Defiant Fate, Ch. 2: Midnight

CHAPTER 2
MIDNIGHT

It takes but a spark to start a blaze,
just as one needs but one wrong to incite a mob,
but it takes a deluge to stop the former,
and a stronger force still to stop the thoughts of the latter.

Strell opened one eye and perceived, through the haze of drowsiness, a bright yellow and orange light. It took his mind a second or two to catch up to his eyes in perceiving that something was dreadfully wrong. Strell sat up with a jerk and looked around in a cold sweat. From outside his window, the pulsating, fluid light glared and crackled menacingly. It was fire, everywhere. Though outside the house, the heat beat down on Strell even so. Strell jumped out of bed, his heart racing, throwing the covers aside and rushing for the door.

As Strell emerged from the house, the true extent of the havoc wrought became known. The fires were in the Provliones' crop fields – all of them. Not a field was without the harsh, cold, yellow and orange glow. He saw two figures between himself and the fire and immediately realized that they were Nell and his parents. He ran up to them as fast as he could.

"Mom! Dad! What..." Strell's mouth proved to move faster than his mind could. His mother replied with all she could think of.

"...The Storm."

"What?"

"What do you think, Strell? Who else could it be? Ah, I can't believe it. I knew we should have done more to protect our crops from them! I knew it! I just knew it!" Strell's mother began to sob.

"Mom, I..."

Strell's mother said nothing more, staring fatalistically at the all-consuming blaze as she wiped tears from her face. Strell's father and Nell could find no words to express their thoughts, resorting instead simply to forming a blank stare in the general direction of the fire.

"Dad? Nell? Come on! We gotta do something!"

Strell's father was the one to respond.

"There is nothing to do, son... even if we put out the fire, they're gone. They're all gone. The fire has been burning for too long already. They're just gone." Strell's father looked towards the ground, examining nothing in particular. "The fire will die out soon enough; there's nothing surrounding the fields for it to ignite." Strell's father paused, and then muttered his next words under his breath, almost silently. "All gone..."

"But–"

"Strell... just leave them alone," said Nell, softly.

"I– I can't just..." Strell stopped his sentence there, discovering that there was nothing he had intended to say.

The gravity of the night weighed heavily upon the family of four. Though a town of hundreds lay only a short distance away, they could not shake the deep, haunting feeling of unrelenting loneliness on this night. The fires crackled before them, taunting them, as if to make it known verbally what the fires had done. The family huddled together as the flames began to wither and the cold night air began to creep into their bodies. The night on which their very livelihood burned to the ground in just one night would prove to be the longest the family had ever faced.

Morning came slower than it had come for years. The family had eventually gone back to their home to their beds, if for no other reason other than absolute exhaustion. None of the four had gotten enough sleep, but none of them noticed. They could think of nothing other than the obvious. They ventured outside in the morning to make sure that the night's events had been real. Strell almost formed an inkling of hope in his heart before he saw the fields. Nothing but ash and unrecognizable charred objects were present as far as the eye could see. The memories of the night before welled up inside him again. Strell felt an unexplainable urge to make something pay for what had happened, but the culprit had already died off in the middle of the night, leaving nothing behind with which Strell could satisfy his urges.

Strell looked back from the fields to see his father talking with Kaye's father. They were slightly too far away for Strell to be able to make out what they were saying. Strell stayed silent, watching the two talk, not wanting to interrupt. After a while, Kaye's father walked off and Strell's father returned to the house, breaking the haunting silence of the morning.

"I just finished explaining what happened to Kaye's father, and he said that he'll help in any way possible. I have a feeling that Jake's father is likely to say the same."

"Oh, that's a relief, isn't it?" said Strell's mother. "It's always good to have friends you can count on."

"Just doesn't seem right. Someone did this to us, and now those two are left to pick up the slack. I wish it didn't have to come to this."

"Honey, we aren't going to find the Storm, no matter how hard we look, and even if we did, there'd be nothing we could do to them. The culprit behind this is long gone by now. There's nothing we can do about it."

