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It took almost four months for Miskatonic to recover from yet another publicity nightmare. It took weeks alone for Herbert to examine and write the autopsy reports for the bodies of Maxine’s victims and henchmen. Katherine McMichaels, victim of her own greed, was handled the same way. Everything was in order, except the absence of any mention of the antifreeze still sitting in her stomach. Given the evidence present, the Arkham police concluded Katherine had taken up leadership of her sister’s crew and done the revenge killings. This didn't necessarily look bad for Miskatonic Hospital, but they were eager to rush her cremation and return the other bodies to their families. For once, no police came to question Dan and Herbert. Somehow, the info they’d been anywhere near the scene on the night of Katherine’s death had been lost in the confusion.
Instead, the end of this nightmare brought unusual peace to their home. They had living proof that the reagent worked. Now they needed to inform the public. Much to Dan’s relief, most of the time was spent writing the research paper rather than experimenting. Writing had lower stakes than raising the dead and they got along a little better when there weren’t corpses to argue about stealing. Dan repaired the soul taser gun and Herbert poured over hours of old tapes and notebooks to write the underlying theory of reanimation. Together, they planned to publish a series of papers introducing the procedure of reanimation, the possibilities of the soul transfer mechanism, and discussing the ethics of how reanimation fit into the current health system. Besides those papers, there were the grant proposals Dan was in charge of writing. If their first publication was well received, they would need funding to move forward. Needless to say, they both were busy for the foreseeable future.
Months passed with little interruption of their lives. Maybe the occasional kid came up to their door on a dare or over Halloween, but nothing major. They didn’t have any staunch traditionalist family between the two of them, so Thanksgiving passed without any fanfare. The same for Christmas: the passing work Christmas party was enough. Dan gifted Herbert a heart pin to wear on his lapel. It had a silly message on it, but he thought it was sweet. In return, Herbert set aside an afternoon to watch Star Trek with him. That really made Dan’s week. But proudly, in the week of limbo between holidays and the New Year, a thick brown envelope arrived in the mail.
Dan was the first to wake, which wasn’t saying much on their lazy holiday. The soft snore of his companion drew his sleep-dazed attention. “Herb.” He nudged him. Herbert’s face scrunched. “Hey, time to get up.” Dan shook him gently by the shoulder. It was nearly 10am. Herbert rolled over to the other side and ignored him.
Dan sighed and sat on the edge of the bed. He rubbed his eyes and wrapped a navy-striped robe around him. Brushing his teeth and splashing water on his face did nothing to unseat the drowsy feeling behind his eyes. He wandered downstairs anyway, put on his pair of slippers at the door, and went outside. The bitter cold was a slap to the face and instantly brought him to full awareness. The graveyard glowed white over the hills, covered in fresh-falling snow. He’d have to shovel the driveway again. Nothing like a Massachusetts winter.
He hurried down the snow-covered driveway to collect the mail from the box near the street. To his surprise, there was just the thick brown envelope inside. It was the first piece of mail he’d gotten in a while that wasn’t just advertisements or bills. Dan grabbed it and sprinted back to the house, half-frozen. He looked it over more closely, reading the sender’s name signed only as ‘Gloria’. A smile came to his face.
There was the familiar sound of the coffee machine brewing in the kitchen, so he took the envelope there. Herbert was waiting by the coffee pot, looking barely awake at all. “What’s that?” He yawned.
“Gloria sent us something.” He managed to unpin the tape from one end and out spilled four themed cards. “Christmas cards.” Dan confirmed. Herbert shuffled to his side to get a closer look.
He seemed mostly disinterested. “Hm, it’s a little late for that.” He picked up a mug from the cupboard and poured himself a cup of coffee. Dan read over the card, each from one of the girls each one. They were all different in some way, but all had the same idea.
“They’re inviting us to a holiday dinner.”
“Christmas was three days ago.”
“I know, but it just says ‘holiday’.” Dan insisted, “They’ve got an apartment together and they want us to come by, that’s all.”
“…For dinner?” Herbert clearly saw it as a waste of time.
“Didn’t you say you missed them?”
“I do. But-“
“But nothing. It’ll be good to see how they’ve been.” Dan pecked a kiss on his cheek to sweeten the deal and reached for his own coffee cup.
“Oh, fine.” He grumbled, “Clear the drive, will you?”
Dan was stilled and worked his jaw. Fair enough. “Sure thing, Honey.”
