Hector felt like he was standing out no matter how hard he tried to appear small. Why would people who had never been interested in paupers in their life now pass him one of those dull appraising looks? Was it because he stood out too much in the garden in his ratty shirt and pants? Even his shoes that he had proudly patched together brought him no comfort. Was this journey going to be possible if they kept giving him those guarded looks of disappointment? The dawning of realization in Hector's body had a more significant impact on him than the one on his mind. It was as if a massive chain had been draped around his shoulders, squeezing the air out of his lungs. The distance between him and the other volunteers all at once seemed like an impossible gap to bridge. As if he were about to collapse from the strain his mind pulled straws left and right, desperately searching for some semblance of value that he could hold on to. 

Hector gave his thumb a quick, sharp bite. Immediately the pain flooded out the irrational thoughts and brought him back to a more alert state. 

[i]"That's right,"[/i] Hector mentally firmed his resolve, [i]"I already left everything behind. It's too late to go back now. I just gotta work twice as hard to make up for the difference. Introductions... Introductions are important." [/i]

Hector cooled his head and quickly scanned the gardens for an opportunity to make himself known, but the scene had become altogether more chaotic than the one he remembered from moments ago. The garden's numbers had swelled, at least in comparison to the previous lot. Four armored combatants, two of them even astride horses, stood circled near the entrance of the garden. Ah... One of them was another beautiful woman. Hector had just inoculated himself to the foreign feelings from earlier, partly by keeping his line of sight to the Empress as far from direct as possible, but he would be lying if he said there wasn't another thump in his chest. If the Empress was a jewel then this woman was probably... a flower?

Daisy. She was definitely a daisy. It was as if his mind had adamantly omitted the gilded armor and the smoldering lance that seemed to threaten the imminent skewering of anyone who dared cross her. Nope. In Hector's mind he perfectly pictured the woman as a flower and the other three as... a bumble bee. The one just to the right of the daisy was definitely like a brightly colored bee, obstinately buzzing around the flower and making a racket. The woman in front was was with the Emperor earlier, that was a woman wasn't it? She certainly didn't give off the air of a flower. That one was more like a little kitchen spider, busily spinning her web and catching any stray flies that wandered in. Hector had always liked spiders, they kept to themselves and ate the more annoying bugs. It was the last one that sent a chill up Hector's spine. Snake. There was no other word for the paralyzing gaze that hid itself behind the man's face mask. The peaceful garden scene felt overcast by the presence of a great, steely-eyed serpent, and Hector quickly decided he wanted nothing more to do with the events in that direction. 

That was definitely not a place where his current self could stand. On the other hand, there was yet another small group forming. Hector's mental image of the garden breached the surface of his mind with renewed vigor at this seemingly more peaceful scene. This group didn't really seem all that different than the one before, but it had a significantly tamer aura. What Hector saw was a pair of daffodils, pretty yellow flowers swaying in a gentle breeze, and around them was coiled a long, greasy caterpillar. The older of the two girls was probably around his age, maybe a bit younger? It was really difficult to tell with girls, since he hadn't seen too many of them that weren't children. The little one looked like she was someone important given the caterpillar's reaction to her, but that just made Hector all the more uncomfortable. In truth it was mostly the caterpillar that bothered him. Hector was never very good with the dandy, book carrying type that hung around certain parts of the city. Unlike the nobles who simply didn't care or didn't know about the affairs of the poor, these ones always regarded him as some kind of naturally occurring city-dwelling fungus. It sent a shiver up his spine in a totally different sense.    

[i]"No good over there either huh..."[/i] he gave off the clear vibe of a young man deep in thought, and despite his best efforts, ended up standing by himself again. The gap had literally become wider.