(Kieran POV)
I found Catherine in the stables, sitting on a hay bale while Jamie explained something about proper horse care with the kind of earnest enthusiasm that suggested he was processing trauma through focus on familiar routines. Normal activities that provided anchor points during circumstances that had challenged every assumption about what normal actually meant.
Activities that didn't require supernatural capabilities to execute successfully.
Conversations that didn't involve violence or threat assessment or strategic planning.
Interactions that felt safe when safety had become theoretical concept rather than practical reality.
They both looked up when I entered, and the relief that flooded Catherine's face made my chest tight with emotions I couldn't process while still fun
