It was approximately four in the afternoon when the trio arrived at Napoli.
Massimo drove around the city before parking at a mall. It was the Centro Commerciale Neapolis.
"Why are you stopping?"
Inquired Eloisa, worried if something was wrong.
"I have to stretch my legs and go to the bathroom."
Massimo excused himself, opening the door and leaving the car. Cosima and Eloisa remained inside.
"You wanted more clothes, remember? Let's go buy them then!"
"Did you and Massimo planned for this?"
Eloisa asked happily, with all the conversation they had on the trip, she forgot she had requested clothes.
"I told him to make a stop in Napoli but didn't told him why. We have an hour. Sadly, we can't do tourism."
Leaving the parking lot, they went into the mall.
"Don't wander too far from me; don't make a scene; and don't talk about conquering Italy."
Warned Cosima the moment they entered.
"Ugh, I am a noble, not a child; I can act in public. Oh, what's that, Cosima!?"
Eloisa wandered off to an electronic store. Numerous screens of different sizes were displaying the same video of an orange fish at the same time.
She didn't even last five seconds before doing what I told her not to do.
Cosima quickly went after her, scared of losing Eloisa among the sheer volume of people walking from one store to another.
"Follow me, Eloisa."
While they were busy with the stores, Massimo was seeing the news on his phone.
Following the explosion that occurred the day before, more police officers were deployed, but since no group had claimed responsibility, other theories were claiming popularity on the internet, like one that came from a dubious source that declared that the explosion was the result of a secret weapon developed on Tonga Island.
Cosima and Eloisa were in some store buying clothes. First, they bought a suitcase to carry it all. Cosima thought they were going to have an easy time picking, but Eloisa turned out to be very fussy about what she wore.
"I can only wear hues of red, purple, white, and black; they can't show any skin, and the skirts can't be longer than my knees because I trip when I run with them; boots instead of shoes; and they have to be either full white or full black. Also, they shall be without designs, monocolor."
She didn't accept any buts or howevers.
"Where are we going to find something like that for your size? Have you seen yourself? You are one meter with ninety-one centimeters; your shoulders are wide, your waist is small, and the rest is curvy!"
"Are you saying I'm big?"
"Yes! Everywhere!"
"Are you calling me fat?"
"N-no! I'm saying your size is hard to find unless we personally go to make clothes specifically for you, and with all the characteristics you want, it's going to be hard to find them here!"
"That sounds like a store problem."
"You are very picky!"
"Are you asking me to lower my standards!?"
"YES!!!"
"Impossible, you see, Cosima, but you are very young and don't understand how the world works. Lowering my standards would make the designers and owners be rewarded for a job I wasn't happy with; this will lead to complacency and stagnation that, like an infection, will spread to the rest of society and cause it's collapse."
"Society is going to collapse because you can't buy boots the color you want."
"See? You get it; I told you that you were very intelligent."
"Ahh, this can't be possible; I'm going to choose for you!"
"Eh, you can't do that!"
"See it as a gift to a master from her precious student; you can't reject that, can you?"
"If you put it that way..."
"Splendid."
In five minutes, Cosima grabbed everything that was Eloisa's size and didn't show skin. She was able to find some clothes in the color she wanted, but anything monocolor, she would have to deal with it. At least, Cosima could find the boots Eloisa wanted.
Eloisa changed herself into the outfit she liked the most; it was a dark red with violet horizontal lines shirt with blue jeans. The boots reached her knees.
"It's good that you found something this comfy; I was about to set ablaze the store."
"I know. We have to return to the car; Massimo is waiting for us."
On the way back, they found a homeless man sitting on a corner.
"Is this enough?"
Asked Cosima, giving seven five hundred euros bills.
"God bless you girl!"
Eloisa didn't make any comments about this, but Cosima couldn't tell if it was over indifference or if she just didn't want to say anything.
When they arrived at the parking lot, Massimo was there, leaning over the car, looking bored. His eyes literally shined when he saw them.
He helped put the suitcase in the back of the car and got inside. Ten minutes later, they were going to Campagna.
"Ah Eloisa I forgot! I bought you a phone!"
Massimo turned around and gave Eloisa a little box. Eloisa quickly opened it; a phone approximately two years old was inside.
"Oh, one of these 'interenets' things! I'm deeply moved by this gift, Massimo!"
Cosima bit her tongue, trying to hold her laugh.
Massimo promised that he would teach her how to use it later; Cosima put the phone inside the suitcase.
It took them an extra hour to get to Campagna. This was a very small city compared to Firenze or Napoli, with a population of only sixteen thousand inhabitants; it reminded Cosima of her hometown, Montepulciano.
As in typical Italian fashion, almost all buildings had a tile roof with the characteristic terracotta hue and walls in clear, warm colors.
"It has grown so much! I remember that church! It's as beautiful as I remember! Ah, they took down my favorite store!"
