Love the story - thanks

Excellent! Pete is lucky! Mac is a good friend!

or all of the above (sea serpents and dragonboats ) Didn't see much of MacGyver originally and what I have seen was probably pretty eclectic as the series went, but you still seem to have the characters nailed in this. (OK, i don't know the ex-wife). thanks for a nice read. I look forward to more.

“I hated it when Harry -- my grampa -- didn’t react to stuff going wrong. I thought he didn’t care. Once I yelled at him about it, and he said he was too busy trying to find a way out to start wailing. Maybe I learned from his example, a little too well. Or maybe I’m just putting off my turn. Tell you what. Mid-day two days from now, I get to panic and you get to shake your head and tell me to relax.”

I loved this section. Years ago, my mother was told not to have hysterics on one particular nurse's shift. Thus she never did when things were stressfull.

Oh, so many lovely moments in this -- very fine writing as well as an interesting story. I loved the elegant display of tension in so simple a thing as Pete's snoring temporarily pausing, and the delicate moments of beauty.

I particularly wallowed in joy over "Mid-day two days from now, I get to panic and you get to shake your head and tell me to relax.” And the look back to Harry was wonderful, spot on.

And the final line -- sea serpents or dragonboats -- beautiful!

Oh, getting better and better! Your work with Pete is truly beautiful -- from the effect of 'hearing through his ears' to his most important, priceless contribution: the ability to lead. 'Mac really didn’t know how to handle group dynamics' -- well put, and more important, well shown.

I especially loved Ma Colton's “I didn’t raise a lot of howling savages” remark, but this line had me howling the most:

“[the birds] that kept flying down and grabbing Mac’s hair . . . .”
“. . . just wanted nesting material,” Mac said, sounding embarassed.

Beautiful!

- Beth

You took on a lot of characters, but you are handling them well. No OOC's at all for all 4 chapters which is impressive considering lots of writers have at least one go wrong in the first chapter and you have about 15+ characters! lol. its going great. keep it up.

p.s. I love seaweed ;)

Hee hee! Poor Mac! He will have to learn to find vegetable or eat meat! Survival means eating what is easiest and meat usually is.

**The guest list made it more of a "This Is Your Life, MacGyver" episode.** I love the way you bring the TV reference in.


**"I did some jobs for Pete, and got mixed up in other stuff a couple times. Nothing interesting," was all he’d admit to.** "’Cause I’m damned if I’m going to set you an example that could get you killed, kiddo!"


**Mac’s friend Jack Dalton, who’d run into them in Zaire (literally), had a lot more stories. They all ended with Jack dragging Mac out of some dangerous or embarrassing predicament.** Somehow "Yeah, right" is just too mild a response.


**Jack’s left eye twitched like a castanet throughout.** Now THAT’S a simile!


**Penny Parker bubbled so much about her latest acting role ("Third Laundromat Girl")** Hey, whatever gets your foot in the door! J (BTW, any relation to Peter Parker, by chance?)


**The boxer Earl Dent was equally happy over a protege’s recent win. His daughter Veronica kept bringing him stuff he should eat, and taking away the stuff he shouldn’t, and refilling his glass of juice.** An example to daughters everywhere!


**Sam could tell Kate Murphy had some great stories, but she was chatting with Nikki, who might just be his stepmother some day. The situation made Nikki and Sam painfully polite together. She was good looking for an older woman, but too uptight. Sam didn’t think he had exclusive rights to his father’s time or anything, but still . . . he wanted to know Mac better
before his father was distracted by a new family.** Careful what you wish for…


**Nikki was the only person his father argued with. A lot. That had to mean something.** When he starts pulling her pigtails, you’ll know it’s love!


**Mac didn’t argue or yell much, but somehow people ended up doing things the way he thought they should be done.** Oh, to have that sort of personality!


**Willie Colton looked furtive as he put a hotdog on his plate. Sam watched the boy wrap it in a napkin, stick it in the pocket of his baggy pants, and reach for another one. A tall authoritative man saw where Sam was looking, and shrugged in resignation.

