We'd talked before about Terrible Things Happening versus existential angst--and I think this is you in the latter mood. Everything's so trapped and broken, and Hal's remove to the tavern is almost more about escape than about performance. He knows Richard's vices, and he knows that they didn't help, and yet he still goes to the tavern because it's better than being home with his family and the ghosts that they've made.

Excellent work.