Title: Altered Realities Author: Sass C. E-mail: mrs_hchikamori@yahoo.com Rating: PG Classification: Animal/Lia R Spoilers: It may seem very much like the movie, "Flight of the Navigator". I had a weird dream that reminded me of the movie that I decided to turn into a story. Summary: Lia & Mac's lives somehow become exchanged…each one living the other's life. ********************************************************************** * (1/???) NAS OCEANA JUNE 12, 2012 1400 EST/1900 ZULU Commander Liandra O'Hara Chikamori was flying again, and she loved it. It was just for a special Naval air demonstration, but she was having fun all the same. She laughed aloud joyously as she shoved the stick and her jet dove, zigzagged, and flitted all over the blue afternoon sky. Today was her husband's birthday, and she hoped he liked what he was seeing over in the control tower. She wanted to do her best today and make him proud. The rush she was feeling was unlike anything she'd ever felt in her whole life. It was right up there with what she felt when she'd married Animal, when their children, the five-year-old twins Harmony and Sarah, three-year-old Connor, and the baby, eight-month old Krystle Rose had been born. It was not as important as those things, but it was close. Suddenly, the F-14 stalled and almost of its own accord threw itself into a dive. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw her friend Kimber's Tomcat. Oh, no, she thought, it's just like what happened to Uncle Maverick. Thankfully, she knew what could be done to save her life and that of her friend and RIO, Lt. Midori O'Malley. "Dori," she yelled over the rumble of the jet engines, "we've got to pull the ejection cords and get out of here. The plane's going into a flat spin, and I can't pull her out!" "Okay, I'll get it," Midori yelled back, then her hands closed around the handle and she gave it a hard yank. There was an explosion and the canopy flew away from the cockpit of the aircraft. Liandra and Midori were catapulted from the falling jet, and once their parachutes opened, were able to watch in horrified fascination as the Tomcat tumbled to the ground below them. They floated to the ground seemingly effortlessly until they hit 300 feet. Liandra felt dizzy and lightheaded. She knew she was losing consciousness, but could not understand why, unless possibly she had inhaled some sort of fumes from the doomed F-14. Slowly, the world faded from view, the last thing she was aware of were her husband's arms locking around her and his voice shouting despondently. "Liandra!" ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ NAS OCEANA AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL TOWER 1415 EST/1915 ZULU Captain Hugo "Animal" Chikamori watched, delighted, as his wife's Tomcat dove through the azure afternoon sky. On the radar, Lia's Tomcat was just a bouncing green blip on the screen. But if he looked out the main viewing window of the tower, he could see the F-14 performing complicated flight maneuvers that he knew not many people could accomplish. He smiled as he heard her breezy laugh over the radio. Animal felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned. It was his former CAG, Commodore Thomas Boone. "She's doing great out there, Captain," the CAG said, and Animal could not help the tremendous grin that split his face in two. "Yeah, she's one of a kind, sir," Animal agreed. As they watched, LCDR Kimber Benton's Tomcat zipped perilously close in front of Lia's Tomcat. "Animal…" Liandra's uncle, Commander Peter "Maverick" Mitchell growled, his mind filling with unpleasant memories. "I see it, I see it, Mav, but what…" Animal did not get to finish the sentence as his wife's Tomcat fell into a flat spin. Animal knew his wife was an exceptional pilot, but he knew she was incapable of bringing the jet out of that spin. He and CAG Boone, along with the rest of the Black Aces squadron, watched helplessly as the Tomcat began to spin out of control, heading for the ground at an excessively high rate of speed. The radio crackled to life with Liandra's voice. "Dori," they heard her yell at her RIO, "we've got to pull the ejection cords and get out of here. The plane's going into a flat spin, and I can't pull her out!" Maverick and Iceman looked at one another and Ice sighed. "The kid knows what she's doing, Mav, she'll be okay." Animal barely managed a smile, although Ice couldn't see it. "My wife hears you call her a kid, Kaczanski, she'll knock you flat." They continued to watch out the window and listen to the radio. Midori yelled back at Lia, "I've got it," meaning the ejection loops. Then, to their collective relief, the canopy blew off the Tomcat, and the two women were ejected safely from the aircraft. Animal turned around and gave Maverick a quick hug. "For once in his life, Iceman was right, Pete," Animal joked softly. Maverick smiled. "Don't tell him that, or we'll never hear the end of it." Animal led the way out of the tower and down to the far end of the tarmac, where Liandra and Midori's parachutes were carrying them. Once outside, Animal looked up at his wife hanging limply from her parachute. His face creased into a frown. Something was wrong. "She's losing consciousness!" he yelled at his squadron. All of them began to run down the tarmac, scaring the daylights out of the various flight crewers they