Strell's father seemed hesitant.

"I guess."

"We'll get through this, dear."

"I know."

"I wonder why they only went for our crops," mentioned Nell.

"Who knows," snapped Strell's mother. "It's not as if those creatures have a heart. Had they killed us, we wouldn't be around to suffer under what they had done."

Nell decided not to press the issue any further. Jake's father did indeed agree to lend a hand, as Strell's father predicted. Nonetheless, Strell's father grew increasingly uneasy with the setup as the week progressed, having been forced to accept handouts from Kaye's and Jake's fathers in the form of leftovers. The unease that followed Strell's father around found its way into the other three members of the Provlione family, and by the beginning of the next week, they were all beginning to feel dissatisfied with the state of affairs in which they found themselves. They could not, however, see any way around it.

Midway through the next week, Baron Vincent Strauser paid an unexpected visit to their house. Strell was out by the front porch when this occurred. Vincent greeted Strell as he approached.

"Good afternoon."

"Oh, hello, sir. What brings you to our house?"

Vincent scratched his chin.

"Your family's... predicament, shall we say, has come to my attention. I merely felt it prudent to pay a visit to your family, that's all. Are your parents inside? I need to have a... private conversation with them."

"Yes, they're both in the living room."

"Ah, good, very good. Pardon me, then." Vincent walked past Strell and entered the Provlione house. Strell went back to drawing in the dirt nervously. Vincent was taking longer than he expected him to. Eventually, the figure of the baron emerged from the house and carried on out of sight. Strell's parents followed and stopped at the porch. Strell looked up at them.

"What was that about, Mom?" asked Strell.

"Oh, yes... that man was just here to talk about our... problems."

"He... assured us that we should tell him if there's anything he can do," said Strell's father. Strell looked at his parents quizzically. Something seemed amiss.

"Oh, sure, sure, I'm sure he's genuine!" yelled Strell's mother, unexpectedly. "That man sits there in his high ivory tower of riches, and expects us to respect him when he can come in here and act as if he actually cares about us!"

"Come on, dear," said Strell's father, "you know that he can't–"

"Oh, don't play that around me! I know as well as you do that you feel the same way!" Strell's mother threw up her hands. "I can't stand it!" Strell stormed back into the house. Strell's father sighed and slowly followed her into the house. Strell was a bit shook up, as he was not used to seeing his mother angry. She rarely lost her delicate, womanly demeanor. Strell wondered if something was up that his parents weren't mentioning, but that thought quickly became lost in the depths of his mind, unanswered, as a familiar voice sounded.

"Hi, Jake!" called Kaye as she ran up to Strell with Jake close behind.

"Oh, hi, Kaye. What's up?"

"Nothing in particular. I just feel awful about this whole mess you guys are going through."

"Well, your father has been very helpful. Thank him for me. Yours too, Jake."

"I will," said Jake.

"Say, Strell," began Kaye, "do you want to go berry-picking with us in the forest? It might take your mind off of everything, if only for a little bit."

Strell tried to eke a smile out of his face.

"I suppose it probably couldn't hurt, although it might get my mind back onto... something else."

"It's getting colder by the day. I doubt we'll run into that again."

"I guess."

"Look, Strell, you can't let it prevent you from ever going to the forest again. That's just silly."

"I suppose it's something to do, at least."

"All right, then, let's go."

The three began the trek back to the Ruby Forest as they had done many times before. A faint chill hung in the air as a reminder that winter was not far off. No snow had been sighted yet, but no one expected it to be very far off. Strell was well aware of this, and was glad that his family's stockpiles of firewood had been left untouched, so that they could be used on those exceptionally cold days on which heating nearly becomes a necessity.

As the trio walked, Kaye broke the silence.

"I'm sorry, Strell."

"For what?" responded Strell.

"Doubting the Storm like I did. I mean, if I had just–"

"Kaye, nobody could have predicted this would happen, regardless of what anyone would like to believe who now has full hindsight."

