Chapter 5

Goodbyes

"Sigmund, join me in the kitchen please!"

"I'm coming, Father!"

My parents sat at our table. Food for breakfast had been prepared and the table was already set. I sat down as my mother served the food. "What is it father?" I took a roll of bread and cut into it. My parents glanced at each other before my father spoke.

"Your mother and I have been talking for a while about this. We've decided to send you away." My eyes widened and I instantly put my roll down.

"W-what? Where?"

"An academy to further your magic studies. I received a letter in the mail from an academy full of children just like you with an opportunity we just can't refuse, Sigmund. If you get in, you'll be able to go completely free of charge. They've heard about you, about your talents. They said you have great potential!"

"B-but, Father-"

"Sigmund, this is a good thing for you." My mother told me. "You've been alone for too long. You'll be with other children your age who will study magic as well. They're just like you."

As incredible as that sounded, it wasn't something I could get excited about. My parents were aging. They needed help around the cottage.

"But I can't!" I argued "I must stay here. I have to stay to protect you both. To help you—and the farm-!"

"You've done enough here." My father assured. "If you want to do well for our family, you will go to Milkweed Academy." If you want to do well. I knew what he meant by that. I nodded.

"Yes, Father."

"We'll have to wait for an acceptance letter first." My mother added, pouring herself a cup of tea after she'd poured for the rest of us. "I'll be going out to buy you new clothes today."

I ate the rest of my breakfast in silence and did the washing when everyone was finished. It was a lot to take in and I honestly couldn't process it. There were other children like me? That came as a shock, but even more, I couldn't bare the thought of leaving my family.

Leaving home. I had never left home before. I'd always been sheltered. I was home schooled and only truly left home for brief shopping in the marketplace. I grabbed my recorder from my bedroom once I had finished the cleaning and headed down to the river to play. The only other place I left home for. I figured it would be the best place to clear my mind. I wasn't sure how much longer I'd be able to do it, so I took the chance I had now.

Across the river, I saw a figure being reflected off the water. I looked up and saw a blonde girl staring back at me. It looked like Lila, but it had been a while since we'd seen one another. She was definitely older than the last time I had seen her. There was an awkward silence, to be expected.

"Hallo." I mumbled. She lifted her hand to wave, but decided to let it drop to her side instead.

"Sigmund? Is that you there?"

It was such a foolish question to ask. I was the only child in town with hair this odd color. I simply nodded and kept an insult to myself as I took a spot in the grass. She skipped through the rushing river, hopping over the stones that lead to the other side. Quickly, she took a seat beside me. I shifted, making room between us both.

"I haven't seen you in years!" I turned away from her, fiddling with a weed that poked from the grass.

"I wish not to speak with you." I muttered, pulling my knees to my chest. "I'm forbidden."

"...oh." Lila fidgeted a bit before she spoke again. "I regret what happened." I couldn't help but roll my eyes.

"No you don't." I stood up and collected my recorder from the grass, but she grabbed my hand before it reached the instrument.

"Please forgive me."

"Unhand me, NOW!" She jumped at the tone of my voice, but did as I commanded. "I will never forgive you."

"B-but, Sigm-!"

I walked out of the forest where the river lived and ignored Lila's cries over the babble of the water. It was false. Her apology just sounded false, forced almost. She knew I would be there and she was prepared to swindle me, one last time.

—

"SIGMUND! WAKE UP!"

I opened my eyes to my mother, who's eyes were the brightest I'd seen them in a long while. She did her best to keep her composure, but she hopped with glee where she stood. I rubbed the fog from my eyes and rose with a stretch.

"Mother...why did you wake me?" An envelope, tan in color and sealed off with a deep burgundy wax. The emblem was a combination of the letters "M" and "W". She handed it to me and let me look it over. I turned it and read off the address, written in golden calligraphy. "Milkweed...MILKWEED!"

"Yes! It's a letter from Milkweed Academy, Sigmund!"

"Oh mein-!"

"Open it, please! I've waited all morning for you to wake, but I couldn't wait any longer!"

