(Scenes from Legends of Tomorrow Season 6, Episode 9)

Between the timeline switch and the Anti-Monitor Crisis, it's debatable on precisely how long I know Mr. Tarazi. The presumptive answer will be the number of years Miss Tomaz was on board. He holds a number of titles: friend, brother, technician, video gamer, co-wielder of the Air Totem, gastronome, and a Legend. Six days after Fist City, Mr. Tarazi is searching for his totem in the untidy lounge. He finds it under the sofa. "You good, ancestors? I don't wanna think about what Nate and Zari were doing in there to make you fall off my wrist in the middle of the night."

"Actually, after several rounds of me kicking your butt in Mortal Kombat," I recollect, "you complained of your totem being—"

"Being too tight on my gaming arm. So I loosened it up a little." Mr. Tarazi soon retrospects last night's events in the armchair. "Oh, thanks goodness! That's why you spent the night underneath the couch." He happily laces up his boots.

"Before you go, B, I have an important message."

"It's cool, G. We can skip my morning horoscope. Running late for another team meeting and misplacing my totem? Couldn't be more obvious that Mercury's in retrograde."

"Not quite. According to the Temporal Chronometer, today is your birthday."

"Whoa," he exclaims, "I'm a quarter century!"

I cheer, "Happy birthday!" Mr. Tarazi rushes to the bridge, where the meeting has commenced ten minutes prior.

"Okay," Captain Lance says. "Thanks to Kayla's pod tracker, we have a new advantage in preventing displaced aliens from screwing with the timeline."

Her partner requests, "Gideon, can you please run a scan?"

"Right away, Captain Sharpe."

"All right, well, I'm all in," Miss Cruz attests, "'cause mind-melding with that giant sandworm left me with a nasty migraine." She then brandishes her left-hand rifle. "But I suped-up my pequeña amiga with a special surprise for the next space vermin."

"No need for surprises, guys," Mr. Tarazi announces as he arrives.

Miss Logue points in his direction. "Called it! Shows up late, wearing the clothes that he slept in, but still has time for breakfast, which means I'm out of bathroom cleaning rotation for a month." Miss Tarazi groans over her loss in the aforementioned wager.

"Yep, no surprises," the captain remarks. "Just slowly losing all of our free will to Astra."

"Oh, good," he asserts. "'Cause who needs surprises when smoking a few bowls and watching your favorite sitcom on Bestflix with friends and fam will do?"

His sister removes her under-eye patches, commenting, "Mm, that sounds like a very romantic evening for you and Nate, but, oh, that's right. We don't know which of our totems he decided to have his 'sleepover' in."

"Pardon me," I obtrude, "but the pod's projected path is Vancouver, British Columbia, 2023."

"All right, everybody," the co-captain declares. "Put on your, uh, toques and Canada Goose because we are going to the third-largest metropolitan area in Canada! Ah?" The joke's a valiant attempt, but the delivery isn't well-received by the other Legends.

Captain Lance cups her hands. "Oh, 'Raincouver'. Babe, it was right there."

"But it made sense!" Logically, yes. "It's, like—"

"It's okay," Miss Tarazi disclaims. "Accurate information." She, the birthday vicenarian, and Misses Logue and Cruz depart to prepare for the impending mission.

Captain Sharpe shouts, "Oh, Zari! Call Nate. Even in the preventing business, we could still use all hands on deck."

"Got it, girl."

The grinning captain rubs her fiancée's shoulder. They and Mr. Green hover around the central console. "Hey, Gideon," she hails. "Can you make sure Mick knows about this?" I've already accessed the intercom. I plot a course for 2023 "Raincouver".

In the meantime, Mr. Rory still keeps himself at bay from the other Legends. His headaches seem to be concerningly regular. He has also been interminably scratching the back of his head every two minutes per day. No, he refuses to come to the medbay. Mr. Rory makes a video call to his daughter, who answers, "Dad? Dad, is that you? Are you okay?"

"Yeah. Why wouldn't I be?"

"I need to see you right now. Where are you?"

"Uh, hold on! I keep losing track of my stupid portal thingy. I'll grab one." There are a total of eight time couriers on this aircraft; five are misplaced or in use. He exits the galley into the eastern corridor, where the Tarazi siblings are miscommunicating. They acknowledge Mr. Rory as he passes them. His episodic squinting serves as another hindrance in his search. Amidst this, Dr. Heywood is summoned back from the totem. The timing was inconvenient for him as he's eating chocolate-covered strawberries in a robe. Captains Lance and Sharpe are drawn to the commotion.

