Samantha had felt her day had gone fairly productively. True it started with a sort of emergency call about a Sasquatch hunter, but he had seemed rather curious and excited about the offer, and she figured he was presently contacting those who might wish to explain more on their specific were-species to him, based on the list of those best suited to do so in the handbook that she had given him. She had also checked in on the Charlestons regarding their possible decision and to deliver the information on the various were-felines available to her, werecats and werecheetahs which were female only, werelions, weretigers, wereleopards/werepanthers, and werecougars which had both genders. She did not include the information on the male "werecats" as they were male only. That meeting had also gone well.
Some of that would mean she'd miss a couple of things at City Hall, but since a major part of her job was to welcome new normals to Moon Lake and explain to them the details of were society, the meetings that had made her miss some of the other actions would be perfectly understandable. That left her with the other major piece of business that was presently on her schedule being with regard to what Frances had told her about Jenny and Harry's marriage, and that would involve Akane no Tachibana and the Skulk's cooperation as well. That brought her to the building where Akane did most of her business during the day.
As she entered the building, she was greeted by a young werevixen, likely just out of college the previous spring, seated at a welcome desk inside an entry area.
"Good afternoon, Mrs. Twist, is there something you would need or like?" she asked in a friendly voice.
"I have an appointment with Mrs. Tachibana concerning business that will relate to the Skulk and to Moon Lake," Samantha replied calmly and rested one hand on the counter of the welcome desk.
The secretary raised one hand and pressed a button on the phone that was in front of her and spoke to announce Samantha's presence. The town chancellor waited calmly while there was an answer from the other end of the line, likely either a speaker phone or an intercom system that was built into the phone that the secretary used. After a few moments the secretary looked up to Samantha and gave a polite wave of her hand toward the elevators behind her.
"Mrs. Tachibana will see you," she spoke, "she is waiting in the main conference room on the third floor and lunch is prepared for you."
Samantha nodded and made her way to the elevator. Lunch could be a wide variety of things. From what Samantha knew, Akane preferred rather traditional Japanese dishes and commonly enjoyed them when she could. And while some of her duties as town chancellor had had her meet with the Skulk leader on occasion, most of these were in relation to Town Council meetings and food beyond snacks wasn't served. She had never had traditional Japanese food before, and a part of her was even curious as she entered the envelope. The ride was quick and quiet, though there was some soft elevator music which she thought came from the sixties, but she didn't know the band's name. From there she entered into the hallways on the third floor with a black and white plastic sign-board that gave directions to the conference room. Samantha followed them until she came to a long room with a long desk in the center of the room.
Akane was seated quietly at the head of the table with a plate in front of her which had a plate of rice and fish on it. It was still warm and Samantha could even see steam rising from it. There was another plate covered with steal cover, likely served to keep it warm.
"Konichiwa, Mrs. Twist Samantha," Akane spoke politely, "I took the privileged of ordering lunch. I trust you are fine with salmon and rice?"
Samantha lifted the tray to reveal a fillet of grilled salmon and steamed white rice. She could see the butter melting on top of the rice as well.
"This will be more than acceptable," Samantha answered as she set the cover down on the other side of the plate and then set her purse down in one of the empty chairs, "I didn't expect that lunch would be provided... it would be at a cost to your business."
"Ah... the American obsession with profit," Akane chuckled, "an employer who treats his or her workers with respect due them and provides for them in more than just a monthly pay check will find his/her employees loyal and eager. Cutting costs to increase my profits would only leave people willing to leave in favor of something more... profitable."
"I see," Samantha answered and sat down and carefully took a fork and began to start with the rice, "Still... thank you."
Akane nodded and quietly chewed on a piece of her own meal. After a few moments they both turned to why Samantha had called Akane earlier.
"This report on Miss Harpers' parents is quite unnerving," Akane stated, "they would reject their own flesh and blood just because of what happened to her?"
"I'm not sure if reject is the right word," Samantha sighed and looked down for a moment, "but from what I can reveal from what was told to Frances... is that they are quite strict and firm Baptists."
"Moon Lake does have a Baptist church, does it not?" Akane asked.
While she was, Buddhist, herself, Akane had been in Moon Lake long enough as the Skulk's leader to have attended a fair number of weddings that had often taken place to be at least somewhat familiar with Moon Lake's largely Christian population. In fact her youngest son had married the eldest daughter of the Skulk leader that had been there to essentially merge her family and the Japanese werefoxes that had moved with her with those in Moon Lake. The two were yet to produce grandchildren for her, but they were also getting to know each other and in a way they looked good together. As head of her family, Akane then became the new head of the Skulk in Moon Lake under the arrangement and the previous Skulk leader would be her second in command, though when Akane died, the Skulk's leadership would go to her youngest son and his wife.
"A small one... but it may not be the exact same denomination of Baptists as the one the Harper's go to," Samantha answered, "and Jenny's new body as a werevixen could very well strike them something... wrong... that they think that she's lost all her morals and had cosmetic surgery to gain the curves she has now."
