They ate their sandwiches-- Fiona had chosen chicken and mayonnaise for everyone apart from herself and Peregrine who got cheese and cucumber-- and even finished their lattes, and iced tea in Freddie's case, leaving a small tray of blueberry muffins for later, before the train finally crawled to the platform and they were allowed to board.

To Fiona's delight, the train had separate compartments, which meant that she didn't have to put the muzzle on poor Gollum-- he wasn't used to it just like he wasn't used to train rides. It also meant that the men could talk freely without raising the suspicions of the other passengers, and so, she realised, yawning, she could take a nap during the four hours long journey. The long shifts at the hospital drained her, and she never felt the exhaustion as much as when she skipped one.

No sooner the men organised their bags in the closest free compartment when the train slid into motion.

Fiona was offered a window seat which she accepted gladly, she had never had enough occasions to travel and her adventurous soul was awaking from its deep slumber as the smell of a journey into unknown-- the scent of the plastic seats of the train, of the recently wiped floors and windows of the compartment, of the perfume of each one of her  travel companions mixed with the delicate, almost vanilla scent of the blueberry muffins they still had to eat-- swirled up her nostrils, filling her head. She settled comfortably into her seat next to Peregrine, who sat close at her side as if it was where he had belonged since the beginning of times, with Freddie and her mum seated opposite of them, Gollum, stretching comfortably across the compartment taking up the entire space between their feet, and Gilderoy and Leodhais, the latter at her mother's side of course, guarding the sliding glass door of the compartment. 

Fiona turned her face towards the window the moment the train left the building and moved into the late afternoon reigning outside, feeling... strangely content. It seemed to her that she had everything she needed to be happy with her at this moment in time, as she, feeling Peregrine's body closer to her than was strictly required by the space their seats offered, seeing Freddie's rare smile blooming on his face with the corner of her eye when she pretended not to watch him while she slipped off her trainers and pushed her feet under Gollum's side, the gesture necessary for both of their comfort, relishing the grunt of satisfaction from him when he let his head drop on his front paws, closing his eyes, as she was sure he did without looking at him.

She could feel a smile trembling on her lips as she watched the city turning into suburbs morphing into fields and meadows for a long while-- it had started to rain, and she wondered whether Peregrine's old gods conspired in this way to erase the signs of her existence from this world, deleting her scent for all the dragons-- while she listened to the drone of her mum's conversation with her Leo and Gilderoy, and the slightly louder words Peregrine and Freddie exchanged about the Lord of the Rings book that now lay open on Peregrine's lap.

Fiona mused whether she should text her landlord but decided that there was no point in that. She had paid the rent in advance for the following three months, and if she didn't return until the next payment was due, then she would probably never return. And in that case, he could do whatever her pleased with the things she had left behind.

When drowsiness overcame her she didn't fight against it, and simply turned away from the window, closing her eyes initially only so Freddie wouldn't think that she was watching him as she tried to settle more comfortably in her seat. She didn't protest when she felt Peregrine pulling her closer and laid her head on his shoulder, feeling the annoying smile grow when a part of his wide cloak settled around her like a blanket. 

It took her a while to realise where she was when she came to again. Without opening her eyes, she focused her senses on her surroundings. The rhythmic movement and the sound of water pelting glass reminded her that she was still on the train... to Liskeard. Peregrine's arm was now wrapped over her shoulders just like his cloak was spread over her body, while her head rested upon his chest. She could hear his heart while his scent of wilderness and burning wood filled her mind, threatening to overwhelm her. It was a moment of pure bliss... Botheration... She had fallen in love with the man, she was absolutely sure about it. What was she supposed to do now? Of course, she couldn't tell him; it wasn't something he would want to hear...

A sigh was just about to escape her lips when her mother's words penetrated her mind clearly for the first time since she had awoken and an instinct whispered to her to stay still and silent.

"When he left, she was heartbroken. She has never looked at another man since," her mum was saying in a half whisper, the words meant to berate the dragon shifter for his closeness to her daughter.

Peregrine didn't reply as if what Alexandra just told him wasn't anything he had asked about, anything he wanted to know. He simply strengthened his hold around Fiona even as the woman continued, "This Lagon of hers was the strangest man I have ever seen. Silent and mysterious, so much older and more experienced than her... But she loved him so much that she even wanted to give the child his surname when he was born. However, I made her change her mind, and that's why Freddie is Murphy like us, rather than Black..."

Fiona could feel the dragon shifter startle, but she wasn't sure whether it was because of hearing the surname or because she finally decided to show that she was up and stirred to attract their attention. The latter, she decided, Black was such a common surname after all, and in Lagon's case, it was most likely false.

"Are we nearly arrived?" she asked, smiling at Leodhais and Gilderoy, who now turned towards them too. Only Freddie and Gollum were still asleep. 

"Twenty minutes left," Peregrine said, turning away from Alexandra to look at her. 

She wished she could read those thoughts that passed behind his silvery eyes in the few instants before he smiled and unwrapped his arm and cloak from around her, making her feel cold and lonely.

She narrowed her eyes at him, letting him know that she noticed that he was hiding something before she turned to Freddie. Just what was on his mind?

"I better wake him up so we can get ready," she muttered, moving her feet under Gollum's warm belly in a caress designed to stir the dog from the sleep, too.

It was dark and pouring with rain when they filed onto the platform. 

"There is a small Bed and Breakfast I know of nearby, not far from the park," Peregrine said as they stopped within the station building and Fiona fished hers and Freddie's rain jackets from her luggage while Alexandra searched her bag for an umbrella. "It shouldn't be full on a night like this. We haven't been followed; it's safe to spend the night here and then leave early in the morning, or even after breakfast, so Master Frodo doesn't have to walk on an empty stomach. A true hobbit wouldn't appreciate that," he added with a wink at Freddie, making both him a Fiona chuckle.

The dragon shifter was on his knees in front of Freddie the next moment, helping him don his green rain jacket. He acted as naturally around the boy as if he were born to become a father. Did he have a family somewhere? Fiona mused. It didn't feel so to her, not from how he behaved around her. But if he didn't, then why? Family and children were obviously things he desired... 

She understood even as he stood up again, making his sword clink against some metallic part of his boot, his dark-clad body towering over her as he smiled down at her from the shadows cast over his face by his hat, offering her his arm when the others exited the empty building into the rainy night. It was all that Highlander business, just like in that movie.

Well, she would have to find a way to show him that she didn't care about it without making him feel obliged to give her anything more than he wished. It was his life, after all, and he needed to decide how to live it. She would only remind him that they all only had one life, only one moment at only one time, always, and that yesterdays, with all their indecisions and missed chances, would never come back to be fixed and relived in a better way.