Hey guys. I thought I should update today since as of about noon tomorrow (just because its physically impossible for me to get up any earlier on a Saturday) I will be reading Harry Potter all weekend (or less depending on how fast I finish it). And I couldn't have you going all weekend without an update so … without further ado …
This chapter marks the beginning of the end (a fact which I'm sure most of you are pleased about)
Passion Play
2312
Room Across the Hall
Harm and Mac's faces hovered simply millimeters from each other's lips. Mac smiled into Harm's mouth, as her lips consumed his. "And remember," she whispered thickly, as his mouth covered hers. "Don't," she broke. "Tell. Harriet."
For one beautiful second, the whole room seemed to freeze. Seven identically stunned faces peered at the laptop as Harm and Mac continued to passionately kiss, blissfully unaware of the publicity of their actions. And then the effects of Mac's words slowly set in …
Bud bit the inside of his cheek in an attempt to prevent the smile that overtook his lips. Tiner looked away to disguise his grin. Jen giggled. The Admiral bit his lip but could not keep from snorting in suppressed laughter. Sturgis shook his head as if to say 'figures'.
All eyes in the room were fixed on Harriet, with the exception of hers who remained thoroughly engrossed with the image on the laptop. Her mouth was open but did not move, as though facially paralyzed. Jen giggled a little more. Harriet turned around.
"Don't tell Harriet?" she repeatedly numbly. "Did she just … did she seriously … Don't tell Harriet?"
And all the self-control the JAG members had been so careful to exercise simply evaporated.
Tiner burst into laughter, accompanied by Jen who shrilly giggled. The Admiral and General, both trying to retain some sense of decorum, simply chuckled into their fists. Bud, shakily attempting sympathy for his wife, rubbed her arm comfortingly while softly laughing.
"Why don't they want to tell me?" Harriet asked crestfallen.
"Well," the Admiral chuckled. "Don't take it personally. Mac probably just doesn't want you knowing your method of locking people in rooms together works. Which, you can see, is a somewhat valid reason."
"Well," Harriet defended, looking affronted. "It DID work. Besides which, I'm her best friend. How can she NOT tell me this?"
"Pretty easily, apparently," Sturgis smirked. Harriet swatted him.
"I'm not going to stand for this," she said seriously. "They can't not tell me. I'm going to go in there and –"
"And do what?" Bud jumped in. "Tell them we were spying on them with the conference room video camera and having a party over in the next room?" Harriet was quiet. "You can't tell them that. You know it. Just let it go."
"I can't let it go!" Harriet retaliated. "Don't they understand how much time and effort I've put into them? Don't they understand how much I've sacrificed for them? And now, when they finally get their own happily ever after they're not even going to tell me."
"I'm sure they'll tell you, sweetie," Bud pacified her. "I guess just not right away."
"I deserve to be the first to know," Harriet whispered hotly.
Sturgis grinned wryly. "Well, in a way, you are …"
Harriet whirled around to him. "Just say ONE more word and I swear I will …"
"Okay!" The Admiral exclaimed loudly. He glowered amusedly at them. "How about this … it's late. We're all a bit tired, a bit cranky. We have an early morning seminar tomorrow. Let's just let Harm and Mac out, as we know we've accomplished the task we came here to do, and call it a night?"
"I'm up for that," Tiner said and a round of acquiescent nodding circled the group, coming to a final resting stop at Harriet who interjected angrily, "leave them in there for all I care."
"Wait," Sturgis said. "We can't all let them out … it'll be pretty obvious what we were doing … I say we should elect a person or two to release our prisoners."
The General was thoughtful for a moment, but then nodded. "Good idea."
There was a moment of shifty glances as they all stared at each other.
"I call not it!" Jen bellowed, which was followed by a chorus of the same statement. The ending result, was five pairs of eyes staring intently at Bud and Harriet.
"Mature, really," Harriet said rolling her eyes.
Bud chuckled. "Alright, guys, get out of here. We've got a couple prisoners to break loose." He turned back to his wife. "You ready to do this?"
