Funerals are ceremonies for the dearly departed, as a way to honor their life and to bid them a final farewell. But how do you tearfully say goodbye to a person who was utterly despised in life? And how do you comfort the people that, for some reason, loved them?

In the continually growing Haven City Cemetery, such a funeral was taking place. The late Baron Praxis was being put to rest, and very few people had bothered to show up. Ashelin was there of course, as well as a bunch of other politicians and noblemen. Jak, Daxter, Torn and the others had come too, but only to support her, and they made it no secret that they couldn't wait to get to the newly remodeled Hip Hog Heaven—er, Naughty Ottsel—to party their asses off.

Ashelin couldn't blame them either, after everything her father had done to them, especially Jak. But she still felt that her father had his heart in the right place. He'd wanted to protect Haven City from the Metal Heads, even if his methods were a little bit… questionable.

At the end of the service, most of the "mourners" went home. Most had only gone out of politeness. Ashelin stood in front of her father's grave, staring down at it. How could things have gone so wrong? There was once a time when her family was whole, happy and healthy… but now…

"Hey, Ashe… ya gonna be okay?" That now all-too-familiar voice snapped her out of her reverie. She looked over her shoulder at her friends. They were clustered together several feet away from the grave, but they all had their eyes on her. She could see that as much as they wanted to celebrate her father's passing, they all still understood her pain and her need to grieve. Even Daxter, who had been the one to speak, held nothing but compassion in his eyes.

Ashelin nodded. "I'll be fine. You guys can go back to the Naughty Ottsel if you want."

"You sure?" Jak asked.

Ashelin nodded again. "Yeah, I… just need to be alone…"

The group hesitated, but one by one they turned and left until only Torn stayed behind. He walked up to her and took her hand in his. "Ashelin…"

Ashelin looked away from him. She could feel the tears coming, and she didn't want him to see her cry. Torn gently lifted her chin and their lips met briefly. When they parted, he wiped a few of her tears away. "I… I'm sorry it had to be this way…"

He pulled her into his arms and let her cry quietly into his chest. As much as he hated the Baron, he hated seeing Ashelin like this even more. If only there was something he could do…

Ashelin sniffed and wiped her eyes. She looked up at him. "Thanks, Torn…" she whispered. "G-go ahead and join the others… I'll catch up."

Torn nodded in understanding, gave her another kiss, and left. He cast one last glance over his shoulder before disappearing from view.

Now, she was alone. Ashelin sank to her knees, covering her face with her hands, and sobbed. The minutes ticked by slowly, and eventually her weeping died down. She looked at the tombstone through blurry eyes. Unlike most of the grave markers here, this one had only the name and dates of birth and dead. No ancient Precursor verses, no meaningful quotes, no loving phrases… She choked back another sob.

"Here."

Ashelin gasped. She looked up at the man offering her his handkerchief in a mixture of shock, anger, and embarrassment. "How long have you been here, Veger?"

The Count, still holding out his handkerchief, looked much like he always did. Long coat, red ascot, regal-looking cane. But something was different. The perpetual air of condescension that seemed to follow him was gone, and in place of his usual arrogant smirk was a sorrowful frown.

"Since the service began. Go on, take it, it won't bite," Veger replied. Ashelin sighed and accepted the handkerchief. She wiped the tears away and handed it back to him.

"Thanks…" she murmured.

Veger stuffed the handkerchief in his pocket and knelt down to her level. She looked away from him, and he sighed. "You know you don't have to hide your tears from me. I've known you since you were born."

"I… I know…" Ashelin glared at the older man, though there was no real malice in it. "What do you want, Veger?"

The Count surprised her by looking legitimately hurt. He then skewered her with a glare of his own. "I may not have liked the bastard he turned into, but your father was still my closest friend, and I came to pay my respects."

Ashelin averted her eyes, instead staring intently at the mound of earth in front of the gravestone. She sighed quietly, as the spot where most graves held at least a flower or two was notably empty. She forced herself to look back up at him. "Sorry, I…"

Veger held up a hand to silence her. "Forget it."

Ashelin sighed angrily and glared at the tombstone. "I don't even know why I'm so upset. My father was an asshole." She looked back at Veger. "He threatened to kill me if Torn didn't give him information."

Shockingly, Veger looked… well, shocked. When he recovered his wits, he shook his head. "He wouldn't have."

"Torn would never lie to me," Ashelin growled.

"I didn't mean that your father never would have made the threat. Truthfully, I wouldn't put it past him. What I meant was, he never would have followed through," Veger clarified.

Ashelin scoffed. "How would you know?"

The Count's gaze hardened. "I knew your father better than Torn did. And no offense, but I knew him better than you did." Ashelin glared at him, but he didn't let her interrupt. "We were best friends for years before you were even conceived. I was at his wedding. He was at mine. He was there when my son was born. I was there when you were."

That was news to Ashelin. Veger sighed, and a soft, rueful chuckle escaped his lips. "You should have seen him. Your father was an absolute wreck. He thought that anything that could go wrong would." Veger looked Ashelin directly in the eye. "He loved you, Ashelin. He would never have hurt you. Used you as a bargaining chip, yes, but never harm you."

Ashelin looked down, a fresh wave of tears blurring her vision. "How… how could this have happened? How could my father have fallen so far?"

Veger placed a hand on her back. Ashelin glanced up at him, and was surprised to see that his eyes were growing wetter, too. "I don't know," he whispered, "but I wish I could have stopped it."

The woman sniffed and wiped her eyes before heaving a sigh. She was done crying… at least for now. And this was a time to be celebrating with her friends, both the new and the old. The Metal Head menace was gone, and under her rule, the people of Haven would be free. As much as it hurt, the death of her father was for the greater good.

Veger stood up and offered her a hand, which she took graciously. "Thanks," she said after he helped her to her feet. He just nodded politely in response before turning and walking away. Ashelin watched him go and sighed lightly when she noticed that he wasn't heading towards the exit.

He was heading towards his wife and son's grave.

Even though nothing changed between them after that, and they continued mutually disliking each other, Ashelin was still glad that at least one other person still loved her father.

Kat: Yes, this takes place in the same universe as "Haunted." If you want more info on Veger's wife and son, read it. And review, while you're at it :) But don't forget to review this one too!