Ninth: Visit to Budehuc

Dear Father, I am writing to you to ask for your help. A certain man here in the castle has been pursuing me for some time. No matter what I do or say to him, he still tries to win my heart. I'm not sure of my feelings for him; it's all so new and confusing. I need you to come here and judge him for me. I know that with your help I can figure out what to do. Please come to Budehuc as soon as you can. Your loving daughter, Lilly.

"Sean! Renal!" Two servants quickly entered the room.

"Yes, sir?" they chimed in unison.

"I need to leave on a short trip. My daughter requests my presence. You two know what to do." The servants bobbed their heads. "Good. I'll be departing immediately. I expect you two to write to me if there are any problems."

"You can count on us, sir!" said the servant called Sean. The master gathered a few necessary belongings together.

"Renal, call the coach. I'm going to Budehuc Castle."

-

Gustav Pendragon glanced out the window of his coach as it pulled up in front of Budehuc Castle. The structure looked as dilapidated as his daughter had described. The place was certainly not suited for his daughter, but he would have to allow it until the war was over. He climbed out of the coach, instructing the driver to wait in the nearest town. He didn't intend to stay long in this sad excuse for a castle.

"Halt! Who goes there?" challenged a small voice. Gustav glanced around for the source of the voice, and could only find a young girl wielding a weapon bigger than her whole body.

"I am Gustav Pendragon. Who are you?" The girl went pale but tried her best to hold her ground.

"Uh… I'm Cecile. I'm the captain of the guards."

"You?" he scoffed. "A little girl is the captain of the guards? God, what kind of a two-rate army is this? Well, no matter. Get out of my way, girl. I'm here to see my daughter." Cecile meekly stepped aside. Gustav breezed by her and entered the courtyard.

He wasn't very impressed with what he saw. At a closer look, the castle looked even worse than from afar. There were cracks and holes in the structure. It was a wonder anyone managed to live there. The courtyard seemed decent enough, with several shops and a working fountain. He moved off to his left to explore more of the grounds. He wanted to see every inch of the place his daughter was staying in.

There was a small vegetable garden growing, and a dirty farmer was tending to it. Gustav swept by the garden without looking once. He came upon what looked like an outdoor café by the lake. The view was beautiful, but the tables were probably covered in a fine layer of dirt. A man was sitting at one of the tables. Gustav went over to him to investigate the place farther.

"Excuse me, young man. Is this café decent?" The blonde man glanced up in surprise. He was wearing armor from Zexen.

"It's okay. Mamie's a pretty good cook." He stared at Gustav quizzically. "Who are you? I haven't seen you in Budehuc before."

"I'm just visiting," Gustav replied. "My name is Gustav Pendragon." The man's eyes went wide, his face turning pale.

"Y-you're Lilly's father?"

"Yes, I am." There was something about the man's reaction that made Gustav wonder if he was the one pursing his daughter. "You know my daughter?"

"Uh… yeah. Yes, sir, I do." Yes, this was definitely the guy. Who else would be so nervous meeting him? Gustav would wait to pass judgment until he got to know the man a little better.

"I see. What's your name, young man?"

"Um… Borus Redrum. I'm one of the six Zexen knights." Gustav was delighted. He had heard of Borus Redrum, better known as the Swordsman of Rage.

"Wonderful! A pleasure to meet you, Sir Borus! I've heard about your fame, of course." He shook the bewildered knight's hand. "So Borus, where is a cleaner place for us to talk? I want to know all about you."

"Well… the bar's pretty clean," he answered, feeling like he was missing something. "I'll lead the way, sir." He did just that, bringing Gustav the way he had just come and entering a side door to the castle.

This place was surely the bar. It certainly did look much cleaner than the café. There were three minstrels in the corner playing to the patrons and a little play was being performed on the stage. Finally some class! Pleased, Gustav took a seat. Borus ordered a beer for himself and Tinto tea for the guest.

"How did you know that I would want Tinto tea?" asked Gustav.

