Chapter 98: Traditions, Tribes and Packs
It's the next morning and the Reagan family had been working all night to try to save what they could from the basement. There were now items laid out everywhere on the main floor with fans going.
"Insurance company is swamped." Frank sighs as he hangs up his phone.
"Even for the Police Commissioner?" Henry huffs out.
"Yes Pop." Frank confirms "To them I'm just a home owner – as it should be."
"I think it's okay." Sean states as he and Jamie come up the stairs carrying The Henry Special Go Cart.
"Oh thank god." Henry breathes out in relief.
Mia looks over and her eyes widen "Is that a Go Cart?!"
"Yes it is!" Henry proudly boasts.
"Cool." Mia states impressed as she steps towards it to get a better look as Jamie and Sean set it down on the floor "Very cool." She adds causing Henry to look at the young girl and a great big grin slowly appears on his face as an idea forms in his head.
"Oh boy." Jamie breathes out at seeing his grandfather's look.
"What?" Eddie prompts.
"Pop." Frank sighs at seeing and understanding his father's look as well "She's retired."
"No." Henry rejects "She WAS retired but now she's got a new rider!" He quips in delight as he looks directly at Mia.
Jamie simply shakes his head in defeat while Eddie looks around confused "Did I miss something?"
"Bay Ridge Derby." Jamie explains "It's a huge family tradition – Dad won, Danny won, Joe won, I won."
Frank loudly coughs trying to remind Jamie that Sean is there…
"I lost." Sean interjects "Because they…" He continues on as he points between his grandfather and uncle "Decided to level the playing field."
Frank and Jamie turn to look at Sean in surprise "How do you know that?"
"I told him." Henry huffs out "You think I don't know what you two did to my car?"
"Don't you mean what you did Pop?" Jamie challenges "You…" he goes to continue but then pauses as he walks over to Mia and places his hands over her ears so she doesn't hear what he is about to say "You cheated and juiced the go cart – that's the only reason we all ever won!"
Sean makes a shocked expression at hearing that "Really? I did not know that part! Okay..." he then decides "Now I feel better."
"Hey!" Mia protests as she wiggles herself out from under Jamie's hands "What are you doing?" She inquires in confusion as she turns to look up at her uncle.
Jamie shrugs.
"You don't know that." Henry dismisses to Jamie at his accusation.
"Hang on." Eddie interjects in amusement "Back up a second here. Am I hearing that The Reagan's might not have always…" but then Eddie pauses as she walks up to Mia and places her hands over her ears "Played by the rules?"
"Okay stop that already!" Mia demands as she scoots out from under Eddie's hands "I'm not dumb, I can fill in the blanks of what you are trying to stop me from hearing."
"This is our chance to redeem the family name!" Henry rambles on with renewed vigor.
Jamie turns to look at his grandfather "She's a Ruiz." He reminds his grandfather.
"She's lives with you. You're her Godfather." Henry defends "Close enough because chances are I won't be around by the time that one…" he adds as he points at Eddie's stomach "Is old enough to race – and she better race." he seriously warns his grandson.
"Okay." Jamie accepts knowing it's just best to agree.
"So you want me to drive this thing in a race?" Mia questions in surprise.
"Yes!" Henry eagerly replies.
A smile graces Mia's face "Cool." She states as she steps into the car and sits down to get a feel for it.
"You might want to run that by her Mom first Pop." Jamie tells his grandfather.
"Nah." Henry rejects "I'll let you do that." he informs his grandson.
Suddenly there is a knock on the back door.
Frank moves to open it to see Rosa on the other side carrying a couple of extra large food containers "Rosa." he greets "We were just talking about you! Come in!"
"You were?" Rosa questions as she steps inside.
"Hi Mom!" Mia enthusiastically greets from inside the car "Look at my new wheels!"
Rosa looks towards the sound of her daughter's voice to see her in the go cart and a look of total confusion appears on her face.
"Rosa, my dear." Henry soothing greets as he steps forward "What are you carrying? Let us help you with all that." he insists as he beckons Sean and Jamie towards Rosa with an authoritative look.
"Oh right..." Rosa breathes out in remembrance as Sean and Jamie take the containers out of her arms "I knew you would all be tired and likely hungry but also not really have had time to think about food so…"
"Well that was very thoughtful of you Rosa." Frank cordially accepts.
