Author's Notes: Well, here's the next chapter! Whatever I have written for this chapter so far will remain as such until I am able to upload more scenes or at least some of them, because tomorrow I am going out of town with my daddy to visit my sick grandfather and starting next week I am volunteering at a local middle school as a teacher's assistant more or less. Anyways, I'll write in the summary for this chapter so you'll get the basic idea of what you'll see.
In this chapter, you'll see some of the Jewish traditions play out as the Legacy prepares for the somber funeral of little Justine Carmichael. As tensions begin to smother and explode between certain members and as everyone struggles to come to terms with the loss, Suzanne must learn to move on from the death as she repents herself before the Lord and also must learn to accept the fact that her daughter is gone and may never come back. In the meantime, Lee must deal with the guilt that rages in her heart as she copes with the effects of the rendezvous that affects her relationship with Suzanne and must deal with her feelings regarding her dearly departed daughter Justine as well as her relationships with some of the members of her new ohana.
In the meantime, Huey, Riley and Mr. Freedman worm their way into the Petrie house as they arrive to pay their respects to the Carmichael family and say goodbye to Justine as well. However, the entire gang is soon ambushed by scores of Stefano's men and even some of the most notorious villains of Salem, including Vivian Alamain. Team Legacy must defend their home from these cowardly fiends as they ruthlessly assault their headquarters and attempt to spoil things for everyone.
I hope you enjoy this chapter as I write it down as much as I can while I'm doing my volunteering work. I'll try my best to be accurate with the Jewish customs but if I miss anything please let me know so I'll make up for it next time.
Read and Review!
Chapter 3 – Avelim
It was nearly 6 o'clock when sparse sunlight flooded into Rhonda's bedroom. The young British girl rose from her top bunk bed and yawned as she stretched out her arms and legs as she peered out into the open window and smiled. Even though the sky was cluttered with ominously grey cumulus clouds, there was a golden halo of light that was obscuring their view and was radiating out into a beautiful, heavenly glow, a rare sight to see in gloomy London.
Rhonda's head quickly whirled around to see an exhausted and frazzled Lee strolling into the room carrying a cup of coffee as she sauntered over to her bottom bunk of the bed and sat down on it. Rhonda scrambled down the ladder and sat down beside her as she watched her drink her coffee with a concerned face. "Hey, Lee. How did you sleep last night?" she greeted her friendly and Lee's eyes darted over to her friend and lover as she glared at her with a stern and austere expression. "I'm fine, darling, and you?" she retorted simply. "Are you okay, Lee? Didn't you sleep well last night? You look very tired; isn't the pregnancy taking its toll on you?" Rhonda questioned her persistently.
"I'm fine, darling, I just have a lot on my mind, that's all. I just don't know what I'm going to do with Doug, since I've been discussing with him the possibility of him being Logan's surrogate father. He needs a male role model to look up to, Rhonda; you know that," Lee insisted and Rhonda put her hand on her right hand as Lee looked away abashedly and she put her head on her shoulder to comfort her.
"You still love Doug, do you? I want you to be happy, Lee; I don't want you to be miserable. That's why I set up an open, committed relationship between us so you can sleep with anyone that you desire as long as you protect yourself and you don't put me in danger," Rhonda reassured her gently as tears streamed down Lee's eyes and Rhonda hugged her closely as Lee accepted the gesture.
"Thanks, Rhonda. You're a good friend. You're the only one around here who really understands me. It's just that I've been spending two years of my life just trying to get Doug back and I cannot live without him. No matter how hard I try he just would not leave Julie, and at times it seems that I'm so close to getting him back, but then I end up losing him again. Sometimes I feel as if I'm so alone in the world and there is no one beside me, not even Chopsuey."
"I guess after a while being polygamous can get awfully lonely. But there are times that I realize that I got you, and you're the only person around that will stand by me no matter what. If that is not a prime example of being a loyal, true friend and wife, then I don't know what is. I have been thinking about proposing to you too, although you are still in school. I know right now is not a good time to get engaged, with Suzanne having lost her baby recently and all, but I thought it would be a wonderful idea if we could elope together. Perhaps we could go to Scotland and sign a marriage license with a couple of witnesses there and someone to ordain the marriage as soon as you are of legal age, perhaps next summer?"
"Either that or around Christmastide would be fine, Lee. Right now we need to get dressed and pay our respects to Suzanne and her family," Rhonda nodded affirmatively as Lee sipped her coffee calmly and as she hands it to Rhonda and she puts it aside on the counter she threw her arms around her beloved queen and embraced her lovingly. There was a low sound of rumbling of thunder as the two were immersed in each other's arms and Lee's eyes quickly turned to Renee, who had now entered the room and stopped in an abrupt halt as she was startled to see her future stepmother and her own mother in their room together.
"Oh my God, I am so sorry. I didn't realize you two were in the room," she stammered as she glared pointedly at her mother. "And I was looking for you too, Lee. I came to the room where you were sleeping last night and you weren't even there. And I was looking all over for you and then I realized the one place where you could possibly be, so I tracked you down here. I need you to help me with washing Justine's body; the rest of the female members are already in the kitchen helping washing her and I need you to come with me before you do anything else."
