Chapter three: A Mother's Gentle Love

The next morning Lukas woke up still in the hospital. He rolled out of bed and glanced down at his wrinkled clothes. Well, he thought, I must look utterly ridiculous. I really should be getting back to the inn. He looked around for a moment, then saw that his cloak had been laid over on Doctor Edward's chair. He walked over to it and attempted to put it on with his one good hand... After a few moments of struggling with it he realized he was hopelessly stuck in an awkward entanglement of cloth and limb. Imagine his embarrassment when Lara walked in at that very moment.
"Oh! Lukas, what are you-!? Oh, dear... Let me help you with that," she couldn't help but grin at the young man standing helplessly before her. Really, he is quite independent, she thought. Maybe a little too independent.
"Oh, well, I thank you kindly, Lara," Lukas blushed as he attempted to regain his dignity. "For everything, I mean. I don't know what I would have done with this useless hand of mine without your help." He held up his bandaged arm, and suddenly pain shot up his entire arm. "Ahhh!" He breathed in sharply, doubling over with his arm clutched to his stomach. Immediately Lara led him over to a chair.
"Sit," she commanded. Lukas gladly obeyed. She pulled several yards of clean white cloth out of a cabinet and proceeded to fashion a sort of sling for his arm, securing it tightly against his side and stomach. "You have to keep your arm immobile for a few weeks," she explained. "The bones in your hand splintered, and so they need to set along with the other bones in your arm. The muscles and bone were damaged together, so moving your arm will cause an understandable amount of pain."
"I didn't realize that," Lukas grumbled, more to himself than to her. She ignored his comment and continued to tell him how to take care of his bandages and the splint, what medicines to take to ease the pain, et cetera, et cetera... Finally he was able to leave the hospital, hoping to never have to visit for such a painful reason again.

Lukas made his way back over to the inn. His home, sweet, home... He walked on in and heard Lady Ann shouting to Zavier about something.
"If you were any younger I'd ground you!" She shouted. Of course Zavier shouted right on back.
"It wouldn't make any difference," his voice was oozing with attitude as he yelled back at his mother, "You can't control me. I'm my own person, and I do what I want!" Lukas walked on in, taking no notice of the pair. He had been staying at the inn with them long enough to have grown accustomed to their frequent "family discussions", as Lady Ann liked to call what Lukas knew as arguing.
"As long as you are in MY house, boy," Lady Ann sounded furious. "You will do as I say out of respect for me as your mother."
"You know nothing of respect! Do you respect me? No! You don't! You treat me like a child! Don't you lecture me about respect!" Lukas turned around in his doorway to see the angry young man waving his hands in his mother's face. Oh, no... He thought. This isn't going to end well. And of course, he was right. Not two seconds had passed after Zavier's last outburst when Lady Ann had an outburst of her own. She pushed him back once, very roughly, and began to rip Zavier apart.
"You are a child, Zavier! A little immature child trying to play like an adult," she was practically screaming at her son. Not exactly the best way to start off the morning. She continued, unable to control her angry, lashing tongue. "And I will respect you when you actually earn my respect! Do you hear me, boy?" Lukas and Zavier both just stared at her, in shock, for a few terribly silent moments. Finally Zavier turned and fled out the front door, obviously having heard his mother's harsh words... He just had no desire to listen. Especially not now.
"Hahhhh..." Lady Ann took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and leaned against the wall. She looked over at Lukas, who was still staring at her incredulously. "I'm sorry you had to hear that," she apologized. Lukas had often witnessed them arguing before, but it had never been quite like this. He felt as if he definitely deserved that apology. However, as a gentleman, he wouldn't have told her that.
"No, Lady Ann, it's quite alright," he said. "I understand completely. Times like these happen to everyone."
Suddenly Lady Ann got this look on her face, as if she just remembered something important. She looked Lukas directly in the eyes and got this dreadfully mischievous and knowing look on her face... And then Lukas got this feeling in his stomach. It wasn't a good feeling. She knows, he thought.
"Lukas, I meant to ask you, how's your hand?" She asked, her voice dripping with honey. Ah, but you won't be catching any flies this morning, he thought. At least I hope not. She continued, "Tori came home very early this morning and told me all about what happened." Lukas' palms began to sweat. He wondered just how much exactly Tori had told her mother about what had happened so early this morning.
"Oh, ah, really?" Lukas smiled, trying to appear as innocent as possible.
"Yes," Lady Ann smiled right back. "She said you had a run in with the general store door. And that your injury was so dreadful that you had to undergo a procedure at the hospital."
"Yes. Yes of course," Lukas nodded vigorously. "I did- I mean it was. Dreadful, I mean. But I'll be fine- Of course."
He was so nervous. He wondered if Lady Ann could tell... He was trying so hard to appear indifferent.
"Yes, of course you'll be fine. You're a strong young man," she agreed. "However, even strong young men require some amount of tender love and care." Oh, no... Lukas thought. No, no, no, no, no... She knows about the kiss!
"Pardon me?" Lukas knew that his face had turned scarlet when she said the L-word.
"Wasn't it sweet of Tori to stay with you last night?" She prodded. She wasn't about to back down, not now. After all, Tori was her daughter! She wasn't going to stand by and watch as her baby girl fall in love. No, she wanted to be involved. That's just how it works, she thought brightly to herself, just waiting for the red-faced young man to answer her. "Wasn't it?" She asked him again. He began to chatter nervously. This is so much fun, Lady Ann thought, unable to stop herself from smiling.
"Of course, yes, I greatly appreciated it. Her. Tori... Your daughter... AHEM!" He cleared his throat and awkwardly continued. "I enjoyed it. Her company, I mean! It was... Nice. Last night- This morning- Ah! Well, you know... I appreciated it..." He trailed off, mortified. What all had he just said? Lady Ann was staring at him intently, her eye brows raised. There was a strange light in her eyes.
"Just last night?" Lady Ann questioned. Lukas was so confused. What does she want me to say? He had no idea.
"Excuse me?" He said, "I don't quite understa-"
"Don't pretend you don't know what I'm talking about," she cut him off with a wave of her hand. "I may be busy, but I'm not so busy I haven't noticed how much time you have been spending with my daughter. I do love my children very much, and whether they believe it or not I do care what they do. I'm not ignorant, Lukas." Lukas was starting to get scared. He wondered if he should be... Whether he should be afraid or not, he definitely was.
"Lady Ann, I can explain-" Of course she didn't let him. He hated being cut off like that.
"No," she said. "Don't bother. I completely understand!" Lukas gaped at her.
"You do!?" He didn't know how on earth she could possibly understand the situation when Lukas didn't even fully understand it himself. I mean, he thought, I know I like Tori, but... He wanted to go bang his head on the nearest wall. He wasn't sure what was going on inside his head and his heart. Part of him wanted it to stop messing with him, and the other part of him wanted... Well, Tori. To be his, forever. Could it be...? Lady Ann once again interrupted him, although this time he was having an epiphany and he didn't get to finish it himself.
"Let me put it this way, Lukas," she spoke firmly, to the point. She was suddenly standing very close to him. Lukas had no idea when she had moved. "My daughter is falling in love with you. And I can tell that you feel something for her. I'm not certain it's love, I don't know you well enough to say. But if it's not love, and you hurt my little girl, I will kill you." Lukas' head was swimming. Did she just threaten him?
"But if it is love," Lady Ann placed her hands on Lukas' shoulders, "Then know that I whole-heartedly approve. You're an odd one, Lukas. But if you and Tori are in love then that's alright with me." And with that, she was suddenly back on the other side of the room, standing behind the reception desk. "Thank you, Lukas. That was a good talk, I'm sure we'll be having more like it." Lukas mumbled a goodbye and whirled around, practically throwing himself into his room and shutting the door behind him. He had never before been so shaken by a conversation with a woman before. My, but that was awkward! He shook his head and willed his face to stop burning. Her words echoed in his head: "...that was a good talk, I'm sure we'll be having more like it." He shuddered. Hopefully not anytime soon, he thought. I know that I like Tori, but not quite enough to go through that everyday.

