The Tower And The Beast
Catherine & Vincent's Second Halloween Together
By Thomas Mc

Note: I have made a few more revisions, expansions and added a few more encounters to this story in this chapter but the story as a whole is still much the same as before.

Chapter 2 : Blending In

As Vincent and Catherine circulated among the crowd Catherine spotted a knot of familiar faces. Her father was there with Kay, talking to some of their friends. Her father was wearing the same civil war uniform he had worn last year. Kay was dressed as Scarlett O'Hara. Jerry was dressed as Count Dracula and his daughter was wearing a very tight tiger costume. Tom Gunther was dressed as an alien. The sexy witch from the elevator, she now recognized as a friend of her father but she couldn't recall the woman's name.

Catherine had not expected to see so many familiar faces and decided to wait a while before talking to them. She didn't want to spend too much time trying to explain Vincent to friends of her family. Without realizing it, she had quickly finished off her glass of wine while Vincent had only taken a couple of sips. Vincent took her empty goblet and deposited it and his with the next waiter they passed.

After spending several more minutes exploring the party, Catherine pulled Vincent out onto the dance floor. The band was playing the kind of slow dance music where the couples held each other close and just sort of shuffled their feet. After a moment's hesitation Vincent tentatively put his arms loosely around her and joined in the dance. Catherine looked up into his uncertain eyes then with a sly smile tightened her arms around him, pulling their bodies closer together then, with a sigh, rested her head on his shoulder. Vincent paused momentarily stunned by her actions then finally relaxed and let his arms close in around her and they were swaying in time to the music. Catherine was soon totally engrossed in the feel of Vincent's arms around her. The feel of him and the goblet of wine she from earlier made for a very heady and powerful combination. For the present she felt like she was floating halfway to heaven. Catherine looked up into Vincent's eyes and gave him her most dazzling smile, her eyes misting over then she laid her head back against his shoulder. Vincent could feel the waves of love and contentment washing over him through the link they shared. The force of it was almost overwhelming. A peaceful smile settled across his face as he was immersed in Catherine's emotions.

A minute later, Catherine's father and Kay passed close by. Charles looked over at Vincent and Catherine, nodded to them and smiled. Then with a wink at them both, he twirled with his partner and disappeared into the throng of dancers.

Catherine smiled up at Vincent and chuckled softly. "I guess he approves of you."

The next dance was a little faster. It was the type for doing the box step. Vincent had no trouble with it. A waltz followed and Vincent easily shifted into the proper steps. It was quickly becoming apparent to Catherine that Vincent, at least, knew how to dance.

Catherine nodded to several acquaintances as they passed on the dance floor. They all smiled back and they all glanced at Vincent with obvious curiosity. Catherine looked up into his eyes and saw that he had noticed the looks they were getting. She chuckled, her eyes full of mischief. "They all want to know who this handsome hunk is that I'm dancing with. My father is going to be bombarded with questions by all our friends tomorrow."

The next dance was another slow dance which suited Catherine just fine. Vincent had to admit that he also enjoyed the intimacy of the slow dances. During the next dance Catherine spotted Elliot, dressed as a vampire, watching them from the crowd at the edge of the dance floor. They danced through five more songs before Catherine finally capitulated and they left the dance floor.

"Let's get something to eat and sit down for a while." Catherine hung on to his arm as they made their way to the outside observation deck. The outside temperature was in the middle fifties and there were propane outdoor heater lamps scattered among the tables to keep the chill at bay. Together they went over to the buffet table and selected various snack foods to try.

"Frankly I could use a little rest." Catherine commented as they walked up to a table for two in the corner. She wobbled just a bit as she sat down and giggled. "I guess I shouldn't have drunk that whole glass of wine on an empty stomach."

While they were sitting at their table a man dressed as a skeleton wearing white formal tails came up to them. "Would you like something to drink? We have wine, iced tea, soft drinks, water and fruit juices. We also have coffee, hot chocolate, hot tea and hot spiced wine if you need to keep the chill away."

Catherine had caught on to the fact that the people working the party were all dressed as skeletons and she couldn't help herself. She looked at the waiter and dead seriously commented, "Don't you feed the help here. They're all wasting away."

Vincent dropped his head into his hands and shook it. The waiter only rolled his eyes. Then Catherine and Vincent both selected hot chocolate. As the waiter walked away Vincent went over to a nearby buffet table and brought back a plate of finger snacks for the both of them.

"You mentioned an empty stomach." Vincent remarked as he set the plate in the center of their table. He held out one of the treats to her. Catherine smiled her gratitude then opened her mouth and he fed the morsel to her. He took a piece for himself and then held out another for her.

