It felt like painful shards of glass entering Tommy’s skull when he woke up. Shaking himself from the broken ceramic vase, he lifted himself to his feet only to be dizzy and catch himself on his palms. His legs and arms were weak and mellow from the recent brawl with the dragon. In short, Tommy was weak and he knew it.

“Why the fuck is it always me? I’m not some freak! I-I have nothing left.” Tommy said, his voice breaking as tears flowed down from his eyes. “Lady Roosta is surely dead, what have I left to live?” He questioned, beating his fists against the floor in frustration. The rubber of a boot could audibly be heard as Tommy cursed to himself.

Tommy’s slim figure was bare and bones, and stress was pronounced in his cheeks. This was the first thing people would notice about him. His black hair was the darkest black in the world and in contrast--he had the palest skin a man could harbor. Anything less, and he’d be albino. His suit was prim and proper, beautiful and elegant, professional and noble. Yet, with all of these redeeming qualities, Tommy felt especially empty in this moment.

“Damn son, why don’t ya shut the fuck up?” A man covered in bear skin popped into the scene sporadically and slapped Tommy on the back of the head. He likewise ate the floor as he was pushed forward embarrassingly. “I come walking in to see a little pussy crying. Man-- grow some balls. If I’ve ever seen someone burnt by a dragon, this woman surely qualifies.” The man in bear hide said, his ludicrous-blonde hair flowed down to his backside. He gave off the qualities of a barbarian tribesman but held the tongue of a city-douchebag.

Tommy hesitantly turned around, his cheeks were flushed red as he whimpered, “W-Who are you?” Tears ran down his eyes, he couldn’t manage to make himself stand. His arms were too weak for him to push himself up. “God damnit!” he screamed, “Why can’t I just be strong for fuck’s sake!??” He said.

“Here, I’ll help you up. You just had a brawl with a dragon, no need to beat yourself up about getting beaten. Dragon’s are among the strongest creatures in the land. Naturally an ordinary person wouldn’t be able to stand upright after battling even a baby dragon. You’re lucky to be alive boy.” The blonde-haired man said.

Tommy hesitantly took this man’s hand--the one he had been slapped with, and pulled himself to his feet. He brushed his suit off instinctively with a disgusted look in his eyes. “Again, who are you--since you’re so knowledgeable of course.” He said sarcastically.

“I’m Griggs, I’m a silver-medallion beast-hunter, and you’re damned right I’m good at it.” He said. He put his masculine hands on his hips and boasted his raw power in a bodybuilder pose. He kissed his bicep and then shifted to kiss the other one.

“I’m Tommy. So...that means you’re average at best?” Tommy scratched his head in disappointment. He had hoped to get some kind of philosophical advice from a legendary beast-hunter, but he ended up getting a bodybuilder instead with long blonde hair...dressed in bear hide. Not that he was complaining though, he didn’t necessarily have anything left to live for now that Lady Roosta was dead.

A powerful, but hairy hand came upon Tommy’s shoulder. “Look son, I may only be a silver-medallion, but I’m an experienced warrior of the land. I can train you to defend yourself.” Griggs said. His offer seemed perfect for the time and occasion as he continued, “It won’t be cheap, but I’ll train you like a warrior!” He said with a manly smile.

“Okay but...what’s the catch?” Tommy said, killing the vibe.

“Catch? What catch?” Griggs asked innocently. Tommy swore that his face twitched almost nervously at one point, but he couldn’t focus due to the enormous grip that emasculated his shoulder like a brick. The pain continued to increase as Griggs became more nervous, and Tommy decided he’d had enough.

“Okay, take your hand off of me.” Griggs let go of him, “First of all, why would I trust a total stranger who came out of nowhere and offered me ‘training’? You’re in a distinguished noble’s house and nonchalantly walked in without permission! You expect me to trust you even though none of what you’ve done thus far has been anything more than comical and illogical? What horse-shit!” Tommy spat in Griggs face.

Griggs wiped his face, calmly holding back the immeasurable amount of anger fermenting inside of him. He wanted to beat the shit out of this boy, and the tightly clenched fists were enough to prove so. “Stop being such a skeptic, the door was open and I happened to have business with Lady Roosta before I found things like this. She had sent a letter over, telling me she wanted to know what she could do with the dragon...but it seems to have gotten away.” He said.

Tommy was suddenly overwhelmed with heartbreak, Lady Roosta hadn’t told him of this incident. “W-Well, as long as that was all, then it shouldn’t be a problem. I will take you up on your offer. But let’s get this straight, I’m paying you out of what I ‘inherit’ from Lady Roosta. You are not to speak of this to anyone got it?” Tommy looked the beastly man up and down for dishonesty.

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“I’ll take it as a deal, you have my word I will not speak of your sins.” He said with a thumbs up. He didn’t care where the money came from, just that he had some coming in. A silver-medallion hunter wasn’t exactly the best paying job, and this would definitely help Griggs get himself on his feet for the future. What a rare instance it was, but it was necessary.

