It was a disappointed Tony that allowed his cousin to leave without even a goodbye hug but he knew that Percy was one not to beg for sympathy. Unless he came to the ultimate end, like he had told him about earlier. Tony shivered. If that other boy had not come along, then Percy would surely not be alive now. Worried about his cousin, Tony tip toed through the house, almost wishing for the first time he was back in England. Things were so complicated here, not many people had paid him heed since his arrival. (Sorry for taking liberties, here..) Arriving at Sir Ffoulkes study, Tony timidly knocked on the door. "Excuse me, sir?"
Sir Ffoulkes looked up towards the open door. "Yes? Ah, hello, Tony. Are you feeling well?" He stood from his desk and gestured for Tony to come in.
Tony gave a weak smile in return. "I'm not having much fun, I guess." He said quietly, shifting from one foot to the other. "Could I talk to you about something rather serious, Sir? It would mean breaking a promise to somebody, and I am not one for breaking a confidence. But I am afraid for his life.."
Tony stared at the floor for a few minutes before looking up at the older man in front of him. "Yes sir, I'm quite well- but- I was wondering. could I talk to you? It would mean breaking a promise to somebody close to me.." Tony was shaking rather violently and had to sit down. "And I am not one to break a confidence, but I fear for him, sir."
Sir Ffoulkes shut the door and sat across from Tony. "Of course you may, Tony. Understand that I am always quite willing to listen."
Tony felt his face flush. "I-I don't know if you knew this, but my cousin Percy came to visit me about an hour ago." He said softly, feeling his knees start to shake from nerves. "H-he uh, told me something in complete confidence but I'm really afraid for him." His eyes looked up to Andrew's father in fear. "Percy uh, told me that he tried to kill himself this morning because he feels that he doesn't feel as though his father loves him- I know he's hurting, he was looking pretty bad when he came to the house- what can I do to help him?"
Sir Ffoulkes looked at Tony. He could see that the boy was afraid, and was nearly positive that he wasn't lying about this. It was too serious a thing to lie about. "For now, I would say support him. Let him know that he is welcome to visit us any time he likes, and that you will talk to him whenever he is in need." He stood and put his hand on Tony's shoulder. "There are times, Tony, that confidences must be broken," he said softly. "You don't have to tell him that you told me, but know that I am here to give you advice when needful." Sir Matthew Ffoulkes knew that Tony was mainly being raised by one of his servants, but felt that he wasn't quite what the boy needed. As good a man as Ralph was, he was not quite the father figure every young man needed in his life.
Tony continued to stare at Sir Ffoulkes with fear in his eyes. "I-I don't know how I can support him, sir. I'm younger than my cousin and well.." Tony visibly trembled at the mere thought of having broken Percy's trust. "You won't tell his father, will you? Percy will only get beaten, I couldn't bear to see that happen again!" Tony�s' face was masked with confusion and pain. He couldn't imagine not having a good home life. In fact, he couldn't imagine having a home life of any sort at all because he had never known his parents.
Sometimes, Tony would dream about what it would be like seeing both of his parents again. His mother would be sweet and kind and his father- the exact opposite of Lord Blakeney. Just the mere presence of the man terrified him to death. Even though Ralph was good company as was Andrew when he was around, he still felt lonely.
"I wish I could have talked Percy into staying here longer but Michelle started crying out for Andrew so, he left. I think Percy felt like he was in the way.." Tony paused, then gulped. "I'm not in the way, am I?" For some reason, he felt the strong urge to burst into tears.
It was then that the tears began to spill quietly down Tony's cheeks. Inside, Tony felt almost like Percy did, completely out of control and no way to stop how he felt. He dropped his gaze momentarily so that Andrew's dad couldn't see the tears on his face and it was then that he realized what he needed and wanted.
One thing that Tony and Percy had in common was that they both lacked fathers. Or in Percy's case, at least a decent father, one who didn't beat him up every time he felt like it. Being with the Ffoulkes the amount of time he had had truly been wonderful, they were like the family he never had. Not that Ralph wasn't important, it just wasn't the same. This time Tony allowed the tears to fall and soon his small, thin shoulders were shaking with emotion. "W-what's wrong with me?"
"Nothing is wrong with you, Tony. Nothing at all." He felt that the boy had been left alone too long with only Ralph to take care of him. "Is there anything I can do for you, Tony?" he asked. He had the feeling that Tony wanted something, something he may or may not be able to give.
