It would’ve been funny if it happened to someone else. How many times do you actually see a car drive through a garden anyway?
“Lord know the old battle-axe couldn’t stop laughing about it,” Theo grumbled as he evened out the car-tracks into flat ground. The woman had returned that morning, and just laughed at it.
“And nooo...” Theo thought. “Can’t show weakness in front of THAT woman. Have to do everything by hand so she doesn’t bitch and whine and call me a ‘weakling’ for the millionth time.”
Yes, Theo just absolutely loathed his mother-in-law.
“Anybody home?” A female voice was heard from the ruined front gates. Incidentally the damage also destroyed the bell.
The Arch Mage blinked his eyes, and looked towards the stone-wall... Or what was still standing of it anyway. He saw a very familiar woman standing there, looking rather lost. “Hey, Jetta!” Theo called out as he waved a hand. “Over here.”
The former police officer, in human form, stepped through the ruined gate and walked towards the garden. She was dressed in tight jeans and a leather jacket over a t-shirt.
As Jetta got closer to the damaged front garden, she could see the wheel-burrow, gardening tools, and many little flowers pots. It was obvious Theo was going to fix the garden himself. The woman winced as she saw the destruction she caused the previous day. “I... Uh... Do you need a hand?”
Theo blinked his eyes. “You don’t have to,” He told the woman. Turning his head to look at her, he then saw the need in her eyes, and quickly added, “But if you really want to, I have an extra pair of gloves in the wheel-burrow.”
Jetta snorted. “Gloves?” She just took her jacket off and threw it over a three before cracking her knuckles. Jetta was a no-nonsense kind of person, reminding Theo a lot about a certain someone he didn’t like.
Theo lowered his head in defeat. “Great. Another one,” He thought in despair.
The woman smirked and started working with Theo. At least doing something she didn’t have time to think about her current lack of a job. “What’s with doing this on your own? Couldn’t you pay to have it done for you?”
“I usually work the garden on my own,” The good doctor said. Theo’s eye twitched. “But mother-in-law is back, currently out with Julia right now. She won’t let me get any professionals to make repairs, saying that ‘the man of the house should be able to handle ALL duties’, or some crap like that.”
Jetta sighed. “Trouble with your in-law?”
“I wouldn’t say it’s trouble,” Theo said as he used a small gardening spade to start digging a hole. “It’s just a nightmare. The woman’s hated me since the beginning, and tries to do everything in her power to make my life hell.”
Jetta nodded slowly before looking at Theo seriously. “Want me to fix her up for you?”
Theo blinked his eyes once, twice, thrice. He looked at Jetta and smiled a little. “As tempting as that sounds, no. It’s all right. Julia wouldn’t forgive me.” He smirked a little as he finished digging the first hole. “But let me say, you’re already getting on my good side.”
Jetta chuckled. “The offer stands. If she gets to be too much just say so.” She owed Theo a whole lot, since thanks to him the cheetah clan wasn’t completely eradicated. In fact he had taken her niece in when Jetta could do nothing for the girl.
“I’ll keep that in mind,” Theo said as he took one of the potted plants and took it out of it's thin plastic pot. He moved it into the hole and asked, as started to fill the rest of the hole with dirt, “So, Jetta. How did you end up in America? Doesn’t seem like a wolf to leave her pack.”
Jetta paused what she was doing and thought about it for a moment. “I found Brit and...” She trailed off and started to work again. She didn’t know what to say. After all, how was she to tell the man that she had followed the cheetah’s scent in hopes to track her down and kill her, and ended up falling in love with the child’s savior, and basically accepting them as her family?”
Theo took the awkward pause as a hint not to pry further. “Okay, okay, forget I said anything,” He said as he started to dig with his spade again. “But how has American been treating you so far?”
“Life couldn’t be better, except for yesterday,” She said wistfully. “I have the most wonderful daughter, a loving husband. What else could I ask for?” Let it be known that Theo still didn’t know about Ranma’s little problem with water.
“Not that I mean to pry, but don’t you mean a wonderful wife?” Theo asked as he put another plant into the ground. “Or, do you call the Hakken ‘husband’ because she’s the more dominant partner?”
Jetta suddenly caught the meaning behind Theo’s words and bit her lip to stop herself from laughing out-loud. “Do you actually believe that little redhead can be the dominant one in the relationship?”
“Well, she IS a pro-fighter,” Theo said. “Or at least, that’s my understanding.”
Jetta smirked. “She also taught me everything she knows, training me for years. And I’m a werewolf.”
Theo nodded. “So you’re the ‘husband’?” He asked questioningly. “Forgive my curiosity. I don’t know much about...” He stopped for a moment to think how to say this without being insulting. “Same-sex couples.”
The werewolf resisted the urge to burst out laughing by biting her lips so hard she drew blood. The best part was she couldn’t correct Theo. It was Ranma’s choice to let the man know or not. “Don’t worry about it. You’re not the first person to ask about it.”
Theo nodded. “Well, I must say I’m glad you’ve been enjoying your time in America.” He looked at the woman seriously. “And I’m sorry about last night. I hope things will go better for you at the Station once your Suspension is over.”
Jetta sighed deeply. “I wasn’t suspended.”