Rhonda then sighed and handed the mug over to Lee before adding as she got up from her bed, "Come on, Lee, let's go to the kitchen." The two women joined Renee as they departed from the bedroom and headed downstairs to go to the kitchen. As soon as they arrived at the kitchen, Julie, Hope, Marlena, Maggie, Liz, Maude, Vivian, Sophia, Rose, Blanche, Dorothy, Anna Moreno, Francine Reed, Angel, Lady Sedona, Dr. Clemenceau and Dorothy were congregated around the wooden pine box on the counter along with a number of other women as they were rinsing and sponging Justine's corpse with a small, wet towel. The women were all dressed in black with thin, light veils covering their faces.
Francine Reed was wiping Justine's face gingerly as she washed and wiped her tender yet wrinkled skin with tears seeping from her eyes. Sophia was busy crossing herself while Rose's body was rocked with tremors in an effort to stop herself from bursting into tears. Julie turned around to meet her new leader, her archrival and her daughter and immediately strolled over to greet them with hot, bleary tears; she threw her arms around Rhonda and sobbed quietly on her shoulders as she patted her back softly. "Oh thank God you're here, Rhonda. I cannot stand to see another minute of looking at that innocent child," Julie wailed as Renee approached her mother's enemy and exchanged hugs with her too. "It's okay, Julie. We're family, we're ohana. Nobody gets left behind or forgotten, ever," Renee reassured her soothingly as Julie nodded with tears drenched in her face.
Lee just stood there with a stone-faced expression as she stared blankly at her enemy, not knowing what to say or even respond. It was true that Justine's untimely death weighed heavily on her mind as well as her secret rendezvous with Suzanne, but she was unsure of how to even comfort her long time adversary, if anything. Julie spun around to meet Lee and there was a chilly, solemn silence that developed between them as the older blonde woman struggled to pull herself together and scowled bitterly at Lee, who could not help but watch her sadly, despite of their mutual hatred of each other.
"You… You… You dare…" Julie choked a brief sob as she glared indignantly at the younger brunette woman and finally in a fit of rage she struck her hard across the face to the surprised and shocked faces of Rhonda and Renee as Lee staggered over to the floor in stricken horror as she gazed at her with a dismayed and appalled expression.
For a long time neither of the women responded as Lee stared at her with a silent, amazed and alarmed face and her eyes displayed a look of pain and hurt; finally, Julie was unable to control her blind rage and she lunged at Lee with a terrible, blood-curling scream and she was about to attack her when Renee jumped in the way and the two women tumbled to the ground and started to wrestle and struggle with each other as the Team Legacy members flocked around to see the quickly escalating brawl between the women. "Fight! Fight! Fight! Fight! Fight! Fight! Fight!" Spongebob and Patrick chanted enthusiastically as some of the other apes, including Terk, were banging and smashing their fists against the ground while uttering growls, snarls and roars.
Renee began to swing wild, frantic punches at Julie as they rolled over each other and she kicked, punted and lashed at her angrily as Julie tried to block her hits. Julie slapped her constantly on the face as she smashed and clouted her face countless times and finally Renee blocked her next punch with a metal block and tumbled over her twice before flipping her over her back with her legs and Julie was sent flying over to the table with a scream and soon crashed head first into a heap of china, silver, glass antiques, and vases on a table as they smashed into a million pieces; one of the silver plates was overturned as it flipped in midair and clattered on the floor. A panic-stricken Doug rushed over to his fallen wife along with Lee and Rhonda and with their help managed to pull his wife up to her feet.
Julie wiped off the tiny glass shards off her black, slender dress and shook the remaining debris off her veil as she glanced over at her husband and smiled. The rest of the team gaped over at Renee with shocked and mortified expressions as Renee quickly slipped out of the group and retreated to her room. Sophia's eyes swept around her teammates before making one of her caustic remarks. "What the hell is going on here today?" she retorted mordantly. "This is insane! Are we like monsters or even cannibals towards each other? Do we have so much hatred towards each other that we have to just go out and kill one another?" Maude shrieked wildly as she flailed her arms in an attempt to calm everyone.
"Maude's right; we have to calm down and stop going after one another. Fighting and trying to kill or maim each other would not solve anything. We are all in deep grief here and emotions are bound to run very high in dark and tense times like these," Hope conferred with Maude's words. "Besides, we have a little girl to bury, so why don't we all be on our best behavior and get this funeral over with so we'll have plenty of time to grieve and mourn, especially Suzanne and her family," Francine Reed added.
"Oh my God, I have no idea I had such conflicting emotions inside of me and I guess this sad day just brought out the worst in me," Julie murmured in a horrified voice as she turned to Lee and approached her slowly. "Lee, I am so sorry I attacked you. I know that we normally don't get along because we usually vie for the same man but even now it was not right for me to try and attack you, especially since you're pregnant. If you are willing to stay away from Doug for a week and refrain from causing any further trouble during this funeral, I am willing to form a temporary truce. Deal?" she offered her hand placidly as Lee gawked at her wide-eyed and her eyes darted from her outstretched hand to her face. Finally she nodded slowly and accepted the gesture as the women shook hands and Julie pulled Lee into an assuring hug and shushed her as Lee began to let out all of her pent up tears and sobbed inconsolably.
Finally Justine's body was washed thoroughly and Vivian wiped it dry with another towel as Rose took out the white burial shroud and she and the girls helped wrap it around tightly as it lay snug in the pine box. Mrs. Naugatuck then closed the box shut as she performed a cross on the lid's surface before she turned to her mistress. "Okay, ladies and gentlemen. Now we are going to wait for more guests to arrive as they are coming in and we will also wait for the rabbi to arrive as we speak."
