Disclaimer: I own nothing. So much for the American Dream. (Just kidding)

A/N: This will probably be a pretty long chapter, so get ready. The more reviews I get, the faster I'll update. Here is the part where I beg. Please, please, please review.

Hilary and Pat had more fun than ever now that they had found kindred spirits in Parker and Katherine Bowen. Katherine had insisted on being called Katie right away and Pat found the name fit her. She was surprised to learn that, although Katie and Parker had been married for eleven years, Katie was actually three years younger than herself. She and Parker had married fairly young. He had been nineteen and she was seventeen when they married.

Robert, to Pat's secret delight, was not an only child. There was nine year old Keelin, who, with her black curls and green eyes, was a miniature of her beautiful mother. Seven year old David also took after his mother in looks, although his father was quite obviously the object of his hero worship. Four year old Robert was a mixture of his parents in looks, with a slightly darker version of his father's hair, and his mother's eyes. But his soul was his own and Pat quickly saw that he was the rebel of the little group. But such a lovable rebel. Then, there was the baby of the family. Little Bryson was two years old. He captured Pat's heart right away and, after his first few minutes with Hilary, had formed quite an attachment.

On this day, three days after the 'dinner of doom' as Hilary laughingly referred to it, Parker, Katie, and their children had invited Hilary and Pat to Ireland. It was the wedding anniversary of Katie's parents and they were sure to have a good time. The day after the dinner, Hilary had wired his firm, recommending Parker for a position. The rest of the trip was no longer bogged down with business, although Parker and Hilary often fell into conversation about architecture.

Such was the case at the moment. They were on the boat, headed for Ireland, and all Hilary and Parker had done since they met up that morning was discuss architecture. Pat found it somewhat amusing, actually, to watch them. They didn't make the ordinary picture of men talking business. Parker had Robert perched on his shoulders while ever faithful David stood quietly by his side. Pat marveled at the ability of the young boy to stay so still for so long. Had Sid and Joe ever been able to do that? Hilary, too, had his bundle of joy. Bryson, who began to cry whenever someone took him away, was nestled comfortably against Hilary's chest, sleeping. Pat couldn't help but envy the boy. Still, it was a darling sight.

Katie was watching eagerly for sight of Ireland. Keelin stood nearby, looking very bored. Pat smiled at her. It was painfully obvious the girl wanted to run around and play. She was the type that needed something to do.

"You'll love my family, Pat. And I'm sure they'll love you and Hilary."

"Do you have any brothers or sisters, Katie?"

"One brother, three sisters. Eamon is the oldest av us all. Seven years older than I. Then there's Breena. She's four years older than me. I'm in the middle. Taryn is one year younger and Maeve is the baby. She's only twenty one."

"You talk as if you were ancient."

"Not at all. You're only old if you feel you are. Oh, don't let me forget. I want to show you the Castle McDermott before we leave tomorrow."

Pat froze.

"Castle McDermott? I've heard of that place," she heard herself say.

Katie's face lit up.

"Really? It's a grand place, to be sure. A member av our family was a servant there once. Long ago. I niver met her. Neither did my father for that matter. She was my great-aunt. My grandfather told me she left Ireland when she was barely grown. Traveled to Canada with their oldest brother. She must've liked it there. Grandfather told me she worked for a family there that she loved. She was going to come out for a visit a few years back, but never got here. Wrote a letter saying she was needed there. We received word that she had died about a year ago. I would've liked to meet her. She must've been quite a lady. Oh, look! There it is! Pat? Pat, are you alright?"

Pat was not alright. Pat felt as if she would faint at any minute. Surely Katie couldn't mean Judy! Or could she? Pat had never asked Katie's maiden name, nor had Katie asked Pat for hers. It seemed odd, somehow, that this conversation hadn't come up the moment Pat had discovered Katie was Irish. Anything having to do with Ireland always brought Judy to Pat's mind. She realized, of course, that the possibility of Katie being related to Judy had never crossed her mind. Hilary's hand on her shoulder brought Pat out of her reverie. She looked up into a pair of worried grey eyes.

"Are you okay, Pat?"

Katie and Parker stood nearby, concern blanketing their faces. By now, Pat was beginning to recover her wits. She was never without them for long. Her eyes met Katie's and, somehow, she knew it had to be true.

"Your maiden name is Plum, isn't it, Katie?"

At the name she spoke, Pat felt Hilary stiffen. She looked back at him and saw realization dawn on his face.

"Yes, but how did you know? I don't raley remember telling you."

"That's because you didn't. But, then again, I never told you mine either. Before I was Patricia Gordon, I was Patricia Gardiner. A Gardiner of Silver Bush."

It was Katie's turn to look shocked. Slowly, an incandescent smile spread over her face.

"A Gardiner of Silver Bush? Can it raley be possible? I grew up hearing stories about yer family, about yer home. Wait. Patsy. That's what Great- Aunt Judy always called you. You're Patsy."

The sound of the old nickname almost brought tears to Pat's eyes. She had begun to feel that, at last, she had a female friend worthy of the love she had given to her dear Bets. Now, to find out that the friend was a blood relative of one of the most amazing, wonderful women Pat had ever known, it was overwhelming. She hugged Katie, who did not utter a word of protest. Hilary, for his part, was still a little stunned by this turn of events. Parker wasn't far behind him and the children merely looked on in confusion.