Eloisa was saying all that crossed her mind, and multiple feelings stirred inside of her.
"And the castle?"
Cosima doubted, looking everywhere but only seeing tiny houses.
"It's like ten kilometers from here, can't build a castle near a city without people starting to talk about some taxes."
"Ah yes, I used to have the same problem with the mansion."
Massimo didn't know what to say, so he changed topics.
"We have to find where Costa lives. Where did servants live in your time, Eloisa?"
"The important ones were in the castle with us. The rest of them had a house between the castle and the city; maybe it's still there."
"Who would be an unimportant servant?"
Asked Massimo curiously, in his mind he was imagining maids and butlers, unable to see how one was more useful than the other.
"The chef lives in the castle, and the coachman does not."
They kept driving until they arrived at the house that Eloisa mentioned. Cosima was expecting something similar to the ones in the city, but she found it was a four-story house that, in his time, should have looked splendid; however, in the present day, it was somewhat neglected.
Massimo parked in front, and they all got out of the car. There was a sign on the door that said, Golddiggers get out!
"Someone does live here after all."
Cosima commented after seeing the sign that this was the best possible case, because if not, they would have to search all of Campagna for Costa.
"Should we kno—"
"TOMASSO COSTA ARE YOU THERE!!!"
Cosima interrupted Massimo accidentally. Fifteen seconds passed without an answer, so she shouted again. She did this a couple of times more before the door partially opened, restrained by a chain.
"I AM NOT GIVING MONEY TO ANYONE!!!"
A voice screamed from the inside, a mix of annoyance and anger.
"We don't want to beg for money! Eloisa Cobossi is here with us!"
Cosima replicated, trying to gain his confidence.
"Bullshit!"
The man closed the door forcefully, indicating the end of the conversation.
"You didn't think this one through Cosima."
Massimo teased her a bit. This got her thinking about why does everyone she knows likes messing up with her.
"TOMASSO COSTA, I AM ELOISA COBOSSI, OF THE COBOSSI HOUSE, DAUGHTER OF ALESSIO AND FELISSIANA COBOSSI, GENERAL OF THE SICILIAN ARMY AND I REQUIRE YOUR PRESENCE HERE!!!"
Eloisa commanded Tomasso to come out. He refused.
"ELOISA COBOSSI DIED TWO HUNDRED YEARS AGO YOU LIARS!!!"
Eloisa rolled her eyes.
"Negotiations failed. Step back."
Eloisa raised her hand to the door. Massimo and Cosima got behind Eloisa.
"YOU HAVE TEN SECONDS TO GET AWAY FROM THE HALLWAY COSTA!!!"
She counted down aloud, so she could claim that any damage Acosta suffered was his fault.
"Sparo!"
A loud noise akin to a piece of artillery shooting at the enemy was followed by a fireball at a speed of four hundred fifty meters per second moving directly at the door.
The door was torn off its hinges and flew down the hallway until it hit the wall. Smoke filled the place.
"You should have started by saying that you were manasies."
Said Tomasso, poking out from a nearby room.
Tomasso Costa was in his late eighties, walked with the help of a cane, and was a bit fat.
"I am Eloisa Cobossi."
She said stepping inside the house.
"That's just impossible."
Tomasso denied getting close to her. Cosima and Massimo remained outside, watching how things occurred.
"I have the Cobossi mark."
Eloisa showed the birth mark on her neck. Tomasso's expression was worthy of a portrait.
"It can't be! How!? Are you really Lady Eloisa??"
"The magnificence in person, yes."
"My lady! How is it possible!?"
"I will explain it to you. Let's get my students inside first."
Tomasso walked to Cosima and Massimo, inviting them to accompany Eloisa.
"It's almost imperceptible, but you have a noble air about you, young lady."
He said offering his hand to Cosima.
"I am a Farfali, the last one of them."
Tomasso made a light smile, happy that he was able to tell.
"You don't."
He said to Massimo. Cosima holded her laugh.
They walked to a big living room with a large rectangular table and talked there.
"This is a long story, so I will resume it for you."
Eloisa said after organizing it in her mind.
Tomasso remained silent, prompting her to keep speaking.
"There is a ritual that has been occurring since a long time ago. It's bringing manasies from the past to the present and make them fight to death. I am one of those manasies; this was the reason I disappeared. Now, to survive, I need access to my fortune and castle."
"And these two are in the ritual too?"
He pointed at Cosima and Massimo without stopping looking at Eloisa.
"Those are my tools to stop the ritual."
"I see. You need your fortune immediately. However, there is one problem for me to return your fortune: You don't have any legal documents."
"Eh?"
"Carta d'Identità, certificato di nascida, documents that confirm that you are Eloisa Cobossi."
"How do I get those?"
"I know a lawyer who can falsify them. I'm going to call him right now; come with me."
