As they arrived, and then stood at Jacob's threshold together, Jacob looked up, firstly to his son, and then to Catherine, and he was struck at the striking pair they made. And since this was the first time he had ever witnessed them together, side by side, with all of their misunderstandings behind them now, he thought they looked quite happy.
Yes, and though their misunderstandings seemed to be too many to resolve, but alas…with a little help, they found their way back to each other, and Jacob was so proud, he was instrumental in that end.
As he watched his son assist Catherine down the steps, he thought Vincent looked so very suave, and so at ease in the role of a man in love.
And so with emotion, Jacob shakily smiled, and held out his arms to welcome Catherine. Catherine this heart-broken girl, he had met, and grew quite fond of while in Florida, and grew even fonder of as he got to know her through their travels. And it struck him deeply how important it was to him, that she was happy. Maybe it was due to the commitment he had made to Charles, as he promised to look after his daughter…look after her as if she were his own.
And Jacob tried...and ultimately, he actually did look after her, as he helped unravel all the misunderstandings. And Jacob thought since he had known Catherine, never had she looked this happy.
As Catherine hugged him back, they smiled at each other, and the tears that were in their eyes this time, were different from the tears they shed, when they had last parted.
It was then, Catherine cheerfully asked, “Have you recuperated from your flight?”
With a little rubbing to his neck, Jacob irritatingly said, “Interesting you should ask Catherine…and the answer is...NO.”
Jacob then let out a chuckle, as he added, “I haven’t quite worked out the all the kinks yet my Dear.”
He then inquired, “I understand you will be spending the Thanksgiving Holiday with us Catherine…that is delightful news.”
As Catherine beamed at Vincent, she said, “I am so happy Vincent invited me.”
Jacob then slyly asked, “Now, uh…do tell, did…I hear you will be bringing some of that whipping cream...is that right?”
Catherine smiled to herself, as she realized Vincent must have liked the idea of her bringing the whipped cream so much, he told his Father about it!
And so Catherine kindly answered, “Yes I am, and I don't know if Vincent mentioned my bringing some pies, but I plan on baking some pies too. I usually prepare a Pumpkin, or a Sweet Potato Pie.”
Upon hearing Catherine's selection of pies, Vincent worriedly turned to his Father, causing Catherine to ask, "Is there a problem with my baking a Sweet Potato Pie, or maybe theres a problem with the Pumpkin Pie choice? Is someone allergic?"
Realizing he caused Catherine some concern, Vincent kindly explained, "Nothing like that Catherine, however, William’s specialty is Sweet Potato Pie, and Father if I recall correctly, last year he did not appreciate the competition Mary’s pie offered him when she prepared the same.”
Contemplatively, Jacob scratched his chin, and had to agree with Vincent about William's miffed behavior, and then he said, “Yes, yes you are right."
And so Jacob carefully told Catherine, “Perhaps it would be wise to stay away from the Sweet Potato Pie! William is our cook, and he is quite prideful.”
So happy to know this information ahead of time, Catherine thankfully said, “Oh my, thanks for the tip.”
Thinking she would like to make a pie Jacob and Vincent liked, Catherine sweetly asked, “Well then, I would like to bring both of your favorites! What would they be?”
It was Vincent who spoke up first, as he admitted, “The Strawberry Rhubarb pie you served me last evening was delicious, however were I to pick a favorite…it would have to be a Blueberry Pie.”
In total agreement, Jacob chimed in, saying, “Oh, yes a Blueberry Pie, or perhaps a Peach, oh no…a tart Cherry pie! Hmmm, however, would it be a true Thanksgiving without an old fashioned Apple? It is decided! Apple pie is my final choice.”
Happy to have some alternative choices, Catherine definitively said, “All right then, I will tuck away my Grandma’s Sweet Potato Pie recipe card, and I will bake Blueberry, and Apple pies instead.”
As Jacob directed Catherine to his table, Vincent pulled the chair out for her, and the three sat down as Vincent poured their tea.