"Well, sir, that's what Lilly always drinks. I just assumed you would want the same." Gustav nodded; he was liking this guy more and more. The barkeep served their drinks and Borus footed the bill. That gave him another point in Gustav's book.

"Tell me about yourself, Borus," Gustav insisted. "What sort of social class were you in before you joined the knights?"

"Um… I suppose I was upper-middle class. I was born in Vinay del Zexay. I always admired the knights, so I joined as soon as I was old enough." Borus didn't know what to think of Gustav's questions, and he certainly wasn't going to risk provoking the lord of Tinto by asking.

"Good, good. I like that," Gustav nodded approvingly. "And your fame as the Swordsman of Rage?"

"I should think that was obvious, sir," he replied. "I'm called that because… I have a temper." He grimaced a little.

"Wonderful. There's nothing wrong with a little rage. It gets people's attention; it gets things done; it shows people you're serious." Gustav gave another approving nod. Borus seemed respectful, he came from a good class, he was a famed knight… he seemed perfect.

"Not all the time, sir. I should know."

"Well, yes, of course. I wouldn't approve of you using your rage against my daughter. I'm sure you haven't, though." He gave the knight a warning glare. Borus's eyes went wide.

"No, sir! Absolutely not!" Even if he had yelled at her, he wasn't going to tell her father that. After all, where else could she have gotten her personality from?

"That's good. Because I like you, Borus, and I would hate to have a reason to dislike you." Borus smiled faintly, drinking a long pull from his beer. Gustav sipped his tea, studying the blonde knight. "By the way, you're not an alcoholic, are you? I don't approve of those."

"Um, no, sir, I'm not," he responded immediately, pushing the glass away. "I just have an occasional drink with friends."

"I suppose an occasional drink is okay," Gustav said reluctantly. "I'm personally more of a wine man, but as long as you swear you won't become an alcoholic… I'll allow it." Puzzled, Borus could only nod mutely.

"Father, there you are!" For the first time since meeting her, Borus was happy to see Lilly. She came over and put her arms around her father. "I've been looking everywhere for you! Have you been here long?"

"My darling daughter!" he exulted, returning the hug. "I have thus far enjoyed my time here in Budehuc. I have been sitting here in this nice bar talking to Borus." He patted the knight on the shoulder. "I think he's an upstanding young man." Lilly looked as confused by that comment as Borus.

"Okay… well, that's nice. Listen, Father. I want you to come with me and meet some people."

"All right, all right. But before we do that… stand up, son." He tugged on Borus's arm to let him know he was the one being addressed. More perplexed than ever, Borus did as he was told. "Now, Lillian, I have been speaking to this man for some time. I really like him, and I think he'll make a fine husband for you."

"Husband!" two voices cried as one. Lilly was so shocked that it took her a moment to get words.

"Father-no! No! Borus isn't the man trying to pursue me!"

"Oh." He turned to Borus. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't know!" he defended. Though now all the questions Gustav had been asking him made sense. "Wait, so is that why he's in Budehuc?" Borus demanded of Lilly. "You asked him here to see if Percival was husband material?" She turned red, which was answer enough for him.

"Percival?" echoed Gustav. "Who's this, now?"

"He's the one I wanted you to see, Father. Come on. And Borus, you breathe a word of this to anyone and I'll make sure you never get to be with Chris." She took her father's hand and guided him out of the bar. Borus decided to wash the memory of the incident away with more beer.

Gustav was disappointed that Borus was not the man. His hopes had been built up around that boy, and now they were crumbling. He only hoped that the person really pursuing his daughter was at least half as good as Borus. Lilly was leading him back to that dirty farmer and for a moment Gustav was horrified that he would be the one, but to his relief she passed him and kept going. They ended up in a smelly stable, where a dark-haired knight was feeding a horse.

"Hello, Percival," she greeted him. The knight turned, smiling brightly at the lady of Tinto.

"Lilly! What a wonderful surprise to see you!" His smile wavered a little when he saw Gustav. "Um, who's this?" Gustav stepped in to introduce himself.

