Chapter 11: Knife

Ever since that fateful early morning, Lucius had been feeling something that he had never identified before. Usually, when he talked to Florina, his inability with women would cause him to be slightly nervous. Now, however, things weren't quite the same. He remained reserved (as he always had), but he almost felt as if he wanted to help everybody within the convoy with a renewed eagerness in his spirit. Before, he felt somewhat detached and saw the group as a series of groups, little parties that conversed with each other, whereas now he felt as if he was close with everybody, like a large family. In short, he was happier.

Florina however didn't really change. She was still the Florina everyone knew, afraid of men and especially terrified of the sight of a bow and arrow. Still meek. Still slightly smaller in stature. However, her opinions of one man had changed somewhat, and that was the man he had embraced. She never realized that he could be comfortable dealing with such emotions. She had previously viewed him in one dimension: a kind monk who liked to help. But her encounter with him that night had opened up so many more dimensions, she realized that he was capable of feeling pain and suffering, as well as joy in helping others. He seemed so much more human to her now, so much more relatable.

And she liked him a lot more now. So much that she was even beginning to feel for him in a different way.

Adventurous days passed, pressing and exciting at the same time. The tragedy of Priscilla's death, although still heavy on the minds of everybody in the group, was starting to become accepted. They were moving on, and as much as they personally hated to admit it, there were more pressing matters at hand. Eliwood would always serve to remind the group about their loss, but his amazing ability at leadership managed to transform the loss into a motivation. Everybody was doing this for Priscilla and also to prevent anyone else in the convoy from sharing her terrible fate. They were moving on quickly, having just prevented a second tragedy that held far higher consequences: they had prevented the assassination of Prince Zephiel of Bern. Their victory over the Black Fang had left the group in high spirits as they continued on their journey.

Travelling on the foggy, bumpy plains of Bern, the sun barely able to pierce the fog, the convoy's torches were set out to light the path. At the right wing of the convoy, primarily protecting Merlinus and his new and improved transporter, the trio of Marcus, Kent and Lowen were riding as an impregnable trio of paladins, their heavily armored horses efficiently protecting the horse and cart full of goods. Lucius was now stood a few meters into the convoy next to the paladins, keeping an eye out for any attackers. He was by himself, wasn't travelling or talking with anyone. He was left to his own thoughts.

This loneliness could only mean one thing. Someone was going to spot his solitary state and move closer to talk to him. Even as the person started moving, Lucius could sense who it was at once. It had almost become predictable, and inside he was thankful for it.

"Hello Florina…" he said quietly.

"Um…hello"

He was right. Like a pattern, at a random point in the day Florina would leave Huey under the watchful eye of Hawkeye, who was strong enough to control her (and always glad to help) whilst she went and talked with Lucius. They made quite a weird partnership, a woman who was shy of men and a man who was very polite and as a result, quiet. Yet their conversations were innocent and mostly observatory, remarking about the weather, how they were feeling during the day, and occasionally the funny story that would cause the two to giggle quietly, whilst the rest of the convoy went about their business in the travel. Occasionally, the two would garner some weird looks from other members of the convoy, considering that these were two characters that were usually quiet, chattering about the day. Even when the world appeared to be weighing down on them, they found solace in each other's quiet voices, like a shelter from a raging storm. Even in battle, the found themselves closer together, supporting each other when in the midst of a heated fight.

"How are you?" Lucius asked, the now compulsory start to their conversation.

"I'm not bad" would be the usual response from Florina, as it was today. Never just 'good' or 'bad'. With Florina, it was never black or white, always a shade of gray.

"So what's on your mind today?" Lucius asked, making a departure from the 'the weather, eh?' approach. Florina looked down, her shyness reappearing. Now this was strange, Lucius thought. Usually, Florina would get right on with what she wanted to say. But on that particular day, she was hesitant to say something that would open up dark doors that had never been opened for a long time.

"Lucius…I've talked to you all this time…"

What was she going to ask, he thought? He started to feel a little nervous, looking up to the sky.

