"We didn't arrive too early did we?" Jack asks, looking at the Doctor with an amused look as he pretends to scowl.

"No, we had a bad winter as the second sun's orbit finished adjusting and our orbit intersected. We had a storm come in and dump five feet of snow after we should have planted for the first crop. The weather satellite and forecasts had already told us it would be happening but waiting for the ground to dry enough to till the manure under and make sure there was enough moisture for the crops to get a good start but not too much that they rotted instead of sprouting delayed everything by more than three weeks. So instead of having the third crops in the ground we're going to be picking the second ones after the Harvest Festival. We won't plant a third crop this year, it'd be the middle of winter before they ripened."

"Did either of you check in on the construction?" Anna asks, coming in from the front of the dorm.

"Yeah. The sandwich place is nearly finished. They might not have everything finished but they're going to try to be open for the Harvest Festival. The power production facility will be open by the end of the year. Albatross is on course to have theirs finished by the end of the year too, they were more concerned with finishing the work on their growing building first since they'd need the extra space." David looks at Josette. "Yes, I'm heading off in a few to start a crop on the ship again."

"So we don't overload the growing area." David nods in satisfaction. "We can't plant everything but we can get in a good sized garden." The next couple weeks pass, Josette's birthday and the Harvest festival coming along with Josette starting crops on the ship and taking everybody on a tour of the planets from space. The Doctors are busy talking with the ships and Josette chuckles.

"Do we want to know?" Alexander asks, waving a hand at them. Josette chuckles. "Yeah, so we shouldn't be surprised to find the ships traveling through time as well as space some day." He snorts.

"They already do some limited time travel with the dilation." Josette shrugs.

"The cities aren't bigger on the inside than they are the outside."

Josette's eyes twinkle. "Are you sure? The dorms' a helluva lot bigger on the inside than it is the outside. And how much of the city are you really familiar with?"

The others sigh as Josette sniggers. "Even on the show, you never saw people going from building to building outside, they always used the transporters that took you wherever you wanted to go or the nearest one anyway."

After the Harvest Festival construction starts up again and the others head back to the other dimension.

"I don't know if I could live on a planet that quiet." Mary says, looking at the screen that shows the skyline outside since the rooms don't have windows for their protection.

"It's what they're used to, and the city overwhelms us sometimes." James says. "I couldn't have lived on an Earth that had nearly eight billion people. New York City had eight million alone."

Shudders from the others.

"I enjoyed the Harvest Festival, it was almost like visiting one of the local markets." The others nod. "Town is well laid out, plenty of room for growth and the industry they do have will handle their needs for a few decades."

"I'd have worried about the arts and literature until I saw the museums, libraries, and whatnot they have linked into the warehouses. And the plays they have on the servers."

"The music teacher is talking with the universities about live shows. Taking in so many orphans from that other dimension pushed plans back but nobody is complaining."

"Nearly 25,000 orphans. Not only would they have had been placed with loving families here, that's nearly half the inhabitants of the city."

"That's what happens when you have so many people, children . . .the ones who should be protected at all costs fall through the cracks. The heads of the orphanages swore that they weren't warehousing the children but . . ."

"Nobody cared about orphans. No family to speak for them but those they made themselves of their fellow children and the people who did their best for them."

"And from what Josette said, their foster care system wasn't like ours. They were given money to care for children instead of welcoming them into their homes without any thoughts but they needed a home and they had the room at their tables and in their hearts."

"Ours they became family, there they were often pushed aside the minute the parents weren't receiving money for them anymore. Or like the people from the kids sophomore year at school who stole their children's cards and ran up huge bills on them, stealing their allowances and throwing them from their home when they found they were a couple."

"Is anybody else amused as I was to find out who the Covingtons really are?" Charles asks. Jack Harkness chuckles from his spot next to the Doctor. "And you should have told us."

"The kids don't know, so why bring it up? They're their Mom and Dad, whether they gave birth to them or not. Just like James and Mary are." There's an alert and Jack heads to the door after looking at the computer screen.

"You asked us to come?" A voice asks.

"Yes, we found the children you pushed aside because they weren't the ones you wanted." Charles says, looking at two of the three that had come into the room.

"Where are they?" The dark-haired woman says. Charles brings up the footage and she smiles as she sees the figures. "Your unwanted children did better than the ones you kept." she scowls at the other two. "Are they happy?"

"Yes."

She holds out two vials. Jack walks over and punches in a series of numbers, a figure landing on the floor cursing violently.

"Josette."

"Didn't you guys just leave?" The TARDIS is in the corner of the room and there's bags along the walls so it's a good question.

"Yes. This is the Morrigan and two of the Celtic pantheon, they're also Andrew's mother and Alice's father."

"Excuse me, I could swear I heard you say they were their parents but I've seen pictures of their family."

"They had their godhoods stripped and placed in human families because they weren't what they wanted."

Josette stands up and brushes off her clothes. "I knew people were stupid but aren't the gods supposed be above that petty bullshit?" The dark haired woman laughs loudly. "Yes, they're supposed to be but there's always stupid people." She hands over the two vials. "Please give these to them with our blessing, so they might take up their birthright as the god of multiples and the goddess of the hearth and home."

"Well," Josette sighs, putting them in her pocket. "That makes sense given how many children we have and why Mom adopted the rest of us into the family immediately. Thank you Lady Morrigan."

"Yes it does. And you recognize her?"

"I've seen pictures of the Lady in the Halls of War."

"Does Ares use it as dartboard or have a noose around it?" she snorts.

"Neither my lady, it's in a place of honor as an example of why you don't piss off women." She chuckles. "Good, the boy does learn. . .unlike his father. Next time you lot flit off to check on the children, I'm coming along."

Back on Haven Josette looks at the others. "Be right back." and heads to the Covington farm.

"Josette?" Alice looks over at her from the sink where they're washing the dishes. She holds out the vials, Mom and Dad looking at each other before finishing what they were going and shooing off the girls to tidy their room and get ready for bed.

"From Lady Morrigan."

"Are you sure Alice?" Andrew looks at his wife of over a hundred years.

"It won't change us any more than it has Josette." She says. "You are mine, I am yours, and our children are still our children." They take the vials from Josette's hand and drinks them. They start to glow with a gentle light and the sound of bells starts.

"Welcome back, the Celtic Goddess of the hearth and family and the God of Multiples." A voice calls gently. Josette smiles, hugs them, and heads off.

"Do we want to know?"

"They'll tell you when they're ready."