"In the meantime, I would like for everyone to grab a snack and eat something because it is going to be a long day," Doug announced to everyone in the room. The entire gang agreed as they went to their respective places and some of the Team Legacy members lingered in the kitchen and rummaged through the refrigerator to get something to munch on while Dorothy and the girls were hovering over the stove preparing some boiled eggs. "Wow, Rose, I am stunned to see that you're actually preparing some boiled eggs for everyone; I'm very impressed," Dorothy remarked in awe. "Well, I did grow up on a dairy farm back in St. Olaf, Dorothy and we kept chickens around too. Boiled hard eggs are actually a very rare delicacy," Rose answered stiffly and coolly as she kept on cooking and boiling the eggs that lay in front of her.
"Oh, Marlena, this is so awful. Mickey and I are so sorry for your loss," Maggie offered her sympathies to Marlena as she grimly nodded. "Thank you for your kindness, Maggie. But I think you should be commiserating with Suzanne. She's the one who's truly devastated by her daughter's death," Marlena answered crisply as Maggie nodded. "So we're supposed to provide everyone with this Cuban bread?" Liz inquired quizzically to Marlena as they were slicing up loaves of Cuban bread, who then nodded. "That's how the Jews do it, Liz, so we better get working until the guests arrive," she replied softly as she continued to chop up the Cuban bread.
Lee sat on the couch studying the shambled and demolished table with her thin veil hanging over her face as she held Julie's hand and choked back tears with her head throbbing. She glanced over to see Suzanne and Thomas standing over the dug up hole in the backyard that was to be Justine's final resting peace and sashayed over to the sliding glass door to meet them. As soon as she opened it up and stepped outside, she graced over to her friend and fellow teammate and Suzanne was shocked out of her drifting thoughts as she tenderly and suddenly wrapped her arms around her. "I'm so sorry, Suzanne," Lee whispered as Suzanne turned over to her and she wrapped her arms around her slender, slim body in a loving embrace as tears seeped from her cracked, reddened eyes.
"Don't ever blame yourself for this, Lee. None of this is your fault. This is my burden to carry and no one else's," Suzanne hissed in a hoarse, croaky voice, which was strained from crying all morning and all of the previous night. "If there is anything I can do for you, anything at all, I can even offer my son to you…" Lee started but Suzanne put her finger on Lee's lips to silence her as Lee stared into her gray, blue eyes which was illuminated with unconditional love for her daughter and grief for her tragic demise.
"Don't say anymore, Lee. You don't even have to relinquish your son to me. Right now I am dealing with some very complicated emotions and I do not need any interference from you. You being here for me and for my family, including my daughter, is more than enough for me. And don't you dare offer yourself to me either; I must devote my time now to God and I appreciate your concern and sympathy but I will not let my vulnerability allow me to fall for your seductive charms. Even though you may have feelings for me, I appreciate the little time you have managed to spend with my daughter and the love you have provided for her and for that I'll always be grateful. I acknowledge how you feel towards me, Lee, but don't you ever dare try to seduce me."
She turned away from her as she broke away from her embrace and returned to her husband as she wrapped her arms tenderly around his neck and cried. Lee watched the couple bask in their warmth and love for each other as they stared intently at the newly dug up grave for several moments before she returned back into the house.
As soon as she stepped inside the house again, she could smell the sweet scent of incense drifting and hovering in the living room as she saw several of Jumba's, Dr. Clemenceau's and Mr. Kracko's experiments gathered around the wooden pine box, which lay inert. Yaarp even rubbed his nose with his upper left arm as he stood solemnly over the newly deceased corpse and Kixx began to play the trumpet softly as a sign of bereavement.
The jasmine aroma that now weaved and floated in the atmosphere uplifted and comforted her since it smelled so fresh and lovely and it made her feel at least a little better about herself. The doorbell rang and Slinky Dog trotted over with his lengthy bottom meandering along with him in tandem before he stood on his hind legs and twisted the doorknob with his front paws; as soon as the door opened, Marie Horton, Dr. Laura Horton, Belle, John, Roman and Bo were revealed on the doorstep as their latest guests and Bo peered curiously at the young dachshund.
"Well, lookie here. It appears that we have arrived at the right place, everyone. And what is your name, son?" Bo remarked wistfully as he addressed his friends before setting his sights on Slinky. "The name's Slink, Slinky Dog. I'm one of the various members of Team Legacy; the leader of this team is Miss Rhonda Sarah Petrie. Come on in; your pals are waiting for ya," Slinky greeted Bo in a friendly manner as he shook his hand with one of his paws and beckoned them to follow him into the kitchen.
As the six Salemites wandered into the kitchen, Laura noticed Mickey and Maggie standing in front of the counter, chopping up some lettuce, onions and tomatoes and a lump soon developed in her throat the moment her attention was diverted to Mickey. She did not expect to run into her ex-husband in a strange town like this, especially since it had so long since they had been together and he went off to meet, court and marry Maggie after suffering a bout of amnesia. Roman's gaze, however, immediately clicked to Marlena as he saw his old love and one-time wife kneading a roll of Cuban bread in preparation to feed the Carmichael family, her eyes looking down at her work as she ignored him.
