Raven and I were racing up the hall in pursuit of something we hadn't
seen, when dad stumbled out of the cellar, closely followed by Oak.
I was moving too fast to avoid them, though I tried to turn away,
banging into them both, bringing us all stumbling to the ground.
“Is everybody okay?” Mum asked from the end of the passage.
Raven reached down, offering me his arm to pull me up. As I got to
my feet, Dad sat upright, rubbing his head.
“That was a lucky escape,” he said, untangling his limbs from
Oak's.
I helped Dad to his feet, while Raven assisted Oak. Once we were all
upright, Dad put his hand on Oak's shoulder.
“I think I would have been a goner there,” he said, “If you
hadn't reacted so quickly. Thankyou.”
By that time, Mum had caught up with the four of us. “For what?”
she asked, almost accusingly.
“Never mind that,” Raven said brusquely, “We need to get back
in there.” He pointed to the living room door. “Chop, chop!”
“We are sorry, M'lady,” the voice of Strauss filled the house,
too loud to be spoken by any one mouth, or even three. “We really
do not have a choice in this matter.”
