Hickory Dickory Dock…The Cat Ran Up the Clock by Maddie & doc

AN: This is my answer to a Fanfic Challenge. The challenge was to use to following lines: You know, I'm starting to get the feeling this is more than just a bump in the road. You honestly resent me. … And you have no faith in me. … How did we get to this place? (From the episode, 'Silent Service')

This snippet occurs approximately four months after my last short story challenge, 'Nothing Stays the Same: A Dog's Perspective.' For those who haven't read the challenge and the preceding long story, Harm and Mac are married and in private practice together as child advocacy lawyers in San Diego. They have three children, Ben, Conner and Ellie…ages 6, 3 and 2 years.

When I first saw the selected challenge lines for this month, I knew I would have to write a story that involved Harm and Mac arguing, or at the very least, reminiscing about a disagreement. My week had already been rather hellish (leaking pipes, a bathroom under water, long hours, extremely critical patients, deaths), so I just couldn't make myself write a story about a serious 'Rabb Row' that didn't include some mild form of humor. Writing has become something of a therapy for me, and I needed something to make me smile. As it turned out, my writing partner in crime had the perfect solution…a story involving the family pets, a ridiculous spousal argument and a scheming resolution perpetrated by a cunning canine, a devious feline and a wily rodent.

'Starring' as allies in this particular misdemeanor are Molly, the faithful and intelligent family pooch; Suzy-Q, the former 'Spawn of Satan' now rehabilitated for the forces of good; and a new four-legged friend soon to be introduced. My co-author thought it would be fun to have the family pets outsmart the 2-legged alpha-leaders; particularly when said alpha-leaders are being obstinate, inarticulate and unheeding…as they have want to be on numerous occasions. Sometimes children or pets need to take matters into their own hands.

By the way, my co-author is my 4-legged furry child, Maddie. She is the mastermind behind this particular story. I've often thought that our pets are more sensible and intelligent when it comes to dealing with interpersonal issues…they just want to be loved, fed, acknowledged and occasionally walked. Life would be so much simpler if we humans took our cues from them. Once again, I'm merely the scribe who translated animal-speak to people-speak and typed the text into the computer. Maddie claimed her muse and inspiration took a heavy toll on her energy stores…after narrating her tale, she retired to a plush down-covered, four-poster bed to take a nap while I completed the word processing task. We hope you enjoy the scheming shenanigans of a newly formed matchmaking trio. And if life slows down, I might actually put my other more dramatic anecdote to paper…who knows, more unlikely things have happened!

Special thanks to Mom, my faithful finder and keeper of all things related to spelling and grammar.

Disclaimer: I don't own JAG or any of the characters. I just take them out and play with them on occasion before replacing them safe and sound back on the shelf.

Part 1/3

19:15

Friday

15 February 2013

The Rabb House

Mac sliced the remaining shitakes and dropped them into the sauté pan with the other wild mushrooms, stirring through the earthy blend with shallots, garlic and thyme. Adding a quarter cup of white wine, she inhaled the fragrant bouquet of the mushroom stuffing. Reaching for the first of the boneless chicken breasts, she beat it until paper-thin, taking advantage of the physical activity to dispel some of her pent up frustrations…and fear.

The sun had just dipped below the horizon, giving the room a rosy glow. The fire in the family room popped and crackled in time with the lilting melody of the flute and harp composition that serenaded her culinary preparations. She'd hoped that the promise of a tantalizing romantic dinner, the warmth of the fire and the peacefulness of the music would quiet her tortured soul. She and Harm had been quarreling for the last four days. She wasn't sure they even knew what the inciting event had been for the current clash of wills. She only knew that they'd never remained angry and at odds for such a long period of time.

Well, that wasn't quite true, in their 'old days' they could banter and squabble unendingly, but somehow back then their flesh had remained intact. It was more of a tortured dance or choreographed foreplay that stood in the place of the words and emotions that neither one of them could quite seem to express. Even then, she'd never worried that they would truly separate or declare an end to the rhythm that was uniquely theirs…that was until Paraguay. She rubbed her hands up and down her arms to still the shiver of cold that tugged at her soul. The events and aftermath of Paraguay had rocked her faith in the perpetuity of their relationship to its very core. Of course, Paraguay paled in comparison to the despair she experienced in the year and a half of their exile to opposite ends of the world. But since that miraculous Christmas Eve some six years ago, they'd waltzed in near perfect harmony rarely missing a beat. That's not to say they didn't argue, but their spats were restrained and short-lived…more of a prelude to quiet moments and exchanges of love. They rarely ever went to bed angry; squabbles were settled or set aside in the quiet of the night. She'd learned her lesson from those rare glimpses of near total loss and desolation to never take for granted those she loved.

