For the rest of their evening meal, Jane asked for snippets from the courses Susan was having them work through. She found their snippets interesting but above her educational experiences. All too soon, the main meal was over and dessert had been consumed. The three teens asked to be excused, were granted permission and they began clearing the table. Toby lingered longer in the kitchen this time, almost until the kitchen work was complete. But the girls could see the pain he still felt and 'shoved' him out of the kitchen. When he abruptly came out of the kitchen, the eyes of five women turned to face him. With an exasperated look on his face, he told them, "Those two pushed me out of the kitchen. They said I'd done enough and Charlotte literally pushed me out of the kitchen."

Marie broke out laughing, telling Toby, "Cher, I know the feeling. Those two threw me out of my own kitchen as well. They claimed I needed to rest. Me, needing to rest. Can you imagine that?"

"I need to sit down," Toby said, as he shifted his weight from one foot to the other. "The ol' caboose isn't up to one hundred percent yet." Wincing, he made his way to the couch, where he gingerly sat down. He didn't realize it, but he let out a sigh heard by the five women after getting seated. "Aww… that feels better."

Jill got up from the dining room table and walked over to the couch, sitting down next to Toby. "Hey, I hate to do this, but let's get you upstairs so I can see how you're doing. Then you can come back down and get comfortable again."

After giving Jill an 'oh brother' look, he nodded his head and waited until Jill had stood so she could help him stand. With her left hand gently gripping Toby's right forearm, Jill assisted Toby to the stairs. Jane turned to watch the two make their way slowly up the stairs and out of sight, before asking Susan, "So, what can you do because of the ease with which they're going through the AP courses?"

Nodding her head at Jane's question, she replied, "I've been thinking about that Jane. If the IQ tests reveal what I believe they're going to reveal, I may have to move all three to college-level courses. It might even be better to have them continue as they're doing now, using those courses and introductory courses to the college courses. Basically like what occurs in college, where the freshman year is the basic courses of someone's major, then the more advanced courses the sophomore year, and so on. But that isn't what really worries me, Jane. What if the college-level courses are just as easy for them? What then? What could I possibly give them to challenge them? It's all going to hinge on the IQ test results, Jane."

Sherry spoke up saying, "While I realize you want the best for those three kids, just be careful not to expect more than they can give at the moment. Agnus is fresh in Francis' mind. Toby and Charlotte are embroiled in this shoplifting mess, which is so fresh it smells like something you stepped in. All three still have hair triggers that can be tripped unexpectedly."

Marie chuckled, then said, "Well, if you want to give them a challenge, and teach them at the same time, teach them Latin then teach them in Latin. It was once done that way many years ago at the best colleges."

The four women were quiet for several moments, broken by Jane saying, "There is only one problem I can see. Those three teens aren't going to be here long enough to get through any super-advanced course you set up, Susan. Toby may have to go into hiding, if it turns out there's still a price on his head. Charlotte will go back to her family, and that retched high school. And Francis will be leaving soon, if not when Toby and Charlotte leave. Going three possible ways is not conducive to holding a class, Susan. They should be attending a private school whose curriculum is as Marie suggested. And yet… " Jane became thoughtful before saying, "And yet, there's so much to be settled before their educational institution can even be discussed."

Their roundhouse discussion ceased when a bedroom door being closed was heard. Shortly, the slow, rhythmic cadence of footsteps could be heard descending the stairs. Sherry stood up just as Toby and Jill reached the ground floor. She watched Jill help Toby to the couch, helped him sit down, then said, "Oh Jillyyy. You and I have an engagement in the study. Come this way," and she waved her hand towards the study door.

Jane saw the impish look again on Jill's face and said one word, "DON'T"

Seeing the look on Jill's face caused Jane to school herself else she'd laugh at her dear friend. "Aww, Thompson. You're no fun."

