"So, what's wrong?" Anna asked Rory.
"Wh…. What makes you think something is wrong?" She stutters out.
"You asked me about the weather? What did I have for lunch? How is everyone in my life? What's next, are you going to ask about my health?" She felt like she was being forced to talk to someone she hadn't seen in years.
"It's just… having you talk to dad?" She asked.
"Oh yeah, I've talked to him once a week since Sherry dropped off GiGi. Well, there were a few missing weeks when Sherry left because he was overwhelmed. Mom helped him get it under control, so we're back to talking every week." She was holding Sasuke, who was feeling clingy as she went around watering her plants. "I just realized I am making use of my unlimited minutes. I call you, Dad, Mom, Grandma, Grandpa, Babette, and Miss Patty almost every week. Every Time I talk for at least an hour. Be it that Babette and Miss. Patty is at the same time, but still, I'm getting my money's worth." She felt a bit triumphant about it.
"So weird, who would have thought you would be closer to Dad than I am?" She remembers how her sister refused to talk to their dad.
"Yeah, how the times have changed?" She put down the watering can.
"He has been staying in contact with mom for parental advice and I don't know if it's wise." She had a bad gut feeling about this. "He ruins everything for Mom every time he shows up."
"I wouldn't go that far." She put her phone on her shoulder to hold up to her ear while she switched Sasuke to the other arm.
"You have to agree that he has a hold on mom….I want Luke and Mom to work. I got desperate and told him to stay away." She confessed.
"Wait… what?" She gasps.
"When he's around, she reverts to a teenage girl who wants the bad boy to be good for her. He lets her down each time. He didn't listen anyway. He had lunch with Mom. Now, he is here at Yale. He tried to force me to go to breakfast with him. He just showed up at my dorm this morning." It was funny how she was desperate for his attention growing up and as an adult she wanted him to go away.
"Oh yeah, he's visiting his parents so he's in the area." She nods.
"Why didn't you say anything?" She felt betrayed.
"I honestly thought you were talking to him too." She assumed her sister was making the same progress as her. Chris wants to make up for his neglect. "Mom is a grown woman. It's her responsibility to keep Luke informed and feeling secure while setting boundaries with Dad. We've grown too now… so I don't think their relationship should affect our relationship."
"You don't have any loyalty to mom?" She gasps.
"It's not about that, Rory. Mom doesn't want her relationship with Dad to affect us either. And dad has Gigi…" She was going to go on when Rory interrupted her.
"Oh yes, because he has Gigi and is a single dad, so we have to be sensitive to his feelings." She fake pouts. "Single mothers do it all the time and no one has sympathy for them."
"Okay… I don't know if you know but I was raised by a single mother. I want a relationship with Gigi and at the moment she can't call me on her own so I go through her agent." Rory snored at hearing that, hating that their dad was getting another chance he didn't earn. "You know it's a little too late to be going through this teenage angst." She didn't like all this aggression that was coming at her.
"Sorry, he has the worst timing." She sighs.
"That he does. I arranged to get the weekend off. On Saturday, I got Gigi for the day. Dad is going with his father to a doctor's appointment if you would like to spend the day with us. I'll pick her up and then come get you so you'll never have to see him." She offers.
"It would be nice to see Gigi without him. I will be there. I have to go, I have class." She never got to hang out with her youngest sister.
"Okay, I'll see you then." She hangs up the phone.
"Hi Robert, Grandpa." Anna went into the poolhouse.
"Evening madam." He closed the door behind her.
"Hello Anna, how was your long drive? I was worried about all this snow." He hugs her.
"It was fine. Jess put snow tires on and he drove so..." She let Robert take her coat.
"That's good." He led her into the seating area.
"Oh, Grandma's here with a dog." She went to sit next to the other side of the animal. It went to sniff her. "She can smell Naruto and Sasuke."
"Hello, Robert." The butler opens the door for Lorelai and Rory.
"Good evening, Ladies." He gave a little bow.
"Hello, girls." Richard walks them to the seating area. "Did you come together tonight?"
"Oh no, just a lucky coincidence." They took off their coats as they walked further into the pool house. Robert was waiting to take them and put them in the closet. "Oh well, hello Mom and daughter." Anna waves to them with one hand while petting the dog with the other.
"Hello girls, go about your drinks. I'm here to sit with the dog." She nods to it.
"The dog?" Lorelai never thought her mom would be sitting with a dog.
"Oh, he's cute." Rory bent down and petted him.
"When did you get a dog?" Lorelai could never get a dog as a pet when she was a kid. She asked plenty of times.
"She's not our dog." Emily corrected.
"It's a he," Richard told her.
"I thought you said it was a girl?" Emily asked.
"I got another peak. It was rolling around on its back and it was painfully obvious." He crossed his arms.
"They're so hairy down there." She looks down at it.
"This one especially." He agrees.
"It's going from weird to weirder." Lorelai laughs.
"The usual beverage for everybody?" He asked.
"So, are you guys dog-sitting?" Anna let the dog put his head on her lap.
"It showed up in our yard yesterday morning. We have no idea how it got here or where it came from. It has no tag. All the neighbors don't know him." She looks down fondly at the animal.
