Title: Expectations

Author: Cathy Miller (cam7192003@yahoo.com)

Rating: PG 13 (some language)

Setting: Future fic; Sam is married to Ainsley and running for
President/Josh and Donna are married and working the campaign.

Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah, they're not mine; please don't rub it
in.

Feedback: Almost as good as chocolate.

PRESENT: THE EVE OF THE DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL CONVENTION - 97 DAYS
UNTIL THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION

"Tell the truth, you ditched Donna so you could have more than two
drinks tonight, didn't you?" Ainsley accused Josh as she opened
the hotel room door to let him in. Josh took in her relaxed appearance.
Her long blond hair was free from the perpetual bun she'd been
wearing it in during the run up to the nomination. Ainsley has been a
huge boost on their southern campaign run having been raised in North
Carolina, but in the north, she struggled more to be taken seriously;
even with her law degree and White House service.

"Hey Ains, looks like you started without me." He kissed her
cheek. "Donna wasn't feeling that great, so she's going to
bed early." Josh spotted Sam in the living area typing away
furiously on his laptop. "Jesus, Sam, put the laptop away and have a
drink. Writing speeches isn't your job anymore." Josh accepted
the beer Ainsley handed him and pulled the laptop away from Sam.

"Hey!" he protested. "I was working on that! The foreign
policy section still isn't right."

"The foreign policy section, along with the rest of the speech, is
fine. You yourself locked it in 2 hours ago." Josh reminded him.

"Yes, but then he made the mistake of re-reading it an hour ago and
it's all been downhill since." Ainsley drawled.

"Couldn't you distract him or something?" Josh tossed the
challenge in her court, smirking at her.

"How do you think I kept him away from it for the first hour?"
she hit it back to him smoothly.

Josh chuckled. He had always enjoyed Ainsley's quick wit and sense
of humor; ever since that fateful day she had subbed on Capitol Beat and
kicked Sam's ass. During the campaign, however, he had found a new
appreciation not only for what she herself added to the campaign, but
for what she meant to his best friend.

Sam took a swig of beer and began pacing the room. "I was thinking
about the ad buy we're planning..."

"Whose job is it to plan the ad buys, Sam?" I asked shaking my
head.

"I was just thinking about what you said-" Sam tried again.

"Unbelievable! The man has the best, the most talented, the most
creative-"

"Don't forget humble." Ainsley added helpfully.

"And humble, thanks Ains, -campaign manager in the Democratic party,
and he questions my judgment."

"Absolutely criminal." Ainsley agrees smiling at her husband.

"If only you were half as good as you think you are." Sam teases
back.

"Sam, do us all a favor and put it away for the night." Josh
told him as Natalie, the Seaborn's nanny came into the room.

"Ainsley, I'm sorry but Charlotte is refusing to go to bed until
she sees you."

"Sure, if you gentlemen will excuse me a minute?" Ainsley set
down her beer and followed Natalie into the other room to see to her
youngest daughter. Sam and Ainsley had three children, all of them
girls, and all of them had their dad wrapped around their little
fingers.

"You seem wound a little tight this evening Samuel." Josh noted.

"Well I'm about to get the Democratic nomination for President
so I've got a pretty good excuse. You seem a little down tonight;
you sure Donna's okay?" Now that Sam thought about it, Donna had
been very quiet the last few days.

"Overtired I think. We haven't seen home for awhile. Donna may
take the kids to Wisconsin for a bit after the convention." Josh
told him, but Sam got the feeling there was something else going on.
"Grace ran her speech by me this morning. It hit just the tone we
want. You wouldn't have had anything to do with that, would
you?"

Grace Matthews was Sam's Vice-Presidential running mate. A senior
Senator from Illinois, she complemented Sam's abilities and had a
husband and children media consultants could only dream of. Grace and
Sam had begun the primary process running against one another, but soon
found out that they agreed with each other on many issues, and enjoyed
each other personally a great deal. It was a match made in electoral
heaven.

Sam looked away from the accusation in Josh's face. Josh had been
singing a verse and two choruses on delegating for the past 6 weeks. It
wasn't that Sam disagreed with him, it was just hard for him to let
go.

"Buddy, it's just going to get harder from here. You have to
trust your staff to do their job so you can be more effective in yours.
If you don't like this crop of writers, we'll look for someone
else, but you need to back off."

"I like to speak using my own voice." Sam meant in his writing
and Josh knew it.

"The right speech writer will use your voice. I guess we need to
keep looking for the right one." He glanced at Sam for confirmation,
who nodded. "In the meantime, Toby said he'd pinch hit for
us." Sam smiled at the thought of Toby `helping' to write
his speeches.

"Yeah, okay." Sam finally stopped pacing and sat down next to
his friend. "It's just hitting me, that's all. I've been
so focused on getting here, that I haven't given much thought to
what would happen once I did."

"You've been amazing out there, Sam. You should be proud of what
you've accomplished so far, and know you can handle what's
coming next." Josh told him simply and that one statement from Josh
meant more to him than all the editorials and endorsements combined.

"Okay, we're going to have to sell Charlotte, darling. I know
you're fond of her, but she's simply too much work." Ainsley
reported as she rejoined them. Both men laughed. "Do you know she
conned her detail into stopping for a snack on the way back from the
thing? I swear we're going to have to pay those people double
time." She settled onto the couch between the guys. "Where are
your two tonight?" she asked Josh.

"Donna hired an intern to keep them occupied and she took them
swimming downstairs earlier. There were rumors of an in room movie and
popcorn tonight."

"Ah, hotel life. How will we ever adjust to home cooked meals and
sleepovers again?" Ainsley pondered, but Sam laughed at her
supposition.

"This is Josh you're talking to. I highly doubt home cooked
meals were ever a big staple."

"I'm telling Donna you said that." Ainsley threatened her
husband. He took advantage of her upturned face and kissed her before
replying.

"She'd be the first one to tell you it's true."

Josh had to look away from his friends' happy, relaxed faces.

"Thanks for the beer. I'm going to do one last run through with
the team before bed. You two try to get some sleep." Calls of
goodnight reached him as he went out the door and came face to face with
Jim Watson, head of Sam's security detail. "You need to
brief?" Josh asked him and Agent Watson nodded. Okay, security
briefing, team meeting and then bed. He was very tired of security
briefings...especially when they had nothing to do with Sam.

ELECTION NIGHT: 1 AM CALIFORNIA TIME.

"Holy shit, Josh."

"Yeah." came the reply from Josh Lyman.

"I mean...Holy shit."

"Yeah." Josh repeated as he dropped his head to the table he was
sitting at.

"What do we do now?" Sam Seaborn asked him.

"Well, it's been awhile since I did this, but I'm pretty
sure we start planning our transition team and a little speech
you're going to have to give on January 20th." Josh replied with
his head still on the table. The networks had all declared Sam Seaborn
to be the next President of the United States a few minutes ago and no
sooner had the announcements been made than Sam pulled Josh into his
suite for a private nutty.

"An Inauguration speech. I'm not ready yet. I really didn't
expect any of this." Sam objected. At these words, Josh lifted his
head to stare at his friend.

"You did understand when you agreed to run that there was a distinct
possibility you would actually, you know, win, right?" He
deadpanned.

"Well, yeah, but not much of one." Sam responded. Josh grinned.

"Sorry, I'm good." He said unrepentantly.

"I still think it was more Donna than you." Sam knew where to
jab Josh; right in the ego.

Amanda, Sam's executive assistant came in with a cell phone.
"It's President Roberts for you Governor." President Roberts
was the Republican nominee for President. This was the concession call.
Sam paused a moment before he took the phone from her.

"Sam Seaborn...Thank you sir, that's very gracious of
you...Yes, I agree, we were able to raise a lot of important
issues...It HAS been a long night, sir, in fact it's been one long
night since the convention...I will tell her you said so, and if
you'll be good enough to pass my good wishes on to your wife as
well?...Thanks again, Adam, we'll be talking soon, I'm
sure."

"Amanda, will you go see if Ainsley is ready to make an
appearance?" Sam asked her. She nodded and went in search of the
First Lady elect.

"I'm going to go do this thing, now, but after that you and I
are going to have a long talk." Sam told Josh.

"Yes, sir." Josh answered and watched as Sam grimaced.

"Come on...not now; not between us, Josh."

"Okay, Sam, tonight I will humor you, but all bets are off
tomorrow." Josh's smile faded as Donna came into the room. There
had been serious tension between them over the past few weeks that Sam
hadn't been able to figure out. They hadn't had the luxury of
time or privacy for him to delve into it further with Josh either.

"Congratulations, Mr. President-elect." Donna said with a quiet
smile. "Ainsley is ready. She's waiting outside."

"On my way. Donna, thanks so much for everything you've done. I
wouldn't be here today if you and Josh hadn't been on
board."

"I think you would, but I appreciate the sentiment." Donna
kissed his cheek. "You better get out there, sir." Sam grimaced
and threw a glance at Josh who simply shrugged.

"Tomorrow morning...well, really this morning I guess. Breakfast
here at 10." Sam looked at Josh for confirmation and he nodded
silently.

Sam opened the door and cacophony reigned until it closed behind him.

"10:00 tomorrow?" Donna made the statement into a question.

"Transition, that's all." Josh told her, but didn't meet
her eyes.

"He's still pushing for you to take it, isn't he?" She
asked point blank.

"Not really, and it wouldn't matter even if he did. I promised
you didn't I?" Josh's voice rose in frustration.

"Yes, and I can tell how happy you are about that decision."
Donna cracked back.

"I'm going to go say goodnight to the kids." Josh told her
as he got up. He walked past her as a cheer erupted from the television.
She turned to see Sam, Ainsley, and their 3 children (Caitlin, Cassidy,
and Charlotte) take the stage. They were followed closely by
Vice-President elect Grace Matthews and her family. Under other
circumstances, Josh and his family would be there too. They had been
invited, but declined the invitation; telling everyone they preferred to
stay behind the scenes. At least that was partially true.

Josh let himself into their family suite and nodded at the intern
they'd hired to baby-sit for the evening. Julie? Jenny? He
couldn't remember. He would say it sucked to get old, but the truth
was he had always had difficulty remembering interns' names.

"Congratulations, Mr. Lyman. It's so exciting isn't it? Noah
fell asleep about 2 hours ago, but A.J. is still awake in her room."

"Thanks for staying with them." He handed her some cash.
"You should go join the party."

"Really? Great. Goodnight, Mr. Lyman." Jenny! Her name is Jenny.

"Goodnight, Jenny." Josh watches with envy as she bounces, full
of energy, out the door. He runs his hand over his son's sleeping
form and tucks the blanket around him. He heard a noise behind him and
turned to see his daughter standing in the doorway.

"Hey, A.J." He smiled and held his hand out for his daughter.

"It's kind of wild isn't it?" his twelve year old
daughter asked him. "Sam is President-elect of the United
States."

"Pretty wild alright. Aren't you tired, kiddo?"

"I couldn't sleep. Did he write his own acceptance speech?"
AJ asked.

"Most of it. Toby helped him a little, and I got to throw my two
cents in, but most of it was what he wrote on his own."

"The reporters on the news tonight kept talking about how you and
Sam have been friends forever. They said he's going to make you
Chief of Staff again."

"Is there a question somewhere in there, AJ?" Josh prodded
gently as he held his daughter in his arms on the couch.

"Are you going to work in the White House again, Dad?"

"No, I promised your Mom that I wouldn't accept a position in
the White House if Sam was elected." Josh said carefully.

"That's not fair, Dad. You worked hard for Sam and Grace to get
elected and he needs you with him at the White House. Everybody says so.
Why does Mom have to ruin it for everybody?!"

"Abigail Joan, do not speak about your Mother like that. This was
not her decision; it was our decision."

"Sure it was." AJ mumbled.

"Why are you talking like this?"

"I'm not a baby, Dad. I've been campaigning with you all
summer and fall. I hear what everybody's saying."

"And just what is everybody saying, AJ?"

"That Mom didn't even want to campaign for Sam, that she's
pressuring you to get out of politics, and that you'll be divorced
by inauguration." Josh blinked at his daughter, literally stunned by
her speech.