Jane just smiled at Jill as the woman followed Sherry to the study. She was extremely mature by sticking her tongue at Jane as she walked by Jane. Susan could see the interplay between the two women and asked, "How long have you two known each other?"

Watching Jill's retreating back, Jane responded with, "Ever since the Earth came into existence. She saved my life several times during my younger days." When Francis and Charlotte came out of the kitchen, and Marie went into the kitchen, to make sure it had been cleaned properly and was still standing, Jane told the girls and Toby, "You three may take the rest of the evening for yourselves. Bedtime is still at the usual time."

Sherry waited until Jill had entered the study before closing the study door behind her. "So," Jill began, "what do you want to talk about?" The impish look lingered on her face, her eyes dancing with mischief.

Following after Jill, who was walking backward toward the table, Sherry asked, "You really love winding Janie up, don't you?"

"And what about you?" Jill shot back. "Calling her Janie all the time. I remember a boy in college who called her Janie once, but only once. I thought he was going to walk funny the rest of the semester. He thought he was the best thing any girl could have, until he called Jane Janie and she gave him such a shot between his legs. Every guy in that cafeteria cringed when they saw her kick him in his jewels. Those guys may have cringed but the girls were all smiling."

Sherry became somber as she told Jill, "Like you, I've earned the right to tug at Supergirl's cape. We both have been there during some of Jane's nastier times, and stayed with her, helping her get through them."

Her impish expression gone, Jill replied, "Yeah… they were times I wouldn't want my worst enemy to go through. So, what'd you want to talk about?"

Indicating for Jill to sit down, Sherry sat down in her customary chair before speaking. "You got rather upset in the library when you told Jane and Marie to talk to me. Why? You even told them if they didn't speak to me you'd be, and I quote, 'you'd be pissed at them,' unquote"

Jill let her head drop back, brought it back up, shook it, then said, "Do you always ask questions you know the answers to? You know why I got so blasted upset."

"I know why I'd get upset, but I want to know why you got upset."

Jill got up and stepped to the window. "How many times did you pull Jane out of the gutter, so to speak? Likely more times than you remember, right? Well, same here. There was one time I didn't think she'd ever pull herself together. DAMN THAT WOMAN!"

Sherry shoved her chair back, walked around the table, and behind Jill, putting her arms around the crying woman. Jill leaned back into Sherry, then reached up and clasped Sherry's arms. Through her sobs, Jill said, "Damn that woman. I told her she was burning the candle at both ends and everywhere along its length. But she wouldn't listen to me. I thought I'd lost her several times."

In a soft voice, Sherry added, "Yeah, I know. I've got the tee shirt to prove it. She latched onto me after you went off to medical school. She went through one particular nasty period, wouldn't let me call you. I didn't know how to help her, so I just stayed with her, did what I thought was best for her. She made it through, but it was a rough time."

"And I owe you both my life," Jane said, her voice coming from the direction of the study door.

Jane's voice caused both Sherry and Jill to suddenly turn around, releasing each other. "Damnit, Janie," Sherry began, "this is a private session. You have no right to be here."

Still standing by the study door, Jane's voice had an acrid sound to it as she replied, "This is my house, I go where I please." But it softened as she added, "And I pleased to be here, now, with the two of you. With the two who never turned away from me, who were there when I was a complete mess. I owe both of you my life, and I can never repay that debt."

Jane had started walking as she spoke her last statement and was now standing in the middle of the study. Her words set Jill off again, as she started walking towards Jane, saying, "Damn you Thompson. I told you you were burning that candle the entire length, but you wouldn't listen." She'd reached Jane as she continued with, "DAMN YOU THOMPSON, I thought I'd lost you." Jill threw her arms around Jane's neck and cried on her shoulder. Jane put one arm around Jill, then motioned with her other arm for Sherry to join them.

Stepping into Jane's free arm, and putting her arms around Jill and Jane, Sherry said, "She's right, Janie. Damn you, I thought I was going to lose you several times."

