Eli woke up Monday morning, dressed eagerly, and walked downstairs to breakfast with a spring in his step, something that did not go unnoticed by his parents. "What are you so happy about?" Laura asked.

"I'm not driving to school alone today," Eli replied smugly as he sat down. "Someone is coming to pick me up. A female someone."

"You see?" Edward smiled. "I told you that if you just kept being yourself, you'd find someone who'd appreciate it."

"What's she like?" Laura asked. "Tell us everything!"

"Her name is Vivian," Eli said. "She was dating a jerk at school named King, but then she decided that he doesn't appreciate her anymore and wants to date me instead."

"Wait…King?" Laura asked. "And Vivi?" She bit her lip nervously

"Yeah," Eli nodded. Then he asked, "What's the matter?"

"Yes," Edward said. "What's the matter?"

"I know about a Vivi," Laura replied. "And a King. And if this Vivi is the Vivi I'm thinking of, Eli can't date her."

"Why?" Edward asked. "Is she troublesome?"

"No," Laura shook her head. "She's Eli's cousin."

And when Vivi came in to pick up Eli, Laura's suspicions were confirmed. "She's his cousin," Laura told Edward. "I don't know what's going on here, but it's not good."

"I don't think we should start panicking yet," Edward told her, trying to calm her down because he'd never seen his normally easy-going wife so worked up, and he really wasn't sure how to handle it. "For all you know, this could be nothing. I think you and Eli have a solid enough relationship that if there was really something to worry about, he would tell you."

"Right," Laura took a deep breath. "Of course you're right. That makes complete sense! Eli would tell me if there was something going on, and he does have the sense not to date his cousin. He's not like my sister Margaret who dated our nephew and threw the whole magical world into turmoil."

"Oh, is that why this is such a worry for you? I completely forgot about Margaret and Henry."

"You don't forget your sister dating her own nephew when you hear about it," Laura replied. "It was complicated enough when it happened once. I don't want it to happen again."

"But what happened with Margaret and Henry didn't even involve you," Edward tried to reason with her. "I mean, it affected you because Margaret is your sister, but other than that, it wasn't like you had to bear the consequences directly. At least not the way your parents did."

"Is this supposed to be making me feel better?" Laura asked him. "Cause it's really not working!"

"Well, I'm sorry," Edward apologized. "Pep talks aren't my best thing. I'm an accountant, not a therapist."

"I know," Laura replied. "I'm sorry. You go to work and I'll try and chill out, and not pester Eli about him and Vivi until either he talks to me first, or I absolutely can't stand not knowing anymore."

Edward nodded. "That's fair enough," he said. "At least you're trying."

"I know," Laura replied. "I really am."

Edward went to work and Laura (who was on her day off), walked around the house aimlessly, looking for some way to distract herself, which didn't pan out until her mother stopped by with an invitation.

"What's this?" Laura asked as they sat down at the kitchen table.

"I'm inviting my father for dinner on Sunday," Selina replied. "He wants to meet all my kids."

"Wait, you're seriously inviting all of your kids to your house?" Laura asked. "Does Dad know?"

"Well, no," Selina replied. "I know I should probably tell him, but a guy meeting his father-in-law is a tough thing and if I keep it quiet until the last minute, he won't worry. And you know what your father is like when he worries."

"Yeah, I do," Laura nodded. "So, when is this shindig anyway?"

"It's Sunday dinner," Selina replied. "Can you make it?"

"Sure," Laura nodded. "I think I can."

"Why'd you put out the good plates?" Elijah asked Selina on Sunday afternoon. "Are my father and Gwen coming to dinner without my knowing?"

"No," Selina shook her head. "My father is coming to dinner. Tonight. And so are as many of my kids as I could get a hold of."

Elijah looked up. "Your father is coming?" He asked.

"Yes, but you don't have to freak out," Selina assured him. "Daddy is very chill. Like me. And he's like a kid compared to you."

"So?" Elijah asked. He's still your father. And it's not like I know him well, considering your aversion to every family member you were born to. He's not going to glare at me angrily when he realizes how many children we have, will he?"

"No," Selina replied. "And he already knows that. I got that conversation out of the way at his house."

"Well, that's some weight off my mind at least," Elijah replied.

"Don't worry," Selina said and gave him a kiss. "You'll be fine."

But instead of being assured by her words, Elijah hid out in his office until Selina came and told him that her dad would be there in half an hour. He took a deep breath, went to his room, changed his clothes, and every ring of the doorbell made him jump.

Finally, he emerged from the bedroom and headed into the living room, which was full of people.

