Editing Story:ROAD TRIP! (Warhammer High)/Part Five (section)

===Goodbye, Venus, Goodbye, Jake===

On the morning of moving day, Jake packed up the last of his things, and tucked them into the back of his parent’s car for the trip to the manor.

Sandra and George rode with him to bring the car home.  They were quiet on the way, for the most part, with only the occasional bout of actual talking.  Once they were nearly there, however, Sandra turned to her son, who was practically bouncing in his seat.  “Jake, honey, calm down.”

“Sorry, I’m just so fired up!” Jake exclaimed.  “Kouthry!  This is awesome!”

“As staff, yes.”  Sandra looked up at the looming buildings all around her.  “I really hope you enjoy working there.”

“I hope so too,” Jake said eagerly.  The car slid to a halt outside the Vulkan estate, and nearly ran up the steps.  Venus met him at the top of the flight, her arms already laden with stuff.

“Hey, baby, just drop your stuff in the back of the truck,” she grunted, lifting a massive container of clothes into the back of an airtruck.

“Sure,” Jake said, carrying a bag over.  Sandra and George emerged from the car with bags of toiletries and other detritus, as Venus walked back for another armful of junk.

“Venus, do you need any help?” George asked.

She shook her head, scattering black hair everywhere.  “No, thanks, Sieur Seager,” she said.

Vulkan himself emerged with a computer chair in one hand.  “All right, that’s it,” he said.

“Excellent,” Venus said, checking her watch.  “We are way ahead of schedule.”

“It’s a four-hour flight,” Jake reminded her.

“A pittance,” Venus scoffed, “with ten unwatched LaffTrax movies on my slate.”

Jake laughed.  “Outstanding,” he said.

Vulkan held the side panel of the airtruck open as George deposited Jake’s own computer chair.  George raised an eyebrow upon observing just how little was in there.

“How…restrained, Venus,” he said.

Venus peeked into the truck.  “Heh.  I don’t want to drag along a ton of shit I don’t need,” she said.  “I can always send home for stuff if I really want it.”

George nodded as Jake started depositing his computer components with the greatest of care.  As he stepped back to give Jake some room, he caught Vulkan’s attention and looked meaningfully at the door to the house.

Intrigued, Vulkan followed George into the manor, and crossed his arms as George nervously licked his lips.  “Vulkan, sir, I want to thank you for giving my son this opportunity,” he started.  “He’s over the moon.”

Vulkan half-smiled.  “A good choice of words.”

“Pardon?”

“‘Opportunity,’ you said,” Vulkan observed.  “George, I like your son and Venus likes your son, but I wouldn’t have helped them out if this was all there was to it,” he said.  “I think your son is a brilliant young man, denied a chance for greatness by poverty, and there’s no waste like wasted potential.”  He slid his hands into his pockets and watched the much shorter man with a critical eye.  “May I ask why you – and subsequently, he – didn’t enter the Mechanicum?”

George bristled as his line of profuse thanks became a line of uncomfortable questions, but he answered.  “I find the mandatory augmentations of the Mechanicum disgusting.”

“The augs themselves, or the fact that they’re mandatory?” Vulkan asked mildly.

“Both.”

Vulkan sighed lightly.  That hadn’t been the answer he wanted.  Despite that, he inclined his head with a gracious nod.  “All right.  Then you’re most welcome, George, and congratulations.  I know how momentous it can feel to send them off, now,” he chuckled.  “It’s unforgettable, isn’t it?”

“Unforgettable and slightly depressing,” George sighed.  “I remember being his age.  I miss the Seminary’s environment of learning and exploration.”

“I attended Kouthry myself, incognito and online, for the most part,” Vulkan remembered.  “The look on the Dean’s face when I showed up to receive my degree in person was the funniest thing I had seen in years,” he laughed.

George cracked a smile.  “I imagine.”

Vulkan opened the door back up.  “Now, go say farewell to your son as I do the same for my daughter, eh?”

Outside, Misja was tearfully hugging her daughter farewell.  “Mom, I’ll be calling home tonight,” Venus managed.

“I know, I know,” Misja said sadly, squeezing her daughter’s shoulders once more.  “It’ll be really late, though, so just turn in early and be sure to get up in time for the convocation address!”

“Mom, the convocation is three DAYS from now!” Venus said exasperatedly.  “Really, move-in today, a day of Orientation,  day of Faculty meetings, then the Convocation day, then the weekend before classes is more Orientation, then classes start.  I’m fine.”

Sandra pecked her son on the cheek as he sat down in the truck.  “You stay safe out there, Jake.  Don’t feel pressured to take a high classload,” she advised.  “You’ve got time.”

Jake grinned with anticipation.  “I know.  I’m looking forward to it.”

George shook his son’s hand as he walked back up to him.  “You have fun at Kouthry, Jake,” he said.

“I will, count on it,” Jake said.

Venus climbed into the driver’s seat and began the autopilot’s sequence.  “All right…bye Mom, Dad!” she said happily, as the gravlift engine lifted the truck off the ground.

“See you at semester break,” Vulkan said, waving as they lifted.

Venus leaned back in the driver’s seat, eyeing the autopiloted car of hers which was following behind in their wake.  “It took off fine,” she said.

“Cool.”  Jake leaned his seat back and settled down on the padded cushion.  “I wonder when I start,” he said idly.

“Chat with your new supervisor,” Venus suggested.

“Yeah.  Think he knows Vulkan got me the job?” Jake asked.

“Probably,” Venus said wryly.  “The smartest thing you could do is just build your class schedule around your works hours and then kiss up to your boss for optimal shifts.”