"Well it's the least I can do." Rosa insists "You've all welcomed me and Mia like family so…"
"SEE!" Henry giddily points out "She agrees! Not going to be an issue!"
Rosa looks at Henry still confused then turns to look at Jamie and Eddie looking for answers.
Jamie opens his mouth to explain but Mia – her attention focused on the car - talks first "So how does this thing work?"
"Your Uncle Jamie will show you." Henry promises "Right?" he prompts his grandson.
"Right." Jamie dutifully agrees.
Eddie leans towards her husband "Are we taking that thing home with us?"
Jamie shakes his head "No. That would disqualify us. It's the BAY RIDGE derby." He emphasizes "For Mia to qualify, the car has to stay here."
"Whoa hang on." Rosa interrupts as she starts to put the pieces together "Since when are you driving a go cart? And in a derby no less!" the Mother adds unimpressed as she looks at her daughter then around the room at all the adults before settling her unhappy gaze on Jamie.
In response, first Jamie and then slowly one by one everyone else points at Henry in deflection.
"Rosa." Henry soothingly greets as he walks towards her and puts an arm around her shoulders "Let me tell you about a very important family tradition that sadly went off the rails that your daughter now has the chance to set right."
….
Grabbing a sandwich from one of the trays Rosa brought, Eddie takes a bite then looks over to a corner of the room where Henry is talking to Rosa. She leans towards her husband next to her and whispers "You think your Grandfather will convince her to let Mia race?"
"I'll ask you this again…" Jamie tosses back "…have you met my Grandfather?"
Eddie laughs "Fair enough."
Silence.
"So go cart racing was a big family tradition huh?" Eddie prompts.
Jamie nods "Huge." he admits before getting a melancholy look on his face "I kind of miss those days."
Eddie looks at him questioningly.
"Whole family would come out to rally around and cheer you on." Jamie explains as Danny and Erin come up from the basement carrying more items "That hardly ever happens anymore because we've all grown up and gone our separate ways."
"Separate ways?" Danny inquires as he looks around the room at the entire family that still lives in the city be present and accounted for before looking behind him to his sister "Does this look like separate ways to you?"
"More like separate circles." Erin admits "But ones that always circle right back to here."
"But we don't have anything like school plays or derby matches that we all converge upon and attend anymore." Jamie reiterates "That's my point."
Eddie looks around at all the Reagans and her mind starts to imagine what it used to be like. Suddenly she chuckles.
"What?" Erin inquires.
"Nothing." Eddie dismisses but she can't stop smiling.
Danny looks at his brother but points at Eddie "Get her to talk please."
Eddie rolls her eyes "Okay fine. I was just picturing what it must have been like back then – all the Reagan's descending on an event and… well I just had this image of like the red sea parting as you all made your entrance!" she quips before bursting out laughing.
Jamie, Danny and Erin all groan.
"She's cute." Erin tells her younger brother "You married a real funny one."
"I know, I tell him that all the time." Eddie admits to her sister in law.
Erin shakes her head.
"Oh come on!" Eddie laughs "You have to look at it from an outsider's perspective!"
"No we don't." Danny rejects.
"Okay true you don't." Eddie admits "But you should."
"Why?" Jamie inquires.
"You are a very intimidating family." Eddie states.
"Part ancient tribe, part wolf pack." Jamie mutters out before he can stop himself.
Danny, Erin and Eddie all turn to look at Jamie.
"I'm sorry…" Erin challenges "Did you just call us a wolf pack?"
"Sorry." Jamie apologizes in regret as he sheepishly looks at the floor "Forget I said anything."
"No, no." Danny rejects not about to let his brother off the hook "I agree with Erin, I want to hear more about this wolf pack!"
"Okay blame Dad." Jamie defends as he looks up and points across the room at his Father "He said it first!"
Danny, Erin and Jamie all look over to their Father who has his back to them sorting through more items from the basement.
A moment later, feeling eyes on him, Frank pauses then turns to see his children all staring at him "What?"
"Part ancient tribe, part wolf pack." Jamie repeats.
Frank looks at his youngest, then shifts his gaze to Eddie – he smiles. "That's right and?"
"Hang on." Eddie interrupts "Why are you looking at me?"
"Why not?" Frank counters "You're a part of the pack. Everyone in this room is."
"A wolf pack?" Erin repeats as she tries to wrap her mind around the analogy "Ancient tribe sure but a wolf pack?"
