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Date Posted: 22:04:40 06/16/08 Mon
Author: .
Subject: What Goes Around Comes Around

Prompt:

Lou: You've got spunk
Mary: Well, yes.
Lou: I hate spunk

Mary Tyler Moore Love episode Love is All Around Original air date 9/19/1970

Summary: What goes around comes around, In the future Harm and Mac's daughter meets up with someone from Harm's past.

Author's note: This is a fairly famous he said she said quote, I hope it did this justice.

________________________


Harm was currently relying on a lifetime of all his military discipline not to break out into laughter. There was only one other female who could elicit this type of reaction from him...his wife. However said wife was in the same boat, trying not to make what could be a volatile situation even worse.

Flashback

Zara had grown up having two retired admirals as defacto grandfathers, however at the moment this was turning out to be a bad thing as she was being royally chewed out. She'd joined the Navy Junior ROTC as soon as she able, and excelled, partly because she'd inherited bot of her parents leadership abilities. She had plans to join the military but to her father's disappointment, had decided on attending a private university on the west coast. Zara had been involved in student leadership throughout her school years, a natuaral well-rounded athelete choosing not to limit herself to just one particular sport, nonetheless she'd excelled at most sports, her height had made her a natural for basketball, the Rabb and O'Hara genes had given her a headstart there but she'd never cared for that sport, as a player. She'd been selected as salutatorian of her graduating class, beat out for first in her class by her best friend Michelle Roberts, Bud and Harriet's niece and adoptive daughter,who'd edged Zara out of the top spot because of one missed answer on one test in one class in ninth grade. Michelle, Mike Roberts daughter had been raised by her aunt and uncle after the death of her parents. Mike and his wife Lisa were killed by a drunk driver while bringing their newborn daughter home from the hospital. Lisa had been disowned by her parents just for joining the military and they'd foolishly extended that onto Michelle, wanting nothing to do with their grandchild who, despite the abandonment of her maternal kin was the sweetest natured child the Roberts or the Rabb families knew. The young couple had stated if anything should anything happen to them that Bud and Harriet were to raise their children. The grieving Roberts' changed her name from Aubrey Lisa to Michelle Lisa when they legally adopted her.

Michelle had been the beneficiary of a large sum of money in the settlement brought against the company who'd knowingly allowed the intoxicated driver to be behind the wheel that fateful day. Roland Sims, Harriet's father, had made sure the money was invested wisely, so Michelle would have no problem paying for any college she wanted to attend --or pay for graduate school if Michelle was so inclined. Michelle's grades and test scores guaranteed her almost any academic scholarship she wanted to go for so for the time being the money was still in trust for her.

Zara was born the same day, several time zones away, as her parents had been stationed in California and then London England, but the two knew each together from the time they were infants. By the time they were in first grade Zara's parents returned to DC from their overseas assignment. Bud had eventually left the Navy as Captain, His time on the bench had extended his military career years longer than several naysayers had imagined. It became quickly apparent he was an excellent jurist,. When word leaked that he was retiring Bud was asked to run for an open seat for his local judiciary district. Bud had just been nominated to be on the Supreme Court for the Commonwealth of Virginia. Harm and Mac couldn't have been more proud of Bud's achievement, the man had come a long way from the apparently bumbling ensign they'd first met back in the nineties.

When a court reporter asked Bud what his secret for keeping his courtroom running so smoothly he said “A combination of things, I saw how tightly run the courtroom was run while I was still attending law school and than as a JAG officer, and the courtroom rules hadn't changed. Maybe it's the fact I've raised five well-behaved children.”

Zara and Lisa spent the summer between their graduation from high school and their freshman year at their respective universities working as interns for JAG. It would be an eye opening experience for Zara Trish Rabb.

Harm was now the Liaison between the American military and the UN, which was an outgrowth of the work he'd done in Europe. He'd almost retired, but the American government insisted his position be held by someone currently serving in the military. However, as soon as Mac had her thirty years in, the date months away, they both would retire, the current President already had named Harm's successor, Captain Jason Tiner, the two men had just begun working on the transition for weeks already.

Michelle had been tasked with working with the military dependents as they came with their parents for various reasons, while Zara, a teen version of her mother in the looks department, had been relegated to working in the file department. She suspected it was due to her obvious relationship with her mother , now a Brigadier General and head of the judiciary at JAG headquarters. Whoever had decided on the interns job responsibilites did not want to show favoritism.

The current JAG had only been in office for a few months, and this was temporaryas she herself was due to retire in six monhts. Sturgis Turner, who'd been JAG for four years died suddenly after Zara and Michelle's graduation of a massive heart attack, his death stunned all who knew him. The current presidential administration was coming to a close, the new president would nominate their candidate for the position.