"I am her father, Gustav Pendragon. Who are you?" Percival's smile failed him.

"Oh. Well… I'm pleased to finally meet you, sir. I'm Percival Fraulein."

"What?" Gustav demanded, sure he had heard that wrong. Poor Percival cleared his throat and tried again.

"I'm Percival Fraulein, sir. I'm one of the six knights of Zexen." He held out his hand, but Gustav ignored it.

"Fraulein? Is that really your name?"

"Y-yes, sir. It is."

"And which of the knights are you?"

"I'm called the Swordsman of Gale."

"I bet you are," Gustav muttered under his breath. Lilly hung her head wearily; this wasn't going very well for Percival so far. "I was just talking to one of the other knights: Sir Borus. I liked him."

"Oh, well, then, it should please you to know that he and I are best friends." Gustav pursed his lips, giving a half nod. He promised his daughter he would judge this man, and he would have to try his best to be unbiased about it.

"So tell me, Percival: doesn't 'fraulein' mean 'young woman'?" Percival turned pale, glancing hopelessly at Lilly for help.

"Father!" she scolded.

"I was just asking. Now seriously, what were you like before you became a knight? Where did you come from?" Again Percival glanced over at Lilly for help. She was making frantic signals behind her father's back, but he didn't quite know what she was telling him not to say.

"Um, well… I come from a village called Iksay. It's pretty close to Budehuc, actually. It's a small…" Lilly was frantically moving her hand across her neck. He understood, but Gustav was too intimidating to lie to. "It's a small farming village."

"A what?" Percival didn't dare repeat himself. Gustav was already red in the face from hearing it once. "You mean to tell me that you're from a farming village!" Percival had no choice but to nod his head. "And I suppose you'll be going back to that backwater town once you're done with the knights."

"Well, I suppose that depends on what Lilly wants, sir," he answered meekly.

"No! I simply will not allow it!" Gustav shouted. "I will not allow my daughter to be courted by some dirty country bumpkin!" No wonder he liked Borus, thought Percival grudgingly. "Lilly, I've made up my mind. I forbid this man to pursue you any longer. I won't have some common farm boy courting my daughter!" To Percival's great surprise, Lilly was not happy with the verdict.

"Father, how could you say something like that? You didn't even bother to get to know him! You're supposed to be helping me!"

"But I am helping you, Lillian," he protested, baffled by his daughter's anger. "This man is not suited for you."

"Why?"

"Why? What do you mean, why?" Gustav sputtered. "He's a farm boy, for god's sake! That should be reason enough! He's from a crummy little village that could probably fit into our whole house!"

"Father, I can't believe you! Are you saying that the only reason you don't like him is because he came from a lower class than me?" Gustav was very perplexed. Why was his daughter upset with him? Percival couldn't help but wonder the same thing.

"Well… yes."

"Fine," she snapped. "Thank you very much for your input, Father. You've helped me a great deal. You should head back home now." Gustav smiled, still not understanding the tension between them, and hugged his daughter.

"I'm happy to assist you. I should be going; I left my coach in that filthy little farm town. Write to me again soon, dear." He kissed her cheek; she just stood there, pressing her lips tightly together. "As for you, Mr. Fraulein, I forbid you from ever courting my daughter again. Is that clear?"

"Yes, sir," he mumbled. Gustav stalked away, leaving a very heavy silence in his wake. Percival glanced awkwardly over at Lilly. The red-haired lady stood with her hands clenched, her body trembling, and tears were traveling down her cheeks. "Lilly?"

"Percival…" Whatever else she was going to say, it was drowned in sobs. Percival tenderly gathered his love into his arms and she didn't even resist.

"It's okay to cry, Lilly." He was blown away that Gustav's opinion of him had actually upset her. Did that mean that she...? Lilly pulled out of his grasp, trying to get rid of the evidence that she had been crying.

"I… I need to go," she managed, and hurried out of sight. Percival watched her go with a sad sigh. He wished she would stop pulling away just when they were getting close.