AN: Thanks for the revies!

Disclaimer: Not mine.

"It's not normal for me to be this nervous, is it?" Luke asked as Liz removed lint from his shoulder and he picked up his jacket. He had asked her to come over and help him get ready. Along with Sookie, she had also taken Rory shopping for a dress to wear to dinner, as it seemed she didn't really own anything suitable. They'd found her a nice, simple blue dress as well as a few skirts and cardigans.

All three of them remembered the Gilmore's well, and thought it would be best to have Rory looking as good as she could the first time they saw her out of diapers.

"Well, yes and no. On the one hand, you were in love with their daughter and now you're in charge of taking care of their granddaughter, so I guess, that would probably intimidate just about anyone," she replied, smoothing the material on his shoulders. Luke didn't have the strength to deny that his feelings for Lorelai had been that intense. There was no point, Liz wouldn't believe him anyway. "But on the other hand, you aren't sixteen anymore; if Richard yells at you, you can yell back, because you are an adult, and he doesn't have the right to speak to you like that."

"You think he's going to yell at me?"

"No! Of course not," Luke sighed with relief. "I misspoke, Emily might yell at you. I mean, she didn't have any trouble doing it over the phone after not speaking with you all these years."

"Liz!"

"I'm kidding. I'm sure no one will yell at anyone. Now turn, let me make sure you're ready." Luke followed her instruction as Rory came out of the bathroom and Jess let himself into the apartment.

"Looking sharp Uncle Luke!" the boy at the door announced

"Yeah, anyone would think you were headed out on a date, instead of taking me straight to hell," Rory added. Since the night Luke told her about his history with her family, Liz and Sookie had each put their two cents in. Combined with the few things she remembered her mom saying, Rory was pretty sure she had made a big mistake agreeing to this meeting.

"Thanks, you look, ah…"

"You look great Rory," Liz finished. Luke looked uncomfortable all of a sudden. He was never really good with compliments; giving or receiving them. "Ok, well I think you're both ready. Just remember that these people are just people. They may have more money than anyone living in this town would ever hope to possess, but they are still, mere mortals. And Rory, they are your grandparents; whatever has come before today, they love you, even if only on principal."

"Nice speech mom. I think you just made them each turn a few shades darker green than they were before."

"I was trying to help!" Liz defended herself. She had slowly been softening towards Rory, with her brother, son and very close friend all telling her how well she was adjusting, it was hard to keep the girl in that place in her mind reserved for the bad people, who didn't deserve kindness.

"Um, yeah. Thanks Liz. Maybe we should just go?" Rory asked Luke, he looked as if he were frozen on the spot. "Do you want me to drive?" she asked tentatively. She'd applied for a learner's permit back home, even though neither she nor her mother had a car. But she figured that now she was somewhere that didn't have streets clogged with cabs, knowing how to drive would probably be a useful skill.

Nodding mutely, Luke removed the keys to his truck from the hook by the door and handed them to Rory, before slowly walking out. The other three followed his lead and all filed down the stairs and outside of the diner.

"Good luck you guys. And remember-"

"Mom! I think they have enough to remember, don't you?" Jess interrupted as Rory looked over the directions one last time.

"Fine, I'll shut up."

Rory climbed into the driver's seat as Luke moved to the passenger side. Once they were both in their seats, Rory put her feet on the pedals, but it felt way too uncomfortable. Leaning down, she loosened her shoes and kicked off her heels. Adjusting the seat and the rearview mirror, she gritted her teeth, trying to remember what she hadn't really been listening to in Driver's Ed.

"Would it be so awful if I killed us both on the drive there?" she muttered, more to herself than Luke.

"Please do," Luke replied as they pulled away from the curb. Rory looked at him and they shared an awkward smile.

"So, I'm guessing that means you really regret agreeing to this, then?"

"Pretty much the stupidest thing I ever said yes to." He replied, nodding.

"I really appreciate it, though. So, thank you." Rory told him and Luke tried to smile again.

"Well, I think your mom would probably kill me if I sent you off to Emily Gilmore's house, unprotected." Luke replied. "Or she would kill me for allowing it to happen at all, not sure on that one right now."

