Hi, so here is another story and it is an episode based story like the last few this time in the later series.
I do like the later series and this episode The Lost Sheep in particular however I really struggled with the character of Olivia when she came back from Arizona this episode in particular, as a parent I don't understand her actions, I mean she basically belittles Erin, bullies her out of marriage, all but spits on Ashley and gets John to cover for her. Erin in the later series is basically an afterthought, they never seem to know quiet what to do with her and they create man after man to throw at her and to be honest Ashley was the best-granted Paul was quite good (until they ruined him in the movies) but this is a fix it basically for Erin because she deserved to marry the man she loved and she deserved to marry him despite her mother throwing an almighty temper tantrum (to be kind). Seriously...Olivia did twenty plus years married to John and despite everything I thought it was always pretty clear how he viewed religion...
On that note this does mention atheism, war, PTSD and trauma-basically all the good stuff the series doesn't cover. If this is a hard line for you then maybe stop here. I do not wish to offend anyone but this is based off the episode and nothing more. Personal beliefs don't come into it.
If you've read my work then you know spelling and grammar are not my strongest so please keep that in mind.
This is not going to be word for word cannon either. This story should be about eleven chapters long.
I will try and update when I can but with work that might be a bit sporadic so apologies in the meantime.
I have also brought back the original John Boy. The first five series were the best and it is arguably down to Richard Thomas, Ellen Corby and Will Geer being just as involved as Micheal Learnerd and Ralph Waite.
The Same Coin
Chapter 2-Let's Call The Whole Thing Off
Olivia and Erin have a talk at the breakfast table. John wishes he'd had the foresight to stay in bed.
Growing up in Virginia one had a sense of the cold. Snow stuck to the ground here and the winds came from the mountain and hit their little house time after time to where he and his Pa (God rest his soul) would come inside and get warm just to wrap their frozen fingers around something warm. Before that and after that John had been in France. 1917 had been a cold winter, hands frozen around tin mugs trying to get warm, near constant rain and shaking and shivering to the point where a warm flame was the only thing getting through the day. He had been used to the cold from childhood, through soldiering, through working and yet…
That was nothing compared to the breakfast table this morning though.
He was sat reading the paper because John had four sons and he wanted to know what the hell that crazed Charlie Chaplin wannabe was gonna do when eventually his boys went overseas. He was not naïve, he knew that John-Boy was itching to get back to the action, Jason would go with his men if his men were called forwards, Ben was seeing out his wife's pregnancy like John had done all so many years ago and then he was going to go that was plain to see and Jim-Bob was never going to be left behind where his older brothers went.
So yes, he was reading the paper.
And he was doing a very good job at pretending that he wasn't sat at the coldest table known to man.
Which considering Mary-Ellen was boring holes in the paper, his plan to have this stretch out until morning wasn't going to work.
Damn.
He put down his paper.
Erin had come downstairs perfectly calm and perfectly happy, she had made herself a plate and then had ate in a dignified silence. His wife on the other hand had come down the stairs banging and crashing into everything in site and then had spent the entire time clutching her coffee cup as if she was resisting the urge to throw it. He had never quite seen Olivia this gripped by something and that was saying it as well considering that they were now in their third decade of marriage together.
He sighed. Mary Ellen and Ben were both shooting him looks that said they knew something was going on and they wanted to know as soon as humanly possible. Jason was half asleep but he too was shooting highly suspicious looks at his brother and even the children had picked up on the tension. Hell even John Curtis had picked up on the tension and was managing to eat silently even as his mother fed him.
Eventually Mary Ellen ever his brave girl, broke the silence.
"So Erin" she said buttering her toast with a ruthless efficiency. "Did you get your wedding dress finished?"
John mentally closed his eyes and counted to ten in his head.
Ten.
Nine.
Eight.
"No Mary Ellen I didn't" Erin said in that strange tone that was calm, cold dignity.
Seven.
Six.
Five.
"Would you mind giving me a hand? There is a quite a lot to do"
Four.
Three.
