> “Look, Catherine. It’s different, she’s different!”
A couple of days had passed since that night, it is Sunday morning now, despite that fact, the word from Catherine still hadn’t left Eddie’s mind at all, it kept spinning, and playing like a broken record in his mind, mocking him in his futile attempt at hiding his passion for Alchemy.
The living room of the Welton’s household is cozy today, the low table cluttered with herbs and parchments. The warm morning lights casts a ray of sunshine shimmering through between the curtains, casting onto the mismatched furniture where Eddie sat.
Torrie sat across from him sprawling on the carpet, her legs kicking as she flipped through her notebook, her wand resting on top of her ears as she flipped through her notes.
“So,” She said, breaking the silence, “You were at Vandruff’s Travelling Puppet Show last night, weren’t you, Eddie?” Torrie teased, her voice was sing-song in tone.
“What? No! Of course not!” Eddie countered, “What makes you think that?”
“Oh, I don’t know.” Torrie’s smirk widened, “Maybe because my classmate’s brother who worked part-time as a ticket seller with Mr. Vandruff said he saw someone with a dishevelled silver hair sitting in the back row, looking all serious and broody. It was nothing he had ever seen before! An adult in a kid’s travelling puppet show! Sounds familliar?” She continued her tease, her grin widening.
Eddie groaned, covering his face with Torrie’s Alchemy Textbook, his groan muffled. “Look, there are plenty of people with dishevelled silver hair who enjoy puppet shows, alright? Leave them alone!” he muttered, the sound still muffled by his textbook.
Torrie laughed, her legs kicking before she sat up, “Oh come on, Eddie! You’re a terrible liar! You’ve got that look, you know? Just admit you’ve been there!”
“Look,” Eddie shot back, putting down the textbook that has been hiding his face, “Do you want help with your homework or not? If not, I’ve got better things to do.”
Her laughter softened into a giggle, “Fine, fine. But seriously, what’s so bad about going to a puppet show anyway? They’re so fun!”
Eddie lets out a long sigh, running a hand through his hair—an unintentional act that only made it messier. “It’s not about that, Torrie. It’s just… you know what, never mind. Let’s focus on your homework, okay?”
“Alright then, grumpy.” Torrie said with a mock pout, then joined Eddie on the low table.
But before Eddie could start working on the first assignment, the front door opened, he had expected it to be his father coming home early from shopping for ingredients, but as the front door opens, it was someone he didn’t expect.
It was Markus.
Eddie glanced up, clearly puzzled. It was Sunday morning—Markus isn't supposed to be working today. His expression softened as Markus set down a small bag of supplies and adjusted his jacket.
“Oh hey Markus.” Eddie greeted, slightly raising an eyebrow, “What’s going on? It’s Sunday, you’re supposed to be on break, right? Or were you transferred to weekend shift or something?”
“Oh hey Eddie,” Markus greeted back sheepishly, “Sorry I forgot to give you a heads up.”
“It’s alright,” Eddie chuckled, “What’s on your mind today? You wanna help Torrie with her homework with me?”
“Oh no, I’m good, I’m not really good with that stuff.” Markus said, settling on the chair by the door, “The Elf lady called me yesterday, saying that she needed me for something, willing to give me something for the trouble too! Generous, right?”
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“Oh wow, that’s interesting--” But something caught Eddie’s attention, a discrepancy.
“Wait… Elf Lady?” Eddie blinked, “What Elf Lady?”
“You know… Man, I forgot her name, but red hair? Short? Red coat? She almost wear all-red now that you mention it.”
“Wait…” Eddie tries to dig his brains for faces, “Catherine?”
“Yes! That’s the one, the Catherine fellow called me.”
“What the bloody hell does Catherine wants with you, Markus?” Eddie said, puzzled, “Hope she didn’t tangle you in her shady businesses, She’s a pretty shady person if you can see through her wacky personality.”
“Oh, nothing shady, but she mentions something about an Adventure, though.”
Eddie’s heart drops, an Adventure… wait… does this mean…
“No, no, no…” Eddie muttered under his breath, “Are you sure she said adventure? She can’t be that vague right?”
