InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "This is one long fortune."

Savannah Monroe (savannah_monroe) wrote in omega_reality,
@ 2013-04-20 17:11:00

Entry tags:

*complete, 2013 04, character: brian kinney, character: derek reese, character: dominic vail, character: douglas hammond, character: john connor, character: marty deeks, character: maura isles, character: nell jones, character: oliver queen, character: robert callen, character: savannah monroe, character: sean hanna, character: thomas hammond, character: tommy merlyn, character: travis marks, character: troy bolton, dead: mike renko

RP: Jamie Ray's Christening
Who: Savannah, Marty, Robert, Mike, Sean, Troy, Dom, Nell, Derek, Brian, John, Doug, Maura, Thomas, Travis, Oliver, Tommy
Where: Savannah's house
When: Saturday, April 20, 2013
Summary: The last of the kids is baptized

They had a simple ceremony. Brian and Maura stood in lieu of Derek and Emily. Brian was even polite to the priest, possibly because he was sixty and Brian wasn't attracted. Either way, Savannah counted her blessings that everything went well.

At home, things were a lot more relaxed. She had made food for everyone, more than enough in fact. There were kids playing in a corner, four dogs running around, and the weirdest guest list. It was her typical party.

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Re: Marty and Doug

doug_hammond
2013-04-23 12:00 pm UTC (link)

Oh, Doug was rarely running on empty. It was just that he preferred to do his drinking away from people like this, because no matter what Savannah said, they weren't friends, they certainly weren't family, and he was sure that a few of them would be amused to see them fall. Still he took the glass with a smile, because how many political found raisers had he done? "Thank you, but you didn't have to." He had tasted the wine. He really didn't have to, not unless Doug was so drunk as to forget what good wine tasted like.

Doug chuckled. "You'd lose that bet." If it meant that TJ was home and safe, he'd rather be stuck with anyone. In fact, he'd be really glad if the injury were permanent and TJ wouldn't have to return to the field, but he doubted anyone, his brother included, would appreciate the bet. "You two are so fascinating that I want all of you attention for me," he added with a sardonic smile.

The last part was pure politics, though. He might have told Maura not to try for him, but if both Maura and TJ were trying for their own reasons, he knew that it would be stupid not to do what he'd always done. "No thanks necessary in this case. It is our pleasure to be here. If the company weren't enough, I still get to make fun of my brother for delivering a baby and now taking pictures with the above mentioned baby. As you can see, I couldn't possibly refuse the invitation." Except that was the biggest lie, because he would have been happy to stay home and make fun of TJ when he finally heard the story of the pictures. "You shouldn't have to play host, though. I know how these affairs go, but it's unnecessary. You should spend time with your children. In the long run, it'll be more important than the social niceties." He might not have kids, but he and TJ were the result of parents who spent too much time playing the hosts and not enough with their children.

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Re: Marty and Doug

deeks_marty
2013-04-23 08:10 pm UTC (link)

"No, I'm pretty sure there's a cosmic law out there that says part of having your partner's back means making sure he has alcohol when forced to deal with your family, especially a family like this one." Marty started to laugh, but it turned into a snort rather quickly. "Yes, I can see just how fascinating we are. Given the chance to socialize and observe us in our natural habitat, you're so fascinated you're doing a good job of imitating G holding up the wall. But, I guess it's a good thing I didn't put money on that bet. And you can have all that attention at the club on Monday," he finished with a smirk.

Marty seriously doubted there was any pleasure in being there for Douglas. He did the work and Marty didn't have any problems taking him out into the field. But, this was not a pleasure for his partner. Taking another tiny sip from his beer, Marty shook his head. "I'm not playing host, Douglas. I'm talking to my partner." Glancing over at the girls, he smiled softly...and then laughed outright when Savannah had to go over and stop the kids from riding the poor dogs. "I spend time with my kids, as much as I can, and more than my folks ever spent with me. And I'll spend more time with them at this party, and telling bedtime stories tonight. But, I'm not a host here. I'm talking to someone I like. Someone who talks back in actual words instead of adorable giggles or tragic pouts that have Daddy wrapped around their little fingers."

Nope, not too proud to admit that. Marty was being forced to learn to be more disciplinarian with the team. But, he girls definitely had him wrapped around their little fingers. Just like their mother.

"Besides, if I didn't talk to you, I wouldn't know you're enjoying teasing Thomas about the pictures and therefore couldn't offer to give you a copy for posterity," he added with a grin.

