"He's fathered how many children?" Christine asked Matthew.

"Twelve!" Matthew said excitedly. "Don't you see it, Christine? We can use this to show that Mr. McCullough is negligent and irresponsible!"

"Not exactly," Christine said. "He gave those samples for the use of other people, not for children he intended to raise himself."

"Oh, damn," Matthew said, instantly deflating. "You couldn't let me have it, could you?"

"Well, I just don't want you making a fool of yourself in court and getting in trouble for doing something that might be illegal," Christine told him. "Don't get me wrong. I want you to keep fighting, but this is a dead end, I think. Cause everyone knows that he gives sperm to other people and that those sperm have resulted in children. You'll have to find another angle."

Matthew sighed and took Sarah from her mother. "Not now," he said and hugged her. "I've done enough. Now I'll just savor what time I have with Sarah and let Andrew do all the sneaky stuff. He's better at that than I am."

"Good idea," Christine said, kissing both of them and leaning against her husband. "Why don't we go out and have a picnic so we have a few hours where we're not thinking about Malachai McCullough? Heck, it doesn't even have to be a picnic. We can just go and hang out somewhere. Enjoy nature and all that business."

They ended up deciding to get their horses and do a trail, bringing some sandwiches and food for Sarah along for when the ride was over.

"I know this is not the first time that you've done this," Christine told Matthew as she handed Sarah to him and watched him arrange Sarah on the horse, holding onto her tightly so she wouldn't fall off. "I promise not to freak out like I did last time."

"I don't blame you for being worried," Matthew told her. "After all, we are dealing with an animal here. But thank you for your faith in me. I actually think Sarah likes it. The rhythm of the horse, I mean."

"I figured as much when you came back and she'd fallen asleep in your lap," Christine said and boosted herself onto her horse. "Let's go. Do you want me to take the lead, or do you want to?"

"I'll take it," Christine said, and led him down the trail. They finally stopped at a park and Christine got off her horse and took Sarah from Matthew's arms so he could get off his horse and then they played for a bit before sitting down to eat.

"You know, I think this is the nicest time we've had in a while," Christine remarked as the horses grazed and she watched the breeze ruffle the soft dark tufts of hair on her daughter's head as Matthew used one hand to feed her mashed up bananas and the other to eat his sandwich. "We should do this more. I think it would be good."

"Yeah, me too," Matthew nodded, leaning down to kiss Sarah's hair. "I completely agree."

Then, however, Sarah quite suddenly turned into a frog and Matthew and Christine had to run and scramble to catch her before she disappeared.

"Here, I got her," Matthew cried when he got a good grip on the frog. "What do you say we go home now and get her changed back?"

"That's a good idea," Christine nodded. "Let's go."

"I should have known that your uncle would come and talk to you," Selina told Lucy after her daughter confessed about the two of them going to see Damon.

"Are you mad?" Lucy asked.

"Nah," Selina shook her head. "We've gone through phases like this before. And I suppose your uncle's right; there's no reason for me to go see Damon. He doesn't need me when he's got you."

"Good," Lucy smiled. "I wish we could call up Charlotte again. She needs to have a talk with her sons."

"Yeah," Selina nodded. "We can try all we want, but they won't listen to us. Charlotte's the only one that has the authority to deal with their craziness. Do you think I should write a letter asking her to come?"

"Maybe," Lucy smiled. "What do you think?"

"Yes," Selina said immediately. "Let's do it. Thank goodness the envelope for the first letter was saved so we have the right address."

So they got envelopes, pen, and paper and sat at the table to think about what to write.

"I don't think we need to go on and on about it," Selina said. "Not unless you want to make this more than just a letter about the boys. You know, tell her what's going on in your life and all that."

"True," Lucy nodded. "But since so much of my life is consumed with Damon's craziness, there's not much else to tell, is there?"

"Good point," Selina nodded. "I'll let you take this from there and if you need any help just let me know."

"All right," Lucy said and gave a little smile. "I wonder how the guy she's staying with will react to us writing her? I bet he doesn't expect ghosts to get letters."