"Nobody's getting divorced here, AJ. You should know better than
to listen to campaign gossip."

"It's not just gossip. I hear you and Mom arguing more and more.
She wanted you to quit after the convention. I heard you fighting about
it." AJ held her father's gaze. "Why didn't she want to
help Sam get elected?"

"AJ, you shouldn't listen in on private conversations." Josh
admonished her.

"That's all you're going to say about it?" AJ got up
from the couch to face her Dad.

"Your Mom and I have conversations that have nothing to do with you,
AJ. We are your parents, but that doesn't mean we owe you
explanations for all the decisions we make."

"You do when it affects the rest of us. When were you planning to
tell Noah and me we're moving to Connecticut?" There was fire in
his daughter's eyes now, and Josh had a moment to see the formidable
opponent his daughter would become.

"We will talk about plans to move, if and when that decision has
been made." Now the steel was back in Josh's voice. "I think
it's time for you to go to bed now." Josh stood up to kiss his
daughter goodnight, but she turned her head and walked away. Well,
Lyman, you seem to have made all the females in the family pissed
tonight. What an accomplishment.

Josh pulled out a bottle of beer from the fridge and popped it open
taking a large swig. When Donna returned to their suite, he had finished
his second bottle. Her gaze swept over the empties next to her husband
and he waited for her to comment, but she said nothing about them.

"You should get some sleep if you're meeting Sam at 10." She
leaned over to kiss her son's cheek.

"President-elect." Josh corrected her. Donna shrugged. "I
imagine it's that kind of reaction from you that had our daughter
asking me if we're getting divorced."

"Excuse me?" Donna's voice was frosty.

"AJ sat right here not 30 minutes ago and informed me that
she's heard all the gossip, as well as some of our more impassioned
arguments, and wants to know if we're going to divorce."

Tears formed in Donna's eyes. "What did you tell her?"

"I told her no one is getting divorced, and that sometimes married
people fight and those fights are private. She also asked about the move
to Connecticut." Josh responded.

Donna's head dropped down. "That was my fault. I was speaking to
your Mom, and talking about options. I didn't realize AJ had
overheard any of it."

"Well, she did. Maybe we shouldn't have brought the kids on the
campaign."

"Maybe none of us should have been on this campaign." Donna
retorted.

"Look at that, Donna." Josh insisted as he pointed to the
television still covering the victory party of the Seaborn/Matthews
ticket. "We did that together. That's no small thing,
Donnatella."

"No, and it has no small price, Joshua." Donna looked at her
husband briefly, then shook her head. "I'm going to bed."



Title: Expectations

Author: Cathy Miller (cam7192003@yahoo.com)

Rating: PG 13 (some language)

Setting: Future fic; Sam is married to Ainsley and running for
President/Josh and Donna are married and working the campaign.

Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah, they're not mine; please don't rub it
in.

Feedback: Almost as good as chocolate.

Part 2

FLASHBACK: 2 MONTHS BEFORE THE DEMOCRATIC CONVENTION:

"Who are you and why are you channeling Amy Gardner right now?"
Josh asked his wife and earned a slap upside the back of his head for
his questionable humor.

"She's right." Ainsley confirmed. "Grace Matthews is the
one Sam should be approaching about the VP spot. She's right
politically, personally, and geographically. Having a well respected
Senator from Illinois will open things up electorally."

"Now you're talking my language." Josh informed her.

"Ainsley neglected to mention how fired up women, who are in the
majority in this country, will be to have a woman in high office."
Donna pointed out.

"Yeah, I remember how much Geraldine Ferraro added to the Walter
Mondale ticket. How many states did they take again?....Oh yeah,
one!"

"You can't pin that on Ferraro. That had far more to do with
Mondale screwing up and Reagan catching fire than-" Donna retorted.

"What did I say about mentioning that name in my presence?" Josh
interrupted hotly while Donna smirked.

"What name? Mondale?...or was it RONALD WILSON REAGAN?" Donna
teased. Josh howled like he'd been burned. Ainsley shook her head
laughing.

"Stop torturing Josh, Donna." Ainsley requested. "We still
need him for the campaign. Besides, I'm sure he's re-thought his
position on approaching Matthews about the VP nod. Right, Josh?"
Ainsley confirmed.

"Congressman Rowley might be a better fit..." Josh hedged.

"Well he's in DC right now. Let's get you and Sam a ticket
into Reagan National and-" Ainsley offered keeping a straight face
as Josh covered his hears and howled again.

"Excuse me; are we done with open mic night? Does anyone care what
my opinion is?" Sam asked.

"That depends on whether or not you agree with your brilliant wife,
who I am sure you wish to share a bed with in the near future."
Ainsley told him.

"That could be construed as bribery, counselor...good thing for me
I do agree with you." He turned to Josh. "It's Matthews,
Josh. There isn't a single piece of doubt in my mind. We connected
at the debates; more each time we met. She's the one I want."
Josh read the seriousness in Sam's face and that weighed far more
heavily with him than Donna's or Ainsley's attempts at
persuasion.

"Matthews it is." Josh confirmed. "Normally, I'd make
the initial call, but I think in this case, it would be better if you
did the honors directly."

Sam looked at him quizzically. "You didn't get into a fight with
my Vice-Presidential nominee, did you Josh?"

"No!" Josh sounded indignant. "There was a misunderstanding
and she was not your nominee at the time. You should make that call
right away. It will generate some more free media as we ramp up for the
convention."

Sam decided against asking for details about the
`misunderstanding' for now. "Why do we need more free media
2 months out?"

"Locks up the convention, gets a buzz going before the Republican
convention gets underway, and then we get a second more significant bump
after our convention." Josh explained. "Ainsley, we're not
sure if President Bartlet is going to be well enough to address the
convention so we're pumping up Dr. B.'s appearance. I'd like
you to introduce her the second night. Sound good?"

"Sounds great!" Ainsley enthused. "If Donna will help me
with the remarks."

"Done." Donna promised. "I think we should include the
Bartlet daughters too. Make it about women's accomplishments and
active work in the party. It will be a nice build up to Grace Matthews
too." Josh just smiled at his wife.

"God, is it any wonder I love this woman. See how I taught her to
think strategically?" Josh bragged and got another cuff to his head.
"That was a compliment, honey."

"Yeah, to you, HONEY." Donna kissed his cheek. "Make your
phone call Samuel. We need to start making plans." Donna pulled Josh
up with her and they left the Seaborns to have some privacy.

"This time, it's going to be a smooth nominating convention
Donna." Josh bragged as he slung his arm around Donna's
shoulder.

"Cautious optimism, Joshua." Donna warned once again.

"I'm telling you, it's going to be a walk in the park!"
He kissed her as they made their way to the suite where their children
waited for them. "A walk in the park." He repeated.

PRESENT :THE MORNING FOLLOWING THE ELECTION:

At ten the next morning, Josh found himself across the table from
President-elect Seaborn and Vice-President elect Matthews. The room was
abuzz with staffers coming in and out with messages, press requests, and
schedule changes. Grace Matthews, in particular was peppering Josh with
all kids of questions regarding transition. Josh smiled at her energy
and enthusiasm, desperately wishing he had a small fraction of those
qualities himself. After an hour, Sam raised his voice.

"That's it everybody. Josh and I need the room." His
authoritative voice and serious face had the room empty in record time.
Grace was the only one who hesitated before leaving.

"We've hit every topic except the one that matters most to
me." Sam began. "I need you in the office next to mine,
Josh."

"Sir-"

"I know you've done the job before and I know it's asking a
lot for you to do it again, but I'm not sure I can do my job without
you doing that one."

"I told you, I'm honored that you'd ask and I wish I could,
but I simply can't, sir."

"A compromise; serve two years and then help me pick your successor.
That's reasonable."

"Very reasonable, sir, but I just can't."

"What the hell is going on Josh? You and Donna are stressed about
something, you've been distancing yourself from me and my family. I
don't understand what's wrong!"

"Sir, I need you to respect my decision on this and-"

"Would you please drop the `sir' bullshit? It's me, your
friend for over 30 years; just you and me in the room. I need you to be
my friend here and talk to me."

"Unfortunately, SIR, my friend is now also the President-elect of
the United States, and that regrettably changes how things work between
you and me. It changes how things work between you and everybody, save
maybe Ainsley." Josh stood up and gathered his things. "If
you'll excuse me sir, Vice-President elect Matthews asked me to go
over some staffing recommendations with her." Josh waited for
Sam's nod, which he reluctantly gave and then left the newly elected
President alone in the room.

A moment later, Amanda came in. "Sir, the Senator from Virginia is
on the line for you."

"Thanks Amanda." Sam replied and started to pick up the phone.
"Oh, Amanda, will you please get Donna Lyman up here as soon as
possible? I need 10 minutes."

"Yes, sir." Amanda told him and went to find Donna Lyman. Sam
figured if he couldn't get anything out of Josh, then maybe he could
get it out of Donna...He should have known better.

"Donna Lyman to see you, sir." Amanda announced.

"Thanks, Amanda, send her right in please. If my wife makes an
appearance send her in too, will you?"

"Yes, sir, but I haven't seen her at all yet this morning."

"Okay, but we're coming up on lunch now and I like my odds when
it involves my wife and food."

"Yes, sir." Amanda smiled as she motioned for Donna to come in.
The First Lady elect's predilection for food of any kind had been a
running joke during the campaign.

"Donna, thanks for coming up. Did you get any sleep last night?"
Sam asked as he rose to kiss her cheek.

"Not much, sir. You?"

"Not at all. I'm still running on adrenaline. How about Noah and
AJ?"

"Noah's whining a bit about Disney. It seems his Father made a
hasty promise involving the magic Kingdom and now he has to pay up. AJ
pretends to be indifferent about it, but I think she'd be thrilled
to have her Dad to herself for a change." Sam caught the tone in
Donna's voice even though the words were innocuous enough.

"I wanted to talk to you about Josh, as a matter of fact. He seems
like he's been a bit off lately; you both have. Is everything okay
with you two?"

"Fine, sir. Presidential campaigns are just a bit stressful."

"Not for Josh. Well, a bit for Josh, but it's the good kind of
stress."

"The good kind?" Donna repeated.

"He lives for it; thrives on it. You both do. But something's
been off for awhile now. If I had to guess I would say it was around the
time of the convention. What's going on Donna?"

"Nothing, sir." She lied right to his face.

"Okay, but if you want to talk about anything, you know I'm
here, right?" Donna gave him a tight smile and nodded her head.
"Fine, then help me talk your husband into accepting the Chief of
Staff position."

"I can't do that, sir. He's already made up his mind."

"That was before I came up with a brilliant compromise; he serves
for 2 years and grooms his handpicked Deputy as a successor. What do you
think?"

"I think it's only natural that you'd want Josh in that
office, he's very good at what he does, but he's already served
2 Presidents and given up over a year of his life to get you in that
office, so maybe he's earned a break now." Donna's voice had
turned strident.

"Donna, what the hell? If he doesn't want it, he doesn't
want it, but that's not the feeling I get when I talk to him. I get
the feeling that he wants it, but won't take it and I'd like to
know why."

"Then maybe you should ask him...sir." Donna replied.

"I have. All he will tell me is that he can't accept it and to
stop offering it."

"Well if he's your very dear friend then perhaps you should
consider respecting his decision and leave him alone!" Donna stood
up and walked to the door. When her hand made contact with the handle,
she turned her head slightly and quietly said, "With your
permission, sir?"

"Yeah." Sam agreed, still stunned by her outburst. Donna walked
out and nearly ran into Ainsley on her way in. They exchanged curt
`hello's' and Ainsley came in to see her husband.

"What was that about? Donna looked angry enough to spit nails."
Ainsley asked Sam.

"I'm not sure, Ains. Has Donna said anything to you about
Josh?"

"Nothing out of the ordinary. She's been pretty reserved lately,
though. Not her usual gregarious self. You think something's
up?"

"I know something's up. I just can't get them to tell me
what it is. God, I was just elected last night, and already they're
treating me like..."