John also stared at his wife and noticed how despite of the grim and ominous-looking clothing draped on her slender and slim body she still managed to look ravishing and lovely. The thin, flat veil still hung in front of her as it concealed her sensuous and beautiful face and Marlena glanced up at her husband as she kept on chopping the vegetables; she then dropped her knife with her jaw agape upon seeing him and quickly raced up to him with a wail escaping her lips.
"Oh, my, God, John! You came! I cannot believe you came!" Marlena shrieked as she dashed up to John as she threw her arms around him and hugged him lovingly and once she caught sight of Marie, Laura, Roman, Bo and Belle she went up to them and exchanged hugs with them as well, including a special hug to Roman.
"Roman, I am so sorry I have hurt you; I just don't know what came over me," Marlena whispered softly as she held Roman in her arms and he held her tightly. "All is forgiven, Marlena. I know you're a good woman at heart and I'm glad that you're making a good living in this team," Roman replied mercifully as he returned the gesture and the two ex-spouses broke apart as they smiled at each other. Marlena then looked around before turning to her friends once again. "Excuse me; I think I might have to go find Renee. She might be in her room somewhere and I would like to speak with her," she quickly explicated to her friends.
Bo shook his head with a roll of his eyes as he exhaled loudly. "What did that girl do now?" he growled exasperatedly. "Ummm… She got into a fight with Julie and pretty much tossed her over to the glass table that is now smashed into a million pieces," Marlena stammered nervously and anxiously as she scratched the back of her head with her eyes darting frantically. "Now if you excuse me I must be off. I'll arrange for Doug, Julie, Maude Findlay or even Dorothy Zbornak to give you a tour of our lovely home." She bolted into the hallway and disappeared into the corridors as she scurried off to find her friend. "Goddamn it…" Bo grumbled under his breath while Roman patted his shoulder sympathetically. "Cool it, bro. Marlena will be just fine; she's just kind of busy since they're preparing for the burial," he reassured him calmly.
"Well, at least that dachshund thing was kind enough to let us in," Marie sighed forlornly. "Well, funerals are always depressing, if you know what I mean. C'mon, let's find the Carmichaels and give them our condolences," Laura urged the gang and they headed off to the sliding glass door to step out into the grave site and meet up with Suzanne and Thomas. However, as they got close to the sliding glass door, Marie noticed someone lurking in the shadows.
"Oh my God, who is that?" she whispered as Laura advanced towards the darkness to take a closer look; she could just about see the shifting stream of smoke billowing out of the shadows with a pair of light green eyes peering intently at them. "Hello? Who are you? Please come out, for we need to get to the grave site if you don't mind," Laura bellowed out and the moment Lee emerged from the shadows with a cigarette in hand and a tear-stained face, she and her friends gasped in shock. The Brady brothers' jaws dropped as they gawked at what they are seeing and even Belle could not believe her eyes.
"Lee? Is that you? By God I can't believe it's really you! And you're pregnant!" Marie exclaimed wildly. "And how did you end up here in the first place?" Laura added with an inquisitive, skeptical raise of her eyebrow. "Nice to notice that I'm expecting a child, Marie. Well, as for how long I've been in this team, it's kind of like a long story, and right now I'm not in the mood to reveal my misadventures to old acquaintances," Lee retorted sassily as she took a casual, cool drag of her cigarette and exhaled with a flourish of her breath.
Marie's head was shaking to and fro as she shuddered at the sight of Lee and she could not stop her jaw from dropping. "Are you fucking crazy?" she managed to sputter out with a gasp. "Do you realize the harm you're doing to this baby? And look at your eyes! You look like you've either been crying for hours or you have not had good sleep last night."
"Yes I know, and frankly I don't give a shit because right now I'm in deep distress. I'm mourning the loss of a child that has somehow captured my heart and I'm also going through some complicated times as well, with relationships, my bisexuality…" Lee scoffed disdainfully but then Belle interrupted her by saying, "Wait? You're a lesbian? Why didn't you tell us, Lee?" "What is there to tell, Isabella? My private life is none of your fucking damn business," Lee snarled threatening at Belle as she flinched in response and glared at her sharply.
"For your information, Lee, it is too our business because we have not seen you in years and besides one of us would have found out about your bisexuality sooner or later anyway, considering the way our town operates. We've heard some of your exploits as well; rumors have swirled about that you were working as a freelance prostitute in Seattle, then you moved on to Canada and fell in love with a local female native, then you got involved in a huge police chase that took you all the way to Washington, D.C. when you robbed a local convenience store and you eventually got yourself a cushy job at the ol' White House."
"That was around the time where Stefano started creating all of those illegal genetically mutated alien experiments in an attempt to take over Salem and to make himself even more powerful than he already was and eventually they started spreading all over town and eventually spilled out to the entire state of Illinois."
"It wasn't until towards the end of The War Of The Countries that all of the classified and restricted foreign material used to create those alien experiments were discovered in the DiMera mansion and the mayor had all of his men confiscate all of the supplies, DNA samples, instruction manuals and equipment available and have them transported to several lab research facilities that are specialized in handling such top secret material."
"We've spent pretty much the entire war trying to rebuild our beloved city and fending ourselves from all kinds of alien threats and whatnot, especially some of Stefano's biggest monsters; in the process, not only did we learn to survive in a hostile environment and become self-trained mercenaries, but we also formed a very functional and organized team of warriors called The Salem Militia, designed to be dispatched only in times of war."
"Ever since that time, we Salemites have learned more about these alien experiments and now some of those aliens are already lurking in our environment. But of course we always hear rumors and stories of some of our local troublemakers breaking into the restricted institutions and stealing some of the classified equipment in order to make some of those monsters, including now."
