Dallas, Texas

"It was nice, honestly", trying to explain their afternoon to JR, Sue Ellen found herself getting confused and frustrated; it was unusual for her mother to not cause problems, but she didn't want to question it too much for fear of ruining her good mood. She couldn't explain why her mother was all of a sudden a pleasant person and in some ways, she didn't really want to; whatever was going on probably wouldn't last and she didn't want to get her hopes up in expecting that it would. She'd tried to get JR to understand what she was saying, but he didn't seem to get it, repeatedly questioning her as if her mother had told her what her hidden agenda was and she had just missed the signs; it was getting annoying now, she didn't know and she was sick of him asking her to explain. "So you went to lunch, had a pleasant chat, then you went to The Store, bought a few things and then you came home? That's all? She didn't say anything odd?", not realising how frustrated she was getting with his questions, JR continued to ask and was shocked when she glared at him and screamed her answer back at him, "yes! That's all!" pausing for a moment, she stopped sorting through the new purchases she'd made for John Ross and looked at him, "what more do you want? I don't know what goes on in my mother's mind. All I know is that today, for whatever reason, was nice and to be honest, I don't care to know why that was, I just enjoyed not fighting or feeling terrible about myself for an afternoon", sighing and pausing for a moment, she continued to speak, this time in a more resigned, tired manner. "Look, I know you're curious and confused, so am I, but I honestly don't know, so can we end this discussion before it turns into a fight? Please", looking him in the eye and then looking down at the floor, she pleaded him to just let it go; she didn't want to fight or talk about it anymore and she hoped that he would respect her wishes. Surprised by her directness, JR nodded; he couldn't argue with her when she was asking him something nicely, even if she had been yelling at him just a moment ago. "Of course darlin', I'm sorry if I upset you", knowing that everything was always a little better when he just apologised to her, even if he wasn't entirely sure what he was apologising for, he did it anyway. She had a point, he didn't particularly want to fight either and honestly, he didn't need Doctor Williams hearing any more bad stories about him, the man probably already thought Sue Ellen was crazy for staying married to him. Changing mood again as she heard him apologising, freely, without prompting, Sue Ellen walked over to him and hugged him, mumbling into his shoulder as she did, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to shout at you. I know that the situation sounds odd, but really, it was just nice and I'd like for it to stay that way". Pulling out of their hug but not losing contact, JR nodded and kissed her lightly on the forehead; he didn't understand her a lot of the time, but he was learning to just let her be and to not try to control her or the situation. Even if in the past he had thought he was allowing her to be her own person, she hadn't felt that way and it had caused a lot of problems for her and for their marriage, so now, he was trying to make a special effort to allow her to make her own decisions and speak for herself. She needed her own identity and to feel as if she was being heard and he wanted to help her to do that; he loved her and he wanted their marriage to work. There were very few people JR Ewing respected, but his wife was on that list and he wasn't going to purposely upset or anger her by pushing her to do anything she didn't want to do.

Downstairs, outside on the patio, Miss Ellie and Patricia sat talking and drinking iced tea as they watched Lucy and Kristin swim in the pool. "I can't believe how much John Ross has grown in such a short space of time. He's beginning to really smile and he responds so enthusiastically to the colourful mobile above his crib", taking a drink as she paused, Patricia then continued, gushing about her grandson's development in both an excited and regretful tone of voice. She didn't believe she was a terrible mother, she had done everything for her daughters, but in manipulating and controlling their lives, she was finding it difficult to remember the things they had accomplished on their own, without any assistance from her. She remembered Sue Ellen's first steps and Kristin's first words, but she didn't really remember little details about their early lives, the kind of things that the Ewings seemed to talk about and admire and it made her a little sad to think that those things had happened in her own children's lives and she hadn't noticed. Granted, she had had a lot going on in her life when her daughters were younger and she'd been under a lot of stress most of the time, unlike the Ewings who were socially, financially and emotionally stable, but still, in the back of her mind, she felt a little regretful. "He has, he's getting bigger, stronger and smarter every day and I'm so pleased and grateful that I get to be here with him to experience all of that. Things are a lot different now to when my sons were young and Lucy, well, Lucy's first few months were turbulent to say the least. I'm pleased that Sue Ellen is beginning to feel better now too, I would have hated for her to have had a bad experience with motherhood, she'd wanted it so much and for so long, she truly deserves all of the happiness in her life". Smiling calmly and happily as she thought about the future of JR and Sue Ellen's little family and the future of the Ewing family as a whole, she felt happy and content. It would have been nice for Gary to be part of their daily lives, but she couldn't deny that Jock and JR were nicer people when Gary wasn't around and although she didn't know where he was, she had to assume that Gary was happy with his life too. He knew that he always had a home at Southfork, but if he chose not to come back to that home, then she had to accept that; as much as she hated to admit it, he was an adult and he could make his own decisions.