Harriet bared her teeth. "Let me at 'em."
Bud grinned. "Harriet, not a word."
"I know, I know."
Same Time
Other Side of the Door
Harm's POV
"When do you think they'll let us out of here?" I whispered thickly against Mac's lips, as she pushed my back to the wall of the room, fingers uselessly playing with the buttons of my shirt. I released a frustrated moan as Mac's tongue entered my mouth once more. Why did Harriet and Bud have to keep us in here?
Not that I wasn't grateful or anything. If it wasn't for Harriet and Bud, I wouldn't have Mac's body pressed against mine or her saliva in my mouth. Which, though perhaps doesn't sound incredibly appealing on paper, I can assure you is definitely worth the venture in reality.
"They better," Mac whispered forcefully against my mouth, "Let us out soon."
"I know …" I whispered slowly, my hands running themselves through her hair. "Mac …" I whispered, as her body became dangerously close to mine. "We can't … not here … this is the conference room."
Mac smiled devilishly at me. "I kind of gathered that, Harm. Thanks."
She resumed playing with my buttons.
"Mac …" I moaned again. "Look, there's a video camera over there," I protested, pointing into a corner of the room.
Mac rolled her eyes. "Like it's even running."
"Hey, it could b–"
"Harm? Mac?" Bud called from the other side of the door.
Mac and I instantly scrambled off our leaning position on the wall, both of us hastening to button up that which Mac had unbuttoned. I straightened my shirt, and Mac finger-combed her hair. We both sent each other an approving glance, at which point the door to the room opened.
"Hey guys," Bud gestured in greeting.
"Oh, so you finally decided to let us out of here?" Mac barked, voice surprisingly gruff. I sent her a look, which she returned with a twinkle in her eye that quite clearly said 'play along'.
I cleared my throat. "Yes," I added sarcastically. "That was quite considerate of you."
Bud looked nervously to his wife, but Harriet waved it off brusquely. "I'm sure you found a pleasant way to … spend your time."
She raised her eyebrows at us. I looked at Mac, but Mac's game face did not fade. "Oh yes, incredibly pleasant, but a thorough waste. We could have talked about seminar topics over email, and at least then I would have been able to simultaneously eat and watch TV."
"You talked about seminar topics?" Bud repeated stunned.
Mac nudged me. "We did," I confirmed.
"That's it?" Harriet prodded, eyes piercing mine with alarming perception.
I looked at Mac, who swiftly responded, "Pretty much."
"Whoa, will you look at that?" I said loudly, looking at my watch. "God, it's getting on midnight, and we all have to be up early for that seminar. So how about we all go off to bed, huh?"
I shot Mac a discrete glance. Her eyes held a mischievous twinkle. Harriet was looking between the both of us, trying to read our expressions. "Oh, of course," she said faintly. "It is rather late, isn't it? The kids will have already drifted off, I expect. Well then, I suppose we should all get going."
"Yeah," I agreed. My mind drifted to Mac's empty hotel room … I grinned wildly. "We definitely should."
"Hm, alright," Harriet yawned. "Well, I'll just escort you to your car then," she said to me.
Bud, Mac and I just stared at her. "Escort me to my car?" I asked weakly.
"Harriet …" Bud murmured warningly (for some reason).
"Yeah," Harriet nodded. "I think we left Mitch's soother in the back of your car, and he likes to wake up at all hours of the night crying for the damned thing. I can't have him waking up the other three. So I'll just walk to your car, grab the soother, and be off."
"Oh … um …" I tried to look at Mac but she was looking deliberately away. "Okay, then."
"Alright, well, I'll go up then," Bud said. "I'll relieve the babysitter from her duties."
"And …" Mac said, looking resignedly at me. "I guess I'll go up to my room then …"
"Okay," Harriet said brightly. She turned to Harm. "Lead on!"
