Career Day
Note: Simpsons fanfic. It's career day at Jebidiah Springfield Middle School and Maury does a report about his father and even has him appear at the school to answer questions. Of course, he answers "no" to the 'free beer' question, even though he will take-over Moe's Tavern someday.
But, Maury reveals that he will delve into his other passions of oceanography and nature.
Chapter 1—First Day of School
Francine and Maury were anxious to be attending Jebidiah Springfield Middle School for the first time knowing that they would probably be separate from one another. Even though that was a high possibility, the siblings knew that they wouldn't be apart for long. They had adjusted to being by themselves and being independent, so there wouldn't be any trouble for them getting used to taking different classes since the two of them had such unique interests.
Already the year was starting off to be rather interesting. Maury's teacher, Ms. Waterloo, had reminded the class that Career Day was coming up in a couple more days. Students would be required to write an essay about either one of their parents, or invite either their mother or father to class to answer questions. Maury decided to choose the latter and inform his sister and dad of his choice as soon as lunch was served in the cafeteria.
"Hey, Maur. I'm writing an essay about mother's work. I'll be making a powerpoint presentation and bringing along some of her videos from Pierre Dulane's…of course, with their permission.", Francine said, greeting her brother warmly with a huge smile.
"Sounds tremendous, Fran. I was thinking I would bring dad to school. You don't think he'll mind answering any questions, do you ?", Maury questioned.
"Of course not. I'm sure he'd help either one of us out if we asked him. I'm sure your report will be interesting as well. I can't wait to start interviewing mom !", Francine said energetically. Maury couldn't help but smiling along with his sister since her smile was so contagious. He might've not been so outward about his feelings about the report but it was evident that he was eager to tackle it as his sister had been.
Chapter 2—Questions and Answers
Of course, Moe heartily agreed to helping Maury out with his report and was open to answering any questions that were hurtled his way, even the most obvious questions and some sophomoric ones. In his profession though, he was used to dealing with idiocy such as that but never tried to act better than anyone else. The tavern, as far as he was concerned, was the great equalizer. Men came there for one purpose, to talk about their issues and gather together with friends, no matter what the liquor was that they were drinking. And all in all, though some would disagree with his career, he found it humbling and honorable to bring people together and have a sort of family of his own, just for guys, since even guys needed "alone time".
Moe dressed in his usual tavern attire, and combed his hair for the 5th or 6th time at the moment he arrived to school. Ms. Waterloo welcomed all of the parents who were visiting the Middle School and called each student forward by last name. Maury felt sympathetic for the students whose names fell at the first of the alphabet and knew he would have to wait a while before "Syslak" was called, but at least he was learning about his peers' parents while he waited.
At last, Maury's name was called, "Maurice Charles Syslak", and he approached the front of the class with his father. He read his detailed report and shared plenty of photos from his father's archives, including the time he was involved with a long-time running soap opera until Homer accidentally botched that up. Moe had forgiven Homer, because he didn't know any better and one never leaves their best friends behind. No matter what, the Simpson family would be close to the Syslaks, and that wasn't going to change.
Soon as the report had been given and Maury felt confident about his presentation, Ms. Waterloo turned the forum to the students.
"Do you offer free beer ?", one pudgy boy questioned. Moe had to chuckle, but it was a good question, nonetheless.
"No, I'm sorry. I don't.", Moe said, honestly.
"Do many bartenders ever get drunk on the job ?", a young girl asked, twirling her raven hair around her index finger bashfully.
"Some do and do so without ever getting caught. I'm one of them that doesn't. Besides, it would be setting a bad example for Maur here.", Moe said, with a confident smile. Other questions he received were about his boxing career as well as his love for dancing. Moe knew his secret was out when it came to ballroom dance but he wasn't ashamed of that any longer. He still danced but hadn't been involved with any competitions lately. The bartending job kept him rather occupied.
Maury finished his report by saying that he was honored to be the one taught by such a shining example of self-control and was pleased he would be running the bar when his father was no longer able to do so. Of course, bartending wouldn't be his "end all" career. Much to his father's surprise, Maury had revealed he wanted to become an oceanographer. Moe wasn't that shocked, however, because he had known for a while that Maury loved animals, especially sea creatures.
"This just proves that you can dream big, and don't ever stop dreaming. You may fail, but never stop trying. I'm certain one day, Maur will become a tremendous oceanographer.", Moe said, patting his son firmly upon the back. Maury felt fortunate to have a father like Moe. Granted, he had seen his dad make mistakes but he knew that was all a part of being human. He was just glad that his dad supported him, and so did his mom and sister.
Chapter 3—Surprise Celebration Dinner
When the day had come to an end and everyone drew together for supper right before Moe's usual working hours that Lynn had a grand idea. For a special surprise, she had decided to take the entire Syslak clan out to eat at their favorite seafood restaurant. Lynn knew the people who owned it, so they were like family to her.
"So we're going to Pearl's tonight ?", Francine questioned ebulliently, not having eaten such tantalizing seafood in a long while.
"Yes, after all, it is a memorable occasion. It's Maurice's birthday.", Lynn said, noticing Maury had just turned a shade of dusty pink.
"I had nearly forgotten, and to think I share the same day of birth as you !", Francine said, feeling a bit silly.
"Don't worry about it. Going to Pearl's is enough for me.", Maury stated honestly.
The dinner was unbelievably sumptuous. It had been one of the best dinners the Syslaks had enjoyed, save for the ones that Lynn Marie herself had made with extra TLC.
Maury had eaten his fill, but not to the point where he had to unbutton his trousers to let his expanding belly have extra room. The waitress walked by and asked them if they wished to have dessert, and of course everyone passed on the offer.
By the time Moe and family had gotten to the car, everyone was sighing blissfully at the sensational meal they had partaken.
"I can't believe I'm 13 now. You know, it feels like yesterday that I was reaching double digits for the first time…", Maury said and Francine laughed. Francine was amazed she was 13 as well. It felt different being a teenager, all of these bizarre changes coming about, but she knew that her brother would be by her side just in case she needed comforting.
Epilogue
The day had gone by so quickly that Moe had nearly forgotten he had to go to work. He kissed his kids goodbye and said goodnight. They knew he would return despite the fact he had to work until the wee hours of the morning when no one else was awake. Sometimes it was a thankless job being a bartender, but Moe loved the camaraderie of friends and the enjoyment of watching sports on the new hi-def TV he recently had installed in the tavern.
Lynn and the others were able to sleep well that night knowing that they were all loved and all quite fortunate. Granted they weren't the richest people in the world, but as long as they had each other, this was a treasure more than any worldly thing. What the future held was uncertain, but family was constant. And wherever the kids went in their lives, their family would back them up in whatever events or potholes they faced in the road of life. And when it came right down to it that was the greatest treasure of all.
The End