"I've even heard that you have some alien DNA in you, Lee, since you have mated with a male alien experiment that belonged to a Dr. Jumba Jookiba?" "Yes, and he's the father of my children, if you want to know. Now I'm the co-queen of this team as well as Rhonda's queen consort and as such I would like for you to stay out of my way," Lee sniffed coldly as she glared pointedly at Marie and Marie gulped as she looked over at the young Russian-French immigrant; however, she smiled gently and strolled over to Lee and hugged her kindly and patted her back as she hiccupped slightly.
"We're right behind you, Lee. Everything is going to be okay, you know that," Marie shushed her as the two women broke apart and Lee nodded wordlessly. "However, you must keep an eye out for Vivian Alamain. I've heard that she's on her way here to the Petrie residence with the intention of stealing Justine's body and pawning it off to body stealers who will sell it off for profit."
"C'mon, brother. We better get moving on our patrols around the house and check out the perimeters for any suspicious activity. In the meantime we'll pay our tribute to the grieving parents and we will head to the kitchen to get something to drink," Roman urged his brother and Bo nodded before the two men headed outside to meet the Carmichaels, with the rest of the gang following after them. Lee then sighed and walked through the living room with a forlorn and melancholic expression as she glanced briefly at Doug and Julie; she then looked over her shoulder to see some of her fellow Legacy members continuing to prepare meals for any more upcoming guests.
"Where do you think you're going, Lee?" Julie inquired her nemesis as Lee snapped out of her thoughts and turned to the older blonde with a severe glare. "I'm going outside for some fresh air if you don't mind," she sniffed simply as she took another long drag of her cigarette and veered towards upstairs to head to Rhonda's lab. "What the hell is her problem?" Julie retorted while shaking her head as she turned to her husband, who could only respond with a nonchalant shrug of his shoulders.
Just a few feet away from them, Hamm and Slinky were busy talking while sipping cans of Coca Cola. "Hey, Slink. Have you noticed the number of people that have been showing up lately?" Hamm quipped curiously to Slinky Dog, who nodded as he continued to drink his soda. "Yeah, it appears that our Salemite teammates seem to have plenty of friends for them to show up and give support to us, especially since they don't even know most of us, including Justine," Slinky scoffed as he gulped down sips of coke as Hamm kept on talking.
"I actually like Mickey Horton. He sounds like a very nice guy if you ask me; he seems very impressed with the way we run things in here and he's also glad to see that some of his Salem pals are doing exceptionally well, including Doug and Julie. He's been telling me that he's the number one lawyer of all of Salem, so I figured if I ever have a lawsuit to file or if I have any legal issues, I should just turn to him. And his wife Maggie owns the classiest restaurant in town too; Tuscany's. How about that, Slink?"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Hey, listen, Hammy. Have you noticed anything strange going on with Lee?" Slinky Dog snorted disdainfully as he narrows his eyes at his friend. "Yeah… now that you mention it, she seems pretty aloof around these guests and she also seems distant towards us too. You think that the reappearance of some of her fellow townsfolk might be bringing back some bad memories because I heard her mention to Rhonda that she stayed in Salem for a couple of years," Hamm answered thoughtfully.
"I suspect she has a lot on her mind; I don't really think she wants to talk to anyone right now," Slinky Dog replied solemnly with his stubby, short tail wagging to and fro. "Well, why don't you go ask her? Maybe she'll open up to you. I'm sure she might need someone to talk to. I think she's still dealing with the loss of Justine, especially since I've heard of how attached she was to her," Hamm suggested pithily while Slinky frowned. "I don't know; like I said, maybe we should just leave her alone for the time being. Perhaps the one person she'll open up to is Rhonda, since she trusts her more than anything and she loves her with all her heart," he answered while shaking his head.
Just then, Chopsuey and Stitch were marching downstairs dressed in tuxedoes while in the middle of yet another argument. "Naga! Me bootifa! Meega the best!" Stitch growled. "No you are inferior! I am the best! Jumba loves me more, you annoying brat!" Chopsuey snarled as Stitch swiped furiously at his older twin brother and before he knew it Chopsuey lunged at him and they tumbled onto the ground and started fighting.
Julie and Doug whipped their heads around and were shocked and dismayed to see the twin alien brothers locked in yet another brawl. "Oh no…" Julie groaned as she and her husband got up and raced over to where Chopsuey & Stitch were fighting with Hamm and Slinky Dog accompanying them and the four teammates pulled the brothers apart with Doug and Julie restraining Chopsuey by his four arms and Slinky Dog and Hamm held Stitch back by his four arms as well, with mostly Slinky doing the restraining because Hamm lacks mobility in his hooves required to grip and hold objects.
"Naga! Naga sabooka!" Stitch swore as Chopsuey struggled and thrashed against Doug and Julie and soon spat in Stitch's face. "Hey, hey, hey, hey! Let's cut that shit out and let's at least try to show some respect for Suzanne's family!" Slinky Dog scolded Chopsuey fiercely as he and Hamm fought hard to constrain Stitch to prevent him from breaking free from their grasp and lunging after Chopsuey.
