"Combat."
~~~~~

"You're supposed to be rooting for our guy," Josh grumbled as he paced the small area beside the monitor in the holding room. "I mean, I know you have a thing for Republicans, but this is a little over the top, don�t you think?"

Donna made a face at him, then went back to studying the screen. "I /am/ rooting for our guy. I just think Vinick makes some good points about job security and re-training."

Josh stopped pacing and stared at her as though she had grown a second head. "You think Santos doesn't?"

"He does," Donna assured him, absently patting his arm. "But the viewers are going to think Vinick has an actual plan to fix things and Santos doesn't."

Josh ran a hand through his hair and started pacing again, pausing after a few steps to turn and stare at Donna again. "You've heard him talk about it a million times! Better education, more corporate responsibility�"

"Entrepreneurial incentives," Donna finished, her eyes still on the debate. "I know. /I've/ heard it, but the voters haven't. He's coming off soft on the issue."

"No, he isn't! He's coming off as well-informed."

She made a small noise that could have been an agreement or could have been something entirely different.

Josh frowned in annoyance. "You seriously think he's coming off as soft? "

"I seriously think the voters are going to think so," she tossed back.

Josh watched as she worried her hair nervously between her fingers. "Aw, c'mon, Donna. Don't /do/ that," he whined.

She turned to look at him, a puzzled expression on her face. "It would be better for us to focus on Santos' weaknesses now -- so we can work on them -- than to wait until even further into the campaign."

"Not the� The hair thing. Don't do the hair thing. It drives me insane."

Her eyes widened and she immediately lowered her hand to her side. Josh felt a momentary twinge of disappointment. It wasn't her fault that the hair twisting bothered him so much. It was just that it made him think about how her hair looked spilled out over the pillow in bed. Or how it felt when he ran his fingers through it.

It made him forget about other things. Like the fact that the man he'd been pushing towards the presidency was currently involved in the biggest debate of his career. And, apparently, Donna thought he was bombing it. "Although if you wanted to stop bashing the candidate, I wouldn't exactly object."

"I wasn't," she said. "I was pointing out that there are some things we need to work on. Things that aren't going to play well in the press."

"Trust me, we�ll be watching these tapes continually over the next month to work on the weaknesses. We�re not going to ignore them."

They both watched the television monitor quietly for a while, and then Donna suddenly turned to him again. "The hair thing drives you crazy?"

"Yes. Eight years of watching you do that. Eight years of�"

He trailed off, distracted by what was happening on the screen. Santos was being asked about gun control and Josh held his breath, waiting to hear the congressman's answer. It was short and direct and, relieved, Josh returned his attention to Donna. "That's one of the really good things about you being the face of this campaign � no hair twisting in public."

"It really bothered you that much?" she asked, a small smile playing about her lips.

"Seriously, Donna, you think there's a single thing about you that doesn't bother me?" he asked, raising an eyebrow at her and leering just a little bit.

She laughed and sidled a little closer to him. "No?"

He shook his head, reaching out to grasp her hips and pull her to him. "No."

He was just about to kiss her when there was a round of applause from the television. Pulling away, he turned towards the screen and cursed himself for getting distracted. Again. He missed most of what was said, but caught the tail end of Santos' response about the need for alternate fuel sources.

"Yes!" Josh exclaimed, punching the air and directing his full attention on the debate. "He's nailing it! Hitting every single talking point we went over."

Donna practically bounced where she stood next to him, their shoulders brushing. "He's good. He's really good."

"Of course he's good!" There was another loud round of applause as Santos talked about global warming and Josh let out a low whistle. "Yes! And look at Vinick � He's struggling to come up with something even remotely comparable." He whirled around to face Donna. "We're winning this thing, Donna! We're /winning/."

Donna grinned. "And see how cadaverous Vinick looks next to Santos? Not only is Santos smarter, but he's also more robust."

Josh couldn't help himself. His woman was perfect. He pulled her close for a loud smacking kiss and swept her up in his arms, twirling her.

"Josh! Put me down!" she laughed.

"No! It's my day of jubilee, Donna," he said with a smirk as he finally slid her body down his and set her back on the ground.

"Don't you mean /our/ day of jubilee?" she asked with a mischievous grin, pushing her hips provocatively against his.

He rolled his eyes. "Ok, yes. /Our/ day of jubilee. But I think I should remind you that without me, this entire campaign would be null and void."

"I think I should remind /you/ that without me, your day of jubilee loses some of its jubilee."

"I think you just like saying jubilee," he snorted, lowering his head to nuzzle her neck. "But I won't argue the point, because you definitely make this victory better."

She grinned at him. "I know."
~~~~~

"Are we making any statements?"