"What's going on here," the first mentioned inquires. Her mood changes to persiflage after she notices him. "Oh! Huh, did you…?"

"Yep," Dr. Heywood pertly confirms. "Uh-huh."

Mr. Rory reappears and spots the time courier on the co-captain's wrist. She is caught off-guard by his removing it. "Oh, hello. Hi? Rory!" He unhesitatingly opens a portal. However, he and the Legends are in for a shock. Miss Dunn boards the Waverider… eight to nine months in the pudding club.

"Uh, how long was I in the totem," Dr. Heywood queries.

Mr. Rory mutters in absolute disbelief, "She's pregnant."

"Yeah," Captain Sharpe whispers to him, "we time-jumped to 2023. You opened a portal to Lita's future." She then cordially approaches his parous daughter. "Lita, honey! It's so good to see you. You look beautiful. Congratulations."

"Thanks, Aunt Ava."

"She's pregnant," her father murmurs again.

Captain Lance exclaims, "It's family reunion time! Yes, refereed by Auntie Ava." Her fiancée isn't sufficiently fast in stopping her from ushering their friends out.

"Mick, you're gonna be a grandpappy," Dr. Heywood elatedly proclaims.

Mr. Rory walks towards Miss Dunn. Following a silent intermission, he delivers an unpleasant reaction. "I can't believe you went and got yourself knocked up!"

She doesn't take kindly to this. "Got myself knocked up? What do you call what you did with Mom in my high school gym supply closet?!" Mind, that was 11 months and 11 days ago.

"Conceiving." Not dissimilar.

"Really? I haven't seen you in over a year. You don't answer any of my calls, and that's all you have to say?"

"What the hell are you talking about? You hardly needed me."

"You know what? Here I thought the worst has happened, and my baby would never get to meet their grandfather. It turns out I was only half right because you're totally fine and still the same Mick Rory." Miss Dunn turns and walks away from him.

"Come back here, young lady!"

"Yeah, okay, okay, okay," the co-captain addresses Mr. Rory. "Maybe let's just try a little less shouting and a lot more listening. That way, you and Lita can understand each other better."

"I'm not shouting!" He storms off in the opposite direction, much to her annoyance. She concretely tries to convince him to QB with her and Mr. Green. Mr. Rory won't allow it because he's too willful to do so. Moreover, he's already exasperated from "doing nothing".

I pinpoint the cryochamber's targeted destination to somewhere near the premises of Nuug Media Studios. Captain Lance informs her group, "Okay, the pod should make landfall soon. Ish." A production assistant fleetly mistakes them as audience members for the Bud Stuy taping. "What the what?"

Mr. Tarazi eagerly indicates, "I knew that was Imran Saeed in the back of that car!"

"Wait, who is Imran Saeed and what is 'Bud Stuy'?"

"Like you didn't already know it's my favorite sitcom created by the Saeed brothers!"

"Oh, right," his sister flatly responds.

"Gratitude overload. Faking a mission and pretending like you forgot today was my birthday, so you could spring Bud Stuy tickets on me?" The co-captain and the alien consultant are equally alarmed upon hearing this. "Too good!" Oh, such irony prevails.

"Gang! Thank you for keeping it under wraps. It is so hard to pull this stuff off."

The sorceress speaks up, "Um, actually—" She stroppily reconsiders correcting the mistake. "Yeah, it was all Zari's idea."

"The pod tracker doesn't even work," Dr. Heywood fibs. "Happy birthday, buddy."

The captain warily yields, "Yeah, so you better get in there, birthday boy! Before I change my mind." She allows them to attend the taping. "Not you, Spooner. You're with me. Now, the pod's further out this way."

Bud Stuy was televised for two seasons. It garnered a cult following within "popular culture" despite its cancellation due to low ratings. According to Miss Tarazi, her brother would watch reruns on Bestflix late nights when he was in high school. He was oft-times high as a kite on those nights. Miss Logue is underwhelmed with the series. "Sounds like a lame cult. People with low ambition going nowhere in life."

