"'Still'?" he finally repeated. "Expected to leave?"
"Only if they can go back to their families," Arthur answered as Mr. Holmes dragged another chair from the corner. He had heard the door close as well. "Almost all of them were kidnapped, and Mr. Holmes has been trying to find families."
"I have as well. We both wish to reunite those young ones with parents."
The doctor paused in the doorway, obviously recognizing Leonard's voice as a new arrival. Limping footsteps took him toward the other armchair only when the boy did not freeze in the presence of another adult.
"Doctor Watson," Arthur said in both greeting and introduction. "We were telling Leonard how much better our courtyard is than the streets."
"I think anyone would agree that a covered courtyard and brick 'bedrooms' are far more comfortable than alleys." The wry tone referenced last week's conversation to prompt a grin out of Owen, but Doctor Watson kept his attention on Leonard. "A pleasure to meet you, Leonard. I room with Mr. Holmes and often help with cases. He asked me to follow him here on the chance you had been injured. I am glad to see that is not the case."
Mr. Holmes muttered something about "cases," but the doctor ignored him as Leonard shook his head, the reply quietly cautious. "Just hungry, sir."
"Easy enough to fix, though I'm sure the others have already mentioned that."
Leonard made no response, apparently done talking until he gathered an understanding of the new adult. The doctor scanned him once more then focused intently on Arthur.
"What did you do to your knee?"
"Fell on gravel." Why was he staring like that? "Have you any more news on their families? You know they'll ask when they hear I saw you today."
"We do not yet have another sure lead," Doctor Watson admitted, though his eyes flicked between Arthur and Owen enough to gain Mr. Holmes' attention. Could he— "I might have found something a few minutes ago, however. I'll wait to see if it bears fruit before I say anything."
He had, and only supreme effort stifled Arthur's bubbling laughter. Mr. Holmes must not be paying attention if the doctor had put the pieces together first. Arthur dearly hoped he could see the bickering sure to result when the detective realized his friend had known and said nothing. The rare occurrence was almost as gratifying as finding Leonard in time.
Speaking of which, the boy's color was growing worse.
"I thought Mr. Holmes was going to bring food?"
Mr. Holmes tore his questioning gaze away from his friend only when the doctor flat refused to answer. "He was going to ask the club's cook to bring food," he corrected with a twitched grin. "As his employer ordered him to stay inside this night, he is probably lingering in the front room to avoid the noise of our conversation. You know Jupiter does not often leave its orbit."
A response evidently carried that Arthur did not catch. Both adults released a faint grin.
"Jupiter?" Leonard voiced. He still watched to be sure the question would be well received, but most of his uncertainty had faded with the ever-changing conversation. His former home must have been happy. Most of their new arrivals took a bit longer to warm up.
"Mr. Holmes calls his brother 'Jupiter' because he never leaves his routine." Arthur readjusted the bandage and pulled down his trouser leg. Maybe Doctor Watson would put a more comfortable one on later. "You could set your clock by the elder Mr. Holmes, he's that precise. Having to stay inside instead of going to his club tonight probably sparked a highly entertaining argument before we arrived."
"It did," the doctor grinned. "We sprang the trap at the Diogenes not long before you would have reached this flat, and it required Mycroft be absent. He—Ah. That is probably supper."
Loud footsteps cut off the account Arthur would have preferred to hear, but irritation eased as three footmen carried steaming dishes to the far table. That smelled amazing.
Leonard obviously thought so, too. He sat up to peer at the passing deliverymen. "That's a lot of food."
"Three hungry boys eat quite a bit," the doctor rejoined, a slightly exaggerated smile ensuring Leonard saw the mild ribbing beneath. "Are you well enough to eat at the table?"
"Yes, sir." The question jolted Leonard into faltering motion. "I'd rather sit at the table than risk dropping something on Mr. Holmes' settee. Mum never liked me eating on the furniture."
"My brother would prefer you do not as well," Mr. Holmes replied as the men left, "but he would not complain."
"You would not let him," the doctor retorted. "Don't think I missed just how you won that argument earlier."
Another grin twitched Mr. Holmes' mouth, though Arthur doubted Leonard had spotted it. When the boy swayed on reaching his feet, Arthur took a single step closer to offer a steadying hand. Leonard chose to sit back down rather than accept the contact.
"I remember that feeling," Arthur murmured as the elder Mr. Holmes joined the other adults on the way to the table. "You feel like you're shaking, but you're not. Your head feels lighter than it should, and your muscles don't want to do anything. You can lean on me if you want."