Catherin grinned at him. "Keep that up kind sir and you are going to spoil me." She cocked her head a bit. "I think I might just keep you around." Then she took the bite.

In a very short time the waiter returned with their drinks. "Will there be anything else Sir?" He asked.

"No thank you." Vincent replied.

The waiter looked Vincent up and down and remarked. "Fantastic costume, Sir. Would either of you like to enter the costume contest? The entry fee is only one hundred, and the grand prize is a romantic two week Caribbean cruise for two, to Nassau, the Bahamas and Cancun."

"I'm afraid not." Vincent replied. "Thank you anyway."

"Very good, Sir." Then the waiter moved on to the next table.

"I would have loved to enter us in that contest." Catherine chuckled. "But you would have had an unfair advantage." The mischief in her eyes told him that she really had contemplated the idea. "Although it might have been interesting to see you lounging beside the ship's pool or on the beach at Cancun." Vincent thought he caught a hint of erotic overtone through the link as she said it and he found he was having difficulty looking her in the eyes as an image of her laying on the beach popped into his mind.

Catherine blushed as she stood up. "I think I'll take this opportunity to powder my nose. I won't be long." She grinned. "Stay out of trouble while I'm gone." And she went in search of the ladies room, leaving Vincent to enjoy the party scene by himself for a while. Vincent sat there, taking in the marvelous sight of people in all kinds of costumes wandering around the observation deck or sitting at the tables deep in their own various conversations while the music filtered through the glass walls that surrounded the dance floor. He felt so relaxed amongst all these 'ordinary people', it was quite incredible. Four different people stopped by his table and complimented his costume before continuing on their way.

An interesting group, four tables over, caught his attention. The woman was dressed in a blue gingham dress white blouse and sparkling red shoes. With her were two men in very interesting costumes. The younger man was dressed up as a man made of metal and the older man was dressed up to look like a scarecrow. He had read and loved the stories as child and had heard descriptions of the movie. For a moment Vincent contemplated going over to join the group after Catherine got back. He and Catherine were a little too dressed up for the parts they would play in that group but it could work. Eventually his gaze again began to wander taking in the fascinating crowd.

While he was sitting there looking around, a very pretty young woman in a low cut medieval princess costume stopped at his table and looked him over. "I love your costume." She smiled shyly at him. "It would be the perfect compliment to mine." She was flirting outrageously with him and he could clearly sense her very real interest in him. She leaned enticingly toward him and Vincent was afraid that she would fall out of her top. "Would you like to join me for a dance or two?" She cocked her head; the invitation in her look was quite blatant.

Vincent was so surprised by the attention and the offer; it took him a moment to gather his wits. "It's a very tempting offer, but I am currently here with someone else." Vincent was very conscientiously keeping his eyes on the young woman's face. "Thank-you, anyway, for the offer."

The woman shrugged and straightened up, easing his worry a bit, and gave him a wistful smile. "She's a very lucky woman. I think I envy her." He could clearly sense her disappointment at his response.

As the woman was turning to walk away, Vincent suddenly felt a quick flash of fear from Catherine, then it just as quickly shifted to annoyance mixed with a little bit of worry. Standing and looking towards the glass wall, he saw Catherine partially trapped in the doorway by three men.

"How about a little dance?" one of them said in an alcohol slurred voice as he tried to pull her towards the dance floor.

Vincent saw Catherine glance quickly in his direction and give a barely perceptible shake of her head. He was now feeling only annoyance over the link. She obviously felt she could handle the situation and Vincent knew she didn't want him to create a scene. He also knew he could get to her quickly if she did need him, so he restrained his desire to leap to her aid. Then one of the other men also grabbed her and there was a quick flash of anger from her, but she still didn't feel in danger so he maintained control and just watched.

Then he noticed Elliot Burch over to the left making his way toward Catherine and in five leaping strides Vincent was in front of the three men. With a menacing snarl that exposed his fangs he slowly advanced towards the men.

"Hey, chill out, man! Can't you take a joke?" One of the three men remarked nervously to Vincent as they all backed off. The second man was muttering to himself. Vincent could only make out the words, ". . . not part of the deal," to his friend as they moved towards the other side of the room. One of the waiters appeared at that moment and urged the three men away from the dance floor to one of the more out of the way tables.

Vincent turned to Catherine with a chuckle, a flourish, and a bow. "May I assist you, my lady?" Ten feet away he spotted a very frustrated looking Elliot Burch glancing at the three men then looking over at Catherine and him.

"I'm fine, Vincent, let's go sit down." Catherine replied as she glanced a bit worriedly at the people around them.

Vincent nodded. "Your wish is my command." He took her arm and turned toward their table.