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Re: Marty and Doug

doug_hammond
2013-04-23 08:32 pm UTC (link)

"No, I meant it. You shouldn't have, really," he repeated just after taking a sip of the wine. "If you truly want to supply alcohol, a 2007 Gaja Barbaresco or a 2005 Bodegas Roda Cirsion would be appreciated, and of course you never go wrong with a single malt. Chile is producing some high quality reds. Argentina has well, although Chile has a much wider range with flavors ranging from a woody taste to a much fruity one. It was one of the perks of running State. We might not know in what part of the world we were on any given day, or hour, but we always had the best wines."

Doug snorted. "I never said your family was fascinating, but that I found you and Travis fascinating. However, you can ignore what I said and concentrate on each other on Monday. I can sip more red wine and keep TJ company. I wouldn't want him to feel lonely after all."

He followed Deeks' gaze and he was truly amused to see TJ standing there, alone, with a kid. He took out his cell and took a picture, because this was a moment to be used for ages. "I could ramble on and use monosyllabic words if it gets me out of training," he said, smirking. "I don't know about giggles, adorable or not." He wasn't even trying to get out of training, but it was easier to joke about that than discussing the rest, because it would touch on things that were a little too personal.

"That's all right. I'm quite capable of taking pictures, but the offer is appreciated nevertheless." Doug used to be really good at this, at the political meetings, photo ops and fund raisers, but all of the topics of conversations, carefully vetted for each event, were irrelevant here, and he was left staring at his glass. "I'm sorry, but what exactly does normal people talk about?" he asked with a frown. "Because I seem to be at a loss for interesting subjects to discuss." And no, children were not an interesting topic of discussion unless you needed the women's votes, and then you suffer through those meetings.

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Re: Marty and Doug

deeks_marty
2013-04-23 11:22 pm UTC (link)

Chuckling, Marty took an actual swig from his beer this time. "That bad by comparison, huh? Well, as I'm pretty sure without knowing anything about them, that everything you just mentioned is out of my price range, I can skip the wine and offer beer instead," he said with a wink. Not that there was a lot of alcohol in the house for them at all. They had beers for the family because most of them drank beer when they 'relaxed'. They occasionally had wine for really special occasions. Queen and Merlyn might have something, but Marty didn't know offhand. He'd never been a big drinker because of his dad, occasionally hitting a bar when the day had truly sucked but never drinking heavily. "Unless you're into the rare microbrews that G was, in which case, I don't think we have those around by this point."

Marty shook his head. "And I only meant you could be talking to the two of us and you're still over here with the wall," he clarified with a good-natured shrug. "But, you're out of luck on Monday." Being off duty with Savannah might drive Thomas to seek out lonely. Smirking at the photo op, Marty didn't envy Travis when Thomas found out about that picture. "Why would giggling and monosyllabic words get you out of training? We'd just train you the way we're training the kids. Hide and seek and baby aerobics with Savannah. Books an CD from Dom, math and science and about a dozen languages. Classical music and Jazz from Sean."

Raising an eyebrow, he shrugged. "When I find some normal people I'll let you know? But, if you mean people not Hammonds -- and I don't say that disparagingly, but because your family is from a very different class than most of the rest of us -- it's really individual." Marty saw no reason not to treat that like a serious question. It was one of those things that made it difficult for the brothers to find their feet in the team. "Just in my family we have people who like to talk about music, history, literature, physics, comic books, sports, politics, military strategy. We talk about ourselves to a degree, usually anecdotes or stories the others know of our hilarious misdeeds. Sometimes philosophy or religion sneaks in. Really, we just talk about whatever interests each other or is important to each other. Like just now, I brought up your brother because I know he's important to you and I'm here to help if you guys need it while he's injured. But, I keep it light and let you steer the conversation where you want in that regard because I've worked with both of you long enough to know you value your privacy, which is actually pretty common in this family. So, I'm used to it."

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Re: Marty and Doug

doug_hammond
2013-04-24 01:16 am UTC (link)

"They are not that expensive," Doug said. "About two hundred a bottle, I believe. The Chilean are about half that price. I must say that this wine has an ... interesting flavor," he said, smiling, "but no, I can't say that I'm interested in American beer, rare or not. I'll take commercial European beer, though." The alcohol content of some of the dark European beers was the same as wine. and they had a much better taste than a Bud. Doug would have shivered at the thought if he weren't too well trained. "I'm sure Tommy had a pretty extensive wine cellar in his house. His father is extremely rich and enjoys the good things in life." The campaign had benefited substantially from Merlyn's finances.

