... Well. I'm actually surprised. I didn't expect so many goodreviews.O.o Ah, well.

This lesson centers around an often-overlooked character: Juan. He spends so much of his day working with all the nutcases at Budehuc, poor guy, when all he wants is to relax in the sun. Don't worry, our two favorite bishie knights still get a little air time --wink-- Hope I don't disappoint anyone.

Oh, and if you want to know what Borus was flustered about in the last one, take a look at Chris' and Ayame's bath conversation. It's hilarious. You'll see an itty bitty reference to it in this one. --Evil grin--

Oh, and I don't own Suikoden or any of its characters. If I did, Hugo would get more hugs. The boy needs them. Badly.

Lesson 2: Sleep is vital for good mental health.

Budehuc was alive with summer. The sun was shining, the birds were singing. Secondary characters were standing around doing nothing.

Juan was enjoying his usual second early mid-afternoon nap when a shadow fell over him.

Cracking an eye open, he mumbled, "Mind movin'? You're blockin' out my sun."

"Get up! I need to train!" Lilly Pendragon stood over him, hands on her hips.

"Mmm… Get those two guys to do it. Samus and Reed."

"Those two incompetents? You're the Budehuc Bujutsu trainer! Now train me!"

With a sigh, Juan hauled himself to his feet. "Sit and wait."

Lilly took a bench and crossed her legs imperiously. "I'd like to work on my accuracy. I don't have much time, so we'll have to get this done with quickly."

"I'LL SHOW YOU 'SOAP ON THE TIP OF YOUR NOSE'!"

Juan and Lilly glanced up as Ayame came bounding by, and then disappeared into the forest. Seconds later, Sir Borus thundered up, eyes wide with fury. "Which way did she go?"

Lilly stood up and poked her nose in the air. "As if you could stand up against her."

Juan yawned widely and pointed in the general direction. "She… disappeared somewhere that way," he explained sleepily.

"Damn it!" Borus thrust his sword into the ground, leaning on it. "Lost her again!"

"Maybe if you didn't shout when you were attacking her…" Lilly scoffed.

"What was that?"

"When you screech like a wet cat, people are bound to notice you barreling down on them."

"I DO NOT SCREECH LIKE A WET CAT!" Borus screeched.

Juan blinked blearily at the Swordsman of Rage. "What'd she do?"

The knight sobered abruptly. "She… why…uh…"

Lilly chortled, earning her a scathing look.

"She… she… SHE TOOK A BATH WITH LADY CHRIS!"

"Is that what the fuss is about?" Queen asked as she and Ace came down the steps. "By the noise, you'd think someone was being tortured."

"Or worse, watching one of Nadir's plays," Ace added. All present shuddered.

Borus left his sword in the ground and started punching the wall of Juan's Bujutsu hut. "No. It's not that. It's just…" (punch) "she… she was… in the baths…" (punch) "…with Lady Chris…" (punch punch) "…with MY LADY CHRIS!" (punchpunchpunchpunchpunchpunch)

"Hey! Easy!" Juan cried, dismay waking him fully. "I gotta live in that!"

Lilly stamped her foot. "If it's such a big deal, why don't you talk to Goro about it? He shouldn't be letting dangerous characters like that into the baths, anyway."

"Yeah," Ace chuckled. "That Lady Chris is a firecracker, all right."

"WHAT?"

"Hey, I didn't…" Any forthcoming answer was muffled as Borus tackled him, full armor and all.

His hands wrapped around Ace's throat, Borus cried, "DON'T…SPEAK…OF…LADY…CHRIS…THAT...WAY!" making sure to hit Ace's head soundly against the ground with each word.

Queen stepped over the tussling men and faced Juan and Lilly. "We've been looking for Jacques. Have you two seen him?"

Juan shook his head slowly, chewing on his grass sprig. "Nope."

"…Queen…" Ace managed through Borus' stranglehold. "…Little help…?"

Lilly gave Juan a look. "Of course you haven't seen anyone. You rarely even have your eyes open."

Juan shrugged and leaned against the wall, stifling a yawn.

Geddoe and Joker came up the path from the stables.

Joker paused at the fence. "Sir Borus, you might want to drop that. You don't know where it's been."

Borus paused in his ranting to consider it, then dropped Ace into the dirt with a "not worth my time" expression on his face. Taking up his sword, he flourished it with the dignity of a Zexen Knight (Which, at that point, wasn't very much). "If you'll excuse me; I have a ninja to hunt."