To : Harriet Sims (ih8barney(at)hotmail(dot)com)
From : Bud Robberts (bud(dot)roberts(at)theJAGoffice(dot)com)
Subject : You tricky tricky woman
Hm. I see how it is now. Because Mac won't tell you that she and Harm are now together, you are going to punish them whenever the opportunity arises? Have you no shame? You black hearted woman.
Bud
To : Bud Robberts (bud(dot)roberts(at)theJAGoffice(dot)com)
From : Harriet Sims (ih8barney(at)hotmail(dot)com)
Re : You tricky tricky woman
I am not PUNISHING Mac for not telling me that she's now with Harm. I'm simply … making things difficult for them … so that they WILL tell me. I mean, how hard would it have been for Harm to say, "actually, I'm not going back to my place. I'm staying in Mac's hotel room."
I mean, REALLY. If they were just honest, I wouldn't need to squeeze it out of them, and things would be a lot less unpleasant. But nooooo … they're going all "Don't tell Harriet" on me. Well fine. I'll get it out of them.
I'll just do so creatively.
Harriet
P.S: And I am NOT a black hearted woman. How could you call the mother of your four and a half children that?
To : Harriet Sims (ih8barney(at)hotmail(dot)com)
From : Bud Robberts (bud(dot)roberts(at)theJAGoffice(dot)com)
Re : You tricky tricky woman
Don't give me that. You're so punishing them. Now stop making them miserable, let Harm go to Mac, and come back up to the hotel room. The kids, believe it or not, are still up. And watching cartoons.
Bud
P.S: Calling you a black hearted woman, mother of my children or not, I seem to find surprisingly easy.
P.P.S: I would hardly call a month old fetus half a kid. More like 1/9th of a kid.
To : Bud Robberts (bud(dot)roberts(at)theJAGoffice(dot)com)
From : Harriet Sims (ih8barney(at)hotmail(dot)com)
Re : You tricky tricky woman
Mother and child are offended, and have reached the mutual decision you are sleeping on the couch tonight.
H
To : Sarah Mackenzie (sarah(dot)mackenzie(at)theJAGoffice(dot)com)
From : Harmon Rabb (harmon(dot)rabb(at)theJAGoffice(dot)com)
Subject : I'm back
Hey,
Harriet insisted on watching me drive all the way out of the parking lot, waving at me the whole time. I swear, she's getting a little nuttier with the more kids she has. Anyways, I'm sitting in the parking lot outside Subway waiting for the coast to be clear so I can come back.
Harm
To : Harmon Rabb (harmon(dot)rabb(at)theJAGoffice(dot)com)
From : Sarah Mackenzie (sarah(dot)mackenzie(at)theJAGoffice(dot)com)
Re : I'm back
Yeah, that whole seeing-you-off thing was kind of weird … I don't remember Mitch ever leaving his soother in your car. I don't even see when he would have had the opportunity to. Was it there? Maybe the pregnancy hormones are getting to Harriet. That's probably it. Because if she really knew what we were up to, she'd be supplying us a queen size bed with silk sheets.
Mac
P.S: While you're at Subway, you wanna pick up a foot long meat ball sub? Please?
To : Sarah Mackenzie (sarah(dot)mackenzie(at)theJAGoffice(dot)com)
From : Harmon Rabb (harmon(dot)rabb(at)theJAGoffice(dot)com)
Re : I'm back
You're kidding. We just ate.
H
To : Harmon Rabb (harmon(dot)rabb(at)theJAGoffice(dot)com)
From : Sarah Mackenzie (sarah(dot)mackenzie(at)theJAGoffice(dot)com)
Re : I'm back
I'm … growing.
M
A/N: Hey guys. I'm sorry this chapter wasn't very long, but its four in the morning and I'm falling asleep at the keyboard here. So basically, in this chapter I set the premise for the next chapter which is Harriet is trying to force Mac and Harm to tell her they're together, which they don't want to do. But she can't admit she knows because of the video camera thing, and they don't understand how she could know because … well, she wasn't in the room. Don't worry, I've got a series of funny events lined up for that theme.
I won't update till Monday probably. Reading Harry Potter. You all understand.