Chapter Text
Tins clink in the kitchen. Star prepares a meal for Mate, her dear boy, something deep down in her whispers that it may be his last. She pushes that thought aside reassuring herself that Mate is going to be as safe as any other penguin at war would be.
Penguins still do that, right?
She dedicates her thoughts to the preparation of his food trying not to let her mind drift in any distinct direction.
She had been told in all the past briefing letters that he would be well taken care of by both his allies and the higher ups in the area he’d be going to. Star doubts that anyone could truly be taken care of in a war. She expected to be reassured in some way when she read about all the safety precautions there would be and how intensely they trained to make sure that they had little to no casualties. It’s hard to light a fire in the snow, yet harder to bring hope to a mother whose son is being wagered away to fight in a war.
The soldiers he’ll be fighting side by side with don’t all have the same guarantee he does of a home cooked meal for the journey, a goodbye message, letters from someone who cares about them or even someone to worry about them and send prayers that they make it out the other end safe and sound. It may not seem so in the current situation, but Mate is lucky.
Star reminds herself that now isn’t the time to be thinking about anything upsetting, she needs to keep her head up – for Mate’s sake if not her own.
She has her feet firmly planted on the wooden stool she has for all kitchen uses; being her height is its own challenge. Star places a tin onto the stone countertop and begins plating up Mate’s food in the way he likes best. Salmon at the top, cod in the middle, haddock at the end and vegetables at the height of all his food (of course some things can’t be exactly as he prefers). She pours out some coffee in his favourite mug and puts tea in his flask, some for now, some for later. Star climbs down from her stool and pulls out a chair to sit on, eyeing the clock mounted on the wall above the fridge.
There’s one hour left before Mate is being collected by the buggy. He has at least 15 minutes before Star has to take matters into her own hands and wake him up. His sleep pattern is surely going to be a problem for him when he gets there. Stays up too late even when she tells him not too, probably assumes she can’t tell that he does so. She sits for a few minutes looking between the clock, the hall, and the newspaper that’s half open on the table. Eventually she can hear Mate’s flippers on the floor moving across from his room to the kitchen. He comes into a clearer view as he draws closer to where Star is sitting. She sits higher in her seat straightening her back and facing towards Mate.
Star: “Morning, Mate.”
Mate smiles and nods in her direction. Star tries to quicken the interaction before she can think about the chances of this being the last time she gets to witness Mate’s smile. She gets up offering him the coffee she had brewed.
Star: “Here, in your favourite cup. I haven’t made a proper breakfast but there’s food for you to eat on the way and it’s not too late to make anything if you want it. There’s also cereal if you want it. Your choice.”
She shows him a smile making sure to show her teeth and make it look as natural as possible. Mate takes her offering tilting it towards his mouth for a sip then thanking her briefly.
Mate: “I’ll make sure to eat on the way. Thank you.”
Star nods. They both sit in their places around the table.
Star: “I hear Mich is in the same unit as you, you can talk to him, he’ll be on the car ride with you and you’ll be spending lots of time with him.”
Star felt more than relieved when she received the news from Mich’s family that he’d be in the same unit as Mate, he may not be promised much but at the very least he’ll have someone familiar with him. Mate smiles, sharing the sentiment. Despite all the positive things they have said, their voices sound sullen, hiding any poor emotions.
Mate: “I’ll talk with him on the way.”
He tilts the mug to his lips again, finishing it entirely this time round. He excuses himself to go and get ready. He wants to say much more than he already has but not much comes to mind in this moment. He pulls on his clothes in silence thinking. There’s no one specific thought that he’s focused on, but he knows there should be. It makes no sense to be calm in his position, but he figures it’s best not to worry about what’s to come. It’s better to figure things out as he goes along. He knows what he needs to do to get ready, what time he’s being picked up and has an idea of where he’s going. They don’t say too much on locations in the letters he received because it seems they love their confidentiality. He returns to the kitchen, looking at the clock.
He and Star stand outside awaiting the buggy’s arrival. The dirt on the lawn is solid, frozen over and icy. The grass is patchy, coloured a dark green. In Summers and hotter seasons, the lawn is usually even, well taken care of, and presentable, the same can’t be said for the current climate. He wraps his arm around Star’s shoulder, rubbing his hand over it slightly to reassure her and warm her up. Star is considerably shorter than Mate is, 3.64 studs tall to be exact. It’s been a while since Mate last measured his height, but it’s not needed to tell how much he’s grown. Didn’t take him much time to grow taller than his mother. Star leans her body into his side, returning his gesture of reassurance. He holds his bag in his other hand, the tin container of food and flask full of tea weighing him down on his right side. They both hear tires run down the road in the distance, Mate faces towards Star, Star does the same.
Star: “Have your food?”
Star begins running through the checklist of things he could have forgotten.
Star: “Tea?”
Mate nods after each thing is asked until she runs to the end of her list. She pulls him at the side giving him a hug.
Star: “Eat well, write to me at least once a day, leave out no details, I need to be in the know of how things are going. Try to make friends with the others, everyone is there for the same reason and you’ll spend pretty much all your time with them so you might as well just get to know them.”
Mate: “I promise I’ll write and try my best to talk to the other people there.”
The buggy runs to a halt in front of their house, a man stepping out and confirming that he’s at the right place. Mate gives Star a final squeeze before letting go and waving.
Mate: “Bye!”
Star: “Bye, be safe!”
She adds the last part slightly louder than the first making sure he heard her as he backs away from her and towards the vehicle. They both wave and Mate enters the car, doors shutting behind him.
He situates himself in an empty place on the left bench, close to the door. He leaves and empty spot next to him so when Mich is picked up there’s room for him to sit. In front of him, a boy in a blue beanie with blue hair is sat. He is wearing a boxy, blue, plaid flannel with a black T-shirt underneath it. He has one of his ankles crossed over the other. Nothing notable happens for the majority of the car ride other than some conversation with Mich and everyone else in the car as they all pile in to await their arrival.