AN: Animal earned the "blue button" in the events of a story (scheduled for a major rewrite – to be posted on in the future) based in the mountains of North Korea while he was a Lieutenant Commander and prefers not to think about it – the events were too traumatic. Occasionally he will turn around and use it to intimidate overbearing Navy staff bureaucrats and bombastic senators and congressmen and congresswomen, but on the whole prefers to let the ribbon sit quietly on his ribbon rack and be overlooked.
JAG Headquarters
Falls Church, VA
Mac stewed quietly in her office after getting dressed down thoroughly by RADM AJ Chegwidden – file folder open making it look as if she was studying the folder, but her mind was thousands of miles away. Not three hours into Tuesday and already her Tuesday was well on its way down the latrine. Too bad Lieutenant Singer had been so thoroughly unlikeable she had gotten herself killed by Commander Teddy Lindsey; she could have used that manipulative bitch to her advantage now if she was still living. The admiral had effectively silenced her smear campaign against Commander Austin, but she would do everything in her power to make life a living hell for Commander Austin; she just had to figure out how.
CDR Austin had her claws in Harm and Mac was determined to get them out no matter how ugly this got; but the SEAL had thrown down the gauntlet: continue to be a disruptive presence in the office and she would be transferred to McMurdo Station. And there was no doubt that he would do it too. Damn that Admiral Nakamura for opening Chegwidden's eyes. She didn't know what was said in that tirade coming from the office last week, but it had caused a complete 180 degree about-face in Chegwidden's effectiveness. The Admiral was on top of things that he hadn't used to be. If he was still stewing in his juices about his forthcoming retirement, he wouldn't have stuck up for Commander Austin; he would still have been bemoaning his fate and making life hell for the rest of the efficient officers in the JAG HQ. The atmosphere would have still been poisoned and the efficiency rating would still be stinking like Limburger cheese.
The Asian American admiral was the only one in the group who she couldn't utilize her feminine wiles to allure. He was already enthralled, smitten and married to…happily for many years to Commander Liandra Nakamura. He was also one of the untouchable – the JCS would protect him and all because he had gone after a fellow downed NFO in enemy territory on a black hush hush mission for the Naval Intelligence. What else could she do? Harm was smitten with Meg to the point where Mac, herself, had no chance of ever retrieving the situation beyond any repair.
Virginia Courthouse
US Federal District Courts – Roanoke Division
Courtroom 3
"Now, I'm curious." Judge Rita McLennan smiled, looking over her granny glasses at the two Navy commanders standing before her in the company of a young teenage girl. "What brings you two decorated US Navy officers here in my courtroom today?"
"Your honor, we would like to plead for custody of a Ms. Mathilda Grace Johnson." Meg stated clearly as she looked at the judge. "Her father abandoned her and she had been running the day to day operations of Grace Aviation for the past year and a half in his absence."
"Is Mr. Tom Johnson here to defend his position?" the Judge asked.
"I believe the social workers have tracked him down." Harm replied looking over at Meg who nodded.
"That doesn't answer my question, Mr. Rabb." The judge levelled a gaze at him raising one eyebrow as if to state that the question was self-evident. "My question was not if Mr. Johnson was notified, it was: "Is he here to defend his position? I see from the empty defense table that Mr. Johnson is not…"
A commotion at the door and a rather strident "I would like to get in to defend my parental rights!" statement aimed at the security at the back of the courtroom made the judge look up from her bench. A rather dishevelled sandy haired man whose eyes looked rather bloodshot managed to make his way to the front of the courtroom. "I'm here, Mattie." He said, looking over nervously at Meg, Harm and his daughter.
"…and you must be Mr. Tom Johnson, Mattie's father." The judge looked balefully at Tom. Evidently she wasn't too impressed as to the state that Mr. Johnson was in.
Tom Johnson swallowed nervously as he matched the judge's gaze. "I was notified by the Child Protection Services that there was a hearing for custody of Mattie." He stated; his voice calm despite the tenseness of the situation. "I came in to defend…my…"
At this statement, Mattie saw red and erupted. "You left me for the bottle! You didn't give a damn about me!"
Judge McLennan slammed the gavel down. "Ms. Johnson, Though I sympathise with what you have gone through, you will have your moment to speak in this hearing. I would ask that you pay the court the respect it deserves and not speak out of turn!" The threat was implicit and Harm and Meg managed to get Mattie to calm down, the last thing that she needed to have happen to her was to be incarcerated for contempt of court.