"All we say now is, this is a terrible situation ... the Congressman hopes he can provide some support on his visit tomorrow. "
~~~~~

"The visit to the Burkes? Not so good," Donna announced on her cell as she strode down their front sidewalk towards the waiting campaign bus.

"What happened?" Josh asked, and Donna could almost see his face crinkling up with worry.

She stepped on board and headed to the back, where she could get some privacy. "Mr. Burke was less than thrilled at the exploitation of his son's death."

"And Santos?"

"Is still inside," she said, watching Ronna and Lester through the window. "But we're leaving in about five minutes for the church."

"Yeah, ok. Leo's going to meet you guys there. Keep me updated on what happens."

"Sure." She paused, and wondered if she should mention the speech. It would mean going around Lou's authority, but she felt it was something that needed to be addressed. "Listen," she ventured. "About Santos' speech� I know everyone wants him to make a powerful statement � about race and accountability and everything -- but maybe he's right. Maybe he should forget the canned speech and just speak from the heart while he's there."

There was a long silence and Donna wondered if she'd overstepped her boundaries. Then she remembered that this was her job -- making sure that Santos' message got to the public and that it was well-received. And if she had to go to Josh directly to make sure that happened, that's what she'd do.

"Forget what Lou said," Josh said finally. "Let him talk, say whatever he wants. It can't make things any worse than they already are."

She breathed a sigh of relief, glad to have him backing her up. "Ok."

"You know, maybe you should be the one running this campaign. You seem to be catching all the big things � Hoynes, the shooting, this," Josh commented, the smile clear in his voice.

"Why, Joshua, someone might think you were complimenting me," she said. His words warmed her with an inner glow.

"Yeah, well, they'd be right," he admitted. "But if you dare tell anyone I said that �"

"Your secret's safe with me."

"Speaking of churches� there's this thing..."

She could hear the hesitation in his voice and she wondered what she'd have to spin now. "A thing?"

"A wedding. At the White House. Talk to Lou and Gerard. Tell them we need to adjust the Congressman's schedule."

She almost dropped her phone in surprise. "Someone at the White House is getting married?"

"Eleanor Bartlet."

"Ellie's getting married?"

"Ok, you know that compliment I gave you a minute ago? I'm going to revoke it if you just keep repeating everything I say. Some spokesperson you are."

A gurgle of laughter escaped, despite her attempt to stay stern. "I'm completely justified in my surprise on this. I'm perfectly poised and articulate when speaking for the Congressman."

"Yeah, you are," he said softly. "So dust off your party dress, Donnatella. We have a wedding to go to next weekend."

"I will." She glanced out the window and saw the Congressman heading for the bus. "Ok, we're leaving now. I'll talk to you again in a little bit."
~~~~~

"The First Lady just gave me twenty bucks, asked me to pick up a bottle of cold Duck."

"Uh-huh."

"Josh ... "

"I'm sorry ... have you seen Leo?"

"I'm bored. I'm an attractive woman waiting to be entertained."

"He was just with the President. I'm sure he's still�"

