Notes:

BluJPlover - It's you. That's what I mean when I write Loren. You are Luke's daughter ;) Okay, kidding there. Her name is Loren for obvious reasons. But that's funny because I really haven't seen it spelled that way many times, usually Lauren.

Cappuccino2go - I'm glad you decided to read the story. You believe what you want to believe about Nicolas. And yes, they will get back together and I'll promise it again.

smileyGGfan - Is it Marty, guess you'll have to wait and see ;) I don't think the townies would have mentioned Luke and Lorelai's engagment to Mandy. I think Mandy was mostly around in Luke's presence and why would they bring up Lorelai around him? Lorelai cutting Patty off certainly had to do with Luke. I think she's just starting to adjust to being around him again, it would be hard to do with the whole town watching.

Chapter 5: Fight, Babe, I'll Fight

The day she had gone to the airport fifteen years ago with only a small suitcase in her hand it had been a cloudy day, one of those cloudy days where the rays of the sun came down in the small spaces in between the clouds. It still surprised her that it hadn't been rainy that day.

Had she been sad? She couldn't remember.

What she did remember was that she never really planned on leaving for that long. She remembered that until the plane took off, she wasn't actually sure she was really leaving. True, he had pushed her to go, but she still hadn't been sure he really meant it.

She thought it would have been a dark day because she was leaving the only place she had ever called home, a place filled with all the people she knew she'd miss. She was doing something she had never thought she would do, she was running away. But still, he had told her to go.

Even now, fifteen years later, she could still hear his harsh words the last time that they spoke. The words he spat out harshly in a fit of rage that broke her heart and drove her to tears. She knew that if she hadn't left, she would still remember those words every time she saw him, every time she stood in that part of the house, every time she saw that chuppah.

The day hadn't been sunny either. She wasn't happy to leave. Rory was still back in Connecticut. And the Crap Shack. And everything and everyone she had ever loved.

It had been one of those mysterious days when you never knew if it was going to get sunny or rainy or if you were even going to be able to see your hand if it got foggy.

Arriving at the airport, Lorelai pulls into a parking space and sits there, gasping for breath. She knows she is still afraid. She worries that instead of grabbing her kids and going back to Stars Hollow that she might forget everything and get on a plane and never come back. Yes, she has loved being back, seeing her house, her friends, the town, but it is still him. Luke is still and always will be Luke and she isn't sure how she feels about that anymore.

Slowly running a hand over her face, Lorelai slowly regains control of herself. She takes one more deep breath, grabs her purse and gets out of the car. She has to stay. Stars Hollow is her home and always will be. Even when she lived in San Francisco, Stars Hollow was still her home. It was the place she felt she could go to, if only in her mind.

And as she walks through the airport, she still remembers that Luke had once been her home.

Yeah, I'm going to get going. I just left my toolbox from when I was here earlier fixing things. I do a lot of little things around here for Lorelai.

Yeah you're very handy. So Luke we'll talk later.

Yes we will

-

I meant tomorrow. So tomorrow.

Absolutely. We see each other most everyday.

-

So I'll see you tomorrow.

Tomorrow.

Same time as always.

-

Doesn't matter what the time is. I'll always be around.

Lorelai shakes her head, glancing up at the TV screens that tell her where she should meet her children. "Gate B2. B2. So that is…" Lorelai mumbles to herself, looking in either direction. "Ah." She notices the sign and begins to walk towards the B gates.

"Mom!" Lorelai hears her daughter call and jumps, surprised by the voice.

"Hey!" Lorelai shouts, running towards her daughter and son. Lucy runs towards Lorelai. They instantly embrace, hugging each other close as Nicolas coolly makes his way over to them. "Oh I missed you!" Lorelai lets go of Lucy and hugs Nicolas, who hugs his mother back but not as tight as Lucy did. Lorelai lets go of her son, shaking her head at him. "Still Mr. Cool I see," she teases. Nicolas rolls his eyes. Lucy giggles. "You guys got everything?"

"Yeah, Randy said he's going to send the rest of the boxes and stuff next week," Nicolas answers.

"Well then, let's head off to baggage claim," Lorelai says, taking Lucy's hand, letting their hands swing back and forth. Nicolas grimaces, as if annoyed by them. Lorelai puts her arm around her son's shoulders. "You know, it's all right sometimes to admit you're a Momma's boy at heart."

"I'm not a Momma's boy," Nicolas insists, but doesn't remove Lorelai's hand from his shoulder. She squeezes his shoulder and smiles at him.

"So you get a lot done here so far?" Lucy asks.

"Yes, I did. Nicolas is going to take Rory's old room. Rory said that was okay as long as he leaves the All Hail Yale wall up." Nicolas wrinkles his nose in disgust.