Appreciatively, Catherine smiled up at him, and said, “Thank you.”
As Vincent gazed back at Catherine, he politely said, “You are most welcome.”
In the meantime, while Jacob watched on, he could feel the bond Vincent had spoken of, that was between them. Between Catherine, this beautiful girl, and Vincent, his beautifully different son.
And he thought how sweet they seemed together, and besides from the excitement of their reconciliation, they seemed very comfortable with one another.
It was then Jacob asked, “What is the latest word from your Father and Peter?”
Turning to Jacob, she answered, “I heard from Dad yesterday, and because of the Holiday, well, the legal end of things are moving rather slowly, but they are doing all right. Pauline’s whole family is flying down to be with them, so that should raise Peter’s spirits.”
Vincent tipped his head as he thought back, and he said, “If I remember correctly, she has a large family.”
Catherine nodded, and as she looked to Jacob, and then to Vincent, she conveyed, “She does! I can't help but wonder how Dad and Peter will hold up, because neither one is used to being around little children, and all the excitement they own.”
In agreement, Jacob chuckled as he said, “Yes, we can attest to the fact, children do have a lot of energy!”
Vincent then interjected, “Ah yes speaking of children, the children have prepared a song for you Catherine. They should be arriving soon.”
Upon hearing this news, Catherine giggled as she excitedly said, “For me? I can't wait to hear it! I was here when they came in to sing a welcome home song to Jacob, and it was so cute!”
Just then, Mary and Rebecca barged quite unexpectedly into Jacob’s chamber!
So as they raced down the steps, Mary, under the guise of inquiring about some supplies, asked, “Father, Father…did we ever get in the shipment of extra long wicks Benny promised for the Winterfest Candles?"
Nonchalantly, Mary and Rebecca glanced around, settling on Catherine, and feigned to be surprised with Mary expounding, "Oh pardon us! You are visiting with Catherine!”
Vincent bent his head, in an attempt to hide his amusement, as Jacob curtly replied, “Perhaps I should have been more direct, when I told you earlier, Catherine would be visiting at NOON!”
As poor Rebecca looked a bit ashamed, knowing how transparent they were, she still followed Mary inside anyway, because they were both so excited the romance was back on track!
Warmly, Catherine smiled as she greeted them, saying, “Hello Mary, and Rebecca.”
The two ladies greeted her in kind, and then instantly began chatting away, expressing how happy they were to welcome her today, and so pleased too, that she would be spending Thanksgiving with them!
Next, it was Pascal and Mouse who then arrived, also transparently asking about some obscure project, which hadn't been spoken about for months!
And then as Pascal looked stunned to see Catherine, he pleasantly said, “Oh what a surprise! Catherine, it's good to see you again, under much warmer conditions this time.”
In reply, Catherine nodded and said, “It is good to see you again too Pascal.”
Shyly Mouse timidly stepped up to Catherine and shared, “I am Mouse, Vincent's best friend.”
As his demeanor warmed Catherine's heart, she shook his hand, and said, “Nice to meet you Mouse.”
Soon, Jamie, Laura and Brooke came in, and then before you knew it, half of the tunnel community was there! They all wanted to meet, and catch a glimpse of Catherine, the woman who had won Vincent’s heart.
It was then, Rolley peaked in, and hesitantly asked Jacob, “Is this a good time Father?”
As Jacob looked up, and over all of the commotion within his chamber, he waved his hand for him to come in, and said, “It appears this is turning into a celebration! Rolley your timing is perfect. Show the children in.”
As Jacob requested, and then received everyone’s attention, he then said, “In honor of Catherine’s visit today, the children would like to sing her a song. So find a seat everyone, and let us enjoy the song they have prepared for Catherine.”
Rolley then directed the children inside, and as they filed in, they stood in formation as they all smiled in excitement at the beautiful lady who has made Vincent so happy. Vincent stood beside Catherine in her ringside seat, as the children began their song, to the tune of “What a Wonderful World!”