"I can actually see wolf pack more then ancient tribe." Danny corrects.
"What?" Erin counters in rejection as her natural instinct to take on her brother revs up.
"Yeah." Danny defends as he does a little posturing getting ready for a fight with his sister.
"Oh my god it IS a wolf pack!" Eddie laughs out at the sight "That's hilarious. The Reagans…" She suddenly begins to announce "Part ancient tribe, part wolf pack – that would be like a perfect TV show slug line."
Jamie closes his eyes and slightly shakes his head "I'm sorry I even brought it up."
"Why did you bring it up?" Danny mutters annoyed.
"Because she said we were intimidating and we kind of are!" Jamie admits.
"Not from where I sit." Rosa's voice interrupts as she and Henry walk over "You are all kind and caring. Are you protective of your own? Yes absolutely but that's human nature."
"Wolf pack nature." Eddie corrects.
Jamie turns to his wife beside him "You are just not going to let this go are you?"
"NO!" Eddie laughs out so Jamie turns to look at his Father "Apparently I had nothing to worry about."
Frank nods in agreement as he steps forward and the family begins to form an unintentional but natural circle around Jamie and Eddie.
Eddie looks at her husband "What does that mean?"
Jamie smiles sweetly at his wife "All good."
Eddie narrows her eyes at Jamie…
"The new Mother of the pack…" Danny begins to narrate like some voice over on a PBS nature documentary special as he steps forward into form as well "...prepares to face off with her mate in a show of…"
"Oh cut it out." Jamie interrupts his brother.
"No no this is fun." Erin jumps in in agreement with her older brother as she also steps forward to complete the circle "You did start this." She reminds her younger brother before noticing the complete circle everyone makes around the couple and she snickers.
Jamie heavily sighs "What now?"
"Ancient tribe." Erin repeats as she gestures to the complete circle of people before looking back at her younger brother "I feel like we should be performing some kind of ritual right now."
"Oh my god." Jamie groans out as he goes to step between his brother and sister and break free but Danny and Erin step together and block his path.
"Get back there Kid." Danny amusingly tells his younger brother with a point of his finger towards the center of the circle.
Jamie gets an unimpressed look on his face "You too?"
Danny nods before turning to look at his sister "So what do you think some kind of dance or chant…"
"There has got to be something our Irish ancestors used to perform." Erin admits "Grandpa?" she prompts looking towards Henry for guidance.
"Well there was this one…" Henry begins with dancing eyes as he starts to do a little jig.
Jamie rolls his eyes and heads in a different direction to exit the circle but Eddie side steps to block his path and places her hands on her hips "Did I or did I not ask you if there was some weird pregnancy ritual your family would make me perform and you promised me there wasn't!"
"Oh god." everyone hears Mia's amused voice say "This is going to be the best show and tell ever." She adds as everyone turns to look in her direction to see her holding up her Mother's phone and recording.
"Mia what are you doing?" Jamie chides.
Sean snickers "She's recording a wolf pack in their natural habitat."
Using the distraction, Jamie breaks out of the circle and reaches to snatch the phone out of Mia's hands "Give me that."
"Hey!" Mia protests as she watches Jamie delete the video then hand the phone back over to Rosa.
"At least he's not sending people texts on your behalf." Eddie laughs out.
For a moment Jamie stills his movements then turns to face his wife "Geez give me a break already, it was one time and it was for your own good!"
Danny looks at his sister in law "Blink twice if you are being held against your will."
"OH MY GOD!" Jamie cries out in annoyed exasperation "I'm going back to the basement to check the pumps. At least there its just me and the draining water."
"Oh he's circling the drain." Danny notes as he steps to block his brother's path while pulling his cellphone out "I think it's time for a real Reagan Family intervention." he adds as he pulls something up on his phone and suddenly traditional Irish music fills the air.
Danny starts to do a jig.
A moment later Henry, Erin, Sean and even Mia get into it and a moment after that Frank does a few steps in amusement while Eddie reaches for her husband and starts a watered down version herself.
No one really knew what they were doing, but no one cared either.
Jamie looks around at his family "You all look like idiots." he points out.
"No." Rosa's voice states "They look like they are having fun. You look like an idiot for not joining in."
Jamie looks towards Rosa to see her do a couple of steps of a jig herself.
Jamie yet again begins to roll his eyes when a loud crack of thunder fills the air followed by the sound of heavy rain hitting the roof.