"Daddy!" Elijah turned and saw Margaret coming toward him. "How are you?" She asked. "Do you need help with your tie?"

Elijah looked down and realized that his untied tie was still hanging around the collar of his shirt. "Yes I do, apparently," he said. "Thank you, dear. Have you seen your mother?"

"In the kitchen," Margaret nodded. "Just like normal for events like this." She tied his tie and smiled. "There you go. Perfect."

"Thank you," Elijah replied. "Where's Henry?"

"Oh, I don't know," Margaret replied. "He and James are off doing some male bonding thing, but meeting Grandpa is something I should probably do without him. If he's overwhelmed by the number of grand-kids he's never met, meeting a great-great grand-kid like Henry too would probably give him a coronary."

"How are you doing, Daddy?" Laura asked as she appeared at his other shoulder. "Need a drink?"

"Oh, yes please," he told her. "Just one, though. I don't want to make a bad impression when your grandfather shows up." He sighed and bounced on his heels. "Now I sort of get why your mother drinks a lot when she gets stressed. I'm having to suppress the urge myself."

"Oh, Daddy," Laura said, hugging him. "It's gonna be okay."

"Thank you, dear," Elijah replied, hugging her with the arm that didn't have a drink in it. "You're very sweet."

"You're welcome," Laura told him.

He sat down with his drink and was approached by Tristan, who sat next to him. "Did Mom tell you about me getting into medical school?" He asked.

"Yes, she did," Elijah smiled. "And I'm very proud of you. Just make sure that you don't use vampire blood as a cure for everything."

"I won't," Tristan replied. "I promise." He paused. "Oh, and Annaliese told me to tell you or Mom that she won't be able to make it here because she and Peter are on some anniversary trip and going jumping out of airplanes or something."

Elijah nodded. "Of course they are. That sounds exactly like something they would do."

The door opened again and Elijah ran for it, but it turned out it was just Gregory and Katherine, and a dozen cookies. "Mom?" Gregory called. "We brought cookies. I hope you don't mind!"

"Oh, no!" Selina said. "That's perfect."

"Need any help?" Katherine asked. "Cause I'd be more than willing."

"Really?" Selina asked. "Well, come on! It's not like I'm gonna turn you down."

"Have things gotten a lot easier for you too since Katherine's getting along with everyone?" Gregory asked his father."

"Yes," Elijah replied. "Definitely. Now, do you know if any of your cousins are gonna be here? Or was it just our bunch and your grandfather will meet the others later?"

"Don't know, sorry," Gregory said. "You're gonna have to ask Mom."

So Elijah did.

"It's just our bunch," she told him. "I was thinking of inviting everyone at once, but then decided to just let Daddy get the biggest bunch out of the way and meet my kids with your brother later."

"All right," Elijah nodded. "Sounds good."

The doorbell rang again and Elijah sprinted for the door. When he opened it, he was a bit deflated to find out it wasn't his father-in-law, but his son, Colin, the dark haired, dark eyed boy who looked more like someone out of Selina's family than anyone related to him. He came in the house with his wife Valerie trailing behind him.

Remembering what Selina had said about his attitude driving this particular son away, Elijah tried to be as welcoming as he could be. "Hello, Colin, Valerie. How are baseball and chemistry going?"

"Good," Colin said, feeling both surprised and gratified that his father even remembered what he did for a living. "Mom sent me a message about her father coming to dinner and I had the time, so Val and I thought we would stop by. Cause I know it's been while."

"I'm working in pharmaceuticals now," Valerie said and then chuckled. "Coming up with all sorts of cures for diseases that I could cure myself with just a few drops of blood…"

"I was surprised she wasn't scared off when I told her the truth about me," Colin told his father. "But all she did was say that from a scientific standpoint, my vampirism was very interesting."

"And it's not like he ever tried to hurt me, so what did I have to be afraid of?" Valerie added. Her dark complexion made a nice contrast to her husband, and Elijah had to admit they looked marvelous together.

"Why don't you two come in and have a drink?" Elijah said at last. "You probably don't want to spend your entire evening standing in the doorway."

Colin and Valerie made their way inside and were talking enthusiastically with everyone else when the doorbell rang (for the last time, Elijah hoped) and he opened it, taking a deep breath. This time, he wasn't disappointed. "Hello," he greeted his father-in-law. "I bet you were hoping you'd be seeing your daughter, but she's busy in the kitchen, and-I'll go get her!" He turned on his heel and tripped on the coat rack which sent it crashing to the floor.

"What the hell just happened?" Selina yelled. "Who got hurt?"