“Oh?” Theo asked. “Did they tell you to take a personal holiday then, or were you just not scheduled for work today?” Theo asked as he finished up a third hole with his gardening spade.
“... I was fired,” She admitted quietly.
The doctor stopped what he was doing. He slowly turned to regard Jetta. “What?”
Jetta shrugged trying to feign indifference. “What did you expect? I ran a police car into your living room, after all... Aside from driving on the wrong side of the highway for five miles.”
Theo’s eye twitched. “Well, did you mention you thought your daughter was in danger?” He asked.
“Can’t do that. It would raise questions about Britanny and I don’t want to risk it.” Jetta gave Theo a small smile. “I’m just lucky my record was perfect before that. Otherwise I’d be behind bars.”
Theo nodded. He gently went to putting a plant in the third hole. “So, what are you going to do now?”
Jetta shrugged again. “Spend more time with Brit so I can properly train her, I guess. I’ll bring her over so I can train Brenda as well. Not like I can get a job after what I just did.”
“Yes you could,” Theo said. “You can do what I did after I quite Agency Zero, and become self-employed.”
The werewolf in human form took that into consideration. “... I’ll think about it. I do want to spend time with my daughter.”
“No one says you can’t spend time with your daughter if you have a job,” Theo told her. “When you’re self-employed you can make your own hours, to do what you need to get done.”
The werewolf smiled. “Thanks. Even after what I did yesterday, you’re still giving me support.” She chuckled. “Your mother-in-law must be blind.”
Theo nodded. “She’s just extremely old fashioned,” He said. “Her thinking dates back to the Ice Age,” He said with a chuckle.
Jetta laughed and shook her head. “Your wife doesn’t mind you thinking like that, does she?”
Theo shook his head. “She knows I don’t like her mother. And she doesn’t mind.” He looked at Jetta. “I try to do everything to be nice to that woman, and she just doesn’t appreciate it.”
Jetta nodded. “That’s good to know, because your wife is standing right behind you.”
Theo blinked his eyes once, twice, thrice. “Oh, hi honey!” He said with a nervous grin.
“Hello yourself, Theo,” She said with a smile. Leaning forward, she whispered, “Just keep it down. Mom is coming along shortly.”
Theo nodded his head.
Jetta smirked at Julia. “You have him well trained.”
“Why, thank you,” Julia said with a smile.
The werewolf rubbed her face uncaring of the fact she was smudging it with the dirt from the garden. “You need any help fixing the wall?”
Theo nodded. “Yes, but I’m having private contractors come over to do it after she’s gone,? He motioned to the large woman trying to force her way out of a car by tearing the passenger door off of its hinges.
Jetta raised an eyebrow and turned to Julia. “You weren’t kidding with the Giant Clan thing, huh?”
“No,” Julia told her seriously. “I myself come from Jade, rather than Earth.”
The werewolf nodded slowly, having expected as much.
Julia looked at the two and smiled. “Jetta, when you’re done out here, would you mind coming inside afterwards? I’d like to talk to you in private.”
Jetta instantly sobered at that and turned to Theo. “Mind if I take care of that? I promise I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
“Oh, quite all right...” Theo said seriously.
Nodding her head to that, Julia called out, “Mom! Could you stay out here and give Theo a hand? I’d like to talk to my friend for a moment!”
Theo blanched.
The werewolf stood up to her full height, which wasn’t as impressive in her human form, and nodded to Julia. “Let’s get this over with.” She did give Theo a sympathetic glance.
Julia nodded and motioned for Jetta to follow her inside the house. The woman was making a beeline to the kitchen by going through the hole in the wall to the living room.
Jetta followed silently.
Stopping in the kitchen, Julia turned to Jetta with a sad frown. “You were fired?” She asked seriously.
“Yeah, can’t really blame the department, though.” Jetta admitted and rubbed the back of her head.
Julia nodded her head. “Jetta. Could I interest you in an after-school job?”
The werewolf raised an eyebrow. “I’m listening.”
“Well, Brenda WILL need a trainer to teach her how it is to be a Lycanthrope,” Julia admitted. “Is there any chance I could pay you for your services?”
Jetta shook her head seriously. “No. There isn’t.” She raised a hand to forestall the protest she knew was coming. “Let’s set things straight. I owe you and your husband more than I can ever repay. Not only because of yesterday, but because of Brenda. I won’t take your money for doing something I MUST do.”
Julia frowned, but nodded her head in understanding. She knew what it was like to be stubborn about your values and principles. “I just want to be able to help you and your family out in some way though.”
The werewolf patted Julia on the shoulder. “You already did. Now stop wasting my time with offers and let’s go save that husband of yours.”
Julia nodded her head. “All right then.” She smiled a little. “Can I at least consider you part of the family?”
“That depends,” Jetta said as she walked out of the house with a smirk. “Do you howl to the moon?”
Julia smirked right back. “Only if my husband is thrusting in just the right way.”
Jetta couldn’t help herself from laughing at that as they approached Theo’s garden.
“Oh, that’s because Brenda wouldn’t let go.”
“Brit, quiet now or Else you’re gonna get a knuckle-sandwich for lunch.”
“Knuckles? But I wanted tuna.”
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(Posted Wed, 20 Oct 2004 22:58)
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