Tony gave a teary look up at Sir Ffoulkes. "I wish I had known my parents." He said softly, still hardly even looking at the man. "I get so lonely here sometimes, I know you all have lives of your own- but I wish I had somebody to talk to."
"You have me to talk to. Remember that, Tony. And I can also tell you anything you would like to know about my parents. Why, when your father and I were young, we were nearly as bad as Andrew and Timothy!" He smiled at the memory.
Tony said nothing for a few minutes as he was wiping tears away from his eyes. What he wanted was for somebody to give him a hug but he felt awkward asking the older man for such a thing. "What did you do that was so awful?" He asked, suddenly feeling drained.
Sir Matthew handed Tony a handkerchief, then smiled, looking boyish as he remembered his school days. "Put pepper in our professor's tea, put frogs in another teacher's desk, tacks on the chair, switched the salt and the sugar..." then he looked (somewhat) stern. "But don't let me give you any ideas! I'll have you know that we were always severely punished for our crimes! We received more than one beating for out little escapades!"
Tony managed a weak smile for the older man. "I wish Percy would have stayed, I'm afraid for him." He finally admitted, wondering still if he had done the right thing by telling about the circumstances under which his cousin lived. "Would it be possible for us to go and get him, bring him here?"
"Of course, and I must also get Andrew and Michelle's horses. We were in such a hurry earlier that I believe we left them there in the Blakeney stables!" Sir Matthew rang for a servant, and requested that the carriage be set up, then led Tony out.
Along the way, Tony somehow managed to fall asleep. He wasn't sure on how he dozed off in the carriage but he had. By the time he had awoken, Tony was aware that the carriage had stopped. "We there?"
Sir Ffoulkes nodded as the footman opened the door of the carriage. They both climbed out, and stepped up to the door, where Sir Matthew rang the bell and waited for the butler to reply.
Dessau was relieved to have a quiet calm in the house for a change. No fighting, arguing or beatings- and it couldn't be milor at the door for it was his house and he had no need to knock. When he did open it he found a pale, sickly boy standing at the side of Sir Mathew Ffoulkes. "Ah, Sir Ffoulkes- come in- what might I be able to do for you today? Milor has left for town and I am not sure when he will return, if it is him you are here to see."
"Actually, we are here to see Percy. Is he available at the moment?" Sir Matthew asked.
Dessau snorted. Who on earth would want to see that brat? Somebody, obviously. "He is most likely upstairs in his bedroom, sulking. Most unpleasant scene... feel free to go upstairs though, if you wish."
Sir Matthew Dessau. "Actually, I would prefer if somebody would bring him down to us, preferably to a place such as the parlor, where it is customary to meet guests."
Dessau scowled, obviously his good mood shattered. "I will be back with him, milor." He walked up stairs, knocked and found the brat reading. "You have company, Percival." Glaring at the man, Percy followed him into the parlor where to his great surprise, Tony and Sir Ffoulkes were sitting. "Hello again, Tony, Sir Ffoulkes- is there something I can help you with?"
Sir Matthew smiled. "We were wondering if you would like to come visit us for a while. You could bring along some of your things and stay with us, as I hear your aunt is undergoing some marriage planning."
Percy's eyes went wide for a moment- had Tony told on him? The guilty look on his cousin's face said everything. He started to ask why but then thought better of it. A whole day without worrying about getting beaten...perhaps it would be worth everything for it would be ten times worse when he got back home. "Erm, yes- I'd like that quite a lot, actually.." The pain still didn't ease from Percy's face. "A-are you sure?"
"Of course I'm sure, Percival. Now, get whatever you need, and I shall inform your butler of where you are going." Sir Ffoulkes smiled. "And if your father is upset that you went without consulting me, you can inform him that I had other things I had to do at home and could not wait for his return as it was unknown how long he would be gone."
"Thank you sir, I shall be back directly with my things." Percy shot another quizzical look at Tony who had lay down on Sir Ffoulkes lap, looking seemingly exhausted and guilty at the same time. As for Tony, he had never heard Percy speak this way to an adult. All he had ever heard come out of his older cousin's mouth was a snappy comeback to his father. "Do you think I did the right thing?" Tony asked, once Percy was safely out of ear shot. "I think he knows I told on him."
"Yes, I do believe you did the right thing," Sir Ffoulkes reassured him. "And, if nothing else, at least he will feel safe for the time he is with us." He looked at Tony. "I also believe that when we get back, you should take a rest. The last thing I want is Docteur Jacquot getting upset with me for wearing you out!"
