It's been about two years since I married Ciel.
It wasn't anything strange here. It was the norm. You get introduced, you talk, you see if you're suited. If it works, it works. Then you move forward.
Still felt different when it was me.
We took it properly. Sat down, had real conversations, made sure we understood each other before anything was decided. More than a few talks in little cafés, quiet walks back after, that sort of thing.
It took a while. Around six months.
After a while...
it didn't feel arranged anymore.
It just felt right.
Moving out of the orphanage was part of that.
Couldn't exactly get married and keep living in a room down the hall from thirty children. So I bought a place not too far from it. Close enough that I could walk there every morning without wasting half the day, far enough that when I shut the front door behind me, it actually felt like home and not just an extension of work.
Small place. Nothing fancy. Two floors, decent kitchen, good roof, enough space that it didn't feel cramped.
That was enough. Especially with Ciel in it.
She was sitting in front of the mirror when I leaned against the bedroom doorway, brushing out her hair with slow, patient strokes. Morning light spilled in through the window and caught in the long sky-blue strands, making them look even lighter than usual. One side fell low enough to almost cover her right eye, though not fully. The ribbon on the left side of her head—flower-shaped, same as always—sat neatly in place beside the hair clips. Her ears twitched once, soft and catlike, probably because she'd already noticed me standing there before I even opened my mouth.
"You're staring again."
"You say that like it's a crime."
"It's strange."
"You're my wife. I think I'm allowed to stare a little."
That made the corner of her mouth lift. Just a little. "Allowed, maybe. Doesn't make it less strange."
I pushed off the doorway and walked over, resting a hand on her shoulder. My thumb brushed lightly against the collar of her robe before I leaned down a bit.
"Been two years and you still act shy."
"I'm not shy."
"Right."
She looked at me through the mirror, calm as ever, but there was still a faint bit of colour in her cheeks. "You're annoying in the mornings."
"Only in the mornings?"
"Mostly."
I laughed under my breath and pressed a kiss against the side of her head. Her brushing slowed and her tail stiffened for a second, then kept going like nothing happened.
That was how she was.
Quiet about it.
The kind of person who wouldn't make a big show of affection, but would lean into you for half a second when she thought you wouldn't notice.
So naturally, I noticed.
From the next room, there was the sound of small feet hitting wood too fast, followed by a thud, followed by silence.
Ciel's hand stopped mid-brush.
I was already turning.
A second later Sylvie appeared in the doorway in a tangle of green hair and sleep-creased clothes, rubbing one eye with the back of her hand like she'd just rolled straight out of bed and lost a fight with the blanket.
She blinked at us.
Then at me.
Then at Ciel.
Then she narrowed her eyes a little.
"Good morning!"
"Morning to you too."
"Papa, why do you keep staring at mama?."
Ciel's mouth twitched.
"See? Even she says it weird."
Sylvie walked in like she owned the place, which, at this point, she basically did. She still had that half-asleep shuffle to her steps, but there was no hesitation in the way she crossed the room and climbed straight onto the bed behind Ciel like this was the most normal thing in the world.
It was.
That part still got me sometimes.
Not in a bad way. Just... sometimes I'd stop and really look at it.
A house.
My wife.
My daughter sprawled across the blankets with her hair sticking up in every direction.
Ciel turned slightly in her seat.
"Did you wash your face?"
Sylvie squinted. "Not yet."
"I can tell."
That earned a grumble.
A year or two ago I might've expected awkwardness.
Never happened.
Ciel had accepted Sylvie almost immediately.
That had been one of the few things I refused to bend on. Didn't matter how kind someone seemed to me personally. If they couldn't be good with Sylvie, there was nothing more to talk about.
Ciel never even hesitated.
She'd met her, spoken to her, listened to her ramble, and by the end of it Sylvie had somehow decided she was safe.
That was pretty much it.
Children were good at seeing things clearly when adults kept trying to complicate them.
Sylvie flopped onto her stomach and looked up at me from the bed.
