[center][img]https://fontmeme.com/permalink/220814/c5ba6361ddfa686af8da069b54d627e7.png[/img][/center] Lucas stayed in The Lonely Frame for one more quick drink, sharing banter, conversation and goodwill with his comrades. The bartender continued to tell the story of Jeremiah and the griffin to everyone who bought a drink. However, once the alcohol was lightly buzzing the knight's brain - mixed with the tiredness he'd accumulated - Lucas decided he'd had enough, put both hands on the table and rose to his feet. [color=6ecff6]"Alright, lads,"[/color] he began. [color=6ecff6]"I think I'm done. Some fresh air on the walk back to the castle should do me some good. I thank you, Sirs, for a fantastic evening."[/color] He patted the knights adjacent to him on the shoulder and gave a nod the man across the table before excusing himself. After winding through the tables, chairs and tavern patrons to the door, he left the building. Before the door even shut, he was laughing as he vaguely heard Lein's voice shouting something 'a peach and Mayon's ass.' When the fresh air hit him, it was like he'd consumed another tankard right then and there. However his gait wasn't too out of whack and he walked back the short road to the western gate of Candaeln. He should have just gone to bed. Instead, in the late hours of the evening, he stopped and looked on the moonlit courtyard, then got one of his dumb ideas. Next he was wandering around the castle until he found the wine cellar and pilfered a bottle from the rack, then snuck back outside and managed to find his way up to the top of the castle walls. There he sat and mulled over good memories, fun memories and embarrassing memories of his life before. Even a few recent memories of his time as a knight snuck in there. He sat precariously over the edge of battlements, one leg handing off, leaning back on a hand as he took occasional swigs from the bottle. He remembered his mother's caring eyes and smile as she stroked his head, one time he'd gotten really ill as a child. She sang [i]'You Are My Sunshine'[/i] - as she was want to do - while he stared at her, knowing that in spite of his pain, everything would be just fine. He was safe. He remembered a time when he and Gorgeous George were making progress with a couple of female fans after a show and ready to take them somewhere where they could have some alone time, before his father grabbed him by the scruff of the neck and gave him the hiding of his life. Smacked him around in front of everyone - punishment for defying him, shirking his duties and sneaking out with George for the umpteenth time. He remembered Biff and Kate's daughter, Sally, taking him to bed for the first time. [i]Boy,[/i] did the older girl show him what he was missing the first fifteen years of his life! He remembered being dragged into a mess, in a town in Velt, by Chip and Charlie, two young kleptomaniacs, who - that night - got in way over there head trying to burgle one of the richest houses in town. They couldn't run back to the troupe camp, so they were chased by the militia through rivers and reeds, into the nearby forest and had to camp out, up in the trees, all night to avoid arrest. He remembered his first training session in Candaeln, after which, he was asked how in the world he'd been accepted into the Iron Roses. In spite of the fear of being thrown out, he was still proud he'd been addressed as 'Sir Lucas' and actually sparred with a real knight. These memories and more, came and went, the feelings and imagery still strong and palpable in Lucas' heart as they ran through his head. [color=6ecff6]"How did I end up here, eh?"[/color] he asked the moon before taking another swig of the bottle. [color=6ecff6]"How does a simple gypsy lad become a knight of the Iron Rose Order? Mayon, you're too kind to me. I didn't deserve this."[/color] [h2][center][b]...Midnight...[/b][/center][/h2] He returned to the ground level, back to a courtyard covered in moonlight. Lucas swayed as he looked around, blinking stupidly. It was deathly quiet, the air cold and crispy. At first he thought about what he should do with the empty bottle. Then he got yet another one of his bad ideas. Inhibitions completely gone, he stumbled towards his new goal. Ten minutes later... [color=6ecff6]"Ladies and Gentlemen!"[/color] he announced in the courtyard, not too loud and hopefully not waking anyone up. He'd dragged one of the combat dummies over to the archery targets and leaned the dummy against it. And he'd procured a few throwing knives. [color=6ecff6]"Introducing to you... The Storms!"[/color] He made his own imitation of a crowd going wild, (which was basically just breathing really loudly, and pumping a fist in the air.) [color=6ecff6]"Here comes Harold Storm!"[/color] More crowd reaction and then Lucas changed characters to his father and walked over to a point in front of the archery target, then juggled three throwing knives for a few seconds. It was amazing that in his drunken state, he managed to pull it off. More crowd reaction. [color=6ecff6]"And his beautiful wife and accomplice... Penny Storm!"[/color] He gestured to the combat dummy leaning against the target, then did more crowd reaction. [color=6ecff6]"Watch in amazement as they frolic and flirt on the edge of death and danger!"[/color] Lucas juggled the knives once over and then launched one, spinning toward the target, burying itself in it, right next to the head of the combat dummy. More crowd reaction. The second of the three knives, he tossed into the air, caught it by the blade and went to throw it in similar fashion, only he caught it wrong and couldn't adjust properly as he wound back to launch it. The knife span rapidly toward the target and slammed... right into the head of the dummy. [color=6ecff6]"!!!"[/color] Lucas was horrified. Mouth open. Frozen. Staring at the dummy. All this time, he'd not really had any chance to go through the grieving process properly. The moments after his parents were killed, he was being kidnapped by slavers. Then he was terrified in a cage for three days and nights. Then he was saved. Then he joined the merc unit that saved him and trained to be a soldier. Weeks later he was in the military arm of the church and transferring to the Iron Roses. Then he was training his hardest to make sure he wasn't thrown out. There'd been no time to stop and think. And now, as he stared at the knife sticking out of the combat dummy, it was like the dam that was holding the grief back suddenly burst. His eyes started watering and he fell to his knees. Moments later there were tears streaming down his cheeks. [color=6ecff6]"Ma,"[/color] he called quietly in a croaky voice. [color=6ecff6]"Pa."[/color] And then he broke down into full-fledged crying. [color=6ecff6]"Why...? I miss you so much."[/color] There in the middle of the courtyard, head in his hands, sobbing his heart out in the moonlight, Lucas knelt. And there he stayed for some time.