"Annie, you better have an excuse for doing this." Hawkeye growled as I shook him awake.

"A very, very good excuse!" BJ muttered as I threw a pillow at him, waking him up too. Winchester was still sleeping quietly, even with the swearing that had erupted.

We'd just got into bed after a heavy OR session, no sooner had my head hit the pillow than I'd remembered the matter of urgency that I was going to talk to Hawkeye and BJ about before the wounded came in.

"Is being pregnant a good enough excuse?" I whispered, to have both men attack me.

"Good god, Annie!" A group hug had formed on Hawkeye's bunk as the three of us huddled closely.

"Are you sure?" Hawkeye asked, his hand going to my stomach.

"Yes, what makes you think that?" BJ asked, his hand gripping my wrist. Winchester stirred, and demanded to know what was happening.

"We're off to elope!" Hawkeye and BJ followed me into the empty VIP tent.

"Well, I'm a week and a half late." I blushed; forgetting the men I talked to were doctors and had probably heard it before.

"Well, it's too young for menopause." Hawkeye stated intelligently.

"Could be from when you got shot," BJ said, hitting Hawkeye with a pillow at his poorly obvious statement.

"Beej?" I asked, not understanding.

"Anne, you lost your right ovary, and if you menstruated as normal the last month it could be the missing ovary, if your left functioned last time, your right cannot because it is not there."

"But I missed last month too, I thought it was that then, but Hawkeye and I have been together, the timing's right." I started to cry and BJ and Hawkeye both tried to hug me at the same time.

"Oh dear, Anne, that's two in a row, it's sounding positive, anything else?" BJ asked, as my tears were obviously not ready to stop.

"Yes the 0700 dash to the latrine to empty my stomach with the same orifice through which I filled it."

"Every morning?" Hawk asked, and I nodded my response.

"Well, Anne, we'll check this through in the morning, but in the meanwhile, congratulations." BJ said and I hugged him.

"What about me? I'm going to be a father if you're right." I hugged Hawkeye and as he kissed me, Beej crept out of the tent, leaving us the privacy to talk over the matter.

"Hot dog! Annie, I'm right pleased to hear that!" Colonel Potter pumped my hand enthusiastically.

"But I'm right sorry you'll be leaving" He added softly. It was a couple of days later, and we'd found out that I was pregnant and due around the New Year.

"Well, Colonel, I'll be about four months along before I go, I'm about 6 weeks now, so that'll be June or July! The Army is so slow about discharges, even in this case." I said, as I cuddled against Hawkeye again.

"Not a word till I have to leave?" I asked and the Colonel nodded, pretending to zip his lips.

"Nada," He promised, then becoming the doctor that he was issued orders.

"I'm putting Pierce and Honnicut in charge of you. Boys, Annie is 100% your responsibility, look after her. Anne, tell who you want, but keep it discreet. Not a word to Winchester or Klinger." They were the two men most likely to cause a fuss.

"Yes, Colonel." I nodded, and he waved his hand at us dismissively. We left the tent; I was flanked by my doctors and unable to keep a grin off my face.

"Margaret has to know," BJ said, looking over my head at Hawkeye.

"No," Hawkeye and I said together firmly.

"She'll reduce my hours and make a fuss. Major Houlihan doesn't need to know."

"Doesn't need to know what Captains?" It was Margaret herself and I blushed and muttered nervously, and then looked to BJ for advice.

"Margaret, there's something you need to know about Anne." BJ wasn't going to lie, that was clear.

"Would you like to talk in a quieter place?" I nodded, and Margaret led us to her tent and we sat on the bed, me in the middle, holding Hawkeye and BJ's hands tightly.

"Well?" Margaret asked expectantly, pulling her chair around to face us.

"Well, Margaret, you really should know. I'm pregnant." Margaret left her seat to hug .me and nearly wound up sitting in Hawkeye's lap.

"Wow! Why are you worried? You seem to be looking on it as a problem and it's not. You'll go home soon." Margaret asked.

"The problem is that she doesn't know if I'm the father," Hawkeye began

"Or if I'm the father." BJ finished. I feigned shame as the two men began fighting.

"You said you and Anne were just friends!"

"You said your marriage was worthless!"

"Out!" Margaret and I evicted them and we sat down on the bed again, Margaret producing chocolate from Tokyo.

"I just don't want a fuss, BJ, Hawk, Potter, you and I are the only ones that know. No one else is going to know until I leave. I just want to keep working until I leave. Which will probably be June or July. I'm about 6 weeks along."

"Annie, I can't let you keep working!" Margaret protested, the divorce was final and, feeling heartbroken; she was constantly looking for an excuse to tell off someone.

"Major Houlihan, having a baby is a perfectly natural thing. In fact, if a woman conceives it should be seen that her body is as healthy as it can possibly be." I called her 'Major' to indicate my seriousness.

