Chapter Six

Animal's Office, NAVINSGEN's Office, The Pentagon, 1100hrs.

"Sir, it's Yeoman Carran, sir. I have a Commander O'Bannon out here to see you…" the voice on the intercom sounded rather insistent.

Maegyn? What's she doing here? I thought she was still on the Carl Vinson with the Black Aces. Animal thought as he hurriedly scrawled a signature on the file that he had finished looking through then shoved it in his outbox and got up. He hadn't seen Maegyn in a long time since they had flown together the last deployment before the Fumble Fortress got wise and shit-canned his flight status. That was almost six months ago since the ceremony where he received the Medal of Honor. Since then he had been doing make-work at the five-sided outhouse on the Potomac hoping and praying that he would get a reprieve long enough to be able to make an escape.

"Tell her I'll be right out…" he called out to Morna over the intercom. As he opened the door he heard Manetti stage-whispering to LCDR Gracen. "Wonder how long that will take…it didn't seem like he had a good meeting with the CNO. The captain held his calls for two hours. I checked with Morna."

Animal crowed. "IRISH…GODDAMN! HOW THE HELL YOU BEEN?!" causing the redhead to look up from chatting with Morna about inconsequential things like the weather and grin widely.

"Hey, Animal!" Maegyn cheerily called out. "I was in town and I heard through the grapevine that you were hiding here."

"Hiding?" Animal snorted sarcastically as he looked her up and down. "More like kept in the dungeons and fed food and water…then periodically let out to gnaw on certain departments in the Navy."

"So…sailor…like what you see?" Maegyn as ever wasn't shy about certain things…and Animal grinned back at her.

"You do criminal things to that uniform…" Animal said as he looked her over up and down. "Absolutely criminal…" he grinned.

"Then maybe you should arrest me…" Maegyn's green eyes twinkled mischievously. She looked around his office and then purred softly. "So…care to take me out to the concourse and feed me lunch?" she said with a wicked grin.

Oh my god. Animal inaudibly groaned as something started reacting which he didn't want to in public. "Yeah…sure…" he croaked, his mouth suddenly dry. Maegyn loved teasing him. They'd had an intimate relationship that they had managed to keep out of the eye of the higher-ups which would have had him canned and thrown into Leavenworth, but then he thought. Maegyn and he weren't in the same chain of command anymore and smiled to himself. Maybe today might actually turn into a really good day yet.

"OK…I wanna go to Starbucks…then someplace where we can get some burgers." She grinned as she impatiently tapped her foot. "C'mon…I'm hungry. Let's go!"

"Impatient thing, aren't you?" Animal said as he zipped back into his office to grab his cover and they were off.

From the hallway, they could hear Maegyn reply. "Of course, I'm hungry…and you starved me for fifteen minutes interrogating me."

When the two senior officers had left, Lia turned to Tracy, "Who was she?" she asked.

"Well, I think that was one of Captain Nakamura's former squadron-mates. She still flies, so I hear." Tracy replied as they headed back into Lia's office to go over a few more things before lunch. "We really should think about grabbing some lunch too. It'll be noon in a little while."

Pentagon Concourse, Food Court

Maegyn looked over at her former squadron-mate. "So how are you liking it here?"

"I feel like a pariah…" was the simple answer. "I just got through an NAVINSGEN audit of JAG. Felt like the sacking of Troy. I got looked at like I was kicking a puppy…"

Maegyn looked at him curiously. This didn't seem like the gung-ho, take-no-prisoners Animal she remembered. "That bad, huh?" He seemed deflated somehow. Like part of what made him an aviator had been cut out and cauterized so that it wouldn't ever grow back. Even though he wore a set of naval aviator wings, he was essentially grounded. They wouldn't allow him back on active duty and he'd never get to fly in combat again. That's why he looked dead inside.

"Yeah…" He looked down at his hands. "Sometimes I wonder if it's worth it to stay in and do my full twenty. Maybe I should get out and go fly long-haul for an airline."

"You…trying to fly a 757 or 747? Sorry, sweet, but you're not cut out for that mundane stuff. You'd go crazy inside of a week and try to dogfight with a 737." Maegyn commented simply. "You're still a naval aviator through and through." Maegyn laid a soft hand on top of Animal's, her green eyes seeking out his brown. "You're just not doing what you had as a career mostly because the country wants to protect you."

"What's the difference between Medal of Honor recipients and recipients of the Navy Cross. You're just as much a hero as I am…" Animal looked like he was about to whine and Maegyn giggled. "How come you get to fly still?"

"Am I hearing you whine? You got your O-6 and a nice little staff job."

Animal looked at her sharply. "I'm not where I want to be…"

"Hon, Scuttlebutt has it that Tomcats are being retired by 2006. In fact there's several squadrons that are starting the process to convert to F/A-18E and F Super Hornets and we're supposedly supposed to be starting our conversion in 2000." She laughed as she saw Animal's horrified expression. Animal didn't like Hornets. "Our last Tomcat cruise is in 99, then we're done with the Tomcat. We start transitioning."

