Radically Happy

Continued from Part 4.

I sit at a table with my brother and apparently-not-dead long-lost Father.
Refugees in a small shed on the estate of our mad mother.
Wondering how in the name of the Emperor-Beyond-The-Sea I will find the Gift that can restore our family.
When all I can look at is the broken shell of the man I once considered my hero.

Our Father

Robbing: So… the rumors of your death were greatly exaggerated?

[The man who was once our father hangs his head in shame.]

Father: Let us say… slightly exaggerated. I did not fake my death on purpose. I was wounded in battle, and fell into a ravine. The enemy pressed us sore, and our army had no time to gather up the dead, only the obviously wounded. As far as I know we have never retaken the territory lost from the battle where I fell.

As far as I know we have never retaken the territory lost from the battle where I fell.

BraveHeart: Then how did you survive? And return? And why did you not tell us?!

[The old man closes his eyes, his lips moving. Is he praying, or just counting to ten? At last, he opens them.]

F. As to the first, a kind shepherd found me lying near death. He took me in, nursed me back to health. When I had sufficiently recovered, he gave me peasant clothes to wear and I snuck back to the port our army uses. Our unit had been mostly destroyed, so nobody was left to recognize me. I worked as a laborer for my return passage. When I got home…

[He pauses, and turns to hide his face. Presumably to wipe away tears.]

F. [his voice now barely a whisper, yet curiously more similar to the tone we remember] Your mother… I love her more than life itself; but she was not always the easiest person to live with. I knew if I returned in my weakened state she would turn me into a permanent invalid. So after discovering she had taken up residence in our city estate, I ended up hiding in the shed. I originally told myself it would just be a few months until I regained my strength, but…

[BraveHeart lays a sympathetic arm on his shoulder, but Robbing jumps to his feet in anger]

R. More than life! Perhaps, but you never valued your life overly much. [sneering] You certainly didn’t mind risking it for the overlord’s favor. Nay, the only thing you really love is your pride. That is why you went off to war, and why you were too ashamed to show your face after your failure. For all we know, you are actually hiding because you are a deserter. Why should we believe you could face a man in battle when you can’t even face a woman in your own home?

[The old man turns white as a sheet, and starts to rise to his feet in protest. But BraveHeart presses him down with a heavy hand and stands to face his brother. They glare for a moment eye-to-eye. Then Robbing turns away.]

B. Forgive him, Father. He knows not what he is doing. He speaks only to cover his own shame, which I share, for we too lacked the courage to face her. If we had been bolder, or better devoted, we would have discovered you here long since.

[We stand in frozen tableau for a moment. Then Robbing suddenly crumples to the ground with great, wrenching sobs.]

R. No! Don’t forgive me. For I have committed the unforgivable sin. I am the coward, who coveted his brother’s wife. I slew him rather than face my own shame. If not for the Wild Hermit, both of us would still be trapped by the curse.

[We hear a gasp from Father. But it is not the expected one of horror. Instead, his face has come alive with an incredulous expression of… joy?]

F. Sweet Emperor, is it really true? Did one of you really slay the other? Had the mansion truly been bound for years in a curse?

R. Yes, damn you, yes. Why must you rub my shame in my face?

[Father lets out a delighted laugh, suddenly transformed back into the man we remember. With unexpected strength, he grabs Robbing off the floor and crushes him in an enormous bear hug.]

F. My poor sweet Robbing. You did it. You actually did it. I never dared to believe. I couldn’t face the agony. But it had to be done. And you were the only both daring and foolish enough to do it.

B. Do what? What nonsense are you babbling?

F. Not nonsense. The greatest story ever told. But now is not the time for stories. Now is the time to act.

[With the vigor of a man half his age, he dashes to a darkened corner of the hut. After a series of thudding and scraping sounds, he emerges bearing three wondrous swords. Improbably bright and clean, as if they had been lovingly oiled and polished every night for a generation.]

Three wondrous swords. Improbably bright and clean, as if they had been lovingly oiled and polished every night for a generation.

F. [Now with burning eyes that remind us of Willy] C’mon, boys. It’s time to get our family back.

To be continued…