"And I wanted to know…well…"

Oh no, he thought. He didn't like where this was going.

"I'm not sure quite h-how to say this, but…um…you see…"

Lucius's heart was starting to pump faster. He had a strong idea of what topic they would be focused on. He wasn't ready for this; he had been caught off guard.

"I…I-I wanted to a-ask you…."

Here it comes, he thought. Be strong, be strong! She's only human after all!

"...About your…ch-childhood"

His mind felt like a train that had just been derailed. He swore, he just swore she was going to say something else. So convinced he was, he didn't fully catch Florina's request.

"My…what?" Lucius asked. Florina looked down, suddenly withdrawing.

"I-I'm sorry" she said quickly. "I shouldn't h-have asked…"

"No, no!" Lucius protested. "I just didn't hear you, please, ask me again"

"B-But…"

Lucius released his almost patented warm smile, quieting Florina.

"Please, ask me what you wanted to ask" he said, still smiling. Florina found herself unable to mount a resistance to his heavenly smile.

"I wanted to know about your past" Florina asked.

"My past?" Lucius asked back. "What about my past?"

"I don't know…things like your childhood, memories and…stuff" she said.

She watched as the smile slowly vanished from Lucius's face, replaced with a somewhat edgy expression.

"…Y-you want to know about that?" he asked, hoping that he had misheard her. Florina also appeared worried, unsure if what she had asked was wise.

"Why, is it…" she started.

"No, it's nothing" Lucius explained. "Well…the thing is Florina…I've never told anyone else expect Lord Raymond about my past. And even then…he doesn't know the full details. I'll be…h-happy to tell you, but you'll have to bear with me" he said. "To start…I was born in Etruria. I never really knew my mother, and my father was…a mercenary" he revealed.

"A mercenary?" Florina asked.

"That's right, Florina" Lucius confirmed. "He was a mercenary. People, barons and warmongers who fought petty little battles would pay him to fight for their sides, and he would use that money to sustain himself and whatever family he had, me included. I didn't know if he enjoyed being a mercenary or not, in fact I never really knew my father that well…"

"Why, what happened to him?" Florina asked. Lucius fell quiet, his mouth opening erratically, trying to find the best words to put together.

"F-Florina…" he stuttered, sounding as if he was choking on his words. "My father…d-died when I was very young"

Florina felt the terror of the memory suddenly dawning on her. The cold expression Lucius displayed suddenly made so much sense. His hesitation. She felt extreme regret at asking, even turning her head slightly away in shame at what she had unearthed.

"…I'm s-sorry, Lucius…" she said quietly. "I d-didn't mean to…to make you s-say th-that…" She found herself stuttering in extreme discomfort.

"It's okay, Florina…" Lucius said quietly. "You meant no harm to me. I understand that. Florina…there's something I want you to know…"

Florina looked back up to see that Lucius was looking her straight in the eyes, his blonde hair brushed out of the way of his smooth, unobtrusive face. She felt his gaze softly penetrating into her mind, she almost double took to see him straightly. There was something inside of him, dying to escape, a dark secret that Florina knew that nobody else had heard. A great responsibility.

"…I-I'm here…" she said. It was all she could say; all she needed to say.

"…My father was murdered, Florina" Lucius revealed. "He was murdered in front of my very eyes…when I was three"

The news stung, like a deep knife striking into her composure. Florina felt like she wanted to run towards Lucius and take him into her arms, take the news away from him and lessen the burden. The two were still walking, subconsciously, but Florina stepped towards Lucius until she was almost brushing against his robes.

"L-Lucius…" she said, feeling her tears billowing inside of her. "Why?"

Lucius closed his eyes quietly, his face becoming calm and composed, before he opened his satchel and pulled out a knife. Florina jumped back in fright at the sight of the knife, realizing that Lucius wasn't intending to use it. She watched as he continued to tell his story of agony, gazing down at the bronze handled blade.

