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Two hours later, after Arturia got dressed, she was ready to meet the staff, and she and Gilgamesh went down the stairs together. She had briefly checked, and Shirou was thankfully still sleeping.
She was quite taken aback at finding out that the housekeepers were a middle-aged couple, Mr. and Mrs. Stark, certainly not old but at the same time not so young anymore, who lived in an annexe quite close to the mansion, and who were responsible for the management of the house. From the way they spoke, she surmised that they were very familiar with the building and, for some reason, fiercely loyal to Gilgamesh. They gave her a very respectful and more than warm welcome, and she had the distinct impression that they were curious about her, eager to know the new 'mistress of the house' – the new Mrs. Uruk.
As for the rest of the staff, there weren't as many people as she had thought. There was the chauffeur – who was not the same she had met in the US, but that was to be expected – a team of cleaners who would come by three times a week – or whenever they wished them to – and the deliverers, who were in charge of the food shopping and any kind of maintenance work that might be needed.
Arturia made a point of talking at length with all of them, memorizing their full names and their tasks. As soon as the introductions were complete, Gilgamesh, who had been present the entire time, dismissed everyone except the Starks, giving them instructions about the luggage.
Arturia did not notice, but both of them gaped at her when she went to help with the unpacking as well. When Mrs. Stark weakly tried to protest, saying that it was their duty, she waved it off, saying that she was happy to help.
Therefore, for the following half-an-hour, Arturia worked with the couple to put away most of the clothes and objects they had taken with them from the US – including her and Iri's possessions from their apartment – while Gilgamesh was on the phone but remained always nearby.
Within that period of time, she had learned more from the housekeepers about the house's planimetry, and she had also unknowingly won their respect.
As soon as that was done, she thanked them for their work and then dismissed them. Gilgamesh concluded his series of phone calls in that moment, and motioned for her to follow him.
"Aside from the regular staff, you haven't met the cook yet. She is a new employee – she is very young but appears to be adequately qualified. I allowed her to come in later this morning."
In the entrance hall, there was a purple-haired girl who was being calmly but firmly lectured by Mrs. Stark. Arturia did her best to hide her surprise when she turned around to introduce herself.
Her name was Sakura Tohsaka, and by her appearance, she determined that she couldn't be older than eighteen. Gilgamesh sharply gave her instructions, and even though she was quite obviously frightened to death by him, she nodded with shy determination.
Arturia observed her keenly during that exchange, and she felt that there was something off about the girl – not in a negative sense though. She was very young, and she had obviously the desire to prove herself; she listened attentively, and something in the way she nodded convinced the blonde woman that she had resolve and was capable. At the same time, something in her eyes suggested that her life was probably far more difficult than it seemed to be at first glance. For example, there were unnatural dark bags underneath her eyes, but she obviously did not want people to notice; they were in fact barely noticeable, as she had concealed them with makeup rather remarkably. The blonde woman would not have noticed them herself if she hadn't seen the same signs on her sister Iri only a few months before.
As Gilgamesh instructed Miss Tohsaka about the meals and the working hours, Arturia noticed that she seemed to tense up when she was informed that she would have to prepare three meals per day and therefore be at work for more than eight hours.
The blonde woman made her decision in a split second, and gently intervened.
She knew it was not wise to contradict the man who had become her husband just a few hours before, especially not in front of someone else; therefore, she simply made a few changes to what he said. She observed that both of them would have to work out of the house during the day, and therefore it was not necessary for the cook to prepare lunch, unless on some specific occasions in which they would explicitly tell her so.
As she was saying that, she saw how Miss Tohsaka's expression distended in relief, and knew she had made a good choice. She still did not know much about the girl, but she intended to find out more in the future.
Gilgamesh was not blind and, while he wasn't exactly pleased with the change, he knew that Arturia had made a solid point, and only confirmed her words with a nod before dismissing the young girl. It appeared that his wife had taken an interest in the new employee; as long as that did not pose a problem to him, he decided he could leave the matter be.