"The President of the United States?" Ainsley offered.

"I don't want that with them Ainsley. They're our closest
friends and I feel like there's suddenly this wall between us."

"It's just going to take everybody a little time to adjust, is
all. It's a lot to take in."

"Not for Josh and Donna. They've been close friends to the
Bartlet's and the Santos'; what is so different with us?"

"Maybe it isn't us, but them." Ainsley suggested.

"What do you mean?"

"There have been some rumors, Samuel, about Josh and Donna."

"What about Josh and Donna? And why is this the first time I'm
hearing about it?"

"You were a little busy running for President, and they were just
rumors, but in light of what you're telling me, maybe they are more
accurate than I gave them credit for."

"What rumors, Ains?"

"That their marriage is in trouble. They've been overheard
fighting quite a bit and not the usual Josh/Donna banter fighting;
serious conflicts. Then there was the 3 weeks after the convention that
Donna left the campaign..."

"She went home to Wisconsin to see her family." Sam repeated
what he'd been told by Josh.

"Then why did the airline tags on her luggage say D.C.? I saw them
when she came back." Ainsley stopped at the surprised look on her
husband's face. "I'm just saying that you're taking this
too personally, baby. I think this has a lot more to do with the two of
them than the two of us." Ainsley gave Sam a quick kiss. "I
heard lunch was coming soon?"

"Yeah." Sam managed a smile as he took his wife's hand and
walked with her to the conference room where most of the staff had
gathered for lunch. Sam made small talk with his staff while he watched
Josh out of the corner or his eye. Josh looked sad and tired and Donna
was nowhere to be found. After about 20 minutes the Lyman children
invaded. Noah jumped unceremoniously on his dad's lap. AJ kept a
little more distance. Sam excused himself from his conversation and
moved over to AJ, putting his arm around her shoulder.

"I hear you're kidnapping my campaign manager and holding him
hostage on Space Mountain." He began.

"Is he still your campaign manager now that your campaign in
over?" she asked.

"You are your mother's daughter. Okay, my former campaign
manager. Is that better, Ms. Lyman?"

"It was Noah's idea. I could care less." AJ spouted off.

"Well, maybe there's a little of your dad in there." Sam
mused. "Cause you're too mature and cool to hang out in a Mickey
Mouse hat, right?"

"It might be worth it to see Dad hurl after Space Mountain if I had
a friend to go with me."

"I'd love to, kiddo, but I'm a little busy this week."
Sam teased.

"I meant Caitlin." AJ clarified mentioning Sam's oldest
daughter.

"I'm sure she'd love to go with you, but the Secret Service
would have a thing or two to say about that."

"They always do. I'm so sick of it!" AJ groused.

"It's a pain, I know, but in a few more weeks, once transition
is done, you won't have to deal with it anymore." Sam reminded
her.

"I doubt it." AJ said with some conviction. "Have you seen
my Mom?"

"Not since earlier this morning. You okay, AJ?"

"Yeah, I just want to go back home. Things will be better when we
get back home." Sam was about to ask her what she meant by that when
Noah bounced over to them in a manner that would make Tigger proud.

"He said we can go on Thursday! We're going on Thursday!"
Even AJ had to smile at his enthusiasm. "You want to go with us,
Sam?" the 9 year old asked.

"Mr. President-elect." AJ hissed at him.

"Sam is fine." Sam insisted. "Wish I could, buddy. But if
you can manage to take a few pictures of your dad doing embarrassing
things there, it could be worth big bucks to you."

"Alright!" Noah ran back to report his new lucrative business to
his dad. When he'd relayed the information, Sam saw Josh roll his
eyes and look over at Sam smirking.

"Who's going to be your Chief of Staff?" AJ asked him,
bringing him back to their conversation.

"What?" Sam asked surprised. "Are you working for the Post
now, AJ?"

"Danny Concannon said I can get a job as a stringer." AJ told
him.

"I'll bet...I haven't filled that position yet, AJ, are
you applying for the job?"

"No. None of us are; the Lyman's I mean. All the news channels
are saying it's going to be Dad, but he told me that's not
true."

"Not everything you hear on TV is true, Abigail, you know that,
right?" she nodded, but didn't meet his eyes. "I would be
thrilled to have your dad as my Chief of Staff, but he doesn't seem
to think it's a good idea right now."

Just then, Donna entered the room and Noah ran up to her to share his
news about Disneyland. She smiled at him and tousled his hair. She
looked over at Josh with her eyebrows raised and he gave her a tired
smile. After a few seconds, she gave him a full smile in return. Sam
observed all this with interest, more determined than ever to try to
help his friends through whatever they were dealing with.



Title: Expectations

Author: Cathy Miller (cam7192003@yahoo.com)

Rating: PG 13 (some language)

Setting: Future fic; Sam is married to Ainsley and running for
President/Josh and Donna are married and working the campaign.

Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah, they're not mine; please don't rub it
in.

Feedback: Almost as good as chocolate.

Part 3

FLASHBACK:1 MONTH PRIOR TO THE DEMOCRATIC CONVENTION:

The cacophony inside the Seaborn/Matthews headquarters was almost
deafening. Josh tried to ignore the extraneous noise as he concentrated
on the conference call he was on right now. Donna and the kids, who were
enjoying summer vacation, were on the road with Ainsley and the Seaborn
children and he hadn't seen them for nearly 2 weeks. Just hearing
Donna's voice on the call right now was enough to distract him from
the business at hand.

"Josh?" Alex, their media consultant, called to him; and not for
the first time.

"Sorry, where were we?" Josh asked.

"I was asking what you thought about moving Ainsley to the forum in
Arkansas instead of Grace." Donna repeated with some concern in her
voice. Josh looked over at Alex who nodded.

"Her numbers are climbing nicely there. We could better utilize
Grace at the energy innovation conference in Orlando." Alex
confirmed.

"Do it." Josh ordered. "Nice call, Donnatella. Governor, how
are you holding up?" Sam had come down with a little cold that had
been affecting his voice for the last couple days. They had tried to
keep his speeches to a minimum.

"Better." Sam told them. "I think I'm over the worst of
it."

"Glad to hear it. Keep drinking whatever it is that Annabeth is
making for you." Said Josh.

"Easy for you to say; you don't have to taste the
stuff...Josh, I think we need to prepare a statement for after
Roberts' speech on health care Friday." Roberts, the current
Republican President, was trying to steal their thunder on health care
as Sam was steadily climbing in the polls.

"Already on it, Governor. We'll have it for you to review in a
couple hours. Senator Matthews will be echoing your statement at her
events for the next few days too. Roberts is going to look like a tuba
player who can't keep up with the marching band by Friday." They
all laughed at that image. "The message of the day is.."

"Education reform." Came a chorus of voices on the conference
call. Josh laughed at the tone. "You got it. It's driving some
numbers people, so keep up the good work. Any questions or problems I
want a heads up before CNN. I'm at headquarters all day." Josh
paused. "Donna, can you stay on a minute?"

"Sure." Came the puzzled reply and everyone else hung up.
"What's up, Joshua?"

"I'm going to change your schedule. Get you back here by
Wednesday." Josh spoke in low tones so the others leaving the
conference room couldn't hear him as they left.

"Is there a problem?"

"Yes, I miss my family." Josh stated simply and Donna's
heart melted. "My bed is empty and I need a Donnatella fix. AJ and
Noah probably won't even recognize me when they get back."

"Don't be silly, they see you on TV almost every day." Donna
joked.

"Nice. I need you here with me, Donna. I'm changing your
schedule."

"Is that a question or an order?" she asked.

"Neither. Just a simple statement. Come home. I need to hold you, to
touch you, to-"

"I get the idea. Let's keep in mind that this call could be
monitored, shall we? If I can home early, what's in it for me?"
she asked.

"Have I not already mentioned the holding and the touching?"
Josh replied.

"Yes, but I can't help thinking that the holding and touching is
equally rewarding for you, so I ask again, what's in it for me?"
Josh rued the day he ever taught this woman to negotiate.

"Alright, coffee in bed for a week."

"Two weeks." She threw back without a beat.

"10 days." He countered.

"Done. Talk to you after the thing. Love you." And Donna hung
up. However, Josh could hear a chuckling on the line.

"You are so whipped, my friend." came the scratchy voice of
Governor Sam Seaborn.

"Sam! That is a total invasion of my privacy!" Josh was
mortified.

"Yeah, you should have a lawyer look into that." Sam teased.

"I AM a lawyer, how many times do I have to tell you people! I
should quit. I should get on a plane right now, retrieve my family,
and...and quit!" he ranted.

"You can't do that." Sam told him.

"Why the hell not?"

"Because I couldn't do this without you." Sam replied and
took the wind out of Josh's sails. "I'd be lost and
rudderless without you. You've done an amazing job with this
campaign."

"Thanks." Josh couldn't get anything else out past the lump
in his throat.

"Plus you have a contract that commits you through the convention.
Of course, there may be fine print; you should have a lawyer look at
it." Sam hung up laughing as Josh sputtered, laughing himself.

PRESENT: THURSDAY MORNING FOLLOWING THE ELECTION:

Sam and Grace were talking through cabinet positions Thursday morning
when there was a knock on the door and Jim Watson was announced. Watson,
the head of Sam's security team, had previously done most of his
reporting to and with Josh as he was the head of the campaign.
Subsequently, Sam hadn't had the opportunity to get to know him very
well.

"Mr. President-elect, I have the updated roster for the security
teams for your approval. Normally, I would give it to the incoming Chief
of Staff, but-"

"Since I don't have one yet... This is all new to me Jim, what
am I supposed to be looking for here?"

"Basically, if there are any staff changes you want to address
before we get to the White House, it would be best to go over them now.
We also have improvement plans for your home here in California you
should review with the First Lady elect, and the Vice-President's
detail is also in there..."

"I got it." Sam told him as he handed some of the pages to Grace
for her review. "Would you let the agents covering my children how
much we appreciate their patience and tolerance? Ainsley and I have been
very impressed."

"I will pass that along, sir. I'm sure they'll appreciate
you mentioning it."

"All these people are on my detail?" Sam asked incredulously.

"Yes, sir, the rest of the first family's detail is in the
second half of the document. When you name a Chief of Staff, they too,
will be covered with a smaller detail."

"Okay." Sam responds as he looks at the long list of names of
people whose job it is to protect him and his family.

"Sir, may I ask if Mr. Lyman is still under consideration for the
position?"

"That depends who you ask, Jim, why?"

"Just that if he takes the position, we'll need to co-ordinate
with his private security and that can complicate things."

"I'm sorry, his `private' security?"

"Yes, sir, not that they're not good people, I recommended them
to Mr. Lyman myself, it's just that more people means more
complications and more time to organize." Jim tried to back peddle.

"Since when does Josh- why does he have private security, Agent
Watson?"

Jim, recognizing he may have stepped in it, clamped his mouth shut.

"I think it might be better if you discussed this with Mr. Lyman,
sir." Jim told him.

"I think you work for me, and if you'd like to continue to work
for me, you'd better tell me what the hell this is all about!"

"Sam.." Grace admonished him, but Sam never broke eye contact
with special agent Watson.

"Mr. President-elect, these things are usually run through the
campaign manager and Mr. Lyman assured me that anything that needed to
be passed on to you, he would pass on to you."

"Okay, let's call those yesterday's rules. From now on
everything gets run past me, at least preliminarily; until I get my sea
legs on this stuff."

"Yes, sir. I will personally see that you get briefed daily until
directed otherwise."

"Josh Lyman is one of my oldest and dearest friends. His entire
family is- I want you to catch me up on what's been happening."

Sam and Grace listened intently as Special Agent Watson told them about
the threats and what was being done to protect the Lyman family. It was
quite a story.

THURSDAY FOLLOWING ELECTION DAY: DISNEYLAND

Donna watched as her husband got shakily to his feet having endured Mr.
Toad's Wild Ride. Noah was jumping up and down in excitement shoving
his map of Disneyland into his father's face. AJ had a sly smile on
her face which told Donna she might have made the ride a little
`wilder' for her dad than she had to.