She glanced at the grandfather clock in the foyer for the ten or fifteenth…or twentieth time. They had made a special date for Valentine's Day, promised and arranged a month prior. Since the romantic holiday had fallen on a Thursday this year, they'd both decided to celebrate that 'special day of lovers' on Friday the 15th. The children had been collected from school and daycare and whisked off for a special movie night with Gummy and Papa. She and Harm were to celebrate the occasion without the interruptions of food fights, whining, unending requests for 'one more' glass of water, and the inevitable trips to the bathroom in the middle of the night.

Tonight was supposed to be just about them. She knew they had a rough road to mend, but she had faith that their shared joy of cooking would once again work its magic and carry them to that exotic place that always healed their souls and communed their hearts. She'd planned the menu with great care, taking the day off to shop, clean and prepare. Traversing the tiled floor, she opened the refrigerator door to retrieve the bottle of chilled sparkling cider. She studied with pride the chocolate decadence of her already completed dessert. She'd spent the afternoon baking the flourless chocolate torte covered in a thick layering of ganache. Her hips seemed to expand at the very thought of the ounces and ounces of rich imported chocolate. She fooled herself into believing that the indulgent confection wasn't really that bad; after all, it was to be served with fruit…never mind that those luscious red raspberries had been reduced to a deep burgundy colored sauce compliments of a heavy sugary syrup.

With a heavy sigh, she slammed the fridge door shut. Where was he? He knew they had a special night planned. He should have arrived home an hour ago. Calls to his cell phone had gone unanswered; she didn't know if that meant he was busy with clients, or was avoiding her, or…she didn't want to dwell on any of those other 'or's.' He'll be here any moment and probably with a bouquet of exotic flowers, she chided herself. Placing the bottle of cider into the sterling ice bucket, she adjusted the china and crystal on her ornately set table. The candles stood tall and proud, clustered around an arrangement of delicate blooms. Everything was perfect and ready, everything but…him.

She heard the grinding of the garage door opener followed by the squeal of tires as his car rounded the corner. The sudden sound of a slamming car door filled the quiet of the night and she grimaced when she recalled the placement of her car. She had planned to maneuver the SUV into its appropriate stall once she'd unloaded the groceries, but in the excitement to start her food preparation for their special night, she'd forgotten to reposition the vehicle. She listened to the noise of revving engines, squawking brakes and muted curses, and knew that their evening had taken a definite turn for the worse.

He stomped into the kitchen and tossed his briefcase across the floor. Leafing through the mail, he never turned to acknowledge her presence and she felt her heart skip a beat as it sank a little further into the dark recesses of her soul. Tossing the envelopes aside, he threw over his shoulder, "Where are the kids?"

Her eyes dropped to the floor as she studied her feet. She tried to mask the tears in her voice, "They're at your mother's."

"Why?"

She chewed at her bottom lip. He'd forgotten all about their special night. Turning off the burner beneath her mushroom stuffing, she pushed the chicken breasts aside. "Movie night…Trish thought it would be fun."

"Huuh," he grunted his gruff response. "When's dinner?"

She glanced across the counter at the carefully selected ingredients intended for their shared evening of culinary bliss and shrugged to the profile of his back, "Don't know…I'm not really hungry." A tear escaped her lash and slid down her cheek despite her best efforts to keep them at bay.

He grumbled under his breath, "You had the day off and you couldn't even plan dinner?" He cleared his throat and voiced a little louder, "I've been dealing with clients and Child Protective Services all day, surely you don't expect me to cook?"

"Why would I expect that?" she snapped then cringed at the tone of her voice. She hadn't wanted to incite a further battle.

He exhaled heavily through flared nostrils, "I'm going to take a shower." Pausing in place for a moment, he grabbed at his tie with agitated fingers, "Scratch that…I think I'll go for a run first. I need some time alone to clear my head."

Before he could take two steps into the front hall, he heard her anguished voice whisper to no one but the empty room, "How did we get to this place?"

He paused mid stride and spoke with solemn resolve, "I think…I think, you honestly resent me."