I tore the top off the letter with great care and pulled the folded letter inside just as carefully. The paper had a rich texture and thickness to it, something I'd never felt before. Written out in Old English styled calligraphy, there was a letter written out in the most beautiful fashion, in perfect ink;

To the parents of young wizard, Sigmund,

Please accept our pride and great pleasure in welcoming your child into the fold and fabric of our family here at the Milkweed Academy School for Wizards. Starting next month, our Spring semester will officially begin. Shortly and promptly, more information as well as materials necessary for our curriculum will be sent out to you and your family. Attached, we've provided a pamphlet which includes our academic layout and view of this semester's itinerary. We, here at Milkweed Academy, are all very much looking forward to seeing your child, Sigmund, in our halls.

- Headmaster Merlin & Administrator Flan

We danced like we'd never danced before, my mother and I. We laughed and spun around. At one point, we'd climbed up on top my bed and jumped till our heads hit the ceiling. My father walked in on us to see what all the noise was about. I waved the letter in the air and held it out to him.

"FATHER! Read this, Father!"

He took a moment to read the letter to himself and it only took a few moments for the smile to spread across his face the same way ours had. He handed it back to me with a look of pure elation.

"Oh, ho-ho!" My father laughed to himself. It was a hearty laugh that made us laugh ourselves as we climbed off the bed. "What are we doing here, then? We should be getting you ready, Sigmund! Come on! Come on! Let's get going!"

My mother went for her bag and we rushed out of the cottage in the direction of the marketplace. I never let go of that letter, in fact, I held it high over my head, letting it flow in the breeze as my family seemingly bounced around the marketplace. Our faces had to have been the brightest in the market. People stopped to wave at me, surprised to see me out in public after so long. There were musical street performers playing that day and I couldn't help myself. I danced and it cracked my mother up to bits. A crowd formed around me and people clapped and danced with me. I sparkled, which unfortunately bought along more attention, but it didn't matter then.

"Why the celebration?" Someone called out to me. I just waved the letter in the air. They had no clue what it was about, but they still whistled and danced and cheered. The street performers were tipped pretty well that day. By now, my parents had gone off to buy me supplies, but I was too thrilled to shop.

After a long day out, we headed home for supper. I helped my mother set the table and serve the food. It felt a lot more sentimental to help. Every moment with my parents at this point was a moment that was important to me. When we sat to eat, my mother handed me bags from the marketplace.

"These are your new clothes, Sigmund. Pack them away in your cases after supper."

"Yes, Mother. Thank you." My father smiled at me from across the table. He just oozed fatherly pride. I, myself, had never felt more proud than right now.

"We will train later today." He told me. "We must have you well prepared and ready for anything!" I nodded and cleared the table when we'd finished supper.

I took my new clothes up to my room. I'd never had so many pairs of pants in my life. Different shades of brown and khaki. My mother said those were the colors working men wore. There were a couple of vests in tan and mint and equal pairs of laced or collared shirts. I smiled down at my clothes as I packed them. I had never gotten so many clothes at once. The fact that I was leaving slowly sunk in and started becoming more real. There was a feeling deep down and I fought it from rising up in me. I'd fight it till I couldn't anymore. I cried, alone in my room, but knew I had to straighten up to meet my father for training.

I finished packing my clothes and met my father in the fields to train. The gloves he'd given me fit well now, not perfectly, but better than before for sure. I adjusted them as I took my spot in the field, across from my father who waited for my signal. I took a stance and raised my hands to him when I was ready.

"TOSS 'EM!" I called out.

My father steadied himself and in a swift motion, threw the first round of fireballs toward me. I caught them and tossed them back.

"Smooth, son!"

I gave him a thumbs up, which made him laugh. He threw another round when I wasn't exactly ready, trying his best to catch me off guard and keep me focused, something he did often when we trained. It kept me on my toes. Fireballs sprang high into the air, curved and hailed down like rain. A shuffled for a moment, and when I realized there was no way to catch them all, I materialized from where I was standing and reappeared beside my father. He nodded and patted me on the back.

"Sigmund, you're perfect now." I blushed at the compliment. Perfect.

"Thank you, Father." There was a sudden smell of smoke in the air. I watched my father's expression change from pride to panic and his eyes grew wide. I followed his gaze and gasped. The fireballs had landed in the dry grass a few feet from us and was slowly, but surely, starting a small fire. I grabbed our emergency bucket of water and my father removed his overcoat to pat the rest of the flames down. We had a pretty good laugh about that.

