The breakfast was awkward since we had already said our goodbyes but this didn't stop my father from telling me another few things to keep in mind while meeting strangers and traveling outside.
After he was done, my mother gave me a few sweets and then hugged me while holding back her tears.
My father offered to hire a carriage for us but I refused since all I had was a rucksack with clothes and other essentials that I could carry on my back.
In the end, I entrusted the treasured collection from my childhood to Chloe. It was something that I had no use for, therefore, it was better to leave it inside.
When we reached the gates, Rowan took the initiative to clasp his hands and bowed to our parents. I did the same while he patted Chloe's head.
Chloe then jumped on me and started bawling. I could only embrace her and pat her back in an attempt to comfort her.
We left around noon, with the blazing sun above our heads. My father was also coming to the shop with us, to help Rowan carry his 3 huge bags.
Instead of going there straightaway, we took a detour as he took us to the bakery, sneakily giving us the treat to remember before we left.
I took that chance to thank Aunt Enka for her suggestion that day and informed her of my departure. Surprisingly, she reached into her drawer again and took out a black string tied to a green shimmering gem, a good luck charm as a gift for my journey.
I thanked her for her gift and told her that I would bring something for her as a return gift from the capital. She laughingly told me that she would be waiting and began to tend to her other customers.
Wearing the string as a necklace and tucking it under my clothes, I went to the nearby bakery shop, where father and Rowan were waiting for me, cakes ready.
I didn't like it as much as I thought because I was having too many sweet things recently. Nonetheless, the gesture itself made my face melt into a sweet smile.
Soon, we went out and took a slow stride toward 33rd Street. It was slow because of our heavy bags and that last bit of unwillingness to leave.
No matter how much I wanted to, I couldn't remain in the present moment and appreciate it as much as I wanted to because too many thoughts were striking my mind at the same time.
Past, present, and the future, the choices I had made, good or bad, the faces of my family and Sister Hin, everything kept emerging, giving me an invisible sense of pressure that blanked my mind.
Before I noticed it, we had already reached Uncle Albert's shop. It was closed at the moment because its owner was standing outside with a simple grey suitcase in his hand and a black hat.
With his creased black outfit and the cane that he held in his hand, he looked exactly as one would imagine an elite aristocrat to look like. He nodded at us before carrying his suitcase and telling us to follow him outside the city.
It was another long trek that I don't remember anything about other than wiping the sweat off my brows frequently.
When we finally reached the main entrance gates of the city, where hundreds of guards were patrolling and a crowd was clustered outside, separated into two lines and undergoing inspection before coming in.
A few people came to us, asking us if they needed a guide, even when they saw us going outside. This was how difficult it was for the guides, they needed to work diligently for every paying customer to be able to prevail and thrive off the market.
One of them even knew my father and changed his way as soon as he recognized him, leaving him with a helpless expression.
At that time, I took a look around to forcibly memorize my surroundings, to remember my city as it was but somewhere in my heart, I was aware that it was going to turn into a blurry grey shadow soon after I left.
After all, even though I hadn't lived for long, the streets had already changed a lot in front of me. Everything was more crowded now, unfamiliar people were present everywhere. The warm little community that had nurtured me was nowhere to be found. Only in things that remained unmoving could I find a trace of familiarity but traces of time had corrupted them as well.
Everyone that moved, remained in motion, and in one way or another, their lives were changing through their connections and interactions at a pace that I couldn't quite comprehend.
By the time I come back, my father might retire from his job as a guide. He would definitely have more grey hair on his head and wrinkles on his skin. It would make me sad for sure. Perhaps, I might find a potion outside that can help both my father and mother avoid wrinkles and improve their longevity.
If Rowan became an adept potioneer, he might even be able to make one such potion. Little Chloe would surely have changed the most though, hopefully, all those changes are positive.
As I was thinking of all this, suddenly, Uncle Albert, who was leading us, halted and turned to our right, where a buff armored guard was taking large strides toward us. He was my old friend, the head guard of the Mayor.
He nodded his head at Uncle Albert and took his place to lead us from then on. At the gates, the guards continued to salute him and made way for us. For the first time, I also experienced the treatment of an elite but huffing and sweating profusely as I walked, I didn't exactly look like one.
Some distance away from the grand city entrance, with walls more than two meters thick and more than 10 meters tall, a coachman was waiting there for us with a carriage.
I didn't know much about the types of carriages but I knew a little about the emblems carved on the carriages of the aristocrats to represent their families and clans and the one that stood in front of our eyes had none of them, as unremarkable as Uncle Albert's suitcase.
However, its interior was very spacious and there was ample space for both our luggage and ourselves, and that was sufficient for me and Rowan.
The sun was about to set and there was some breeze gracing our exhausted bodies now and then.
I still had a lot that I wanted to tell my father. I still had a lot of questions to ask. I was hoping that he would start telling me a story of his early days, or things that I shouldn't do or touch but it was already too late by then.
Mr. Guard Leader had already gone back silently. Uncle Albert was already sitting inside the carriage, waiting for us as we stood staring at our father, not knowing what would be the best thing to say.
In the end, we also sat inside, and the wheels of the carriage started dragging us away from our home, to a place that we knew nothing of, with the grand ambition of making that very home a better place for everyone.
As the long shadow of the carriage draped over my father was going to pull away, I heard him shout, "Take care kids, keep writing letters and come back if you don't like it there."
Rowan and I looked at each other and saw the bittersweet smile on the other's faces. It was probably Rowan's best attempt at expressing himself.
I waved my hands one last time to my father but… he was already too far away to notice.