The construction starts back up again after the Harvest Festival and the crops start coming in, everybody busy canning, drying, or otherwise storing food for the winter. Josette starts bringing in the other offworld harvests, heading off to Atlantis to get the books and supplies for the classes she'd taken that summer. A few days after the first testing week Josette slumps onto one of the couches in the living room.

"Is that all the offworld harvests?"

"Yeah, I brought the last of it just now. This one's ours so I don't have to deliver it when everybody's finished canning, drying, or preserving it." Josette opens one eye and looks over at David. "Construction?"

"Coming along well. The stuff from the paper factory?"

"Ready to be picked up our second testing week. I'm talking to the plastics factory right now about combs and hairbrushes, they're going to be working on changing out the forms over the next few weeks."

"Did they figure out how they're packaging?

"Yeah, cardboard packing with formed plastic. All recyclable. We're looking at three different packages on a revolving basis, a brush and comb, two brushes, and two combs. All different colors, just like the toothbrushes."

"Which factories coming out next?"

"Elastic next year. Then either toothbrushes or shoelaces. Bringing out others as needed."

"Do we have the machinery to cut the oats?" Lois asks.

"No, we can soak them overnight to cook for oatmeal until we bring it out. Take longer than instant oatmeal but just as easy for families. Even if we don't have a night hearth." David looks at Josette who snickers.

"How's your theses coming?"

"Good, with all the construction this year I didn't get a chance to work on them much this summer but I was able to work on it during the storms first semester. And I can this semester when I finish my classes before we head off." He waggles a finger at her. "You evil minx you, you broke our families minds when they saw all your degrees."

Josette flips him off. "I think finding out how old we are and how many kids we have might have helped."

"The racks for the candle and soapmakers?"

"We're bringing them out tomorrow. Along with supplies."

"Thank you boys, these will be used often . . .and were sorely needed." the managers says the next day, looking at all the new room filled with racks of storage for soap and candles along with more storage space and more room in the front of the stores for extra display cases that Josette is bringing out and setting up. She's hugged and grins.

"This way you can put out all the new stuff that you'd wanted that you didn't have the room for. And you can put out speciality stuff for the lights and harvest festivals. I know you've wanted to for a while but didn't have the room until now. I'll start bringing out the supplies so you have it on hand before the first of the year."

"Josette, the other buildings?"

"The stuff in Albatross will be open for the Lights Festival. Their pizza parlor will be wall to wall people for a good six weeks." The others nod. "Sandwich place is officially opening after Thanksgiving. So's the new power production building."

"How's the addition to their growing building coming?"

"Done and they have everything set up and a crop planted. They're spacing things out so they have something growing all winter" The others nod in satisfaction. "Next year they're going to be working on home renovations and planting the first commercial crops. The Sorting planet areas will be ready to start by the end of the semester when the university seniors graduate and start their jobs." Everybody nods in satisfaction.

"Building to sell the fresh fruit and veggies?"

"We're bringing out the flea market building from Killingmesoftly today. Two floors, bathroom, and basement kitchen. Able to be added on to in the future, the only down side is it was meant to be seasonal so there's no heat. We can move into the big building when it gets too cold.

"Will we have the only building?"

"No, there's going to be one in Eureka too at first, possibly the other two planets in a couple of years. Depends on how much business they'd get with most everybody working." The others nod.

"Are you working up a list of prices?"

Josette nods. She looks up at a call and points out the window, everybody looking as a building goes up nearby.

"Tables?"

"Should be in the basement, if not we can make some." Alexander says. "Josette, bags?"

"People will bring their own, bigger stuff will be delivered. Probably offplanet orders will be delivered."

"We'll need crates or other containers on the tables."

"Plastic bags to put stuff like beans and whatnot in, that way they can put everything in a shoulder bag."

"A scale at the checkout." Nods from the others.

The second testing week comes and Josette absorbs her other selves before dinner.

"Plants?"

"I'm heading tomorrow to check on them, the footage shows they're looking good. They should start ripening pretty quickly. Maybe I'll spend a few weeks there and harvest everything before I come back. I need to spend some time at the fortress anyway, see how the robots are doing with the city." The others nod.

"How's the flea market building looking?"

"Good, the generator's going to be tapping a nearby power source for the kitchen, bathroom, and a single register. That will make it easier to expand as needed in the future."

"Tables?"

"There's some and Dad's talking more and boxes to hold the other stuff sold by weight."

Josette goes to the first planet the next morning after splitting off duplicates, returning an hour later with food that gets put in various places.

"Is that everything?" David asks.

"Yes, I've updated the list of what we have in stasis, after Thanksgiving we can decide what we want to plant upstairs." David looks at the lists on the server and nods before they head to lunch.

"Your theses?"

"Working on them and talking with Dad, Grandpa Nathan, and Bruce and Thomas about a project for the Mechanical Engineering requirement."

"No worse than a business plan and the thesis for a MBA." David nods. "I'll have time to work on it next summer since we won't be so busy next year."

"Everything seems to come at once."

"This year was rushed since the crops went in late and we only harvested twice." Mom says, kissing them on the temple when she comes into the back room, filling a tray and sitting down. Josette nods. "That's why I didn't take classes over the 2nd break, normally everything was quiet since the crops were just in and I could relax. This year we had the orders for the university students graduating in a couple of months."

"All the new businesses coming in." Lois says.

Everybody nods. "We're recovering from the loss of the other Earth and moving forward. Things just all happened to come at the same time this year."

"We've survived years like this before." The others nod.

"When do Clarinda and the others come back?"

"They'll be in their new homes for Thanksgiving, Thomas and the others will be heading to Eureka after that. They start their new jobs the first of the year. That gives everybody time to get settled in before they have to start work."

"No throwing anybody in the deep end their first day." Ma murmurs as she comes into the room.

Everybody nods.

"Are you two stocking up on supplies for the winter?"

"Yes, it's early but it's better to stock up now and miss the rush after Thanksgiving. We've had to stock up on most everything after last year."

"Let me know when you're ready to go back and I'll deliver everything for you."

"Thank you Josette, that will be perfect. They're getting everything ready for us. Otherwise we'd have to use a couple flyers and wagons."

"I thought you two must be scraping the bottom of the barrel on a lot of stuff." Anna says. Mom and Ma nod. "Even with getting the big 40 pound bags of rice, flour, sugar, coffee, cornmeal, and other stuff that won't go bad. Speaking of which?"