Everyone present watched him walk off.

"That guy has some issues," Ace said, rubbing his throat.

Joker leaned up against the fence. "I don't know. I find the rage and rampant brutality rather endearing."

Ace shot him a look. "Good thing Aila wasn't here to freak him out even more."

Queen took a few steps toward where Geddoe was standing, looking out over the water. "Did you find him?"

Geddoe shook his head, throwing them a significant look over his shoulder.

"Let's get going."

The four mercenaries headed off, toward the castle's lower entrance.

"What a bunch of weirdos," Lilly declared. "And look how they follow him around: like puppies, or something. Where are Samus and Reed, anyway? They ought to be worried about me, by now!"

When Juan didn't answer, she whirled at him in a fury, only to find he'd fallen asleep standing up.

Angrily, she kicked him in the ribs, which merely succeeded in making him fall limply to the ground and mumble in his sleep.

"ARGH! Everyone's incompetent but ME!"

>>>>

Later…

Juan sleepily considered rolling over; his left side felt thoroughly baked in the blazing sun. He'd rolled halfway over when a shadow fell over him.

"Who is it?" he called sleepily.

"Lazy boy ought to try a bath every now and then."

"Branky! Quiet down!"

Juan yawned and opened his eyes. Mel and that creepy puppet of hers were peering down at him.

"Huh?"

"Oh, hello, Juan. I know you're busy, but…"

"But no amount of beauty sleep could ever fix that face!" the puppet finished.

"Branky! Be nice!"

Juan stood up, rubbing his eyes. "What?"

"And he's a quick one too!" the puppet added sarcastically. "Only the greatest can keep up with a sharp wit like that!"

"I'm sorry, Juan. Branky's a bit… mouthy today."

Juan shrugged. He really didn't see any difference.

"That's why I'd like to train: to work off Branky's extra energy."

Juan blinked blearily at the puppet, who was shaking its head in denial. "I'll tell you who needs to work off some energy: that Kathy chick. WAAAY too perky, if you know what I'm sayin'."

"Branky!"

"Peggi can sharpen that!" Peggi cried from his booth next door. The giant lizard looked thoroughly bored with…not…pounding at hot iron.

"Oh, no! That's okay…"

Without warning, the lizard leapt out of his booth and bounded up to Mel, brandishing a hammer. "Prepare to die, hot iron!"

The puppet hurriedly checked itself over, as if looking for something to sharpen. Peggi dragged poor Mel back to his booth and laid Branky flat on the tabletop.

"Hey, wait a second, you overgrown gecko…!"

Peggi hissed gleefully as he started hammering away at the puppet affixed to Mel's hand.

"Mel… OOF… HELP!"

"Hold on, Branky!"

"It's not sharpened yet!"

"AACK! MURDER…ow…MURDER!"

Kidd, summoned from his usual dungeon cell by the word, came running. "What happened? Who murdered who? Give me details!"

"Someone…YIPES…get this…OUCH…buffoon off me!"

Mel frowned at her puppet. "Maybe if you weren't so mean to everyone, this wouldn't happen!"

"A motive, you say?" Kidd asked, jotting down notes. "And just who is this 'everyone'?"

"Peggi can sharpen it!"

"Let…OOF…GO!"

Kidd, finding no answers forthcoming from those sources, turned to Juan, who was once again fast asleep on the grass. "Ah! An excellent witness!" Poking Juan awake, Kidd commenced a long line of questioning.

Finally convinced that Branky was fully "sharpened," Peggi put his hammer away. "There. When Peggi gets a new hammer, come back to get even sharper!"

"Why…me…" Branky whimpered as Mel scooped the puppet up.

"It's no less than you deserve, Branky, for being so rude," Mel scolded, not the least concerned, now.

"I think I'm…ow…ready for bed… oh, that smarts." Mel nodded at a job well-done and headed back toward the inn.

Kidd, despite the departure of his victim, would not be deterred. "How did it happen? Not talking, eh? Or moving? Maybe you have something to hide!" Kidd grabbed the front of Juan's shirt and began shaking him. "WHY DID YOU KILL THE PUPPET?"

Juan snored softly.

>>>>

Later…

Juan was chewing on his sprig idly in his sleep when a shadow fell over him.

"Whaddya want?"

"Yuh huh huh. The Grim Reaper comes while you're sleeping…"

Juan opened his eyes to the sight of Landis looming over him. That woke him up as nothing else could.

"You can't escape the Grim Reaper," Landis said, single eye shining maniacally. He fell silent, his face twisted in a grotesque grin.