Akane sighed heavily and took a bite of her own rice. She chewed it carefully and swallowed before answering.
"I can understand not wanting children going into work in the red-light district, as you put it... and I can understand not being supportive of someone who's self-esteem is so low that they'll have cosmetic surgery just to reinforce that self-esteem," Akane said slowly, "but I cannot understand rejecting a child because of those choices... Parental love should never change. Suppose your son joined some biker gang and rode around on motorcycles... would you love him any less?"
"I'd bee disappointed... but I wouldn't not love Ben," Samantha began.
"And that makes you a good mother and the way things should be," Akane answered, "I just cannot understand rejecting one's child for his or her choices..."
"Of course... but it is entirely possible that they feel that it would be best for Jenny to follow their lead and example," Samantha answered, "and regardless of our opinions... fighting with them over the issue won't help matters."
Akane nodded. It wasn't something could be easily handled and both would know that the Skulk and the town will have to take some steps while they are here. Much of it would be to relate to keeping Moon Lake's secret. If Jenny was rejected and they immediately left, while Jenny might be heartbroken, things would better for her quickly as she would have Harry's love and Moon Lake's support. But if they remained in Moon Lake for longer, things would then have to depend on whether or not they found out about Moon Lake's secret.
"Do you think they can be trusted with the truth?" Akane asked.
"I don't know," Samantha sighed, "given what I know... I wouldn't think so. And I will be talking with the City Council to put a temporary restriction on the permission to transform in public after dark while they are here... but that will be for all were-beasts of course. Just in case that Mr. and Mrs. Harper decide to investigate the town further."
"That may prevent them from learning of us... but what if they do find out?" Akane asked, "suppose that they put so much pressure on their daughter that she reveals who and what she is to them?"
"If that happens... we may have to treat them as new normals "moving" to Moon Lake and that Mr. and Mrs. Harper will not be allowed to leave before they themselves are were-beasts," Samantha sighed, "but I'm hoping that we can avoid it."
Akane nodded, "Hopefully... though both of us will still have to make sure that no one messes with the ceremony. No one not invited coming bay and saying anything, even if in good spirits and meaning no harm."
Samantha nodded to that, "the best we can manage is additional patrols from the police, but the can't be placed on any permanent basis around the church that Jenny and Harry may decide on."
"The Skulk can provide additional security if you require it," Akane offered while Samantha drank from a glass of water that was to the left of her plate, "to keep passers by at a distance during the ceremony. They can stand at posts to keep the street quiet and spread the word to keep things at a distance. Though I don't think we can do too much more until we know for sure where the wedding will be held and the exact plans for it are."
Samantha nodded and chewed on the food that Akane had had prepared for her. The salmon did taste good. There were some good preliminary ideas for keeping things quiet in case the Harpers got too suspicious, though a part of her was still nervous how other things could work out. Because Moon Lake's weres generally had much more obvious secondary sexual characteristics than normal humans and women who felt "inferior" to weres could join the were population if it was their choice, Moon Lake didn't have any plastic surgeons or those who could do cosmetic surgeries. Which meant that if the parents demanded to go to Jenny's doctor, none of them would be able to present themselves as someone who could perform the surgery.
"We'll still have concerns on being prepared for possible potential questions that the Harpers may have," Samantha commented after a few moments, "such if they decide to investigate who performed the surgery on Jenny... if they even believe the cosmetic surgery explanation. To my knowledge no one in Moon Lake performs those surgeries..."
Akane gave a heavy sigh and looked down for a moment. After awhile, she looked up with a somewhat frustrated look, which made it clear to Samantha that the old werevixen didn't like the behavior of Jenny's parents as described to her, the reputation of Jenny's parents as described to her, and liked the situation it was putting her in even less.
"It may be best to let Jenny know that if she is to use cosmetic surgery as a cover to mention that the doctor was from outside of Moon Lake and that I paid for it," Akane spoke slowly.
"You'd shoulder the likely rage that they may have?" Samantha asked.
"I'm over two hundred years old werevixen... having people think me of being some kind of prostitute or bimbo is nothing new," Akane answered, "other nobles in Japan thought it of me... American sailors of Commodore Matthew Perry's naval squadron thought it of me when they landed in Japan... If they wish to think me as nothing more than an immoral witch trying to corrupt their daughter... so be it. I've endured it before. I can endure it again."
"You shouldn't have to," Samantha argued.
She didn't know everything about every were-beast, and there were some things that werefoxes did that struck her as unnecessary, but that didn't mean the Skulk leader deserved that kind of stress. In a way, Samantha felt that she deserved the right to retire to her home and have her children, grandchildren, and even her great-grandchildren around her. After losing her husband to the Second World War, she deserved peace. Samantha didn't think that Akane should have to shoulder so much.
"We must do what we must do," Akane said calmly and patted Samantha's hand. There was a great deal of inner strength that Samantha heard and felt in the Skulk leader's comment.