Zeke let Viola lead him down the hill to the station he'd arrived on yesterday morning. The realisation that it was the last place he'd seen his parents struck him with an odd mix of feelings. He'd been doing fine, he thought, but the thought stirred up a sense of homesickness. Didn't they say they were going to stay in the town for a few days? He might be able to go back home with them. But then he bumped into Viola when she stopped, and he grinned so widely his eyes closed. He liked his new friends. Icy and Yellow and Viola and he hadn't even been to class yet.

"Two for the student's rail?" A man in a floppy black hat asked from behind the glass. Zeke tilted his head at the man's big, grey, whiskery mustache, like a walrus'. "Thought you'd all be in class already," he mused as he gave them the tickets.

Zeke squeezed Viola's hand for reassurance. He didn't have to be shy. He didn't have to hide away. "Ummm..." His voice started out with good intentions, but it got frightened and trailed away. Instead, he pulled the note from this morning out of his pocket and held it out as explanation. Maybe that would help. The man's blue eyes trailed over it, then he nodded. The man's eyes were a duller blue than Viola's, a deep river blue to Viola's bright sky blue. Zeke realised he was staring and ducked his head down, feeling his cheeks warm up. "Sorry," he muttered.

The two took their tickets and, after a moment of searching, got onto the student's car. It was simple inside, with plain, cushioned benches that had seen better days, and too busy for photographs, but Zeke and Viola found a couple of seats together even as Zeke tried to look small around all the older kids who all knew what was going on. Once they'd sat down, Zeke realised that he hadn't let go of Viola's hand yet. This caused another blush, and he dropped her hand to hide his face. "Sorry," he mumbled into his palms. "Now your hand's all sticky and I'm..." The gentle rush of acceleration, and a change in the light, distracted him, and he looked out the window at the scenery.

[@Pseudo Stygian]