"Take it easy on B," Miss Tarazi berates her. "It wasn't like any of us were saving the world when we were in high school. I mean, technically, I was becoming a global brand and building a Fortune 500 company. But it's his birthday, so who's keeping track?"

Mr. Tarazi validates, "Figured it was stressful enough having one global superstar in the fam-bam. Bud Stuy's charm was that it wasn't trying to appeal to everyone, but it meant a lot to me. Wait till you see Imran Saeed. He's my all-time favorite actor."

While the taping is about to commerce, Captain Lance and Miss Cruz reach the perimeter outside the studio. "Pod should be entering our atmosphere any minute now." I can verify it has penetrated the Earth's ozone layer.

"Speak of the devil," the survivalist reasserts.

"What do you think you're doing?"

"Preventing." She fires a single blow so potent that it knocks the capsule off its course. "Dang."

I reaccess the taping for Bed Stuy. So far, Mr. Tarazi has been the only member of the audience enjoying the experience. His laughter is the most audible. Suddenly, the extraterrestrial cryochamber topples on the stage. Miss Logue heeds, "Finally, something interesting happens on this show."

"That is not supposed to happen," he espies. Thank Miss Cruz. The alien emerges on the scene: similarly sized to that of a Beebo doll, black eyes, flappy ears, two small bottom teeth, an upturned nose, and three fingers on each hand. The audience coos at the winsome creature. Mr. Saeed and his co-star, Mr. Faiz Demers, don't know how to respond. He bites into a vinyl record and spits it out from his mouth.

Mr. Saeed protests, "That was a classic!" The rest of the audience finds this unscripted moment humorous. His brother, the director, calls for the taping to temporarily end.

"So, this 'surprise' is really starting to give off an 'improvised lie that backfired' vibe," the birthday vicenarian deduces. Spot on.

His sister begins apologizing, "Listen—"

"It's cool. Little tropey but guess we're doing a sitcom mission."

She uses the camera from her cellphone to attract the accidental celebrity. He leaps off the table and shuffles his way to them. However, the Legends fail to retrieve the alien and are swiftly kicked off the set.

At that time, Captain Sharpe is reasoning with Mr. Rory in the western corridor. "Okay, Mickey, I get that Lita's pregnancy is unexpected, you know? it feels like only yesterday that we were watching her grow up, but if I've learned anything from co-captaining on the ship, it's that being a parent is really just about being cool when things aren't really that cool, yeah?" He doesn't answer and keeps walking. "Okay, where are we at with listening, Mick?"

They pass the galley, from where Mr. Green is exiting. "Captain Sharpe, you want another try at a sassy send-off attempt for the record?"

"No!" It's not the best time.

He follows after them. "Ooh, why are we power walking?" They manage to find Miss Dunn in the parlour.

"Oh, look, she's studying," the co-captain notes. "That's an excellent sign." She greets her honorary niece and peers at the textbook she's reading. "See, Mick, Lita's still in school. That's great, right?"

"Yeah, I have a big test coming up in my Intersectionality and Feminist Activism class." The underclasswoman faces her father, adding, "It's where I met Niko."

He inquires, "You got knocked up by some creep taking a class for women?" Not being helpful, Mr. Rory.

"Let's see what else you've missed." Miss Dunn surveys, "I'm vegan, I'm over my Sabbath phase, more into Fiona Apple, and I'm donating all the money you left me in the shed to Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's future presidential run. Is there anything else you wanna judge me for?"

Captain Sharpe intervenes, "Hey, why don't you tell us how you and Niko plan to raise the baby?"

"We're cohabitating. The institution of marriage is too inherently patriarchal." Shortly afterwards, her cravings transpire. Mr. Rory looks in on his expectant daughter struggling to open a jar of dill pickles. "Oh, stupid swollen fingers."

He extends his gloved hand out for the jar. "Here."

"No, I got it."

"You know, uh, Gideon could have made you something."

"Yeah, well, I don't have Gideon at school just to make my life easier. And usually Niko helps me with this stuff." She relents, sighing, "Okay, I am rational enough to accept defeat, hangry enough to accept your help."

"You know, uh, some jars are like old, stubborn bastards. They, uh, eventually open up." He twists the lid open with minor difficulties. "Tell me about Niko." Miss Dunn gives a slight smirk before taking the whole jar. Mr. Rory listens attentively to her briefing him on Niko Martinovic-Young.