"But–"

"Don't worry about it. Really."

"Well, okay..."

"Thanks for the concern, though."

Kaye smiled.

"You know I worry about you, Strell."

"Well, you shouldn't."

"Well, I do."

"Well, I guess I can't do anything about that, can I?"

Kaye thought for a moment.

"Probably not."

"There you go, then."

Jake laughed.

"Like I said before..." said Jake.

"What's that?" asked Strell.

"Oh, nothing."

The trio walked a bit further down the path before Kaye broke the silence again.

"So how are you guys holding out, anyway?"

"Hmm?" responded Strell.

"You know... is your family all right? Is there anything you guys need, or something like that?"

"No, we're okay for now. If we can get through the winter, we should be able to pick things up again, although it will certainly not be easy, since we won't have any seeds from our crops that we can then plant next year. I guess we'll figure it out when the time comes."

"Do you ever... you know..."

Kaye hesitated.

"No, I don't know," said Strell.

"Well, do you ever worry," began Kaye, "that, like, you won't be able to make it through? I mean, I don't know. It just seems so overwhelming everything you've been through."

"I hadn't really thought about that. I don't know."

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said anything."

"No, it's all right. It's a valid question; I just don't really have an answer for it."

"I hope everything turns out all right."

"If it does all go to pot, it certainly won't be due to lack of help from parents and Jake's father."

"I suppose. Is there anything I can do to help? I don't want to just sit around doing nothing while my parents have to pick up the slack."

"Funny you should ask, given that you've already done it."

"I'm not sure I follow you."

"Never mind; it's not important. What made you think of berry-picking, anyway?"

"I'm not really sure. I guess it just seemed like an easy thing to do that would pass the time and get your mind off of everything."

"It is that, yes."

"Plus, it's something that we used to always do when we were little kids."

"Why did we stop?"

"I don't know. Too old for such a silly thing, I guess." Kaye smiled.

"Then why are we doing it again, hmm?"

"I think we all need to return to simpler times when things begin to get out of hand in our lives. It's sort of a home base without which we're lost in times of distress."

"That sounded a lot more philosophical than something Kaye would say."

"Maybe I'm an alien who killed Kaye and took her place, then!"

Strell chuckled.

"Hah, I knew I could get something out of you," said Kaye.

"Ah, what would I do without you?" remarked Strell.

"Wanna find out?"

"I'd rather not."

Kaye laughed.

"All right then."

A lone maple leaf fluttered down to the left of the trio and gracefully set itself down on top of the Sapphire River, becoming quickly carried away by the current. As winter approached, the trees became more and more bare, having more leaves stripped off every time a wind picked up. Many of the maple trees that composed the Ruby Forest were very sparsely populated with leaves by this time of the year. The only item that the scene was missing was snowfall. Even with winter having nearly arrived, however, many plants aside from the maple trees were still alive and well in the forest, blissfully unaware that they would soon be covered with winter's trademark white blanket. Among these plants were ferns, holly bushes, and what the trio were entering the forest to find: evergreen huckleberries.

A fair way into the forest grew large evergreen huckleberry bushes. From experience in the past, the trio had found that they never failed to taste the best right around the time of the year that a chill began to accumulate in the air as winter neared. As such, this day on which they ventured into the forest for berry-picking was quite an ideal one.

As the trio neared and entered the Ruby Forest, the origin of the forest's name was clearer than ever. High above the trio, the maple leaves still resting in the trees formed a shining cloud of red, while around the trio's feet, the many fallen leaves formed a crimson mist lingering above the forest soil, shifting with the wind and with each passing footstep. Jake, observing the sea of red, spoke up,

"You know, I wonder if this forest is natural."

"What do you mean?" asked Strell.

"The trees in it are practically all maple trees and nothing else. It seems like something humans would put together themselves, and yet the distribution of trees seems as random as any other natural forest."

