Chapter Text
Siegfried sat at the head of the kitchen table with Jimmy and Rosie, enthusiastically reading them their daily morning story. Today's story was about equine dysautonomia, much to the dismay of Mrs Hall, who was trying to get breakfast ready.
“The aetiology of the disease is—”
“Mr Farnon, can’t you read them a story that isn't from one of your textbooks?” Mrs Hall asked. She shook her head in disbelief that this even needed to be asked as she continued preparing breakfast.
“Mrs Hall, I am simply enriching the young minds of the next generation. Jimmy and Rosie love learning about the intricacies of veterinary medicine. Don't you?” He looked at them confidently, knowing that they looked forward to story time as much as he did.
They nodded in agreement and cheered.
“You see?” He peered over his glasses at her with a smug sense of satisfaction and a coy smile draped across his face.
“Maybe I should join the family business and be a vet too,” she joked as she walked over to the children. “I've heard so many of your stories that I'm starting to understand these intricacies of yours.”
Siegfried slammed his book shut and swiftly took off his glasses. “Mrs Hall, that is an absolutely marvellous idea! You are compassionate, sensitive and caring. All qualities required to be an excellent vet.”
“There's a bit more to it than that.” She laughed. “I suppose you're going to send me off to college, like Tristan?”
“There is no need for that. It would be my honour to teach you. Under my guidance, I have no doubt that you'll succeed.”
“You? Teach me?” She was shocked at his declaration.
“I am an excellent teacher, Mrs Hall! Aren't I, Jimmy?”
“He is, Aunty Audrey,” Jimmy said, looking up at her with a big smile on his face. “He's the best teacher.”
Siegfried looked lovingly at Jimmy. “That is high praise indeed. Thank you, Jimmy.”
“I know he is.” She smiled at Siegfried and squeezed Jimmy's shoulder. “Others may not agree though.” She laughed to herself. He completely missed her jab at him because he was too overjoyed at being complimented by her and Jimmy. Their opinions mattered the most to him, and he was touched that they thought so highly of him.
“Mrs Hall, I'll make you my partner.” Siegfried looked at her with an earnest smile on his face.
She dropped the tomato she was holding and her eyes met his. “What?” She was stunned by what she’d just heard.
He didn’t know what came over him and why he had phrased it like that. “A-a partner in the business,” he replied, trying to recover from his gaffe. “Once you're fully trained up, of course.” His face felt hot.
“What's a partner?” Jimmy asked.
After a brief pause, Mrs Hall composed herself. “Well, there's more than one meaning, Jimmy,” she replied. “Your uncle is talking about someone you own a business with. Isn't that right, Mr Farnon?”
“Yes, quite right…Your father is my business partner, and we work together.” He was glad they were moving on from what he had accidentally said and hoped he hadn't made her uncomfortable.
“Aunty Audrey, will I see you at the farm with my dad?” Jimmy asked with a smile on his face.
She laughed. “I don't think so, love. Your uncle was just being silly. You know how he is.” She smiled at Siegfried, and seeing her smile was always reassuring and comforting. He knew now that despite making a fool of himself, she wasn’t upset with him.
Siegfried made a silly face, and Jimmy and Rosie burst out laughing.
Mrs Hall returned to the counter to finish preparing all the ingredients and started cooking breakfast. “What does today hold?”
Siegfried pondered what he had planned for the day. He remembered that Mrs Hall had mentioned a few days earlier that a shop in Skipton sold teddy bears, and she wanted to get one for Mary's first birthday. However, she kept putting it off because she was too busy. He knew that she liked to get things done early, so he decided he would help her out. He could finally start repaying her for everything she had done for him.
“Nothing particularly exciting. Are you…going to Skipton today?” he asked, knowing that she would say no.
“Not today. I have a lot to be getting on with here.”
“Mrs Hall, I can go and get that teddy bear for Mary. It's a light surgery day, so Tristan can handle it.”
“Uncle Siegfried, can we come too?” Jimmy asked eagerly.