"Captain Pierce! I'll take this to Colonel Potter! It's going to be rest for you, constant rest till you go home." Margaret left the tent and I followed her.

"Suffering saddle sores! Major Houlihan, I've delivered a few hundred babies in my time and I know for sure that continuing as normally as possible is one of the most important things!"

"But Annie should have rest -"

"Mule muffins! She's perfectly healthy. Ask Pierce or Honnicut, her doctors, see what they say, and Captains or no, what they say goes!"

"Well Annie, it's all up to you," Hawkeye said as I sat on a table in the OR, a white gown on. I'd just had a complete physical, it had included an internal exam, and neither Beej nor Hawk wanted to do it. They played 'Shrapnel, Metz, Minefield' to decide, Hawkeye won - or lost - take it how you will, and he did the exam.

"You're perfectly healthy, and so is your baby apparently, so if you want to work, you can, just don't over do it." Hawkeye smiled and helped me off the table.

"Thanks honey," I hugged him, and then turned to BJ, I hugged him too, standing on my toes as I did.

"You deserve one too, you've been just as good!" I whispered as Hawkeye came up behind me and pulled the gown closed.

"You've got a cute tush, but I doubt everyone wants to see it." I laughed and Margaret, BJ and Hawkeye left to report to the Colonel and let me dress.

It was a week or so later, and although most people gave me a suspicious eye, they didn't really know what was up. The secret was still safe with the five of us. We'd written home, and our families knew too, mum I was sure would be delighted, but then I did a quick reassessment of my life and right there in Post-Op started to cry.

"Annie, what's up?" I sniffled as someone came up behind me and put an arm around my shoulder.

"It's, oh, it's something can you get BJ or Hawkeye?" I asked and in a second, BJ was next to me, his arms trying to stop the shakes caused by my sobs.

"Anne, baby, it's okay, I'm here now, it's Uncle BJ, you can tell me." I felt like a little girl, so helpless, relying on 'uncle' BJ for comfort.

"Beej, look at me, I'm 27, I'm in Korea, I'm married to a man I've known for little over a year, and I'm having his baby, how pathetic is that?" BJ cradled me; his arms holding me in a tight, warm embrace.

"It's not pathetic Anne, you're a fine nurse, you've got a loving husband and all those dreams you have about having a family are going to come true," His hands stroked my hair and back expertly, knowing what comforted me most as I had been very quick on the tears recently.

"Oh Beej, it's going to seem like Hawkeye and I got married for convenience, like the baby is an accident." I heard BJ sigh as he rested his cheek on my head, knowing there was little more to do than to wait out my tears.

I felt better now; I'd sat with BJ for about 15 minutes, and had sobbed everything out. I wanted to thank BJ, but I didn't know how. I decided just to tell him, as he got up, and made sure one last time I was okay.

"Hey Beej?"

"Yeah?" He turned around and looked back.

"ATTENTION ALL PERSONNEL, GET 'EM WHILE THEY'RE HOT! TELL YOUR FRIENDS, LIMITED SUPPLY OF WOUNDED FRESH FROM THE HANDS OF THE FRONT!" We both just ran, forgetting everything.

"Clamp, Metz, suction, sponge, " Hawkeye chanted, as I methodically handed him the instruments.

"You say either," I hummed.

"And I say either," BJ came in.

"You say neither" Hawkeye warbled.

"And I say neither," Margaret continued.

"Either," Me

"Either," BJ

"Neither" Hawkeye,

"Neither," Margaret,

"Let's call the whole thing off!" The entire OR joined in. We sang the rest of the way through the song like that. We needed something to help us relax a little.

"Look, BJ, what I was trying to say before was than - " I tried again but I was cut off.

"Doctor! We've got a gangrenous foot, looks like a case of field surgery." Angela said

"Later!" BJ and I agreed together, heading in opposite directions.

I was feeling really guilty now, I'd not been able to thank BJ and it was really bugging me. He'd done so much for me, the first time I saw him, he had been my doctor when Hawkeye was too exhausted to continue, he acted immediately when I had been shot, possibly saving my life, he was so wonderful, he'd told me off in Tokyo when I thought I'd loved David, supported me when I'd been fighting with Winchester, he'd listened when I was upset when Hawkeye and I couldn't have that time we wanted, he'd helped Hawk reconstruct my wrist, he was stroking my back now as I cried again and I had never once said thankyou for it.

"Beej?" I sniffled, looking into his eyes.

"Yes, Anne?" His smile was soft.

"There's something I really need to say Beej, coz you've been so wonderful for me. For listening, operating, nursing me back to health, acting like a psychiatrist, all those things that you -" It happened again, Klinger came in, he was the company clerk now as Radar had gone home when his Uncle Ed died, and waved letters around.