By the morning of the trip, the snowing had thankfully stopped. The car was packed with the map, sandbags, and the bottle of antifreeze. You could never be too careful with icy roads. Dan, warm enough in his letterman jacket and woolen hat, secured a store-bought cheesecake in the backseat. He’d attempted to lead Herbert through making a chocolate butterscotch pie the afternoon before, but their attempts were too unsightly. Tasty, though.
He watched Herbert emerge from the house with his medical bag. Dan thought he looked well-dressed in his black trench coat and scarf, his gloved hand around his new cane. “Ready to go?” Herbert asked.
He nodded, spinning the keys around a finger, “What’s that?” He inquired about the small bag he carried in the crook of his arm.
“Some first aid. In case they need it.” He was right, they hadn’t seen them in months. The condition of their surrogate bodies might have declined, leaving them with a new problem to solve.
“Gotta prepare for the worst.” Dan agreed and got in the car.
Dan pulled the car out of the winding driveway and onto the street. With Herbert watching the map and Dan driving, they were less likely to get lost.
They arrived at the apartment building in less than an hour. It took a little longer to find the right building among the winding layout of identical brick complexes. “The card said 320, right?” Dan asked, weary from squinting at door numbers. He wished he’d brought his glasses.
"That’s it there.” Herbert pointed it out.
“Good eye.” Dan parked the car close to the door, its gold numbering standing out on the red wood. He got out and retrieved the cheesecake. He hadn’t done something like this in such a long time. Last time, he’d showed up to Dean Halsey’s house alone and without a dish to offer. Thankfully, the Halseys already liked him. Now, he was wizened and had Herbert by his side.
They went together across the path cleared of snow and rung the doorbell. Who answered was a young man. His appearance had changed, but he was still familiar enough to settle the slight panic Dan had. “Hey! Doctor Cain, Doctor West.”
“Carmen, great to see you.” Dan couldn’t help but give her a once over. She’d turned the spindly body into one of slender muscle like a dancer. That was especially apparent through her fitted turtleneck sweater. “You look great.” He couldn’t help but compliment. Herbert gave him a glaring look.
“You too.” She smacked Dan in the bicep appreciatively, “What do we have here?”
“Oh- We brought a dessert for the dinner. Gloria’s card said-“ He began to explain.
“Right, that.” Carmen leaned back into the doorway to yell, “Gloria! Cain and West are here!” And then she was gone back up the stairs.
Sharing a glance at each other, Dan and Herbert stepped over the doorframe and shut the door. No sooner were they on the stairs, that Gloria appeared at the top. “Dan! Herbert!” She rushed down and hugged the both of them.
“Gloria-” Dan started but was smothered.
Herbert flinched at the sudden contact, patting her on the back, “You seem lively.” She really did. If not for the faint pale lines where stitches had been, she looked completely healed.
“Aw, thank you.” Gloria looked so pleased, “I'm really glad you both could make it. I mean- you’ve gotta see the place.” She urged them to come upstairs. Up, into chaos.
The immediate room was the split kitchen and living room. Carmen was sprawled by the tv, flipping through channels at great speeds. Two boys sat on the couch behind him, watching it somehow. Angel ran through, carrying a bone of some sort in his mouth and a string of tinsel in his hand. “Angel! You come back here right now!” Sandra chased with a wooden spoon, on her two tall prosthetic legs.
“Inside voices, please!” Attorney Mohlson’s booming voice came from the young lady sat at the table, reading.
“Everyone! Look who’s here." Gloria excitedly announced and took their coats.
“Doctors!” “Infamous West and Cain.” “Hi!" "Hey!"
“Full house, huh?” Dan commented, amused at the disarray.
“Sandra and her boys are just visiting, they have the apartment below. It’s not usually this…out of control.”
“Then it’s fortunate we came prepared to help. Right, Dan?” Herbert hinted.
“Right, uh, I’ll see if Sandra needs any help in the kitchen.” He decided and went, careful to step around Angel, who had settled on the floor by the table.
“I, on the hand, am more interested in how this body has been holding up. Any changes we should know about?” He asked her.
“Oh, nothing I’ve noticed. I’m the healthiest I’ve ever been- besides the poor circulation, but Sandra said that comes with being tall.” She rambled.
It’d be easier to observe it for himself. “I’d like to do an informal physical, to be sure.”
“Okay. Saves me a doctor’s visit.”
Gloria shooed the boys off the couch so there was space for an impromptu examination. He sat across from her, setting his cane on the floor. With her, Herbert was mostly interested in her joints. The bones had been set with metal braces, and since removed. He carefully flexed and extended her arms and legs, checking for pain as he went. “Curl your hands to your palms.” He directed, “And straight again? Yes, everything on the outside seems normal.” Herbert turned on his penlight and shone it in her eyes. The pupils shrunk just as fast. This close, Gloria made an observation of her own.