“Yes, of course!” he replied with more enthusiasm than Jimmy. “We can make a morning of it.” He drummed his fingers on the table. He had been looking for an opportunity to go on a little trip with the children, and this would be perfect. Siegfried was also delighted that Jimmy wanted to spend time with him, and he hoped that wouldn’t change as Jimmy got older.
“Is that really a good idea, Mr Farnon?” Mrs Hall asked with concern in her voice.
“What terrible plan does my big brother have today?” Tristan asked with a grin on his face as he waltzed into the kitchen and sat beside Jimmy.
“He wants to take Jimmy and Rosie to Skipton,” she explained to Tristan while adding the finishing touches to breakfast.
“Now that is a terrible idea. Think of the children.” Tristan gestured to Jimmy and Rosie.
“Tristan, you fail to remember that I brought you up. Rest assured, I know what I'm doing.” Siegfried smiled warmly at Jimmy and Rosie.
“You realise I was 13 and not a child, right?” Tristan retorted. “There is a difference. No offence, Jimmy, Rosie.”
“That is not how I remember it.” He smirked at Tristan. “Besides, Jimmy and Rosie are much better behaved than you ever were. Isn't that right?”
The children smiled at him, and Siegfried looked at them like a doting father. He loved them as if they were his own children, and he felt blessed to be part of their lives. Being with them always put him in a good mood and not even Tristan could upset him—usually.
“You're the parenting expert, Siegfried,” Tristan said with a hint of sarcasm in his tone. “When Helen comes back, she should come to you for parenting advice.”
Siegfried pursed his lips and became lost in thought. For once, Tristan wasn't actually wrong. He felt a responsibility to help Jimmy and Rosie achieve the best version of themselves. Surely, he had enough wisdom and experience to share with Helen and James to benefit the children. He decided he would need to consult Mrs Hall on how to handle this, as she always knew best.
“Oh God, he thinks I'm serious.” Tristan looked at Mrs Hall with regret.
She chuckled. “Breakfast's ready.” She served Siegfried a plate of bacon, fried eggs and tomatoes.
“That looks delicious,” Siegfried said. “Thank you, Mrs Hall.”
Mrs Hall softly smiled as she continued serving breakfast to the table, before making a plate for herself. “Tris, do you have any plans today?” she asked as she sat down across from him.
“I'm planning to see Charlotte later today.” Tristan smiled. A look of confusion, however, quickly followed. “Wait, if you're taking the morning off, who's looking after surgery?”
“You are, little brother,” Siegfried replied in a patronising tone as he had a bite of his bacon.
“And how was I supposed to know this?” Tristan shared a look of disbelief with Mrs Hall.
“You know now, don't you? Besides, it's a light surgery day. Think of it as slowly easing yourself back into work.”
“I don't mind helping out. It would just be nice to know ahead of time. You do know that I have a life outside of working for you.”
Mrs Hall looked at Siegfried, unimpressed. Her disapproval was always soul-crushing, and he instantly knew that he was wrong and had to make amends immediately.
“Tristan…” he paused as he searched for the words. “I should have told you sooner. I confess, I have been rather preoccupied this week since Jimmy and Rosie are staying with us.”
Tristan and Mrs Hall smirked at each other. “That's the closest you'll get to an apology,” she said.
Siegfried held his tongue before he upset Mrs Hall—or Tristan—again.
“Is Jim coming back tonight?” Tristan asked. “I feel like I haven't seen him in ages.”
“He drops by when he can. He's staying up at Heston to help Jenny until Helen and Richard are back from his brother's,” she replied. While it was selfish, Siegfried secretly hoped that they would be away for longer than expected so that he could spend more time with the children. He had tried to talk some sense into James, but James was adamant that his family were not moving back to Skeldale for the foreseeable future. Hearing this had hurt him, and he still couldn't understand why James was making such a rash decision.
Tristan looked at Jimmy and Rosie. “Well, it has been nice to have you two back with us.”
“Isn't it just?” She smiled at the children.
“The old goat's certainly missed you.” Tristan nodded towards Siegfried. “He hasn't been this happy since—” he smirked as he looked at Mrs Hall. A faint smile flashed across her face as she shook her head.
