The Lufian Family 4

“Father… Marcus is… Marcus is dead.”

“I see. So Marcus is dead.” Dagobert slams his fist against his desk. Win flinches back, never having seen his father’s anger before. “I knew I should have stopped him! Win, can you take me to him?”

Win nods stutteringly. He brings his father out to the yard. Marcus still stands there, his body obstinate in not falling. Dagobert approaches it hesitantly, as though he doesn’t want it to be true. Marcus’ corpse does not stir at the presence of his master. Dagobert stands before it.

“So he really has died. And he remains standing in spite of it. Marcus… Why must you leave us? I’m not ready. I’m still the same irresponsible man. Scold me again. Spar with me again. We are not whole without you.”

Marcus’ body slumps over now, falling over onto Dagobert. Tears silently begin to streak down his face. Win, at last freed of the burden of being alone, begins to weep. After several minutes spent in such a state, Dagobert gently lifts Marcus’ body. He begins to leave.

“Win, come along. We must make plans for the funeral.”

The funeral proceeds quickly, only a single day later. Upon searching his room, Dagobert and Win found Marcus’ extensive plans for his own funeral. Even before they sought it out, according to his notes, the arrangements had already been made in secret. Throughout the day, various servants come to inform Dagobert of the arrival or completion of the last thing Marcus had asked of them. They all can barely stop themselves from crying in the presence of their lord. Every element Marcus had planned for his own funeral comes quickly. Dagobert can’t help but laugh. He has always been nothing if not thorough, and even in death he continues to guide the house.

The morning after his death, Marcus’ funeral begins. Dagobert personally lays his body into the casket. Four strapping young men in formal attire, Marcus’ direct subordinates, lift the open casket and bring it to the burial site. Dagobert, Win, the rest of the family, and all of the staff await them there. They place the casket behind the newly dug grave, then take their proper place with the rest of the staff. Dagobert walks behind the casket. He looks out at everyone and begins the eulogy.

“Good morning, everyone. We’ve gathered together this morning to mourn the loss of Marcus, the head butler of our fine house. Marcus was a great man, a gentleman finer than most. He’s been serving the family dutifully for so long. He was the oldest resident of the house. He served my father and grandfather well. He raised me in their stead. He guided me in the art of statecraft. In many ways, he loved the house more than even I. In the throes of despair I have at times cursed my fate to be born the heir of this house, but Marcus never wavered. He was always sure of himself. He was always sure that this was his proper place, and that protecting the house was his proper role. And not once did he fail in that duty. I’m sure there’s no place better for his burial than here. He requested it himself, that if it were possible he would like to remain with the house in perpetuity. It is not often that I would permit such a thing. All of you before me have your own families and homes elsewhere, and I could not bear to take you from them even in death. But Marcus wanted nobody else. All he wanted was for us to be well. For us to live with joy. I’m sure that if he could live forever and watch over us he would. Nobody can replace him. We’ll be without him forevermore. But I’m glad I can honor him in this way.”

Dagobert seals the casket with a simple spell, then places it within the grave. Another spell buries it. And yet another forms the grand monument that serves as the headstone, a star-studded blade.

Win watches his father bury Marcus. He hates it. He hates the beautiful words. He hates the love. He hates the kindness. He hates the honor. He hates the monuments to him. He hates being the inheritor. Everything is unsightly to him. He hates it all. He hates the world that has people die. He hates the training that killed him. He hates the weakness that made him die. He hates the person who bears it.

The other people in attendance begin to cry. Dagobert, in keeping his dignity as Margrave Lufian, refuses to let another tear fall in front of his subjects. Win too grits his teeth so that he doesn’t cry. He wants to be strong. He wants to find strength. He doesn’t want to shame his master. He doesn’t want to be a failure of a disciple. He will become the inheritor of the Overflowing Heart. He won’t waver, not even at this. He’ll temper himself.

Even through the feast Win does not cry. As people walk around to each other, reminiscing over Marcus, he hears so many stories of him. Everyone has their own memory of him, yet the man remains the same. They all agree; he was a man who ought to be honored and who ought to be imitated. But even at the stories of the man Win wants to see, he does not cry. He wants to accept the death quickly. He wants to act mature. He stops himself from crying for the whole of the funeral.

When the funeral ends, the Lufian family is alone together for the first time since Marcus had died. Now alone with each other, Dagobert begins to weep freely. Sigiland comforts him, she herself tearing up. Odila, still too young and without much memory of Marcus to truly understand what had happened or why her parents were so deeply affected, joins them just from watching. Even then Win tries to be strong, and tries not to cry.

That night, Win returns to his room. The next morning the door remains closed. Win locks himself away with nothing but the blade.