Ok, so what exactly is the plan to get those two stubborn idiots to work out their differences so that they can both be happy?"

Grams takes a sip of her coffee, and sighs, "That, my dear boy, is the million dollar question."