"Takes a while to forget the lessons you learn on the street," he said.** Sad! You tell us a lot about this kid’s history in just these few lines!


**If I keel over from too much good nutrition, tell Dad I want a really cool tombstone."** Hee-hee!


**He waved, turning toward the snack table and mentally kicking himself. Talk about obvious! Maybe he could have dropped the word ‘Dad’ into the conversation two or three more times, with a ‘father’ or two for variety, and let’s not forget that other F word, ‘family’!** *snerk!*


**Still, best to get it over with, so people weren’t left guessing. As a journalist, Sam knew the extremes to which rumor rose.** Egad, and with all the slash stories going around the web these days … Bleagh! Yes, make the truth clear ASAP, Sam!


**Only, look at Mama Lorraine. Could anyone have predicted that the santeria owner was one of Mac’s friends? Anybody might turn up next!** Like aliens or something!


**"I heard you can put together some stunning outfits, shopping at the thrift store," Lisa Woodman allowed. "Of course, you have to spend more than ten minutes at it."** So THAT’S what I’ve been doing wrong!


**"I got him out of a lake in Switzerland. He’d been shot. He could have died."

"He was dying when I met him. Poisoned. He couldn’t remember who to call for help, and the bad guys were looking for him. If it hadn’t been for my traps, they’d have caught him."** Oh yeah? Well when I met him, He was already dead, and I had to spend three days performing ancient Necromancy rites to bring him back to life and now he called me "Mistress" and obeys my every command, so there!


**For the first time Sam wondered how much he really wanted to know about his father’s past. What if something had happened to Mac back then and they’d never met? He stepped between the girls and kissed them, Allen first and then Woodman.

"Thank you for saving my Dad’s life. I owe you!"** Now THAT’S a way to break up a catfight before it goes too far!


** Allen swung at him. Woodman sniffed. Sam retreated, raising his hands placatingly. In a couple of steps the two girls were bickering too hard to see Sam’s wave.** … or not.


**"What’s that other planet, the bright one up there?"** Fortunately, Mac was far too mature to make any cracks about Uranus.


**"Yeah, I guess it has to be an airplane. It’s moving in a weird zig-zag."

And getting bigger, as if it was headed toward them. Was the plane off-course, looking for a place to land?** After certain events in our recent history, this can’t help but make the reader cringe a little.


**A family of raccoons, foraging for uncooked hamburger, knocked over the brazier. The fire started by the scattered coals burned Pete Thornton’s house. The party-goers were assumed to be dead, in spite of the lack of cremains.** And later, the Commander of the Alien ship exploded "YOU FORGOT TO ABDUCT THE RACCOONS?! They were our main reason for coming here, you morons! The primates were just a side experiment!"


**The loss of two activist directors nudged the Phoenix Foundation back toward its original role as a "think-tank". It drifted into obscurity.** ... and this concept re-surfaces later…

Brilliant story with everyone included. I'm looking froward to updates :D

I am intrigued by how this was pulled off. I look forward to your updates and am so glad people continue to write MacGyver fic

Dang. I almost missed the new chapter! Shan't let that happen again!

Nice job juggling all the characters so well -- that's a lot of balls to keep in motion! Veronica playing in the surf, and the touch of interplay with Mama Lorraine, were especially on the mark.

I loved the expression of Mac 'mapping' his surroundings, and the bit about the salesman who 'traveled in vacuums'. Way to wring the most out of each word!

O! Love the MacGyver Colony too. I like what you've done with Pete and his ex and Sam is a hoot, trying to figure out how to interact with all of Mac's friends. Another great story for this AU. Please continue...

Hey, are you planning to open this AU up for other authors to play in?
JudyL

Pete needs to learn there is more to him than his eyes. His instincts are what is needed now.

Well I think they are going to have a long time to talk about it. Good chapter. Very realistic conversation.