| Beatrice |
The Hero Returns |
December 9, 2003 |
Disclaimer: I don’t own JAG or its characters. They are the property of Donald Bellisario and Bellisarius Productions. No copyright infringement intended - I’m not making any profit from this!
Author Notes: So many other writers on this board have done a wonderful job with long stories in a series of installments; I thought I’d take a different tack. I hope to post a number of scenes or vignettes focusing on Harm and Mac’s relationship that can stand alone and might be inserted into an episode. Hope you like them!
This scene takes place at the end of S7 on the U.S.S. Seahawk - after Harm diverts the missile but before he and Mac learn of Bud’s injury.
Mac strode down the passageway at a brisk pace, heading toward the mess hall. She nodded briefly at a pair of young petty officers who were grinning inanely at her. She was accustomed to drawing a certain amount of attention whenever she was onboard a carrier, partly because she was female and partly because she was a JAG. Her mere presence on the ship typically indicated an ongoing investigation, about which there was bound to be curiosity among the crew. On this trip, however, she had vaulted past celebrity status to absolute stardom.
Thanks to Harm.
Yesterday he had saved them all, leading the missile away from the Seahawk until it dropped into the ocean and ceased to be a threat to their lives. In the process, he had attained the status of a minor deity with the crew. And now, everyone knew her as his partner.
Mac smiled to herself at the memory of the previous day’s events.
As soon as he had been cleared for landing back on the carrier, she had left the bridge and scrambled to a place where she would have an unobstructed view of the deck. She watched his F-14 touch down and snap to a halt. The scene that subsequently unfolded before her was like something out of Top Gun, with the pilot and RIO emerging from the cockpit and climbing down from their plane, only to be instantly surrounded by throngs of people.
Harm had seemed pleased by this warm welcome, a smile firmly fixed in place, but he also seemed a bit distracted. Periodically he would look up and scan the crowd, as if he were looking for something. Or someone. His gaze systematically moved higher and higher until finally he made eye contact with Mac on one of the upper decks. On seeing her, his entire countenance lit up with a boyish grin, unleashing a flourish of butterflies in her stomach. If only he’d been close enough, she could imagine him asking proudly, ‘Did you see me, Mac?’ She smiled back at him, a feeling of warmth flooding over her at the realization that the object of his visual search had been to locate her. Holding her gaze, Harm mouthed the words, “Meet me,” and pointed astern. She knew he’d be expected at the debriefing room ASAP and that he wanted her to meet him there. She nodded in agreement, and with that she saw him begin to make his way through the crowd.
She caught up with him a short distance from the debriefing room. When he saw her in the passageway, he gave her another wide grin and threw his arms open wide.
Normally, this type of behavior from Harmon Rabb, Jr., would have given Mac fits. She had been trying desperately to play it cool around him the past few weeks, enjoying the renewed closeness of their friendship but carefully concealing her deeper feelings for him. She was through pushing him and wearing her heart on her sleeve. If he wanted their relationship to progress to the next level, he was going to have to work for it and prove himself before he’d get a response out of her. But these were extraordinary circumstances. Her hero had returned, and if he wanted a hug from her after saving 5,000 souls, then by God, he would have one. She stepped into his embrace and threw her arms around his neck.
“Nice flying, Hammer,” she murmured softly.
To her surprise, Harm wrapped his arms around her and squeezed her so tight he almost lifted her off the floor. “Thanks, Mac,” he replied. Then he whispered against her hair, “Saved your little green Marine butt again.”
She laughed out loud. “Yeah, and almost rode a mushroom cloud to the great beyond.”
He snorted indignantly. “Nah, never happen.” He pulled back, looking down at her smugly.
“Oh, really? How can you be so sure?”
“Well, for one thing, you weren’t with me.” He released her entirely, then pointed at her chest and his own. “We’re Butch and Sundance, remember?” He winked and flashed her another cocky grin.