"Mail call! Mail call, Cap'n Honnicut, Cap'n Pierce, holy Toledo! I think every one of your family's written." He handed me a bunch of letters, mostly mine, but there was a couple of 'are you alive' letters from Daniel for Hawkeye.

"Thanks Klinger," I opened the letter from mum first, and pulled out new pictures of my beautiful baby brother and sister.

"Jemmy and Nate are so cute," I was distracted now and had forgotten to thank BJ again.

Mum was thrilled to hear that I was pregnant, and I didn't blame her, I'd be thrilled too. Daniel was equally happy; he told me he'd never think he'd have a grandchild, let alone a legitimate one.

BJ smiled at me, my tears long gone, and took up his letter from Peggy, and began to read it, knowing that until I'd finished all my mail, I'd be okay without him.

"Give him some gas," I put the mask on, and soon the patient was asleep. Winchester muttered as he opened the patient's chest.

"It's extremely uncivilised to wake a person up at this hour." He protested.

"Yes, but you're the thoracic expert," BJ smiled, disgustingly perky. Winchester opened his mouth to give a snobby reply so I stepped in.

"Gentlemen, there is a lady present," I said, and BJ winked at me, while Winchester looked ashamed.

"I'm most terribly sorry Mrs Pierce," He apologised, only to have BJ mimic.

"I'm most terribly sorry Mrs Pierce" BJ clasped his hands, tilted his head and batted his eyelashes like a little child.

"Shut up you socially-malformed rodent! Scalpel," Winchester said. It was only 2300 hours but Winchester had already gone to sleep and when we decided that the patient needed re-opening we had to rouse him from hibernation.

BJ was present instead of another nurse, mostly so I wasn't alone with Winchester. He'd improved since I'd given him that blasting and we were forced to be alone, but was still rather patronising on occasions, especially when he was tired or grumpy. Seeing as he was being both with great vigour BJ was there so I wouldn't go insane.

"See, we thought there was a bleeder." BJ said, as Winchester called for sutures.

"Yes, but would you have been able to locate it this quickly?" Winchester asked pompously. I tried to stifle my groan as BJ shot me a look.

"Suction, why isn't there a nurse assisting me?" Winchester broke the silence in which BJ and I played 'eye-tennis' for nearly five minutes.

"Because Anne seemed to be the only nurse awake, or fit to function, even Major Houlihan is a bit out of things tonight." BJ lied expertly, 'serving the ball' by shooting me a cross-eyed glare.

It was true; we thought there was a little bug going around. Nothing huge, but enough to make most people very tired. The nurses were already retiring when BJ called for help and I was the only person able to remain on my feet long enough to cross the compound. Even Margaret was feeling low, and Potter had confined her to bed rest for 24 hours.

I gave BJ a desperate glance that he returned quickly. Winchester caught the look and got snooty.

"What is going on between you two, you seem to be having a private conversation or something similar?" He demanded to know.

"Nothing Charles, we haven't said a word." I replied, checking the BP of the patient.

"Sorry Annabelle, I'm just tired after being woken so rudely." Winchester said meaningfully.

BJ and I resumed our game of eye-tennis, which we continued until we took the patient back to Post-Op and Charles returned to bed.

"Drink Anne? My treat." BJ asked as we left Post-Op.

"Yeah, okay and I want to talk to you." We headed up to the O-Club where Hawkeye sat at the bar.

"So, Anne, what was it?" BJ asked as he bought me a drink, I sat against Hawkeye beside the bar and BJ sat down to face me curiously.

"Beej, you've been so good. You've nursed me back to health, you've probably saved my life, you've been a friend, and you've just been so wonderful to me. Whenever I was sick, or teary, you were there, when I screamed at Winchester, you supported me, when Hawkeye and I were stressed; you talked the sense back into me. Everyone needs a friend like you Beej; you make being here bearable. I guess what I'm trying to say is a long overdue thanks for everything, cause I know I don't always say thankyou." BJ smiled and Hawkeye cuddled me closely.

"Anne, I know you are grateful. You've got those soulful blue eyes that give away what you're thinking. I saw the thanks each and every time. Right now, you're relieved, disbelieving, grateful and wondering if I know what you're feeling." I laughed then; BJ had hit the nail on the head. I was relieved that BJ had known, slightly disbelieving about how easily he had accepted the thanks, grateful that he had and wondering what my eyes showed.

"Beej, you're so wonderful. I know why Peggy married you." I laughed and Hawkeye kissed the top of my head.

"I'm going to go, I need sleep." BJ yawned and stood up. We nodded our goodnights and he went to the door, he paused momentarily, knowing something was coming. I called him back.

"Hey Beej, one more thing."

"Yeah Anne?" He turned around, and smiled at me, I knew he knew already but I had to say it.

"Thankyou,"