Mary's in black, too, though she's already gotten her shoes scuffed and started picking at threads on her dress. She hates dresses, and is only wearing this because Granny Rockbell sighed at her until she grudgingly put it on.

"We're gonna find Akira Curtis now, right?" she asks her sister, glancing over at their mom's grave. "She said to wait until mom was dead."

El has carefully kept track of the paper Akira wrote her information on. It's in her pocket now. She touches it to make sure.

"Yeah. First train tomorrow."

"Good." She kicks the ground. "I don't like people being sad at me about mom. It's annoying."

"Once we leave, the only person who'll know is Akira. And I don't think she'll be sad at us."

"Good."

"Come on. Let's go pack."

"Yeah. Gotta bring the most important books, and all our notes on the ones that're mostly fluff..."

"Spare shoes, snacks, the money..."

"Empty notebooks... Some stuff to remember mom by... Clothes we like... Gotta also make sure the house is clean and doesn't have food that can spoil lying around..."

Lots to do.

It'll be enough to occupy them until the train, at least.

El makes sure Mary is up and they're off in plenty of time to catch it.

Mary keeps her face pressed to the window for much of the ride, practically quivering with excitement, neglecting the studying she'd been planning on doing.

They only get to leave home for the first time once. El spends some time staring out the window too.

And, eventually, they arrive in Dublith, as the sun's considering setting. Mary's starting to yawn a bit, but she bounces up once the announcement comes on.

"We're here!!!"

"We're here. Don't forget your suitcase-" She gathers up her own things.

"I won't!" she says, double and triple checking she has everything. ('Everything' being rather heavy, due to all the books.)

And off the train and into Dublith?

"You've got the address, right?" Mary asks, anxious, and like she hasn't memorized it anyways.

(Dublith is a lot, lot bigger than Resembool.)

"I've got the address." And she looked at a map. And brought the map with her, even.

"This way."

"Awesome!"

Mary follows along.

The house is on the other side of town, not quite off in the woods but not quite part of the town proper, either. It's on a rise overlooking the rather enormous lake, and there are lights on inside. The architecture's modest - extremely sturdily built, with no attention to ornamentation. An extensive series of gardens, containing plants only vaguely recognizable to the Elrics, surround the house. Everything has a little label about its cultivation and breeding. Two cats, one white, one a tabby, follow them from the edge of the property to the door, staying well out of reach.

It's a far walk, with everything they brought, but doable, and Mary especially seems an unending font of energy right now.

El's excited, too, and not about to let a little walking get her down. She knocks on the front door.

Akira Curtis answers the door after a few moments.

Oh good.

"Hi. We're here to study."

"Mom died," Mary says, perhaps unnecessarily, "So we're your apprentices now."

"Very well," Akira says. "Come in." And she steps aside, gesturing in. "Have you eaten already?"

"We came straight here from the train."