"Is it really going to be that bad? I mean, I know I haven't been here all that long, and I don't know you or Sookie or Liz very well. But I get the feeling that none of you are really exaggerating all that much. And, no offense, but you look terrible, like you're about to face the firing squad or something."

"Yep, that's pretty much how I feel." Rory's face blanched at that and Luke shook his head, trying to think of words that would reassure her. "No, I mean, it's like I said the other day; they won't be happy to see me, and I don't really want to see them either, but this isn't about any of us. It's about you and you deserve to know these people if that's what you want. So, I promise to stop filling your head with horror stories, if you can promise me that you'll try and be on your best behavior tonight, ok?"

"Ok." Rory directed her gaze back to the road for a moment, before turning an eye towards Luke once more. "How pissed would you be if I asked you for a cigarette out of the glove box?"

"There aren't any cigarettes in my glove box." Luke replied, mildly amused. If there had been, and she was seriously asking, he would be very, very angry, but since there weren't-

"I stashed a couple in there the day you went all despot on me and demanded I stop smoking." Rory explained as she reached over and popped open the door. "Guess I just knew that we would eventually be having an extremely nerve-wracking night, huh?" She tried to lighten the mood, while fishing around for the pack she shoved in the back.

"Rory, keep your eyes on the road!" Luke admonished her, reaching in himself to find what she'd been searching for. Eventually coming up with a small cardboard rectangle, Luke opened the box and extracted one cigarette as well as the lighter. "Here," he handed the lit cigarette to the girl beside him, and she gratefully took it. "If you tell anyone I willingly gave that to you, Richard and Emily will seem like Mike and Carol Brady in comparison to me, understood?"

"One thousand-seventy-eight per cent. Thank you." They drove silently then, until they came close to the neighborhood that Luke recognized as the one the Gilmore's lived in. Everything looked the same as it had on that last day that he'd made the drive from Stars Hollow to find out what was wrong with his girlfriend's father.

"Take a left here," he instructed, as Rory reached for the paper on the dashboard.

"I thought that the-"

"This is the way that Lorelai always had us go. What Emily told you, involves looping around through a bunch of streets so you see all the fancy houses before finally arriving at hers and seeing its superior grandness. But, if you want to get this over with as much as I do, then I suggest you take a left here," he repeated and Rory nodded, flicking on the indicator.

"Wow!" Rory breathed, pulling up in the driveway a few minutes later. "Who needs the tour of the neighborhood? This place is amazing all on its own."

"And completely terrifying," Luke added as the each grabbed their coats and climbed out of the truck.

"Yeah, I was getting to that. What time is it?" she asked, looking over at Luke as they slowly walked towards the front door.

"Five to seven," he replied, glancing at his watch.

"Five minutes to bail. Would it be really bad if we just didn't show up?"

"Well, considering they know where we live, yes. If we don't go in there right now, the two of them could launch a sneak attack at any moment. Its better this way, trust me."

"Ok, but I'm holding you accountable for any possible bloodshed."

"I'm ok with that," the older man answered as he reached out to ring the bell. Within seconds the door flew open and a woman with red hair stood on the other side, beaming.

"Rory is that you?" the woman asked, throwing her arms around Rory as she resisted the urge to roll her eyes. 'Who else would show up at this time, when I'm expected for dinner?' she wondered, slowly lifting her arms to hug her grandmother back awkwardly. "It's so good to see you, after all this time. I never thought that… Well, never mind, you're here now. Come in, come in."

"Um, hi, Mrs.… Um…"

"Call me grandma, after all, I am, no shame in that is there?" they walked inside and Rory had to bite her lip to stop from crying out at all the expensive things displayed around the house.

'The next time I speak to mom she is really going to get it. God! What was she thinking?' Rory thought. She could have grown up here or somewhere like here, or even, if she'd gown up in Stars Hollow she could have visited, been aware of the existence of this house before now. But no, Lorelai had to go and screw all that up, because she needed her independence.

"Richard! Rory's here! Hurry up and get off that phone," Emily yelled over her shoulder just as a door squeaked open and seconds later, a tall man wearing a bowtie appeared in the doorway.

