Responsibility by Bernice Low

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Responsibility 3/4
by Bernice Low

Morgan scribbled the last figure on his computer pad and gave a sigh of relief. He'd finally finished doing those bloody ration counts. He looked over at True and Uly who were obediently sitting on a cargo crate, seemingly occupied with themselves.

"Morgan?" he heard his wife calling. "Yes dear.." he replied absent-mindedly, still watching True and Uly. I bet they're up to something, he thought to himself as he walked over to his wife.

"Have you finished?" she asked Morgan as he walked up to her, holding the computer pad to his chest.

"If it hadn't been for those two brats I would have finished a lot faster." he grumbled.

"Now, now Morgan, remember you were ten once too. And I remember your mother telling me that you were a handful yourself." his wife said to him as she studied his figures. "Quite the little Hitler."

"Have you spoken to Julia yet?" Bess reminded, not looking up from the figures.

Morgan perked up a little. "Bess honey, I was just thinking - I've been kind of tired lately you know and maybe we don't quite need.." he hinted at his wife.

"Honey that's fine by me - I'm just worried about you." she cooed, and stroked his face. "Remember what they say - use it or lose it..." his wife batted her eyelashes at him before strolling off to check numbers with Magus.

Morgan clenched his teeth. Foiled again. Time for Plan B.

***

Dr Julia Heller strolled into the MedTent, hands in her pockets, feeling like Cinderella after she gets her Prince. Hmmmph. That wasn't the right fairy tale. To feel this good would require the Ugly Sister getting Prince Charming and living happily ever after.

She smiled and shook her head. This was getting positively whacky. She felt so good today - and she couldn't think why. But before she had time to sit down and have a proper think about why she was feeling so good about herself, her GEAR beeped.

"Julia here." she said in an voice that sounded too cheery even to her own ears. Heavens, she sounded like a talking advertisement for anti-depressants. "Yes Morgan, what can I do for you today?" she asked, seemingly not noticing that Morgan was curiously choosing to speak to her by audio when it only took a few steps for him to see her in person.

Morgan Martin sat in his tent, surprised by Julia's tone. She sounded strangely, nice today. Almost approachable. Like she had just ingested Prozac by the gallons. Usually he got the feeling that she didn't like him; and it was always something he never quite understood.

What was there not to like about Morgan Martin? "Well Julia.." Morgan began confidently, bolstered by the fact that firstly, he didn't have to actually face Julia personally and secondly, by her apparent 'good mood', "..I've really been meaning to get round to asking you but you know how it is, busy,busy,busy always.." he rattled.

"Um hmmm.." Julia murmured, sitting at her desk and scrolling through her data pad for her records.

"..unpacking, counting rations, time just flies by in the day and I'm just so forgetful.." he babbled and knowing full well that he wasn't getting any closer to asking the 'million dollar question'.

"Quite Morgan.." she said politely on cue. She studied the records and smiled to herself. Morgan beating around the bush like that was symptomatic of only one thing - he must have run out of suppressors.

She tapped her index finger on the table and wondered if she should be nice to Morgan and spare him the ordeal of having to ask her. She could of course let him ramble on and on, but she wasn't sure if even that would get Morgan to work up the courage to ask outright. It would probably drive her to distraction first, hearing his incessant chattering.

But today was different.
Today, Julia felt....

Benevolent.

"Oh Morgan.." she interrupted him midflow. "Yes?" he asked, and thought he heard, horrors, his voice quiver a little. "I just remembered, you're due for another batch of suppressors - I'll drop it off to you tomorrow, if that's OK by you."

Morgan was momentarily speechless. He couldn't believe his ears. What luck!

"Morgan?" he heard Julia calling.
"That would be fine Julia." he gushed. "Just fine." he said, and quickly broke contact before she changed her mind.

He pulled the GEAR off his head and congratulated himself. Mission Accomplished. The nights are definitely going to get better, he thought gleefully to himself and went off to find Bess, whistling to himself.

***

Julia took off her GEAR and smiled. Morgan was just so incorrigible. But she couldn't help but think there was something almost lovable about him - his twitching, blustering, wimpish ways.

She caught herself. I must be in a really good mood today, she thought to herself - I'm even starting to like Morgan.

"Thinking about me?" a sexy masculine voice drawled from behind her. Julia didn't have to turn around, she knew it was Alonzo. She felt him slip his arms around her.

"Actually, I was thinking about Morgan." she said in a mock serious tone, while stroking his muscular forearm. She turned to gauge his reaction, her blue eyes dancing.