Arturia was certain that there was something that made Miss Tohsaka's life complicated, and she could guess that it wasn't something she wanted to talk about, at least not openly. As she had just found out, she was indeed eighteen years old; she was younger than her and was already working as a cook in a job position not easy to obtain. After all, Arturia knew very well, from personal experience, that Gilgamesh did not go easy on his employees and accepted only perfect work.
She did not know why she was so interested in helping young Miss Tohsaka, but seeing her behaviour in the morning had made her feel the same she felt when she saw her nephew Shirou dealing with the matter of his sick mother: an instinctual desire to help, protect, and give comfort and support.
Speaking of her nephew, he was coming towards her in that moment, holding her note in hand, rubbing his eyes sleepily and looking around in wonder.
"Auntie Ria, Uncle Gilgamesh, good morning. What is this place?" he asked, eyes wide as he did not forget his manners and took in the elegant room.
"Good morning, Shirou. We're in Japan, in Gilgamesh's hou– well, Gilgamesh and mine– our house." She struggled with her words, and inwardly reprimanded herself for it.
The little boy focused on her.
"You live here now? It's so pretty! And so big!"
She nodded and smiled a bit at his compliment, leaning down to kiss his forehead.
"It is. Did you sleep well?"
Her nephew smiled, showing again how many of his milk teeth had fallen, and excitedly answered, "Yes, very much! The bed is fluffy!"
Had she been alone with him, she would have probably smiled back more, but she could not forget that her husband – it would still take her time to become accustomed to that term – was present as well.
Before she could say anything, the boy went on, "Is mommy coming here too?"
She resisted the urge to chew on her lip before slowly shaking her head.
"She can't. She has to heal first."
He solemnly stared at her.
"Mommy will be at the hospital?" And then immediately afterwards, his voice pleading, "May I stay with her, please? I want to be with mommy…"
Arturia hesitated for a fraction of a second.
"First things first, Shirou. Let's get you dressed and then we will go to mommy."
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Irisviel von Einzbern's flight was going to land on the rooftop of the hospital. It was the best hospital in the city, and one area of it was a private clinic, in which Iri was going to be located.
Together with Arturia and Shirou, Gilgamesh – who wasn't particularly happy about having to go with them but who couldn't decline for appearance's reasons – stepped into the limousine to reach the place.
The boy's eyes were wide as they took in the luxurious vehicle, and he asked his aunt and uncle countless questions about it, even though only the blonde woman patiently took the time to give him answers. Gilgamesh didn't ignore him, his crimson eyes were on him too often to give that impression, but he patently wasn't interested in participating to the conversation, and Arturia didn't find anything to object to that.
Iri had already been brought to the room in which she was going to stay. It was very welcoming and cosy, and as a patient, she had the best service at her disposal. Arturia was glad to hear that the flight had gone well and that both Iri and the baby were healthy; her sister was already five months pregnant, and it was positive to see that the gestation was proceeding well. The personnel was mostly made of very nice people, and Iri was treated like a guest, with attention and dedication. She was still comatose, true, but her sleep was peaceful and even, and the doctors in both America and Japan had said that there were good chances of her waking up soon.
It was then, however, that little Shirou proved how much of a stubborn child he could be at times. He determinedly declared that he was not going to leave his mother until she woke up, and he absolutely refused to leave the room for any reason at all.
This was not exactly something Arturia had anticipated, but to her enormous surprise, Gilgamesh had. With an expression that was a mix between bored and annoyed, he wordlessly indicated the door on the other side of the entrance of Iri's room.
Confused, the little boy followed his silent order and went to open it – finding out that it led to a very comfortable room furnished with a bed, a library, a sofa and a desk with a chair. There was also a small bathroom.