"I can help you today if you want Erin"
"Why thank you Cindy"
Two.
One.
BANG.
His wife had just put down her cup so hard it shattered on impact. John sighed and opened his eyes again. Everyone bar Erin even the baby was looking at his wife in shock, Erin on the other hand was dapping at her mouth with a napkin as if this was a part of the everyday normal breakfast routine.
John had to admire her nerves if nothing else. He was not quite sure he would be that sanguine about things if his wife was looking at him that way first thing in the morning.
"Is everything alright Mama?" Ben asked being the first one to break the silence.
His wife took a moment and then in a measured voice that was trembling with rage spoke into the kitchen.
"No Ben everything is not alright. Erin would you like to tell them why?"
Blue eyes met his wife's with a steely determination.
"No Mama I don't need to tell anyone why, any business between my future husband and I is private and will remain that way until I have a chance to discuss it with him. Certainly his own private matters are simply just that. Jason can I ask if you managed to get in touch with John-Boy to see if he might be able to make it back—"
"Ashely doesn't believe in God!" his wife cried. John personally thought that all she was missing was a pointed finger and she would be straight out of some biblical reference. Erin put down her mug and John wondered how much of a coward he would be if he left the table.
He was never good at stuff like this. He didn't…look he might have been raised by a God fearing woman and the Lord knew he had certainly married one but he and God had, had a falling out somewhere between 1917 and his brother's last breath and they were still not on good terms. When God could come and tell him what the point of the Great War was (especially as they were here fighting the Second War to End All Wars) and then him a clear and concise reason why John had lost his big brother then maybe, just maybe they might be able to have a decent conversation but that was just maybe and even then he didn't think that he was going to like the response. For reasons beyond his comprehension that had never been a problem with his wife, the rest of his feelings about God and the Church had never been and issue and so now he couldn't understand why this whole marriage was being thrown into chaos.
Erin had gone and found a man who didn't believe because he had seen what war could do to mere mortal men and Ashely Longworth JR had been in the same boat that he had been, he loved his daughter, he had presented a compromise that wasn't the worst in the world. Call John old fashioned but as long as he loved Erin, as long as he promised to keep her safe from harm and he didn't raise his hands or his voice then John was happy with Ashely.
Mostly.
Religion certainly had nothing to do with it.
"Thanks for that Mama" Erin said dragging him back to the conversation.
"When you say don't believe—" Jason began and Erin put down her mug.
"He went to war…to Italy from what he says and somewhere over there—"
"Ah" Jason said his mouth thick with egg. "He saw enough to make him wonder?"
Erin shrugged.
Jason shrugged too. "Not the first man won't be the last" he muttered. "A lot of people come back and wonder how something like that could happen"
John personally agreed but he didn't think he was going to voice this opinion. Jason put down his knife and fork and stood up.
"I'm gonna go and ring John-Boy again but I'll take it at the store. Erin as long as your happen then I'm happy" he said and then he was gone.
John personally wanted to go with him.
Erin said nothing.
"Okay" Mary Ellen said quietly. "So is that why you are getting married so soon"
"He only has a week's worth of leave and neither one of us wanted to wait" Erin said patiently. "Ashely and I spoke last night and we agreed to disagree on the topic of religion. As I told Mamma last night we had an understanding that I would raise my children with Ashely in the same faith that I had only that he would not have anything to do with it until he was ready. If that takes time then that takes time"
Mary-Ellen paused.
"Not quite sure Mamma what the problem is" she said quietly. "It sounds like a good compromise—Daddy—"
"YOUR FATHR BELIEVES IN GOD! THIS HEATHEN DOESN'T!"
"This heathen has a name" Erin cried her cheeks getting pink with emotion.
"His name is Ashely Momma and he is soon to be your son in law"
"No he is not…Erin I think you are rushing into this and—"
"Bit rich coming from the woman who eloped"
Ben choked into his tea. Cindy kicked him under the table but his son was inches away from laughing and John could see the conversation slide into chaos.
