Title:  Stateroom	
Author:  Dancer
E-Mail:  dancersgrace@mail.com
Rating:  PG
Classification:  Best Shipper Story
  		     Best Mac Characterization
Spoilers:  Adrift I, Adrift II, Measure of 
           Men
Summary:  Harm goes to the Guadalcanal to 
          get some answers from Mac.



*****




 "Stateroom" was a funny word for it.  The 
cubicle was small, and a bit cramped with 
the two bunks in it, but at least it was more 
private than the general crew quarters the 
enlisted men had to share.  

As an investigating officer, the Colonel 
pretty much had the run of the ship. But 
somehow, this time, she had found herself 
spending more and more time topside where 
she could give her thoughts to the open sea 
and sky instead of the chaos of conflicting 
feelings that drove her to take this 
assignment in the first place.

Mac was sitting at one of the "desks" 
working on a laptop computer when Harm 
found them.  Gunny was standing nearby as 
if he were reading over her shoulder.

Since they'd left the door to the passageway 
open, neither of them noticed when Harm 
walked into the stateroom until he spoke to 
them.  "Well, I guess they're letting anybody 
on Navy ships these days," he said easily, " 
- even Marines."

The Gunnery Sergeant in the green utilities 
snapped to when he recognized another 
officer's presence, but settled for "parade 
rest" when Harm smiled back warmly.  
"How are you, Gunny?"

"I'm fine, sir," Galindez replied happily, "It's 
good to see you back."

"Good to be back, Gunny."

The Colonel had turned in her chair at the 
sound of his voice, but once Galindez 
moved to greet him, Mac had stood up to 
watch his approach. "The Admiral said he 
had a message for me," she suggested 
warily. "But, he didn't say you'd be 
delivering it personally." 

"Slight change of plans, Colonel." There 
was a tension to his voice when he said that. 
"Some things need to be kept confidential."

The way Harm's eyes smoldered when he 
looked at her, and the almost shy way Mac 
responded gave Victor the feeling he was 
interrupting some other conversation that he 
knew nothing about.  But he could guess.  It 
was written all over their faces.  "Well, if 
you two need to discuss the case..."

They spoke up simultaneously.  Mac's 
answer of, "No, that's all right," was 
overruled by Harm's slightly more pointed, 
"Thank you, Gunny," as the two exchanged 
anxious glances across the stateroom.

Seeing Col. MacKenzie's obvious 
discomfort, the Gunnery Sergeant hesitated, 
but with a certain informed reluctance, he 
agreed to leave.  "I'll be in the Chiefs' Mess, 
ma'am," he said to the Colonel.  She nodded 
her acknowledgement.

As Gunny passed by, Harm followed.  When 
he'd gone into the passageway, Harm 
reached over to close the hatch.

"Please don't," Mac called out.  When 
Harm's eyes questioned her, she shrugged. 
"The two of us alone in here, people are 
going to talk."  

"All right," he agreed cautiously, "but that 
won't stop me."

"Harm, I'm here on an investigation.  Can't 
this wait?"  She put up a good front, but she 
had to bite her lower lip to keep it from 
trembling.

"No. No, it can't." He stepped toward her 
with a solemn look in his eye.  "I know 
things were still pretty hectic when you left 
but..."

She looked away nervously. "That's one way 
to put it."

Harm took a deep breath, and looked right 
into her eyes. "I talked to Chloe." When she 
heard those words, Mac's eyes shot open 
wide and the color drained from her face.  
Harm stepped forward almost pleading with 
her. "Mac, whatever you heard, whatever 
you thought you heard that night, it's just not 
true."

"Renee certainly seemed to think..."

"Renee's gone, Mac. She's gone back to 
California."

"You broke up?"

Harm dropped his gaze to the floor. "Well, 
let's just say I finally answered some of her 
questions."

"Questions?" Mac barely whispered to him. 
"What questions?"  

He looked up, but was almost afraid to 
answer her.  "She asked about you - us -- 
what you mean to me." He shook his head 
slowly.  "After that, there wasn't much 
reason for her to stay."

Mac turned away from him suddenly, 
embarrassed to hear any more.  She tried to 
break the mood with humor.  "You mean, 
you came halfway around the world just to 
tell me you broke up with your girlfriend?"

"Among other things." Harm reached out to 
touch her arm hoping she'd spin around and 
let him look at her.  She barely turned her 
head.  "We need to talk, Sarah."

