The wailings of a woman pierced the ears of the coachman and footmen, forcing them to tear their gaze away from the beautiful Varian coastal landscape. It was a fine day; the sky was as clear as it could be, and the winds were warm and gentle. The kind of weather that inspired people to go on walks, just to simply enjoy it. The ideal weather for travel.

This juxtaposed the shower of tears that ran down some of the faces gathered around the horse carriage on which the coachman was perched. Even those who did not openly cry wore grim expressions, as morose as a heavy rain cloud. People near the bawling woman did their best to comfort her, but each attempt seemed to only exacerbate or spread the melancholy like a contagious disease.

The coachman didn’t —couldn’t— understand what all the fuss was about. It was just another posh party. Surely it shouldn’t warrant such grief, especially as a noble. He mentally rolled his eyes as he watched the family in front of him finally calm the woman down enough to start exchanging hugs and kisses with the man the woman was weeping for. Count Fritz Hendrix. One of His Majesty’s many esteemed guests for this year’s annual gathering.

The woman, no doubt the Count's mother, was the last to bid farewell. Hands cupped her son’s face, and she scrutinized him as if determined to etch every detail of his face to memory, before reluctantly letting the Count go so that he could board the carriage.

A herd of people followed the carriages out the front gate, waving or shouting out their [i]good luck[/i] and [i]take cares[/i] at the Count, who in turn waved back and reassured them he would. The coachman half-expected the herd to follow them all the way to Sorian, but the group stopped short at the border of Hendrix’s estate, continuously waving at the Count and his entourage. They stayed glued to that spot even as it became impossible to tell who was in the carriage. They were still there when the carriages turned into nothing but dots on the horizon. And the escorts from Caesonia wondered if they intended to stand there forever. Until the day Count Fritz Hendrix returned into their loving embrace.

[hr]
The journey to Caesonia Castle was surprisingly agreeable with Count Hendrix. As soon as the Hendrix estate was nowhere in sight, the Count properly introduced himself and his servants to the escorts, and asked for each of their names, horses included. Throughout the trip he engaged in pleasant conversations or good-natured banter with his traveling companions. Whenever they passed something of any significance, anything ranging from a landmark to the goods sold at a store, he acted as a tour guide, entertaining them with relevant information and some less relevant stories about the place or thing. On occasion, he would buy food from vendors and share it with the others, insisting that it would be a terrible waste for the escorts to travel this far and not try out the local cuisine.

Through these interactions, the escorts got the distinct impression that, despite coming from a wealthy family, the Count was perfectly comfortable mingling with the commonfolk, and that the sentiment was mutual. At one point, when the carriage passed through a town near the Hendrix estate, the townspeople who had previously avoided the carriages baring Danrose’s family crest suddenly seemed less threatened by its existence when they recognized who was inside it. Some waved or bowed slightly in greeting. Some became brazen enough to approach and knock on the window when the vehicle had slowed down or stopped for one traffic reason or another. Each time this happened, the Count enthusiastically opened the window to exchange pleasantries with the brave soul. Perhaps it was less about being brave and more about being confident that no harm would come to them. They knew they were safe with the Count. That much was evident from their expressions.

[hr]
Despite the return to Sorian being infinitely more eventful than their way to the Hendrix estate, time seemed to fly by much faster for the escorts. Regrettably so. They wouldn’t have minded if the trip lasted a little longer, but the last thing they wanted was to be punished for bringing the guest late to the party.

After thanking his escorts with words and handsome tips, the Count stood outside the carriage, staring at the marvel that was Caesonia Castle. Sorian’s crown jewel was breathtakingly majestic by every measure; an architectural masterpiece in its own right. There were very few of its kind in the Three Kingdoms, so it was near impossible not to be wonderstruck by the palace's presence.

Yet, that was not what the coachman saw on the Count’s face. Not the same awe he had felt when he first started working at the Castle. No. It was as blank as a new sheet of paper. He saw nothing there, which unsettled him more than it ought to have. Perhaps because it reminded him of soldiers heading into hopeless battle.

That was when it dawned on him that this man was going to die here.

Those mother’s tears were not an overaction to her grown child leaving the house for a fancy party. It was out of despair. Sadness derived from the knowledge that she may not ever see him again. For she had sent her boy off to war.

The coachman froze involuntarily when the Count turned to face him, noticing his intense gaze. Count Hendrix studied the face of the other man briefly before directing an understanding smile at him. [color=9354FF]"I must thank you once again for the lovely ride, Mr. Brisby."[/color]
“It was a pleasure, Lord Hendrix,” the coachman bowed his head slightly. “It would honor us to accompany you again for the return trip. Until then, please enjoy your stay.
[color=9354FF]"Why thank you. I most certainly will,"[/color] he nodded before addressing the other footmen as well. [color=9354FF]"I hope you all have a wonderful day."[/color]

As he drove the carriage away from the front entrance, the coachman could not help but hope that his earlier intuition was wrong; that they would indeed meet the Count again, alive and well. They were going to take him home where his family prayed for his safe return. If he was so inclined, maybe they could take a different route back, enjoy the scenery together, and mayhap try some of the local delicacies along the way.