"Are you going to the orphanage today?"
"Yeah."
"Can I come too?"
"No."
Her face dropped instantly. "Why not?"
"Because it's the weekend," I said. "You're not spending your morning following me around while I drown in paperwork."
"That doesn't sound that bad."
"It does if you're the one doing it."
She pushed herself up a little. "But I like going."
"I know you do. You like bothering the other kids, stealing food from the kitchen, and pretending you're helping when you're not."
"I do help."
"Sometimes."
Sylvie narrowed her eyes at me.
"I help a lot."
Ciel set the brush down on the table and turned a little more in the chair.
"That means she helps just enough to make trouble harder to complain about."
Sylvie pointed at her immediately. "See? Mama gets it."
"Traitor," I muttered.
She grinned.
I walked over to the bed and sat down on the edge of it, reaching out to ruffle the top of Sylvie's hair. She swatted my hand away and fixed it immediately after, offended on principle.
"You'll be back before evening?" Ciel asked.
"Yeah."
"You said that last time too."
"I know. This time I actually mean it."
Sylvie gave me a look that was way too old for her face. "That's also what you said last time."
I pointed at her. "You've gotten too comfortable."
"Good," Ciel said.
I looked over at her.
Then Sylvie tugged at my sleeve. "So I really can't come?"
"No. You're staying here."
"But—"
I tapped her lightly on the forehead before she could keep going. "I need someone here."
She blinked. "Why?"
I glanced toward Ciel, then back at her. "Because while I'm gone, someone's got to be a good knight and protect mama."
Sylvie straightened immediately.
Chest up. Serious face. The whole thing.
Ciel's mouth twitched.
"I can do that," Sylvie said.
"I know."
She folded her arms like she'd just been handed the defense of the kingdom itself. "Then I'll stay."
"Very noble of you."
"I'm serious."
"I can tell."
Ciel stood from the chair and walked over, smoothing her robe as she did. "Then Sir Sylvie can start by washing her face."
"I'm not a sir."
"Then Lady Knight Sylvie can start by washing her face."
That seemed to satisfy her.
She slid off the bed and took Ciel's hand without another complaint.
Ciel glanced back at me once. "Bring something back from the square if you're coming home late."
"What kind of something?"
"Strawberries," Sylvie said immediately.
Ciel was quiet for a second, then nodded once. "Those."
I looked between them. "So that's how it is."
"Yes!" Sylvie said.
"Clearly," I muttered.
I stood up and stepped over to Ciel, brushing a loose strand of blue hair back behind her ear. She tilted her head just slightly into my hand before catching herself.
"I'll bring back the strawberries," I said.
"You'd better," Sylvie replied from the hall.
Ciel let out a quiet breath that was almost a laugh.
I leaned down and kissed her forehead, then crouched slightly and did the same to Sylvie, who immediately looked offended by the public display of fatherhood.
"Go wash up," I said.
"I was already going."
"You were standing here."
"I was about to go."
"Sure."
She ran off before I could say anything else, bare feet thudding down the hall.
Ciel watched her go, small smile on her face, then looked back at me.
For a second neither of us said anything.
The house was warm. Morning light all over the floorboards. Sylvie making noise somewhere near the basin. Ciel standing right in front of me, robe sleeves hanging past her wrists, blue hair over one shoulder, looking like she'd been here forever.
And somehow, in a way I still didn't fully understand, this had become normal too.
I rested my forehead lightly against hers for a second.
"I'll be back before evening."
She looked at me like she was deciding whether to believe it.
Then she gave one small nod. "Take care of yourself."
I smiled. "Yeah."
And then I left for the orphanage.
Behind me, the house settled back into quiet.
Ciel stood there for a moment, listening to my footsteps fade.
Then her hand rose slowly and rested against her stomach, warm and gentle, and a small smile touched her face before she turned to go after Sylvie.
--------------------
AN
hopefully I made this chapter quite warm, lmk if you guys have any other ideas. or questions.