She concentrated on her approaching family rather than the security
detail behind her; not that is was terribly difficult to do. The
security team was dressed casually and kept a respectful distance from
her family. The only giveaway to their real purpose in the Magic Kingdom
was the earpiece they wore which was barely discernable behind their
dark sunglasses; and the fact that they had no children attached to
them.

"You picked Toad's Wild Ride. I get to pick next and I want to
go on Pirates of the Caribbean." AJ argued.

"The Haunted Mansion is right on the way. See?" He offered his
map to prove his point.

Donna's eyes met Josh's and they shared a parental smile over
the normal sibling interaction. Donna knew that Josh taking this day off
for family, at the start of transition no less, was a peace offering of
sorts from her husband. She leaned forward and kissed him.

"Oooh, ick!" Noah exclaimed. "Don't do that here!"

AJ pretended disgust, but Josh could tell she was happy to see some
genuine affection between them. He was happy to feel it too.

"Pirates first, then God help me, the Haunted whatever thing."
His family laughed. They struck out towards New Orleans Square when his
cell phone rang and everyone froze.

"Joshua Lyman, you promised no cell phone today." Donna accused
as she shook her head. "You swore it would be just family with no
interruptions from work."

"I didn't even realize I had it, Donna, I swear. It must have
just been habit; grab the phone on the way out." He tried to
explain, but Donna took Noah's hand and began walking away from him.

"Dad, do something!" AJ implored.

"It was just an accident, AJ. It doesn't have to ruin our day.
I'm not even picking it up."

As if on cue, it began to ring again. Donna turned her head enough to
call to him. "Better get the phone Joshua or it will keep ringing
all day."

"What phone?" he asked in mock innocence. That stopped them in
their tracks. Donna slowly turned around to face him.

"The one that is currently ringing in your pocket." She said
dryly. Josh reached into his pocket and pulled out the phone, looking
surprised to find it there.

"How did a phone get in my pocket? I've never seen this thing
before in my life." He affirmed as he tossed the phone into the pond
they were passing. All 3 of them gaped as if he lost his mind.

Donna moved over toward the pond and looked into the water like she
could retrieve the phone if she could just locate it. "Josh your
phone- you just-" she gestured toward the water.

"I'm sure MY phone is at the hotel where I left it. Noah, which
way to the Pirate thing?" Noah laughed and pointed the correct
direction. AJ grabbed her father's hand and squeezed.

"Way to go Dad!" Josh basked in the glow of his children's
delight and enjoyed the fact that he could still surprise his wife of 13
years. She was still staring at the pond; frozen in one spot. Josh
reached back with his other hand and took Donna's. The trio followed
Noah's lead; each very happy with the direction the day was taking.

It was nearly midnight when the Lyman family dragged themselves into the
hotel they were staying at. Noah was riding piggy back on Josh who was
complaining about being used as a pack mule; AJ and Donna were holding
hands and conversing quietly with each other. They turned the corner of
the hallway towards their suite when Donna and AJ stopped abruptly
causing Josh and Noah to run into them. Josh then caught sight of the
Secret Service agents lining the hall outside their suite. He and Donna
exchanged a significant look, before she took Noah from him.

"I'll get the kids into bed." She promised as the Secret
Service opened their door for them. Josh nodded his agreement.

President-elect Sam Seaborn was seated in their living room reading a
stack of papers. He looked up as they entered.

"Looks like the Lyman family enjoyed Disneyland." He noted with
a sad smile.

"It was awesome." came the sleepy reply of Noah Lyman. "I
got great pictures too."

"Can't wait to see them." Sam responded without looking at
Josh.

"Say goodnight, guys." Donna prompted. The children complied and
were escorted into the bedroom. Josh wearily sat on the couch opposite
Sam and prepared himself for what was coming. Sam tossed down the Secret
Service report reviewing the threats to Joshua Lyman and his family on
the coffee table between them and they made a loud snapping sound that
startled Josh.

"So, I got my Secret Service detail report this morning." Sam
began.

"I didn't think you needed to concern yourself with that when
you had just gotten the nomination. I handled it just fine myself."

"Handled what, Josh? Credible threats against my best friend and his
family? That was what you decided was beneath my notice?" Sam lashed
out.

"Sam, it wasn't-" Josh tried to explain.

"Excuse me?" Sam interrupted. Josh's eyes went wide for a
second when he understood Sam was insisting on being called
`sir' or `Mr. President'.

"SIR, it wasn't that I thought it was beneath your notice."
Josh took a deep breath. "There was simply nothing more that could
be done than was being done. Worrying you served no purpose."

"How about lying to me about where Donna and the kids went after the
convention. Did that serve a purpose?"

"Yes, sir, it did." Josh maintained. "It kept my family safe
and kept your campaign from being derailed."

"What a load of shit. Donna didn't want you on the campaign
anymore, did she? That's why there has been all this tension between
you. Why there are rumors of marital problems? Are they just rumors,
Josh, or is that nothing I should concern myself with either."

"Don't speak to him that way, Samuel." Donna rejoined them
in the living area.

"Donna." Josh tried to stop her tirade.

"I may not have agreed with his decisions, but he made the decisions
he did with your best interests in mind, and those decisions are what
landed you in the White House. So don't speak to him like that."
Donna's eyes flashed.

"You're really not helping the situation Donatella, and can I
just say...you pick `now' to get on my side?"

"I am not on your side, exactly, just more on your side than his
right now." She answered.

"And `his side' being the side of the President-elect."
Josh clarifies.

"Don't start with me, Joshua."

Sam lets out a loud whistle and they both turned to him.

"Over here, you two." Once Sam was satisfied he had their
attention he continued. "Did you not think I would hear about this
at some point? Did you not think I would be terribly hurt that you kept
this from me?" Donna merely looked at Josh, waiting for him to
reply.

"I didn't want to put anything else on your plate. It was being
handled...sir."

Sam managed a laugh. "Only you can make that sound like an insult
Josh."

"If you're done defending my honor, will you excuse us for a
minute, Donna?" Josh asked her simply. She acquiesced and after
throwing a glare at Sam, she went back in the bedroom.

"All this.." Josh waved a hand at the reports on the table.
"..has pumped up my blood pressure quite a bit. My doctors are
recommending taking some time off. That's why I couldn't accept
the COS position. I promised Donna once the election was over, I would
take time off and try to get things back under control. She wasn't
happy with the decision to stay on as campaign manager, but I think part
of her knew me well enough to know that even if I quit after the
convention, I would still have stress problems watching from the
sidelines. I think she decided it might actually improve the stress if I
had some control over the situation."

"Tell me how it started." Sam demanded.

"You read the reports. I'm sure they are very thorough."

"I read the reports. Tell me how it started." Sam insisted. Josh
got up and grabbed two beers from the frig in the kitchenette. He opened
them and handed one to Sam.

"The first I heard about it was two weeks before the
convention..." Josh began.



Title: Expectations

Author: Cathy Miller (cam7192003@yahoo.com)

Rating: PG 13 (some language)

Setting: Future fic; Sam is married to Ainsley and running for
President/Josh and Donna are married and working the campaign.

Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah, they're not mine; please don't rub it
in.

Feedback: Almost as good as chocolate.

A/N: Huge, incredibly big thanks to Amy for the incredible job she does
as my beta. I give her a lot of work and she never fails to add some
brilliant kernel or two. Also, thanks to Rick for helping set the tone
in the initial chapters and helping me define the story plot better.

Part 4

FLASHBACK TO 2 WEEKS PRIOR TO THE DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL CONVENTION:

"Mr. Lyman, may I have a word with you privately, please?"
Special Agent Jim Watson requested.

"I need the room please, people." Josh told the assembled team.
"Have a seat. How are we set for the convention?" he asked as
the room cleared out.

"I've briefed Senator Matthews and her family. They're
getting acquainted with their detail." Josh smiled at the thought of
Secret Service trying to keep up with the Matthews children, ages 6 and
8. They were adorable, but their energy was boundless.

"Who drew the lucky straw on that one?" Josh shared a look of
commiseration with the Special Agent.

"I really couldn't say, sir." Watson refrained from any form
of complaint. "The convention center will be locked down 1 week out
and we've prepared for the arrival of President's Santos and
Bartlet." Josh hoped like hell, President Bartlet would be able to
attend, but his health had been pretty shaky lately and he wasn't
able to make a firm commitment. Still, it would mean the world to Sam if
he came, even if he was unable to speak to the convention.

"Great. If that's all then..." Josh started to get up.

"It's not." Agent Watson told him as he held onto Josh's
arm to prevent him from leaving. "Another situation has
developed." He was unusually grave, even for Secret Service.

"What?" Josh asked, dread filling his stomach. If anything
happened to Sam after Josh practically dragged him into this race.

"We have established a credible threat that needs immediate
attention. It involves the West Virginia White Pride." Agent Watson
let that sink in for a moment and saw Joshua Lyman pale at the
statement. "There are always rumblings from that quarter, but recent
events lead us to believe they will be responsible for a violent attack
within the next two weeks."

"We're going to need additional security then. Sam's
children are out of the building right now. Should they be out of the
building?" Josh asked panicked.

"The threat isn't against Governor Seaborn or his family.
It's been made against you and yours." Josh stood up and walked
over to the phone, intent on calling Donna immediately. Agent Watson put
his hand over the phone. "Your wife and children are with the
Seaborn family and completely secure right now. It's not my call,
sir, but you may want to wait and get the full briefing before you alarm
your wife."

Josh nodded and sat down again.

"Carl Leroy was killed in prison 8 years ago." Watson stated and
handed Josh a pile of papers that Josh assumed was the information
gathered so far. Josh nodded.

"Believe me Agent, I am well aware of when Carl Leroy was killed in
prison."

"I'm sure you are sir. His youngest sibling, James Leroy, has
become something of a cult hero within WVWP over the last decade. His
rise to leadership in the organization coupled with your increased
prominence over the last few months have brought you to the top of their
hit list. The talk is that they should finish what Carl Leroy and his
merry band started all those years ago."

"We are working with the FBI who have two agents that have
infiltrated their organization. They attended a meeting last night where
specific plans were mentioned but not elaborated upon. They are
attempting to gather more specifics, but due to the nature of their long
term undercover operation, they can't make arrests and blow their
cover at present."

"So what DO we know?" Josh felt his breath quicken and his heart
speed up just talking about this.

"We know you are a target and that your family is a target.
Presently, we believe that the threats are in that order, but we
can't rule out an attack against your family if the circumstances
change."

"We need to leave, then. Right now. Staying here only endangers Sam
and his family; not to mention anyone else who happens to be standing
next to me."

"Actually sir, this might be the safest place for you and your
family to be. Traveling with the Democratic nominee means that
everywhere you go and everything you do is blanketed with security. We
can bump up security around you without seeming to bump it up at all. We
don't feel the Seaborn family is at any increased risk with your
presence."

`Let me think a minute." Josh rose and walked to the windows,
then thought better of his location and moved away. "I want my
family away from here. Can you make some recommendations for private
security for them?"

"Certainly. Will they be going back to D.C. or someplace else?"
Watson inquired.

"D.C. I guess. I can't really send them to Donna's family in
Wisconsin if the WVWP might follow them there." Josh mused out loud.

"I took the liberty of doing a preliminary review of your property
there. It was secured before when you served as COS to President Santos,
so re-establishing security there wouldn't be terribly difficult.
Any security team would want a few days head start before you got there,
though." Watson paused. "The other consideration is that we
don't want to tip them off about the information we already have. If
you suddenly send your family home, blanketed in security, it might
cause them to up the ante or wait you out until security relaxes
again."

"So what do I do? How do I keep my family safe?!" Josh started
to lose his cool.

"I would advise you to stay through the convention and give whomever
you bring in for security time to establish a perimeter around your home
in D.C. In the meantime, we up the detail here and hope there is a break
in the case through the FBI. They are our best bet to an endgame
here."

"Endgame!" Josh laughed harshly. "There is no endgame. You
take all these guys out today, they will just be replaced with another
crop by tomorrow."

"True enough, but that doesn't mean we have to change how we go
about our lives."

"Our lives? You mean my life; my family's life."