"Morgan? Now you've got me really worried - Walman, Danziger - hey, I can deal with those guys, but Morgan? That is serious competition." he grinned, playing along.

She let her fingers run through his thick black hair.It was touching his collar now - not quite as long as Morgan's but long still.

"You need a trim..." she murmured.
"And a shave.." he said, running her other hand along his jaw slowly - she smiled at the invitation.

Her attention was distracted by the sound of voices outside the Med Tent. She stood up from her table and walked over to the tent opening. Ducking her head through the flap, she very nearly bumped right into the towering person of John Danziger.

"Devon? John? Something I can help you with?" she inquired, noticing that the conversation had ceased the moment she appeared.She looked from one to the other. Alonzo emerged from her tent and stood next to her.

"Devon?" John immediately said, looking pointedly at her with a look that said 'This is *your* idea Adair.'

"Me?" Devon was momentarily surprised, then gave Danziger her best 'evil stare', designed to remind him that they happened to be in this one together.

"Should we go and do something else while you two work this out?" Julia asked, tactfully, looking at both of them with raised eyebrows.

"No!" Danziger and Devon said in unison. They looked back and forth at each other.

Julia caught Alonzo's smirk and grinned back at him. "Alonzo!" Danziger said, as if noticing him for the first time. An idea popped into his head.

"Yeah?" the pilot responded lazily, looking at his friend. "Let's go somewhere and talk huh?" he replied, looking at Devon and hoping she understood what he was doing.

"Can't we talk about it here?" Alonzo asked, puzzled by Danziger's sudden change in tactic.

"Nah!" Danziger brushed off Alonzo's question quickly. Slinging an arm around Alonzo's shoulders, he started to drag the surprised pilot away as Julia looked on with surprise.

"It's one of those man-to-man things..." Danziger explained, looking at Julia and patting Alonzo on the shoulder somewhat overzealously. "Be back real soon Julia... Promise.." he added. Alonzo held his hands up helplessly, a quizzical look on his face as Danziger continued to pull him in the opposite direction.

"Danziger! Come back!" Devon ordered but John seemed determined to ignore her. She could see Alonzo gesturing to him, but he refused to pay attention.

"John Danziger!" Devon bellowed furiously but Danziger seemed to have turned deaf overnight. Devon couldn't believe her eyes - he was leaving her to do all the dirty work!

"Devon - what are you and John up to?" she heard Julia ask. "What?" Devon answered, almost absent-mindedly. She felt like a volcano ready to explode. That bloody man - trust him to leave me just when I need him, she fumed. I'll kill him with my bare hands!

"Devon?"
"Julia..." Devon turned around to face the doctor, realising she couldn't ignore her anymore. She forced herself to put aside for the moment thoughts of a diabolical revenge on Danziger which would involve lots of pain and suffering.

Julia looked back at her, slightly impatient. "Yes?" she said, a tinge of irritation in unmistakable in her voice. Devon was acting very strangely indeed and it was really starting to get on Julia's nerves all this beating around the bush.

Devon sighed inwardly. This was going to be sooooo bad.Gritting her teeth, she tried to muster up a friendly smile.

"We need to have a little chat you and me..." she said sweetly, taking the doctor's arm and propelling her towards the tent.

***

"Let me get this straight Devon - you want ME to explain to your son and True the facts of life?" Julia asked, somewhat aghast at the request.

"Absolutely - who else is better qualified than yourself?" Devon answered. A little flattery never hurt anyone.

Julia smiled weakly. "I agree Devon - I mean in terms of explaining the facts and science - certainly I'm qualified. But..." Julia tapped her fingers on the tabletop,

"...perhaps you and John could put it in better...erm....perspective..."

Pause

"Being their parents..." Julia added as an afterthought, having realised her last sentence gave rise to 'other' connotations.

Devon shook her head vehemently. "Absolutely not Julia - John and I have absolute faith in your capabilities and we really want the kids to have a crystal clear idea of what their being told and John and I really don't really know..."

"... I mean, don't think we could explain it as well." Devon rephrased after seeing Julia raise one surprised eyebrow.

"This is all rather sudden Devon." choked Julia, starting to feel a little bit uncomfortable at the thought of having to explain the A-Z of life to Uly and True.

"Well...err..you know...kids just grow up so fast these days don't they?" Devon burbled. Julia felt herself going into denial - if she closed her eyes maybe she could wish this away.

She opened her eyes.
Drat - Devon was still there, big as life inside her MedTent. And she was still stuck with the job of explaining to Uly and True all about flowers and bees. This was certainly not on the curriculum when she was at Medical school.

