Matteo waited at the door for Tara, double- and triple-checking his stuff while he stood there. Maybe she decided on not going? Even if two hours before the train came was a bit too late to back out. He didn’t even think he’d get a refund on the tickets.

He considered going up to check on her when she came down, carrying two bags: a nice one that held her art supplies, and bulky one that must hold…pretty much everything else. Her way of packing was tossing everything in one place, unlike the others who tried to make it look neat.

He opened his mouth to confirm she was ready, then noticed her hair was still the same dark pink as she usually had it.

“You didn’t wash the dye out?”

“Believe or not, it’s easier,” Tara replied quietly.

That’s probably why she took so long, then; she had to make sure she had…whatever things were involved. Hopefully it wouldn’t take up too much time.

“Right,” Matteo said after a second. “So you’re all set? Got everything?”

“I should,” Tara murmured. She glanced at his bag—which was, suffice to say, more self-contained and less haphazard-looking—and added, “I…don’t think I need to ask the same of you.”

“Packing is the one thing I’m definitely confident in,” Matteo admitted. “At a certain point, if it’s not in your room it has to be in your bag, you know?”

She murmured some half-hearted agreement, and he took that as his sign to stop making small talk. Matteo picked up his bag and left, making sure Tara walked somewhere behind him.

First things first, Adelinde wanted to see them before they actually went to the train station. She went to the music district out of some prior agreement—every now and then she offered to teach her friends’ kids how to play any given instrument, and used the music district’s gazebo to do that since the tips she normally received paid for the lesson—so Matteo walked in that direction first. Tara kept up pace a few steps behind him.

Adelinde herself sat on one of the benches when they got there, with Rene nearby entertaining some conversation. The latter must have had a shorter day or was off work.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

…Not that he’d be entirely surprised if Rene happened to see Adelinde and went to talk to her despite having work. Even having been together for fifteen or so years, the two’s relationship (that is, occasional flirting and plenty of light kisses) remained unchanged from Matteo’s earliest memories.

Rene noticed Matteo and Tara first, offering a little wave that alerted Adelinde to their presence as well. Adelinde looked them both over when they came close enough.

“You seem ready,” she murmured. “And you’re both sure you have everything you need?”

“Clothes, maps, books—if it’s not in the bag it’s lost,” Matteo replied. It would only be three days, excluding the trip there and back. They didn’t need a whole lot as a result.

“I’ll make sure your mom doesn’t worry while you’re gone,” Rene said mostly-teasingly.

“Right, right. Who’s going to use the ‘don’t do anything dumb’ line first?”

“You, I guess.”

Rene’s attention shifted to Tara, and in response she stood a little straighter.

“Think you’ll be fine?” Rene asked, some of the earlier attitude fading into a bit of caution. “You look more nervous than usual.”

“…I can manage,” Tara replied quietly.

Adelinde glanced at Tara as well. “Another migraine?”

She murmured some quiet half-response as her answer. Most members of the family worked off migraines—Rene because she had to, Adelinde because she felt bad not doing anything all day, Matteo because he usually had other plans—but Tara somehow managed to be even more silent and slept a lot. In that respect, she’d probably find a comfortable place on the train and sleep the whole way.

It was a bit late to delay the trip on account of pain, but Tara always insisted she was better after waking up again. Instead of making any direct comments on it, then, Adelinde just offered a reassuring but worried look.

“When you get back, it could be time to make sure it isn’t anything serious,” she said. Tara nodded in agreement, despite not looking entirely willing. Adelinde put on a smile instead. “But regardless, stay safe and have a good time. Try to talk to each other—or at least consider holding more conversation than what’s necessary.”

“I’ll think about it,” Matteo promised. He gave her a teasing look in response. “Have fun with no kids for a few days.”

“It’ll be different, if nothing else,” Rene mused. She looked at Adelinde. “We haven’t really had the house to ourselves in a while, have we?”

“Not for much longer than a few hours, no,” Adelinde replied, briefly turning towards Rene before standing up and facing the kids again. “One last time—watch out for each other, don’t let the other wander off or get into trouble. I look forward to hearing about it when you come home.”

Both of them murmured a kind of agreement and offered a wave of goodbye, and then they were off to the train station to wait.