After he had dressed (which took a rather long time to do so properly with only one good arm) and cleaned up a bit he cautiously stuck his head out the door. He didn't want to risk running into Lady Ann again. When he saw that the coast was clear he made a run for the exit.
Of course, the exit was also the entrance, and fate intervened once again: Just as Lukas reached out with his left arm to push the door aside it flew open and he fell into the person who was opening the door from the outside. Gravity played its part well and Lukas found himself in a humiliating entanglement of arms and legs.
"AUGH! GET OFF OF ME, YOU IDIOT!" Shouted Mei, the warrioress who lived in the room next to Lukas'. Of all the people that could have possibly been on the other side of that door, Lukas thought to himself, cursing fate, it just had to be her.
"I'm sorry, madam," he said as she abruptly pushed herself up using his face, causing his "I'm sorry madam" to come out more like "Ummfff eehhh mummm..." Now she was standing over him, and he was sitting on the ground. Lukas felt as if he and the ground were quickly forming a very close bond as of late.
"Why don't you watch where you're going?" She hissed at the fallen poet, who was struggling to keep calm. He didn't want a fight, especially not with Mei.
"You do realize, madam, that it is impossible to see through a solid wooden door," he said, standing up on his own, nearly falling over again in account of having to push himself up with his left hand, his right hand immobilized by the terribly inconvenient sling. Mei merely grunted in reply and walked huffily into the inn, slamming the door shut behind her.
"And good day to you, too!" Lukas grumbled as he dusted off his pants and began to walk toward his next destination: the de Sainte-Cocquille mansion.
He had previously decided that Rosetta couldn't possibly be the one he was looking for. Of course he didn't know that for certain, but he was pretty positive that she couldn't have written Bridges... After all, she doesn't even like poetry, he justified his assumption in his mind.
Very soon he found himself standing before the beautifully designed mansion the de Sainte-Cocquille family called home. He prepared himself for what he was about to do.
"Alright, Lukas," he said out loud to himself, "Bianca is the last one, so- wait! She's the last?" In his mind that completely determined that Bianca was most definitely the one he was looking for. He knocked on the door firmly, excited to finally be getting somewhere in his quest. It won't be long now, he thought happily to himself. Soon enough I shall be able to begin a new chapter in my epic tale of heroics, of how I saved a lost love and brought two lost souls back together! Indeed, he could not have been prepared for what was truly about to happen...

Stay tuned for Chapter Four: A Most Awkward Encounter... It won't be long now, I promise! I just wanted to get this one published before it got too incredibly long. I hope you enjoyed it! Please review, and, like I said, be patient because I'm almost finished with the next bit!