Lady Catherine Met our teacher Vincent And he became forgetful when he fell in love Then you didn't write back, and broke his heart It made him and us very sad
Then came another lady her name was Brigit She wrote stories, and poetry, And had big red hair She was nervous and sweaty and too big for her clothes She forgot all of our names and didn’t seem to like it here much Soooooo she didn’t remain
Then you and Vincent talked and figured it all out now you are back Vincent is happy again please make sure you always write back to him cuz we don't wanna see him so sad again!
We like you Catherine You have eyes of green and a friendly smile too You remembered our names Without even a clue Vincent says you’re not mean but quite kind too!
As everyone clapped, Vincent leaned downward to whisper in Catherine’s ear, and said, “Perhaps the children notice too much!”
With a smile, Catherine nodded, and said, “Oh yes, they are observant.”
In appreciation, Catherine stood and with a tearful smile, she approached the children, saying, “That was beautiful! Thank you for writing it for me!”
They all fell out of line, and ran up to Catherine, and luckily, Vincent noticed little Natalie, who could barely be seen, was also vying for Catherine’s attention!
And so Vincent bent down and gently scooped her up, so she could receive her due and be heard too, and so Natalie excitedly told Catherine, “Each one of us wrote a line for your song. I wrote the one part where Vincent became forgetful. I know cuz Brooke told me girls can make boys forget important things sometimes.”
Because Catherine didn't know the story behind Vincent's forgetfulness, Catherine simply smiled, and said, “You did a very good job with your part Natalie.”
It was then Seth walked up and said, “Hi Caff…Caftfh…Caferine! Did you like my part calling you Lady Caferine?”
As Catherine smiled back, she excitedly said, “As a matter of fact, I did Seth. How nice to have such a title, thank you!”
Next, Joseph proudly said, “And I wrote a line too! I came up with the one about Vincent saying you are not mean!”
Getting a kick out of this little fella, Catherine giggled as she told Joseph, “Wow? Well I thank you for that Joseph!”
Then Kipper quickly added, “I added the rhyming part, the part that went, ahem… a beautiful smile too You remembered our names, without even a clue!”
In reply, Catherine thoughtfully said, “Very good Kipper, rhyming can be tricky, and I liked that part very much! Thank you!”
Commandingly, Jacob came up and said, “Children, children you did a wonderful job today in honor of our guest Catherine. However, we must not neglect our other lessons. Rolley tells me you are working on a special Christmas pageant. So back to your practice. Oh yes, and children Thank you very much…Rolley, they were wonderful.”
As they all started to leave, Catherine said goodbye to them one by one and with a hug and a smile, she thanked them for writing her the beautiful song.
Just as Rolley neared the threshold, Vincent privately approached him and said, "Your work with the children, is wondrous! You truly inspire them.”
Humbly, Rolley nodded and said, “In truth, it is they who inspire me. I would have been lost with out them, or any of you here…I would have been lost if you would’ve given up on me.”
Proudly, Vincent patted him on the back and said, “Yes Rolley, we all need someone to believe in us.”
As Rolley humbly hung his head, he turned and walked out following the children.
As Jacob’s chamber began to clear out, Vincent turned to Jacob and told him “Please excuse us Father, I would like to show Catherine more of our home, and take her on a tour of the Tunnels.”
Joyfully, Jacob waved his hand and said, “Yes, yes of course my boy! There is so much more to see than just my old chamber!”
With much affection, Catherine stepped up to Jacob and said, “One day I would love to spend more time here with you, and investigate further into some of these books and their titles. I am in heaven here among all of these books!”
Warmly, Jacob took her hand and said, “I would like to show you! Soon then, we will do just that. It is a date!”
With daughterly embrace, Catherine hugged him, and said, “I can’t wait!”
Meanwhile, Vincent stood near the stairs leading out of Jacob’s chamber and held out his hand for Catherine. As she reached for it, he led her into the main passageway.”
And as they strolled along, they came upon Vincent's chamber, and so with a splay of his hand, he asked, "Shall we?"