“He's not a goat, Uncle Tris!” Jimmy said, giggling. Siegfried was deeply moved hearing Jimmy defend him against Tristan's gross mischaracterisation.
Tristan raised up his index finger. “Actually—”
“How about you finish breakfast so that you can start surgery on time?” she interrupted.
“Of course, Mrs H.” Tristan began to quickly eat. Siegfried was always impressed and slightly jealous at how easily Mrs Hall could get Tristan to listen to her. His life would have been so much easier if Tristan had just listened to him for once in his life. Though having been on the receiving end of her might, he knew that she was far more formidable than he could ever be.
Rosie tugged on Siegfried's sleeve from her highchair. “Yes, Rosie?” he asked. “You've already finished your breakfast?”
Rosie babbled happily.
“How very impressive,” he said with amazement in his voice. “Let's get you cleaned up then, shall we?”
“Let me help you, Mr Farnon.” Mrs Hall put down her cutlery and started to get up from her seat.
“I can do it, Mrs Hall. You don't have to do everything yourself.” He smiled warmly at her.
“Oh aye?” Mrs Hall looked at him with amusement on her face.
Tristan stopped eating and watched them with delight.
“Are you ready to go on an adventure?” Siegfried asked Rosie in a playful voice he only used with children and animals.
Rosie made a happy sound and clapped her hands.
“Hurray!” Siegfried picked Rosie up from the highchair and carried her on his hip. “Now Jimmy, we mustn't keep your sister waiting.”
“I'm almost done, Uncle Siegfried.” Jimmy took another bite of his toast.
“Jolly good. We'll wait for you in the Vauxhall.”
Jimmy nodded in agreement. The excitement on Jimmy and Rosie’s faces was a heartwarming reminder of the joys of fatherhood, and he would cherish these moments forever.
“We're off out!” he announced as he swiftly left with Rosie, before Mrs Hall or Tristan could say anything.
Outside, Siegfried carefully put Rosie in the back seat of the Vauxhall, treating her like a crystal vase.
“Are you comfortable, Rosie?” he asked. “I hope there's enough room for you.”
Rosie giggled, and he knew that she was pleased. Despite her limited vocabulary, he believed that they understood each other completely. Every day, he looked forward to having intelligent conversations with her, and these were always the highlight of his day.
“Very kind,” he said softly with a smile and nod.
Siegfried heard footsteps coming towards him, and he thought that it was Jimmy. When he turned to look, he saw Mrs Hall instead. She was holding his jacket, and he realised that in his excitement, he had forgotten to put it on.
“Thank you, Mrs Hall,” he said as she helped him put his jacket on.
“Mr Farnon, are you sure you're going to be all right?” she asked. “You really don't have to do this for me. I can go meself.”
“This is the least I can do for you, Mrs Hall. I'm also rather looking forward to spending time with Jimmy and Rosie. Truth be told, I haven't seen them much since they moved back to Heston…” He could not hide the pain in his voice. It was obvious that James was only letting Jimmy and Rosie stay at Skeldale because Mrs Hall had returned. While the children were back, he desperately wanted to make up for lost time.
“I see,” she said empathetically. “I can see how much this means to you. No wonder they've been so excited.” He looked at her with a half-smile.
Jimmy came outside and made his way to the Vauxhall. “Aunty Audrey, are you coming too?”
“No, sorry love. Next time. But you're going to have a wonderful time with your uncle.” She shared a smile with Siegfried. He was grateful for her kindness and understanding. Now that she was back, he hoped that she could help him convince James and Helen to move back home with the children. Despite the front that he put up, he had greatly missed having his family together.
Jimmy got into the back seat, and after Siegfried made sure he was comfortable, he closed the door. “Are we ready?” he exclaimed as he got into the driver's seat. Jimmy and Rosie cheered from the back. “We'll be back before lunch time, Mrs Hall.”
“Aye, have a good time.”
As Siegfried drove away, Mrs Hall waved goodbye and watched them until they were out of sight.