Everyone stops dancing and looks up.
"Damn it." Henry breathes out in regret "I think we just did a rain dance…"
"Heading back to the basement." Danny dutifully announces as he, Jamie, Erin and Frank all simply and silently move to follow.
…..
Frank and Eddie are in the kitchen sorting through yet more items from the basement when Erin comes up the stairs with another box. She sets it down next to Eddie and opens it up for her to go through but Erin pauses when inside she sees not only a bunch of mementos but what looks like a small black jewelry box. Curious, she picks up the small box and opens it just as Jamie comes up the stairs with another box "Oh geez!" Erin laughs out at the sight of the contents "Here!" She adds as she thrusts the box at Jamie as he passes her "These are yours."
Reacting quickly, Jamie manages to juggle and balance the big box he's carrying and grab the small box being thrust at him.
He shoots his sister an unhappy look as he sets the bigger box down on the table to look at the contents of the little box and when he does he sees his Mother's pearl earrings staring back at him "Oh man!" he huffs out "She didn't get rid of them!"
"Apparently not!" Erin laughs as Danny walks up the stairs.
Eddie leans over to look and her eyes go a bit wide "Are those pearl earrings?"
"Yes." Erin confirms.
"They were my Mom's." Jamie adds.
Eddie looks at Jamie, then down at the earrings then up at Erin in slight confusion "And you don't want them?"
"Nope!" Erin definitively confirms.
"Why?" Eddie seriously wonders.
"Because she knows where they have been." Danny chimes in "And trust me, you don't want them either – well except you did marry him… he reconsiders "So maybe it wouldn't gross you out. Do you share a toothbrush?" he inquires of his sister in law.
Eddie looks at her brother in law thoroughly confused by his line of questioning.
"Ha ha funny." Jamie tosses at his brother before address his wife "Don't listen to them."
"You know your husband has a history of swallowing things right?" Danny queries "Including those." He adds as he points at the earrings.
Eddie looks at Danny then down at the earrings then up at Jamie "You swallowed these? Why would you do that?"
"Hey, I told you I swallowed things." Jamie defends.
"Yeah but when you said pearl earrings I didn't think they'd look like this!" Eddie counters "These are some nice earrings Jamie!" She chastises in disapproval.
Erin reaches over, removes the box from Jamie's hand then gives it to Eddie "Here you go. Consider them yours now."
Eddie looks up in surprise "Really?"
Erin nods "Yup."
"Thank you!" Eddie sincerely accepts in appreciation.
"Yup." Danny adds with an up and down bob of his head "Clearly doesn't bother her…"
Off to the side Frank smiles knowing his wife's earrings will now find new life with her daughter in law.
"Ugh!" Henry grunts out in frustration a second later as he walks into the kitchen with Rosa and Mia not that far behind.
"What's wrong Pop?" Frank inquires.
"You mean other then the obvious?" Henry tosses back at his son as he gestures around the room at all the items everywhere "This will never be cleaned up in time for us to be able to have Sunday Dinner."
Still smiling as she looks at her new earrings, Eddie pipes up "We can host it if you want."
All eyes turn to look at her in surprise including Jamie's – his the widest of the bunch.
"Really?" Mia excitedly exclaims in delight "Oh yes please! Please, please, please!"
"Great." Eddie decides as she snaps the earring box closed "It's settled. Sunday Dinner tomorrow will be at our place. Don't be late!" She singingly instructs everyone as she heads off into another room of the house in search of her purse to put the earrings in.
"Here let me give you the roast." Henry tells Jamie as he begins to move to the fridge "Now you'll want to marinate it, I haven't had time to even start that." He begins to instruct but then Henry abruptly stops talking and looks at Jamie "Oh why am I tell you this." He then questions before shifting his gaze in the direction Eddie went wanting to tell her before suddenly remembering Rosa is there "Rosa." Henry begins again focusing all his attention on her "You'll want to marinate the roast…"
"Hey." Jamie interrupts "I've marinated a roast before you know."
Henry again stops talking and turns to look back to his youngest grandson "You have?"
"Yes I have." Jamie confirms.
Henry eyes him another moment as if weighing his options then turns his attention back to Rosa "So as I was saying…"
Jamie just throws his hands up in the air in defeat while Rosa silently stands there – her eyes growing wider and wider as Henry rambles off instructions to her…
...