They arrived with the intent of merely delivering the food and turning directly back. Kitty placed the basket on the table and started to empty it while Georgiana put the things away, and Mr. Knott went over to speak with the mother of the family, who was lying in bed holding her infant and coughing. It took no time to get everything put away, and as Mr. Knott prayed quietly with the mother, Georgiana instructed the eldest of the children, a girl of about five, in getting the soup on the fire so it might be heated in time for dinner. It was no small task, given her size and that of the pot, but between the two of them they got it in place, and the little girl was elated to be a help to her mother.

As they wrapped up, Georgiana checked her watch and shook her head. "We had better hurry if we're going to get back in time. That took longer than I thought it would." She picked up the basket and went to join Mr. Knott at the door, but before Kitty could catch up to them, a scream sounded from the little girl behind her. Kitty whirled to see her clutching her hand to her chest and screaming with all her might.

"What happened?" she asked, dropping to her knees before the girl. The baby was wailing in the bed and the poor mother had all she could do to calm it down.

"Ow! Hot!"

Kitty gently pulled her arm away enough to see what was wrong. The girl had touched something hot near the fire and a nasty red burn had spread across her palm. "Oh, you poor dear! Georgiana, is there any flour about?"

She was already at the cupboard, and found the flour quickly. Kitty took it and tried to get the girl to let her administer it. "It's all right, dear. This will help it feel better, I promise." She grabbed a generous handful of the flour and offered it to her. "You put this on your hand, and then you wrap it in cloth, and that keeps it safe while it gets better, and it takes the hot away."

Sniffing, the girl held out her hand and squeezed her eyes shut while Kitty floured it thoroughly and, without anything else to wrap it in, took off her fichu and wound it gently around the girl's palm. It was an old one of Mary's anyway, and had probably been through Jane and Lizzy before her, so she didn't regret the loss very much.

"Now, doesn't that feel better already?"Another sniff, and a nod. Kitty smiled and stood up, dusting the flour off her skirts and hands. "Good. Make sure you put keep that on all day, and you can take it off tomorrow morning if you like. If your hand still hurts, you can put fresh flour on, but be sure to use a scoop to get it out, so you don't make a mess of your mama's flour. All right?"

"Yes'm."

"Are you going to be all right to get dinner on for your family?" Georgiana asked.

The girl nodded, and straightened herself. She wasn't going to let a silly burn stop her from getting to act like Mama for a day. By way of proof, she went back to the pot and gave it a good, proud stir.

Kitty couldn't help grinning. "Good girl!" She and Georgiana put the flour away and found an old rag for the little girl. Kitty knelt before her again and held it out. "Now, whenever you need to touch the pot, wrap this around your hand too. The rag will get hot, and your hand will be safe. But move quickly, or else the heat will go through the rag and you'll burn yourself again."

"Like this?" She wound the rag about her fingertips and tapped them gingerly against the side of the pot, then drew her hand away quickly.

"Yes, but you can hold it a little longer than that if you need to. Just no longer than it takes you to count to five. Can you count to five?" The girl demonstrated her ability to do so. "Perfect. That's how long your hand can touch the pot, and only if you have this rag on it. Understood?"

Another nod satisfied Kitty that she'd gotten through, and she joined the others at the door. They took their leave again, and hurried back toward Pemberley.

"How did you know to use flour?" Mr. Knott asked Kitty as they went. His tone was mostly just curious, but Kitty was pleased to detect a bit of admiration in it. It was nice to have someone appreciate her good qualities, at least.

Kitty smiled and shook her head. "I burned my hand in a similar manner when I was a girl, and the treatment was the same. My mother was furious when she found out that I was in the kitchen, getting in the way."

Georgiana checked her watch again. "We had better go faster. We are going to have a difficult time reaching the house within our time after that delay."

Kitty's stomach fell, but she picked up her pace. She'd forgotten about her father briefly, in the excitement, and now she saw how stupid that was. But she was determined to show him that she could be trusted. If she could only make it back in time!

Mr. Bennet was waiting in the hall for them when they returned, and it only took a glance at his expression for Kitty to know the only time that mattered: they were late. She closed her eyes and waited for the inevitable.

"You are at least a quarter of an hour past your time," he said.

"Their little girl burned herself," Mr. Knott said gently, helping Kitty to a chair. By the end of their rushed trip home, her ankle was protesting heavily, and she had been forced to lean on him to maintain their pace. "Miss Bennet stopped to help her before we left."

Mr. Bennet's eyes never left Kitty's face, and she had to fight to keep her countenance while she met his gaze. "I'm sorry, Papa—I should have asked for more time in case something happened to delay us."

"Yes." Without looking away from her, he said quietly, "Miss Darcy; Mr. Knott; thank you for bringing her home. If you will give us our privacy, I will see my daughter to her room."

They could do nothing but acquiesce. Georgiana pressed Kitty's hand as she passed, but that was all. She could not help feeling abandoned, and she swallowed hard. It would not do to cry.

"Come along, Kitty." She opened her eyes to see him holding out his arm to her. She took it and stood on her good foot, dreading the walk ahead of her. Resting had only seemed to make her ankle hurt more. She took a step forward and gasped involuntarily, leaning on her father's arm heavily.

"I am very disappointed, Kitty. I had thought that doubling Miss Darcy's estimate would be more than sufficient time to complete your task, but again you have proven that I cannot trust you." Something in his tone made Kitty think that he would not have been satisfied no matter when they'd come back. He would have found something to remark on.

"Papa, I couldn't just leave the girl with a burned hand…"

"Two hours, Kitty! That should have been more than reasonable to deal with three burned hands!" he snapped. "I am at my wit's end. Each time I try to be reasonable, you disregard the few rules I have given you, and each time you act as though I am a monster for being angry when you disobey. What would you have me do? You will remain in your room for the rest of the day. I will have a tray sent up for your dinner. Perhaps Lizzy will have a better idea of what to do with you tomorrow."

Kitty felt that she should be enraged, and fight him about it. But her ankle hurt so much, and she had a headache from fighting so hard to keep from crying, and she just did not have it in her to do more than allow him to lock her into her room. She collapsed onto her bed and closed her eyes. It seemed as though it would be a very long time before she was free again.