I walked into the great hall for the first time when people were all having supper. Not everyone was there, of course, but most of the twenty-person staff was there. Some people I knew by name, like Hyrum and Draves. Some of the maids and stable hands I had seen around but didn't know yet, and others I didn't even know were part of the staff. I saw Marcus sitting at a table alone, who I assumed to be his mother, Patricia. Marsh and little Emily led me to the table upfront and showed me to my seat.

"You guys are eating with me, right?" There was no way I would sit by myself while everyone else surreptitiously looked at me.

"We cannot, Lord Amos, but the offer is appreciated," Marsh said more formally. Emily had looked excited at the offer, but her face fell immediately.

"Can't or won't, Marshandra," I said pointedly.

"Both, my lord, can't because it is against the law for a peasant or serf to sit at a Nobleman's table and won't because it is improper for you to do anything unbecoming of your station."

"So you won't sit with me. If nobody can sit here, I will sit elsewhere." I picked up the chair I was supposed to sit in and walked over to the guard's table. By the time I reached their table, everyone in the hall was staring at me. Plopping the chair down at the end of the table, I said, "Mind if I join you, gentleman." I sat down before anyone could say anything.

"Sir, why are you sitting here?" Draves said.

"Well, Captain, I just found out no one is allowed to sit with me at that huge table. I'm guessing it's the varnish. Peasant and serf skin must be too delicate." The guards I hadn't met yet were completely confused while Hyrum tried to hide a smile.

"Lord, this is highly improper." The captain tried to continue, but I cut him off.

"Captain, How would you like it if you were in a room full of people and everyone refused to sit with you? You can't tell me it wouldn't be awkward. I mean, at least with you all, they have an excuse."

"What excuse?" Hyrum couldn't help but ask.

"You're sweaty, smelly guards. No wonder you sit by yourselves. And that means I fit right in."

At that point, one of the older guards sprayed the drink he was trying to swallow across the table, and another guard laughed. Most, though, just looked at me in confusion or sympathy for my early onset of insanity. Emily was staring at me open-mouthed as if she couldn't believe a lord would deprecate himself in front of someone. The only ones that didn't look happy were Draves and Marsh.

Before they could say anything, I said, "Marshandra, could you please bring me some water and something light to eat? No bread, I don't need the carbs, and the captain and I will leave for town shortly. Emily, do you want to sit with us?" I offered politely.

She looked nervously around the table of large men. "My lord, if you don't mind, I am going to sit with Grandma," she said while looking back at Marsh. I looked between the two and then slapped my forehead.

"Grandma?" I said, looking at Marsh, "You're too young to have a granddaughter. No wonder you almost ripped my head off and shoved it… Uh, never mind."

The men at the table looked confused, probably wondering if I relly had no clue that Emily was Marsh's granddaughter or if it was another of my jokes.

"I'm lucky you weren't carrying a knife when you entered that room."

I could tell Marsh was holding back a sigh as she turned to get my meal. I took the opportunity to look around the room. It wasn't a large enough hall that some would not have overheard our conversation, so there were quite a few furtive looks. I noticed Marcus had left the hall, and Patricia sat alone. This was probably as good an opportunity as any, so I got up and walked over to her.

She looked up as I approached, surprise evident on her face. She then stood abruptly and curtsied. "My lord," She said.

"I just wanted to give my condolences for the loss of your husband, Patricia. Please let me know if I can do anything for you or your family."

"Thank you, my lord. That is very kind. Thank you for allowing us to stay at the manor."

"We both lost family to the plague. As the new baron, I will do what I can to ease the burden. Please tell Marcus I appreciate his work and tell Carrie I am sorry for startling her today."

"Carrie?"

"Yes, we crossed paths, and I think I surprised her. Then I lacked tact in dealing with the situation and asked her to move out of the doorway instead of inviting her past me."

"I see," Patricia said, somewhat confused. Maybe because, to her, a lord asking a peasant to move out of the way was standard protocol. It probably was here, and I really needed not to stand out, but my mother always taught me. Ladies first.