“I’ll be sending half of the money over to my sister’s cottage in the far east from here, and the rest I will pay you by day. Does that sound fair?” Tommy asked. He collected a golden chalice from the shelf and stowed it away into a sack. He looted the place completely from head to toe with the help of Griggs.

“Yeah, that sounds fair. As long as you keep your end of the deal, we will have no problems at all! First on the agenda, we should probably find that dragon. It would make us a large sum of cash at once.” Griggs said. He pulled a dusty book off from the shelf, wiping its cover before reading the words aloud, “Lady Roosta’s Sex Diary?”

“Yeah that sounds like a plan to m-” Tommy was immediately washed with the memories of his sordid acts with the Lady, “Give me that!” His grasp was tight and strong on the book as a tug of war ensued between the skinny man and the outrageous body-builder. “Just give me the book! Please!” His grip was slipping from the diary.

Griggs had a confused complexion as he slowly pulled the book toward himself, he strained to take the book for himself. “What--where did this strength come from?!” Griggs exclaimed, he put his second hand on the book before planting his feet. “ His face began to turn red.

The devil had unleashed within Tommy’s figure, as he stood confidently and bold with one hand on the book. A black aura had consumed him figuratively, his eyes were grim with determination. The book was pulling toward Tommy’s side of the battle and then back toward Griggs. It was then that Tommy realized his freak-desperation strength could only last so long. His hands began to slip, and his world began to unravel into an embarrassing life of shame.

But no, Tommy wouldn’t let his puny form become punier. “Okay, FUCKING fine! I was occasionally getting fucked by Lady Roosta and I was the bottom, but no...I wasn’t into it! You see, she forced me and--”

A hardy laugh erupted from Griggs as he flailed back in jovial excitement, “Damn kid, Lady Roosta had told me some stories, but you sure make it surreal! To tell you the truth, I’ve known this whole time about it. Not that I can really read that well anyways.” Griggs threw the book back to Tommy who was completely red.

Tommy couldn’t thinks straight. Who else had Lady Roosta told about their intimate sexual relationship? The activities they participated in were beyond the description of just ‘lewd.’ If Tommy was known for these acts, he’d surely be looked down upon in society. He had limited knowledge of the outside world, but what he truly was ignorant of was his standing socially. He’d been a servant for most of his life.

“Yeah…..” Tommy swallowed deeply and grabbed his sack with the chalice in it. He would need some time to recover from that blow. He was devastated, horrified, and more than anything, embarrassed. What would his sister think of him? Had she also known about his sins and continued to shamelessly take his money?!

Griggs had found a bottle of alcohol, he began to sip on it as he admired the detailed construction of the mansion. The architect who had built this was surely of a higher existence. “Who built this place if I may ask?” He asked. The alcohol began to disappear into his throat.

Tommy switched gears, taking this opportunity to recover from his misdemeanors, “Ahh. The mansion was built by Ser Rye of the Duke’s Council. He is the duke’s architect, and is widely recognized throughout the kingdom for having one of the finest eyes for art.”

“Ser Rye huh? That’s an interesting name. I will definitely remember that name, and once I’m a legendary hero I’ll get him to build my mansion too.” Griggs said with the taint smell of alcohol invading Tommy’s nostrils. Tommy was quite annoyed he wasn’t the one drinking at the moment. After all, he had a deathly problem with the stuff.

A moment of silence passed as the two held eye contact. Tommy’s mind began to drift back to the earlier incident, but quickly shifted back to the task at hand. “Should we get moving now? I figure it would be best that we capture that dragon and sell it.” Tommy said, proposing his knowledge to the seasoned hunter.

“Yeah, we could do that. It would be fair to get you some gear with that money. After all you’re paying me to help you become a man with Lady Roosta’s money. Would you be interested in joining the adventurer's guild? You could serve the land, and earn fame through the rankings!” Griggs said.

“No, for now let us continue as we’ve planned. I have no intentions of living a life of danger, I only want to be able to defend myself in the case of a circumstance like the one that occured today, and that is your job. To prepare me. Got it Griggs?” Tommy said, putting his hand on Grigg’s shoulder.

Griggs once again smiled with a manly posture. “I got it. Your first task at becoming a man is to hold my shit and keep up with me.” He said, putting a large bag of junk in Tommy’s arms. Tommy nearly crumbled at the weight of the bag, he felt like he was drowning in a metallic ocean.

“O--O-Okay!” He struggled under his breath to carry the junk, his legs were trembling as the two newly-acquainted men walked out of the mansion without a second glance. Griggs carried his pay along his back with a single sword at his waist. His chainmail armor was neatly tucked under the hides of the bear skin as he walked.

A new life had began for Tommy, and only the road ahead could lead him to the answers he sought for. Would his life entail that of an adventurer--or would he be known as the town pervert? Only time could tell.