"I took a batch of wheat to the manufacturing satellite a bit ago, it should be ready after Thanksgiving. If we start running low again before next years harvest I'll bring some out from the ships." The others nod.

"When will the last hay be cut?"

"Couple of weeks, this next crop won't be big enough to cut before the frost kills it."

"Can't be helped and it will act as compost for next year." Ma says. "We've been damn lucky since moving to Haven. I remember years when we didn't have other harvests to fall back on and had to buy feed for the animals when an early frost or a drought took our crops."

"We're damn lucky we got so much this year. We've had years where we had to harvest after it snowed, but we'd been able to get in a full year's worth of crops. This year we weren't able to but we adapted."

"Yes we did, and this year will show everybody why we're lucky to be able to harvest three times." Nods from the others.

"Did you finish your degree?"

"Yes, that's the first classes I started, I finished the last one just before the first testing week, along with a couple classes for the history degree. I finished the year for the history degree and a couple classes for the other degrees before this testing week."

The hay's cut a couple weeks later, drying in the fields before being rolled into bales and put under cover. The next day Josette heads off with the others but David for their third testing week, dressing warmly since it was the middle of winter on Archimedes.

"Did you get the third hay crop in?" Dr. Cross asks when Josette joins them at the table.

"Yes, once the frost kills off the last crop I'll cut it and leave it in the field to compost for next year."

"Are you ready for winter then?"

"Yes, it's strange not seeing the crops starting to ripen in the fields the closer we get to finals."

"Are the students who are moving to apartments on Haven ready?"

"Yes, everybody moved what they could this summer, everybody will start heading off after Thanksgiving."

"Is the construction finished?"

"Yes, the pizza parlor and power production building will be opening in Albatross after Thanksgiving. I'm sure it will be asshole to elbow people until the first of next year." The three men nod, chuckling. "The addition to their growing building is finished and they're planting early, timing crops so they have something growing at all times." Dr. Stark nods in satisfaction. "Town's is starting after Thanksgiving as usual, we're farmers we know to plant early. The communal gardens are looked at as a second source of food, not the first."

"That may change after people run out of canned fruit and vegetables and they have to replicate or wait until the new crop ripens."

"Possible. We've become spoiled by three harvests a year, the hard winter we had last year and only two crops this year should knock some of that out of us." The buzzer sounds to end the morning session.

"So how's David coming along on his theses?" Dr. Cross is asking when the others join them at the table.

"Whining about having to work on a project as well as do a thesis for the Mechanical Engineering Masters." Dr. Stark snickers.

After lunch Josette heads back to Haven, absorbing her duplicates before joining the others for dinner. The weeks pass quickly and soon Josette's coming back from her finals with the others. The graduating university students are congratulated by their friends and teachers at Thanksgiving a few days later and start heading off to their apartments or to other planets, the cleaning robots coming in and cleaning the now empty dorm rooms.

The canned goods and other food is passed out, everybody looking at emptier than usual shelves. More than one person suddenly realizes just how much not having a third harvest hurt them this year. After Thanksgiving Josette cuts the hay in the fields, letting it compost for the next year while heading to the Albatross Nest.

"The kids head off or come back?"

"Yep, everybody's off until the first of the year so they have time to get settled into their houses or apartments before they start work."

"That's nice of them. Letting the kids get settled in instead of chucking them into the deep end their first day and letting them sink or swim on their own. And speaking of sinking or swimming on their own, are there any complaints about not enough canned fruits and veggies."

"No, people realize that it was their own damn fault for not planting enough. They were told that with the late storm there'd probably only be two harvests and to plant extra. They didn't want to and now they have to pay the price for it." Nods from the others. "Everybody in Albatross planted extra, I know you did too on the other continent."

"Yeah, we made the fields half again as big for the hay and other animal food crops, it wasn't that much more work to enlarge the human food fields. Even if our kitchen garden is ten acres now." the others snigger.

"Josette, sugarcane?"

"At the manufacturing satellite to be made into new types of sugar. We've got plenty in storage, this gives us the chance to experiment." The others nod in satisfaction around them. "Including cane syrup vinegar."

"Tapping the trees?"

"We'd planned on it next year, hopefully we'll be able to."

"Yeah, this year it was too cold during the day . . .not to mention all the snow." Everybody sniggers.

"It was a good year for quilts though." Everybody nods and they turns their attention back to the kits after eating. Josette 'flips' the bags back to her workroom and pulls on her stocking cap, gloves and matching scarf in a deep wine red with white accents, pulling on her heavy coat with fake fur lining before heading back to the dorm. She brushes off the snow when she enters the front of the dorm, putting up her outside clothes before heading down the hall to the storeroom to bring out kitty litter and animal food. Filling the animal dishes with food and water she feeds the fish and then empties the litter boxes.

Washing her hands she joins the others putting their outside clothes on to head to lunch. After lunch Josette and David head into town to talk to Dad Sanders, Doc, and President Bartlett about the elastic factory that's going to be coming out.

"Plastics?"

"Starting up after the first of the year." Josette sends them the details on the packaging and they nod in satisfaction. "They'll have to switch the forms for the different styles and the brushes, we can do that as they're needed." Nods from the others. "After the elastic will be the toothbrushes, the toothpaste factory is going to be starting a batch next spring." They nod. "That will give us the machinery to insert the bristles for the hairbrushes as well as the toothbrushes."

"After that?"

"Shoelaces, thread, dish and clothes detergent. The others as needed." Nods from the others as they head back to the school, Doc joining them in the back room for dinner and heading back to Headquarters. The next day they head off to the other dimension, coming back a long time later for them but an hour to the outside world. The next day Josette, Clark, Thomas, and CJ head off to the other dimension with some of the others, returning an hour later. The next couple of weeks pass and the Lights Festival comes, the new buildings decorated to match the season. They head to Albatross the second day, talking as they walk the streets of town and look at all the decorations before Josette picks up the pizza and subs from the pizza parlor and they head back to the school for a late dinner.

"Are you taking a full semester for the cooking degree?"

"No, only 3 classes since they're so intense." The others nod.

"Finishing a degree?"

"The second degree for multiple degree dyeing curriculum, they're working the hands on portion right now, it will be a couple years though so we don't duplicate projects." The others nod. I'm only taking 10 classes on the school computer, I'll finish the other degree I'm taking four classes at a time so I finish two of them at the same time again." The others snigger. "Wha? Finishing one degree one year and one the next gets annoying after a while." More sniggers from her loving family and she flips them off with a smirk. "Just because you plebes only finish one degree at a time. . .or two in David's case. . .and you've got to start working on your project this year." He nods. "Do you know the girls will be two years into their degrees."