"I don't actually know. I've never really thought about it. It seems like it would take an awful lot of effort to put together such a large forest by hand, though."

"I wouldn't underestimate the determination of royalty," remarked Kaye, "to put nature exactly as they'd like it to be."

"Why do you suspect royalty?" asked Strell.

"Who else would it be?" replied Kaye. "No one else would have the money you'd need for such a huge project."

"So you think that some king put this together at some point in time."

"No. I have no idea how it got here. I'm just saying that that you shouldn't rule out human intervention purely based on how much it'd cost."

"I suppose you have a point."

"Well... it is a very beautiful sight, either way," noted Jake.

"No arguments from me about that," said Strell.

"Strell, boys aren't allowed to evaluate beauty. You know that, silly," laughed Kaye.

"Okay, Queen Kaye: is the forest beautiful?" asked Strell.

"Well, if you're going to put it in that dignified a tone, I can't help but answer yes."

"Glad to hear that the authority on the matter agrees with us."

"See? You would be lost without me. I just knew it."

Strell laughed a little.

"We certainly would, Kaye. We certainly would."

As the trio walked further into the forest, their intended destination finally came into sight. Beneath the branches of a tree wider than the average tree in the forest, there grew multiple evergreen huckleberry bushes among various other various forms of foliage. Kaye was the first to notice it.

"Ah, look! Here we are!"

"It's still here after all these years, eh?"

"Well, there it is in front of us, at least." Kaye lightly elbowed Strell. "You still need to find out if it's real."

"Okay. Here goes." Strell walked up to the bush and gently plucked off one of the berries. The bluish berry between his fingers stared at him silently, as if it were inquiring with regards to what Strell planned to do next. Strell placed the berry into his mouth, chewed briefly, and then swallowed it. Kaye and Jake watched him, eagerly. "Well," came Strell's initial reaction, "I would declare it to be both real and quite good."

"Do you approve?" asked Kaye.

"I do."

"Excellent!" laughed Kaye. With that, the trio began whittling away at the many berries present on the bush. As they filled their stomachs, the bush lost more and more of its blue aura, becoming more strictly green with every berry.

"This was an excellent idea, Kaye; I must commend your judgment."

"A compliment from Strell!" exclaimed Kaye, with feigned shock. "I wish I could have a record of this moment."

Strell laughed.

"All right, if you're going to react that way, I just won't compliment you anymore."

"What's that, Strell? I'm still cleaning my ears out from that last thing you said."

"Oh, you're impossible, Kaye."

"That's how you know she likes you, Strell," commented Jake, with a smile.

"Like? I like no one!" stated Kaye, with mock earnest. "I am Queen Kaye, tyrant of the universe!"

"I think you've eaten one too many berries, Kaye," said Strell.

"Oh, get back to eating, Strell," said Kaye, attempting to stifle a smile.

Try as they might, the trio was unsuccessful at sweeping the bushes clean before their stomachs gave out. Satisfied with their raid, they found a nearby log on which to sit down and relax for a while to let the berries digest. Strell pat his stomach while letting out a sigh.

"Whew! I don't think I could eat another bite," he said.

"Me neither," said Kaye.

"Or me," said Jake.

"Say, Strell, that reminds me," said Kaye. "When I was walking towards your house, I happened to see that baron from downtown – what was his name?"

"Strauser," answered Strell.

"Oh yes, Vincent Strauser, that's the guy. Anyways, he seemed to be coming from your house, and your mother seemed quite upset, at least from what I saw for a brief moment before she went inside your house. What was that about?"

"Oh, he just came to our house to let us know that he understood what we were going through and to tell us that we should tell him if he could do anything."

"Why didn't he do something right at that moment? It seems to me that it would have been well within his power."

"That's what I gathered my mom didn't like. She didn't think he actually meant what he had said, or at least that's what she made it sound like. I couldn't tell whether it was just that or whether something else was bugging her."

"What else would it be?"