—

"Rest up. Tomorrow, we're going to the station."

"Father, I'm excited."

"Are you? Why?"

"The children, Father. There will finally be children just like me." My father paused before shaking his head.

"Sigmund, I need you to listen to me." I sat up in bed as he spoke. "You're different. I don't want you to expect too much."

"But Father, you and Mother told me what Milkweed would be like. You said there would be children like me. They'll be studying magic too, just as I am."

"Son, you've been home-schooled for a long time now. We've trained and worked hard for months. They're just beginning. You're very much ahead of them."

I looked down at my hands. The skin on my palms was peeling a bit from all the heat that had been against them. My father was probably right, maybe no one else was training the way we had. He could be wrong though and I was honestly hoping he was. I always wanted friends and good company. People I could relate to and not have to worry about being different around. I prayed Milkweed would bring that to me, friendship. My father straightened up after being at my bedside and headed towards the door.

"Gute nacht, Sigmund."

"Gute nacht..." I mumbled.

Morning came quickly. I sprang out of bed early and headed to the restroom to get myself ready for the travel ahead. The house smelled of sweet tea and other good things that my mother normally made for special occasions only. This would be my last meal in a long while with my parents. I tugged my cases into the kitchen and greeted my mother with a kiss to her cheek.

"Guten morgen, Mother."

"Oh Sigmund, your new clothing looks lovely on you!"

"Danke!" I sat at the table with my father, who hugged me tightly. I hugged him back. "Father, are you happy for me today?"

"Ja, of course!" He chuckled. "Very happy!"

My mother served me plate after plate that morning. She wanted me to eat as much as I could. She told me her reasoning behind it all. "Who knows what they'll be serving you or when you'll ever eat my meals again!" I didn't argue with her about that. By the time I finished eating, I felt as though I'd burst through the seams of the clothing I'd just gotten the night before. I could hardly stand from my seat at the table when it was time to go.

My parents helped me with my bags when the time came and together, we walked into town. Passing through the marketplace on the way to the train station, my mother stopped at a stall and bought me a snack, which she pushed down into my vest pocket. She told me I might get hungry on the way there. The trip would be a long one, after all.

Once we finally made it to the station, my father eyed the train ticket to figure out which platform I should stand on. When that was situated, he gave me the ticket and one of my cases. My mother was already getting emotional as she handed me the other case. This was it. This is where we would part.

"Please, Sigmund, be safe." She told me. She kissed my forehead and fought her tears. I shook my head.

"Please don't cry, Mother." I begged. "You know Isis wouldn't like that and neither do I." My mother laughed faintly. I turned to my father. "Keep her safe, okay?"

"Of course." He nodded. "And you prevail over your peers, my son. Come up on top."

"I will. That's not an option."

Behind us, the train I would take to Milkweed Academy screeched to a stop on the tracks. We made our way over to the conductor, who took my bags and pointed out the train car I'd be sitting in. I turned to my parents and hugged them with everything I could manage. I felt that feeling again, that feeling I'd been fighting off. I was starting to lose the fight.

"Bless you, my son." My mother cooed in my ear. "Ich liebe dich."

I pulled away from them and smiled the best I could before climbing the stairs up into the train car. I couldn't fight the way I felt anymore. I was leaving them and I felt guilty leaving them. The tears in my eyes welled up and spilled over. I rushed to the nearest window of the train car and waved out of it to them.

"A-auf Wiedersehen!" I cried out as the train suddenly jerked forward.

My parents waved back. My mother was already crying and stopped waving the handkerchief she'd been using to dab her eyes. I swatted away tears of my own and leaned out the window to get a better look at them as the train started to pull away. I felt panicked. The train whistle sounded and smoke bellowed into the air. Other parents waved to their children. I couldn't take my eyes off my parents. They weren't coming with me. I needed them with me. I couldn't leave them! "F-Father!"

"Sigmund! It'll be alright!"

"Father!"

The train was too far from them now. I was too far for them to hear my cries. When I couldn't see them anymore, I leaned back into my seat and took a heavy, uneven breath. I was on my own now.