"I must say, you seem quite young miss." Harold said, placing his cup on the holder.
"Only seventeen, Sir," I replied nervously, my cheeks blushing a cool red colour.
"No need to be so shy, darling." Annabeth said, holding my hand in a way to comfort me.
I let out a small smile in response to her warmth. Her hands were soft. She was stunning. Angelically woven into the world.
"The train ride will be quite a while. Why don't we socialise?" Harold added.
"Let me reintroduce myself. I am Harold Bane, thirty years old, and I own a small company called Bane Industries. I would like to say that we are scientists but more so a company that tries to follow science. I have a loving family: a wife and two daughters. Alissa and Alice." He said in such a loving and energetic tone.
I could tell that he was really fond of his family. Showing me and Annabeth a few pictures of his family, we watched with great pleasure to see the wellbeing of another human.
"I guess I shall go next. I'm Annabeth. I'm twenty-four, and I work as a sociologist. I mainly go around seeing how society behaves and interacts with each other. It is an exceptionally beautiful profession indeed. Seeing the joys and bonds between friends and family makes my heart melt with happiness. I also have a brother who is currently living abroad, who is the most important thing in my life. He is only seventeen as well, just like you, Jolynn."
"What item did you bring then from your residence?" Harold asked Annabeth.
"My locket." she said, taking it off from around her neck.
It was a beautiful piece of jewellery. The string was shaped as a spiral that looped inwards on itself, taking on the form of two snakes covered in gold. The locket itself had the face of a lion at the front and a tiger at the back.
Opening it up, we saw a picture of two children. The first was a girl wearing an all-black dress, a white bow, and held a cane. The second was of a younger boy. From the looks of the picture, we could tell it was a much more recently made photo.
"A picture of me and my brother." She said, her eyes filled with happiness.
She had a soothing expression upon her face when talking about her brother. Her voice was the softest I had ever heard. There was this elegance that followed her like a dog. Majestic. That was all I could think when I looked at her. I knew from that moment that she was who I wished to be. My inspiration.
"Well, I guess it is my turn. I'm Jolynn Parker. I'm currently doing a philosophy degree. I have two younger brothers that are twins, who are seven currently. My parents are farmers, as it has been for many generations. We live in the countryside. Peaceful and noisy at the same time. The scenery is absolutely gorgeous. You should most definitely come and visit after all this is finished. It may not be much, but it is home. I have brought two photos of my whole family."
Showing them all the photos, I happily continued to chat away about them, answering whatever questions openly.
Such an enthusiastic child. Reminds me of my younger days as a youthful female.
I thought to myself.
Jolynn really was someone to admire. Her social skills and mannerisms were among the best. The glimmer in her eyes when talking about her family or education is something people should strive towards. I must look after such an important soul during this time.
"I think that was a great introduction." Harold said with a smile. "The next thing we ought to discuss, however, is this mystery psychologist. We first need to discuss to what extent he is trustable. For all we know, he could be a maniac who has cleverly articulated and fabricated such letters to bring us together."
"He addressed himself as The Scientist in my letter." Annabeth said.
"Mine was a psychologist." Jolynn stated in which Harold agreed to.
"Why would he not choose one title to be addressed by, and why has he not stated his name? It all seems too suspicious. We must be cautious when moving forward. This may be an experiment that was professionally accepted. However, we do not have any prior knowledge as to how the experimenter is as a man of science... and as a human being." Harold elaborated.
I could feel my body tense up increasingly more.
Looking at Annabeth, I noticed that even her demeanour has changed. The polite and uptight character that was quite admirable had started to waver.
We were all on the edge of our seats, and the long journey ahead made it worse. Before long, we had begun to prepare ourselves for what lay ahead.
May God be with us.