"Three more years after that and we'll have another Ph.D and Susan will be a year from her Masters."

"Three more years and you'll be 95. Tinya and her group will be out of the house working, Jason and his group will be juniors, and the babies will be in third grade." Josette flaps a hand at David in mock-irritation, everybody seeing the amusement in her eyes. "Yes I know, we're going to have to start thinking about babies again, we're going to have as many kids as I am old pretty soon." The others snigger.

"Thirteen more years and the school closes down." Alan shakes his head. "Do we have a schoolroom set up for future kids?"

"Yep, I've been working on it for the last couple of years since the school opened again." Josette leads them off, everybody nodding in satisfaction at the rooms set up for future children.

"Are the offworld children starting kindergarten with ours next week?"

"Yeah, they're younger but pre-school and kindergarten isn't all that intensive and the teachers will decide at the end of the year whether or not they can handle first grade of they need to wait another year. If they do, they'll take extra classes when they're older so they start high school with our monsters."

"Are the apartments ready for the students graduating this year?"

"Yep."

"When do you start working on everything?"

"Tomorrow. Another reason I only plan on taking three cooking classes, I'm already going to be gone for hours with work and my classes." The others play the world's smallest violin and Josette pouts.

"And you'll be enjoying every second of it." They snort. She laughs.

"Do we have students graduating?"

"Yes, about seven, eight hundred a year for the next three years then every other year or so until it's just the youngest kids."

The next morning Josette splits off five duplicates that head to the candle, soap, glassworkers, the potters, and Hank's building before she joins the others walking to breakfast, heading upstairs to start working on a quilt when she comes back to the dorm, Alexander and Michael heading off to Hank's, Susan and Alan to work in town, while the girls and David work on their papers. The first week of the year passes quickly and it's the night before school starts, Josette and the twins heading to the meeting of teachers and staff members before school starts.

The next morning Josette splits off a number of duplicates before breakfast that head to work or start classes then joins the others walking to breakfast.

"How is everything coming along?"

"Good, I'm working second shifts with the others working on stuff for the vampire planet, our stuff is being worked on the first shift if we're making multiple batches." The others nod.

"Government meeting after breakfast?"

"Yeah, to talk about how things are going."

"Anything new?" Doc asks a couple hours later at the boardroom. Josette puts a hand up then covers her mouth with an arm and belches.

"Sorry 'bout that, but I was thinking. Something like meals on wheels? Deliveries of meals from the communal kitchen for elderly who don't have family or are infirm and can't cook for themselves. Right now we're all pretty healthy but it might be something to think about for the future."

"Doesn't Albatross do something like this?" David asks.

"Yeah, they have a bunch of people who prepare a week's worth of meals at the church and freeze them for delivery to people who are under the weather."

"Thankfully we haven't had to deal with most of the problems of old age. Including dementia." Nods and silent prayers of thanks from the others.

"Wellness checks."

"The person delivering could do that as well. Bring a day's worth of meal containers in the morning and pick up the previous day's containers." Nods from the others as they make plans for that in the future.

"Anything else? Josette, the flour?"

"Picking it up in a couple of weeks along with the sugar. The cane syrup is in casks, one aging normally into vinegar, the other I added something to turn it to vinegar sooner."

"Trees?"

"Tapping them in a couple of months when the days are warm enough for the sap to run but it's cooler at night." Nods from the others. The meeting ends and everybody heads back to the school. Doc heads back to Headquarters and Josette heads upstairs to work on her latest quilt until lunch.

The weeks pass quickly and Josette heads off with the others but David for their first testing week.

"How is David coming along on his project?"

"Good, he's working on it when he's not on teacher and he'll have plenty of time to work on it this summer when he's not taking classes." Josette says. "Keeps him out of mischief. . .like hinting that we need more children."

Dr. Stark smirks at her as Dr. McNider chuckles. "Well your babies are in kindergarten this year."

"Yes, and I'm turning 91 years old damn it."

"And you don't look a day over 90." Dr. Cross chuckles. Josette rolls her eyes.

"Are you starting new degrees?"

"Yes, I'm taking three classes for the cooking degree and I'm going to take a semester for the chemistry degree." The three men nod in satisfaction. "I'm only taking ten classes on this system so I'm finishing both degrees I take four classes for at the same time just like the degrees I take three classes for. Finishing one degree one year and the second the next is annoying." The three men snicker. "Well it is." Josette chuckles.

"Speaking of finishing degrees?"

"I'm finishing the second of three degrees on dyes this semester and with the school computer degree should be finishing five degrees this year and four next."

"Five?"

"Dyes, buttonmaking, both from Assyrian. Sherlock and Doctor Who from Montague," Chuckles from all three men, "and the China conflict from the history school."

"Four next year?"

"The two hands-on from Assyrian and Edinborough, Cambridge, and Oxford."

"Do we want to know how many degrees this makes you've got finished?"

"25 bachelors, a Masters, and 2 Ph.Ds that I haven't graduated with at the end of this year."

"I'd threaten you with a graduation ceremony but we're busy with the students who finished their degrees last year." Dr. Stark smirks. "And you've started a new school. . ."

Josette blows him a raspberry. The others laugh as the buzzer sounds to end the morning session.

Josette slides into her seat at dinner after absorbing her other selves that were at the dorm, she'll get the others working the second shift after dinner. They arrive back at the dorm later that night, being absorbed up in Josette's workroom. The next couple of weeks pass quickly, Josette looking in satisfaction at everything being made for the apartment complex on the vampire planet before she heads off to Eureka for her second testing week.

"Josette, beer?" Vincent asks at lunch.

"I'm working on a batch right now, I'll bring out a couple more kegs from the last batch in a couple of days."

"Thank you. Peppers?"

"Planting them, another heirloom tomato, and more herbs in a couple months."

"Excellent."

"How is everything coming along for the vampire planet?"

"Good, we know it's just a drop in the bucket but the shelves are beginning to fill. We're taking the first delivery of furniture out after our finals. We'll take a second batch out before the Harvest festival and the third before the lights festival, taking out some of the smaller stuff then too."

Nods from the three doctors.

"Toothpaste?"

"Started the next batch earlier this year, we should be running out just as this batch is finished."

"Warehouse factory?"