"Julie, I think Chopsuey's too strong; I don't think I can hold on any longer," Doug grunted as he tried to steady his grip on Chopsuey's arms. "HA! You people are so fucking old you cannot even muster up the strength to restrain me!" Chopsuey jeered as he laughed maniacally and Maggie gasped in horror as she, Mickey, Liz and Hope rushed over to Doug and Julie and grabbed onto Chopsuey to help them control him. "Dad, is this alien crazy or what?" Hope commented as she tried to help her father pin down the young experiment and Chopsuey proceeded to toss out a series of profanities at his younger twin brother.
Stitch hissed in a ferocious snarl as he struggled against Ham and Slinky and he continued to swear and curse in alien at Chopsuey as well. "I cannot believe you are itching to have another fight with Stitch; when are you going to learn enough is enough, Chopsuey? Do you really hate your brother this much for you to scheme to get rid of him just so you can be Jumba's favorite? Is that really important to you?" Doug shot back at Chopsuey as his grip tightened on his upper left arm.
Chopsuey spun around and sneered contemptuously at Doug. "Of course it is, you old fool! It's more important to me than anything else! You don't know what it is to be ignored and shunned by the one creator who is supposed to love and adore you and only to be reduced to becoming a mere servant!" "You're not a servant, Chopsuey! You're a part of this family just like anyone else! Julie is family! Doug is family! Lee and Renee are family too! No one is any better or any superior than anyone else. You're just as equal as everyone in this gang!" Hope cried in an impassionate, fiery voice as Doug and Julie were surprised and stunned to see their daughter so especially outspoken at a moment like this.
"What the damn hell is going on here? Shame on you, Chopsuey! I cannot believe you picked a more inappropriate time to pick a fight with your own brother than a funeral for one of our own!" Viola Beautacroft roared in an indignant, passionate voice as she marched down the stairs with a flowing, black, slender dress and a thin, draping veil hanging over her elderly face and Chopsuey swerved around to see one of his old colleagues from Washington.
"What would Lee say if she were to see you like this, a savage as you are?" "Fuck you, you damn, miserable whore! I hate you, I hate you, I hate you!" Chopsuey shrieked as he lashed out angrily at Viola and the old Frenchwoman could only stare at him with a cold, steely expression in her eyes and she stood there distantly and aloofly as she watched Chopsuey scramble furiously to attack her. She was very much used to Chopsuey's violent tantrums as she was to Lee's and was very much aware of how violent he can turn out to be; even though she was still slightly afraid of his aggressive and vicious tendencies and she still fears the possibility that he could possibly attack and assault her, she tries her best to deal with his outbursts as they come and there are times when these temper tantrums don't even faze her. Viola tolerates Chopsuey as a teammate but still despises and loathes him due to his belligerent and brutal nature and his insane and maniacal personality as well as his still burning desire to destroy Stitch.
And as for Lee, the two could have never been closer. Viola loved Lee as if she were her own sister and adored her with all her heart and soul; at the same time, however, she was saddened and heartbroken at the fact that Lee had chosen to be with Rhonda and now that they were lovers she had never felt so alone. It had reminded her of the times she had suffered and mourned deeply after the untimely death of her husband, whom she had loved passionately and cherished for more than 50 years.
The pain she was currently feeling was becoming increasingly unbearable and she often spent time alone by isolating herself from the rest of the gang and sitting in her dark room lying in her bed, reminiscing about her memories in Washington, D.C. and all the adventures she shared not only with Chopsuey, Ichy and the other villains but most importantly with Lee.
Sometimes she would even console herself by strumming on Harold's guitar, which he had bought for Father's Day and in other times she would either sit on her bed reading a romantic novel, knit some sweaters for Lee's son Logan and for Justine, Sydney, Arabella and even Omari and there were some other occasions where she would wander into Jumba's lab and examine all of his database and secret files chronicling his experiments and any other relevant information that described in depth information about his creations; there would be times where she too would visit Rhonda's lab while wandering around the perimeters and even snoop into her restricted files detailing information about all of the experiments she had ever created during her long career as a superhero.
Viola had once stumbled upon the files of Dr. Clemenceau and Mr. Kracko, which had been handed down to Mrs. Kracko and Miss Karnes upon his death, and read through the notes, documents and mementos that depicted the tales of how the experiments have been created and the circumstances that surrounded not only their births but also the events of their early lives long before they joined Team Legacy. She was stunned and intrigued by how all of their destinies have all been linked together in some inexplicable manner and of how Mr. Phantom had somehow become associated with the famous mad scientist, who was said to be less crazy than was previously thought.
Truth to the matter was that he was a very generous and giving, kind-hearted man who never hesitated to help someone in desperate need and was beloved by all, which was why his funeral four years ago was met by great fanfare and brought together those who knew him and those who did not. Viola wished she could have been there during that time period but unfortunately she was still living in France working in a law firm as a secretary and was happily married with a well to do realty investor and lawyer.
She also smiled at the memory of her dearly departed husband named Hoyt Bernstein, who was the most wonderful man she had ever known; he was a sweet, kind, gentle and loving man who thought the world of her and knew exactly how to take care of her. He had the ability to come up with the most romantic dates for the two of them to enjoy. Not only was Hoyt a sensible and responsible man, but he was trustworthy, faithful, dedicated, intelligent and with a good sense of humor.
It was not easy working at a law firm where she had to deal with some unsavory characters for clients, especially ones that piqued her disgust and contempt, but whenever she returned home to run into Hoyt's arms, Viola always knew she had someone to turn to and someone to confide in. But when Viola received the news that Hoyt had suffered a massive heart attack during lunch with a client and had been rushed to a nearby hospital, she knew she had to go to him. And so she sped all the way through traffic cutting several red lights and nearly crashing into several cars on the way there, and when she finally arrived at the hospital, her husband was in critical condition.