"Yes, sir. That's what I mean. If you can arrange a time for me
to sit down with you and the Governor I can go over our strategies with
both of you at once."

"That won't be necessary." Josh told him.

"Generally, we work through the campaign manager, but usually
candidates like to be kept apprised of changes in the detail and
security strategies."

"I'll keep the Governor apprised of anything he needs to know.
Otherwise this will become too much of a distraction. He needs to keep
his head in the game."

"Okay, Mr. Lyman. Please review the materials I brought you and let
me know if you have any additional questions or concerns. In the
meantime, I'll put together a list of top security firms in the D.C.
area. It will be easier to keep things low key if you're working
with a local firm."

"You can get that to me soon?" Josh asked.

"Within the hour, sir." Watson replied. "I know this is
alarming Mr. Lyman, but please keep in mind that the Secret Service will
assist in any way we can to keep you and your family safe."

"Thanks." Josh looked down at his hands as they picked up the
papers Agent Watson had delivered and noted that they were shaking.

When Josh didn't meet her for lunch as they'd planned, she was
annoyed but not alarmed. When she tried to reach him by cell and only
got voicemail her annoyance increased. `The man has caller ID on his
phone.' she thought, `surely he could at least call me
back.' She checked the conference rooms, then the pool area, and
finally decided to check the restaurant. She had to walk through the bar
area to get to the restaurant and almost walked right by him. He was
hunched over at a table staring into what looked like a glass of
Whiskey. It didn't appear to be his first either. His eyes were
glazed and he looked disoriented.

"Joshua? What are you doing?" Donna couldn't believe her
eyes.

"Donna. My beautiful Donnatella. Come have a drink with me." He
motioned for her to sit down next to him and called to the bartender for
another glass.

"Josh it's 2 in the afternoon. We have prep for the convention
the rest of the day."

"Well, I'll tell you.." he slurred, "I sincerely doubt
we'll be here for the convention, so I thought I'd drink a
little." He took her hand and kissed it. "I love you so
much."

"Josh you're scaring me, now. What's going on?" Donna
took his chin in her hand and forced him to meet her eyes.

"No, no, no. Let's have a drink first." Josh implored.

"You've had too much already. Come upstairs with me. AJ and Noah
are with Natalie and the Seaborn kids."

Josh laughed a little. "Oh, I know." Donna gave him another
strange look.

"Come upstairs with me now, Joshua." Donna tried to get him to
stand up.

"It's the middle of the day, Donna. What will people say?"
He joked, but Donna was focused on moving him out of the bar where
anyone could see him; so focused in fact, that she didn't notice the
agents fall in behind them as she hurriedly took him to their suite.

She listened to him ramble as she led him upstairs and into their suite.
She didn't want anyone to see Sam Seaborn's campaign manager
sloshed at 2 in the afternoon; for everyone's sake. Once they were
inside, Josh took Donna by the hand and led her into their bedroom. She
protested at first until she actually entered their room and saw the
mess inside. There were papers everywhere; on the bed, on the floor,
even a couple taped to the wall. What the hell?

"Josh?" she whispered. "Please tell me what's
happening."

"It's bad, Donnatella, very bad." His words were still
slurred, but he seemed to have sobered up instantly. "Agent Watkins
came to see me this morning...They've established a credible
threat..." Donna started to hear buzzing in her ears. She leaned
closer to the nearest pile of papers and began skimming. Donna Moss
Lyman had made a career out of skimming important documents and gleaning
the important facts from them in a fraction of the time it took most
people and now she took advantage of that skill.

FBI agents infiltrating West Virginia White Pride headquarters...James
Leroy, youngest brother of Carl Leroy convicted of...killed while
serving his sentence in Federal prison...targeting former White House
Chief of Staff Joshua Lyman...wife Donnatella Moss Lyman and children
Abigail Lyman, age 12, and Noah Lyman, age 9, are also considered
valuable targets...verified sources document plans of violent attack
against primary and secondary targets...Recommend immediate secondary
security enforcement for all possible targets.

Donna starts to feel nauseous and dizzy all at once. Then a horrible
thought occurs to her and she reaches for the phone. Josh stops her with
one sentence.

"They're fine. They're with the Seaborns for the day and
under Secret Service protection until I can arrange for private security
to take over. Technically, Secret Service isn't supposed to be
detailing us, but since they are with the Seaborns...Who do you think
sounds better... `Task Force Consulting' or `Delta Group
Security'?" he asks as he lies back down on the bed. "I know
all kinds of things, Donna, I am a very well educated man; but I
don't know how to begin to hire a private security firm to protect
my family from ignorant bigots with weapons."

"God, Josh. What- what do we do?" Tears leaked from Donna's
eyes.

"I'm being advised to conduct business as usual until security
precautions can be arranged at home, but I'm having a little trouble
with business as usual. Once it's set up, you and the kids go back
to D.C. for whatever trumped up reason we can come up with and I get Sam
elected to the White House."

"Josh.."

"Well, I and a few other people get Sam elected to the White
House."

"What does Sam have to say about this brilliant plan?"

"Sam is a little busy running for high office right now, Donna. He
doesn't need any of this. There isn't anything he can do that
I'm not doing already."

"Is that the excuse you use to justify not telling him, cause
I've got to tell you Josh that's bullshit." Josh opened his
eyes but didn't move from where he was still lying on the bed;
mostly because he didn't think he could. "And the children and I
going home without you? That's bullshit too. We go as a family or
stay as a family."

"No, we don't. You are all far safer keeping your distance from
me at this point."

"And that will be some sort of consolation to me when you're in
the hospital? Or the

morgue? `Well, at least the kids and I are safe.' I know
you've been drinking, but you're not that drunk. How could you
think, for one single moment, that I would take the kids and go?"

"Because I'm telling you to go, damnit!" Josh sat up too
quickly and felt his stomach roll. "I can't do what I need to do
here if I'm constantly worried about you and the kids."

"Then you come home too." Josh started to protest. "I mean
it; you come too or no one goes anywhere. And don't tell me this
campaign can't run without you; you're good, I will even go so
far as to say you're the best, but Sam is the best too, and he can
get this done without you...without us." Donna took his hand and
pleaded with him.

"Maybe, but I'm not going to go home with my tail between my
legs and run scared from these assholes, Donna. I refuse." Josh met
her gaze. "I can't do much in this situation, but I'll be
damned if I'm going to go home and do NOTHING."

"Josh, please, it may seem like doing nothing, but keeping yourself
safe is NOT doing nothing. It's everything! It's everything to
me, to AJ, to Noah, and to Sam. Please don't do this."

"I told Jim Watson to pick a firm and have them start
doing...whatever it is that they do immediately. Everyone stays put
until after the convention and then the three of you go home. That's
it." Josh got up and left the suite. Donna cried silently as she
picked up the papers from around the room and embarked upon the arduous
task of reading through them.



Title: Expectations

Author: Cathy Miller (cam7192003@yahoo.com)

Rating: PG 13 (some language)

Setting: Future fic; Sam is married to Ainsley and running for
President/Josh and Donna are married and working the campaign.

Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah, they're not mine; please don't rub it
in.

Feedback: Almost as good as chocolate.

Part 5

PRESENT - 2 DAYS AFTER THE ELECTION; FINISHING THE CONVERSATION WITH
SAM

"Tell me, do you ever get tired of Donna being right all the time
and you being wrong?" Sam asked his friend when Josh finished
telling his story. Josh grimaced. "Seriously, you were so far off
base there. You know that right?"

"No, sir, I don't. It bought us some time, kept everyone safe
and got you in the White House."

"We could have got it done anyway. We would have got it done, but I
guess that's water under the bridge at this point. We need to have a
game plan moving forward."

"There is no plan, sir. We're going back to D.C. and I'm
going to take some time off; drop out of sight for awhile. Then, like
rabid dogs, these assholes will rapidly lose interest in me and move on
to a more visible target."

"No, that's not the plan...First, you're going to sign
this." Sam handed him a paper. Josh quickly skimmed it and saw it
was a Presidential authorization for Secret Service protection for
senior Presidential advisor Joshua Lyman and his family. "Being
President-elect has its' privileges. Next, you're doing a sit
down with Danny who will be here tomorrow morning. We are going to tell
him all about this story and generate some media which will be followed
up by a personal statement from my office."

"Sam-"

"Shut up. You tried this your way; now we're doing it mine.
I'm telling you that by the time we're done with this, West
Virginia White Pride is going to be feeling so much heat that
they're going to think they're in an oven set to
`broil'."

"Sir, I think you need to re-consider that course of action. The
first 100 days in office are the most critical and you can't waste
the political capitol you have protecting your friends."

"The hell I can't. I had a gifted campaign director, who risked
his life getting me elected by the way, who told me that crime
legislation should be one of my first major pushes out of the gate. I
think he's right and I think this is the perfect example of how it
affects American citizens. They want a fight? Fine, let's bring it
to them."

"Someone has watched `The Untouchables' too many times."
Josh mused out loud. "I promised Donna I wouldn't work in the
White House. I'm already in enough trouble with my wife, I can't
break this promise."

"It says senior advisor. You can advise me from your cell phone
sitting on a beach for all I care; but you're going to take it and
you're going to sign this." Sam insisted. "I'll work it
out with Donna." Josh raised his eyebrows in doubt. "Okay,
Ainsley will work it out with Donna."

"I really don't think this is a good idea." Josh protested.

"I really don't care. We'll call it an executive order. Sign
the paper, Josh." Sam held his gaze until Josh picked up the pen.

"You know, for a guy who was pretty concerned about taking on the
authoritative role of the President just a few short months ago,
you've certainly adjusted to the part." Josh told him as he
signed the paper and handed it to Sam.

"I swear, if you ever keep something like this from me again..."
Sam gave him a look and Josh swore he could see a little of Jed Bartlet
in it.

"Yes, sir, Mr. President-elect."

"Damn right." Sam replied with a wicked grin that made female
hearts swoon across the country.

"Boy, are you stupid!" come the dulcet tones of CJ Cregg
Concannon.

"CJ, so good of you to join us." Josh states as he gets up from
the table he's been seated at with Danny Concannon. Instead of the
hug he's anticipating, she hits him upside the head with her purse.
"Yeah, I didn't miss that so much."

"We're trying to work here, Ceej. Can you wait until I'm
done interviewing him before you maim him?" Danny asks without
missing a beat in his note taking. "Another 10 minutes...maybe
20." Danny turned back to Josh. "How have the kids handled all
this?"

CJ remained silent, but took a seat at their table; both men ignored her
for the time being.

"At present, they believe that we need extra security because of our
proximity to the First Family elect. AJ has fought us on it a bit, but
Noah goes along with everything very well. I'm afraid with this
story coming out soon we're going to have to have a serious
discussion in the very near future."

"Tell me about the statement Sam's- sorry, the
President-elect's office is putting out this week."

"The President-elect is asking certain members of Congress to send
him a bill that will make it easier for law enforcement to arrest and
convict on conspiracy charges. The problem has usually centered on the
right to free speech; even deplorable, ignorant Neanderthals like the
members of the West Virginia White Pride have the right to free speech.
So how do we allow for free speech while protecting American citizens
from the violent results of attacks provoked by that speech?" Josh
was in his element now. Danny didn't have to ask a thing; he just
kept writing.

"Most industrialized countries in the world are ahead of the US in
legislating speech that incites violence. In Canada, advocating genocide
or inciting hatred against any 'identifiable group' is an indictable
offense. You'll find similar criminal codes in France, Germany,
Ireland, Australia, the United Kingdom and many other countries."

"So you're saying we're behind the ball on this issue
internationally?" Danny asked.

"I'm saying that the United States should reassert itself as a
leader in human rights and set an example for criminalizing speech that
incites violence. The President-elect is committed to keeping the
citizens of this country from being harmed as a result of hateful speech
which is used to provoke violent behavior."

"When these people who have threatened you and your family are
caught, what kind of punishment do you think would be appropriate?"

"Luckily for them, I don't have input on that decision, but this
isn't about me and my family. The President-elect reduced crime and
made daily life safer for the citizens of California when he was
Governor and he will do the same thing nationwide as President. America
is a pluralistic society, and we do best when we embrace that pluralism
instead rejecting certain factions."