"Elastic, then the toothbrush factory." The next day Josette splits off duplicates before breakfast, settling in her workroom behind her sewing machine to start putting together the blocks for a quilt until lunch. She suddenly disappears, David blinks in the doorway but counts off seconds until Josette appears again. . .this time from the old fashioned cupboard that had appeared in the corner of the room. She walks down a flight of three steps as around them other cupboards appear.

"Do I want to know?"

"No, no you don't." Josette sighs. "How long was I gone?"

"Only a few seconds, I'd just come up to see if you were ready for lunch."

"Yeah." She follows him out into the hallway, going downstairs to put on her outside clothes with the others.

"How long until we start tapping the trees?" Lois asks when they're in the dining hall.

"About a month, by then it will be warming up during the day but still cool at night." Nods from the others.

"The graduation ceremony."

"Dr. Stark's got it in hand, it's going to be this summer. This way he can't torment me with another graduation ceremony." Anna sniggers as she comes into the room. "D'awwww."

Josette rolls her eyes. "Next summer will be the ceremony for the students graduating this year, then so on until all the university students have had their ceremonies. And yes, we'll have one for GD employees in there somewhere. Probably after I've finished the first degree from the Naval Academy so I'll have another quick change to go through on stage." Her loving family sniggers at her. She flips them off. In the front room Principal Madison snickers.

"Tormenting Josette again?" President Bartlett looks at the screen to the back room.

"Talking about the university students graduation this summer and how they should be having one for the GD employees in a bit. Probably after Josette's finished her degree from the Naval academy so she has another change of cap, gown, and collar on the stage. The others weren't impressed by her complaint."

"How far are the others?"

"David's going to be a year into his comic book degree and 21 classes into each of his Masters. He's working on his project and theses when he's not taking classes this year since last year was so busy bringing things out." the others nod. "The girls will be two years into their Ph.D's and Susan's Masters this year, they're working on their papers while they're not working. Alexander and Michael are going to be three years into their degrees and Alan two years into his. I think Dr. Stark plans on having a graduating ceremony in Eureka when the others all have at least one degree finished in a few years. That will have Tinya and the others graduated from university and the students finishing high school this year still in university." The others nod.

"How are they coming along on the vampire planets orders?" One of the other teachers asks.

"Good, they're taking their first batch of furniture in after their finals according to the last meeting. Then again before the Harvest Festival and again before the Lights Festival. The last trip they'll be bringing out some of the smaller stuff too."

"Toothpaste?"

"Started the next batch a couple weeks ago, we should be just running out of the last when this one is ready for deliver."

"What factory is coming up this year?"

"Elastic, next year will be the toothbrushes so we have the machinery to put the bristles in hairbrushes as well as the toothbrushes. If it can't handle them, we'll replicate."

"Don't we have the machinery to do that at the plastics factory?"

"No, they'd take the hairbrush handles and do that elsewhere."

"One of the reasons the world was in such bad shape, instead of seeing from beginning to end." President Bartlett snorts. "But then that's why we were making plastic cases and something electronic, both were sent somewhere else along with who knows what else to be put together."

"Are we going to have enough fruit and vegetables from the first sorting world crops to sell here?"

"Probably not, but we will the second. The first new crop is always an experiment." Professor Druid says. The others nod.

"Josette, the offworld olives?"

"I'm bringing out a small press later this year, should have the first batch of oil the end of this year or early next. I'll check on them when I go to plant the peppers, herbs, and tomatoes."

"Is Clark finished with his 2nd world lab?"

"Nearly, I'm taking the last batch of supplies out and we'll be installing the switching station between the lab and Headquarters after my finals."

After lunch Josette heads back upstairs, looking at the cabinets around the room and patting one before she settles back behind the sewing machine. A couple weeks later she flies out to the sugar maples, checking on the trees and starting to bring out the supplies for tapping the trees. The next week the sap starts running and Josette splits off a duplicate to head to the first planet to plant the raised bed, bringing out the pressing station, bottles, labels, and capping station.

"Barrels for the other olives?" Hanover asks over the link on her belt.

"Yes, I'll have to bring some out. And with so many olives growing we can let some of them mature to black olives, slicing them as needed for pizzas or whatnot." Josette looks around in satisfaction and flies back to the ship, coming back to Haven where she replicates more barrels, putting them on the ship for the next trip back.

"Do you do this every year?" One of the helpers bringing the sap buckets in asks.

"No, only when we're running low enough to be out during the year. Then we replicate or use what we have in storage until we can tap again. Usually it's every three to four years. More often if we keep going and make some of this into maple sugar, not just maple syrup."

The rest of the semester flies by and Josette nods in satisfaction at the shelves of maple syrup and bags of maple sugar before heading to Eureka for her finals with the others but David, who's busy working on his project and waves a hand as they walk out.

"David working on his theses?" Dr. McNider asks as Josette slides into her seat.

"Project, he waved a hand in our direction when we left." Josette says. "A good five months of work should have it and at least one of the theses at a stage where it can be finished next year." The three men nod.

"What are you doing over break?"

"Finishing the degree on Doctor Who and starting the fourth year for my buttonmaking degree. I'll finish that next semester and get in a class from Oxford to be three semester in for that and Cambridge. I'll finish the degree on Sherlock and the China conflict degree this fall."

"Did you bring the elastic factory out?"

"Yep, it's being looked over right now." Josette stretches in the chair and yawns as the buzzer sounds to end the morning session.

"What's your plans for the rest of the week?"

"When the boys are finished with their finals we're taking our first batch of furniture to the vampire planet, before that I'm off to deliver supplies to Doc's 2nd planet lab and setting up the switching station and botany section."

The next day Josette, CJ, and Clark head off to the second planet, working weeks getting everything installed before coming back. Clark pretends not to see Josette crossing her fingers behind her back at they use the switching station for the first time. CJ sniggers and Thomas smiles.

"Is David working on his project?" Bruce asks, coming into the room.

"Yes, we figure five solid months will have it and at least one of the theses at a spot where he can finish them next year. Having so much stuff coming up last year knocked his schedule to hell and back."

"How's the girls coming along on their papers?"

"Working on them during the breaks and when Susan's not working. They'll be two years into their degrees the end of this year."

"Susan and David should be finishing their degrees about the same time?"

"Should, David's taking one more class a semester but she's been going longer."

A couple days later Josette, Alexander, and Michael head off to the vampire planet, accepting the first payment for the furniture they're delivering. They return to Haven a few weeks later for them, the first payment being sent to Hank's account. He nods and makes a note of that in his records.

Josette finishes the classes she'd wanted over the break, looking at the plants just poking their heads out of the ground.

