"Cassia, can we talk?", Gonzo asked as he climbed into bed, watching his wife finish brushing her teeth in the adjacent bathroom. She paused for a moment to gurgle and spit her mouthwash out, before turning towards her husband.
"About?"
"About this situation. I think you might be going a bit overboard.", Gonzo commented, moving aside so his wife could lie down.
"Gonzo, there's nothing to talk about. My decision is final. Nora needs to leave by the time she's 18,000. No exceptions. She can go live under an overpass for all I care."
"Dear, that's not what I meant.", Gonzo sighed, "But are you really sure kicking Linnie out is a good idea? Especially when it's going to be hard for him to get a job, at least until this child is born."
"Well of course I don't expect him to move out right then and there.", Cassia explained, "I just think it's high time he started being more responsible, especially if he intends on keeping this child."
"You know it's not Linnie's fault, right? You keep talking to him and acting like he asked Nora to take advantage of him.", Gonzo sighed, getting aggravated at his wife's attitude, "The only one at fault here is Nora. The rest of us couldn't have possibly saw what she was going to do coming."
"Well, I don't think any of that would've happened if Daisy didn't just dart off the way she did on prom night."
"Cassia, it's not Daisy's job to babysit her brother. She's allowed to have a life away from him and hang out with others besides him."
"So you think she shouldn't have to watch out for him? Protect him like a good woman should?"
"No. I'm saying that none of this is anyone's fault besides Nora. She's the one who decided to drag him to a bar, she's the one that decided to get into his pants, and she's the only one not taking any accountability for what happened. I don't think even she and Linnie had talked ever since we had that conversation." Gonzo explained, "I know how much you love Linnie but you've got to understand, he's not a baby anymore. He needs to learn to take care of himself, but it's also important to realize that none of this is his fault."
"I-I know..Gonzo", Cassia sighed, "I'm sorry. I know I wasn't thinking the night Linnie told us he was pregnant. I just can't help but worry."
"I know, but he needs our support more than ever. At the end of the day, he's still our son, and this baby he's having is going to be our first grandchild. Even if the circumstances are less than ideal, isn't it a little exciting? We're finally going to be grandparents!"
"Yea, I guess so. Just wish it wouldn't have been this early.", Cassia muttered, getting up and floating towards their dresser, "Are we ok on groceries?"
"Well, probably if I can just make meals and turn them into leftovers. Why?'
"Because I think it would be a good idea if you would take Linnie to get some baby supplies while I'm at work, if he's not puking or sick to his stomach of course."
"But didn't you want him to provide for the baby himself."
"Yes, but it probably wouldn't hurt to help him out until he gets on his feet.", Cassia said, "And I'm thinking once Nora moves out, he can turn the guest room she's been hogging into a nursery for the baby until Linnie is able to find a place of his own."
"Well, the problem is getting Nora out. I know what she did was wrong but I'm not sure if I feel right about kicking her out with no job."
"Ha! After the shit she pulled, she can rot in hell for all I care. She stopped gaining my sympathy the moment she dragged him to that bar."
"She's still that child's mother…"
"That's too damn bad. Baby is probably better without her anyways."
Gonzo sighed as Cassia turned off the light and lied back down, turning her back away from her husband as she closed her eyes.
"Oh, and I guess tell Daisy she's ungrounded in the morning. I'll find a way to formally apologize to her after work."
The next morning, Linnie jumped as he heard a loud cheer and YES! coming from outside his room. Daisy came in, dancing as she walked in, ignoring her brother's weird looks as she dug through her closet for something to wear, setting on a lime green and yellow striped sweater, black boot-cut jeans with a flower belt, and white boots underneath.
"Where are you headed off to? I thought you were supposed to be grounded?" Linnie asked, as Daisy danced towards her dresser to brush her lime-green hair and to put on her flower clip-on earrings.
"Dad just told me I'm ungrounded, so I'm off to the mall for my friends to find an outfit for the graduation party this weekend. Are you going?", Daisy asked, turning to face Linnie, who was wearing a velvet, tan suit jacket under a white turtleneck sweater, black pants, and tan heeled boots, "Aren't you hot underneath all of that? What's the occasion?"
"Well, do you remember me telling you about that daycare I applied to? I got called in for an interview!", Linnie cheered, smiling slightly as he applied his foundation, "They said they were super impressed with my resume."
"Well good for you. It's nice to know at least the baby has one parent who's making an effort.", Daisy said, "Don't suppose you happen to know when Nora's leaving right?"
"Think mama said when she was 18,000"
"Yea but I'm asking, do you know when her birthday is?"
"Not really. I've never really thought to ask. Why?"
"Dad wanted me to ask so we could start planning.", Daisy said, "Plus to be quite frank, I'm ready for that skank to be gone."
"Now who the fuck are you calling skank?", a loud, rough, female voice boomed just outside their door. Nora stood in the frame, wearing dark blue sweats, as she invited herself in the room, getting face to face with Daisy. "I'm still a guest, you know."
"Not anymore when you turn 18,000 on…"
"None of your damn business, that's when!", Nora snapped, before looking at Linnie, who watching the scene unravel with horror. "Are you going to do something to defend the mother of your child or are you just going to sit there like the hoe you are-"
SMACK
All of the sudden, Nora's eye began to swell as it reminded Linnie more and more of a blueberry. Squaring up her shoulders and raising her fists, Nora took a few more swings at Daisy, who dodged and blocked most of them; both girls ignoring Linnie's pleas to stop. After a couple more swings, Nora took her wand out from her pocket and stuck it at Daisy, the star tip glowing violently.
"Nora, no! Stop!", Linnie yelled, launching himself from his seat in hopes to defend her sister. However, in the blink of an eye, Linnie watched as Daisy dropped to her knees, and her head and replaced by one of those "golden retrievers" that he had heard about in the human world.
"What's going on here?", Gonzo asked, before dropping the spatula he was cooking with, watching Daisy pant like a dog on her hands and knees, Nora wearing a rather arrogant smirk on her face, and Linnie looking white as a ghost. Putting two and two together, Linnie saw a hidden rage in his father that he hadn't seen in a long time.
"You…", he looked right at Nora, "You better get the hell out of this house, right now."
"Make me,." old ma-"
POOF!
All of the sudden, Nora was nowhere to be found. In place, a tiny, cyan fly buzzed around the room, with no sense of direction. Gonzo stomped inside the room and cracked open the room, swatting Nora with his wand until she flew out. He then took his wand and turned Daisy back to normal, who dropped down in confusion, wonder what happened.
"Are you ok?", Gonzo asked, picking Daisy up.
"Uhh..yeah…w-what happened."
"It's ok, I'll explain everything when your mom gets up. Is your head hurting?"
"A little..but I can take an Advil."
"Are you going to be ok by yourself?"
"Yea Dad, I'm fine.", Daisy said brushing herself up, "Uhhh why is the window open?"
"Don't worry about that. You just go do what you were going to do. I'll explain things later.", Gonzo said, as Daisy left the room to get some Advil from the bathroom.
"What did you mean by yourself? Where are you going?", Linnie asked. Gonzo smiled softly.
"Well, your mom had asked me to take you baby supply shopping.", Gonzo replied, looking at Linnie's outfit, "Are you cold, son? What's with all the layers?"
"I've got my interview today, remember? At the daycare?"
"Right well…my offer still stands afterwards. Plus I think it would be good for us to talk about plans and everything that just happened. Do you need a ride?"