“Well, she is pretty vague, but I’m sure-“
“Wait, Markus?” Torrie interjected, “Did Aunt Catherine invite you too?! She was gathering a party to go on an epic adventure to the woods! She said I can come by!”
Wait, wait, wait. Eddie thought, his mind beginning to spiral.
“Wait, Torrie. What are you talking about?” Eddie said
“Didn’t you know, Eddie? Aunt Catherine is gathering an adventure party!”
But before Eddie could respond, the door opened once more, he couldn’t make of the face at first due to the bright morning light, but from the silhouette it was clear. Short hair, and sharp, elven ear.
It was Catherine
“Mornin’ everyone!” She chirped, "Well, I see everyone is here," she continued, setting down the bags of grocery on the low table. She turned to Eddie with a teasing glint in her eye. "What's all this fuss about?"
“Catherine, you’ve gotta address something for me.” Eddie said sternly, his face is a mix of confusion and frustration, “What the hell is going on. Why is Markus clocking in on a Sunday morning, and most importantly. Why are you involving my fucking sister into this?”
“Language, Eddie!” Torrie shouted from the low table.
“Well, firstly.” Catherine said, her tone is matter-factly, “I said a few days ago, right? I was planning an excursion to the Deep Glaive. It wouldn’t be a balanced party if was just two Alchemists isn’t it? So I decided to recruit more!”
“You what?!” Eddie shouted, standing abruptly. Textbooks pens and notebook falling down to the low table.
“What’s wrong, Ed?! She said it will be an exciting adventure! There’s nothing wrong with it!” Torrie plead
“Look, there is so many things wrong with this, Torrie. Firstly, you are involved! Do you know how dangerous this is?!”
“Oh, I think you’re overthinking this, Edward.” Catherine said, brushing off her hands in front of her face, “It’ll be just a little adventure! A bit of detour, if you will. I mean- come on, you were exploring an even more dangerous dungeons when you were her age!”
“Look, Catherine. It’s different, she’s different!”
“She’ll be fine.” Catherine said, “It’ll be like the old times!”
Eddie's heart sank. He looked at his little sister, who was still so young, so eager to prove herself. He glanced at Catherine, the woman who had once been his mentor and aunt, now standing so confidently before him, acting like nothing was wrong.
He opened his mouth to argue again, but then he turned to his mother, Alyssa Welton. Who just entered to the kitchen across the room, hoping for some sense. "Mom!" he called out, his voice tinged with frustration. "Are you listening? Are you okay with this? Why isn't anyone thinking straight about this?"
Alyssa, who had been arranging the groceries Catherine just bought, turned around, her expression warm but unreadable. "I trust Catherine. She's always been dependable in her way. She gets you in and out of dungeons in the past, although I can argue all I want, I know she’ll find her way to get you guys out. Let’s just say if she's confident, this will work out, I believe her."
Eddie stared at her. "You believe her? Just like that? What happened to thinking things through? What happened to being cautious?"
Alyssa smiled softly as she took out a carrot out of the grocery bag and putting it on the chopping board, “Eddie, sometimes you have to trust people and take a leap. You haven’t gone to adventures like these since Alfred goes to the army haven’t you?”
“In fact,” She continued, her chopping sounded harder against the carrots.
“If anything happens to any of you..”
Chop,
“I can just hold a certain Elf accountable can I?”
Another chop,
Catherine lets out a deep gulp, “Y-you heard your mother, Edward.” She said, “I’ll make sure to keep you guys safe!”
Alyssa’s chopping began to soften again, “If you are going, Eddie. You'd better get prepared. You should have your things ready in the garage."
Eddie felt a sharp sting in his chest. Was his mother, the one who always kept a careful eye on things, saying this? He wasn't sure if it was reassuring or terrifying. His mind was still racing, caught between his fears and the urge to protect his family from the reckless dangers that seemed spiralling out of control.
He clenched his fists, turning to Catherine again. "Fine," he said gritting his teeth.