"Look, umm… Just tell her I'm sorry. I'd do it myself, but I have already embarrassed myself enough in front of her, and I feel uncomfortable talking to her." Ok, so that was a little white lie. I didn't feel embarrassed because I had been an idiot in front of her. I was embarrassed because she was a beautiful girl around my age; I was never very good at talking with girls my age. It always felt like they were judging me. I figured that if I tried to talk to Carrie, my anxiety would spike, and I would say something stupid like I had to Jill Simmions in the tenth grade when I decided to get up the courage to speak to her. I had nightmares about that event until the car accident. Then, I had other things on my mind. I left, trying not to think about what Patricia must feel right now.

I returned to the soldiers to find warm soup and water at my seat. The smell made my stomach growl. I immediately started scarfing it down. It tasted so good. Back on earth, I would have said it was bland and watery, but right now, I could eat anything. I was trying to avoid carbs in the evening, so that meant no bread. I had three bowls of the soup before I was done. I knew we were running short on time before nightfall. So, I told the captain it was time to leave.

"Well, boys, it was a pleasure sitting with you. Please don't eat me out of house and home. And the drinks are on me tonight."

The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

A couple of the men chuckled as we left. I went to my room and picked up the clay tablets to drop off at the blacksmith's shop. As we arrived in the courtyard, I turned to Draves. "Captain, could you have Jack get the carriage ready?" He can bring it down to the village, but I would like to walk down there. I want to lose this weight, and walking is pretty much the only exercise I can do right now."

"Of course, my lord."

After he came back, we began to walk down to the village—the setting sun at our backs. I was about to start a conversation with Draves about what we would be doing in the village, but he beat me to it. "My lord, I would not presume to know your mind, but I would feel it negligent of me if I were to refrain from giving a word of advice. Your manners at the table were unbecoming of you. You are those men's lord, and as such, you must have their respect."

I interrupted him. "I hate how everyone avoids me and looks at me like a demon. I want to show them that I am just a person like them."

"I understand where your heart is, but it is misplaced. Let me share a story with you. I was once in the King's army as a spearman. I was good at what I did, so I became a squad leader over my own group of spearmen. Because, like you, I wanted to be liked and thought that they would respect me more if I were one of them, I tried to fit in. Joking around, making light of the fact that I was their leader, and sometimes going out drinking with them."

Really, I couldn't imagine Draves doing that. But I had the tact not to mention it.

"It was fun. We all got along, but there were times when I tried to lead them, and because I was one of them, they didn't respect my orders. They would complain to me just like I would have complained to a buddy if I were one of them. My commanding officer saw it. He noticed I didn't have the respect of my squad and called me in. He said I had lost the respect of my men, and a man who couldn't maintain the respect of his men was not worthy of the position over them. I was demoted to the position of spearman.

For the next three years, I watched the leaders above me whom I respected. The ones who had disciplined soldiers underneath them. They weren't buddies to their soldiers, nor were they tyrants who used their position to maintain order. They were the ones who raised themselves to higher standards. They showed concern for those under them, but they weren't their drinking companions. The men respected and trusted them. Once I learned this lesson, I rose quickly through the ranks. All the men I lead are my friends and respect me, not because I lower myself but because I elevate myself, and they follow."

"So what am I supposed to do, sit at my table and act like I am better than everyone else? Just be like the rest of my family?" I said in frustration.

"You must not act better than everyone else; you must be better than everyone else and show others respect no matter their station. Your father kept order in his barony by reminding everyone of who he was and exacting discipline quickly. It earned him obedience but not respect, which was fine with him. He wasn't interested in his people's respect as long as they produced the required amount."

"I don't even want to be a baron! I didn't sign up for this."

"So why haven't you left? You could leave and travel to Ith-Tam. Just take what you have in the treasury."

Was he trying to get me to leave? "What would happen to the barony?