"I can observe better from afar. I get the larger picture instead of focusing on the minutia that could lead you to make the wrong conclusion for failure to absorb all the details," he said calmly. "This is how fascinating you are. I prefer to look from here to see everything." He went to the table and put the glass down, before returning to his spot. "And spending time looking from afar, I can tall you my conclusion. You're all insane." Here he thought that his parents had faults as parents, but training children from such a young age was border line abuse. However, he didn't think that his opinion on the matter would be appreciated or even be relevant. They weren't his children.

Doug stared at Deeks like he'd lost his mind as he went on to explain what people discussed. "So you spend your time discussing topics that have no relevance to our lives, aren't part of our history because of different dimension or are work. That's-" And then TJ wondered why he didn't talk to people. He had no interest in half of those subjects except for political reasons and the only politics that mattered had disappeared Who was he kidding? He lived and breathed politics, his politics and not this dimension's federal version, or even the smaller one within the team. "TJ will be fine," he finally said, falling back on things that he knew how to deal with, and of course that little reminder that he was sharing about his own brother made sure that he stopped doing that too. "We will let you know if we need anything, other than a maid, a cook, a personal driver, a private plane and Secret Service protection. Other than that, we're fine, but thank you for asking."

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Re: Marty and Doug

deeks_marty
2013-04-26 04:44 pm UTC (link)

"To be honest, I'm not sure what G was drinking. Something imported." Marty shrugged. "But, I'm not much of a drinker of anything, one beer at a party is about my limit. I guess I'll have to get you to consult on drink selections for the next party...possibly not two hundred dollar bottles if it's a large gathering, though," he added with a chuckle. He had no problem imagining Merlyn's extensive wine cellar. The price tag on most of it would probably make Marty's heart stop. But then, Marty was supposed to have been the one to bring more money and prestige to the family and he's chosen to be a cop instead of the fancy lawyer. So, it wasn't surprising he was unfamiliar with having that kind of money to drop on wine.

Still, he laughed at Douglas' conclusion. "And you don't even know the half of it. We're comfortable in our insanity. It keeps us sane in a strange way."

And speaking of children, Marty had seen Liam teleport himself over to Daddy. So, he wasn't surprised when Robert arrived just then and turned Jamie Ray over to Marty's care. "I think Liam just knew that Jamie wanted his daddy," he told the older man with a grin. "It's kid-code. They all use it to plot mischief against their parents."

In another two or three months, as the baby's brain functions began fully developing, Marty would probably have to start wondering if his son really was getting the other kids to do things for him. Who knew how a baby with Marty's power would grow into it. But, for now, they didn't have to worry. "What do you say?" he asked the baby, who simply blinked up at him. "You're going to be the mischief maker who doesn't know his own courage just like both of the men you're named for, aren't you?"

Kissing his son's forehead gently, Marty settled him more comfortably in the crook of his arm before turning his attention back to Douglas. "I'm sure your brother will be fine. He's a stronger man than I think he even realizes himself. Just like you are. But, that's not a political offer or a polite society offer. I'm your partner, Douglas. I'm here to have your back, period. I know you've lived with Travis long enough to know what 'partner' means to a cop. But, I get it. You don't trust me, don't understand me, probably don't like me much, and don't really believe that I'll have your back when it matters. And that's fine. I'm still going to be here whether you trust me to be or not.

"And in the meantime, yes, normal people talk about all of that because those things are what make us who we are. Travis and I swap stories from the job not because it's relevant to our situation, although some things might be considering how much undercover work we've both done. But, we do it because it's something we share, a connection to another human being who gets where we've been and who we've been, what we've had to do to get there. Sean could no more stop talking about music than Harley could learn to do long division. It's too intrinsic to who he is. He cares about people and uses his gift of music to make them happy in the best way he can. His music makes the rest of us smile and forget how much things suck for a little while. John talks about computers and philosophy and half of what he says goes over the heads of everyone else in the room except for a few. But, it gets him excited, makes him come alive in a way that's reassuring for the rest of us because if a kid who has lived the life we all suspect he's lived can still be excited by life, then there's hope for the rest of us and for our kids who are going to have to live a similar life whether we want them to or not.