Juan grew uncharacteristically uncomfortable with the Winger's silence. Glancing around at the empty yard, he mumbled, "Out in the sun, I see."

"It is good to wait… Yuh huh huh."

Juan shifted his sprig of grass in his mouth. "Uh… Wait for what?"

"For the night… It always happens at nightfall…"

Juan glanced apprehensively at Landis and his scythe, and took a couple steps backwards.

Something touched him in the back.

"Yah!" He whirled, raising his fists.

Martha frowned at him. "You put those fists of fury of yours away, Juan."

Juan took a step away from her, starting to apologize. Unfortunately, Landis had followed behind him rather… closely.

"Keep your eyes open for the Grim Reaper…" Landis whispered in Juan's ear, gripping his shoulders.

"YAAAH!" Juan jerked away and put himself against the wall of his hut.

Martha didn't seem to notice Landis, or his creepiness, as she faced Juan. "Is there any truth to what was written in the Budehuc Times this week?"

"What'd it say?" Juan made sure to keep an eye on both people before him.

"That you've been stealing money from the treasury to buy Bujutsu books."

Juan felt vaguely indignant. "I ain't a thief."

"You're right," Martha said after a moment. "That's giving you too much credit."

"Yuh huh huh… They come at night to steal your sooouuuuls…"

"Zip it, Landis," Martha snapped.

After a couples moments of tense silence, Sir Percival emerged from Dominic's armor shop. "Ah. Landis is here. That explains the shouting."

Juan shifted his sprig of grass indignantly. He'd been doing all the 'shouting'.

Martha turned to the Zexen Knight. "Good to see you out and about, Sir Percival. I've heard quite a few nasty stories of your last trip through the Yaza Plain."

Percival nodded in acknowledgement and grinned mildly. "Nothing a little antitoxin and a stay at Dr. Tuta's couldn't fix."

Martha smiled regally and nodded. "I'm pleased to hear it."

"Yuh huh huh… black and deadly… small and poisonous…"

Percival glanced at Landis. "Tell me when the new lottery numbers are coming out. We knights have a pool going on who the next winner will be."

Martha nodded again. "Of course, Sir Percival."

"So many leeeeegs… Clacking pincers oozing with bloooood…"

Percival swallowed, glancing more nervously at Landis. "I'd better be going…"

"They're coming for you in swarms… Yuh huh huh. They'll weave webs while you sleep, trapping you like a fly… Suffocating you…"

"Quit it!"

"They descend and go in for the kill… Kill you while you're sleeping…"

Percival slapped his hands over his ears. "I'm not listening to you!"

"Yuh huh huh… Biting and stinging, they devour your living flesh…"

Shrieking, Percival ran off in the direction of the castle. Landis swooped after him.

"The Grim Reaper will be well pleased tonight…."

Juan and Martha stared after the two while they ran out of sight.

Martha shook her head. "Who would have thought that, when we opened up free trade, we'd get so many oddballs."

Juan just shrugged.

Martha nodded to him before she left. Juan, left alone once again, decided he was in dire need of a nap.

>>>>

Later…

No shadow fell over him this time, because it was after sunset and everything was dark. Stretching, Juan stood up and considered turning in. Then again, the cool night air didn't make him drowsy the same way that the sun did.

Juan started trekking along the castle grounds to work off his energy.

He found Jacques sitting on the ledge above the castle's lower entrance.

"You couldn't sleep either, huh?" Juan called around his sprig.

"…"

"Can I join you?"

"…"

Juan shrugged and climbed up to sit beside Jacques. They stared over the water in a companionable silence for a time.

"So, you like the lake, huh?"

Jacques looked at him, then nodded. "There were no large bodies of water, back home."

"Huh."

Again, they lapsed into silence for a time.

"Can I try that?" Jacques' voice asked.

Juan looked at him. "Huh?"

Jacques pointed at the sprig of grass in Juan's mouth.

"Uh… Sure." Juan took out the sprig and wiped off the tip. "There you go."

Jacques took it and transferred it to his mouth before turning back to look out at the water.

Juan shrugged to himself. "Just another day at Budehuc."

Jacques nodded.

Author's Notes: Well, there you have it. A day in the life of Juan. I like reactions, good or bad. Flames make me feel all fuzzy inside... So review! And I really mean what I say about wanting suggestions: or else there may not be another update for a while. The Lesson I'm puttering with right now is going nowhere fast. Thank you muchly!