"A new lord would be appointed when the King found out."

"What would happen to the people?"

"The headmen would maintain order. Some people will starve, some will leave, and some may even prosper."

"So me being here doesn't even make a difference?"

"It could make a difference. But that is up to you."

"I'll screw up. Just like with your men. I'll make mistakes."

"We all do. Since you woke up, I have seen a young man trying his best to do the right thing for his people, even when you were going about it the wrong way. As foolish as it was, you were willing to sacrifice your family's armor in hopes that it would help your serfs. Do you think our next lord would give so much to his people?"

I thought about the last Baron and his concern for his money above the lives of his serfs. I thought about the desire to free the serfs. Then I thought of a particular quote from Uncle Ben and cursed Stan Lee.

"A rising tide raises all ships," I muttered. Crap, I so want to take the suggestion to run away right now. "Come on, Captain, let's go see if I can make it through the rest of the day without making a fool of myself. Then maybe tomorrow I can figure out how to help the Barony make it through the year."

We had just entered the town, and I first asked Draves to take me to the stone mason's shop. Apparently, we didn't have a stone mason in this village. He lived up near the village in the hills, Melnon. I needed a grinding wheel. Where was Amazon when I needed it? Well, I guess that idea was out the window. I decided to get the unpleasant job of dealings with Jorb over with first. I wanted to give him the molds and see if they would work. We went over to his shop and clapped. "Come in," he said.

When we entered, we saw that he was heating metal in the furnace. A younger boy, probably around eight or nine, sat on a stool next to him. He was pumping a hand-bellow as his father worked. The thing that made my eyes linger on him was the missing left foot and most of the calf. I noticed a crutch off to the side.

The boy turned first to look at us. His eyes went wide with terror, and his face drained of all color. Of all the people I had encountered so far, I had never seen anyone as afraid of me as this boy. He may have been more comfortable in the presence of Death if he showed up in a cloak with a sickle. Then his father turned to see who it was. Looking between me and his son, his face became bright red. His eyes filled with pure rage, and I had to look away. I couldn't even talk. The captain, as perceptive as ever, intervened before the man lost it and ended up killing me. "We are here for the wire."

"A moment, Captain," he said while turning to a stack of wire cut at two different lengths. He grabbed the wire and handed it to the captain. You must excuse me. I must get back to work, and it appears my son is unwell." With that, he turned around, scooped up his son in his massive arms, and left out the side door.

As we left, I let out a sigh. "Captain, I don't know if I am sharing too much information, but I nearly wet my pants in there. Did you see the rage on his face?"

"Yes, and it was a completely unacceptable way to treat his lord. I will speak with him and make sure he apologizes."

"What? Captain, you need to learn to read the room. I caused his son to lose his leg. Jorb is a freeman, right? Frankly I am surprised he hasn't left yet."

"Do you have your memories back?" He said doubtfully.

"No, but it is pretty obvious. You can't tell me you don't know what happened."

"I was away at the time. It was three years ago. If I recall correctly, he was trampled by a horse. When I came back, I could not get any details."

"It was my horse. And my dad covered it up. I was probably riding through town drunk as a skunk and trampled the kid."

"It could have been any horse."

"Look, if I am wrong, I will be the first to admit it. But it makes sense. Why else would Jorb hate me so much? Why else would his son be that afraid of me? Most people are afraid of me, but that was terror." I said stubbornly. "How is he supposed to provide for a family now? He will have to live on the charity of others unless he becomes a scholar or something he could do while sitting. But who would he be a scholar for? We don't need scholars here, and we don't have any teachers. I guess I could teach him, but he would never come anywhere near me. Amos, you're such a moron. How could you screw things up so badly?"

"You cannot do this to yourself, my lord. What happened was not your fault." Draves said sternly.

"I don't care what you say. That boy was trampled because of me." I said firmly.

"No, my lord. He was trampled by Lord Amos's horse, and you are not Lord Amos," he said as his hand moved to his sword.