"Thanks Josh. I got all I need." Danny turned off his recorder
and closed his notebook. "You really doing okay?"

"It's been a pretty stressful campaign, but things are starting
to look up. The President-elect has really lit a fire under the FBI and
the consensus seems to be that it's only a matter of time until
these assholes are under lock and key."

"You didn't actually answer my question there, Josh." Danny
noted.

"I'm skating on thin ice right now Danny. I feel like one more
crack and Donna will be checking me into a padded room." Josh
admitted.

"Yet another reason you might have leveled with your friends and
gotten some support." CJ interjected.

"It wasn't a personal insult, CJ. I did what I thought was best
for my family and my friends. However, I will admit that I'm glad
that it's all in the open now. The President elect has been like an
avenging angel ever since he found out."

"He seems to have adjusted to his new role very well." Danny
stated.

"He's going to be great, Danny, I mean really great. I thought
he was good before, but something happened during the campaign and he
just caught fire. Who'd have thought, eh CJ?"

"You did, mi amour. That's 3 men you've helped put in the
White House. I'm afraid your ego may grow to even larger
proportions, if that's possible. How about using your considerable
skill to put a woman in the White House?" CJ proposed.

"Maybe someday, but AJ won't be eligible to run for another 30
years and by then I may be too old to hit the campaign trail. Or have
you changed your mind about running?" Josh teased. He had tried many
times to convince CJ to run for office, but she never wavered.

"Not on your life...sorry, that was thoughtless of me." CJ was
instantly contrite. "I didn't-"

"Please don't tiptoe around me Claudia. I wouldn't know how
to take that from you." Josh reasoned. CJ smiled and relaxed a bit.

"Mr. Lyman?" They were interrupted by one of the security
agents. "I just received word from one of my people that your
daughter has made an unescorted trip out of the building. We don't
think she's gone far, but-"

"You've lost her?" Josh was on his feet in an instant and
heading toward the hotel lobby with CJ and Danny in tow.

"We didn't lose her; she deliberately evaded our agent.
She's only been missing 2-3 minutes. This is the danger we talked
about in not telling her the specific reasons behind additional
security."

"Find my daughter first; lecture me on my parenting later." Josh
snapped. They were joined in the lobby by Donna and another agent.

"Josh?!" Donna couldn't get the words out.

"It's going to be okay, Donna. She just slipped out a minute
ago, she won't have gone far and then we are going to have a serious
conversation with both our children." Donna nodded her agreement.
They had had serious disagreements about what to tell the kids and it
had been Donna who had fought to keep them ignorant of as much as
possible. She just couldn't tell the children their lives might be
in danger or explain the hateful things that were being said about their
family.

Josh paced and Donna stayed within reach of the lead agent so she could
overhear the reports he was getting. In reality, the whole event lasted
less than ten minutes, but for two worried parents, it seemed
significantly longer. The female agent who had been assigned to AJ
returned through the lobby doors, leading a sullen AJ by the elbow.
Donna and Josh both let out a sigh of relief and enveloped their
daughter in a hug.

"I just wanted to be by myself for few minutes." AJ explained.
"I've been followed for months and I just wanted a little
privacy. It wasn't like I was with Caitlin." She reasoned
thinking if she wasn't with the eldest Seaborn daughter she really
didn't need security anyway.

"Abigail Joan Lyman you know-" Donna was stopped mid-sentence by
her husband.

"Let's take this upstairs." He turned to one of their agents
and asked them to have Noah brought to their suite. By the time they
arrived upstairs, Noah was already waiting for them.

Josh sat the children down on either side of him while Donna sat across
from the trio.

"We need to talk to you about some things that have happened and the
reason we need to take security very seriously right now." Josh
started to outline, in very general terms, what the threat was to their
family and what everyone was doing to help keep them safe. Both kids
were visibly shaken, but AJ, realizing what her impromptu solo trip
really meant today started crying.

"I'm sorry Daddy, I didn't mean to scare you guys, I just
wanted to go the shop next store for a little while by myself. I
won't do it again, I promise." Josh pulled her closer.

"I know you won't, AJ. You didn't know the whole story, and
that was our decision. There are going to be a lot of people who will
want to talk to us over the next few days, maybe weeks, as this story
comes out. Most people are going to be wonderful; supportive and caring,
but there will be some people who will say hateful things, horrible
things about me and our family. You need to know those hateful people
aren't anyone we are going to pay attention to or respond to."

"Your Dad and I have very smart people working for us who will keep
us safe, but we need to listen to these people; each of us needs to
listen and obey their rules. Do you both understand?" Donna added.

Both children nodded as there was a knock at the door which was quickly
opened to admit Sam and Ainsley Seaborn.

"We heard y'all were having a party down here." Ainsley
smiled. "Abigail, next time you want to go shopping, come get me.
You know how I love to shop."

"Yes, Ma'am." AJ smiled through her tears. Sam knelt in
front of the kids.

"I promise you two that I will do everything possible to make sure
your family stays safe. Got it?"

"Yes, sir." AJ answers.

"When you move into the White House, can't you have your men
just shoot those guys who want to hurt us?" Noah asked him.

"That's not how it works, kiddo, but we can make sure those guys
go to jail and never hurt anybody again." Sam looked over at Josh.
"Danny tells me you gave him quite the exclusive. You ready to do
this?"

"Yeah. It feels good to be going on the offense for a change. You
may have been right about that."

"Just remember that next time you're tempted to doubt your
Commander in Chief."

"I think I've created a monster." Josh groused.

"We've got pizza coming upstairs and the Matthews are joining us
too. We invited CJ and Danny but I don't know if they want to brave
the kid zone." Ainsley told them. CJ and Danny were enjoying some
`couple time' while their son stayed with Danny's family.

"Well, I am." Josh replied. "And I'm hungry too. I get
especially hungry when the President-elect is buying. Let's go."
Everyone rose to go get pizza, but AJ stayed behind and asked her mother
to wait.

"This has been what all the fights have been about, isn't it?
With you and Dad?"

"Yes, AJ. We've had some pretty heated arguments about how to
take care of our family, but you need to know that there has never been
a minute that I considered leaving your dad or divorcing...never. It
hurt me very much that you thought that I might. I love your Dad with
all my heart and have loved him as long as I can remember. Nothing is
going to change that."

"I heard you tell him that he was being selfish; that he was only
thinking of himself and what he wanted. You told him he couldn't be
Sam's Chief of Staff." AJ saw the question in her mother's
eyes. "It was the night we were in Illinois when we got back after
the convention." Donna nodded her encouragement to AJ to continue.
"Dad was so sad after that. I thought you were making him quit
politics because you didn't want to do it anymore; or because you
didn't believe in Sam anymore...I was really mad at you."

"I know." AJ looked up at Donna in surprise. "I know you
Abigail, better than you know yourself, and I know how much you love and
admire your father. He told me you asked him if we were going to divorce
and he told me about the gossip you'd been hearing. I'm sorry
you heard such garbage. People who love each other still disagree and
still fight. Your dad and I have argued with each other since the day we
met, so I don't see that ever changing, but that doesn't mean
our marriage is in trouble. I know that's hard to understand."

"I think I understand what you're saying. I just wanted to tell
you I'm sorry for having a bad attitude around you. It wasn't
your fault and I'm sorry I blamed you." Donna held her daughter
in her arms and enjoyed the moment of peace between them. AJ had always
seemed to be more Josh's daughter than hers, but she knew her
daughter loved her and had been genuinely troubled by the strain in the
family.

"Hungry?" she asked AJ as she pulled her out of the embrace.

"I could eat pizza."



Title: Expectations

Author: Cathy Miller (cam7192003@yahoo.com)

Rating: PG 13 (some language)

Setting: Future fic; Sam is married to Ainsley and running for
President/Josh and Donna are married and working the campaign.

Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah, they're not mine; please don't rub it
in.

Feedback: Almost as good as chocolate.

Part 6

Danny's story and the President-elect's statement had created
the anticipated whirlwind of press attention and public outcry. For the
next several weeks the Lyman family was stalked by press and public
alike, but none of them gave any additional statements except when Noah
told some reporters to get off their lawn before his agent accidentally
shot one of them; a line he'd often heard his Father threaten at the
dinner table. Donna wasn't sure if it was Noah's threat or the
dead eyed glare of the agent standing behind him but the press did get
off their lawn.

By mid-December some of the furor had died down and the Lyman family had
become accustomed to their security as a matter of course. Tension in
the Lyman household had greatly been reduced as soon as Sam had named
William White, former Deputy Chief of Staff under Santos, as his Chief
of Staff. Josh continued to advise Sam on various matters and was a
frequent visitor to the White House, but as promised, Ainsley talked
Donna off the ledge on that issue and everyone seemed comfortable with
the new order.

Two weeks prior to the inauguration, the President-elect, the
Vice-President elect, Bill White, most of the cabinet and senior advisor
Joshua Lyman were meeting about the legislative agenda. Josh was in a
particularly good mood since the day before when he'd been informed
that two arrests had been made regarding his case. Maybe this was all
coming to an end. Josh watched Bill White and was pleased to see that he
was making sure Sam looked at each angle of every topic they were
considering. Agent Watson came in and handed a note to Sam who then made
eye contact with Josh and motioned to the door.

"Ladies and gentlemen, please continue. I'm needed next door for
minute." Sam excused himself and ushered Josh into his office in the
OEOB.

"This about the arrests yesterday?" Josh asked them as they
moved into the office.

"Josh, everyone is fine; Donna and the kids are safe at home."
Josh thought that wasn't an auspicious way for Sam to start to this
conversation. The door opened again and Toby came in. Toby had been
abducted from his office at Columbia where he was now a tenured
professor, to help write the inaugural address.

"What's going on, sir?" Josh looked between the 3 men in the
office until Agent Watson spoke.

"There was an explosion in the parking lot of your son's
elementary school. There was some structural damage, but no one was
hurt. Your family was nowhere near the school when it occurred."
Josh felt Toby's hand on his shoulder as the Agent continued.
"Our agents found the device earlier and had cleared the area. They
had just begun procedures to disarm the device when it was set off. We
believe there was someone nearby watching the procedure and attempted to
injure the agents on the scene."

"I need to get home. Does Donna know about this?' Josh asked as
he got to his feet.

"Donna's been briefed and AJ was pulled from her middle school.
They're all at home. Agent Watson will get you there to see
them." Sam assured him.

"I need to call Mom. If she hears this on the news..." Telling
his Mom about the death threats had been difficult enough. He'd
promised to keep her informed of everything that happened, no matter how
frightening the circumstances.

"You can call her on your cell while you are on your way to the
house. Come on, I'll ride over with you." Toby told him.

"There is some good news in this, Mr. Lyman. There was a great deal
of physical evidence at the scene this morning that the agents were able
to preserve before the explosion; including ...fingerprints of James
Leroy. We've got a drag net set up around the perimeter of the
school. It's only a matter of time now."

Josh just looked at him solemnly before leaving the room with Toby.

When the men arrived at Josh's home, Toby stood back a minute and
let Donna and Josh have a private moment.

"Everybody's okay?" he confirmed and Donna nodded.

"We simply told them there was a security problem and they needed to
come home. My God, Josh; an elementary school?" Donna shook her
head. "I don't know when this is ever going to end."

"Agent Watson said they were able to get some good evidence today.
This IS going to end Donna. Where are the children?"

"In the family room. We're playing a game of Monopoly.
They'll be so glad to see you. AJ has been especially worried about
where you were." Donna led him by the hand toward the family room.
Then she blinked and noticed Toby standing just inside the door.

"Toby! You didn't need to come all the way out here. You're
doing important work right now." She gave him a huge hug which,
surprisingly, he returned.

"The speech can wait. Hell I can do it from here. I wanted to see
all of you for myself."

"You're a good friend, Toby. It means the world to Josh that
you're here; both at the White House and in our lives here."
Toby self-consciously ran the back of his hand down her cheek.