The room became quiet and cold as his dominating presence retreated toward the master suite. Molly slowly stood from her place of repose by the front door and crept toward the kitchen. All day long, she'd watched her Ma'am nervously flutter about the room preparing wonderfully smelling treats. She had taken the dinner preparations as a hopeful sign of a declared truce. Her people had been speaking with cold loud voices for the last few days…well that was if they spoke at all. She'd heard them angry before, but she'd never felt the cold last this long. She could sense the discomfort in the quiet of Her Boys and the whining cries of her Little Miss. Her family was in pain like she'd never experienced before. Staring at Ma'am from the kitchen door, she watched as her Mistress swiped a hand across her eyes brushing away tears of pain. Ma'am covered the meat and returned it to the fridge. The lettuce and greens were left to wilt in a bowl on the back counter, forgotten in the gloom of the night. Molly swung her eyes back to the heaping plate of meat wrapped spears. She knew the vegetable was one of Sir's favorites. Ma'am had gushed about her 'new twist' on an old dog and ruffled the fur behind Molly's ears; as she laughed at her own silly joke…was that only a few short hours before? Many suns and moons had come and gone in the chill of this house.

She sighed and dropped her head as Suzy-Q approached and wound her body around the old dog's legs. The kitten shivered and leaned in for comfort from her canine friend. "Molly, I'm so cold…how come the house doesn't feel warm? Where are the boys and the girl? How come no one laughs or hugs?"

Molly leaned down to give the kitten a nuzzle and a lick. "It's because of the fighting. I think Ma'am and Sir have forgotten what is best for the pack. I haven't seen Ma'am this sad since…" Molly stopped mid thought and stared off into the distance.

Suzy batted a paw against her snoot, "Since when, Molly?"

The old dog closed her eyes at the memory, "Since before Sir came to join the pack. Before that night of Santa Dog Treats and dancing under the moon, Ma'am was sad and lonely all the time. You should have seen her, she…on second thought, I'm glad you never did…she had no spark, no life." Molly glanced back to the kitchen in time to see Ma'am sink to the floor. Arms wrapped around knees and head bowed; Molly watched Ma'am's body shake with silent sobs. Nuzzling the kitten once more, she whispered, "Stay here…I'll be right back."

Suzy started to follow close behind, "But I'm scared."

Molly fixed her with a silent stare of command, "I said to stay…you don't want to see…. I'll be right back, don't move."

Molly approached Ma'am and wiggled her head between her knees. Once she felt the warmth of Ma'am's breath and the dampness of her tears, she licked and whined in an attempt to comfort her Mistress.

Ma'am patted the dog's head and then turned away in pain, "Not now Molly. Please, just leave me be."

Molly slunk back to the front hall and dropped to the floor. Suzy-Q cuddled in close, "What do we do now, Molly? We can't give up…our people need us."

Molly snorted sarcastically in response, "You're right, sometimes the alpha-leaders get so caught up in the struggle to be first that they ignore the good of the pack."

"I don't understand?"

"Ssshh," Molly whispered, "…I'm trying to think of a plan."

Suzy bounded up from the floor, "I can help!"

Molly sighed, "Suzy, you're too little. You haven't lived long enough to understand."

The kitten dropped back to the floor with a pout, "And you have no faith in me…I'm just trying to save my family."

Molly gathered the small feline close, "You're right, little one. It's about time you learned the secret ways of the family pets. People think we don't understand what's going on, but any self-respecting family companion knows how to work our charm."

Suzy's eyes grew wide, "What do you mean by charm? Is that like a magical power?"

Molly nodded her assent, "Very special powers. Sometimes it's just a look or a whine. Sometimes we have to play to our human's misguided notion that animals are just simple pets. They don't understand the full extent of our knowledge or our drive to keep them safe and content."

Suzy's little mouth formed a perfect 'O.' "Whoa…how did you learn all this?"

Molly beamed with pride, "The wisdom comes from years of observation and standing along side of those we love." The old dog rose to her full height and ambled down the hall with head held high. "Come Suzy, we have work to do."

The kitten danced on her hind legs, batting at the air, she crowed, "I get to help…I get to rescue the day!"

Molly cleared her throat, "Do you want me to change my mind?"

Suzy dropped back to all fours and looked appropriately contrite, "No Ma'am, I'm falling in right behind." Two steps down the hall, she paused to ask, "Where are we going anyways?"

"To the Boy's room to enlist Toby in our scheme."

Suzy stopped once again, indignant at the dog's response. "Why do we need that rat?"

Molly stopped and turned around with a sigh, "He's not a rat…he's a hamster." She saw Suzy lick her chops, "Don't even think about it. If you so much as take a single lick of that rodent, I will knock you into next week. Now come along, you and Toby have a little play acting to do."

To be Continued…tomorrow…