Viola had never seen her husband looking so ill and pale before and he seemed to be very weak and frail. He was hooked to an I.V. monitor and could barely even speak, but was still glad to see her. Viola stayed with him through the night as she held his hand and talked to him as they recalled several moments together. Then, just as he was about to leave, Hoyt suffered a severe spasm in his chest and went into sudden cardiac arrest and a frightened and mortified Viola bolted out of the room in tears as her cries could be heard all over the hospital. All she was able to remember was that she raced through the hospital as if time was speeding right by her as she saw several nurses and doctors flooding into her husband's room from all directions behind her; she soon stepped out into the front of the building before collapsing on her knees and just bawling and praying to God above to let her beloved husband live.
20-30 minutes, one of the nurses appeared out of the hospital and approached the grieving old woman as he delivered her the bad news: her husband had been pronounced dead. It was as if her world had suddenly slowed to a halt and time had ceased to move on; Viola did not know how to react or respond to what she had just heard. All she could do now was to fall back into his arms and just scream out her furious and angered grief as she promptly mourned the sudden death of her husband of more than 50 years.
Nothing was ever the same after Hoyt was gone; it was as if life ceased to have any meaning left for the elderly Frenchwoman; the newly proclaimed widow felt like an emotionless, vacant zombie as she felt the perpetual and pervasive emptiness and guilt rage through her soul as she distanced herself from everyone she had ever loved and known. Viola felt numb and cold in her heart as she had to deal with his life insurance, final expenses, funeral arrangements, and even all of the bills he had racked up.
For months she struggled to pay off her mortgage and monthly bills as she continued to work not only as a secretary in her law firm but she also took two other part time jobs as a high school English literature/law teacher and as a nightclub singer at a local bar. She also became a manager at a local university hospital as well as a cash register clerk in a fast food restaurant. This endless stream of jobs took a toll on her mental and physical health and left her thoroughly exhausted as she fought to make a living for herself. This eventually resulted in her suffering a nervous breakdown with a severe bout of insomnia and in a powerful bout of grief and anguish attempted suicide by overdosing on barbiturates.
Luckily she was rushed to a mental hospital and was institutionalized there for over 72 hours for observation; while there she received counseling by psychiatrists and was treated for her near fatal overdose. Viola was soon referred to a particularly respected psychiatrist and for the last two years of her life in France had been seeing her to try to deal with the loss of her husband and how it was severely affecting her life.
It was then that Viola realized she must pull herself together and try to cope with the best way she knew how; she continued to see her psychiatrist and quit her job as a manager and as a cash register clerk to relieve herself of the excessive workload besides attending numerous sessions in group therapy to help come to terms with her loss. She gradually started to feel better about herself and was now trying to accept her loss as best as she could, even though she still missed her husband dearly, but the worst was yet to come.
Shortly after the end of The American War 2006 and sometime after Mr. Sanders took over the presidency in the U.S., Viola was informed by her boss that she was about to be laid off due to chronic problems with the company and as such she should have all of her belongings gathered and her space cleaned out by the end of the following week. Viola obeyed, and by the time next Friday rolled around, she was already gone.
The first thing she did was to check to make sure that she had some money left to survive; however, she soon discovered that the law firm had failed to set up a pension plan for her and even though she had saved plenty of money in her own private savings left over after her husband's demise as a result of her odd jobs, she had combined all of her savings accumulated during her long marriage to Hoyt into her husband's account, which was very foolish now that she thought about it. And since she was forced to spend much of her husband's savings on funeral expenses and other bills and the rest of them were acquired by her employer, Viola was left broken and destitute, making her practically a pauper.
Because of her dire financial situation, Viola decided to find work elsewhere since no one else in France would take her due to her advanced age and that was what led her to find Mr. Sanders' ad online; the rest was history, since this particular venture led to her migration to America and her subsequent escapades in Washington as well as some steamy romances, including with one of her only true friends left, Lee.
Lee, the not so perfect angel; a comforting and alluring presence in her life; someone who she could relate to on some level and with whom she is capable of being intimate with. The one woman with whom she had shared all of her secrets, dreams and wishes with, and with whom she shared all of her crazy adventures all of these years ago. And now that Lee was a queen of this expansive superhero team, Viola was practically left in the shadows as she had gradually realized that even though they were still dear, close friends, Lee was now lavishing all of her attention and romantic love to Rhonda, making her awfully lonely.
However, considering Lee's promiscuous nature, Viola knew it would not be long before her wandering eyes would set their sights on her and even now she knew that Lee still held some feelings for her, which made her feel elated, since she still loved her romantically as well. Lee was the one person she could turn to whenever there was a problem and despite of her villainous nature she trusted her openly and had come to think of her as one of her truest and closest friends. Even now the two women should share some of their most personal and private secrets that they would not even reveal to some of their loved ones and they would huddle in bed together and just talk and laugh about all of the things they have done together.
