A New York Story: Chapter 1

Well, here we go - living out of suitcases again.

Lisa chuckled in spite of herself as she opened her training case and proceeded to put some of her personal items in the drawer of the hotel room's end table. Just over a month earlier, the Pythons – sans John and Eric – had traveled to America to promote Flying Circus at a number of its public television stations, and she had accompanied them. She had always wanted to visit America, and she couldn't bear the thought of being apart from Michael for several weeks again. It had hurt enough during the weeks he spent in Scotland filming Holy Grail, and they'd only recently reconnected back then.

Their America visit had dotted the continent: Los Angeles, Dallas, Philadelphia, New York ...all quite cosmopolitan cities that were intriguing, if not a bit overwhelming. She enjoyed visiting some of the historical landmarks, and especially walking through New York's Central Park with Michael and the others. Poor Terry Jones lost a chunk of his fur coat to an ornery horse. They all had a good laugh over it, though deep down she couldn't help but feel a bit sorry for Jonesy. Nonetheless, she'd had a wonderful time and everything was great apart from a few female fans at the hotel trying to get Michael to come downstairs and visit with them. Nothing ever came of it, though. He'd learned from their honeymoon in Barbados not to indulge the fans.

She'd finished putting her things away and sat on the edge of the king sized bed in the middle of the large - by her standards, anyway - hotel room. She became lost in thought as she thought back to that trip and about the present situation. Last time, Eric declined to join them as he was busy filming his new television series. Even though they were such good friends, Michael actually seemed a bit relieved, especially after the events surrounding Valentine's Day. Now, Eric had joined them on this trip to New York. He had been dating his girlfriend, Cheri, for over two months, while he and Lisa remained good friends. Cheri couldn't join them due to work commitments, but Eric had proven that he wasn't interested in anything beyond friendship with Lisa. There was no need for her or Michael to worry.

Her thoughts then turned to the film. So far, they'd had some marginal success with it back in England. She was hoping for a similar reception here in the States. The Pythons had worked hard on it, not only on the filming but also editing and recording the soundtrack album. She hoped it would pay off.

She sighed and didn't realize she'd zoned out until she felt a hand lightly touching her shoulder.

"Lisa?"

She turned and lifted her gaze to find Michael looking at her curiously. "Hm? What?" she blurted, caught unawares.

"Ah, there you are. For a moment I was worried I'd lost you," he joked, a small grin revealing dimples at the corners of his mouth.

"Oh! I'm sorry, Michael," she giggled apologetically. "Just been doing a lot of thinking, is all."

"About?"

She found herself unable to put it all into words. "About everything. So much has been happening the past two months. It's been like a whirlwind. Lot of work. But also great fun." She smiled at him.

His eyes found the floor and he chuckled briefly. "Yes, that would be a good way to describe it. I have to admit, the reception we've been getting for 'Grail' has been better than I'd anticipated. I didn't think it would go over as well as it has. Hopefully our promotion here will pay off as well." He smiled and moved behind her, wrapping his arms around her torso. "And you don't know how much your constant support means to me, love."

She beamed as he nuzzled her neck. "Oh, I'm sure I do," she replied before turning and kissing him tenderly on the lips. He reciprocated by pulling her into an embrace, kissing her passionately and leaning into her. He leaned into her so deeply she ended up falling over onto the bed, where their kissing and caressing continued uninterrupted.

Finally, Michael sobered up as if he had something on his mind. He straightened up slightly, finishing with a tender kiss on her lips and brushing his hand against her cheek.

Lisa felt intoxicated by what had just occurred, but the way he stopped suddenly made her frown. "What's wrong?"

"Oh, nothing. I'd just remembered what I was originally going to tell you." His gaze turned apologetic. "I have to be up at 6 tomorrow for our appearance on 'AM America.'"

Lisa arched an eyebrow. “That early?”

“Yes, I'm afraid. When they said it was an early morning chat show, they weren't joking. It doesn't actually start until 7, but I suppose they want us there early to brief us on what we should be doing and all that.”

Lisa nodded. She understood but still thought it was crazy.

“I'll try to be extra quiet and not disturb you when I leave,” he smiled affectionately. “And we'll have breakfast together when I get back, yeah?”

Her face fell. “I thought we'd talked about it and decided I'd join you at the studio,” she said in a small, disappointed voice.

Michael blushed and lifted his gaze to the ceiling, looking like he wanted to kick himself. “Oh, that's right.” He turned back to Lisa, looking concerned. “Are you sure, love? It's not too early for you?”

Her smile grew wide as she advanced and wrapped her arms loosely around his neck. “I don't care how early it is. I'm here to support you, remember?” she purred. She gave him a soft kiss on the lips that made his cheeks flush and his dimples reemerge behind a satisfied smile.

“Have I ever told you how very appreciative of that I am?” he asked before engulfing her in another deep kiss. Lisa felt herself shiver from the arousal of Michael's tongue entering her mouth and his hands reaching down her back, playing with her bra strap. It ended much too soon as he let her come back up for air.

She took a few deep breaths. “I think so,” she said coyly.

Michael giggled softly, tracing an index finger across her lips. He held her close and kissed the top of her head.

Lisa beamed, her heart soaring from Michael's affection, but she suddenly felt her smile falter when another realization struck her.

Michael seemed to notice and looked at her quizzically.

“I just thought of something... If we have to be up so early for your television appearance, we'll have to make it an early night. I suppose we won't get to see very much of New York,” she explained glumly.

Michael shut his eyes and sighed dramatically. “Blimey, you're right. Well, I reckon those plans to go skinny dipping in the East River are out.”

She raised an eyebrow at him, then gave him a murderous glare, swatting him across the chest. Her glare softened into a smirk. “As if you had ever planned that in the first place. And no doubt the police would catch us. Don't forget, New York City is vastly different from the lochs of Scotland.”

“Yes, Mum,” Michael replied in a sing-song voice, rolling his eyes playfully. “And we just happened to be lucky that that policeman was also a Python fan.”

Lisa felt her smirk slip and she broke into giggles. Michael soon joined her, seemingly glad that she could still joke about their rather embarrassing encounter with the law during their little jaunt soon after the Holy Grail filming.

“But seriously, darling, it's not as though we're only spending one day in New York. We'll have five days to see as much of the city as possible.” He then glanced at his watch. “And it's only half past five. I don't see why we can't still have dinner out, perhaps take in a few sights as well this evening. How does that strike you?”

Yes, typical Michael: always trying his best to make those he cared about happy. The grateful smile Lisa felt tugging at her lips proved that he was successful.

“I would love that, Michael. Thank you.” She gave him a quick kiss on the lips that made his face light up.

“Then shall we be off?”

Lisa nodded and Michael turned, grabbing a dining guide he'd apparently picked up from the lobby when they'd first checked in. He opened the door and held it for her, closing and locking it after he'd joined her out in the corridor.

“All I ask,” she began, pulling a serious face, “is that our chauffeur not be that horse that tried to make a meal out of Terry Jones' coat.”