"You are going to stay only in this room and your mother's, and occasionally stroll through the park here outside. No other random wandering around the hospital nor interfering with the medics' work, or you will not be given permission to stay with your mother anymore. Is this understood?" Gilgamesh said sternly, looking directly into Shirou's eyes.
The boy, wide-eyed and intimidated, was quick to give a nod.
Arturia took a step forward as her nephew jumped on the bed to 'test' it. Pulling her… husband's – it still felt so weird to say – arm closer, she hissed in his ear, "Gilgamesh, can we please discuss this first? I'm not going to have my nephew closed in a hospital at his young age, without the possibility of getting an education and–"
He interrupted her, turning towards her and pulling her closer to him, making sure no one, least of all the child, could guess the subject of their conversation.
"There's no need to immediately get so defensive, Arturia. Your nephew will have regular lessons here with private tutors and can legally reside in this place, with his mother, as long as he keeps to these rooms of the clinic. And rest assured – his and your sister's safety are guaranteed."
She blinked. What…?
Had he already arranged for everything to make sure Shirou could be close to his mother and yet not neglect his life at the same time?
That was… it was… huge.
She blinked once again. He very visibly held back a scoff.
"No, it's not a dream, Arturia. Don't begin to try to wake up."
She just stared, unable to find the words right away.
Finally, she managed, "Wait a minute, Gilgamesh. Private tutors are not a small expense–"
He did scoff this time.
"I'm paying for them. It's the alternative to the brat– the boy," he amended after her pointed glare, "it's the alternative to the boy going to school. He obviously refuses to leave his mother, and I will not tolerate a childish scene of kicking and screaming. This solution avoids all the annoying trouble."
She was silent. She didn't even spare a thought about the fact that he was still keeping her body close to his, while Shirou was merrily somersaulting on the bed.
Eventually, she slowly took a step back, putting some space between them, before saying, "I would like to talk to the tutors myself before they ever get near my nephew, if you don't mind."
His gaze lingered on her a while longer after he had given her a nod, and he casually put an arm around her waist, drawing her closer to him once again. From the corner of her eye, Arturia noticed a nurse entering the other room to check on her sister, and correctly guessed that he had made that gesture of affection because of her presence.
As she looked at her nephew enthusiastically becoming acquainted with the rooms – proving that he had no objection whatsoever about the arrangements – another worry came to mind. She had been thinking about it in the past as well, but it was now presenting itself quite clearly, and she did not like it at all. It was a concern of no small impact or importance.
She frowned, and leaned closer to her husband, to make sure that what she told him could not be overheard.
"While I truly am grateful to you for the arrangements you made, I am concerned about Shirou spending so much time and actually growing up in such an environment. He is still very young, and he has already spent too much time in hospitals – and not because of his own injuries. I do worry about the way his judgement and personality will be influenced, and how all this will shape him in his character and mentality."
Her anxiety was plain to see, and the fact that she was standing so close to him made it even more apparent.
Gilgamesh sighed inwardly. She had basically been mothering the boy for years; it was quite natural for her to worry about his future. He held back a second sigh. In the contract, they had only agreed on the money for her family, nothing else; but he could say something when she was not being logical – and when she had such worrisome stress lines furrowing her brow.
"It cannot be helped, Arturia. As you have seen, the boy wants to be close to his mother. Until she is here, he will be here as well. Everything is connected to your sister's health."
Those words came out more gently than he had intended them to be, and it surprised him as much as it surprised her. Rationally, she had already known those things, but to have him of all people calmly remind her of them, and in a non-mocking way, too, well… if this day wasn't a festivity or celebration of some sorts, it definitely deserved to become one.
Therefore, all she did was stare at him straight in the eye and then, slowly, nod at him. She knew her eyes had the disadvantage of being very expressive; she hoped that, in this specific occasion at least, that trait of theirs would convey her message clearly. She intended to acknowledge his making an effort – a huge effort – in keeping her from needlessly worrying about things over which she had no control.
She could not express gratitude because he was not her friend and he hadn't exactly tried to soothe her, but he had actually been something very close to kind.
