Time Will Tell
The Beast meets his match
By Thomas Mc

Author's Notes : This is an 'alternate universe' story in which Catherine finds herself in a world where she and Vincent never met.

Chapter 1: Displaced And Confused

Catherine smiled to herself as she made her way upward from the lower tunnels where she had been visiting Narcissa. The strange old woman had always had a special relationship with Vincent and his children. Catherine had gone to see her and tell her about the new baby growing inside her. Her mind wandered back to her visit with Narcissa. The blind, confusing, sweet old woman had been delighted over the news and they had spent a long time ruminating over the precious twins that were now firmly ensconced in the terrible twos. When they weren't bemoaning all the things that the twins managed to get into, they were laughing about all the things that the twins managed to get into.

After a couple of pleasant hours Catherine stood up and told Narcissa that it was time for her to get back to Vincent and the twins. Narcissa grabbed her hand with a firm grip. "Be careful child." Her expression was now dead serious. "You must set right what has gone wrong for your world to be restored." Then Narcissa released her hand and her normal pleasant smile returned. "Hurry child, you have a long walk ahead of you." She turned her back to Catherine and ambled over to her little work bench while mumbling and chuckling to herself. After staring back at Narcissa for a few seconds, Catherine shrugged and started on her way back up to the home tunnels. In the back of her mind she played back that enigmatic warning but, as usual with such pronouncements, she could make no sense out of it. She gave up and set her mind to negotiating the long winding path that led from Narcissa's deep chambers up to the main home chambers.

~ o ~

Catherine had just entered The Chamber of the Winds which had always held a fascination for her. The eternal fog that perpetually covered the floor gave the chamber a mysterious, almost mystical quality that intrigued her. She smiled to herself over the often imagined magical adventures that would begin in a chamber like this.

Again her mind returned to Narcissa's last words of warning. At least they had sounded like some type of warning. But try as she might she still could not make heads nor tails out of them. What was wrong and how was she to make it right? As far as she knew everything in her world was perfect. Her life was perfect. She looked down at her middle. And it was getting better all the time. Her thoughts were interrupted by a strong gust that made the fog swirl around her and nearly knocked her off balance.

She regained her balance and concentrated on making her way through this most confusing chamber. She looked around at the dozens of openings in the walls of the great chamber. If she were to let her attention slip and enter the wrong passage, she could end up lost for days and Vincent would probably have to come rescue her. She concentrated, fixing the correct opening in her mind and began to move again.

As she continued across the swirling mist covered floor Catherine began to feel a bit woozy. 'It must be a side effect of my pregnancy.' she thought as she placed her hand over the gentle swell of her abdomen. She paused and leaned against the wall to let the spell pass. She started forward again and walked through the selected opening. A minute later she stopped. Something wasn't right. This tunnel looked all wrong. She should have reached a specific T-junction by now. She turned and started back and a minute later realized that she was completely lost. The next moment she felt herself falling.

~ o ~

Catherine looked down at the solid tunnel floor beneath her feet. A moment before she had been falling. Now she was just standing there as though nothing had happened. She looked around in puzzlement at tunnels that she did not recognize. 'Where am I and how did I get here?' She wondered. She must have taken the wrong passage from the Chamber of the Winds and now she was lost. She paused to listen for several seconds. Then she heard a very faint, far off irregular, clanking sound. She smiled. She didn't know where she was but she knew where she must go. The tapping sounds could be heard coming from somewhere to her left. She immediately set off in the direction of that sound.

After several minutes of walking, she had finally reached a major tunnel and began to follow the much clearer sounds of pipe code. She still didn't recognize the area but since there was nobody else in the tunnel, she figured this tunnel was unfamiliar because it was rarely used. She knew that she was, at least, heading in the right direction by the steady increase in clarity and volume of the ever-present taping of the pipes. As soon as she located one of those pipes, she could send out a call for help.

A call for help! Why hadn't she thought of this sooner? She reached out for her bond with Vincent . . . nothing! She felt the beginnings of panic. Where was he . . . Why couldn't she feel him? With extreme effort she forced herself to calm down. Once she had herself under better control she again reached out. Slowly, agonizingly she felt for that familiar presence. At first she felt nothing. She took a few deep breaths and pushed harder. She was beginning to lose hope. There it was but it was so faint, so distant that she had to work to maintain the contact. The faint presence seemed to be totally unaware. There was no response to her probe.

