"You sure you got everything?" Mom asked as I did one last check in front of the house, "All your clothes, your souvenirs? Oh, did we forget to pack you some food for the road?"
"Mom, I got everything." I rolled my Eyes, "Now keep quiet, Cecily and Cene are still sleeping inside the wagon."
"You should head inside too as well and catch up on some sleep." Dad warned, "It's still pretty early, and I know from experience how annoying going on a wagon ride can be."
"Yeah, but more importantly..." Latham smirked, "Take that scarf off, bro. I dunno where you got it, but it really isn't the right time nor place for it."
"Shush, Latham!" Mom urged him to stop, "It's a very sweet gesture to see him wear it so proudly. Mom for one is very proud of you for encouraging Cecily, Lune."
Obviously, Latham knew about the same as I did when it comes to the scarf, so I don't blame him for wondering why I'd wear something as out of season as a scarf near the start of summertime. Hey, he's at around that age where he gets curious, isn't he? Well, give it a year or two and he'll be the same age as I was when Cecily and I first met, so I won't judge him just yet for not understanding the beauty of this scarf wrapped around my neck.
"You'll understand when you get a girlfriend, dude." I teased.
"Tch, you say it like it's that easy." He crossed his arms, "None of the girls here really meet my fancy. I'm just content hanging out with my friends, pranking people and enjoying youth."
"Ah, I kind of get that." I chuckled, "But just FYI, foreign girls are way cuter. Well, at least girls that aren't in the local area, so to answer your earlier question - It really is that easy if you just know where to look."
I'm not lying nor exaggerating here. I'm genuinely giving my younger brother some proper relationship advice. Now I can understand why the readers may be inclined to think I'm just being biased here, especially after reading about my time spent with Cecily and Marina, but this isn't just me talking about how much I hate it here in Whitehood. No, truth is if you live in a smaller town or village, word spreads around super quickly if any two people start to date. This puts a ton of pressure on both parties, which in the end usually doesn't end well for either. Besides, even as a kid I remember relatives coming over to ask if I got a girl yet, to which I'd always reply the same way Latham did. You just can't ever bring yourself to look at the kids around you as potential romantic interests, since you already know so much about them beforehand, as do they about you.
"Yeah, maybe look for some girls outside the country." I patted him on the shoulder before pointing behind me to the wagon, "Heck, I met the love of my life in Great Hiana."
"They can't all be perfect." He clicked his tongue, "You're just making Cecily into an example of how lucky you got."
"Maybe, and I would like to add that they aren't indeed all perfect like her." I smiled, "But it sure beats being in an area where you for sure know none of them are for you."
"Ahem. Lune, I'd prefer if you didn't put any runaway ideas into my youngest son's head." Dad interrupted us, "One son running away already gave me enough wrinkles."
"Aww, is that how you see it? Come on, old man, you're still looking impeccable for your age!" I went to talk to him next, "All that hard work really kept your body in shape, you've still a full head of hair, and that beard you grew makes you look super distinguished."
"I got this beard because I'm so swamped with work I forget to shave." Dad ruined my compliments one after the other, "Also, having to do this much hard work at my age could hardly be considered good, I should be retired by now, y'know."
"Oh."
"Also, what's all the hair in the world when it's gone totally White and Gray from old age?" Dad sulked, "Honestly, I'd shave it all bald if your mother didn't constantly stop me from doing so. It's a constant reminder of how decrepit this bag of bones is..."
"Is that how you see it? Geez, we really don't share a single opinion on anything, huh..." I actually laughed a bit when I noticed it, "But y'know, I have friends who were born with naturally White hair."
"Naturally White hair? Nah, they're just pulling your leg, son." Dad didn't believe me, "They must've just dyed it before you met, so you're led to believe they were born with it."
"I'm telling you - One's a descendant of the Raamans from Abyssus Solis, and the other's, well, foreign." I recalled my earlier conversation with Latham, "Basically, both Meil and Othelia were born with it, because the color never falls off and it stems from the very roots. We also talked often in the past, so I imagine I would have noticed it at least if that were the case."
"Naturally White hair?" Mom looked stoked, "See, dear!? I told you it's cool! Even your son is telling you you look way better with it!"
Well, at least now we know who I got that love for White hair from. Well, not love, I just think it's cool, but it's still a surprise to see my mom berate dad on such a seemingly random topic. Looking back, I never would have guessed she was the type to like wild colored hair.
"Sigh, if only you had dyed it sooner." Mom slumped forward, "We could have matched that way."
"Huh, what do you mean?" Both Latham and I tilted our heads.
"Never mind her, she just likes to spout nonsense." Dad grunted, "Your mother likes her hair dyes, so she always wanted to drag me into it as well, but I just never got into it because I don't really consider it appropriate for my age."