“Hey, we match.” She touched the light band of scarring at the base of her neck, where he’d severed her head from her body. She was looking at his fatal mark, the wound on his neck that Dan had sewn up.
“So we do.” He said, not unkindly. Herbert used his stethoscope to listen to her breaths and the heartbeat between. “You’re right, nothing of note.” He confirmed. For someone her age, she seemed completely healthy. Not even any sign of cancer.
“Nothing like a clean bill of health for the holidays.” She sighed like relief. It was hard to believe there really was nothing wrong at all.
“You’ll have to report if your symptoms are stronger than baseline when you’re sick. It’s likely your immune response hasn’t caught up yet.” He could only scrutinize what should’ve happened in theory. Herbert didn’t believe in luck, the unsatisfying perfection. If something went right, he’d reverse engineer it to do on purpose.
“Will do. If I can still get sick.” Gloria agreed.
“You’ll get sick, you’re not suddenly a god because of that reagent stuff.” Carmen rebutted.
Gloria glared at him. “I think Carmen wants to get examined next.”
“What? I didn’t say anything.” He whined.
“Carmen.” Gloria said sternly and commandeered the tv remote. Still, Carmen didn’t look pleased to be sitting with him.
“It’ll be quick.” Herbert refreshed his mental list of concerns. He didn’t know the woman so much, moreso the body she was in. Knowing it was a drug overdose, he had cleaned the blood prior to reanimation, but he’d still be interested to know if there was unrepaired organ damage. “Follow this pen.” He directed her. Her eyes followed, almost as naturally as she could roll them. The sclera looked healed, no visibly burst vessels, and the pupils responsive. He listened to her breathing and heart, nothing abnormal there.
He could do a full physical, but it looked like she was very comfortable being physically active. “Any complaints with this body?”
“Ah, nothing that can’t be explained.”
He waited for an explanation, but she didn't go on. “…For example?”
“I mean, I’d been having these terrible headaches, but that’s probably because, like, everyone at my job chainsmokes. The line cooks can’t function without it. I think I’m getting used to it, though.” Well, that would do it.
“You may want to find another occupation. You have to be mindful of this body’s given susceptibility to drugs- Second-hand smoke can be just as harmful.” He told her, but she just huffed and crossed her arms. He wouldn’t get through to her as simply as Gloria; It was hard to remember there was a teenaged girl behind this man’s face. “You made a good choice, staying in this body.” Herbert appealed to her vanity. The spoiled teen in her might respond to that.
“Yeah?” Carmen looked at him, mildly creeped out.
“You’ll find it easier to be a dancer, but you have to take care of it as your own. I can understand the change must have been jarring. With you once a woman…” He lowered his voice.
She stared at him, slightly offended. “It was, a little. It still is, sometimes. But I know it’s mine now, and I’ve made it whatever I want. I still wear makeup sometimes and stuff like that.” She said out of spite, thinking he’d be against it.
“Self-creation. there’s nothing more respectable.” He related to that more than she could know.
Carmen seemed surprised. “Yeah. I’ll uh, ask if I can work in the nonsmoker section.” She had gained a new appreciation for him, “Thanks, doc.” She went back to the floor to wrestle for control of the tv remote from Gloria, now with the two young boys as a cheering audience.
Herbert relocated himself to the table, where Rachel Mohlson was. “Ah, Dr. West. You’re just who I wanted to see.” She seemed all too pleased, which wasn’t the usual demeanor people regarded him with.
“Why’s that?”
“Well- don’t let me interrupt, you had something to say, didn’t you?” She was certainly animated. Maybe too much coffee, judging by the number of mugs already on her side of the table.
“I’m conducting follow-up physicals now, so if you’ve had any complaints-“
“Nothing to report, really. But you’re free to examine me.” Mohlson offered. So, he did, rotating and curling her joints, listening with the stethoscope, checking for any sign of sustained injury to her previously crushed trachea. “I was so eager to look over your paper, I’ve been reading it whenever I have free time. It’s brilliant stuff.” She started again.
Herbert didn’t have a clue what she was talking about. “You might be mistaken. Dan and I have a couple publications planned, but the drafts aren’t ready to be read yet.”
“Oh, he didn’t tell you? Dr. Cain asked me to advise you as a lawyer- Of course, by the time you’re ready to publish, I’ll be out of law school.” She explained, “In any case, I think I’ve found your angle: Donations to science. Legislation around those bodies is very loose. You can use that a source for past experiments and future ones.” She emphasized, implying some way to cover up their illegal work.