"Well, if he can see ghosts in the first place, I bet he's encountered stranger things," Selina told her. "That's what I think, anyway."

Lucy finished the letter quickly, put it in an envelope, addressed it, and then put a stamp on it before taking it out to the mailbox and sending it on its way.

"I hope she actually comes," Lucy said.

"Yeah, and that she brings the guy with her," Selina smiled. "I'm intrigued. I want to meet him."

"Me too, even though it will make us have to listen to more whining from Stefan and Damon," Lucy remarked. "But we'll see, won't we?"

"Yep," Selina nodded. "We'll see."

"Another letter for you," Thomas said, bringing it in. "I've never known a ghost to get so much mail before."

"What can I say?" Charlotte said. "It's what happens when so many people in your life are vampires."

Thomas opened it and read it out loud. "Selina," he said as he read the first signature. "That has to be the woman you told me about. It's not a common name. And Lucy? You never mentioned any Lucy."

"Yes, it must be her," Charlotte replied. "And Lucy is my daughter in law. But did you pay attention to the rest of it? They want you to come with me to meet my sons!"

"All right," Thomas shrugged. "I can do that."

"Are you sure?" Charlotte asked. "You don't have to. I'm sure they'll only treat you badly because they're threatened by you."

"I can deal with it," Thomas assured her. "They're vampires. I'm a vampire. I'm sure we can come to an understanding."

Charlotte made a face. "I think that's a tad naive of you to say, but I'm not going to order you to think otherwise, of course."

"You really think the reaction will be that bad, huh?" Thomas smiled and kissed her hand. "I'm touched that you're concerned for my safety. I've haven't had a lot of that, to be honest."

"I know you haven't," Charlotte said. "And that's exactly why I'm telling you to be careful. I don't want you to be badly hurt or killed when you just started to have a taste of what it's like to have someone care about you."

"I'll be careful, I promise," Thomas told her. "I won't start anything and I'll be as polite as I can. I won't hurt your sons, I swear."

"Well, if they start trouble with you, go ahead and defend yourself," Charlotte told him. "I wouldn't deny you that."

"I'll go write the return letter," Thomas smiled. "I can't wait to go on this trip. It's been awhile since I've been out of town."

"Well, I'm sure it'll be worth your while," Charlotte told him. "Or make you want to never go anywhere again. Who knows?"

"I can't believe Mother is bringing her boyfriend here!" Damon grouched as Lucy helped him tie his tie in Selina and Elijah's bedroom. "Are we going to have to be nice to him?"

"Of course you are!" Lucy told him. "I don't know what's happened to you. Usually you're so nice, but lately you've been acting like a big baby."

Stefan began chuckling and Felicity said, "Don't you laugh at him! You're behaving the exact same way." That shut them up and then the two of them were ordered to sit quietly on the sofa until Charlotte and Thomas arrived, which they did in their own way. Thomas knocked politely on the door and Charlotte appeared quite suddenly, not looking like their nice, normal mother, but just as she had at the moment of her death, her eyes blank, and her neck broken and twisted painfully to one side.

"What was that for?" Damon asked when she'd stopped the horrible look.

"It's to make sure that the two of you behave yourselves," Charlotte told them firmly. "You treat Thomas rudely and you'll see it again."

"All right," they said resentfully.

When Thomas entered the living room with Selina a few minutes later and introduced himself, they did the same, though not with the same enthusiasm.

They then sat down and Thomas said to them, "So you're Charlotte's sons."

"Yes," Stefan said. "And you're the man who's living with her. You have a nice place?"

"I'd say so," Thomas nodded. "It's neat and cozy. And in a very safe neighborhood. Not that that's really something your mother needs to worry about, but I think being safe is a good thing overall."

They then lapsed into awkward silence for a few minutes until Thomas decided he would try to start a conversation with Lucy and Felicity instead. "Which one of you wrote me that nice letter?" He looked between them.

