A/N: Thank you for the reception this idea is receiving, I am so pleased that you are all enjoying this latest musing.

Chapter 8 – Knowledge

There had been so many things to decide before but after the shower things settled down, Logan and Rory prepared the nursery and just went about their day to day lives, friends stopped by on occasion and some days Logan worked from home. It was all mellow, slow even and Rory marveled inwardly at what she could possibly have been afraid of for all these years. Marriage was not scary at all, actually it was comforting. She mused how he had helped her to accept help, to allow the many staff to do their job and even to wear the Huntzberger mantle with style and grace. She had spent a day shopping with Honor, renewing their old friendship, she had lunch with Shira, beginning a sort of friendship, she even went to the club and dined with the whole family for the pretty picture society needed. She was pulled from her reverie when the maid stepped into her view.

"Excuse me mam, but you mother is here, shall I show her back?"

Rory was surprised, her mother hadn't been around since that impromptu dinner, "Of course, send her back."

The maid left and in a short while her mother appeared, "I hope you don't mind my dropping by unannounced."

"Don't be silly, you're my mother, you don't need an invitation, our door is always open." Rory waved her to the settee. "Would you like a drink, as it happens you are just in time for tea, Amanda and I were just confirming what she will prepare and I can have it made up for two." she indicated a discreet nod to the maid, who seemed to take the implied instruction to tell Amanda the tea will be for two.

Lorelai tittered and said in a poor English accent, "You sound like my mother, a tea will be prepared at your bidding by Amanda, you simply can't deign to brew your own cup?" She waved her hand as if holding a kerchief and clutched it to her collar.

Rory took a breath and sighed, "Mom, did you just pop by to criticize and mock or is there a point? Just to clarify, I wouldn't just have tea brought there will be small sandwiches and cake as well. Amanda is the kitchen manager and I like the way she does things, so no, I don't need to do them myself if I don't want to." She rubbed her belly absently and smiled when she felt her son kick.

"Actually, criticism aside, and since We hadn't chatted in a while, I came to see if you needed any help with the nursery." She clarified and accepted the glass of lemonade that had magically appeared. "Love how you have house elves to keep everything spit spot." She sipped the lemonade appreciatively. "Hey, this is real, not the powdered stuff, nice of you to roll out the red carpet."

Rory ignored the dig, it wasn't her that was doing the avoiding."The nursery has been done for a while now, all washed, polished and ready for our Bill here." She pats her tummy and sipped the lemonade as the maid returned with a tiered tray of small sandwiches and petit fours with napkins and plates she set in front of each woman.

"How do you do that? I mean, do you communicate telepathically, are they on a radar like ants and you are the queen?" Lorelai teased as she plucked a sandwich from the tray and placed it on her plate."You don't even need the Ant-man helmet." she chuckled.

"No, you just came at teatime,as I said earlier, it happens that I have to eat four or five times a day, just small meals to keep me from being ill." She placed a few sandwiches on her own plate and draped the napkin across her knees.

"You are still having morning sickness, but you are due in what; 2 weeks?" Lorelai was aghast, "Why didn't you tell me kid? I would have had Sookie send you some gingerbread and stuff. I could have had Luke make you mashed potato like when you had chicken pox."

Rory picked a few more sandwiches and placed them on her plate pouring lemonade and offering more to her mother, "I didn't want to bother, you are busy enough with the Dragon Fly and Annex, I have staff to fuss for you."

"Wow, did you just hear yourself? You sounded like my mother; you have staff." She mocked in a fake English accent, again." I bet you say, 'rather and quite' more frequently now too."

Rory sighed and thought, 'Eliza Doolittle she ain't.', "Well I am a Gilmore-Hayden come Huntzberger, it kind of goes with the territory." The maid appeared and poured a coffee for Lorelai and more lemonade for Rory they were both now enjoying the small cakes.

"Did you just three last name me? Me your life giver was just reminded of your position in society, tell me you aren't shopping with Francine any time soon." Lorelai sounded a bit scandalized by the thought.

"Actually, Grandmama was just here last Tuesday with Grandma Emily and Shira, we played canasta, it was a lovely time." She returned in mocking high born tone, "Honestly mom, let's put the barbs down and I will show you Bill's room." She used the table for leverage as she rose and waved her mother to follow.

Lorelai reluctantly tagged behind and shook her head knowing the table would be pristine by the time they returned.

The room was picture perfect, it had a stunning cherrywood crib, that would one day be converted into a twin sleigh bed, a classic changing table perfectly stocked with items to change baby, there was also a rocker glider, built in bookcases that housed books as well as stuffed toys, pictures, and various other accents. She took note of a video baby monitor, crystal mobile that depicted the galaxy and the floor was covered on a bright cushion of alphabet and numbers ready to launch the next generation into his privileged destiny. Lorelai barely held in her disdain.

"Fancy smancy, does it have a warmer for his hinny wipes, can't have the heir using unwarmed wipes now can we?" Lorelai scoffed and shook her head.

"Point of fact it does, it was a gift from Lane, you know my best friend since I was five and she also gave me the baby Beethoven he will surely listen to at night, she swears by it. Mom, I know it's not how you raised me, but it is how I am choosing to raise him. He will never have a want or need unmet and I am more than okay with that."

"Are you saying you needed things I didn't give you kid, that I neglected you?" Lorelai was indignant.

Rory took a breath and held back on repeating the memory of her leaving baby Rory in a bucket, and placed her hand on her belly, "Mom, you were a sixteen-year-old runaway, we lived in a potting shed behind an inn and took meals with the staff. Did you ever think sending me to one of the most prestigious schools on the east coast on a bus with a horrendous yellow backpack might have been just a little bit embarrassing?" She held her fingers up with a gap to emphasize the little bit. I came home most weekends from Yale, even after I was twenty-one. Yes mom, my needs were unmet, mostly I needed you to be an adult, but you were a kid, and I know you did your best…"

Lorelai raised her hand and cut her off, "Jeez Kid, I didn't know you had it so rough." Her tone was dismissive.

"As I was saying, I know you did your best, but I am older, a college graduate and married, of course things will be different for Bill." She sighed, "Do you want to see the rest of the upstairs, I know you haven't seen it since I took over, I think you will love the master bedroom." Rory tried to lighten the mood.

Lorelai took in the remaining rooms and when she got to the master bust out laughing, "Is that a round bed? A round bed in a house that has been deemed a historical landmark?! I can't believe that you, who deigned to three name me, has a round bed!" she laughed full and aloud.

"Logan laughed too, I just wanted something, I don't know, but just not fully Emily approved. I thought of the movies we used to watch from the sixties, and this just seemed, well perfect." Rory explained with a lilt of laughter, "I just needed it to be my room and not her and Grandpa's."

"Mission accomplished, has she seen it? Please tell me you took pictures when she saw it." Lorelai continued to chuckle.

"No, grandma won't come upstairs, she might when Bill comes home, but for now she stays downstairs only. She doesn't wholly approve of my decorating choices, but conceded that I am young, so forgiven my folly."

It was at that moment Lorelai realized that Rory had grown up, that she was part of society but still her daughter, still the Stars Hollow princess; and it made her smile.