Daria: Winter Is Coming Sunday

Disclaimer: I do not own the property rights to either Daria or to the Game of Thrones. Characters, plot, background and details belong to their respective creators. This work is written for recreation and ego gratification, and the author neither expects nor deserves financial compensation for this work, although positive reviews would be nice. Those readers interested in finding out more about Daria and/or A Game of Thrones should seek out the creator's official books and videos.

Winter Is Coming*Winter Is Coming*Winter Is Coming

Despite her fear and worry about Dad, Rikka woke in a good mood. That was the first time she remembered dreaming about her mother in a long time, and it was not only good to see her again but also to know that while she might be dead, she was out there watching over her.

-(((O-O)))-

Ruth Morgendorffer decided that she wanted to go to Lawndale again. She'd tried calling Jakey the day before but had only gotten his answering machine. A horrid thought occurred to her: maybe Ben really was as sick as he said he was. That could well be the real reason that Breeze woman's younger daughter called her to ask for Jakey's phone number. If so, she might want to see him while she still could.

She thought about setting off for Lawndale on Saturday but she'd been invited to a bridge game by Joan at Coalton's small community center. She called Jakey again but again got his answering machine. She decided that she'd head down on Sunday. She got her neighbor Gilda to drive her to the bus station. It was going to be a long trip from Coalton to Lawndale.

-(((O-O)))—

It was Sunday morning and Rabbi Shapiro was relaxing with hot coffee and the local paper. The Temple was in better shape than it was last year: there were more people in the pews, the adult classes were holding steady and the youth program had actually grown. That was a good reason for feeling good about his work.

Still, there was that part of him that caused him to aske himself if he could do more. Were there any parts of the local community he'd overlooked? Where there any visitors he ought to follow up on? He knew there were some visitors he ought to track, just as there were new singles and families in the area who might want to visit Temple Beth-Shalom. As he sat there looking at his coffee, he realized that hadn't seen Ben Morgendorffer, the newcomer from Las Vegas that had fainted during services and had to be taken to the hospital. He knew that Ben was very ill and that he thought he was dying.

He decided to do a follow-up. He called Leah Trautman, the nurse who'd help take Ben to the hospital and helped care for Ben Morgendorffer's adopted daughter. He was surprised to learn that Ben had been in and out of the Cedars of Lawndale. At first, Leah didn't think that she had any contact phone numbers for Ben, told him to wait, then gave him a phone number that Ben's niece had used to call her parents. He copied it down, then dialed it.

-(((O-O)))—

The phone rang just as the Morgendorffers were preparing to head out to the hospice. By chance, Jake was the one to pick up the telephone.

"Hello?" said Jake.

"Hello, is this the Morgendorffer residence?" said Rabbi Shapiro.

"Yes, it is," Jake said warily, wondering how some jerk put his phone number on some call list.

"This is Rabbi Shapiro from Temple Beth-Shalom," said the Rabbi. "We hadn't seen Ben this week and we're wondering how he's doing."

"My brother's in hospice care," said Jake. Helen looked at him warily. Was Jakey going to leak? "We had to take him there last week."

"Which hospice?" said Rabbi Shapiro.

"The Boughs of Lawndale," said Jake.

"Is he still awake? Can he see any visitors?" said Rabbi Shapiro.

"He still is," said Jake.

"Do you think he'd mind if I came by?" said Rabbi Shapiro.

"Yes, no, I don't think he'd mind," said Jake.

"I'll try to come by today or tomorrow," said Rabbi Shapiro. "Mr. Morgendorffer…"

"Jake," said Jake. "My name is Jake."

"Our thoughts and prayers are with you and your family," said Rabbi Shapiro. "And also that little girl."

"She'll be part of the family," said Jake. "We've got temporary custody."

-(((O-O)))—

Breeze's phone must have rung around 9:00 AM, while she was out in the back yard. She checked looked at the display on her answering machine and saw that it had a Nevada area code. The number looked familiar: she suspected that someone was using Ben's cell phone. She pressed the PLAY button and listened.

"Hi, Mom! It's me, Jade. Melanie and I are both down here in Lawndale. All three of us went to the local hospice to see Dad. He's not doing well, but he was glad to see all of us. We're going to visit him again today. I'll be coming back this evening.

"Love you,

"Bye."

Breeze found herself scowling at the end of the message. Despite the fact that her car was in the shop, she decided that she needed to go down to Lawndale. It was time to set some boundaries and lay down the law.

-(((O-O)))—

Almost all of the Morgendorffers set off for the hospice, Daria being the exception. She still nursing her cold and, after talking to her Mom and Dad, they all decided that it would be for the best for her to remain behind. She walked back upstairs to her room. Quarantine, she thought sardonically. She didn't have much planned for the morning except to nap, try to do some of her homework, and then update her journal.

She wished she could have been at the hospital. A sense of family duty made her feel that she ought to be there, despite the fact that she and Uncle Ben had little in common except that they both had Dad, Grandma Ruth, and Mad Dog Morgendorffer as close kin. Sure, he was nice enough, but she couldn't think of anything to talk about with him except Rikka and maybe the Grand Canyon. She did have his cell phone number: Melanie had taken it to the hospital and she could call him if she wanted. Daria resolved to do so after everyone had arrived at the hospice.

She lay down and napped for two hours, then went downstairs to get a glass of water. The message light was blinking on the answering machine. She pushed the PLAY button, thinking that it was Mom's sleazy boss. It wasn't: it was Grandma Ruth. She was at the bus station and wanted to be picked up. Daria picked up the mobile phone and called her mother's cell number.