"Stanford is better," he claims.

"That's cuz you're a West Coast boy. We'll train you, don't worry," Lorelai responds.

"I thought you hated Yale," Lucy notes. Lorelai shrugs. "I can't believe we're going to live in the house that Rory once lived in. It's so odd. I mean, we know basically nothing about Stars Hollow." Lorelai blushes.

"That's not true!" Lorelai exclaims. "You know about the inn that I own. And you know Sookie. And you know that it's small and they like to have festivals every day of the year. And everyone knows everyone. It's special."

"Sounds like Stepford," Nicolas mutters. Lorelai shakes her head at him.

"No, it's not at all like Stepford." Lorelai groans. "Oh I can't describe it, but I know you'll love it." Nicolas shrugs.

"If you say so," he grumps. Lorelai lifts the hand on his shoulder and gently smacks him upside the head. "Hey!"

"That's what you get for not believing your mother. Have I taught you nothing? Mommy is always right."

"She's right Nicky, remember when she told you not to buzz your hair off? You wore a hat for two months straight," Lucy reminds him. Nicolas bows his head in shame and Lorelai struggles to keep her laughter inside.

"I'm going to regret that for the rest of my life," Nicolas mumbles.

"Oh, actually I think you're going to regret telling your little sister about it, more than you'll regret actually having done it," Lorelai tells him. This doesn't seem to make Nicolas any happier. "Oh Kiddo, we all do stupid things. Seriously if there was a monument to the stupid things I've done, it would reach higher than the Tower of Babel." Lucy giggles. Nicolas just huffs.

"So you're going to show us around Stars Hollow this afternoon?" Lucy asks. Lorelai shakes her head. "Why not?"

"We have a stop to make," Lorelai responds mysteriously. Lucy narrows her eyes, not sure if she wants to know.

"Spit it out," Lucy tells her mom.

"Your grandmother has requested a visit with you two," Lorelai says gloomily.

"So basically before you're taking us to the darkest reaches of hell before throwing us into the bright fields of heaven," Nicolas figures. Lorelai laughs.

"Yeah something like that," she responds.

"Great," Nicolas deadpans.

Lorelai stands in front of the door to the Gilmore mansion with Nicolas and Lucy flanking her on either side. Lucy gives Lorelai a worried look as Nicolas's eyes hide his fear but Lorelai just stares straight ahead, her hands folded in front of her. After a minute, Lucy sighs, glancing at Nicolas. He shrugs in response. Meanwhile Lorelai's mind is wandering.

This is a house?

This is a house.

What a waste. This is what causes peasants to revolt. This is how heads end up on pikes.

Open with that. That's a great icebreaker. Now listen, I want you to be careful about your consumption of booze.

I'm not going to drink too much.

No, no, no, you've got it backwards there, Pablo. Ride the pink elephant, baby, 'cause it's your only defense against Emily Gilmore unless you're packing a Kolishnikov.

Yeah, yeah. Shouldn't we ring the doorbell or something?

"Shouldn't we ring the doorbell or something?" Nicolas wonders. Lorelai's startled to hear the question in surround sound.

"Mom!" Lucy exclaims, yanking on Lorelai's sleeve. Lorelai quickly gives Lucy a smile.

"Yes, yes, ring the doorbell," Lorelai responds in a monotone. Lucy reaches out and rings the doorbell. Lorelai sighs. "I feel like Mary Surratt," she mutters. Both Nicolas and Lucy try to hide smiles as the door opens revealing Emily Gilmore. Lorelai quickly flashes her mother a fake smile. "Hello Mom."

"It's a good thing I took an aspirin otherwise I might have had a heart attack," Emily says coldly.

"Mom, you knew we were coming. In fact, you insisted on it," Lorelai responds.

"Yes, after fifteen years I think it's only right that you visit your mother when you come in town." Emily steps aside. "Come in, come in." Lorelai pushes Lucy in first and Nicolas files in after her. Emily smiles at her grandchildren. "Well you two look older than the last time I saw you, taller."

"Yes, well I tried to give them a bottle labeled 'Drink Me' but they were too smart for me," Lorelai quips. Emily gives Lorelai a bitter look but Lucy giggles. "Um, okay, Nicolas, Lucy, you remember your grandmother." Lorelai motions towards Emily.

"Hello Nicolas. Hello Lucy. Would you two like something to drink?" Emily asks in a voice as if she's talking to a 10 year old. Nicolas raises an eyebrow, glancing at Lorelai, who gives him a look telling him to be good.

"Sure," Lucy answers.

