Chapter Text
“Gabe? What’s wrong, sweetie?” Emilie stepped into Gabriel’s workshop carefully after noticing a tense silence settling through the apartment. She gently stepped around the piles of projects scattered around the room until she reached her beloved husband with his face buried in his hands. In front of him lay a mangled fabric, creased and wrinkled as though he’d tried to strangle it before throwing it away in a fit of anger.
Emilie quietly set a soothing hand on the back of his neck, feeling the heat, and correctly guessing he was close to tears, if not already shedding them. Her sweet, ambitious husband mumbled something into his hands, but the muffled words were unrecognizable. Leaning down to hear him better, Emilie smiled in both amusement and resignation.
“Once more, my beloved. This time without barriers?” Emilie gently tugged at his wrists and he obligingly wiped his eyes and moved his hands away from his mouth. They had both known his newest creation would be difficult to bring into reality. Surely there was a reason no one had used this type of fabric for a design like this before.
“It’s all wrong. I can’t figure out how to make this work, Em. I’m going to lose the commission, and we’re going to lose our apartment, and I’ll never make it and you’ll leave me for a successful businessman and,” Gabriel sniffled and covered his face again, shoulders shaking. Emilie sighed and wrapped her arms tightly around the insecure and hurting man.
“Shhh, now, Gabe. Come here. Let me fix it. Together we can do anything, remember? Let’s reverse engineer it to find where it goes wrong, and then we’ll figure out how to make it right, okay? I’ve got you, sweetie. I’m right here.” Emilie continued murmuring assurances into Gabriel’s ear until he finally stopped shuddering, relaxed into her hold, and finally nodded his assent.
Emilie smiled triumphantly. Her husband was ambitious because he had talent and perseverance. He wouldn’t give up over of a few setbacks. Gabriel was strong, and he was determined. That was why Emilie had fallen in love with him after all.
Emilie slowly leaned back and Gabriel straightened up after wiping his eyes and blowing into his handkerchief. Emilie smiled, kissed his cheeks, and then stepped behind Gabriel as he drew the garment towards himself. She then wrapped her palms around his shoulders supportively. Gabriel took a deep breath, nodded, and began to explain the problem to his resourceful wife.
“So, when I add this stitch here, the whole line of the garment warps for some reason….”
**20 years later**
Gabriel laughed wildly, feeling free and uninhibited. He continued to laugh, triumphant in their mission until a dull thumping sound resounded through the room. Gabriel twirled around, alarmed at the quiet before he saw his wife collapsed in the doorway, pale and unmoving.
“No.” He whispered, full of disbelief. “Em? Em! Emilie!?” The quiet man’s voice slowly rose in alarm until the shrill sound no longer resembled his own. He dropped his cane, ignored Nooroo and Duusu, and pulled Emilie into his arms.
“Emilie? Please, what’s wrong?” Gabriel whispered brokenly. He’d known she’d been feeling ill on occasion over the last few weeks, and had a vague hope that she was finally carrying another child. Gabriel however, had never seen her collapse like this before. She looked as though she were no longer a part of this world. Shakily, he reached out and cupped her throat feeling carefully for her carotid artery.
As his desperation grew, he gulped down his tears and fear, slowly pressing harder into her neck, desperate to find a pulse. Almost giving up, clutching her neck so strongly he had the uneasy feeling of strangling his most precious person, he felt a faint pulse. Sobbing with relief, he leaned over her unmoving body, unashamedly releasing heartfelt sobs of relief.
“Thank god. Oh thank god. Come on, Em. I’ve got you. I’m right here.” Gabriel gathered her more securely into his arms and carried her to the office couch. Gently setting her down, he stroked her face reverently as Duusu quietly admitted she’d been cursed. Gabriel silently cried as Duusu admitted Emilie had known the risks and refused to stop using the miraculous anyway.
With an angry jerk, Gabriel wordlessly ripped the peacock brooch off of his wife, flinging it into a wall, and forcing Duusu to disappear without warning. Nooroo flinched and flew away from his upset master, bearing silent witness to the torment. Ever so gently, Gabriel stroked Emilie’s face, crooning to her as though consoling a child.
“Shhh, now. Don’t worry Em. Come here. Let me fix it. I’ve got you. We can do anything, remember? I can fix this. I’ll find where it went wrong, and I’ll make it right. I know I can.” Nooroo shuddered at the mad tone in the grieving man’s voice, feeling a creeping sensation send chills through his body, as Gabriel continued to talk to his comatose wife.
“Let me fix it….”