Meanwhile, the rest of the Legends are searching for the alien. They have split in groups of two. Captain Lance calls in, "Any luck?"

"Negative," Mr. Tarazi replies, "but I did get a peek behind the curtain in the writers' room. Trust me, you do not know how the sausage gets made."

"Hey, I think we found it. Meet us by the stages." The captain entreats herself to the fledging extraterrestrial. "Aw, hey, little guy. Hey, I can promise you, alien hybrid to alien, bananas are overrated. Everything bagels is where it's at. Mm, you wanna try it? Come on. Here you go. Hey, I know."

"Let's get outta here," Miss Logue hastily vocalizes, seizing him. The alien starts emitting a shrill and prolonged cry.

The survivalist groans, "Hey, Astra. I don't think he likes that." I disable my connection to the Legends' earpieces. They all return to the Waverider at least an hour later, requesting medical assistance. The alien's scream was so piercing; it has induced temporary deafness as well as rendered Miss Cruz with a migraine and epistaxis.

The next morning, most of the Legends reconvene in the bridge. The survivalist is still convalescent. Captain Sharpe and Mr. Rory are handling other matters. "All right, rise and shine, everyone," Captain Lance announces. "We need a new strategy. Where's Behrad?"

"Late again." The sorceress proposes, "Let's sweeten the pot on the earlier bet. If he doesn't show in the next five minutes, loser becomes my personal fluff and fold." She misses having her own servants.

Mr. Tarazi's arrival ruins her presumption. "Relax, relax. I'm right here." The other Legends are moderately surprised by the change in his appearance. His loose and curly hair is groomed in a slick back. Miss Logue is also speechless as he brings her morning coffee.

Miss Tarazi asks, "Is that my brother?"

"That's my pomade," Dr. Heywood complains. "I know the sheen anywhere."

"Communal bathroom," his friend states, "thought it was up for grabs. And I just felt like shaking things up."

"I knew you had 'leading man' hair in you. All Tarazis have the gene."

"Okay, let's just show Gary the—" The captain can't resist staring at his hair. "Wow, it really is mesmerizing." I'm thinking 'distracting'.

Miss Tarazi shows Mr. Green the picture of the alien on her cellphone. "Ooh, a Gusarax!"

"Baby Gus-Gus," her brother renames. "It's got a nice ring to it."

Miss Logue inquires, "You're coining merchandisable nicknames now?"

Dr. Heywood questions, "Why was Imran's brother able to grab Gus without causing a Category 5 tantrum?"

"Well, Gusaraxes are bonded to their parents during the, uh, developmental phase," the alien consultant explains. "So, if, uh, Gus-Gus is bonded to Imran's brother, you'll have to get him to bond with one of you, but, heh, good luck with that!" Why? "They're attached to their parents at the hip because that is where the teat is."

Captain Lance expresses, "Ugh, don't say 'teat'."

I report, "Captain, I've detected that a new Bud Stuy draft has been submitted to the studio. Episode titled, 'First Contact High'."

Dr. Heywood narrows his eyes in his friend's direction. "New cup?"

He glances at his mug. "Hm, weird. Wharton is the business school my maman and baba think I attend." Mr. Tarazi nearly spits in his coffee. "'Wharton is the business school my maman and baba think I attend'? What's happening to me?"

His sister surmises, "I think the change in your favorite show is having an effect on you." This is precisely congruent to how George Lucas giving up on filming affected Drs. Palmer and Heywood.

"He's better groomed, better caffeinated," Miss Logue observes. "I'd say Behrad got a free upgrade."

The captain refutes, "No, no, no, no. This is not good. The butterfly effect from one small change in the timeline is too unpredictable. That's how we lost Zari 1.0." Miss Tarazi consequently glances downward. I download a copy of an advertising leaflet notifying a casting call. "Okay, they're looking for the role of 'nosy landlord'." The latter and Mr. Green both volunteer to audition.

"It's obviously me," she discerns. "I'm the trained actor." He wordlessly backs out. "I mean, it's gonna be a nosy, glamorous landlord, but Nate, come with to run lines?"

Dr. Heywood accedes, "All right, let's get ready for that closeup."

"Okay, great," Captain Lance approves. "Zari, once you book the part, you'll be in position to separate Gus-Gus from Imran's brother and bond with him. Astra and B, make sure that this new script doesn't make it to air. We have to ensure that Imran stays the star, so that Behrad can stay himself."