The next moment the pipe messages changed and became more urgent. "Intruder-Alert!" It was the most frightening message one could hear in these tunnels. The coordinates for the alert were also unfamiliar and Catherine became very nervous. She began to advance very cautiously and looking around for any sign of the intruder.

She nearly jumped out of her skin when a large man stepped out in front of her.

"Stop! Who are you and what are you doing down here?" The man demanded.

~ o ~

Vincent paused in his current task. There had been something barely there. A faint presence, a sense of panic, then it was gone. He glanced around but was unable to identify a source for that fleeting impression. After a few moments the fleeting impression of another presence returned but it was so tenuous, like a distant whisper that would dissipate with the slightest breeze. Then it was gone again. The next instant he was yanked from his contemplation of that strange phenomenon by the extremely urgent messages that were now racing along the pipes.

"Intruder-Alert!" It was a message that everyone living below feared. He recognized the location. It was along the western edge of The Maze. No one ever went there because it was so far out of the way and one wrong turn could get one hopelessly lost. The only reason they even kept watch in that area was because there were several connections to the main service tunnels that ran along the western border of the northern end of Central Park. There was always the danger of a maintenance employee wandering off and getting lost in that part of the maze or stumbling onto the northern edge of the inhabited part on the tunnels. Now it seemed that someone had stumbled into that area.

Vincent took off running toward the location of the alert. He had the feeling that he might be needed there. Then something new was added to the message. The intruder was a young female. That was a curious development.

~ o ~

The man standing before Catherine and blocking her way was unfamiliar to her. She stated to edge away from him. "Who are you? . . . What are you doing down here?" She demanded as she watched the strange man warily. This stranger must be the one that triggered the Intruder Alert. He could be a serious threat to the tunnels.

"Who are you?" The stranger shot back.

At that moment Catherine became aware of movement behind her. She glanced nervously back and gave a huge sigh of relief. With a couple of quick steps back she was standing with the two that had come up behind her. "Cullen, Jamie, I'm so glad you found me. Somehow I got lost in this unfamiliar area then I stumble upon your intruder." She babbled in her relief to finally encounter something familiar.

The silence that greeted her caused her to pause and look more closely at her two friends. They were both looking back with expressions of confused uncertainty. "Well, don't just gape at me like that." She pointed at the stranger with just a hint of exasperation. "We have an intruder among us! . . ." She glanced at the intruder and lowered her voice so that the unknown man wouldn't be able to hear. ". . . We need to get him out of the tunnels right away before he sees something that he shouldn't!" Her voice lowered even more. "And I need to find Vincent. I need to talk to him before I head back above."

The shock and fear on the faces of Cullen and Jamie caused Catherine to wind down in confusion. The three of them stood frozen for two seconds as the stranger stepped over to join them. Catherine became aware of the stranger's approach. Her glance bounced between the stranger and her friends. Jamie and Cullen's apparent lack of concern about the stranger caused her confusion to increase.

"How do you know about Vincent?" Inquired Jamie.

The intensity of her voice cut through Catherine's confusion and she glanced warily over at the stranger. The stranger's face showed surprise and worry as he stared back at Catherine.

She looked with growing uncertainty back at Cullen and Jamie. "What do you mean?" She again glanced nervously at the stranger then returned her attention to her friends. "And why are you talking about Vincent around a stranger?" Now there was a hint of panic on her face and in her voice. "You both know that Vincent and I have known each other for years." She again spared a quick glance at the flabbergasted look on the stranger's face. "What is going on here? Who is this intruder?"

Cullen addressed the stranger. "David, send a message that the intruder has been found. We're taking her to Father. Maybe he can make sense of this." The stranger nodded and headed back up the tunnel.

Catherine watched David walk away for a moment then faced her friends. She was feeling more uncertain and a little bit scared. She summoned some bravado and demanded. "I'm not an intruder. Why are you both acting like you don't know me? I need to see Vincent, now!" She demanded. The bravado drained away quickly leaving just a hint of tears in her eyes as her voice softened in desperation and a tear slid down her cheek. "He'll know me. He can straighten this out."

Cullen spoke to Catherine in the soothing voice one might use on a scared child. "Please, come with us miss. Don't worry we won't hurt you. We just need to get to the bottom of this."

Catherine deflated and allowed her strangely acting friends to lead her along without resistance. After a couple of minutes, they turned into a very familiar maintenance tunnel that ran right past her old apartment building. The familiar sight instantly raised her spirit. "I know where we are now. This is the north-west boundary of the community."