"What a difference a year makes." Alan says, coming up behind her from taking care of the animals and checking on the eggs now that the chickens are outside in their mobile coops. He's got a pail about half-full of eggs in his hand.

"Not a bad haul for the chickens just starting to lay again." He nods as they walk into the ranch, cleaning the eggs and putting them in stasis back at the dorm.

"Get your classes in?" David asks, pulling himself away from the laptop where he'd been updating the progress on his project.

"Yes, I'm one semester left for the buttonmaking degree and I've got the degree on Sherlock to finish along with the school computer degree."

"Are you taking classes 2nd break?"

"Probably, I want to finish the first year for my chemistry degree. Get in a year for the musical instruments degree too."

Josette heads off to the first planet a couple days later, delivering the barrels for the olives and checking on the peppers and other plants before heading off again to do some harvesting from the other planets. She returns to Haven six months later for her and slides into her seat in the back room.

"Get everything you needed to do offplanet?" David asks.

"Yeah, I've got in all the supplies I needed, checked on the plants on the first planet, and spent some time running experiments that GD and Doc has wanted done." Josette yawns. "I need a nap."

"How is the elastic factory coming along?"

"I gotta check on it this afternoon, and Doc and I are heading to the sorting planet tomorrow to see how everything's coming along at the paper, glass, and plastics factory."

"I should be going with you instead of Doc."

"Your project and theses are more important, Principal Madison has a meeting with Dr. Stark about the graduation ceremony next weekend, and President Bartlett has classes. So it's Doc and I this time. That's why we all make sure we know what we're doing at the meetings and can pinch hit at a moment's notice. You just want a break from your papers and the project but you need to keep your eye on the prize, your nose to the grindstone, and all that other stuff." Josette flaps a hand as everybody laughs. "I gotta deliver some of the cotton, pick up flour, and see how the commercial crops are going anyway while I'm there."

The others nod. "When are they going to start commercial crops on Archimedes?"

"They start in a couple of months, about the time our first crop comes in. That's the same time we're going to be bringing out Eureka's copy of the flea market building."

"Are the sorting planet and Archimedes going to get first dibs on the food?" Lana asks. David and Josette nod. "They'll be able to place orders for food, some of it's going to be canned, dried, or otherwise preserved, and the rest will be split between the two buildings for sale. We're not expecting much at the beginning but it will be nice to have fresh fruit and veggies in winter."

"And it won't have to picked super early to send across the country." Maria says. The others nod. "Fresh picked at the height of ripeness as the old commercials used to say."

A couple weeks later Josette heads to the first planet again, picking some of the peppers to put in stasis and dry before they turn colors as well as the early tomatoes and some of the herbs, stopping first on the vampire planet and accepting a sandwich from Adam as they talk about the prices for the peppers. Traveling to Eureka, she and Vincent haggle over everything as she puts bottles of wine on his shelves. They come to an agreement and Vincent sends her the payment before Josette checks on Franklin and Madelyn then heading back to Haven, spending the next couple of days braiding some of the peppers into wreaths and putting them outside to dry.

"The offworld harvests?"

"The ones I just pick up should start coming in soon, the ones we actually harvest a couple weeks after that."

"Our crops?"

"We should start harvesting next week. I see most of the people in town have full gardens." Susan chuckles.

"Now they know once they're out they're going to have to settle for replicated until the winter crops start coming in, just like we told them." Josette says piously, then grins.

"Are we working on tortillas eighth day?"

"Yeah, get them finished and in the freezer before we start bringing in the crops. Once those are in and the next crops planted I'll be busy bringing in the offworld harvests." The others nod.

"Your classes?"

"Getting along good on them."

Josette brings in the last baskets of food into the kitchen a couple weeks later.

"Is that everything?" Mom Sanders asks, looking up from the sink as a dozen Josettes bustle around the kitchen. Another half-dozen are at the Covingtons and another batch are at the Kents to help with the canning.

"Yes, the plants are pulled and in the compost bin." Josette says. "Thanks for coming out to help."

"I'm bored to tears on Archimedes, the kitchen garden is in and James is in Albatross going over the plans for the home renovations the others want since David's busy working on his Masters project and papers." Mom waves a hand towards the link to the dorm where her son is slogging away. Beside her Hannah is standing on a stool, washing the food in the sink and passing it along. Once everything is done she stacks the baskets together and starts sweeping up the dirt on the floor, dumping it outside.

"Did you keep the larger garden?"

"Yes, I wanted to try some new recipes and it won't go to waste. Everybody in town planted full gardens after running out of canned fruits and vegetables and having to make do with replicated until the winter crops ripened." Josette shrugs. "We told them to plant extra since we'd only have two harvests last year."

"People have to learn for themselves." Mary says, nodding as they start the last batch of food. "I'm sure everybody in Albatross planted extra."

"Yes, because they're farmers. The communal gardens in town were seen as a second source of food."

"We'd do the same thing in Eureka." Mary says shaking her head. "I'm not sure if starting to grow commercially offworld is going to help or not."

"We'll have to wait and see." Josette says as David comes into the kitchen, hugging his Mom and youngest sister. "Everything in?"

"Yeah, time for lunch." The three head off, letting Josette's other selves continue working on the food. They talk about how the commercial growing is going to affect the communal gardens.

"I can't see it, you can make what you want when you have your garden." Lois says. "Right now when we can, dry, and preserve to pass out after Thanksgiving for the winter, it's what's most popular." Maria nods. "And there's always the chance of a short harvest again."

Ma and Mom nod, having been shooed off to eat by the Josettes in their kitchens. They fill their trays and settle at the tables. "We want people to be self-sufficient, yes having offseason fruit and vegetables will be nice but I can't see people getting complacent, not after the kicks in the teeth we've had. We want people to be self-sufficient, that means canning more of their garden to have for the future while buying fresh fruits and vegetables when they're available at the market."

"And like Josette, being able to experiment with different recipes."

"Tomato sauces, pesto."

"Plus at least one field or area a year will be a new fruit or vegetable."

"Did you harvest the rest of the plants on the first planet?" Abby asks.

"I'm going to now that we're done here." Josette heads off after lunch, spending a couple weeks on the first planet but returning an hour later. Cleaning them on the ship she heads back to Haven, stopping on the vampire planet to haggle with Dr. Kane about getting more.

"Are you holding some back?"

"Both in stasis and dried in wreaths." He nods in satisfaction as Josette gets back on Atlantis and lifts off, heading to Eureka this time.

