Daily Updates

From: judyomega@aol.com (JudyOmega)
Subject: GH: Update, Friday 5/22/98
Date: 29 May 1998 14:41:59 GMT

Hi all!  Sorry this is a bit late, and I hope no one's been waiting
in breathless anticipation of reading about Katherine's demise.
In a nutshell, she won't "impact" until Monday, and doesn't
get around to dying until Tuesday, so those events are beyond the
scope of this update...

Be that as it may, there were still some scenes worth watching <BG>:

All the action takes place at Wyndemere, and we start the show
with Stefan placing The Ring on FauxLaura's finger, while RealLaura
wanders outside, still wearing her mask.  Alan, in a very jovial
mood, hollars for a kiss... they oblige.  Meanwhile, Helena
sidles up to Alexis saying she might be needing her later,
and cattily points out Ned and his NotAlexis date (V).
Ned and V toast.  [As an aside, I feel mighty bad for V, who,
once again, is being used as a pawn in some other couple's
dating game.  Drop these usin' losers and find a guy who
appreciates you!  Don't become the Grace of GH... look what
happened to her on PC!]

On the dance floor, Brenda suggests to Jax that they pretend this is
their wedding dance.  Nik asks Robin to dance.  Edward spies a
wistful Emily watching Nik and Robin, and suggests that she cut in.
Emily balks at the idea, so Edward cuts in, dancing with Robin and
freeing Nik for Emily.  With AJ's continued prodding, Emily finally
approaches Nik, but, instead of asking him to dance, she asks him
where Alan is.

Katherine leaves the party to get Stefan's 'gift', which she's left
in the guest house.  (Little does she know that Stefan's heart's
desire is there right now, but it's not some cheesy pair of cufflinks...)
Nik asks Stefan if he's happy, and Stefan replies that he's happy
that the three of them will be a family at last.  Helena joins them and
comments about how lovely it is to have three generations of
Cassadines together, but the two men look at her as if she were
some noxious thing clinging to the bottom of their shoes.

On the parapet, Luke is busy loosening the railing.  He eyes Helena's
potential trajectory admiringly.  He uncovers Laura's portrait
and then immediately covers his face with his mask.  (I couldn't
help but think that action was significant.  He reveals Laura's
'other past' and then immediately removes himself from it.  It's
the one part of her adult life that he has nothing to do with.)

Meanwhile Laura is in the guesthouse, looking for a trigger to
open the secret tunnel.  The door to the tunnel opens, just as she
spies her old dress.  Katherine enters and finds her there.  Kat calls
for Luke, thinking he's there too.  She accuses Laura of trying to ruin
her wedding.  Laura asks about the dress, and tells Kat it was one
of her favorites.  Laura goes on to say that Kat's ring and dress are
not family heirlooms, and that they were made for her.  "What
about these marks on the ring?"  Katherine asks, thinking they
prove the ring is older than Laura says.  Laura explains that she
smashed the ring on a stone bench... the one where she and Stefan
used to meet.  "Are you becoming a Cassadine?"  Laura finally asks
her, "Or are you becoming me?".  She compares their images in the
mirror and then shows Katherine her invitation.  Katherine tells
her to feel free to poke through all her things and then locks her
in the guest house (apparently, Kat didn't notice the open door
to the tunnel <g>...).

Lucky and Liz find a spot outside Wyndemere to eat their dinner.
They revel in 'living in the moment'.  (While the rest of the
principals in this episode wallow in the past....)

Edward spies a distraught-looking Katherine who's frantically looking
for Stefan.

In Stefan's LauraShrine, conveniently located near the parapet,
Laura finds The Trunk, opens it, and gasps audibly at the contents.
She pulls out a lovely nightgown (which is the one she wore during
the SexWithStefan flashback), followed by Nik's baby shoes (is
there any doubt now, when and by whom Nik was conceived?).   She
then finds the portrait of herself and runs from the room.

Back at the dance, a tipsy Ned walks up to Edward and Kat and makes
some snide remarks about how at least the housekeeper hasn't
poisoned her yet.  Then, Ned sees Alexis and is instantly distracted...