The three women were crying on each other's shoulders and didn't notice when the study door quietly opened. Holding the door by the doorknob, Marie looked in and smiled at seeing the three holding each other. She nodded her head, stepped back, and silently closed the door behind her. As she walked back into the living room, she said to herself, "Est ut sit. Ita semper debet (It is as it should be. So it should always be.)."

None of the three realized the amount of pent-up emotions they had from that time, a time when Jane could have become no more. A time when Jill and Sherry did all they could to keep her safe. A time when Jill and Sherry had to put their own lives on hold because of Jane's immediate needs. A time when Jane saw the path she's still on today A time that made Jane Thompson the woman she is today, and formed a life bond between the three women.

After several minutes, their crying stopped but they continued holding onto each other. "Looking back," Jane said softly, "I don't know why you two stayed with me. I was such a mess, anyone else would have kicked me to the curb."

It was Sherry who asked the question, "Why does Judge Ruth send boys to you, Jane?"

Jane was silent for a moment, before replying, "Because she sees redeeming qualities in them."

"That's why we didn't let you self-destruct, Jane," Jill supplied. "We saw redeeming qualities within you. We saw what you could become if you only saw it yourself. You finally saw it yourself after Sherry got you away from that jerk and sat up with you all night. That one scared you straight, and when you had time to reflect, you decided what you were going to do with your life. So in a way, that jerk helped you decide the path you were going to take. It took some time, but you made it. Just look at all the good you've done because of your choice."

Jane pushed back from Jill and Sherry, reached up, and stroked both women's cheeks. After what Jill had just said, Jane's throat was too tight to speak. She nodded her head, turned, and left the study, leaving Jill and Sherry in the middle of the study with their arms still around each other. Clearing her throat, Jill said, "Well, that was cathartic. I didn't realize I had so many bottled-up emotions from that time."

Turning Jill around, Sherry guided Jill back to the table, pouring two glasses of water and offering one to Jill. "That's the problem with emotions, you never realize they're all jumbled up until someone or something comes along and pulls the cork holding them back. Then you either explode with anger, cry yourself a river, or explode and cry yourself a river. The explode and cry yourself a river is the one occurring lately around here, you just happen to be its latest target." Sherry then pointed to the seat Jill had used, before sitting down herself.

Jill drank half the water in the glass before saying, "Yesh? And what do you call what you did? Faking it? I seem to remember you blowing up before flooding the carpet in this room. I remember you being just as upset as I was back then. If that time didn't bother you, why all the fireworks and waterworks then?"

With a smirk on her face, Sherry told Jill, "You know, if you don't have a license to become a practicing Psychologist, you can get into a lot of trouble." Then, to punctuate her point, she stuck her tongue out at Jill.

Shaking her head slowly, Jill retorted, "There you go again, avoiding the issue. And that last bit was sooo mature for a practicing psychologist. Seriously, though, Sherry. Why are you avoiding the issue? I remember you being as torn up as I was back then when that damn woman wouldn't listen to either of us about that skuzball."

Sherry sat her glass of water down, then looked down at her hands before speaking. "Because I was ashamed of myself back then. And I still am."

"What do you have to be ashamed of? How many nights did you sit up with her while she went through that hell?"

Sherry sighed before saying, "It wasn't about the number of nights I sat up with her. It's because I wanted to kill that jerking bastard. I wanted to drug him, take him out to some secluded spot, and make a nice flat 'V' between his legs. Then shove everything right down that gawd awful maw he called a mouth. And leave him there to bleed to death." With tears streaming down her face, Sherry choked out, "I wanted to kill him, Jill. I wanted to hurt him as much as he was hurting Janie. I'm ashamed I ever entertained the idea. That's why I avoid the issue… because I'm ashamed of myself."

