Class Act - tagalogue

Written by Shell Willens (excerpts from the episode belong to him)

"Maybe you're right, Scarecrow. But, she really is something, isn't she?" Billy gave Lee a knowing grin. As soon as Billy finished, an alarm sounded and a message flashed on the computer screen on the desk that read: 'Classified Material. Access Denied.' Lee, Francine and Billy immediately jumped into action.

"What is that?" Lee asked as they left Billy's office and headed into the bullpen. He looked across at the cubicle where Amanda was and saw her raise her hand, signaling that it was something she did that set off the alarm. He arrived at the cubicle followed by Francine and Billy and asked, "Amanda, what happened?"

"I don't know," Amanda replied, her hands turned upwards as she raised her shoulders in defense. "I just wanted to erase my last sentence so I pushed the 'era' button and..."

"Entering Restricted Area," Francine translated with a tolerant but smug smile.

Lee glanced at Amanda, whose face was a mixture of chagrin and embarrassment, then turned around to face Billy with a lopsided grin. "You were right, Billy," he said with a nod of his head. "She really is....something," he finished with a 'thumbs up' gesture of his left hand.

Billy and Francine chuckled and shook their heads, and Lee turned back around to face Amanda with a grin. She looked up at him in remorse and shrugged her shoulders. He made a split-second decision and moved to the other side of the cubicle wall. "Look, Amanda," he said as he reached down to grasp the elbow of her right arm and gently pull her from the chair, "why don't you take a break from all of this and walk with me, hmh?"

She turned to grab her purse. "But, what about saving..."

"We'll make sure it's saved. Don't worry." Lee placed his left hand at her back as they headed for the double doors of the bullpen. He glanced over his shoulder at Billy and rolled his eyes as they walked around one side of the cubicles. No sooner had they stepped into the corridor, and Amanda sighed.

"I really messed up again didn't I?" she asked, her eyes lowered as she looked at the floor.

"No, no," Lee hurried to reassure her. "But, it's going to take someone sitting at your terminal to correct your little mistake, and since there wasn't any other stations where you could sit, I thought you'd like to just get away for a few minutes while they worked on it."

"Well, that's very thoughtful of you." She glanced down the hall. "Where are we going?"

He continued to guide her forward. "To the break room."

"The break room? I didn't know you had a break room in here. I thought each of the floors had their own coffee machines and tables with a few other necessities for when you guys work late nights."

"Well, we do, but we also have vending machines on each floor. How else do you think Francine handles her craving for chocolates?" He grinned and looked at her out of the corner of his eye to see her smile.

"Oh!" She nodded. "That makes sense."

They turned another corner and Lee stopped them both in front of a door. He reached for the knob and turned it, then pushed the door open and stepped aside for Amanda to enter in front of him. After the door closed, he walked over to the vending machine, retrieved a few coins from his pocket, plunked them into the slot and pulled the knob to release the item he wanted. He bent and reached for the bag then turned. "Do you want anything?"

Amanda had taken a seat at the table and folded her hands primly on top of the table. "No, thank you. I'll just have a cup of water, if you don't mind."

"Not at all." He turned to water cooler to get her drink. "So," he began after she had her water and he was seated, "what do you think of our high class cafeteria?" He gestured with a wave of his hand around the room that seemed to take its style from one of the many interrogation rooms on the lower levels, then returned his attention to opening the bag of M&M's he held.

"Oh, very impressed." Her voice betrayed her sarcasm. "How long do you think it will take for them to correct the computer problem? I'd like to get back to work on that report and have it finished before I go home for the day, and I was only halfway through when I hit that wrong button, so, it's going to take me at least the rest of the afternoon to..."

"Probably only about ten minutes, maybe not even that," he interrupted.

"I'm sorry, I did it again," she remarked with a sheepish grin, then took a sip of her water. "Were any of the trainees qualified enough to go on for further training?"

He popped a few pieces of candy into his mouth, then sighed. "No, none. You know about the three KGB agents, and the other eight that were there were complete washouts, despite their qualified backgrounds. That just leaves you, and well..."

"Yeah, I know, I'm going to be a civilian for a while longer." She nodded.

"Maybe," Lee corrected as he popped a few more candies in his mouth and chewed.

"Maybe?"

"Yeah, Billy made a comment just before you hit that 'era' key about there not being one single person to send out for more training. There were twelve recruits, and it seems like such a waste to not have at least one." At her hopeful expression, he hurried to continue. "Now, that doesn't mean it's going to be immediate, but it also hasn't been completely ruled out."

"Oh, I know that, but it's exciting to know that there's a chance!"

"Well, despite all of your bumbling attempts on the training course," he said with a grin, "you did keep your eyes open and were able to help Peggy on the pulley descent."

"Yes, you're right, and to be honest, I'm very proud of what I was able to accomplish. Now, I know what you and Francine and Mr. Melrose think of me most of the time..."

"Ama..."

"And I may not be the most skilled at self-defense or covert maneuvers, but I have managed to help out on more than one assignment..."

"Loo..."

"And compared to most of those other trainees from camp this past week, I think that I should be given a chance to further my training. After all, you all have managed to find a need for me, a simple housewife, and..."

"Wou..."

"I just don't see why it's so important to be the best at everything in order to be useful."

"Are you done, now?" He finally managed to get a complete sentence out, and he tried to think of a way to pacify her while not making any promises he didn't know he could keep.

"Yes," she replied and took another drink of water. "After the dressing down you gave me once Drigorian was caught, I thought you deserved a taste of your own medicine," she added with a teasing grin.

He sighed and rolled his eyes. "Anyway," he said, barely concealing his mild frustration, "everything you said is correct. You did use your instincts at Station One, and you did think quick on your feet. You were also using your head when you caught what Peggy, or rather Tonja Pavlovich, said about bean sprouts. That's why Billy was contemplating the idea of allowing you to continue....just not right away," he finished with a placating motion of his hand. "I do have one question."

"Yes?"

"How did you manage to knock out Tonja?"

Amanda smiled and shrugged her shoulders, acting like it wasn't a very big deal. "Oh, well, I just stepped on the little buttons on the floor and those cardboard people popped up. I didn't even know they were there. I was looking for any way I could find to get out of there!"

A knock on the door stopped Lee from replying, and he looked up as the door opened. "They're all done, Mr. Stetson," a clerk informed him.

"Thank you." He looked across at Amanda as he stood. "Well, are you ready to get back to work on your report?"

"Oh, yes! The sooner I can get that finished, the sooner I can go home."

"Yeah." They both walked to the door and Lee held it open for Amanda. As she walked by him, he spoke, and she stopped to look at him. He reached for her hand and held it in his. "For what it's worth, you did a hell of a job at Station One, and that's my opinion, not Billy's." He punctuated his compliment with one of his disarming smiles as he released her hand and gave her chin a light tap.

She didn't reply, only smiled and continued out into the corridor. Lee watched her walk away and chuckled. Billy was right. She really was something.

(THE END)

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