When he eased himself down to sit on the 
edge of the lower bunk, she stepped away 
from him.  He was too serious, too 
determined to say something she wasn't sure 
she was ready to hear.  "Harm, I've been 
doing a lot of thinking out here the last few 
days," she told him firmly. Then, she began 
to pace the room.  "I think maybe you were 
right about this...this thing we have getting 
in the way.  We just can't let it..."

"Go," he cut in. "We can't."  She stared back 
at him with astonished eyes.  Was this really 
Harm saying these things to her?  "It's not 
going to go away, Mac, not after all this."

"Maybe not," she whispered softly. "But I 
think we need to give it some time."

"Maybe."

They were just a few feet apart in that tiny 
cabin space, but Harm could feel her trying 
to push him further back.

"So many things have happened in such a 
short time --," Mac was saying as she 
struggled to find her words. "Harm, I don't 
think either one of us knows what we're 
doing right now.  Not about this."  She was 
trying to enforce some of that famous 
mental discipline on herself - to stay 
objective.  But when it came to Harm, 
objective is one thing she wasn't, and she 
knew it.  In a kind of desperation, she 
exclaimed, "I almost married him," as if 
invoking the specter of her former fiancé 
would close the discussion between them. "I 
would have married him," she repeated in 
wonderment. "That day - that night - right 
up until the Admiral told us..."  Her voice 
trailed off as she fought to control the 
emotions her memories brought forth in her.

As he stepped forward, the crook of her arm 
lay cradled in the palm of his hand as he 
gently sought to comfort her. "I know," he 
murmured softly, "and I would have been 
right there to see it because I thought that's 
what you wanted."

She turned her now misty, brown eyes up to 
meet the blue-green fire of his, searching for 
understanding.  After a long, deep exchange 
of glances, Mac's face suddenly erupted in a 
nervous, embarrassed smile.  "We really are 
quite a pair, aren't we?"

Lifting his hand to stroke the side of her 
face, he whispered, "One I wouldn't trade for 
the world." She looked at him one more 
time, and in an instant, they were in each 
other's arms holding one another like the 
long-lost friends they were, but with the 
added touch or sweet caress that showed 
what they might become.

"I missed you," she sighed into his collar.

"I missed you, too, Sarah," he gently told 
her.  After a moment to let those words sink 
in, he impishly added, "You know how 
much I hate to break in new partners."

A burst of her laughter exploded next to his 
ear even as she clutched him tighter to her 
for an instant.  "Don't you dare," she chided 
him. "You owe me, Mister." 

The night she almost lost him, Mac cried out 
of fear and the sudden loneliness of knowing 
that the only arms she wanted were Harm's.  
Now that his arms held her tightly, she cried 
with relief and the hope that they might 
finally be on the right track, but she still 
worried.  "We can't just jump into this thing, 
Harm," she warned him. "Not yet."

"I know." He whispered it softly against the 
side of her face. "We'll just take it slow for 
now."

She pulled away just far enough to see him 
clearly and look straight into his eyes.  "I 
want to do this right."

His easy smile beamed down on her. And 
with a fluttering hand gesture in front of his 
face, he chuckled, "Whatever 'this' is." 

She slid back into his embrace, holding him 
tighter than she had before, and savoring the 
warmth of his arms around her.

"Begging your pardon, ma'am!" a new voice 
spoke out a bit too loudly in the room.

They parted just enough to show daylight 
between them, but still held their arms 
loosely around each other.  "It's all right, 
Petty Officer.  I was just..." Mac looked 
back to see Harm give a wicked arch to one 
eyebrow,  "...greeting Commander Rabb."

The tall, young man had come to full 
attention. "Captain wants to see you in the 
Pilots' Ready Room ASAP, ma'am," the 
P.O., Second Class barked out. "Said to tell 
you he had some new information for you."

"Thank you, Petty Officer," Mac replied 
crisply, "I'll be right there."

"Aye, ma'am!" the young man answered.

As the Petty Officer slipped back out into 
the passageway, Mac turned her attention 
back to the Commander standing along side 
her.  "Pilots' Ready Room," she teased.  
"Want to come along?"

"No thanks.  I'm fine."

"Are you sure?" She was surprised by the 
ease of his answer. "I mean, he's going to 
want a report."  

 "That's okay," he shrugged pointing to the 
laptop. "Give me a chance to catch up on 
your notes." 

"It might take a while."

"Don't worry, Mac." He flashed her his most 
winning smile and assured her, "I'll be here -
- for as long as it takes."




The End