Jill shocked Sherry by starting to laugh, and she kept laughing until tears were sliding down her cheeks. She laughed so hard she fell out of her chair, and continued laughing while lying on the floor. Angry over what she thought was a terrible slight, Sherry stood up so fast that her chair fell over backward. She all but ran around the end of the table, stood over the still laughing Jill, and demanded, "Alright, Peters! What's so damn amusing about what I just said?"

While still laughing, Jill looked up to see the angry expression on Sherry's face. It was only then she realized what she'd done and started to cry. Seeing Jill now crying, Sherry realized something else was going on with her sister, and as she dropped to her knees, picked Jill up from the floor, and held her, her anger dissipated. Jill stuttered out through her crying, "I…I'm…sorry…She…Sherry. I…di…didn't…mean…t…to…m…make…yo…you…an…angry.” I…was…wasn't…laug…laughing…at…y…you…b…b…but…bec…because…of…wh…wh…what…y…you…wa…wa…wanted…to…to…do…to…th…th…that…pie…piece…of…cra…crap." Her crying lessened after that, replaced with the two women sitting on the floor holding each other. The silence that had lasted several minutes was broken by Jill saying, "When you told me what you wanted to do to that slimeball, it reminded me of the paper I wrote, with steps and diagrams I made when I first arrived at medical school. Oh, it was brilliant, Sherry. It had ten steps I was going to follow, with each step detailing what I'd do to that prick and when. What I'd use on him and where it'd be applied. I was going to make him suffer so much that he'd beg me to shoot him; that was one of the ten steps, Sherry. I was fuming because of what he did to Jane. I wanted to hurt him sooo much, Sherry. I wanted to make him pay ten times more than he'd hurt Jane. If it hadn't been for my roommate, who kept pestering me to attend a support group on campus, Dr. Jill Peters wouldn't be Dr. Jill Peters but another person in prison today. I only made it through medical school because of that support group. And that roommate of mine, both helped straighten out my head back then."

"And why are you two ladies sitting on the floor holding each other?" Jane's voice startled both women so much they jerked around to face her, a 'deer caught in the headlights' expression on both of their faces. Softly, Jane said, "I heard what you both said, and I would have been upset if either of you had gone through with what you'd planned. I would have lost the two closest friends I had back then and still to this day. And, as you put it Peters, I would have been pissed at both of you. He ended up getting what he deserved, though. I heard some time later that he killed his then-girlfriend and will die in prison from old age. Now! Will you two get up off the floor, you're giving Seasons House a bad name." Jane extended her hands to Sherry and Jill. As each woman took one of the offered hands, Jane stepped back and pulled at the same time, helping each woman to stand up. She didn't let go of their hands but held them tight, saying, "Thank you both again for being there for me. If you need anything from me you have only to ask."

Sherry saw it as well as Jane, the impish look on Jill's face. "Well, now that you mention it, Thompson. Got any roast beef? 'Cause I could really go for a roast beef sandwich about now. Got any horseradish mustard, Thompson? Ya know, it goes real well on roast beef. Oh, and some of Marie's tasty homemade bread. Oh, and a tall glass of iced tea. Got any of that, Thompson?

Sherry had the fingertips of her free hand pressed tightly against her mouth to keep from laughing as she looked at Jane. Jane looked back at her with a deadpan expression on her face. Then, they both looked at Jill, who still had an impish expression on her face, along with a big smile. It was Jane who finally said, "And here I thought I only had petulant children in my house. Only I discovered I have an adult one too. If you must stuff your face, Peters, then we better adjourn to a more appropriate location."

Jane having said that the three women dissolved into laughter, holding each other and wiping the occasional tear off each other's cheek before they left the study and walked to the kitchen. Only to find three roast beef sandwiches laden with horseradish mustard on Marie's homemade bread, and three tall glasses of iced tea waiting for them. "I knew it," Jill said, as the three had stopped just inside the kitchen door when they saw the three sandwiches on the table. "I knew that woman had to be a psychic of some kind."