"Good!" Emily exclaims. She flashes Lorelai a smile. "So, Lucy, tell me all about your flight." Emily slips her arm through Lucy's as if they're gossiping like teenagers. They walk into the living room. Nicolas gives Lorelai a hesitant look.

"Oh don't worry, she'll love you. You still have the possibility of being the Great Richard the 2nd," Lorelai tells Nicolas, who nods, his hands going to his hips.

"Is it strange?" Nicolas asks.

"Is what strange, Sweets?"

"It just being Grandma." Lorelai shrugs.

"Kind of, I guess. I mean my father was always sort of the silent - I'll go about my business, you go about yours - type," Lorelai answers. She purses her lips, folding her arms over her chest. "I think coming here I miss him a little more." She shrugs. "You go on, go visit with your grandmother, I'll be in there in a minute." Lorelai pushes Nicolas gently towards the living room.

"O-kay," Nicolas says slowly.

"Go, Lucy's probably dying for you to pull a Lancelot," Lorelai tells him. Nicolas nods and walks into the living room. Lorelai takes a deep breath and walks into the dining room.

Slowly circling the table, Lorelai drags her gaze from chair to chair, pausing for a moment at Richard's old chair. She runs her fingers over the back, pressing her lips together. "Daddy, I'm sorry I failed you," she whispers. She blinks, swallowing the lump in her throat.

Lorelai finishes her circle around the table, ending at her chair and sits down. She takes a deep breath, looking from chair to chair.

You're our daughter and come June 3rd, Luke will be our son-in-law. They could come after your assets, then Luke's assets, then our assets!

We could be wiped out!

So this is about protecting you.

It's about protecting all of us!

We're all in this together.

All four of us.

Lorelai nods to herself, staring at Richard's old chair. "All four of us," she repeats softly. Then she shakes the memory away. "You said it Dad, we were all in it together. And once it ended, we were all out together."

She covers her face with her hands, feeling the tears prick the corners of her eyes. She can still see the look on Luke's face as they sat at this table. She can still feel her heavy heart, unsure about the future, confused about her relationship with Luke, frustrated with how things were turning out. She wipes her eyes, glancing at each of the chairs. gathering herself again.

Then she stands and walks into the living room. "Hey everyone, just making sure that my kids aren't comatose or posing with swans," Lorelai says brightly walking in the room. Emily scowls.

"Mom, Grandma was just asking us what school we'd be going to," Lucy tells Lorelai.

"Oh, uh, I hadn't really gotten to that yet," Lorelai realizes, scratching her head. Emily looks shocked.

"Lorelai, you show up in Stars Hollow unexpectedly. You leave your children behind only to call them and make them fly across the country to live in a new place on a second's notice and you don't even plan a life for them here. I thought after all these years you were finally beginning to take some responsibility in your life," Emily snaps.

"I am taking responsibility in my life. I have! I can't believe I'm still having this same argument with you. Rory's grown, I took responsibility for her. I got us a house and opened the Dragonfly," Lorelai argues.

"Only to leave all that when the air went bad," Emily responds simply.

"No, that wasn't it. I didn't plan on leaving for that long, it was only supposed to be a break from the monotony. But I met Larry and these two came along and I decided to stay."

"Until things went bad there," Emily adds coolly.

"Again, I wasn't originally planning on staying here but Stars Hollow is home. It always has been. And what was keeping me in California isn't there anymore," Lorelai tells her, motioning wildly.

"You mean your children?" Emily asks.

"No I mean…" Lorelai groans. "Yes, the kids, but they wanted to leave. And I just… I needed to leave. I need to stay here. I need to live in Stars Hollow. And they understand. They're my kids, I know what's best for them. And if I didn't think they would be just as happy, if not happier, in Stars Hollow then I wouldn't have considered it for a moment." Emily folds her hands in front of her, pursing her lips. "Mom, I'm not Mary Jo Walker dragging my kid all over the country the moment a relationship has gone bad. I just – I feel like we don't belong in San Francisco anymore. But I belong here – we belong here." Lorelai looks at Lucy and then at Nicolas.

"We want to give it a chance, before hopping a train," Lucy tells Emily, who raises an eyebrow.

"Fine," Emily responds shortly. "Then where are they going to go to school?" Lorelai shrugs.

"I guess they have a decision to make," Lorelai answers. Then she looks at Lucy and Nicolas. "You guys can go to Stars Hollow High or Chilton Academy, where Rory went."

"You can afford that?" Emily asks. Lorelai glares at Emily.

"Yes, I can actually," Lorelai retorts. Then she smiles at her kids. "You guys take the day to decide" They nods. Lorelai gives Emily a pointed look. "Okay, now, I guess we should go, gotta get to Stars Hollow and start unpacking before it gets dark and the Vampires come out."