Henry Jenkins Senior offered to drive his new in-law James Harper Junior to the hospital to find out the latest concerning his father and hear what Doctor Tora Tachibana felt could only be discussed in person.
James made a point in telling his younger siblings that they should stay with the rest of the Jenkins and relax.
What he didn't tell them was that, despite their mother's wishes otherwise, James Junior was probably now "the man of the house".
If this were true, there would be some major changes ahead, including the emancipation of Janice and John and their move to Moon Lake to live with and be the responsibility of their older sister Jennifer, now Mrs. Jennifer Jenkins, since she married Henry's youngest son Harry earlier that day.
"Penny for your thoughts," offered Henry, as he drove them to Moon Lake General Hospital.
"Afraid you might not like some of them," replied James Junior.
"Your father?" surmised Henry.
"And my mother, and a whole lot of other stuff," confirmed James, before asking, "When you and your wife moved to Moon Lake, why didn't you two become weres also?"
"Truthfully? We were scared shitless of the prospect," confessed Henry. "Even after the guy who was Town Chancellor before Samantha Twist got the job explained everything to us, we didn't know what to do. Harry was too young to be legally considered by Moon Lake's Mandatory Were Law but Huck had just turned 14 and jumped at the chance to become the family were. Thought it was the coolest thing to happen since the advent of video games. To this day I'm still not completely sure why he chose to be a weredog. Winding up looking like a Pomeranian was just dumb luck, I guess," he added, shrugging his shoulders as he drove.
"Over all though, this Mandatory Were Law is a good thing, right?" asked James.
"I can understand the logic behind it, if that's what you're asking me," answered Henry. "You wouldn't want to expose were society if you or someone you cared about were also a member. Whether or not the town has the right to make someone become a were so they have a vested interest in keeping the secret too is open to debate, but I'm probably the wrong person to ask."
"And you can't join now because...?"
"Age. The older you get, the more doubtful it is your body would survive the first transformation, despite the fact that weres live anywhere from the ripe old age of 350 to 400 years."
"That is a long time. Know any weres that old?" wondered James.
"Me personally? No, although I hear there's this lady named Tachibana no Akane that's got to be close to 300 if she's a day, considering she lived in Japan during World War 2."
"Makes you wonder what life will be like for them, another century or two down the road," said James, thinking about the potential future of Jennifer, Janice, and John; let alone himself and his parents.
"Maybe it's just the fact that I'm still what they call a normal, let alone that I'm getting on in years, but I try to take things one day at a time myself," conceded Henry.
James just nodded his head in acknowledgement as his new friend and in-law continued to drive.
AT THE HOSPITAL...
"There you are," said Doctor Tachibana, as Henry and James entered the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit. "I had to slip a mild sedative into a bottle of water we gave her to calm Mrs. Harper down, but I still need someone to sign the authorization forms."
"Authorization for what?" asked James Harper Junior. "Just what happened to begin with?"
"From what our monitors and the staff on duty have been able to tell me, your mom was beside herself, frustrated with the situation and the potential future the two of them might be facing," began Tachibana, explaining. "Apparently she started talking out loud, complaining about everything toward the end of whatever was on her mind, and your father reacted badly to her opinions by having another heart attack."
"Is he all right?"
"About as well as can be expected, under the circumstances. We did revive the man and he's resting about as comfortably as one can in ICU right now, but..."
"But what?" James Harper Junior wanted to know.
"Your father had a severe stroke and has lost most motor functions on the left half of his body. The heart and lungs are still working, but the rest of that side is either limp or paralyzed. Sadly, you can tell by the sag in the left half of his face, since the facial muscles don't have the tone and control they used to. We won't know if there's any other side effects, like slurred speech or the risk of diminished mental capacity, until after he regains consciousness. I tried to get Mrs. Harper to sign the additional treatment forms needed so we could address his additional needs, but she took one look at the man in the bed and started yelling that wasn't her husband and demanded to know where we were holding him," explained Tachibana.
"Hence, the sedative," realized James.
"Exactly. I'm afraid that now, instead of at least a few days, your father is looking at at least a month before it might be safe to medically transport him to wherever the family thinks is best back in Alabama. I won't lie to you though. The chances of a full recovery have increased against him, and any recovery now will be a much longer trip than originally predicted."
"I see," said James Junior, thinking things over. Boy dad, when you cause trouble, you certainly don't do it in half measures. Then he told Doctor Tachibana, "All we've ever visited there is just a general practitioner. As it is, I'm not sure mom's ever seen an OB/GYN or anyone for any woman specific issues since having Janice."