The vaguely, or not so vaguely, teasing glint that appeared in his eyes told her that he had very much understood what she had meant to convey and had every intention of remarking on it.
Oh, but she would not let him do that.
Narrowing her eyes, she abruptly turned away from him and called, "Shirou, how about we explore the rest of the building – and perhaps the gardens, too?"
His almost imperceptible frown was enough to show that he had understood that she had wordlessly closed the subject – and prevented him from teasing her at the same time.
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There were only another three days free before they would both go back to work and resume their lives in a more or less normal way.
They did not interact that much in that short period of time. The only actual conversation they had was on the evening of the first day, when Arturia asked him if she could give his number, as well as her own, to the hospital staff, to call in case there was an emergency of any kind; Gilgamesh wasn't too keen on it, but he eventually agreed.
After that, they hardly exchanged more than a few words per day. She had graduated, and therefore did not have her studies to tend to anymore; she played with Shirou, read for and with him, and spent time simply being there for him. She also talked with the doctors, who went into more detail about her sister's illness and how it was slowly being cured, and she was informed of the fact that the head medic of the structure was temporarily absent to be of assistance in another hospital, as he was a very busy person. She was going to meet him in a fortnight.
Together with Shirou, she saw the first ultrasound of Iri's baby, who was confirmed to be healthy. It still wasn't entirely possible to determine its sex but that was admittedly the least of all their worries. After that, the little boy fell asleep, and Arturia remained in the room for a long time, just listening to her sister's heartbeat, overwhelmed by relief because she was alive and was healing.
Every evening the chauffeur drove her back home, from where Gilgamesh worked and had one phone call after the other. Dinner was always a quiet affair, and Arturia had to admit that Sakura Tohsaka was an excellent cook. The cleaners only came by when requested, and the girl and the Starks were discreet people who did their best to give the couple of newlyweds some space.
While it was to their credit as professional workers, the blonde woman was mildly disappointed about the fact that she could not get to know the young cook a bit better. She was certain that Miss Tohsaka's personal situation was not the best, and she felt the inexplicable desire to be of help to the shy girl. Now that she was married to a worldwide famous man, Arturia was slowly beginning to realize that she actually had some power in her position, not just to help her sister, but other people as well. Miss Tohsaka, while very reserved and polite, did give the impression of having something weighing on her in her life.
Between adjusting to jet lag, finding her way around the large house and helping Shirou getting settled in his new home, Sunday evening came entirely too soon. That was when she and Gilgamesh had to actually talk to each other, since the following day they were going to have to go back to work.
They sat down with tea in one of the living rooms, one on the upper floor that was for their private use and to which the blonde woman had taken an immediate liking. The first day, the housekeepers had showed Arturia all the rooms' purposes, and that same morning she had done her best to memorize them all, since it was after all going to be her house.
Gilgamesh's first inquiry was about her working hours, because he meant for her to take on the full time schedule.
"You are wasted as a part-timer, Arturia. You have graduated now, and your capabilities would be better employed with a full-time schedule."
"But my family comes before my possible job ambitions, Gilgamesh," came her easy reply.
Months before, when he had told her that she was to continue working at his company even after signing their contract, she had thought, her blood boiling in her ears, that he was speaking with false magnanimousness. He had instead merely lifted an eyebrow and informed her in no uncertain terms that he valued capable employees and therefore would not let her leave her position. It was something that had left her dumbfounded, even when later on Enkidu had confirmed to her that Gilgamesh had never intended to fire her. She hadn't fully believed him – but with time, she had been forced to reconsider.
Nevertheless, she was not going to work full time. While she truly liked her job and would have been sorry to forfeit it, she had a comatose sister and a very young nephew to look after, and since she had to be careful about the press's attention, she could not add the stress of a full-time job to all that.