“The common reanimated patient won’t have choice over a body, but that could work.” Herbert acquiesced.
“Just like a transplant. I knew you’d see it my way.” Mohlson smiled, satisfied.
He was convinced she could be helpful, but he’d have to have a long talk with Dan. Thinking of this, his gaze wandered across the room into the kitchen. Dan was still helping out, enjoying normal company. No matter how long they were together, Herbert couldn’t help but feel he didn’t deserve him. Some joke had made it across the kitchen and Dan looked up, his smile creating sweet creases in the corners of his eyes. He didn’t feel jealous as often, but when he witnessed some inevitable new hire mistake Dan’s generosity for flirting, he felt…almost rightfully pushed aside. Arkham was no place to be Out, and he had no plans to be. Still, it was lonely in a relationship constantly being disrespected by nearly everyone.
“Sandra? She probably needs a physical the most. Every time she’s here- ‘My legs! My back! I’m aging prematurely!’” Mohlson noticed him staring and incorrectly assumed he was looking at Sandra.
“Well- some of us weren’t put into a younger body!” Sandra, playfully, threw a hand towel at Mohlson.
She ducked and resumed reading as if nothing happened. “I plead the fifth.” She said flatly.
“Can I get some extra hands to set the table? Marco, Jesse, that means you too.” She asked.
Taking the opportunity, Herbert wandered into the kitchen too. “If you’re having pain with your prosthetics, I could try to refit them.”
“That’d be a dream.” She dropped a dish of microwave vegetables into his hands, “After dinner.” Herbert didn’t like being bossed, but the dish was scalding in his hands. He opted to port it to the table rather than waste time.
“Mom, do we have to have dinner? We just found a movie to watch.”
“Yeah! It’s brand new too.” The two boys trailed Sandra, apparently her kids.
“Which one is it? I don’t want you watching anything too violent.”
“Home Alone.”
“Hm, alright. Just keep the volume down.” Sandra let them skip the meal. His hiding spot under the table infiltrated, Angel followed the boys. Everyone else took a seat behind a plate.
“Did you see the kitchen? We really gotta remodel ours.” Dan pulled up a chair beside Herbert.
“As if that’s what holding you back.” He replied.
“No, but I think, with new appliances and some more counter space, I could make a cook out of you.” It was rare he ever got to teach him something.
“Look at this. All of us, together, again.” Gloria took a seat beside him, “Last time was-“
“When we were still inside your head. Yes, good times.” Sandra said sarcastically. Mohlson kicked her under the table, causing Carmen to snicker. “Anyway, as I was trying to say, I’m glad our doctors here were able to take time out of their busy lives to come see us.” Gloria continued.
“It’s really no trouble. There’s always time to meet and catch up.” Dan assured. Unlike the average patient, they’d interfered in these four women’s lives by bringing them back to life. He’d like to think that was for the better.
“You have our address, too. If there’s ever an emergency, you’re welcome to visit.” Herbert added.
The dining options were mostly leftovers from the girls’ Christmas dinner. There was half a turkey pre-carved, a few cans of jellied cranberries, and sweet rolls. The green bean casserole was mostly gone and now frankensteined with microwaved carrots and cauliflower. The homemade clam chowder was the real star of the show.
“You made this?” Dan was surprised there was still this much leftover.
“Yeah- but it’s a funny story.” Carmen admitted, “I got this job at diner in town, just to earn some cash while I get back into dancing. I usually can’t cook, but everything in that kitchen just tastes so good. I copied their recipe.”
“Oh- tell them how you almost got us found out.” Sandra butted in.
“I didn’t- look It’s not as bad as it sounds.” Her face had gone red, “We all had to get our bodies’ death certificates reversed, our names changed- whatever. For some reason, mine didn’t go through. So, when my boss tried to put my info in the system, it said I was deceased.”
That surprisingly earned a laugh from Herbert, and several others.
“That, was not your fault. In my case, this girl still has a family: Her parents, some siblings. And they’re paying for my law school so I had to go to their house for Christmas. You’d swear they knew something was off; I just didn’t know how to act around them. I had to tell them I had amnesia just to assuage them.” Mohlson complained.
“At least they still have a daughter. They should be thankful.” Sandra decided.
“And how does that work? Do you take the donor body’s name or your own?” Herbert asked.
“The donor’s name. It’s what they’re calling me at school; It’s just easier.” Mohlson said.
“I tell people ‘Carmen’ is like a nickname.”
“It’s ‘Miss Hollister’ at my office. No one ever bothers to ask why that’s not the name on my id.”
