A Hero's Legacy

Chapter Three

Ryder sat idly in the cozy yet modest parlor of his abode, cheek resting against the palm of his hand as his mother, Iris, paced about the furniture of the room. It had been like this since he'd returned to his home in the wake of his sentencing at school, where he'd learned two important things : one, the older woman had been contacted by his principal that afternoon and thus had a long list of questions that needed sensible answers, and two, that he needed to find some way of getting even with his eighteen year old asshole of an older brother, Scott - he stood at an angle close to the lounge's doorway, wicked smirk adorning those irritatingly sharp features of his as his aqua hues wordlessly described his sibling's predicament.

Busted.

"I heard some interesting things over the phone, but I'd like to understand it from your point of view," said Iris, coming to rest within Ryder's field of vision, "Now stop with the silent treatment and explain to me, in your own words, what exactly happened to you at school and why you have four weeks of community service as per the behavioral guidelines, Ryder."

"They told you the truth, mom," he said simply, "I got into a fight."

"That isn't like you," replied the forty-something year old woman, "That's not the boy I raised, understand? The school hasn't given me anything to work with, but if there's anyone in this world that I truly know, it's my son. And he would have a reason for picking fights with other students."

Ryder dipped his head, lip bitten in something akin to shame but tinted with indignation; yes, he'd lost pitifully against Cole, yes, he no longer had the last memorabilia connected to his father because of it, a thousand times yes. He'd acted without thought and experienced the consequences of such misdemeanor, so there was as much point in an attempt to exclude the truth of his ill-informed choices as there was in the battle he'd waged with someone he couldn't ever possibly overcome - so, nothing there for him to lose, he gave his account of what had transpired within the limits of their school that afternoon and left not a single element for the imagination to decipher.

"They were picking on some alien kid at lunch just because he wasn't from around here," explained the sixteen year old, fingers interlocked, "And, I dunno, it wasn't right. So I try telling them to back off, right, but they don't, and .. the rest is obvious just by looking at me. After I got my butt kicked raw, he took dad's watch and probably broke it - that is if he hasn't already gone and sold it to some jerk for pocket change. I know I was a complete idiot and I know it won't make much of a difference, but I'm really sorry, mom."

"Oh, Ryder," she said, moving to run a hand through his somewhat unkempt locks, "I'm not angry with you. If anything, you've shown me again that you have a good heart. And that's more important than a lost belonging."

"It's more than just some lost belonging," spoke the male, hostility rising unexpectedly to the forefront of his tone as he withdrew, "It was dad's. Is that it? No grounding, or anything? No punishment? Why aren't you mad at me, mom?"

"Because you did the right thing."

Ryder shook his head, rising slowly to his feet. In anyone else's case, this might have been spectacularly miraculous, but her sweetness and adamant willingness to absolve him of his obvious mistake, especially when the heirloom was his father's last material possession given onto him, simply left a bitter taste in the mouth of the teenage boy for a reason he couldn't seem to properly discern and identify for himself - instead, he tugged closer his faded hoodie, stepping past the arranged silverware and towards the hallway wherein Scott had bore witness to the entire conversation.

"Where are you going?" Iris called after him, looking at him in a way that would have torn down every last defence he'd built; she knew what was wrong with him, some of the thoughts that had continued to race through his mind when it came to the influence of her husband, "Ryder, please."