"I see. Well, since your father will be our guest for longer than originally expected, we have time to work everything out to everyone's satisfaction. And since your sister is a member of the Skulk now, we'll lend a paw where we can to help support our sister werevixen and her family in their time of need," replied Tachibana. "But considering your father's behavior and your mother's current mental state, we would appreciate it if our secrets were continued to be kept from them."
"Understandable. You can be rest assured though that the rest of the Harper Clan is definitely pro-Moon Lake."
"And the Jenkins too," quickly added Henry, who had been standing nearby in case James needed any help or moral support.
"Thank you. On behalf of the Skulk and the rest of the were populace, we appreciate that," said Tora with a smile.
"And thank you, the staff here, and everyone we've met since our arrival for your kindness and help," said James, holding out his hand.
Doctor Tachibana, in his human form on duty instead of his vulpine fursona, smiled and shook the man's hand in return.
AFTER SIGNING THE FORMS, James asked for some privacy as he went to talk to his mother.
He found her sitting alone in the ICU Waiting Room, since Elizabeth Harper had been rushed out of her husband's room when the CODE BLUE Alert was issued.
James closed the waiting room door behind him, but she never noticed. She was slumped in a chair with her head bent downward, staring at the tiled floor, if she was staring at anything at all.
James Harper Junior had never seen her like this before.
Sure, living with his father and trying to run a household and being James Senior's ideal good wife had left her ragged and weary most days, but at least the Elizabeth Harper of Alabama her oldest son knew had more life than this depressed, tired figure before him.
It's not all the sedative, he realized, slowly approaching her.
It wasn't until James actually said "Mom?" that Elizabeth Harper even realized there was someone else in the room, let alone who.
"Junior!" she shouted, looking up at him. "What have these people done with your father? Where is he?"
"Mother..."
"We've got to get the others and organize a search party. Your father has to be held somewhere in this place against his will," surmised Elizabeth, starting to stand up. "He would have come back to me already otherwise."
"MOTHER!" said James Junior, angrily, as he grabbed her hand and pulled her back down into the chair she was occupying, while taking the seat next to her.
"WHAT?" she demanded to know, staring at him.
Yet James could see that the usual fire (and brimstone?) wasn't present in her current expression, and that definitely wasn't because of the sedative.
With everything that's happened today, she's down but not willing to admit defeat, he realized.
"Mother..." her oldest son began in a more calm tone of voice. "Listen to me," he pleaded, taking both of her hands in his.
Elizabeth Harper stared at her first born, a tear starting to form in her eye, despite having cried often throughout the afternoon.
"Dad's condition has gotten worse. He's going to be here longer than we thought..." said James, trying to break the news to her as gently as possible.
"No..." sobbed his mother, as she began to cry.
"Please, listen to me. I've already signed the additional treatment forms that you wouldn't earlier. In a couple of days we'll be heading back to Alabama, just the two of us."
"NO!" cried Elizabeth, while trying to pull away from him. "What about your father, let alone Jennifer, John, and Janice?"
But James Junior still held her hands and kept her in place. "We will be going back to Alabama, alone. Dad has to stay here until he gets better. You can start that sewing work you've been talking about. Jennifer's married now, and will be staying by her husband's side here. And as for John and Janice..."
James paused, to let what he already said sink in before continuing.
"As for John and Janice, as soon as I get them, you will be signing the emancipation forms for them, because John and Janice are going to be living here with Jennifer where they'll be safe from you and dad and able to lead normal lives like children should." That is, if the term normal applies to a potential future were.
"I-" said Elizabeth Harper, staring at him.
"Mother..." began James, in a scolding tone of voice.
Elizabeth Harper looked at the man before her and said, "Yes, dear. Whatever you think is best for our family." It was as if she had suddenly turned into a robot on autopilot.
James Harper Junior stared at his mother with an expression of shock on his face. He had expected to encounter at least some difficulty getting his mother to agree with the emancipation of his younger siblings, let alone her eventual signing of the forms.
But this???
Then he realized what had just happened.
Unable to deal with dad incapacitated and unwilling to think for herself, mom's subconsciously transferred her years of dependency and obedience of dad from him to me! I've got to fix that too, but at least it will work out in the short term to make sure everything goes the way it should, he thought, as James Harper Junior felt the weight of the world on his shoulders increase.
ELSEWHERE THIS HALLOWEEN NIGHT...
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