Again, Jamie and Cullen looked at her in stunned surprise.

The next instant another small group appeared around a bend in the tunnel and she spotted one tall powerful figure among them. She would recognize that figure anywhere, despite the concealing hooded cape, and she called out. "Vincent!" Before anyone could react, Catherine launched herself past her two escorts and into Vincent's surprised arms. All the while she was babbling about how worried she had been and how glad she was to have found him.

Vincent instinctively caught the woman and found himself with an armful of a very emotional, and very beautiful, woman that he had never seen before. She was hugging him like her life depended on it while radiating intense emotions of 'relief' and 'joy' and 'love'. The 'love', in particular, was so strong that it was almost overwhelming. Then without warning she stretched up on her toes, pushed his hood back, and passionately kissed him squarely on the lips. He felt lightning bolts run up and down his spine as he stood there too stunned to react.

After about three seconds Vincent was starting to feel a strong desire to kiss her back then he felt a growing element of 'confusion' and 'dismay' appear in her emotional gestalt. She drew back and stared at his face in confusion. "Vincent?" Her eyes began to tear up as she tightly clutched a double handful of his vest. "What's wrong?" She blinked twice. "Why cant I feel you?"

Vincent finally managed to recover command of his voice though he could not quite bring himself to let go of her. She could clearly see his face yet was surprisingly unfazed by his appearance. It was obviously his uneasy reaction to her that had upset her. Reluctantly he spoke to the woman. "I'm sorry miss but I do not know you."

The hurt in her eyes stuck him like a hammer. "Vincent how could you say that when I'm carrying our child." He felt a second hammer blow as the meaning of her words sank in. The startled exclamations of those around them passed un-noticed as she continued speaking. "And yet you're acting like you don't even know me . . ." Her eyes narrowed as she gazed into Vincent's deep blue eyes. "And why can't I feel your emotions?" She glanced around spotting the older man standing next to Vincent and looking back at them in total confusion. "Jacob, what's going on here? Why is everyone acting like they've never seen me before?" She pleaded like she was hoping that he could explain.

Father blinked twice at the intensity of her expression before responding. "That is because we have never seen you before. Who are you? How do you know so much about us . . ." He glanced at the barely perceptible swell of her new maternity clothes. "And why would you think that Vincent could possibly be the father of your child?"

"Because, he's my husband!" She retorted in desperation. "Who else could be the father?" Her voice trailed off as she glanced around at the stunned and disbelieving faces that surrounded them. She looked back at Vincent to see the same stunned disbelief in his eyes. And the tears began to fall as she leaned against Vincent's sturdy bulk. "It's all wrong. Why don't you know me? Where is our bond? What is happening to me?" She glanced up into Vincent's eyes looking for some hint of recognition, some kind of answer.

There was look of confusion and sympathy on Vincent's face and she was just barely beginning to 'sense' Vincent's emotions of 'confusion' and 'sympathy' but there was an alien feel to it. She could almost connect to his presence but there was no link, no bond. And he did not know her. There was no wedding ring on his finger. She looked into his face, carefully studying it. There were some very subtle differences in expressions, even in the look of his fur. Things began to become devastatingly clear to her. Taken as a whole, it was becoming obvious to her that despite the fact that this was definitely Vincent, this was not her Vincent. The realization was too much for her to handle. She sobbed in earnest as her knees began to buckle.

Vincent scooped the very distraught woman up into his arms. "I'll take her to my chamber and try to make her feel more comfortable." He remarked to Father. "We can sort this out there." He looked down at the woman in his arms. Her eyes were closed, and she had a death grip on his vest and her whole body was shivering. He looked over at Father. "She really believes everything she has been saying and she truly does not understand why we don't know her."

As the group headed toward the heart of the community, there was a hint of wonder in Vincent's face as he mulled over the implications of what this woman had said before she collapsed. This beautiful woman really believed that she was married to him and carrying his child. It was like a dream come true. But it was only a dream. He did not know this woman and Father had once told him that it was unlikely that he could have children. He shook his head. Her presence, her actions, and the things she was saying, had to mean something. Could it be that there was some hope of a better life for him?

As they passed deeper into the home tunnels more people joined them. They listened in amazement to what Cullen and Jamie were telling them about the initial encounter. Then they gazed in wonder at the pretty, well dressed young woman in Vincent's arms and at the amazed expression that continued to pass across his face.