"It is a very big mystery, this dog." Richard was surprised at how attached Emily was to it.
"Oh, I'm monopolizing things and I'm not even here. Please, go about your drinks." She waves them off.
"No, I'm having Robert make one up for you as well." He could do that.
"Are you sure? Because I'm not officially here." She wasn't supposed to be in the pool house. She was breaking their agreement.
"Absolutely." He hands out the drinks that Robert brought over.
"How long are you keeping him?" Rory wonders if she'll see him again.
"As long as it takes to find the owner," Richard told them.
"Some people will abandon their dog in random places, so he might not have any owners." Anna looks at the collar with no tag.
"Then as long as it takes to rehome him." He needed to know the dog went to a good home.
"Richard had to miss a half day of work yesterday." She sips her drink.
"Emily has agreed to write a note excusing my absence, so it should be okay." The playful look they exchanged didn't go unnoticed by the younger generations in the room.
"Okay, now pretend I'm not here. You girls and I can chat later." She couldn't let her hopes get up about Richard and her reuniting. Sbe put a hand on Anna's back to get her to stand up.
"Okay, well." Lorelai guides the girls to the couch. "Did I tell you about the horrendous thing that mom did? She can be such a witch with a B."
"Lorelai." Emily's stern voice put a stop to her teasing.
"Oh jeez mom, I forgot you were here. My pretending is that good." She sat down on the couch with her daughters sitting on either side of her.
"We can't pretend you're not here, Grandma." Rory laughed.
"That's true, Emily, you have a presence that can't be ignored." Richard sat on the chair next to the couch.
"Oh fine, I can leave." She uncrossed her legs to get up.
"Oh no, no, the dog likes you there. Join in the conversation if you wish." He waved his hand for her to sit back down.
"I'm curious to know when you guys got the bad news today?" Emily sips her drink.
"What bad news?" Lorelai asked.
"About Christopher?" She clarified.
"No, but I'm supposed to pick up Gigi tomorrow though." She thought he would tell her then.
"Is he okay?" Lorelai wondered.
"He didn't tell any of you?" Emily was surprised.
"I figure he will at least call one of you," Richard was shocked.
"What happened? You're scaring me." Lorelai was getting concerned.
"Staub died. This morning." She told them.
"Oh, I knew he was sick. He got the cancer diagnosis a month ago and it had spread." Anna wondered if her dad knew and that was why he was here. He said it was because his parents wanted to see Gigi.
"I can't believe Chripster didn't tell us." Lorelai thought they were building a good friendship.
"He may not be in the shape to think straight." Richard knew he couldn't when his mother died.
"We should send something for the funeral. Does he want us to go?" She didn't know if it was going to be private.
"He was very quiet over the phone. He was only good for the headlines." She didn't know much.
"You can't blame him." Richard sips his scotch.
"He had a very tortured relationship with that man, but none of that mattered in the end." Emily shook her head.
"We should send something like flowers or a meal… everything sounds so lame." She huffs.
"Whatever it is, send it to Francine. That's where Christoper and the baby are staying until everything is behind them." Emily informs them.
"Should we send something together, Emily?" Richard asked since the public didn't know they were separated.
"I already signed your name to some flowers." She stood up when the dog shifted. "Oh, he moved, is he supposed to do that?"
"I'll show you how he likes his blanket arranged. He can be picky." He got up to fix the blanket.
"I appreciate the help." She watches to see how he likes it.
"Why didn't you say anything?" Lorelai asked Anna.
"I don't know. I don't know where everyone is with Dad. And I have a good thing going with him… I didn't want to jinx it." She felt like it was simpler this way.
"Death does remind you of how little time we have with people." Rory wished she hadn't turned him away.
"Oh Gigi, we're in time for the reenactment." Anna jumped out of the car to grab her bundle-up sister from the car seat.
"Oh, what a joy." Jess's words dripped sarcasm as he got out of the car.
"Hey." They join her mom and sister in the crowd.
"Hi, guys." Lorelai and Rory smiled at them.
"Welcome to Stars Hollow new historically accurate revolutionary war reenactment." The minister spoke. "To the members of the press I'd like to point out the best side is my right side." He went on when he saw their unamused faces. "The left side is fine too. I'm just kidding. People forget that men of the cloth can crack jokes too. Anyway, I'd like to introduce three special participants: Bobby, Tara, and Criag who were chosen from our own Stars Hollow elementary school to narrate what we see today." He pointed at the children who held comically large books and wearing clothes from the time.
"I got to narrate from the 3rd to the 5th grade. No one was ever picked three times in a row before." Anna brags.
"I don't think anyone else wants to." Jess rolled his eyes.
"So rude." She pouts.
"The year…" Craig started.
"1779," They said together.
"The location." Craig led them to say Stars Hollow together.
"Children should shoot us for what we make them do," Lorelai whispers. Her daughters hushed her.
Craig took a step forward. "An important turning point when our brave town militia learned that a powerful British general was riding through the area to rejoin his troops and wage a decisive battle inspired an idea." Craig stepped back.
Tara stepped forward. "First, the militia went to block off the highway."