"…but Hornets SUCK!" At that several Marine and Navy aviators who actually flew the Hornet and were assigned at staff billets (that they would eventually get to leave) at the Pentagon looked up in annoyance and grumbled.

"Tomcat Puke…" one of them uttered.

Animal looked over at them, twisting his body around so that they could see his rack…especially the top ribbon. They looked over spotting that ribbon, and shut up quickly.

"So…how long are you here for?" Animal asked quietly reaching over to take her hands.

"Three weeks leave. Thought we could hang together for a while…" Maegyn said softly. "Maybe I can cheer you up."

"You gonna be here at the Pentagon till secure?"

"Yeah…" Maegyn replied.

"Well, you know where I work…so pick me up? Then we can convoy to my place…and catch up on old times." Animal offered.

"Catching up sounds good…" Maegyn's eyes twinkled and she smiled. "Might be something to look forward to…" she hinted, as she brushed her hand across his thigh causing him to suck in his breath quickly and groan as he involuntarily reacted to her touch.

"oh, just you wait till I get you back for that…tonight." He whispered softly.

"Promises, promises…" Maegyn murmured. "See you at secure, sailor. Got a quick meeting to attend…" she said as she got up. Animal thought what she did to that Navy uniform skirt of hers was absolutely criminal. He slowly watched the swaying of her behind as she walked towards the door. He groaned willing that reaction to lessen before he could stand up and return to his office.

JAG Headquarters, Falls Church, VA, 1300hrs

"Staff Call in the Admiral's office." Yeoman Tiner called out. "Admiral Morris would like to see his senior staff in his office." Harm and Mac looked at each other as they had just returned from their lunch and were just getting ready to dig into their files, but each shrugged their shoulders and headed for the office.

As they all stepped through Admiral Morris' door, the newly appointed pro tem Judge Advocate General looked up to gaze upon them with a saturnine expression. He kept them standing for a few minutes at a brace. "Lieutenant Commanders Rabb, Mattoni, Imes and Major Mackenzie. You are now aware that I have taken over command of the Judge Advocate General's office until such time as a new Judge Advocate is assigned to this office. The out-going Admiral has put my name forward as a potential candidate for this position but it will not be a permanent position until the Congressional committee meets and confirms the candidacy of this position, which means: it may or may not be me." He paused for a long moment. "I do intend to confine my duties on the bench to the cases that have been placed before me prior to the assumption of my duties and that are still on the court docket." He looked over at each and every one of the four senior lawyers in his office then said dourly. "You will still maintain a professional manner of conduct in my court and you, Mr. Rabb, will refrain from firing off any more automatic weapons in my courtroom, is that understood?"

"Yes, sir…" Harm replied, ensuring that he had nothing but a poker face expression that the admiral could read absolutely nothing into.

"Hmmmph." Admiral Morris growled. "I'll believe it when I see it, Commander!" He then fastened his gaze on the other three. "As for the rest of you…I urge you to use the same sort of restraint and avoid copying Lieutenant Commander Rabb's past transgressions." There was a chorus of eager yes sirs. "Dismissed!" Adm. Morris growled and each of the four senior lawyers about-faced and headed for the door exiting the lion's den as quickly as possible. Harm as he shut the door behind him grimaced as Mac tried to stop herself from giggling at the remembrance of Admiral Morris' look of distaste at having to look upon Harm's visage.

"What's so funny?" Harm asked, his tone rather annoyed as they transited the bull-pen.

"Oh, just your haste in trying to get on the admiral's good side." Mac snickered.

Harm looked offended. "Oh…and you weren't trying to get on his good side too?"

"No…I just do my work and keep my head down. Best way not to attract attention."

Animal's Office, NAVINSGEN's Office, The Pentagon, 1730hrs,

Animal wrapped up his files just as he heard Maegyn's voice in the waiting room again talking to his yeoman. Grabbing up his briefcase and his cover, he headed for the door. Lia and Tracy had left an half hour earlier at secure.

"Hey…" he said as he headed out the door of his office. "You're here."

"Just as I said I would be…" Maegyn grinned at him.

"Well, I'm calling it a night." Animal said to YN1 Carran. "You should too, Yeoman One."

"Aye, sir. Will do as soon as I finish this bit of correspondence that needs to get out to Air Wing One, sir." YN1 Morna Carran looked up and smiled. "You two have a good evening, sir, ma'am."

"Thank you, Yeoman One." Maegyn said and as they exited the door, she turned to him and said "She takes good care of you, doesn't she?"

"Yep. Keeps the office running efficiently or I'd be running around like a six legged octopus. A day late and two legs too short." Animal quipped. "Now let's get home…I want to spend some personal time with my favorite wingman."

"oooh…that sounds kinky…" Maegyn said as they walked side-by-side down the Pentagon hallways heading towards the exit.