Vincent glanced down at her beautiful, tear stained, face. A need to protect this woman at all costs washed over him. Regardless what the reality of her situation turned out to be, he would take care of her and make sure no harm came to her.

Vincent and Father entered Vincent's chamber while everyone else stopped in the tunnel outside his door. Vincent gently set the woman down on his bed then had to pull her closed fists from his vest. A strong shiver passed through her as she moaned his name. Vincent reluctantly stepped back as Father quickly checked her over.

Father straightened up from his examination. "Well she is definitely pregnant. Other than that, she is in good health. I suspect that the strain of her situation combined with the normal hormonal problems of pregnancy were just too much for her." He glanced down at the watch on the woman's wrist. "That is a 'Lady Rolex' watch that she's wearing, and her clothes appear to be very expensive. These indicate that she must be very wealthy." He looked more closely at her ring finger. "This ring, however, is relatively plain compared to that watch." He looked closer. "Yet this ring looks a lot like something that Cullen might make." He shook his head. "None of it makes any sense."

Their attention was drawn to Vincent's name softly called by the woman in Vincent's bed. She shifted then opened her eyes and, frowning, she quickly looked around, taking in the chamber, as a whole, then her entire body seemed to relax as her frown turned into a sleepy smile. "Vincent, how late did I sleep?" She closed her eyes and stretched. "I had the worst nightmare." She shifted to work the kinks out of her back. "I dreamed that I got lost in the tunnels and when you found me you didn't even know who I was." She opened her eyes and noticed Father for the first time. She frowned as her gaze shifted between the two of them and she noticed their expressions. Her frown deepened, then her face fell, and her eyes closed. "It wasn't a dream." She opened her eyes. "Was it?" She sat up and gazed steadily at Vincent, her expression suffused with disappointment. "And you are not my Vincent."

Vincent knelt beside the bed and spoke gently to the woman. "We have no idea who you are or where you came from." He cocked his head. "Though I do find the things you have said most intriguing."

The woman gave them a sad smile. "My name is Catherine." Vincent repeated her name. It felt right to say it. She blinked several times and looked around the chamber, as though taking it all in, then tilted her head. "I can see that you are not my Vincent, but you have a lot of his mannerisms . . . and you have his voice." She glanced down at her hands then reached out to take Vincent's hands. "It was your voice that I first fell in love with, days before I knew what you looked like. But I quickly fell in love with your beautiful face as well."

Father cleared his throat drawing their attention. "You seem to know everything about us yet none of us have ever seen you before." He glanced at her watch and frowned. "You certainly don't look like someone that belongs Below." His frown softened at the sad expression on her face. "Can you explain what is going on here?"

Catherine turned her sad smile on Father. "I have no explanation for what is happening or how I got here. One second, I was returning from visiting Narcissa and the next I was where Cullin and Jamie found me. None of it makes any sense." She paused. "I can only tell you what my world is like as I remember it."

Vincent shifted to a large chair next to the bed. "Tell us about the world as you remember it."

Catherine seemed lost in thought for a minute then she began to speak. She started by describing the night she was attacked outside of, her then boyfriend, Tom's party and how Vincent found and saved her. She didn't soften her description of how she reacted the first time she saw Vincent's face. She hastened to explain how the second time she saw him a minute later she no longer found his appearance frightening. Then she emphasized that by the time Vincent had escorted her to the tunnel access to her apartment building she had found Vincent's appearance to be very attractive.

Father looked surprised. "You say that you live in an apartment next to the park?" Father inquired. "People have to be indecently rich to live in that area." He blurted out.

Catherine smiled at his typical reaction. "Oh, it's worse than that." She shrugged. "I own the whole apartment building. I inherited it from my father, so I was actually paying rent to myself." She chuckled at the expression on Father's face. "I don't live there anymore. We now live in a brownstone just a couple of blocks north of the old apartment building. There is a tunnel that runs from our basement to the outer edge of the community so Vincent can come and go as he pleases."

Father and Vincent were both now staring at her in stunned silence. Smiling at their reaction Catherine continued her narrative with tales of hers and Vincent's first halting steps toward a close relationship.

Over the next couple of hours, she described the entire six years of their relationship so far. She made a point of telling them how much Vincent's initial reticence had frustrated her during the first two years that she knew him. Then she described the blossoming of the love between them once she finally convinced him that what they had was real. She described their courtship, their wedding and the beginnings of their family. Father was particularly moved to realize that their son was named Jacob after himself.