"Is that the last of the harvest?" Vincent asks.

"Until I plant again in a few months." Josette nods. They haggle over the prices of everything and Josette returns to Haven, braiding the peppers into more wreaths and putting everything else in stasis before planting the next crops.

"Everything in?" David asks a couple days later. tapping on the door of her first floor room.

"Until the yearly and offworld harvests start." Josette stretches and yawns, nearly knocking the chair over as she laces her fingers together and throws them up over her head. The cat lying in her lap gives her a disgusted look for disturbing him and she skritches him behind the ear, getting a purr. "Should be a couple of weeks and it will be asshole to elbow until the second harvest comes in and the Harvest Festival. "And it feels good to say that after last year."

Josette is busy in a couple of weeks, slumping into her seat at dinner after delivering everything and accepting payments.

"Is this it?"

"Until the crops come in and the next batch of offworld harvests." Josette says, opening one eye as a tray is put in front of her. Anna shoves a spoon into her hand and she begins to eat. The next morning it's raining like pouring piss from a boot and the others are quiet as they walk to the dining hall for breakfast. They shake off most of the water in the entry and hang up their foul weather gear, it steaming in the back room as they eat breakfast.

"The cisterns needed refilling anyway." David says, looking outside.

"Yes, this way nobody's got to stand pumping for hours to fill them." Josette laughs suddenly. "Something else they're going to have to get used to farming instead of gardening." Ma, who'd come out before breakfast to go to Agatha's after breakfast, laughs and nods. "The cisterns and pumping station to handle the larger fields helps a lot but it takes all day to fill the cistern. Bless the rains, they may make life miserable while they last though some of us forget to wear galoshes so they keep having to dry their feet and change out their socks and shoes..." Josette sniggers as the boys roll their eyes.

"Do you have all the yearly crops in now Josette?"

"Yes, both here and on the first planet except for the olives." Josette yawns and stands up to fill her tray again. After breakfast Josette and Ma head to Agatha's, doing some shopping there then heading to the flea market building and looking through the offworld fruits and vegetables, buying some to take home. Josette stops at the sandwich place and bakery before they walk home and Ma heads to the Kent farmhouse, stirring the hearty stew she'd put in the slowcooker before breakfast then making lunch for herself and the others as Pa and Connor come in from the barn.

"Is that some of the offworld food?" Pa looks at the bins filled with fruit and vegetables Ma's putting in the pantry.

"Yes, Josette and I stopped on the way back from Agatha's to see what they had."

Meanwhile Josette starts a brisket low and slow in her slowcooker and has meat marinating in the refrigerator for jerky.

"Brisket?" David pokes his head around the door, recognizing the spices Josette's putting away.

"and meat marinating for jerky. I'll put the drying racks out for them in a few days."

"Smoke house?"

"Next year, cheese, fish, and jalapenos for chipilotes." Josette looks in on the wreaths of drying peppers before they go to lunch.

"Josette, have we ever thought about the big water wheels to drive machinery?" President Bartlett asks, waving her up to the front table. One of the teachers listens in interest.

"Yes, I've thought of it but the solar panels provide more power unless we had somebody inside the wheel walking in place like we do at the power production buildings." Nods from the others. "There's also the thought of having to find a good sized river or stream for the wheel, which would put it apart from other buildings."

"Meaning anything produced there would need to travel."

"Exactly. With the flyers it wouldn't be that big of an inconvenience but if we had to rely on horses and wagons. . ."

"A good portion of the cost of getting a product to market on Earth was transportation." President Bartlett sighs. Nods from the other teachers. "That's why fruit and veggies were picked early so they could travel cross country or around the world and treated with wax or other stuff to make them look good by the time they arrived."

"And were tasteless since they were picked so early." Professor Druid says, rolling her eyes. The others nod. "Josette, have you been to the flea market building since it opened?"

"Yeah, Ma and I went earlier this morning and got bags of fruits and vegetables."

"How are they moving the food? Are you picking it up?"

"No, I could if they had a lot but right now they're sending somebody through the switching station to have a wagon ready, then the chamber is filled with basically banana boxes filled with fruit and veggies that are loaded onto the wagon and taken to the building. Whatever they've picked that morning is either canned, dried, or otherwise preserved for the future or delivered, either here or there." the others nod in satisfaction.

"Are they only growing fruits and vegetables this year?" President Bartlett asks.

"Yes, they're learning the difference between gardens and crops." Professor Druid chuckles. "Next year they should get the hang of it, and they'll have more helpers with the others finishing their university classes this year so they can expand the fields and crops."

"Is the sorting planet interested in another apartment complex?"

"Yes, we're bringing it out after our fall finals, they're talking about us furnishing it like the vampire planet's buildings when we're done. That will give a crew from Sanders over the winter to work on it."

"Is David getting along well on his project and papers?" Professor Fletcher asks.

"Yes, he's got an appointment with his advisor to go over his progress this fall when he starts classes again."

"How are you coming along on your classes?"

"Good, I finished the buttonmaking and dyeing degrees from Assyrian, I can start the buttonmaking hands-on degree next year but the dyeing degree they're working on to make sure they don't duplicate the projects from the other degree I took. I finished the degree on Doctor Who over the break, that leaves me Sherlock and the China conflict to finish next semester and I'll be a year into the book degree for musical instruments and my chemistry degree."

The others nod in satisfaction. "The girls?"

"Working on their papers when they're not at work or over the breaks in the twins case. They want to present them summer year after next when they'll be a semester from finishing."

Josette heads back to the back room, filling her tray and settling in her usual seat. The others look at her. "Wanted to know if I'd thought of a water wheel for power."

"Solar panels more effective unless you had somebody in it like a human hamster." David says.

"And we'd need a large enough river so it would be pretty far away from everything else. With flyers that's not a hardship but back on Earth where transportation was common it drove up prices. Someplace like the vampire planet where everything's spread out. . ." The others nod.

"There have been communities growing up around a saw or grist mill." The others nod.

"If we hadn't already planned out Town before we arrived, that might have been a possibility. It might happen on the vampire planet."

"Do we have water powered mills?"

"Tons, setting them up for the different types of operation might be a bit of work but we have waterpowered sawmills, gristmills, and woolen mills in limbo."

Josette checks on everything when she comes back to the dorm and goes upstairs. David leans in the doorway, looking at the cabinets and grinning at her. "Shouldn't you be working like a dog on your project?"

"Heading to Eureka in a few minutes to talk to Henry. Sooo, should I be assuming you went dimension hopping again?"

