“Why, Captain, that’s the best idea I’ve heard all day! I’ve just got to go tell Miss Harriet!” Off Katherine went out the door, remembering just as she reached the doorstep that she hadn’t picked up the bag of tea, and quickly wheeled around to take the well-packed sack from the bewildered captain. Then, she ran down the street, towards Miss Harriet’s.
When she neared the shop, she slowed down and walked the last little bit, so she wouldn’t be so out of breath when she arrived. She knew Miss Harriet didn’t like her to burst in the door as she was prone to do. Self-control and gracious composure were paramount. Katherine had even been trying to learn to move about between the tables quietly and gracefully as her employer did.
Once she had herself sufficiently under control, she walked in, smiling happily at the customers as she walked back towards the kitchen.
“Oh, Miss Harriet, I’ve had the most wonderful idea!” Katherine exclaimed in a whisper as she joined her employer behind the counter after depositing her sack in the kitchen.
Miss Harriet looked at her, all pleasant surprise and curiosity. Then with a quick glance round the tables and down at her watch, she leaned over and whispered,
“I can’t wait to hear it, Dearie, but it’s only a half hour till closing, and as you can see, we’ve quite a few tables filled; may I suggest that we can make it the topic of our dishwashing discussion tonight?”
Katherine grinned and nodded, then whisked away to take the orders of customers at three newly-filled tables.
Finally, the customers had gone, the tables had been cleared, and what little food was left over had been put away. Miss Harriet changed her light floral apron for a plastic one (which was just as floral) and began to fill the sink, while Katherine stacked the dirty dishes on the counter next to her.
“Well, now. What’s this grand idea you’ve had?” asked Miss Harriet, swirling the hot water to distribute the soap.
“It was Captain Braddock’s idea, really.” Katherine began eagerly.
“Captain Braddock’s? And what kind of idea might he have had that got you bursting with excitement? He hasn’t stolen you away from me completely, now, has he?” Miss Harriet interjected with mock sternness, shaking a sudsy finger at Katherine.
“No, nothing like that. He didn’t realize he’d had the idea, and he was actually being quite rude at the time. By the way,” Katherine said in an aside, “he won’t be attending your Guy Fawkes Day party.”
Miss Harriet did not look surprised at this revelation, and Katherine continued, thinking it wise to overlook the details of the captain’s tirade.
“Anyway, he said something about Thanksgiving, and I thought, since I’m going to be with my parents, and I just can’t bear to think you’ll be alone with just Whiskers to keep you company, why don’t you have Thanksgiving dinner with the town?”
Miss Harriet looked both intrigued and puzzled.
“But, my dear, won’t ‘the town’ be having Thanksgiving with their own families?”
“Not the whole town. There must be people with nowhere to go and no one to visit. Think of poor Mrs. Penelope, for example. You yourself said that she never sees her children. Wouldn’t it be nice for her to have somewhere to go for Thanksgiving dinner?” Miss Harriet rinsed a teacup thoughtfully, then looked up at Katherine with a growing smile.
“I do believe that old grouch has had a good idea, after all! I had never thought of throwing the shop’s doors open to the ‘lone and forgotten’ like myself. I like the idea exceedingly. But how shall we feed them all? I’ve never cooked a Thanksgiving meal, and you’ll be away, so I won’t have any help.” Katherine had been thinking of this.
“You could ask Mr. James to help you. He’s been so happy to help you with Guy Fawkes’ Day, and I don’t think he has any family to go visit. And you could ask people to bring food, like a potluck. That way everyone gets their favorite Thanksgiving dish, and you only have to cook a little!” Miss Harriet handed a saucer to Katherine, then stopped, thinking it over.
“Katherine, dear, I knew you’d be good for this place! I’ll do it. I really will! I’ll talk with Mr. James about it first thing in the morning.”
* * * *
Katherine went to bed that night with a happy heart. She had become somewhat resigned to visiting her parents but had been bothered by the thought of leaving Miss Harriet alone, even though Thanksgiving was not a holiday that meant much to an Englishwoman. It would be good to be able to leave for her parents’ place with the knowledge that Miss Harriet would be well looked after.
She knew that Miss Harriet enjoyed serving people more than anything and that Mr. James would make sure it all ran smoothly. Besides, it would be good to have something to look forward to hearing about after her trip. She nestled her head into her pillow with a satisfied sigh.
Now, she thought, If I could just figure the Captain out.
* * * *
The next morning was Saturday, and Katherine awoke later than usual, since it was her day off. Hearing voices down in the shop, she quietly peeked out her door and saw Miss Harriet standing near Mr. James’ table, and both of them talking excitedly. She knew they must be discussing Thanksgiving. Unable to resist, she quickly got dressed and went downstairs.
“Good morning, Miss Katherine!” Mr. James cheerfully exclaimed as she approached the table.
“Ah, yes. Good morning Dearie!” Miss Harriet said, turning around to greet her.
“Good morning! You two look like you’re in full planning mode.”
“Yes, Miss Harriet was just telling me about your very excellent idea for a Thanksgiving town-wide feast. I think it will be just the thing, because so many of our people stay here and don’t have anyone to share the holiday with. Statistically speaking, it’s far more likely that people will stay home at Thanksgiving, to save their funds for a Christmas visit to family that live far away.”
“How interesting! And—” Just then the kettle began singing from the kitchen, but Katherine was already halfway to the kitchen before Miss Harriet had turned around.
“I’ll get it, Miss Harriet.” Katherine called over her shoulder.
When she returned, she had a larger pot of tea than Mr. James usually ordered, and there were two cups and saucers on the tray.
“I figured since this is an official chat, you should join Mr. James in a cup of tea, so he can be spared the dilemma of whether to be impolite and drink his tea in front of you, or whether to suffer through a cup of cold tea after you’re done.”
Miss Harriet began to protest, but one look at Katherine was enough to tell that her protestations would be in vain. “Well… as long as Mr. James doesn’t mind...”
Mr. James stood and pulled out a chair for her. “Not at all. In fact, I was just considering asking you to join me, and Katherine has just very graciously removed my only scruple. Of course, I couldn’t monopolize your time while you were the only hand on deck, so to speak, but now that Katherine’s arrived, we can take our time and discuss our plans thoroughly.”