"Come on men, let's block the highway." A reactor ran as the others followed him.
"Shouldn't there be horses?" Rory asked.
"Horseys." Gigi claps her hands and bounces on Anna's hip.
"Yes, or they could get a stick toy with the horse head on it and bang coconuts together for a sound effect." She bangs her fists together.
"Brave, our soldiers are." They watch a woman almost get run over coming out of Doosey's market. "The British had no choice but to take the only passable road on this snowy day the road through Stars Hollow." Tara steps back for Bobby to take over.
"Soon, a scoot arrived to warn of the general's coming." A man riding on a horse yelled what Bobby said. "And then the general arrived."
Taylor came on a horse. "Of course, he gave himself the role." Jess scoffs.
"It's certainly unfortunate the high road was blocked this day, forcing me to ride through town," He looks around the place.
"This dialogue is worse than from Justin to Kelly." Lorelai was in pain at this point.
"What? Gigi is getting cold. I'll take her to Luke." Jess stole her to escape the show.
"Ah, I was about to do that." Lorelai was upset he got to it first.
"We could just leave." Rory reminded them they had no obligation to keep them there.
After exchanging a look, they shook their heads. "Nah."
"Then a brave woman puts herself in harm's way and emerges to distract the general." A woman came out of the church.
"Is that your dress?" Rory tilts her head.
"I thought you said Lulu had a fitting." Anna thought it looked baggy on her.
"I did. Did she get a boney all of a sudden? You think the stress of the role made her lose weight." Lorelai was confused.
"Did it make her grow because she seems taller too?" Rory wonders.
"Maybe they had to recast at the last minute." Anna couldn't think of another reason.
"No, I saw Kirk this morning and he said everything was fine." She watched as Lulu kept her head down as she approached Taylor.
"Good day, fair lady. You intrigue me, what do you have to say?" He looks down at her.
The crowd along with Taylor gasped when she lifted her head. "Kirk? No wonder her breasts weren't holding it up." Loralie had a large smile on her face.
"That's the ugliest lady I've ever seen," Tara commented.
"I think he doesn't look half bad, especially if he did his makeup." Anna giggled. They whispered to each other before Taylor got off the horse.
Bobby took his cue. "This simple common woman whose livelihood defied the law of morality acted in a fashion in which God would forgive her, led the British general to the warmth of her boudoir. She saved Star Hollow." Kirk struggles in his heels to walk up the steps while holding onto Taylor.
The Reverend laughed and got scolded by Craig. "Sorry." He apologized.
"The British General was kept occupied long enough for LaFayette's troops to ambush his men. A decisive victory for the colonists." Bobby read after the doors closed.
"Thanks to the Stars Hollow Militia and the woman whose livelihood defied the law of morality but acting in a fashion in which god would forgive her." It got choppy when they had to say too many words in unison.
"How far are Kirk and Taylor going to take this?" Lorelai asked.
"I'm not leaving until I find out." Rory watches the doors.
"Ah, I have to get back to the Inn. Keep me posted." Lorelai left.
"And we got Gigi." Anna reminds Rory.
"You're going to get this in the paper, right?" Rory leans over to the reporter.
"Oh definitely." He nods eagerly.
"So what's our plans?" She walks to the diner.
"Miss. Patty is having a mom and daughter dance lesson, so I figure we could do that. The library has a read-aloud. Babette has a craft thing she wants to do with her." She explains.
"Oh, she has a busier social life than me." Rory kids.
"Yup. Liz wants to sleep over with her." Liz insisted.
"Is Gigi staying the night?" Rory was surprised.
"Yeah, I figure I offer with everything going on," She thought her dad needed some time alone to grieve.
"Can I sleep over?" She asked.
"Sure, Liz wouldn't mind. She is a real people person." She shrugged.
"Do you guys have a VCR? If not I can run to my mom to get it. I brought the latest scooby doo movie for Gigi. He's her favorite." Anna asked after they finished dessert. Liz nods that they did.
"The newest Scooby Doo, let's get that puppy started." TJ grabs the baby and runs into the living room.
"Scooby doo is his favorite too." Liz smiles.
"Of course." Jess laughs.
"Come on, Jess. It wouldn't hurt for you to be a little childish sometimes." Anna teased.
"He was always a little adult." Liz laughed. "He insisted on reading the book before watching Charlotte's web. He went on and on about the differences. He wrote a report about it."
"I did the same thing." Rory pointed to herself.
"Yeah, 'cause you wanted to practice for college." Anna laughed.
"It was my homework. I wasn't having fun." Jess picked up his plate to take it to the sink. An awkward silence fell over the table. A reminder that Liz's drug haze made her not fully present during Jess's childhood.
"We're waiting!" TJ yelled.
"Come on, we have a mystery to solve." Rory got up. Anna followed along.
"I'm sorry." Liz felt like she always put her foot in her mouth with him.
"No, I'm sorry. We're trying to move forward and I keep ruining it." He sighs.
"No, you didn't ruin anything." She knew there would be bumps in the road. "We'll save the dishes for later. Come on, we don't want to miss the beginning of the film." She pulled him away from the sink to pull him into the living room.