Mac rolled her eyes and laughed again. She was so relieved to have him back onboard, safe and sound, she could have collapsed into a heap on the floor. He was staring at her, an intense gleam in his eyes. He was breathing rapidly, and she knew the adrenaline must have still been surging through his veins from his mission. But there was something more to the way he was looking at her, more than the excitement of a successful mission, more than getting another ride in a Tomcat and playing the hero, almost like…
Harm opened his mouth as if to say something, then bit his lip. There were so many other people in the corridor at this point; there was no hope of continuing this conversation with any degree of privacy. He motioned toward the debriefing room. “Come on, let’s go in.”
She had walked in and taken a seat next to him, thankful that her role as a JAG allowed her to be present during the debriefing and gave her an excuse to stay close to him a little while longer.
Mac emerged from her reverie about Harm’s return just as she reached her intended destination, the mess hall. She stopped at the door to survey the scene. What she saw was quite typical of what had been occurring over the past 24 hours.
Harm was, quite simply, in his glory. A crowd of people, primarily pilots and RIOs, surrounded him, talking excitedly about his mission. Periodically one of them would move closer to pound him on the back or shake his hand. Rabb groupies, Mac thought sourly to herself. Don’t any of these people realize I’m the one who has to live with this man, day in and day out, with his enormous ego? She sighed wearily. Oh, who am I kidding, I’m the biggest groupie of them all. Still, she couldn’t resist having a little fun with the situation and deflating her partner’s ego a bit in the process, if the opportunity presented itself.
The XO spoke. “Commander Rabb, I can confirm the scuttlebutt. The Skipper’s going to recommend you for the Navy Cross, in light of the bravery, courage, and skill you exhibited in saving this crew from a terrorist attack.”
“Don’t forget insanity,” Mac called out.
Harm looked startled, though he instantly recognized her voice. He oriented to the sound, and when he found her, Mac met his gaze evenly and continued.
“Don’t give me that wounded look, sailor. Getting a nuclear warhead to chase you is, without question, a certifiable act.”
A ripple of laughter went through the room, and everyone was focused on her. Mac smiled at Harm, slowly shaking her head. As she walked toward him, the crowd parted to clear a path for her. “You’ve pulled some pretty crazy stunts in the past, and I’ve witnessed quite a few of them with my own eyes. But this, this one definitely takes the cake.”
Harm assumed a casual stance, folding his arms across his chest and leaning against the wall behind him. He replied lightly, “Well, if that’s true, then it’s your fault.”
“How is it my fault?” she countered, incredulous.
“I just have to keep pulling bigger and bigger stunts to impress you, Colonel.” He gazed at her innocently, expectantly. She saw the corners of his mouth begin to twitch as if he was fighting to suppress a smile, and there was the barest hint of a challenge in his voice.
Mac’s breath caught at his words, and she felt her cheeks flush. The banter was back in their relationship, to be sure, but she’d never expected him to unleash it in such a public forum. Though her eyes were locked on Harm’s, she was intensely aware that all other eyes in the room, having sensed the electricity between them, were studying the pair of lawyers. Staring at them, wondering if there might be something more intimate going on between Rabb and his beautiful partner. Feeling compelled to say something, anything to dispel the tension, Mac rolled her eyes dramatically and laid the back of her hand against her forehead in a feigned fainting gesture. “Somebody catch me, I might swoon,” she said with all the sarcasm she could muster.
The room again erupted in laughter. Mac grinned devilishly at her partner, as if to signal that his gauntlet had indeed been picked up. Harm laughed along with the others at her remark, but his eyes were fixed on hers with an intensity that emphasized the truth behind his words: it was all for her.
Afraid she’d be unable to sustain this exchange any longer without betraying her true feelings, Mac ducked her head and quietly made her way through the crowd to the doorway. She turned to take one last look at Harm, who was once again surrounded by people alternately slapping him on the back or vigorously shaking his hand. He was watching her, and when she turned, he gave her a brief, knowing smile. She smiled back, then turned and disappeared down the passageway.