"I don't know. It just seemed so odd to see her drop her normally feminine demeanor in such a dramatic way. She usually retains most of her composure even when upset."

"Could it be that this whole ordeal has simply worn her down a little? It must be hard for anyone to go through. I'm surprised you seem to be taking it as well as you are."

"I hope that that's all it is, at least. My mom isn't usually one to keep secrets from someone."

"Strell, really, you worry too much. I'm sure that it's nothing."

"I'm glad you're so sure."

"Look, if it's something else, what would it be?"

"I already said that I don't know. Look, you're right. I imagine that it is just nothing."

Kaye smiled.

"You're worrying so much about this whole thing I could swear I was talking to Jake!"

"Har har, very funny, Kaye," injected Jake.

"Seriously, though, chin up, Strell. You'll make it through this."

"I know, Kaye... thanks."

"That's what friends are for, Strell."

Strell smiled briefly.

"See, now that – that's what I like to see," said Kaye.

"Ah, I love you guys."

Kaye smiled.

"Do you think we ought to get going back?" asked Jake. "Our parents might be starting to wonder where we are."

"Maybe you're right," said Strell. "Kaye?"

"I think we've seen all we've come to see."

"All right then," said Strell, "let's head back."

The three got up from the log and started back down the path on which they had come to the evergreen huckleberries. By the time they got up, the sun was already hanging lower in the sky than it had earlier and the day was getting progressively darker, though it was still certainly bright enough for the trio to find their way through the forest. Before long, the sun would be down beneath the horizon, having completed its daily trek across the blue sky by which all the population of the world live their lives. The sky was a little cloudy on this day, but not to an extent where it would dampen one's spirits. The sun had been still easily seen throughout the day.

The three reached the edge of the forest before long and began their usual trek back towards their houses, the Sapphire River now fixed on their right instead of their left. Though winter was close by, the river still went along its merry way, as it had all summer, and as it would continue to do even once its surface was turned into ice by the frosty touch of winter. The waters in the river were as clear as ever, undaunted by the occasional dirty leaf that fell into the river and then traveled along its eternal track.

The trek from the forest's edge to Strell's house took around eight minutes when a steady gait is used. The trail itself was rather unremarkable. It followed the always visually appealing Sapphire River for about two-thirds of the way, but beyond that, it was a simple dirt path with grass on either side and a few token trees to the left and right every so often.

As the trio came closer to Strell's house, the first house the path passes, they made their farewells for the day.

"See you tomorrow, Strell," said Kaye.

"I had fun today. Thanks, guys."

"Don't mention it," said Kaye. "See ya!"

"Bye, Strell," said Jake. Jake and Kaye continued down the path towards their respective houses, and Strell turned off the path towards his house. Strell saw no one outdoors, so he figured that everyone must be inside the house. He walked up to the door and opened it, walking inside.

"Mom? Dad? I'm home!" he called. His mother's voice answered his own.

"We're in the living room, Strell."

Strell walked into the living room. His mother was sitting in an armchair, not appearing to be doing anything in particular. His father was sitting on a couch, reading a book.

"Where's Nell?" asked Strell.

"She's in her room, studying hard, as always. Did you have a good time with Jake and Kaye?"

"Yes. How did you know that that's where I was?"

"It seemed like where you'd likely be. Are you hungry? We saved some of our dinner for tonight in case you were. You just missed it."

"No thanks. We went berry-picking in the forest."

"Well, okay."

There was an uncomfortable silence that lingered in the air. Strell knew that there was something that he was not being told.

"Strell," began his father, putting down his book, "I think... we need to talk. It's important." His father got out of the couch and walked over to the living room door. He shut it tight and then went back to the couch, sitting back down.

"What is it?"

The silence again lingered, becoming even more agitating.

"Strell, it's about us," said Strell's mother, "and our... affairs. Simply put, it doesn't look good for us if we continue like this."

"Why not?" asked Strell. "Jake and Kaye's families are being very supportive."