The judge gave Mr. Johnson the opportunity to defend his position and give his reasons why he abandoned Mattie to her own devices. The arguments, Harm felt, wouldn't hold any water when Judge McLennan made her decision. Meg looked over at Mattie who looked like an absolute seething volcano about to erupt. She leaned over to Mattie who whispered to her. "He's just making things up!"
"Captain Rabb, what made you interested in taking care of this young lady. Why didn't you feel that she would be better off in the hands of child protective services?"
"Ma'am, if you call being jumped around from foster care to foster care, with no stable home situation, that's not conducive to a child's safety and security. That's what I wish to give Mattie – a safe and secure home." Harm replied to the judge's query with as honest an answer as he could give.
The judge levelled a look at Meg, "Commander Austin. I noticed you and Captain Rabb are not married, yet you both intend to level a joint application for custody of Ms. Grace-Johnson here. Tell me why."
"Ma'am, As Captain Rabb stated we are trying to ensure that Mattie has a stable home life. She has had to endure running a business on her own thus having to grow up all too quickly, had to find some way to feed and support herself, all while paying bills and ensuring that she had a roof over her head. And she succeeded to some level, but it is still too early in her life at fourteen to have to do all that. She has sacrificed an education and a teen-ager's life in order to subsist. Despite the fact that Captain Rabb and I are not married, we do have a relationship and I intend to be the one that takes care of Mattie so that Captain Rabb can have visitation." Harm raised eyebrows at this and looked over at Meg in amazement. "Captain Rabb has a posting at NAS Patuxent River which means that he will be able to drive over at least 3 times a week to meet with Mattie, while Mattie can go to school during the week at a high-school in Reston where I reside which is only nineteen minutes by drive from where I work…"
Tom Johnson at this point was looking rather uncomfortable himself interjected. "But that's my daughter…and they're trying to take her away…"
"Mr Johnson, you have had your say. Considering the amount of work you have to do with surmounting your alcoholism, I'd say that you have your hands full with your addiction." The judge glared at him, silencing whatever else he was going to say. "Commander Austin, do you have anything else? I see you have a plan in place that will help Ms. Grace-Johnson here, however a single woman taking care of a young teen-ager while working is not a plus point in your favor. Right now, we have a social worker waiting to take Ms. Grace Johnson into her care, unless you have some means to enable a family situation and I am talking a connubial situation between the two of you, Captain Rabb and Commander Austin. We take that into high regard here that traditional families are the ones who have the most stability. Do you understand what it is that I'm saying?" Harm and Meg winced hard as the full realization of the situation fell on their shoulders as the judge's words sank in.
Mattie looked at the two of them bewildered. Surely they weren't going to back out now.
To his credit Harm didn't back out. "Your honor, we request that we have custody of Mattie while we sort out this situation, it won't take more than two weeks, your honor."
The judge smiled. "Very well, Captain Rabb. Temporary custody granted to Commanders Meg Austin and Captain Harmon Rabb Jr. You and Commander Austin will have two weeks to settle out your situation. Commander Austin, should this end with a ring on your left hand, I will have no choice other than to grant you custody. Keep that in mind. Captain Rabb and Commander Austin. This case is adjourned for two weeks whereupon I will grant a hearing for custody in case # 127401 Virginia CPS versus Commander Meg Austin and Captain Harmon Rabb. Court dismissed."
"ALL RISE!" the bailiff intoned. The court did so.
Five Minutes Later
Virginia Courthouse
US Federal District Courts – Roanoke Division
Outside Courtroom 3
"What just happened?" Meg looked at Harm with a look reminiscent of a deer in the headlights.
"Uh…I think you two got engaged, by legal decree." Mattie said looking at the two of them who looked at her with raised eyebrows. "I think I'll just pipe down."
"Meg…I know this isn't the most romantic way." Harm said.
"Let's go home and talk about it there. At least we have the day off for this all to sink in." Meg said. "This wasn't exactly the most romantic way to get engaged."
"Think the admiral will hit the ceiling?" Harm asked.
"Oh, I'm sure he'll probably go into lunar orbit when I tell him that we're getting married." Meg replied. "After all, I told him that I was involved with a certain 'ex-fighter pilot'. Did you see his face when you mentioned that you were the one involved with me? He went ballistic."
"Yes…" Harm remembered that nervous moment about whether or not AJ could actually do it (bust him down a grade or two) before Animal had quickly shut AJ down.
"To tell you the honest truth, I think we should tell him." Meg said quickly. "It'll make it smoother if he realizes the situation rather than us springing it on him with a ring after the fact." Hard as it was for Harm to say it, he agreed with Meg.
"Should we both go in?" he asked Meg.
"Might be better that way." Meg said, disguising the fact that she didn't want to be alone telling the Admiral that she was getting married. "Though there is a part of me that wants to do this in the bullpen where that Marine is around – must be the sadistic side of me though."