"He really won the lottery when you hired yourself for his office
all those years ago." He winked.

"You should remind him of that at regular intervals. Come on in.
Maybe Noah will let you be the racecar."

3 DAYS BEFORE THE INAUGURATION:

"You are not going, Donnatella. That's final."

"Since that tone never works on either of your children, why to you
think it would work on your wife?"

"There has been a dramatic increase in threats since this latest
round of arrests. My family will not be in the spotlight at all. If you
want me to stay home too, I will."

"What happened to not letting these people dictate where we go and
what we do?"

"There's a difference between letting them dictate our lives and
staying home from a party."

"It's not simply a party; there's the speech and swearing in
beforehand. Are you telling me you don't want to be there when your
best friend takes the oath of office?"

"Is this about the dress? Because you can wear it somewhere else you
know." That earned him a pillow thrown at his head.

"Dad...I think we should go." AJ entered the conversation.
"Toby's always telling us we can't be afraid of these
bastards."

"AJ!" Josh responds in shock.

"That's what he calls them." AJ defended herself.

"And when he adopts you, you can use that language too." Donna
added dryly.

"Grandma Ruth says we have to show them we're not afraid. This
is the biggest day; Sam is going to be President. We need to be there
too."

"I'd love to be there AJ, but an open air ceremony with
thousands of people in the crowd just gives them too many opportunities
to hurt somebody. I don't know how I could live with myself if some
innocent bystander got hurt because they were standing near me."

"We have no control over what someone else does, Joshua. We can,
however, stand together as a family with Sam and his family on January
20th though." Donna stated.

"Please, Dad?" AJ did the combination eye batting/mouth pouting
routine that she learned at her Mother's knee.

"I'll talk to the Secret Service, but if they think it's too
dangerous, we dress up in our finery and watch it on TV. Deal?"

"Deal." AJ promises, then runs from the room. "Noah? Dad
says we can go!"

"I did NOT say that, AJ." But it was too late, AJ was already
long gone.

"You are such a sucker for her." Donna teases as she lies down
next to him on the couch.

"That's only because she's the mirror image of her
mother." Josh replies as he kisses Donna's head.

"My dress is amazing, though."

"It always is."



Title: Expectations

Author: Cathy Miller (cam7192003@yahoo.com)

Rating: PG 13 (some language)

Setting: Future fic; Sam is married to Ainsley and running for
President/Josh and Donna are married and working the campaign.

Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah, they're not mine; please don't rub it
in.

Feedback: Almost as good as chocolate.

Part 7

INAUGURATION DAY: 11:30 AM

"Mr. President-elect, if you'll come this way."

"Just a moment, please." Sam turned to his friend of over 30
years. "I'm glad you're here. It wouldn't have been the
same without you."

"No, watching it on TV wouldn't have cut it for me either."
Josh admitted. "Don't stress about the speech; you and Toby did
great work. President's Bartlet and Santos are both going to be very
proud."

"I'm so glad he was well enough to attend today." Sam
admitted. "He told me I'd be standing here one day, you
know."

"Yes, sir. I recall that story after a few beers one night in
California." Sam grinned at the memory.

"Sir, it's time to go," said the ceremony coordinator with a
worried look on her face.

"I'm coming." Sam told her. "I'll see you on the
platform." He told Josh.

When Josh joined his family on the platform there were smiles all
around. So far, the day was going without a hitch and Josh was glad
their family had decided to come. Peter and Miranda Santos looked so
grown up and Josh had enjoyed spending time catching up with their
family. President Bartlet was having a really good day and appeared to
be beaming as his prot‚g‚ took the oath of office. Donna was a
little on edge during the swearing in, but once the balls began, she
visibly relaxed. They had promised the children they could go to the
first two, then they were going to the White House for the
`children's ball' with the Seaborn and Matthews children.

Josh was enjoying a slow dance with his wife, when President Bartlet
asked to cut in.

"You look as beautiful as ever, Donna." The former President
told her.

"Thank you, sir, you look pretty dashing yourself."

"Please, the best you can hope for at my age is distinguished."

"Well, you're certainly that." Donna smiled at him.
"President Seaborn was particularly thrilled to see you here
today."

"I was thrilled to be able to come. I was very happy to see all of
your family in attendance as well, Donna. Standing up to hate mongers
who threaten your family takes no small amount of courage; but you and
Joshua have never been lacking in that department have you?"

"No, sir." Donna agreed. "It's different when it's
your children that are threatened, though."

"Of course it is. No one knows that better than I. Your job is never
done as a parent. It's a finish line you never get to cross, but
Noah and AJ have good heads on their shoulders and a solid foundation
thanks to you and Josh. They'll weather this storm just fine and be
all the better for it in the end." Jed Bartlet stopped moving and
kissed her cheek. "I'm going to sit with the men outside and see
if I can sneak a cigarette while Abby's pre-occupied."

"Good luck with that sir." Donna watched as he met up with her
husband and Josh unobtrusively took the former President's arm and
led him to where the current President was holding court.

"President Seaborn, did my ears deceive me, or was that speech a
collaboration between Batman and Robin?" Laughter rang out among
those who had served with President Bartlet. Toby seemed to find it
particularly amusing.

"You always had a very good ear, sir. Ainsley and I are so delighted
to have you and Dr. Bartlet as guests at the White House."

"I always said you'd be President one day, Sam."

"You were right, as always, sir." Bartlet laughed now.

"That's not quite accurate, but I'm not going to argue with
the sitting President. What do you think of our boy here, Joshua?"

"I think he's going to make us all proud, sir." Josh
replied.

"He has already, Josh, you all have. If Leo was here today, he'd
be bragging about how he formed the next generation of Democratic
leadership." Losing Leo to a massive coronary just a few months
after he and President Santos left office had been a heavy blow to all
the men at the table, but particularly to Jed Bartlet.

"I can just imagine it." Josh added. "Son, we have great
expectations for you. You let us down and I'll personally drop kick
you off the map." Josh did his best Leo imitation.

Jed Bartlet looked from one man to the other, just as CJ joined them.
"Hello gorgeous. I'm glad you're here. I was just saying to
these fine gentlemen how proud I am of all of you. You've lived up
to the expectations that we placed on you and you never let me or one
another down. This nonsense that Josh is dealing with, it's good
that he doesn't have to go through it alone."

"He never will, sir. I promise you that." Sam assured him as he
looked at Josh.

"I already have a Robin, but Josh could be our bat girl." Toby
remarked.

"Thanks Tobus, but I think I'll pass. Maybe CJ?" Josh teased

"I was always partial to Catwoman." CJ purred. Ainsley appeared
at her side.

"I really don't think it's appropriate to purr around these
men, CJ." Ainsley told her. "They're very easily encouraged.
President Bartlet, your wife is looking for you."

"She knows how to find me. Can I just say that you have come a long
way from the young woman who almost peed in Leo's closet."

"President Bartlet, that is positively wicked of you to mention,
especially in this company."

"You will be a lovely and formidable First Lady, I'm sure."
Jed told her.

"Wait a second. I want to hear the peeing in Leo's closet
story." Josh interjected.

"You keep this one on his toes. He's going to need a strong
compass over these next few years. A strong, smart partner makes all the
difference in the world in his job." Jed continued as if Josh had
never spoken.

"Josiah, that was a lovely speech, and if you hadn't seen me
coming up behind you in the window, it might have saved your sorry ass
from the lecture you're going to get." Came the dulcet tones of
Abigail Bartlet.

"Please, honey, not in front of the children." was his reply.

"Our deal was one final dance with Donna and then to bed." She
took his arm. "Now you'll have to leave without sneaking out for
your cigarette. Goodnight, everyone." Abigail led her husband out of
the ballroom at a sedate pace as the others watched.

Donna came up behind Josh and put her arms around his waist while Danny
Concannon followed her into the fray.

"Isn't anybody going to tell the story about Ainsley and
Leo's closet?" Josh demanded.

"Excuse me?" Danny asked intrigued.

"No reporters here tonight, Danny." Donna reminded him.

"Thank God." Ainsley breathed a sigh of relief. "How about
another glass of champagne everyone?" Ainsley motioned for the
waiter to distribute the glasses.

"I think you're floating pretty well already, Ains." He
husband mentioned.

"Hell, Sam, neither of us are driving." She told him.

"Fair point." Sam conceded. "Plus maybe if I get you drunk
enough you'll tell everyone the story about peeing in Leo's
closet."

"I did NOT pee in Leo's closet and there isn't enough liquor
in D.C. to get me to repeat what did transpire."

"Toby?" Sam entreated his former boss to make the toast.

"To our new President and First Lady; may the expectations placed on
them never be greater than the sum of their talents and skills."

"Here, here." Exclaimed CJ as they drank to the toast.



Title: Expectations

Author: Cathy Miller (cam7192003@yahoo.com)

Rating: PG 13 (some language)

Setting: Future fic; Sam is married to Ainsley and running for
President/Josh and Donna are married and working the campaign.

Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah, they're not mine; please don't rub it
in.

Feedback: Almost as good as chocolate.

Part 8

Nearly four weeks later, Donna answered the door to find Mike Casper on
the other side. Her immediate reaction to seeing her husband's old
friend was happiness, but then she saw the expression on his face.

"Mike?" she asked tentatively.

"Everybody's fine Donna, but I have some news. The Secret
Service told me Josh was home. Can I talk to you both for a minute?"

"Sure Mike. He's in his office. Come on back." Donna noticed
her hands were shaking as she brought Mike through the house and knocked
on Josh's office door.

"Josh, Mike Casper is here." She announced as she opened the
door. "He has some news for us." Josh stood and shook Mike's
hand.

"You didn't have to drive out here, Mike. You could've
called."

"One of the men we arrested just before the Inauguration finally
made a deal through his attorney. In exchange for some preferential
treatment at sentencing and in prison, he gave up Leroy. We just made
the arrest about an hour ago. I wanted to tell you in person."

"Mike, that's incredible! I promise to never bad mouth the
F.B.I. again...well not for awhile anyway." Josh joked, and Mike
smiled but the smile didn't reach his eyes.

"What aren't you telling us, Mike?" Donna asked him.

"Leroy killed one of our agents and wounded two others. It was an
ugly stand off that went bad very fast. The only good thing to come out
of it is that Leroy will never get out of prison alive. Once he took the
life of a Federal agent, he signed his own death warrant."

"Mike, I'm so sorry. Did you know the agent well?" Donna
enquired.

"We worked out of the same field office for years. He has two kids
around the same age as yours. I'm headed to their house next."

"Will you please give the family our sympathy and let us know when
arrangements are made for the funeral? I'd like to be there."
Josh stated.

"We'd like to be there." Donna added. Mike simply nodded.

"I wanted you to know that Leroy was in custody and his organization
is crumbling. All the heat that President Seaborn, Danny Concannon, and
your family have put out has really paid off."

"Thanks Mike. It was really wonderful of you to come all the way out
here." Donna reiterated.

"I'll walk you out Mike." Josh said as he walked Mike out of
the house and all the way to his car. Mike new his friend well enough to
understand he had something to say that he didn't want to mention in
front of his wife. That could only mean trouble for Mike. Hell hath no
fury like Donna crossed.

"What is it Josh?"

"I need you to get me inside to talk to Leroy." Josh said
simply.

"Are you nuts? That guy tried to kill your children, threatened all
your lives, and wouldn't spit on you if you were on fire. What could
you possibly want with-"

"I need to talk to him, Mike. It's the only way I'll get any
closure."

"Yeah, I'll get closure too. Donna will close her hands around
my throat."

"Let me deal with Donna."

"Easy for you to say. You'll be dead by the time she gets to
me."

"Is that your only objection, Agent Casper? Fear of a young mother
of two?"

"Don't try to make this into an ego thing, Lyman. Besides,
I've seen you shake when she starts in so don't pretend
you're immune."

"I'm not, but I'll deal with it. You can make it happen
right?"

"He's in maximum security, Josh. He killed a Federal Officer.
He's refusing a lawyer at the moment, but that could change at any
time. I don't even know if I could get into see him right now."

"Mike..."

"I'm just saying it's a REALLY bad idea. And I can't
make him see you, either."