"This knife…" he said quietly. "…I was too young to understand what had happened to my father when I heard his yell, heard him fall to the floor. I was too young to understand what blood represented. I saw his killer…standing above him, nothing but a black shade in my memory now. In that moment, something compelled me to take this knife…o-out of my father's back…and I kept it. I kept it close to me ever since so that one day…"

He lifted his head with a controlled anger, a sheer bitterness that came out clearly in the bite of his words.

"…I will show this knife to the man who killed my father" he said. "I will show it to him and tell him about the little boy whose father he had killed. I'll tell him that I was that little boy, and once he realizes who I am, I shall walk away…" he said, hiding a tear. "I will not kill him if he offers no resistance. My religion has taught me not to kill those who pose no threat to myself, and to only use my powers for the peace of Elibe. He shall share the pain of my memory, and I will silently hope that his murder will haunt him to his grave…"

He slowly turned around and saw something he did not want to see. Florina had started to cry, the power of Lucius's words had cut into her mind so deeply that she wept the pain away.

"Florina, I'm so sorry!" Lucius repented, stepping towards her. "Don't cry, I didn't mean…"

But it was too late to keep their talk discreet. Already the convoy had stopped to look at what was happening. Lucius felt the blood rise to his head and his collar grow searing hot as everybody's attention focused on them. He had never felt so embarrassed in all of his life. It was certainly an incriminating scene.

Lucius watched as Lyn marched right up to him.

"Lucius, what have you done?" she yelled, taking Florina into her arms. Lucius could only stutter an answer out.

"I-I meant no harm!" he pleaded, even placing his hands together. "I was speaking to myself, about my past and what I said upset her"

"What past?" Lyn pressed. Lucius glanced to see that every single person was looking at him. Even Huey shot a glance his way. In a last act of defense, he brought a hand up to his face and sighed in exasperation, turning away. Lyn wasn't happy to be looking at Lucius's back and grabbed his shoulder.

"Don't turn away from me!" Lyn yelled, trying to act in the defense of Florina, who was crying even more. Lucius shook Lyn off, tempted to just run away, run away and never turn back. He could feel the convoy turning against him, every single one of them.

"Hey, leave him alone!"

Lucius, whose eyes had started to tear up from the shame, turned around and gasped as he saw raven pulling Lyn away from him. Lyn spun around, even more angered.

"What are you doing?" she spat. Raven's face appeared just as furious as Lyn was, sporting a large frown that wrinkled the spot between his eyebrows.

"Leave my friend alone, he didn't mean any harm to her, okay?" Raven defended. This served only to infuriate Lyn even more, who was so angry that she had her hand on her blade.

"Who do you think you are, talking to me like that?" she yelled. At that point, Eliwood and Marcus arrived at the scene. Marcus stood in between the two of them whilst Eliwood softly pulled Lyn away.

"Can we all just calm down?" he yelled amidst the noise, suddenly silencing every voice involved with the argument. Lucius turned around fully, trying his best not to let anymore tears slip out of his eyes. His hands were all over place, rubbing his red eyes, readjusting his robe, scratching his skin from the itchiness caused by the sweat formed out of embarrassment, readjusting his robe again. He kept his head down, unable to face anyone out of the humiliation of the scene.

"Eliwood…" Lyn said quickly, trying to have her say. But Eliwood swiftly brought his hand up, bringing solitude once again to the scene.

"I will not listen to any of this now!" he spoke. "I want everyone to stay with the convoy and continue this journey without any hassle! We'll sort out what's happening when we set up camp for the night. Lyn, Florina, you two come with me, the rest of you stay here. Now can we please continue on our trail?" he asked.

"Yes, Lord Eliwood" everybody replied, suddenly feeling foolish for partaking in the kafuffle. With swift effectiveness, everybody returned to their posts in the convoy and continued their way on the trail. All the while, as Lucius walked, Raven walked silently beside him. Having not spoken to each other since the incident after Priscilla's death, the rest of the day's travel was filled with an uneasy quietness. Neither said a word.