David sniffled and declared, “I am keeping it,” in a tone that suggested negotiation was not an option.
Amelia laughed softly, brushing dust from her ruined dress as she said, “Of course you are.”
It was in that exact moment that Gabriel arrived with Valerie on his heels.
He took in the scene in one sweeping glance, his expression tightening almost immediately when his eyes landed on David’s arm. The stillness that followed was sharper than any shout, and even Grover seemed to sit straighter under it.
Gabriel stepped forward, his attention fixed entirely on the injury as he said, “What happened?”
David quickly protested, “It’s only a scratch,” but Gabriel cut him off with, “Inside. All of you. Now.”
“But the kitten. I will not leave it,” David said.
Amelia watched as Gabriel saw the kitten. He huffed and then freed it and handed it to Valerie.
“Now, inside,” he said.
Amelia guided David carefully despite his complaints.
Grover followed solemnly, as though sensing the gravity had shifted.
Once inside the house, the atmosphere changed from sunlit chaos to structured concern. Gabriel guided David into the sitting room where light streamed through tall windows.
“Sit,” Gabriel ordered.
Amelia hovered nearby, offering, “I’ll get clean cloths,” while watching Gabriel examine the cut with surprising precision.
David, still tearful, declared, “The kitten is more important,” earning a look from Gabriel that silenced him instantly.
Amelia quietly fetched cloths and water, suddenly aware of how naturally she was moving within this household.
The silence that followed was broken only by David’s intermittent complaints, including“It hurts”and“I was very brave actually,”which he repeated with increasing conviction.
Amelia knelt beside them, helping hold his arm steady as Gabriel cleaned the injury and then wrapped it with controlled, steady hands.
At one point, David tried to pull away dramatically, insisting, “Stop treating me like a baby,” to which Gabriel replied evenly, “Then stop behaving like one.”
Amelia bit back a smile as she murmured, “He is bleeding, not auditioning for heroism,” earning a faint, almost reluctant pause from Gabriel.
When the bandage was finally secured, Gabriel stepped back and said simply, “That will do. I will call upon John to come havea look,” though his eyes remained fixed on David for a moment longer than necessary.
David leaned against her side and announced, “The kitten needs a name,” as though this were the next logical emergency.
Valerie, still holding the animal, said, “It cannot stay inside; it will ruin the rugs,” though she made no move to put it down.
Grover settled beneath a chair with a satisfied sigh, as though the crisis had been successfully resolved under his supervision. And Gabriel, though still stern, had not once left the room until he was certain everything was properly under control.
Later, the room was quiet once the others had been dismissed, the faint echo of David’s complaints and Valerie’s careful instructions still lingering in Amelia’s mind like an afterimage.
Amelia stood a few paces away from Gabriel, suddenly aware of how small the space felt when it was only the two of them, and she folded her hands to stop herself fidgeting. The earlier chaos of the injured arm and the rescued kitten seemed distant now. When Gabriel finally spoke, his voice was controlled but edged with something sharper than irritation. Amelia braced herself before he even finished the first sentence.
He asked her, without preamble, “Why must you insist on breaking rules so frequently, as though structure inmy household were something fragile you take pleasure in undoing?”
“You make it sound as though I am doing it deliberately,” Amelia replied at once, lifting her chin slightly as she met his gaze.
Gabriel’s expression did not change as he answered, “Intent is irrelevant if the result is disorder.”
She exhaled softly through her nose, frustration flickering across her face before she steadied it again. “Then you only ever notice me when something goes wrong,” she said, taking a careful step forward, “but when things improve, you act as though I am invisible.” She hesitated then added more quietly, “I am sorry for breaking your rules, but you must understand, Valerie and David need more than structure. They need spontaneity and life… and you.”
