A continuation of the universe I set up in my 1st two fics ('Family' and 'Almost Perfect'). It's better if you read one (or both) of those first, but it should be okay if you don't.

What you need to know is:
-Michael and Maria have split up from the rest of the group
- The FBI is still a threat and they have not yet returned to Roswell
- The couple has a son- Will (who is three years old in this story)

This is part one of (probably) three.

Summary: Amy comes for a weekend visit several years after Michael and Maria left Roswell. Maria is excited to see her mother again, but Michael is worried that Amy won't be so thrilled to see him...

Let me know what you think and if I should continue!
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PART I

Maria paced nervously around the small hotel room, glancing out the window every few moments, hoping to see a glimpse of the familiar red Jetta.

It was almost one o'clock, and her mother was supposed to be arriving at any moment.

They would finally be reunited again, after so many years apart.

She knew that this weekend was a bit of a risk, but she was certain that they had done everything they could to ensure everyone's safety.

Instead of having Amy visit their current home in New Jersey, they had decided to meet in a hotel just outside of Huston, Texas. They were pretty sure that the Special Unit hadn't been able to track them to New Jersey yet but, according to Jim Valenti's contacts in the FBI, they still checked up on Amy on occasion. In order to avoid suspicion, Amy had told her acquaintances that she had a meeting with some clients in Huston and, if all went according to plan, she would make it to their little family reunion without attracting much attention or leading the FBI to Michael and Maria's more permanent residence.

After weeks of careful planning, Maria found it hard to believe that the moment had almost arrived and she could hardly contain her excitement. She hadn't seen, or even spoken to her mother, for a very very long time.

Not since graduation.

Not since Maria had left Roswell behind.

"Maria, calm down." Michael said from across the room. "You're going to wear a hole in the carpet."

"I can't calm down." Maria replied, glancing out the window once again. "I haven't seen her for almost six years, Michael. And she has never even seen her grandson. I've been waiting for this moment for so long…"

Knowing that calming his wife was a lost cause, Michael shrugged and went back to playing with the couple's three year old son, Will. Unlike his wife he wasn't overly thrilled about seeing his now mother-in law. He had gotten along with Amy before, but now that he had stolen her daughter and been revealed as an alien he wasn't sure if the woman would be as accepting as she had been six years ago.

He knew it was selfish, but a small part of him wished that they had just stayed home. Coming here had been a bit risky, and he wasn't looking forward to a weekend of questions and awkward silences.

But Maria had wanted to do this, and Michael knew that it meant a lot to her, so he had agreed to come and was trying very hard to keep up a happy façade.

For her sake.

He'd do anything for Maria…

"All done!" Will proclaimed happily as he completed the block tower he had been working on and looked towards his father for approval.

Michael smiled at his son. "Good job Will! I think that's the biggest one you've ever built."

"Yep!" The toddler exclaimed. "You turn it yellow now? I want a yellow tower."

Michael gave a small chuckle and affectionately ruffled his son's blonde hair. "Yellow?" he asked. "Are you sure? I made your tower yellow yesterday. I thought you wanted a blue one today."

"Nope." Will replied with conviction. "I like yellow."

The man shrugged and decided not to push the matter further. "Alright." He said as he waved his hand over his son's block creation, changing the dull brown wood into a bright canary yellow.

Will clapped his hands in approval amused, as usual, by the neat tricks his daddy could do. "Yay! Mommy, look! Daddy made it yellow!"

Maria stopped her pacing for a moment to look over at her husband and son. "That's great sweetie." She said, giving Will a quick smile. "Michael…can I talk to you over here for a minute?"

Michael noticed the serious tone in her voice and he reluctantly stood up and walked across the room. Maria glanced back at Will, who had now begun to disassemble his tower, and then turned to face her husband.

"You have to stop doing that this weekend." She said, her voice hushed so that their son couldn't overhear.

Michael raised an eyebrow. "What? Changing the colour of his blocks? He likes it."

"I know he likes it." Maria replied. "But I don't think my mother will. She hasn't been around you since she…found out…and I don't want her to get freaked. If we keep things as normal as possible, then she'll have less of a reason to disapprove."

Michael folded his arms across his chest and locked eyes with his wife. He was clearly not thrilled by her words. This conversation was doing nothing to reassure him about what was to come. "So you want me to hide what I am?" he asked. "Play the part of a nice normal human so that your mother won't think that her daughter gave up everything to be with some freak?"

"Yes…I mean, no. No, I don't mean it like that." Maria replied hastily as she placed a gentle hand on his arm. "You know I love you just the way you are, but this is still new to my mother and she hasn't had a chance to confront you yet. Trust me, it's hard to get used to the whole alien idea, and the less you use your powers, the more she'll be able to look past that she see what a great person you are."

"Fine." Michael conceded. "If you think it's for the best..."

"I do."

Michael sighed and glanced back at his son who continued to play happily on the hotel room floor. "What about Will?" he asked, meeting his wife's eyes.

The couple had realized early on that the boy had inherited his father's alien DNA and they had decided to be honest with him from the start. They had told him as much as they could about his unique heritage and Michael wanted his son to understand that, despite the difficulties, it was okay to be proud of what he was. He feared that an obvious attempt not to mention the alien thing around his grandmother might give the boy the opposite impression…

"If we act all uptight about it," Michael continued "He's going to start thinking that being an alien is a bad thing. You know that I don't wa-"

Before Michael could finish his sentence Maria cut him off. "I know." She said quietly. "I'm not saying that we have to lie- I just don't want to make a big show if it until I know how my mother feels about the situation. She has read Liz's diary- and for all we know she's gotten used to the idea already- but I think it's better if you don't use your powers until she settles in a bit."

Michael sighed before drawing his wife in for a gentle hug. "Alright. She's your mother, you know best."

"Thank you." Maria replied as reached up to give him a quick kiss on the cheek. "And don't worry- everything will be fine. She liked you before- things shouldn't really be any different now."

Michael tried to smile. He somehow doubted that this little reunion was going to go as well as Maria seemed to be hoping, but he didn't want to shatter her hopes. "Yeah…" he began, doing his beat to sound sincere. "It'll be fine."

Before he could dwell on the situation any further, however, the sound of Will's voice distracted the two adults away from their conversation.

"Red car!" The little boy exclaimed happily, pointing out of the hotel window. "Red car!"

Maria let out a squeak of excitement as she turned to see the red Jetta pull into the parking space just below their window. "Oh my god. She's here! She's really here!" the woman exclaimed as she quickly walked over to the door. "Come on, let's go outside!"

The little boy clapped his hands, obviously caught up in his mother's excitement, and Michael attempted another smile.

He was thrilled that she was so happy...

And he knew that she had been waiting for this moment for a long time…

But he couldn't help but worry.

Amy had a lot of reasons to hate him right now, and he didn't know if she would be able to see past what he was…and what he had done…

Drawing a deep breath and knowing that it was too late to turn back now, Michael picked up his son and followed his wife out of the hotel room door.

Will bobbed his head happily and began to hum as they made their way down the dreary hallway. Michael was glad that the boy was oblivious to the tension of the situation and he could only hope that his son was spared from the arguments that were, undoubtedly, about to ensue…
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