A little taken aback by Miss Ellie's comment, Patricia's mood changed, "what was wrong with Sue Ellen? As far as I was aware, she's always been very happy here at Southfork. I'll have to have a word with her if she's been burdening everyone with an unpleasant attitude", annoyed that her eldest daughter would act so rudely in front of her in-laws, she spoke without really considering the meaning behind Miss Ellie's words. Sighing, Miss Ellie, quickly regretted saying anything, she knew Sue Ellen probably didn't want her mother to know about her struggles, she and Patricia weren't close and didn't share things like that with one another and from observing their relationship, she had a strong understanding why that was. "Oh no, nothing like that. Sue Ellen is a lovely young woman; she's polite, graceful, beautiful, appreciative, a wonderful wife and mother and I couldn't have asked for a better daughter-in-law. All I meant was that the first few weeks for any mother are difficult, but I'm pleased that her struggle wasn't long lasting", giving Patricia a warm, friendly smile in an effort to help convince her, she hoped that her cover story was believable and she wouldn't push the topic any further. "Oh, that sounds more like the daughter I raised", smiling proudly at the glowing assessment of her eldest daughter, Patricia temporarily forgot about her previous suspicions; they wouldn't be gone forever, but they were pushed to the back of her mind once Miss Ellie finished speaking. Nodding, Miss Ellie stayed quiet for a moment before turning her attention toward Lucy and Kristin who had gotten out of the pool and were now drying off and chatting amongst themselves.

Walking over to her grandmother, Lucy used her most charming voice to ask whether she and Kristin could go down to the stables and responding that as long as they were back in time to get ready for dinner, they could, Miss Ellie smiled to herself as the two young girls ran back into the house to change. Observing the interaction between grandmother and granddaughter, Patricia felt a little jealous; she and Kristin were close, but in a much more controlled way; it was obvious that Miss Ellie held real love and affection for her granddaughter and if the way she interacted with John Ross was any indication, her grandson had a bright future ahead of him. Not only would John Ross grow up in a socially, emotionally and financially privileged home, he would also grow up secure in the knowledge that he didn't have to worry or stress about his future. If all went to plan, and she expected it would, in another two or three decades, John Ross Ewing III would follow in his father and grandfather's footsteps and become the president of Ewing Oil. JR Ewing may not have been her first choice for Sue Ellen's husband, but she couldn't deny that Sue Ellen's marriage to him had been very beneficial, for both the Shepard and Ewing families. "How nice, Lucy and Kristin get along so well…" pausing for a moment, she then continued, changing the direction of their conversation a little. "I'm sure little John will have a wonderful life growing up on this beautiful ranch. His Uncle Bobby will teach him to ride, and someday he'll have a great big office, right next to his daddy's. What a wonderful future", smiling proudly, as if she were a major player in his life, she then sipped her iced tea and listened as Miss Ellie concurred. Agreeing with Patricia but not wanting to get into an in-depth discussion about John Ross' future, not after telling Jock to behave in a more controlled manner when speaking about the future, Miss Ellie gently nudged the conversation back to a general topic and was pleased when Kristin and Lucy emerged from the house again. John Ross may have been born into a family where his life was pre-planned, but she didn't want it to be a daily discussion, she had a feeling that that hadn't done JR much good and she wanted things to be different for John Ross.

To be continued…

Author's Note: Credit for some of the lines between Patricia and Miss Ellie goes to Arthur Bernard Lewis who wrote the episode The Silent Killer.