"I'm right here Emily, there's no need to shout,"

"Well, how was I to know? You rarely ever set foot out of that office of yours. I told you what time she would be arriving, the least you could do was try and end your business calls at the end of business hours."

"It's still business hours in Seoul, my dear."

"Perhaps you should remind your clients that you live in America, then. That way we can both be ready when our company arrives."

"I apologize for that, Rory. It's wonderful to see you, all grown up, and- Luke! My, I haven't seen you in many years. Emily, you didn't tell me Luke would be here." he said to his wife, the first of the two to finally notice the man sitting beside their granddaughter.

"No, I'm sorry; it must have slipped my mind. I didn't even see you there Luke. Well, you're here, isn't that wonderful?"

"How are you my boy?" Richard asked, reaching out to shake Luke's hand.

"Doing pretty good thanks Mr. Gilmore, how are you?"

"Well, there's always something more to insure, so, business is doing well. Thank you for asking,"

"Good, that's good." Luke nodded; out of the corner of her eye, Rory saw him continuously clench his hand into a fist, due to his nerves, she figured, scrunching the material of his pants each time he closed his hand.

"Can I get anyone a drink?" Emily asked, standing up again. "Rory? Soda, water?"

"Uh, soda,"

"Would you like something Luke? Wine, vodka, a nice cold beer perhaps?"

"I think I might just have a soda as well, thank you Em- Mrs. Gilmore." Luke replied. He had been so used to calling her Emily when speaking to Lorelai and then switching to Mrs. Gilmore when actually in her vicinity, but that was a long time ago, now he had to train himself all over again.

"Two soda's coming right up. Richard?"

"Oh, I think I'd like a scotch on the rocks,"

"I should have guessed," Emily replied, smiling tightly. She moved to pour the drinks and then passed them out before retaking her seat. "So, Rory. Tell us what you've been up to," she requested once everyone held a glass.

Rory glanced at Luke for a moment before she began her story. Why hold back? These people were family and they did ask. So she started from the beginning and told them all about her life in New York, right up until her arrest and the move to Stars Hollow.

"I know you're mad at them, but you didn't have to make up all that stuff just to make them feel bad about not rescuing you from you mom," Luke told Rory as they returned to the car after dinner. "I mean what was with that story about the crack dealer that lived across the hall?"

"That was purely non-fiction. Everything I said tonight was. Well, except for her name. I forgot it. You can call Lorelai if you don't believe me. Oh! Marcy; that was it. She was a kindergarten teacher too, did I mention that?" Luke looked over at her skeptically as he navigated his way through the streets, ecstatic to be getting away from Hartford. "I swear, it was all true! Didn't you just love the looks on their faces?"

"That's not the point," Luke replied, the tiniest of smiles gracing his features. "You promised-"

"To be on my best behavior." Rory finished. "I thought you would appreciate my honesty and willingness to share. Come on, admit it, you enjoyed the outcome of that story just as much as I did."

"Alright, yes; it was funny and I'm glad to have that memory of the house now. But don't you ever pull a stunt like that again." He warned and she groaned.

"You mean, like, next week when I have to go back there, unsupervised?"

"Yes, I mean, like, exactly then." he replied, imitating her. "And any other time you're with them. You have to understand something about these people; it's not enough that you're a part of their family. If it were, your mom probably would have felt more comfortable in that house. But they have impossibly high standards and you must live up to them, otherwise, you'll end up just the way she did,"

"Pregnant and alone at sixteen?" Rory questioned, "I don't think so. I'm not even sleeping with anyone right now."

"Not… I- No! She never fit into their world the way they wanted. And they made sure she knew it. In all the time I spent with those people, your mother was on the oust with them. I don't want that to happen to you." He concluded as Rory studied him, thoughtfully.

"You never say her name." she observed quietly.

"What?"

"I'm pretty certain that since I got here you've said her name less than five times," Rory explained. "It's always 'your mom', 'her' or 'your mother'." She added, affecting a deep voice. "Are you even capable of saying Lorelai?"

"Of course I am."

"Tell me then, when was the last time you said it?"

"I say her name all the time. Like, the other night when I was telling you-"

"Nope. Not all the time. You said it once that night. And if I remember correctly, you've said it a grand total of… three times. Two were when you were speaking to her. Any other time you can think of?"