Laughter caught Jill's attention, and looking up from the sandwiches, she saw Marie quietly sitting at the end of the kitchen table. As Jill watched, Marie pointed to the open cabinet and the monitor setting within the cabinet. "It's called modern technology. Or for the slower ones, a psychic's friend."

Jane and Sherry had watched Jill as Marie spoke. When Marie burst Jill's psychic bubble, Jill looked up, rolled her eyes, then told Marie, "That's dirty pool, Marie." Sherry, Jane, and Marie all started laughing, but Jill didn't care as she walked over to the kitchen table, pulled out a chair, sat down, pulled one of the sandwiches to her, and began eating. With a mouth full of food, she asked, "You fwo ust gonna tand dhere?" After swallowing the large bite she'd taken, she turned to Marie and told her, "This is delicious, Marie. A-b-s-o-l-u-t-e-l-y delicious." She looked back at Sherry and Jane, and using her free hand, indicated the two sandwiches remaining on the kitchen table. Still holding each other, Jane and Sherry walked over to the kitchen table, each pulling out a chair before sitting down and starting in on their own roast beef sandwich slathered with horseradish mustard.

Looking at the clock on the kitchen wall, Marie turned off the monitor, closed and locked the cabinet doors before leaving the kitchen to sound the bedtime bell. Marie returned a short time later with Susan in tow. "Oh, look at you three, stuffing your faces while one of us was slaving over your kids, trying to teach them the difference between two plus two and the possibility the answer could be six."

Marie immediately caught on to the reference Susan was making, while the advance of Jill's sandwich had stopped just inside her mouth. Sherry gave Susan a quizzical look at first, but finally caught on to what Susan was saying. Jane calmly kept eating her sandwich, waiting until Jill asked the inevitable question, which arrived after Jill set her sandwich down on the plate. "What do you mean by that statement, teaching them the difference between two plus two and the possibility the answer could be six? How in the hell do you get two plus two being six?"

Jill looked at Susan as she asked the question, seeing only a deadpan expression on her face. She looked at Sherry, then at Jane, then at Marie, each wearing the same deadpan expression. Sherry broke the silence with, "And you call yourself a doctor. Did you skip the day one of your courses met or do you always keep your legs together at home?"

Jill was still confused by Susan's and Sherry's statements. "What do you mean keeping my legs together at home? What's that got to do with what Susan said?"

As Jill watched, Sherry shook her head, then held up the first two fingers of each hand. Then, turning those fingers sideways, she meshed one set between the other set, slowly repeating it for Jill's benefit. The laughter started slowly as they watched the sudden understanding form on Jill's face. She turned to face Susan and told her, "Gawd… you're as disgusting as those two," pointing at Sherry and Jane.

The ruckus laughter was interrupted by a knock on the kitchen door, followed by Francis coming into the kitchen. Having a worried look on her face, Francis said, "Oh, I'm sorry to have interrupted."

She had turned to leave the kitchen when Jane said, "Francis, you're not interrupting. What is it chère?"

Turning back around to face Jane, Francis said, "We're ready for bed, Aunt Jane. I just want to let you know." After Jane thanked Francis for letting her know, Francis left the kitchen, more at ease than when she'd entered the kitchen.

"Ladies, if you'll excuse me for a few moments," Jane told the four women, before setting her sandwich on its plate, pushing her chair back, standing and walking out of the kitchen. As she walked through the dining room, she could already see the three teens standing in the middle of the living room, each dressed in their particular night clothes. "Well, let's have a look at you three." Jane stood close to Charlotte and Francis, checking to make sure they'd removed all of their makeup and had used the moisturizer on their faces. Satisfied with Charlotte's and Francis' efforts, she turned her attention to Toby, noting the slight pain on his face. "Toby, are you alright? You look as though you're in some pain."

Toby had been shifting his weight from one foot to the other before Jane asked her question. Still shifting his weight, he told her, "I'm doing better Aunt Jane, at least my back and legs are. My butt is still causing some pain, I guess it was worse than I suspected."