Miss Dunn goes to the library, where an irritated Captain Sharpe is surrounded with crumpled pieces of decorative paper. "You okay?"

"Oh, yeah. I'm just trying to wrap Behrad's birthday gifts. You know, the edges have to be perfect, or the whole presentation is thrown off, that's all." She stops and gives her undivided attention. "I'm so sorry, honey. Are you okay?"

"Yeah. I'm just looking for my dad. I should head out soon."

"I take it you two buried the hatchet, then?"

"Well, you know Dad. He runs a little hot, but he cools down eventually."

The captain strolls by, snacking on Maraschino cherries, when she overhears their conversation. She reveals herself, querying, "Oh, really?"

"Yeah. He was even asking all these questions about Niko, like, where he grew up, his class schedule, and he's really interested in his cross-country training. Even down to the hours and the routes." The underclasswoman providently divulges, "Niko wants to compete in the Olympics."

"Aww," the co-captain utters. "See, I knew he'd come around. Should we start planning a baby shower, then?"

Her fiancée proclaims, "Or a funeral! Look, take it from a trained assassin. You wanna murder somebody without a trace; you gather as much intel as possible. Lita, your dad is gonna kill your boyfriend." Isn't he innocent until proven guilty? She and Miss Dunn hurry out of the library. They have Mr. Green accompany them to 2023 Hudson University.

Mr. Rory has located Mr. Martinovic-Young five minutes after the latter completed his nightly regime. There seems to be an imbalance in temperaments, yet the former articulates something mature. "I really wanna thank you for looking after my daughter while I was… away."

Just then, she, Captain Lance, and Mr. Green find them. "Dad! I thought you were gonna kill him!"

"I was."

"Dad!"

"No, no. It's okay," Mr. Martinovic-Young pardons. "We talked it out. Mr. Rory came around to seeing how bad it would look if the author of post-feminist empowerment lit killed his daughter's boyfriend."

"Oh, really?"

Mr. Rory earnestly confesses, "I want my grandchild to have something I didn't: two loving parents." He understands that the expectant parents were "caught up in the moment" because it happened with him and Kayla. Yes, the same one who borrowed the Waverider.

"Don't you mean you and Mom," Miss Dunn clarifies.

Mr. Green surmises, "Wait, you and Kayla…?" Mr. Rory then makes a muffled yet unheard-of sound.

The captain asks him, "Are you… are you crying?"

"No," he sobs.

"It's—It's okay, Mr. Rory. Let those toxic man-tears out. Rest in peace, Kayla." Such a gentleman his future son-in-law is. Mr. Rory is still wiping his eyes when he portals back on the ship 10 minutes later.

In Vancouver, Mr. Tarazi's persona has delved more into that of a cupidinous businessman. It has repelled his sister, Dr. Heywood and even Miss Logue. She apparently loathes whenever driven men refer to her as "babe". Miss Tarazi has locked her brother in the lounge, especially after he intentionally sabotaged the meeting with Mr. Kamran Saeed. She again feels vapid next to Miss Tomaz because she was more mindful of her Behrad. Dr. Heywood assures Miss Tarazi isn't the only person at fault. He rightfully underlines that, if they don't make haste, the Legends will lose the B they know evermore. They, along with Miss Logue, return to Nuug Media Studios to obstruct the imminent taping.

To say Mr. Rory's behaviour as of late is eccentric would be an understatement. Frankly, no one has asked him about what happened in space. The emphasis was mostly on Captain Lance and, to a lesser extent, Mr. Green. The latter eventually seeks Mr. Rory out in the galley, snacking with his daughter. "So, when were you gonna tell me about Kayla," she questions. "Sounds like you really cared about her."

The alien consultant interjects, "And do not leave out any details. Like, uh, when you got caught up in the moment—cover your ears, Lita—were there any, uh…" He points two fingers at his outer ear. "…tentacles involved?"

Miss Dunn markedly blurts out, "Whoa! You dated an alien?"

"We didn't date," her father corrects. "We, uh, we almost died. But then we, uh, then I..."

"Ugh. Gross, Dad."

Mr. Green uneasily speculates, "So there were tentacles involved?"