Both Harm and Mac had been astounded by the President's choice, this person obviously a political appointee, as the current administration wanting to look good to the female boomer generation, who despite their advancing years, still had a powerful voice in the current administration.

Admiral Allison Krennick was not the best person for the job, better suited to the courtroom than the administrative aspects of lawyering. However she'd always been politically savvy and managed to get the ear of the all the 'right' people in Washington. By all rights she should have retired years earlier, but she'd spent time in the reserves while a newly minted Captain, to raise a daughter. This way she would go out on top as the first female JAG of the Navy.

Allison was no longer as blatant as she was about the younger men she worked with, and at this point in her career, they all were younger than she was. When she'd arrived for Turner's funeral, weeks earlier, she'd ran into one of her former conquests, and was surprised to learn Harm still had an office at JAG and decided to ask him to join her for dinner that night.

Harm politely declined stating “We've already made plans to have Verese Turner and her children come to the house for dinner.” It was at this point Mac came into his office, her court adjurned for the day.

“Harm, we managed to wrap up earlier than I expected, so I'll head home. Admiral it's nice to see you again, too bad it's under sorrowful circumstances.” She acknowledged the 'barracuda's' presence, if both women had been in a civilian situation Mac would have ignored her as much as possible.

“I came to tell you that I'm going to announce to the rest of the staff, I have been appointed to serve out the year as JAG.” That news stunned the Rabb's, they had not expected a decision made so quickly.

“Congratulations, Admiral” the said, their reactions stiff, Krennick knew then they'd give her the respect her rank was due, but that would be all.

Allison had wondered why she was always so lonely, after all she kept in shape, for a woman of her years she was still head turning. At every station she'd been at in the past twenty plus years she'd been close to shunned by all the other women, and most of the men. She knew she was outspoken, but wasn't that a good trait for an attorney? Since her daughter left for a private boarding school in New England, a few years earlier, she'd reverted to how she'd been when she first meet a up and coming attorney named Harm Rabb.

Harm's small office soon felt even smaller, as Zara entered. She wouldn't have entered if the occupants had been talking, but the door was open and the room quiet. She noted a female admiral in the room with her parents, but went in anyway. “I had to come up her to deliver some files, I'll be home after I drop Michelle off. ”

“Admiral Krennick, I'd like for you to meet our daughter, Zara, she's an intern here for the summer.” Mac said, she knew the two would see each other during the internship, the teen had heard about the man-hungry Commander during her father's first years at Headquarters.

“It's nice to meet you, Zara. I take it you were named for your mother.” .

“Yes, ma'am.” Zara could sense the older woman did not like her at all. This could be a long summer as the Admiral was her new boss.

“I'll let you all get back to work.” Krennick said as she left the room. Zara left a few seconds later. She and Michelle had ridden in on the motorcycle she'd gotten for graduation.

As the summer progressed Krennick had intentionally made life miserable for Zara, changing her work hours at the last minute, giving her work assignments she wouldn't even consider for the other interns. However, Zara had heard what her parents went through the summer after they graduated from high school, and knew she had it easy compared to what they'd been through.

A few times this got to her and she called AJ Chegwidden who had been a grandfather to her. She'd quickly seen through his gruff exterior and knew he had a kind heart. Tom Boone, before his death, had also taken the girl under his wing. Unfortunately, Matt O'Hara, Mac's uncle, died of lung cancer less than a year after serving his sentence so she didn't get to know him in person. However, he was kept alive by the letters and videos he'd made for his niece's children.

With his position Harm occasionally met with Krennick in an official capacity and Mac met with her on a weekly basis, the meetings rarely coinciding. Because of various schedules the members of the Rabb family did not often see each other at work, and Zara kept her run ins with Krennick to herself.

For several days in August Krennick was meeting with the man who'd become her successor, Rear Admiral David Bell. Bell found Krennick to be abrasive in her personality and just by observing the staff and officers under her command knew he would have damage control to deal upon his confirmation to the position. He noted Krennick kept one particualar intern hopping with various requests, seveal which should have been under the heading of personal business, noting to himself the young woman took it all in stride. He figured she'd had some JROTC because she appeared to take it in stride. Asking Krennick's yeoman about the teen he found she was the daughter of two high ranking military officers. He was pleased to hear she'd been accepted at his alma mater, would be heading to southern California in a matter of days, taking a week to spend time in San Diego with her elderly grandmother before freshman orientation at USC.