"Hope you know where you're going…because I still get lost here. If we take a wrong turn we might not be found before the next millennia." Animal jokingly enlightened Maegyn.

"Well, that's males for you." Maegyn replied with a smirk. "All we females have to do is look for the exit sign. See…one right there."

Liandra's Apartment, 614-2475 Virginia Avenue, Georgetown, Washington DC. 1745hrs

Lia crawled into her apartment exhausted from the drive. A blinking light on her answering machine alerted her to the fact that there was a call from someone. Dropping her things by the door, her coat on the coat-rack, and staggering to the couch, she sat down weary with all the things that were gone over by Tracy Manetti for the job that she was supposed to do. Unfortunately it seemed like the harder she tried to concentrate on getting the job done; the less she retained as far as the information she had learned today. She sighed, as she hit the play button on the answering machine.

Hey, Lia, it's Harm. Just wondering how your day went at the Pentagon. Our place just got turned upside down. Looks like AJ Chegwidden got fired and now we got Rear Admiral Stiles Morris as JAG pro-tem until such time as either he or someone else gets confirmed for the position. It was a tough way for AJ to go, but maybe we can get together and grab a bite to eat. Or I can bring something over. You're probably too exhausted to cook properly anyways tonight. So let me do that for you."

She grinned and picked up the phone, cutting off the rest of the message. Dialing Harm's number she waited until he picked up.

"Hey…I just got home. So…Harm, how did you get home quicker than me?" Listening to his reply, she laughed. "OK…I'll take advantage and have you bring me some dinner. Am I going to hear about what's going on over at JAG?" She asked him. When she got a reply in the affirmative she said. "Good. I don't want to walk into a situation where I don't know what the hell is going on." She got an estimated time of when she was going to see him that evening and they said goodbye and hung up.

"So…" Lia said. "The review did its damage." She looked over coldly in the direction of the Pentagon. Well, her new commanding officer wasn't going to be the recipient of her friendliness anytime soon.

Animal's Apartment, 503-4141 Henderson Road, Arlington, VA 1830hrs

"Hey…this is a nice place." Maegyn said sweetly as Animal opened the door of his apartment for her and let her go in first.

"It's quiet enough…" Animal said as he closed and locked the door and as he turned around, he found Maegyn snaking her arms around his neck and bringing his face down to hers for a deep, passionate kiss.

"God, I missed you…" she murmured softly. "Forget supper, I want you." Tugging him towards the bedroom, she whispered. "This is one of the reasons I came up to find you…" Animal followed her into the bedroom, partly because he was being pulled along by Maegyn, and partly because he too wanted her. Her uniform jacket was draped on the couch out by the door, and she was in just shirt and uniform skirt, also having kicked her heels off in the living-room. Tugging her uniform shirt off after she sensuously unbuttoned each button from her shirt, she cast it aside. In the moonlight, visible from the sliding door to the porch, she slipped out of her skirt, leaving a nice translucent white camisole which outlined her figure.

Gasping softly as Animal fastened his lips to her neck and sucked gently. "Mmmmmm…" Maegyn moaned softly. "Oh…yes…I want you…" Her hands started reaching down to his uniform trousers and removed them, dropping them to the parquet floor; then she started undoing his uniform shirt, which he had on a set of line officer captain's soft-boards with the four stripes and that got thrown to the floor too, and Maegyn started running her hands along Animal's bare chest. "Your chest is so hard and well-muscled." She said softly as she looked over at him. She ran her fingers softly along the scar that he had received from that spat in North Korea. She slid down the length of his body and pulled his black socks off his feet, then slid up part way and hooked her thumbs in his underwear. Yanking them down, she pulled them off as he lifted one leg and then the other. Animal gasped softly as she stood up and reached down with her hands. Then pulling her hands away she took the bottom of her camisole and yanked it off, then pulling her pantyhose down, leaving her bare to his sight.

"God, you're beautiful…" Animal groaned as Maegyn grasped him again, ensuring his continued cooperation. Then she pushed him to the mattress, and straddled him, taking him deep within her.

Maegyn softly spoke looking at him. "Well, this is what I wanted; I want you…" Leaning over, she kissed him fervently. "I want you to make love to me…" And he did as she asked. Her blissful cries as they went over the edge together. This wasn't the only time that they made love that night.

Much later, Maegyn stood under the shower, luxuriating in the feel of Animal's body close beside her as they stood under the pulsing jets of the water, their lips fastened to each others in a kiss that seemed to last for as long as they could breathe. The rivulets of water ran down their bare bodies as they embraced.

"I missed you so much…" Maegyn whispered softly as her eyes locked on his. "No matter what the flying does for me, it doesn't match spending this time with you, feeling our bodies close together as we make love."

AN: Animal and Maegyn have had an intimate relationship for some time since they flew as wingmen with the Black Aces (that's a back-story which I may write one of these days).