A/N: Sorry it took this long, but exams really suck (got my results today and they were good, but still…) So, here's a new chapter. Hope you like it, I have to admit that because of my writing hiatus, my writing and inspiration isn't really of very high quality…

And keep reviewing… Merry Christmas!

"You know what I don't understand?" Rory asked her mother.

Lorelai shrugged and took a left turn. "Why Chris wants my opinion?" She was trying to figure that out herself.

"No, why he drove all the way to Stars Hollow to ask you. Why didn't he just call?"

Lorelai shrugged, she hadn't quite thought about that yet. "You have a point there."

"I know, mom."

"I wonder what she's like." Lorelai wondered out loud. "I hope she's not Sherry-material again. 'Cause it won't hurt me so much to tell the truth."

"Mom!"

"Well, you know, I can't help it, I tried, but I just didn't like the woman. And the marriage failed, didn't it. She's just not his type."

Rory frowned. "I thought you said you didn't know him anymore."

Lorelai rolled her eyes. "Okay okay, so, maybe he does have a little bit of reason to ask for my opinion, but you know, what's he gonna do when I don't like her? Dump her, because his high school girlfriend told him too, come on Rory!"

"Why else would he ask?"

"Oh my god!"

"What?" Rory normally was pretty good at following her mother's trail of thoughts, but now she really was lost.

"He wants to break up with her and he wants to use me as an excuse."

"Maybe Luke is right, you do watch too much TV."

- - - - - - - - - - - -

"Ladies, how can I help you?"

"Three cones with vanilla please." Paige ordered.

"So, I hear you are entering the marathon." Taylor said, while scooping.

Paige frowned. "News sure travels fast around here."

Taylor didn't really respond to the sarcastic tone in her voice. "Has Piper given you all the information you need?"

Paige shrugged. "Not yet, but I'm sure we'll get it."

"Don't forget that every competitor that lasts until the tenth hour, gets a free Doose's ice-cream."

Paige just nodded.

"Well, here you go." Taylor handed Paige the cones and Paige paid.

"Bye Taylor."

"Thank you for choosing Doose's."

Paige shook her head as she left the ice cream parlour. She walked to the bench where Phoebe was sitting with Pia in her stroller next to her.

"Ice cweam!" the little girl exclaimed as she was handed her cone.

"Pia, what do we say?" Phoebe looked 'sternly' at the girl.

"Thank you auntie Paige!"

"You're welcome."

As Pia focused entirely on her ice cream, Paige turned to Phoebe. "Taylor already knew that we were entering the dance marathon."

Phoebe grinned. "Why are you so surprised? This is Stars Hollow."

Paige just nodded. "I know, but well, there is something about this town that just gives me the creeps."

- - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Lorelai and Rory entered the diner, where they were meeting Chris. They looked around to find him.

"Lorelai, Rory!"

The Gilmore Girls turned around to see Christopher and a woman sitting at a table.

With a smile they went over to the table, but the elder woman's was rather forced.

"Lorelai, Rory, I'd like you to meet Helen." A redhead, tall, though not like Lorelai, pretty too, was facing then. She wore glasses that matched her hear and clothes that said I've-got-style-but-I'm-not-going-to-brag-about-it. (Lorelai's words, of course)

"Nice to meet you." Rory said, politely, and she offered her hand, but instead Helen gave her a peck on the cheek, and then she proceeded to do the same thing with Lorelai.

"I've heard so much about you!" Helen started as the two other women sat down, still a bit shocked.

"I'm sorry, I startled you with the kiss, I spent too much in Europe I think."

Lorelai smiled. "It's okay."

"You lived in Europe?" Now Rory was interested.

"Yeah, I worked there. I spent most of last year in Belgium."

"Helen works for the NATO." Chris added, quite proudly.

Rory's eyes lit up. "So you lived in Brussels?"

Helen smiled. "You know you're politics."

"I'm a reporter for the Stamford Gazette." Rory explained.

"Chris mentioned that."

Lorelai looked at the woman's hand, she wasn't wearing a ring, so her theory was right, they weren't engaged yet. "So, how did you two meet?"

"Gigi pushed Helen's son off the monkey bars." Chris said. "So, I was punishing, she was comforting and I bought them ice cream."

"That's our Chris, the knight in the shining armour." Lorelai joked and received a frown from her daughter. "So, you've got a kid." She continued.

"Yeah." Helen dug up a picture and showed it to Lorelai and Rory. "Matt's four."

"He's cute." Lorelai said.

"He's adorable." Rory added as she gave the picture back.

"Chris told me you have a four-year-old yourself."

Lorelai nodded, Chris had really filled her in. "Yeah, Hannah, I'm sorry, I don't have a picture, but just imagine Rory twenty years younger."

"Isn't she about that age on the picture that's on your parent's mantelpiece?" Helen asked Christopher.

Both Rory and Lorelai frowned and looked a bit shocked.

"I said something wrong, didn't I?" Helen sighed.

"No, Helen, we're just surprised." Lorelai had composed herself.

"They have a picture of me on their mantelpiece?" Rory asked her father.

"Yeah, a few actually, they asked me some last year."

"Why?" Rory didn't understand this. The last time she had seen Chris's parents, well, that just hadn't turned out very well.

"They're proud of you, I guess." Chris shrugged.

Lorelai understood it now. "And knowing Straube and Francine, they are not really people to come crawling back."

Rory shook her head. "I don't understand those people at all."

"I'm not following everything, but after meeting them, I think they think that it would be beneath their standard to admit that they were wrong." Helen intervened.

Lorelai grinned. "Either you have really good people skills, or your mother is a DAR member."

Helen sighed. "The latter, unfortunately. She still hasn't gotten over the fact that I got divorced before I gave birth." The woman shook her head. "It is just not done darling, what will the ladies say?" She quoted her mother.

"Imagine the reaction when you're 16 and pregnant." Lorelai said.

"She would've sent me away, probably." Helen answered. "At least she won't be bothering me about Nathan's debut."

Lorelai rolled her eyes.

"Rory came out." Christopher said exactly what was on Lorelai's mind.

Helen frowned and looked at the young woman. "Why, in heaven's name, would you do that?"

Rory shrugged. "I did it to please Grandma, it made her so happy."

"It was my mother's evil plan, I had missed mine, for obvious reasons, so she recycled my old dress for Rory." Lorelai still hadn't quite recovered. "We made so many jokes that week."

"Somewhere, you were proud of her." Chris teased.

Lorelai frowned. "Yes, but I also repeatedly mocked her, especially during the fan dance."

"They still do the fan dance?" Helen couldn't believe it. "God, I'm glad I'm not part of that anymore."

"It was not my favourite part either." Rory said.

While Helen, Rory and Chris were continuing the conversation, Lorelai took her cell phone under the table and wrote a text message.

You found her, Chris. Approved :p