A few of the people looked at them as they moved away, but the incident seemed to have already been forgotten. One man dressed as a mummy gave Vincent the thumbs up sign and a big toothy grin as they headed back to their table. Catherine frowned, worry written on her face. "I shouldn't have let those drunks bother me. I could have dealt with them if I had to."

"I know you had everything under control but what self-respecting protagonist could resist coming to the aid of his lady fair?" Vincent responded, with a twinkle in his eye. "Besides, those nearby seemed to consider it nothing more than an interesting diversion."

When they reached their table the pretty young woman was still standing there. "WOW! That was awesome." She said enthusiastically. Then her voice took on a teasing tone as she glanced at Catherine. "I still think your costume would be a perfect match with mine." She shrugged her shoulders. "Oh well, you two have a good evening. And it was nice meeting you, kind sir." Then she smiled at them both and headed back into the crowd.

Catherine looked at Vincent and arched her eyebrows. "What was that all about?" She asked as they sat down.

Vincent shrugged with a hint of a lopsided smile and a playful gleam in his eye. "She tried to pick me up while you were gone." He picked up his cup of hot chocolate and took a sip, someone had brought fresh cups while he had been aiding Catherine against the three drunks. "Mmmm! This is quite good."

"You really are having a good time, aren't you?" Catherine scowled back at him.

"Yes, I am. Try your chocolate." His smile was edging into a grin and she could see the tips of his fangs peeking out.

She gave in, laughed and picked up her fresh hot chocolate.

Catherine and Vincent sat there for a while munching on their collection of snacks, enjoying their hot chocolates and watching the other people around them. Finally, after all the snacks and chocolate were consumed, Vincent stood up, bowed and held his hand out to Catherine, "Come, my lady, let us dance again."

Catherine smiled back as she accepted his hand. "I would love to, kind sir." And back towards the dance floor they went.

As they passed the table with the Oz group, the young woman dressed as Dorothy waved and called out, "Hay-there, would you like to join us in the movie group contest?"

Catherine looked over, did a perfect classic double take and shook her head laughing. Vincent steered them both over to the table. He nodded his head to the young woman and replied, "I am honored that you ask." He tilted his head to Catherine. "But I am already otherwise engaged."

Dorothy smiled at him very sweetly. "Oh please, it would complete our group and the prize is dinner for six at that new movie theme restaurant that just opened on Broadway."

The older man (Scarecrow) jumped. "We would all appreciate it and it would certainly improve our chances of winning."

Catherine gave his hand a little squeeze, that familiar hint of mischief in her eyes. "We couldn't make it to the restaurant, but it wouldn't hurt to let them include us for the contest, would it?"

Vincent looked at Catherine and saw her eyes dancing with amusement. He also could feel her amusement tinged with slightly erotic overtones over their link and couldn't help wondering what had produced that particular reaction in her. He looked back at 'Dorothy' and shrugged his shoulders. "I suppose it will be OK."

Dorothy reached for a form sitting on the table. "Great, all I need is your names." She looked at them expectantly.

Catherine responded. "It's Catherine Chandler and ... " She glanced at Vincent her eyes shining then continued. "Vincent Wells." Vincent could feel both amusement and a very strong rush of pride from her as she gave his name to them.

Vincent saw her write down Catherine's name with "Glenda – Good Witch of the North" nest to it. His own name was followed by the words "Cowardly Lion".

The younger man (Tin-man) responded. "We're glad to meet you both, and thank you." He indicated himself. "I am Dominick."

The scarecrow spoke next. "My name's Kenneth."

Dorothy finished. "And my name really is Dorothy."

Vincent bowed to the three. "It was a pleasure meeting you." He looked over at Catherine. "Now, if you three will pardon us, I believe the next dance has our name on it." Then he directed Catherine towards the dance floor. As they approached the glass door Vincent spoke. "You certainly are getting bold."

She looked up at him. "I don't know why I did that, but I couldn't resist it. It's just something about this night that makes me feel so free and daring." Then she giggled and smiled at him as she stepped through the door. "And I couldn't resist the picture of you as the cowardly lion."

Again there was that faint hint of erotic overtone coming over the link from her. Vincent noticed a distinct blush rising in her cheeks as she looked away from him and wondered again what he was missing. Catherine at the same moment wondered what Vincent would think if he realized that, in the movie, the cowardly lion was the only character that wore no clothes. Again she felt herself blushing as they steped through the glass door.

"Besides," Catherine continued after a second, "they won't mind if we don't go to the restaurant with them. I'm sure they have other friend that they would rather take."