"Danziger!" She heard Devon exclaim as he popped his head into the tent. "Told you we'd be back." he grinned as he hauled Alonzo into the tent with him.

"Devon.."
"Later Danziger.." Devon replied frostily, her reply holding a promise of nasty untold tortures to be inflicted on Danziger as soon as they were out of sight. Something with pliers...and that damned spanner Danziger was so fond of. Oh yes, he'd be thinking long and hard about Number 7 after she was done with him.

Danziger watched her with a suspicious eyes. Devon had gone all business-like on him and he didn't know why. He'd heard that tone of voice before - the tone of voice that made most grown men quiver in their shoes but he dismissed that thought.

Ms Devon Adair was a small problem compared to his daughter and her questions. Besides, it looked like they had achieved their objective. Julia and Alonzo both looked like they had too much spirolina for dinner.

Divide and conquer - works like a charm, every time.

He had dragged Alonzo away so that Devon could pin Julia down without too much difficulty. While Devon was hopefully working on Julia, he had informed Alonzo that considering the root of the problem had been their little expedition, perhaps he and Julia cared to explain to True and Uly the nature of their nocturnal visit to his project?

By the look on Julia's face, obviously Devon had managed to twist the doctor's arm too. It was now time to beat a hasty exit, find the kids, send them in and let the lovebirds get on with the job. All done in haste and speed to ensure Julia and Alonzo didn't know what hit them.

"I think maybe we oughta leave Julia and 'Lonzo for a while Devon.." he hinted.

Unfortunately, Devon didn't get the hint, or at least was deciding to ignore him. This called for mildly strong arm techniques.

"Adair - it's time to inspect the vehicles..." he growled and grasping Devon firmly by the arm, he frog-marched her out of the MedTent, leaving Alonzo and Julia alone.

"Is it just me or are those two up to something?" Alonzo asked Julia who was clearly lost in thought, trying to find an appropriate metaphor to use for her ghastly task. Grendlers? Kobas? A swarm of ladybirds would be nice at this time - she could just set Uly and True down in front of a jar and ask them to observe 'the facts of life in action'.

"What?"
Alonzo sat down on her bed and repeated his question. "Danziger dragged me off somewhere and said that True and Uly saw us going into the shower and wanted to know about....."

"About..." Alonzo paused. " About...errr..." Oh boy, what a day this has been. First Devon corners me into explaining all about 'the big bang' to the kids, now Alonzo - Alonzo of all people - is going all prudish on me. What is going on? thought Julia.

"Alonzo..." she said, getting up and grasping him gently by the shoulders. "What?" he looked up at her.
Julia looked matter-a-factly at him and pronounced a single word. "Sex."
"Sex?" He looked puzzled.
"The word you are looking for." Julia explained, shaking him slightly, "It's sex."

Alonzo wrinkled his nose at her, "Do you have to be so clinical about it?" Julia slowly ran her hands up his muscular arms, over his broad shoulders and linked her fingers behind his neck. "Are you implying Mr Solace that my technique is too 'clinical'?' she murmured, as she stepped closer and leaned in.

Alonzo sat up straighter as he caught the flirtatious note in her voice and his arms curved around her slender waist

"Not at all doctor. Please, carry on."

***

"John Danziger - you will unhand me this very minute!" "Will you keep your voice down!? or those two will start to realise we've pulled a fast one on them!!" Danziger hissed as he marched Devon away from the MedTent.

"We haven't 'pulled' anything Danziger!" Devon argued. "For once Adair, can you just accept the fact that I've seen seen through your little plan and for once, you have my unresounding support?" Danziger cast a cautious look back at the MedTent.

"I don't see the point in running away like guilty schoolchildren!" Devon fumed, as John continued to guide her through camp.

"You got that right Adair - we're guilty as hell - we're just foisted off our parental responsibility on those two over there. If we didn't like doing it, what makes you think they will?" he reasoned.

"Are you having second thoughts?"
"Of course not, now keep walking."

They walked briskly towards Devon's tent and stopped behind it. "You think they've figured it out yet?" Devon asked. "Maybe - but if you did your job right Adair, Julia will be too busy trying to find a reason to say no to you and thinking about what to tell those two kids of ours."

"What did you say to Alonzo anyway?" Devon asked, curiosity getting the better of her.

"I told him that it was all his fault that the kids started asking these questions and that True and Uly had a right to know what was going on from the horse's mouth - I told him I didn't want to give them the wrong idea." Danziger replied and was rewarded by a small grin. "After all.." he added with a grin.

"They might have *just* been checking the plumbing."

End of Part 3.

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