Follow Your Heart Auto Memories Doll

Chapter Twenty

Violet shifted her weight uncomfortably on her bench seat. All was quiet, save for the hiss of steam she could hear out on the relatively dim platform. The cool night air rushed in through her slightly opened window as the steam engine's whistle blew long and loud through the night.

Violet was finally going home after her three month stint tutoring Amy. She figured she was probably halfway home already in fact, and already she could tell winter would probably be in full swing in Leiden. Part of her almost wished she could have stayed longer. The reprieve from her stress had been incredible. Being able to focus on Amy's problems instead of her own had been far more of a comfort than Violet could have ever imagined.

Amy had been far more of a comfort than she could predict as well...

She'd grown quite attached to her new friend in the past three months and now it was more than likely that their paths would never cross again. It hurt. She could feel the weight in her chest and her eyes felt so full they might burst. It wasn't quite the same as heartbreak though, she'd decided that much. It was different to how she felt about Major Gilbert, and even more different than it had felt leaving Trevor behind for three months.

Trevor.

God she hoped he was okay. She had been letting the distractions of Amy's daily life keep her attention off of Trevor. It kept her from constantly worrying about him all of the time. Wondering if he was hurt, or if he would even tell her if he was. He'd sent her letters as much as he could while she was away but the school's policy on outside interaction was very strict. Violet hadn't even really been allowed to leave the grounds, even though she wasn't actually a student.

She appreciated the effort but every time a letter did work it's way into her shared dorm with Amy the worries would come back. Her hands would shake as she would open each of them, wondering how bad the news would be.

But the news hadn't ever been bad and that made her worry even more. There was just no way that all of Trevor's problems would be solved by Violet going away...was there? His father couldn't actually hate the idea of him spending time with a woman that much could he?

Maybe it wasn't just any woman. Maybe he hated Violet specifically. Maybe he hated soldiers, hated the military for taking Allen away from him?

Violet shook her head violently. This was what she'd been keeping locked up for three months. Now that she was stuck on this train, alone in the silence, the voices were coming back. It had been a nice change of pace but she needed to deal with these problems. She couldn't just keep pretending like they didn't exist. She just wished the voices could take turns, slow down and let her think, instead of flooding her mind all at once. It all seemed so overwhelming to her. She'd never had problems to deal with before her new life had begun.

Good soldiers follow orders, and Violet always had. Right up until the Major had ordered her to leave and she'd chosen to stay.

Violet rested her head back against her seat and tilted toward the window. She watched the stars out in the night sky sliding past and tried her very best to steel herself for what she would be coming home to. Eventually though, she found herself slipping into an uneasy sleep as the coach swayed back and forth through the mountains and valleys between Drossel and Leiden.

Violet heard a rap on the door of her cabin within the coach and jumped awake, almost sprinting to full attention through habit. She hadn't been forced awake much in her time since the army, but it had happened many times in the barracks or in trenches.

"Last stop," she heard a man's voice ring through the coach as he continued down the hall and knocked on every door. "Last stop, Leidenshaftlich!" He called out in the night.