Therefore, Gilgamesh illustrated her her schedule as a part-timer. He made a visible effort to ask her if it was compatible with the time she wanted to dedicate to her family; she was certain of the fact that he was both annoyed and amused as he asked that.
According to what he determined, she was going to have three – only occasionally four – mornings and two afternoons per week; it was a very generous part-timing, and she was going to start the following day.
A pause followed.
"You are well aware of the fact that there will be gossiping and not a small amount of staring at the office," he pointed out slowly.
She gave him a blank stare, dismissing the issue without wasting any time.
"That's the same as it was back in the US. Now, concerning the lunch break…"
She made it clear that it was for the best if they had lunch together, at least the first few weeks, and he nodded as they agreed to meet outside the office and get a meal together.
As she took a sip from the tea she had chosen – peach-flavoured – Arturia's eyes fell on the wedding ring she was wearing. A frown appeared on her face and she stared at the item with barely veiled disgust.
"Gilgamesh, I suggest a change about the ring-wearing tradition." Knowing that she had his attention, she continued firmly, "I'd rather we not wear them on our fingers, as there are other, more practical possibilities. A chain holding the ring around the neck, for example, would be better."
It was certainly better than actually wearing that thing. It was less fancy than the engagement ring – and she had already hated wearing that one – this new one was just a very simple yet refined golden band, exquisitely tasteful and with small elegant carvings, but that did not mean that she liked it. She knew she could not refuse to have it on herself, but she would much prefer keeping it around her neck rather than on her hand. It was a too blatant reminder if she wore it there, and she truly did not need one.
It took quite a bit of quarrelling but, even though he was not pleased about it, he finally relented: they would not wear their rings on their fingers.
Something in the way he was looking at her, however, prompted her to pronounce her following words.
"You consider me a child for this request."
He raised an eyebrow at that, and appeared quite entertained by the notion.
His tone was more than just mildly condescending as he replied, "While I do believe that some growing up would be favourable for you, I don't think you to be a child…"
He trailed off, and she picked right up from there.
"You may consider me a person, Gilgamesh, but you don't consider me an adult." She allowed her sarcasm to be on full display on her face as she continued, "I'm actually surprised you made a contract with me instead of asking me to delegate to someone more mature."
She wasn't truly irked by the fact that he had told her that he considered her still not fully formed as a person, because she knew that it was partially true, at least when it concerned her age and worldly experience, and she was after all used to much more offensive comments on his part. But that did not mean that he had the right to patronize her in such a way, because he wasn't superior, and yet the way he had addressed her on it confirmed what she had believed his thoughts to be.
Deliberately, she added, "When the entirety of the past months is taken into consideration, I reach the conclusion that perhaps it's not just me who has to grow up though."
She did not wait to witness his reaction and instead finished drinking her tea.
As she was about to stand up to retire for the evening, he spoke again, oddly changing the subject entirely.
"Next weekend there is supposed to be the annual aestival social event, to which all the richest and most famous people are expected to make an appearance for the sake of business. I will have to attend."
He looked at her pointedly, and she did not blink.
"You mean to say that we will have to attend."
The lazy smirk on his lips was a confirmation she didn't actually need, therefore she just gave him a nod. "Very well. I assume it is to take place in the evening?"
"Late afternoon, and it will be held in Kyoto," he specified. "Elegance is not expected – it's mandatory."
She almost rolled her eyes.
"I didn't know there was ever an occasion where you're involved in which it isn't," she commented sardonically.
She was tired after the exchange of usual jabs with her husband of a few days, and she wanted nothing more than finally go to sleep before starting work the following day.
Well, it wasn't the exact truth.
All she truly wanted was for Iri to heal, to be well and safe, and to have the means to raise her unborn child and Shirou. If Arturia had to put up with this impossibly arrogant man every day to obtain such a thing, then so be it. Whenever it was going to become too much, she would just keep to herself and he would just–
…no, he enjoyed teasing her far too much to keep to himself.
Still, since it was for her family's sake, she could and would endure it.
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