Fandom:

The West Wing AU

Pairing:

C.J./Danny

Rating:

PG-13 for topic

Distribution:

How much do I owe you for hauling it off?

Spoilers:

Up to and including Full Disclosure, from which the series follows on

Email:

exfilia at livejournal dot com

Disclaimer:

if I owned them, they'd have a lot more fun

Warning:

mentions nonconsensual sex

Note:

Hoynes lovers should probably be hitting delete right about now.

"Mr. President?"

"C.J., good thinking about the clinics. We're about to put a kink in a very nasty operation, I think."

"Thank you, sir."

"We have numbers?"

"Looking good in the east. We're pretty sure we picked up a seat in Virginia and one in Pennsylvania."

"Good, good. C.J., is Leo doing a lot of this tutorial stuff?"

"More than I think he should. I'm sure I don't have the clearance to see some of this."

"Is it bothering you?"

"Leo bothers me. He wouldn't be doing this for a man, not even a president-elect, much less a long-shot candidate."

"Not so long as you think. Besides, you have this unfair advantage where Leo McGarry is coaching you. Look, C.J., it'll be a good thing in the end. You'll skip this sharp learning curve that I bloodied my nose on. You'll be up enough that no one can criticize your lack of military service, or anything else."

"Speaking of which, sir, I'm wondering how I go about getting all my family leave for the wedding at once."

"Why do I think some of these people work for me?"

"Actually, Quentin--my youngest brother--teaches public school in Dayton."

"You need me to make a call?"

"He's not a problem; we're looking at doing it during Christmas vacation, anyway."

"So what is the problem?"

"My sister. She should have been maid of honor, but she's doing something else and I don't know if she could get loose, or if what she's doing isn't more important anyway."

"Talk to me."

"She's flying an EA-6B off the Truman in...."

"Yeah, I can see where that's pretty important. What did she say?"

"I didn't ask her. I... I was worried that people would say I didn't understand the necessities of military operations, and that I'd asked for special priviliges."

"We have more than one pilot in the Navy, you know."

"ECM is kind of specialized, but that's not the point. The point is I'm making decisions about my personal life based on political circumstances. Julia didn't even get the chance to say no. I never asked her. I knew better."

"Do you want me to tell you that you made the wrong choice? Because you've applied for a job where hard choices are something you do every day, something you have to live with."

"Yes, sir. Anyway, my older brothers are in the Navy, too: Cecil's the XO on the Holmes--it's a Burke class guided missile destroyer, and Mark has the Pusan."

"The new cruiser? C.J., is there anyone protecting the eastern seaboard who isn't a blood relative of yours?"

"Sometimes I wonder. There's a nephew at the Citadel, and next year Hogan starts at Annapolis."

"And that's it?"

"So far."

"No wonder you know more about military things than I do. What do you think about getting them all home for Christmas and keeping them here past the wedding? We could say two weeks leave--they all have the leave?"

"Mr. President, it's harder to get them away from their jobs than to get you away from yours. They probably have several months each."

"Right. I'll make the calls. Does Danny know about this?"

"Sir?"

"Does he know that you're close kin to the Atlantic Fleet?"

"I don't think he's processed the information yet, sir, but he'll deal. He dealt with the wait, and sitting here tonight waiting for returns, I don't see how anyone could."

"Yeah. Waiting will kill you."

"Why do I feel like we could win every seat east of the Rockies and still feel like we lost the night if we lose the California 47th?"

"Suspense giving you problems?"

"I just wish, you know, he was running in Maine."

"C.J.," he said, shaking his head, "just wait till it's your name on the ballot."