Midnight Bayou

Go Mardi Gras, 2001!

Anybody beside me think

we missed the turnoff?

We have a party!

I'm king of the world!

I'm king of the--

Whoa, whoa, stop, stop.

Stop, stop, stop!

Declan, what are you doing?

-Where'd she go?

-What?

Where'd she go?

Where'd who go?

What are you talking about?

Declan.

There is no way in hell

that thing is there.

No, no, no.

Manet Hall, very bad juju.

Nobody's lived there for years

except squatters and tramps.

Some of them possibly

not of the living variety.

I'm going in.

Declan.

-Come on.

-Come on.

-No, not me, no way.

-lntruders, be gone!

Come on.

This is what I get

for bringing my roommate...

...down here for Mardi Gras.

I gotta have it, Remy.

Just tell me where to send the check

and how much.

Can we please leave now?

No, no, no.

I wanna see the ballroom.

What makes you think

there's a ballroom?

How could a haunted Southern

mansion not have a ballroom?

We are so out of here.

Declan,

you get your butt over here now...

...or you can find

your own ride home to Boston!

Here, try that.

Two more bay leaves,

one more grind of pepper...

-...and a dash of cayenne.

-Got it, babe.

Oh, and your grandma called.

She needs a favor out by the cabin.

On my way. All right.

Satchmofest kicks off tonight,

so order in a double of everything.

If we run short on ice again...

...I will personally put somebody's

hand in the Hurricane blender.

Love y'all.

Bye, baby.

Hey.

Come here. Hey.

What's going on? How you doing?

-Good. How you been?

-How's things in New Orleans?

I got something cooking.

Oh, yeah,

and it ain't just in the oven.

Seems somebody's bought the Hall.

Sight unseen,

cash on the barrelhead.

Young lawyer out of Boston,

Declan Fitzpatrick.

Oscar said

there was a favor you needed.

Oh, just a neighborly thing to do

would be to take the gentleman...

...Welcome to the Bayou

fresh-baked corn bread.

And my knees have been acting up

something fierce.

This young lawyer wouldn't happen

to be single, would he?

And when did that become a crime?

Grandma, why you wanna waste

a perfectly good loaf of corn bread...

...on a guy who'd be gone in minutes

like everybody who buys the Hall?

Oh, no, now this one's different.

This one's putting down roots.

Yeah, I'm bad with roots.

Roots scare me.

Lena.

I got a look at the man on his way in

and if I were 20 years younger...

...I'd be heading over there

with the corn bread myself.

You wouldn't have a chance.

How do you know he doesn't belong

to a club, wear loafers with no socks?

Those boys in the Quarter...

...may have the right footwear...

...but none of them

mean anything to you.

They all mean something to me.

What's the difference?

-Hello?

-May I help you?

I was just looking for the owner.

Is he expecting you?

No, it's just a corn bread

courtesy call.

I figured I'd find him sitting

on the veranda sipping mint juleps...

...being fanned by servants.

Oh, you've made his acquaintance?

Haven't had the pleasure.

So his reputation precedes him?

No, not exactly. Just--

The kind of person who buys

a house like this, it's a type.

Northern boy who comes down here

dreaming of moonlight and magnolias.

I actually hear the owner

isn't too big on mint juleps.

He's more of a beer guy.

-You're...?

-Declan Fitzpatrick, Northern boy.

Oh, my God.

How could you--?

That was entrapment.

-Have we met?

-Have we met?

Guess that answers our question.

I was down here for Mardi Gras

in 2001, maybe it was at a party?

Well,

I was mostly in Shreveport in '01.

Maybe in Boston?

Never been there.

Hey, baby,

let me help you with that.

You're a mover?

Some of these guys are.

We also have a few legal students

and paralegals...

...including yours truly, Jack Tripadoe,

the practical one.

While Declan's spending his

trust fund providing legal services...

...to these citizens of our lovely parish,

someone's gotta keep the ship afloat.

And what'll I find on that ship?

Legal library, housing clinic.

Daycare center for the kids.

You name it, we got it.

Lot of people in tough straits here.

Insurance companies refusing to pay

claims saying they won't cover flood.

They only cover wind.

There's no end to it.

That one? It's right over there.

Can you handle this one?

I'd love to stick around

and help you unload the truck...

...but I got a big night at work,

so I better get back to town.

I'll see you later then.

Thank you.

The corn bread's from my grandma.

Lives in the cabin

down on the bayou.

It's good with raspberry jam.

You didn't tell me your name.

Angelina Simone.

But mostly it's Lena.

So, what's the catch?

Why does there have to be a catch?

How can a man like that

possibly be single?

Did he like the corn bread?

Oh, you know something.

He was engaged to a girl

up in Boston.

But he broke it off.

When?

Three weeks ago today.

When were they gonna get married?

Well,

what difference does that make?

Grandma.

Three weeks ago, Sunday.

He walked out on his fiancee

two days before the wedding?

That would make him your type,

wouldn't it?

Mama, Hello? Mama, you in there?

If you're in there, pick up,

Oh, what do you think she wants?

Cash or bail?

Mama, that guy in Houston,

he turned out to be this total loser,

He got ahold of my credit card

and he went hog-wild and I--

I can't get a cash advance

or write a check,

I need-- I just--

-I gotta get some cash, Mama,

-Do not pick up until I'm out of here.

Come on, I know you're in there,

You ain't going nowhere, pick up,

-Hi, Mom.

-I just wanted to make sure,,,

,,,you were down there

safe and sound,

Couldn't be safer and sounder.

I got a lot of unpacking to do, so....

I ran into Binky Davenport

at the club today,

-Oh, what a coincidence.

-Declan,

As upset and disappointed as all

parties involved are at the moment,,,

,,,I was given

the unmistakable indication,,,

,,,if you were to apologize for your

rashness and lack of consideration,,,

,,,the Davenports may be open

to reannouncing the engagement,

Mom, Mom, Mom.

I did all parties involved a massive

favor by saving a wonderful woman...

...from marrying a man

who was not in love with her.

It's all that Remy's fault

getting you to quit your job,,,

,,,spending your last dime on some

overpriced cabin in the swamp,

The overpriced cabin

in the swamp...

...coming on the market

was the catalyst, not the cause.

And I quit my job because if I had

to file one more pre-trial motion--

Declan,

Declan, I--

Mom, let me call you back.

I gotta call the realtor.

-Love you.

-Fine,

How's the new homeowner?

Actually, I was wondering

about the old homeowners.

Weren't they supposed to have

their stuff moved out before I got here?

We didn't have anything

to move out,

They sold the place

before the furniture got there,

Nobody's been in that house

for a year,

Then somebody's

definitely been squatting.

There's a room full of furniture

and it looks very lived-in.

Oh, my god,

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