"So I did hear you two right?" Gary asked in a bemused if somewhat scratchy voice, "The girl who came here with Jonni is really Jack?"
Jonni acknowledged the question with a nod. It seemed silly to deny it in light of everything else they had to discuss. Gary let go with a brief snort of amusement.
"Dad!" Jonni scolded, shocked by her father's callousness.
"Sorry," Gary Gibson at least had the good grace to look a little ashamed of himself, "But you have to admit it is a little funny. I mean, I'm not totally unsympathetic. I was a dog up until a few minutes ago!"
"I cannot believe we are even having this conversation," Jonni rubbed her temples with the tips of her fingers. She was starting to get a headache.
Gary edged past Jonni and Liam, cracking open the guest room door just slightly enough to peer in at Jack/Nora, "The horny old goat probably never imagined in a million years he would wind up like that."
The idea that his unfriendly father-in-law was trapped inside the pretty and pregnant blonde curled up on the guest bed gave Gary a certain smug satisfaction, but he was careful not to let it show in front of Jonni. Gary had been in the army when he met Linda Merlin, and Jack, Gary's unwilling future father in law, had strongly resisted his daughter having anything to do with him. Gary and Linda's relationship had blossomed in spite of Jack's troublemaking, but the old man had never once wasted an opportunity to make Gary feel inadequate as a husband and unwelcome as a son-in-law. So, all things considered, but especially considering it was Jack's magic stone that the entire family's life upside down, Gary wasn't too upset with the idea of Jack forced to endure childbirth and live the rest of his new life as a woman.
Instead of gloating, Gary feigned curiosity, "Who is she really? That's no female version of Jack. Too young, too blonde."
"We can discuss it in the other room," Liam interrupted, "We just got Dad to sleep, Gary. Let's not wake her."
Gary wanted to smirk at Liam's reference to his own father as a "her," but mutely acquiesced and slunk back down the hallway fast on Liam's heels. Jonni came waddling behind them, quietly pondering the bizarre family dynamics of a house where the father used to be a dog, the mother was an eighteen year old man, and the grandfather and grandson were both expectant mothers.
The three of them each staked out a spot to sit in the living room. It wasn't lost upon Jonni that she sat on one side of the room, while her dad and "Liam" sat across from her. She had sat in this living room many times, but it was the first time she was the only woman in it. There was an awkward moment as Jonni struggled to seat herself on the couch, but Liam sprang to her rescue by offering a hand to help lower her to the cushions.
Gary quietly raged inside. If he were still a golden retriever he would be growling. It was Jack's stone that had done this to his son, but Gary supposed the old man had been punished enough for his part in it. DeMorrell was the one who had done the actual wishing, the one who had changed Jon into this - - who had done - - Gary forced himself to unclench his fists. It was impossible to imagine what Jonni had been put through. All he knew was it made him angry, bringing out all the old killer instincts he had left behind with his days in the army.
"So how do we get you back to normal?" Gary finally broke the uncomfortable silence that had descended.
"I'm not totally sure," Jonni said after a moment. "DeMorrell made a wish that affects my future. He wished I would be his wife, but we hadn't gotten married yet when Grandpa and I escaped. I think I'm going to have to find a way around that before I find a way around this," Jonni laid a hand against the side of his distended belly.
"Why not wish you had a quickie ceremony before you escaped?" Liam offered.
"That might work and it might not," Jonni shrugged, "As things stand I don't want to make any wishes that mess with the flow of time before we escaped. Too much risk I might wind up back with DeMorrell somehow. For now let's concentrate on fixing everyone else."
Gary and Liam's eyes widened slightly as Jonni produced the stone from a pocket of her jacket. They were looking at the most powerful force in the world held in the palm of girl's hand. Jonni smiled, "Let's start with you, Mom."
"Me?" Liam almost squeaked, leaning back slightly.
"Yes, you," Jonni nodded, "In fact, this may solve two problems at once."
"Hold on now!" Gary spoke up, "Maybe you should set the stone down first and then tell us what you're going to do before you just start wishing things around again!"
"Oh! Right, right," Jonni struggled to sit forward slightly then set the stone on the edge of the coffee table in front of her, "Good idea. Sorry!"
Everyone took a breath. Gary could feel the tension flowing out of Liam. No matter how bad they both wanted Liam back to Linda, knowing the power of the stone was about to be unleashed on you set the old adrenalin to pumping.
"So my plan was this... ," Jonni began to explain and Gary vowed to listen attentively. He owed Jonni that. It might even be a good plan. Besides, If he didn't like what he heard he could always grab the stone. Jonni, bless her heart, wasn't moving to fast in her present condition, and Liam's chair was further away from the coffee table than his own. Gary had a few ideas of his own about how to fix things.