"I'm Lucy," Lucy replied. "And this is Felicity. She's my niece. Selina, the other woman who wrote the letter, is my mother. She's teaching now, but she should be home in a little bit."

"I'm Felicity," Felicity told Thomas as she appreciatively eyed the muscles that were obvious under his shirt and marveled over his warm eyes. "Nice to meet you. Can I get you a coffee or something?"

"Sure," Thomas nodded. "That's real sweet of you. I just take it black. I'm not one to make too much trouble about things."

"Well isn't that nice?" Felicity said, looking pointedly at Stefan. "Some people could learn from that view of life. I'll be back in a bit with your coffee."

Selina appeared half an hour later with Andrew and Amelia in tow, explaining that Elijah was at their daughter's visiting their grandson, but would meet Thomas next time he came over. "I thought that if you were coming, you'd want to see your friend," she smiled at Charlotte as Amelia hugged her.

"I've really missed you," Amelia told Charlotte, her usually somber eyes lit up. "Have you found yourself a nice place to haunt, or are you just wandering?"

"She's staying at my place, actually," Thomas told her and took her hand. "I'm Thomas."

"Amelia," Amelia smiled. "And this is my husband, Andrew, and my daughter, Selina."

"'My daughter'?" Thomas repeated. "She doesn't belong to both of you?"

"No," Selina shook her head. "My father is Andrew's brother, Matthew. These two had a son a long time ago, but we don't know what could have happened to him."

"I gave him up," Amelia nodded. "I didn't see him again after I left him at the orphanage. If I could talk to him now, I would tell him how sorry I am for what I did, and that I meant well. I hope he'd be able to forgive me."

"I'm sure he would, since you meant well," Thomas told her and gave her a hug because she seemed so distraught. "You seem like a very nice person." He then eyed the box of cigarettes Andrew was holding. "Can I have one of those?" He asked. "I know it's a bad habit, but everyone has their vices, right? And I'm a vampire, so it's not going to kill me."

"You're a vampire?" Damon asked, jumping back into the conversation. "Since when?"

"1881," Thomas told him.

Damon smiled. "1864. Stefan and I have both been around longer than you!" He crowed, backing down when Charlotte gave him a look. "Not that that matters for any reason," he said quietly and lapsed back into silence.

"How long are the two of you planning to stay?" Selina wanted to know.

"As long as we're welcome," Charlotte replied.

"Well, if you need a roof over your head, you can stay with us," Andrew said and gave Thomas a cigarette and a light. Then, he eyed the young vampire keenly. "You play poker?" He asked, looking over Thomas' jeans and button down white shirt. He had an air of someone who wasn't so much into business that he didn't have time to have a little fun.

"I did when I was on the riverboats," Thomas nodded. "But I'm a bit rusty. Will you teach me again?"

"Sure," Andrew nodded. "First rule: don't bet more than you can afford to lose."

"Point taken," Thomas told him.

Then, Andrew looked at Selina. "You think your husband would let you come over for a few games? I know he watches you doing stuff like that."

"Gambling doesn't bother him since I have my own money and he says that's mine to waste," Selina replied. "It's just the hunting , smoking, and drinking to excess that bother him. And I can come over to your house without consulting him first. Why would I need to ask?"

"No reason," Andrew said, flushing a little. "I only ask out of habit."

"It's okay," Selina smiled. "I forgive you."

Amelia looked at Charlotte. "So…you want to take me up on my offer to come stay at my house?"

"Of course," Charlotte nodded. "I would love that. I know my sons are still adjusting to Thomas and I as a pair, and I wouldn't want them to have to adjust to too much at once."

"When you say you're a pair," Damon, "do you literally mean you're a pair? Are you a couple?"

"No," Charlotte told her son. "We're just a lost woman and a man nice enough to give her a room."

"Yes," Thomas nodded, although he was thinking of their last kiss. "That's all we are…for now."

Those last two words brought both Stefan and Damon to their feet, which made Lucy and Felicity hold them down while Charlotte and Thomas followed Amelia and Andrew out of the house and slammed the door behind them, bringing silence and peace to the house again.