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"Hold on, back up."
"What? You really think an old grumpy man like me could ever show his face to the village sporting any other color than my natural one?" Dad winced, "Hell, it took your grandma months before she finally accepted your mother changing to blonde before her passing. If you ask me, I think she doesn't approve of it even from beyond the grave."
"So what if she doesn't?" Mom got fussy, "Mom told me herself that she doesn't care as long as I'm happy, and that's that! Besides, who cares what others think if it makes you happy!?"
"Mom's... not naturally blonde haired?" Both Latham and I learned a shocking truth.
"Hm? Yeah, no duh? She's Brown haired, just like you two." Dad raised an Eyebrow, "You guys'd have to be blonde otherwise."
A blonde Lune and Latham, huh...? N-No wait, mom's naturally blonde!? How did I never notice this!? Huh, whaaaaat~!? That's just... Huh!?
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"You boys seriously never noticed my darker roots?" Mother leaned forward to show us the top of her head, even though we're both taller than her already, "Well, I guess I started dyeing it before even Lune was old enough to remember, but I could have sworn I mentioned that at least once or twice."
"Not to us!" Latham shouted.
"But damn, your hair at the top really is Brown..." I still couldn't fully take it in, "Geez, even after all these years, to think there are still things I never knew about you."
"Maybe if you stuck around for longer you would have found out..." Dad grumbled.
"Then how come I didn't know this either?" Latham stuck up for me, "I get you're salty about Lune leaving us, dad, but you really shouldn't fault him for this if you never told him either."
"Huh? Latham's sticking up for me against dad all of a sudden?" I joked, "The plot thickens...! How funny, you were the one that blamed me the most for leaving when I did around a week ago, and now you're actively defending me? Seriously, who are you and what did you do to my baby bro?"
"Dunno what you're talking about." He folded his arms, "And don't call me that. 'Bro' is more than enough, maaaaaybe 'younger brother', but that's pushing it."
Laughing together as a whole, we were now reaching the conclusion of our conversation. Noticing that our time together is slowly but surely coming to a close, everyone could feel the air around us get somber and melancholic. It was a real blast hanging out with my family this past week, and it seems we've finally all buried the hatchet between us in favor of throwing away any and all regrets we've been harboring these past 2 decades. Right, Beth's been restlessly tapping her foot on the grass behind me for a while now, eagerly waiting for us to stop talking, say our goodbyes and go, but...
"I really don't wanna leave." I bashfully revealed.
"Hey now, don't go getting cold feet." Dad smirked, "You guys got a ship to catch, so dawdling too long is only gonna cause headaches."
"Hearing that from you makes me think you've got ulterior motives hidden behind those words." I joked.
"If wanting my son to go back to his own home with his own wife and son and continue the life he's set out for is considered an ulterior motive, then you can confidently say that I'm the sleaziest, most cunning man to ever set foot on this world."
"Yeah, I guess." My gaze fell before I picked myself back up to give them all a strong hug, "Thanks for everything, guys. We'll try to come back as soon as possible, and hopefully you'll get to meet Nelly as well."
"No rush, but we're just as excited as you are." Mom smiled back, a single tear of joy hitting the ground, "Just, make sure to warn us ahead of time when you do decide to come back, okay?"
"Yeah, I'll be sure to let Latham know, seeing as he's so eager to check your guys' mail."
"Sorry..." He sulked.
And with that, this trip came to a proper close. Mom and dad seem to be doing just fine, Latham's a good guy when you get to know him, and most importantly - They all seem to approve of Cecily and Cene. We now know why they didn't attend the wedding, the mystery behind that letter was solved, and everyone is once again happy. Finally sitting down next to a sleeping Cecily and Cene inside the wagon, Beth didn't even wait a second more before starting up the engine.
"Bye bye, folks!" She waved at them as if to just shoo them away, "Now stop stalling, dammit! You're all gonna see each other again anyways, so what's the point of this emotional farewell?"
"Girlie, your attitude won't get you a good guy anytime soon, y'know." Dad advised her.
"It won't get me a man, but what it will get me is PAID. In HARD CASH." She flaunted the two gold coins she still kept from when I tipped her, "Have fun with your pigskin, geezer! I'm rich, muahahahaha!"
"D'oh...!" Dad angrily stomped on the ground, "Lune, you better not tip that brat any more!"
"Don't worry, I'll keep it to just one gold coin this time."
"That's still a lot!"
Maybe, but it's fun to see him so animated. Yeah, it's hard to imagine this is the same guy everyone in the village still calls "Grim". But then again, I haven't really heard many people call him that recently, so maybe they too realized a change in his heart? Ah, all this yelling woke Cecily up it seems. You can sleep, dear, everything's fine.