"Or me." Owen had followed closely enough to overhear, and he stood on Leonard's other side. "Hungry too," he confided. "After Haven. Ate too much. Then not enough. Too much. Learned by watching. You will too."
Uncertain eyes studied them in turn, but Owen must have said something right—or Leonard simply felt more at ease with a boy his own age. He used Owen as a substitute for his failing balance all the way to the closest chair.
"Thank you."
"Course." Owen replied, his tone not as short as the word. He never noticed the surprised pleasure that crossed Doctor Watson's expression at even the abbreviated sentences. "Friends 'n brothers for helping. You like beef? Can fill your plate."
"I can get it." He waited until both Arthur and the elder Mr. Holmes had dished themselves some meat before claiming a piece and taking a large bite. "How slow?"
"Normal bites." Arthur leaned around Owen to see the doctor giving Leonard an understanding smile. "Chew, then swallow. When you finish that piece, count to thirty before you have another. We will not run out of food."
Leonard pulled a face nearly as expressive as Owen's had been earlier. Scent and a few swallows had obviously strengthened his appetite.
"Hungry."
"Better than sick."
"Owen's right, Leonard." Arthur claimed a scoop of potatoes before nudging the bowl closer to Leonard's plate. "Going so long without a real meal means you will get sick if you eat too fast. Mr. Holmes brought plenty of food—probably got his boss to pay for it, too," he added, to their Mr. Holmes' evident amusement, "and I'm sure we can find more if needed. Eat slowly, taste every bite, and wait between servings. If I understood Doctor Watson's lecture last time, the problem is not the solid food after so long without. It's eating too much because you're eating faster than your body can realize it's full. Am I right, Doctor?"
"Exactly." The doctor directed a half-hearted scowl at Mr. Holmes that eased only when a piece of meat joined the three tarts he had already claimed. "Limit yourself to one or two desserts as well, unlike the consulting detective next to me. You need real food to recover, and there will be sweets other days. Arthur, have you found anything more on your people project?"
People project? What did—oh. Arthur barely changed a laugh to a wide grin around his bite. The only "project" Doctor Watson could mean was the revelation that he and Owen were brothers. The doctor wanted to know if Arthur had told Mr. Holmes.
"No, sir. I'm at the same place as I was a couple of days ago. I've been rather busy." A glance asked for more honey in his tea, which the elder Mr. Holmes granted. "Owen and I went to the cartographer's this morning, though. He learned a whole bunch of stuff, and I might start an apprenticeship there soon. It depends on when Mr. Hensley's journeyman decides to buy his own shop."
"They like his map," Owen contributed. "Spent hours talking about lines, ink, and colors. Interesting. Long."
"We were there for a while," Arthur agreed, "but you had fun, didn't you? You seemed like it when we left."
Owen hurriedly nodded. "Fun, mostly. Just long."
That "mostly" was probably the worry that Arthur would leave him. Arthur changed the topic.
"Can you tell us about the case today? I don't think I've heard the others talk about it."
"The Irregulars did not help with this one." Doctor Watson hesitated, silently checking with his friend. Only once he received a nod from their Mr. Holmes did he start outlining an attempted assassination, a quest for some highly important papers, and what a fireplace had to do with an umbrella. Leonard listened carefully, though silently, but Owen and Arthur asked the occasional question—especially when Mr. Holmes started explaining his deductions. Arthur would always take the opportunity for another deducing lesson, and Owen had already shown the same interest.
The meal passed quickly, with Leonard relaxing more and more as he filled his stomach for the first time in weeks. Arthur and Owen enjoyed the company, Doctor Watson and their Mr. Holmes gave what pieces of the case that the elder Mr. Holmes' boss did not count as "secret," and their Mr. Holmes even regaled Leonard with a few on-the-spot deductions that remained unfailingly accurate. By the time even Leonard had pushed his plate away, he did not flinch at the doctor's request to examine him. He would be fine in time.
Mr. Holmes, however, had apparently sunk too deep into the aftermath of a successful case. As he had either completely missed Arthur's secret or had not reacted when he deduced it, Arthur decided to leave it for another day. The longer the detective ignored the behavioral clues, the better his reaction would be—and the better the less-than-serious argument when he found out just how many others had seen what he missed. Arthur would run with this mischief as long as he could.
After all, the Irregulars did not often get the chance to prank the detective.
And so finishes Irregular Home. Hope you enjoyed, and don't forget to drop your thoughts below :)
Be sure to follow Tinsel and Other Horrible Ideas for the challenge stories to be posted this month. Contingency Plans won't post until after the new year. Happy Reading :D