Arrival

Mathis hopped out of the bus, feeling like he had been dropped off in the middle of nowhere.

This was the deep countryside, he hadn't seen any habitation in the last few hours, actually, he had seen some not even thirty minutes before, but they were all clearly abandoned.

The latest advancement of society had made the cities so much bigger, it wasn't strange for whole village to have been deserted with the massive rural exodus.

Not that Mathis, the son of wealthy, by comparison at least, farmers knew any of those terms or concepts.

He didn't want to take after his father and work on the farm, even if that would set him for life, he wanted freedom and to prove that he could sustain his needs by himself, he had jumped on this opportunity.

Pi, a doctor and surgeon, whomst Mathis had met a few times, the doctor was a kind man that could be seen travelling through villages and to the nearby city, he had offered the young man a job.

It was incredibly well-paid and awfully simple, Mathis simply had to watch over the man's manor while he was away for work, many other freedom seeking boys that Mathis knew had taken the job before him and with the large sum had set out into the world, as described in the letters they had sent back.

This prospect excited Mathis, walking down the beaten path, soon enough, catching a glimpse of the enormous Rebouteux residence.

The young country boy was in awe, never imagining that a single house could get so big, it was built out of strong wood, it was utterly beautiful, suddenly, the idea of taking care of this wondruous place started making him worry a bit.

There were no word to describe how bad it would feel if he messed something up.

He tentatively went up the stairs leading to the front door, only knocking twice before rapid footsteps approached and the door was opened vigorously.

"Ah! Mathis, I was waiting for you, was the travel good? How are you?" Pi Rebouteux assaulted him with questions as he led him inside the house by the shoulder.

He barely responded coherently as the interior shook him even more than the exterior, the carvings really were impressive.

He could hardly believe that the good doctor was living in such a place all by himself, he knew that the man's parents had recently passed away but one would think that a succesful man like Pi would already be married and have children.

He didn't dare to ask him anything however and simply followed him around as he showed him the place and explained a few things.

"Be sure to set the various traps for rats and such, it is honestly an invasion sometimes, you can even here animals walking around and bumping into walls around the house, so don't worry if you hear scratching and such, it is what it is" Pi explained energetically, Mathis wasn't certain how old he was but he was certainly below thirty and a fair bit taller than most.

"Also, lighting the candles is up to you, as long as you don't move anything combustible nearby, I don't put any rugs for a reason, I am a just a slight overly cautious about a fire starting, not that it is very important, during the day, the place is very luminous and honestly, even I am a bit scared to move at night here, Ahah!" the surgeon tapped Mathis in the shoulder as he led him to the stairs leading to the floor above.

"I didn't precise it, but I have lots of food in stock in the kitchen eat as you wish..." Mathis somewhat stopped listening as they arrived on a flat ground, separating the first set of staircase from two diverging ones.

On the wall there, a massive painting was hanging there, looking immovable.

He could see a much younger Pi, as a child with his two parents but what surprised him was the girl that seemed the same age as him on the painting, he didn't know the doctor had a sibling.

"Everyone always stops here, I don't blame them, me and my parents never talked of Aga" the doctor's tone was much less enthusiastic all of a sudden, making Mathis believe he had done something wrong.

"My parents always seemed ashamed of her, even on this painting, she isn't represented accurately but don't worry about all of this, Aga died in a fire when she was seven" he informed him dryly before pointing up the stairs.

"Let me show you your room now, not that I want to brag and mock your parents, but I think you will find it to be a fair bit better than you old one" Mathis didn't dare say anything as the surgeon just went right back to his jovial attitude as if nothing had happened.

He showcased the place and indeed, the room alone left the entirety of his parents house in the dust, as had every single room before.

"No need to pay any mind to the gardens, simply focus on the inside" spoke Pi, handing a double of the keys to Mathis.

"Hum, sir, how long will you be gone for?" asked Mathis as he followed after the surgeon as he was walking back downstairs.

"Oh, maybe a week or two, three if I am held back, this automobile thing is very handy but I doubt it will shorten my time away much" he put on a hat and stepped outside.

"Never forget to lock everything properly and take care!" Pi turned and got in his car, driving away through the beaten path, which was clearly not very thought out for a vehicle like this but soon enough, the surgeon was gone from sight.

Mathis hadn't expected him to go so quickly but it didn't change much.

He wasn't going to be moving much anyways, if he didn't wander around and just went in between the kitchen and his room, he wouldn't have to worry about messing something up.