-(((O-O)))—

Her Mom picked up the phone at the hospice. "Hellooo," she said.

"Hi, Mom, it's Daria," said Daria. "We just got a call from Grandma Ruth. She's at the bus station."

"Did she leave a number?" said Helen.

"No," said Daria.

Helen sighed. "Well, I guess I'll go down and get her, then," she said. "Thanks for letting me know, Sweetie"

-(((O-O)))—

It was now early afternoon. Breeze was still upset about her younger daughter's disobedience and her lack of transportation. She'd meant to be in Lawndale yesterday afternoon but her car wasn't ready and she wouldn't be able to pick up until Monday at the earliest. True, she could take the bus, but she'd have to first take a bus to Harrisburg and then take another bus from there to Lawndale. The bus wouldn't get in until late. She sat and fumed, wishing there was a way to get to Lawndale before then.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of her telephone ringing. She picked it up, hoping that it was Jade begging her to come down to Lawndale to pick her up. It wasn't: it was Lena. Lena was one of the women in her meditation group. She wasn't very bright, but she was earnest. Breeze was able to talk her into driving down to Lawndale to pick up Jade.

-(((O-O)))—

Ruth was waiting impatiently inside the bus station when her daughter-in-law Helen came in and invited her to ride over to the hospice. Ruth asked her why she didn't come by earlier when she called and Helen told her that she came as soon as she heard. Her tone of voice told Ruth that her daughter-in-law was unwilling to debate the subject. Since Helen had the car keys and since Ruth didn't know her way around Lawndale, she chose to say nothing.

They drove in silence to the hospice and turned into the parking lot.

"It looks like a southern mansion. Or a funeral home," said Ruth.

"It's a hospice," said Helen.

"It's not a hospital?" said Ruth.

If it wasn't for Helen's experience with dealing with difficult clients, Helen would have exploded. It's a hospice," said Helen. "Ben is very, very sick. If you have any questions, I suggest that you talk to Ben or to the staff. They can tell you more about hospice care than I can."

Ruth followed Helen into the hospice, then followed her into a room much like a hospital room. with a bed, a television, and a roll-away table. The room was crowded: Jake was there, as was his younger daughter. So was little Rikka and that woman's daughters Breeze and Jade. They saw her and quietly said hello. It was then hit her like a brick. This was a place where people went to die. Her eldest was dying and he was on his deathbed. She started crying.

Jake held his mother and let her cry. Ruth wasn't able to see his expression, but Helen could. Jake looked helpless. Helen looked at him and mouthed "It's OK, you're doing good, Jakey."

-(((O-O)))—

Rabbi Shapiro pulled into the parking lot of the Boughs of Lawndale, then walked into the main entrance. He'd been here before: he'd been a rabbi for twelve years now and had had to deal with the dying and their friends and family. He went up to the front desk and was about to present his credentials when an aide returned from her break and recognized him. When he told them that he was here to see Ben Morgendorffer, she gave him the room number and told him how to get there. Je walked down the corridor and into the room where Ben Morgendorffer was on his deathbed.

The room was crowded. He'd heard from Ben that the Morgendorffers had not been a close family and, like many modern families, had scattered across the continent as their lives and careers changed. Still, Rabbi Shapiro recognized a man who must be Ben's younger brother Jake, a woman who must be Jake's wife, two girls he suspected were the daughters that Ben cared for for several years and considered his daughters, little Rikka, and a woman who had to be Ben's and Jake's mother.

Little Rikka recognized him and smiled. "Hi," he said. "I'm Rabbi Shapiro. I got here as soon as I could."

-(((O-O)))-

Lena and Breeze arrived in Lawndale in the late afternoon. Typical soulless, materialistic suburb, thought Breez
e, a bastion of brainless, soulless consumerism. Neither of them knew where the hospice was. Jade and Melanie were around here somewhere.

Breeze felt inspired and told Lena to pull into the parking lot of a supermarket. They parked and went in. They went in and did a little shopping: bottled water and organic crackers. Breeze found something better: a Lawndale city map. She felt pleased with herself, then set about achieving her next objective.

She walked up to one of the other shoppers, this one a woman of a certain age who didn't look like she belonged to either the Born Again or mainstream Christian sects. "Excuse me," said Breeze, "I just got in town and I don't know my way around and I'm trying to find the address of the local hospice."

"Oh," said the local woman. "There's only one of them these days. You must be looking for the Boughs of Lawndale. Do you want the address?"

"Please," said Breeze. The woman gave her a street address and directions as to how to get there.

-(((O-O)))—

The hospice was a short distance away. Finding the driveway was a little difficult: Lena overshot the hospice once, thinking that it was on the other side of the street, then missing the driveway. She did pull in the parking lot.

Breeze looked at the architecture and sneered. Fake Gone with the Wind, she thought. She blew past the receptionist's desk and set down a hallway towards a room with an open door where some man was finishing calming a very upset family.

"If we could take some deep breaths, I can lead you through some prayers if you'd like," he said.

"Why not?" said an authoritative woman's voice.

Breeze walked in through the door, looked at her younger daughter, and said "Jade, the car's outside. Let's go."

"No," said Jade.

"Excuse me, you are?" said the authoritive auburn-haired woman standing next to a man who had a strong resemblance to her ex.

Rikka gave her an angry glare and said "Hi, Breezy!"

The man she'd heard speaking earlier stepped in front of her and said "I'm Rabbi Shapiro. Lady, do you have any idea as to what the hell is going on here?"