"Yes, but at this rate, we'll be indebted to them for God knows how long. This'll never get us up off our feet. We'll be taking handouts from them forever."

"Why?"

"We're farmers, Strell," said Strell's father. "We need crops to get money, and we need money to get crops. It's a nasty cycle once you're out of the loop."

"Can't we get some from Jake or Kaye's family? They'll understand; I'm sure they will."

Strell's mother shook her head.

"They need all the money they can get," she said, "especially with all of the food from their crops that they've been giving us so generously. We can't rely on them."

"Then what...?" asked Strell.

The silence returned. Strell swallowed nervously, becoming increasingly uneasy at what his imagination suggested his parents might be trying to say.

"Strell, you have to promise you won't tell Nell any of this," said Strell's mother.

"What?"

"Please. It's important."

"Er... okay."

The silence returned once more, though for a shorter period of time.

"Strell, you know Baron Strauser, right?" asked Strell's mother. Strell nodded. The question appeared rather odd, to him. He didn't like it at all.

The silence reared its head once more. Strell's mind turned back to his mother's previous comments about Vincent, and he suddenly came to a disturbing realization.

"Mom," said Strell, nearly inaudibly, with a dash of nervous laughter spliced in, "you're not suggesting we..." Strell couldn't finish the sentence. Strell's mother sighed.

"I think you already know what we're suggesting."

"...Ivory tower..."

"What's that?"

"...No. Mom, we can't. Do you realize what you're suggesting? So he has a lot of money. That gives us no right to help ourselves to it."

Strell's mother paused.

"Strell, what do you suggest?"

Strell bowed his head, staying silent.

"We need money, desperately. We can't rely on others forever. It just wouldn't work out. They'd get tired of us very quickly if they thought that that's what our plans were. If you have a better idea, Strell, I'm welcome to hear it."

Strell stared towards the ground, looking at nothing in particular.

"I don't."

"I don't want to make you do this, Strell, but–"

"Wait, me?" interjected Strell. "Why me?"

"You're young, agile, and a strong young man. I don't think anyone here would be better suited to such a thing."

"But I've never done anything like this before."

"And we have?"

Strell didn't respond.

"Strell..."

"How could I possibly do something like that? I'm just one guy."

Strell's father spoke up.

"Crime has been down in Monz for quite some time. From what I've heard, it's gotten to the point where the baron doesn't even seem to care anymore about security. Few guards are seen around his mansion. I don't think he'd even expect anything like this to occur."

Strell thought for a bit before saying anything.

"...What should I do?"

"Are you sure, Strell?" asked his mother. "If you really don't want to–"

"No, I will... if we really have no other option."

His parents stayed silent for a little bit before his mother spoke up.

"Go to bed when you usually do. I'll keep myself awake until midnight, at which time I'll wake you up. That will probably be the best time. No one in the town will still be awake by then. The moon is nearing full, so you won't be completely in the dark as you go."

"All right."

"Don't take too much, Strell: just take enough to enable us to buy the seeds that we need come springtime."

"Okay..."

Strell's parents nodded, and Strell got up and left the room. As Strell went about his usual nighttime activities that evening, a haze of unease and uncertainty loomed over his head. Every time his mind failed for a moment to block out the task he had agreed to do, the grim reality of the situation set in: failure in this location was not akin to any other failure he would have faced in his past. It bore no resemblance to a school test, where failure meant a lower grade, or perhaps the requirement to retake the class. It was unlike any sport or game he had played, where failure meant a brief loss of face, or perhaps momentary disappointment. Failure in this case would mean a loss greater than any loss Strell had faced in his life.

Strell kept to his word and never said anything to Nell. He was never sure whether or not his demeanor gave off a hint or inkling that something was amiss; he also, however, was not concerned about this part, because he knew that it didn't matter. There were only two potential outcomes to what Strell was about to do. One option would have him successfully extract the money his family needed from the Strauser mansion. The other would have him caught, followed by a punishment whose form Strell preferred not to speculate upon. Either outcome would require Nell to learn, one way or another, what would have transpired by that time.