Vincent noticed that there seemed to be a significant time discrepancy and brought that up.

When told the date by Vincent, Catherine was astonished. "Then, from what you say in this . . . place . . . it is exactly one year from the day I was attacked." She looked back at them and a light dawned. "If you are not my Vincent and you are not my Jacob Wells . . . Then maybe there is another me here as well."

She stood up from the bed and started pacing. "That must be what Narcissa was rambling on about." She looked directly at Vincent. "This is what I must set right." Suddenly she was filled with purpose and determination. "I have to go fix what has gone wrong in this world." She turned and walked out of the chamber with a confident stride.

For a moment Father and Vincent looked at each other in stunned surprise. Then Father spoke. "Well go after her!" He commanded. "Try to keep her out of trouble and make sure she doesn't get lost."

Vincent paused one more moment then took off after the strange enigma of a woman. He had no idea what he was getting himself into, but he assumed that it would be interesting.

Vincent caught up with Catherine a few seconds later and fell into step beside her. "Where are we going?" He asked.

Catherine glanced over at him without breaking stride and raised one eyebrow. She thought a moment then a slight grin began to twitch at the corners of her mouth. "I thought I would go try to find myself."

Vincent looked back at her in surprise then cut loose with a soft chuckle. "I can't believe I just heard you say that."

She shrugged. "I've been told that I have a weird sense of humor."

He nodded. "And who told you that?"

"Actually, you and Father did . . . among others." She responded.

Vincent couldn't suppress the grin that passed across his face at the thought of Father's reaction to Catherine's apparent brand of humor.

They walked for a couple of minutes in silence as Vincent mulled over everything that had happened since this unique woman first appeared in his world. The way she had greeted him when they first met had taken him completely by surprise. Her feelings about him, or her version of him, were unmistakable. They radiated off her like heat from a campfire. The way she had embraced then kissed him had felt . . . very good. Just the idea that a beautiful sophisticated woman like her could feel "that" way about him was mind boggling. He had to admit that he certainly found himself drawn to her. She even claimed that the baby she was carrying was his and that they already had two other children at home. He sneaked a quick glance at her and sighed. It was like all of his most cherished secret desires come true.

A quick glance around and he realized that they were approaching the outer boundary of the tunnel community. Without hesitation Catherine took a turn to the left down a tunnel that Vincent was not familiar with then a turn to the right.

"This area is new to me but you seem to know where you're going." He commented.

"I should. We've walked this path together so often that I could do it blindfolded." She smiled to herself at the resurgence of those memories.

"So where does this path lead?" He asked, his curiosity peaked.

She smiled softly to herself. "This leads to my apartment building." She looked over at Vincent as a determined look crossed her face. "The main reason I moved to the townhouse was to make it easier for you to come and go whenever you wished. If I hadn't met you yet I probably would still be living there. It seems like the most likely place to find me."

Vincent shook his head and took a moment to try to make sense of her statement. He wasn't sure how much he could believe what she had been telling him. "And what do you plan to do when we get to your destination?"

She slowed her pace a bit and thought over his question. "I . . . I don't really know for sure. It depends on what I find when I get there." She looked over at Vincent. "If what I believe is correct, and since you are following me . . ." She looked at Vincent with the return of the determined expression. "Maybe, I hope to be able to introduce you to your future wife."

Vincent stared back at her, totally flabbergasted. For the next few minutes they walked in silence because he was too stunned to speak and she was deep in her own thoughts, planning out her strategy. Maybe it was just wishful thinking but his sense of her said she was being truthful so he tended to believe her. He glanced again at her. She was a very beautiful woman and her emotions were so vibrant and full of life. What could it hurt to go along with her for a little while longer?

Finally, Catherine stopped at what looked like a random point in a dim unfamiliar utility tunnel. She was staring at point in the wall where water damage had eaten away at an irregular patch in the brick wall. She stared at the wall for a moment, emotions of 'deep contemplation mixed with doubt' circulated in her mind. The determined expression returned as she faced Vincent. "Can you knock that damaged section of wall out for me?" She inquired.

Continued in Part 2

( 190228 )

Disclaimer: The 1988 TV show 'Beauty and the Beast' and its characters are owned by Witt-Thomas Productions and Republic Pictures. No infringement on copyrights is intended. This story is presented merely for the enjoyment of fans. Original concepts and story elements may be used by other authors as long as appropriate credit is given.