passed in their frenzy. The men skidded to a halt as the two parachutes came floating to the ground. Iceman, Merlin, Sundowner and Chipper raced to help Midori out of her chute as she peppered them with frantic questions. "What's wrong with Lia? Is she all right?" "We don't know, Dor, we don't know," was Chipper's solemn reply. Animal ran straight for his wife's chute, his arms locking around her small frame as soon as she was within reach. "Liandra!" he shouted, snatching her helmet off of her head once she was in his arms. Maverick pulled a knife out of his flightsuit and began to cut his niece's parachute away from her body. Metalman, Scooter and Skateratz frantically pulled the voluminous silk away from their friend's wife, Metalman snarling and cursing when the wind blew the chute into his face, using his bare hands to rip through the brightly colored material. Animal lifted his wife's small body into his arms and began to carry her towards the admin building, towards his office. "It's okay, baby, I'll take care of you," he told her unconscious form, brushing her hair from her face. "I'll take care of you." ********************************************************************** * (Part 2/?) BETHESDA NAVAL HOSPITAL BETHESDA, MARYLAND 1900 EST/2400 ZULU Liandra awoke slowly, feeling slightly groggy, her mouth dry. She felt a hand squeeze hers, and heard a familiar voice beg her to wake up and go home. She squeezed back and opened her eyes. Her vision was blurred. Lia blinked to clear her sight, and saw a dark head bent over the side of her hospital bed. Smiling tiredly, she reached out a hand and touched the black hair. The man's head came flying up, his face instantly changing from sad to overwhelmingly happy in a single second. His blue eyes were wet with almost-shed tears. He wiped at them with his left hand, a golden band gleaming from his ring finger. "Liandra," he whispered, smiling. Lia's mind was reeling. What was Harm doing at her bedside, and in tears yet? She smiled back at him through her confusion. "Harm," she said softly, "what's wrong?" Harm chuckled, squeezing her hand. "Silly jarhead," he said affectionately. "You crash your plane, go into a coma, come out of it five days later, and ask what's wrong?" He leaned down and kissed her mouth softly. "Get some rest, Ninja Girl, and I'll see you later." WHAT??? "Harm," she called to him. "What is it, sweetheart?" he asked, his hand on the door. "What did you just call me?" "Sweetheart? I call you that all the time," Harm replied. "No, the other name," Lia said, her face wrinkling with her confusion. "Ninja Girl?" he asked, his own brow wrinkling. "Oh, I don't even remember when I started calling you that. I think I probably started it that day in the rose garden. Look, I gotta get out here and tell your Uncle Matt that you're okay, or he'll bust my six to kingdom come. The rest of the family will want to know too, so I better get moving." Harm walked back over and ran his hand slowly down her cheek. "Just curl up and go back to sleep, Colonel Rabb, and I'll come back and see you later," he said softly, then left the room. Liandra's mind spun as she stared up at the ceiling after Harm had left. She knew, she remembered what happened that morning and why she was there. She'd been participating in an air show when Kimber's F-14 had crossed right in front of hers, and she and Midori got caught in Kimber's jetwash. Just like what happened to Uncle Maverick and Goose. She and Midori had managed to eject from the aircraft and parachute to safety, but everything after that was a blur, and she got a headache thinking about it. Harm had called her "jarhead" and "Ninja Girl". Those were his nicknames for Mac. He'd also called her sweetheart, and had a wedding ring on his hand. He had referred to her as "Colonel Rabb." Lia snorted. "Great, I'm a Marine, and married to Harm." Suddenly something hit her like a load of bricks, but she didn't have time to wonder if her life and Mac's had somehow become interchanged. Her door opened again and her uncle, Colonel Matt O'Hara, came in, followed by a slim blonde in a white labcoat. "Wait just a moment, Colonel, while I examine your niece," the doctor said as she approached Lia's bed. The doctor held out her hand, and Lia tried not to gasp in utter shock. "I'm CMDR Jordan Parker, and I'll be taking care of you while you're here, Colonel Rabb. You accidentally inhaled some toxic fumes after you ejected from the Tomcat. Have you felt dizzy?" Jordan asked her, using an opthalmascope to examine Lia's eyes. "Not since ejecting from the plane," Lia said weakly. "What about headaches?" Jordan asked, placing the tip of an otoscope in one of Lia's ears. "After I woke up, I was trying to remember everything that happened, and some of it's a blank," she said, seeing Harm come in and stand at the foot of her bed. "My head started hurting, so I quit thinking about it." "Short-term memory loss is common after emerging from a coma," Jordan said as she finished probing Liandra's ears. "You'll let me know if you experience any other problems?" Jordan asked, looking from Liandra to Harm. Lia nodded, and Jordan left, explaining that she had other patients to visit. Matt O'Hara walked over and set his hand on Lia's arm. "Liandra, how are you feeling?" "Like I've been run over by a B-52, Uncle Matt," she joked. "Well, you get some