Strell went to bed at his usual time. He found it hard to get to sleep, knowing what was to come at midnight, but his mind slowly drifted off on its own. Were someone to ask him later if any dreams transpired that night, he would not have been able to answer. If there existed any, he could not remember them, though he very well knew that this could have been as much due to the stress he was under as it could have been due to there not being any dreams.

Exactly when Strell's mother had said she would wake him up, a voice found its way to the depths of Strell's mind.

"Strell?"

Strell began to stir, but had not yet woken up completely.

"Strell, wake up."

Yawning, Strell opened his eyes and rolled over on his bed, seeing his mother there, as he expected.

"It's time, Strell."

Strell yawned again and rubbed his eyes.

"All right, Mom."

His mother walked out of his room. Strell sat on the edge of his bed for a little bit, mulling over what he knew he had to do. Eventually, he got to his feet and sleepily walked over to his clothes that he had simply dropped on the ground. He first slipped on his pants, then slipped on his socks, and then pulled his shirt over his head. The house was more silent than Strell had ever seen it before. Once Strell put on his shoes and thrust his arms through the sleeves of his jacket, he slowly walked towards the door. As he turned its knob and stepped outside into the midnight air, gently shutting the door behind himself, he felt the silence playing a dirge dedicated to his memory. In the cold of the night, his breath lingered in front of him as a token reminder that he yet lived, even for just a moment.

He started down the path towards town. His steps were short and his speed was not quick, in an attempt to prolong the time between the current second and the inevitable, always lurking in the future. The stars looked down in pity upon the solemn sight of a boy leading his own march to the execution chamber, and the moon joined them in offering sorrowful sympathy in the form of meager, but dearly needed, light upon the ground. The somber moonlight cast an eerie pall across the land, displaying the world as a colorless, unfamiliar landscape that seemed to draw Strell into its cold, dead depths.

However, before he could fall too far, a familiar voice rescued Strell as it sounded behind him.

"Strell? Strell! I thought it was you!"

Strell turned around quickly, recovering from nearly having a heart attack right there on the path. It took his eyes a short time to focus on the figure standing before him, but once they succeeded, he realized he was looking at Jake. Strell looked to left and realized that he had just passed Jake's house in his daze without realizing it. He tried to regain his composure in his response to Jake.

"Jake, what are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same question, Strell! I'm not the one walking outside in the middle of the night."

"Why are you awake?"

"I couldn't sleep, so I was awake in my room, reading."

Strell looked over at Jake's house. He hadn't even noticed that there was a small light emanating from Jake's room.

"Why are you being so confrontational, Strell?" continued Jake. "What's wrong?"

Strell shook his head out. He was surprised at himself for how aggressive he was being towards Jake. He hadn't realized how much stress his mother's task for him had put him under.

"...I'm sorry."

"What's going on, Strell?"

Strell sighed. He knew that he either had to lie to his best friend and betray their trust, or come clean and brace himself for Jake's reaction. Strell could think of no suitably plausible lie to explain his situation, and as such, he knew there was only one other choice to take. Resigned to the consequences of doing so, he began to tell Jake everything. He explained to Jake what his mother had told him about their family's condition, about the fact that they needed money, and about what they saw as their only hope to get enough money. He laid out exactly what he was planning to do, and freely admitted that he had no idea how he was going to do it. He did not stop talking until he was sure that Jake knew everything there was to know.

Jake paused as his brain struggled to absorb everything he had been told.

"I..." Jake stammered, "I don't know what to say."

Strell turned around and looked away.

"Whatever you do is up to you, Jake," Strell said. "Quite frankly, I won't blame you for what you do, whatever it is. I daresay I deserve any and all of it."

Jake stayed silent. Strell looked towards the ground, trying to stamp out the first signs of tears.