"I think we're all right, darlin'," her father said as he helped Elijah to his feet. "Your husband just knocked over the coat rack comin' to look for you."

"Oh," Selina nodded, smiling at Elijah's now rumpled appearance, giving him a hug and then going to hug her father. "So glad you could come. I hope you're ready to meet a lot of people. They're eager to meet you, I know. We have beer and stuff around, and I made up some appetizers that are in the dining room."

"Wonderful," Matthew replied. He then handed her a little box of chocolates he'd bought at the drugstore and went to sit by Laura.

"Are you okay?" Selina asked Elijah once her father had gotten settled.

"I'm not hurt," Elijah replied. "But I feel like such a fool!"

"Oh, relax!" Selina replied. "You haven't drunk much, have you?"

"No," Elijah shook his head. "I just had one glass of wine, I swear."

"Well, even if you'd had more, Daddy wouldn't hold it against you. If anyone knows how hard it is to meet the in-laws, it's my dad. Meeting my Lockwood grandparents couldn't have been easy. Now, go talk to somebody for a few more minutes and then we'll have dinner, okay?"

"Sure," Elijah replied. "All right." He went and sat between his daughter and his father-in-law, and the more time he spent with Matthew, the more at ease he felt. Selina hadn't been lying when she said her easy-going personality had come from him. When it came time for dinner, Selina gave Matthew the seat at the head of the table, so he could see all of his grandchildren the best he could. And before the food was served, Matthew made a speech: "I'm so glad to be here tonight," he said. "It's wonderful to meet all of you and know that I have so many successful descendants. My daughter clearly married a good man and was able to be a much better parent to all you children then the circumstances of your mother's young life allowed her mother and me to be to her. May this be the first of many wonderful interactions between us in the years to come." He then offered a toast and everyone followed his lead. After that, they ate, and Elijah was able to be much more lively than he had before, following Laura and Selina's lead, and trying not to hog all his father-in-law's attention, which was hard cause he really was a fascinating man.

When it was all over, and everyone was gone (except for Valerie and Colin, who were staying the night), Selina gave Elijah another hug. "That wasn't so bad, was it?" She asked.

"No," Elijah shook his head. "But next time you do something like this, tell me beforehand. Please."

Continuing their subterfuge, Eli and Vivi made a stop at Roxie's after school the next day. "Interesting to see the two of you come in together," Roxie said. "Mom's kids from her various husbands don't mingle very often."

"They don't?" Eli asked. "Why not?"

"Cause your father is a paranoid person, that's why," Roxie replied. "So what brought the two of you together?"

"It might seem a tad immoral and weird, but we're pretending to be a couple so that he can get a girlfriend and I can work up this guy that I spend way more time with than I should," Vivi replied.

"Interesting idea," Roxie said. "I hope it works out for you."

"We probably shouldn't do it for too long a time," Eli said. "When my mom found out this morning, she looked like she was going to faint."

"Oh, it's not so bad," Roxie replied. "In Victorian England, cousins were together all the time. Have you told Laura that this is just pretend?"

"Yes, but I don't know if that will help," Eli replied. "It takes a lot to make Mom rattled so who knows what will bring her back?"

"Oh, it probably won't take much," Roxie replied. "If I know Laura, (and I do), if you tell her that this thing is just part of a plot between the two of you and that it absolutely won't lead to anything serious, she'll have to believe you. And even if she doesn't, you know that's the truth, right?"

"Of course," Eli replied. "So even if we can't convince Mom, we'll keep doing what we're doing, she'll see that it's not real, and then her mind will be put at ease."

"Exactly," Roxie replied. "But you'll at least try to talk to her first, right?"

"Yeah," Eli nodded. "Of course. I'm not an idiot."

"Eli, you and I have to talk," Laura said, pouncing on him as soon as he came through the door after getting back from Roxie's. She'd had enough of waiting for him to talk to her. Now, she wanted answers.

"I know we do," Eli replied. "And I know what about, too. But you don't have anything to worry about, really."

"I don't?" Laura asked, coming up short. "You're well aware that Vivi is your cousin so absolutely nothing can go on between the two of you?"

"Yes," Eli said. "We're very much aware. We're just doing this whole thing as a pretend so that she can teach this guy she likes a thing or two about appreciating her, and I can have the possibility of appealing to other more suitable girls who aren't my cousin."

"All right," Laura replied. "I'm gonna choose to believe you, cause if I don't, I'll just worry, worry, and worry, but watch out for yourself, okay?"

"Okay," Eli promised. "I will."