"Yeah, lots. It was mind-blowing. You jealous?" Does he still feel something for Kayla? "Now, get out of here! I wanna spend some time with my daughter." He accordingly withdraws from them. The alien consultant's agitation increases while he helps the captains wrap Mr. Tarazi's presents.

I access the studio cameras for Captains Lance and Sharpe to watch the unaired episode in the parlour. Dr. Heywood has achieved the role of the "nosy landlord". After all, they were scouring for someone who looks "privileged", "reputable", and "handsome". He ad-libs his lines by introducing himself as an "intergalactic alien law enforcer" named Nick Hunter and finds Gus-Gus concealed under a blanket. As Dr. Heywood intends to stun him with one of Miss Cruz's handguns, the baby alien bites his finger. Gus-Gus is sent flying when a golf cart crashes on set. Dr. Heywood catches and soothes him with a weed gummy. Mr. Saeed returns to acting, offering the "nosy landlord" a full bag of gummy bears to go.

With Bud Stuy restored to its original form and Gus-Gus secured in the Legends' custody, Mr. Tarazi is reverted to his easygoing attitude. He wants to get back into his old clothes, which I comply. After that and grabbing a sprinkle-covered doughnut, Mr. Tarazi strolls back to the dark lounge. I activate the lights; everyone jumps out of hiding, collectively wearing party hats and mouthing "Surprise!" The clean area is decorated with balloons, streamers, a "Happy Birthday" banner as well as tables full of junk food, paper plates, plastic utensils and games. He shouts, "You guys!" He is shushed since Dr. Heywood is carrying a sleeping Gus-Gus in a baby vest carrier. "Oh, right."

"Happy birthday," the captain whispers with a friendly hug.

"Thank you." The co-captain and the other Legends take turns bestowing a gift to Mr. Tarazi. I perceive each parcel to be connected to his pursuits in the culinary arts. A standout is the photo album containing pictures of him and the Legends from circa 2019 or early 2020 to present day. During this time, Miss Tarazi has quietly secluded in her quarters. 25 minutes later, a different Zari journeys to the party. She enters in time to see the guest of honor lightly teasing Miss Logue for committing grand theft auto. The sorceress denies doing it solely for him and about to walk off until she smells a distinct fragrance. Miss Logue asks Mr. Tarazi if he's wearing sandalwood and frankincense. When he confirms this, the sorceress admits fancying the scent with a flirtatious smile prior to chatting with Miss Cruz. The interaction leaves him excited.

A pleased Miss Tomaz makes her presence known, declaring, "Wow, my little brother is all grown up." He gleefully chuckles upon seeing his alternate sister. She greets him with a brotherly hug. "Happy birthday." When her gaze meets that of Dr. Heywood, he softly gasps, "No..." Her boyfriend gives Gus-Gus to Captain Sharpe, who happily looks on at the smiling couple striding toward the other. Everyone else soon regards them kissing. I too am delighted.

As the liveliness settles down, Miss Tomaz explains how Miss Tarazi uncovered a loophole: since two Air Totems haven't co-existed beforehand, their ancestors believe the timeline—and Mr. Tarazi's life—won't be compromised if the Zaris switch places at certain intervals. She's soon enlightened on the events following her permanent leave. "So, AvaLance is engaged. Congrats. Sara has a new set of healing powers. Sweet. Gary's been an alien this whole time. Not at all surprising. Lita is expecting. Oh, and a baby alien imprinted on my boyfriend. Cool, cool, cool." Miss Tomaz boops Dr. Heywood on the nose. She offhandedly comments, "Well, I can always count on you not to change, Mick."

"Cheers." Mr. Rory is about to take a swig of his beer when Mr. Green abruptly slaps the bottle out of his hand. His ill feeling has culminated to this point. "The hell are you doing," Mr. Rory demands.

The alien consultant wriggles his fingers while rapidly speaking. "When you and Kayla got caught up in the moment and her tenacle entered your ear canal, she laid her eggs in your head. And now, you're growing a brood... pouch." Everyone is completely gobsmacked, even Gus-Gus. Is he saying...

Miss Dunn abridges, "So, you're saying my dad is... pregnant?"

"Yep." Canned laughter bursts through the speakers. Everyone calls in unison, "Gideon?"

"Sorry, I can't help it. This is the laugh I was programmed with."

"Wow, that I didn't see coming," Miss Tomaz declares as all eyes fixate on the expectant grandfather and father. Or should I say "mother"?