Team CRMN was in Richard's class, Alternative Careers. Richard had just finished a lecture on applying Huntsman skills to practical careers, when the bell rang. The students filed out, except for Melanie, who approached Professor Shaden.

"Ms. Lemay." He observed. "You should hurry along, you might miss your next class."

Melanie hesitated. "Could we talk later? I...have some questions...about my parents."

Richard paused. "Individual sparring time, I'll be in here."

"Thank you." Melanie stated.

Richard nodded, preparing for the next class coming in. Later that day, Melanie returned. Richard looked up and gestured to a desk,

"Please, sit." He offered. "What is it you wanted to know?"

Melanie leaned against the edge of the desk, rather than sitting behind it. "I...it's not something specific I can ask...most of what I know is from rumors and guesses..."

"Phillip hasn't...told you anything?" Richard asked.

Melanie shook her head. "Only what he mutters in his sleep. If he's not drunk, he's passed out."

Richard ran a hand through his hair. "Phillip...what the hell happened to you..."

"You know full well what happened to him." Melanie said. "That's the one conclusive thing I have pulled from him...I know exactly what he did...and so do you."

Richard glanced around. "You haven't-"

"Ratted my dad out?" Melanie asked. "No, he's my dad. He may be a lousy drunk, but I still love him."

Richard breathed a sigh of relief. "So all you know about your dad is he's drowned in self misery, and...the reason why."

Melanie sighed. "And that's still more than I know about my mom."

"What do you know about her?" Richard asked.

"Her name?" Melanie shrugged. "Maybe what she looks like...that this necklace was probably hers."

Richard took a deep breath. "I see...let me start from the beginning then. Thirty years ago, your mother, Sarah Jomin, your father, Phillip Lemay, me, Richard Shaden, and Crimson's father, Johnathan Dram, all enrolled in Haven academy. During the entrance exam, I partnered with your mother, Sarah. She was...confident, clever, witty, quick on her feet and in her mind. We were a power duo, and we were fast friends. I know that Phillip and Johnathan somehow partnered up, but I don't know what happened between them...only that Phillip was pissed and Johnathan was embarrassed. We became team SPRJ (Spring), of which Sarah was the leader. And she was an incredible one. She knew how to direct each of us to our full potential...she made us the best versions of ourselves. Phillip was the slowest of us to change...he was a stubborn cynic with a death wish, but...Sarah gave him a reason to live. It happened during a solo mission on our second year...we were all close friends by then, but Phillip's personality hadn't really changed until then. We were called to deal with bandits stealing dust from a local mine. They somehow caught wind of us, ambushed us...Phillip was on recon, but the rest of us...we were hit with some kind of poison...it paralyzed us...and the mine was caved in behind us, sealing us in. Apparently, Phillip went berserk. We were hazy with the lack of oxygen and the lingering effects of the drug, but the next thing we heard was the bandits screaming, and lots of gunfire. Johnathan couldn't hear what was being said, but Sarah and I..."

"What do you mean? What did you hear?" Melanie asked.

Phillip looked at her. "Phillip was talking to...the last of the bandits."

"You're insane." The bandit said. "You're a psychopath! You slaughtered us all!"

Phillip grabbed the man by the throat, extending the hidden blade from his other gauntlet. "You buried my family."

"Wait!" The bandit screamed. "They were deeper in the mine, the cave-in might not have caught them!"

Phillip growled, but dropped the man. He looked around, spotting a cart full of dust. He ran over and started pushing it along the track, back towards the rubble blocking the entrance. He took a few steps back, then extended the hidden pistol from his gauntlet. He shot the dust, detonating the rubble.

"ARE YOU CRAZY?!" The bandit screamed as the explosion shook around them. "YOU COULD BRING THE WHOLE MOUNTAIN DOWN!"

Phillip ignored the man, running in. He found the rest of his team inside. Sarah and Richard were already getting to their feet, so he went to lift Johnathan, looping the nerd's arm over his shoulder.

"Come on, Johnny. We're making it outta here." He said, dragging Johnathan behind him.

Richard went over to help, lifting Johnathan's other side. "Come on."

"Why was Johnathan taking so long to recover?" Melanie asked.

Richard sighed. "His aura control wasn't as good as ours, so his body was trying to fight the toxin on its own. It was destroying his immune system, and he couldn't focus to replenish his aura. Johnathan was the most worried any of us had ever seen him. Every night Johnathan was in sickbed, Johnathan was out looking for information. A thief named Carmen Rouge, Crimson's mother, told Phillip of an inoculation the bandit tribe used, and agreed to help him steal it. When they came back, Phillip rushed to inoculate him. It worked, and Johnathan was the most shocked to see how relieved Phillip was. After that, Sarah began spending a lot more time teasing Phillip. We all grew closer, but...for Phillip...it seemed like the closest he'd ever been to anyone. He and Sarah, of course, started dating by the time the Vytal ball came around. Shortly after graduation, they married. Then Johnathan and Carmen married. Then I married Stephanie. We stayed a team for years of course, Carmen and Stephanie even joined us. But then Sarah got pregnant...Phillip and Sarah retired...Johnathan and I started RedOwl...some time later, Sarah was badly hurt in a riot. By the time we got there, she was...gone...and Phillip was nowhere to be seen. He didn't show up to her funeral, to any of the class reunions, he just...disappeared. He did show up to Johnathan's funeral, but not as part of the service. I caught him watching from a distance, and...that was when he told me."

Melanie looked down. "It's been...seven, eight years? That was when he really regressed. He wasn't there a lot before, but when he was...he tried. After that, he just gave up."

"I'm sorry." Richard said.

Melanie sat back. "It's not your fault...we all dig our own graves...one way or another."