“But that’s ‘cause you work with, like, a huge marketing firm. No one knows anyone’s name.” Carmen added.
“Marketing? How’d you manage that?” Dan recalled she was previously the prostitute.
“I lied on my resume,” Sandra grinned, “I thought, what the hell do I have to lose? It turns out none of those silly qualifications matter if you’re pretty enough. It’s like the trailer park but pays way better and I don’t even have to do anything.”
“And we’re thankful for it. To our breadwinner.” Gloria raised her glass in toast, which the others agreed. It was then apparent that Gloria was being uncharacteristically quiet.
“Now might be a good time to tell them, Gloria.” Sandra said cryptically.
“No, no. Forget it.”
“First you won’t shut up about it. Now they’re here, you won’t talk.” Carmen pushed her. She went all ablush.
“It's alright.” Dan could only gather so much from the others, but could tell it was of an embarrassing nature.
"Well, all the other girls have new identities. I wasn’t sure what to do. I could keep my name but, I…I had something else in mind. I owe my life to you both. So, how does Gloria Cain-West sound?” She revealed.
“Cain-West?” Herbert repeated with a glance at Dan.
“I don’t wanna rush anything between you two- I just wanted to be connected to you both, like family.” She added nervously.
“Gloria, that’s-“ Dan started but couldn’t find the words. A family. More people to give his love to, how could he be anything but overjoyed? “That’s great.” Dan went to her and gave her a hug.
Herbert was equally surprised. He’d picked this name for himself, to distance himself from family. But his creation taking his name, that was another matter entirely. It felt like acknowledgement of what he and Dan had made together. “I don’t see why not. It does have a ring to it.” Herbert said simply and stayed put. But Dan pulled him over and made him join the hug.
“You won’t regret this- I’ll make you both proud.”
At the end of dinner the table was cleaned off, the leftovers packed into the fridge. After Sandra separated two Tupperware meals for her kids, Herbert got to examine her. Like the others, there was no sign of decay. He only found bruising on her amputated legs, which was remedied by replacing the padding in her prosthetics. “Huh. Feels good as new. Thanks.” Sandra stood and walked around on them, “Marco, Jesse, come on, it’s time to go home.” He was almost thankful to see them go. The children whined about having an early bedtime and…something about a snowball fight?
From the window, he spotted Gloria and Dan having a snowball fight in the front lawn. Somehow, they’d snuck out while he was distracted. Herbert retrieved his cane and coat and went down to the front door. “Danny! Gloria-come back inside now! It’s too cold for games.” He called.
“Aw, but I was just getting started!" Dan wound his arm in classic baseball fashion.
“Come on- help me out here!" Gloria hid behind a snow wall.
There was no way he was going out there to entertain this, let alone pick a side. Then one of them got the bright idea to aim at him, and he just barely managed to shut the door, avoiding the snowball that landed splat on the door a second later. It didn’t take long for them to come to their senses in the cold, and he was there to brush the snow off their coats. “I don’t know why you insist on being outside in this.”
“Just havin’ a little fun. Nothing wrong with that.” Dan let himself be picked over.
“I think we should be on our way home.” Herbert told her.
“Sure. Don’t be strangers. I’ll let the others know you’ve gone.” Gloria smiled. He could appreciate that, not having to stick around for drawn out goodbyes.
“Oh, you’ll be seeing more of us for sure.” Dan assured her and allowed himself to be pulled out the door. “That was nice, wasn’t it? They seem to be doing pretty well.” He commented when he got in the car, “Everything alright with the examinations?”
“Nothing too concerning.” Herbert reported.
“So, they’re successes?”
“I’d remain cautiously optimistic about them.” He corrected. His mind was really elsewhere, on what Mohlson had told him. “Have you been talking with that attorney? Mohlson?”
“Hm? What are you talking about?” Dan blinked, looking at him briefly.
“She said you let her read a draft.” He explained, insistent for an answer.
Dan’s brow raised with recognition.“…Yeah, I did.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Herbert felt he was to be the one consulted, considering their work was a sensitive subject.
“It was gonna be a surprise. I found us a perfect grant, and a legal question came up. She answered it for me.” He admitted.
A viable grant. Herbert never thought he’d see the day. One step closer to sharing the reagent with the world. “Oh. That changes everything.” His voice softened.
“Yeah, it would.” Dan agreed, “I could have it submitted in a week. Like a new year's present.”
“I see that. How thoughtful of you.” He mocked.
Dan leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. “How about some directions home, hm?” Herbert was content to handle the map, knowing just how he’d equal the gift once they got there.