"When you're ready to really talk to us, or me, -- and, yes, I'm saying when instead of if because I'm that much of an optimist -- the floor's open for whatever you want or need to talk about as well. No judgement. No criticism. There may be differing opinions, but it doesn't mean anything other than we disagree because we think differently. Door's always open to you." Marty smirked, having reached the limit of his own seriousness. "Unless there's a sock on the knob, in which case I have to clear it with the wife first before seeing if there's an exhibitionist kink there. Or something. Maybe not a sock."

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Re: Marty and Doug

doug_hammond
2013-04-26 05:11 pm UTC (link)

"You can find decent wine for less. In fact, you can find pretty good substitutes for about a forth of that price. Very few would be able to tell the difference... well all right, with Merlyn, Queen, my family and the Director, you might have an unusual high percentage, but it'd still be pretty good wine," Doug explained, because he had no problem discussion wine, just like he was fine watching and ignoring all the comments about the children, at least until he compared Jamie Ray to TJ. "He's going to keep his sisters busy if he's like TJ," he said with a snort.

"TJ is who he is," he said, somewhat diplomatically, but he wasn't about the explain his brother to Deeks. "Normal people make secret deal while planning on how to get out of them, and never talk about it, because secrets stay secrets only if you don't talk about them. The other topics of discussion are taken from the list of things that interest any given group, tailored to get a desired response. The point is never to know or understand what people say, but know enough to answer so it looks like you understand," he said with a shrug. You learned what the people were talking about and after that and the political information, there wasn't room for much else. This was why he knew who Justin Fucking Bieber was, or for that matter who Maura was, before even coming here, but hadn't read a book in ages, but he knew what to say if people mentioned sparkling vampires.

"You are wrong about trusting you to have my back. I grew up with the Secret Service. TJ got out of it, but working with my mother ensured that I was around them all the time. I trust people to take a bullet for me." He wished everything were that simple. "I don't dislike you, but the fact that we work together doesn't make us friends. We're colleagues. Contrary to what everyone seems to think, you are not friends with your colleagues. Travis is different, not because we work together, but because TJ decided that he wanted to be with him."

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Re: Marty and Doug

deeks_marty
2013-04-27 04:24 am UTC (link)

"Like I said, I'll have to get you to consult." Chuckling, Marty finished off his beer and tucked his pinky under Jamie's curled fingers to let the baby play. He was never really sure if babies were really grabbing for fingers to play or if they just didn't notice adults sticking fingers in their hands. Still he laughed. "He's going to keep his sisters busy if he's like Ray, too. We didn't name him after docile and biddable men, did we? Ray is my best friend," he explained, though he doubted Douglas cared. "We grew up together. I was an only child, so Ray was like a brother to me. Close as I could get, at least. His life hasn't always been, shall we say, straight and narrow and I don't mean his sexuality? But, we've always had each others' backs when it counted."

Marty sighed inwardly. "No offense, but that's only normal in your world. Not the dimension you come from, either. Most people, the average Joe just working to make a living and take care of his shit isn't thinking about any of that. Then again, this family isn't really normal, either. Even if you take away the unconventional way we came together. The best undercover agent there is, a SEAL, a cheerleader, LAPD, NYPD turned Federal agent, An Air Force pilot from the upper class, a Juilliard student, a basketball star, a genius turned agent, a Marine. Anyway, I'm from L.A. What would I know about normal?" he added with a grin. "We're all either actors or crazy beach bums out here...man, I miss the beach."

Shaking his head, he looked at Douglas in silence for a moment. "No, that's not the same thing. Having your back and taking a bullet aren't the same thing at all. Sure, I would if I had to. But, it's more than that. It's things like leaving that door open for when you want to talk. It's looking after Thomas for you if, for any reason, we were all separated. It's what Thomas did for Savannah in helping her bring our son into this world and talking her out of rash actions that could have gotten both of them hurt. It's making sure the three of you had a direct line to someone who could and would help if you ran into problems on your own in Pittsburgh. It's Travis coming back here when we needed him and you having your brother's back by coming back with them. It's not giving up on you one day opening up just a little, not because I need you to talk but because someday you're going to need to talk to someone who isn't family and doesn't put that family name ahead of your well being." Marty snorted. "I'll let you in on a little known fact, but I wasn't friends with any of my colleagues at LAPD. In fact, I was pretty universally despised by the other detectives. But, working with NCIS, I learned a different truth. When you're part of a team, it's more than simple work colleagues. Those are the people who really will be there for you through everything. It's not friends and it's not family, but something that takes the best of both and throws in that willingness to take a bullet for you."