Viola had already revealed her painful tragedy to Lee while they were wandering through the unforgiving wilderness that stretched all the way from Washington all the way to Salem and Lee actually sympathized for her despite of herself. She had understood the pain that Viola went through because she had gone through some serious grief herself, especially where her romance with Bertha was concerned, and she was the first to confess to Viola about her steamy and torrid affair with her own half-sister, whom she loved and hated with passion. Not only did she reveal to her about her romance with Bertha, but she also informed her about the time when Renee ended up in the hospital during the Salem Strangler incident and she was especially worried about her to the point where she informed Julie that if anything were to happen to Renee, all the blame would fall on David, her adult son.
Even if Viola did not approve of any bizarre and crazy scheme Lee would still pull out her sleeves, (which she still does, if anything), she was willing to stand by her friend and support her no matter what. After all, she was the one who stuck by her when times got extremely tough, with the sudden departure of Chopsuey from the White House and of how Lee would grieve and mourn his loss for nights on end, and on how she was there when her twin children Caesar and C.C. were born; she was also the one whom Lee had trusted to keep an eye on every hour of the day as she went on her endless conquests to consolidate her power and earn her place in the White House again after being publicly disgraced for her blatant betrayal of Mr. Sanders and his administration.
Even after Mr. Sanders was exiled to Atlantis and his whereabouts remained unknown, Lee continued to wreak her vengeance upon others she considered inferior and unworthy and as she continued to gather an infamous and notorious reputation while gaining more and more power and prestige in Washington with a long rap sheet of crimes and misdeeds, Viola began to become horrified as she watched her lover and dear friend slowly succumb to the corruption that was taking over her body and as she continued to kill, maim, torture, capture and seize hundreds of innocents and even terrorize her fellow villains, she could not help but think that not only was she reverting back to her old devious, sinful self, but that she was now becoming a horrifying monster.
Gradually Viola could no longer recognize who her friend was anymore and she continued to become disturbed and alarmed by her increasing number of crimes and this soon became the basis of their many arguments. Even when Viola was at her wits' end she was still determined to stand by her and loved her with all her heart, in spite of the raging darkness in her heart. And when Lee was about to embark on that fateful epic mission on board her ship towards the end of the war, she finally turned to her old friend and asked her to do a simple favor: if anything were to happen to her, she was to become Caesar and C.C.'s guardian and she was also to raise them as if they were her own. Viola was touched by this request and immediately accepted, since she loved the alien twins as her own and she had come to think of them and Lee as her own family.
Lee then drew her into her arms and immediately kissed her in the lips as she threw her down on the bed and they proceeded to go into another make-out session. Viola had never been happier to be in Lee's arms as she had been at that moment as the younger woman cradled her lovingly in her arms and was kissing her deep in the mouth. Even in this moment she had never felt such a tender touch from her lips as she did now and as she wrapped her arms around her body tightly yet snugly she could feel a tight grip in her arms and her body was completely pinned to the bed.
Viola also recalled how she heard distinct, hollow breathing coming from Lee as she continued to kiss her passionately and the moment she started to trail her kisses down her neck a shudder ran down her back and when their lips touched once more she peered deeply into her light green eyes and she recognized the old fire burning within them, making her smile.
Lee then began to whisper sweet nothings into her ear in French and Viola started to chuckle with delight, earning a smirk forming in her lips. But then she heard loud, shrill screaming coming from the door and spun around to see her twin alien children bursting into the room crying out for their mommy, oblivious to the fact that their mother was busy having relations with yet another woman.
Lee dismounted off Viola, startled and shaken to see that her offspring had once again walked right into one of her numerous trysts and greeted them with open arms as they dashed right to her shrieking and crying. Viola watched mother and children reunite as she saw a confused and puzzled expression in C.C.'s eyes, as if she was wondering what her mother was doing making out with their "aunt". Lee hugged them and kissed their little faces as she noticed C.C.'s concerned face and as she stroked her scruffy face lovingly, she reassured her that what she and their Aunt Viola were doing was consensual and mutual and they're doing it because they love each other.
Viola also recalled C.C. asking her mother, as she had done so many times, if their father was ever coming back, with Lee replying simply that she does not know if he ever will. She then proceeded to explain to her little ones that she is going on a special trip to the future and she is going to make a big score that will ensure the stability and security of their lives and possibly earn her a reputation as one of the most successful villainesses in the entire district as well the entire universe and galaxy.
However, there was a possibility that this mission could turn out to be extremely dangerous and potentially fatal and she may not even return from this expenditure alive; therefore, if anything were to happen to her, Viola will always be there to care and provide for them as if she was their own mother. And as Lee explained this to her children as best as she possibly could, she could see the crestfallen expression on their faces and she could see that Caesar was deeply hurt by what he had just found out and C.C. too.
Like his twin sister, he was very perceptive of the environment around him and even though he was not as preoccupied with Lee's bisexuality as C.C. was, it always bothered him that his father was never even around to teach him things that a father usually teaches his son, such as how to treat women, play catch, go hunting, etc., and he would always wonder why he never came in to see them. Lee was just as reluctant to explain to her son, her beautiful, beloved son, why his father had suddenly left them behind sometime before their birth, although she knew why he had left in the first place but just did not want to dwell on the bad memories.
Viola watched Lee talk and interact with her children as she led them over to the bed and she lay her head down on the pillow and patted her lap for the alien children to sit on; the twins did as their mother commanded as they climbed onto her chest and it was not long before Lee climbed into bed and covered herself as the twins joined her; then she pulled down on her dress and exposed herself as she peered down at her body and watched her children nurse with a quiet smile. Viola recalled that she could not help but simper as she watched Lee feed her children with the tender love of a mother.
