Tom actually felt rather comfortable with how things had gone. He might have preferred to move straight into the reveal, but he supposed "baby steps" were better than no steps at all. And some of the commentary that he heard did seem to work out rather well in that there was some support for what he wanted to do, which was actually a step up from what he expected. He expected there to be much more fear in that the guests or members of Moon Lake's City Council to be far more timid with regards to dealing with the truth of their existence and the real possibility that weres would be found out regardless of what they did.
There was some fear that he noticed and there were some concerns, but Tom was fairly certain those things could be handled. He was especially impressed by his conversation with the young teen, Tad Decker. The young man looked to be about eighteen, was well muscled and even a bit taller than Tom, but he was composed and honest. He was also glad that the young man wasn't broken by what had happened to his father. The loss of a parent or a child could always be rough, and Tom could remember a few stories he'd been assigned to cover that related to those sorts of issues.
"Do you really think it'll work though?" Amy asked from beside Tad as the two of them looked to the werefox journalist as he stood before them, "that one guy did have a bit of a point that the Republicans in Congress might not be so accepting of weres..."
"They may not be," Tom admitted, "but that is where showing the positives that we can provide and controlling the narrative of the reveal will allow for it to be connected to existing laws and articles in the Constitution. It may not be easy, and I won't tell you it will be... BUT, I'd think the framework is there for it to work."
"Though... we'll probably need to make some calls for attorneys that practice Constitutional Law for their guidance on what could be done with regard to the Civil Rights Act and the post Civil War Constitutional Amendments," Harold Stevens spoke up as he came around the front table, "and that may be something that will take time, given how the legal system works."
"But if it works and we're all free to come out," Tad commented to the man, "it would be good, right?"
"If it works," Harold Stevens answered, "though we'd best be going."
Amy and Tad nodded and made their way out for their own date while Harold Stevens moved to escort Tom out. He'd need to get Tom back to the Stevens home, where Tom's car was parked, to let the werefox return to his own evening activities.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
And while Tom had been there for the debate on his plan regarding revealing the were secret, others continued on with their lives as though it were just an ordinary night. Such was the case for Jen and Clare as they sat down to dinner at the Decker household. It wasn't the fanciest of dinners, but it was quick and easy and would allow for some of the other things that Jen had planned for that Friday evening. Some of it would be pretty typical date activities, but she hoped that some would be as special as Claire was to Jen. After all, while the circumstances that lead to them dating weren't quite how most lovers met, something about it just felt special to Jen, and she would fight hard for that.
"You're sure we need to eat this early?" Claire asked as she came down the stairs, catching the scent of what Jen had been cooking as she descended the stairs.
She'd finished her afternoon shift, and had to take a little bit longer, given that she'd taken a longer than normal lunch break to meet Jen's mothers, and had come home to find that Tad wasn't home and that Jen was already cooking. It left her a bit curious and she couldn't help but inquire as to what was going on. Jen's answer that it was for a date had been playful, which Claire accepted, but it hadn't lowered her curiosity. In fact it was still there as she got ready, showering and putting on some clean clothes for the date had barely distracted her. It was also still there as she went through the living room to find Jen pulling a small platter of chicken breasts from the oven.
"Yeah," Jen answered as she turned over the counter and reached for a set of tongs to begin serving the baked chicken onto a set of plates that were next where she set the platter down, "Moon Lake's theater will have a movie coming on at six and it'll be fun."
"Do you know what the movie is?" Claire wondered as she watched Jen move about to place a pair of baked potatoes from the microwave on the plates.
Claire knew Moon Lake had a small theater, but it was also older and the result was that Moon Lake's theater didn't always get the newest movies as they came out. It had meant that it often took time for the theater to get movies as they were released, particularly as the theater had special order films for its specific screen size. It worked, and the quality was pretty good, but it meant that new movies wouldn't come to Moon Lake at the same time as Seattle, and that people from Moon Lake often went to Seattle when they wanted to go see a new movie. The theater also had a limited number of areas in the building to watch what movies they did have. It often meant a rotation of movies through the day. It wasn't something that could easily be followed.
"I think it's a comedy of some kind," Jen answered, "it's a bit older... but it will be fun and leave everyone in a good mood for the fun to come later."
"Ohhhh," Claire purred back, "Some special desert, I take it?"
"Maybe," Jen smiled back as she moved to carry the plates into the dinning room with Claire following. Claire found that glasses of water were waiting for them as they entered the dining room. She sat down at one seat where Jen had set down a plate, though she soon noted that Jen was sitting down beside her and that there wasn't a plate for Tad.
"Shouldn't there be a plate for Tad?" Claire asked curiously and then wondered, "where is he?"
"He and Amy went to see what this City Council meeting was about," Jen answered, "He promised to let us know what the meeting was about later... but he and Amy also have their own date plans, as her brothers and parents are having their own nights out as it were. So they may be having their own night out as well after the meeting. So... I cooked just for us and we can be ready to go out for the night."
Claire nodded and set about eating her dinner. It tasted good and was greatly enjoyable, which Claire was glad to have. Before meeting Jen and before her becoming a werecat, Claire had been a firmly straight woman. It had been a big part of why her wish to be a werecat wasn't easily accepted by others in Moon Lake, and partially set up the circumstances for why she'd been able to go for so long as a "new resident" in Moon Lake without being forced into a were group. Samantha Twist had judged that her acceptance and asking to be a werecat worked within what Moon Lake could accept in that Claire was judged willing to be a were. Though, Moon Lake's werecats generally hadn't accepted her desire, as Jen's mothers had pointed out earlier in the day, which had been why she was still a normal on the previous Halloween.
However, Jen hadn't been like other werecats. Regardless of its cause, Jen did agree to turn Claire, and in doing so, Claire had found herself now a fully homosexual werecat. It was a massive change in her, but one she accepted and now welcomed. And Jen had become something very special to Claire, and someone that she always wanted to make happy. It'd been why she'd agreed to meeting Jen's parents, and she was glad the meeting proved better than Claire could have expected. It also made her quite willing for going out to a movie, as it would make Jen happy and she would get to spend time with someone she was finding herself in love with.
"I've had a great day," Claire said to Jen when they finished and prepared to go out, "Your moms were protective... but they were okay. I hope I can win them over... As, I know that my opinion on housecats and why I wanted to be a werecat hasn't sat well with many werecats who were born werecats or were already lesbians or bisexual when they became werecats... but what can I say?"
"I have no problem with your choice," Jen spoke as she took Claire's hand and gave a loving squeeze as they collected their purses and prepared to head out, "as it IS your choice. And in a way... while it may be faster than what is normal... given my husband's murder and so on... I am glad to have your love."
Claire couldn't help herself and have a very warm smile when she heard that. The courtship with Jen would be considered different, even by Moon Lake's standards, which made her very happy that Jen was coming to love her. It was mostly because she felt that she was falling in love with Jen. Some of it was because Jen was willing to turn her, but the more she talked with Jen, the more she found to love about Jen.
"And I'm glad to have yours," Claire smiled as they got into Jen's car, "now let's go out for a good time."
Jen nodded and they drove out. A good night with a romantic comedy lay ahead of them.