Alan's forsaking the hors d'voures tray and is instead, opting for
his pills.  Amy sees him and confronts him about his drug abuse.
Monica sees them talking and, for some reason, it sets her
adultery-spotting-radar off.

Stefan, who'd been showing V around the mansion, spots a masked
Laura "from across a crowded room" and recognizes her immediately.
He crosses to her and says "Lasha... you're here...".  He indicates
her mask and asks "Why so coy?"  Laura says that Katherine knows
she's here, and then asks him, point blank, what he's doing.
[Updater's note:  This whole scene was wonderful.  Both Stefan
and Laura were unusually candid, and for me, it was a reminder
of how intimate they had once been--not in the sense that lovers
are-- but as old, dear friends.]  "I'm granting myself a life," Stefan
replies "a future... happiness.  Can you begrudge me that?"  Laura
lists the evidence indicating that Stefan's "new life" is merely a
warped image of his old one with Laura.  "I've stumbled onto some
plot.. against me, against my family.. is that it?"  she asks.  "Is
that what you would like it to be?"  he replies.  She continues to
mull this over:  "If not... if there's some other reason..."  She goes
on to say how dangerous this all is.  "To whom?"  Stefan asks.
"You!  and Nikolas... and me"  she replies, and goes on to tell him that
Nik visited her in NC.  Noting that Stefan didn't know about the visit,
she says Nik came to ask her about their (Laura and Stefan's)
relationship. "What did you tell him?"  Stefan asks, as if anticipating
her answer for himself.  Laura's face softens at his earnest tone:  "The
same thing you did..."  she replies.

They go on to talk about Helena.  Stefan assures Laura that Helena
doesn't know they were lovers.   Laura cautions Stefan that if Nik
persists in this line of thought, and finds all this evidence, how
long will it be before he starts to wonder?  And if he can no longer
trust either of them, and looks for answers on his own... what will
he find?  "Is he your brother's son?  Or is he ours?," she asks.
Stefan replies: "What he will find is that he is Prince Nikolas,
the last of the Cassadine princes.  The legitimate heir of the
late Stavros Cassadine."  And Laura, knowing Stefan's pretzel logic
so well, realizes that what he's really saying is that Nik is his
(Stefan's) son, as he would never willingly give up his previous
threat which led to Laura's banishment in the first place.
"You are my son's father,"  she states.  "Yes," he says, at last,
"did you ever doubt it?"  "Yes..."  she says, but then..."no."

Then Laura, ever the realist, turns her attention back to the present
and says that Stefan needs to get rid of that trunk.  Stefan, ever the
idealist, thinks that can wait, and asks her about her conversation
with Katherine.  Laura gives him a brief recap and advises that if he
really loves her, that he should not make her prisoner the way
Stavros did to me... let her go..."  Stefan asks if she's staying or
going back to NC.  "What does it matter now?"  she asks.  "Nothing,"
he replies.  And as a parting shot, Laura gives him a lovely
incredulous look, indicating that no amount of his bullshit will
ever fully obscure the crystal clear view she has of him.

Reality Bites, or back to the dance:

Amy and Alan argue about Alan's addiction.  "Who will people believe?"
Alan asserts, "The town gossip, or the chief of staff?"

Nik asks Emily to dance, while the proud Q's look on.

Alexis asks Helena to adjourn to the parapet.  Helena refuses.  Alexis
tells her she's pregnant (and I don't know how that revelation
would convince Helena to follow her upstairs....).  Ned steps in to
defend Alexis (not hearing the Alexis-is-preggers statement)
and diverts Alexis from her duty.

Time flies... Katherine tries... but doesn't:

Meanwhile, Katherine sees the portrait, which sets off a big
200 watt lightbulb (careful Kat.. your hairdo's probably flammable...)
She confronts Stefan and says he's been molding her into Laura.
He, of course, denies it, but Katherine can see the writing on the wall..
er... portrait (as the date indicates it's a recent acquisition...).  As
Laura approaches the scene, Katherine approaches the parapet.
Stefan insists that none of this matters, as Kat backs up against
the loosened gate, and falls....

end of update... and if all goes well, the end of Katherine too...

-Judy (one-half of the Twin Updaters of Different Fridays)