"I just saw him headed towards the East Room. He was with the congressman ... and Barry Goodwin and Senator Montgomery. It looked pretty intense. Illinois? I'm sure it's nothing to worry about."
~~~~~

Josh sat alone at the bar, idly wondering how Ellie felt about her wedding. What should have been an intimate affair had been turned into a political circus. If he had to take a guess, he'd say that maybe fifty of the thousand guests were actual friends or family of the happy couple. At the most.

Taking a sip from the drink in front of him, he looked out at the throng of guests milling about. How many of the people in this room could /he/ consider friends? Not many. Definitely not Montgomery or Goodwin, the backstabbing bastards. Mitchell? Josh choked back a bitter laugh at how ridiculous that thought was.

But hell, why stop with those three? Pretty much the whole DNC was against him. Why not count up all the people who had forgotten the things he'd done � for Bartlet, for Santos, for the whole damn Democratic Party � and see how long the list was?

Montgomery, Goodwin, Mitchell, Smith, Gallagher, Craig, Jefferson, Bundy � every single one of them thought he'd lost his edge, that he'd screwed the party. To say nothing of his own candidate, if the back room meetings he'd been excluded from were any indication.

It all came down to money. And he was fucking it up, letting them all down, because he couldn't find a way to make it work.

His mind spooled through all the areas where they needed to adjust their media buys -- Chicago, Des Moines, Philadelphia, Cedar Rapids. No matter how he did the math, it didn't add up. If they moved money to Wisconsin, they'd hurt Florida. If they put it in Chicago, they'd hurt Missouri. Maybe if they pulled back a little in New York�

He was still working out the figures in his head when Donna found him a little while later.

"Buy a girl a drink?" she asked, sliding onto the stool next to him.

He hastily schooled his features into a more relaxed expression and shot a small smile in her direction. He probably wasn't fooling her at all, but it was worth a try. "Whiskey sour?"

"I thought maybe I'd try scotch on the rocks this time," she answered, grabbing his glass and taking a sip.

One side of his mouth quirked up in a genuine smile. "That's not your usual drink."

"I'm taking a walk on the wild side," she said, shooting him a questioning look over the rim of the glass as she sipped some more of the drink.

He marveled at how much worry she managed to convey in such a small glance. "Don't worry. It's only my first."

"It's not the number of drinks I'm worried about," she said.

He tried to reassure her, even if he wasn't feeling overly confident himself. "You don't need to worry about my state of mind either."

She nodded slightly and he wondered if she was actually going to drop the subject, but her next words dashed that hope. "What happened with Montgomery and Goodwin?"

"They want to replace me with Leo," he said, reaching for the glass of scotch she still held. She handed it over without comment and he took a swig from it.

"I'm sure it's not --"

He stopped her before she could say anything more. "They were serious. But it's not happening. Not tonight, at least."

"They'd be fools to replace you. Anyone with an ounce of sense can see how far you've gotten the Congressman."

"Not everyone has your confidence in me," he said quietly, grateful for her overwhelming support. "Leo backed me up this time, but I feel like I've used up all my last chances. One more wrong move and there won't be anyone there to catch me when I fall."

"I'll be there," she told him, her eyes wide and earnest.

He raised an eyebrow. "Yeah?"

She reached out, linking her fingers with his, and nodded. "Yeah."

And she would, too, he suddenly realized, looking down at their joined hands and then back up at her face.

She'd always been there, having faith in him, inspiring him, encouraging him, making him a better man. Even when they were working against one another. Even when she was pissed as hell at him, even when he was at his worst. Especially then.

Because she loved him.

She wasn't giving up on him. She wasn't leaving him. And she'd be there to catch him. Always.

The same way that he'd always be there for her, too. Encouraging her, supporting her, wanting the best for her.

The realization startled him. She'd been telling him, repeatedly, that she would always be there. But now, this moment, was the first time that he actually realized how much she meant it. And he finally realized that he could do this, weather this campaign -- or whatever life threw at him -- as long as he knew she'd be there. With him.

He set his glass down and snaked an arm around her waist, pulling her to her feet. "Come dance with me."

She shot him a quizzical look but let him lead her towards the dance floor. "Are you sure? We could go back to headquarters, work on the media buys. Bram was going to �"

"Bram has our cell numbers if anything happens," he said, offering her a smile and feeling lighter than he had in weeks. "Right now, we deserve a little down time."

"Even if we'll have to scramble to make up for it later?"

"Yes," He gathered her hand in his and wrapped his arm more securely around her, refusing to let this moment pass him by. "Dance with me, Donnatella."

She gave him another strange look, but rested her head on his shoulder anyway and let him twirl her about the floor.

"So did you mean it?" he asked a little while later, as he lowered her into a dip.

She looked up at him. "Mean what? That we should go back to headquarters after this?"

"No, the other thing," he said, pulling her up. "The thing about catching me."

She frowned. "You know I did. Why?"

"Nothing� It's nothing," Josh replied, hesitant to voice the vague idea that had begun swirling in his brain. His mouth didn't seem to understand his hesitation, though, and he found himself blurting, "Maybe after the election you should start planning one of these things for us."

She stumbled mid-step. "You're not serious?"

He shrugged and tried to play it off as a joke. "Could be fun. There's food and drink. I hear you get lots of presents."

Donna smiled at him, amused. "You want a wedding so you can get presents?"

"I think you underestimate how much I desire a custom-made bird's nest from Indonesia."

"Do birds take custom orders in Indonesia?" she asked, laughing, "That /is/ tempting.�

He didn't know whether to be relieved or disappointed at her mirth.

"I'll think about it," she told him, still smiling.

"You do that," he said, settling for relieved.
~~~~~

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