"He'll see me. That's the least of the complications.
You'll call me when you have it set up?"

Mike looked at his friend, really looked at him closely. This had really
affected Josh in more ways than one. He looked older and more stressed
than he had 6 months ago. Mike would do what he could to help bring some
closure to the situation.

"God help us both if Donna finds out."

"Thanks, Mike. And please don't forget to give us the funeral
information for the Agent that was killed." Mike knew his friend
would feel guilty about that life lost even though it was Leroy who was
actually responsible. So Mike nodded again and got in his car. It was
going to be a long day for him.

*********************************************************************

"Joshua, why are you calling me in the middle of the day? Is
everyone alright?"

"Everyone is fine, Mom, I promise. I actually called with some good
news. Mike Casper just stopped over to tell us Leroy has been
arrested."

"Thank God! That is such wonderful news. This is just what we've
been praying for."

"Yeah, it is. You've been pretty calm through all this. You
haven't even done your usual nagging to be careful."

"That's not my job anymore."

"Right..."

"Well, I'm trying not to do that job anymore. Besides, you have
your own family now. You know what it is to worry about your wife, your
children."

"Maybe we can all cut down on the worrying now."

"We can try. Now that you've got Sam settled in the White House,
do you think you can spare some time to come down and see me?" Josh
had long given up on getting his mother to call Sam `President
Seaborn'.

"Hey, I can come anytime. You want me to fly down tonight? Of
course, Donna and the kids have school so they won't be able to join
us, but you really just want to see me, right?"

"Funny boy. I happen to know Donna can miss a class or two without
ruining her perfect GPA and the kids could take a few days for family
trip. You pulled them out of school during the campaign. I guess Sam is
more important to you than your mother."

"You may have given up the nagging, but you're still aces in the
guilt department, Mom. Let me see what I can do."

"Great, I'll see you Friday."

"I said I'd see what I could do, Mom. I can't
guarantee-"

"I have great confidence in you. Anyone who can put three men in the
White House can surely get his family to Florida by Friday."

"You never let up on the expectations, do you?"

"No, and you've never failed to live up to them either.
That's not necessarily a coincidence, Joshua."

"See you Friday." He acknowledged just before he hung up the
phone.

"Who are you seeing Friday? Are you seeing another woman,
Joshua?" Donna asked as she came into his home office.

"Yes, I am. I've grown tired of you Donnatella and I'm
seeking the company of a more mature woman; perhaps someone who owns
some Florida real estate."

"She conned you into bringing us down there by Friday? You're
getting soft old man."

"It means a lot to her. I thought I'd indulge an old woman in
her waning years."

"I am SO telling her you said that." Donna dropped into his lap
as he laughed at her threat. "You doing okay?"

"I guess it all feels a little anti-climatic, you know?"

"Maybe so, but I'm fine with anti-climatic; more than fine with
it as a matter of fact. I was thinking though. How would you feel about
setting up a college fund for the children of the agent who was
killed?" Josh's heart nearly burst thinking about how if Leroy
got his way, someone might be setting up a fund for his children. He
leaned his head against his wife's.

"I think that would be perfect. I'll get the information from
Mike. You'll take care of the details?" Donna nodded.

"What were you and Mike talking about out by the car?"

For a good 30 seconds, Josh contemplated telling her a lie. He settled
for avoidance.

"I was asking him about what's going to happen to Leroy. Since
he shot and killed a Federal Officer, he'll be on death row."

Donna's voice was low when she responded. "Do you think it makes
me a bad person to be glad about that?"

"No, no I don't." Josh hugged her close. "I'd like
to pull the switch myself." Silence hummed between them for a few
minutes. "It makes me wonder how Governors and Presidents decide who
to pardon. How can anyone be expected to make choices about whether
someone deserves to live or die?" Donna sighed and moved out of his
arms.

"I'll get us reservations for Florida." She noted.



Title: Expectations

Author: Cathy Miller (cam7192003@yahoo.com)

Rating: PG 13 (some language)

Setting: Future fic; Sam is married to Ainsley and running for
President/Josh and Donna are married and working the campaign.

Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah, they're not mine; please don't rub it
in.

Feedback: Almost as good as chocolate.

Part 9

"Mr. President, be reasonable." Bill White tried again.

"I'm the President of the United States. I don't have to be
reasonable about this. Do I Josh?"

`Have to? No, but Bill makes a good point-"

"I'm sorry; I didn't hear anything after no. Bill, explain
to these morons that I'm vetoing anything that comes to my desk
without higher fuel emissions standards. I want the alternative fuel
incentives too."

"And I want a BMW, but that's not realistic either, sir."

"Get it done, Bill." Bill turned his frustrated glance in
Josh's direction and Josh motioned for Bill to excuse them.

"Yes, sir." Bill said quietly and left the room.

"Why are you riding Bill over something you know can't be done
right now, sir?"

"How was Florida?"

"Hot and humid. What's going on Mr. President?"

"Can we just not- Can we just be two old friends having a
conversation?"

"That's not why you asked me to take this meeting, sir."
Josh's eyes never left Sam as he got up from his desk and came
around it to sit across from Josh on the opposite couch.

"I always thought if I got this far, I would somehow be endowed with
the wisdom to know what to do when I got here." Josh laughed.
"What? I did!"

"Then you're a fool...sir." Josh told him. "And
you're no fool. You watched up close and personal while two other
Presidents struggled with decisions and made mistakes. Are you about to
admit you have MS and never told anyone?" This time Sam laughed.

"No, I can spare you that...Bill brought something to my desk I
wish he wouldn't have."

"Can we discuss it?" Josh wasn't asking if Sam wanted to
talk about it, but rather if he could talk about it. Josh had a certain
level of security clearance. But there were plenty of issues that were
above his pay grade now.

"I don't really want to. Tell me something. Why do you have Mike
Casper working back channels to get you an interview with Leroy?"
Josh looked surprised that Sam had that information. "If you
don't think I have intimate knowledge about every breath that man
takes, then you're a fool...and you're no fool." Sam shot
back at him.

"This is about a pardon, isn't it? That's what Bill brought
to your desk?"

"He wanted to point out the political ramifications of a decision
either way, and it...upset me."

"I'll bet." Josh mused. "It's his job, sir, and I
know it's not an easy one. Cut him some slack."

"You don't have anything to else to say on this subject?"

"I'm glad I don't have your job?" Josh offered.

"I've never been a supporter of the death penalty. I suspended
them in California. This is different. He shot a man, a Federal agent in
cold blood, and attempted to murder- this is different." Sam looked
up at Josh again. "Why do you want to see him?"

"I want him to see me. I need him to see me; alive and happy, going
home to be with my family. I can't explain it; but I know it's
what I have to do...As for the other thing; you do what you think is
right. I trust you to do the right thing."

"You do remember that I'm the guy that accidentally slept with a
prostitute, right?"

"Yes, and even in that situation you did the right thing."

Sam tipped his head back on the couch. "Want to go down to the Hawk
and Dove and get loaded?"

"I think your detail might have a problem with that. We could go to
the residence and get loaded though."

"It just doesn't have the same appeal. I miss Ainsley." Sam
admitted. "She and the kids don't get back for two more
days."

"You'll make it. Let's go have a beer and you can tell me
the story about your wife and Leo's closet."

"You're on." Sam started to rise, but Josh motioned with his
head to the Chief of Staff's office. Sam sighed again.
"Bill?!"

The door opened immediately, and Bill stepped through to the Oval.
"Yes, sir?"

"Have Wilkins pull the amendment and let the bill pass clean.
We'll get our fuel emissions and alternative energy next time
around, or use it to clobber the Republicans during the mid-terms. Then
go home...unless you'd like to join Josh and me in the residence
for a beer and complaints about women?"

"I think I could add to the conversation, sir. Let me talk to
Hawkins and then I'll be right up." Bill smiled as he escaped
back to his own office.

"I'd better tell you about the closet story now, before Bill
joins us. I don't think I want my Chief of Staff to have that kind
of knowledge about my wife."



Title: Expectations

Author: Cathy Miller (cam7192003@yahoo.com)

Rating: PG 13 (some language)

Setting: Future fic; Sam is married to Ainsley and running for
President/Josh and Donna are married and working the campaign.

Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah, they're not mine; please don't rub it
in.

Feedback: Almost as good as chocolate.

Part 10

Josh walked through the final security check behind Mike, actually
feeling pretty calm despite the fact that he was about to come face to
face (through protective glass) with the man who shot a Federal Agent
and wanted to murder him and his family.

Once they entered the visiting area, Mike turned toward him again.

"Are you sure-"

"For the love of God, Mike, you don't have to do this with me,
but if you are, please stop asking me if I'm sure I want to do
this." Josh snapped. Mike nodded and sat down. Josh followed suit.

A few tension filled minutes later, Leroy was led into the room,
shackled hand and foot and accompanied by two more agents. Leroy smirked
as he took a seat.

"All these months I've been trying to get this close to you and
you end up coming to me."

"Hello, James, orange suits you."

"This ain't over, you know."

"It never is, but it may very well be over for you. Vocally inciting
violence in public, leaving your fingerprints all over the explosive
device and killing a Federal Agent makes it pretty tough to argue you
belong to a superior race."

"You, your whole mixed breed family, and Jew loving President are
going to spend your lives wondering if one of my men is around the
corner waiting to take you out!"

"I don't think so. When I walk out of here, I'm never
wasting another moment thinking about you, or the pathetic losers that
affiliate with you... Did you understand what I just said, or do I
need to use smaller words." Josh leaned forward and engaged in a
staring contest with the young man. Leroy looked away first and spoke to
one of the Agents.

"I'm done here." He said and now it was Josh's turn to
smirk.

"Looks like I am too. Have a nice long life, James. I know I
will." Josh got up and walked out, Mike right behind him.

When the men got outside, they found Donna waiting for them. Josh turned
a cold glare at his friend.

"Don't look at me. This leak came directly from the Oval office.
Bye Donna."

"Bye Mike." Donna continued to watch her husband. She didn't
see any lingering effects from his prison visit; in fact he seemed to
look more relaxed than she'd seen him in months.

"The President called you?"

"The First Lady."

"The Sisterhood?"

"Bet your ass."

"So, exactly how pissed are you?"

"I was pretty pissed at first, but then I realized you weren't
trying to deceive me. I think in your own twisted mind, you were trying
to protect me from this."

"Just so I'm clear; you're not pissed anymore and I did the
right thing not telling you about this?"

"Dream on. You did NOT do the right thing, however you may have had
good intentions while doing the wrong thing. Now, I will not be pissed
anymore provided you promise never to keep me in the dark about
something this important again."

"I think that's an unreasonable expectation unless you specify
what constitutes `something this important'."

"I had to fall in love with a politician..." Donna complained.
"It's a perfectly reasonable expectation and you'll know
when something is `this important' when you see it."

"Kind of like the Supreme Court and pornography?" Josh teased.

"Yes, Joshua, it's exactly like that." Donna said drolly.
"Are we done here?"

"We are completely done here." He took her arm and started
walking to his car.

"You going to tell me what you said in there?"

Josh thought for a moment then said simply, "I took out the trash".
Donna gave him an impatient look and Josh took another moment to put his
feelings into words.

"I told him that I was looking forward to living a long life. He didn't
win, and I needed to tell him that". Donna nodded her understanding.
That was one of the things he loved best about Donna; she always
`got him'. "Let's go pick the kids up early from school.
We'll go to a movie or something."

"They only have a couple hours left of their school day; you can
wait `til then. Besides, they've missed so much school this year
that we're going to find a truant officer at our door."

"We could home school them. I'll teach them history and
Government and you can teach them the other stuff."

"During breaks from writing my Master's Thesis."

"Sure, you've always been an excellent multi-tasker. Then when
you graduate in the Spring, we can start planning your run for office. I
have it all planned out."

"I think your expectations are unreasonable." Donna argued.

"My current expectations revolve only around going home and finding
something to do until the kids get home."

"Then let's work on meeting those expectations. I may have
colored index cards that might help."

"I bet you do." Josh smiled.

The End.