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Re: Marty and Doug

doug_hammond
2013-04-27 11:59 am UTC (link)

"Why would you do that?" Doug asked with a frown. "If you want him to live up to a reputation, why not pick people who mean something? Presidents, scientists, people who've made a real contribution to the world." He didn't plan to have children, but if he did, he certainly wouldn't call them after anyone in the family. In fact, they had even had this discussion with Susan. "I was talking to a journalist about this once, and she asked me what I'd call my very hypothetical future kids and there was only one answer possible.' He smiled at the memory. "When I told her that our family is so tied to the country, she guessed without me even saying it. George for Washington and John for Kennedy."

Doug shrugged. "It's normal in all dimensions if you're in politics, or in business, or in many upper class section of life. My goal was never to become the average Joe." His goal was to be the President of the United States. "I... I don't think I've ever been to the beach. Unless there was some political reason. By the time Dad was out of the White House, I had other commitments, and it never occurred to me. I'm pretty sure that Florida was the first time that counted for pleasure."

He was not going to argue with the rest, because it sounded too much like Savannah, and next came the Kumbaya and Doug didn't have the energy to have another to with this. "There is a difference between helping people when in a crises, something that even my parents would do, regardless what people might think and the rest. Also I didn't have my brother's back. He's my brother and I didn't come for them, but for him." He liked Travis and TJ might consider him family, but he'd never really be family as far as Doug was concerned. Then again, he didn't think Anne had ever really been family and they were married. "How about I won't need someone to talk to? That sounds like a much better outcome.

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Re: Marty and Doug

deeks_marty
2013-04-28 10:03 pm UTC (link)

Marty didn't miss the smile, but he held his tongue. Curiosity didn't just kill cats, sometimes it blew up in undercover detectives' faces. "We did name him after people who mean something, though, people who mean something to us. The world's pretty fickle and if he wants that for himself and the situation allows for him to have that, we wouldn't stop him. But, the one things he's always going to have in this life is his family's love. We'd rather give him names of people we care about and who are important to us, to show him how important he is to us." Marty smiled. "We named him after Thomas because, addictions aside, there are a lot worse men he could emulate and very few who would do what he did to help Savannah when they didn't even like each other and he's not a cop or an agent who chose to rescue people for a living. He showed a strength and courage that impressed us both. And that's saying something when you consider Savannah holds everyone up against the measuring stick of men like G and Sam. And Ray is the best friend a man could ever have. Even on opposite sides of the law, there isn't anything we wouldn't do for each other and if it wasn't for him, I quite probably would never have lived to see high school. If Jamie can grow up to be like either one of them, I'll be a very proud father."

There was no pushing on the normality or lack thereof in politics vs. the average Joe. Instead, he cocked his head to the side with a look of mock horror. "And here we've had you living in the land of sun and surf for almost four months. That's just something we're going to have to rectify." Marty could talk to Vance. If they could go to Disneyland, they could find a day to go to the beach. Marty had told Claudia he'd see about surfing anyway. "Florida is nice and all. But, there's absolutely no surf there. Tragically disappointing. We'll have to take you to Santa Barbara. Lay around on the beach and relax in the sun. The surfers among us can enjoy some of the best waves on the West Coast."

Sighing, Marty shook his head. "It might sound like a much better outcome, but it's really unlikely. I won't push you, though. If you're right and you never need someone to talk to, then it's all good. But, if you do...the door's open. There's no expiration date on this except whenever God decides it's time to punch my ticket."

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Re: Marty and Doug

doug_hammond
2013-04-28 10:27 pm UTC (link)

Only the fact that he wouldn't say anything negative about his brother kept hm from pointing out that aspiring to be like George Washington or John Kennedy was nothing like aspiring to be a junkie like TJ or a criminal like this Ray, regardless of what other qualities they might possess. "Different ideas of what's important obviously. I would hope that if I stayed at home, I'd have reached the White House and so would one of my children, but since there is no risk that I'll have any at this point, then the point is moot."

And here he thought that Savannah was insane, but he had underestimate how insane her husband was. "West Coast beaches are not really known for exclusivity or even beauty. I liked my beach to come with sunbeds, waiters and very few people, but I'm perfectly happy staying by the pool and drinking."

Doug smiled. "My family has beat unlikely plenty of times in the past." Besides, they never needed to talk, because talking led to arguments, instead they could just drink, or argue, or get high in some cases. "But thanks for the offer and I seem to be monopolizing your time. You really don't have to stay with me."

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