"Look, I don't want to talk about this, ok? Whether I say her name or not is none of your business. It doesn't mean anything!"

Rory blinked, slightly taken aback. She hadn't really meant to piss him off; pushing people's buttons was just sort of a hobby. "Luke, I-"

"I'm the adult here, so I'm imposing a time out. For both of us. No one makes a sound until I say so, alright?" Rory nodded mutely.

"How'd it go?" Jess asked putting his book down on the counter as they walked through the door. Rory looked at Luke and he nodded.

"On a scale of one to ten? Sucky McSuckerson Awful! And I have to go back next week. Apparently they really want to get to know me."

"That's a good thing, isn't it?"

"If you had been there tonight you would understand. Remind me to thank your little friend next time he's in town, alright?"

"What are you still doing here?" Luke asked, moving behind the counter to make sure everything had been done correctly.

"Mom had to go out of town, unexpectedly. She said it was some sort of work thing. Can I crash here for the night?"

"Sure, if you don't mind sleeping on the couch. What kind of work thing?"

"I don't know; she refused to elaborate, which lead me to believe she's lying. I think she has a secret boyfriend."

"No, she would have told us. Or you; wouldn't she?" Luke asked.

"Maybe she thinks we'll be crazy and judgmental and drive him away like the last time."

"The last time you were eight and I was just trying to protect my little sister."

"Yeah, well, in any case, she's hiding something. I'll give her a couple more weeks to 'fess up before I drag it put of her. I'm gonna go get the couch sorted, see you up there." Jess turned and left the diner area and Rory moved to put the final stool up on the counter

"Figures," he had left his book behind, she scoffed at his choice of reading material. Hemingway. Crap pile. "Do you think Liz is hiding anything?" she asked as Luke flipped through receipts.

"Nah, I'm sure Jess is just overreacting. Up until recently he's had Liz mostly to himself. I guess it's just hard for him to get used to her being away now and then."

"Mom never bothered to hide any of her guys from me," Rory replied without thinking. She suddenly looked up, concerned.

Luke froze in his work. That was the second time Rory had mentioned other men in Lorelai's life. 'I'm not expecting her to be sitting around missing me,' he thought. 'Not really. But does this have to be thrown in my face?'

"Luke, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to-"

"It's ok."

"No, really. Those guys… there haven't been that many."

"Rory, its-"

"And they've never stuck around long either. I always thought it was something she was doing wrong, but I think I've figured it out now. They weren't you, so she didn't really want them."

"Can we just… can we not do this right now, please?"

"I just… I know I've pretty much made it my mission to make you miserable, but I'm not trying to do that right now. I think that you're the one she was trying to find all these years."

"She's always known I'm right here," Luke replied angrily. "Not too hard to find."

"Maybe she's afraid. Cause she knows she hurt you."

"Why are you defending her now? At your grandparents house you couldn't contain your Mommy Dearest stories. Why the sudden turn-around?"

"I just need you to understand. She-"

"I understand that she left. I understand that whatever we had wasn't enough to keep her here. And I also understand that that relationship has nothing to do with you. So do as I ask, stop talking about this, go upstairs and go to sleep." Luke replied forcefully and Rory nodded, picking up Jess' book and silently walking up the stairs.

Luke let out an uneasy breathe as he leaned against the counter for support.

This was just too hard.

It was difficult before, but he had been able to get through each day with minimal effort. With Rory around - her mere presence a constant reminder of Lorelai – getting up in the morning and going about his business had reached a level of difficulty he hadn't thought possible.

Send her back.' He thought. 'You don't have to do this.'

But as soon as the thought occured to him, Luke dismissed it. That wouldn't be fair to Rory, not now when she'd finally found some stability in her life.

"I just have to try harder," he told himself. "They are two separate people. Rory deserves a clean slate."

Making the decision to separate the two Gilmore's in his mind, Luke headed for the stairs, exhausted.

Okay. That was… hmm, I don't really know what that was. I don't think the Gilmore's were quite right, but my thinking is that everyone would act a little strange in that situation, so they're bound to be a little off. What do you think? Was it any good? Was it sucky mcsuckerson awful? Let me know.