"I don't know what I'm doing out here, Jake." Strell only barely managed to squeeze out his words through his tight throat. "I don't know what I'm going to do when I get there. I don't know the first thing about anything." Strell placed his head in his hands and stayed silent for a moment. "Whatever you're going to do, do it now. I'm not going to watch. I'm not going to stop you."

"Strell..." Jake could not quite find the words he was after. Strell stayed silent. "...I want to come along."

Strell blinked. He took a few seconds before turning around and staring at Jake for a few more seconds. Finally, he spoke.

"What?"

"Strell, you know as much as I do how hard I try to shake off my introverted demeanor. I always feel like I'm not doing anything with my life. And now, if my best friend is going to go off and get himself killed doing something stupid, I'm not going to just sit here and watch him do it."

Strell paused, still taking in the words "best friend". He then shook his head.

"Jake, you don't know what you're saying."

"I know exactly what I'm saying, Strell! I can't just watch you do something like this alone."

"Jake, no. I'm sorry, but I can't let you do this. Your father needs you. He had nothing to do with anything. If I don't succeed, at least my family will still have Nell." Strell began walking down the path towards Monz.

"Strell! Strell, don't just walk away from me!" Jake watched Strell as he continued down the path.

"Go home, Jake," came Strell's response.

Jake paused for a second before shouting back at Strell.

"Strell, I don't care about my father!"

Strell stopped suddenly and looked up. Jake couldn't believe what he had just reflexively said.

"What?" asked Strell. Jake turned away and paused before saying anything further.

"Ever since my mother died suddenly, it's like he doesn't care about me any more. He puts on a good face when he's with other people, but there's always just been something missing." Jake looked towards the ground. "I suppose I'm introverted because I never have anyone at all to talk to most of the time..."

"Jake..."

"I honestly don't know if my father would even notice if I was gone."

"Don't say that."

"But it's true! Strell, you and Kaye are all I have. I don't know what I'd do if I lost either of you."

"What would Kaye do if she lost both of us?"

Jake paused.

"I don't know. I suppose I never really thought about that part."

"Do you want to put her through that?"

Jake sighed and looked at Strell.

"Strell, we both know that you're the one she really cares about."

"What?"

"Don't tell me you haven't noticed, Strell. I know you have. She feels a great deal of affection for you, regardless of whether or not either of you wants to admit it."

Strell stayed silent. Jake walked closer to Strell.

"I have to protect you, Strell. We both need you to come back."

"Jake..."

"Kaye can do without me, Strell. That's just a fact. However, I'm not so sure that the same could be said about you."

Strell sighed.

"What am I going to do?" asked Strell

Jake walked up to Strell.

"I can't tell you that, Strell," said Jake, "but whatever it is, I want to help you do it. You're not walking to Strauser's mansion without me."

Strell smiled ever so slightly, and then shrugged.

"If you insist..."

"Let's go, Strell."

The two started down the path towards Monz, dimly lit beneath the pearl of the midnight sky. By the time the two arrived at the entrance to downtown Monz, the city was already deep inside its evening slumber. Neither Strell nor Jake had seen Monz as still and as void of noise as it was this night. Both found the state rather unsettling. Neither of the boys' hearts could shake the feeling that unseen eyes lurking in the dark were watching their every move, waiting for the existence of incriminating evidence, even though both of their brains knew very well that this was ludicrous, and that the likelihood of the idea being true was slim, at best.

As the group inched closer towards the commercial district of Monz, a slight wind blew in an act of regicide against the silence that had reigned only moments before. Dust shifted along the ground, accompanied by various lightweight objects that had been discarded for one reason or another, some for only a day, some for much longer. Jake shivered slightly against the sudden chill and bundled his clothes together. Strell became concerned that perhaps he was not dressed properly for the midnight air as close to winter as it was, but the duo was already far too close to the Strauser mansion to do anything about it at that point. The two resigned themselves to their duty and kept walking, despite all of the attempted protest coming from both their brains and their hearts. Slowly, but surely, their target became closer.