"Yes, I swear I'm the universe's playtoy in cosmic catch and release, pull me from my dimension, stick me in another for however long, then send me back home." David sniggers.

"Should I wonder?"

"Do you know there is a planet where time travel is so fucking common, you can go to a mall and shop in whatever time period you want?"

"Shit, I thought the worlds that were giant malls were bad." David winces.

"Oh yeah, all you have to do is go to a government agency and you can spend your vacation wandering through any time period you want, all you have to do is go down a hall. Don't even have to stay in the same time period, just day trip."

"Jeez." David shudders.

"There's also a underground where you don't even have to contact the government, all you need to do is know the right people and you're in like Flynn. That's probably why I was stuck in a time loop that lasted six days one time, the timestream there is a fucking mess and it took them days to figure out what the cause was. The hotel where I was staying had a fire drill and I spent days getting to the door and then being back in my room, since there was merchandise on the walls I just grabbed changes of clothes and food and stuck it in my duffel bag in case this was the time that I actually got past the door." David shakes his head.

"There's worlds where everything is covered with buildings either from natural disaster, building on worlds that you couldn't live outside, or just because once they started building they didn't stop. You know how the skyscrapers in the other dimension were basically little cities but people still went outside and the trains could take you anywhere in an hour or so, even halfway across the world? Forget that on those worlds, the same hallways that could take you to different time periods on one world could take you to different cities on another. You wanted to go from New York to London, just go down the hall and take the London branchway."

"Shit, the city on the first planet doesn't look so bad now, at least they went outside as often as they could." David heads off to Archimedes, taking a deep breath of air after stepping outside and walking to Henry's to talk over his progress. He returns in time for dinner.

"Good talk?"

"Yeah, Henry gave me a few pointers on what I'd need." David puts down his tray and sits down. "Unless I totally tank my paper, and he's promised to lock me in a room so my parents and godparents can beat me if I do, I'm good for the thesis. Of course that means when I'm done Grammy Allie will start hinting about a Ph.D."

Josette does the world's smallest violin as the others snigger.

"So, that planet you were telling me about. . .the hotel. Technology?"

"No, it's a natural function, they've never figured out how the hell it happens. . .which is why the government really wants to control it. Because a single misstep could cause something like what happened with me at the hotel. Or even worse."

"I can understand."

"Ahhh Jeez Josette, again?" Alexander asks.

"Yeah, I'm the fish on the line in the multiverse's version of catch and release." Josette snorts. "Yank me out of my nice warm dimension and pop me into another, then send me back home." On the screen Principal Madison snorts despite himself.

"Makes you appreciate what you have all the more." Susan says. The others nod. "Offworld harvests?"

"Starting again next year, I'll get another two or three in before we sign up for our fall classes, the crops start coming in, and the Harvest Festival."

The next couple of weeks pass and Josette nods at everybody in the front of the dorm.

"Thankee." She says as David hands her a bottle of Haven Dew. She slumps into a chair and opens the bottle, lap full of purring cats as one of the dogs puts his head under her head to pet.

"Lady Morrigan." She starts to get up to bow.

"Oh relax child, you're dead on your feet. From what the others have said, I can understand." She waves a hand.

"Is that all of the offworld harvests until the Festival?" Alice asks.

"Yes, that way everybody can enjoy themselves but I start right back up again after the Festival. It was rough the harvests and the crops all coming in at the same time but it can't be helped. As it is, all the offworld harvests will be finished by our first testing week. By next year, they'll all be done by the first week of the semester."

"How long until we could harvest twice if we wanted?"

"Atlantis and the other ladies figure three or four years."

"Doc is a Time Lord?" Alan asks after their visitors have left a couple weeks later. Doc had spent hours with the Doctors talking to the cities. David's snickering.

"Yah, that was my thought." Josette says, rolling her eyes. "My life is fucking weird. Oh, I did find out that the cities can link together to become one large planet sized city."

"Shades of Voltron." Michael says. Josette sniggers.

"Did you deliver the second batch of furniture to the vampire planet?"

"Yeah." Josette stretches. "We'll take the last batch along with what supplies we have made up so far after our finals. "You bringing out the apartment complex for the sorting planet then?"

"Yeah, the last of the work that can be done on the outside of the houses in Albatross will be done by then or scheduled for next year with the interior work having been finished. Winter is not the time to be having work done." The others nod.

"So what's Doc's TAR. . .Headquarters?."

"Linked to it, along with the Fortress."

"Do you exist . . .or did exist?"

"Nope, like Clark's world my father wasn't born."

"So does the Doctor exist in that dimension?"

Josette nods. "Yes, and like ours he has the wanderlust."

"Time Academy?"

"What makes you think I'd know anything about it?" Josette says innocently.

"All the new stuff in your workroom?" David snorts.

"Boring ass shit, no wonder the Doctor stole the TARDIS and shook the dust of Gallifrey off his heels."

"Time War?"

"No, they just sat on Gallifrey and moldered away because they forgot to live." Josette rolls her eyes.

"And some of us prefer to grab onto life with both hands and our teeth." Anna says, the others nod as they head off to dinner. The next day Josette heads off with another group of people to harvest offworld, bringing the food out when they return. Josette delivers their portion to the dorm, putting everything away before she opens her textbooks and supplies for the fall classes. and checks on the Josette on teacher.

"How many classes are you looking at next semester?" David asks that night at dinner.

"37, I'm finishing the first year for the musical instrument and chemistry degrees and finishing the China conflict and Sherlock degrees. It's a little more than I wanted to take but it can't be helped. It'll be tough." The others laugh at her.

"Did you plant the raised beds?"

"Yes, I'm off to check on them and the olives in a couple of days. I'm going back after I pick since I'm leaving some to ripen to black olives."

"Did you do a batch of beer?"

"Yeah, next year I'll work on something else." Josette reaches behind her to scratch her back absently. "Unless of course David gets his wish and knocks you girls up again." Michael chuckles as the girls roll their eyes.

"Maybe this time you'd get with the program and catch up with me." Abby smirks at her sister. Anna blows her a raspberry. The others snigger.

"Meeting with your advisor?"

"In a couple of days."

"Did you get to a good stage for the papers and project?"

"Yeah, I should be able finish one of them next year. Henry agrees with me, now I just gotta see if my advisor's on the same page. And duck Grammy Allie's nagging about going for a Ph.D when I finish the Masters."

"Rotsa Ruck." Josette snorts. The others laugh.