sleep, Colonel, and I'll see you later," Matt said, leaning over and kissing her cheek. "Aye aye, sir," she said facetiously as her uncle left. Lia decided it was time to get some answers. "Harm," she asked, as he curled up beside her and gently pulled her into his arms, "where's Mac?" "Oh, she was at JAG during the air show," Harm explained. "Animal left to go pick her up. He said he'd meet me here once he picked up his wife and informed the Admiral of what happened." Lia's head started to throb again. Mine and Mac's lives have interchanged. Mac is married to my husband, and I'm married to the man she should be with. Oh, well, at least Meg's not Animal's wife. Liandra consoled herself with the thought that her greatest enemy hadn't taken over her existence. What has happened to my life? she thought despairingly as Harm pulled her head onto his shoulder and she fell into an exhausted sleep. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ THREE DAYS LATER BETHESDA NAVAL HOSPITAL BETHESDA MARYLAND 1030 EST/1530 ZULU Liandra was sitting in a chair, in front of the window in her room, mulling through everything Harm had told her over the past few days. Apparently after Jordan's comments the day she'd awakened, Harm believed her to have nearly total memory loss, so she decided to indulge him. He told her that they'd married in a beautiful ceremony at Annapolis one week after her high school graduation. Shortly after that, she had joined the Marines and attended law school. Now she was one of the best lawyers at JAG. "The second best lawyer," Harm said teasingly. They'd now been married for eighteen years. They had seven children. Their oldest, Harmon Galen Rabb III, was a sixteen-year-old high school junior and the spitting image of his handsome father, at least that's what Lia thought after seeing the pictures Harm had brought for her to look through. And just like his father before him, wants to join the Navy and fly F-14s. Then came fourteen-year-old Cory Anne Rabb, somewhat of a tomboy. Harm chuckled. "Wants to be a Marine like her Mom and Auntie Liza." Lia breathed a sigh of relief. At least Liza was still Harm's sister. Their third child was Cory's twin sister, Daria Janae. " Dars is sort of leaning towards JAG as a career," Harm explained. "You took her with you to that "Take Your Daughter To Work" thing at the office last year. She got to watch you and Mac in action and says she loved it." Following Cory and Daria was their twelve-year-old son, Christopher Dylan. "Chris wants to be a doctor," Harm said. "Figures we'd end up with a maverick in the family," he grinned, and Lia scowled playfully at him. She knew he was playing on the fact that Lia's uncle Pete's callsign was Maverick. "Watch it, buster," she growled. Next in line on the Rabb family tree was seven-year-old Michaela Rhiannon. "Your cousin Stephanie and her husband helped you pick out that name," Harm said with a smile. "Her husband?" Lia asked, because to her knowledge, her newfound cousin Stevie Nicks had never married. "Lindsey Buckingham, you goose. I remember when you found out they were getting married. She'd called you at the office and you let out a shriek that froze the whole office." "Oh, okay," Lia said, continuing to play the coma victim, ignoring the pain in her heart. She remembered when she found out she was Stevie's cousin. It was just a couple of weeks after that when she'd testified against Palmer and Animal had taken her to her mother's house in New Orleans for protection. After that whole mess with Palmer, Lia had taken Animal to a concert of Stevie's in Washington, DC. Oh, Animal, have I lost you forever? she wondered as Harm continued telling her of their life together. "Our next to youngest is Little Miss Delaney Elizabeth Rabb, age five. She is so proud of her Mom," Harm grinned. "She tells all of her friends at school that her Mom is going to be the next JAG," he laughed. "That is, until the kids get home from school and start arguing about it. The boys think I will, and the girls think you will." "And now, for our youngest and most special Rabb." Harm got up and opened the door. "Dad, bring Kennie in here, will you?" Oh, no, not Frank. Anything but Frank. Harm and his stepfather hadn't gotten along very well, and Lia didn't really care for the man either. Lia watched as a tall man, the same height as Harm, walked in, wearing the dress uniform of a full four-star Admiral, and carrying a small baby in a pink dress. The Admiral walked over and placed the baby girl in her arms. "This is your six-month old daughter, Kendra Liane Rabb, Lia," he said to her. His voice sounded like an older version of Harm's voice. It couldn't be. It just couldn't. She couldn't bear to look at the man, and settled for staring into the crystal blue eyes of the precious child she held. After a moment, she looked up at the Admiral. Her breath momentarily stopped. Harmon Galen Rabb, Senior, grinned down at her, his medals and aviator's wings gleaming from their places on his pristine white uniform. Oh, dear God, help me, she thought. Am I going insane? ********************************************************************** * (Part 3/?) RABB RESIDENCE FALLS CHURCH, VA JUNE 16, 2012 1015 EST/1515 ZULU Liandra had to shield her eyes from the bright sunlight as Harm helped her out of the Navy's regulation blue sedan parked in their driveway.