They left for another room, leaving Massimo and Cosima alone. Tomasso was being way more cooperative than Cosima would have expected. What kind of loyalty could he have if he was going through all these problems just to help some relative of the family he served more than sixty years ago!
"Have you ever been in this part of Italy? I think I came to Napoli once when I was very little, but I can't remember too much about it; probably it wasn't even Napoli."
Massimo broke the silence with an innocent question. They usually didn't have any time alone together, so this was their chance to get to know each other better.
"No, I usually didn't go out of my mansion unless it was strictly necessary, like to go to school in the mornings, but for other things like seeing movies or eating food that I wanted, I watched them in my room and asked for a delivery. I was kinda of a shut in, now that I think about it."
"You have never been to a cinema?"
"Never, but I do like movies!"
"What is your favorite genre?"
"Can I choose two?"
"Yeah."
"Spy movies and comedies."
"I like spy movies too! especially the old ones! You know what? Let me take you to the cinema when all of this ends!"
"That would be great! There's a lot of good movies that I want to see right now!"
They were smiling at each other without noticing it. Watching a movie with someone with your same tastes was very fun. After a while, Massimo's expression became a little more serious.
"Hey Cosima. I get that having a mansion is probably very cool, but if you have so much money, why haven't you traveled before? Or you don't feel the desire to discover new places and go to where you have never been?"
Cosima was about to answer; however, the moment she opened her mouth, she thought more about it, and some memories of her childhood flooded her head. Massimo understood that she was taking her time to give a full response instead of a half-baked one.
"My father... I don't remember if I already told you about this, but he died when I was five years old. I don't remember my mother, but my father told me I didn't have one. I suppose she died in childbirth. There are very few things that I remember about my father, but one that I do was some weeks before the fire that took out his life. He told me that I should remain in the mansion to be safe because the outside was dangerous for me. I think I subconsciously followed that advice for the most part of my life; in retrospective he was right. The moment I went out of Montepulciano, I got myself into this."
"It sounds like you were happy there. Why did you leave it to go to university? Do you like architecture that much?"
Cosima couldn't find the words to formulate an answer. Massimo was throwing some sharp questions.
You should be studying psychology instead of architecture!
"It wasn't because I was feeling lonely, that's for sure. I-I... I... I felt... like I was missing something, you know? Like a purpose or a goal. Also I felt a bit bad about myself, because... I live, well, in luxury on a mansion and I was somewhat out of touch with the rest of the world. I think this will sound childish but... And I know I can't help everyone, but at least, I would like to help to make the world a better place for someone. I know it kinda sounds like it came from nothing because I used to not interact with people."
Massimo nodded, he was satisfied with this answer, but he wanted to keep asking things.
"Do you feel guilty about anything?"
"I am very... selfish, I was blessed with power and I used it to turn on the stove, I was blessed with money and I used it to buy cheap food for dinner. Never did I thought to help anyone with any of those things. I think I'm apathetic and I want to change that, I recognize its bad and decided to have a change of environment!"
This time, Massimo disagreed with her, fully thinking she was mistaken.
"Apathetic? You were about to fight Eloisa when you thought she was going to kill me! Yes, its probably true that you didn't help anyone before, but you also weren't harming them. Also, you said that you spent all your time inside the mansion, that's your answer right there! You didn't help anyone because you didn't actively see them in problems! You were out of touch as you said, but I bet that you would have done what you did for me for anyone that you could help! And even if I'm wrong, and you were truly apathetic, the fact that you want to be better already makes you best than the majority of people in the world!"
Now Cosima really didn't know what to say. She wasn't familiar to receiving compliments and started blushing.
"I-I really appreciate that you think that of me! Let's go to that cinema!"
The veil of silence covered them again, for Massimo it was a peaceful one, for Cosima, an uncomfortable one.
After discussing the important things, Eloisa was ready to go. Tomasso wanted to keep speaking but he understood that the urgency of the situation made it impossible. However, right before leaving the room. Eloisa turned back to make a last question.
"Is he still there, or was he moved after the war?"
"He remains next to you, miraculously untouched. The rest of the family is there too"
"Thank you, Tomasso Costa, I hereby promise, that after all my problems are solved, I will came to visit you."
"It would be a pleasure, my lady."
A couple of minutes passed before Eloisa returned with Tomasso to the living room. She had a smile on her face and both of her students could tell she was about to announce some news.
"Apparently, I am Felipiana Gonriquez, a caretaker from Argentina that Tomasso deemed worthy of the fortune! We can use it in fourteen days!"
"That's not a real name!"
Both of them replicated in unison among laughs. Tomasso laughed too. Together, they walked outside.
"You should be going to the castle, I haven't been inside since the war, but I know some of the defenses are still working, targeting everything. Be very careful."
With this last warning. Tomasso said goodbye to them.