As the week went on, Bell kept an eye and and ear out for Zara, listening to what others had to say about her as the teen intrigued him and he planned to arrange for her to meet with some of the faculty he'd kept in contact with. Finally Friday afternoon, Bell managed to meet both her parents as they'd been summonded to Krennick's office on official business. As that meeting drew to a close they stood to leave, when Zara was summoned into the office having found yet another obscure file for the admiral. As she had all summer, she'd kept her frustrations to herself, accepting the constructive criticism, and doing her best to ignore the vitriol she'd had to listen to during her internship.

“Ms. Rabb, I needed this file Wednesday morning, I don't understand why it took you so long to find it, I do hope that you will not be as lax in your studies this fall.”

“Admrial, if I may, this file was located in a warehouse in Philadelphia, and it took me most of Wednesday to make contact with someone at the warehouse. When we received the box the file was in I noticed it had mouse droppings,” Zara noted Krennick shuddered and inwardly smiled. “I took the liberty to clean up the file so that the smell of the droppings is not so prevelant.” Krennick paled for a second and her face hardened. She didn't look pleased with the reasons behind the delay and let Zara know, nevermind the reasons for needing the file where mundane and the information not needed for several weeks, and she started to chew out the intern, with her parents both present.

Admiral Bell knew he should intervene and did so, shutting Krennick up as she was crossing the line in her behavior. “If I may, Admiral, I would like to talk with Ms. Rabb.” Krennick nodded, hoping Bell would do her dirty work for her.

“May, I call you, Zara,” Zara nodded and he continued. “You've got spunk”

“Well, yes.” Zara didn't know how else to reply, as her family had told her quite often that was one of her stronger traits.
“I hate spunk, most of the time, but I've seen how you have handled yourself around here this week. Keep up the good work, and make your parents proud of you.”

Zara acknowledged Bell the best way she knew how. “I will do my best, Admiral Bell.”

Krennick told the teen she was dismissed and Zara left the room as quickly as she could. Her parents planned to discuss what had occurred later, at home.

Harm and Mac both had done their best to keep their composure, partly because of how their daughter had been treated, apparently all summer-long, but because of how Zara had handled it herself and the new JAG who'd put Krennick in her place. They knew Krennick's reign of terrorizing most of the younger staff and officers had come to an end, and that JAG would be in good hands when they retired shortly.

“Admiral Rabb, Brigadier General Rabb, our meeting has concluded, you are dismissed.” Krennick said her, her tone would have made a polar bear want to find a coat to wear. They left heading to Mac's office, the closer of the two, to talk in private.

End flashback.

“I'm proud of how our daughter handled ourself in there” Mac said sitting at her desk. “She'll make a good Marine one day.

“She will, that she will, after all the apple didn't fall far from the tree Ms. Sarah 'Spunky' MacKenzie.” Harm said, with Mac's office door shut and blinds down, gave his wife a quick kiss before heading to his own office to finish up his day. As she shut her computer down for the day, she thought to herself, “Harm, to go to Vietnam as a teen, I think you had spunk yourself.” As she locked her office door she knew they'd done well in the parenting business, considering they'd come to the game later than most of their friends and colleagues.

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Replies:

[> This was a different look at the Rabb family. I really enjoyed it. Did Admiral Bell say anything to Krennick after Harm and Mac left the room? -- Debbi, 22:36:06 06/16/08 Mon [1]


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[> [> Yes ---and it was not a pleasant conversation for Krennick. -- The Author, 23:30:26 06/16/08 Mon [1]


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[> This was great, and I could just imagine a child of theirs being like this. -- Katiegirl, 00:30:15 06/17/08 Tue [1]


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[> A refreshing take. Loved the David Bell name combo also the name Zara. Well done. -- Jubellant, 00:52:24 06/17/08 Tue [1]


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[> Clever name for their kid, and there was a lot of detail on the back story/setting in this. However... -- siri, 06:53:16 06/17/08 Tue [1]

I can't understand anyone not caring for basketball as a player ... I don't think that's possible ;)


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[> [> Reply to basketball -- Zara--aka the author, 13:55:00 06/17/08 Tue [1]

As a vertically challanged player, I love the game, but am lousy, so I thought it kinda funny to have Zara, who with her height, would not care for the sport. -- I knew someone who because of their height was 'pushed' to play b-ball, but didn't care for the game, so I had Zara not care for the game, but had her actually be very good at it when she played for the fun of it.


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[> What a nice future you've created for everyone! Nice use of the prompt lines! -- JAG Junkie (Ronda), 19:21:12 06/17/08 Tue [1]


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[> This was an interesting view of the Rabb family of the future. I enjoyed reading it. -- Achillea, 12:44:24 06/18/08 Wed [1]


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[> A nice job well done. -- Bev uk, 13:55:23 06/19/08 Thu [1]


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