Jane's monster began whispering in her mind again, only going quiet when Jane again told it to shut the hell up. "I'll have Jill come up and look at you Toby once you're in bed. She may be able to give you something or put something on your rear end to help alleviate the pain you're feeling. You three are excused, sleep well." Jane received 'good night' from each of the three, and stood still until the three had disappeared up the stairs. She went back into the kitchen, sat back down in her chair, picked up her roast beef sandwich, and told Jill, "Toby's still experiencing some pain in his butt. I told him I’d have you look in on him when he got into bed and maybe you could give him something for the pain. He says his back and legs are feeling better, it's just his butt that's bothering him. After seeing what a mess it was, I can understand why it's still bothering him."

Nodding her head, Jill wiped her hands off on the napkin lying next to her plate, and told Jane, "I'll look in on him then head home." After pushing her chair back, standing, then pushing the chair under the table, she walked around to stand next to Jane, bent down, and put her arms around Jane's neck. Putting her right cheek next to Jane's left cheek, she said, "I love you, you damn woman. I'll be back in a couple of days to check on Toby. Call me if he needs me sooner." She then kissed Jane on her left cheek, having Jane then put her arm around Jill's head and pull her even closer.

The two stayed together for several moments until Jane said, "I love you too, you crazy lady. And thank you for my life. Get yourself relaxed tonight."

Jane's last statement caused Jill to straighten immediately. "Thompson, you are a crude woman deep down… but a wise one." Jill bent back down and kissed Jane again on her cheek, before bidding the other women a good night.

Susan was the next to say, "I'd better be going as well. After today, I think getting myself relaxed is excellent therapy. Good night to you all." She was wished ‘good night’ by Marie, Jane, and Sherry, the three watching as Susan left the kitchen.

"Well, Jane. After the results of today, I'll be coming every day for the rest of this week and maybe next week; it will depend on how each of you progresses. I think the worst is now out in the open, it's now a matter of how to deal with it from day to day. I'm not so worried about you and Marie, you both are better at handling this on a daily basis. It's those three upstairs I'm more concerned about. They're going to be thinking of this constantly until it's over, and need to learn how not to let it control them. I think I'll join those other two and get myself relaxed tonight, I can really use it." After saying that, she leaned over and kissed Jane on her left cheek, only to have Jane pull her head in closer for a few moments.

Sherry felt a tear slide between her and Jane's cheek, before Jane said, "I never knew until today how much pain I caused you and Jill. I can't go back and undo my stupidity, I can only offer you my heart-felt apologies, and the knowledge you can ask anything of me and I'll grant it."

"You damn woman, I love you so much," Sherry told Jane before kissing her on the cheek and quickly getting up out of her chair before leaving the kitchen. Never wishing Marie or Jane a ‘good night.’

Jane was looking down at the sandwich she held in her hands. "I hurt those two badly with my actions all those years ago, Marie. And I didn't know how badly until tonight. I was such a fool back then."

Marie walked over to stand behind Jane, putting her arms around Jane's neck. "Chère, that time has passed. Today is today. We all have done something years back we wished we hadn't done. But that isn't a reason to let the actions of yesterday influence the actions of today. Put yesterday where it belongs, learn from it, but only let the lessons learned guide your way today. ‘Good night,’ chère. I'll check the downstairs before checking on the kids." She then bent down and kissed Jane on the cheek.

Jane watched Marie leave the kitchen before finishing her sandwich, thinking back to all the happenings of the day with each bite she took. As she took the last bite of her roast beef sandwich, she reflected on the last words Marie had said. Marie's words were true, but truth doesn't explain how to leave the past in the past or not influence today. She finished her iced tea, rinsed off the plate and the glass out, before looking around the kitchen one last time, walking to the kitchen door and turning off the kitchen lights as she left the kitchen and headed to her bedroom.