"Rather you than me, at least you can defend yourself if the doctor decides to go off on you!" Tony said in a sleepy voice, his eyes shutting. Percy took long enough that Tony was beginning to wonder if he had either gotten lost or was not coming. He didn't even bother to look, Tony had dropped off to sleep by the time Percy showed back up. "Sorry, Sir- took a bit longer than I thought." He looked over at the sleeping Tony. "Is he ok?" Percy took a deep breath. "Maybe we should get out of here, the last thing I need is for my father to see me leaving the family once more."
Sir Matthew nodded and set a letter addressed to Lord Blakeney on a table where there was a high probability he would find it. "He's fine, just tired," he replied, lifting the sleeping Tony, who was so small that he was easy to carry. He led him out to the carriage.
Tony stirred a bit when Sir Ffoulkes moved but he did not make a sound, the poor lad was simply worn out from all the excitement of that day. Percy smiled at his cousin's sleeping form and a wave of relief swept through him, at least he was going to be alright. "Tony told you about my father, didn't he?" Percy asked quietly as he walked slowly towards the carriage.
In an equally quiet tone, Sir Matthew replied "Yes, he did. However, I had my suspicions long before Tony said anything, Percy."
Percy was fairly quiet through out the carriage ride. So, Tony had told on him- but Sir Ffoulkes had already known. What would happen to him once his father found out? Only God knew...they were about halfway towards the Ffoulkes' estate when Percy finally got the courage to ask the thing that had been on his mind the most. "S-sir...did Tony tell you anything else? If he did, I'm not angry with him, I just promised him not to tell and I'm afraid that if anybody else found out, then I would be punished for my actions." At least his younger cousin was still sound asleep, hopefully he wouldn't wake for a while yet.
Sir Ffoulkes looked at Percy. "Is there something that you think I should know, Percy?" he asked, not letting him know if there was or was not anything else Tony had told him in confidence.
Percy's lower lip began to tremble slightly. "I've only told a couple people this but I uh, tried to kill myself one day after my father and I got into an argument." Refusing to let Sir Ffoulkes on how upset he truly was that nobody seemed to be taking him seriously, Percy leaned against the carriage window and peered outside.
Sir Matthew watched Percy as he confessed. He, quite understandably, seemed to be ashamed of what he had nearly done, but Sir Matthew was pleased and surprised that the young man had told him. "Percival, you know that you are welcome to visit our home whenever you please. If you need to escape, or speak to somebody, our door is always open."
Percy glanced up in surprise, for this was the first time that anybody had taken his attempt to take his life seriously. "You mean you don't think I'm horrible?" Percy's self esteem was completely shattered. "And please, call me Percy. My father calls me Percival." He said softly, shuddering at the thought of going back home. Clearly the boy was afraid but wouldn't admit it. Tears of shame rolled down his cheeks. "Part of me wishes I had died, my father could care less."
Sir Matthew watched the boy as he spoke. "Or maybe is afraid to show that he cares," he replied. "In any case, you have friends like Tony, the young Lord Hastings, and Andrew who care, as well as your Aunt Emilie.
Sir Ffoulkes had returned home with the two boys, put Tony in bed, then had gone straight to Michelle's room, where he found her propped up in bed reading with Lady Eleanore doing needlepoint by her side. Michelle looked up and smiled. "Father!" she cried, putting down her book. He came over to her and put a gentle kiss on her forehead, then sat down next to the bed. "How are you feeling?" "Better," she replied. "I still hurt, but I took more of those pills Docteur Jacquot left."
He smiled at her, then asked "So where is Andrew?" His wife looked at him, and replied "Isn't he in the library or his room?" to which Sir Ffoulkes shook his head. "I passed both on the way up here, and he wasn't there." He stood and rang for a servant. Marie quickly hurried in and hardly had time to curtsy before he asked "Marie, have you seen Andrew?" The maid looked confused. "Non, monsieur. Not since this morning." He frowned, sternly. "Check the stables. See if any of our horses are missing." "Oui, monsieur," she curtsied and hurried out.
"Matthew?" his wife questioned. He simply looked at her. Several minutes later, Marie hurried back in. "Monsieur, there is one horse missing other than the ones the children took with them yesterday." Sir Matthew looked a bit angry, but not extremely surprised. He knew his children well, and had suspected Andrew may do something of this sort, even though he had tried to prevent it. He had hoped his order would at least keep his son in the house long enough for the initial trauma and anger at his sister's abuse to be calmed down somewhat, but, obviously, this was not the case. There was nothing he could do about it now but wait for Andrew to return.