"Awwwww…" Harm grinned at Meg. "My Meg couldn't be sadistic."
"Um… 'my Meg', is it now?" Meg teased Harm back as she turned around to head for the door and the vehicle they came to the courthouse in - Harm's Mom-mobile.
"Love you, Meg." Harm tossed the endearment at her.
"Mmmm…I like the sound of that. Now before we hit Falls Church, feed me. I'm hungry!" Meg retorted. "Love you too." She tossed back.
Before Harm got the car engine going he made a quick call to NAS Pax River.
"Yeah…what is it." Animal's voice was on the other end of the call.
"Say, you have some dress whites?" Harm asked.
"You don't say!" Animal knew that dress whites outside of an official function could only mean one thing.
"Yep…I say…" Harm replied.
"F*NG DAMN!" Animal replied. "You got a save-the-date, so I know when to book Lia and myself off to be there?"
"Yep, will let you know once we iron all the details…" Harm said.
"Good." Animal's voice was jovial.
"You know you're going to be the honor guard captain, right?" Harm riposted at Animal.
"Yeah, and where's Schmuckeeter?" Animal sounded surprised that he was chosen honor guard captain. Normally it was the groom's best friend, not his superior officer that got the honor.
"He'll be on the opposite side." was the reply.
"When you get a hold of Keeter, tell him I said 'hi', will ya?" Animal queried.
"Oh, I'm sure you're in his nightmares." Harm said and grinned when he heard the malevolent chuckle over the phone in reply from Animal. "Catch you later, Animal."
"Good thing. Will talk to you soon." Animal replied and hung up on the other end of the phone line. Looking up from the phone, Harm's eyes met two pointed sets of stares.
"FEED ME!" the two chorused. Harm decided discretion was the better part of valor and headed for the nearest burger joint. Though he was a vegetarian, he knew a carnivorous look when he saw one and Meg and Mattie were not in the mood for dead-plant.
JAG Headquarters
Falls Church, VA
"Afternoon, sir." Bud greeted Harm with his normal effusive demeanor.
"Afternoon, Bud." Harm grinned as he followed his fiancée into her workplace – after the food, they had headed immediately for Falls Church to talk to the admiral. Mattie was asked if she would hang out in the bullpen until the admiral was finished with the two officers.
"Is the admiral in?" Meg asked the new admiral's legalman, evidently, she was a master chief legalman now, evidently everything got upgraded once Jen left.
"Yes, he is." Master Chief Diana Kronwall replied. "he is. Ma'am."
"Could you tell him that Captain Rabb and I need to speak with him?"
"Of course, ma'am. Will do." The MCLN quickly got on the phone with the admiral. "The admiral will see you two now."
"Thank you, Master Chief." Meg responded as the two stepped to the admiral's closed door and Meg pounded the pine requesting entry.
"ENTER!" the admiral replied to the knock.
"Commander Austin and Captain Rabb requesting permission to speak with the admiral, sir." Meg said.
"Rabb, I thought you'd be at Pax River. Enjoying your new post."
"Immensely, sir." Harm replied. "But something came up."
"I heard according to what Commander Austin related to me." The admiral said gruffly raising an eyebrow as he levelled a gaze at the captain. "So, what did you drag my best litigator into now?"
"Sir, I went willingly." Meg said. "Actually we have to tell you something."
"Oh?" the admiral said. "What is that?"
"Sir, we've decided to ask for custody of Mattie and the only way that we're going to get it is to show that we're united…" Meg said.
"in all things…" Harm added.
"gesù cristo" Admiral Chegwidden intoned; index finger and middle finger massaging his temple, thumb resting on chin. "I really don't want to know what that last meant. Next thing you're going to be telling me is that you two are going to get married."
Harm and Meg looked at each other, grinning sheepishly.
"JESUS CHRIST!" The admiral exploded. "I knew it! I knew it! When you told me that you were involved with this ex-fighter jock… Commander Austin, I knew there was only one road that it would lead to." he sighed melodramatically. "So…you have a save-the-date yet?"
"We're working on that, sir."
"One piece of advice, Rabb." The admiral said. "Put a ring on that finger of hers, ASAP! And make sure that I get the 'save the date'. Congratulations Commander Austin, Captain Rabb." He rose from behind the desk to come over and shake both officers' hands.
"Aye, aye, sir!"
"Congratulations. Now I'm sure you want to tell your friends here in the bullpen." AJ replied, not really looking forward to a certain Marine Corps Lieutenant Colonel's reaction to the news. Yep, it wasn't going to be pretty.
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