Once again they were dancing in each other's arms and all seemed right with the world. Several other dancers smiled at them and soon they both found themselves getting into the fun. The young girl that had flirted with Vincent danced by on the arm of a handsome pirate. As she passed she waved to them. Catherine gave Vincent a little nudge in the ribs. "You seem to be very popular tonight."

Vincent smiled down at her. "If so it is only the reflected light of your beauty that makes me so." His words and the sparkle in his eyes made Catherine feel warm all over.

A few minutes later, as she was glancing at the other couples dancing around them, Catherine spotted Elliot having a heated discussion with the three men that had accosted her earlier. Surely Elliot wouldn't resort to something as sophomoric as setting up a peril scenario so he could save the day. She shook her head telling herself that she was just misinterpreting the evidence. That just wasn't Elliot's style. She put it out of her mind and went back to enjoying the feel of dancing in Vincent's arms.

Dorothy and the Tin Woodsman danced close by and they both smiled and nodded to Catherine and Vincent. The sexy witch Catherine met in the elevator also smiled and winked as she danced by on the arms of man dressed as a satyr.

As the latest dance ended an announcer stepped up to the microphone. "Ladies and Gentlemen, we have a few announcements for you all!" He waited for the crowd to quiet down, "First I would like to say that this event has raised over four hundred thousand dollars for the children's wing of Saint Vincent's Hospital." A general cheer went up from the crowd.

Vincent looked at Catherine in surprise. She hadn't told him about the charity aspect of their outing, nor, he realized, how much the tickets to this thing must have cost.

The announcer held up his hands and the crowd was again quiet. "Now for the Costume contest." Several preliminary awards were given out. There was the scariest costume that went to a very scary and realistic looking grim reaper. The most unusual costume went to a man dressed as a Jack-in-the-box. The best romantic movie couple award went to her father and Kay as Ashley and Scarlett O'Hara. The best movie fantasy character group award went to the 'Wizard of Oz' group. Catherine clapped enthusiastically as Dorothy, her name turned out to be Dorothy Sloan, went up to collect the prize for the group. There were several other minor categories including best historical romantic couple, most authentic period costume, most realistic, funniest and silliest costumes.

The band played a little fanfare and the announcer called out. "Now for the big moment. For the best individual costume of the night." He waited a beat while he checked a piece of paper. "The grand prize of a two week cruise for two goes to The Jack-O-Lantern man." The crowd cheered.

Like everyone else, Catherine had noticed that particular costume earlier. The man wore a green one piece suit with inch thick padded vines twisting all over the suit. There were several large leaves attached to the vines. His hands also looked like leaves. Over his head he wore a large Jack-O-Lantern made from a real pumpkin. She knew it was real because once when he passed close she had caught the faint aroma of fresh pumpkin.

As the man, accompanied by a very pretty and sexy blond vampire, went up to claim his prize Catherine nudged Vincent. "Maybe you wouldn't have had such a big advantage after all."

After the grand prize was given out to the cheering of the crowd, the band came back out and Vincent and Catherine returned to their table which was currently vacant and cleaned off. A few seconds later Dorothy and her two companions came by to thank them for joining her group and offered them two of the diner certificates.

Vincent shook his head. "No you keep them. We have no need of them and I'm sure you have a couple of friends you could share them with."

As Dorothy and her escort turned away, Catherine's father came up to their table. He glanced at the retreating trio then turned back to his daughter and her friend. "Happy Halloween, Cathy." He greeted her. "I don't believe I've met your friend." He paused, waiting to be introduced.

Not having any way out, she performed the introductions. "Father, this is Vincent … Wells." She wondered if he had noticed the momentary pause. "Vincent, this is my father, Charles Chandler."

Charles held out his hand. "Pleased to meet you."

Vincent reluctantly extended his hand. "The pleasure is mine, Sir."

Charles' eyebrows climbed halfway to his hairline as he saw Vincent's clawed and furred hand. After only a moment's hesitation, he took Vincent's hand in a firm grip. "Your costume is excellent, right down to your furry gloves. My compliments."

Vincent relaxed a little in his relief. "Thank you."

Charles continued. "Kay has deserted me for the powder room so I'm temporarily without a dance partner." He smiled at Catherine then addressed Vincent. "Would you object if I borrowed my daughter for a spin around the dance floor?"

Vincent nodded to Charles. "Not at all, Sir. Go right ahead." Then as Charles took Catherine's hand Vincent added, "But don't forget to bring her back."

With a laugh Charles led his daughter off to the glass enclosed dance floor. Catherine was desperately trying to anticipate his possible questions and develop plausible answers. Charles expertly swung his daughter onto the dance floor and Catherine remembered that her father had always been a good dancer. It was he that had taught her most of what she knew.

Continued in Part 3

'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.