Mot

“Trisha!”

Looking up from the garden in the front yard, Trisha saw Cleodora waving overly enthusiastically with Thaddeus in tow behind them.

“Cleo!?”

She yelped as she got to her feet, confused by the two's sudden appearance, but amused by it nonetheless.

“You didn't tell us you were coming to Resembool today.”

Cleodora nodded with another laugh—making Trisha furrow her eyebrows slightly in suspicion—rummaging through their bag now they were standing in front of her. Thaddeus did not look at Trisha other than to give a curt greeting nod, hiding behind his scarf, which he had pulled up higher than usual.

“Here, here,” Cleodora then pushed an envelope into Trisha's hands, rushing past her to the front door of her house before she could react. “Happy valentines!”

They called out over their shoulder before letting themself in. Trisha blinked, stunned by both the audacity and surprise of seeing Cleodora in such an eerily cheerful mood. She huffed as she looked down at the envelope in her hands, shaking her head before looking up at Thaddeus, who still remained in his spot.

“Since when… Does Cleo celebrate valentines?”

Trisha chuckled as she turned the envelope in her hand; ‘Trisa’ was written on the front in an… attempt at an eligible handwriting. Thaddeus shook his head slightly, catching his scarf whenever it threatened to fall.

“Since yesterday I presume. I do not question them right now… They are always acting odd during the spring season.”

“Huh," Trisha acknowledge with a shrug. “Did they get you anything?”

She asked while tearing the envelope open out of curiosity.

“Yes. They managed to find several very old copies of a few books I was planning to buy myself. It was… Thoughtful.”

Trisha had to stop herself from awh-ing at Thaddeus' flustered mumbling. The two had clearly come such a long way, and she could never resist a good love story.

“That sounds like you'll be busy for a while,”

She giggled before peeking into the envelope to find a small post-it note and a collection of different paintbrushes that she had mentioned to Cleodora once. Maybe twice?

“What is it?”

Thaddeus asked when Trisha went quiet with a small smile on her face. She sighed softly as she fished the note from the envelope first. The handwriting is completely illegible considering it is Cleodora's.

“It's paintbrushes…”

Trisha mumbled as she squinted at the handwriting. Thaddeus frowned slightly beneath his scarf, confused by her quiet response, did Cleodora not think about what they were giving her?

“Is that… Good?”

He asked hesitantly, Trisha looked up with a confused blink before nodding with a laugh.

“Oh, yes. It is! I just hadn't expected them to remember that I needed to replace mine.”

Thaddeus made a quiet ‘ah' noise before looking at the note in her hand.

“It says ‘for all your—a word even I can not read—needs’. I assume they meant creative.”

Trisha nodded as she smiled fondly at the note before putting it make into the envelope with a soft chuckle.

“So, did you do anything for them? Or did they catch you off guard?”

She asked as she stuffed the envelope in the pocket on her apron. When Thaddeus hesitated to answer, she looked up with a raised eyebrow, greeted by Thaddeus’ reddening face. He fidgeted with his scarf as he insistently pulled it over his mouth and nose again. Trisha didn't need to know more to put two and two together, covering her mouth as she barked out an amused laugh.

“Oh, I see~” She wriggled her eyebrows teasingly, nudging Thaddeus’ arm with a snort. “No need to be so embarrassed about it, silly.”

Thaddeus shot the younger woman a glare as his face only got redder at her teasing remarks.

“Do not laugh! I am not ashamed. It is just warm.”

“Riiight.”

“Silence, you prurient fool.”

Trisha rolled her eyes with another giggle as she smacked Thaddeus' arm lightly for his defensive grumbling.

Meanwhile, Cleodora had managed to locate their next target, already holding the envelope with Hohenheim's name on it in their hand when they knocked on the door to his study.

“Surprise visit, open up,” They called out impatiently, knocking insistently until the door swung open. “Ah! I was getting worried.”

Hohenheim lifted his glasses with an incredulous look, a small smile on his face despite their sudden—demanding—entrance. Cleodora extended the envelope to him as they leaned on the doorframe.

“What's this about, Dora?”

Hohenheim chuckled as he took the envelope, turning it over in his hand once before putting glasses back on to squint at Cleodora's handwriting.

“Happy valentines day,” Cleodora mumbled before pushing off the doorframe. “I didn't really know what to get you.”

They added, already turning to leave Hohenheim to open their envelope.

Hohenheim shook his head as he watched Cleodora descend the stairs, carefully tearing open the envelope to find a post-it note, a folded sheet of paper, and a small photograph.

While he definitely couldn't read Cleodora's handwriting without Thaddeus’ help, the folded paper revealed a letter written in a very neat and cursive handwriting. A hand that Hohenheim easily recognised as Thaddeus'. A soft smile slowly tugged at Hohenheim's lips as he read over the words, although he was sure the letter was in no way intended for him to ever read, it was deeply endearing. Cleodora should not have crossed Thaddeus' boundaries in such a way however, and he'd be sure to give them an extensive talking to later.

The picture was simple: Trisha on the left, Thaddeus on the right, and Hohenheim in the middle. He remembered that Cleodora took the picture, but he had assumed they would have deleted or forgotten about it in all honesty. It was nice to see.