"Erin has made her decision Liv, she has decided that Ashley and her can compromise on religion, many people can't do that so I have to give some credit"
"Besides it's not like Daddy goes to Church is it?" Elizabeth said as if that settled the matter and John sighed. He knew that this was going to be a thing.
"Your father believes in God! He didn't want to raise his children in a godless home!"
"Neither does Ashely Mamma I told you he is fine with—"
"He says that now, he might change his mind and by then the damage is done you have a marriage and a child and—"
"Olivia."
"John! This marriage cannot go ahead it just…it's not right"
"Because you say so" Erin said her eyes bright with emotion. "You say so Mamma. Not me. Not Ashely, you stand there and dictate what is right and what is normal and what is godless and what isn't, you're the one who has to decide it. Not everyone is as religious as you are, not everyone wants God rammed down their throat at every turn, some people choose to believe in different things to you and if Ashley and I want to get married in the Baldwin House with a city official presiding then we will do it, it doesn't make our marriage any less real or any less happy or blessed than anyone and while you take this high road may I remind you that Ben also didn't marry with a preacher at his side"
"Thanks Erin" Ben said stabbing his egg with a particular sense of vengeance that John could understand only too well.
"I do not think this is the right marriage for you Erin I cannot—do not expect any help from me or—"
"Why don't you just not bother coming then?"
The words shocked around the table and John who had been about to intervene fell silent. Even Jason halfway at the door doubled back a little. But Erin was holding her head high and her red hair was bobbing on her shoulders and her blue eyes were bright. His wife had fallen silent. John wondered weather or not she had ever considered that this might go too far.
Erin put down her knife and fork and stood up.
"If my husband's choice of believes is too much for you Mamma then we don't need you at our wedding spreading that kind of hate and misery. If you cannot muscle up any bit of joy for your daughter getting married to a man she loves who loves her then please don't bother attending, we will do just fine without you. Ashley and I are adults, we know what we are doing and unlike with Chad Marshall I do not need anyone's permission to marry. The wedding will take place a week from Saturday. If you cannot be happy for me don't bother coming at all. Now" she said with a ruthless kind of tone. "I will be at the Baldwin's house getting my plans together, I will take my dress and I will see if Miss Maime and Miss Emily will help me fix it seeing as you won't. I will also see if they would mind putting me up until the wedding and then you don't have to see me at all. Goodbye Mamma"
And with that she turned on her heel and walked out the door past Jason who was watching with a worried look on his face. The door banged shut and they heard the car start.
Mary Ellen picked up her son out of the high chair.
"Well I am certainly going to go" she said flatly. "I never cared what Curt believed in and If him being an atheist meant him coming back through the door tomorrow that would be just fine with me. I love you Mamma and I respect your feelings on this matter but I can't help but feel you've played this very wrong"
And with that she swept off.
"Okay" John said putting down his cup. "Everyone else out or to school. NOW"
He didn't need to shout but such was the tone of his voice that they all scattered even Cindy though he noted that Ben had to help her a bit. Rose who had began to clear the plates away muttered something about taking her knitting to the spot by the pond and getting in a few stiches under the good morning light and so she bustled out too.
Olivia stood up just as the door shut, John knew his offspring and he knew them well. Ben would be the one to stick his head round the door at lunchtime to see if it was okay the rest of them would piss behind the barn before they got in the way of this conversation.
Olivia started to pick up the breakfast dishes.
"Liv—"
"Not now John"
He laughed and it wasn't pleasant.
"Sit down Liv"
"John"
"Liv I love you to death but sit down now so we can talk about this because I cannot, cannot believe that the woman I know has let her daughter walk out of that room without having the last word so WILL YOU PLEASE SIT DOWN!"
Olivia smashed the dishes into the sink and came over and sat down.
Well John thought that was at least something.
He opened his mouth and then glowered up at the ceiling.
Some fucker up there was going to pay for this when his time came.
Mark his fucking words.
And yeah, there you go, I hope you enjoy.
Next Chapter-Olivia and John hash it out. Part 1.