Pat was in her element as they stepped off the boat and on to Irish soil. The dock was busy, a bit filthy actually, but Pat didn't mind. Parker decided to get a taxi to take them to the house, which was on the outskirts of the town. There wasn't much luggage, but Bryson was beginning to get cranky and Robert wasn't far behind. He knew his wife, however, well enough to know that she would want to walk to her parent's home. Pat decided to walk with her, as did Keelin, who had had enough of standing still, and David, who surprised both his parents with his decision to join his mother. Hilary went with Parker and the two women and two children were soon walking towards their destination.

They walked in a comfortable silence. Katie occasionally called her son or daughter back to her, declaring they were getting too far away. Once they neared the outskirts, however, Pat realized the children were allowed to wander further. Pat found the scenery here beyond description. Everything was as Judy had said. Of course, times being what they were, there were bound to be some differences, but charm hung thick in the very air of Ireland. Pat saw easily why Judy had loved it so much. The country side fairly took her breath away. Everything was so green. But such a deep, vibrant green. It was really unlike any place Pat had ever seen. Somehow, here, she found it easier to believe there were fairies in the bushes by the road, or leprechauns darting about unseen.

"There's the house," Katie said suddenly. Pat looked up and saw a small, whitewashed house standing on the top of the hill. The door was a vibrant red in color and a fat, jolly-looking stone chimney stuck out of the grey roof. Pat grinned.

"It's perfect," she declared. "How old is it?"

"Oh, it's been in our family for generations. I'm not sure of the exact time it was built, though."

"Why is it that your accent seems to come and go?" Pat asked suddenly. Katie sighed.

"Years of suppressing it, I suppose. I've grown so used to speaking without it. It isn't proper for a successful businessman to have a wife with a thick Irish accent."

Pat's eyes narrowed.

"So you suppress it for Parker?"

"Well, yes. But not at his request. He loves my voice, actually. Told me so many times while we were 'courting'. And while we were engaged. And after we were married." Katie laughed. "It seems he's always complimenting me on something. You know, sometimes I feel I'm not half good enough for him."

"I know the feeling," said Pat ruefully. Katie glanced at her.

"I remember Great-Aunt Judy writing about you and Hilary. She thought from day one that the two av you would marry. The only time she lost confidence was when you became engaged to that Kirk fellow."

This was strange indeed! Although Pat was sure she would have told Katie about her engagement to David, it certainly felt odd to have her already know about it. Especially when they had known each other only a few days. But Katie wasn't through.

"I felt sorry for you, you know."

Pat met Katie's eyes questioningly. The Irish woman sighed and continued.

"I probably shouldn't be saying this. I might be risking our friendship by bringing up such a painful subject. But I cried so hard the night Da read us the letter Judy wrote about your friend."

Pat immediately knew which friend Katie was referring to. She took a deep breath and willed the lump that had suddenly risen in her throat to go away. Even now, even after all these years, it hurt to think of Bets. But she did not stop Katie's words.

"We had heard all about her from Great-Aunt Judy, av course. She was so sweet, so beautiful, so kind. I envied the friendship you had with her. I didn't have a friend like that. Oh, I had my sisters and a few friends at school, but no one I loved so deeply. No one who could always tell what I was thinking or feeling. When we heard av her death, I cried and cried. I remember the next day, beginning to write a letter to you. But I niver had the courage to send it. Why would a sixteen year old Canadian girl want a letter from a thirteen year old girl in Ireland? I often wished later that I had sent it. But I had burned it. I didn't want Eamon to see. He teased me terribly when we were younger. Still does, actually. Keelin! I don't mind you running, but you will not roll around in the grass like a colt! Especially not in that dress."

Her mother's sudden admonishment brought a flush to Keelin's face. She obediently stood and began to wipe the bits of grass off her dress. Katie smiled.

"The first thing she'll do is go to Eamon and Bridget's house. She'll coax Eamon into letting her wear one of his son's old outfits so she can play as much as she wants. If it weren't for the anniversary dinner tonight, I'd say this is the last time you'll see her in a dress."

Pat watched with amusement as Keelin bypassed her grandparent's home and headed further down the road to another little white house. Katie laughed and Pat thought again what a pleasant laugh Katie had. Perhaps, if the letter had been sent, Katie would have been her friend for all these years, instead of just these few days. The odd thing was, she didn't feel as if she were betraying Bets, as she had when she first became friends with Suzanne Kirk. Bets would've liked Suzanne. Bets had liked everyone she met, even going so far as to say there must be something good about May Binnie. But Pat had always felt that Bets and Suzanne would never have been close friends. Something told Pat that such was not the case with Katie. She found herself speaking as they began to near the house.

"I'm glad we've found each other, Katie. I wish you had sent that letter, but I suppose all things come together in their own good time. And we'll be friends from now on. That's what really counts."

Katie smiled and linked her arm through Pat's, just as Bets used to do. And they made their way to the front door, arm in arm, as if they had known each other for a lifetime.

A/N: I am so sorry it took so long for an update! But I had been inspired to do a 'Kate and Leopold' fanfic which, after all my work, I deemed not good enough to post. Then my muse gave me an idea for my 'Mummy Returns' fanfic, and I just finished writing and posting that chapter. Not to mention the fact that I just saw 'Chicago' for the first time (Cool movie!) and it's really hard to get back into 'Pat' mode after watching a story about sex, murder, and lies, even if said story contains really great music.

A special thanks to all my reviewers. Marzoog, silverfish, miri, meg, and Danae. You people are so complimentary! Thank you for all your encouragement. And, meg, the pretty please was what got my gear shifted up on this chapter. Thanks again to everyone! Please review and any storyline suggestions would be welcomed.